DarSys/Miscellaneous

Artifact Changes

• Hearthstone Bracers - these now add +1 to both DVs, and jade hearthstone bracers reduce multiple action penalties by 1, and also negate 1 point of Dodge DV penalty

Stunts

As an optional system, stunts can be altered to provide slightly higher bonuses and more interesting options.

• Stunts range from 1 to 5, but 5s are 'higher' than current-system +3s, so, +1 == +1, +2 == +2 to +3, +3 == +4, and +5s are reserved for really truly amazing things I'd like to give more than just dice for. See below
• Stunts regain a number of motes of essence equal to their dice bonus if successful. +2 to +4 stunts can instead regain 1wp, and +5 stunts can regain 2wp if desired, in lieu of essence. Stunts may always regain essence if successful, but only 1 dot of willpower may be regenerated from stunts per turn. +5 stunts are an exception to almost all limits, including this one, and, if the storyteller is feeling particularly generous, may give higher regains, both wp and essence, xp, or anything else, even if not successful.
• When making stunts, players can suggest what bonuses they might qualify for, but the ST actually gives out the stunt bonus. Stunt bonus may come in bonus dice to accuracy, bonus dice for damage (1 for 1), making a defense applicable (+4 equivalent) or making an attack undefendable in one way (+5 equivalent) - other things may suggest themselves.
• stunts modifying DVs grant half their dice bonus, rounded up, as a static value. (Could grant whole, but +4 or +5 is a big big amount statically. Don't want to roll, slows things down)

Misc Tweaks

These are things which I think make the system work

• declare defense charms AFTER the attack roll. Yes, big change, but its necessary here to make things work with the double-charmslots. You can try and change it... if you do, please tell me results.
• hesitation rolls in mass combat use Morale + Drill as the pool

House Rules

These aren't really a system thing, they're personal preference on other bits ^_^

• Infinate Melee and Martial Arts Mastery are dual-purpose, and thus end up better than the same motes in any other ability - thus, the cost benefit is split between Offensive excellencies, and Defensive excellencies. Counterattacks count as whatever slot they went in, typically but not always Defensive.
• If swept with a weapon that -also- causes enough damage to prompt knockdown, the resulting check is difficulty 4. More damage can also increase knockdown difficulties for all.
• stunning is automatic if HLs are greater than Stamina - quicker, easier to remember, and it means it happens more than once in a blue moon. Also makes stamina more important.
• By some readings, DV is an external penalty. I am not treating it as such - it subtracts from the number of attack successes, but it's just DV. It's not difficulty, or penalty, or anything like that, and the only way you can reduce it is with effects that specifically apply to DV. This nerfs Salty Dog Method - I'm fine with that.
• If something "cannot be blocked without use of charms" then an Excellency builds the DV from 0. According to some rulings, excellency bonuses can apply even on inapplicabalized attacks - I rule that they cannot.
• The cap for adding to a static value is + (Attribute+Ability) points, at least for solars. 1st excellency is NOT more efficient, whatever they say, and +half is way too nasty a cap. -- unsure nowadays
• Favoured specialities cost only 2xp. Also, you can have up to (Ess-1)*2 or 3 specialities, whichever is greater. Fields, degrees, etc, don't count. Exalts buy Degrees of thaumaturgy as specialities, so, 9xp (6 if favoured) for Master. No more than 3 specialities may apply at once, as usual.
• Exalts buy craft fields after their first as specialities, and they all have the same rating. Exalts -may- choose to buy extra languages for linguistics like this, although they still get 1 per dot.