SolarArchery/LordAuran
Tossed this off in just a few minutes. Decided to post it "raw" and hope all you wikizens will help me fine-tune it.
Monkey Hand Volley
Cost: 5 motes Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Minimum Archery: 4 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisites: Wise Arrow
With this charm, the archer begins to learn that essence-infused arrows can do much more than simply strike true. The archer fires two to five arrows with this one attack. If he hits, the attack does no damage, but counts as a clinch as the essence-infused arrows pin the target to the ground or a nearby object. As long as the archer commits essence to this charm, it will continue to function, permitting the archer to make a single clinch roll against the target each round using his Essence+Archery, with a bonus die for every arrow over 2 used in the original attack. This clinch roll can only be used to hold the target, not to inflict damage, throw the target, etc. A third character can automatically free the target in one round by pulling out the arrows used in the attack.
Word-Racing Arrow Technique
Cost: 3 motes Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Minimum Archery: 4 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisites: Monkey Hand Volley
When the bow truly becomes an extension of the archer, it can move faster than sound in defense of its master. This charm, which the archer may invoke at any time, even in the middle of another character's action, grants the archer an attack with his bow. If the attack hits, it does no damage, but slices or punctures some vital point on the target's body (such as the tongue, the finger, or the sole of the foot), potentially ruining actions that require careful pronunciation, gestures or balance. The target must make a Stamina+Resistance (or appropriate ability) roll against the archer's attack successes. If the target fails, he loses his action. This effect only works against actions that require great care: the charm can't negate a physical attack, dodge, etc., but can interrupt spells by piercing the tongue, ruin a pickpocket or lockpicking attempt by stabbing a finger, etc.
Collapsing the Walls Method
Cost: 3 motes Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Minimum Archery: 5 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisites: Word-Racing Arrow Technique
Arrows are imperfect implements of destruction, nowhere near as potent as a daiklave or goremaul, but they are superb implements of skill, and this can prove more effective against some opponents. If an attack modified by this charm hits, it does no damage, but hits straps and weak points that forcibly remove the target's armor (or at least bits and pieces of it). Roll damage (subtracting the armor's soak as usual), but the attack does no damage. Instead, each success drops the armor's soak by 1 as straps, clasps and supports are undone. When the armor's soak has been entirely depleted, the armor loses all effectiveness as its main protective components fall off. The target can take a turn to strap armor back on, regaining lost soak at a rate of one per turn. However, due to broken straps and other such damage, armor affected by this charm will always be missing at least half of the soak it has lost until it is professionally repaired. This charm may be used to remove other worn accessories, including clothing, tower shields being worn as armor, etc., and will drop their soak just as if they were armor.
Bloodthirsty Shaft of Bellicose Indifference
Cost: 2 motes Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Minimum Archery: 5 Minimum Essence: 3 Prerequisites: Collapsing the Walls Method
An arrow guided by intention in addition to physical force can ride the winds of chance to taste blood even when it misses its mark. When one of his arrows is parried or dodged, the archer can activate this charm and ensure that the deflected or dodged arrow finds another target. Immediately apply the original attack roll to a different target within range. The charm can't be used to redirect arrows that miss, only those that are parried or dodged. The archer may reactivate this charm if his first redirection is also parried or dodged. He may redirect a given attack a number of times equal to his Essence.
Bowman's Bitter Benevolence Method
Cost: 3 motes Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Minimum Archery: 5 Minimum Essence: 3 Prerequisites: Bloodthirsty Shaft of Bellicose Indifference
The archer whose bow bends perfectly to his will can weave a web of perfectly accurate arrows that can influence everything around him. This charm permits the archer to fire a single arrow at an ally who's under attack, not-so-gently correcting a poor parry or dodge to make it more effective. The archer must use this charm when the ally declares his defense, but need not roll immediately. Instead, he may wait until the ally makes his defense roll. If the archer then chooses to improve the roll, he rolls an attack against the ally's defense roll. If the archer hits, he does one level of bashing damage, but grants the ally a number of additional dice for his defense equal to the archer's Archery score. The ally may roll the dice immediately, and they apply against the attack for which the defense was originally intended. If, after activating this charm, the archer decides not to fire on his ally and improve his roll, he does not regain the essence he spent on the charm, but may freely forfeit the shot it granted him. This effect will not work on enemies, and may fail against allies who distrust the archer, at Storyteller discretion.
Example: Auran the Solar archer is fighting alongside his ally James. A savage Anklok attempts to bite James, rolling 3 attack successes. Auran thinks James might need help against the attack, so he spends three motes to activate this charm and waits for James' parry roll. James parries, but scores only 2 successes. Auran fires on James and scores 5 successes, enough to penetrate James' parry, and so he inflicts one level of bashing damage, but shoots James in the hand to correct his parry. This grants James an extra 5 dice (from Auran's Archery score of 5) to apply to his parry. James rolls the dice and scores 2 successed, bringing his total parry successes to 4 and successfully defending against the Anklok's bite.
Inscrutable Convergence of the Iron Storm Assault
Cost: 2 motes per arrow fired, 1 WP Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Minimum Archery: 5 Minimum Essence: 3 Prerequisites: Bowman's Bitter Benevolence
The archer fires a volley of essence-guided arrows, but in the end, only one will strike the target; the others weave a convoluted, improbable path through the air, ricocheting off of the surroundings and each other, only to converge on the one chosen arrow and drive it straight at the target from some unanticipated directon. This attack requires at least 2 arrows, and may include a maximum number of arrows equal to the character's Essence + 1. The target must make a Perception+Archery roll at a difficulty equal to the number of arrows fired to predict the complex path of the arrows; if he fails, he may not dodge or parry the attack. If the attack hits, it does normal damage.
Comments
Hmm... How does Collapsing the Walls Method interact with artefact armour? Since they have an inherently lower Mobility penalty than normal armour, as written, they are easier to negate. It'd suck to have your lovely 17L/17B armour (Mobility penalty -2) shot away with a single, easy shot. I'd recommend just sticking with the soak reduction, personally. Also, the cost for Inscrutable Convergence of the Iron Storm Assault seems odd, since you will almost never use it at anything less than maximum strength - so a flat mote cost might be better. - Moxiane
My theory on Collapsing the Walls Method was that armor with an artificially low mobility penalty is elaborately constructed to avoid hampering the wearer, and as such would be easier to disrupt by taking out some straps. OTOH, materials do come into it, and even perfect armor could avoid mobility penalty by widely distributing the weight, which may result in armor that's harder to shoot off. So, I guess I will stick with the soak reduction. Your comment on Inscrutable Convergence of the Iron Storm Assault is interesting. I would imagine that characters would use it at minimum strength; against a target with, say Perception 2 and Archery 0 (not at all uncommon), you'd be pretty safe sinking three or four arrows into the attack, even if your Essence is five. Maybe I should increase the cost to make using less arrows a more attractive option? Thanks for the suggestions; further commentary is welcome. - LordAuran
I like all of these, but I think they'd certainly be a distinctive style of archery, that you'd have to learn or invent in-game. They'd be very good for a wise-old-man-archer though. I find Bowman's Bitter Benevolance a little overly complex, although it has a lovely name which I probably cannot spell.
-- Darloth
