WillowsInfernal/InfernalAnimas

Infernal Animas

I have two versions of these: Solar-based animas, and, for a more Infernals-focused game, Yozi-based animas.

Solar-based Animas

Forsaken

The Forsaken can shed their anima-of-Creation and reveal their omen anima, a terrifying and unreal thing. For 10 motes, this makes the Exalt look mighty and terrifying, and mortals must make a Valor check of suffer a -2 dice penalty to attack the character; those that botch the check flee in fear. Demons are never frightened by this power, for it is familiar to them; automata and the undead are unaffected, because they do not know fear.

Blasphemous

The Blasphemous caste is empowered with the ability to strike down creatures of truth: Gods, elementals, the uncorrupted Exalted and servants of destiny. As her action for the turn, a Blasphemous character may channel 5 motes through her anima and indicate such a creature; it suffers her Essence in dice of aggravated damage. They may also flare thair animas like those of the Forsaken, but their terrifying flare only affects creatures of truth.

Unclean

The Unclean dabble in fearful experiments, and their animas have developed the power to protect them. Reflexively, an Unclean can channel 5 motes through his anima, and it will confuse and dissipate the harm that approaches. Roll Essence and subtract the successes from the damage of the attack.

Wretched

The Wretched have fine control over their animas; when using peripheral Essence, they may spend double the quantity of motes in order to prevent them from adding to their anima banners. For 10 motes, a Wretched can wrap himself in a folding veil of concealment, adding 1 to the difficulty of rolls to track or detect him for a scene.

Deciever

The Decivers can bind oaths in the manner of the Eclipse Caste, but only if at least one party is a servant of Malfeas. They are protected from the dead by ancient pacts with the Malfeans, and, like the Eclipse, may learn the Charms of other types.

Optional Rule::All Eclipse-types may learn the Charms of other Exalted, but their power beyond that is limited

the Eclipse may learn the Charms of gods and elementals only; Moonshadows may learn Arcanoi only, and the Decievers may learn only the Charms of demons.

Yozi-Based Animas

This is Rebecca Borgstrom's fault.

In this version, Infernal anima powers do not correspond to their Castes, although Castes still decide their in-Creation anima displays and their Caste Abilities. Instead, each Infernal resonates with a particular Yozi, who is the source of his anima effect.

Three different patterns have emerged with respect to Yozi-aligned anima powers (even though only like 75 Infernals exist at all.) These are:

• Anima powers independent of Caste.
• Anima powers that work with Caste Abilities.
• Anima powers that work with Favored Abilities.

Any Yozi grants a single anima power that follows one of these patterns. Some examples include:

Adorjan

The Yozi of Motion smoothes the actions of her servants, so they flow as swiftly and gracefully as the wind. Spend 10 motes to convert Essence/2 dice of any Dexterity rolls involving broad motion (not fine manipulation like archery, crafting, or delicate timing like martial arts) into automatic successes for a scene.

Cecelyne

The Yozi of Space grants her Infernals extra room to move. By stretching the space around them, they double the distance between themselves and all others present. This affects movement rates, arrow ranges, and so forth. It doesn't change the relative distance among the others present. This effect is activated by channelling 10 motes through the anima; it lasts for a scene.

Cytherea

The Mother of Creation remembers the beginning of things; when her Chosen see a spell and know the Charm to cast it, they may commit 1-3 motes (1 mote for Terrestrial Circle, 2 motes for Shadowlands and Celestial Circle, 3 motes for Labyrinth and Solar Circle) to 'memorize' the spell. At any time, they may cast the spell by the ordinary rules, paying the remainder of the cost and releasing the commitment; this causes them to forget the spell. A memorized spell may be researched and learned as though the Exalt had a tutor.

Isidoros

The Sky-Twisting Lord grants his servants the power to break the magics of the heavens. For 5 motes, they may lift the effects of an astrological working from an individual for a scene. For 10 motes, the Infernal may roll his Essence against the Essence + College of an effect, to shatter it completely.

Kagami

The Obscurer of Things grants its Chosen the power of reflection; an Infernal resonating with Kagami may touch another Exalt and spend 5 motes; for the remainder of the scene, he may channel motes through his anima to create the other Exalt's anima effect. In the case of Eclipse types, this ability only copies the oathbinding capability.

Kimbery

For 5 motes, any non-magical bindings on one of Kimbery's Exalts falls away, although this has no effect on artifact chains or the like. For 10 motes and 1 Willpower, they become horrifically fluid, capable of escaping almost any confinement- add the Exalt's Essence in automatic successes to both Clinches and any Athletics check that relies on hitting through a narrow space. - DariusSolluman

Laerad

The Roots of the World provide a strong base for their Chosen; an Exalt of Laerad can reflexively spend 5 motes to give his actions supernatural foundation. For the remainder of the scene, he cannot botch Caste Ability rolls. This is explicitly permitted to be used immediately after a botch is rolled to turn the botch into an ordinary failure.

Malfeas

Malfeas permits Exalts to expand their Specialties, growing farther into the directions they have chosen. For 5 motes, add a Specialty dot to each Caste Ability with Specialties; this dot is "unspecified", and adds to all rolls, but does not raise the dice-adding cap. For 10m+1wp, double all Caste Specialties for a scene.

Oramus

The Dragon Beyond the World brings others outside with him; a Chosen of Oramus can, as a simple action, channel 5 motes through his anima and indicate a being within 10 yards; that being, for the remainder of the scene, is considered to be outside of Fate. This power makes Sidereal Exalted unabl;e to use their Charms or astrological powers, but they can reflexively resist it with opposed Essence rolls, plus the college rating of any Resplendent Destiny they are under.

Qaf

The Piercing Spear grants his Chosen the power to pass through barriers; his Chosen can reflexively channel 2 motes through their animas to make any attack into a piercing attack (bypasses half armor soak), or spend 10 motes to halve the difficulty of bypassing a barrier, such as a closed door, a wall, or a mountain range.

Sacheverell

He Who Knows the Shape of Things to Come presents his Exalted with a bit of enchanted expectation; for 10 motes, a Chosen of Sacheverell adds his Essence to his initiative for a scene.

She Who Lives In Her Name

The Yozi of Order imposes hierarchy on her servants, and thus grants them servants to do their own bidding. As an action, spend 5 motes and speak the name of someone in your presence; they must obey a single, short, sensible command you give them, to the best of their ability.

Thari

Thari remembers the speech the Primordials used when they crafted the world, and her Exalts can speak it with all its weight of meaning (but little of its mystic intensity). Reflexively spend 10 motes to speak in the uncorrupted Primordial tongue for a scene. This language is perfectly understandable to all demons and creatures of Creation; those with links to the Malfeans suffer intense pain when they hear it. Malfean-tied entities roll Valor at Essence/2 difficulty; if they fail they must flee. This affects those ordinarily immune to Valor checks; beings without Valor flee automatically.

The Ebon Dragon

The Yozi of Consequence allows his children to unlink their powers from the consequences they normally incur. Charms of Favored Abilities don't flare the anima banner, as if they were used with Personal Essence.

The Truth of Luna

Infernal animas cause minor 'omen weather' around themselves in Malfeas, which makes their resonant Yozi obvious. This omen weather intensifies as their animas flare, eventually turning into a bright display of the Infernal's spiritual allegiance. As a shorthand, I have been calling this the omen anima.

Outside Malfeas, this isn't so obvious; Infernal animas become more abstract displays of sickly-colored lights, looking like slightly garish, poorly coordinated Solar animas. This, I call the anima-of-Creation. This is illusory, however, and it stems from the Yozis' desire to conceal their minions. There is one weakness to this disguise: because her children walk in darkness where others fear to tread, and her own eyes have been sharpened by gazing into the madness of the Wyld, the light of Luna reveals an Infernal's anima, turning back the light show to display its Malfeasan world-twisting behavior. Contact with a Lunar whose anima is flaring will have the same effect.

Infernal anima-manipulation Charms don't trump this effect, but they aren't broken by it either; their visual display is suppressed, but other effects are not. So, an Infernal using Maiden's Veil Technique is still inside fate while under the effects of the Truth of Luna, and one using Silver Structure Perversion could still change his shape, though crystal spheres would still spin round his head.

Comments

I like in general, but Malfaes made me do a double take. Shouldn't Anima Abilities have something to do with spending essence through your anima? Like everyone else? :)

Also, may I recommend that hearing Thari speak provokes Valor checks in Malfaen-tied creatures, or else they flee the pain- even those normally immune to Valor checks (much like the Zenith power).

And Cecelyne, while I kinda like, I think that would be a better effect for a Charm- Ride or Survival.

- DariusSolluman

PS: Which thread of Rebecca's sent you thinking like this?

Hmmm.... the Lost Caste Exalt Ways thread, I posted the relevant exchange over at her quotes page. I'm moving your K. idea up into the list, and revising a couple of things... - FourWillowsWeeping

Can Laerad's anima power be used immediately after rolling a botch, to turn the botch into an ordinary failure? Probably not, as written... but it would probably be a more useful power if this were explicitly permitted. Also, the power for She Who Lives In Her Name seems awfully strong. "Lyta, please tear your heart from your chest and give it to me." - Quendalon

Added that to Laerad's power. She Who Lives can only force "sensible" commands; I'd leave the applicability of that power to ST discretion, but heart-tearing-out is probably not sensible unless you have powers like the Clockwork Heart Motif or the Auxiliary Organ Meditation. - willows

Ah, I completely glossed over the word "sensible." That limits it a lot, but still leaves more than enough flexibility to make it useful in a broad range of situations, so it works.\\ Any thoughts on anima powers for Aranzahas, Ghroth, He Who Follows In His Wake, and Sadagares? - Quendalon

Eek! I should get to thinking about that. - willows

And I've just added Uthlanga. That should keep you on your toes! - Quendalon

A suggestion for She Who Lives -- perhaps make it apply to only those with Essence lesser than the Exalt's? Or at least have a contest between the two Exalts, if this theoretical higher-essence-Exalt does not wish to follow the command given (Manipulation + Presence, diff. permanent Essence), maybe? - magichate

also wouldn't infernal's that serve Kimbery would be able to breathe under water and able to command the lintha - neogavillian