Capric/Randomthoughts

So, was thinking about social combat and the lack of good gradations for it. The alternate tickless social combat system over on fixalted is pretty cool. Although I would prefer to keep the tick based system even though I know it doesn't make as much sense. But I did rather like the sort of gradations that they had for inspiring different effects, and I certainly liked that there was a little bit more added depth to intimacies. I like that! I also like that they were linked to virtues. More things should be.

Now add this in the the previous version of the page, where I was thinking about alternate systems for essence-based combat. And my sort of general thoughts about alternate ways of handling wounds in Exalted (note: this is almost certainly more work than it's worth, but is fun to think about).

Finally read spirit of the century and I do like how they implemented aspects. Also finally read aaron peori's bit about how he handles intimacies (which is indeed modeled on aspects). I like it.

The key bit is that you may invoke other people's intimacies to give them a penalty, and that intimacies may be fairly trivially destroyed, although doing so gives you stress, which eventually makes you do stupid stuff, and gives you limit. This is a good thing. It also makes virtues scale lineraly in terms of benefit, rather than quadratically. Also a good thing.

The bad part is that it ties very heavily into willpower, which I don't particularly like.

...

Another thought:

• Characters regain or lose 1 temporary willpower per restful night until they are at normal maximum.
• Dice from channeling virtues is +4. Number of times is still (rating) per story.
• There is no roll to avoid acting against virtues, and any virtue at 2 or above compels action.
  • If the character goes with the compulsion, roll (virtue). This is the number of willpower you regain, and may take you above normal maximum.
• All intimacies are linked to a virtue. The number of that type of intimacies you may have is equal to that virtue. An intimacy may be taken more once. Divisions:
  • Valor: Duties or Vows
  • Compassion: Passions
  • Temperance: Taboos
  • Conviction: Ideals or Beliefs
• Make all intimacies behave like virtues, both positive and negative. Except:
  • Exalts may spend a willpower or gain 1 limit to ignore an intimacy.
  • Intimacies have a strength of 1 for the purposes of regaining willpower.
  • Ignoring an intimacy counts as a scene spent reducing it.
  • An intimacy may be invoked no more than once per session. There's no limit on how frequently it may compel, though each intimacy may only restore willpower once per session.
  • Only one intimacy may be invoked or compelled at a time.
• Motivation also acts as an intimacy of normal strength which may be invoked an unlimited number of times, and which may not be reduced.
• All servitude, emotion, compulsion, and illusion tagged effects are considered intimacies for their duration
  • Strength for regaining willpower is (attack successes)/2 or (willpower needed to resist), whichever is higher.

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Mutations do

Cost 1 bp per at character creation. This may be offset with harmful mutations point for point.

Cost 3xp per out of character creation (giving them a low xp-bp ratio)

Wyld-based mutations count against the total amount of wyld-ness which a character may have before becoming too Wyld to live in creation.

Are assumed to give social drawbacks in some place, as wyld mutants are not that popular.

Wyld-based mutations give some sort of drawback when going up against Raksha?

Mutations can

Give extreme synergy, as they are typically persistent effects which stack with everything else

Drastically alter the utility or functionality of a character

Mutations should

Not reward heavy specialization--increased spending should not give higher point effeciency.

Rely on synergy

Scale approximately similar to an ability.

There are 4 levels to mutations, 5 levels to skills. It costs 18xp to get a max level mutation (and they typically have drawbacks!), and 23xp to get a max-level nonfavored skill. So the two should have approximately similar benefits.

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Artifact songs!

• Must be sung to someone in order to transfer them.
• Can only be held in special chambers generally if not attuned by anyone. Some can be held anywhere though!
• Sometimes require mote commitment, but also require the committement of weird stuff. Committing willpower, intimacies, virtues and other things is not unheard of!
• Are crafted using craft:air, usually. Craft is capped by performance in this case!
• Magic materials are consumed to get that perfect sound.

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Crafting redesign. Crafting is a pain in the ass and generally clunky. There should be some sort of unified rules for crafting. I don't like how it is now! But I do like the 5 crafts.

So! I propose:

Abilities

• Craft: Fire
• Craft: Wood
• Craft: Water
• Craft: Air
• Craft: Earth
• Craft: Essence-- used for all artifacts or basically anything else which requires "magic".

The general method is that any crafting project will have at least one of these as the applicable skill. Esoteric crafts will use the lower of two or three abilities. For example:

• Fleshgrafting: Water, Wood
• Genesis: Water, Wood, and Essence
• Clockwork: Fire, Air
• Magitech: Fire, Air, Essence
• Glamour: Wood and Earth
• Fate: Wood, Earth and Essence
• Moliation: Fire and Water
• Necrotech: Fire, Water, and Essence

Any craft roll which is craft:essence applicable is considered an "artifact" roll. Those for which craft: essence is not applicable is considered a "mortal" roll. The target for a craft roll is a single object.

Attributes and Phases All crafting is made with two general rolls: the design roll and the build roll. The design roll is an (intelligence + craft) roll, and the build roll uses the lowest of perception, intelligence, or dexterity (if exalt is the sole crafter). The design roll must always precede the build roll. Crafting rolls have unusual botching rules: if the roll fails, it is considered a botch if there are any 1's rolled, regardless of any automatic successes granted.

Furthermore, artifact crafting is done in two stages (making 4 rolls all in all). First, base item is crafted; then additional enchantments and magics are placed upon it. This is done in the following order:

• mortal design
• artifact design
• mortal build
• artifact build

Intervals Crafting intervals vary per project. Possible intervals are:

• miscellenous action (5 ticks, no cooperation possible)
• 1 minute (60 ticks)
• 5 minutes (dramatic action)
• Hour (60 minutes)
• Day (8 hours)
• Week (7 days)
• Month (4 weeks)
• Season (3 months)
• Year (5 seasons)
• Decade (10 years)
• Century (10 decades)
• Millenium (10 centuries)
• each additional millennium

The default interval for a crafting project is a week.

Design The design roll is a dramatic action, with success indicating a design has been made. Artifacts generally do not assist in design. Limited cooperation may be used for design rolls. Characters know when a design roll merely fails, but characters believe a botched design roll has in fact succeeded.

The base difficulty of the design roll for a mortal project is resources value of thing to be crafted. A design roll is specific to a certain material and tool set. Mortal crafts assume:

• Raw materials equal in value to end result value
• Tool set equal in value to end result value.
• Careful notekeeping. Designs are complex, requiring (base difficulty) successes on an (intelligence + lore) to recall them completely.
• Reference knowledge, expert, or material. This is measured in terms of effective (intelligence + lore + specialty) pool, with excellencies explicitly raising this static value.

Modifiers to the mortal design roll:

• Decrease design interval: +2 difficulty per step
• Increase design interval: -1 difficulty per step
• Decrease planned raw materials: +1 difficulty per step for base resources 1-3, +2 difficulty per step for base 4-5
• Increase planned raw materials: -1 difficulty per step
• Decrease tools to be needed: +1 difficulty per step for base resources 1-3, +2 difficulty per step for base 4-5
• Increase tools to be needed: -1 difficulty per step
• Interrupted during design: +1 difficulty;
  • If no notes then it becomes +1 difficulty per interruption.
• Existing design for same item: -2 difficulty if complete, -1 if incomplete or physical object only
  • with same tools or raw materials: -4 difficulty if complete, -2 if incomplete
  • with same tools and raw materials: no roll required if complete, -4 if incomplete
• Poor reference (pool less than 5): +1 difficulty
• Excellent reference (pool greater than 10): -1 difficulty
• Superb reference (pool greater than 22): -2 difficulty

The base difficulty of the design roll for artifacts is:

• art 1: difficulty 3
• art 2: difficulty 5
• art 3: difficulty 8
• art 4: difficulty 13
• art 5: difficulty 21

An artifact design roll is requires and is specific to:

• a specific base mortal item of resource value equal to artifact level
• raw materials equal to artifact level consumed per artifact build roll
• a number of exotic components equal to artifact level
• a workshop equal in dot value to artifact level
• careful notekeeping. Designs are complex, requiring (base difficulty) successes on an (intelligence + lore) memory roll to recall them completely.
• Reference knowledge, expert, or material. This is measured in terms of effective (intelligence + lore + specialty) pool, with excellencies explicitly raising this static value.

Modifiers to the artifact design roll:

• Decrease design interval: +2 difficulty per step
• Increase design interval: -1 difficulty per step
• Poor base item (lower resource value than artifact level: +2 difficulty
• Fine base item (greater resource value than necessary): -1 difficulty
• Lower quality workshop planned: +2 difficulty per step
• Higher quality workshop planned: -1 difficulty per step