HearthstoneRelay/Villainy

The thirty-fourth theme is Villainy

The fruit of conniving Manse architects, creatively treacherous users, or the innate tendencies of their element, these stones are useful for all manner of skullduggery, betrayal, and unsavory endeavour.

 

Covetous Eyes Bauble (Ikselam)

Sidereal manse 1

Trigger: Concentration (Simple)

These pearly, lemon-yellow spheres always form in groups of two or more. When placed in an artifact, they facilitate the flow of Essence through it -- but also render that flow vulnerable to usurpation.

A Covetous Eyes Bauble functions even if its user is not attuned to its Manse; it provides full essence regeneration, as well as reducing the commitment cost of the artifact in which it is socketed by one mote. If more than one bauble is placed in the same artifact, the commitment reduction stacks, but cannot reduce it by more than half (round down).

A user who is attuned to the stones' Manse receives the benefits noted above, and can also seize control of artifacts socketed with unattuned stones. Doing so is a Speed 6 Manipulation + Occult roll, made at a difficulty of the target artifact's owner's permanent Essence; the character must also spend a number of motes equal to the artifact's normal commitment cost. If he succeeds, the artifact becomes attuned to him; if he fails, its original attunement remains, and its owner gains the motes that he spent. In either case, the stone set in the target artifact shatters.

Bone Eel Skull - willows

Underworld Manse 2

Trigger: Movement

This gem looks like a fish skull made of polluted wax. Particles swirl around inside it.

Exalted who are attuned to Bone Eel Skulls find their spines and limbs rendered flexible; this gives them 2 bonus dice to physical Larceny and Athletics efforts. The stone also allows them to walk over surfaces that would normally support their weight as though swimming along the muddy bottom of a stream; in the space of a minute, the bearer's tracks will be erased as the ground flows back into its place.

Oathbreaker's Proxy (Ikselam)

Lunar Manse 3

Trigger: Concentration (reflexive).

This hearthstone looks like an unremarkable, water-smoothed rock. Although its surface is dull, it is extremely slippery to the touch. When attuned, it allows its bearer to escape binding oaths.

The stone's owner can reflexively activate it whenever he is party to a magically binding promise; the orb's internal structure crystallizes around the Essence flows which enforce the oath and ties them off before they can reach his soul. From that point onward, the stone, not its user, counts as having taken the oath.

The orb can only affect one promise at a time, and its effect only ends when it breaks. It spontaneously breaks if placed in a situation which makes it violate the oath to which it is bound; it will also break 24 hours after becoming deattuned. When the stone breaks, the oath always breaks with it. The hearthstone reforms in its manse after shattering, but if it broke as a result of violating its oath, it takes twice as long as normal.

Swiftly Flowing Thiefstone (FlowsLikeBits)

Water Manse 4

Trigger: Concentration (reflexive).

Water can steal items, and carry them away with the tide. But anything stolen must be returned somwhere else. So it is with this stone, which appears to have swirling water with a dark tint in it at all times.

Whenever someone attempts a duplicitous, nefarious or tricky action against the Exalt(Generally, anything using the Manipulation attribute or Larceny or Stealth. Other actions may qualify at ST discretion. ) They may "steal" up to two successes or 4 dice from the opponents roll. These dice or successes may be used when the Exalt attempts to trick, connive, etc, someone else. Effectivly, the stone can only enhance actions it could steal from.

Bloodchalice Gem (Hapushet)

Abyssal Manse 5

Trigger: Paying a HL cost.

This stone looks like a massive, perfect pearl, save for a stark carnelian scar across one side. Bearers of this notorious stone often place it in a setting that hides the scar in order to avoid revealing their possession of it until they must refill it.

By spilling blood into the scar - at least a Lethal Health Level's worth, but it need not be her own - onto the Bloodchalice Gem, the bearer may store the vital Essence for future use. This blood may be claimed during combat; if the scar is placed into a weapon and exposed, assume that one Health Level's worth of blood spills into the scar for every three lethal Health Levels inflicted by the weapon. (More efficient means of bleeding a sacrifical victim require a dramatic action.) Stored Health Levels may be used at any time the bearer must pay a Health Level cost to activate a Charm or sorcery to pay that cost instead. The Hearthstone holds up to 10 Health Levels at any time. Stored Health Levels may be used to pay for costs that require a bashing or lethal Health Level to be paid on a one-for-one basis; costs that require aggravated Health Levels may be paid as well, but require two stored Health Levels for every level in the cost.

Stored Health Levels are not lost if the stone is removed from an attuned setting - a randomly discovered Bloodchalice Gem might well have Health Levels still stored within it. If the stone is shattered while it still has Health Levels stored, however, the contained blood is released in a gory explosion that douses everyone within several feet.

Comments

Had an idea, didn't fit -_-
-- Darloth moved it to here instead

I'm hoping the Oathbreaker's Proxy doesn't work against Eclipse-sanctified oaths. Those things are (in my opinion) among the strongest effects in the game, and I'd hate to see a way out of them so easily. -- GreenLantern

Since there are precious few canonical ways to magically enforce oaths besides the Eclipse power, having the stone not affect that would be a colossal nerf. _Ikselam

Iskelem:Ok, that's funny. I might put a restriction that the Oath Stone rating has to be within X(2? 3?) of the OathBinders Essence. Also, why wouldn't you just smash it after taking an Oath. (Well, I suppose the other person would know).

I'm not sure what "the oath binds the stone" means though. In most cases, it is probalby impossible for the stone to keep an oath(as it is incapable of independant action). I assume you mean the stone takes the backlash if the holder breaks the oath? -FlowsLikeBits

The reason you would not immediately smash it is if multiple people were party to the same oath, with it being void if anyone breaks it. E.g., "I won't attack your nation unless you attack mine first," or, "I will use no glamour on you or your party unless you ask me to." In the first draft, I spelled this out, but I've been trying to cut down on bloat.

Also, the stone's inability to keep active promises (and its inability to do more than one at a time, and its self-destruct mechanism) is part of what limits its power to level 3 (and why I implicitly allow it to affect oaths of unlimited potency). It is still really great at keeping ones that require inaction (see examples above), and moderately good at keeping ones that involve staying in or avoiding a specific place. E.g., "I will never again enter the city of Nexus," or, "I will not move from this spot until you accomplish your task." It obviously can't do more than buy you time on things like, "I vow to defend the Circle with my life!" _Ikselam