MartialArts/TransparentInfinitiesOfPosition

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Personal Notes

The following (large) section is a cut-and-paste of a brain dump I was doing. I'd encourage you to not worry about this style for a few days, until things are cleaned up and organized into something coherent.

Transparent Infinities of Position Style - A Sidereal Martial Arts Style - The Sutra of "Position"

Form Weapons: Knives, Staves
This style may not be used while wearing armor of any sort.

To do:

  • Attack (Supplemental) that literally pushes the target in multiple directions, tearing the hell out of them. Especially powerful against in-animate objects (those with Ess 0).
  • Elsewhere stepping stride - literally vanish and re-appear quite far away - perhaps even crossing planar boundaries?

"Knowing the Path"
Cost: 3m
Duration: Instant / Special: Scene
Type: Reflexive
Essence: 4
Prerequisites: Any martial arts form charm

Having touched an object, the character attunes himself to the position of his target, knowing precisely where it is, both in the Universe, and in relation to himself. This allows a character to precisely find out his own location by simply activating this charm on his own clothing, or on the ground upon which he stands, as he will know - with certainty - exactly where said object is.

If used in combat on a weapon (often by being struck by the weapon, or having an unarmed attack parried by the weapon) or opponent (again, often by striking or being struck by), the knowledge of the position allows maneuvers to be made much more precisely than normal. This allows a dodge to be made that, while not harming the practitioner, might give him a very close shave, or to perform a strike that while opening the opponent's throat, might only expose the arteries underneath, rather than slicing them open. Mechanically, the character rolls Perception+MA at the time the charm is activated, and for each success, adds one automatic success to a 'position' pool, which may contain a maximum number of successes equal to the character's (Perception+MA). These automatic successes may be applied to any position-related roll the character would like, within normal die-pool limits, and may create a pool where none exists. The pool fades at the end of the scene.

While the pracitioner may use the charm on himself, giving his own location, as the character is already intimately familiar with his own position, it gives no other bonuses.


"Ranged Attack Causing Indiscriminate Knockback"
Cost: 6m
Duration: Scene
Type: Reflexive
Essence: 4
Prerequisities: Knowing the Path

Allows you to touch, attack, or handle anything within (Essence*5) yards, as if you were manipulating it directly, from any orientation you'd like. This explicitly allows touch-related effects to be delivered at a distance, as if the character was in hand-to-hand range. In addition, if so desired, the character can use the manipulation of space that moves their hand to not only deliver themselves to the target, but flowing through them, to throw the target in any direction desired. Target must roll Dex+Athletics at a difficulty equal to the number of successes on the MA's attack roll in order to remain stationary. If this roll fails, the target is thrown 5 yards, plus 1.5 additional yards for every point this roll fails by, in a direction chosen by the MA'ist. If successful, the difficulty of the roll to remain stationary is increased by one on all subsequent attacks, until the target is moved.


"All things come to a point"
Cost: 10m, 1WP
Duration: One round
Type: Reflexive
Essence: 5

When this charm is activated, any martial arts attack made this initiative round may be applied to (Essence) separate targets within range. Each such attack shares a single attack roll, charm activation, etc., but is defended against separately. This charm may be placed in a combo.


Transparent Infinities of Position Form
Cost: 15m, 1WP
Duration: Scene
Type: Simple
Essence: 5

His position in the Universe no longer dictated to him by some external factor, the character transcends mortal concepts of movement. For the duration of this charm, at any point in the round, the character may choose to locate (or relocate) himself anywhere within a sphere of radius (Essence*5) yards around his 'real' position, reflexively. The character's 'real' position can be changed through sheer force of will during the character's initiative, by an amount equal to their standard movement rate. In addition, at the end of each round, the character's 'real' position is determined by the location at which the character ends a given round, implying that this form allows a form of rapid travel, as the character pushes their center forward at their traditional movement rate (perhaps 30 yards per turn, after including other charms), then, just as the round ends, they blink forward an additional (Essence*5) yards, giving them an effective movement rate of (30 + Essence*5) yards per turn.

In combat, this ability is used to ruthless efficiency as the martial artist vanishes and re-appears throughout the battlefield, first attacking one opponent from behind, then simply ceasing to be there as a Daiklave cleaves through the location where their chest used to be. This ability to move reflexively throughout space grants a number of mechanical advantages, as it can be used as a form of reflexive defense, moving the character out of the path of almost any incoming attack reflexively, and moving them into opponents' blind spots, vulnerable spots, and otherwise exploiting the field of battle. If used to create reflexive dodge, the dodge so created uses the character's full dodge pool, and automatically converts all dice to successes. The character may only exploit this reflexive dodge once per attack, implying that attacks that change course and continue to follow must still be defended against normally at the character's new location. At the same time, this is considered a form of 'leaping dodge' as the character may easily move out of reach of traditional melee opponents in the blink of an eye. When used in an offensive fashion, to exploit location against one's opponent, all attacks are considered an ambush, and as such may only be defended against by reflexive charms. In addition, the difficulty of opponents' dodge and parry attempts is increased by the character's Martial Arts.


Superposition of the Self
Cost: 5m + Variable
Duration: Instant
Type: Simple
Essence: 6

Realizing that not only is his position in the Universe irrelevant, so too does the master understand that his own position is of no meaning. Embracing this understanding, he can assume all positions simultaneously, and in so doing, have no position at all. As his form blurs and shifts, ghostly images tracing every possible intended motion, he traces through the patterns of his training without need for his body to keep up. At the time this charm is activated, the character creates a ghostly and transparent image of himself, superimposed over the 'real' image. The activation cost of this charm is increased by the cost (including Willpower, HL, etc.) of any one martial arts form the character knows, and as the charm takes effect, the ghostly image can be seen tracing through the motions of the appropriate style, and the character gains the benefits of that form. At the beginning of each round, the character may pay one mote (unaffected by the Sutras, and not counting towards their limit) to maintain this ghostly image, and retain the benefits of the assumed form charm. Note that this charm may be used multiple times in succession, allowing the character to assume many forms simultaneously, but at ever increasing cost, as each form must be paid for individually.


Co-location of Being Cost: 12m, 1WP Simple, Scene-Long Essence: 6 Completely in control of the position of his body and its various parts, the Master now ignores the physical boundaries his body imposes upon itself. Able to stick his arm through his own chest without a problem, and able to independently move subsections of his body in ways totally impossible to even many Solar gymnasts, the MA'ist becomes a blur of liquid flesh as he first strikes with a fist, then parries with a bone-reinforced lung. The MA'ist becomes totally impossible to clinch or restrain in any fashion - it is not that this is a perfect defense, merely that such attacks become inapplicable when applied to a truly liquid being able to squeeze through any hole, no matter how small. In addition to allowing any number of oddities (such as touching one's own elbows together), this charm allows the character to reflexively re-shape himself in response to incoming attacks, blending and flowing around blades and other strikes. Even when struck by a blade, seemingly cleaved in two, the halves simply return to their respective positions, blood flowing through the again adjacent veins and arteries. For the duration of this charm, convert all dodge dice to automatic successes, and halve all post-soak damage (rounded down).


An Army of One
Cost: 15m, 1WP, 1HL
Essence: 6
Duration: One turn
Type: Reflexive

Having superceded all concepts of position, the advanced practitioner has acheived many things normally considered impossible - his own position relative to others is malleable, his position relative to his own body is controllable, and the very fundament of singular position has been shattered as he assumes multiple positions simultaneously. Having broken through these walls, it is but one step to the final, ultimate understanding acheivable through this style. Summoning vast reserves of essence, the martial artist expands his consciousness as he spins, blurs, and detaches himself from the entire concept of position. His souls riding on this wave of energy, sustained through essence, he is entirely in control of his own position, location, and existence. While this charm remains active, the practitioner directs his form to the proper place, at the proper moment, to complete any action desired. Rather than being limited by his power, the practitioner is instead limited by his own capability to control his own form in a useful fashion, as one mind still controls and coordinates all actions.

Mechanically, at the time this charm is activated, the character fades into elsewhere, and rolls (Intelligence+Martial Arts). For each success gained, the character rolls initiative once. At each initiative thus rolled, the character has an independent action as the character's physical form snaps into existence, performs the desired action, and vanishes. If the charm is not activated at the beginning of the turn, any initiative actions that should have already occurred instead occur simultaneously with the character's initiative. This charm has no effect if activated after the character's initiative. At the end of the turn, the character's primary form returns from elsewhere up to Essence*5 yards from its original position. Note that as all 'clones' are really direct links to the character's actual form, damage or effects on them directly affect the character normally.


Sample MA Page (Where work in progess will be located)

What follows is a sample MartialArts style page, for a hypothetical MA style called Delicious Elephant Style. Obviously, you can click "Modify text of this page" and copy-paste this to your own MA style page in order to use it easily. Don't forget to delete this happy little statement on top. Also, don't forget to add the page to the relevant index page when you are done, as well as theMartialArts/ByContributor page. Here is the format for additions to the index pages:

;''''[[MartialArts/ExampleStyle]]''' - by [author name link here]'':Delicious Elephant Style, for martial artists who like tasty elephant meats and acting like them.

will display as:

'MartialArts/ExampleStyle - by [author name link here]:Delicious Elephant Style, for martial artists who like tasty elephant meats and acting like them.

Delicious Elephant Style

This style is an awesome style by me, the author, because I rule.

Background

Practitioners of Delicious Elephant Style vary in texture and flavor almost as much as the pachyderms they seek to emulate. The style's history is clouded in very mysterious mystery, though its first mention in history lies as an appendix to The Almighty Cookbook of Resplendent Might, a cookbook\revolutionary manifesto released in the twilight era of the First Age by discontent Solar chefs. Its teachings spread in fragments following the Contagion, and the modern teachings have divided into several variations dependent on the spices and sauces available in that corner of Creation. (This tree follows relatively close to the original style, but players are encouraged to flavor the style to their particular interpretation of it.)

Training

Delicious Elephant martial artist marinate themselves in tasty sauces, trying desperately to achieve the same state of mind as a lightly browned lemon-pepper elephant steak. Novices merely soak themselves; adepts get to use salt as well, and masters have graduated all the way to pepper.

Weapons and Armor

Delicious Elephants favor either the seven-section staff or the sledgehammer, alternatively desiring the noses of their scrumptious idol or to tenderize their foes as they must tenderize themselves to truly become delicious.

Charms

Tasty Bits Defense</b>

<b>Cost: 3 motes
Duration: One turn
Type: Reflexive
Min. Martial Arts: 2
Min. Essence: 1
Prereqs: None

The character flavors her body with Essence, becoming resilient to damage just as an elephant becomes delicious. For the turn the Charm is active, the character can absorb up to her Essence in bashing damage. This Charm is incompatible with armor.

Flavor text: Jabberwocky sat comtemplating, not wanting to write flavor text. A quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.

(As per the standards at FormatStandards/CharmFormat)

Comments

Comments are generally placed at the bottom of the page, under a "=== Comments ===" header; this includes Styles, the index, and generally any other page under MartialArts, or, really, the Wiki as a whole. Comments should be ":<i>Indented and italicized</i>", or futher "::Indented", if responding to other comments. Any comment made should generally be signed at the end -- it won't stop the world if you don't, but it's an easy enough courtesy.

Whoever made this page originally -- I'm guessing Jabberwocky, for some reason -- is awesome. I hope my slight changes and additions didn't ruin your comic vision.
~ Shataina