BurgerSlave/BearStyle

Bear Style Martial Arts

Bear Style Martial Arts is a Celestial-level martial arts style. By emulating the bear for which it is named, a Bear stylist is able to borrow all the great strength and stamina of the most stately and untameable bruin. Developed by the young Sidereal Eirik in honor of his Lunar father, this style has shown great popularity among the Lunar Exalted of the North and East, where bears are common. A number of Solars have begun to study this style as well. Those Dragon-Blooded initated to Celestial martial arts tend to eschew this style for less heretical forms.

Bear Style's signature weapons are the cestus, the khatar, and tiger claws (including artifact versions of these weapons), and does not permit the use of armor. Terrestrials, Lunars, and Abyssals must learn the style as is. However, Solars and Sidereals may innovate upon these techniques, creating powerful custom Charms specific for their Exalt type. This is an explicit exception to the usual rule stating that Exalts may not add custom Charms to a non-specific Martial Arts style. A couple of examples for both Solars and Sidereals are provided in this Charm cascade, but players may develop others with Storyteller assistance.

Indomitable Ursus Stance
Cost: 2m per dot; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1; Type: Simple (DV -2)
Keywords: Combo-Basic
Duration: One Scene
Prerequisite Charms: None

When a bear stands on its hind legs, it is often to compensate for its poor eyesight. It is also just as often to frighten onlookers with a show of its strength. A character using this Charm is able to trade speed for strength. For every mote of Essence spent, the character reduces his dice pool for Join Battle and adds one point to either his Strength or his bashing soak. He may not spend more motes on this Charm than his Martial Arts. The bonus to Strength is considered a dice bonus from Charms.

Bear Claw Swat
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Indomitable Ursus Stance

By chanelling Essence through his fingers, the character is able to emulate a bear's long, thick claws. This Charm supplements a Martial Arts attack, making the damage lethal and allowing him to parry lethal and ranged attacks without a stunt. This Charm also adds +2 Damage to all unarmed attacks it supplements. Furthermore, an opponent struck with this attack suffers an internal penalty of -2 to resist knockdown and knockback until their DV next refreshes.

Embracing Bear Kata
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)
Keywords: Combo-OK
Duration: Varies
Prerequisite Charms: Bear Claw Swat

Anyone watching a bear on the hunt knows the crushing power of a bear hug. With this Charm, a character is able to execute a similarly devastating hold. The Exalt may activate this Charm to initiate a clinch against one target. Additionally, the character adds +1 Accuracy to the clinch, and his target suffers a -2 external penalty to gain control. While maintaining the clinch, the character may choose to inflict lethal damage, at his option. If the Exalt chooses to maintain the clinch, he must pay 1 mote every time his DV refreshes to keep Embracing Bear Kata active. If he chooses not to pay this cost, then the Charm ends and normal rules for clinches apply. This Charm cannot be Comboed with Extra Action-type Charms or Charms that enhance a character's Join Battle action.

Fearsome Bear Bellow
Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Compulsion, Obvious, Social
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Bear Claw Swat

With a deep inhale and a thunderous kiai, the Exalt is able to channel Essence into his lungs, lending his shout the fearsome aspect of the bear. This Charm supplements a Martial Arts attack. When a target is struck by this attack, compare the attack successes to the target's MDV. If successful, the target suffers a -2 internal penalty to all attacks against the Exalt from fear until their DV refreshes twice. This is a Compulsion, and is a form of unnatural mental influence. This Charm may also supplement social attacks. Add the Exalt's Martial Arts in dice to a single social attack based upon fear or intimidation.

Bear Form
Cost: 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Simple (Speed 5)
Keywords: Form-type
Duration: One scene
Prerequisite Charms: Embracing Bear Kata, Fearsome Bear Bellow

The character assumes the stance of an angry bear, ready to strike at a moment's notice. While the Charm is active, he adds +1 to the Speed of all actions and subtracts an additional die from the first action of all flurries, but is immune to knockdown and knockback. Furthermore, he may substitute his Strength for Dexterity when making an unarmed Martial Arts attack, and adds his Martial Arts score to his Stamina for the purposes of soaking damage. Finally, the character gains an aggravated soak equal to half his lethal soak. The Exalt must reflexively spend a mote every time he soaks aggravated damage while Bear Form is active. A character may only have one Form-type Charm active at a time.

Sleepy Wintertime Practice
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Simple
Keywords: None
Duration: Varies
Prerequisite Charms: Bear Form

By carefully regulating his Essence, a Bear stylist is able to place himself into a kind of hibernation. Once this Charm is activated, the Bear stylist does not need food or water, and is able to preserve himself in this hibernation as long as he has motes of Essence to spend. While in hibernation, the character does not regain Essence, and motes spent on this Charm remain committed until the character voluntarily ends it. This Charm does not protect against the elements, so finding a warm and comfortable den is recommended. A character remains only subliminaly aware of his surroundings while in hibernation. A Wits + Awareness roll against difficulty 3 is required to respond instantly to danger. If the character fails this roll, he is sluggish and slow to respond. All his dice pools are no higher than his Essence while he rubs the sleep out of his eyes, and he is at -3 to his DV; these penalties last until the Exalt's DV refreshes three times. On a botch, he fails to notice danger, and will blissfully sleep through his own evisceration. Warning Charms such as Surprise Anticipation Method function normally, and negate the need for the Awareness roll to awaken. Once this Charm ends, the character will be ravenous, and must eat immediately or begin to suffer from starvation. See page 129 of Exalted: Second Edition for rules on starvation.

Inescapable Bear Hug
Cost: 5m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)
Keywords: Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Bear Form

By this level of mastery, the Bear stylist is able to clutch his opponent in a mighty bear hug before the target even realizes what is happening. This Charm initiates a clinch with a +2 Accuracy, and the target's Parry DV is inapplicable. The character may choose to do lethal or bashing damage with this clinch. Anyone attempting to control an Inescapable Bear Hug suffers an external penalty equal to the Exalt's Martial Arts. This is a Solar Charm, and may only be learned by Solar Exalted and Moonshadow Caste Abyssals.

Terrifying Ursus Claws
Cost: 3m + 1m per level; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Inescapable Bear Hug

This Charm calls upon the horrifying strength and savage claws of the bear to provide a Bear stylist with powerful weapons. By wrapping Essence around his fists, the Exalt may buy extra damage successes during Step 9 of combat resolution, spending up to his Essence + Martial Arts in motes. The character may not flurry without the aid of Charms while Terrifying Ursus Claws is active. Furthermore, the character may parry lethal and ranged attacks without need for a stunt until his DV refreshes. This is a Solar Charm, and may only be learned by Solar Exalted and Moonshadow Caste Abyssals.

Cub Protecting Prana
Cost: 4m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Bear Form

Like a mother bear defending her cubs, the character becomes fixated on protecting his Circlemates. The Exalt may designate one target within his Essence x 5 yards. For the remainder of the turn, the target's unarmored lethal and bashing soaks are replaced by the character's. Any damage the target sustains is transferred to the character using Cub Protecting Prana, but is suffered as unsoakable bashing, regardless of the source. If the character's soak is augmented through Charms such as Iron Skin Concentration, then the target of Cub Protecting Prana enjoys the benefit of those Charms as well.

Ursus Instinct Attitude
Cost: 3m + 1m per opponent; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive (Step 3)
Keywords: Combo-OK
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Bear Form

It is well known that bears have extraordinary senses of smell, as well as keen instincts. By tapping into these instincts, the Exalt is able to compensate for the advantage multiple opponents have against him. By activating Ursus Instinct Attitude for three motes, the Exalt may then pay an additional mote to reduce the maximum number of opponents that may act against him simultaneously, down to a minimum of one opponent. This Charm may reduce the effectiveness of Charms that increase this limit, such as Threshing Floor Technique. This is a Sidereal Charm, and only Sidereal Exalted, as well as Eclipse Caste Solars and Moonshadow Caste Abyssals, may learn it.

Bear Swats The Honeybees
Cost: 5m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)
Keywords: Obvious, Combo-Basic
Duration: One scene
Prerequisite Charms: Ursus Instinct Attitude

Bears love the taste of honey, and their thick fur and swatting paws make excellent counters against the swarm of angry bees that invariably pour out of the hive to defend their territory. This Charm emulates that defensive stance, protecting the Exalt from the numerous stings and attacks of multiple opponents. This Charm negates the onslaught penalty to the Exalt's DV from all attackers for its duration. This is a Sidereal Charm, and only Sidereal Exalted, as well as Eclipse Caste Solars and Moonshadow Caste Abyssals, may learn it.

Frenzied Bear Focus
Cost: 8m, 1wp, 1hl; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -3)
Keywords: Obvious
Duration: One scene
Prerequisite Charms: Cub Protecting Prana

The ultimate mastery of Bear Style martial arts allows the Bear stylist to harness the shocking power of an enraged bear. Chanelling his Essence into his anger, the character gains a number of benefits. First of all, he is immune to wound penalties for the duration of the Charm. Secondly, he adds his Martial Arts to his Strength for the purposes of determining damage and his Stamina for determining his soak. He also soaks lethal damage with his full Stamina. Thirdly, the character's unarmed attacks do lethal damage, and automatically cause knockback as he hews through his opponents. Finally, the character adds his Essence as automatic levels of damage.

However, while the character is under the effects of Frenzied Bear Focus, he becomes almost incapable of rational thought. He must make a Wits + Awareness roll against a difficulty 3 in order to differentiate friend from foe. Also, at least one of the character's actions must be dedicated to a Martial Arts attack against the closest enemy. If there are no enemies (or if he fails the Awareness roll), the character will begin attacking his friends. If he is completely alone, he will tear into the surrounding landscape until his rage is spent. The character may spend three Willpower to prematurely end this Charm. This causes Solar and Lunar Exalted to gain a point of Limit.