HectorMacLaren
I am an Exalted GM and will be posting a number of melee charms that my mate Pete came up with. I am a total fanboy where Exalted is concerned. Will also post my own world settings when I have the time.
Here are a set of charms for the Melee tree that came from reading the Wheel of Time books and coming up with ideas based on the sword styles that Rand uses. May I present to you Border Guard Style.
Towards the end of the first age when the Fair Folk were becoming more adventurous but before the contagion a group of soldiers was set up in the north to protect the populace from invasion. These were the Border Guards, a group of mortals and exalts who put the safety of the realm above their own lives. They had a strong code of honour and loyalty and the charms the exalts developed reflected this.
Boar Rushes Down the Mountain
Cost: 1 Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Min. Melee: 1 Min Essence: 1 Prereqs: none
As the boar charges its victims, so the Exalt moves with surprising quickness towards his opponent. He adds his essence to his base initiative for the turn
River Undercuts the Bank
Cost: 3+1/die Duration: Instant Type: Simple Min. Melee: 2 Min Essence: 2 Prereqs: Boar Rushes Down the Mountain
The Exalt strikes the opponent. He deals no damage, but makes a DEX+MELEE vs DEX+ATHLETICS roll, which can be boosted by additional dice up to max of exalts melee pool. If he wins, then the opponent is knocked to the ground, suffering the number of successes in bashing damage [armor does not protect against this, stamina does].
Cat Walks Across the Courtyard
Cost: 3 Duration: Scene Length Type: Simple Min. Melee: 3 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs:River Undercuts the Bank
The Exalt moves with the grace and hauteur of a cat stalking, this gives him supernatural awareness of his and his opponents locations. This allows him to add his melee score to attacks and parries. It also adds the exalts essence to the difficulty of an opponents valor roll when facing a dawn caste with his anima power active. The cost to activate the anima power is reduced to 6 motes while this charm is active.
Courtier taps his fan
Cost: 3 Duration: scene length Type: Extra Action Min. Melee: 3 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Cat walks across the Courtyard
This Charm was developed to counter the hordes of hobgoblins that the Fair Folk would sometimes send against the borders. When a solar makes a successful attack that takes the target to incapacitated or dead, the solar may make another attack at a different opponent within reach using the same dice pools. The Exalt cannot split these extra actions. Limited to Essence extra attacks per turn (Limit is rate in PC)
The Swallow takes flight
Cost: 4 Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Min. Melee: 4 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Cat Walks Across the Courtyard
With the speed of a Swallow in flight, the Exalt charges at his opponent (up to a full move, he must move at least a short distance) he automatically wins initiative and may make an attack adding his essence in dice to the attack roll. If other characters are using auto-win initiative charms then precedence is decided the usual way.
Lightning of Three Prongs
Cost: 5+1 WP Duration: Instant Type: Simple Min. Melee: 4 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs: The Swallow Takes Flight
It became important for the Border guards to be able to deal with their enemies at range as to allow the Fair Folk into close combat was often tantamount to suicide. The Exalts encouraged their mortal colleagues to use bows and other ranged weapons and saved this charm for when the ammunition ran out. Pointing his weapon at his opponent, the solar launches a bolt of energy at them. Base damage str+ess, range ess X 10 yds max. This damage is done 3 times, hitting the 3 nearest opponents, or the same opponent up to 3 times. The damage is aggravated against servants of the Yozi's, the Malfeans, Fair Folk and Spirits.
Leaf on the Breeze
Cost: 2 Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Min. Melee: 4 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Cat Walks Across the Courtyard, Reflex Sidestep Technique
The Solars supernatural grace and awareness allows him to dodge attacks without seeming to know they are there, moving like a leaf on the breeze. The solar uses this in addition to reflex sidestep technique, gaining a bonus of his Dex in auto-successes to his dodge. NB, this is explicitly allowed to function along with reflex sidestep technique in the same action/turn without a combo
Moon on the Water
Cost: 4 Duration: 1 turn Type: Supplemental Min. Melee: 3 Min. Stealth: 3 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Cat Walks across the Courtyard
The Border Guards realised that at the right time and place one death could prevent many, this charm was developed to aid this. The solar gains a bonus of his essence to stealth and attack rolls for the turn, if he defeats his target in that time, then he may conceal the enemy with a simple stealth roll [x successes dependant on cirumstances]
Parting the Silk
Cost: 4 Duration: Scene Length Type: Simple Min. Melee: 5 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs: Cat Walks Across the Courtyard
The Fair Folks' gossamer armour could turn aside the heaviest of blows but not if the exalt had put this charm up first. Hitting the vulnerable parts of a target, where the armor is weakest or non-existant, the solar ignores points of his targets lethal soak equal to twice his essence.
The Wood Grouse Dances
Cost: 4 Duration: Scene Length Type: Reflexive Min. Melee: 4 Min. Dodge: 4 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs: Leaf on the Breeze
Life on the border was not all danger and fear and the Guards would use some of their leisure time for hunting. One enterprising solar noted how the wood grouse moved after it had been flushed, close to the ground and in an irregular pattern, and developed this charm as a way to emulate this. The solar moves in such a manner that his oponents find it impossible to track him effectively. They suffer negatives to their attack and damage rolls equal to his melee.
Snowflake on the Water
Cost: 8+1 WP Duration: 1 Turn Type: Simple Min. Melee: 5 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs: Lightning of Three Prongs
Spreading out from the solar, to a distance of essence x 10 yards, his essence in a blaze of golden light hits the fey, disrupting their impermanent forms. They take aggravated damage equal to twice the solars essence, and he regains motes of essence equal to total damage done. This may take him above his maximum essence pools. Excess essence adds to his peripheral pool, and has the effect of activating his anima banner as if the same amount had been spent.
The Mountain and the Feather
Cost: 10+1 WP Duration: Scene Length Type: Simple Min. Melee: 5 Min Essence: 5 Prereqs: Snowflake on the Water, The Wood Grouse Dances, Parting the Silk, Moon on the Water, Courtier taps his fan.
The Solar makes a final stand against his foes He gains bonuses to attack, damage and lethal soak equal to melee. He may make a number of actions equal to his essence per turn. He also gains extra -0 health levels equal to melee. These disappear at the end of the charm, and damage must be accounted for then. He may not split his actions during the life of the charm. At the end of the scene, he loses health levels equal to his melee. This is considered aggravated damage, as is the health level accounting above. If the solar is acting according to nature/demeanour, he may soak this final damage with his valor. Will power can only be used to convert a valor point into an auto-success in this situation. For the duration of the charm, he takes no negatives due to combat damage.
