DBSInfernalExalted/Artifacts

Infernal Artifacts

Nestled within the twisted form of Malfeas lies the substance the demons call Thien To, or vitriol. This corrosive substance was left from Creation when it was begun, locked away lest it devour the Primordials’ work. Elusive of proper study, caustic beyond measure and beautiful even in its foulness, it resembles the Demon Princes themselves. Perhaps its properties have been blighted by the demons. Perhaps it is the other way round. Perhaps they were always alike.

Welling up from pores in Malfeas’s own dark flesh, vitriol is an oily, iridescent liquid, its dark surface veiled by clouds of acrid and bitingly sweet smoke that boil away from it. It devours flesh readily, and given enough time will consume anything not formed of the Magical Materials or Malfeas itself. These properties have not been ignored by the Yozis in their crusade against Creation. Lesser demons gather and store vitriol, a fiercely unpleasant and oft dangerous task.

The purer the substance to which vitriol is exposed to, the fiercer its vigour in devouring it. Touched to the finest of things, vitriol becomes a roiling mass of seething malice, boiling away its own impurities in its vigour to defile such purity. Fed with the finest jewels, the blood of innocence, the best of thoughts and the most immaculate souls, vitriol condenses ever further, until it coalesces to a sliver of crystalline hatred known as vitrioline. Demons demand tribute of such pure things both to feed themselves and to fuel the production of this vile substance.

The translucent appearance of vitrioline bears slivers of strange colour within, and is covered with a slick layer of the vitriol from which it is refined. It releases dark and misty fumes as it moves, and people who inhale such smell an odour more delicious than honey as they feel the linings of their lungs stripped away.

Infernal Exalted may attune to vitrioline artefacts at no additional cost; nothing is closer to the Essence of the Demon Princes.

Vitrioline Weapons

Often gracing the hands of Infernals, vitrioline weaponry is often formed in elaborate and bizarre shapes. When they strike, searing acid sluices away from the blade and boils through armour and flesh alike. Vitrioline weaponry adds one to its minimum damage after soak.

Torturous Knives of Cecylene - Razor claws designed for a Forsaken caste slowly being born in my mind. - Trithne

Vitrioline Armour

Vitrioline armour is predictably very rare. Its substance is caustic to its wearer, fiercely unpleasant to be near, and is very difficult to produce. Nonetheless a few sets exist, lined with white jade and replete with a facemask and bulky gauntlets. The cloud of acidic smoke released by vitrioline armour deals 1L damage every turn to everyone within a yard of its bearer, and the same again to anyone who strikes it unarmed.

Vitrioline Bracers

Carved in confusing, mad patterns, vitrioline bracers imbue the Infernal’s attacks with their own inevitability. A character using vitrioline braces adds two to the accuracy of their attacks.

Vitriol Flasks

Crafted from black stone and inlaid with sigils designed to sunder on hard impact, vitriol flasks are a powerful if somewhat volatile weapon made available to Infernals. The acidic substance leaves disfiguring and painful wounds in its wake, making it a feared component of the Infernal arsenal; however, it is almost impossible to acquire save as a favour from the denizens of Malfeas themselves. Infernals may purchase five vitriol flasks at character creation for Artifact OO, twenty five flasks for Artifact OOO, Or a hundred and twenty five for Artifact OOOO. Artifact OOOOO allows them enough flasks to stock a full Dragon of troops one apiece, although storing them may prove a problem.

Acc / Dmg / Range / Rate / Artifact

+0 / 5A / 15  / 1 / O

Vitriol Cannon (Bilethrower)

The most infamous of Infernal weaponry, bilethrowers are hulking masses of dark stone carved into a brutish gauntlet, ornamented with vitrioline conduits and connected by armoured tubes to a misshapen alchemical device designed to worn on the bearer's back. There, vitriol is manufactured by rendering down jade across panels of pure vitrioline. The acid is routed down to the barrel, and fired with blasts of putrid dark green smoke. Every five shots, jade worth Resources OOO must be fed into the alchemical reactor to provide more fuel, making it a costly device to run. Firing a bilethrower requires a Dexterity + Archery roll.

Acc / Dmg / Range / Rate / Artifact

+1 / 6A / 10  / 1 / OO

Bilthrowers have a maximum range of ten yards.

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Feedback

I still read your stuff! ^_^ I'm still not convinced of the need to place Vitriol/ine on the same level as the 5MM, but as the circle still hasn't managed to roll high enough to get past the effects of the "I'm a friend" charm the Infernal in their midst has up, the question has been mechanically and effectively moot. Keep up the good work! I enjoy the way your mind works, even when I disagree with what you put out. ^_^ -Suzume

The vitriol/vitrioline debate troubles me still, but regardless I thought it would be pleasant to have the rules available should people want to use them in their campaigns. The artifact rules above are completely nonessential, and feel free to shirk them if it suits your game to do so. Nonetheless, thanks for your support...DeathBySurfeit

I, too, continue to track your progress over here. And I, for one, have no problem with vitroline as a MM. ~ G

Interestingly, a Dragon Blooded akuma from Blood & Salt uses 'black lead' weaponry, although not having the book myself I'm in scant position to work out whether it's statted as a MM itself. Thoughts? ...DeathBySurfeit

Dukantha breaks all the rules. He's got an upgraded Dawn-caste anima power, dragon-blooded charms, and wears armour of greened brass while using weapons of Black Lead. And he gets powarz on top. Big ones.

But anyway...

backfiguring the accuracy of the Black Lead Grand Daiklave and Black Lead Long Powerbow, I figure Black Lead gives +1 damage to melee weaponry, and +1 damage +1 rate to bows. The damage for the bow is weird though, he's using Infernal Green Fire Arrows, which do 5L standing fire, but who really knows how much base damage they do. I assumed 5, but if it's 6, the Black Lead will only be giving +1 rate, to bring it back into line with the daiklave. He also has Black Lead superheavy plate (although the flavour says it's greened bronze) and ARRG my soup, feh, well, I can get it in a moment, the plate is... apparently the same as moonsilver, unless he has another weird effect, since his dodgepool is unaffected. It explicitly states the soak of the plate is 15/15, which I believe is normal.

As such, Black Lead is more of a (little m) magical material, and I prefer Vitrioline. Maybe Kimberry doesn't like the stuff, or had run out, or maybe Dukantha just said "No! For it clashes disharmoniously (in a bad way) with my cloak".
-- Darloth

I came up with an Infernal Magical Material that works on the same principle that Akuma do. Niello is a real life metallic alloy made of sulfur, with copper, silver, or lead. It's used to fill an incised design on the surface of other metals. Niellonite (best I could come up with at the time) would be dripped on another Magical Material and corrupt it, turning the bonuses into infernal reflections of what they once were. I just thought I'd post it here so see what people thought. ~ Seiraryu

I had an idea about demon version of soulsteel and starmetal... what if the demons processed demons or currupted and processed mortal essence to refine a material much the way soulsteel refines the souls of the dead and starmetal refines the essence of small gods? I mean that demon woman does something simular to mortals that summon her, casting them into some object of signifance to fate and order. Demons are by nature driven by order in the sense of their own personal sense of order. It adds Valor to a weapons damage, and Temprance to an armor's lethal and bashing soak. Bracers add valor to resistance and endurance rolls. Not sure what to call this material though...Any ideas? ToBE