MartialArts/BlossomingCherryTreeStyle
Blossoming Cherry Tree Style [version 1.5]
Terrestrial Martial Arts
This style calls upon the strength of the cherry tree as well as the fluidity of the free-flying blossoms that come from it. This particular first age style is said to have been part of the inspiration of the Immaculate Wood Dragon Style. This style sees some usage by Dragonblooded duelists from both the Realm and outside.
Unless specifically noted, this style is compatible with armour. The in-form weapons are slashing swords and staves. The magical variant of such weapons are reaper daiklaves and serpent-sting staffs as well as other staff-based artifact weapons.
Click Here to see the charm tree diagram. It makes some sense of what I was going for. I hope. Even if it's a poor jpeg image. ^_^;
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Charms
Gripping Roots Stance
Cost: 1 mote per dot added Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Min. Martial Arts: 3 Min Essence: 2 Prereqs: None
Calling on the strength of a deeply rooted tree, the martial artist digs in and applies her strength in a manner like that of a tree resisting the strong wind.
For the rest of the turn that the exalt activates this charm in, she may increase her strength by spending 1 mote per dot up to her essence rating. However, this charm does have a downside, by locking down and increasing her strength, the martial artist lose 1 dot of dexterity for every dot of strength gained, down to a minimum rating of 1. Due to the nature of the immobility of the character, all attempts for this character to dodge requires a stunt or appropiate magics (charms, hearthstones, spells) to do so. The martial artist also can NOT move more then 1 yard away from her original position, doing so terminates this charm.
The nature of this charm prevents the charm from being activated in the middle of rapid movement such as an attack; which means that the charm can't be activated after the player has made an attack roll.
Locking Roots Grasp
Cost: 2 motes per +1 difficulty and 2 motes Duration: Until released Type: Supplemental Min. Martial Arts: 3 Min Essence: 2 Prereqs: None
With this charm, the martial artist grasps her opponent like a well planted tree locks into the earth. The clinch of the martial artist is like that of a tree's roots and just as hard to break or escape from.
The character makes a clinch attack like normal (see Exalted p. 239 or Player's Guide p 205), but for every 2 motes spent after spending the 2 motes to activate the charm, the difficulty of winning or breaking the martial artist's clinch is increased by +1. This charm CAN be placed in a combo despite its non-instant duration. However, the combo effects are only effective in the first turn, after which only the locking roots grasp's effect of increasing the difficulty remains. The maximum that the difficulty can be increased to is equal to the exalt's martial arts rating.
Blossoming Cherry Tree Form
Cost: 5 motes Duration: Scene Type: Simple Min. Martial Arts: 3 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Gripping Roots Stance, Locking Roots Grasp
The martial artist does a slow and smooth kata that resembles a tree growing into its maturity with hands and weapon(s) held high. As the kata is performed, the character sents life reinforcing essence through her body, granting her body the resilience of a cherry tree hardened by years of surviving all that nature has to throw at it. As a side effect of this charm, the martial artist has the sweet scent of cherry blossoms around her when this charm is in effect
When this charm is in effect, the character gains a bonus to his bashing soak equal to her martial arts. This protective effect is akin to the protective bark of a tree, the core of the tree is also just as hard if not harder; the martial artist can now soak lethal damage with her bashing soak. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the essence flowing through the exalt, any and all fire damage simply bypasses the soak bonus.
Due to the fact that her body is now hard as wood layered with bark, all of the martial artist's unarmed attacks do lethal damage. The martial artist can also parry lethal attacks with her bare hands.
The martial artist can NOT use this charm with any form of armour, nor can more then 1 martial arts form charm be active at any given time.
Falling Blossoms Defense
Cost: 6 motes Duration: 1 turn Type: Reflexive Min. Martial Arts: 4 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Blossoming Cherry Tree Form
In autumn, the cherry tree grows a crown of gloriously beautiful blossoms. However, it is their fate to fall after blooming and when they fall, it can be like a blizzard with pink and white petals everywhere. And so too, the martial artist's fists and weapons are everywhere in her defense.
The martial artist gets to roll her full dexterity + martial arts dice pool against all physical attacks directed at her in the turn that this charm is activated. This charm's effect only works on what the exalt can normally parry and does not provide free parries. When the martial artist splits her dicepools, the effects of this charm negate the multiple action penalties for defensive actions in that turn. In Power Combat, while using a full parry, it negates the accumulated -1 penalty.
Wind carries the Blossom technique
Cost: 5 motes Duration: Scene Type: Simple Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min Essence: 3 Prereqs: Blossoming Cherry Tree Form
The chilly winds of autumn can carry a cherry blossom for some time and distance. So it is that a martial artist with the power of essence can move as if blown about by a great wind.
Until the charm is ended, the martial artist can move up to her sprinting distance in any given turn without taking any penalty to her actions (that is, she can move up to her sprinting distance in a turn and still take an action as per normal). However, she can not stop moving or else the charm will end, the minimum amount of distance the martial artist has to keep moving each turn is equal to her dexterity in yards. This charm does not provide any bonus to attacks or defenses beyond increasing the movement capability of an exalt.
Fallen Blossoms trapped in Stormwinds attack
Cost: 4 motes + 1 Willpower Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs: Wind carries the Blossom technique
When a strong storm wind blows, the multitude of cherry blossoms caught in it can blind even the most observent being. A blinded opponent is often helpless against a strike he can not see coming. Activating this charm, the exalt blinds her opponent momentarily with a storm of cherry blossoms and then dashes behind him to strike.
Upon activation of this charm, the martial artist swings her weapon or arm in a slash and a gale of cherry blossoms formed from essence leaps from the slash and races to a distant target (maximum range is equal to the character's total sprinting distance).
To use this charm, the attacker first rolls her dexterity + martial arts opposed by the defender with a wits + awareness roll. If the defender wins the roll, he isn't blinded and can reply to the true attack with his normal defensive pool.
Whether the attacker wins or fails her roll, she races up to her opponent to strike from behind without any penalty, her essence carrying her along the path of the cherry blossoms. As this is an attack from the back, the defender can NOT defend without the use of a defensive charm or effect (IF he fails the wits + awareness roll), and if using a defense charm, the die pool starts at zero (see Exalted p. 238 ).
This charm can only be used IF the character can move and isn't restricted in some way from moving. This means that this charm can NOT be comboed with Gripping Roots Stance or a charm such as Thunderbolt Attack Prana (if the character is a solar).
Autumn Festival of Falling Blossoms
Cost: 10 motes + 1 Willpower Duration: 1 turn Type: Extra Action Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min Essence: 4 Prereqs:Falling Blossoms Defense, Fallen Blossoms trapped in Stormwinds attack
Warriors are like cherry blossoms, meant to bloom gloriously... but only for a short time until their season passes. However, for the weak, that season passes much faster. For the weak, there is no glory to be had, falling before their time.
This charm helps reveal this particular truth to all who opposes the martial artist as she performs a slow and languid kata that ends with her dashing to her nearest opponent and cutting him down and then moving to her next target and the one after that; culling those who are weak, felling them before their season.
As long as the martial artist makes a successful attack and does at least 1 die of damage before soak and if there is another opponent within 3 yards of her target, she can move to him and attack with her full die pool. The exalt can only attack up to a maximum of (essence rate X 5) targets with this charm if they're all clustered together.
This charm ends if she hits her maximum amount of targets, runs out of viable targets (more then 3 yards apart) or if she misses a target. This charm is NOT compatible with the use of armour and can not be activated if the character is restrained in some fashion and prevented from moving. This charm does NOT provide any defensive capability to the Martial Artist.
There, this martial arts tree is now finished and ready for any and all comments. Please use the space below for any and all C&C. ^_^
Peanut Gallery
Awesome, absolutely awsome! I smiled at every single Charm, and as I went through them, in turn, my smile became broader. ~ FornClakes
- Thanks for your kind words, Forn... ^_^
~ Haku
Quibble re: Falling Blossoms Defense--it should probably have a duration of "One turn" instead of "Instant"; instant Supplemental Charms normally only benefit a single dice action. Also, Autumn Festival of Falling Blossoms is clearly an Extra Action Charm, not a Simple Charm. Other than that, I love it! Definitely going to give some of my NPC martial artists this style. --MF
I agree with both of MF's comments, and I might use it too!
-- Darloth
- I see... hmmm... the trouble with Falling Blossom Defense is that it becomes extremely weak if I made it a 1 turn duration charm.... on the other hand, since it technically does boost defense, I could make it a reflexive charm which would make it more in line with the charm rules?
- As for Autumn Festival of Falling Blossoms, it's now changed. ~ Haku
Cool Style. I like the visuals for this one.
- Locking Roots Grasp: This should probably cost more(maybe 3 per die), as currently it's way better than Dragon Coil.
- Falling Blossoms Defense: Cool idea. I like it. I'd probably give an Instant duration so it works with combo's. (Unfortunate side effect of combo rules here.
Thanks for the comments... ^_^
- Locking Roots Grasp: erm... how is Dragon Coil Technique weaker then Locking Roots Grasp? They seem to function rather differently, all this charm does is increase the ability to control a clinch, you can by to your MA. It does not boost damage, does not make the damage lethal, heck, DCT GIVES auto-successes to controlling the clinch / hold and essence die to all clinch / hold rolls.
- Falling Blossom Defense: Thanks... the instant duration, I've had people complain about, as the effects seem to make it beyond... well instant. So I changed it to 1 turn. On the other hand, this is typically used by DBs... who can use reflexives like mad if they're willing to burn essence... And yeah, this is how I see a watered down Bulwark Stance working, doesn't give you reflexive parry, BUT it does give you a full parry pool for all your parries. ^_^;
~ Haku
- Locking Roots Grasp: Well DCT you have to pay for every turn and it restricts your charm use. This doesn't. They also have the same effect except the rare case when your opponent does not beat the difficulty. DTC does give slightly better bonuses, although this will give you more successes. I have houserule DCT to work more like this.
- Falling Blossom Defense: I see their point. Also the comb rules are kinda wacky currently. You might want to say it can be combod as though of Instant duration.
- FlowsLikeBits
- Fair enough, mind you... I still feel that DCT gives alot of benefits, the major one being that you get to do more damage then usual. Raising it up to 2 motes is rather harsh, given how much a DB has to conserve his essence pool to be of any use, any higher and it does get unfair. I've also given it a cost to activate said charm. This is as far as I can without making it useless. Althou, you are correct, it could potentially give more successes to be used for a damage, I didn't think on that one.
- Hmmm.... This is going to make this tree end up with alot of non-instant charms that can be used in a combo... on the hand, this tree should have certain weaknesses. And a persisternt defense is one of them. ^_^;
- Haku
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