MartialArts/GryphonStyle
Gryphon Style
By Connager
Background
This Martial Arts Form was designed to be used either unarmed or with fighting knives. Knives are the only weapons that can be used with this style and are usually wielded paired. Also, martial Artist's following this Style revere and personalize their figthing knives, treating them as sacred. The MA Practitioners usually ritualistically craft these blades on thier own or were awarded them by their trainers. These Martial Artists will usally go through great lengths to retrieve their knive(s) if lost or stolen.
If anyone is really interested, this Style was created and handed to the Solars from a sect of Fair Folk that live alongside humanity and have made covenants with the Unconquered Sun, Gaia, and Luna. Their main effort is to put down the threat of the Deathlords. I call these fae the "Liosalfar" (meaning 'light-elves').
Charms
Aerial Predator Gaze</b>
<b>Cost: 3 motes Duration: One scene Type: Simple Min. Martial Arts: 2 Min. Essence: 1
The Martial Artist bends her senses around her, giving her 360' vision and making her aware of all attackers around her. Being "attacked from behind" is impossible. Penalties from blind-fighting or obscured vision are halved.
Gliding Parry Maneuver</b>
<b>Cost: 3 motes Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Min. Martial Arts: 3 Min. Essence: 1 Prereqs: Aerial Predator Gaze
The Martial Artist may add her Martial Arts rating to parry an attack either armed or unarmed. However, on a successful parry the character glides backwards through the air a number of yards equal to the attacker's strength score. If the parry is unsuccessful, use the knockdown/knockback rules as usual. If the Character is immobile or has nowhere to go, she may still parry, although momentarily hovers as she does so.
Gryphon Form</b>
<b>Cost: 6 motes Duration: One scene Type: Simple Min. Martial Arts: 4 Min. Essence: 2 Prereqs: Gliding Parry Maneuver
The Martial Artist adopts the form of an enraged Gryphon- knees slightly bent, arms extended in front, with the elbows slightly bent and pointing outward, ready to lunge at, or lure in her prey. For the rest of the scene the Martial Artist adds her Martial Arts rating to her bashing and lethal soak. The character may inflict lethal damage unarmed.
The character may also use her Essence rating in dice to supplement an attack OR a parry, once per turn. These dice can also be used reflexively as a parry but not reflexively as an attack. As usual only one Martial Arts Form charm may be used at a time.
Armour-Piercing Talon Rake</b>
<b>Cost: 3 Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Min. Martial Arts: 4 Min. Essence: 3 Prereqs: Gryphon Form
The character inflicts lethal damage armed or unarmed. Regardless, the target's armour has it's soak value reduced by a number equal to the character's martial arts score when determining damage.
Vital Organ Bite</b>
<b>Cost: 5, 1 willpower Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min. Essence: 3 Prereqs: Armour-Piercing Talon Rake
The wise gryphon has learned how to predict his enemies movements, and where to strike to have the most effect. This charm embodies that knowledge, granting the Exalt a bonus to their initiative equal to their Martial Arts score, as well as doubling the successes from their attack roll before soak is applied. Additionally, the Exalt may choose whether to simply incapicitate their foe, as opposed to killing them. Should this option be chosen, no damage is dealt from the attack; instead all successe on the damage roll become dice pool penalties to the opponent for a number of turns equal to the Exalt's Permanent Essence. Multiple uses of this charm do indeed stack, though the maximum penalty that can be inflicted on any one opponent is equal to twice the Exalt's Permanent Essence.
Delay the Suffering</b>
<b>Cost: 4 motes Duration: One scene Type: Reflexive Min. Martial Arts: 4 Min. Essence: 2 Prereqs: Gryphon Form
In order to protect the sacred charges entrusted to the Gryphon Artist, the artist must be able to function in top form even when wounded. To represent this, the user of this charm may reduce the dice pool penalties generated by wounds taken (represented in Health Levels of damage) by his Essence divided by 2 (rounded up).
Fortitude of the Defending Gryphon</b>
<b>Cost: 6, 1 willpower Duration: One scene Type: Simple Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min. Essence: 3 Prereqs: Delay the Suffering
Gryphons defending their charges are a hardy lot indeed, often survivng blows that would fell tougher combatants through their focus on their sacred duty. This charm allows the Exalt to add the twice their Essence score to their Bashing and Lethal soaks for the remainder of the scene. Should the Exalt not have anyone or anything in their charge, or their charge has been removed from danger, this bonus is halved. This charm is not compatible with the use of Armor, though it does stack with the benefits granted by Gryphon Form.
Hovering Death Prana</b>
<b>Cost: 5 motes, 1 willpower Duration: Instant Type: Extra Action Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min. Essence: 3 Prereqs: Fortitude of the Defending Gryphon, Vital Organ Bite
The Martial Artist hovers slightly above the ground and becomes a whirlwind of carnage in the midst of swirling feathers of essence. The character gains a number of extra actions equal to her permanent essence score. These extra actions cannot be split for multiple actions. At least the last action must be an attack. Further more, for each succesive action a die is taken away from the pool and added to the damage of further attacks and/or the final attack action for the round.
Foe-Rending Lure</b>
<b>Cost: 7, 1 willpower Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min. Essence: 4 Prereqs: Hovering Death Prana
This Charm may only be used on opponents who have won initiative and attack the Martial Artist. The charm is activated after initiative is rolled.
When the opponent attacks, the character reflexively parries with her full dice pool plus a number of dice equal to her essence score. The character may also parry a lethal attack unarmed. IF the parry is successful, the Martial artist may immediately counterattack with her full dice pool and the extra successes from the parry. The damage dice after soak is doubled as the Martial artist uses all her limbs to rend the opponent in two. If the initial parry fails the motes and willpower spent are wasted.
