MartialArts/InfiniteBureaucracyStyle
Infinite Bureaucracy Style
By gundam_beast
Background
Signature Weapon: Pen (as in ink)
The natural weapon of the Bureaucrat is, of course, the Pen. All attacks made with a Pen are considered unarmed for the purposes of this charm tree. Statistics of a Pen are identical to those of a knife. They may be made out of any of the 5 M.M. As a special feature of this martial arts style, an individual who knows any of this tree receives a special bonus when fighting against certain foes when armed with a Pen. To be specific, anytime the Bureaucracy Style practitioner engages in combat an individual(s) armed with swords of any kind (short, great, knife, daiklave, everything) the Pen’s statistics alter to be one number better in each category than the sword her opponent is using. In the case of dual wielding opponents, the practitioner may choose either blade, or alternate between them as often as once every three rounds. Because… (Wait for it…) The Pen is mightier than the sword! Ha!
Charms
Heightened Color Alert Prana</b>
<b>Cost: 2 motes Type: Reflexive Duration: Instant Min. Martial Arts: 2 Min. Essence: 1 Prereqs: None
(Associated Law: Clear concepts will be made confusing.)
The character receives an official memo from the Bureaucracy that Is, alerting him or her to immanent danger. As the memo they receive puts it, their “alert status has been heightened from orange to red.” Mechanically, anytime there is a physical threat to the character, the storyteller should alert the player of it. The character becomes aware of the danger, and may immediately respond with a dodge, block, parry, or whatever action they deem appropriate. Keep in mind, this is a benefit, not a handicap. The storyteller should not use this as an excuse to drain the player of motes.
Speaking without Saying Anything Method</b>
<b>Cost:6 motes Type: Simple Duration: One scene Min. Martial Arts: 3 Min. Essence: 2 Prereqs: Heightened Color Alert Prana
(Associated Law: Bureaucrats answer only their own questions.)
Any good bureaucrat knows how to answer questions that areinconvenient to their agenda; Don’t. This principle was theprimary inspiration for this charm which mimics thesidestep of a smooth operating politician. The charactermay add her Bureaucracy rating to all dodge rolls for theremainder of the scene. This does not increaseher “natural” dice pool, and may not increase the net dicepool past its normal limits. (Double Attribute + Abilityfor Solars, double Ability for Terrestrials, etc…)
Fearing the Hassle Technique</b>
<b>Cost:5 motes Type: Simple Duration: One scene Min. Martial Arts: 2 Min. Essence: 2 Prereqs: Heightened Color Alert Prana
(Associated Law: The tangled web of a bureaucracy is directly and geometrically proportional to its size.)
This charm projects into the minds of everyone around the user a sense of dread and doom. The thought of attacking the individual becomes laughable, due to the massive amounts of time and effort such an action would require. The hassle involved with such a thing is daunting in the extreme, and many finally decide that no matter how much they’d like to injure the character, it’s simply not worth it. Any individual who wishes to attack the character must first pass a simple Conviction check. This check needs to be made only once, and a success lasts for the remainder of that use of the charm. Subsequent uses require further checks. Those who fail may make other actions normally (defend, flee, etc…), but may not attack the character for the remainder of the scene.
Distracting the Authorities Method</b>
<b>Cost:10 motes Type: Simple Duration: Varies Min. Martial Arts: 3 Min. Essence: 2 Prereqs: Heightened Color Alert Prana
While the majority of bureaucrats must personally involve themselves or their agents to ensure local authorities do not interfere with business, the practitioner of the Infinite Bureaucracy Style has no such requirement. From the moment this charm activates until its termination, its user and their allies (no more than a dozen people) are guaranteed not to run into any official law enforcement agents. This is no protection from hired muscle, brigands, or any other forces that are not part of the "official” ruling body’s police or military system. What constitutes official or private is left to the storyteller. This charm lasts for its users Essence in hours.
Infinite Bureaucracy Form</b>
<b>Cost:5 motes Type: Simple Duration: One scene Min. Martial Arts: 4 Min. Essence: 2 Prereqs: Speaking Without Saying Anything Method, Fearing the Hassle Technique, Distracting the Authorities Method
(Associated Law: To truly use the bureaucracy, you must be part of the bureaucracy.)
The character takes on the aspects of a bureaucracy of infinite paperwork and eternal lines. All attacks that target the player struggle to land, as their blows must cut through the metaphysical red tape that now surrounds the character. Their fists grow weary of the perceived lines and hassle they must endure to connect, and wonder if it’s really worth it. After all, doing nothing requires so much less paperwork. The difficulty of all attacks against the character is increased by his Essence. This charm is not compatible with the use of armor.
Preemptive Strike Method</b>
<b>Cost:5 motes, 1 Willpower Type: Reflexive Duration: Instant Min. Martial Arts: 4 Min. Essence: 3 Prereqs: Infinite Bureaucracy Form
(Associated Law: The bureaucracy is accountable to no one.)
A bureaucrat using this charm receives information from the Bureaucracy that Is’ intelligence department, outlining the plans for an enemy’s attack. Using this information, the practitioner may act first to prevent the attack from ever being launched. Mechanically, this charm may be activated immediately after a character announces an attack on the practitioner during the action-declaring phase. The user then makes a single attack action against the character that targeted her. This dice pool may not be split. This attack is resolved immediately, out of the normal initiative order. It also uses the character’s dice action for the turn. If this kills the victim, their action is obviously forfeit. If not, they may act normally, without fear of their attack hampered. It is of note that the evidence the user receives isn’t ever made public. That would pose a breach in security.
Untouchable Dictator Prana</b>
<b>Cost:8 motes Type: Simple Duration: Varies Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min. Essence: 3 Prereqs: Preemptive Strike Method
(Associated Law: When you can’t fight fair, you can always fight dirty.)
Wars are an unfortunate reality of life. Where there are people, there will be war. However, a good bureaucrat knows that they must sooner or later deal with a superior foe. Being able to compete with larger entities is a necessity of bureaucracy. This charm utilizes the concepts behind the defense of the Thousand Kingdoms, and similar countries. Like the petty dictators who rule these countries, the charms user can resist the attacks of much more powerful foes. Mechanically, this charm functions by making stronger opponents less overwhelming, but allowing lesser foes to become more dangerous. For the duration of this charm, if the user attacks someone with an Essence higher than their own, then the final post-soak minimum for damage dice is equal to 1 + (the difference in Essence ratings.) Against foes of lower Essence, the foes receive automatic successes on any attack made against the user of this charm. This charm lasts a number of turns equal to the users Essence, and the user may NOT dismiss it prematurely.
Lost File Method</b>
<b>Cost:8 motes, 1 Willpower Type: Simple Duration: Instant Min. Martial Arts: 5 Min. Essence: 4 Prereqs: Untouchable Dictator Prana
(Associated Law: When the office runs out of toilet paper, the employees get desperate.)
The Bureaucracy that Is has a file for everything that happens. Ever. They're anal like that. This charm causes them to loose the file for a single attack of any type or origin. This basically defends against any attack. This is a Perfect Defense. Some say the file ends up shredded, others say the office water closet. Others deny there ever was a file. Others... simply don't care.
Lost File Cabinet Method</b>
<b>Cost:10 motes, 2 Willpower Type: Simple Duration: Permanent Min. Martial Arts: 6 Min. Essence: 5 Prereqs: Lost File Method
(Associated Law: When the company goes under, the employees riot and pillage.)
One of the fundamental principles of a bureaucracy is that the larger the bureaucracy, the larger the corresponding void into which things disappear, never to be seen again. Activating this charm requires a reflexive Wits + Bureaucracy check, which is rolled when the next attack executed by the character lands. The difficulty of this roll is equal to double the permanent Essence of the creature it is being used on. If the roll is successful, the target ceases to exist, his files and the cabinet they were kept in gone, never to be seen again. If the character using this charm manages to rack up enough successes (good luck), this will turn a Primordial or Yozi into a Malfaen. This also removes all memory of the target from the minds of everyone with a permanent Essence lower than that of the character who executed the attack. Extrapolating the causality of actions around the target (Intelligence + Awareness, difficulty 2) can cause an intellectual realization that a person must have existed at some point, but emotional connections, if any, are gone forever.
