MartialArts/TheShield
This is not a complete martial art. Rather, it is but one branch of the Fivefold Way of Battles Style.
Courage & Pain - The Shield
The Shield always carries a shield or a leather strap for biting. He is always armed and always eager for battle. He carries trophies of his kills.
Barbarians and the barbarian code, fearlessness, protection, bragging, pain, heroism, heroic suicide, wrath
Probably an overt style focused on the offensive spectrum of defensive effects; i.e., counterattacks, though preferably the more peculiar sorts of counterattack effects. Charms that enhance the character's attacks or counterattacks based on how hard the character was just hit.
Charm Ideas:
An MA 5, Ess 3 instant supplemental that adds the raw damage of the last attack that struck the character to the raw damage of his next attack, probably 5m1w
Roll willpower with a difficulty equal to the amount of damage taken over incap to return to just below incap? Though that is probably too powerful, what about valour roll
The substyle of the Shield does not have a true signature weapon, but is explicitly compatible with shields.
Characters who learn these Charms as if they were Sidereal Charms may freely Combo them with Sidereal Resistance Charms. Such a character may also choose to substitute her Resistance Ability for the Martial Arts Ability any time the Charms of the Shield call for a use of the Martial Arts Ability, other than for the purposes of meeting the minimum Ability requisite for learning the Charms.
Shield Rating: Some Charms in the substyle of the Shield make reference to the character's "shield rating". This is shorthand for "the difficulty penalty imposed on attacks by the character's shield". In the case of shields with a different shield rating for ranged and melee attacks, use the higher value for effects that do not interact with a particular attack. For effects that do relate to a particular attack, such as Stubborn Red Shield, use the rating that was applied to the attack.
Stubborn Red Shield
Cost: 3 motes Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Minimum Martial Arts: 3 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisite Charms:
The martial artist subtracts his shield rating from the damage successes of a single attack against him.
Perfected Guardian Aegis
Cost: 1 mote Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Minimum Martial Arts: 3 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisite Charms: Fivefold-Way Sight
The lessons of the Shield are pain and courage, but first the initiate must learn preparedness - to be always armed and ready for battle. She keeps her shield nearby, ready to defend and ready to strike back. As long as her shield is within reach (an intentionally fuzzy condition - "within reach" could be at her feet or across the room, depending the player's tendency to stunt), the invocation of this Charm brings the shield to bear, interposing it between the Exalt and her foes, applying the cover bonus from the shield when it otherwise wouldn't have been in place. The shield is always brought to bear in a fairly discrete fashion - it doesn't leap to the Exalt's hand, but the Exalt might swiftly kick it up from the ground to interfere with an attack. The Perfected Guardian Aegis does not generally counter effects that magically circumvent cover.
Student's Posture of the Shield
Cost: 4 motes Duration: One Scene Type: Reflexive Minimum Martial Arts: 4 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisite Charms: Perfected Guardian Aegis
The martial artist takes up a strong, ready stance, welcoming destruction and ready to return like for like. While the character wears the Student's Posture of the Shield, her courage is unshakeable - add her Essence rating to her Valor score. This does not increase the character's Essence pools. Additionally, the character gains bashing and lethal soak equal to her temporary Willpower. This Charm is incompatible with armor. This is a Martial Arts Posture-type Charm.
(Unnamed Shield Charm 1)
Cost: Duration: Type: Minimum Martial Arts: Minimum Essence: Prerequisite Charms: Fivefold Way of Battles Form
(Essence recovery through suffering, maybe even mote-theft. Alternately, a defensive effect)
(Unnamed Shield Charm 2)
Cost: Duration: Type: Minimum Martial Arts: Minimum Essence: Prerequisite Charms: Unnamed Shield Charm 1
(counterattack with chocolate sauce)
(Unnamed Shield Charm 3)
Cost: 5 motes, 1 Willpower Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Minimum Martial Arts: 5 Minimum Essence: 3 Prerequisite Charms: Unnamed Shield Charm 1
(Instant Supplemental, adds the raw damage of the last attack that damaged you to an attack)
Master's Posture of the Shield
Cost: 6 motes Duration: One Scene Type: Reflexive Minimum Martial Arts: 5 Minimum Essence: 4 Prerequisite Charms: Unnamed Shield Charm 2, Unnamed Shield Charm 3
The martial artist dons a heroic, invincible mein, proud and unbreakable. While this Charm is active, the Exalt is immune to wound penalties, up to the Incapacitated level. Furthermore, when the character is struck by an attack, she may reflexively roll Valor + Resistance. For every success on this roll, she may spend one mote to remove one success on the damage roll. Note that this can make the character impervious to feeble attacks, but resisting powerful attacks can become quite costly. This Charm is incompatible with armor. This is a Martial Arts Posture-type Charm.
Comments
So. Tell me what you think of the Student's Posture. I'm thinking it may be a bit much, but I'm not sure where to trim. I really like the idea of the character having complete control of her shield - kicking it up with her toe to deflect an attack, grabbing the rim and slinging it around, etc. The soak seems like it might be important, but on the other hand, putting it in a Stance means it's not normally stackable with the Master's Posture, where it's most beneficial. I'm thinking of deviating from my pattern here and adding another scenelong to this substyle, though that trims down the Comboability. - David.
Burning Shield Counterstrike
Cost: 1 mote per 2 dice Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Minimum Martial Arts: 3 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisite Charms: Fivefold-Way Sight
The first lesson on the path of the Shield is the lesson of pain, and making war against an adept of the Shield is often a tutorial in discomfort. For every point of initiative that the Exalt holds her action, she may spend one mote to gain two dice (up to her normal dice-adder cap - if this is an odd number, the extra die bought through the Charm is lost) to be used in a reflexive counterattack that takes place on or after her initiative. This Charm can only be used in response to close-combat attacks, but the counterattack from this Charm is affected normally by Accuracy and Damage modifier's from the character's weapon.
(tucking Burning Shield Counterstrike down here for the interim, just in case I decide I need to reconsider its mechanics)
