Paper-Based Bureaucratic Assassin Style

Paper-Based Bureaucratic Assassin Style (which really needs a better name. HELP!)

Background

Signature Weapon: Strips of paper, cards, prayer strips, anything made of paper

The natural master of a bureaucracy is a paper-pusher. Upon realizing this, certain Sidereals devoted to rooting out corruption within bureaucracies around Creation developed this style to capitalize on the ubiquitous nature of paper within a bureaucacy.

The prefered type of paper used is about the size of a playing card. However, some Sidereals have been known to use their own prayer strips, and several have even had their own artifacts created for the style.

This Charm tree is incompatible with the use of weapons and armor not created thought these Charms.

Charms

Paper Trail Technique</b>

<b>Cost:  2 motes
Type:  Simple
Duration:  Until Destroyed
Minimum Martial Arts: 3
Minimum Essence: 1
Prerequiste Charms: None

Charging a piece of paper with essence, the user exploits their link with their essence in order to track a target. The player gains a bonus amount of dice to track the target paper equal to their Permanant Essence. The essence charged in the paper is considered committed, and remains committed until the paper is either burned or somehow destroyed.

Razor Paper Prana</b>

<b>Cost:  1 mote per 2 points
Type:  Supplemental
Duration:  Instant
Minimum Martial Arts:  3
Minimum Essence:  2
Prerequisite Charms:  Paper Trail Method

Taking hold of a piece of paper and thinking of it in a way that one would a weapon, the Exalt imbues it with essence. The character may use up to his Inteligence + Craft to increase Accuracy, Damage, Defense and Speed (also Rate in Power Combat) of the paper. Each dot in the pool is used to increase 1 point in Accuracy, Defense, Bashing Damage and Speed (also Rate in Power Combat), 2 points per point of Lethal Damage is needed. The charm can also be used to enhance the stats of card-based artifacts and form charms for the duration of the charm by +1.

(Form Charm)</b>

<b>Cost:  5 motes
Type:  Simple
Duration:  One Scene
Minimum Martial Arts:  4
Minimum Essence:  3
Prerequiste Charms:  Razor Paper Prana, Some Charm Thing

Adopting the unassuming stance of a paper pusher, the user of this form's essence fills every paper they touch, giving them a limited control over it and all fibers. First of all, the paper they wield as weapons take on the stats of weapons depending on their length. For example, a small card or prayer strip will be a throwing knife, and a scroll will be wielded with the stats of a short sword, if wielded unfurled it can be used as a javelin. The character may also make reflexive changes to the paper at a cost of 1 mote per change. She cannot, however, create more paper than there already is, she can however, merge numerous peices of paper to create one weapon. The character's soak increases by their Martial Arts score, and they can create shielding. However, the weapons and soak created by these charms can easily be destroyed by fire. Fire-based attacks reduce the soak by 1, and a paper weapon can only sustain parries equivalent to the wielder's essence. Essence-based fire attacks (such as Dragon-Graced Weapon and various Fire Dragon Style Charms) reduce the soak of the armor by the attacker's Permanant Essence.

Example: Kyrie has snatched away her circlemate's oragami swan. She could either make it fly and amuse her circlemate, or turn it into a blade to kill the charging Lunars.

Stance of Corruption Gaze</b>

<b>Cost:  4 motes
Type:  Supplemental
Duration:  Instant
Minimum Martial Arts: 4  
Minimum Essence:  3
Prerequiste Charms:  Form Charm

Seeing corruption within a buraucracy is not an easy task, much less finding the cause of the corruption. This charm also allows the Martial Artist to analyze, to a lesser extent, the corruptability of an official. Roll Inteligence + Martial Arts, and the character may infer the relative state of corruption of an official within a given bureaucracy merely by the way they walk and gesture.

Underling Invisibility Approach</b>

<b>Cost:  8 motes, 1 Willpower
Type:  Simple
Duration:  Special
Minimum Martial Arts:  5
Minimum Essence:  3
Prerequiste Charms:  Stance of Corruption Gaze

Taking on an unasuming, submissive and exausted stance, the character disguises herself as an underling, and becomes virtually invisible within an area. Roll Inteligence + Bureaucracy, and each 2 success represents a minute the character may travel the area unchallenged.

Inky Handed Block</b>

<b>Cost:  1 motes per die
Type:  Reflexive
Duration:  Instant
Minimum Martial Arts:  4
Minimum Essence:  3
Prerequiste Charms:  

The Martial Artist focuses essence through his hands, and ink flows from their fingers, marking the paper with trails of ink as the body whirls to avoid a deadly blow. The ink created by the charm blinds the attacker as the character moves away. Add 1 die to Dodge for each mote spent up to the characters Dex + Martial Arts.

Violet Parchment Stillness Strike</b>

<b>Cost:  5 motes, 1 Willpower
Type:  Simple
Duration:  Essence Rounds
Minimum Martial Arts:  5
Minimum Essence:  3
Prerequiste Charms:  Inky Handed Block

After striking several pressure points, the Martial Artist affixes a marked paper to the character's forehead, causing their mental processes to cease. This requires a Dexterity + Martial Arts roll at difficulty 5. Every round, the character may make a Willpower + Essence roll to neutralize the effects, but may take no other actions.

Paper Guardian Summon</b>

<b>Cost:  10 motes, 1 Willpower
Type:  
Duration:  
Minimum Martial Arts:  
Minimum Essence:  
Prerequiste Charms:  Violet Parchment Stillness Strike, Underling Invisibility Approach, 

Awesome Paper Tornado Blizzard Technique</b>

<b>Cost:  
Type:  
Duration:  
Minimum Martial Arts:  
Minimum Essence:  
Prerequiste Charms:  

Comments

Aaa! Yomiko Readman! - TonyC

Shhh! Don't say anything! She'll hear you! -- Jydan

But really, it's more like a cross between Sheena from Tales of Symphonia an Yomiko Readman. -- Jydan

Ooo, Sheena too!
Hmmm, the charms are a bit weak. Is this supposed to be Terrestrial, Celestial, or Sidereal level MA?
Yes, I know a Sidereal invented this, but Sidereals are capable of inventing a new Martial Arts of any level.
Also, you should say that this MA is incompatible with any weapon and armor other than the ones created by this style's charms. The distinction is important, because it is possible to use this style to create armor and shields, at least in the source material. Also, a roll of newspaper is not usually considered strips of paper, cards, or prayer strips, and yet it makes a very good weapon in the hands of a Paper User, no? Yes, there's no newspaper in Creation (yet), but what about a scroll of last year's tax? - TonyC

I was planning on doing that, I just have trouble fixing stuff like that. In fact, the Form charm is going to increase your Soak by your MA, as an extrapolation of your paper powers. There are also going to be different kinds of stats for individual lengths of paper. A card will be a knife, a scroll will be a short sword. Also, keep in mind that this style is celestial, and these are the beginning charms. These charms are weaker because the later powers will be very powerful, like Sheena's Guardian Summoning, Paper Ninja Disappear, and Yomiko's Cascade of Paper Cutting Terror. ^_^ -- Jydan

This is really, really conceptually appealing. Usually Martial Arts enhances punches and kicks, but there's plenty of examples of it assisting other abilities. Melee, Dodge, and Athletics are the most obvious ones. But there's styles that enhance Archery (Wood Dragon), Thrown (Air Dragon), Stealth (Ebon Shadow), Performance (Dreaming Pearl) and even firearms use. Why not Sail, Linguistics, Survival or Medicine? Or, like in this case, why not Bureaucracy? This is just brilliant. If I didn't think I'd get stabbed for it, I'd make "Bureaucracy and Paperwork" the next theme for MartialArtsRelay. -- TedPro

Thanks for your thoughts, TedPro. I came up with the idea when reading through some of the Sid Bureacuracy charms and thinking "wouldn't it be cool if someone would just slip into a bureacracy and start killing off corrupt officials?" That's why I loved that. -- Jydan

I think this style would make a lovely complement to MartialArts/InfiniteBureaucracyStyle. -- JesseLowe

I saw that earlier, and decided I liked paper better than pens, and it's not all assassiny. -- Jydan

Well, I figure a truly bureaucratic master would know both. And maybe have a secret style built off of them. -- JesseLowe

I'm pondering making this an 'alternate' style for Willow's Endings MA (which is very cool, go look at it!). -- Jydan

working with the analogy.... The Primordials created the world from Chaos as a scribe might write upon a piece of paper... The style whirls paper in the air in a chaotic, but eerily graceful, dance.... which mirrors the chaotic, but oddly patterned state of the world that the Sidereals observe everyday...

How about something like "Anarchic Administration Exploitation Style" or "Minister Commands His Kingdom Style", with the minister commanding a kingdom of paperwork and administration in general.

Also, I'm envisioning the paper work flying out to hit an enemy standing several feet away, and taking on a kind of life of its own. How about a Charm (or possibly the form charm) with a 'summon monster' type effect to make a being of pure paperwork that attacks on its own? The "Paperwork with a life of its own" lasts as long as the Martial Artist stays in the fight in some capacity.

Also, there might be some advantage in being able to either A)summon paperwork out of nowhere, so you can use the form somewhere other than an office or B)expand it to more generally apply to small light objects, so that you could use, say, rose petals or raindrops or snow to attack your opponent. Actually, maybe I'll just write that up as its own style: FallingRosePetalStyle -MeiRen