Resplendence/FivefoldElementalHarmonyStyle
Fivefold Elemental Harmony Style
Fivefold Elemental Harmony Style is a Terrestrial form of combat that has existed since the First Age, developed by a Sidereal martial arts master to allow Dragon-Blooded to offset their relative weakness by cooperation. Traditionally, Fivefold Elemental Harmony practitioners were paired together to compliment each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Usually, this meant one strong, resilient martial artist and a quick and skilled one.
Cooperative Charms in the style have a maximum range of (Essence + Martial Arts) / 2 yards. Beyond this, the martial artist pair cannot benefit from each others Charms. To team up with a new companion with Fivefold Elemental Harmony Style, the team needs to spend a scene sparring or meditating together. A stunt might also suffice. Without teaming up, two martial artists cannot benefit from each other’s Charms. After teaming up, the martial artists can both spend a point of Experience each to make the pairing permanent. This eliminates the need for sparring or meditating together. The maximum number of companions equals the Martial Arts rating.
Spears, swords and their artifact equivalents are this style’s signature weapons. It’s compatible with armor with a Mobility penalty no higher than the practitioner’s Martial Arts rating.
Earth Holds the Skies
Cost: 1m Duration: Until next action Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -0) Keywords: Combo-OK Minimums: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1 Prerequisite Charms: None
The martial artist can defend both herself and her companion, if she is within range. She can lend her Parry DV to her companion, who may opt to use whichever he wants.
Rain Feeds the Earth
Cost: 1m Duration: Instant Type: Reflexive Keywords: Combo-OK Minimums: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1 Prerequisite Charms: None
Moving herself to a disadvantageous position before opponents, the martial artist creates distractions and openings for her companion. When rolling Join Combat, the martial artist may trade up to Martial Arts successes to her companion.
Meet at the Horizon
Cost: 2m Duration: One scene Type: Reflexive Keywords: Combo-OK Minimums: Martial Arts 3, Essence 1 Prerequisite Charms: Rain Feeds the Earth
The sky and the earth are always joined at the horizon. Likewise, the companions of this Style a bond that keeps them together. When separated by the chaos of battle, the martial artist can reestablish this contact with her companion. She may add her Martial Arts rating to her movement rating for a scene, but only if she moves towards her companion.
Fivefold Elemental Harmony Form
Cost: 5m Duration: One scene Type: Simple Keywords: Form-type Minimums: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2 Prerequisite Charms: Earth Holds the Skies, Rain Feeds the Earth, Meet at the Horizon
When the coordination of the Fivefold Elemental Style is fully developed, the paired martial artists truly fight as one. They know each other’s motions, perceptions and thoughts as intimately as their own.
The Form Charm only grants its bonuses if the Martial Artist pair both have it activated. In fact, all advanced Charms following the form require it to be active in both fighters.
Earth and Sky Harmony companions find great strength in each other. If one has a Virtue or Willpower rating higher than the other, she might add one to her own rating.
They share perceptions and awareness of the combat. They may communicate wordlessly and instantly, but only about matters that concern the battle. Any one of them may spot an unseen attack for both to be aware of it. When facing several opponents, neither of them suffers undefendable attacks from behind.
The companions share onslaught penalties when attacking the same target in the same tick.
Furthermore, when one of them takes damage, the companions can agree to share this damage. Up to Essence levels of post-soak damage can be reflexively transferred directly after it has been rolled.
Finally, every tick the martial artist can transfer up to Essence motes of Peripheral Essence to her companion.
Wind Carries the Embers
Cost: 2m Duration: Instant Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1) Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious Minimums: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2 Prerequisite Charms: Fivefold Elemental Harmony Form
By acting as a living springboard for her companion, the martial artists can launch a long-range attack that combines their strength.
This Charm and the companion’s attack must be initiated at the same tick. The Charm throws the companion as that tick’s movement. She uses their combined Strength ratings instead of her own to calculate her jumping distance. Also, for the first attack she makes in the tick, she can use their combined Strength ratings to calculate damage. This Charm usually sends the companion outside the range of the style, which requires her to move back before the martial artists can receive its benefits again.
Mountains Echo the River
Cost: 2m Duration: Instant Type: Simple (Speed 3, DV -1) Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious Minimums: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2 Prerequisite Charms: Fivefold Elemental Harmony Form
The supplemented attack inflicts no damage. Instead it decreases the DV the target uses (parry or dodge) to defend himself by one for every net success scored. The penalty counts as a regular external penalty to DV that lasts until the target’s DV refreshes. It only applies for the martial artist’s companion, not herself.
Mountains Echo the River
Cost: 4m Duration: Instant Type: Simple (Speed 4, DV -0) Keywords: Combo-OK Minimums: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3 Prerequisite Charms: Mountains Echo the River
Using their supernatural coordination, the martial artists outmaneuver their opponent. One creates a distraction to create a blind spot for the other.
Roll Manipulation + Martial Arts against the static value of the target’s (Wits + Awareness) / 2. If the martial artist succeeds, she has created a blind spot for her companion, whose attacks become undodgable and unblockable until the target’s DV refreshes.
Flood Crumbles the Root-Cracked Tower
Cost: 4m Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious Minimums: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2 Prerequisite Charms: Wind Carries the Embers
Like growings roots crumble protection against the elements, the martial artist follows up a strike her companion has made, adding the forces together to a mighty strike combination that is greater than the sum of its parts.
This Charm supplements an attack made by the martial artist’s companion. The attacks must be initiated on the same tick against the same target and may be one or more attacks in a flurry, each supplemented separately. The martial artist forsakes her own attack but provides a bonus to her companion’s attack – half the attack dice pool (including all pertinent modifiers) is added to the companion’s attack dice, and half the base damage is added to his raw damage. Special effects (such as overwhelming or piercing attacks) apply but do not stack. Only the best one counts and if there is a conflict the original attack supersedes the supplemented attack. Charm effects, however, do stack from both attacks. The attack dice bonus counts as a normal Charm bonus.
Two Are One
Cost: 10m, 1wp Duration: One scene Type: Reflexive Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious Minimums: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3 Prerequisite Charms: Ocean Drowns the Burning Ship, Flood Crumbles the Root-Cracked Tower
With this Charm, coordination becomes so perfect that the martial artists’ bodies and Essences act in complete unison. For a moment they act and think as one being.
Both martial artists must initiate this Charm at the same tick and be within range. For the duration of the scene they effectively count as one person in combat. They use the highest of the pair’s Attribute, Ability, Willpower, Virtue and Essence ratings. They combine their pools of Health Levels, Willpower points and motes of Essence. They have one anima that is activated for both at the lowest of the pair’s activation levels. Charms and other magical effects apply to both as it does to one person. They act as one person, but due to their coordination they reduce all DV penalties from their actions by one and flurry penalties by two. They can freely choose which weapon to use to attack or defend. For the purposes of Charms from the Fivefold Elemental Harmony Style the companions count as two people, but they cannot willingly separate themselves beyond the range allowed by this Style. Against any outside effect that tries to separate them physically, mentally or spiritually they receive a number of automatic successes on the resistance roll equal to their highest Essence score. This applies to the MDV against social attacks and magical persuasion that attempts to separate or set them against each other as well. Should such an attack succeed, however, it affects them both.
The martial artists gain a deep understanding of each others thoughts and emotions. They can usually act in perfect understanding, but if a conflict arises the companion with the highest Willpower score decides what to do. If both are equally strong of will, they cannot act until they come to an agreement. Any of them can end the Charm at any time, however.
When the Charm ends, the martial artists may distribute lost health levels, motes of Essence and such as they wish. If they cannot agree, the losses are distributed evenly. Charms and other magical effects remain with the martial artist who activated them. External effects apply to both companions, if possible.
