Thus Spake Zaraborgstrom/InvoluntaryHeartSurgery

Involuntary Heart Surgery

Rebecca Borgstrom 10-21-2003 02:51 AM

quote:Originally posted by Fade\\ > I have a question about Convulsive Displacement Infectious Atemi. Say I\\ > slap someone on the back and somersault past them, catching their heart\\ > in my other hand. What is stopping me from crushing it in my hand and\\ > killing them instantly? There must be something because it shouldn't\\ > allow an instant kill, but I can't think of it.

If they're a mortal, nothing.

If you're a Solar? Okay.

Technically, the Sidereal is attempting to clinch your heart. The heart's base soak is 0L/0B, and its base pools are 0. The Storyteller may convert clinch damage to Lethal, and may give the Sidereal a bonus die for already having a basic grip. You're a Solar, so you can control your heartbeat, but that's not much as combat mobility goes.

Most of the Solar soak Charms are applicable, including Adamant Skin Technique. (It's not limited to your skin, or you'd be in trouble if you had pre-existing burns.)

Parries and most of the parry Charms can be stunted to defend the heart with your weapon. You can rap their wrist to stun their hand, or slide your daiklave blade between the heart and their fingers. This is the kind of thing stunting is for, after all.

The heart isn't really in a great position for using dodge Charms or breaking the clinch once started, but Flow Like Blood's flavortext suggests that it's not always dependent on your actual ability to get out of the way. Once you get a stunt die so you have a dice pool to work with, you can also use Virtue dice and Willpower to fuel a Dodge.

For example, a lame stunt but still a stunt that a heart can use: "I'm slippery with my own blood, and filled with the Essence of the serpent; I roll out of his hand as he clutches at me." Here we have a stunt die, Willpower autosuccess or Virtue dice, and Martial Arts dice from Serpentine Evasion. Versus the Sidereal's attack (Dexterity + Martial Arts + a bonus die, probably.) That could succeed!

Basically, it's worth remembering that you're not holding the Solar's Secret Weakness(tm) in your hand. You're holding a heart that's still in every metaphysical way part of a living paragon chosen of the Unconquered Sun. If it were an intestine, it'd probably be writhing. Stop short of being cartoony, but macabre humor is okay; the heart won't be grabbing you with its aorta and wrestling you to the ground, or invoking Glorious Solar Plate for little heartmail, but it's still a Solar's living heart. Darn right it'll be hard to hang onto.

Rebecca