First Age ahoy! [interest]

Gulup said:
Since I do NOT want to run for an 'Experienced' slot should I just start statting up a character?
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Sweet Zombie Jesus, lots of posts to answer!


For Gulup, sir, pitch me an idea currently. I want to get a feel for what folks wish to bring to the table for the moment :D
 
Mmm, I'll have to nix that idea a bit. No one knows of the Curse, no one gets inklings to the Curse. Especially in the Age of Dreams. In fact, everyone cites it being simply how such and such is. The stress of the job, their own proclivities, so on.
 
Aw well not a problem one I wanted to try but one that never seems to work. I'll work a bit more on it. ^^ Basic Idea 2 will be coming up laters then xD
 
Huzzah! And sorry about that, I just never really get a good feel for folks knowing of the Curse right out of the box. Learning of that beast is an epic tale on top of an epic tale. Far beyond the scope of even the madness I'm planning. :o
 
The parable of the Righteous Solar


Long ago in the Age of Dreams, there lived a young Solar. Newly Exalted and plucked from everything he once knew, he felt lost and could not give his grand new life the meaning it deserved so he searched all of Creation for an answer.


The Solar travelled to Meru, the grandest city Creation has ever seen. These among the thousands of miracles and towers of Jade, he sought out an Elder Solar.


“Please help me,†he said, throwing himself at the feet of the Elder Solar, “I have all this power and my life has no meaning as I know not what to do with it.â€


“I will tell you what to do,†said the Elder Solar, “You are conflicted by doubt and worry. Two thousand years ago you would have had enemies to fight and your life would have been a never-ending battle. That is over. Your duty was completed an Age ago by a past incarnation, so you should spend your time finding enjoyment for yourself.â€


But the young Solar shook his head and left.


The Solar travelled to the Wyld, the ever changing chaos that surrounds Creaton. These among the endless dreams and nightmares, he sought out an Elder Lunar.


“Please help me,†he said, throwing himself at the feet of the Elder Lunar, “I have all this power and my life has no meaning as I know not what to do with it.â€


“I will tell you what to do,†said the Elder Lunar, “Your heart is dry and your life has no meaning because you lack something to care about. You have been gifted with rulership of an entire nation and the mortals there look up to you. Now and forever they will need you to nurture and look after them, as the world is a harsh place and they have not the strength to protect themselves. You need to become a father to them, raising them so they can become more that they are.â€


But the young Solar shook his head and left.


The Solar travelled to the Yu-Shan, the land of perfection that mere mortals can never attain. These among the palaces of god, he sought out an Elder Sidereal.


“Please help me,†he said, throwing himself at the feet of the Elder Sidereal, “I have all this power and my life has no meaning as I know not what to do with it.â€


“I will tell you what to do,†said the Elder Sidereal, “Your mind is full of chaos and ideas. You would strive with all your great power to find some greater meaning to yourself and the Universe, but such greater truth does not exist. You should give yourself over to Fate, let whatever awaits you in the future come in it’s own time and seek inner peace rather than an outward meaning for your powers.â€


But the young Solar shook his head and left.


The Solar travelled far and wide, across every plane of existence. Neither exalt, god, demon, fair folk, elemental nor anything else could answer his question to his satisfaction, when by sheer luck he stumbled into the Carnival of Meeting and found himself in front of The Unconquered Sun.


“Please help me,†he said, throwing himself at the feet of the The Unconquered Sun, “I have all this power and my life has no meaning as I know not what to do with it.â€


“I will not tell you what to do,†said The Unconquered Sun, “For even the least mortal knows the meaning and purpose of my Chosen.â€


“Please,†begged the Solar, “I have searched for years. I have asked every kind of Exalt. I have talked to gods, elementals, demons and ghosts. I have questioned behemoths and fair folk. None have been able to give me an answer which rings true.â€


Beckoning over an astounded and honored mortal, for the Carnival of Meetings is the one time when mortals may freely wander heaven and speak to the gods, The Unconquered Sun asked the mortal what the purpose of his Chosen is.


“Ah, everyone knows that,†said the Mortal, “The Chosen of the Sun are the heroes of all Creation. They fight the greatest evils. They allow no injustice to go unavenged. They protect the weak. They are selfless, kind, wise and strong. They are brave, temperate, compassionate and righteous. They are an inspiration to us allâ€


At last, the Solar smiles. “Once I knew this, but in the endless possibilities of this Age I forgot.â€


“But now you remember,†says The Unconquered Sun.


“Yes, now I can strive to be the hero Creation deserves.â€


“That is good,†says The Unconquered Sun, “But Creation needs seven hundred such heroes.â€


Remembering the Elder Solar, Lunar and Sidereal, the young Solar nodded and returned to Creation with a mighty task ahead of him.
 
You know, in a way, this Zenith and Chaka's Eclipse have a few points in common. Intriguing. I was kind of hoping some of you would latch on to the listless feeling of an Era of infinite peace (save Operation Wyldhand).
 
i have a waxing moon that i have here, i have to write out his background and appearance but think a male version of Lady Macbeth, this isn't established just starting out, his mentor is Queen Merela's lunar mate which i have defined as a Waning Moon Fox totem lunar, would that be a problem?
 
I'm actually willing to play a starting Dawn Caste, young woman of little experience, but a lot of talent.


Also have an idea for a cougar Half Moon who is rather content with her new life, a bit lazy if you will.
 
Still undecided on little details like Aspect, who his patron was/is and the exact nature of his military command (Naval? Aerial? Infantry? They're all so good!), but here's a synopsis of my DB:

Thanks to the blessings of Solar anagathics, Guan-Te is now in his 6th century. Early in his service he witnessed the death of his Solar patron, who sacrificed himself to prevent even greater bloodshed.While certainly noble, he's not entirely sure it excused his more ignoble indulgences off the battlefield.


Still, duty is duty, and when his patron's Exaltation found a new host, Guan-Te was the one sent to bring him to Meru, and the first to swear his service to him. Guan-Te is a couple of centuries his senior, but the Solar has caught up fast. They always do. In the mean time Guan-Te does what he can to steer the boy away from the excesses of his last life. Mandate of Heaven or no, there is some behaviour that is just unbecoming of on of the Sun's Chosen and too often he has seen Solar children grow up to be POWERFUL children. Not that he speaks up of course. But he still retains an air of mentor and father-figure, and a well-placed frown or look of disappointment still carries some weight. He'll exploit it while it lasts. Maybe it'll be enough.


Despite, or perhaps because of Guan-Te's concern for his patron, he has become a trusted advisor and occasional butler, and combined with his skill in the arts of warfare he commands a great deal of his lord's military might. He occasionally dreams about being the first Dragon-Blood in centuries to attain the rank of general, but Guan-Te earned his status through blood and sweat and duty, and as such doesn't harbour ambition to any great degree. He is content to rise as far as his skill and diligence allow. It is only proper.
 
Alright, here's one character idea. I might get more later.

A relatively young Water Aspect, and one of the few who doesn't work in the navy. From the moment she was born, she was taught to be obedient. No Solar was around to control her mind, but her minders and the older Dragon-Blooded needed no Solar magic to mold her into a dutiful, unquestioning servant. Because she came from a branch that the Gens considered rather valueless, she was brought up as a tool, with no respect given for her sense of self, even by the other Terrestrials.


Awodana is mostly inclined towards intellectual pursuits, and acts as a quartermaster and bureaucrat. She is very talented, but is generally noted for lacking initiative (partially from having it crushed early on). When not given direction, she can be very aimless, but she is very talented at adapting her skills to any situation that's provided to her. She can easily arrange anything from the entertainment for a party to the equipment and troop disposition for a war.


She is generally lacking in will and emotional strength, and is generally confused if anyone ever bothers to ask about her personal preferences or desires (she has once been recorded as commenting "People other than the Celestials are allowed to pick favorite foods?"). She does have these things, deep down, but it would take effort and power to bring them to the surface, and the only ones with both to spare are not at all interested in the lowly adjutant/secretary.


She could be made older, to be an established Dragon-Blooded, without significant personality changes. After all, nothing looks like it's gonna change for her soon.
 
Alright!


I’ve been trying to play in a First Age game for, well, ages!


Unlike, most of my fellow posters, my character concept requires a (fairly) recently Exalted Solar…


Ash (Young Solar):
At the end of a Solar’s life, the shard of divinity than empowers her separates from her mortal soul and returns to Heaven, where Lytek, the god of Exaltation, cleanses it of stains and scars before releasing it to find a new host. Usually, this is a swift process, with the Loom of Fate and gods loyal to the Unconquered Sun guiding the Exaltation to a worthy hero. With the Sun’s blessing, mortal and divine meet and join, becoming Exalted.


Sometimes, though, for reasons unknown, it takes its time.


When Red Sky in the Morning (b. 2103, Exalted 2132, d. 3493) fell in battle with an eldritch monstrosity during operation Wyldhand, his peers confidently expected his reincarnation within weeks or months at most. Instead, his Exaltation seemed to vanish from Creation after leaving Lytek’s hands. Decades passed with no sign of him. Almost as troubling, expeditions sent to bring his remains back to Meru for honorable burial (and recover his Sun Hawk-class warstrider and hearthstone) returned empty-handed. Attempts to contact his ghost failed. It was as though he no longer existed...


...until a young girl in a remote Northeastern mining town tumbled down a crevice in the earth and found herself in a bat-infested cavern. At the far end, encased in roots, rock and mud, lay a titanic armored figure. Too curious to be really afraid, the girl, whose name was Ash, approached the immobile form and climbed into the hollow space in its chest. Inside lay the brittle bones of a man, which crumbled at her touch -- as an apparition appeared before her, a youth who appeared to be made of liquid gold, pleading in an unknown (though familiar) tongue.


Ash returned to the “metal man†many times over the months and years to come, eventually learning his language. She brought him the tools and supplies he asked for, even though she often had to steal them. She cut away the roots and dug away the mud from his limbs, and, at his insistence, burned what was left of the skeleton. Through all this, Ash never told a soul about her discovery. Even when a mysterious sickness struck her people and representatives of the local Terrestrial prefect descended upon them to investigate, she hugged her secret to herself and said nothing, never dreaming the two might be related.


The day after her sixteenth birthday, the town was attacked by raksha. The Dragon-Blooded officers attempted to rally the people, but they were no match for the horde of grotesque goblins and cold-eyed faerie nobles that seemed to come out of nowhere, and Celestial aid was taking too long to arrive. Ash ran to the forest to the cavern where her “friend†lay hidden. “Help ME now,†she demanded. “I’ll do anything you want, just help me stop them!â€


The golden man gazed at her -- fondly, she thought. “Yes,†he said. “It is time.â€


He looked into her eyes. “Return,†he said. And Ash found herself engulfed in golden light.


When she came back to herself she was already strapped into Spring Thunder’s fuselage; they tore their way free of the cave, reborn again, together.


Thunder’s delicate Essence weapons had deteriorated into scrap during his long years underground, but he still had his mighty orichalcum fists and his deadly Charms. The unprepared Fair Folk were like butterflies caught in a rockslide. In an exultant haze of victory she heard the Dragon-Blooded addressing her respectfully (and warily) as “Excellencyâ€, saw the shock and awe on the faces of people she had known all her life.


It was only when she saw her eldest sister’s features twisted with anger, resentment and a terrible jealousy that Ash began to understand she was now separated irrevocably from all she had once loved.


Description: Eighteen-year-old Ash is at a state of physical perfection seldom attained at any age. She is not very tall and slender almost to skinniness, with big honey-brown eyes and an extraordinary mop of hair so red it is remarkable in itself. It is neither auburn nor carroty but a blazing, flaming and yet subtle color which is as rare as it is beautiful. She still wears her old brown jersey and skirt, which have shrunk with much washing until they cling to her like a second skin. A red-and-yellow kerchief is knotted around her neck.


(If Ash looks familiar, she should -- I’ve been trying to find a game to play her in for ages, too.)
 
Chaka said:
That. Was. Awesome.
Click to expand...
Thanks :)


I think I did my generic write-up of my character idea quite badly, so I thought I'd need to pull out something a bit more unusual to stand out in a tough crowd.


Some other random points on my still unnamed Solar:


- While he travels Creation battling evil and righting wrongs to try and live up to the ideals of The Unconquered Sun, he isn't unconquered himself. Unable to turn a blind eye to wrongdoing, he has several times set himself against Elder exalts who are by far his superior in power.


While he has so far always been able to accomplish his goal (Freeing slaves, uncovering evidence of awful crimes, repelling the marauding army, etc), he hasn't always won the fight which results from annoying such a powerful being. So far no-one has seen fit to kill him once he's been defeated because he has far too much popularity as well as several powerful allies who would talk umbrage to his execution, but he has earnt several powerful enemies.


- Five years ago, the Deliberative was nineteen votes away from declaring war on him. The Righteous Solar has killed other Solar Exalts three times. The first was an Eclipse Akuma he uncovered. The second was a mad Twilight caste planning to unleash detestation with a variety of super-powered artefacts. These killings were condoned and then quickly covered up. The third was a respected Dawn caste who raped a mortal, which is not a crime the Deliberative would usually punish with anything nearing the severity of capital punishment. The Righteous Solar was not so forgiving when he found out about the crime.


The only reason the Deliberative did not declare was on him is because a sympathetic Sidereal leaked information of the incident to the crime to the general public, causing public opinion to quickly shift in the direction of the Righteous Solar. This in turn made the savviest of the Deliberative vote against the motion, which swayed the vote just enough to ensure he kept his life.


As well as the general displeasure his actions have caused within the Deliberative, this also means there are three new Solars who all have good reason to either hate and fear him for killign their prior incarnations or to wish him well for freeing the Exaltation which found it's way to them and imbued them with incredible power.
 
Unfortunately I don't have one of those epic background teasers written up yet, but at the very least here's my concept:


A newly-exalted No-Moon Lunar. He formerly comes from a community that was directed on raising up priests and thaumaturges, so is very focused on spiritual matters. In fact due to this over-specialization of the place, he has little combat talent beyond that which comes naturally, and the training he has been given since Exalting. On the other hand, his knowledge of spirits, demons, and magic is equal to normally what someone several times his age would be aware of.


I'll come up with a better description later, should this be accepted.
 
A male! Hot damn, we're getting somewhere on gender equality. :P Sounds fine thus far. And Ligier, I'm going to have a load of fun target--er, developing plot for you and Myllinnia. :D
 
I'm going with my Chosen of Secrets that just popped into my head. Works well for both Experienced and Starting characters with little tweaking on backstory.


Basic concept is a shrewd Vizier who is manipulating the new Exalts that she advises. Telling them over and over "A good leader is always willing to take advise, to do otherwise is how mistakes happen." She herself finds pure joy in secretly influencing the Solars (and maybe Lunars as well) in the direction she wants.


She learned from her Sifu that Solars start to not take advise very well as they get more experienced, and she has witnessed some of those outbursts of hubris.
 
Ash has only just arrived at Meru and has no political connections, servants, soldiers, Lunar spouse, Sidereal adviser or even access to her Exaltation's bank account yet. (Alternatively, she's younger than eighteen and still attending school at the insistence of her peers, hence her lack of clout.) She has somewhat higher traits than one would expect from a recent Exalt (i.e. she's a starting First Age Solar rather than a starting Second Age Solar) due to her extensive pre- and post-Exaltation instruction by the small god of her warstrider, Spring Thunder Over the Mountains.


Spring Thunder is more of a Mentor than an Ally, and she tends to rely on his advice and judgment perhaps more than is wise. Ash and Thunder have an extraordinary bond, though. He suffered considerable damage during his time underground, and one of her first priorities will be to get him repaired and restored, whatever it takes. Since this will probably cost much more than she can afford, her quest may lead her into some very strange places. She has a bit of a crush on his projected avatar (as he appears inside the fuselage) without being aware of it; likewise, Thunder himself has strong feelings for his Exalted owner which he doesn't realize, and probably wouldn't understand if he did.
 
I'm tempted to toss in a concept, I'm just not sure whether I'd be better going for the Established or New Solars...


I have a concept for a Night Caste who suffers from a growing paranoia. Born in a shadowland, intimately familiar with the Underworld, and is constantly terrified of the idea of death. His fear is only magnified by the Great Curse, of course.


If he's a new Solar, he's a very quiet one who doesn't like to expose himself or his identity much. Keeps his face covered for official business and has already started forming a network of spies.


If he's an established Solar, he's entrenched himself firmly in a network of servants, spies, and informants. He's constantly afraid that he's under some form of mind-control, and has thoroughly inured himself to several kinds of poison. Learned sorcery more or less exclusively so he could counter it.
 
What's your standpoint on the Craft ability? Just checking as I've seen some STs use the as-in-book version and others custom houserules, and would like to know beforehand.
 
Dawn Fix has been launched.


Just as I go and create an unarmed, unarmored martial artist type for this game, they go and unleash all these charms that make it great to generalise across all the combat abilities!
 
My take 2 Basic Concept is now a page 1 75% complete work in progress. Its far better imo than my Take 2, but I've only changed a few things and expanded on others. (I'd... be working on it now, if it wasn't for a tragic night of sleeplessness that is turning into a day of too tired to try, not tired enough to sleep. I would be. Sooo annoying :? )
 
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