Sidereals - New Beginnings - IC Thread

[Psychie]

It does not take long for the three of you to make your way through the halls to find a room large enough to be able to call forth the Calibration gate. The spell to summon it does not take long to cast, and in moments, the portal is there in the center of the room, waiting for you to use it. Standing just inside the gateway, there is the first of three Celestial Lions that are the guardians of this side of the portal. It looks at the three of you and nods. "Running a bit late, aren't you? Scores of your Order have been using the Gateway in the past half hour. I thought I was going to be trampled!" The Lion chuckles a bit at its own joke as it steps to one side to allow you passage through to the Celestial City.

The inner gate of the portal stands open, and the next six Celestial Lions are there, making sure that whatever comes through the Gate is approved by the Celestial Hierarchy. This side of the Calibration Gate stands in a large plaza, surrounded by the twelve gates that take you to the Blessed Isle, spaced out in a wide circle. The plaza is a busy location, filled with literally thousands of spirits coming and going through their day in Yu-Shan.

Off in the distance you can see the offices of the Bureau of Destiny where the work of the Sidereals takes place, towering up in the air above you. Somewhere inside, you know that the bulk of the Order is already there having their meeting. As you make your way towards the offices, the relative peace of the day is shattered by the sounds of a series of large explosions taking place, blasting a large hole in the side of the offices of the Bureau of Destiny, right where the main conference room is located. The spirits that fill the plaza stop and stare in shock at the sight, and through the opening where smoke and flame is pouring out, you can see bright flashes of Essence and the distinctive glow of dozens of Sidereal animas going full totemic. Without a doubt, there is something bad going on in there.

What do you do?

 

[Sherwood]

It takes a moment for Renna to be able to register the events transpiring in front of them, but once she does, she manages to say, "Great Maidens! What in the name of all that is holy is happening up there? We have to get in there! We may be able to help! Quickly! Gather around me and I'll use my Stormwind Rider spell to move us in fast."

Assuming that both Tien and Euphemia don't have any objections or better suggestions, she casts the spell to get to the burning building much faster than running.

 

[Rykon]

Tien places a hand on Renna's shoulder to signal her not to bother. "No need, I've got this." He takes both Renna and Euphemia by the hands, and with a slight touch of Essence steps through the threads of the battlefield immediately to the roof above the meeting room.

[Activating Glance and Stride for 3m, it's clearly within sight, so Tien can walk there with a reflexive action. Assuming the 1m surcharge to cross through the air and land on the roof to appease the "straight line" limitation]

Spoiler: Glance and Stride

Cost: 2+m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisite Charms: Impeccable Patterned Deployment
and her mirror loved her back.
The character moves with the greatest speed, mimicking the nature for a general’s influence to be everywhere. Aiding beleaguered soldiers one minute, leading troops to victory in the next, his feet cross dozens of yards at a step, as many or as little as he likes. As long as the character moves in a straight line (following the contours of the terrain), he can move as far as he can see. He does not naturally avoid obstacles or people. Spending an additional mote allows him to walk on air for a single tick, moving even to locations that are not accessible from the ground, though he must still have a straight-line path to that place.

 

[Psychie]

OOC Before you make your jump, please make sure you declare what Charms you have active and in use. We are going into this assuming that your Essence pools (except what is committed, of course) is full, and you have all of your Willpower.

Rykon Random Word Sherwood

 

[Random Word]

Euphemia can't see the distant fireworks, but she can hear them, and she can sense the ripples they send through the air around her, and it doesn't require her superhuman intellect to deduce where they're coming from. Though the Lion can't hear her, she replies, "A Sidereal is never late. She arrives precisely when the Maidens intend."

She feels a tug as the world shifts around her and she orients herself by the calamitous resonance of the gauntlet and the sword beneath her. "Thank you, Tien. Such sweet music - you're a hard act to follow, Renna, but would you both kindly give me the pleasure of this dance?" she inquires sweetly, holding both hands out. [If you touch her hand and accept, take +1 Martial Arts dot, +6 Dodge MDV, and you may spend 4m of Euphemia's motes on any attack to make it halve enemy DV and soak, or 11m to make it Perfect. You are considered to be Defend Othering Euphemia reflexively at all times, and can strike dematerialized targets as if they were material (doesn't help you see them, though).]

Spoiler: Active Charms

Earth and Sky Bargain [Gain soak and heal 1 HL per action]
Walking Outside Fate [Be imperceptible to anything inside Fate]
Lion Mouse Stratagem [Be supernaturally unimportant]
Lotus Eye Tactics [Instantly know when anyone you perceive has a combat ability rated at 6 or higher.]
Throne Shadow Form [All Fingers Reflexively Defend Other her.]
Defense of Shining Joy [Replace Dodge with Performance, negate 6 points of penalties to DV]
Harmonic Completion [Add Performance successes to Dodge DV, all dice in performance pools converted to successes.]
Trouble Reduction Strategy [Use Dodge for Defend Other on Renna and Tien]
Optimistic Security Practice [Adds Essence + Resistance (9) to B/L/A soak, and any attack against her requires the attacker to strike and destroy one of their own positive intimacies or abort.]

5 Optimistic Security + 5 Throne Shadow + 5 Defense of Shining Joy = 15
Personal 7/22
Peripheral 34/75
Committed: 16 Harmonious + 10 Earth & Sky + 3 Lotus Eye + 3 Lion Mouse Stratagem + 2 Useful Finger + 5 Walking Outside Fate + 2 Trouble Reduction = 41

 

[Sherwood]

Knowing that Euphemia's combat style involves working in a group to protect one another, Renna will gladly take her hand to get the bonuses of being a part of her martial 'hand'. She says, "Well, I must thank you, dear Euphemia. A fine dance you offer up, and I would be very rude not to accept! Be ready for anything up there."

Spoiler

+1 Martial Arts dot, +6 Dodge MDV, and you may spend 4m of Euphemia's motes on any attack to make it halve enemy DV and soak, or 11m to make it Perfect. You are considered to be Defend Othering Euphemia reflexively at all times, and can strike dematerialized targets as if they were material

Spending 10m 1wp on Echoes of Infinity, activating Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form, 5m on Optimistic Security Practice, and 6m on Pearlescent Filigree Defense, all of which are Scene long in duration, all from Peripheral Essence. Finally, I'll spend 1m on my Anima power, granting a +6 to the Mental Defense Values of all allies within 60 yards, and making everyone immune to mind control from opponents of less than Essence 6.

Health Levels
-0 [ ][ ]
-1 [ ][ ]
-2 [ ][ ][ ]
-4 [ ]
I [ ]

Essence: 6
Personal: 22
Peripheral: 73 / 55 / 33
Committed: 18
Willpower: 10 / 9

Compassion: 3
Conviction: 4
Temperance: 2
Valor: 2

Join Battle: 9

Parry DV: 8 / 10 with War Fans
Dodge DV: 11 / +6 DV from Defending Euphemia

Parry MDV: ?
Dodge MDV: 10

Soak
Bashing: 3
Lethal: 2
Aggravated: 0
Optimistic Security Practice: +12L / 12B / 12A
Pearlescent Filigree Defense: +12L / 18B
Infinite Resplendence Amulet: +1L / +1B

Floating Ribbon (Starmetal)
Speed 5, Accuracy +4, Damage 8L, Defense +0, Rate 2, Attune 5

Seven Jeweled Peacock Fans (Starmetal) x4
Speed 5, Accuracy +4, Damage 8B/4L, Defense +3, Rate 3, Attune 4

 

[Rykon]

Tien takes Euphemia's hand with a smile. His form distorts, shifts, and churns. Energies of creation coalesce in a chaotic yet channeled surge of raw essence now focusing into a diadem upon his brow. "Very kind of you. Of course I'll take this dance."

Spoiler: Active Charms

Without Strategy Arrangement 7m 1w
Prismatic Arrangement of Creation Form 10m 1w
-Four Magical Materials Form 13m
-Soul Fire Shaper Form 13m
-Demesne and Manse Form 4m (Gem of Perfect Mobility)

A lot to unpack here with all the motes spent, but for resource tracking, 41m 2w spent in total. Attunement to artifacts is now paid for by the effect of a charm and he also gains an overdrive pool of 10m.

 

[Psychie]

With Tien's single step, the three companions fly across the intervening space until you find yourselves standing upon the roof of the offices of the Bureau of Destiny. This place usually has a few attendants waiting to assist the various visitors to the building that use the airship landing pads to come and go, but you can see that the violence that has engulfed the building has not missed this place. Four bloody bodies lie scattered about, two appear to have been badly sliced up (in one case, cut in half) by edged weapons, one is riddled with arrows, and the fourth person has been literally ripped in two by some opponent of tremendous strength. Not a pleasant sight.

Heading for the stairs down, you can feel the building shake as another explosion rocks the place. When you get to the floor where the auditorium is, you can see that there are a pair of Celestial Lions that lie dead on either side of the large double doors that hang wide open, savagely cut down by some unknown force. Looking through the open doors, you can see a scene of utter carnage. Multiple explosions have gone off in the chamber that tore through the ranks of the newer Exalted and most of the secretarial staff like a hot knife through butter. Bodies have been tore apart, lying in ever expanding pools of blood. It is a horrible scene.

Towards the front of the chamber where the higher ranked Exalts would sit, the room has been spared from much of the explosive damage, but there are still many dead servants and a handful of the Order. On one wall, there is a figure of a young member of the order, an Exalt recently raised up to the order named Jontom Wren, pinned to the wall by a spear stuck into his chest. He is still alive, struggling to get down even as he is bleeding out.

What is worse, though, is the fact that there are figures that still stand in the room. Three Exalts, all members of the Sidereal order, stand in the middle of the chamber, all in the midst of intense combat with one another, wounded and with anima's blazing. Even as you are moving into the room, your presence is just enough to shift the tide of the fight, and two of the fighters tear into the third, cutting her down.

As one, the two remaining Exalts turn to face you.

At first, it seems that the two fighters still standing were about to turn on you, but they slowly lower their guard. One, a Chosen of Endings named Vai Kallen lets out a sigh. "Thank the Maidens that there are other survivors of the attack! Are you hurt?"

Jontom manages to croak out, "D-don't trust them! They are traitors! They attacked the others when the demons struck!"

Vai shakes her head, saying, "I would have thought that you had learned your lesson, little man." With a flip of her wrist, she flings a dagger out that sinks into the shoulder of Jontom as he's still pinned to the wall, causing him to scream in pain, and the scream brings a smile to Vai's face.

The other one still standing, a Chosen of Battles named Dex Rowan, glares at Vai. "You idiot. You just had to strike the pinned rat, ruining any chance of surprise. Now we'll have to fight the three of them, and they are all fresh."

Join Battle Rolls, everyone!

 

[Random Word]

"Vai, darling, if you wanted to be tempted into sin you should have just called me. I promise I'm better. Selling your soul is so last Age." Euphemia rests a finger on Tien's shoulder and says softly, "Take me to the wounded when you can."

 

[Sherwood]

Renna yanks out a pair of her fans and spreads them wide, dropping into a combat stance. "Are you serious? The two of you are Akuma?!? How could you betray us like this?"

Join Battle roll of 9 dice - 5 successes

Its a good thing that '1's' don't take any away . . .

 

[Rykon]

The chosen of Mars gives a subtle nod and replies in a whisper, "I'll see what I can do, I may have to fight through these pathetic knuckleheads first."

Tien raises his eyes, glaring down Val and Dex with a malevolent smirk. "I wonder, do you think your masters gave you enough slack on that slave leash to keep up with us? I rather doubt it." Light pulsed in his bracers when Tien took his stance.

[Rolling Join Battle, only 3 successes]

 

[Psychie]

Dex has blood dripping from his hands as he lifts up his hands, fingers spread, and pouring forth from his fingertips are thousands of nigh invisible threads that fill the room.

[OOC everyone in the room now suffers a -3 external penalty to your Physical Action die pools and DVs due to the Nest Of Living Strands].

With a second action, he launches himself forward at blinding speed and performs a flying kick at Tien. [13 Successes against Rykon ]
On his third action, he motions towards Renna with a hand, and sends a razor sharp strand towards her. [Only 4 successes. Meh.]

Vai throws a pair of deadly knives Euphemia. [9 successes against Random Word ]

What defenses do you use?

0 - [Dex Rowan]
1 -
2 - [Vai Kallen]
3 - Renna
4 - Euphemia
5 - Tien
6 - Dex Rowan, Vai Kallen

 

[Sherwood]

Renna is able to dodge out of her way, even with the -3 to her Dodge DV.

Spoiler

+1 Martial Arts dot, +6 Dodge MDV, and you may spend 4m of Euphemia's motes on any attack to make it halve enemy DV and soak, or 11m to make it Perfect. You are considered to be Defend Othering Euphemia reflexively at all times, and can strike dematerialized targets as if they were material

Echoes of Infinity, Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form, Optimistic Security Practice, and Pearlescent Filigree Defense active, all of which are Scene long in duration, all from Peripheral Essence. Finally, I'll spend 1m on my Anima power, granting a +6 to the Mental Defense Values of all allies within 60 yards, and making everyone immune to mind control from opponents of less than Essence 6.

Health Levels
-0 [ ][ ]
-1 [ ][ ]
-2 [ ][ ][ ]
-4 [ ]
I [ ]

Essence: 6
Personal: 22
Peripheral: 73 / 55 / 33
Committed: 18
Willpower: 10 / 9

Compassion: 3
Conviction: 4
Temperance: 2
Valor: 2

Join Battle: 9

Parry DV: 8 / 10 with War Fans
Dodge DV: 11 / +6 DV from Defending Euphemia

Parry MDV: ?
Dodge MDV: 10

Soak
Bashing: 3
Lethal: 2
Aggravated: 0
Optimistic Security Practice: +12L / 12B / 12A
Pearlescent Filigree Defense: +12L / 18B
Infinite Resplendence Amulet: +1L / +1B

Floating Ribbon (Starmetal)
Speed 5, Accuracy +4, Damage 8L, Defense +0, Rate 2, Attune 5

Seven Jeweled Peacock Fans (Starmetal) x4
Speed 5, Accuracy +4, Damage 8B/4L, Defense +3, Rate 3, Attune 4

 

[Psychie]

With practiced ease, everyone manages to evade the attacks of the two hostile Sidereals.

Sherwood is up next. Don't forget to include any Speed changes from Charms or I'm going to assume a Speed 5.

0 - [Dex Rowan]
1 -
2 - [Vai Kallen]
3 - Renna <====
4 - Euphemia
5 - Tien
6 - Dex Rowan, Vai Kallen

 

[Sherwood]

If there was any chance to make this right, it looks like that ship has sailed. Renna moves while trying to stay calm, knowing that anger is now her biggest enemy. She asks in a conversational tone of voice, "So, what was it that made betraying your family worthwhile? Did the Yozis offer you money? Power? Something else entirely? Whatever it was, can you honestly say that it was worth your life?"

She then gestures at the two traitors with her fans, letting their reflections play across the starmetal surface of the weapons. Renna then feints towards Dex, then shifts at the last moment to strike at Vai, seeing just how well this Chosen of Endings will be able to handle the attack.

Spoiler

Activating Reaching Through the Mirror for both Vai and Dex, making all of my attacks unblockable, and applying a -2 negative penalty to their DVs against my attacks. In addition, I'm lowering my Target Number to 4, and adding 6 dice in from my First Dex Excellency.

MA 7 + Dex 6 + Specialty 3 + Excellency 6 + Accuracy 4 + Stunt 2 = 28 dice at a Difficulty of 4.

23 successes to hit - 3 from the Nest of Living Strands = 20 successes total

+1 Martial Arts dot, +6 Dodge MDV, and you may spend 4m of Euphemia's motes on any attack to make it halve enemy DV and soak, or 11m to make it Perfect. You are considered to be Defend Othering Euphemia reflexively at all times, and can strike dematerialized targets as if they were material

Echoes of Infinity, Obsidian Shards of Infinity Form, Optimistic Security Practice, and Pearlescent Filigree Defense active, all of which are Scene long in duration, all from Peripheral Essence. Finally, I'll spend 1m on my Anima power, granting a +6 to the Mental Defense Values of all allies within 60 yards, and making everyone immune to mind control from opponents of less than Essence 6.

Health Levels
-0 [ ][ ]
-1 [ ][ ]
-2 [ ][ ][ ]
-4 [ ]
I [ ]

Essence: 6
Personal: 22
Peripheral: 73 / 55 / 37
Committed: 18
Willpower: 10 / 9

Compassion: 3
Conviction: 4
Temperance: 2
Valor: 2

Join Battle: 9

Parry DV: 8 / 10 with War Fans
Dodge DV: 11 / +6 DV from Defending Euphemia

Parry MDV: ?
Dodge MDV: 10

Soak
Bashing: 3
Lethal: 2
Aggravated: 0
Optimistic Security Practice: +12L / 12B / 12A
Pearlescent Filigree Defense: +12L / 18B
Infinite Resplendence Amulet: +1L / +1B

Floating Ribbon (Starmetal)
Speed 5, Accuracy +4, Damage 8L, Defense +0, Rate 2, Attune 5

Seven Jeweled Peacock Fans (Starmetal) x4
Speed 5, Accuracy +4, Damage 8B/4L, Defense +3, Rate 3, Attune 4

 

[Psychie]

Sherwood , the way that the penalty in Nest of Living Strands is written is not that it is -3 successes, but -3 dice. If I we were to just take away the last three dice rolled it would come out to the same. No harm done.

So, with your roll and the minuses that you applied to Vai and her wound penalties, you hit with 6 successes. Go ahead and roll your damage. Her Lethal soak is 30 at the moment.

 

[Sherwood]

I don't have an Overwhelming rating for my fans, so my only damage done is Essence ping. IIRC, in 2.5, that has been changed to just one die. Here goes nothing....

Crap.

 

[Psychie]

Ok, with 20 successes to hit doing Aggravated damage, reducing Vai's DV by half and another -2 on top of that, it gives her a 6 DV if I calculated right, giving you 14 successes to hit. Her Agg soak is 14. Go ahead and recalculate and roll your damage, and disregard that first roll you made.

 

[Sherwood]

Wow. That bumps my roll to six dice. Thanks, Random Word !

3 damage levels

 

[Psychie]

Vai is nearly cut in two from the power of your attack, and she stumbles backwards while trying to hold her intestines in and keep them from falling out all over the floor. As she struggles with her injuries, she has finally lost too much blood and falls to the ground.

Random Word is up with Euphemia

1 -
2 - [Vai Kallen]
3 - [Renna]
4 - Euphemia <====
5 - Tien
6 - Dex Rowan
7 -
8 - Renna

 

[Psychie]

Hold on. I forgot to reduce Vai's Agg soak by half. Sherwood , you have 7 more damage dice to roll

 

[Sherwood]

Oh, darn.

3 more levels

 

[Psychie]

Ok, she's down. Its just Dex against the three of you.

Random Word is up

 

[Random Word]

As the threads of spider's silk fill the room, Euphemia slips between them as she dances for nothing but the sheer unmitigated joy of it to the celestial music produced by the resonant thrum of the strands of fate that portend joy and good fortune. So long as she dances, fate will bend over backwards to ensure she meets nothing but joy, and her colleagues being kicked in the face is not conducive to her happiness. She reaches out and grasps Tien's hand, pulling him gently with her through the space between heartbeats, into that place young lovers go when their eyes first meet and everything else in the world ceases to exist, then depositing him back in reality as Dex's kick and Vai's daggers meet only empty air. She grasps a strand of violent fate trailing behind the dagger as it flies over her shoulder, tracing it back to its source, tying it to the strand of fate that connects Renna to her little finger, making the minor sign of Saturn, sealing the knot with blood pricked from her thumb, and then plucking the string to set it resonating in the opposite direction. "Saturn sends her love," she says with a smile as she feels the air ripple around Renna's ribbon as it cleaves Vai in half.

She follows the sound of the plaintive cry evoked by Vai's earlier knife until she reaches Jontom, brushing her crimson-wreathed fingers against his cheek to see if the flesh blackens and burns. If he is not a creature of darkness, she leans in to give him a kiss on the cheek, whispering, "This looks like a problem for tomorrow you."

[Euphemia is using Deferred Pain, committing 12m to defer 6 points of Lethal damage to delay Jontom being impaled by a spear until she releases her commitment to the Charm. Doesn't work if the spear was Aggravated damage. Simple Charm, Speed 5.]

 

[Psychie]

Euphemia's dance through the combat is pure grace, sliding past the bloody bodies on the ground as if they were not even there. Soon, she finds herself standing next to the gravely wounded Jontom. Through use of your Charm, you are able to pull the knife from his shoulder and his injury heals quickly, deferred for another day. The wound caused by the iron spear, however, is a bit more grievous. When you pull on it, Jontom lets out a anguished groan as he slumps to the ground, gasping for breath. The young Exalt will live, but he will be sporting a nasty scar.

Rykon is up with Tien

3 - [Renna]
4 - [Euphemia]
5 - Tien <====
6 - Dex Rowan
7 -
8 - Renna
9 - Euphemia