<div align="center"><span class="bbc_u">Exalted: Words of Creation OOC Thread</span><br/><br/>(https://i.imgur.com/esxRKj3l.jpg)<br/><br/><br/><span class="bbc_u">Thread Index:</span><br/><br/>Preludes:<br/>Hungry Mouse (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=310396.msg15064460#msg15064460)<br/>Kisara (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=310398.0)<br/>Talion (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=310399.0)<br/>Zavros (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=310400.0)<br/>Chapter 1: Group Prelude (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=311428.0)<br/><br/>Current: Chapter 2: The House of Azure (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=313722.0)<br/><br/><br/><span class="bbc_u">Character Roster:</span></div><br/>Mnemon Kisara (Dawn), played by<strong>Ivory Dawn</strong><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Kisara</div><div class="spoiler_body">Name: Mnemon Kisara<br/>Concept: Dynast-turned-Solar Warrior<br/>Theme Music: Metalwings - Crying of the Sun (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vqBwWt-Qa4)<br/>Caste: Dawn<br/>Experience: 3 (next level at 6)<br/>Level: 2<br/><br/>Attributes:<br/>STR 16 (+2)<br/>DEX 13 (+1)<br/>CON 14 (+1)<br/>INT 13 (+1)<br/>WIS 16 (+2)<br/>CHA 10 (+0)<br/><br/>Attribute Checks (21 - attribute score):<br/>STR 5+, DEX 8+, CON 7+, INT 8+, WIS 5+, CHA 11+<br/><br/>Saves:<br/>Hardiness: 12 <br/>Evasion: 17<br/>Spirit: 12<br/><br/>Attacks: Twin axes +7, Dmg 1d10+3<br/><br/>Armor Class: 4 (Medium armor)<br/>Hit Points: 14<br/><br/>Facts:<br/>Origin: Born to (extreme) privilege. <br/>Upbringing: Became a Legionnaire to escape the scorn of her family.<br/>Relationship: Determined to make right the wrongs the Empire has wrought.<br/>Exaltation / Recent Activities: Exalted saving the lives of her scale, and hid out in shame until she realized the actions of most Dynasts make them the real monsters<br/>Caste:  The Dawn Caste are the warriors of the Sun, fearless and able to turn back any foe.<br/><br/>Words: Melee, War, Awareness<br/><br/>Intrinsic Word Benefits: <br/>Melee: All weapons attacks count as magical. Cannot be disarmed. Can summon any melee weapon previously used immediately to hand as an action.<br/><br/>War: May roll 1d20 once per day. At any time during the day, may replace own or someone’s 1d20 roll with the banked one. This replacement can occur once per day.<br/><br/>Awareness: Cannot be surprised. May set Wisdom to 16, or 18 if it’s already 16 or higher.  <br/><br/>Caste Abilities: Terrifying Mein: (Action) Commit Eﬀort to the end of the scene. All NPC foes who can see or hear you, must instantly make a Morale check. Lesser foes roll this at a -2 penalty. Foes that fail this check will usually ﬂee in terror, albeit those without a means of escape might surrender on the spot. This gift can be used against a foe only once per scene, and PCs are immune<br/><br/>Gifts:<br/>By Chance: (Action) Commit Eﬀort for the scene. The player dictates an event in their presence that isn’t utterly improbable, and it happens. Damage to foes is limited to a 1d12 die for a focused calamity on a single target or a 1d6 damage die apiece for troubles that aﬀect a group. This power aﬀects only physical objects and events, and not minds or emotions.<br/><br/>Eyes Above: (Action) Gain a bird’s-eye view of a mile around you, gazing swiftly enough to immediately spot particular individuals or things you might be looking for. You can focus on individual locations within that mile, observing everything going on but unable to overhear ordinary speech. The sight cannot penetrate roofs or other cover.<br/><br/>Thirsting Razor: (Constant) Commit Eﬀort. You always hit lesser foes with your melee attacks. No attack roll is necessary, but this benefit applies only to actual melee weapon or unarmed attacks, and not to other eﬀects that involve hitting a foe to inﬂict a hostile eﬀect.<br/><br/>Disclose the Flaw: (Instant) Commit Eﬀort for the scene and choose a target, either creature or institution. Know its current weaknesses and most vulnerable elements at that time, including any hidden means by which it might be killed or destroyed. Creatures reveal their hit dice and Eﬀort totals.<br/><br/>Hope of the Dawn: (On turn) Commit Eﬀort. You and allies within your general area gain a Morale of 12 and an invincible defense against magical emotional inﬂuence. Allied NPCs gain +1 hit die and +1 to hit. Those in sight of you have an instinctive awareness of your wishes, though they are not compelled to obey.<br/><br/>Contempt of Distance: (Constant) Your movement action can take you to any point in movement range, provided the path is unobstructed and there’s a target to hit at the end of the move. A hero could thus dash straight to a rooftop or balcony without navigating the physical route there. Foes too far away to reach in one round can be pursued over multiple rounds, but they must be attacked once reached. Tis pursuit can even extend into the air, supporting the hero until they defeat their enemy or choose to disengage, whereupon they land safely at a point below.<br/><br/>Effort: 3<br/>Influence: 3<br/>Dominion: 0<br/>Spent Dominion: 0<br/><br/>Influence Commitments: None<br/>Dominion Projects: None<br/><br/>Weapons: Twin axes (dual-wield)<br/>Armor: Legion-issue chainmail<br/>Other: A horse and a change of clothes<br/>Wealth Level: +0<br/><br/>Appearance: (https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48679678243_1933471577_b.jpg) <br/><br/>Background: Kisara was born to House Mnemon, the result of a perfectly arranged marriage between two impeccably bred Dragonborn. She, as all the Dynastic children are, went to the best schools, had the finest tutors, all the best resources a young soon-to-Exalt Princess of the Earth could.<br/><br/>Except she didn’t Exalt.<br/><br/>As time went on, and her siblings Exalted . . . and her cousins . . . and her friends . . . the tension in her family grew and grew as she didn’t. When her oldest sister’s daughter was blessed by the Dragons, that was the end of hope. She wasn’t good enough to have the power gifted to her, no matter how carefully she’d been bred and raised. Her parents were fighting, both implying the other was to blame. And Kisara made a choice for herself, for the first time in her life. She ran away and joined the Legions.<br/><br/>When her parents realized what she’d done, they were secretly relieved – no one had wanted to suggest sending her there, but now that she was there . . . well, at least she wasn’t still around the manor, reminding everyone of the failure. So they paid for a decent commission (in the Threshold, of course, to get her all the way off the Blessed Isle), and off she went.<br/><br/>In the Legions, it was better. She wouldn’t be fast-tracked to officer, but eventually she’d be able to move up. And even if she couldn’t, her scale was more like a family than her own, so at least she had that going for her. They were friends, and she couldn’t have valued that more.<br/><br/>One day, her scale was sent on a simple patrol, and ran afoul of a hoard of beastmen. The half-animal wildmen attacked with a fury even the more experienced Legionnaires couldn’t explain, a frenzy that left all of them scrambling for their lives. In the heat and madness of that fight, Kisara found the thing she’d wished for the most through her entire life. She took her second breath and Exalted.<br/><br/>When the fight was over, she stood there panting, covered in the blood of what seemed like countless beastmen and more of her comrades than she wanted to think about. It wasn’t until then that she realized she wasn’t covered in a blazing halo of flame or a shower of rain . . . it was golden light of the dawn that cloaked her.<br/><br/>She dropped her weapons and dropped to her knees, knowing she was a monster. Most of her scale was unconscious or incapable of moving, which likely saved her life. Had they been able to, they would have attacked, and likely killed her, in that moment of panic and self-loathing. But when Kisara saw their reinforcements topping a rise, her self-preservation instinct kicked in and she ran like the Ebon Dragon himself was chasing her.<br/><br/>It took a week to shake the Hunt, and then she went to ground in a small village that was only subject to the Empire in name. Largely, she spent most of her time hiding and waiting for the impulses she knew she would have: Eating babies, consuming human flesh, indiscriminate murder. But they didn’t come. After a month of living on her own, away from as many people as she could, she wasn’t a monster. She was just dirty and hungry.<br/><br/>So Kisara scrubbed herself clean in a nearby river, cleaned the clothes she was wearing as well as she could, and marched into the town. She commandeered supplies and a horse from the Immaculate Temple there as a daughter of the Empire (though she used the name Tepet Vilara, just in case they had heard about Mnemon Kisara) and headed off to right the wrongs she saw the Empire inflicting on people.<br/><br/>Personality: Kisara spent a lot of her 24 years as a disappointment, and trying to make up for that by being a model child. She doesn’t like showing much emotion, and frequently seems cold. She is well aware that the familial feelings she had for her scale wouldn’t have kept them from killing her as anathema, so she is very reluctant to let people get too close or show vulnerability. Deep down, however, she’s a caring person who doesn’t want to get hurt by betrayal again. She’s a little bit of a hedonist, and prefers to stay in nice places when possible – she is still a Dynast, after all.<br/><br/>She also changes her alias every so often in the hopes of keeping the Wild Hunt (and the rest of her family) from tracking her down.<br/></div></div><br/><br/>Hungry Mouse (Dawn), played by<strong>Guancyto</strong><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Hungry Mouse</div><div class="spoiler_body">Name: Hungry Mouse<br/>Concept: Recovering Religious Zealot<br/>Theme Music: Johannes Bornlöf  - And the Sky Shall Unfold (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bP4eWOEnY9Y)<br/>Caste: Dawn<br/>Experience: 3 (next level at 6)<br/>Level: 2<br/><br/>Attributes:<br/>STR 14 (+1)<br/>DEX 18 (+3)<br/>CON 16 (+2)<br/>INT  13 (+1)<br/>WIS 13 (+1)<br/>CHA 10 (0)<br/><br/>Attribute Checks (21 - attribute score):<br/>STR 7+, DEX 3+, CON 5+, INT 8+, WIS 8+, CHA 11+<br/><br/>Saves:<br/>Hardiness: 13<br/>Evasion: 12<br/>Spirit: 14<br/><br/>Attacks:<br/>Literally Anything (Melee): Attack +7, Damage 1d10+4<br/>Knives (Ranged): Attack +7, Damage 1d6+3<br/><br/>Armour Class: 0<br/>Hit Points: 15<br/><br/>Facts:<br/>Origin: Came from a village indoctrinated by Lunars into rebellion against the Realm.<br/>Upbringing: Raised as a sword-saint, to burn up in the crucible of war.<br/>Relationship: Trying to find a place where the refugees from her village can find peace.<br/>Exaltation / Recent Activities: Exalted when she turned her back on her cause and sought to save the lives of those dear to her.<br/>Caste: The Dawn Caste are the warriors of the Sun, fearless and able to turn back any foe.<br/><br/>Words: Melee, Athletics, Medicine<br/><br/>Intrinsic Word Benefits: <br/>Treat all weapon or unarmed attacks as magical. Cannot be disarmed. Can summon any melee weapon ever used as an Instant action.<br/>Cannot be surprised. Dexterity is set to 16, or 18 if it is already 16 or higher.<br/>Invincible defense against diseases and poison, and can diagnose these instantly. Constitution is set to 16, or 18 if it is already 16 or higher.<br/><br/>Caste Abilities: Gain Terrifying Mien as a bonus gift, and gain +2 on all attack rolls.<br/><br/>Gifts (8pts + 1 bonus):<br/>Terrifying Mien (Action) - Commit Effort to the end of the scene. All NPC foes who can see or hear you must instantly make a Morale check. Lesser foes roll this at a -2 penalty. Foes that fail this check will usually flee in terror, albeit those without a means of escape might surrender on the spot. This gift can be used against a foe only once per scene, and PCs are immune.<br/>Shattering Hand (On Turn) - Commit Effort. Your melee damage rolls and Fray dice are always the maximum possible. You can destroy barriers as thick as five feet of stonework in front of you in one round’s action, smashing them with a blow or as part of your movement action. Magical substances may resist this power.<br/>The Storm Breaks (Instant) - Before the first round of every combat or time-sensitive circumstance, you may Commit Effort for the scene to get one free bonus round before anyone else acts. Two heroes using this gift roll opposed Dexterity attribute checks to see who takes their action first.<br/>Flickering Advance (On Turn) - Commit Effort to scene end. Instantly reach any location you can see with your unaided sight out to the horizon, which is usually about three miles away for a character standing on flat terrain. From a high elevation, the maximum range is ten times as far.<br/>Flesh Made True (Action) - You are able to cure a target's maimings, blindings, poisons, mutilations, and birth defects by sight once per round. This does not heal hit point damage, but it can restore lost limbs and crippled functionality.<br/><br/>Walk Between the Rain (Constant) - Your natural AC is 3. You cannot be hit by anything not driven by a purpose unless you allow it; falling objects will never strike you unless some will to harm you set them in motion. Traps meant to hit an intruder have a chance to hit you. Armor and shields don't benefit you.<br/>All Directions As One (Constant) - You can navigate vertical or overhanging surfaces as if they were flat ground. You can pass through rough terrain effortlessly. You have an invulnerable defense against being pushed or made to fall.<br/>Steel Without End (Constant) - All your melee weapon attacks are treated as magic weapons doing a 1d10+1 damage die, including unarmed attacks. As with all weapon-boosting gifts, you may use any attribute to modify attacks made in this way, provided you can explain how it is relevant to your style.<br/><br/><br/>Effort: 3<br/>Influence: 3<br/>Dominion: 0<br/>Spent Dominion: 0<br/><br/>Influence Commitments: None<br/>Dominion Projects: None<br/><br/>Weapons: Any<br/>Armour: Dress<br/>Other: Mo Problems<br/>Wealth Level: +0<br/><br/>Appearance: Hungry Mouse is of middling height, but with a firm musculature that speaks to a life of training and physical activity. She has flowing silver hair and ice-blue eyes, and steel in her gaze only matched by the steel at her hip. <br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Portrait</div><div class="spoiler_body">(https://i.imgur.com/wokpHaE.jpg)</div></div><br/>Background: Once, there was a boy,<br/>Who thought his fate was the grandest in all Creation,<br/>He would shape nations, save a thousand-thousand lives.<br/>He trained until his body was iron,<br/>He learned until his mind was steel.<br/>He leapt the moon in a single bound to pluck stars from the sky.<br/><br/>He fought with a sword-saint,<br/>Who lopped off his head with a single blow.<br/>For the first time, she wept.<br/>And put down her blade,<br/>For it only destroyed what was beautiful.<br/>'Oh,' said the head, 'so that's how it is.'<br/><br/>Hungry Mouse was going to save the world. That's all she had ever wanted to do, and that's what she had spent her whole life preparing for. The temple of the Great Stag was the only place she felt at peace, and her parents would often find her stealing candles to exchange for more stories from the storyteller, keeping the old woman up until the wee hours of the morning. She was sternly lectured for falling asleep during the day - the village was poor and they needed the labors of every last son and daughter to survive.<br/><br/>She knew of the Realm, of course, the wretched hateful Realm with their men of iron and jade, how they must smile and offer tribute when those men came, and how they would crush it during the Glorious Revolution, in which the Great Stag returned to lead them to save the world from the Realm's evil. When she was old enough she trained tirelessly to participate, teached of the Stag's wisdom whenever it was safe. "Some of the teachings do not make sense," she would say to anyone who would listen, "but who wants sense in a senseless world like ours? Better that they teach our spines to be stiff to throw off our yoke."<br/><br/>Unlike so many in Creation, her wish came true. The Great Stag, clad in silver and moonlight, returned in her lifetime. She and others of her caliber were anointed Sword-Saints, who would have the Moon's blessings to drive the men of iron and jade before them.<br/><br/>An uprising at this time and place, the Silver Pact had determined, would force the Realm to divert a legion away from defending more important assets. Taking advantage of this weakness in their defense, a Lunar strike force destroyed a dam, flooding an entire Realm-aligned city and killing hundreds or thousands of their troops, and stole a priceless artifact of the First Age in the bargain. It was, as they say, a huge victory for the good guys. (The jury was still out on whether it could even be a turning point in the whole war.)<br/><br/>Hungry Mouse's village, of course, was utterly destroyed. The depth of their heresy and rebellion when brought to light could not be salvaged, but even if it could, her Revolution saw children with spears throwing themselves fearlessly against trained Realm legionnaires. Everyone she knew was going to be slaughtered to the last. Betraying her training and her cause she fled the battle and took shelter in the woods. There, by some coincidence she found the storyteller. <br/><br/>At swordpoint she demanded if the storyteller knew that they would lose against the Realm. The answer stilled her blood.<br/><br/>"Of course. But the birth of the butterfly is the death of the caterpillar. What you have done here will spread and grow, until we are all free."<br/><br/>Mouse fell to her knees, looking at the blood on her hands. "Was any of it true?"<br/><br/>The storyteller nodded sagely. "All of it."<br/><br/>"Even the lies?!" Mouse pressed.<br/><br/>"<em>Especially</em> the lies. What is true, little one, if not what we wish to make so? So, what will you do? Will you go back, fight evil, fulfill your destiny?"<br/><br/>Mouse felt like she took a long time to answer, as her insides filled with lead and her eyes stung with tears that would not come. In that time the storyteller had gone, probably off to train another village to die for her, but Mouse did not see her go.<br/><br/>"I will," she rose at last, although there was no one left to hear it, and the words did not escape her lips, "not for you, or for my god, or for your cause, but because my people deserve to live."<br/><br/>And as she descended to spill her blood so some last remnant of her people might survive, the light of the sun filled every corner of the forest, as though the trees were on fire.<br/><br/>And safely away, the storyteller smiled. This little nothing of a village might have turned out to be very valuable indeed.<br/><br/>Personality: Hungry Mouse is blunt and straightforward. Deprogramming from a lifetime of dedication makes her lacking in social graces and she has difficulty relating to people, but she makes up for it in enthusiasm. Hopefully. While a gifted medic, she has it on good authority that her bedside manner is <em>terrible</em>.<br/></div></div><br/><br/>Talion / Talona (Night), played by<strong>Armphid</strong><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Talion/Tolina</div><div class="spoiler_body"><strong>Name:</strong> Talion/Tolina AKA The Prodigious Youth, The Smiling Thief, That Hot Blond<br/><strong>Concept:</strong> Gender Bending Heroic Thief<br/><strong>Theme Music:</strong> Make My Story – Lenny code fiction (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGic3vNgl9E)<br/><strong>Caste:</strong> Night<br/><strong>Experience:</strong> 3 (next level at 6)<br/><strong>Level:</strong> 2<br/><br/><strong>Attributes:</strong><br/>STR 10 / +0<br/>DEX 18 / +3<br/>CON 13 / +1<br/>INT 14 / +1<br/>WIS 13 / +1<br/>CHA 18 / +3<br/><br/><strong>Attribute Checks:</strong><br/>STR 11+, DEX 3+, CON 8+, INT 7+, WIS 8+, CHA 3+<br/><br/><strong>Saves:</strong><br/>Hardiness: 13+<br/>Evasion: 11+<br/>Spirit: 11+<br/><br/><strong>Attacks:</strong><br/>Dagger: Attack +6, Damage 1d6+4<br/>Sling: Attack +6, Damage 1d6+4, Range 40<br/><br/><strong>Armour Class:</strong> 0<br/><strong>Hit Points:</strong> 14<br/><br/><strong>Facts:</strong><br/><strong>Origin:</strong> Grew up poor in Nexus after his family’s business was crushed by the wealthy<br/><strong>Upbringing:</strong> Became a daring thief who wasn’t afraid to whore himself to get what he could to give to the poor.<br/><strong>Relationship:</strong> Searching Creation to steal from the powerful and privileged to improve the lot of the downtrodden.<br/><strong>Exaltation / Recent Activities:</strong> Exalted when faced with a bound demon after stealing from a Dragon-Blooded and was exiled from Nexus, he now travels to find new targets for his theft and help.<br/><strong>Caste:</strong> The Night Caste are the infiltrators of the Unconquered Sun, fearlessly delving into the darkest of places.<br/><br/><strong>Words:</strong> Athletics, Larceny, Presence<br/><br/><strong>Intrinsic Benefits:</strong><br/>Athletics: You cannot be surprised. Your Dexterity score becomes 16, or 18 if it was already 16 or higher.<br/>Larceny: Your Charisma score becomes 16, or 18 if it was already 16 or higher.<br/>Presence: Your Charisma score becomes 16, or 18 if it was already 16 or higher.<br/><br/><strong>Caste Abilities:</strong> Gain Veiled Step as a bonus Gift, and you can spend one extra point of Effort (two total) in each scene without it counting towards Incandescent Power.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Gifts:</strong><br/><br/>Walk Between the Rain (Constant): Your AC is 3, which cannot be improved by armour or shields. You cannot be struck by falling or flying objects that were not launched as an intentional attack.<br/><br/>Fashioning a Friend (Action, Scene): A chosen creature becomes friendly and cooperative towards you for a scene, unless you do it obvious harm. Worthy foes can make a Spirit save to resist being beguiled.<br/><br/>Effort of the Word: Your maximum Effort increases by 1. You can take this Gift once per Word you know, but every purchase after the first costs two gift points instead of one.<br/><br/>All Directions As One (Constant): You can move across surfaces of any angle as if they were flat ground, and your movement is not impeded by terrain. You cannot be pushed or knocked prone.<br/><br/>Veiled Step (On Turn, Indefinite): You cannot be detected by enemies if you stay out of their immediate vicinity and do not draw attention to yourself. Worthy foes make a Spirit save to have a normal chance at noticing you.<br/><br/>Master of the Key (Constant / Instant, Scene): You can automatically open or disarm any mundane lock, trap, binding or seal without using an action. You can Commit Effort for the scene to instantly open, disarm or remove magical barriers, traps, bindings or locks nearby, even if the binding is magical or mental in nature or if it would render you helpless.<br/><br/>The Storm Breaks (Instant, Scene): Before the first round of combat or another time-sensitive situation, you can activate this Gift and immediately take one round of actions before anybody else acts.<br/><br/>All-Encompassing Presence (On Turn, Indefinite): While this Gift is active, you may instantly move up to 100ft twice during each of your turns, to any location that you could normally reach.<br/><br/><strong>Effort:</strong> 4<br/><strong>Influence:</strong> 3<br/><strong>Dominion:</strong> 0<br/><strong>Spent Dominion:</strong> 0<br/><br/><strong>Influence Commitments:</strong> None<br/><strong>Dominion Projects:</strong> None<br/><br/><strong>Weapons:</strong> Dagger, Sling<br/><strong>Armour:</strong> None<br/><strong>Other:</strong> Hearthstone of Gender Change, Rain-Glimpsed Agora (Water-aspected Manse)<br/><strong>Wealth Level:</strong> +0<br/><strong>Appearance:</strong>  Talion (https://cache-na.finalfantasy.com/uploads/content/file/2019/07/11/7369/35_Thief_of_Tantalus.png)<br/>Tolina (https://i.pinimg.com/236x/23/b6/31/23b6311d764e6d8df71ecab45c71c7b4--final-fantasy-ix-zidane.jpg)<br/><br/><strong>Background:</strong> Talion’s family were merchants in Nexus until a group of wealthy and powerful Guild members decided they wanted the family’s holdings.  A few bribes later and the family business was seized by the order of the Council of Entities citing a law about wearing red on the holy days of Venus and the family was left destitute, forced to live in squalor in the Firewander district.  Talion was very young when this happened but he clearly remembers that rich people ruined his family just because they could and their wealth both enabled and protected them.  <br/><br/>On the hard streets of Firewander, the family did what they had to in order to survive.  Talion quickly learned to beg, pick pockets, and as he grew, to break in and outright steal.  His mother worked as a prostitute and when he got old enough, Talion started doing the same, whoring himself to bring in enough coin to make it.  He ended up being a good thief and his hauls got bigger and better, allowing his family some comfort and stability.  While he was on good terms with the Firewander gangs, he preferred to work alone as a thief.  In order to make sure no one ratted them out, Talion shared his loot with his friends and neighbors and that…felt good.  He started giving away more than he kept.  It felt like he wasn’t so much as stealing but taking back what Nexus owed the people it exploited to be such a profitable place. <br/><br/>This led him to his most ambitious robbery yet.  He actually managed to get into the wealthy Bastion District and cased a huge manor there.  On the night of the new moon, he slipped inside and made off with jewelry and raw jade worth a small fortune.  Unfortunately, the home’s owner was a Dragon-Blooded sorcerer who had bound a demon to watch over her estate.  The demon pursued Talion across the city until it cornered him.  With no way out but through this ultimate example of a resource the rich could have and the poor couldn’t, Talion took his Second Breath and managed to put the demon down.  He was still blazing with power when the Emissary appeared.  It spoke of his thefts and claimed he had interfered with trade; Talion disagreed and said that by giving money to the poor, he was growing trade as they could then buy goods and services.  Perhaps amused by this, The Emissary did not kill him but exiled him instead.  Talion left Nexus that same day.  He wasn’t sure which way to go until he heard of Gem.  Now there was a place where the wealthy lorded it over helpless poor people even more than they did in Nexus.  So he set off southward to find the powerful and rich who needed to be humbled by a few thefts and have their wealth spread among those more deserving of it.<br/><br/>Soon after crossing into Hacre, he came upon a spot in the arid highlands that felt somehow familiar.  It may have been chance or fate but a brief and fleeting rain shower passed over the area which revealed the outline of the Rain-Glimpsed Agora, leading him to approach the long-abandoned Manse.  Claiming it for his own, he now has a base of operations that is relatively secret, as it only appears when it is rained upon or one is attuned to it.  The Hearthstone within allows him to swap gender, becoming what he would be if he had been born female instead of male.  Dubbing the female self Tolina, she decided to use both genders as disguises for each other to better infiltrate and rob the powerful to support the weak.<br/><br/><strong>Personality:</strong> Talion is a youth, barely 19 years old, and growing up on the mean streets of Firewander, death was never far away.  As a result, he lives boldly and takes risks, determined to make the most of what he’s sure will be a short life.  The fact that as a Solar Exalted, he could live for millennia hasn’t really sunk in.  He still could get killed tomorrow, so better live for today!  That said, he doesn’t rush into danger headlong.  He wants to survive as long as he can, he just wants to make the time he’s got as fun as possible.<br/><br/>He is a smiling, laughing thief when caught or spotted, openly daring pursuit and teasing his opponents.  He is also a flirt and doesn’t hesitate to do so with any man or woman he finds attractive.  He sees his life as a story and wants to make sure it’s a memorable one full of passion, excitement, sex, fighting, adventure, all that one can find while still making Creation a better place.<br/><br/>Tolina is much the same, perhaps even more of a flirt than Talion.  She feels freer than him in some ways and the fact that she is a relative unknown is something she uses to her advantage, leading others to believe that the two are separate people who work together.</div></div><br/><br/>Zavros Tellson (Twilight), played by<strong>Zaval</strong><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Zavros Tellson</div><div class="spoiler_body">Name: Zavros Tellson<br/>Concept: Apprentice Smith who desires Order and Growth<br/>Theme Music: Polemos (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91v7VPe4r2s)<br/>Caste: Twilight Caste<br/>Experience: 0<br/>Level: 2<br/><br/>Attributes:<br/>STR 14 / + 1<br/>DEX 13 / + 1<br/>CON 18 / + 3<br/>INT 10 / + 0<br/>WIS 16 / + 2<br/>CHA 13 / + 1<br/><br/>Attribute Checks:<br/>STR 21-14=7, DEX 21-13=8, CON 21-18=3, INT 21-10=11, WIS 21-16=5, CHA 21-13=8<br/><br/>Saves:<br/>Hardiness: 15-3-1=11<br/>Evasion: 15-1-1=13<br/>Spirit: 15-2-1=12<br/><br/>Attacks: 1d10 (+4)<br/><br/>Armour Class: 2 (3 w/Reverence of Steel, -1 from DEX Modifier)<br/>Hit Points: 15<br/><br/>Facts:<br/><br/>Origin: An apprentice smith from the outskirts of Hacre. Sought employment due to family's farm facing foreclosure by the Guild 'with permission from the Good Kings of Hacre.'<br/><br/>Upbringing: An unremarkable upbringing from farmers in the rural outskirts of Hacre. Yet he was brought up with a love of seeing things grow. At first it was from crops; seeing things grow from your hands was an incredible thing. But as he gained employment as an apprentice smith to help earn some money outside of planting and harvest seasons, that fascination grew to seeing things made by his hand in the forge.<br/><br/>Relationship: A positive relationship with his Master, an older smith in the village who saw potential in Zavros. Often spoke of his contemporaries in Hacre, where he actively retired away from. Most of them were not smiths, but of the more actively respected alchemists and brewers offering independent quality goods to their communities.<br/><br/>Recent Activites:<br/>Caste: Twilight<br/><br/>Words: Artifice, Bureaucracy, Endurance<br/>Intrinsic Word Abilities:<br/><br/>- Bureaucracy: You know when someone makes a deal with you in bad faith, unless they have supernatural deception-related abilities.<br/><br/>- Craft: You can create a portable manmade object as a round's action, using available materials. Your labour on crafting-related projects is equivalent to 100 normal workers.<br/><br/>- Resilience: You do not need to eat, sleep or breathe.<br/><br/>Caste Abilities: Subtle Eye<br/><br/>Gifts:<br/>1: Reverence of Steel (Greater Gift)<br/>2: Ten Thousand Tools<br/>3: Hammerhand<br/>4: Amaranth Vitality<br/>5: Sustain the Multitude<br/>6: Influence of the Word (Artifice)<br/>7: Effort of the Word (Artifice)<br/>Bonus: Subtle Eye of Knowing<br/><br/>Effort: 4<br/>Influence: 5<br/>Dominion: 0<br/>Spent Dominion: 0<br/><br/>Influence Commitments: None<br/><br/>Dominion Projects: None yet<br/><br/>Weapons: Smith's Hammer (One-Handed Weapon, 1d10 when used by Zavros)<br/>Armour: Iron-Enmeshed Leather Armor (Would count as crafted under Reverence of Steel)<br/>Wealth Level: +0<br/><br/>Appearance: Years of toiling in the fields and beating and shaping metal over a hot forge has left Zavros as a tall, broad shouldered and muscular man. Short brown hair and matching eyes frame a broad face that is usually graced with a gentle smile. This would normally mark him as an easy mark for conmen or thieves, but when the mark is a giant standing at six feet and four inches, most tend not to bother. He is usually seen wearing simple clothes, usually that of a farmer or a smith (covered with soot and ash).<br/><br/>Background: The second-born son of a pair of farmers, Zavros always loved seeing things grow. From something as simple and quick as the wheat his father planted, to something more grand like the apple trees tended to by his mother, something about seeing things grow. He was otherwise an unremarkable boy growing up, and as he reached adulthood, this mindset might have seen him become a reasonably successful farmer.<br/><br/>However, in times of economic desperation in the latest years of the Reign of the Good Kings, Zavros' parents had to take loans from the Guild, whose merchants were becoming more and more a frequent presence in the village near the farm. Not wanting to see his family become penniless, nor wanting to see all their hard work for naught, Zavros took to finding an extra form of employment. The village smith took him as apprentice, and Zavros set to work.<br/><br/>Day and night when not harvesting or planting, Zavros worked feverishly, learning everything he could. The same love of growth soon took root with smithing as well, always filling the young man with a sense of pride at what he wrought with his hands. Yet it was tempered by the knowledge that more was needed to help pay the debt coming closer. More to make. More to sell. More to see off the bastards wanting what belonged to his family.<br/><br/>Perhaps with this in mind, it should not be too surprising when he Exalted on the final day of the debt...<br/><br/>Personality: Zavros is a kind soul. He may be uncharitably be called simple, but others may call him earnest. Zavros enjoys the mundane pleasures of life - of rising early, working hard, and relaxing in the evening with a mug of ale in hand in front of a hearth, with friends to joke, laugh, and tell stories with.<br/><br/>Above all, however, Zavros enjoys building things. Particularly, he loves to build things to last, and to fix them if they break along the way. From forging something simple like nails or gloves, to more solid things like greaves or helms (with hopes that his master will teach him how to forge a quality sword!), Zavros wants to see things last that helps everyone. It is why he is so aggrieved by the merchants of the Good Kings, as they made it no secret that they would tear down the farm in favor of some estate that only a single noble will ever enjoy.</div></div><br/><br/><div align="center"><strong>Rules</strong></div><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Variant Rules &amp; Character Creation</div><div class="spoiler_body"><strong>Castes:</strong> Solar Exalted characters choose a Caste, which gives them certain additional benefits, and which also counts as an additional Fact that provides a bonus to rolls relating to the ordained role of the caste.<br/><br/>Dawn Caste: Gain Terrifying Mein as a bonus gift, and gain +2 on all attack rolls.<br/><br/>Zenith Caste: Gain Untamed Will as a bonus gift, and can force dematerialised spirits to become solid in their presence by Committing Effort for the scene.<br/><br/>Twilight Caste: Gain Subtle Eye of Knowing as a bonus gift, and halve the damage taken from instantly casting sorcery.<br/><br/>Night Caste: Gain Veiled Step as a bonus gift, can purchase Walking Ghost for one gift point, and can commit one more point of Effort in any scene without it counting towards Incandescent Power.<br/><br/>Eclipse Caste: Gain Untroubled Passage as a bonus gift, and you can supernaturally enforce a bargain or promise someone freely makes with you (the target will be aware of this enforcement, and your anima immediately activates at the glowing level). If they break it, you immediately know of this and can instantly take one action as if you were standing next to them, which they cannot dodge or resist, and with any damage roll having maximum effect. Characters with the Deception word or similar powers can make a Spirit save to prevent you becoming aware of the breach.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Skill Words (Charms):</strong> Solar Exalted may choose three Skill Words (below) to bind to at the start of their journey.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Incandescent Power (Anima Banner):</strong> Committing Effort in a scene will create a growing visual display. All effects fade away at the end of a scene.<br/>1: No visible effect. This level rises by one at levels 3, 6 and 9. A Solar can skip this step if they actually want to produce a visual display.<br/>2: Caste Mark glows (can be concealed).<br/>3: Glowing aura illuminating the immediate area. Stealth is impossible or very hard.<br/>4: Iconic bonfire display, visible up to a mile away.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Innate Powers:</strong> Solar Exalted always know the time of day, and the direction they are facing. They can generate light from their bodies at will, enough to illuminate a room.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Chosen of the Sun:</strong> Although they cannot bind the Word itself, Solar Exalted can create Miracles to reproduce Gifts of the Sun Word.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Familiar Bond:</strong> Solar Exalted cannot bind the Beast Word, but can take the <em>Link of Unity</em> Gift without needing any particular Word bound.<br/><br/><br/><strong>True Strifes (Supernatural Martial Arts):</strong> All Solar Exalted can learn any True Strife with a teacher, and one True Strife without a teacher. For the first True Strife learned by a Solar, the cost of the initial and final techniques are reduced to one-half gift point each (allowing full mastery of the True Strife for three gift points).<br/><br/><br/><strong>Consuming Temptation (Limit Breaks):</strong> Choose an ambition, drive or craving that lurks in the heart of the Solar. When they are in a crisis and have committed all their Effort or are below a quarter of their hit points, or are facing the loss or failure of something precious to them, they may suffer Limit Break (GM’s call) and be overcome by their flaw. If so, then after the crisis has passed, they must spend a day enthralled to their urges or extravagantly satisfy them in a single scene. Until they do so, they cannot spend Effort on anything unrelated to their temptation. An Exalted cannot succumb to their temptation more than once a month.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Creation-Ruling Mandate:</strong> All Solar Exalted are considered free divinities for Dominion purposes, generating 1 point per month (+1/month at levels 3, 6 and 9) in addition to normal rewards, and not gaining any extra from cults.<br/><br/><br/><strong>Starting Level:</strong> Characters start at level 2. After creating a level 1 character, apply the following bonuses: +1 attack, +2 gift points, + (4 + half CON mod) hit points, +1 Effort, +1 Influence, -1 to all saves, one extra Fact relating to either the circumstances of their Exaltation or things they have done since then.</div></div><br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Skill Words</div><div class="spoiler_body">The Words of this campaign are modified to be a kind of Skill Word, themed around areas of human excellence rather than abstract concepts. However, the power of the Solar Exalted allows them to go beyond mortal possibilities with their skills, so though themed differently, they are chosen in essentially the same way as regular Words, with no minor / major distinction.<br/><br/>The following Skill Words are effectively the same as existing Words, having the same intrinsic benefits and Gift choices.<br/><br/>Archery / Thrown: As the Bow Word (p.34)<br/><br/>Athletics: As the Alacrity Word (p. 34).<br/><br/>Brawn: As the Might Word (p. 46).<br/><br/>Craft: As the Artifice Word (p. 32).<br/><br/>Melee: As the Sword Word (p. 53).<br/><br/><br/>These Skill Words are more different, incorporating Gifts from several standard Words, and some new ones (taken from the Words of the Chosen project), which are listed at the end of the Word list.<br/><br/><strong>Awareness:</strong><br/>Description: Heroes with the Awareness Word can detect things others cannot, be they the most minute and subtle details in light, sound and taste, or even the faint resonance of magic.<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: Heroes with the Awareness Word cannot be surprised. They may set their Wisdom to 16, or 18 if it’s already 16 or higher.  <br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>Walk Between the Rain (p. 30)<br/>Eyes of the Cat (p. 33)<br/>Eyes Above (p. 50)<br/>The Subtle Eye of Knowing (p. 51)<br/>Investigator’s Intuitive Glance<br/>Sensory Attunement Method<br/>Spirit-Vanquishing Approach<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Creation’s First Light (p. 52)<br/>Sundered Moment (p. 54) <br/>Omniscient Vision Meditation<br/><br/><strong>Bureaucracy:</strong><br/>Description: This Word holds power over bargaining, negotiation and reciprocal agreements. This Word can also influence the bureaucratic workings of organizations such as merchant cartels and governments—such powers best affect organizations with formal rules and records. <br/>Intrinsic Benefits: Heroes with the Bureaucracy Word may set their Intelligence or Wisdom score to 16, or 18 if it’s already 16 or higher. They instantly know whenever somebody makes a deal with them in bad faith, unless that person is bound to the Deception Word or has similar powers.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>The Lieutenant’s Wisdom (p. 35)<br/>Sustain the Multitude (p. 55)<br/>Wither the Purse (p. 55)<br/>Dust for Gold<br/>Magnate’s Exquisite Eye<br/>Purity of the Solemn Auditor<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Bearer of the Scarlet Crown (p. 35)<br/>The Golden God’s Hand (p. 55)<br/>Sagacious Tycoon Methodology<br/><br/><strong>Larceny:</strong><br/>Description: As the Deception Word (p. 37).<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Deception Word.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>A Familiar Face (p. 37)<br/>Perfect Masquerade (p. 37)<br/>Veiled Step (p. 37)<br/>Master of the Key (p. 43)<br/>Opening the Way (p. 43) <br/>Subtle Confiscation Gesture<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Walking Ghost (p. 37)<br/>Unfailing Fortune (p. 45)<br/>Thieves’ Bane (p. 55)<br/><br/><strong>Lore:</strong><br/>Description: As the Knowledge Word (p. 44). Gifts which are shared with the Sorcery Word (p. 51) cannot be Miracled.<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Knowledge Word.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>The Unveiled Truth (p. 44)<br/>Adept of the Gate / Terrestrial Circle Sorcery (p. 51)<br/>Perfection of Understanding (p. 51)<br/>Echoes of the Past  (p. 54)<br/>Look Forward (p. 54)<br/>Spirit-Vanquishing Approach<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Irresistible Query (p. 44)<br/>The Omniscient Scholar (p. 44)<br/>Adept of the Way / Celestial Circle Sorcery (p. 51, requires Level 3, unavailable to Dragon-Blooded)<br/>Adept of the Throne / Solar Circle Sorcery (p. 51, requires Level 6, unavailable to Dragon-Blooded, Sidereals or Lunars)<br/><br/><strong>Medicine:</strong><br/>Description: As the Health Word (p. 42).<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Health Word.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>Ender of Plagues (p. 42)<br/>Flesh Made True (p. 42)<br/>Merciful Gaze (p. 42)<br/>Plaguebringer (p. 42)<br/>Chakra Immunizing Prana<br/>Mend the Soul<br/>Greater Gifts: As the Health Word. <br/><br/><strong>Navigate:</strong><br/>Description: As the Journeying Word (p. 43).<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Journeying Word.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>Elemental Scorn (p. 39)<br/>Harder than This (p. 39)<br/>Dust At Your Heels (p. 43)<br/>Know the Path (p. 43)<br/>Swift Progress (p. 43)<br/>Untroubled Passage (p. 43)<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>The Exodus Road (p. 43)<br/>The Path of Racing Dawn (p. 43)<br/>Implacable Ship and Steed Style<br/><br/><strong>Performance:</strong><br/>Description: The Word of Performance bestows supreme abilities in all kinds of personal artistic expression, whether dance, song or more eclectic forms. A performance from characters with this gift can shape the perceptions and emotions of those who behold it, or leave them incapaciated with wonder or horror.<br/>Characters can treat the Performance Word as being equivalent to the Dance or Music words from the <em>Lexicon of the Throne</em> supplement, chosen when they bind to the Word. If they wish to learn the other Word, they can bind to it for only 2 gift points, gaining the other intrinsic benefit and access to the Gifts of the other Word.<br/><br/><strong>Presence:</strong><br/>Description: As the Passion Word (p. 48).<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Passion Word.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>A Thousand Loyal Troops (p. 35)<br/>The Soldier’s Faithful Heart (p. 35)<br/>Banner of Passion (p. 48)<br/>Fashioning a Friend (p. 48)<br/>Heart of the Lion (p. 48)<br/>Terrifying Mien (p. 48)<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Lord of the Wild (p. 33)<br/>Thrall-Making Shout (p. 35)<br/>A Heart Like Clay (p. 48)<br/><br/><strong>Resilience:</strong><br/>Description: As the Endurance Word (p. 39).<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Endurance Word.<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>Untamed Will (p. 33)<br/>Amaranth Vitality (p. 39)<br/>Body of Iron Will (p. 39)<br/>Defy the Iron (p. 39)<br/>Harder than This (p. 39)<br/>Intrinsic Health (p. 42)<br/>Greater Gifts: As the Endurance Word.<br/><br/><strong>Socialize:</strong><br/>Description: The Word of Socialize represents flawless social graces, mastery of etiquette, emotional empathy, and an eye for the delicacies of relationships.  Heroes bound to this Word are able to glide through societies making easy friends, setting new trends, and rearranging social circles.<br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Command Word (p. 35).<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>Know the Inner Truth (p. 35)<br/>The Lines of Rule (p. 35)<br/>Deceiver’s Unblinking Eye (p. 37)<br/>Liar’s Flawless Grace (p. 37)<br/>A Word Far Off (p. 44)<br/>A Truth That Burns (p. 44)<br/>Follow the Threads (p. 48)<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Conviction of Error (p. 37)<br/>Impenetrable Deceit (p. 37)<br/>Infectious Passion (p. 48)<br/><br/><strong>War:</strong><br/>Description: The Word of War represents mastery of the battlefield and all things that contribute to it.  Heroes of War are powerful commanders of troops, brilliant in tactics, strategy, and logistics, and have a keen eye for opportunities and timing.  <br/>Intrinsic Benefits: As the Luck Word (p. 45).<br/>Lesser Gifts: <br/>Guards! Seize Him! (p. 35)<br/>The Best Course (p. 44)<br/>The Best Laid Plans (p. 44)<br/>Salting Away the Luck (p. 45)<br/>Hope of the Dawn (p. 52)<br/>Heavenly Guardian Stratagem<br/>Greater Gifts: <br/>Invincible Iron General (p. 35)<br/>Disclose the Flaw (p. 44)<br/>By Chance (p. 45)<br/></div></div><br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">New Gifts</div><div class="spoiler_body">Chakra Immunizing Technique<br/>Action<br/>Choose a creature in sight and commit Effort for the day. Until the end of the day, that creature is immune to one physical peril or special attack, as the Endurance gift Harder than This (p. 39). Additionally, any Influence or Dominion project to treat a malady or render a population immune to it a counts as a plausible change, and takes effect immediately.<br/><br/>Dust for Gold<br/>Action<br/>Commit Effort for the scene and offer any item or service to an nearby person in exchange for an item or service that  person could conceivably be willing to sell. The person is convinced they are being offered a good deal, and will develop elaborate rationalizations to justify this. Worthy foes get a Spirit saving throw to recognize the deal for what it is.<br/><br/>Heavenly Guardian Stratagem<br/>On Turn<br/>Commit Effort.  You may extend the benefits of your defensive gifts or miracles to the troops under your command.  This includes both Constant and other ongoing gifts (such as those that improve AC), as well as allowing Effort spent on a defensive dispel or automatic saving throw to also protect your troops.<br/><br/>Implacable Ship and Steed Style<br/>Constant<br/>You automatically succeed on all checks to drive,  operate, and maintain riding animals and vehicles. While traveling, your mount or vessel gains 15 hit dice, a base AC of 3, and quadruples the cargo or people it can carry. <br/><br/>Investigator’s Intuitive Glance<br/>Action<br/>With a moment’s focus, you immediately notice everything in the area that was intentionally concealed or hidden by someone, even if it's behind an object or buried. You also detect any particular object you might be looking for, if it's in the area.<br/><br/>Magnate’s Exquisite Eye<br/>Constant<br/>You can accurately judge the fair market value of any item, however bizarre or arcane.  You also automatically detect forged, defective, or false items and documents, unless the creator of those items was bound to the Word of Deception or has similar powers. As an action, you may find the location of the nearest buyer in who will pay market value for any specified  item, as long as such a buyer exists within the same realm.<br/><br/>Mend the Soul<br/>Action<br/>Choose a creature in sight. That creature is returned to full mental health and freed of psychological disease or trauma, illusions (whether imposed by the self or others), or magical effects on their mind. Effects resulting from permanent physical injury or disease (such as a head injury) are not cured. While the subject’s personality and memories are not directly altered, though clarity may change their views and behavior.<br/><br/>Omniscient Vision Focus<br/>Action<br/>Commit Effort for the scene to see anything known to you or any place you can geographically identify. You see it as if you were standing next to it, and can observe the surroundings freely for the scene. When searching for a specific object or person, you must know their name, have seen them before, or otherwise have some identifying knowledge of them. You can't use other senses in the vision, but can see well enough to lip-read. Nothing short of divine gifts may block this vision.<br/><br/>Purity of the Solemn Auditor<br/>On Turn<br/>Commit Effort and choose a person within sight who has official duties. As long as the Effort is committed, the chosen person must perform their official duties in absolute compliance with all relevant laws and ethical codes. If the Godbound wishes, they can also affect every other member of person’s organization within one mile. Worthy foes get a Spirit saving throw to ignore such compulsions.<br/><br/>Sagacious Tycoon Methodology<br/>Constant<br/>Businesses or bureaucratic organizations under your management are flawlessly efficient and without wasted resources. Their Trouble score is treated as one less for all purposes.  As an action, you may call to mind any fact that is catalogued in your organisations’ records. You are automatically aware of any significant crises affecting organisations of which you are a senior member, over any distance.<br/><br/>Sensory Attunement Method<br/>Action<br/>Commit Effort for the day. For the rest of the scene, as an action, you may choose any person or intelligent creature you can see or hear. You can borrow that creature’s senses, knowing all that it sees, hears, smells, etc. This lasts until the creature moves out of sight and earshot, you choose another creature, or until the scene ends. Worthy foes can resist this with a Spirit saving throw, and success renders them immune for a day.<br/><br/>Spirit-Vanquishing Approach<br/>Action<br/>Commit Effort. You may see, hear, or otherwise sense immaterial creatures.  You may interact with those beings as if they were material (allowing you to attack them), if you wish.  If one of your attacks would reduce a spirit to 0 Hit Points, you may permanently and utterly destroy that spirit. Spirits that sense you instantly recognize that you have bound this gift. This gift can be bound as a lesser gift by those who have mastered a True Strife or who have been initiated into any type of primordial magic, or as a lesser gift of a Word related to enhanced perception and mystical understanding. Miracles cannot replicate this gift.<br/><br/>Subtle Confiscation Gesture<br/>Action<br/>Choose an unattended item in reach, or an item being carried by a person in reach. You steal that item, and no one notices the theft until it is directly pointed out to them or after the scene ends. You cannot steal anything that is actively in use or the focus of immediate attention, nor anything larger than you could both carry and quickly hide from view. Worthy foes may attempt an Evasion saving throw to prevent the theft and if they succeed on that, a Spirit save to become aware of the attempt. <br/></div></div><br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Sorcery</div><div class="spoiler_body">As well as the theurgy detailed in the Godbound book, the following spells are available. If there’s a different spell you’d like (either original or from an existing source), just ask.<br/><br/>Terrestrial:<br/><br/>Curse of Slavish Humility:<br/>The chosen victim (who must be visible or connected via an arcane link) must act in a grovelling, self-abasing way towards the caster. Though they can still oppose or even attack the caster, it must be in a browbeaten and grovelling manner (“my lord, please forgive this unworthy servant for daring to assail you....”). This spell imposes a -4 penalty on relevant social rolls. Worthy foes may make a Spirit save to resist this spell.<br/><br/>Demon of the First Circle:<br/>This spell cannot be cast quickly or instantly, and requires an uninterrupted ritual from sundown to midnight. At the conclusion of that ritual, a first circle demon from Malfeas.  First circle demons usually have no more than 8 HD, are unnamed, and have little personal identity.  You may summon a specific species; there is at least one will be suitable for any occasion.  The demon may be given a single assigned task with a defined endpoint, or bound to a year of service. Versions of this spell exist at Celestial and Solar level (Demon of the Second Circle and Demon of the Third Circle)--in the latter two cases, demons who are worthy foes can make Spirit saves to avoid being bound and extra Effort can be committed for the day to impose a penalty to their save of -3 per Effort.<br/><br/>The Sacred Tongue:<br/>Until they next sleep, the sorcerer can speak in a powerful occult tongue that can be understood by all intelligent creatures, and can understand all languages. This is treated as a beneficial Fact when communicating with demons, spirits and elementals. However, anyone who hears the language will immediately know they are talking to a powerful magical being.<br/><br/>Song of the Waves:<br/>The caster summons a being that takes the form of a giant horse made of water, which exhales a blast of water and symphonic force at one enemy before vanishing. Worthy foes can make a Spirit save to resist the enchantment. Affected victims will see their former allies as hated enemies and attack them without remorse for one round per 2 levels or Hit Dice of the sorcerer.<br/><br/>Sprouting Shackles of Doom:<br/>Thick plant-like bonds appear around the body of up to one human-sized target per two levels of the caster or one large target, binding them. Worthy foes can make an Evasion save to avoid entanglement. Entangled foes cannot move or perform any actions that require motion, and take a -2 penalty to their AC. On each of their turns, they may try to escape as an action, making a Dexterity or Strength check opposed by the Intelligence or Charisma of the caster. If they fail, they take 1 damage per level of the caster (if reduced to 0 HD, they are rendered unconscious). Another creature with great strength or an edged weapon can spend an action to free a bound creature.<br/><br/>Stormwind Rider:<br/>This spell wraps the caster and a few allies in a small whirlwind that moves overland at up to 100 mph, lasting as long as the caster maintains it.  While these winds form a barrier against small nonmagical projectiles, if the caster is struck, it counts as an interrupted spell causing the caster and all his allies to fall.<br/><br/>Summon Elemental:<br/>This spell cannot be cast quickly or instantly, and calls a minor elemental to the service of the sorcerer, with the same limits as Demon of the First Circle. Spirits summoned are treated as minor spirits, with one or two Gifts from a relevant Word. Mistreating summoned elementals or getting them killed too much is likely to attract the attention of local spirit courts.<br/><br/>Viridian Mantle of Underwater Journeys:<br/>This spell gifts the caster plus up to five other creatures with a mantle of bright green seaweed over their torsos. All subjects of the spell must be in contact with water when the spell is cast, and the mantle will last until they leave it. While affected, the targets may breathe and speak normally underwater, are immune to pressure, cold and other hazards, and may swim at their normal speed.<br/><br/><br/>Celestial:<br/><br/>Battle's End:<br/>The spellcaster causes the rune of Saturn to appear above everyone involved in a nearby battle or conflict. They will be compelled to cease fighting, so long as the number involved is equal to 10 people / a Small Mob on each side, or fewer. The enchantment lasts for one minute / ten rounds after being cast. Affected creatures cannot knowingly engage in violence against other affected creatures even indirectly, must back away from their former enemies, and will be aware that this is due to the sorcerer's interference. They can attack unaffected targets or withdraw. A sorcerer cannot cast this spell if they are involved in the battle and have attacked other participants. Sorcerers who learn this spell know that to use it to gain an advantage in battle for themselves or their allies will draw the wrath of the Maiden of Endings, something which should give even the mightiest Exalt pause.<br/><br/>Eternal Crystalline Encasement:<br/>This spell cannot be cast quickly or instantly, and the casting must begin at dawn, so the sorcerer can trap the first rays of sunlight and begin solidifying them into a cocoon. When the casting is complete, an object or a helpless creature in your presence (up to a 20ft cube in size) becomes encased in a crystal shell. Within the shell, they do not age and time does not pass for them. The spell also creates a crystal wand which will dissolve the encasement if touched to it, otherwise an attack that does at least 12 damage before modification will shatter the crystal and break the spell.<br/><br/>Magma Kraken:<br/>Ten tentacles made of molten rock arise from the earth in a 50-yard radius, and attack all of the caster's enemies within that area. They are considered the equivalent of a Small-size, mindless Brazen Legion mob, that never fails Morale, cannot move from the area it was summoned into, and which deals -2 damage to characters immune to fire. As an AOE attack, this deals straight damage against Mobs. Enemies within the area must make a Evasion save every round, or be grabbed by a tentacle and unable to move that round by normal means. Flammable materials in the area will catch fire after a round. Surviving tentacles return to the ground after a scene.<br/><br/>Princes of the Fallen Tower:<br/>The caster summons a number of creatures made of rusted iron, with crude features and long claws. Carrying pure entropy in their touch, they cause wood to rot, metal to rust away and stone to crumble. They are treated as a Small Mob of normal soldiers with Morale 12. They have an invincible defence against damage from nonmagical manufactured weapons, and any such weapon that hits them is destroyed. Their attacks destroy nonmagical armour, and treat the AC of enemies relying on such protection as being 9 (or 9 minus Dexterity modifier for PC's). If set against a structure or building, they will destroy a normal-sized house (or the equivalent amount of a larger structure) each round unless the structure is made from magical materials. Once summoned, they remain for five hours or until banished or destroyed.<br/><br/>Swift Spirit of Winged Transportation:<br/>The caster summons a giant creature made of wings, with clawed legs. They can command the creature to grab and transport a single vehicle up to 300ft long, and specify a destination or direction. The creature will seize the vehicle and all aboard and transport it at 100mph until it reaches the destination or is commanded to stop early. The creature can be ordered to put the vehicle down gently (most ships will overturn if placed on solid ground) or simply drop it upon reaching the destination. Transport aboard the ship is smooth and protected from high winds or inertia. The creature has AC 3, saves of 12+, is immune to nonmagical damage, and ignores attacks doing less than 4 damage--any attack that deals 4 or more will cause it to vanish.<br/><br/>Wheel of the Turning Heavens:<br/>For a half-mile radius around the point where this spell was cast, the stars glow with unnatural brightness, visible even through clouds or daylight. Creatures apart from the caster in the area feel compelled to stop what they are doing and watch the stars (leaving any buildings they are in to get a better view), taking no actions and paying no attention to anything happening around them. Worthy foes can make a Spirit save to avoid the effect, but must make another if they look at the sky even for a moment--actions will take a -4 modifier where this limited vision is a factor. If any creature affected by the spell suffers intentional harm, the effect is broken for everyone. Otherwise, it lasts half an hour.<br/><br/><br/>Solar:<br/><br/>Benediction of Archgenesis:<br/>This spell requires the taproot of a tree at least 1000 years old, and can only be performed on the first new moon of the season of Ascending Water. After a ritual that lasts all night, the root is cast to the ground at sunrise within a distinct geographical area such as a hill, valley, estuary, bay or island. The area for several miles around that point will become amazingly fertile and bloom with life over the next three months, with plants and animals in the area multiplying and growing at an accelerated rate and displaying great vitality and health. The local weather will change to sustain this growth indefinitely and provide a pleasant climate, regardless of how inhospitable and barren the land was before. Any magical curses of less than Solar Circle strength that affect part of the area will end, and unnatural blights on the land (such as shadowlands or Wyld zones) will return to normal over this period, unless a worthy foe within such an area wishes it to remain. Once the process is complete, the area is considered a Feature that can easily sustain thousands of people or provide a idyllic home in even the harshest of lands. If cast upon land that is already fertile, the growth will last for one season and then overtax the land and render it barren for years afterwards, probably imposing a severe Problem on the controlling faction. In addition, any Dominion changes made by the caster to modify plants grown or natural animals born within the area are one level easier than they would normally be (Impossible becomes Improbable, Improbable becomes Probable).<br/><br/>Light of Solar Cleansing: <br/>The caster’s body glows with a soft golden light for the next full day. Undead cannot approach within 10 yards of the caster. While this spell is active, the caster's Fray dice becomes 1d20 against undead and they can Commit Effort for the day to destroy a lesser undead or deal their level in automatic damage to one who is a worthy foe.<br/><br/>Mirage of Protective Shelter:<br/>A designated area or settlement that you cast the spell upon becomes nearly impossible to attack. While non-hostile travellers and ones who have no destructive intent towards the area as a whole can still pass, individuals or groups intent on conquest, sacking or general destruction will become confused and lost as they approach within three miles. No matter how determined they are or how obvious the area should be, they will end up missing the area entirely and wandering off in a random direction. Only beings with the Awareness word or similar abilities can see through the illusion, but they cannot lead a group larger than a dozen. This counts as a defensive Feature that can only be removed with Adamant Countermagic / Sunder Any Spell, and which gives the faction a d12+2 die to resist overtly destructive attacks (but not indirect ones such as spying or trade embargos). If successfully attacked, it does not suffer additional damage from the the attacker being larger.<br/><br/>Rain of Doom:<br/>The casting of this spell must end after sunset has begun. After this spell has been cast, the caster must travel across the ground around the area they wish to destroy, reaching their start point by the time the sun has completely set--if they do not do this, the growing storm dissipates and the spell is wasted. If successfully cast, storm clouds gather and after five minutes, the area chosen is blasted by highly corrosive rain and green lightning until dawn. Creatures in the area without acid-proof protection or shelter will take 1d4 straight damage per round after the first and even if they leave the area or find shelter, will take 1 damage per round until they wash off or remove clothing soaked by the acid. Buildings in the area that are not supernaturally resistant will be destroyed within one hour at most. After it has fallen, the acid is neutralised by water or daylight, but the area scourged will remain blasted and lifeless for decades afterwards.<br/></div></div>