Exalted: Sol Invictus

download Exalted: Sol Invictus

of 192

Transcript of Exalted: Sol Invictus

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    1/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    2/192

    olSol nvictusInvictus

    BY JOSHUA HALL-BACHNER

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    3/192

    CREDITS Written by: Joshua Hall-BachnerAdditional Material: Shreyas Sampat, JonathanStott, William BurkeEdited by: Charlotte IrrgangArtists: Braden Lamb, Mike Tilly, ShreyasSampatCover: Braden Lamb with Joshua Hall-BachnerCover Template: Melissa UranPlaytesters: William Burke, Daniel de Sousa, John Dearing, Will Haggard, Charlotte Irrgang,Vincent LaBate, Shreyas Sampat, Jonathan Stott(Sol Invictus); Kelly Asprooth-Jackson, Ian Ally-Seals, Ian McBee, Kacey Cohen, Ben Blattberg,

    Vin LaBate, Ethan Bremner, Braden Lamb ( AeonReborn)

    SPECIAL THANKS#wod, for fervent enthusiasm and extensiveassistance;Kelly and the Vanguard Crew, for years ofexcellent gaming and friendship, and a future ofmany more;Vin and Ross, for living with me during the keynal stages;Casey, for everything.

    Sol Invictus is an unauthorized derivative work of Exalted and its associated line ofsupplements, which are copyright White Wolf Publishing, Inc. Nothing contained hereinreects the viewpoints of White Wolf Publishing nor should be taken as a challenge toany copyrights or trademarks owned thereby.

    This text is copyright 2004 - 2006 Joshua Hall-Bachner. All art within is copyright 2004, 2005 the artist(s) in question.

    This work may be freely distributed between invididuals. It may not be made availablefor download or otherwise repackaged for mass distribution without the authors consent.It may not be exchanged for money under any circumstances.

    This book purposely avoids reprinting copyrighted material which it references in itstext. Purchase Exalted supplements at your local retailer or dtrpg.com and support WhiteWolf.

    For questions, comments, and update information contact the author at [email protected].

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    4/192

    TABLE

    OF

    CONTENTS

    INTRODUCTION - 5CHAPTER 1: CHARM DESIGN - 7CHAPTER II: EXTENDED CHARM

    TREES - 29CHAPTER III: STORYTELLING - 173

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    5/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    6/192

    5

    INTRODUC

    INTRODUCTION

    In the First Age, the Solar Exalted wielded world-shattering power as the rulers of all Creation. TheseExalts slew Primordials, built incredible wonders,and crafted an awe-inspiring society that enduredfor thousands of years.

    At the beginning of the Age of Sorrows, thereare few -- if any -- Solars who can wield that sortof power. However, it is only a matter of timebefore the Chosen of the Sun unlock the powersof old. When they do, Creation will be shaken toits foundations. Will you be the ones to remakeCreation in your own image?

    HOW TO USE THIS BOOKThis book is intended to provide you with thenecesssary tools to incorporate high Essence SolarExalted and custom Charms into your game. Eachchapter focuses on a different area, as explainedbelow.

    Chapter One: Charm Design contains a set ofguidelines and suggestions for designing SolarCharms, providing players and Storytellers with aframework to use for developing their own Charms,as well as describing the framework used to designthe Charms presented in this book.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    7/192

    6

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    Chapter Two: Expanded Charm Trees contains newSolar Charms for each ability, as well as alterationsto make existing Charms more streamlined andconsistent. These new Charms both expand theexisting trees into currently under-representedareas, and extend them upwards in Essence andAbility minimums. In addition, this section containsdiscussions of the Charm design philosophies foreach individual ability.

    Chapter Three: Storytelling provides guidelinesand suggestions for incorporating high EssenceCharms into your game, and options for playing

    Solars at a high power level in Exalted.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    8/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    9/192

    8

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    Decide if your charm is in theme. Think about themechanical and avorful themes of your Charm.Do they t with the common Charm mechanicsand avors for the relevant Exalt type? (Both ofthese are discussed in some detail for Solars below.)More specically, does it fall into any thematiccategories which are generally the purview ofanother Exalt type? Charms which stray slightlyoutside an Exalts normal purview are generallyacceptable, but might be less appropriate if theydirectly impinge on someone elses schtick.

    Examine existing Charms. Take a look at the Charmswhich already exist in your Charms ability. Arethere any Charms which do something similarto yours, only less effectively? If not, are thereany Charms which deal with a similar aspect ofthe ability which could be used as prerequisitesinstead? Pay close attention to the conceptualdistance between the prerequisites you identifyand your Charm if theres too much of a jump

    in power, you might want to create intermediateCharms between the selected prerequisite and yourCharm.

    Determine trait prerequisites. In general, the Abilityprerequisite of a Charm should represent howmuch a character needs to buy in before usingit a Charm with a 1-2 rating will be available toalmost any Exalt whos interested, while one witha 4-5 rating will only be open to the most dedicatedspecialists in its associated Ability. The Essence

    prerequisite is a good measure of the Charms basicpower level guidelines for the meaning of SolarEssence prerequisites are presented below.

    Determine cost. Almost every Charm has a motecost, and many have additional costs as well. Whenselecting a cost for your Charm, pay close attentionto how it ties in with the Charms effects. Doesthe cost involve valuable enough resources for aneffect of its power level? Does the Charms cost t

    WHY ALTER CANON CHARMS?Sol Invictus provides more than three hundred

    new Charms for use in a Solar Exalted game. Theutility of this is obvious; however, it also containsmodifications to existing Charms, the appealof which is less obvious. Why offer changes toexisting Charms, when they can cause difcultywith established games?

    The simple reason: the existing Solar Charmset is,in the authors view, not entirely balanced.

    Individual games will vary immensely. Many

    players have used the Solar Charms as written,without complaint. Some will nd certain Charmsoverpowered that others nd too weak. Achievingbalance in such matters is difcult at best.

    Nonetheless, Sol Invictus attempts to producesuch a balance. The changes in this book aim tobalance the utility of both individual Charms andof entire abilities, with the end goal of producing

    as many viable choices for characters as possible.To aid this process, the Charm guidelines fromthis chapter are used extensively.

    In order to help explain this process, there areseveral additional sidebars in this chapter whichdiscuss the changes to certain Charms in detail.These sidebars detail the reasons why the Charmcan be seen as over- or under-powered, thenexplain the reasoning behind any specic changes.The goal is to help dene the limits of reasonablepower, and help provide additional guidance forplayers creating their own Charms.

    The authors hope is that the systematic andthoughtful nature of these changes will be evident,and that the reader will consider them on theirmerits. For some, changing existing Charmswill not be necessary; for these players, the newCharms can be used while ignoring some or all ofthe changes to existing Charms. For others, thesechanges will hopefully improve their games andexpand their options in play.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    10/192

    9

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    thematically with its effects? See below for a morein-depth discussion of Solar Charm costs.

    Look over the Charm one last time. This is the stagewhere you have to rely on intuition compareyour completed Charm to other Charms and see if itfeels right. After applying whatever nal tweaksare necessary, your Charm is complete.

    SOLAR CHARM EFFECTSSolars are in some ways the most exible of theExalted. Because they have the fewest ties tospecic methodologies and styles, Solar Charmsarent limited to a narrow range of special effects;because they represent the pinnacle of basic humanachievement, Solars can perform incredibly wellin any eld. There are still limits on what sorts ofpowers the Solar Exalted may develop, however. Ingeneral, their Charms fall into one of the followingcategories.

    Peerless Skills. By far the majority of Solar Charms arestraightforward extensions of their mortal abilities.These Charms let Solars perform actions that are

    natural extensions of human skill in a certain eld.Combat skill Charms let a Solar ght faster, harder,and more accurately than normal. Productiveabilities let a Solar create things of inhuman quality.Social skills allow a Solar to inuence people beyondwhat the greatest mortal statesman or courtiercould do. As a Solar grows in power, these abilitiesmove further and further beyond what humans arecapable of, but they always derive at some levelfrom the mortal ability.

    Leadership Effects. Regardless of her Caste, everySolar Exalt is a natural leader only the style ofthis leadership is shaped by her Caste. As such,Solars of every Caste have access to effects whichallow them to lead and instruct men, or provide forthose they do lead.

    Some of these effects directly improve the abilitiesof a single person. Effects like Masterful TrainingManual can assist in the normal learning process;

    other higher-level Charms could reduce trainingtimes, or possibly even XP costs.

    Yet other Charms temporarily or permanentlyimprove the skills of a group of people. SeveralBureaucracy Charms (which can slow or speedan entire organization) and Performance Charms(which can train, inspire, and survey an entire army)are solid examples. This sort of effect could easilybe generalized to several other abilities, allowing aSolar to inspire and strengthen her followers in anyappropriate ability Survival, Craft, Investigation,Medicine, Larceny, and Sail would all be viablecandidates.

    The Supernatural. Some of the Charms available toSolars have effects which are straightforwardlysupernatural. Some of these fall into specificcategories discussed below. Those that do nottend to be the purview of two abilities, Occult andLore.

    Solar Occult Charms, other than those used toperform Sorcery (discussed below), generally dealwith spirits and the ows of Essence. While theseare supernatural effects to a modern mindset, it

    should be kept in mind that Essence is a naturalpart of Creation, and basic Essence manipulationcan be performed by mortals. With this in mind,these Charms can be seen as a natural extension ofmortal thaumaturgy, which can be used to detect,summon, and ward spirits, as well as measureEssence ows.

    Some Solar Lore Charms are more directlysupernatural in their effects. In general, these effectsstem from Solars unsurpassed mastery of Essence.This allows Solars to transfer Essence and otherforms of energy from one person to another, orto enforce their wills directly upon the unshapedEssence of the Wyld. Other supernatural effectswould be allowable as long as they also derivedfrom this mastery of Essence.

    Solar Fire. Most of the Exalted have powers dealingdirectly with their associated energies and materials;Solars are no exception to this. Therefore, the Solar

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    11/192

    10

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    Exalted can make use of Charms that invoke lightand Solar energy explicitly. Most of the explicitlymagical Solar Charms which arent Occult or Lorefall into this category.

    When they manifest, these Charms tend to focuson a few key qualities of the Sun its presence, itsbrightness, and its purity. As such, Charms whichuse Solar light to terrify or inspire, to illuminate orblind, or to damage the servants of the Underworldor Malfeas are all acceptable, even if their effectsare explicitly magical in nature. Many of the self-sufciency Charms discussed below also use Solarimagery; those Charms generally use an image ofgolden light simply to establish that they are Solar

    Charms, not because their effects draw in anyparticular way on the qualities of the Sun.

    (On a related note, there are currently no publishedCharms which explicitly deal with Orichalcum, theSolar Magical Material. Both Lunars and Abyssalshave access to several Charms which allow themto work with or draw greater benet from theirassociated metals, so it seems likely that Solarscould develop similar Charms dealing withOrichalcum.)

    Self-Sufciency. A signicant subset of Solar Charmsare designed specically to keep characters frombeing caught empty-handed. Most commonly,this theme manifests itself in the various GoldenX Charms, which allow a Solar to summon thetool or resource he needs out of golden light be it a sword, a suit of armor, a horse, or evenan entire sailing ship. These Charms are anotherexception that allows for ashy effects Solarsare so incredible that they never need worry aboutcarrying such objects with them. These Charmsalways take on the trappings of the Sun brightgolden light, Solar iconography, and so on. Basedon the existing Charms of this sort, these effects areappropriate for almost any Ability, and can produce

    drastically supernatural effects, at a signicant scale the Sail Charm Glorious Solar Ship being themost extreme example.

    There are other Solar Charms which pursue self-sufciency in a slightly less ashy fashion. Charmsof this sort let a Solar do without some resourcethat is necessary for the task at hand. CraftsmanNeeds No Tools is one good example of this effect;Ignore the Winds Course Technique is another.

    WRITING POWERFUL CHARMSIts important to make Charms interesting andunique, especially as they grow more powerful players should feel like each Charm offers thema new opportunity or story hook when they buyit. Finding distinct ways of expanding the sameability can be difcult, though, especially withthe thematic restrictions placed on Solar Charms.

    Tweaking existing effects can take you a long way,if you choose the right things to change. Heres alist of factors you can increase and expand uponto make new Charms.

    Quality. Improve the nature of the Charms effects.An attack that dealt bashing might deal lethal oraggravated; one that built decent tools might nowcreate masterworks.

    Scale. Increase a Charms power by raising howmuch or how many of something it effects: insteadof one target, ve or fty; instead of Essencedamage, (Essence x 2).

    Scope. Expand what a specic Charm can applyto extend effects from the self to allies, or frominanimate objects to human beings.

    Frequency/Length. Make an effect happen more

    often, or improve the duration move frominstants to turnlongs to scenelongs, or from a weekto a month.

    Related Concepts. Write a new Charm that addressesan idea thats related to, but different from,another Charms. Glorious Solar Saber is a goodexample; similarly, you could go from a Charmfor deciphering languages to one for inventingthem.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    12/192

    11

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    This sort of Charm should also be available withina broad variety of abilities Solar Charms shouldbe capable of ignoring the need for most physicalresources.

    Martial Arts and Sorcery. Martial Arts and Sorceryare the two universal forms of magical power inthe world of Exalted their effects are consistentbetween different varieties of Exalted, and almostany Essence-wielding being can practice themto some degree. Because they are universal, thestandard rules do not apply to them Solars canproduce explicitly out-of-theme effects through theuse of Sorcery or Martial Arts Charms.

    Abyssal Mirror Effects. The Abyssal Exalted are thedark mirrors of the Solars, given to darkness and

    decay where the Solars stand for light and rebirth.Because the Abyssals are Exalted by the taintedEssences of Solars, their Charms take a similarform, in many cases directly mirroring their Solarcounterparts. Because Exalted: the Abyssals waswritten after the core book, however, there are someAbyssal Charms which would naturally have a

    Solar equivalent, but currently do not. This ruledoes not apply to all Abyssal Charms many aretied directly to Abyssals destructive natures or totheir unique powers and resonances but in somecases a Solar Charm is appropriate specicallybecause Abyssals have access to a similar effect.

    Inappropriate Effects. In general, any effects thatfall outside of these categories are inappropriatefor Solar Charms. Any areas that are specically

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    13/192

    12

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    the purview of other Exalted or Essence wieldersare out of bounds so powerful shapeshifting,necromantic, elemental, and astrological effects areall inappropriate. Many straightforward magicaleffects are also excluded no Solar Charm shouldallow dematerialization, teleportation, or duplicate-creation, for example.

    EFFECT GUIDELINESWhile determining the effect your Charm will have,its worthwhile to keep a few points in mind:

    Is it sufciently unique? Not every Charm needsto do something new many provide simpleeffects, or purposely mirror effects available toother abilities or types of Exalts. However, itsstill worth examining how much your Charmduplicates other Charms, to avoid redundancy. Ifyour Charm closely resembles another Charm inthe same tree, what makes it worthwhile to havesuch similar Charms? If it duplicates a Charm fromanother ability, ask whether it makes sense for twodifferent abilities to provide such a similar effect.

    Does it do something useful? Think about whetherthe Charms effect is something characters mightget real use out of in a game. Some effects mightseem initially nifty but have little actual utility,whether due to narrowness or inapplicability. Thisis an especially important consideration for combatCharms its easy to write a Charm with a solidconcept but whose mechanics render it less usefulthan other comparable Charms in a real ght.

    Is it individually exciting? Purchasing a new Charm

    normally costs a character two or more sessionsworth of experience points. As such, each newCharm should be exciting and fun for the playerwho just bought it otherwise, players will steeraway from it unless it serves as a prerequisite forsomething better. There are two common ways forCharms to fall into this trap: repeating an earliereffect with only a slight improvement (the difcultywith the pre-Power Combat armor penalty-reducingCharms) or providing an effect which might be

    useful but which is too specic to come up often (aswith many of the Solar Sail Charms.) When it doubt,ask yourself whether youd be excited by the newpossibilities this Charm opened up if you boughtit after three sessions of saving. If your reaction isapathetic or disappointed, you may want to rethinkyour design.

    Does it follow the Rule of Cool? Finally, you shouldmake sure that your Charm has that intangible senseof coolness. This can arise from many differentsources: new mechanics or interesting new effectscan both contribute, as can built-in plot hooks orawe-inspiring visuals. There are no rules to showyou how to achieve this you just need to go with

    your gut.

    CHARM MECHANICSEven though individual Charms vary greatly, theireffects tend to be based in a specic set of mechanics.Most Solar Charms draw from the following suiteof tools.

    Dice Adders: Solars have access to the most powerful

    dice adder Charms of any Exalted, adding up toAttribute + Skill dice to a single roll. These Charmsform the bedrock of Solars expertise in many areas they tend to have low prerequisites and be easyto use. Solar dice adders also tend to be extremelystraightforward, without additional effects orconditions. In addition, several non-combat skillshave Charms which add automatic successes torolls; these are generally limited by the ExaltsPermanent Essence (if they grant a blanket numberof successes) or the naturally-rolled successes (ifthe Solar is buying additional successes.)

    Extra and Reflexive Actions: Solars are largelyunburdened by the restrictions of having one diceaction per turn, due to their large selection of action-granting Charms. These take a variety of forms:Extra Action charms which replace the standarddice action with specialized actions, Reflexivecharms which grant a single action when used,and turn-long or scene-long Charms which grant

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    14/192

    13

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    a pool of specialized actions to use reexively. Theactions granted in all these cases tend to be specic,although Solars could presumably gain access toIndependent Actions at higher Essence levels.

    Scenelongs: Solars have access to a large numberof Charm effects which last for an entire scene,granting actions or bonuses for the entire duration.In general, Solars have access to scene-long effects

    in most abilities, unless such effects explicitly dontt with the philosophy of the other Charms.

    Perfect Actions: Many Solar Charms have perfecteffects they simply work. These Charms haveeffects which occur automatically when invoked,without the need for a roll. In some cases, theymerely result in an automatic success; in others,they result in a success surpassing all others one

    OVERPOWERED CHARMSA few Solar Charms are overpowered whencompared to their fellows they change thedynamics of the game too severely, or they reduceoptions by being so clearly superior to otherCharm choices. These Charms have been alteredin Sol Invictus to more closely match their peers.

    As an example, look at Protection of CelestialBliss, a melee Charm from Castebook: Dawn. Atrst glance, this Charm may seem reasonable it does, after all, require Essence 6. But a closerexamination reveals some problems.

    Using only printed Charms, it is implied thatCelestial Bliss is the only method for Solars toobtain multiple perfect defenses from a singleCharm. However, this capability isnt reasonablylimited to Essence 6; the guidelines in this chapterestablish that taking an instant effect and increasingit to several times per turn should require no morethan an additional 2 Permanent Essence. (Anexamination of existing high Essence effects likeSidereal Martial Arts Charms should also revealthat more efcient perfect defenses are important

    to surviving high Essence combat.)Reducing this Charm to an Essence 4 or 5minimum, however (as the author did, duringthe playtest for Sol Invictus) reveals furtherdifculties. The hanging quality of this Charmdrastically shifts the dynamics of combat. Since aSolar can enter combat with this Charm prepared,she can often ignore defense entirely and openup with a powerful offensive Combo, relying on

    these perfect defenses to protect her against anypowerful attacks.

    Furthermore, as written, the Charm providesa drastic improvement in efciency compared

    to Heavenly Guardian Defense. Celestial Blissparries are functionally equivalent to HeavenlyGuardian Defenses, since both can defend againstunblockable attacks. The former, however, onlycosts 7 motes and 1 Willpower, compared to 15motes and 5 Willpower to achieve the same effectusing the latter. The ability to freely use the CelestialBliss parries in the same turn as other Charmsmakes it even more efcient, since it eliminatesthe need for a Combo. Higher Essence Charmscan improve on the efciency of less powerful

    prerequisites, but an improvement of more than4 Willpower with no upfront cost to ameliorate itis denitely excessive. Because it defends againsteven unblockable attacks, it also makes Charmsthat grant such attacks too inefcient to use.

    To solve these problems, Sol Invictus splitsCelestial Bliss two distinct effects into separateCharms. Celestial Bliss itself now provides onlytwo hanging parries this still gives the Solaraccess to the utility of defenses that dont requirea Charm use while limiting the effect so it doesntcompletely dominate combat. Another charm,Unyielding Adamant Defense, is created thatprovides multiple perfect defenses, but withoutthe hanging effect. Both Charms now provideparries that cannot defend against unblockableattacks this ensures that neither fully supplantsHeavenly Guardian Defense and maintains thethreat of unblockable attacks.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    15/192

    14

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    at a level no rolled success can match. Non-combatperfect effects are fairly common, often applying tosmall or simple tasks at lower levels and increasingin scope as their prerequisites increase. Theseeffects allow a Solar to automatically succeed ina single task, or even achieve an incredible resultautomatically. In combat, these effects are moredifcult to obtain, but still available they allowfor unsurpassable defenses, or attacks that alwaysstrike.

    Permanent Charms: In the Core Book, the onlyPermanent Charm listed is Ox-Body Technique.However, Permanent Charms have been developedfurther in later books, with Lunars, Abyssals, and

    Sidereals all making use of them. The presence ofCharms like Environmental Hazard-Resisting Pranain Caste Book: Zenith indicates that additionalPermanent Charms are acceptable for Solars aswell. In general, Permanent Charms represent anExalts evolution, rather than a specic power asher skill level increases, her body and mind reshapethemselves to more fully embody a core concept.For Abyssals, this is the Essence of death eachPermanent Charm makes the Abyssal more deadly,more vampiric, more horrifying. For the Solars,such Charms should transcend human ability.These Charms should provide the ability to ignorehuman limitations, culminating in the eliminationof fundamental weaknesses like the need to sleepand eat, the characters maximum lifespan, or themaximum for attributes and abilities.

    ESSENCE PREREQUISITESThe Permanent Essence prerequisite for any Charmserves as a rough guide to that Charms power level.At lower Essence levels, Solars have access only tothe most basic of effects. As their mastery of Essenceincreases, they gain the ability to use increasinglypowerful and exotic talents. The following chartsummarizes the approximate power levels of eachEssence rating, drawing on examples of publishedCharms. The lower levels of the chart are drawnalmost entirely from Solar Charms; however, as

    the Essence minimums increase, they also drawfrom Abyssal Charms, as well as Immaculate andSidereal Martial Arts, since there are few publishedSolar Charms of those levels.

    Essence 1: These Charms form the very basis of aSolar Exalts power. In combat abilities, Essence 1Charms can be basic dice adders, reexive actions,or low-level Extra Action Charms like PeonyBlossom Attack. They can provide weak perfecteffects like Seven Shadow Evasion, which requiresyou to foresee the attack and cant be used afterthe attack roll. Essence 1 Charms can also providevery basic bonuses, like the ranged attack of IronRaptor Technique or the range bonus of Accuracy

    Without Distance. For non-combat abilities, Essence1 Charms can provide dice or success adders andotherwise boost the Solars competency to the peakof human ability. These effects tend to be very basic,so that they can easily apply to many different usesof the ability. Masterful Performance Exercise isa typical dice adder, while Hardship-SurvivingMendicant Spirit is indicative of the level of effectother Essence 1 Charms can have.

    Essence 2: Charms of this level are slightly greater

    in scope than Essence 1 Charms. In combat abilities,Essence 2 Charms can boost the damage of attacksand add minor side effects, such as the darkness-attacking effect of Edge of Morning Sunlight. Theycan provide basic self-sufciency effects such asPhantom Arrow Technique and Glorious SolarSaber. Essence 2 Charms can also provide strongerand cheaper Extra Action effects like Arrow StormTechnique or Iron Whirlwind Attack. They canalso grant stronger perfect effects like HeavenlyGuardian Defense, or turn-long extensions ofEssence 1 Charms like Ready in Eight DirectionsStance. In non-combat abilities, Essence 2 Charmsrepresent a step beyond mortal talents. In socialabilities, Charms of this level can affect groups, andbegin to directly dictate the actions of others, as withRespect Commanding Attitude, Speed the Wheels,or Heart Compelling Method. Essence 2 Charmscan generally perform feats just outside the purviewof human skill, as in Unshakeable Bloodhound

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    16/192

    15

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    Technique, Spider-Foot Style, or Stealing FromPlain Sight Spirit. This is also the level at whichCharms begin to interact with Essence directly,as can be seen in Charms like Essence-GatheringTemper and All-Encompassing Sorcerors Sight.

    Essence 3: At Essence 3, Charms begin to seriouslyramp up in power level. At Essence 3, Solars gainaccess to persistent defenses like Flow Like Bloodand Fivefold Bulwark Stance. Other combat Charmscan provide more powerful self-sufcient effects(like Fiery Solar Chakram and Glorious Solar Plate)or make attacks that require Charms to defendagainst (like Suns Flaming Tongue Attack orBlazing Solar Bolt.) These Charms can also providesignicant power boosts to a single attack (as withCascade of Cutting Terror or Knockout Blow).In social abilities, Essence 3 Charms can affectlarge groups of people and completely reversetheir behavior see Performance Charms likeRout-Stemming Gesture or Presence Charms likeMemory Reweaving Discipline. In other abilities,Essence 3 Charms can allow the Solar to achieve

    effects that enter the level of the impossible survive in a volcano with Element-Resisting Prana,fix anything with Crack-Mending Technique,become invisible with Sound and Scent BanishingAttitude, or heal with a touch using Anointment ofMiraculous Health. This level also represents thebeginning of outwardly magical effects like WyldShaping Technique and large-scale self-sufcienteffects like Phantom Crew Charm. In general, atthis level Charms can stretch Essence 1 effects outto scene length, or apply several Essence 2 effectsin a single Charm (as in Immunity to EverythingTechnique).

    Essence 4: At Essence 4 and above the number of

    published Solar Charms decreases signicantly, butconclusions can still be drawn about what Charmsare likely to look like. In combat abilities, Essence 4allows for Charms which perfectly negate incrediblenegative modiers (like Shot Without DistanceExercise) or damage a characters Essence or otherfundamental characteristics (like Maw of DrippingVenom or Soul-Cleaving Strike). Charms can boostindividual combat statistics significantly (likeDeadly Starmetal Offensive) or multiple statisticsmoderately (like Angry Predator Frenzy Style).They can affect groups of perhaps 10 people, or dealaggravated damage (both exemplied by TsunamiForce Shout). For social abilities, Charms increasedrastically in scope. They can provide control andcomprehension of an entire army (with Generalof the All-Seeing Sun) or even a kingdom (withIron Tyrant Mien). In other applications, Essence 4Charms allow a Solar to reach well into the realmof impossibility. She can magnify her physicalcapability a thousandfold (as with MountainCrossing Leap Technique), eliminate the negativeeffects of powerful magic on a person (throughOrder-Afrming Blow or Perfect ReconstructionMethod), or disguise oneself as ones completeopposite (through Solar Impersonation Style). Self-sufcient effects can reach a massive scale (likeGlorious Solar Ship) or achieve an effect superiorto the real thing (like Soaring Spirit Steed). At thisEssence level, Exalts can directly affect the useof Charms or other Essence-fueled powers, as in

    SIDEREAL MARTIAL ARTSThe Sidereal martial arts published in Exalted:

    the Sidereals are an excellent source of inspirationfor high Essence Solar Charms. These threestyles make use of several approaches tocreating powerful Charms. Some operate onan increased scope or scale compared to othereffects, while others change the rules of combatin unexpected ways. While Solar Charms wontbe as unusual and quirky as Sidereal MartialArts, they should convey the same feeling thatyour character is learning powerful techniquesthat give her new eand exciting capabilities. TheSidereal Charms are also a good watermark forthe power level of your Charms an Essence5 Solar with a selection of powerful Charmsshould be a signicant challenge for a Siderealwho has mastered the Form Charm of a SiderealMartial Art.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    17/192

    16

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    Charm Redirection Technique. In general, Charmsof this level can stretch Essence 2 effects out to scenelength (as with Inexhaustible Bolts of Solar Fire), orapply several Essence 3 effects in a single Charm(as in Steel Devil Style.)

    Essence 5: At Essence 5, Exalts reach the greatest

    power attainable within a mortal lifetime. In combat,Essence 5 Charms can boost a valuable trait by asignicant amount (as with Soul Fire Shaper Form)or any number of traits by a moderate amount(as with Perfection of Earth Body). At Essence 5,Exalts gain access to powerful effects like scenelongIndependent Actions (as granted by Charcoal Marchof Spiders Form). Charms at this level can affectmoderately large groups of people. Alternately, theycan do signicant, permanent damage to a single

    targets traits. Defensively, Charms can protectagainst signicant effects beyond straightforwardattacks. In social abilities, Essence 5 Charms couldpotentially span a quarter of Creation, or cementcontrol of a large group of people, or utterly enslavethe will of a single person. In other areas, Charms ofthis level can reach greater levels of impossibility,

    performing feats that signicantly extend the scopeof Essence 4 effects. Essence 5 Charms can interferedirectly with the use of Essence (as with Power-Disrupting Whisper). Self-sufcient effects shouldbe able to create large objects with unique qualities,or superb custom examples of smaller objects. Ingeneral, Charms of this level can stretch Essence 3effects out to scene length, or apply several Essence4 effects in a single Charm (as in Four MagicalMaterials Form).

    UNDERPOWERED CHARMSQuite a few Solar Charms, as printed, are simplynot as useful as their brethren. For various reasons,there are a number of Solar Charms with effectsthat cant be found elsewhere, but which arewritten in an underpowered form. In Sol Invictus,these Charms have been improved to expand theirutility. (These changes are very similar in bothconcept and execution to those provided in theExalted Players Guide Power Combat rules, butattempt to make more extensive improvementsto the Charms as a whole.)

    As an example, take Iron Raptor Technique andSandstorm-Wind Attack, both Melee Charmsfrom the corebook. They provide a useful ability making ranged attacks with Melee. However,neither is strong enough to see signicant use.Both are Simple, forcing Solars to use them onlyonce in a turn (barring a Combo). This leavesthe Charms too inefcient to use Solars willtypically wish to make multiple attacks duringmost turns.

    In addition, the two Charms are not sufcientlydistinct Sandstorm Wind Attack has a longer

    range, but otherwise does not offer any signicantbenefit over its predecessor. (This is a goodexample of a speedbump, as dicussed in a latersidebar.)

    To improve these Charms, Sol Invictus rst changesIron Raptor Technique from a Simple Charm to aSupplemental. Even with this change the Charmis not tremendously powerful, but it is now usefulenough that a player who wants to make rangedMelee a part of his character concept can do sowithout greatly sacricing effectiveness.

    That leaves Sandstorm-Wind Attack. This Charmcould be eliminated, but its often more elegantto alter a Charms functionality than to eliminateit. In this case, the author opted to add a neweffect related to the existing power: letting theattack strike a distant foe and any other enemiesin between. This gives Sandstorm-Wind Attacka unique ability, and also renders it usefulenough that it can remain Simple. With thesemodications, these Charms while still notthe most powerful powers available in Melee become useful enough to seriously consider for acharacter, instead of weak enough to be dismissedoutright.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    18/192

    17

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    Essence 6: In order to attain Essence 6, an Exaltmust survive longer than a mortal lifetime. It istting, then, that Essence 6 Charms take an Exaltscapabilities beyond the limitations of the humanframe. In combat abilities, Essence 6 Charmsreach fearsome levels. Purely offensive Charmscan do literally anything to a single target, frominstantly killing them (Jumping Spider Strike) totransforming them into something entirely new(Pattern Spider Touch). Defensively, they can shieldagainst arbitrary negative effects (with SpiritualPerfection) or preemptively nullify attacks, evenreturning them manyfold (Cannibalistic HeritageTechnique). In scope, Essence 6 Charms can affectnumerous opponents (as with Thumbnail Spider

    March). In other abilities, Essence 6 Charms canprovide effortless mastery of an ability perfectlyseeing through all deception with Eye of theUnconquered Sun, observing and controlling everypart of an army with Ideal Battle Knowledge Prana,automatically healing any insanity with Balm ofMerciful Sleep, or keeping out spirits absolutelywith Spirit-Warding Ban. These Charms can applyperfect effects to arbitrarily difcult tasks, andgenerally make them proof against even higherEssence magic. Self-sufcient effects should allowfor the creation of massive, incredibly fantastic, orhighly powerful items. Essence-affecting Charmscan completely shut down Essence expenditure (aswith Power-Disrupting Blow) or use motes fromanothers pool (as with Water Spider Bite). Essence6 Charms can also extend Essence 4 effects to scenelength or combine multiple Essence 5 effects in asingle Charm.

    Essence 7: There are few published Essence 7 Charms,but the ones that do exist paint an impressive pictureof their power level. At Essence 7, each Charmhas a truly earth-shattering effect. With ExtendedLife Prana, a Solar can increase her lifespan to5,000 years, rivalling the Sidereals for longevity;with Youth-Restoring Benison, she can return amortal to the ush of youth. The Sidereal MartialArts Charms at this level are similarly terrifying they can impart Great Contagion-level illnesses,deal aggravated damage to everything within a

    tenth of a mile, or make attacks on every visibletarget. From these examples, it seems that Essence7 combat Charms are able to apply to large scales(like every visible enemy) and can apply effectsthat are likely to kill outright any being withouthigh Essence Charms. In non-combat applications,Essence 7 gives an Exalt a godlike ability to utilizetheir abilities allowing Medicine to heal agingitself, for example. Presumably similarly extremelevels of competence would be possible with highEssence Charms of other abilities.

    There are currently no examples of Essence 8+Charms for any type of Exalt, so the specics ofexactly how powerful they are is up to you. Based

    on the difference in power level between Essence6 and 7, however, it seems likely that even asingle Essence 8 Charm could change the face ofCreation.

    CHARM COSTSCharms have a great deal of variation in their cost,ranging from those with miniscule costs to thosethat drain an Exalts resources almost dry with a

    single use. However, as with most other aspectsof Charm design, there are some standards whichCharm costs tend to follow.

    With a few exceptions, Charm costs involvespending some combination of the followingresources:

    Motes of Essence. These, the fundamental units ofEssence, are the basic unit of currency for Charmcosts. Almost every Charm (with a few exceptions)

    costs motes to activate.Temporary Willpower. Willpower is an importantsecondary cost for many Charms. In general, Charmswith certain effects require a Willpower cost. Perfecteffects generally require Willpower to activate(although a few, like Seven Shadow Evasion, canavoid it through weaknesses like inapplicability).Scenelong effects generally cost a Willpower,though those which only provide several small

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    19/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    20/192

    19

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    feels would not be unbalanced if it could be usedfor free.

    2-4 motes. These Charms tend to be a Solarsworkhorse Charms. Charms with a mote costin this bracket typically provide effects which aresignicant but not overwhelming. A basic defense(like Dipping Swallow Defense) or offensive booster(like Fiery Arrow Attack), a moderately usefulturnlong effect (like Feathery Gallop Exercise), ora very basic scenelong effect (like Friendship WithAnimals Approach) would all qualify. A typicalSolar can use an effect in this range 10-20 timeswithout regaining Essence, so a Storyteller shouldexpect a Solar to be able to use such a Charm

    repeatedly in a single scene.

    5-9 motes. Charms within this cost bracket providea fairly signicant effect. In any given situation,theyll tend to shift the balance in favor of theExalt using the Charm. Powerful Instant effects(like Seven Shadow Evasion), signicant scene-long combat effects (like most Martial Arts FormCharms or Fivefold Bulwark Stance), and non-combat effects with a large or lasting effect (likeTouch of Blissful Release or Blurred Form Style)all tend to fall within this range. A typical Solarcan use Charms in this category about 5-8 timeswithout recharging Essence; a Storyteller shouldexpect a character to use them when necessary, butcarefully consider their use.

    SPEEDBUMPSOne specifc type of underpowered Charm isthe speedbump a Charms that exist only toslow down a characters access to more powerfulCharms later in the tree. Its sometimes desirableto make a Charm more difcult to acquire, butintroducing unnecessary Charms with limitedutility isnt an ideal way to accomplish it.

    The question to ask about a Charm is: If I buy thisCharm, do I ever stop without buying the Charmafter it right away? Charms whose successorsare simply better or more mote-efcient (withouta drastic increase in prerequisites or cost) wouldqualify. So would Charms that are largely uselessin the rst place. These Charms are frustratingto players because they arent worth having on

    their own any points spent to purchase themfeel wasted.

    One Weapon, Two Blows (from the corebookMelee tree) is a perfect example: there is almostnever a reason to buy it alone. It provides aweak effect, and its more exible successor canduplicate that effect for only 1 more mote. Sincethe prerequisites of the two Charms are so close,

    theres very little reason to stop at One Weaponrather than buying the followup Charm as well.

    When designing a Charm, there are ways to keepa Charm from feeling like a speedbump. If twoCharms have similar effects, and the second ismore powerful, the rst will still be useful if itsmore efcient. Similarly, if theres some small

    quality that only the rst Charm possesses, thatcan be enough to keep it from becoming useless.(Peony Blossom Attack is less powerful thanIron Whirlwind Attack, but the latter costs aWillpower point to use which means the rstis still sometimes worth using.)

    Similarly, a Charm wont feel like a speedbumpif the Charm that follows it has much higherprerequisites. If an Essence 5 Charm obsoletesan Essence 2 Charm, the latter is still worthbuying at least, if you dont have Essence 5.A player can use such a Charm for a long timebefore becoming powerful enough to use the nextCharm in the tree.

    In general, Sol Invictus makes alterations toany Charms that meet this definition, eithereliminating them or altering their effects to makethem remain useful.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    21/192

    20

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    10-15 motes. Charms costed within this brackethave large, powerful effects. An instant effectcosted in this range (like Essence Venom Strike)will generally provide an effect that will certainlyshift a situation strongly in the Solars favor.Charms of this cost level with longer durations(like Terrifying Apparition of Glory) will generallyhave far-reaching consequences. Charms withsignicant effects on large numbers of people (likeHeroism-Encouraging Presence) tend to cost thismuch or more, as will Charms with long-lasting orpermanent effects (like Crack-Mending Discipline).A typical Solar can use Charms in this category only3-4 times without regaining Essence, so their effectsshould be signicant enough to make three to four

    uses entirely worthwhile.

    16-20 motes. The most extreme and elaborateCharms within the Solars arsenal are costed inthis range. This cost range is typically reserved fortruly earth-shattering effects, those that produceincredible or irrevokable effects. Wyld-ShapingTechnique is the most obvious example of a Charmin this category a powerful, awe-inspiring effectwith a cost to match. Other Solar Charms in thiscost bracket should approach the scope or utility ofthis Charm. A typical Solar can only use a Charmin this category twice without recharging Essence;with most such Charms, however, twice will beenough.

    Maximum Cost. No single Charm should cost morethan 20 motes of Essence. While Charms can bepowerful, by their nature they dont produce thesort of effects which call for that level of Essenceexpenditure that is typically reserved for Sorcery.Charms which would otherwise call for extremelyhigh mote costs should utilize secondary costs (likeWillpower or health levels) to bring the mote costdown to 20 or below.

    HIGH-ESSENCE COMBATWhen creating high Essence Charms, specialattention is needed when creating combat Charms.Non-combat Charms are often used in a vacuumand do not interact extensively with one another they can generally be safely judged withoutcontext. In addition, their effects are often easyto vet for power level without extensive testing.Combat Charms are a different matter. Because theyinteract with one another in many different waysduring ghts, combat Charms are more delicate tobalance -- you need to take into account not onlythe power level of the Charm in question, but how

    it affects the way combat works.

    DEFENSE! DEFENSE!Defense is very important in Exalted. Attack Charmsare quite noticeable when theyre overpowered orbroken, but defense is actually more important tocombat balance, due to the defense trumps offenserule an overpowered defense Charm can do moreto ruin the fun of combat. The defensive Charms in

    Sol Invictus have been reworked and honed moreextensively than any others, for just this reason. Thespecic philosophy of these defenses is discussedbelow, along with some of the common pitfallsencountered in building high Essence Charms.

    SOAKPossibly the most controversial defense, soakhas also undergone the biggest change theintroduction of the Essence ping rule in the ExaltedPlayers Guide drastically reduced the effectivenessof soak as characters increased in power. Thischange also left many players questioning exactlywhat role soak was intended to ll under the PowerCombat system.

    The key element of soak is that it is primarily apassive defense. Every character possesses somesoak automatically, and more can be obtained

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    22/192

    21

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    simply by wearing armor. Soak is also automaticallyapplied to every incoming attack, requiring noeffort on the part of the person being attacked. Theresult is that soak is both a simpler defense and aless powerful one its lesser power is a tradeofffor its automatic nature.

    Charms that grant soak (or which closely resembleit) are an exception to this rule, because they requiresome effort on the part of the player. However, theystill typically provide a more mote-efcient defensethan dodge and parry. Soak can be obtained on ascenelong basis much more easily than persistentdodges or parries, and soak directly subtracts fromdamage, rather than simply attempting to hold

    back attacks. Therefore, Charms that grant soakshould naturally be somewhat weaker than dodgeor parry defenses.

    Resistance-based defenses that are not basedon soak can be treated somewhat differently.Adamant Skin Technique is essentially comparableto Seven Shadows Evasion, and should be costedsimilarly.

    DODGE VS. PARRYAfter soak come the two active defenses: dodge andparry. For other Exalts, the difference is signicant;each of the two defenses has a completely distinctset of Charms associated with it, making the choiceof defense an important tactical decision. Solars,however, have signicant parallels between theirMelee and Dodge trees.

    Each of the two defenses has one obvious drawback.Dodge is a narrow ability; it doesnt provide

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    23/192

    22

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    offensive capabilities like Melee does. Melee, onthe other hand, cant be used unless a weapon isin hand. These two disadvantages are difcult tocompare (Dodges is typically a problem duringcharacter creation while Melees occurs during play)but they are widely seen as being approximatelyequal, with Melee possibly having an edge.

    In the corebook, Solar Dodge Charms feature oneother drawback: several of them are required tobe used before the attack is rolled. This is a fairlysignicant drawback, since it requires the playerto select a defense without the benet of knowingwhich attacks are most dangerous; it becomes evenmore dangerous as characters grow in power and the

    stakes on each attack rise. With no obvious reason

    to weaken dodge, this restriction is unnecessary; inSol Invictus, it is removed.

    A nal area of contention between the two is thedistribution of perfect defenses. In the Exaltedcorebook, Dodge receives an expensive perfectdefense that cannot block undodgeable attacks;Melee receives Heavenly Guardian Defense, whichis cheaper (albeit with a Willpower cost) and whichdefends against even unblockable attacks. This canbe read as an implicit statement that Melee shouldhave access to superior defenses. However, theExalted errata mentions that this distinction is notintended to be binding, and that equivalents of eachCharm can be purchased in the other ability. So

    Invictus makes this explicit, creating equivalents ofboth Charms for Dodge and Melee. It also extends

    CHARMS VS. SPELLSTheres a sometimes thin line in Exalted betweenCharms and spells. Both are individual, singulareffects that are purchased one-by-one; both areeven typically bought for the same price. Bothhave similar costs. At rst glance, theres a great

    deal of similarity between the two.Its important to maintain a division between thetwo, however. Charms are the fundamental toolsof an Exalt, the abilities that separate her frommortals and which she calls upon for her basicneeds. Spells, even those of the Emerald Circle, arepowerful and dramatic shapings of raw Essence,effects whose every casting should be dramatic.Charms that have overly spell-like effects (whilestill enjoying the benefits of being Charms)

    weaken the thematic uniqueness of spells whilesimultaneously diluting the avor of Charms.

    A few guidelines to stay away from in creatingCharms:

    Ritualistic preparations. Ritual and long preparationtime are elements of spells, whose massive Essencesometimes requires extensive preparations to be

    shaped properly. Charms, on the other hand, aretypically immediate effects. Its okay to have somebasic preparations involved (as in Charms likeUnknown Wisdom Epiphany) but the effect ofa Charm should be reasonably immediate anddirect.

    Variable avor. Spells are a universal magic, nottied to any specic Exalts thematics. As such, theavor of any given spell can vary widely, intootherwise unexplored areas. (Martial Arts styleshave a similar freedom.) Exalt-specic Charmsneed to hew more closely to a standard theme, sothat each Charm supports the style of the Exaltswho use it.

    Broad scale, narrow scope. Spells are big and ashy,especially as you move upwards into increasinglystrong circles of sorcery. At the same time, eachspell often has a very narrow utility, serving onlyone very specic purpose. Charms are typicallythe opposite way. Charms that affect hugeswaths of people or things typically do so only bybuilding up from similar but less powerful effects.However, Charms have broader uses outsideof pure combat effects, most provide capabilitiesthat can be used in a variety of circumstances.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    24/192

    23

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    this principle to other key framework defenses if Melee has a hanging defense (as it does inProtection of Celestial Bliss) then Dodge shouldalso have one.

    Outside of the framework Charms, each abilitycan detour slightly into unique defensive tricksthat are not shared by the other. Dodge illustratesthis effectively with Leaping Dodge Method andReflex Sidestep Technique; Melee branches offinto counterattacks. Other Charms of this sort areappropriate for both defenses, as long as any trulyfundamental effects continue to be shared betweenboth.

    INAPPLICABLE DEFENSESSolars have access to effects like Cascade of CuttingTerror attack Charms which completely preventa certain type of defense from being used. Solarsare also the only Exalt type to possess applicabledefenses Charms like Heavenly GuardianDefense that can defend against even unblockableor undodgeable attacks.

    These Charms play an important role in Solarcombat. Solars can become unable to damagean opponent due to a strong wall of persistentdefenses or a single powerful perfect defense.Undefendable attacks provide the Solar with anace in the hole, helping to bypass such tactics andquickly end the ght (or force it to shift its tactics, atleast.) At the same time, defenses such as HeavenlyGuardian Defense provide insurance against suchattacks, helping maintain the primacy of defensein Exalted.

    In general, unblockable and undodgeable attacksshouldnt be available until Essence 3; these effectsare powerful and cant be easily be defended againstat lower Essence levels. In addition, they cant beeasily defended against by non-Solars at all; theseeffects can prove a powerful trump card againstlesser-powered foes.

    Sol Invictus chooses to balance these attacks bygiving Archery access to both unblockable andundodgeable effects, Brawl and Thrown one each,and Melee neither. Melee, with its straightforwardtrees and built-in defense, is arguably the strongestcombat ability and doesnt need such Charms tosucceed in combat; Archery focuses on precisionand is particularly adept at striking at targetsweaknesses. These levels are chosen to encourage agreater level of overall balance between the combatabilities, but can be adjusted for an individual gameyou may nd that unblockable Melee attacks poseno threat to balance or fun in your chronicle.

    PERFECTION AND INVULNERABILITYHaving your huge attack Combo defeated witha single application of the Heavenly GuardianDefense can be frustrating. To counter this, manylayers come up with the idea of an attack thatbypasses perfect defenses. While this might seemlike a fun Charm, it has a detrimental effect oncombat as a whole. Exalted combat is based aroundthe principle that defense trumps offense. Allowingsuch a Charm into the game suddenly reverses thisprinciple with a single Charm, an attacker canrender his opponents strongest defenses useless.

    To remedy this problem, you might try to create abetter defense, one that defeats even the perfect-beating attack. But this leads to an even worsesituation. Whats to stop the attacker from generatingyet another attack now, one that bypasses even yourbetter defense? This can go on indenitely. Not onlydo these Charms engage in an unwinnable armsrace, they quickly stop having any relationship

    to events in the game world. Heavenly GuardianDefense works in an obvious way its a defensethat blocks any normal attack. But what does itmean in roleplaying terms to block any attack thatdefeats defenses that can block perfect-trumpingattacks? That way lies madness. Its far moresensible to cut this line of thinking off immediatelyand maintain the sanctity of perfect defenses.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    25/192

    24

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    A similar problem arises with another commonCharm idea: a perfect defense that lasts for an entireturn or scene. This idea has an obvious genesis:rolled reexive defenses like Dipping SwallowDefense serve as the prerequisites for turnlong andscenelong versions; it seems reasonable that youcould extend a perfect defense in the same way.

    Such a defense is simply too difcult to penetrate.A single perfect can be overwhelmed by multipleattacks, and a persistent can be beaten by individualpowerful attacks, but a turnlong perfect combinesthe best of both worlds. The only way to reliablydefeat this defense is to create an attack thatbypasses perfection which, as discussed above,

    has its own pitfalls.In order to avoid this problem, perfect defenses witha long duration should be avoided. In Sol Invictus,perfect defenses can be obtained in greater numbersat higher Essence levels but not in the unlimitedquantity that rolled defenses are.

    EXPANDING THE COMBAT GAMEPowerful defenses are just one aspect of highEssence combat. Several other specic factors comeinto play when balancing high Essence Charms thatdeserve discussion.

    HEIGHT VS. WIDTHThere are two specific routes for expansion inExalted combat that are particularly important:making bigger attacks (height) making moreattacks (width.) Most Solar offensive Charmsclearly work to improve one or the other, andthe defensive Charms follow suit -- HeavenlyGuardian Defense is a tall defense, and FivefoldBulwark Stance is a wide one. Having both optionsfor expansion makes combat more interesting andcreates difcult choices for characters is it betterto focus on a few big Combos, or try to whittleopponents down with numerous strikes?

    By Essence 3, Solars gain access to defensiveCharms which defeat single-minded applicationsof either strategy. Perfect defenses can defeat anysingle attack, no matter how powerful; persistentscan defeat an innite number of individual attacks.From that point upwards, combat strategies needto expand in both directions. On the offensive,elaborate Combos make multiple powerful attacks.Defensively, Charms like Unyielding AdamantDefense (page XX) grant a measure of width toperfect defenses, while Wind-and-Water Evasion(page XX) improves the height of a persistent.

    This balance is fragile, though, and its possibleto upset it if you dont carefully balance the two

    strategies. New combat Charms should be checkedto ensure they dont unbalance combat towardsone extreme or the other, letting a player make toomany (or excessively powerful) attacks at too lowa cost.

    Power Combat brings an important caveat to thetable. The Essence ping rule helps tip the balancetowards wide attacks as Exalts rise in Essence since each attack has the potential to do suchhigh damage even if theyre soaked, characters are

    encouraged to attack more frequently rather thanwith more powerful attacks. The Charms in SoInvictus are written to account for this factor athigher Essence prerequisites, wide defenses aremade more powerful than their tall counterparts,while tall attacks are made increasingly deadly. Ifyoure not playing with the Power Combat rules,you might want to adjust the costs of some combatCharms to compensate.

    R ESOURCE MANAGEMENTResource management is the linchpin of Exaltedcombat. At its core, the combat engine involvestrading and conserving resources spendingmotes and Willpower while trying to hold ontoyour health levels.

    For higher Essence combatants, the importanceand complexity of this resource management

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    26/192

    25

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    increases drastically. Theres a simple reason forthis: a characters resource needs rise faster than herpool of resources. Temporary Willpower increasesvery rarely, and motes increase by only a smallamount when Essence goes up while charmsquickly go from costs of 1 or 2 motes up to as manyas 20. For this reason, resource management toolsare increasingly important to powerful Exalts.

    Stunting is, of course, an important tool for Exaltsof all power levels. Under Power Combat, anExalt who stunts once every turn will generallyrecover 4 motes or 1 Willpower each turn; giventhe standards for a two-die stunt, it is reasonableto expect characters to stunt at least this often (and

    previous comments have indicated that canonicalCharms are indeed written with this assumption inplace.) This provides a level of resource recoverysufcient to fund most Charm usage at low Essencelevels.

    As the Solar increases in power, her need for motesand Willpower will start to outstrip her stuntrecovery. By Essence 3, a character is likely to use6 motes or more in a turn; by Essence 5, most Solarswill spend well over 10 motes and one or more

    Willpower during each round of combat. Morepowerful Exalts are also likely to commit muchhigher levels of Essence to powerful atifacts andscenelong Charms. As such, alternate means ofresource replenishment become necessary.

    The one canonical mote recovery Charm for Solars(Essence-Gathering Temper) provides a goodtemplate for other such effects. Like this Charm,other Charms that regenerate motes or Essenceshould typically appear in an ability without directattack or defense abilities. This helps encouragecharacters to diversify their skillsets, and ensuresthat no combat ability becomes too strong thanksto a powerful resource regeneration effect.Essence-Gathering Temper is near the limit ofmotes regenerated by a single effect; other Charmsprobably shouldnt exceed its limit, and effects thatprovide motes easily should provide fewer.

    R ULE CLARIFICATIONS FOR HIGH ESSENCE COMBATFully Independent Actions. The independent action,introduced in Exalted: the Sidereals with the CharcoalMarch of Spiders Form, is a natural evolution of theExtra Action concept. Instead of receiving a singleaddition dice action, the character receives an entireturns action. Charms which grant IndependentActions follow the rules on page 187 of ExaltedThe Sidereals.

    In addition, Charms of the Independent Actiontype have several specic restrictions. Charms ofthis type do not consume the characters standarddice action unless otherwise specied, though theymust be activated on the characters initiative.They do count as the characters Charm use fortheir standard action that turn. They may notbe used as part of a Combo. Independent ActionCharms are treated as equivalent to Extra ActionCharms in all circumstances where the latter areforbidden; this includes activating an IndependentAction Charm while you already have access to

    Independent Actions from another effect.Finally, initiating a spell, continuing a spell,and casting a spell are each considered a singleIndependent Action for purposes of these Charms.These actions each have a duration of one turn,so they cannot be performed simultaneously you cant use Independent Actions to launch aTerrestrial Circle spell on the same turn you beganto prepare it. However, you can use IndependentActions to perform other activities while the spell

    is being prepared. Therefore, someone with twoIndependent Actions could use one to begin castinga spell while using the other to defend. If she stillhad access to two Independent actions the nextturn, one could be used to unleash the spell whilethe other was used to defend; if not, her entiredice action would be consumed by unleashing thespell.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    27/192

    26

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    Damage Levels. Some high-Essence Charms foregorolling damage at all and deal levels of damagedirectly. Unless noted otherwise, damage fromsuch effects can be soaked normally; futhermore,soak subtracts from automatic damage levels beforedamage dice. Thus, if a character with 7L soakreceived an attack which dealt 5 dice and 4 levelsof lethal damage, the attacker would roll 2L.

    A complement to automatic-damage effects areeffects which remove damage successes, ratherthan dice. Such effects function like the TwilightCaste anima power they are used after damageis rolled, and subtract directly from the health levelsdealt to the target.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    28/192

    27

    CHAPTER 1 CHARM DE

    CHARM CREATION SUMMARYDETERMINE YOUR GOALS.

    What do you want your Charm to do?

    DECIDE IF YOUR CHARM IS IN THEME.Does your Charm fit into a standard Solartheme?

    Peerless SkillsLeadership EffectsThe SupernaturalSolar Fire

    Self-sufciency Martial Arts and Sorcery Abyssal Mirror Effects

    Does your effect follow the guidelines?Is it sufciently unique?Does it do something useful?Is it individually exciting?Does it follow the Rule of Cool?

    EXAMINE EXISTING CHARMS.

    Look to other Charms to see whether similareffects exist and use them to help dene yourCharm.

    DETERMINE CHARM PREREQUISITES.Ability prerequisites:

    1-2 are easily accessible to all Exalts4-5 are only available to those dedicated to the ability

    Essence prerequisites:Essence 1:Extremely basic toolkit CharmsEssence 2:Feats just outside of human potentialEssence 3:Effects that clearly and decidedly outmatchmortalsEssence 4: Powerful and broad-scope effects on amagical scaleEssence 5: Extensive effects at the limits ofconcievabilityEssence 6:Blatantly impossible and vast effectsEssence 7:Godlike, indescribable power

    DETERMINE COST.Motes:

    1 mote: Basic, precise effects; unlimited uses2-4 motes: Workhorse effects; 10-20 uses5-9 motes: Signicant effects; 5-8 uses10-15 motes:Huge, powerful effects; 3-5 uses16-20 motes: Earth-shattering and important effects,2 uses

    Willpower:To replace motes (10 motes = 1 Willpower)Scenelong effectsUnusually powerful or applicable Charms

    Pushed effects

    LOOK OVER THE CHARM ONE LAST TIME.Double-check what youve created and give ita nal test

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    29/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    30/192

    29

    CHAPTER 2 EXTENDED CHARM T

    C HAPTER 2

    E XTENDED

    C HARM T REES

    A RCHERY

    PHILOSOPHYArchery is the default ranged combat ability; assuch, its Solar Charms are fairly straightforwardand direct in their application. It is structured asa ranged mirror of Melee, as the multiple ArcheryCharms with exact Melee equivalents show.

    Solar Archery Charms are divided into twodistinct subtrees: the tree stemming from WiseArrow, which focuses on accuracy, and the treestemming from Fiery Arrow Attack, which focuses

    on damage. The rst tree expands from a basic diceadder into range-boosting effects and Extra Actions.The second expands into self-sufcient effects andimproved damage boosters. Expansions to the treeshould follow the same basic pattern individualCharm paths branching off the two central trees, or

    new trees for other purposes.The key stylistic elements of Archery Charms aresimplicity and utility. Solar Archery Charms dontusually provide tricks they allow you to shootfaster, shoot harder, and shoot better. Any trickinesscomes in with the uses the Solar puts them towards.As they increase in power, Solar Archery Charmsshould focus on these elements, producing more

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    31/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    32/192

    31

    CHAPTER 2 EXTENDED CHARM T

    accuracy. Finally, the arrow cannot be stopped byarmor; the target must soak it using only her naturalsoak. Any obstruction made of Magical Materials

    will be left undamaged; other materials will retaina small hole where the arrow passed through them.This Charm can be used to strike targets concealedentirely behind an obstruction if the Exalted hasaccess to a method with which to observe them(such as All-Encompassing Sorcerers Sight).

    R EVERSAL OF FORTUNE STRIKECost: 4 motes, 1 WillpowerDuration: InstantType: ReexiveMinimum Archery: 5Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Arrow StormTechniqueThe characters mastery of archery has reached

    a level at which ranged attacks are no danger toher. When she is the target of any ranged attack

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    33/192

    32

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    with a physical component (including boulders,hurled characters, and other unusual missiles) shenocks an arrow to her bow and makes a reexiveDexterity + Archery roll. If she rolls even a singlesuccess, her arrow successfully deects the attackaway from herself and towards a new target of herchoice. Immediately apply the attack against thenew target, using the Exalts Dexterity + Archeryroll as the attack roll. This technique can evenbe used against incoming missiles which are notstrictly attacks (for example, giant hailstones) orarea attacks; in the latter case, only the portion of theeffect targeting the Exalt is redirected. If this Charmis used against a missile enhanced with Reversal ofFortune Strike or any other counterattack Charm,

    the missile is harmlessly deected on a successfulroll, rather than being redirected.

    LITHE ARCHER DISCIPLINECost: 5 motesDuration: InstantType: Independent ActionMinimum Archery: 5Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Shot Without DistanceExercise, Barrier-Breaching ArrowThrough intense practice with his chosen

    weapon, the Exalt has become deeply attuned tothe fundamental Essence ows of archery. On theturn he activates this Charm, the character maytake a single Independent Action in addition to hisstandard dice action. All actions taken and Charmsused with this independent action must make useof the Archery ability.

    Example: Harmonious Jade is facing off against abrotherhood of talented Terrestrial archers. On herinitiative, she activates Lithe Archer Discipline, grantingher an additional Independent Action. She uses her primary action to move a full turns movement. Shethen splits her secondary action ve ways, making oneattack at each Terrestrial; she reserves her Charm useso she can use Reversal of Fortune Strike against anyincoming arrows. Harmonious Jade couldnt choose to

    use any of her split actions to dodge, since they can onlybe used for Archery actions.

    DEATH-UNLEASHING METHODCost: 10 motesDuration: InstantType: Independent ActionMinimum Archery: 5Minimum Essence: 5Prerequisite Charms: Lithe ArcherDisciplineThe Exalt and her bow have become one;

    she has merely to think in order to unleash itswrath upon her foes. On the turn she activatesthis Charm, the character may take a number ofIndependent Actions equal to one-half her Archeryscore, rounded up. All Charms used with theseactions must use the Archery ability; in addition,all offensive actions taken must also use Archery.However, the character may freely use these actionsfor defense.

    STRIKE WITHOUT EFFORT

    Cost: 3 motesDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Archery: 5Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Accuracy WithoutDistanceThe character has mastered the ability to

    effortlessly launch powerful, precise attacks againsther enemies. When activating this Charm, thecharacter adds her Dexterity + Archery in dice toa single Dexterity + Archery roll.

    HEART-SEEKING MISSILECost: 3 motesDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Archery: 5Minimum Essence: 3

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    34/192

    33

    CHAPTER 2 EXTENDED CHARM T

    Prerequisite Charms: Accuracy WithoutDistanceThrough a sublime understanding of the

    arrows true nature, the character can draw uponthe projectiles desire to strike home. The attacksupplemented by this Charm cannot be dodged,bending through space to always strike true. Inaddition, if this attack strikes, it will uniformlystrike the targets most vulnerable spot; double thesuccesses rolled on the damage roll for purposes oflost health levels. This attack is targeted throughmystic principles, and so can affect non-livingtargets like constructs or the undead; however,the additional damage effect is ignored againstinanimate targets.

    PERFECTED ARCHERY DISCIPLINECost: 7 motes, 1 WillpowerDuration: Instant

    Type: Extra ActionMinimum Archery: 5Minimum Essence: 4Prerequisite Charms: Heart-Seeking Missile,Shot Without Distance ExerciseThe character has fully internalized the

    principles of both speed and accuracy, allowingher to effortlessly strike numerous targets. TheExalt may make a number of attacks equal toher Dexterity, which may be against the same ordifferent targets. Each of these attacks receives

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    35/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    36/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    37/192

    36

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    face. Unlike Melee, which relies heavily on long-term enhancement effects, Brawl is all about themoment.

    The basic Solar Brawl tree is based around smallmodular parts inexpensive, straightforwardInstant Charms which Combo together well. A SolarBrawler who attempts to ght without Comboswill nd himself falling severely behind, sincemost of the Charms individually provide little heft.However, the Charms combine in myriad ways tocreate powerful and versatile strategies.

    Brawl, more than any other combat ability, isoffense-oriented. While individual Brawl Charms

    can provide defensive effects, they should do soas part of an offensive maneuver. A Charm whichdid nothing but provide a parry would generallybe inappropriate for Brawl.

    Brawl is also much more modular and techniqueoriented than other combat abilities. As such, Brawlhas an unusually high complement of powerfuleffects that provide unusual tactical benefits,especially when used in conjunction with otherBrawl Charms.

    Some of the additional Brawl Charms in Castebook:Dawn integrate poorly with the remainder ofthe tree, both because they increase in EssenceMinimum too quickly and because they dont twell with the principle of basic, Comboable Charms.As such, they are modied below to integrate moreeffectively into the tree.

    ABYSSAL EQUIVALENTSThe Abyssal Brawl tree contains several Charmswhose effects could usefully be mirrored by SolarCharms. The best example is Owl Seizes Mouse,an excellent grappling Charm. Solars do haveDragon Coil Technique to assist in grappling, butare otherwise decient in that area; they coulduse additional Charms to improve their clinchingability.

    Solars also lack an inexpensive damage adder forBrawl; Abyssals have access to Scouring ErosionMethod as a second-tier Charm, which implies thatPounding Hammer of Devastation Technique issignicantly overcosted.

    EXISTING CHARM MODIFICATIONSFists of Iron Technique, pg. 157. This Charm addsone-half the characters Brawl (rounded up) to boththe Accuracy and Damage of the attack.

    Dragon Coil Technique, Exalted Corebook pg. 158.This Charm has no Charm prerequisites.

    Crashing Wave Throw, Exalted Corebook pg. 159. ThisCharms prerequisite is Dragon Coil Technique.

    Shockwave Technique, Exalted Corebook pg. 160. ThisCharms prerequisite is Blood and Fist Prana.

    Pounding Hammer of Devastation Technique,Castebook: Dawn pg. 72. This Charms Brawlminimum is reduced to 4 and its Essence minimumreduced to 3. Its cost is reduced to 4 motes.

    Adamantine Fists of Battle, Castebook: Dawn pg. 72.This Charms new text is listed in the section NewCharms.

    NEW CHARMSPOUNCING TIGER STRIKE

    Cost: 5 motesDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 4Minimum Essence: 2Prerequisite Charms: Dragon CoilTechniqueThe Exalt bounds forward with great speed,

    catching his quarry unaware. A character making

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    38/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    39/192

    38

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    HUMAN SHIELD ATTITUDECost: 6 motesDuration: Instant

    Type: ReexiveMinimum Brawl: 4Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Slippery FishManeuverThe Exalt can use a clinched foe to defend

    against incoming attacks. The character can onlyuse this Charm if he won the most recent attemptto control the clinch. When activated, the charactertwists in order to place his clinched opponentsbody in front of an incoming attack he is awareof. This attack strikes the clinched foe as if it wereoriginally aimed at her.

    TEN-FOE GRASPCost: 3 motes to activate, 1 mote to maintainDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 5Minimum Essence: 4

    Prerequisite Charms: Slippery FishManeuverThe character has gained complete and total

    control of his bodys strength and agility, and canapply this to his wrestling. When supplementinga clinch attempt with this Charm, he can make thisattempt using even the smallest part of his body a single nger can apply the pressure needed tohold a foe to the ground. Clinches supplementedby this Charm have a Rate of 5. In any turn whichthis Charm is used, the Exalt may freely take other,

    non-clinch dice actions, as long as he sets asideactions to do so or has actions granted by Charms.In addition, the character may clinch any number ofopponents simultaneously using this Charm byholding them in unlikely positions, using the limbsof one to hold another, or otherwise using unlikelymethods to ensnare them.

    At the beginning of any turn in which a characterwishes to maintain a clinch begun using this

    Charm, he must activate this Charm once for eachsuch clinch he wishes to maintain, or release thatopponent.

    INCORRIGIBLE BEAST STYLECost: 3 motes, 1 WillpowerDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 6Minimum Essence: 6Prerequisite Charms: Ten-Foe GraspWhen wrestling, the character bucks and

    wriggles like a wild riding animal throwing its rider and he can always translate that motion intosuperior position in a clinch. The Solar automaticallywins a single contest for control of a clinch, evenif his opponent scored more successes on the rollthan he did. If two characters both use effects whichallow them to automatically win control of the sameclinch, ignore both effects and roll as normal.

    UNWITTING FOE-HAMMER Cost: 6 motes, 1 Willpower

    Duration: One turnType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 4Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Crashing Wave ThrowFor the masterful Solar brawler, a foe is not

    just an obstacle to overcome but also a weapon.The character may activate this Charm on any turnin which she wins control of a clinch. This turn,instead of inicting damage in the clinch as normal,he may choose to use the clinched opponent as aweapon with which to strike other foes. Such a foehas a damage rating equal to her Stamina (and otherweapon stats equal to 0). If such an attack hits, theclinched foe must soak raw damage equal to thatinicted upon the target.

    UNENDING STRUGGLE MEDITATIONCost: 5 motes, 1 Willpower

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    40/192

    39

    CHAPTER 2 EXTENDED CHARM T

    Duration: InstantType: Extra ActionMinimum Brawl: 5Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Crashing Wave ThrowThe characters tricky movements make her

    extremely difficult to pin down in a wrestlingcontest. This Charm must be activated in place ofthe standard beginning-of-turn roll for control ofthe clinch. Instead, the Exalt may make a numberof clinch control attempts equal to his Dexterity,following the rules on page 205 of the ExaltedPlayers Guide. The rst attempt receives +1 die;each additional attempt receives an additional diebeyond those previously added.

    UNERRING FISTSCost: 3 motesDuration: Instant

    Type: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 3Minimum Essence: 2Prerequisite Charms: Ferocious JabThe character channels pure Essence into their

    attacks, striking with a determination that drawshis attacks inexorably towards his target. The Exaltadds dice equal to his Strength to a single Dexterity+ Brawl attack, although it cannot be a clinchattempt. This bonus cannot more than double thecharacters Dexterity + Brawl pool.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    41/192

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    42/192

    41

    CHAPTER 2 EXTENDED CHARM T

    Prerequisite Charms: Sidestep ThrowTechniqueWhen faced with an opponents oncoming

    blow, the character slides in close, unleashing aquick and deadly blow that will often undo hisopponents strike altogether. This Charm must beused in response to an opponent declaring an attackagainst the Exalt. After the opponents attack roll,but before damage, the Solar rolls a Dexterity +Brawl counterattack. The damage for this attack is

    rolled before that of the original attack. In addition,if the counterattack connects and its raw damageis greater than the number of successes rolled onthe original attack (or if the attacker is renderedunconscious or dead by the counterattack) then theopponents original strike has no effect; damageand all other effects are prevented. This Charm maynot be used in response to any counterattack.

    INEVITABLE DESTRUCTION SPIRITCost: 7 motesDuration: Instant

    Type: ReexiveMinimum Brawl: 4Minimum Essence: 4Prerequisite Charms: Sidestep ThrowTechniqueThe Exalt has learned that any defense leaves

    a worse opening elsewhere. When an opponentsuccessfully defends against an attack the Exaltmade (through parrying, dodging, or soaking theattack to zero dice), he may activate this Charmand reexively attack his target again, doublingthe dicepool of his original attack. (This doubleddicepool may explicitly exceed the cap on Charm-added dice.) This attack does not benet fromany supplemental effects applied to the originalattack. This Charm may not be used to repeat acounterattack or any other reexive attack (such asthose granted by Inevitable Destruction Spirit).

    TUMULTUOUS FISTS MEDITATION

    Cost: 5+ motes, 1 WillpowerDuration: InstantType: Extra ActionMinimum Brawl: 5Minimum Essence: 5Prerequisite Charms: Inevitable DestructionSpiritThe Exalt launches into a rapid-re fury of

    attacks against all nearby foes. The character maymake a single Dexterity + Brawl attack against eachfoe within hand-to-hand range. In addition, the

    Exalt may choose to pay additional motes whenactivating the Charm. For each 5 motes spentbeyond the Charms initial cost, each attack madeby this Charm is applied an additional time againsteach target. No attack made by this Charm can beapplied more times than the Exalts PermanentEssence.

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    43/192

    42

    EXALTED SOL INVICTUS

    BLOOD AND FIST PRANACost: 2 motesDuration: Instant

    Type: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 2Minimum Essence: 1Prerequisite Charms: Ferocious JabThe Exalt channels Essence directly into his

    strikes, rendering them more deadly than those ofa mortal pugilist. The character adds damage diceequal to his Permanent Essence to a single Dexterity+ Brawl attack. This Charm may be activated afterthe attack hits, but before damage is rolled.

    MIGRAINE FORCE ATEMICost: 1 moteType: SupplementalDuration: InstantMinimum Brawl: 3Minimum Essence: 2Prerequisite Charms: Blood and Fist PranaWith a well-placed blow, the Exalt strikes

    disorder and uncertainty into her foes mind. If

    the attack supplemented by this blow strikes, thetarget loses a single temporary Willpower.

    VICIOUS ENCROACHMENT FISTCost: 5 motesType: SupplementalDuration: InstantMinimum Brawl: 4Minimum Essence: 3Charm Prerequisites: Shockwave TechniqueStriking with intense, unbridled might, the

    Solars sts knock aside all barriers and strike trueagainst their target. Any attack supplemented bythis Charm is unblockable. In addition, the strikesforce sends shockwaves throughout the targetsbody, setting her limbs aail and rendering herunable to properly ght; for the remainder of thescene, she receives a dice penalty to all physicalactions equal to one-half the Solars Brawl, rounded

    down. Each turn on the targets initiative, reducethese penalties by one. Multiple applications of thispenalty stack with one another.

    IRON TEMPEST STRIKECost: 3 motesDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 4Minimum Essence: 3Prerequisite Charms: Shockwave TechniqueThe characters strikes are forceful enough that

    mortal protection provides no safety from them.If the attack supplemented by this Charm hitssuccessfully, it ignores armor; the target may onlyuse her natural soak against it.

    ADAMANTINE FISTS OF BATTLECost: 5 motesDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 5Minimum Essence: 5

    Prerequisite Charms: Pounding Hammer ofDevastation Technique, Iron Tempest StrikeEssence concentrates around the characters

    hands, infusing them with great power. Strikessupplemented with this Charm deal automaticlevels of damage equal to twice the charactersPermanent Essence, in addition to their normaldamage. In addition, the Exalt may choose to havethese strikes inict either lethal or bashing damage,even if using a weapon which normally inictslethal damage.

    GOLDEN WARRIOR FISTSCost: 6 motes, 1 WillpowerDuration: InstantType: SupplementalMinimum Brawl: 6Minimum Essence: 6

  • 8/13/2019 Exalted: Sol Invictus

    44/192

    43

    CHAPTER 2 EXTENDED CHARM T

    Prerequisite Charms: Adamantine Fists ofBattleThe Exalts fists become entirely suffused

    with Solar Essence; they glow with brilliant light,and cannot be stopped by any force. Any strikesupplemented by this Charm will break throughany physical barrier without slowing (unless it ismade of one of the Five Magical Materials.) Forattacks against nonliving targets, strikes augmentedwith this Charm automatically deal enough damageto punch a st-sized hole in the object or shatter it(depending on its construction.) When used againstliving opponents, the strike is unblockable andignores all soak and hardness including bothnatural soak and that gained through Charms.

    M ARTIAL A RTS

    PHILOSOPHYMartial Arts is a notable exception to the normalrules for Exalted Charms. Because Martial Artsstyles are universal, the idea of high Essence SolarCharms doesnt apply in the same way; all Exaltedtheoretically have access to the same Charms.Furthermore, because each style is a self-contained,unique tree, the philosophy of existing Charms isless relevant to developing new ones. Therefore,instead of presenting extensions to existing Charmtrees, this section presents a complete, high EssenceMartial Arts tree.

    SOL INVICTUS STYLEIn the days of the First Age, the Solar Exaltedwere the undisputed masters of all Creation. TheSolars bestrode the world like collossi, and all thatthey desired was theirs. Many Solars wished tostudy powerful Martial Arts, but their ability withEssence was insufciently subtle to create suchstyles of their own accord. As such, the humbleSidereal viziers of the Deliberative were taskedwith creating such styles for the Solars to enjoy.

    One of the most glorious was Sol Invictus Style,a Martial Art created to honor the Solar Exaltedspatron god and the Virtues he embodies.

    The Charms of the Greater Sol Invictus Styleincrease the characters Virtues to superhumanlevels as part of their mechanical effect. This is notpurely a mechanical effect, however; the Exalt mustact in keeping with these increased Virtues duringthe time such Charms are in effect. For Solars, thismay result in points of Limit if they fail a roll orspend a point of Willpower to ignore them.

    Sol Invictus Style was created by the Sidereals toexplicitly harmonize with Solar animas, in a manner

    similar to how the Five Immaculate Dragon stylesharmonize with Terrestrials. As a result, severa