Sat Dec 2 '23 Announcement
10 months ago
– Sat, Dec 02, 2023 at 06:29:49 AM
Gather up, Gravediggers!
I've got the next section of Charms for you today, covering Larceny to Presence!
But before we get to today's section from the draft manuscript, I just want to post two quick reminders.
UPDATE #3 - if you've recently pledged, or are thinking about pledging, please go to the campaign page and ready Update #3 to ensure you havent accidentally overpaid or left a tip that you weren't expecting.
SHIPPING CHARGES will be collected in the PLEDGE MANAGER after the campaign –
The best we can do at this point is to plan carefully, advise everyone up front that international shipping will likely be expensive (see our projections on the main page) and only charge what it costs us when the time comes. We’ll be charging for shipping in the Pledge Manager once the books are being printed and we can deal with the actual shipping charges rather than using our best-guesses this far out. If you live outside the US and aren't sure you want the hardcover or other physical items, you can pledge to the PDF tier now and upgrade your pledge in the Pledge Manager once we know the final shipping costs.
DRAFT MANUSCRIPT PREVIEWS
Draft Manuscript Previews will be made available in update posts during the campaign. My current plan is have a new section of the manuscript posted every 4 days during this campaign.
Breaking the manuscript into sections and spreading them out over 4 weeks helps guide and focus the conversation, and helps the development team keep on top of the feedback while these manuscripts go through their final development and editing stages.
In fact, if you want to provide feedback directly to the development team, Onyx Path has created a special Feedback Form just for Abyssals: Sworn to the Grave! You can access that here: https://forms.gle/iWbzZDwuRGJxUSnf6
DRAFT MANUSCRIPT PREVIEWS
In today’s preview, we’ve got the second part of Chapter 6.
-
Chapter Six: Charms reveals the apocalyptic magic of the Abyssal Exalted, by which they may slaughter armies, bind the dead, and spread death’s dark gifts upon Creation.
DRAFT MANUSCRIPT DOWNLOAD LINKS
The comment section is for all members of this community – united by our shared desire to see this project fund and develop – to cheerlead the project and figure out how best to spread the word about what we’re building here. If you’ve started a thread on whatever social media platform exists today or a Discord conversation about the game or this campaign – let me know about it so we can share that info. If you’ve discussed the game on a blog or podcast, let’s hear about it! If you’ve got funny ideas for social media hashtags, well we can do those too!
If you've got questions about the rules or setting, or just want to discuss this game with other fans (as well as the Onyx Path writers and developers!), you can check out these Onyx Path discussion zones:
So dig in to our middle section of Charms and remember to share your feedback using the Feedback Forms that the writers, developers, and editors will have as guidance to take the book through the next rounds of editing and development. On Monday we'll get the next part of our Abyssals fiction, and we'll have our final section of Charms next Wednesday. It's got my favorite subtitle of all time - Resistance to War!
#AbyssalExalted
Thu Nov 30 '23 Announcement
10 months ago
– Thu, Nov 30, 2023 at 07:42:30 AM
Hey Gravediggers,
Now that we've hard our first bit Charms section, it's time for a sneak peek at the next one!
Before we get into it, just a quick Stretch Goal update! We've unlocked one more target, and have another on the way!
ACHIEVED! - At $115,000 in Funding - VTT Token Pack
At $120,000 in Funding - New Soulsteel Artifacts
New Soulsteel artifacts will be written up and added to the Companion PDF.
As demonstrated, we'll be dividing our MASSIVE Charms chapter into three sections for backer review. You'll be able to download these sections over the next week, with Preview 5 coming on Saturday.
-
Abyssals Draft Manuscript Preview 4 – Charms: Archery to Investigation – posted Nov 28
-
Abyssals Draft Manuscript Preview 5 – Charms: Larceny to Presence – coming Dec 2
-
Abyssals Draft Manuscript Preview 6 – Charms: Resistance to War– coming Dec 6
But who wants to wait? Let's have a sneak peek at a trio of Charms from Manuscript Preview #5, and then a look ahead to one charm from Manuscript Preview #6 to keep us excited through the middle part of this campaign! Let's get to it...
Bleak Wisdom Malison
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Cost: —(+1wp); Mins: Lore 5, Essence 2
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Type: Permanent
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Keywords: None
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Duration: Permanent
-
Prerequisite Charms: A Lesson in Sorrow, Fatal Flaw Scrutiny
Confronting the weak with their frailties and follies, the Abyssal teaches the wisdom of despair.
When the Abyssal uses Fatal Flaw Scrutiny to reveal a weakness in someone’s agenda she can pay a one-Willpower surcharge to confront him with the futility of his actions . If her successes equal or exceed his Resolve, he suffers a –(Abyssal’s Essence/2, rounded up) penalty on mental and social rolls related to his agenda, and 1s subtract successes. This lasts until the Abyssal uses Fatal Flaw Scrutiny on another character or until that character spends three Willpower to resist.
Life-Mocking Assembly
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Cost: 5m (+5m, 1wp); Mins: Medicine 5, Essence 2
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Type: Simple
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Keywords: None
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Duration: Instant
-
Prerequisite Charms: Necrotic Graft Technique
The Abyssal is an artist of dead flesh, transforming bone and viscera into undead masterpieces.
The Abyssal spends an hour laboring over a human or human-like corpse with surgical tools, reanimating it as a zombie (Exalted, p. 502) with a Defining Tie of obedience towards her that can’t be weakened.
Alternatively, for a five-mote, one-Willpower surcharge, the Abyssal can surgically enhance a zombie or other reanimated corpse, increasing the time needed to use this Charm to eight hours. This confers one of the following benefits:
- +1 die to all Strength-based dice pools and raw withering damage. An undead can only receive this benefit once.
- +1 die to all Dexterity-based dice pools. An undead can only receive this benefit once.
- +1 die to all Stamina-based dice pools and +1 soak. An undead can only receive this benefit once.
- A −4 health level. An undead can only receive this benefit (higher of Abyssal’s Essence or 3) times.
If the deathknight has dots in a Craft that involves the preparation or use of dead flesh, such as embalming, taxidermy, tanning, or cooking, she receives craft points for meeting objectives with this Charm as though she’d completed a major project (Exalted, p. 241).
The Death of Miracles
-
Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Occult 5, Essence 3
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Type: Simple
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Keywords: None
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Duration: Instant
-
Prerequisite Charms: Bleak Truths Laid Bare (x2)
Through ritual, the Abyssal may sunder the miracles of sorcery, withering blessed fields and slaughtering generational curses.
After encountering the ongoing effects of a spirit Charm or a spell, the Abyssal rolls (Intelligence or Wits + Occult) to introduce a method by which that magic may be undone. This roll is opposed by the character who created the effect, using an appropriate (Attribute + Ability) combination. If successful, the Abyssal’s player and the Storyteller should work together to determine a way that she can end the magic. The effort required to do so should be commensurate with the effect’s strength. This can’t reverse Instant-duration effects, or magic used by Essence 10 beings. If the Abyssal breaks a magical effect with this Charm, the opposing character becomes aware of it, sensing the affront to his primacy.
An Essence 4 repurchase lets the Abyssal pay a one-Willpower surcharge to introduce a way to permanently undo a Terrestrial sorcerous working, or temporarily suppress a Celestial or Solar working long enough for her to accomplish a significant task.
You'll be able to find all of these Charms, along with many, many more, in our next draft manuscript preview coming Saturday. And, on December 6th, we'll have draft manuscript preview #6, which will contain...
Arise and Slaughter
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Cost: 8m, 1wp; Mins: War 5, Essence 3
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Type: Supplemental
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Keywords: None
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Duration: Instant
-
Prerequisite Charms: Death Is No Respite
Speaking with calm and unquestionable authority, Death’s Lawgiver stirs the corpses of the battlefield to take up arms in her name.
The Abyssal can use a rally for numbers action to restore Magnitude to a mindless undead battle group despite its perfect morale, adding (Essence) successes and ignoring the once-per-scene limitation on that action.
If there are not any allied zombie battle groups, the Abyssal can instead animate a Size 1 battle group of zombies (Exalted, p. 502) with poor Drill and Might 1 as long as she rolls a single success. With 5+ successes and sufficient corpses to draw from, she instead reanimates a Size 2 zombie battle group.
The deathknight draws her new recruits from corpses strewn across the battlefield, and there must be a sufficient supply of them for her to use this Charm. This requirement is generally satisfied in any combat where a battle group has suffered Magnitude damage, but the Storyteller may require the Abyssal and her allies to kill additional victims before she can use this Charm if he deems there aren’t enough available.
#AbyssalsSwornToTheGrave
Tue Nov 28 '23 Announcement
10 months ago
– Tue, Nov 28, 2023 at 04:25:17 AM
Gather up, Robin Hood Detectives, for we have Archery to Investigate!
Oh wait, I misunderstood my notes.
Today, we've got our first of three sections of Charms from the draft manuscript, covering Archery to Investigation.
But before we get to today's section from the draft manuscript, I just want to post two quick reminders.
UPDATE #3 - if you've recently pledged, or are thinking about pledging, please go to the campaign page and ready Update #3 to ensure you havent accidentally overpaid or left a tip that you weren't expecting.
SHIPPING CHARGES will be collected in the PLEDGE MANAGER after the campaign –
The best we can do at this point is to plan carefully, advise everyone up front that international shipping will likely be expensive (see our projections on the main page) and only charge what it costs us when the time comes. We’ll be charging for shipping in the Pledge Manager once the books are being printed and we can deal with the actual shipping charges rather than using our best-guesses this far out. If you live outside the US and aren't sure you want the hardcover or other physical items, you can pledge to the PDF tier now and upgrade your pledge in the Pledge Manager once we know the final shipping costs.
DRAFT MANUSCRIPT PREVIEWS
Draft Manuscript Previews will be made available in update posts during the campaign. My current plan is have a new section of the manuscript posted every 4 days during this campaign.
Breaking the manuscript into sections and spreading them out over 4 weeks helps guide and focus the conversation, and helps the development team keep on top of the feedback while these manuscripts go through their final development and editing stages.
In fact, if you want to provide feedback directly to the development team, Onyx Path has created a special Feedback Form just for Abyssals: Sworn to the Grave! You can access that here: https://forms.gle/iWbzZDwuRGJxUSnf6
DRAFT MANUSCRIPT PREVIEWS
In today’s preview, we’ve got the first part of Chapter 6.
-
Chapter Six: Charms reveals the apocalyptic magic of the Abyssal Exalted, by which they may slaughter armies, bind the dead, and spread death’s dark gifts upon Creation.
DRAFT MANUSCRIPT DOWNLOAD LINKS
The comment section is for all members of this community – united by our shared desire to see this project fund and develop – to cheerlead the project and figure out how best to spread the word about what we’re building here. If you’ve started a thread on whatever social media platform exists today or a Discord conversation about the game or this campaign – let me know about it so we can share that info. If you’ve discussed the game on a blog or podcast, let’s hear about it! If you’ve got funny ideas for social media hashtags, well we can do those too!
If you've got questions about the rules or setting, or just want to discuss this game with other fans (as well as the Onyx Path writers and developers!), you can check out these Onyx Path discussion zones:
I know we've been waiting for Charms this whole time, so let's dig in! We'll have another preview from our next section on Thursday, and then Charms part 2 (Larceny to Presence) on Saturday, December 2. Don't forget to submit any issues you find using the Feedback Form links!
#AbyssalExalted
Mon Nov 27 '23 Announcement
10 months ago
– Mon, Nov 27, 2023 at 08:54:05 AM
Hello Gravediggers,
I've got some more fiction to share with you today, but first some facts! We've unlocked our 10th Stretch Goal and it's time to set up our next batch of targets!
ACHIEVED! - At $110,000 in Funding - Deathlord QCs
At $115,000 in Funding - VTT Token Pack
Digital assets will be created to support online play for Abyssals: Sworn to the Grave, including key character and antagonist tokens from the book. This online asset pack will be added to the rewards list of all backers.
At $120,000 in Funding - New Soulsteel Artifacts
New Soulsteel artifacts will be written up and added to the Companion PDF.
They had taken the boy’s fingernails first. They didn’t stop when he told them he could get the money back with interest. By the fourth, he had told them about his secret cache of silver, set aside for finally escaping Nexus one day. By the fifth, he realized they didn’t care what he told them, and that he was going to die.
He awoke in the ruined temple, hazy with burning pain and the memories of cruel laughter. As he opened bleary eyes, he saw his own corpse, streaked with blood, pocked with bruises and wounds. His killers were there, frozen in time, etched with smiles of chilling satisfaction.
He was not alone in this frozen time. A vast figure clad in black armor draped with tarnished chains, stood in the temple’s entry, too large to have crossed its threshold. The figure’s masked face watched him with rapt attention.
“Well then, is it the old god of the temple, come at last to deliver me? Or are you come to ferry my soul away? Well, have at it, I’m not afraid of you!”
A lie. Even outside his flesh, the presence of the spirit caused the boy to shiver. Long familiarity with danger told him that he was in the presence of one of the world’s true terrors.
The figure spoke, voice reverberating in the darkness: “No god I, and no shepherd to your soul. I am here to recruit.”
“Recruit for what?”
“In a place beyond the world you know, a great war of my making is brewing. I seek lieutenants of uncommon talent to further my design.”
The boy barked a bitter laugh.
“I think you’ve made a mistake, lord. I’m nobody. See here, where my talents landed me.”
The boy felt the apparition’s attention shift momentarily to his dying body, then to the cruel tools and ghoulish faces of his killers.
“I do not make mistakes. You came from nothing but have taken much. Your name commands fear in the dark corners of this city. You are clever. Observant. An assiduous judge of character, and not afraid to get your hands dirty. In you, I see the potential for great things. This life has given you no opportunity to realize it, but I give you that opportunity now. I give you honor as a prince among the dead. I give you the respect of your few peers and the obedience of your lessers. I give you the loyalty of a general, if you give me the loyalty of a soldier.”
“Oh? And what, you’re going to write my name in the clouds while you’re at it?”
“No. Your name is to be forgotten with your mortal frailty and your former life, never to be remembered. That is the cost of greatness, vengeance, and survival.”
The figure reached down and extended a clawed hand. The boy flinched back before he recognized the gesture as a handshake.
The boy could sense the truth in the figure’s words, and the offer of true power before him. He looked down once more at his own body. He saw a dead boy and a wasted life — never living up to his ambition, thwarted by the world.
“Good.” he said, taking the freezing, metal-clad hand in his own. “I want to forget it.”
The terrifying figure inclined his spike-crowned head fractionally.
“Then stand in glory, my Chosen. My deathknight. Kill this chaff, then depart south, and seek me by my omens. When we meet, our work can begin in truth.”
The boy breathed in his Second Breath. He opened his eyes; a heartbeat later, his erstwhile captors began screaming. Their blood was a baptismal crust upon his hands when he finally knelt before his Deathlord at the Thousand, pledging himself as The One Who Walks Behind You.
***
The Voice That Speaks in Silence sat motionless upon his mount, a vast skeleton-serpent which framed him like a gruesome, writhing throne. From that vantage, he beheld them: the tomb-bodies of his dead gods, the Neverborn. Blood wept from his caste mark, tracing down his dark skin to the channels engraved in his silver half-mask. He forced himself to recall the patterns he had inscribed, the sacred geometry of their asymmetrical paths dividing and rejoining. They carried the blood over his unblinking left eye, which blazed darkly with his Essence, and to the right corner of his mouth, where laughter-prone lips were set in grim determination. He could almost hear it, after all this time…
Time. Its movement was fluid, turbulent, within the Labyrinth. In these tombs, it was a tortured skein, an unsolvable knot, each moment frozen in constant motion. Was this how the Neverborn felt, in the nightmare of their eternal unbeing? Or was he merely a stone that looked upon a mountain and thought itself the same?
Same. His pilgrimage through the Labyrinth was the same as walking Creation’s dragon lines in his youth, a simple ritual of endurance. Through rivers of teeth, fields of broken toys, knife-trees and Essence-snares, he walked, arriving here, where he began, where he had given up his name. What had they done with his name, these sleepers? A quirk of his usual humor touched his lips, the laugh-lines drinking of his flowing blood. Never-born, never-named, what use have you for our names?
Names. Mere sounds, symbols without significance — like the Whispers that intruded on his thoughts, tantalizing, daring him to interpret them. But that, he mused, was the trap. The mind built itself patterns from words, stars, entrails, dreams...But if he gave in to that impulse now, if he had the hubris to think that he, out of every soul that had ever died, could divine the true words of the corpse-gods...he'd end up like a nephwrack, preaching dross to a congregation of eager fools.
Fools. Only they listened overlong to the echoes of the Whispers. The Whispers break the mind, but the silence breaks the soul. In the great, yawning spaces between the echoes lurked a paradigm shift, “Perhaps...there is meaning!” becomes “Perhaps...there is no meaning!” As one of Death's Lawgivers, to dance upon on the knife's-edge of such distinctions was his chivalry.
Chivalry. It defined him: the very rhythm to which he danced. His fingers drummed idly on the broad skull of his throne-serpent, some nameless song so old he had forgotten where he learned it. Beneath the silence of the Labyrinth is the sound of the Whispers. Beneath the sound of the Whispers is the silence of despair. Beneath that...
His staring eyes blinked at last, focused on the fingers that tapped away of their own accord. He surged upright, his serpents lashing their tails in irritation, the crystals woven in his long hair chiming. For the second time, he favored the dead gods with a wide, triumphant grin.
Beneath that silence...there is another sound.
***
The Bleeding Lily Crowned in Shackles sat in an uncomfortable high-backed chair amid a ring of similarly inauspicious personages. Another hour stretched into infinity. She stared upwards into the gruesome vaulted ceiling and entertained her wandering mind by counting the bony joins where each buttress met the roof like the ribs of a great beast. As a Moonshadow, she oversaw the summit and bound any agreements the long-dead council might request.
Other deathknights shifted in their chairs, which were never meant to support the weight of physical bodies. Some were enforcers shipped to this summit alongside their snake-tongued courtiers as a show of strength.
A Dusk Caste that the Bleeding Lily recalled as the Kingeater lounged near her with one long leg carelessly slung across its carved arm. Every so often, her eyes flitted toward the Lily with just a hint of salacious intent. The Bleeding Lily did not return the looks — one lover under fraught circumstances was enough.
With that reminder, her daydream shifted to Meadow's warm touch and the full softness of her lips against her mouth and neck. The second this dusty specter called a recess, she planned to slip out of the shadowland and find her way to her shepherdess's field.
The next time she met the Lily’s eyes, though, the Dusk flashed a roguish wink. The Lily felt her cheeks flush and glared back. This provoked a burst of inappropriate laughter from the Kingeater, and then the awkward silence a council interrupted.
"Is something the matter?" the ghostly chairman asked.
"Nothing, your grace," the Kingeater said in an appealing, rough voice, "but I think the members of this assembly with flesh and blood may be growing tired. Perhaps we can resume at midnight."
The ghost considered her words and then nodded, albeit grudgingly. "We shall be adjourned, then."
The Lily wasted no time bolting from the chamber. She kept her head down to avoid unwanted conversations and focused on the motion of one boot in front of the other. She failed to notice the Kingeater crossing her path until they collided.
The Dusk seized a fistful of her blouse and pulled her uncomfortably close. She smiled mercilessly at the Lily with pointed teeth grazing her painted bottom lip. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"
The Lily pushed against the solidness of the Kingeater's chest and her silver and black jacquard vest to force space between them. "None of your business. I need to stretch my legs."
The Kingeater’s wicked smirk widened into a wolfish grin. "Which is it? An unbelievable excuse or none of my business?"
"Both. Go away." The Lily slapped away her hand again.
"We could stretch together," the Kingeater said with a lascivious wink. "C'mon. Let's have a bit of fun."
The Lily decided whether to be disgusted or aroused and settled on a mix of both. "No. Don't you have something better to do?"
The Kingeater eyed her with brutal scrutiny. "You have someone else, then, who you're rushing off to meet." She paced a dangerous circle around the Bleeding Lily. "Let me guess... Some mortal you're keeping your identity from? How dreadfully romantic."
The Lily flushed. "No, nothing like—"
The cold kiss of metal pressed against her throat as the Kingeater blocked her passage with knife in hand. "You're a lovestruck fool, the Bleeding Lily Crowned in Shackles. That kind of romance isn’t for us.”
“I disagree,” the Lily said. Dark Essence circulated through her body and she moved, faster than thought, past the Kingeater. Without looking back, she sprinted toward the sliver of daylight winking through the exit.
“A hunt, is it?” The Kingeater’s cruel laughter echoed down the hallway. “I’ll catch you both, then.”
The Lily heard the rush of power and heavy footfalls catching up behind her. She knew she was no match for a Dusk Caste in single combat, but she would never lead this wolf to her Meadow.
***
The shepherdess watched the sun dip toward the horizon and waited until the moon rose high. Knowing her lover would not appear tonight, Meadow stood and returned home.
Sun Nov 26 '23 Announcement
10 months ago
– Sun, Nov 26, 2023 at 09:27:27 AM
Hello Gravediggers,
Two quick bits before I get to our trio of Charms preview.
First up, now that we've had a chance to look at Chapters 4+5, which cover Abyssal Character Creation (see Update #9 if you haven't already checked that out!), you can have some bonus fun listening to the latest Onyx Pathcast!
The Pathcast comes together to make an Abyssal character! Check it out!
And Stretch Goals! We're *so close* to unlocking our next Stretch Goal, so please continue to spread the word and see if other Exalted fans want to join in!
At $110,000 in Funding - Deathlord QCs
Two Deathlords will be written up with Quick Character stats and added to the Companion PDF.
At $115,000 in Funding - VTT Token Pack
Digital assets will be created to support online play for Abyssals: Sworn to the Grave, including key character and antagonist tokens from the book. This online asset pack will be added to the rewards list of all backers.
As mentioned previously, we'll be dividing our MASSIVE Charms chapter into three sections for backer review. You'll be able to download these sections over the next few weeks, starting with Manuscript Preview #4 coming on Tuesday.
-
Abyssals Draft Manuscript Preview 4 – Charms: Archery to Investigation – coming Nov 28
-
Abyssals Draft Manuscript Preview 5 – Charms: Larceny to Presence – coming Dec 2
-
Abyssals Draft Manuscript Preview 6 – Charms: Resistance to War– coming Dec 6
But who wants to wait? Let's have a sneak peek at a trio of Charms from Manuscript Preview #4, and then a look ahead to one charm from Manuscript Preview #5 to keep us excited through the middle part of this campaign! Let's get to it...
Piercing Gaze of the Unmaker
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Cost: 10m, 1wp (+10m); Mins: Awareness 5, Essence 4
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Type: Simple
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Keywords: None
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Duration: One scene
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Prerequisite Charms: All-Seeing Overlord’s Lair
The Abyssal’s perception transcends the prison of the world, casting her gaze upon all that she must one day destroy.
The Abyssal casts her perception out from afar. She may choose a specific location — a manse, a small village, a city district — within (Essence x5) miles, letting her observe it as with All-Seeing Overlord’s Lair. This doesn’t let her perceive anything beyond the observed area’s boundaries.
Alternatively, the Abyssal can choose an individual, object, or other specific thing, like “my nemesis, Panther,” “my daiklave,” or “the intruders in my lair.” If a qualifying target is within (Essence) miles, she can observe its immediate surroundings. If there are multiple targets that fit the Abyssal’s description, she can pay a ten-mote surcharge to observe up to (Essence + Perception) of them. She can only observe one at a time, requiring a miscellaneous action to switch between viewpoints.
Anyone observed with this Charm feels a faint unease, as if being watched by something malevolent. If the Abyssal seeks out a specific individual, she can heighten this, letting her make a (Manipulation + Awareness) threaten roll against him. This Charm’s range is doubled while using All-Seeing Overlord’s Lair, or while all five of the Abyssal’s senses are currently enhanced with Inhuman Perfection of (Sense).
With an Essence 5 repurchase, the Abyssal can pay twenty-mote, one-Willpower surcharge to waive this Charm’s range limit once per story. She can even peer even into other realms of existence.
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Reset: If the Abyssal fails an Awareness roll against a target of her observations, she can’t use this Charm against him again for the rest of the session.
Eloquent Example Inspiration
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Cost: 10m, 1wp; Mins: Bureaucracy 5, Essence 1
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Type: Simple
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Keywords: None
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Duration: One investigation
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Prerequisite Charms: Traitor-Extirpating Instinct
Blood and fear grease the wheels of bureaucracy, leading inexorably toward the truth.
The Abyssal begins an investigation into an organization by making a demonstration out of one of its members, publicly punishing him for some offense, real or fabricated. She doesn’t need any authority within an organization to investigate it, so long as the group’s leadership approves her punishment — either in advance, or by giving it their imprimatur after the fact.
The Abyssal adds five automatic successes on Investigation and Socialize rolls made in the course of the investigation. When she deals with organization members in the course of the investigation, their fear encourages honesty. This counts as a Minor Tie of obedient fear toward her. If their Resolve (including modifiers from Intimacies) is lower than the Abyssal’s (Charisma or Manipulation), this counts as a Major Tie instead.
This terror is all the greater if the Abyssal initiates her investigation with a fatal punishment. The Tie is imposed in all interactions, not just those related to the investigation, and organization members suffer −2 Resolve when determining its intensity.
Tenebrous Cloud Dissolution
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Cost: 10m, 1wp (1i per turn); Mins: Dodge 5, Essence 3
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Type: Simple
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Keywords: Dual, Mute, Perilous
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Duration: One scene
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Prerequisite Charms: Flickering Wisp Technique
The Abyssal melts into the air, becoming nothing more than dark, chill fog.
The Abyssal dissolves into a cloud of fog, with the following effects:
- She gains +2 Evasion. With an appropriate stunt, she can dodge unblockable attacks.
- She can’t take physical actions except for dodging, Stealth rolls, and movement actions, as well as Charms like Breath-Seizing Mist that are explicitly compatible. She’s still able to speak.
- In combat, she can move two range bands on her turn as an action that can’t be flurried. She can do so reflexively on the turn she uses this Charm.
- She can hover up to close range above the ground, letting her float over difficult terrain and certain environmental hazards unimpeded. She can’t cross running water.
- She can pass through doors, walls, and other obstructions as long as they aren’t airtight or magically warded against such intrusion.
- She’s immune to decisive damage unless its source is enhanced by magic, based on heat or cold, or benefits from an appropriate stunt. Even then, decisive damage rolls against her subtracts (Essence) successes unless they’re based on heat or cold.
- Grappling her is impossible without appropriate magic.
The Abyssal must pay one Initiative at the start of each of her subsequent turns or this Charm ends. It also ends if she’s crashed.
You'll be able to find all of these Charms, along with many, many more, in our next draft manuscript preview coming Tuesday.
And... on December 2nd, we'll have draft manuscript preview #5, which will contain...
Fear Not the Grave
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Cost: 5m, 1wp; Mins: Linguistics 5, Essence 3
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Type: Simple
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Keywords: Written-only
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Duration: Instant
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Prerequisite Charms: Evangel-Inspiring Blasphemy
The Abyssal teaches that death is not a thing to be feared, only a step along the path to freedom in nonexistence.
The Abyssal makes a special (Charisma + Linguistics) instill roll to compose a missive to a single target: morbid poetry, philosophical arguments, bleak evangelism. Success extinguishes her target’s fear of death, with the following effects:
- He gains +2 Resolve against fear-based influence based on threats of death or physical violence to him.
- His Intimacies related to fear of death or harm are weakened by one step.
- His Intimacies related to acceptance or celebration of death count as one step higher.
- Fear of death plays no part in his decisions — a revolutionary attacks a tyrant heedless of her guards, a monk protests an unjust law by fasting unto death, etc. Acting against this requires entering a Decision Point and citing a Defining Intimacy, or a Major Intimacy if danger is imminent.
This influence can only be resisted when the target faces a significant risk of physical harm. He enters a Decision Point and may cite a Defining Intimacy and spend three Willpower to end this effect.
With an Essence 5 repurchase, affected characters become immune to applicable fear-based influence, and suppress Intimacies related to fears of death or harm completely. They can only resist if faced with a risk of death, not just injury.
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Reset: This Charm can only be used against a given character once per story.
#AbyssalsSwornToTheGrave
