Character: Trapped Fire
NameNellens Takuma, Trapped Fire
ConceptEndlessly kind bureaucrat turned fallen savior
DescriptionA cloud of sand forming the shape of a 23-year-old young man in a vicar's outfit.
MotivationJoin all living things, including the Yozis, in empathy and love.
UrgeMaster the nature of the Yozis in order to cause them to transcend the oaths sworn on their natures.
IntimaciesOthers (Love)●●●
The Yozis (Sympathetic pity)●●●
Greyfalls (Hometown affection)●●●
Suffering (Exasperation)●●●
Joyous Rose (Tragic Love Amusement)●●●
Senescha (Benevolent concern)●●●
Five Fulcrums of Heaven and Earth (Ingratiated reliance)●●●
LanguagesHigh Realm, Foresttongue, Riverspeak, Old Realm, Rocktongue, Autochthonic
CasteDefiler
AnimaA storm curved inward, wracking itself with thunder.
Experience3 unspent/545 total (5 from stunts)
Essence●●●●●○○○○○
Personal25/25
Peripheral40/57
CommitmentChrysogona tattoo (3m peripheral, permanent), hearthstone amulet (1m peripheral), chain shirt (2m peripheral), Green Dawn (1m peripheral), Mind-Hand Manipulation (10m peripheral), total 17m peripheral
Respiration7m/hr from hearthstone, 3m/hr from worship, 4m/hr relaxed or 8m/hr resting, extra 1wp at will once every 24 hours, extra 1 Compassion channel every sunset
Willpower●●●●●●●●●●
■■■■■■■■■■
Compassion●●●●●Conviction●●●○○Temperance●●○○○Valor●●○○○
■■■■■■■■■■■■
Primary VirtueCompassion
TormentCurse of Cecelyne: Roll Essence. Takuma and any unwanted Intimacies are scourged with silver sand and suffer lethal damage equal to the number of successes, soakable only with natural soak or non-Infernal Charms.
Limit■■□□□□□□□□
Strength●●○○○Charisma●●●●●Perception●●●●●
Dexterity●●○○○Manipulation●●●●● ●Intelligence●●●●●
Stamina●●●○○Appearance●●○○○Wits●●○○○
MalfeasCecelyneHer NameAdorjanEbon Dragon
Archery○○○○○Integrity●●●○○Craft○○○○○Athletics○○○○○Bureaucracy●●●●○ ○
Martial Arts●●●○○ ○Performance●●●●● ● Investigation●●●○○Awareness●●○○○Linguistics●●●●●
Melee○○○○○Presence●●●○○Lore●●●●○Dodge○○○○○Ride●●○○○
Thrown○○○○○Resistance●○○○○Medicine○○○○○Larceny●●○○○Sail○○○○○
War○○○○○Survival○○○○○Occult●●●●●Stealth○○○○○Socialize●●●●○ ○
Lore (Primordials)●○○Lore (Time of Glory)●○○
Occult (Charm Technology)●●●Performance (Trenchant Arguments)●○○
Awareness (Social Politics)●○○Linguistics (Old Realm Malfean Dialect)●○○
Allies●○○○○Walks Five Roads, a Nexus socialite and Green Sun Prince.
Artifact●●●○○A demon ink tattoo of a chrysogona's mask over his heart.
Artifact●○○○○An orichalcum hearthstone amulet in the shape of the Twilight caste mark, tainted with vitriol.
Artifact●○○○○An orichalcum chain shirt worn under his reverend's outfit, tainted with vitriol.
Artifact●○○○○Green Dawn, a clerical collaret forged from Malfean brass.
Backing●○○○○Low-level ranking in the Descending Hierarchy of Cecelyne.
Cult●●●○○Supplication and worship from the Cult of Trapped Fire.
Familiar●○○○○The dependent loyalty of Iabart, an innocent sesselja.
Familiar●○○○○The obedient attachment of Vespasian, an artistically inclined agata.
Infernal Manse●●●○○The Tomb of Kaschej, Who Mourns His Own Passing.
Influence●○○○○Importance afforded by the mission to free the Yozis.
Influence●●●○○The regional power and influence of the Cult of Trapped Fire.
Past Life●●●●●Unity with the memories of the First Age sorceress Salina.
Savant●○○○○Instinctive familiarity with First Age lore flowing from Salina's memories.
MutationTypeDescription
Personal CloudAbominationInstead of sweat, the character exudes a thick, half-obscuring cloud of fog.
CharmYoziMinCostTypeDurationKeywordsEffects
Hardened Devil Body
1-PermanentPermanentStackableAdds three -2 health levels and one -4 health level.
First Cecelyne Excellency
11m/dieReflexive (1/2)InstantCombo-OKAdd dice up to (Attribute+Ability) or (Trait+Essence) to a roll resonating with the nature of Cecelyne.
The Endless Desert is patient and deliberate. She holds back, amassing resources until she can overwhelm her opposition. Her law places the strong over the weak, celebrating a doctrine of arbitrary and capricious hypocrisy. She demands reverence from allies and enemies alike and works terrifying and wondrous miracles to expand her worship. She is deeply insightful into the desires and failures of others and owns those whose wishes she fulfills. She borders everything and eternity, so everything comes to her in time. Her heart overflows with desolation, turning all around her to literal or metaphorical wasteland. When her patience runs out or her plans reach fruition, her rage is sudden and shocking.
Characters may apply this Charm to any actions in which they build on prior planning and effort in order to succeed more thoroughly or carefully. Cecelyne's Excellency also assists actions that give others what they want in order to influence and ultimately own them. She also helps punish those who break a deal or betray their loyalty to the Infernal or his laws. The Charm may assist any attempt to amass or jealously protect resources that are directly useful to the Exalt's established plans, but has no power to help spur-of-the-moment whims, acts of meaningless self-indulgence or displays of truly selfless altruism. The Endless Desert helps Infernals endure unrelentingly harsh conditions, whether physical or social, as well as resist challenges to their long-term plans. The Charm does not help characters resist random misfortune, nor can it thwart actions of those advancing an agenda unrelated to the Infernal's long-term goals.
Second Cecelyne Excellency
1- (2m/success)PermanentPermanent-May purchase successes through the First Cecelyne Excellency, each counting as two dice towards the maximum.
Cecelyne Mythos Exultant
3-PermanentPermanent-Regain both motes and Willpower on any two or three-dice stunts resonating with the nature of Cecelyne.
Cecelyne Inevitability Technique
3- (1wp)PermanentPermanentShapingWhen activating the First Cecelyne Excellency, may pay an additional 1wp to warp the flow of causality, reducing the target number of the roll by one. This effect is not cumulative with other target number reduction effects. This Shaping effect targets the environment rather than any particular individual.
Effortless Cecelyne Dominance
4-PermanentPermanent-Reduce the cost to make Charm activations of the First Cecelyne Excellency by 1m per previous activation in the same scene, to a minimum of 0m.
Sorcerous Enlightenment of Cecelyne
3/4-PermanentPermanentSorcerousEnable Shape Emerald and Sapphire Circle Sorcery actions. Reduce the cost of spells to summon, bind or banish servitors by 10m+1wp, to a minimum of 5m+1wp. May not cast spells that shape wood or create edible food or potable water.
Cecelyne Yozi-Body Unity
5-PermanentPermanent-Body exists simultaneously material and immaterial, allowing the Infernal to perceive and interact with objects in either state. May enter sanctum entrances like an immaterial being or pass through them like a material being, and other such effects. May choose at will between this dual-materiality state and any other state defining the character as exclusively corporeal or incorporeal.
Hellscry Chakra
25mSimpleIndefiniteCombo-OKPerceive demonic Essence as a synesthetic overlay of colors and tastes. Perceive immaterial demons and possessor demons, recognize non-demonic natives of Malfeas, and intuit the nature, capabilities and Motivations of recognized demons, Yozis and infernal relics. Add (Essence) bonus successes to notice, track or pierce the disguise of natives of Malfeas, or spend one Willpower to automatically succeed against a native who is not contesting with magic.
Demonic Primacy of Essence
2-PermanentPermanentServitude, SocialSocial attacks against natives of Malfeas with lower Essence inflict MDV penalties equal to the difference and become unnatural mental influence. Incoming social attacks by natives of Malfeas with higher Essence also inflict MDV penalties equal to the difference.
Transcendent Desert Creature
2-PermanentPermanent-Suffer no negative effects from exposure to places of desolation. Reduce difficulty 4+ foraging rolls to difficulty 1. Cap starvation penalties in places of desolation at -3. Automatically remove all successes on non-magical attempts to track the Infernal. Impose a penalty of the Infernal's Essence to magical tracking attempts. Add the Infernal's Essence to the difficulty of attempts to notice him with Awareness in places of physical desolation.
Stone-Flayer Touch
21m/1m, 1wpSupplementalInstantCombo-OKCause an action to affect targets regardless of immaterial or material status. Physical attacks made with Stone-Flayer Touch cost 1m+1wp if made while dematerialized on a materialized target; other actions cost 1m. Gods or demons injured by Stone-Flayer Touch lose motes equal to the levels of damage suffered as luminous flecks ground away from the wounds.
Sands Through Fingers Defense
23mReflexive (2)InstantCombo-OK, ObviousPerfectly dodge an attack by briefly dematerializing into sand. May not dodge attacks that touch material. Imperfection of the Endless Desert: May not dodge attacks from beings with an Essence rating three or more dots higher.
Soul-Sieve Transmutation
3/4- (5m, 1wp)PermanentPermanentObviousPay 5m+1wp instead of 3m when activating Sands Through Fingers Defense to remain immaterial until the Infernal's next action tick, or to dematerialize the attacker until his next action tick as a Shaping effect. Sands Through Fingers Defense may be activated in this way in the absence of an attack.
Soul-Sand Devil Shintai
4-PermanentPermanent-Permanently assume a natural dematerialized state like a demon, constructed from billions of jagged particles. Gain the benefits of a demon's panoply with regard to the material state of possessions and attuned artifacts. Replaces the need to breathe air with the need for either Essence 6+, Cult 3+, or natural living essence respiration to breathe. Does not require food, but without Cult 3+, still suffers hunger penalties as Transcendent Desert Creature. May reflexively spend 1m to toggle manifested or concealed presence. Automatically manifests at anima banner 4-7 level and higher.
Materialize 375mSimpleVariesObviousBecome material by spending (Essence + Willpower) x 5 motes, forming a vortex of fine grit that assembles bone, visceral cording, meat, organs and finally skin to complete a simulacrum of the Infernal's former appearance. Motes remain uncommitted, and the Infernal may respire motes normally while materialized. May dematerialize as a miscellaneous action at no mote cost.
Verdant Emptiness Endowment
310m, 1wpSimpleInstantShaping, Sorcerous, TrainingTrain one dot of an attribute, ability or specialty fitting to dissatisfaction expressed by someone within Essence yards. The Infernal may demand of recipients any one task that is possible and isn't an unacceptable order, lasting up to one month, on pain of the Infernal's Essence rating in botches that wait for the worst possible time if refused.
Bestowal of Accursed Fortune
3-PermanentPermanent-Expands Verdant Emptiness Endowment to bestow the following backgrounds as appropriate to the recipient: Abyssal Command, Allies, Acquaintences, Backing, Command, Connections, Contacts, Cult, Followers, Henchmen, Influence, Mentor, Resources, Reputation, Retainers, Salary, Sifu and Spies. The new background takes (new rating) weeks to result from gathering coincidences.
Abundant Generosity Patronage
22mSupplementalInstantCombo-OK, SocialEnhances any mental influence against a target who owes an outstanding favor to the character through Verdant Emptiness Endowment and is not currently actively working towards fulfilling it, rendering it undodgeable unnatural mental influence.
Factual Determination Analysis
22mReflexiveInstantCombo-OKDetermine whether a statement was intended to deceive through intentional falsehood or meaningful omission.
Analytical Modeling Intuition
33m, 1wpSimpleInstantCombo-OKRoll (Perception + Investigation + Essence) against the Dodge MDV of a target within (Willpower x 10) yards. On failure, lose another Willpower. On success, psychically extract the answer from the target to one question, answered truthfully and without meaningful omission, but which does not need to include emotional information. This unnatural mental influence may be resisted for one Willpower, or three Willpower to gain immunity from this Charm for the rest of the scene. Dredging painful or humiliating memories inflicts a -2 internal penalty on the target's next roll to recover Willpower from sleep.
Cosmic Transcendence of Compassion
2-PermanentPermanent-Regain a Compassion channel every day at sunset. Whenever the Infernal would normally roll Compassion, gain Compassion rating in automatic successes instead. Embrace a personal greater good; the terms under which Compassion may be channeled or must fail or be overridden are now defined by whatever advances or detracts from the greater good, and not the normal Compassion guidelines. Trapped Fire's greater good is a world where all beings are tied together in empathy and care for each other.
My Heart Over Yours
38m, 1wpSimple (DV -2)One sceneCombo-Basic, Emotion, Obvious, Sorcerous, WarlockUnveil a sigil, which erupts into heatless white fire visible only to those who can see the immaterial. Roll Willpower + Charisma against witnesses' Dodge MDV, adding one success per transcendent Virtue against extras. Success inflicts a Sorcerous Emotion effect which temporarily inflicts a five-dot rating in every Virtue corresponding to the Infernal's Cosmic Transcendence of (Virtue). Afflicted Virtues transform dice into successes when rolling to check for suppression. Inappropriate actions suffer a -3 internal penalty and the corresponding Virtue may not be channeled in favor of them. Compassionate inappropriate actions are those which violate the Infernal's greater good.
Essence-Dissecting Stare
23mSimpleOne hourCombo-BasicSee immaterial and invisible. Treat all Charms as Obvious. Sense artifacts, demesnes, manses, and beings with Essence 4+. Add the target's Essence in dice to any attempt to pierce a target's mundane or magical Stealth. Roll Intelligence + Occult to analyze findings. Difficulty 2 to gauge an Essence, Demesne, Manse or Artifact rating. Difficulty 5 to fully understand an unknown Charm or spell.
Ego-Infused Pattern Primacy
2/3-PermanentPermanentShapingMay reflexively initiate a one-hour or one-minute period, during which non-reflexive rolls suffer a -1 internal penalty, to reverse any Shaping effect. During the reassertion period, the character suffers the effects of his changed state normally, but the source of the healing Shaping effect (such as Wyld mutation or individual Charms) may not further change the character. Only one Shaping effect may be reversed at a time.
Wholeness Rightly Assumed
3-PermanentPermanent-Expands the list of effects reversible through Ego-Infused Pattern Primacy. Wholeness Rightly Assumed has been purchased for: Sickness effects, Crippling effects, points of bashing damage, points of lethal damage.
Pattern-Reassertion Touch
315m, 1wpSimpleUntil completeCombo-OK, Shaping, Sorcerous, TouchMay, at a touch, intuit as Obvious any effects which Ego-Infused Pattern Primacy may reverse, and choose to cause any of them to reverse in any order desired, at a rate of one minute per effect, after which the Charm abates.
Causal Substitution Maintenance
33mReflexive (7)InstantCombo-OK, Obvious, Shaping, WarlockPerfectly negate all damage after total resolution of a perceived attack by disconnecting cause from effect, producing some otherwise-unrelated effect instead. Imperfection of the Principle of Hierarchy: Increase cost by 5m against unfamiliar supernatural powers, including unfamiliar Combos of familiar Charms. Reflexive (Intelligence + Occult) roll at difficulty 5 to recognize any Charm that might possibly be familiar. The use of other Charms to perceive unexpected attacks also imposes this surcharge. Attacks by creatures of the Wyld never impose a surcharge.
Lease the Flame
33m, 1wpSimple (5)InstantCombo-OK, ObviousWill up to (Essence x 5) motes from the character's essence pools to those of a perceived character up to a mile away. Overdrive motes may be transferred into Overdrive pools at a 1:1 basis, or regular motes into Overdrive pools (including the user's own) at a 3:1 conversion rate. Willpower cost is waived when transferring motes to a hierarchical superior. Transferred peripheral motes do not contribute to anima display.
Mind-Hand Manipulation
2/410mSimpleIndefiniteCombo-OK, Obvious, SorcerousEnable telekinesis, using Willpower for Dexterity, Essence for Strength, and Occult for the ability. May keep up a number of objects equal to Essence held aloft at once. Must control a clinch to hold people aloft.
Unseen Force Application
3-PermanentPermanent-May remove the Obvious keyword from Mind-Hand Manipulation at will, rendering telekinetic force invisible and imperceptible except for a tingling surge of essence anticipated by essence users. Tracing invisible telekinetic attacks to the Infernal requires a difficulty 4 Wits + Awareness check as a miscellaneous action. Mortals treat these attacks as unblockable and suffer -3 DV to dodge them; essence users suffer -2 DV to block or dodge them.
Principle-Invoking Onslaught
31m (+1wp)SupplementalInstantCombo-OK, Obvious, Shaping, SorcerousEnhance telekinetic attacks by shaping instant-duration, damaging phenomena into existence, even phenomena that are wholly imagined and lack precedent. Characters immune to Shaping effects may not be harmed by this effect. This effect (and not any other effects of this Charm) may be invoked without a Charm activation, but unless invoked with a normal Charm activation, this attack functions in all ways except outward superficial expression like a normal telekinetic attack. Otherwise, the phenomenon bears the mechanical stats of a telekinetic attack but may have other corresponding effects, such as fire igniting flammable materials, and targets killed or destroyed by the attack may have their remains transmuted into any other matter of Resources value up to the Infernal's Essence. Enhancing a clinch requires a Charm activation and an additional willpower, and produce independent phenomena that keep the target ensnared, automatically producing half their dice pool in successes to hold the target clinched, and never taking any action except to immobilize the target. The phenomenon unravels when the clinch is broken or dispelled or the creator wishes, and the prisoner is free to act immediately. Up to (Essence) independent clinches may be made in this way at once.
Tool-Transcending Constructs
3-PermanentPermanentShapingUse Mind-Hand Manipulation to alter reality as a substitute for non-weapon tools when performing Ability-based actions, such as musical instruments, writing implements, fire, etc. Provides the equivalent of a basic workshop.
Unified Field Theory
4-PermanentPermanentWarlockActions using Mind-Hand Manipulation may exert their full Essence on the immaterial. Additionally, while the Infernal is immaterial, he may take actions using Mind-Hand Manipulation to affect the material. Any attack made against the material in this way costs an additional 1wp.
Directed Thought Imposition
3-PermanentPermanentIllusion, WarlockWhile Mind-Hand Manipulation is active, the Infernal may intrude thoughts into the minds of targets within ten times the Range of his telekinetic attacks as an unnatural Illusion; resistance costs 1wp and immunizes the target for one day. Linguistic messages are transmitted in Old Realm. Directed thoughts cannot be overheard without relevant magic.
Sacred Kamilla's Inhalation
1/51m/corpseReflexiveInstantCombo-OK, StackableWhile moving away from a corpse within (Essence x 10) yards, dissolve it into an inhalation of essence-infused breath, allowing safe breath in all climates and conditions for a number of days equal to the corpses inhaled. If the Infernal inhales a corpse he personally killed, he gains mystical ownership of all possessions on the victim's person. Animate corpse extras may be inhaled, ejecting any possessing beings. Non-extra walking corpses may not be inhaled.
Freedom Lets Go
21m/5mReflexive (2)InstantCombo-OKThe Infernal may activate this Charm to end all emotional attachment connected to an Intimacy, removing it. This ends any Emotion effects imposed by the subject of that Intimacy, and gives the option of removing the subject from the Infernal's memories. The first time an Intimacy is removed by this Charm in a scene, the Infernal recovers one Compassion channel. Activation involves turning one's back and walking away from the subject if she is physically present, or silently mouthing the subject's name and pausing in brief and final reminiscence otherwise.
Tragic Love Amusement
24mSimpleInstantCombo-OK, EmotionThis Charm creates an Intimacy of love towards an individual, whether amorous or platonic. The Infernal adds successes instead of dice when channeling Compassion to aid the subject of a magical Intimacy created by this Charm. Stunts that teach, hurt or express affection towards the subject raise their stunt rating as if resonating with the Infernal's Motivation, and the Infernal may choose to recover a Compassion channel instead of a Willpower point from the rewards for such stunts. The Infernal also subtracts Compassion from the subject's Mental Defense Values when socially attacking her. The Infernal may sustain up to (Compassion) magical Intimacies created by this Charm at any given time.
Broken Silence Laughter Defense
21m/5mReflexive (2)InstantCombo-OKThe Infernal may activate this Charm for 1m in response to any mental influence, making that influence Obvious to his senses. By spending an additional 4m (or for free, if he has made no other vocal utterances in the scene yet), he may perfectly parry the influence with inappropriate or unnerving laughter, even if it is unblockable.
Wind-Carried Passion
3/4-PermanentPermanent-Tragic Love Amusement may be activated to target another person within 100 yards. Roll Charisma + Larceny + Compassion against the target's Dodge MDV. Success induces love for a subject of the Infernal's choice, in a context similarly chosen, as per the effects of Tragic Love Amusement unless the target resists the Emotion effect for two Willpower.
Loom-Snarling Deception
25mSimpleIndefiniteCombo-OK, Illusion, ShapingThe Infernal's shadow washes over him, producing an Illusionary guise with the same basic body plan and functioning as a perfect disguise, irresistible with Willpower or Excellencies, and adding Essence in successes to Charm rolloff. A Shaping effect also lures the Infernal inside fate and creates a false destiny that fools astrological readings. On deactivation, a pattern spider cries out in horror.
Eldritch Secrets Mastery
3-PermanentPermanentIllusionEnables Loom-Snarling Deception disguises to encompass false magical traits, such as Essence rating, status as creature of darkness, mote aspecting, or anima banner.
Emerald Angel Unfurling
3/46m, 1wpReflexive (2)One hourCombo-OK, HereticalCreates an invisible ablative essence sheath composed of (Integrity) winged layers, which appear in an Obvious mandala when an unwanted Shaping effect is incurred. The Shaping effect fails; roll (Essence + Willpower) against a difficulty of the shaper's Essence, and on failure, one of the winged layers shatters (on a botch, all layers). Upon loss of all layers, Emerald Angel Unfurling terminates, though it may immediately be reactivated as a non-Charm activation. Pure Chaos may not impose this roll more than once per hour, even across separate activations of Emerald Angel Unfurling.
Titanic Convergence Shield
3-PermanentPermanentHereticalCounts Reflexive Charms with a Primordial Imperfection as any other such Charms for the purposes of being included in Combos.
ComboCostCharmsDescription
Temporal Angel Ignition1wpFirst Cecelyne Excellency, Sands Through Fingers Defense, Factual Determination Analysis, Causal Substitution Maintenance, Broken Silence Laughter Defense, Emerald Angel UnfurlingTrapped Fire thrums with unnatural power, distorting space and sound around him and briefly illuminating two pairs of ephemeral wings of essence: one silver and one searing white; one glimmering emerald and one deep crimson.
SpellCircleCostTargetEffects
Conjuring the Azure Chariot
5m, 1wpCasterBeckons four cerulean horses that snort steam, trail lightning sparks and freeze the ground beneath their hooves, carrying an azure coach out of a conjured fogbank. The coach can carry up to (Essence x 200) pounds or 4 passengers plus the caster. The horses gallop on a trail of fog when given a destination, flying at up to 200 miles per hour, unable to be slowed or turned aside. They only fly while the sun is in the sky, and the spell must be cast during daylight hours.
Emerald Countermagic
10m, 1wp/20m, 1wpCaster or one spellThis spell may be shaped reflexively for 0 ticks. May secure self against hostile magic for the duration of Cast Sorcery action and one action thereafter for 10m, shattering any Emerald Circle spells targeting caster. May shatter a particular Emerald Circle spell within (Essence x 50) feet for 20m, or interrupt a spell still in its shaping stage. This spell cannot banish summoned spirits. Shattered spells cause random trivial magic effects, which may cause minor burns or damage to those in range other than the countercaster.
Infallible Messenger
5m, 1wpSummoned cherubConjures a multicolored humanoid figure only a few feet tall, with six iridescent wings. Whisper a message or social attack of up to five minutes (five long ticks) in length (which may be enhanced with proper Charms), then name and describe a target. The cherub may travel hundreds of miles an hour, crossing Creation in less than a day and effectively reaching any point in Creation or the Demon Realm almost instantly. Unless the recipient is mystically obscured, the cherub finds the recipient, conveys the message in the sorcerer's voice, then dissipates.
Slave-Spawn Summons
10+m, 1wpOne first circle demonSummon and bind a first circle demon. Cast at sunset with one Shape Emerald Circle Sorcery action. May not be cast in the Underworld. After summoning, roll Essence + Willpower against the demon's Essence + Willpower - (1 for every 5m added to the spell cost). Continue to roll until either sorcerer or demon has 3 more successes than the other. If the demon wins, binding fails; roll Wits + Occult at difficulty 3 to banish. If the sorcerer wins, the demon's will is broken and bound to either a task or a year and a day of abscissic loyalty to the sorcerer. In either case, the sorcerer may choose an invulnerable magical Intimacy of reverence or terrified awe to instill in the demon for the duration of binding.
Unconquerable Self
1m, 1wpCasterThis spell may be shaped reflexively even when bound or paralyzed, so long as one can concentrate. Unmakes the caster's essence pattern, causing an iconic anima flare followed by an essence eruption that destroys the caster and any possessions, including attuned artifacts. No ghost is produced, and Exaltations retain no memories of the caster. Momentarily blinds witnesses but does not harm them.
The Battle's End
30m, 2wpAreaMakes the Sign of Battle's End and sends violet essence into the sky, which turns as a wheel of sigils of harmony surrounding the mark of Saturn. The wheel lasts for (Essence x 20) ticks and extends for (Essence x 100) yards, from up to 50 yards from the sorcerer. Inflicts an unnatural compulsion to cease all combat and stare at the wheel. Mortals may not resist; Exalted may resist for two Willpower. Those who resist may snap others out of the reverie, but they still may not fight.
Sapphire Circle Banishment
5+m, 1wpDemon or demonsThis spell may be shaped reflexively for 0 ticks. Harnesses the Seven Devils Rebuking sign and the Victory over Primordials Mudra to banish a demon or demons with a range of up to (Essence x 15) yards. One first circle demon may be banished automatically without a contest of wills. One second circle demon may be engaged in a contest of wills, causing an extended resisted roll of (Essence + Willpower), with each step being a Speed 3, DV -1 action, with any contestant who takes a non-reflexive action before the contest is over forfeiting, and the demon's dice pool reduced by one die for every five motes spent over the cost of the spell. The winner is the first to total the opponent's Essence in successes. If the demon wins, the caster may not attempt to banish it again for five days. Multiple first circle demons may be engaged in a collective contest of wills, with the sorcerer facing a resisting pool of the highest (Willpower + Essence) among the demons, plus one die for every additional demon, otherwise resolved similarly. In mass combat, this spell reduces a unit of first circle demons by one point of Magnitude.
Sapphire Countermagic
15m, 2wp/20m, 2wpCaster or one spellThis spell may be shaped reflexively for 0 ticks. May secure self against hostile magic for the duration of Cast Sorcery action and one action thereafter for 15m, shattering any Emerald, Sapphire or Iron Circle spells targeting caster. May shatter a particular Emerald, Sapphire or Iron Circle spell within (Essence x 50) feet for 20m, or interrupt a spell still in its shaping stage. This spell cannot banish summoned spirits. Shattered Sapphire Circle spells cause random magic effects, which may cause burns or damage to those in range other than the countercaster. Shattered Iron Circle spells cause random trivial magic effects, which may cause minor burns or damage to the same. Shattered Emerald Circle spells are extinguished completely.
Soul-Body Union Noesis
20m, 2wpOne Alchemical ExaltThis spell requires a mixture of clay, salts and the mundane equivalent of the Alchemical's caste material, totalling Resources 3 in value. The materials congeal and liquify, and the Alchemical immerses himself within and meditates, as they glow and form into the shape of his iconic anima. He may requisition a new set of installed Charms or Arrays, and his body molds into the requested shape, while the materials dissolve to replace his old installed set in the noetic networks.
-0□6 hours rest
-1□□2 days rest
-2□□□□□4 days rest
-4□□2 weeks rest
Incapacitated□2 weeks rest
Dying□□□2 weeks rest
Anima Powers
1mCause caste mark to open for a scene (as if at the 4-7 mote display).
1mGlow with a light-distorting aura bright enough to read by (as if at the 8-10 mote display).
1mIntuit the time remaining until the next moment of demon-summoning.
1mSense the nearest entry point into the Yozi realm.
5mShield the Infernal from one attack with a globe of congealed essence, rolling Essence and subtracting successes in levels of damage from the attack in step 10 of attack resolution.
Anima Display
1-3mThe third eye gleams faintly, visible from certain angles with a successful (Perception + Awareness) roll at difficulty 1. The mark is not bright enough to interfere with Stealth. The effects persist for one hour after peripheral expenditure ceases.
4-7mThe third eye cracks open, staring the Infernal's caste mark into the air, penetrating anything used to cover it. Normal Stealth attempts are impossible, although the character can hide behind natural cover at a +2 difficulty.
8-10mThe Infernal is surrounded with a light-distorting aura that is bright enough to read by, and his caste mark is a burning brand of sickly green energy. Stealth is impossible.
11-15mThe Infernal is engulfed in a bonfire of infernal essence that burns from his feet to at least a foot over his head. Mortals observing the bonfire sometimes feel senses of nausea and vertigo. Mundane materials exposed to the bonfire may show signs of decay, or mundane decorative patterns may warp into unnatural shapes. The character is visible for miles, and the light produced is bright enough to read by up to 100 feet away. At this level, the character's anima power activates, congealing into a sphere of essence and subtracting one level of damage taken from all attacks in step 10 of attack resolution, unless the Infernal chooses to spend 5m to use the active version of the power instead.
16+mTrapped Fire is surrounded or surmounted by a burning iconic image of a storm inverted and turned inside-out, wracking itself wildly with unnatural lightning and spatial weather. The totem display recedes when his DV next refreshes. It occurs automatically the first time in a scene that Fire spends essence at this level, but for the remainder of the scene, such displays only occur when his player deems it dramatically appropriate. All demons within miles take notice of this outpouring of unholy power, and those not bound by Exalted sorcery are compelled to make their way towards its source.
PossessionsVicar's outfit, sandals, firmin-needle utility knife
ArtifactsA demon ink tattoo over his heart in the shape of a chrysogona's wooden tragedy mask, whose ink slides constantly to create the animated image of silent weeping. An orichalcum hearthstone amulet, brassy and rusted, in the shape of the Twilight caste mark (the solid top half of which folds down over the inserted hearthstone), and a matching tainted chain shirt, gifted by the Ebon Dragon without explanation as to their origin. Green Dawn, an artifact of dawn's cleansing light in the shape of a clerical collaret, forged from Malfean brass by the water elemental Seona-Mul.
ManseThe Tomb of Kaschej is the anticipatory tomb of the Dragon Beyond the World's tenth soul, Kaschej, Who Mourns His Own Passing. It is an edifice of Underworld jade constructed in the wake of the Primordial War, when Kaschej's reflective soul, Orfejas, the Meaning of Nothing, in her restless wandering, discovered to her wonder the site of her father's death. The Tomb of Kaschej is lined with ebon statues of hekatonkhires and Labyrinth dreamings, many of which are still unidentified, and contains long halls of prayer offerings and incense altars (given in vain, due to the status of ghosts in the Demon Prison) around a descending central spiral. Within the deepest level of the central chamber is the great sarcophagus of Who Mourns His Own Passing. When opened, a deep and disconcerting emptiness can be witnessed. The nothingness within the crypt of Kaschej answers inquiries with visions of unknown origin and dead echoes from the remembrances of people not yet deceased. Orfejas spends most of her time walking up and down the halls of the Tomb, or meditating on the void within her father's sarcophagus and the answers found there. The Tomb of Kaschej also serves as a minor place of refuge in the Demon City, its eternal edifice standing up against local catastrophes which would presume to bring it a greater ending that it already represents. Trapped Fire permits both first circle demons and what few escaped ghosts might make it to the threshold to seek free refuge there. Demon-Bound: Kaschej. Comfort Zone (2cp), Magical Conveniences (1cp) (Doors creak open unbidden, candles light themselves with pyre-flame on approach, a guestbook records the name of every visitor next to a vague omen associated with their eventual demise), Deathly-Flavored Aspect (1cp), Archive (2cp) (Occult (Necromancy), Occult (Creatures of Death), a secret pertaining to the hearthstone bearer's demise).
HearthstoneThe Death-Speech Gemstone, a cobalt blue stone in the shape of an egg. The bearer may concentrate as a miscellaneous action to initiate a conversation with any corpse, so long as the corpse still has some amount of flesh remaining. The corpse has no knowledge it did not have when it died.
Past LifeSalina
ConceptCheerful egalitarianist Solar prodigy
DescriptionA short blonde woman with a forcefully effusive personality.
MotivationCreate true freedom by eliminating hierarchy.
IntimaciesOppression (Righteous enmity)●●●
Impromptu crusades (Impish satisfaction)●●●
Joyous Youth Juritsu (Friends with benefits)●●●
Children (Flaky motherliness)●●●
Pyrian magic (Distaste)●●●
CasteTwilight
AnimaA blazing golden eagle diving forward with every forceful gesture she makes.
Unwoven CoadjutorEres, a self-cautious but adventurous tomescu who does not scream.
DescentTomescu, the Clamorous Cloud Arsenal, progeny of Octavian, the Living Tower, defining soul of Munaxes, the Ravine of Whispers, fourth soul of She Who Lives in Her Name, the Principle of Hierarchy
TellPores release thick, foggy clouds rather than sweat.
FamiliarIabart, a childish sesselja, innocent by the standards of the Demon City.
DescentSesselja, the Stomach Bottle Bug, progeny of Alveua, the Keeper of the Forge of Night, expressive soul of Erembour, That Which Calls to the Shadows, seventh soul of the Ebon Dragon, the Shadow of All Things
Essence Pool75/75
Respiration Rate4m/hr relaxed or 8m/hr resting
Willpower●●●●●●●○○○
■■■■■■■
FamiliarVespasian, a demon wasp, artistic and sensitive.
DescentAgata, the Beauteous Wasp, progeny of Florivet, the Whim-of-the-Wind, reflective soul of Orabilis, the End of All Wisdom, sixth soul of Cecelyne, the Endless Desert
Essence Pool70/70
Respiration Rate4m/hr relaxed or 8m/hr resting
Willpower●●●●●●○○○○
■■■■■■
Join Battle/Debate4/5Parry DV (Unarmed)3
Parry MDV6Parry DV (Telekinesis)8
Dodge MDV9 (14)Dodge DV4
Natural Soak3/2/0Armor Soak5/7/7
Total Soak8/9/7Pierced Soak5/5/3
Armor Hardness3/3/0Movement2 move/8 dash
AttackSpeedAccuracyDamageRateRangeDefenseTags
Punch55 (6)2B3-3N
Kick54 (5)5B2-2N
Clinch64 (5)2B1--NCP
Telekinetic strike5155B5158N
Telekinetic blade*5155L5158NP
Telekinetic clinch6155B115-NCP
*Telekinetic blades inflict aggravated damage to creatures of the Wyld.
AttackSpeedCharismatic AccuracyManipulative AccuracyRateCharismatic DefenseManipulative Defense
Presence489245
Performance61112166
Investigation589245
Nellens Takuma was born to functionary parents at the satrapy of Greyfalls, patricians of House Nellens who had no reason to expect one of their thin-blooded eggs to hatch: the Wood Aspected Nellens Haruna and her husband Yasu, and their children Rikuto, Masaru and Takuma. There was relatively little concern over the boys being kept at the satrapy and trained at a primary school there rather than sent back to the Blessed Isle and groomed for potential greater things. And while dedicated Masaru surprised the family by Exalting in the course of his studies of the Immaculate Faith, greater things did not seem to be in the cards for young Takuma. He was an exceptionally soft-hearted child, unprepared for the harsh life of a Dynastic scion, even one who had lessened expectations placed on his shoulders. The other children of the Realm would strike Takuma, spit venom on his parentage, and wheel past him in the dealings of Realm society, and though he was hurt, he would not fight back, and feared to stand up for himself. If anyone ever stood up for Takuma, it was just one other local Dynastic girl who would defend him and try to encourage him, and soon he had only one friend against the world. When she turned fifteen, Cathak Lunira disappeared under mysterious circumstances, and then he didn't have one.
Still, Takuma was a devoted young man. He read the precepts of the Immaculate Faith and adhered to them with great devotion in emulation of his older brother, to the point where local immaculate monks would sometimes reproach and shame Dynastic locals for unbecoming behavior by saying they should emulate the Nellens boys; a handful believed he too was destined for Exaltation despite his thin blood. His feeling of responsibility was great, and while he did not study for his functionary future with unusual vigor, he did study with unusual sincerity. He sought out and interacted with the native populace in dialogue rather than command, and though his will was not unusually strong, his heart was. All who reached out to Nellens Takuma received a hand to help them.
Takuma therefore lived, if not a life free of strife, a life with which he was mostly satisfied, until the arrival of Peleps Deled. The Wyld Hunt was passing through at the time, on the trail of Anathema rumored to be moving out from the Hundred Kingdoms, and while the departed hunter Brother Masaru was not among them, the notorious Brother Deled was. The Anathema was not suspected to be in Greyfalls, but Deled found other offenses in minor divergences between his own interpretation of the Immaculate Faith and the local monastery's. Takuma had come to study and meditate on the dragons, but instead he saw before his eyes as Brother Deled's words became heated until he struck the local abbot. He reached out his hand to no effect as Deled's strikes grew more grievous. An invisible presence in the vicinity knew then what the boy could have done. His sincerity was great enough that it could have touched the heart of Peleps Deled, leading to a level of contrition that would ripple outward. But Deled was terrifying, and Takuma weak. When he spoke, the words barely came out, and Deled's barking for him to shut up and go on cowed him. He stared, throat devoid of words, and then ran from the monastery. Deled struck several more people before his fury passed, and his first victim died of his wounds. The scandal echoed outward. The Dynasts of Greyfalls were shocked and the natives enraged, certainly, but even as far away as Chiaroscuro, hearts hardened in response. More arguments spread through the immaculate community. Unrest grew and hatred stirred.
Takuma couldn't rest thereafter. His dreams replayed the incident over and over, and cloudy whispers told him he could have done something. He should have done something. They would whisper to him each night in more clarity, until he found himself remembering conversations with the voice attached to his memory. It told him he had a potential that could be unlocked, a power he could exercise to encourage harmony and right living, so that no rogue madmen like Peleps Deled would pollute the body of Creation. It told him that he had missed his chance, but that he was blessed, for he was being given another: take it now, and spread harmony throughout Creation, or refuse it, and be consigned to ignominy, his kindnesses forever outpaced by the cruelty of his peers. One night, a feeling of emptiness and futility spread out across his heart, and he despaired. He rose from the middle of his dream and said "yes," and was enveloped in clouds.
Takuma's memories following that are foggy, filled with strange portents and bizarre experiences. It wasn't long, though, before he was taken to Malfeas, and he understood fully what he was. He had taken the devil's bargain; he was Anathema. And yet he saw something new in the alien landscapes before him, as he was drowned in spiritual communion with She Who Lives in Her Name. They were demons, yes. They often did terrible things. But he saw now that they were living things, first and foremost, and in pain. In their torments, they thrashed about, and they did not know how to respond to the world around them any longer. The Yozis and all their lesser emanations and progeny preyed on victims to alleviate their own victimhoods. Then he knew, even as he was damned and his soul condemned, that he could still do good. Nellens Takuma had lost his redemption, but gained the redemption of something greater, if only he could figure to accomplish it. In two years now he has set to study, unusually sincere if not unusually vigorous, to a great undertaking: to heal the Yozis, free them from pain, and teach them the love and understanding that their creation, humanity, knows. He has presented the plan to his fellow denizens of Hell as a means by which to expand the Yozis' purviews and therefore, rather than transform Creation into something that is no longer enough like Creation to keep the Yozis out, transform the Yozis into something that is no longer enough like the Yozis to keep them bound within themselves. It is a wear on his spirit, and he knows not yet whether he can accomplish the task before him. But he knows it is the right thing to do, and that is, at least, comfort.
ConceptEndlessly kind bureaucrat turned fallen savior
DescriptionA cloud of sand forming the shape of a 23-year-old young man in a vicar's outfit.
MotivationJoin all living things, including the Yozis, in empathy and love.
UrgeMaster the nature of the Yozis in order to cause them to transcend the oaths sworn on their natures.
IntimaciesOthers (Love)●●●
The Yozis (Sympathetic pity)●●●
Greyfalls (Hometown affection)●●●
Suffering (Exasperation)●●●
Joyous Rose (Tragic Love Amusement)●●●
Senescha (Benevolent concern)●●●
Five Fulcrums of Heaven and Earth (Ingratiated reliance)●●●
LanguagesHigh Realm, Foresttongue, Riverspeak, Old Realm, Rocktongue, Autochthonic
CasteDefiler
AnimaA storm curved inward, wracking itself with thunder.
Experience3 unspent/545 total (5 from stunts)
Essence●●●●●○○○○○
Personal25/25
Peripheral40/57
CommitmentChrysogona tattoo (3m peripheral, permanent), hearthstone amulet (1m peripheral), chain shirt (2m peripheral), Green Dawn (1m peripheral), Mind-Hand Manipulation (10m peripheral), total 17m peripheral
Respiration7m/hr from hearthstone, 3m/hr from worship, 4m/hr relaxed or 8m/hr resting, extra 1wp at will once every 24 hours, extra 1 Compassion channel every sunset
Willpower●●●●●●●●●●
■■■■■■■■■■
Compassion●●●●●Conviction●●●○○Temperance●●○○○Valor●●○○○
■■■■■■■■■■■■
Primary VirtueCompassion
TormentCurse of Cecelyne: Roll Essence. Takuma and any unwanted Intimacies are scourged with silver sand and suffer lethal damage equal to the number of successes, soakable only with natural soak or non-Infernal Charms.
Limit■■□□□□□□□□
Strength●●○○○Charisma●●●●●Perception●●●●●
Dexterity●●○○○Manipulation●●●●● ●Intelligence●●●●●
Stamina●●●○○Appearance●●○○○Wits●●○○○
MalfeasCecelyneHer NameAdorjanEbon Dragon
Archery○○○○○Integrity●●●○○Craft○○○○○Athletics○○○○○Bureaucracy●●●●○ ○
Martial Arts●●●○○ ○Performance●●●●● ● Investigation●●●○○Awareness●●○○○Linguistics●●●●●
Melee○○○○○Presence●●●○○Lore●●●●○Dodge○○○○○Ride●●○○○
Thrown○○○○○Resistance●○○○○Medicine○○○○○Larceny●●○○○Sail○○○○○
War○○○○○Survival○○○○○Occult●●●●●Stealth○○○○○Socialize●●●●○ ○
Lore (Primordials)●○○Lore (Time of Glory)●○○
Occult (Charm Technology)●●●Performance (Trenchant Arguments)●○○
Awareness (Social Politics)●○○Linguistics (Old Realm Malfean Dialect)●○○
Allies●○○○○Walks Five Roads, a Nexus socialite and Green Sun Prince.
Artifact●●●○○A demon ink tattoo of a chrysogona's mask over his heart.
Artifact●○○○○An orichalcum hearthstone amulet in the shape of the Twilight caste mark, tainted with vitriol.
Artifact●○○○○An orichalcum chain shirt worn under his reverend's outfit, tainted with vitriol.
Artifact●○○○○Green Dawn, a clerical collaret forged from Malfean brass.
Backing●○○○○Low-level ranking in the Descending Hierarchy of Cecelyne.
Cult●●●○○Supplication and worship from the Cult of Trapped Fire.
Familiar●○○○○The dependent loyalty of Iabart, an innocent sesselja.
Familiar●○○○○The obedient attachment of Vespasian, an artistically inclined agata.
Infernal Manse●●●○○The Tomb of Kaschej, Who Mourns His Own Passing.
Influence●○○○○Importance afforded by the mission to free the Yozis.
Influence●●●○○The regional power and influence of the Cult of Trapped Fire.
Past Life●●●●●Unity with the memories of the First Age sorceress Salina.
Savant●○○○○Instinctive familiarity with First Age lore flowing from Salina's memories.
MutationTypeDescription
Personal CloudAbominationInstead of sweat, the character exudes a thick, half-obscuring cloud of fog.
CharmYoziMinCostTypeDurationKeywordsEffects
Hardened Devil Body
1-PermanentPermanentStackableAdds three -2 health levels and one -4 health level.
First Cecelyne Excellency
11m/dieReflexive (1/2)InstantCombo-OKAdd dice up to (Attribute+Ability) or (Trait+Essence) to a roll resonating with the nature of Cecelyne.
The Endless Desert is patient and deliberate. She holds back, amassing resources until she can overwhelm her opposition. Her law places the strong over the weak, celebrating a doctrine of arbitrary and capricious hypocrisy. She demands reverence from allies and enemies alike and works terrifying and wondrous miracles to expand her worship. She is deeply insightful into the desires and failures of others and owns those whose wishes she fulfills. She borders everything and eternity, so everything comes to her in time. Her heart overflows with desolation, turning all around her to literal or metaphorical wasteland. When her patience runs out or her plans reach fruition, her rage is sudden and shocking.
Characters may apply this Charm to any actions in which they build on prior planning and effort in order to succeed more thoroughly or carefully. Cecelyne's Excellency also assists actions that give others what they want in order to influence and ultimately own them. She also helps punish those who break a deal or betray their loyalty to the Infernal or his laws. The Charm may assist any attempt to amass or jealously protect resources that are directly useful to the Exalt's established plans, but has no power to help spur-of-the-moment whims, acts of meaningless self-indulgence or displays of truly selfless altruism. The Endless Desert helps Infernals endure unrelentingly harsh conditions, whether physical or social, as well as resist challenges to their long-term plans. The Charm does not help characters resist random misfortune, nor can it thwart actions of those advancing an agenda unrelated to the Infernal's long-term goals.
Second Cecelyne Excellency
1- (2m/success)PermanentPermanent-May purchase successes through the First Cecelyne Excellency, each counting as two dice towards the maximum.
Cecelyne Mythos Exultant
3-PermanentPermanent-Regain both motes and Willpower on any two or three-dice stunts resonating with the nature of Cecelyne.
Cecelyne Inevitability Technique
3- (1wp)PermanentPermanentShapingWhen activating the First Cecelyne Excellency, may pay an additional 1wp to warp the flow of causality, reducing the target number of the roll by one. This effect is not cumulative with other target number reduction effects. This Shaping effect targets the environment rather than any particular individual.
Effortless Cecelyne Dominance
4-PermanentPermanent-Reduce the cost to make Charm activations of the First Cecelyne Excellency by 1m per previous activation in the same scene, to a minimum of 0m.
Sorcerous Enlightenment of Cecelyne
3/4-PermanentPermanentSorcerousEnable Shape Emerald and Sapphire Circle Sorcery actions. Reduce the cost of spells to summon, bind or banish servitors by 10m+1wp, to a minimum of 5m+1wp. May not cast spells that shape wood or create edible food or potable water.
Cecelyne Yozi-Body Unity
5-PermanentPermanent-Body exists simultaneously material and immaterial, allowing the Infernal to perceive and interact with objects in either state. May enter sanctum entrances like an immaterial being or pass through them like a material being, and other such effects. May choose at will between this dual-materiality state and any other state defining the character as exclusively corporeal or incorporeal.
Hellscry Chakra
25mSimpleIndefiniteCombo-OKPerceive demonic Essence as a synesthetic overlay of colors and tastes. Perceive immaterial demons and possessor demons, recognize non-demonic natives of Malfeas, and intuit the nature, capabilities and Motivations of recognized demons, Yozis and infernal relics. Add (Essence) bonus successes to notice, track or pierce the disguise of natives of Malfeas, or spend one Willpower to automatically succeed against a native who is not contesting with magic.
Demonic Primacy of Essence
2-PermanentPermanentServitude, SocialSocial attacks against natives of Malfeas with lower Essence inflict MDV penalties equal to the difference and become unnatural mental influence. Incoming social attacks by natives of Malfeas with higher Essence also inflict MDV penalties equal to the difference.
Transcendent Desert Creature
2-PermanentPermanent-Suffer no negative effects from exposure to places of desolation. Reduce difficulty 4+ foraging rolls to difficulty 1. Cap starvation penalties in places of desolation at -3. Automatically remove all successes on non-magical attempts to track the Infernal. Impose a penalty of the Infernal's Essence to magical tracking attempts. Add the Infernal's Essence to the difficulty of attempts to notice him with Awareness in places of physical desolation.
Stone-Flayer Touch
21m/1m, 1wpSupplementalInstantCombo-OKCause an action to affect targets regardless of immaterial or material status. Physical attacks made with Stone-Flayer Touch cost 1m+1wp if made while dematerialized on a materialized target; other actions cost 1m. Gods or demons injured by Stone-Flayer Touch lose motes equal to the levels of damage suffered as luminous flecks ground away from the wounds.
Sands Through Fingers Defense
23mReflexive (2)InstantCombo-OK, ObviousPerfectly dodge an attack by briefly dematerializing into sand. May not dodge attacks that touch material. Imperfection of the Endless Desert: May not dodge attacks from beings with an Essence rating three or more dots higher.
Soul-Sieve Transmutation
3/4- (5m, 1wp)PermanentPermanentObviousPay 5m+1wp instead of 3m when activating Sands Through Fingers Defense to remain immaterial until the Infernal's next action tick, or to dematerialize the attacker until his next action tick as a Shaping effect. Sands Through Fingers Defense may be activated in this way in the absence of an attack.
Soul-Sand Devil Shintai
4-PermanentPermanent-Permanently assume a natural dematerialized state like a demon, constructed from billions of jagged particles. Gain the benefits of a demon's panoply with regard to the material state of possessions and attuned artifacts. Replaces the need to breathe air with the need for either Essence 6+, Cult 3+, or natural living essence respiration to breathe. Does not require food, but without Cult 3+, still suffers hunger penalties as Transcendent Desert Creature. May reflexively spend 1m to toggle manifested or concealed presence. Automatically manifests at anima banner 4-7 level and higher.
Materialize 375mSimpleVariesObviousBecome material by spending (Essence + Willpower) x 5 motes, forming a vortex of fine grit that assembles bone, visceral cording, meat, organs and finally skin to complete a simulacrum of the Infernal's former appearance. Motes remain uncommitted, and the Infernal may respire motes normally while materialized. May dematerialize as a miscellaneous action at no mote cost.
Verdant Emptiness Endowment
310m, 1wpSimpleInstantShaping, Sorcerous, TrainingTrain one dot of an attribute, ability or specialty fitting to dissatisfaction expressed by someone within Essence yards. The Infernal may demand of recipients any one task that is possible and isn't an unacceptable order, lasting up to one month, on pain of the Infernal's Essence rating in botches that wait for the worst possible time if refused.
Bestowal of Accursed Fortune
3-PermanentPermanent-Expands Verdant Emptiness Endowment to bestow the following backgrounds as appropriate to the recipient: Abyssal Command, Allies, Acquaintences, Backing, Command, Connections, Contacts, Cult, Followers, Henchmen, Influence, Mentor, Resources, Reputation, Retainers, Salary, Sifu and Spies. The new background takes (new rating) weeks to result from gathering coincidences.
Abundant Generosity Patronage
22mSupplementalInstantCombo-OK, SocialEnhances any mental influence against a target who owes an outstanding favor to the character through Verdant Emptiness Endowment and is not currently actively working towards fulfilling it, rendering it undodgeable unnatural mental influence.
Factual Determination Analysis
22mReflexiveInstantCombo-OKDetermine whether a statement was intended to deceive through intentional falsehood or meaningful omission.
Analytical Modeling Intuition
33m, 1wpSimpleInstantCombo-OKRoll (Perception + Investigation + Essence) against the Dodge MDV of a target within (Willpower x 10) yards. On failure, lose another Willpower. On success, psychically extract the answer from the target to one question, answered truthfully and without meaningful omission, but which does not need to include emotional information. This unnatural mental influence may be resisted for one Willpower, or three Willpower to gain immunity from this Charm for the rest of the scene. Dredging painful or humiliating memories inflicts a -2 internal penalty on the target's next roll to recover Willpower from sleep.
Cosmic Transcendence of Compassion
2-PermanentPermanent-Regain a Compassion channel every day at sunset. Whenever the Infernal would normally roll Compassion, gain Compassion rating in automatic successes instead. Embrace a personal greater good; the terms under which Compassion may be channeled or must fail or be overridden are now defined by whatever advances or detracts from the greater good, and not the normal Compassion guidelines. Trapped Fire's greater good is a world where all beings are tied together in empathy and care for each other.
My Heart Over Yours
38m, 1wpSimple (DV -2)One sceneCombo-Basic, Emotion, Obvious, Sorcerous, WarlockUnveil a sigil, which erupts into heatless white fire visible only to those who can see the immaterial. Roll Willpower + Charisma against witnesses' Dodge MDV, adding one success per transcendent Virtue against extras. Success inflicts a Sorcerous Emotion effect which temporarily inflicts a five-dot rating in every Virtue corresponding to the Infernal's Cosmic Transcendence of (Virtue). Afflicted Virtues transform dice into successes when rolling to check for suppression. Inappropriate actions suffer a -3 internal penalty and the corresponding Virtue may not be channeled in favor of them. Compassionate inappropriate actions are those which violate the Infernal's greater good.
Essence-Dissecting Stare
23mSimpleOne hourCombo-BasicSee immaterial and invisible. Treat all Charms as Obvious. Sense artifacts, demesnes, manses, and beings with Essence 4+. Add the target's Essence in dice to any attempt to pierce a target's mundane or magical Stealth. Roll Intelligence + Occult to analyze findings. Difficulty 2 to gauge an Essence, Demesne, Manse or Artifact rating. Difficulty 5 to fully understand an unknown Charm or spell.
Ego-Infused Pattern Primacy
2/3-PermanentPermanentShapingMay reflexively initiate a one-hour or one-minute period, during which non-reflexive rolls suffer a -1 internal penalty, to reverse any Shaping effect. During the reassertion period, the character suffers the effects of his changed state normally, but the source of the healing Shaping effect (such as Wyld mutation or individual Charms) may not further change the character. Only one Shaping effect may be reversed at a time.
Wholeness Rightly Assumed
3-PermanentPermanent-Expands the list of effects reversible through Ego-Infused Pattern Primacy. Wholeness Rightly Assumed has been purchased for: Sickness effects, Crippling effects, points of bashing damage, points of lethal damage.
Pattern-Reassertion Touch
315m, 1wpSimpleUntil completeCombo-OK, Shaping, Sorcerous, TouchMay, at a touch, intuit as Obvious any effects which Ego-Infused Pattern Primacy may reverse, and choose to cause any of them to reverse in any order desired, at a rate of one minute per effect, after which the Charm abates.
Causal Substitution Maintenance
33mReflexive (7)InstantCombo-OK, Obvious, Shaping, WarlockPerfectly negate all damage after total resolution of a perceived attack by disconnecting cause from effect, producing some otherwise-unrelated effect instead. Imperfection of the Principle of Hierarchy: Increase cost by 5m against unfamiliar supernatural powers, including unfamiliar Combos of familiar Charms. Reflexive (Intelligence + Occult) roll at difficulty 5 to recognize any Charm that might possibly be familiar. The use of other Charms to perceive unexpected attacks also imposes this surcharge. Attacks by creatures of the Wyld never impose a surcharge.
Lease the Flame
33m, 1wpSimple (5)InstantCombo-OK, ObviousWill up to (Essence x 5) motes from the character's essence pools to those of a perceived character up to a mile away. Overdrive motes may be transferred into Overdrive pools at a 1:1 basis, or regular motes into Overdrive pools (including the user's own) at a 3:1 conversion rate. Willpower cost is waived when transferring motes to a hierarchical superior. Transferred peripheral motes do not contribute to anima display.
Mind-Hand Manipulation
2/410mSimpleIndefiniteCombo-OK, Obvious, SorcerousEnable telekinesis, using Willpower for Dexterity, Essence for Strength, and Occult for the ability. May keep up a number of objects equal to Essence held aloft at once. Must control a clinch to hold people aloft.
Unseen Force Application
3-PermanentPermanent-May remove the Obvious keyword from Mind-Hand Manipulation at will, rendering telekinetic force invisible and imperceptible except for a tingling surge of essence anticipated by essence users. Tracing invisible telekinetic attacks to the Infernal requires a difficulty 4 Wits + Awareness check as a miscellaneous action. Mortals treat these attacks as unblockable and suffer -3 DV to dodge them; essence users suffer -2 DV to block or dodge them.
Principle-Invoking Onslaught
31m (+1wp)SupplementalInstantCombo-OK, Obvious, Shaping, SorcerousEnhance telekinetic attacks by shaping instant-duration, damaging phenomena into existence, even phenomena that are wholly imagined and lack precedent. Characters immune to Shaping effects may not be harmed by this effect. This effect (and not any other effects of this Charm) may be invoked without a Charm activation, but unless invoked with a normal Charm activation, this attack functions in all ways except outward superficial expression like a normal telekinetic attack. Otherwise, the phenomenon bears the mechanical stats of a telekinetic attack but may have other corresponding effects, such as fire igniting flammable materials, and targets killed or destroyed by the attack may have their remains transmuted into any other matter of Resources value up to the Infernal's Essence. Enhancing a clinch requires a Charm activation and an additional willpower, and produce independent phenomena that keep the target ensnared, automatically producing half their dice pool in successes to hold the target clinched, and never taking any action except to immobilize the target. The phenomenon unravels when the clinch is broken or dispelled or the creator wishes, and the prisoner is free to act immediately. Up to (Essence) independent clinches may be made in this way at once.
Tool-Transcending Constructs
3-PermanentPermanentShapingUse Mind-Hand Manipulation to alter reality as a substitute for non-weapon tools when performing Ability-based actions, such as musical instruments, writing implements, fire, etc. Provides the equivalent of a basic workshop.
Unified Field Theory
4-PermanentPermanentWarlockActions using Mind-Hand Manipulation may exert their full Essence on the immaterial. Additionally, while the Infernal is immaterial, he may take actions using Mind-Hand Manipulation to affect the material. Any attack made against the material in this way costs an additional 1wp.
Directed Thought Imposition
3-PermanentPermanentIllusion, WarlockWhile Mind-Hand Manipulation is active, the Infernal may intrude thoughts into the minds of targets within ten times the Range of his telekinetic attacks as an unnatural Illusion; resistance costs 1wp and immunizes the target for one day. Linguistic messages are transmitted in Old Realm. Directed thoughts cannot be overheard without relevant magic.
Sacred Kamilla's Inhalation
1/51m/corpseReflexiveInstantCombo-OK, StackableWhile moving away from a corpse within (Essence x 10) yards, dissolve it into an inhalation of essence-infused breath, allowing safe breath in all climates and conditions for a number of days equal to the corpses inhaled. If the Infernal inhales a corpse he personally killed, he gains mystical ownership of all possessions on the victim's person. Animate corpse extras may be inhaled, ejecting any possessing beings. Non-extra walking corpses may not be inhaled.
Freedom Lets Go
21m/5mReflexive (2)InstantCombo-OKThe Infernal may activate this Charm to end all emotional attachment connected to an Intimacy, removing it. This ends any Emotion effects imposed by the subject of that Intimacy, and gives the option of removing the subject from the Infernal's memories. The first time an Intimacy is removed by this Charm in a scene, the Infernal recovers one Compassion channel. Activation involves turning one's back and walking away from the subject if she is physically present, or silently mouthing the subject's name and pausing in brief and final reminiscence otherwise.
Tragic Love Amusement
24mSimpleInstantCombo-OK, EmotionThis Charm creates an Intimacy of love towards an individual, whether amorous or platonic. The Infernal adds successes instead of dice when channeling Compassion to aid the subject of a magical Intimacy created by this Charm. Stunts that teach, hurt or express affection towards the subject raise their stunt rating as if resonating with the Infernal's Motivation, and the Infernal may choose to recover a Compassion channel instead of a Willpower point from the rewards for such stunts. The Infernal also subtracts Compassion from the subject's Mental Defense Values when socially attacking her. The Infernal may sustain up to (Compassion) magical Intimacies created by this Charm at any given time.
Broken Silence Laughter Defense
21m/5mReflexive (2)InstantCombo-OKThe Infernal may activate this Charm for 1m in response to any mental influence, making that influence Obvious to his senses. By spending an additional 4m (or for free, if he has made no other vocal utterances in the scene yet), he may perfectly parry the influence with inappropriate or unnerving laughter, even if it is unblockable.
Wind-Carried Passion
3/4-PermanentPermanent-Tragic Love Amusement may be activated to target another person within 100 yards. Roll Charisma + Larceny + Compassion against the target's Dodge MDV. Success induces love for a subject of the Infernal's choice, in a context similarly chosen, as per the effects of Tragic Love Amusement unless the target resists the Emotion effect for two Willpower.
Loom-Snarling Deception
25mSimpleIndefiniteCombo-OK, Illusion, ShapingThe Infernal's shadow washes over him, producing an Illusionary guise with the same basic body plan and functioning as a perfect disguise, irresistible with Willpower or Excellencies, and adding Essence in successes to Charm rolloff. A Shaping effect also lures the Infernal inside fate and creates a false destiny that fools astrological readings. On deactivation, a pattern spider cries out in horror.
Eldritch Secrets Mastery
3-PermanentPermanentIllusionEnables Loom-Snarling Deception disguises to encompass false magical traits, such as Essence rating, status as creature of darkness, mote aspecting, or anima banner.
Emerald Angel Unfurling
3/46m, 1wpReflexive (2)One hourCombo-OK, HereticalCreates an invisible ablative essence sheath composed of (Integrity) winged layers, which appear in an Obvious mandala when an unwanted Shaping effect is incurred. The Shaping effect fails; roll (Essence + Willpower) against a difficulty of the shaper's Essence, and on failure, one of the winged layers shatters (on a botch, all layers). Upon loss of all layers, Emerald Angel Unfurling terminates, though it may immediately be reactivated as a non-Charm activation. Pure Chaos may not impose this roll more than once per hour, even across separate activations of Emerald Angel Unfurling.
Titanic Convergence Shield
3-PermanentPermanentHereticalCounts Reflexive Charms with a Primordial Imperfection as any other such Charms for the purposes of being included in Combos.
ComboCostCharmsDescription
Temporal Angel Ignition1wpFirst Cecelyne Excellency, Sands Through Fingers Defense, Factual Determination Analysis, Causal Substitution Maintenance, Broken Silence Laughter Defense, Emerald Angel UnfurlingTrapped Fire thrums with unnatural power, distorting space and sound around him and briefly illuminating two pairs of ephemeral wings of essence: one silver and one searing white; one glimmering emerald and one deep crimson.
SpellCircleCostTargetEffects
Conjuring the Azure Chariot
5m, 1wpCasterBeckons four cerulean horses that snort steam, trail lightning sparks and freeze the ground beneath their hooves, carrying an azure coach out of a conjured fogbank. The coach can carry up to (Essence x 200) pounds or 4 passengers plus the caster. The horses gallop on a trail of fog when given a destination, flying at up to 200 miles per hour, unable to be slowed or turned aside. They only fly while the sun is in the sky, and the spell must be cast during daylight hours.
Emerald Countermagic
10m, 1wp/20m, 1wpCaster or one spellThis spell may be shaped reflexively for 0 ticks. May secure self against hostile magic for the duration of Cast Sorcery action and one action thereafter for 10m, shattering any Emerald Circle spells targeting caster. May shatter a particular Emerald Circle spell within (Essence x 50) feet for 20m, or interrupt a spell still in its shaping stage. This spell cannot banish summoned spirits. Shattered spells cause random trivial magic effects, which may cause minor burns or damage to those in range other than the countercaster.
Infallible Messenger
5m, 1wpSummoned cherubConjures a multicolored humanoid figure only a few feet tall, with six iridescent wings. Whisper a message or social attack of up to five minutes (five long ticks) in length (which may be enhanced with proper Charms), then name and describe a target. The cherub may travel hundreds of miles an hour, crossing Creation in less than a day and effectively reaching any point in Creation or the Demon Realm almost instantly. Unless the recipient is mystically obscured, the cherub finds the recipient, conveys the message in the sorcerer's voice, then dissipates.
Slave-Spawn Summons
10+m, 1wpOne first circle demonSummon and bind a first circle demon. Cast at sunset with one Shape Emerald Circle Sorcery action. May not be cast in the Underworld. After summoning, roll Essence + Willpower against the demon's Essence + Willpower - (1 for every 5m added to the spell cost). Continue to roll until either sorcerer or demon has 3 more successes than the other. If the demon wins, binding fails; roll Wits + Occult at difficulty 3 to banish. If the sorcerer wins, the demon's will is broken and bound to either a task or a year and a day of abscissic loyalty to the sorcerer. In either case, the sorcerer may choose an invulnerable magical Intimacy of reverence or terrified awe to instill in the demon for the duration of binding.
Unconquerable Self
1m, 1wpCasterThis spell may be shaped reflexively even when bound or paralyzed, so long as one can concentrate. Unmakes the caster's essence pattern, causing an iconic anima flare followed by an essence eruption that destroys the caster and any possessions, including attuned artifacts. No ghost is produced, and Exaltations retain no memories of the caster. Momentarily blinds witnesses but does not harm them.
The Battle's End
30m, 2wpAreaMakes the Sign of Battle's End and sends violet essence into the sky, which turns as a wheel of sigils of harmony surrounding the mark of Saturn. The wheel lasts for (Essence x 20) ticks and extends for (Essence x 100) yards, from up to 50 yards from the sorcerer. Inflicts an unnatural compulsion to cease all combat and stare at the wheel. Mortals may not resist; Exalted may resist for two Willpower. Those who resist may snap others out of the reverie, but they still may not fight.
Sapphire Circle Banishment
5+m, 1wpDemon or demonsThis spell may be shaped reflexively for 0 ticks. Harnesses the Seven Devils Rebuking sign and the Victory over Primordials Mudra to banish a demon or demons with a range of up to (Essence x 15) yards. One first circle demon may be banished automatically without a contest of wills. One second circle demon may be engaged in a contest of wills, causing an extended resisted roll of (Essence + Willpower), with each step being a Speed 3, DV -1 action, with any contestant who takes a non-reflexive action before the contest is over forfeiting, and the demon's dice pool reduced by one die for every five motes spent over the cost of the spell. The winner is the first to total the opponent's Essence in successes. If the demon wins, the caster may not attempt to banish it again for five days. Multiple first circle demons may be engaged in a collective contest of wills, with the sorcerer facing a resisting pool of the highest (Willpower + Essence) among the demons, plus one die for every additional demon, otherwise resolved similarly. In mass combat, this spell reduces a unit of first circle demons by one point of Magnitude.
Sapphire Countermagic
15m, 2wp/20m, 2wpCaster or one spellThis spell may be shaped reflexively for 0 ticks. May secure self against hostile magic for the duration of Cast Sorcery action and one action thereafter for 15m, shattering any Emerald, Sapphire or Iron Circle spells targeting caster. May shatter a particular Emerald, Sapphire or Iron Circle spell within (Essence x 50) feet for 20m, or interrupt a spell still in its shaping stage. This spell cannot banish summoned spirits. Shattered Sapphire Circle spells cause random magic effects, which may cause burns or damage to those in range other than the countercaster. Shattered Iron Circle spells cause random trivial magic effects, which may cause minor burns or damage to the same. Shattered Emerald Circle spells are extinguished completely.
Soul-Body Union Noesis
20m, 2wpOne Alchemical ExaltThis spell requires a mixture of clay, salts and the mundane equivalent of the Alchemical's caste material, totalling Resources 3 in value. The materials congeal and liquify, and the Alchemical immerses himself within and meditates, as they glow and form into the shape of his iconic anima. He may requisition a new set of installed Charms or Arrays, and his body molds into the requested shape, while the materials dissolve to replace his old installed set in the noetic networks.
-0□6 hours rest
-1□□2 days rest
-2□□□□□4 days rest
-4□□2 weeks rest
Incapacitated□2 weeks rest
Dying□□□2 weeks rest
Anima Powers
1mCause caste mark to open for a scene (as if at the 4-7 mote display).
1mGlow with a light-distorting aura bright enough to read by (as if at the 8-10 mote display).
1mIntuit the time remaining until the next moment of demon-summoning.
1mSense the nearest entry point into the Yozi realm.
5mShield the Infernal from one attack with a globe of congealed essence, rolling Essence and subtracting successes in levels of damage from the attack in step 10 of attack resolution.
Anima Display
1-3mThe third eye gleams faintly, visible from certain angles with a successful (Perception + Awareness) roll at difficulty 1. The mark is not bright enough to interfere with Stealth. The effects persist for one hour after peripheral expenditure ceases.
4-7mThe third eye cracks open, staring the Infernal's caste mark into the air, penetrating anything used to cover it. Normal Stealth attempts are impossible, although the character can hide behind natural cover at a +2 difficulty.
8-10mThe Infernal is surrounded with a light-distorting aura that is bright enough to read by, and his caste mark is a burning brand of sickly green energy. Stealth is impossible.
11-15mThe Infernal is engulfed in a bonfire of infernal essence that burns from his feet to at least a foot over his head. Mortals observing the bonfire sometimes feel senses of nausea and vertigo. Mundane materials exposed to the bonfire may show signs of decay, or mundane decorative patterns may warp into unnatural shapes. The character is visible for miles, and the light produced is bright enough to read by up to 100 feet away. At this level, the character's anima power activates, congealing into a sphere of essence and subtracting one level of damage taken from all attacks in step 10 of attack resolution, unless the Infernal chooses to spend 5m to use the active version of the power instead.
16+mTrapped Fire is surrounded or surmounted by a burning iconic image of a storm inverted and turned inside-out, wracking itself wildly with unnatural lightning and spatial weather. The totem display recedes when his DV next refreshes. It occurs automatically the first time in a scene that Fire spends essence at this level, but for the remainder of the scene, such displays only occur when his player deems it dramatically appropriate. All demons within miles take notice of this outpouring of unholy power, and those not bound by Exalted sorcery are compelled to make their way towards its source.
PossessionsVicar's outfit, sandals, firmin-needle utility knife
ArtifactsA demon ink tattoo over his heart in the shape of a chrysogona's wooden tragedy mask, whose ink slides constantly to create the animated image of silent weeping. An orichalcum hearthstone amulet, brassy and rusted, in the shape of the Twilight caste mark (the solid top half of which folds down over the inserted hearthstone), and a matching tainted chain shirt, gifted by the Ebon Dragon without explanation as to their origin. Green Dawn, an artifact of dawn's cleansing light in the shape of a clerical collaret, forged from Malfean brass by the water elemental Seona-Mul.
ManseThe Tomb of Kaschej is the anticipatory tomb of the Dragon Beyond the World's tenth soul, Kaschej, Who Mourns His Own Passing. It is an edifice of Underworld jade constructed in the wake of the Primordial War, when Kaschej's reflective soul, Orfejas, the Meaning of Nothing, in her restless wandering, discovered to her wonder the site of her father's death. The Tomb of Kaschej is lined with ebon statues of hekatonkhires and Labyrinth dreamings, many of which are still unidentified, and contains long halls of prayer offerings and incense altars (given in vain, due to the status of ghosts in the Demon Prison) around a descending central spiral. Within the deepest level of the central chamber is the great sarcophagus of Who Mourns His Own Passing. When opened, a deep and disconcerting emptiness can be witnessed. The nothingness within the crypt of Kaschej answers inquiries with visions of unknown origin and dead echoes from the remembrances of people not yet deceased. Orfejas spends most of her time walking up and down the halls of the Tomb, or meditating on the void within her father's sarcophagus and the answers found there. The Tomb of Kaschej also serves as a minor place of refuge in the Demon City, its eternal edifice standing up against local catastrophes which would presume to bring it a greater ending that it already represents. Trapped Fire permits both first circle demons and what few escaped ghosts might make it to the threshold to seek free refuge there. Demon-Bound: Kaschej. Comfort Zone (2cp), Magical Conveniences (1cp) (Doors creak open unbidden, candles light themselves with pyre-flame on approach, a guestbook records the name of every visitor next to a vague omen associated with their eventual demise), Deathly-Flavored Aspect (1cp), Archive (2cp) (Occult (Necromancy), Occult (Creatures of Death), a secret pertaining to the hearthstone bearer's demise).
HearthstoneThe Death-Speech Gemstone, a cobalt blue stone in the shape of an egg. The bearer may concentrate as a miscellaneous action to initiate a conversation with any corpse, so long as the corpse still has some amount of flesh remaining. The corpse has no knowledge it did not have when it died.
Past LifeSalina
ConceptCheerful egalitarianist Solar prodigy
DescriptionA short blonde woman with a forcefully effusive personality.
MotivationCreate true freedom by eliminating hierarchy.
IntimaciesOppression (Righteous enmity)●●●
Impromptu crusades (Impish satisfaction)●●●
Joyous Youth Juritsu (Friends with benefits)●●●
Children (Flaky motherliness)●●●
Pyrian magic (Distaste)●●●
CasteTwilight
AnimaA blazing golden eagle diving forward with every forceful gesture she makes.
Unwoven CoadjutorEres, a self-cautious but adventurous tomescu who does not scream.
DescentTomescu, the Clamorous Cloud Arsenal, progeny of Octavian, the Living Tower, defining soul of Munaxes, the Ravine of Whispers, fourth soul of She Who Lives in Her Name, the Principle of Hierarchy
TellPores release thick, foggy clouds rather than sweat.
FamiliarIabart, a childish sesselja, innocent by the standards of the Demon City.
DescentSesselja, the Stomach Bottle Bug, progeny of Alveua, the Keeper of the Forge of Night, expressive soul of Erembour, That Which Calls to the Shadows, seventh soul of the Ebon Dragon, the Shadow of All Things
Essence Pool75/75
Respiration Rate4m/hr relaxed or 8m/hr resting
Willpower●●●●●●●○○○
■■■■■■■
FamiliarVespasian, a demon wasp, artistic and sensitive.
DescentAgata, the Beauteous Wasp, progeny of Florivet, the Whim-of-the-Wind, reflective soul of Orabilis, the End of All Wisdom, sixth soul of Cecelyne, the Endless Desert
Essence Pool70/70
Respiration Rate4m/hr relaxed or 8m/hr resting
Willpower●●●●●●○○○○
■■■■■■
Join Battle/Debate4/5Parry DV (Unarmed)3
Parry MDV6Parry DV (Telekinesis)8
Dodge MDV9 (14)Dodge DV4
Natural Soak3/2/0Armor Soak5/7/7
Total Soak8/9/7Pierced Soak5/5/3
Armor Hardness3/3/0Movement2 move/8 dash
AttackSpeedAccuracyDamageRateRangeDefenseTags
Punch55 (6)2B3-3N
Kick54 (5)5B2-2N
Clinch64 (5)2B1--NCP
Telekinetic strike5155B5158N
Telekinetic blade*5155L5158NP
Telekinetic clinch6155B115-NCP
*Telekinetic blades inflict aggravated damage to creatures of the Wyld.
AttackSpeedCharismatic AccuracyManipulative AccuracyRateCharismatic DefenseManipulative Defense
Presence489245
Performance61112166
Investigation589245
Nellens Takuma was born to functionary parents at the satrapy of Greyfalls, patricians of House Nellens who had no reason to expect one of their thin-blooded eggs to hatch: the Wood Aspected Nellens Haruna and her husband Yasu, and their children Rikuto, Masaru and Takuma. There was relatively little concern over the boys being kept at the satrapy and trained at a primary school there rather than sent back to the Blessed Isle and groomed for potential greater things. And while dedicated Masaru surprised the family by Exalting in the course of his studies of the Immaculate Faith, greater things did not seem to be in the cards for young Takuma. He was an exceptionally soft-hearted child, unprepared for the harsh life of a Dynastic scion, even one who had lessened expectations placed on his shoulders. The other children of the Realm would strike Takuma, spit venom on his parentage, and wheel past him in the dealings of Realm society, and though he was hurt, he would not fight back, and feared to stand up for himself. If anyone ever stood up for Takuma, it was just one other local Dynastic girl who would defend him and try to encourage him, and soon he had only one friend against the world. When she turned fifteen, Cathak Lunira disappeared under mysterious circumstances, and then he didn't have one.
Still, Takuma was a devoted young man. He read the precepts of the Immaculate Faith and adhered to them with great devotion in emulation of his older brother, to the point where local immaculate monks would sometimes reproach and shame Dynastic locals for unbecoming behavior by saying they should emulate the Nellens boys; a handful believed he too was destined for Exaltation despite his thin blood. His feeling of responsibility was great, and while he did not study for his functionary future with unusual vigor, he did study with unusual sincerity. He sought out and interacted with the native populace in dialogue rather than command, and though his will was not unusually strong, his heart was. All who reached out to Nellens Takuma received a hand to help them.
Takuma therefore lived, if not a life free of strife, a life with which he was mostly satisfied, until the arrival of Peleps Deled. The Wyld Hunt was passing through at the time, on the trail of Anathema rumored to be moving out from the Hundred Kingdoms, and while the departed hunter Brother Masaru was not among them, the notorious Brother Deled was. The Anathema was not suspected to be in Greyfalls, but Deled found other offenses in minor divergences between his own interpretation of the Immaculate Faith and the local monastery's. Takuma had come to study and meditate on the dragons, but instead he saw before his eyes as Brother Deled's words became heated until he struck the local abbot. He reached out his hand to no effect as Deled's strikes grew more grievous. An invisible presence in the vicinity knew then what the boy could have done. His sincerity was great enough that it could have touched the heart of Peleps Deled, leading to a level of contrition that would ripple outward. But Deled was terrifying, and Takuma weak. When he spoke, the words barely came out, and Deled's barking for him to shut up and go on cowed him. He stared, throat devoid of words, and then ran from the monastery. Deled struck several more people before his fury passed, and his first victim died of his wounds. The scandal echoed outward. The Dynasts of Greyfalls were shocked and the natives enraged, certainly, but even as far away as Chiaroscuro, hearts hardened in response. More arguments spread through the immaculate community. Unrest grew and hatred stirred.
Takuma couldn't rest thereafter. His dreams replayed the incident over and over, and cloudy whispers told him he could have done something. He should have done something. They would whisper to him each night in more clarity, until he found himself remembering conversations with the voice attached to his memory. It told him he had a potential that could be unlocked, a power he could exercise to encourage harmony and right living, so that no rogue madmen like Peleps Deled would pollute the body of Creation. It told him that he had missed his chance, but that he was blessed, for he was being given another: take it now, and spread harmony throughout Creation, or refuse it, and be consigned to ignominy, his kindnesses forever outpaced by the cruelty of his peers. One night, a feeling of emptiness and futility spread out across his heart, and he despaired. He rose from the middle of his dream and said "yes," and was enveloped in clouds.
Takuma's memories following that are foggy, filled with strange portents and bizarre experiences. It wasn't long, though, before he was taken to Malfeas, and he understood fully what he was. He had taken the devil's bargain; he was Anathema. And yet he saw something new in the alien landscapes before him, as he was drowned in spiritual communion with She Who Lives in Her Name. They were demons, yes. They often did terrible things. But he saw now that they were living things, first and foremost, and in pain. In their torments, they thrashed about, and they did not know how to respond to the world around them any longer. The Yozis and all their lesser emanations and progeny preyed on victims to alleviate their own victimhoods. Then he knew, even as he was damned and his soul condemned, that he could still do good. Nellens Takuma had lost his redemption, but gained the redemption of something greater, if only he could figure to accomplish it. In two years now he has set to study, unusually sincere if not unusually vigorous, to a great undertaking: to heal the Yozis, free them from pain, and teach them the love and understanding that their creation, humanity, knows. He has presented the plan to his fellow denizens of Hell as a means by which to expand the Yozis' purviews and therefore, rather than transform Creation into something that is no longer enough like Creation to keep the Yozis out, transform the Yozis into something that is no longer enough like the Yozis to keep them bound within themselves. It is a wear on his spirit, and he knows not yet whether he can accomplish the task before him. But he knows it is the right thing to do, and that is, at least, comfort.