Keychain of Creation IV: The Lore Thing

[Xelloss]

Misho and Secret share a similar past experience : they died and then have been fine... :-p

[Yuki Akuma]

No they don't. Secret never died.

She came close, but she never actually stopped living for even a second.

[Ignition]

I guess I'm unclear about how Abyssal Exalted work then. Do they gain necromantic power infused into their still-living bodies? Are they in some kind of pseudo-undead stasis state?

Also, Misho is so morose, haha. Understandably so, I guess, but it's almost jarring at times. He seems like one of those nerds who can only get along with people when he's teaching them something.

[The Rose Dragon]

Abyssals are living beings that respire death Essence. As beings that respire death Essence, they are terrifying to the living. As beings that are alive, they are terrifying to the dead.

Though they may look like it, they are not undead. Neither did they die and come back - the hun and po souls do not return once they leave the body.

[Ignition]

So Solars are the attention whores of the universe; all their powers make them glorious to behold and personally magnetic and so on. And Abyssals gain antipathic powers by wearing all black. I'm sensing a pattern here.

[Morty]

I think I'm confused. How does Misho remember the First Age? Does he remember the previous life or his soul before it was reincarnated or does he remember the life of the previous host of his Exaltation? Keychain can be confusing at times for someone who doesn't play Exalted.

[Yuki Akuma]

He remembers his previous Exaltation. Of course, he might also remember his soul's previous life - but that's not very likely.

Basically, memories have a tendency to 'burn into' an Exaltation - and it needs to be 'pruned' to get rid of them. Thrice Radiant Misho's life was recorded on his Exaltation and apparently not removed at all.

[Weimann]

To clarify even further, Misho's state is an abnormality. Usually, upon death of a Celestial Exalt, the shard that carries the Exaltation should return to Lytek's (the god of Exaltation's) cabinet, to be rinsed of the memories from it's previous owners life before it's let out to find another worthy host.

In Misho's case, his shard came to him will all the memories of the Thrice-Radiant intact. While there are ways of making your character have significant memories of his previous lives in the system, it seems that he can even draw on the Charms and spells the Thrice-Radiant knew (since I very much doubt Misho would study Necromancy on his own accord), and this cannot be done at all within the system. This is Jukashi creating a plot element.

Edit: Which made me think. If it is actually so that Misho retains the Charms and spells of the Thrice-Radiant, would that mean that he carries dormant charms up to possibly Essence 8-10 level, just waiting for him to unlock their prerequisites?

[Ignition]

Plot?! In Exalted?! Tell me it's not true!

That's cool though. I more or less figured that Misho's memory/powers seemed to be even beyond the limits of how absurd Exalted tends to be, in regards to shouty super powers. Heck, to an extent I think Marena is pretty bloody overpowered, but I've come to accept that these guys have some significant extra experience points they're spending for the purposes of the story. So I'm not worried about the mechanics as much as I am the fun, which is in no short supply.

[The Rose Dragon]

Which made me think. If it is actually so that Misho retains the Charms and spells of the Thrice-Radiant, would that mean that he carries dormant charms up to possibly Essence 8-10 level, just waiting for him to unlock their prerequisites?

He's a Golden Hero Vassal. I'd be surprised if he didn't have Essence 10 Charms available before dying.

[Morty]

Ah, it makes sense now. Thanks. I was under the impression it's common for the Exalts to get flashbacks to the lives of their Exaltation's previous hosts.

[The Rose Dragon]

Ah, it makes sense now. Thanks. I was under the impression it's common for the Exalts to get flashbacks to the lives of their Exaltation's previous hosts.

Flashbacks, yes. Lytek is not God (OK, he is a god, but you get the point). Exaltations are incredibly complicated works of motonic technology, as such removing all of the memories is incredibly difficult. All Exalts, except for Terrestrials and Alchemicals, can retain some memories of their important past lives (defined as 100+ year old ones), though detailed memories are only common amongst the Green Sun Princes, because Ebon Dragon is a cheater.

[Sanguine]

Ah, it makes sense now. Thanks. I was under the impression it's common for the Exalts to get flashbacks to the lives of their Exaltation's previous hosts.

It's not entirely uncommon for that to happen, however when they do occur they are usually short and completely free of context. Green Sun Princes are an exception to this as they generally remember there Past Lives quite well due to their Exaltation not being pruned like others are.

[Doran]

Flashbacks, yes. Lytek is not God (OK, he is a god, but you get the point). Exaltations are incredibly complicated works of motonic technology, as such removing all of the memories is incredibly difficult. All Exalts, except for Terrestrials and Alchemicals, can retain some memories of their important past lives (defined as 100+ year old ones), though detailed memories are only common amongst the Green Sun Princes, because Ebon Dragon is a cheater.

How did Ebon manage to that? I'd have thought Lytek would have stripped all memories before storing the exaltations in the sea prison.

[Sanguine]

How did Ebon manage to that? I'd have thought Lytek would have stripped all memories before storing the exaltations in the sea prison.

Lytek didn't store the Exaltations in the Jade Prison. He was mugged by the Sidereals before he got a chance to work on the Exaltations. They put them in the Jade Prison.

[The Rose Dragon]

How did Ebon manage to that? I'd have thought Lytek would have stripped all memories before storing the exaltations in the sea prison.

Lytek would never approve of the Jade Prison. One of the reasons the Celestial Bureaucracy despises the Sidereals is because of how Lytek was manhandled during the Usurpation.

[golentan]

Yeah, in the middle of the party Lytek got held at swordpoint to keep him from doing his job. A violation of half a dozen heavenly laws and a severity 4-5 offense if ever there was one (killing one celestial exalt of low essence is bad enough, as is keeping a god from doing their job or threatening them...)

Misho pretty blatantly has the Throwback flaw from scroll of heroes. That + Amnesia + Nightmares also explains how he got so many damn merits, to paraphrase secret.

[The Rose Dragon]

Yeah, in the middle of the party Lytek got held at swordpoint to keep him from doing his job. A violation of half a dozen heavenly laws and a severity 4-5 offense if ever there was one (killing one celestial exalt of low essence is bad enough, as is keeping a god from doing their job or threatening them...)

And if you're wondering why the entirety of Yu-Shan doesn't go audit-fu on their asses, it's because the breaking of the Mask effectively removes all evidence of their complicity. Everyone knows that they are behind the Usurpation, and no one can prove it.

[golentan]

And if you're wondering why the entirety of Yu-Shan doesn't go audit-fu on their asses, it's because the breaking of the Mask effectively removes all evidence of their complicity. Everyone knows that they are behind the Usurpation, and no one can prove it.

Yeppers. I'm given to understand the Sidereals don't even clearly remember how they were involved in the Usurpation. They really wracked up some problems there.

Though, you know what's really fun? In a game where the seal of Eight Divinities is busted, point out the alchemicals match up pretty one for one against other exalt types. Then point out the adamant caste to the sidereals, offhandedly bring up the Oversight Committee, and waggle your eyebrows suggestively. Instant paranoia fuel.

[Doran]

What is 'the Breaking of the mask'?

[The Rose Dragon]

The Mask is a constellation associated with the Ability Stealth and resonates with identity. Sidereals broke it to avoid punishment due to the Usurpation, but they succeeded too well. Not only did it remove all evidence of their complicity, but it also made them extremely difficult to remember and removed their ability to create non-resplendent destinies of the Mask for themselves.

[Kyeudo]

What is 'the Breaking of the mask'?

The Mask is a constellation associated with the Ability of Stealth. The Sidereals broke it when they overloaded it with something like seven hundred simultaneous Sidereal Astrology effects in an attempt to make everyone forget the Sidereals ever engineered the Usurpation. Jupiter herself had to intervene to prevent the constellation from imploding.

The Sidereals got their wish, but now everyone who is not a Celestial diety or Outside Fate tends to forget they even exist. The Sidereals also forgot several important things, one of which is how to make a Jade Prison. They did it, they remember doing it, they just don't remember how they did it. They also forgot where they ditched it, so they couldn't go and check on it.

Fourteen centuries later, the Deathlords found it.

[Doran]

Hmm, fixing the Mask would make an interesting mini-campaign

[Kyeudo]

Sidereals have generally decided that the problems with being forgotten are only nusiances (repeated exposure allows people to start remembering the Sidereal again), while the benefits are great (nobody believes a shadowy cabal of Anathema secretly control the goverment of the Realm!).

[Ignition]

So you're saying that the Sidereals's main weapon is surprise?

[Doran]

Sidereals have generally decided that the problems with being forgotten are only nusiances (repeated exposure allows people to start remembering the Sidereal again), while the benefits are great (nobody believes a shadowy cabal of Anathema secretly control the goverment of the Realm!).

For Sidereals, yes, but for a bunch of (Corrupted) Solar who want to expose the Sidereals it could be very handy.

[SlyGuyMcFly]

So you're saying that the Sidereals's main weapon is surprise?

If that isn't a Quirky Miniboss Squad waiting to happen, I don't know what is!

[The Bushranger]

Misho pretty blatantly has the Throwback flaw from scroll of heroes. That + Amnesia + Nightmares also explains how he got so many damn merits, to paraphrase secret.

I thought Misho's stats for that were Amnesia + Past Lives 5?

(*doesn't have SoH* )

[The Rose Dragon]

I thought Misho's stats for that were Amnesia + Past Lives 5?

(*doesn't have SoH* )

We know for sure he has Past Lives 5, as he says so in the first ten strips.

[golentan]

I thought Misho's stats for that were Amnesia + Past Lives 5?

(*doesn't have SoH* )

Which qualifies him for the Throwback flaw, where a past life can control your actions and exert a potentially unhealthy influence on you.