General Exalted Discussion Thread IX: Errata is Combo-Ok!

[Volthawk]

Originally Posted by TheCountAlucard

My group currently plays via Skype...

Yeah, my current games are on Skype and IRC, although the Skype one isn't Exalted.

[Gensh]

Originally Posted by Lix Lorn

I sorta want to apply, but I probably wouldn't stick with it, and a skype game sounds awkward.

Playing isn't really awkward at all (except when everyone speaks at once or you have two conversations happening at once). Reading the backlogs is a colossal pain. Though I should probably check Google to see if there's not a way to remove all the time tags and stuff.

[Andreaz]

Originally Posted by Gensh

Playing isn't really awkward at all (except when everyone speaks at once or you have two conversations happening at once). Reading the backlogs is a colossal pain. Though I should probably check Google to see if there's not a way to remove all the time tags and stuff.

Time tags are easy to remove with a simple regex. If they are like [2000-01-31 00:00:00] for example, the following find/replace from
^\[(\d{2,4}[\s\-:]*)*\](.*)
to
$2
would give you the messages
Editors like MsOffice, OpenOffice, vim and all programming aides should have such option.

[Gareth3]

Originally Posted by aetherialDawn

I lack the personal experience to answer this question in full, but I can provide some information. I think that you might want to have a little more information on intended theme than 'Solars in the East' - but be prepared for your players to reinterpret that slightly. Don't lock yourself in until you know what you're locking it in for.

Thanks for the feedback. I actually have an elaborate scenario planned, but it may limit the PCs too much to be useful in a game. I'm still having trouble with the difference between thinking up a story in the Exalted setting and thinking up a good scenario for an Exalted game.

[Turalisj]

Originally Posted by TheCountAlucard

Fluff or crunch?

Both? I was thinking of Changing Moon, but then doing a giant squid totem lunar sounds awesome too. Honestly, not too sure what I should focus on...

[TheCountAlucard]

Originally Posted by Turalisj

Both?

I'll see what I can do; I'm not a big expert on Lunars.

Originally Posted by Turalisj

a giant squid totem lunar sounds awesome too.

You've got me there.

Originally Posted by Turalisj

Honestly, not too sure what I should focus on...

Giant squid sounds good for a grapple-focused build.

What sort of backstory have you hammered out so far?

[Drascin]

Originally Posted by Story Time

He has to be an Exalt? Uh, Lunar. Ganon wasn't human, originally. Nintendo 64 came along and added some things. If you can find a copy of the original The Legend of Zelda manual for the Nintendo it should make a cute read. So not-really-human-at-all. ...but neither do I think that Ganon makes sense as an exalt type.

He's been orginally-human since A Link to the Past. He was a bandit king that managed to enter the Sacred Realm. Then he got progressively turned into an inhuman demon due to acquiring power, and it corrupting him (and the world around him) due to his evil heart. Or more precisely, the Realm turns everyone into reflections of what they had inside - and for Ganondorf, it was a pig demon (under the same influence, Link becomes a cute little pink bunny, because innocence ).

I think we could make him work as an Infernal, in most incarnations - LttP, OoT, TP.

Wind Waker Ganondorf is an exception, and seems more Solar, though.

[Bitter]

Originally Posted by Turalisj

Both? I was thinking of Changing Moon, but then doing a giant squid totem lunar sounds awesome too. Honestly, not too sure what I should focus on...

In terms of crunch, there's the obvious get Deadly Beastman Technique, Relentless Lunar Fury and some charms that build off of those. They're the core of Lunar combat. Like Alucard says, grappling would be thematic and also strong for you when you're in your spirit shape with it's massive strength bonus. My only advice there is to pick up the core Lunar charms rather than Lunar Hero Style. LHS is just a bit weak in comparison.

The social/general charms depend on what you want to do. West Mastery Technique will let you breath underwater as a human, so you don't have to spend DBT mutation points on it. Dog Tongue Method along with a social charm could let you put together a Posse of sharks and giant squid and stuff. I'm a fan of the Charisma Fascination charms that let you use social charms on people without them even knowing.

[Omniplex]

So, I'm making a Sidereal Exalted Chosen of Battles for a game. Was wondering what charms would be good for a Melee using combat focused Sidereal.

[Mr.Bookworm]

Originally Posted by Omniplex

So, I'm making a Sidereal Exalted Chosen of Battles for a game. Was wondering what charms would be good for a Melee using combat focused Sidereal.

Uuuuuh. Well, first, recognize that the Sidereal Charmset is pretty effed up at the moment. There's errata on the way very soon, though.

For Melee, well, you only have seven Charms, so you might as well pick them all up. Impeding the Flow and Serenity in Blood are the obvious ones. ItF is an awesome semi-perfect and SiB lets you beat surprise attacks (plus the stuff that ItF won't block).

You probably want to go into Martial Arts, in any case, to expand your capabilities.

Grabbing Archery or Thrown for some ranged capability is good. Sidereal Archery is hilariously awesome, so I'd recommend that.

For non-combat stuff, really depends on what you want to do. What's your character like?

[DeadManSleeping]

All the Sidereal Melee Charms are actually pretty good. I'd recommend also taking a MA or two, probably VBoS for one.

[Urpriest]

First, Isidoros probably has a Shintai that would be appropriate for Ganondorf, no?

Second, I have recently realized that the song Eye of the Tiger has several verses that correlate well to Fair Folk abilities, especially "You trade your passion for glory" -> "You trade Compassion for Valor" or similar. Has Meschlum ever made Eye of the Raksha?

[horngeek]

Originally Posted by Urpriest

First, Isidoros probably has a Shintai that would be appropriate for Ganondorf, no?

Second, I have recently realized that the song Eye of the Tiger has several verses that correlate well to Fair Folk abilities, especially "You trade your passion for glory" -> "You trade Compassion for Valor" or similar. Has Meschlum ever made Eye of the Raksha?

Malfeas' Shintai would work just as well, I think, and Malfeas' themes work better with Ganondorf.

[Gensh]

Originally Posted by horngeek

Malfeas' Shintai would work just as well, I think, and Malfeas' themes work better with Ganondorf.

Devil-Tyrant Avatar Shintai for ease of reference. Still, the full-blown shintai isn't really what you'd be looking for, as I've never found a use for having all those mutations at once. By Rage Recast with a decent Essence score is probably enough, and that doesn't even have any prerequisites. As for using Isidoros vs. Malfeas, though, the Izzy Charmset on the wiki is old enough that it lacks a shintai entirely. I really want to say that we should use a different Yozi entirely since Ganon doesn't quite fit either of their themes that well, but I daresay Izzy has the better set of Charms for the purpose. Also, I want to say he'd be a Fiend, but eh.

[horngeek]

In terms of the Shintai, that's to replicate his trick of turning into a giant boar.

I'd say he seems like either Slayer with ED Favored, or Fiend with Malfeas favored, leaning towards the former. Defenitely a Malfean Urge, though.

[golentan]

Originally Posted by horngeek

In terms of the Shintai, that's to replicate his trick of turning into a giant boar.

I'd say he seems like either Slayer with ED Favored, or Fiend with Malfeas favored, leaning towards the former. Defenitely a Malfean Urge, though.

Actually, I'd go with a Cecelynian urge. His goal is to dominate Hyrule. By vicious, overkill force, yes, but look how he always goes about it. He uses his ability to create titanic monsters to secure his main objectives, then sends out waves of lesser creatures to force people to conform out of terror to his will. In every sense, it is about domination and the preference for the strong over the weak.

[horngeek]

Originally Posted by golentan

Actually, I'd go with a Cecelynian urge. His goal is to dominate Hyrule. By vicious, overkill force, yes, but look how he always goes about it. He uses his ability to create titanic monsters to secure his main objectives, then sends out waves of lesser creatures to force people to conform out of terror to his will. In every sense, it is about domination and the preference for the strong over the weak.

Ooooh, point.

[Tavar]

Also, his trickery seems rather direct, often enough. I mean, in OoT wasn't he in court because he was some kind of magician? Maybe some wish-granting powers were aiding him.

Zelda is, of course, a Sidereal. If she's in Sheik(or whatever that one's name is) form, she's simply wearing Armor of the Unseen Assassin. Probably a Chosen of Endings, but then we don't really get to see her abilities too much.

And then Link's a Solar

[horngeek]

...to be honest, I always saw both Link and Zelda as Solars- Link as Dawn and Zelda as a Zenith.

Remember, I've never played OoT.

[Gensh]

Originally Posted by golentan

Actually, I'd go with a Cecelynian urge. His goal is to dominate Hyrule. By vicious, overkill force, yes, but look how he always goes about it. He uses his ability to create titanic monsters to secure his main objectives, then sends out waves of lesser creatures to force people to conform out of terror to his will. In every sense, it is about domination and the preference for the strong over the weak.

He's not particularly ordered about it, though, which is a main point of contention. He has an evil plan, yes, but even Steve has an evil plan. Likewise, he isn't really a hypocrite and doesn't put effort into twisting things up. He breaks them - a trait held in common with Isidoros and Malfeas. The deciding factor here for me is that Malfeas will give you some excuse as to why he did so: "Autochton! Stop crafting better than me! That's illegal! Onee-chan, make that illegal!" Isidoros will not make such excuses.

Originally Posted by Tavar

Also, his trickery seems rather direct, often enough. I mean, in OoT wasn't he in court because he was some kind of magician? Maybe some wish-granting powers were aiding him.

Zelda is, of course, a Sidereal. If she's in Sheik(or whatever that one's name is) form, she's simply wearing Armor of the Unseen Assassin. Probably a Chosen of Endings, but then we don't really get to see her abilities too much.

And then Link's a Solar

Sounds about right. Unless you want Lunar Link specifically for the wolf transformation, but there are other ways to get that.

[horngeek]

To be honest, my major reason for thinking of Zelda as a Solar is the fact that she rules directly, not manipulating things from behind the scenes.

Now, in OoT, things may be different...

[Draken]

ED favoring Slayer sounds ideal for Ganondorf. Gives him a way to create those Dark Links.

I would also give him a few choice items from Reminiscent Oasis' recently posted Mardukth charmset (up to and including the Shintai that lets you soulfuse with a familiar), and the desert backgorund of the Gerudo tribe does open space for a couple of Cecelyne charms. And Hate Springs Eternal, can't forget Hate Springs Eternal.

[horngeek]

Originally Posted by Draken

I would also give him a few choice items from Reminiscent Oasis' recently posted Mardukth charmset (up to and including the Shintai that lets you soulfuse with a familiar), and the desert backgorund of the Gerudo tribe does open space for a couple of Cecelyne charms. And Hate Springs Eternal, can't forget Hate Springs Eternal.

Who's Mardukth and where can this charmset be found?

[golentan]

Originally Posted by Gensh

He's not particularly ordered about it, though, which is a main point of contention. He has an evil plan, yes, but even Steve has an evil plan. Likewise, he isn't really a hypocrite and doesn't put effort into twisting things up. He breaks them - a trait held in common with Isidoros and Malfeas. The deciding factor here for me is that Malfeas will give you some excuse as to why he did so: "Autochton! Stop crafting better than me! That's illegal! Onee-chan, make that illegal!" Isidoros will not make such excuses.

Sounds about right. Unless you want Lunar Link specifically for the wolf transformation, but there are other ways to get that.

The way you phrase this, I think we're talking at cross purposes. I'm purely talking about his urge: his motivation, which is set distinct from methodologies such as charmset. And his motive seems to me to gain power. He doesn't want to destroy things, he wants to rule them. Destroying them until they're small enough to rule is his methodology: I agree he is direct, all about the overkill and open application of force in his methodology and in the powers he uses. which does fit with malfeas. So, in my mind, a Malfean/Isidorian slayer caste with a Cecelynian urge.

Because Urge, Favored Yozi, and Caste can and should be mix and match for fun and profit.

Originally Posted by horngeek

...to be honest, I always saw both Link and Zelda as Solars- Link as Dawn and Zelda as a Zenith.

Remember, I've never played OoT.

I agree with this. Though zelda (depending on game) is everything from a not-particularly-heroic-mortal to "Who let the Incarnae out of the games?"

Also:

Spoiler

Edit:

Originally Posted by horngeek

Who's Mardukth and where can this charmset be found?

Don't ask who Mardukth is! He'll never shut up about it once you get him started!

[Draken]

Originally Posted by horngeek

Who's Mardukth and where can this charmset be found?

Reminiscent Oasis posted a charmset for him in the whitewolf forums recently, but my whole internet is crazy and having trouble loading so I can't give a link. It loaded while I made the paragraph bellow, yay.

It has some interesting things, including a Followers version of Messianic (your powers rely on flunkies!) some charms that work off of familiar (and lets you turn any animal you find into a familiar and eventually be better an animal themed barbarian as Lunars don't wish they were. And your very own mountain-raising variant of CPI.

[Gensh]

Originally Posted by golentan

The way you phrase this, I think we're talking at cross purposes. I'm purely talking about his urge: his motivation, which is set distinct from methodologies such as charmset. And his motive seems to me to gain power. He doesn't want to destroy things, he wants to rule them. Destroying them until they're small enough to rule is his methodology: I agree he is direct, all about the overkill and open application of force in his methodology and in the powers he uses. which does fit with malfeas. So, in my mind, a Malfean/Isidorian slayer caste with a Cecelynian urge.

Because Urge, Favored Yozi, and Caste can and should be mix and match for fun and profit.

The terrible way that part of the book was written has left me wondering exactly how GSP character creation actually works on several occasions. I'd always assumed you had to have an Urge from either of your two patrons. Since all the iconic GSPs have Urges matching their caste, it wasn't exactly helpful.

[Mr.Bookworm]

Originally Posted by Gensh

Sounds about right. Unless you want Lunar Link specifically for the wolf transformation, but there are other ways to get that.

Actually, Zelda and Link are a perfect fit for a Lunar and Solar bonded pair. The various games are about the different bearers of their Exaltations, repeating an endless cycle of heroism and love.

Originally Posted by horngeek

Who's Mardukth and where can this charmset be found?

Mardukth is (er, was, until the Solars got to him) a Primordial who would not shut the hell up. Was severely neurotic and had an identity crisis, so he kept asking everyone around him who the hell he was. The world got sick of his **** so hard that it started growing just to get away from his whiny ass. He also looked like something out of a heavy metal album cover. Then the Empyreal Chaos came along, planted a boot firmly up his ass, and took over. Thank him.

Mardukth's Charmset can be found here. RO does solid work.

Who is missing the joke?

[Tavar]

Actually, I'm going to take back the "Link is a Solar thing".

Why? Because of fate. Remember, he's always fated to come into his power. Plus, in many ways, Ganon always dwarfs him, powerwise. But Link manages to win through trickery.

He could very well make a good Sidereal. In fact, I'd say he's a Sidereal of Endings, while Zelda is of Battles.

[golentan]

Originally Posted by Gensh

The terrible way that part of the book was written has left me wondering exactly how GSP character creation actually works on several occasions. I'd always assumed you had to have an Urge from either of your two patrons. Since all the iconic GSPs have Urges matching their caste, it wasn't exactly helpful.

Nope, any Infernal can have any urge AND any favored yozi. Patron yozi is fixed by caste tho. The Iconics are non-helpful on several levels, but I don't think that should detract from the joys of good infernal character building. I've had fun with a Scourge Caste with Kimbery Favored and an Ebon Dragon Urge. The scourge caste mostly provided base "stealthy character" skills, but also some really good mobility charms. Kimbery provided a vast wealth of poisons, and the ebon dragon provided the motive to use those poisons to spread fear and corruption among his enemies.

Also, Ebon Dragon and Kimbery have some crazy synergy going on. One of my favorite combinations. Heelloooo arbitrarily high hardness.

[Lord Raziere]

Originally Posted by Mr.Bookworm

Actually, Zelda and Link are a perfect fit for a Lunar and Solar bonded pair. The various games are about the different bearers of their Exaltations, repeating an endless cycle of heroism and love.

however keep in mind that its Link thats the Lunar.

Why? because he travels through and bends time, has shapeshifted into a deku, a goron, a zora and a wolf, has shrunk down to a small size, comes from the woods, has a fairy companion, and if I remember correctly he once divided himself into four Links in one game. he has also done various other things using music, none of which I can see a Solar doing.