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  1. - Top - End - #151
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Islebreaker
    Nord's sunlight infused stroke cuts a furrow through the ocean itself, water spraying to either side as it sails towards the heavily armoured mechanical Kraken. It looks certain to find its mark, to slip betwixt the gargantuan armoured plates that blanket the necrotech abomination... yet before it could do so, the leviathan's tendril shifts to catch the oncoming light.

    As the group watches, the great beast wraps its mighty tendril around the beam. The sheer force of Nord's blow is enough to force even the monstrous Kraken back a little in the water, but it retains its grip on the vibrant energy, raising it high above the scene before bringing the force of the Solar's very essence down right atop the tower. Dancer and Granny can feel the ancient building shake as the great beast looks down at Karal Nord. Even with no mouth, the smug satisfaction in those eyes is clear.

    "Cute. That might've hurt. I guess I should take you seriously."

    Spoiler
    Show
    Nord's attack failed. The Islebreaker's base parry is 7. Nord loses 3i, placing him at 9.

    But hey! It sets up the Islebreaker's Devastating Action! Lacroix is rolling a Feat of Demolition to smash through the Hearthroom roof. Success will force Granny to face a Falling Rubble environmental hazard. (If Dancer were mortal, I'd ask for a roll for her to keep her balance since she's on the balcony right next to this room, but she's too badass to fall unless Lacroix was aiming at her specifically.) Regardless of the result, the Hearthroom will be difficult terrain if this goes off.

    (18d10)[9][8][2][9][5][3][8][5][6][3][8][9][7][3][6][2][8][3](104) Feat of Demolition (+2 Autosuccess, double 9s) Difficulty 10.

    If it goes through, Falling Rubble: 4B/Immediate, resisted with Dexterity + Dodge, difficulty 3


    Unconcerned with the fate of the tower, Lacroix's focus is on the ragged group. One of the Lunars has slipped away - no matter. There are still three chosen standing before him, as well as a perfect little group of victims behind them. This little band that remain will make a wonderful demonstration. He dips the Islebreaker forward slightly in the waters, as though the great beast were bowing politely to its soon-to-be-victims. "I tried to warn you, indigents. You could have surrendered. Now, it's time I show you a couple of Nova's actually useful creations!"

    With a click and a hiss, the two hatches Rivers had spotted on the Islebreaker's core fall back as a pair of hefty devices within rise to the surface. They are indeed hefty - each mounts two large cylinders in a frame that has to be near equal size to a ballista. Marrow has the strange impression of them matching firewand designs - the strange pattern encircling the weapons at a distance looks like the markings that gave Dragon Sigh Wands their name. Unfortunately a second inspection shows the lie to that; the markings are some kind of tubing, pumping multicoloured liquids through Lacroix's newfound weapon. Likely its source of ammunition.

    The Islebreaker slowly drifts forward - not quite enough to bring it fully in range of the pier, but more than enough to prove uncomfortably close as the abomination looms over them. There's nowhere to dodge. The cannons pan left and right, up and down, moving faster than the eye can track. Even with their size, their firing arc seems all encompassing. Just as Lacroix had darted across the catwalks with Dancer earlier, it's quite simple to keep even these hefty armaments almost in multiple places at once.

    And then, the moment comes.

    "BURN!" Dorian Lacroix cries out, with all the excitement and vindictive glee of a child at Calibration as twin mighty lances of all encompassing pure white flames shoots forward from the Islebreaker - right towards the party standing in the towers gateway. The flames crackle and flicker as they pass through the air, turning about and combining into one - an aesthetically perfect abomination against Hessiesh. The former prisoners are screaming, running for the interior as quickly as they can. But the three Exalts are closer to the beam. It feels all but unavoidable at this point.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Plasma Pyre Flame Cannons. This is an Unblockable withering Attack against Rivers, Marrow and Nord, with the potential for collateral on the prisoners due to the sheer scale of the move. Parry is inapplicable against this attack, only Evasion is a valid defense, so declare your Evasion people! Also Lacroix gains +2 sux against Rivers and Marrow due to Flying Time Technique.

    ... Yeah. Smart move on Whisper's part to GTFO!

    Spoiler: Attack
    Show
    (13d10)[7][2][3][3][5][8][6][3][6][3][10][8][6](70)Attack roll. +2 sux against Rivers and Marrow. Lacroix only gets awarded i from the strongest hit, assuming any of you are hit by this.
    (20d10)[8][5][7][7][10][10][5][4][5][7][2][4][4][5][10][5][2][3][1][4](108)Damage roll, Overwhelming 5

  2. - Top - End - #152
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    Eurus's Avatar

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    "Sol's hairy-"

    The music stutters and stops for a moment as the top of the tower starts to shudder and disgorge huge amounts of rock. A cacophony of crashing masonry echoes across the sea, accompanied by squawking profanity that manages to somehow be almost as loud.

    After a few moments, it settles.

    "I'm fine. Everything's fine."

    The hacking cough accompanying the statement undermines it, slightly, but the organ music does resume.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Dex 5, dodge 1, stunt 2.
    (8d10)[1][1][7][8][6][9][6][7](45)
    Avatar by araveugnitsuga.

  3. - Top - End - #153
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
    BlueWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Since witnessing the Islebreaker's emergence, Rivers has known their doom was coming, but they didn't expect it to come at the speed of light. Those sweeping beams of energy can't be turned aside like a punch or a blade, and they aren't swift enough to run or leap past the point of danger. This could be the end. Or...

    Or perhaps, perhaps what cannot be avoided can, at least, be endured.

    They throw themselves forward into a crouch, sheltering beneath their upraised forearms, beneath the bulwark of jade formed by their so-recently-acquired Seven Aeons Gauntlets. They strengthen their body against the force of the blast, drawing solidity from the earth beneath their feet, dulling the furnace heat of the pyre flame with the cooling essence of water which suffuses their soul. Their anima erupts again with the effort, a lone bubble of darkness pushing back against the streams of white-hot flame. Like the tower-manse amidst the ocean, they are an island amidst the blaze, and, like it, though they may be weathered by time and storm, they will still persist.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Rivers' Evasion is their base of 2 + Stunt.
    Their base Soak is 7, which they're boosting to at least 11 with Impervious Skin of Stone (4m from Peripheral) and likely further with Eternal Tide Endurance (2m from Peripheral), which grants another +1 Soak for each 1 in the Islebreaker's attack roll.

    Assuming that the cost of attuning to the Gauntlets brought their anima back to glowing (which I'm sorry I neglected to acknowledge at the time), this brings them up to burning.
    Current Games:
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    GMing The Lotus Blossoms! [Exalted 3E] (OOC)
    Playing Waldaharjaz in The Convergence of Sky [Exalted 3E]
    Playing Rivers in Welcome to Thorns [Exalted 3E]

  4. - Top - End - #154
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    MonkGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The Dancer feels the tower rumble.

    Can't think about that now.

    She hears the juddering blasts from below.

    Can't think of that now.

    She hears that damnable ghost laughing.

    Can't think of that now.

    What she needs to focus on is that airship, close enough to see and hear clearly, but not close enough to touch. If the others keep Lacroix busy, she can deal with this. She has to. With no ranged weapons and now airship of her own, she'll have to rely on blunt, tactless measures. Fortunately, the old woman at the organ has provided plenty of material for a mind in a hurry.

    "Hey you cowardly !@#$%'s! What, can't handle a little danger, you !@#$%ing !@#$-blasted !@#$%s? If you can't bear to come down here and !@#$% with this little girl, maybe you can !@#$% and go !@#$ yourselves back to the !@#$% Mask's thorny !@#$% where you clearly belong! Or wanna prove me wrong? Show me what big scary Thornguard can do besides throwing rocks from a basket like little !@#$% children behind the butcher's shop! Come give me a better challenge than your !@#$%-faced commander down there could, or are you scared?"

    Not the most subtle of approaches, but she had heard a lot of airmen's chatter growing up, and some things you never forget.

    Spoiler: OOC & Rolls
    Show
    Dancer is making an influence rol, taunting the Thornguard captain and trying to get him to bring the ship in closer to the tower. I figure if he has any intimacies favoring Lacroix, she just stung those to penalize his resolve. She is enhancing this with a full excellency (3 autosuccesses) and Unbearable Taunt Technique. If she succeeds, he must immediately prioritize attacking her, and cannot attack other characters. If he pays willpower to resist, he still loses two initiative if he attacks any other character. I'm guessing this is Manipulation+Presence+Stunt, as she's trying to get him to do something not in his best interest.

    Spoiler: Roll
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    [12d10[/rollv] +3
    Sorry for making things complicated!
    -Me

  5. - Top - End - #155
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    pfm1995's Avatar

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Standing on the beach, Marrow watches the gargantuan necrotic squid deploy it's strange devices with a critical eye. They're beautiful work, truly, though marred by the stench of rotting flesh and the pipes and tanks attached to them. Does Lacroix really think that fire, mere fire, would be enough to deter them? He draws Marrow up to his shoulder, watching as the cannons come to focus on him.

    A great white light gathers, as the torrent of fiery death makes ready to pour forth.

    Standing on the beach, Marrow looks at the work of two of the Abyssal Exalted and judges it insufficient.

    As the twin lances of white-hot flame lance out towards him, they're met by an all-consuming wave of verdigris. Met, and then stalled, and then consumed, for the flame that spills from Quiet's mouth are not mere flames at all. What is mere burning liquid, faced with hunger personified. In the wake of the green fire dances Marrow, gliding around and through cascading droplets of burning liquid fleeing their own immolation. The heat washes over him, and he feels a few scattered droplets land with searing pain on his back, but after the briefest moment he's through the worst and the fire fades, then dies.

    Spoiler: Charms
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    Full excellency (4m), bringing Marrow's total evasion to 7

  6. - Top - End - #156
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Spoiler: OOC: Initiative Count
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    So, coming towards the end of round one, we have...
    29 (26): Islebreaker + Lacroix
    19: Whisper
    11: Dancer

    6: Vendetta Cannons, Thorn Captain Madrigora
    3: Rivers, Granny
    1: Nord
    0: Marrow


    Nova's white hot flames eventually give way, but the sight is not a pretty one. The stone around the tower's entryway is blackened and crumbling. The three proud Exalted defenders stand for now, but enduring even a brief gout of those weapons has taxed all three defenders sorely. And above them, the Islebreaker still looms, tentacles gleaming in the anima light.

    Meanwhile, up above Thorn Captain Madrigoria grimaces. He might have glass panes and the cast iron hull of his airship between himself and that damnable Fire Aspect, but he can't deny how tempting it will be to rub her and her benighted mouth from the face of Creation. Without glancing down to see what is occurring below, the officer barks to his men. "Alright. Target the loudmouth. Show her how loud we can get, eh?"

    The Thornguard laugh, all too happy to comply. In a few seconds Dancer finds the ship's hail of bombs raining down towards her position. Namely, the hearthroom. Still standing on the sill as she is, there's no way to avoid Granny being caught in the firing arc from this assault.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    An officer's weapon is his men, and Dancer's taunting doesn't dictate her opponent's actions. It just gets his attention. Madrigora is issuing an Order Action to shell the top of the tower. Hate Fuelled Animus allows him to throw (Intimacy) dice on a roll fuelled by hatred, so... congrats Dancer! He's adding 3. And gains +2 from the Thornguard's Elite Drill
    (13d10)[6][10][7][10][8][8][2][10][10][3][9][5][8](96) Order Action

    And the troops will follow that up with an attack. I'll roll their base dice here, and 10 bonus dice - as per, those will be applied from left to right as needed
    Spoiler: Attack Roll - Targeting Dancer and Granny
    Show
    (12d10)[10][8][1][1][5][2][7][1][3][1][5][3](47) Attack
    (15d10)[9][4][5][2][4][4][7][4][10][6][1][8][8][10][7](89) Damage.

    (10d10)[1][9][1][9][8][8][10][8][3][1](58) Bonus dice for the attack roll.

  7. - Top - End - #157
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    MonkGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The Dancer sees the bombardment coming. She'll be the first to admit, she did not expect those guns to be able to fire on-level. "Oh !@#$."

    Twisting about, the Dancer's blade flickers and sparks as she whirls it about, keen eyes picking out the projectiles and deflecting them away. The explosions do not phase her, but being hit by a shell would certainly be inconvenient. Never in her field training did she have to parry explosive ordinance, on reflection it really ought to be an agent's first day in basic. She wonders on the value of learning proper enunciation of Scavenger Land noble titles as she swings out, slicing a mortar clean in two. She's drawn some fire from her comrades and gained the attention of the artillery crew, but she needs to get them close enough to engage. How to do that...

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Dancer is utilizing flame-flicker stance to parry the bombardment. She is also spending 1WP to boost her base parry to 6, that plus the stunt bonus (1-2) and then an additional +1 for every 1 in the crew's attack roll...sigh capped at +3
    Last edited by Sticks; 2020-05-13 at 08:02 PM.
    Sorry for making things complicated!
    -Me

  8. - Top - End - #158
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    Eurus's Avatar

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Another barrage, but this one is a lot more direct. Granny isn't quite out in the open, but the hearthroom is already starting to fall apart, so it's not as much cover as she'd like. Nimbly, she twists her body to roll with the impact, relying on her preternatural toughness to absorb the worst of it as she gets tossed into a wall by the blast.

    As quick as she can, she's back on her feet and in front of the organ once more, swaying slightly with dizziness and a coppery taste of blood in her mouth but still in one piece. Another hit like that will be messy.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Granny's evasion and parry are both 3 base, +1 stunt, +1 cover. Spending four motes to add +4 soak (stunting Dexterity to raise the Excellency cap).

    5 evasion, 8 soak total.

    6/16 Personal
    30/38 Peripheral
    3/5 Willpower
    Avatar by araveugnitsuga.

  9. - Top - End - #159
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
    BlueWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Rivers doesn't look around as the flames clear, doesn't allow themself to worry about how the others weathered the white-hot storm, or about the explosions they can hear behind them. The opening moments of this desperate struggle already showed them too much human suffering; they can't get distracted by anyone else's plight now, can't worry about how thin the thread of hope is. If they let themselves think about it too much, they'll shut down, and they can't afford to shut down.

    The Islebreaker, in all its hideous strength, already shrugged off the best shot of one of the Solar Anathema while Rivers watched... but Rivers can also feel some ancient power stirring in their fists, hungry to face such an impossible foe. The Seven Aeons Gauntlets are the stuff of miracles... they ought to be impossibly unwieldy, through bulk if not through weight... the Gauntlets' immensity ought not to even fit their hands... but they feel as comfortable as the thinnest glove. And, more, Rivers intuitively understands that they are scaled to the foes they were meant to face; they were forged for situations such as this. They were forged to lay titans low. That is their miracle, and Rivers has never been one to discount miracles. They must try their best to make the most of this one. It would be disrespectful to the gods to do any less.

    So it is that, heedless of all but the fated saga of their fists, Rivers runs and leaps from the dock. It isn't enough; their weight and the weight of their gauntlets are too much, and the arc of their jump falls well short of the vile squid... but as they fall toward the water, they twist in the air, they bring their right fist swinging around in a wide arc... and a vivid pulse of green ripples through their blue-black anima as they punch the sea.

    The blow launches Rivers skyward, twice as high or higher than their initial leap, rising amidst the whirlpool of their iconic anima. For a moment they seem to hang in the air above the Islebreaker, framed at the center of a spiral of laughing river dragons, and then gravity remembers its hold on them, and, once again, they fall... they fall, spinning, momentum building in their fist... they fall, like a hammer blow. Their massive fist falls toward the main body of the Islebreaker, and the ocean itself trembles at the memory of their strength.

    Spoiler: OOC and Rolls
    Show
    Withering attack on the Islebreaker. Rivers spends 5m on Become the Hammer (the Brawl Excellency), taking their anima to Iconic. They can now freely choose to treat the surface of the water like solid ground, for tricks like, say, pushing off of it in the middle of a stunt.

    Spoiler: Rolls
    Show
    The Gauntlets' Withering attack + Excellency + Stunt =
    Attack: (17d10)[9][5][5][10][3][8][6][1][10][4][9][3][9][10][10][9][5](116)
    Damage (base 18, minimum 5, rerolling 6s until they cease to appear): (18d10)[6][5][3][7][6][6][1][9][10][6][2][1][1][9][10][6][4][10](102)

    Potential rerolls: (6d10)[8][2][5][9][2][9](35)
    Last edited by Ascension; 2020-05-15 at 12:15 PM.
    Current Games:
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    GMing The Lotus Blossoms! [Exalted 3E] (OOC)
    Playing Waldaharjaz in The Convergence of Sky [Exalted 3E]
    Playing Rivers in Welcome to Thorns [Exalted 3E]

  10. - Top - End - #160
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Some tales replay. Once the Exalted fought the Sea That Marched Against The Flame, and her endless brood of abominable creatures. Now, the little party on the shore reenact that fight, weapons ancient and new raised against Lacroix's pet abomination.

    Rivers' collision with the Islebreaker comes with the force of a legion. The mock-Kraken is brought to a sharp halt as the water rises up on every side, its tentacles pulled back to steady itself. The low moan of the souls within the armor rises to the force of a passionate scream, as the ring of jade on steel echoes over the bay. The lightning strike from before was no fluke. No matter what weapons the forces of the Mask might have built into this thing, it can be driven back. It can be felled. It can be beaten.

  11. - Top - End - #161
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    pfm1995's Avatar

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The heat is staggering. Marrow feels his cheeks char, smells his hair burn and has to close his eyes to save them; when the flames finish washing over him he steps out with less a graceful dance and more a stumbling stagger that leaves him half-prone. He's still alive, though, and he still has his plan.

    Reaching back into his pocket, he thumbs a rune that feels like hungry ice, feeding it until it shatters and he feels the blue-jade slab shake. In a single explosive motion he rises and whips the thing out over the water like a discus - as it flies it unfurls, and he chases after it in a full-out sprint until he runs out of dock and then he leaps.

    The impact of landing on the windblade almost sends both him and it spilling into the ocean with the bodies of his men, but he wrestles it back to level as he pours power into it and it begins to go faster. And faster. And faster, until he's leaving an arc of water spraying behind him as he bobs and weaves through the kraken's flailing tentacles until a shockwave hits him and almost sends him back into the drink. A quick glance backwards - which has him come within inches of slamming into another tentacle - tells him that Rivers has entered the fray, but he doesn't have time to do more than wish them good luck. Another heartbeat, and he's shooting free of the kraken's reach and into the open sky, heading straight for the airship sitting fat and happy in the sky.

    Spoiler: Actions
    Show
    5m to commit, and this whole thing I think is just a stunted Rush action (Plus a reflexive move towards the skyship.) No charms.

    Spoiler: Roll
    Show
    (7d10)[3][1][4][9][1][9][5](32)

  12. - Top - End - #162
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Marrow's ascent towards the skyship is dizzying. The sheer speed, coupled with the sensation of weightlessness as his little craft pulls him high above the water would be enough for anyone to lose their cool. But rise he does, at a speed far faster than his target could even hope to match, and with a few seconds he's found his footing. And something occurs to the young Dragon.

    In the few seconds before he's too far away to make them out, he risks a glance downwards towards the battle. Specifically towards the bodies he has oh so recently bobbed through. A number of the dead have been tossed to the surface now, but... yes. It's curious: he can't make out any members of the Cureva amongst the fallen. Wishful thinking, or...?

    Meanwhile, Lacroix has quite recovered his posture. Plated segments of the Islebreaker's engorged tendrils clank against one another, as the great machine's many limbs start to coil around the waiting Rivers. Rather than strike however, the commander returns to his other passtime. Pontification. "You think this pathetic resistance will accomplish something?" One tentacle taps upon the black markings the lightning bolt from earlier had left. The ghost in the machine chuckles. "Dents and scrapes won't stop the Islebreaker, little Dragon. No amount of stolen strength is going to change that. You won't hold me back for..."

    "AAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

    The cry somehow rises above Lacroix's amplified voice, cutting the commander off. With a clang of metal, the drenched form of a familiar dark haired warrior rises out of the depths, clambering up the Islebreaker's crested core as best she can with shaking fingers and a shortage of breath. She still clutches her stolen sword in one hand, bringing it down into the gaps between plates to gain some little leverage in her ascent. Finally finding a stable hold, the former prisoner calls out towards her adversary.

    "I am Iahway Kimacha... daughter of the Marukani. And you are dying today, monster!"

    She brings the sword down upon the metal. And while it can not hope to dent the well forged soulsteel, the clang rings out across the bay, louder than her voice could. Even in the face of overwhelming odds, the Exalted stand.

    And the people of Creation stand with them.

    Spoiler
    Show
    START OF ROUND. All characters regain 5m. Nord gains an extra 10, for a total of 15. I believe Lacroix is up first, will write that post later. Just wanted to do this bit.

  13. - Top - End - #163
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Spoiler: Initative Count
    Show
    Updated count now, while I remember

    24 (21): Islebreaker + Lacroix
    19: Whisper
    9: Rivers,
    8: Dancer
    7: Iahway
    6: Vendetta Cannons, Thorn Captain Madrigora
    1: Nord
    0: Marrow
    -4: Granny


    Lacroix
    Moments can be powerful in retrospect. The stuff of bards song and wonderful imagery. But all too often, reality can rob the narrative of its poetry.

    There is silence following Iahway's strike. Not even the slightest dent has come from the proud warrior's blade. The tide crashing against the stone of the isle is the only sound left to the moment. But then the creak and moan of soulsteel resumes as the Islebreaker starts to turn, almost knocking the mortal warrior from her perch.

    "Ohh... Oh, that was wonderful, wasn't it? All that hope, passion... and for what?" Lacroix chortles. The Islebreaker's two azure blue eyes are staring intently down at Rivers, even as its tendrils arc and sway around the mighty defender of Creation. "Do you think you scare me, little dewdrop? With your god-light and your fists and your friends? D'you think this is some glorious last stand, where you'll strike some pyrrhic blow against me and mine?"

    In an instant, two of the tree trunk sized tentacles lash out. One arcs around Rivers, and then swiftly circles back moving back towards the core and straight at the Marukani. The other keeps going past the Dragon Blood - out towards the isle. It takes most of its prodigious length to get there, but soon enough the great metallic appendage sails through the air straight towards Karal Nord. All the while, Lacroix's voice booms out, almost on the verge of laughter. "No, Chosen. You're getting nothing from this. Today is my reward for service to the Mask. After all that tedious, monotonous culling of lives, this? This is sport!"

    Spoiler
    Show
    Lacroix is using the Islebreaker's tendrils to flurry two Grapple gambits against Iahway and Nord. Thanks to Overwhelming Might, these grapples can not be contested if they land. And Flying Time Technique adds 2sux to each attack roll. The bright side is that even if they succeed, each grapple does cost Lacroix 3i as a successful gambit so this will likely hurt a bit less than a straight up decisive.

    Spoiler: Attack - Nord
    Show
    (12d10)[1][8][1][10][1][2][5][2][8][9][2][1](50) Grapple Attack, Nord
    (21d10)[4][6][1][8][4][7][7][3][1][6][1][3][4][1][6][7][7][1][1][8][8](94) Target - 2


    (12d10)[1][7][8][3][2][9][10][1][1][10][5][7](64) Grapple Attack, Iahway
    (18d10)[10][2][1][7][9][4][8][4][4][1][7][5][6][4][1][6][4][9](92) Target - 2
    Last edited by Inspector Valin; 2020-05-20 at 06:11 PM.

  14. - Top - End - #164
    Titan in the Playground
     
    HalfTangible's Avatar

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    [Despair]

    Nord didn't bother to answer Lacroix's initial statement. He'd seen the ghost sink a ship full of escaped prisoners (and potential fuel for his ship, as morbid as it was to think) without a second thought. As if surrender was ever an option for any of them.

    As flames consumed him, he felt himself being pushed back. He gritted his teeth against the blinding light and the heat of the flames, trying to stay on his feet against this unimaginable onslaught. When the Pyre Flame Cannons subsided, he only leered at the colossal kraken.

    As River's attack landed, he realized just how exhausted he was.

    What good could they even do here? Even if they managed to kill this thing, they were all but stuck on the island. So many dead, and for what? They'd gained nothing from this venture and lost so much. He'd wanted to die fighting, he supposed, but it felt wrong to let everyone else do it, too. These dragons had a chance to do some good elsewhere. He was just some demon.

    ... Maybe they should run. This was a fight they couldn't win.

    And then Kimacha came, and for a moment, Nord froze with shock and relief.

    They hadn't all died after all. The ship had been cracked, and the supplies lost, but more importantly there were survivors. It hadn't occurred to him to check, but now that the Marukani girl had revealed herself, he realized that many there could probably swim. They could search the waters when this was done; so long as the Islebreaker was broken.

    Lacroix's mocking laughter as he pontificated yet again only brought the ghost of a grin back to the mercenary's lips. No. The Marukani girl's attack was not pointless. Nord had fire in his blood again. Essence pumped in every limb and through his heart, like the beating of a fiery war drum. A demon he may be, but he would not go quietly. Let the others run if they wished.

    Pyrrhic? No, Lacroix. The loss of an airship, the lightning organ and the Islebreaker's destruction will make this a victory. Imperfect, yes, too many have died. But not all.

    And he chuckled, as his anima began to flare once more. His blades came up, and he sneered directly at the creature's eyes, just daring it to try and take him. As the tentacle the size of a tree trunk descended upon him, he leapt forward, slicing with his blades with a roar of vengeance, carefully aiming his strikes towards the weakest points of the armor; the joints. It would not take him, not while he still drew breath. This thing had to come apart, and it had to come apart now.

    The draconic voices in his aura seemed to strike with him, the light of the sun burning at the undead flesh of this abomination.

    Surely just his imagination, but... could it?

    Spoiler
    Show
    Spending 8m on a full melee excellency to parry.

    Stunt (1) a Parry (Base 4) + Full Excellency (8m for 4 Parry) + Dual Wield Specialty (1)
    Defense: 10
    Hate me if you want. But that's your issue to fix, not mine.

    Primal ego vos, estis ex nihilo.

    When Gods Go To War comes out March 8th

    Discord: HalfTangible

    Extended Sig

  15. - Top - End - #165
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Even Nord's blades aren't enough to tear through solid soulsteel. But just as Iahway had done, the Solar warrior finds purchase in the crevices between armoured segments. He lacks the leverage to cut as the great tendril pushes down upon him, but with a twist and a cry, the mighty Dawn hefts it above his head and tosses it backwards, landing in the sea with a hearty splash.

    His newfound comrade is not so lucky. The young Kimacha grimaces as the mighty tentacle clanks towards her, trying to roll out of the way, but without success. The soulsteel laden limb lifts the Markani warrior bodily off of the Islebreaker's core, like some charging ox bringing its victim along for the ride. Iahway brings her blade down, trying to cling to the limb as best she can while Lacroix brings his victim before him.

    Those blue eyes meet the gaze of the Marukani for a lingering second. And then, with a flick of its metallic tendril, the Islebreaker tosses Iahway Kimacha through the air.

    The young warrior flies faster than any bird, a blur of brown passing by the scene's combatants. She hits the tower just atop where the cargo lift had been, frail flesh impacting hard against stone. She falls down to the surface of the lift, out of sight of the combatants on either side. All that remains is a faint smear of blood against the tower wall.

    Lacroix laughs at the sight, the Islebreaker's eyes turning back to Rivers as its tendrils churn through the water, great waves coursing out from the monster's core as the ghost celebrates his petty victory. "One tap, Dragon! Just a flick of a tentacle sent her that far! How can you deny the beauty of that?!"

  16. - Top - End - #166
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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The crocodile that is Whisper slips beneath the waves, forced to dive as Lacroix's thrashing tentacles churn the surface of the water. The silver glow surrounding her shatters any chance she might have at striking unseen, but at least the water offers some insulation from above... and affords her a look at the ersatz kraken's underside.

    And makes it harder to hear Lacroix. Just a good decision all around, really.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Aim, begin moving into close range of Lacroix.
    Avatar by GryffonDurime. Thanks!

  17. - Top - End - #167
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    BlueWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    "There's nothing beautiful about death," Rivers growls.

    Though they stand atop the surface of a churning ocean, though they face an improbably blasphemous construct several orders of magnitude larger than themself, their rolling stance is little different than it would be on dry land, and they face their opponent as they would any man. That is what he is, after all. Behind all the soulsteel and corpse-flesh, past all the metaphysics of ghostly existence, at his heart Commander Lacroix is simply a man, with a man's contemptuous vanity.

    "Not even your final death is gonna be beautiful. But what it will be..."


    Rivers draws back their right fist, massive in its black jade gauntlet. Even with a fist this size, even against an opponent this size, the mechanics of the punch are the same. What differs is timing... placement... window of opportunity. But Lacroix is, again, merely a man. He is not accustomed to inhabiting the body-plan of a squid, not accustomed to having ten limbs and Maidens-only-know how many joints. Not the way Rivers is accustomed to throwing a punch. Lacroix simply can't be controlling all ten tentacles with his full skill and dexterity at all times... only two pursued Nord and the unfortunate Iahway, after all. While the ghost's cunning plotted the arc of those two tentacles, the rest of the kraken's complement merely thrashed aimlessly at the water. Rivers doesn't know whether they're driven by some semi-conscious portion of Lacroix's mind, or by some autonomic process, or if they're delegated to the control of some lesser spirit, but the mechanism doesn't matter. The salient point is that their movements are relatively uncoordinated... relatively sloppy. There are gaps in kraken's ever-shifting web of arms. Vulnerabilities to be exploited. Rivers sees their chance...

    "What your death will be..."


    They lunge forward, their seemingly ungainly form dancing across wavetops with unexpected grace. They duck under a mindlessly flailing tentacle and springboard off the wave-crest left in its wake. Their fist drives forward, a right cross aimed to smash the Islebreaker right in its great beaked maw.

    "...is JUST!"


    Spoiler: OOC and Rolls
    Show
    I was so tempted to use this insert song from the F-Zero anime for this PAAANCH, but it doesn't really fit Rivers. Alas.

    Withering attack with... bleh, I'll go the full 6m on Become the Hammer. Probably won't be enough post-Soak damage to Crash him, and conserving motes until Flying Time Technique's Defense bonus isn't in the way would probably be a better idea, but I want to hit. Sue me.

    Spoiler: Rolls
    Show
    Attack: (18d10)[9][5][10][2][9][7][4][2][1][2][3][3][10][6][7][8][5][6](99)
    Damage (Base 18, Minimum 5, rerolling 6s until 6s cease to appear): (18d10)[5][9][10][7][4][10][2][7][4][5][5][3][10][4][7][9][5][6](112)
    Potential rerolls: (6d10)[6][9][7][7][10][10](49)
    Current Games:
    Spoiler
    Show
    GMing The Lotus Blossoms! [Exalted 3E] (OOC)
    Playing Waldaharjaz in The Convergence of Sky [Exalted 3E]
    Playing Rivers in Welcome to Thorns [Exalted 3E]

  18. - Top - End - #168
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    MonkGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The Dancer is briefly distracted from her target before her by the coiling golden dragons, sprays of sea-foam and roar of fire below. It seems she's truly thrown her lot in with a strange and dangerous group, but frankly, can she turn away any help in the face of this foe? No, no time for doubt. It's time for battle, time for passion, time to Ignite.

    The disciplined Thornguards' never-ending hail of projectiles has a consistency, a rhythm no performer can miss. It's dangerous, but she can use that. A step here, a pivot there, she's almost ready, the first step will be the hardest. Spinning in time with the next low projectile, the Dancer's blade darts downward as she throws herself off the ledge. The edge of the short-sword deflects off the shell, altering her momentum just so. Her feet touch briefly atop the next shell, right where she knew it would be. This is the blade-dance, one she's done a hundred times to rapturous applause, now substituted by the thunder of cannonade. Her essence swirls about her, smokeless fire accentuating the performance and dazzling anyone trying to get a bead on her. A new turn, a new pivot and she's stepping in time with the hail of projectiles. She kips to the right, snaps her head left to avoid a shell, spins mid-leap to land again, kicking off instantly. Feet from the window of the gondola, she leaps high, spinning on her axis as the sword leaves her hand. It flies toward the window, shattering the glass. With a final leap and a tumble, she flies for that opening, cascades of flaming maple-leaves trailing behind her.

    Spoiler: OOC & Rolls
    Show
    The Dancer is dancing across the bullets, as it were! She's trying to reach the airship in the form of a Dance, with Valin's okay. To make this absurd stunt more palatable, she's flurrying the combat movement with Perform by way of Petal Strewn Pavane, ignoring the flurry penalty. She is spending 6m on Audience-Enthusing Display. Also throwing in a WP for an autosuccess. If she makes the landing, I'll make a short post for her flurried influence roll, and its associated charms. Edit: Also spending 2i.

    DEX+Performance+Specialty+Stunt+4

    (13d10)[3][2][6][4][4][4][7][10][1][2][5][4][9](61)+4
    Last edited by Sticks; 2020-05-27 at 02:54 PM.
    Sorry for making things complicated!
    -Me

  19. - Top - End - #169
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Rivers' fists clang as the Islebreaker is forced back. For all its size, weight and intensity, Lacroix has little backup beyond the Islebreaker, and Rivers is no trivial opponent. The water dragon might not be enough to win this fight alone, but they're proving capable of keeping the monstrocity quite distracted thus far.

    Meanwhile Dancer's performance is a thing of beauty. Pyrefly makes a happy purr as he flits by beside his new mistress, as the dragon treats each projectile as one more stepping stone, carrying her onward and upward towards her objective.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Okay, not in any way worth the wait, apologies gang, but finally a post to confirm the obvious! I can't resist the bullet run, and it was a cool moment, Sticks. 2 die, so take a WP, and a success. 9 sux is plenty for this. Do not consider this a flurry - you are successful, and can make your attack with your full dicepool.

    Ascension was correct, through a point - the Islebreaker reset to i5. It's still at i1 currently however. Need to do a count, but wanted to finally get this update up.
    Last edited by Inspector Valin; 2020-05-30 at 06:02 PM.

  20. - Top - End - #170
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    MonkGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Tumbling through the broken window, Dancer somersaults once and lands on her feet in the middle of the gondola. Any shocked onlookers behold a vision of disheveled beauty, slightly flushed with excitement, hair somewhat windswept and overall wreathed in flames. Those flames, taking the form of many-hued autumnal leaves native to the scavenger lands, sweep about her with abandon, licking at the bodies of any unfortunate enough to be nearby in this cramped space. Retrieving her sword, Dancer turns and whirls at the Thorn-captain. No sense letting them regain their composure, this was a performance for her life, and those of her new comrades. Time enough for artful poise later.

    The Dancer ducks low, spins into her step, takes another spin and lashes out, blade whirling in her left hand in a wide scything slash, aiming to throw the captain onto the back-foot even more than he is already. Press the advantage, keep the audience enraptured, don't let them know the performance is over until the curtain falls.

    Spoiler: OOC & Rolls
    Show
    Dancer is making a Withering attack, unaugmented at this time. She's hoping to regain some motes and let her anima flux do a lot of the work here. When the thorn-captain and crew take their turn, they'll each take 3 dice of withering damage. If crashed, this becomes decisive. Edit: The captain is at -1 defense from onslaught, as fire dragon form applies onslaught penalties before the roll is made.

    (13d10)[1][4][2][2][9][8][1][9][3][7][7][7][3](63)
    Last edited by Sticks; 2020-06-01 at 11:52 AM.
    Sorry for making things complicated!
    -Me

  21. - Top - End - #171
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The dance seems to last an eternity, but just like that, Dancer is through the window. The guardsmen are shocked - most don't even have their blades to hand, their focus on the cannons. Their leader, clad in hefty dark iron plate, however is another matter. Madrigora's hefty greatsword rises to meet the Dancer's strike, the thorns entwined around its hilt showing no signs of decay amidst the flames of the Dragon Blood's anima. The Thorn-Captain glares at her - his face is hidden by his helm, a featureless thing wrought in honour of the Mask, but Dancer can see two cold blue eyes glaring at her. He might be mortal, but this is a senior member of the Thornguard, elite of Mask's elite. He won't be easy pray.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Madrigora isn't exactly looking to take a hit with anima flux coming his way. Focused Loathing Deflection - 4m, +2 defense, and ignore up to 2 points of Onslaught penalty. Brings him to a Defense of 7.

  22. - Top - End - #172
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Spoiler: Resolution and i count
    Show
    Aaand that is a parry for Madrigora. Further I missed an effect- FLD allows him to steal 1i on a successful block.

    19: Whisper
    13: Rivers
    7: Dancer
    , Thorn Captain Madrigora
    6: Vendetta Guardsmen,
    1: Nord, Islebreaker + Lacroix
    0: Marrow
    -4: Granny

    All her momentum, all her passion and power, the sheer energy of the onrushing flame enfolding her, and it feels like she's run up hard against an iron wall. Madrigora's great blade is unyielding as those two cold blue stars that pass for eyes burn behind his helm. He chuckles, a low, rumbling sound. "This is my ship, Dragon! And I don't recall inviting you aboard."

    The other Thornguard have drawn their weapons and begun to encircle Dancer, cannons forgotten in the face of personal survival. All however are starting to sweat in the face of the Dragon Blooded warrior's oncoming flames. Across the room, unattended vials begin to spark and sputter as the ship's various accouterments try to endure Dancer's wrath. Floorboards warp and char, the doors and cabients begin to smoulder. It might be enough to spook a less well trained group, but the Thornguard don't break easily.

    But then, something strange happens. Dancer sees a confused look enter the eyes of the troops. Even Madrigora suddenly looks befuddled. Through the fire and heat of her anima, it feels like a cold wind has begun to blow.

    A trained fighter knows better to turn their back on a foe, but Dancer can make out what has changed from the corner of her eye. Behind her, in the ground she'd jumped across after entering the ship a band of spectral figures have flickered into existence. Ghosts. Weak ones, not wearing the uniform of the Mask of Winters. She can made out a bizzare set of figures - a young man with a goatee, a human sized snake, a bald monk, a farmgirl... and more keep appearing as she looks. Perhaps two dozen in all. Twice as many as the remaining Thornguard.

    As one, the new arrivals step forward with their arms falling into line behind Dancer. After all, they followed in her wake to get here. Even without lungs, their cry rings out across the scene

    "In the name of the Silver Moon!"

    And in an instant, all is pandemonium. Cannons are flung backwards off their moorings, loose boards are ripped from the floor, shot canisters spiral through the air. The great airship rocks back and forth as the Thornguard struggle desperately to maintain their balance, rushing about to try and maintain the ship's structure. Madrigora alone is left to face Dancer, the armored giant's glare somehow growing more hateful yet as he charges forward towards the Dragon Blood. His world might fall apart, he might die today, but if nothing else he's resolved to take her with him.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Environmental hazard! The ghosts are using Poltergeist Warning Technique offensively - controlling simple objects to throw them at the Thornguard. This is usually a difficulty 3 damage 4B hazard, buuuut... this place is now on fire, so I'm bumping that up to damage 6L for Madrigora and his men, resolving at the start of their action every round. And yes, this stacks with anima flux. ;)

    So first resolving that!

    (3d10)[7][2][4](13) Madrigora, Flux
    (3d10)[10][2][1](13) Crew, Flux

    (8d10)[2][1][5][3][3][1][7][10](32) Madrigora, Hazard
    (6d10)[9][2][10][6][6][6](39) Damage, if successful
    (6d10)[2][2][2][4][10][7](27) Crew, Hazard
    (6d10)[10][5][3][1][4][9](32) Damage, if successful

    Now, Madrigora's going for a straight up Withering attack. He's not adding motes, but you're pretty sure he's got an artifact sword there

    Spoiler: Madrigora's Attack
    Show
    (12d10)[3][8][8][5][8][9][5][3][2][8][4][8](71) Attack
    (15d10)[8][2][10][8][8][6][3][10][7][5][3][6][1][3][10](90) Damage


    Aaand his crew are taking a misc action to stabilize the ship, following the ghost's first attack. They don't wanna drop out of the sky after all.

    Next up is Nord! PROGRESS HAS BEGUN!

  23. - Top - End - #173
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    HalfTangible's Avatar

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Kimacha's attack was brave, but ultimately futile. Nord felt guilt well inside him; she should've just stayed hidden. But that wouldn't have been right. Sometimes, it was better to attack an unstoppable foe, even if you knew it was futile; and surely, she knew she stood no chance alone.

    Nord grit his teeth, looking over the Islebreaker. He had to admit, it was an impressive piece of tech. Rivers wouldn't be able to finish this thing off alone, he had to provide them back-up. But he couldn't just punch the thing, he was a swordsman, and this thing was armored from head to tentacle. What was he supposed to cut?

    ... Actually, come to think of it...

    His eyes fixed onto the creature's face.

    Not every bit of it was armored.

    In fact, there was one place that, by necessity, had to be unarmored. With the creature so cl-

    "One tap, Dragon! Just a flick of a tentacle sent her that far! How can you deny the beauty of that?!"

    The last of Nord's patience snapped.

    "By the Legion, do you ever SHUT UP?!" Nord yelled and charged at the tentacle again, slashing in a mad frenzy. His blades weren't doing anything to the soulsteel, so instead he struck for the exposed bits of the armor. He saw the dragons in his anima striking with him, and he tried to follow their path. There were thinner parts of the armor, even some gaps; such flexible tentacles would need even more such places than plate or Gunzosha armor.

    "I'VE MET POLITICIANS AND SINGERS LESS IN LOVE WITH THE SOUND OF THEIR OWN VOICE!! WE'D ALL BE DEAD TWELVE TIMES OVER IF YOU FOCUSED ON SOMETHING OTHER THAN TRYING TO SOUND COOL!!! MAYBE YOU'D DO SOMETHING WORTH REMEMBERING IF YOU SPENT LESS TIME TALKING ABOUT HOW MEMORABLE YOU THINK YOU ARE!!!!"

    Nord was screaming like a madman at this point, slicing all along the monster's armor as he ran for his target. The sheer unadulterated rage running through his every limb felt like molten metal in his veins.

    "NO WONDER YOUR INCOMPETENT ASS WAS PUT ON SOME BACKWATER ISLAND OUT AT SEA! THEY PROBABLY GAVE YOU THIS JOB JUST SO THE DEATHKNIGHTS WOULDN'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO YOUR 800TH SPEECH ABOUT HOW GREAT YOU AREN'T! AND I DON'T BLAME THEM!!!!! I'VE KNOWN YOU EXISTED FOR MAYBE AN AFTERNOON AND YOUR ARROGANT IDIOCY IS WORSE THAN ANY OF YOUR ATTACKS EVEN WITH THAT DAMN SQUID THING!!!"

    Nord ran along the tentacle that had been used to seize him, a massive track the size of a tree trunk.

    "JUST!"

    Another slice, orichalchum ringing against soulsteel.

    "****ING!"

    Another cut, this one between the armored plates.

    "STOP!"

    He leapt right for the one area on the beast that wasn't armored; the one part that had to be exposed: the eyes.

    "TALKING!!!"

    He stabbed both blades into the pupil, then wrenched them both outwards, cutting the eye open lengthwise.

    Spoiler: Action
    Show
    Using my movement to get within range of the Islebreaker if needed, but it just tried to grab me so I doubt it. Using Excellent Strike with this Withering Attack. Reroll 1s until 1s fail to appear and add 1autosux to the attack. Spend remaining motes on melee excellency Plus a stunt.

    Come on, daddy needs to overcome some serious soak!

    Spoiler: Attack
    Show
    Dex(3)+Melee(5)+WeaponAcc(5)+Specialty(1)+Stunt(2) +Excellency(6)
    Attack: (22d10)[5][7][3][10][8][4][6][4][6][3][3][8][1][1][9][1][8][3][8][4][1][7](110) +1autosux (13 to hit)
    Damage: (14d10)[9][1][2][3][1][3][9][10][3][3][6][6][3][4](63)

    Rerolls (left to right): (15d10)[9][9][7][5][1][9][3][1][10][1][1][8][4][9][1](78)
    Last edited by HalfTangible; 2020-07-09 at 06:13 PM.
    Hate me if you want. But that's your issue to fix, not mine.

    Primal ego vos, estis ex nihilo.

    When Gods Go To War comes out March 8th

    Discord: HalfTangible

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  24. - Top - End - #174
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    MonkGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Surprised but pleased at her sudden reinforcements, the Dancer's fire burns brighter than ever. "Yes, good spirits, for your moon and for the Mask's Ruin!" The giant blade descends towards her, but the Dancer will not be felled by so clumsy a blow. Artifact it may be, perhaps possessing magics both old and terrible perhaps, but against the brilliance of a dragon in her element, it's wielder is found sorely wanting. The Dancer's borrowed weapon darts upward, enwreathed in a column of sparks and propelled by a torrent of hot vapor. It clashes with the mighty sword, exactly at the point where the weapon's momentum masters its wielder's swing, and sends it spinning away to land heavily in the burning floorboards. The Dancer's black eyes, burning with the will to live, meet those cold stars and issue a challenge. "Show me how you extinguish the flame of life, worm! I'll need inspiration for your funerary dance."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Spending 4m on Become the Hammer to raise Dancer's parry to 7, plus any stunt-bonuses.
    Sorry for making things complicated!
    -Me

  25. - Top - End - #175
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The eye closes as Nord's blades come down. The sensation of drawing his swords across the monster's skin is faintly sickening to the Lookshyan - even the thin layer of flesh covering the eye is leathery and tough. Still, his swords bite all the same and he can see the line they drew for just a second, before the monstrous pupil opens once again, looking the raging Solar right in the eyes.

    "If I'm such a failure, Karal, what does that make you? Where's the Seventh Legion backing you up, the Gunzosha, the Sky Fleet?" The monster snorts, vents upon its core expelling great plumes of steam. "I have the trust of the Mask himself. Whereas your backwater band of barbarians cast you aside rather than accept you. Your words have all the bite of your blades, Sun-chosen."

    Spoiler
    Show
    1i damage dealt, so Nord is up 2i. Passing to Marrow

  26. - Top - End - #176
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    pfm1995's Avatar

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    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Marrow arcs like an arrow through the sky, the wind plastering his hair to his head as the skyship grows with astounding speed. Below him he hears shouts and invocations muffled by the rush of air, but his eyes never waver from the ship ahead. He comes into line with its guns, tightening his grip on the windblade in full expectation of being blown out of the sky, and then... nothing. The ship has stopped firing. As he watches, a plume of flame rises from the far side of the ship and he hears the distant clash of blades.

    Grimacing, he feeds a little more essence into his ride in the hopes of eking out even a fraction more speed. If that ship goes down his whole plan is in ruins.

    ...

    He comes over the bow like a swooping hawk, not bothering to slow before diving off the windblade which, bereft of its rider, careens through a group of Thornguard before embedding itself with a loud thunk in a wall. Marrow comes up out of a roll in the midsts of a swarm of ghosts and is already aiming Quiet when he realizes... they're not attacking him. In fact, they seem to be attacking the Thornguard. Inside what looks like some officers quarters he can see flashes of the Dragonblooded woman from earlier dueling someone, but she's banished from his mind in an instant - she looks like she can take care of herself, and there's an opportunity. Drawing himself up to his full height, Marrow lets a bit of his grief and rage leak into his voice as he gathers air and aura into his voice and shouts "ENOUGH!". The command echoes like thunder, hours and hours spent fighting the surf to be heard paying off, and the pulse of Wood-aura that accompanies it he has to hope is enough to reach the spirits in their frenzied state. Either way, he can't let them question him.

    "!"
    he orders, trying desperately to remember any nautical terms he may have overheard at the docks. "You!" He points at a ghost that seems dressed in the tattered rags of the Realm's merchant navy. "Come with me! We're turning this ship about."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Aight, so! Marrow is attempting to Command the ghosts to help him seize the steering parts of the airship - he could care less about the cannons, and hopefully that concentrates the ghosts a bit. This might be an attack? Either way, Marrow's dice pool doesn't change.

    Full excellency (5m, +5 dice and reroll sixes until they cease to appear), and he'll pop Blazing Courageous Swordsman's Inspiration (2m, add one non-charm die per 10 rolled). I think this bumps Marrow up to Burning, after committing to the Windblade.
    Spoiler: Roll
    Show
    Command - (15d10)[8][6][7][4][4][1][9][7][4][5][10][9][9][1][3](87)
    Rerolls - (10d10)[7][4][5][6][2][10][3][8][7][3](55)
    Courageous Swordsman Bonus Dice - (5d10)[8][8][6][3][8](33)

  27. - Top - End - #177
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

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    Aug 2013

    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    The ghosts do not all head Marrow's words, most seemingly too focused on their task of devastation, but five the young Dragon had singled out as likely helpers are more receptive: silently falling in behind him and following towards the bridge of the ship. Two lingering Thornguard raise their blades as his little boarding party burst through the door, but a jab from Quiet lays one low and a map table to the back of the head has the other out cold in a second. The Realm officer shares a grin with Marrow at that, as the little group file into the bridge. The ghosts take their positions swiftly, the civilian crew bolting for the door leaving Marrow at the helm with the battlefield set out before him on the other side of a pane of glass.

    It worked. The ship is his. At least until the battle in the gundeck is done with.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    19: Whisper
    13: Rivers
    7: Dancer,
    6: Vendetta Guardsmen, Thorn Captain Madrigora
    3: Nord
    1: Islebreaker + Lacroix
    0: Marrow

    -4: Granny

    I'm not sure where you're going with this, PFM, but I look forward to finding out.
    Last edited by Inspector Valin; 2020-07-12 at 03:50 AM.

  28. - Top - End - #178
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    Eurus's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Still covered in dust from the collapsing stones, Granny settles back down on the bench in front of the organ and begins to play once more. She spins silvery essence into her limbs, loosening and quickening them so that her fingers can keep up with her thoughts. Pushed beyond her limits, she plays fiercely, no room left in her head for other thoughts. Improvising a sequence that follows the Engine's esoteric rules is more math than art at times, but it comes out surprisingly harmonious anyway. She strikes one last howling chord, and light bursts from the sky.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Attacking the Islebreaker with the storm hammer. Using a full Wits excellency, and stunting to add Dexterity to the cap. 10 peripheral motes. Anima rises to Burning.

    Wits (5) + Lore (3) + Stunt (2) + Accuracy (3) + Excellency (10), +1 success from willpower.
    (23d10)[8][7][2][8][9][7][5][4][1][2][4][5][10][5][8][2][6][6][9][3][9][2][1](123) +1 success

    11/16 Personal
    20/38 Peripheral
    2/5 Willpower
    Avatar by araveugnitsuga.

  29. - Top - End - #179
    Titan in the Playground
     
    The_Snark's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2006

    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    Below the waves, everything is muted. The sound of clashing steel and battle-cries, the eerie melody of the storm hammer, the roar of the cannons above... all these fade into the rushing of the currents. Only the Islebreaker's thrashing remains audible, felt as much as heard as its tentacles furiously churn the sea around it. With the water as choppy as it is, Whisper can't see above the surface very well, giving her only a split second to react when one of the monster's limbs comes crashing down nearby. She has to dive deeper than she expected to keep from being hit.

    And then... she finds herself beneath the monster. Two of its arms fan out behind it, undulating to keep it afloat and in place, but the bulk of its attention is fixed elsewhere. Sadly, the creature has no soft, vulnerable belly to tear into - the kraken is a beast made to hunt in three dimensions - but the joints in the armor where the arms meet the body are the next best thing. The armor plating has to be flexible there, or the monster wouldn't be able to move right... and even if her jaws aren't strong enough to bite straight through at the weakest point, she can rend flesh with sheer crushing force.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Decisive attack time! Base pool is 8, +3 from aiming, and let's spend another 5m on the Dexterity Excellency, because now seems like a bad time to miss.
    Spoiler: Roll
    Show
    (18d10)[10][4][9][1][10][8][7][2][6][8][2][9][10][2][7][9][5][6](115)
    Damage: (19d10)[10][4][4][8][5][9][1][9][4][8][9][4][2][9][7][1][9][7][9](119)
    Avatar by GryffonDurime. Thanks!

  30. - Top - End - #180
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    HalflingWizardGirl

    Join Date
    Aug 2013

    Default Re: Exalted 3e - Welcome to Thorns (IC)

    As the battle for the skyship above is heating up, attacks continue to rain down apace upon the metal behemoth towering above the scene. With the sound of desperate chords, sparks of lighting continues to roll across the Islebreaker's armored plates, crackling against the ocean spray. Before Lacroix can react to the siege weapon's attack however, Whisper makes her play from below - lunging right at the creature's flesh at that crucial point of the joint. Her fangs go deep - reaching through the flesh and past the plate, starting to penetrate the slick worked muscle that makes up the monstrosity's core. Whisper can feel bile and darkened ichor oozing from the thing's corrupted veins, pouring out into the water behind her. She can feel the creature shudder and shake in pain as she tears towards its foul heart.

    "AAARRGH! Away with you!" A second tendril pushes down into the water, Whisper just managing to shift away before the gargantuan limb connects with her. Lacroix is too late, in more ways than one. For the first time, the Exalted warriors above her can hear the pain and fear in Lacroix's voice.

    This thing is indeed not invulnerable. Its wounds matter. It can be felled. It can be beaten.

    Spoiler
    Show
    8 damage for the croc! Those are some fangs. 15 total damage dealt to the Islebreaker. Lacroix is at -1, and right on the brink of -2. Seriously, one more damage will push him there.

    13: Rivers
    7: Dancer,
    6: Vendetta Guardsmen, Thorn Captain Madrigora
    3: Nord, Whisper
    1: Islebreaker + Lacroix
    0: Marrow
    -1: Granny
    Last edited by Inspector Valin; 2020-07-14 at 05:38 PM.

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