Exaltations Anonymous Houserules - Solar Hero Style
Expect this to be somewhere between the Chung version of Solar Hero Style and the Core version.
Style
The Solar Hero Style (known as Fist of the Daystar Style among the Fivescore Fellowship) is a Celestial Martial Arts Style. It considers all brawling aids (fighting gauntlets, iron boots, cestus, khatar, spiked harness, any other weapons that function on the same principles as punch, kick and clinch) and improvised weapons to be form weapons. It is fully compatible with armour, but not compatible with inhuman body patterns, such as a tyrant lizard's shape. It may not be used with inhuman natural weapons, such as a mutation providing razor-tipped tentacles.
The style is considered a tree of native Solar Charms when used by Solar Exalted. All repurchases and expansions are native Solar Charms, and are inaccessible to characters learning this style as a Celestial Martial Art. They are not required in order to complete the style.
New Keyword: Hero. Hero effects only function for the Exalt type for which these Charms are considered native. Learning a Hero Charm as the appropriate Exalt type's Charms instead of Celestial Martial Arts with the Eclipse/Moonshadow/Fiend anima power also unlocks their use.
Charms
Fists of Iron Technique
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1; Type: Reflexive (Step 1)
Keywords: Combo-OK, Hero
Duration: Indefinite
Prerequisites: None
The stylists unarmed Martial Arts attacks may inflict Lethal or Bashing damage as the character chooses, and count as perfect quality weapons if that status would be beneficial. They gain the bonus that perfect weapons would gain, chosen when the charm is purchased (this can be changed by spending 1 XP). The character may parry and deal lethal damage with their natural weapons.
When the form charm is active, their natural weapons gain +Essence to damage.
Hero: While the form charms is active, their natural weapons may gain status as orihalcum weapons if such would be beneficial and the associated Magical Material weapon bonus.
While the orihalcum status is active, this charm gains the Obvious tag as brilliantly glowing swirls and elaborate runes of golden essence form on their natural weapons, nearly completely covering their hands and feet and fading towards their arms and legs. This is roughly as noticeable as a 4-7 mote anima banner though slightly less identifiable. The stylist may choose whether or not to activate this status when taking the form or upon starting this charm.
Sledgehammer Fist Punch
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious
Duration: Instant
Prerequisites: Fists of Iron Technique
The pugilist's anima flares, and she strikes like the judgement of Heaven. This technique is also known as the Pillar-Breaking Blow. This Charm supplements an unarmed Martial Arts attack. If this attack strikes, it deals double base damage, double raw damage against inanimate objects.
Dragon Coil Technique
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 1)
Keywords: Combo-OK, Hero
Duration: Action
Prerequisites: Fists of Iron Technique
The clinch of the Lawgivers is inexorable. The pugilist may, if she chooses, crush the life from the strongest opponent. This Charm adds half the pugilist's Essence in bonus successes to the dice pools to inflict, maintain and control a clinch, as well as adding her Essence to the raw damage of clinch crush attacks and her Strength + Athletics total for dragging a clinched opponent.
Hero: While this Charm is active, the Solar may clinch with one hand (or leg if they can use it similarly), and may parry and dodge freely while in a clinch as long as they have at least one hand (or leg as above) free.
Repurchase: The Solar may willingly end Dragon Coil Technique to automatically break free of clinches. This effect may also be used in order to automatically escape from any form of physical restraint that resembles a clinch, such as being tied up with rope or bound in shackles, destroying non-magical restraints in the process. If this Charm is contested by another effect, the Solar adds her Essence in bonus successes to the roll-off.
Solar Hero Form
Cost: 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Simple (Speed 6, DV -1)
Keywords: Form-type, Obvious, Hero
Duration: Scene
Prerequisites: Sledgehammer Fist Punch, Dragon Coil Technique
The pugilist suffuses her body with the Essence of the Sun. She becomes a paragon of strength and skill, radiant with the power of a legendary hero returned. There is nothing formal to this fighting style, but there is an unstoppable and unchallengeable grace to it. This is a honest battle art, for champions, gladiators and heroes. It was forged in the dawning of the world so that the Solar Exalted could face the greatest monsters with nothing save their hands and skill and be undaunted by them. The pugilist may reflexively spend 1 mote in Step 7 to count bonus successes on her unarmed Martial Arts attack rolls twice for the purposes of damage.
Hero: To a Solar Exalt, this Charm is Reflexive (Step 1) and has the Combo-OK Keyword. While not a dice action, it is counts as Speed 6, DV -1 when used, modifying the speed of your last action as necessary.
Repurchase: At Essence 5, this Charm is exempt from the limit regarding the number of Form-type Charms a character can have active at any given time. At Essence 6, activating this Charm allows him to raise any other Martial Arts Form-type Charm he knows reflexively as part of the activation. Forms raised in this manner must still be paid for normally.
Heaven Thunder Hammer
Cost: None; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Permanent
Keywords:
Duration: Permanent
Prerequisites: Solar Hero Form
The fury of the Lawgivers scatters their enemies like leaves before a storm. This Charm improves Sledgehammer Fist Punch. Whenever an attack enhanced by Sledgehammer Fist Punch hits, the pugilist may blast her target away from her horizontally, one yard for each point of raw damage, halved if the pugilist chooses to launch her opponent vertically. Targets that strike hard objects take one die of damage for each yard they would otherwise have travelled. Unlike falling damage, a victim may not escape harm by arresting their momentum with a Wits + Athletics roll.
Crashing Wave Throw
Cost: None; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 3; Type: Permanent
Keywords:
Duration: Permanent
Prerequisites: Solar Hero Form
The effective application of strength casts aside small nuisances like leaves. This Charm improves Dragon Coil Technique. Whenever the pugilist ends a clinch enhanced by Dragon Coil Technique by throwing her opponent, she may reflexively pay 3 motes to hurl her opponent an additional (Martial Arts x5) yards upward or (Martial Arts x10) yards horizontally. Characters take damage as with Heaven Thunder Hammer. Such use confers the Obvious tag to Dragon Coil Technique.
Ox-Stunning Blow
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 2; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)
Keywords: Combo-OK, Crippling, Hero
Duration: Instant
Prerequisites: Solar Hero Form
The Essence-driven fists of the Solar Exalted can lay even legends low. This Charm produces a single unarmed Martial Arts attack. If this attack hits, calculate a virtual damage pool, ignoring the target's non-magical (Stamina, mortal armour, etc) soak. Every success on the damage roll imposes a -1 internal penalty to the target for their next three actions. The target takes no actual damage from this attack. Charms that reduce or negate damage interact normally with this Charm.
Hero: Solar Exalted using this Charm impose a penalty to their target for a number of actions equal to three or their Martial Arts rating, whichever is better.
Hammer on Iron Technique
Cost: 5m 1w; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 2; Type: Extra Action
Keywords: Combo-OK, Hero
Duration: Instant
Prerequisites: Solar Hero Form
The Lawgivers' arts of battle bring unrelenting punishment to their enemies. This Charm is a magical flurry. The pugilist makes a number of unarmed Martial Arts attacks equal to her Essence + 1, ignoring Rate and suffering a DV penalty equal to the highest penalty for any one attack. She must make all of her attacks against the same target.
Hero: A Solar Exalt may use her Dexterity + 1 to determine the effects of this Charm, and need not direct all her attacks against the same target.
Shockwave Technique
Cost: 7m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple (Speed 5, DV -1)
Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious, Hero
Duration: Instant
Prerequisites: Heaven Thunder Hammer, Crashing Wave Throw, Ox-Stunning Blow, Hammer on Iron Technique
The pugilist burns with Essence and strikes, her blow sending shockwaves through the world. This Charm produces a single unarmed Martial Arts attack. That attack is Unblockable, and is applied to every valid target except the pugilist herself within Essence yards in addition to her initial target. As this is a single attack that strikes multiple targets, Charms and other effects modifying the attack are activated and paid for only once. If used in mass combat, this Charm negates the DV bonus for the unit's Magnitude and does double raw damage to a unit in close formation. In addition, if Heaven Thunder Hammer is used, the unit's rout check has its difficulty increased by half the pugilist's Essence.
Hero: Solar Exalted pay 5m to use this Charm, and may choose to spare any targets they do not wish harmed or include themselves as a target if they wish for an additional cost of 2m. They may use their Martial Arts to determine the Charm's numerical effects. The greater control afforded by the Solar Exaltation allows the Solar to manifest this Charm with any thematics appropriate to their iconic anima banner.
Repurchase: At Essence 5, the Solar may add 1w to the cost of the Charm in order to make it Undodgeable as well as Unblockable, as well as doubling the blast radius. This also causes the Charm to ignore all mass combat defensive bonuses and do double raw damage to any mass combat unit, triple to units in close formation. With a second repurchase at Essence 6, the Solar may double the mote cost of the Charm in addition to the previous +1w in order to expand the radius by a factor of ten, applied after the previous doubling. Use of this upgraded effect in mass combat is considered to be a mass destruction event, outside the scope of the mass combat system to handle. If a unit is subjected to this explosion, any entities not capable of independently resisting the shockwave are simply destroyed.
Solar Hero Style: Expansions
These Charms are native Solar Charms, and are not part of the Solar Hero Style Celestial Martial Art. Other extensions may or may not exist at my discretion.
Eye-for-an-Eye Response
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 9)
Keywords: Combo-OK, Counterattack
Duration: Instant
Prerequisites: Solar Hero Form
This is the lesson of retaliation: when struck, strike back with greater force. Against the vengeance of the Solar Exalted, the fiercest assaults break and falter. This Charm grants the Solar an unarmed Martial Arts counterattack in Step 9 against any perceived attack made against them.
Repurchase: At Essence 3, whenever Eye-for-an-Eye Response is invoked in response to a flurry, every invocation past the first has its mote cost set to zero.
