D&D Next, Druids

Playtesting D&D Next and really like the idea of a swiftshifting Druid, so I wrote up a new Circle. I've got some other ideas for messing with the circles, too, but here's a start.

Druid of the Water

The Oak may stand resilient to the lightning, and the Moon stay out of its reach, but it is the water that disperses is. The water is not restricted by form, resting as a pond, flowing as a stream, or racing as the rain, the water adapts.

As an initiate of the Water, your druid focuses on adaptability and short term rapid adjustments to his situation. You lose your ability to cast dozens of spells, but tend to have the right one to use when needed. You lose the ability to transform for hours at a time, but can quickly shift between shapes. The Water initiate is most often chaotic but can have any alignment. Cantrips: You know three druid cantrips of your choice.

Spell Slots: You have at most one spell slot at each level, with the ability to refresh spell slots up to level 5 while resting. You may only refresh each spell slot over level 1 once per day.

Wild Shape: You have more Wild Shape Charges per day than other druids. However, they only last for Wis mod + Con mod turns each. Shifting out of your chosen form does not count as a spell action, even if you leave your form early, allowing you to instantly leave a form and cast a spell, or extend the duration of your form by instantly spending another Wild Shape Charge as it ends. During rests you may regain expended Wild Shape Charges. You can only regain up to your caster level in charges per day.

As this specialization relies on short term change, a Steed is out of its area of influence and as such you lose access to this spell. However, your Hound’s bite damage is increased to 1d10 + 2 piercing.

Level 1 form, Turtle: Small or Medium beast
AC 18
Speed 20
Str 14 (+2), Dex 10 (+0), Con 16 (+3)
Shell - Resistant to bludgeoning, slashing, and piercing damage
Melee attack--bite: +4 to hit (5 ft, one creature) 1d6 +1 piercing damage.

Level 3 form, Adaptive Shape: You may change your form’s appearance to that of any other animal with a similar body type. Your hound could be a great cat or an alligator. Likewise you could turn into a salamander instead of a rat, or a camel instead of a horse. This does not change your traits, just your appearance. You only have to have seen the creature once to be able to adapt to its form. Being able to turn into any species does not allow you to turn into a specific individual.

Level 5 form, Augmented Shape: By expending 2 Wild Shape Charges you may transform into an augmented version of a shape you know. This has the same benefits as a Dire Beast with the following exceptions: you may only choose increased AC or Hit. You may become one size larger, no larger than Huge, or one size smaller, no smaller than Tiny.

Level 7 form, Elemental Large Elemental
AC 15
Speed 30
Str 12 (+1), Dex 12 (+1), Con 12 (+1)
Elemental Form: You are resistant to your chosen damage type, but vulnerable to the opposite
Elemental Aura: You deal 1d6 damage* to all creatures within 5 feet of you at the end of each of your turns, and to creatures that make melee attacks against you.
Ranged attack--Elemental Blast: +5 to hit (25 ft, one creature) 1d6 +2 damage*. *See table for damage type.

The following table lists the combinations available for this shape.
Elemental Shape, Resistance and Attack Type, Vulnerability
Acid, Acid, Thunder
Rock, Thunder, Acid
Ice, Cold, Fire
Fire, Fire, Cold
Air, Lightning, Poison
Poison, Poison, Lightning
Shadow, Necrotic, Radiant
Light, Radiant, Necrotic

Level 10 form, Amalgam Shape: At the cost of one Wild Charge, while activating a Wild Shape, you may substitute one trait of your chosen form for that of another from a form you know, including your own, for the duration. You may use this to apply one of your form's traits to your natural body instead of activating another form. Attacks are not traits you can copy, though AC is. Your appearance changes to portray your choice.

Crosspost

Mark of the End to Come
Cost: -; Mins: Occult 5, Essence 4; Type: PermanentKeywords: IllusionDuration: PermanentPrerequisite Charms: God-Slaying Torment
Each death an Abyssal causes is a message to everything in Creation that it is next. This Charm allows the Shadow of the Abyss to make this message explicit to anyone who ventures on the corpse of her victim.

Upon dealing enough damage to kill her target she may activate God-Slaying Torment, and commit the motes indefinitely, to cut all her victim’s ties to fate or any other construct that enforces causality. The target’s corpse stays exactly as it was, still visible but otherwise unable to be affected. Material and immaterial creatures alike may pass through it as if it weren’t there.

In addition to searing the image of her victim into reality, the first time in a scene that anyone witnesses the corpse they are filled with the memories of his death as an unnatural Illusion that costs 2 willpower to resist. The Abyssal may include or ignore any details from the scene of his death, of which she is aware, in this image. In addition to the memory, witnesses see the corpse flash with the Abyssal’s totemic anima - marking her as his murderer. Mortals react as normal for viewing an 

Abyssal’s iconic aura (MoEP: Abyssals, 101).

Magical possessions and Celestial Exaltations are immune to the effects of this Charm and are not held in place. All effects of this Charm end when the Abyssal releases the motes committed, leaving behind a plain, if well preserved, corpse.

Abyssal/Slayer toys!

Crossposted on exalted forums

Prison Yard Bracelets ****
Even in the face of death one must never submit. This artifact, a pair of Soulsteel shackles with broken Starmetal keys rattling inside, allows an Exalt to subvert the control of others with false submission. The wielder, attuned for 6m, may reflexively connect the shattered chain between them, or release it. While connected these bracers create an Illusion that the Exalt is bound by any means she desires, from basic rope to a slave collar. In addition anyone in a position to bind the Exalt believes he has succeeded in doing so. Overcoming this natural mental influence costs 2 willpower for a scene.
This illusion does nothing to help her if she is already bound, however. As such, she may spend 3 motes to slip all current restraints. To remove the confusion of suddenly having a duplicate set of bindings, the owner of these cuffs may commit an increased cost of 5 motes to shunt all her ties to elsewhere instead. She may only have one set of bindings stored at a time, but may recall them individually if she desires, as a reflexive action. She must have the entire cost committed as long as even one remains banished.

In addition, these bracers enhance the user's martial prowess, supporting rage induced and demoralizing attacks witnessed in the most dangerous prisons in Creation or Malfeas and as such double stunt dice granted in attacks which show ultimate superiority over her victims: overhead smashes, brutally debilitating attacks and violent coup-de-gras.

While unattached these cuffs enhance fierce blows (Exalted 158), allowing the user to stack the effects up to (Essence) times. These strikes ignore the -1 external penalty and instead increase the attack's DV penalty by 1 for each stack over the character's (Strength/2). Damage from these attacks are always Lethal, unless other magic makes it Aggravated.

By attaching the chains while controlling a clinch she adds (Essence/2) successes on further rolls to maintain her hold. While benefitting from these successes she must inflict damage on every action. In the event that the Abyssal loses the roll to control her victim he remains bound to her, only capable of holding or crushing but not releasing or throwing her, unless he exceeded her successes by her Essence or more.

Dark Messiah Style Expansions do Defense

I wrote up a basic defensive suite as DMS expansions. Feel free to critique here or cross-posted on the exalted forums.

Rising Cobra Defense
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 2)Keywords: Combo-OKDuration: InstantPrerequisite Charms: Ravaging Blow
Beleaguered and defenseless a Dark Messiah turns to the attack. This Charm suppresses the Abyssal’s traditional PDV and allows her instead to strike the incoming attack directly; roll her (Dexterity + Martial Arts + Accuracy) in a contest against the attacker’s roll; failing this roll allows the attack through normally (the attacker benefits from successes over those the Abyssal rolled), otherwise the attack is successfully parried. This defensive strike may be enhanced with Charms, such as a Martial Arts Excellency, but it deals no damage or other effects aside from deflecting the incoming blow


Unquestionable Fist of Denial
Cost: -(3m); Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: PermanentKeywords: ObviousDuration: InstantPrerequisite Charms: Rising Cobra Defense
Responding to an attack a Dark Messiah does not retreat back, but presses her aggression. This Charm upgrades Rising Cobra Defense allowing it to be invoked at an increased cost of 3m; wreathing her fist in the essence of Oblivion she meets the advance directly, parrying even unblockable attacks. Oblivion does not offer its grace without recompense, however. If the Abyssal has not dealt at least one level of damage to a living target on her action this Charm adds a 2 mote surcharge, and if she hasn’t dealt any damage the surcharge is increased to 3 motes. When defending another she must always pay the full surcharge regardless of any damage she has dealt. This surcharge is a unique flaw of invulnerability. Using Rising Cobra Defense in this way makes the Charm Obvious.


Assault Engorging Bulwark
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 2)Keywords: Combo-OKDuration: One ActionPrerequisite Charms: Rising Cobra Defense
Always on the offensive, a Dark Messiah often finds herself overextended from her onslaught. This Charm helps correct her pose by drawing strength from her successful strikes. For the rest of her action, reduce all penalties to her Martial Arts based parry DV by the total extra successes on her unarmed attacks.

A repurchase at Martial Arts 5+ allows the Abyssal to activate this Charm for an extended duration of One Scene by adding 1wp to its cost. Benefits from successful attacks wear off at the end of each action per normal.


Buffeting Ghost Strike
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts , Essence ; Type: Reflexive (Step 6)Keywords: Combo-OK, CounterattackDuration: InstantPrerequisite Charms: Assault Engorging Bulwark
Even the most aggressive Abyssal may not always strike first. This Charm allows her to launch a preemptive counterattack to boost her defenses. Extra successes on this attack reduce penalties to her Martial Arts based PDV. If she has Assault Engorging Bulwark active while invoking this Charm add this attack’s extra successes directly to her PDV instead; this cannot bring her DV above normal trait maximums. While this attack is instigated and rolled in step 6 of combat resolution in order to add extra successes to her DV, the rest of the effects of the attack are continued in step 9 per normal.


Onslaught Ending Enfeeblement
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 9)Keywords: Counterattack, Combo-OK, CripplingDuration: InstantPrerequisite Charms: Foe-Blinding Jab, Rising Cobra Defense
When an opponent presses his attack an Abyssal will not suffer repeated strikes. This Charm grants her a counterattack aimed at disabling the attacking limb. This attack is automatically successful and Cripples the attacking limb for the rest of the target’s flurry, forcing him to abandon any further attacks that require it, but otherwise deals no damage or ill effects. Against attacks from outside the Abyssal's reach she may only use this Charm if she successfully parried, sending back her assailant's projectile instead of striking him directly


Shadow Strike Reversal
Cost: 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 2)Keywords: Counterattack, Combo-OKDuration: InstantPrerequisite Charms: Rising Cobra Defense
A Dark Messiah never loses track of her surroundings, and she will punish anyone who believes she has. This Charm removes the unexpected quality from an individual attack and grants the Abyssal a spectral counterattack in step 9 to punish the offender regardless of distance between them. Counterattacking is not optional, however she may choose to activate another Charm with the Counterattack keyword to replace the attack this Charm provides; in this case add (Essence) successes to her attack roll. This counterattack may use any of the Style’s form weapons, but may not be used to initiate a clinch.

Stalled

So many hanging projects; why must life continue to get in the way and me not be able to just push through it. Okay, I'll have new shit in a few days, promise.

Yeah, so I've been terrible

And haven't updated for shit. So, I'm working out all the Dragon Styles and Shadowed equivalents. I'm looking at just a few Charms for each; this way they'll stand out as thematic perks that people will want, without being giant trees required to master, which I think is a plus. Additionally, they won't be sets of combat prowess Charms, but thematic Charms that boost your native ones when you fight in a certain way. For instance, Water Dragon Style will support a wave like attack structure, moving in and out of range in order to boost the power of your attacks. Meanwhile Blood Dragon Style will support playing with your prey and giving them small wounds then backing off to watch them suffer.

If an individual decided they wanted to take both they would support each other, using Water's in-and-out movement to make stronger attacks and using the "out" time to watch their attacks damage the target over time. Likewise I'm going to change the form weapons slightly, they'll each have two in addition to unarmed, and each pair will have one that's the same. For instance both Blood and Water will have Tiger/Razor Claws, Blood will also have slashing swords/Reaver Daiklaves while Water also supports Spread-the-Water Knives/Tsunami Blades.

Back to the begininnings

When I first started writing Charms, I developed Necrotic Seamstress Style. It's relatively decent, I think, which is surprising. It was a fluke. It was my first shot at making Charms, and at putting them all in a single style. I've done a few more styles since; they haven't been nearly as good. I think I'm going to go back to that again (not that I'm going to stop writing Abyssal Charms). I've got some ideas for Blood Dragon Style, we'll see when I get it finished, and I'll try to post up works in progress and other snippets here and on twitter (depending on length).