The Elemental Aura (Dragon-Blooded, pt. 2) [Exalted]

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Hi, folks. 🙂 Rose here, with the next Dragon-Blooded preview from Eric and Robert. This time, we dig into one of their unique mechanics, the Elemental Aura.

The Elemental Aura

A Dragon-Blooded can unlock the greatest heights of her power by entering into an Elemental Aura state, centering her Essence around a single element. Some Charms are powered up while the Dragon-Blooded is in their element’s Aura, while others—marked with the Aura keyword—can only be used in the Aura state.

However, this power comes at a trade-off: if the Dragon-Blooded uses Charms from another element, her Aura state ends. There are a few helpful exceptions: the Balanced keyword marks Charms that won’t disrupt your Aura, and Charms that have multiple elemental aspects won’t end it as long as one of them matches.

Currents Sweep to Sea

Cost: 4m (+1a); Mins: Brawl 3, Essence 2; Type: Simple

Keywords: Water

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite Charms: Water Dragon’s Coils

The Dragon-Blooded’s reaches through water, shaping it into a flowing torrent that can constrict foes and drag them across the battlefield. As long as there is a source of water on the battlefield, such as a small pool, a cistern, a river, or a recent rainfall, the Dragon-Blooded may use this Charm to create a grasping limb or tendril of water, rolling a grapple gambit against an enemy at short range. If she wins control of the grapple, her foe is dragged into close range with her.

In Water Aura, this Charm can be used to grapple enemies out to medium range. If there is no source of water to use, the Dragon-Blooded may expend a level of her anima instead.

Blossom Hides Thorns

Cost: 4m, 1wp, expend Wood Aura; Mins: Performance 5, Essence 3; Type: Simple

Keywords: Aura (Wood)

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite Charms: Dance of Flashing Swords

The Dragon-Blooded turns the strumming of her fingers on an erhu’s strings or the graceful steps of a dance into a facade for a deadly ambush, concluding her show with a truly breath-taking finale.

In order to use this Charm, she must be in the middle of a performance. She rolls Manipulation + Performance against the Resolve of a single target. On a successful roll, the Dragon-Blooded, her allies, and her target roll Join Battle. Either the Exalt or one of her allies has the opportunity to make an unexpected attack against the target (Exalted, p. 203). As usual, if the attacker beats the target’s Join Battle, the attack is an ambush that bypasses defense completely; if not, it is only a surprise attack, inflicting -2 Defense.

Dance of Flashing Swords can be acted reflexively together with this Charm to disguise the sneak attack as part of the performance. Its Willpower cost is waived.

Earth Bears Witness

Cost: 5m, 3i; Mins: Resistance 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive

Keywords: Aura (Earth), Decisive-only, Perilous

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite Charms: Impervious Skin of Stone

The Dragon-Blooded braces her body solidly against the ground, feeling the Earth’s Essence upholding her own. As she is struck, the force of the blow passes through her and into surrounding earth or stone-based objects. This subtracts her (Stamina/2) dice from the damage of a decisive attack, shunting it into the ground. The Storyteller may deem that this creates difficult terrain or destroys mundane objects.

If there is a large source of stone or other earth-based substance within short range of the Exalt, she instead subtracts her full (Stamina) as it bears the force of the attack for her. The force of her enemy’s blow might smash a crater in the shape of her silhouette into a fortress’s walls or blast a stone monument from its pedestal.

A second purchase of this Charm unlocks the following elemental variants.

Wood: In Wood Aura, this Charm can shift decisive damage into wooden objects or living plants. It reduces damage by the Exalt’s full (Stamina) if she shifts it into a wooden structure or tree-sized plant.

Water: In Water Aura, this Charm can shift decisive damages into any water, whether it is a pool or river, a jug of water poured out from a well, or a steady fall of rain. It reduces damage by the Exalt’s full (Stamina) if she shifts it into a nearby body of water or a large vessel, such as a cistern or a well.

Portentous Comet Deflection

Cost: 3m, 1wp (expend Fire Aura); Mins: Melee 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive

Keywords: Aura (Fire), Clash, Decisive-only

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite Charms: Flame-Born Interception, Stoking Bonfire Style

The Exalt sees with the eyes of fire, realizing the perfect path of a strike the moment before she suffers an attack. The Dragon-Blooded may reflexively use her combat action for the round to clash with a decisive attack. She cannot clash if she has already used her combat action this round.

The Dragon-Blooded may expend her Aura state to clash without counting as her attack for the round.

Mela’s Hungry Jaws

Cost: 3m, 1wp; Mins: Stealth 5, Essence 4; Type: Simple

Keywords: Aura (Air)

Duration: One scene

Prerequisites: Dragon Shroud Technique

The Dragon-Blooded breathes in the very air from her victim’s lungs, strangling them without ever laying a hand on them or being seen. This Charm can only be used while in concealment, against an enemy within medium range of the Dragon-Blooded who is unaware of her. She steals his breath, causing him to begin to asphyxiate (Exalted, p. 232). Trivial opponents never receive a chance to hold their breath, even outside of combat.

The Terrestrial cannot move while using this Charm to siphon her foe’s breath, but he must disengage to move away from her, regardless of the distance between them. A victim can only break free of Mela’s Hungry Jaws if he successfully finds the Dragon-Blooded with a (Perception + Awareness) roll or succeeds in withdrawing to extreme range. His allies can attempt to free him by attacking the Dragon-Blooded once they have found her. Even if the attack roll misses, this Charm still ends.

The Dragon-Blooded may expend her Air Aura when she uses this Charm in order to affect every hostile character within medium range of her who is unaware of her presence.