Weaving their blade into a fluid tapestry of defense. The ritual commences with a swift, controlled draw of the katana from its scabbard, mirroring the precision of an Itamae's knife as it slices through ingredients. The blade emerges like a moonlit reflection on tranquil waters, its obsidian surface shimmering with unspoken mastery. With the katana held poised and ready, Machida executes a seamless arc—his movements embodying the grace of an iaido master. The strike, a controlled yet devastating motion, finds its target with an elegance reminiscent of a perfectly crafted sushi roll. The blade's whisper cuts through the air, each movement speaking to years of honed technique. As the blade moves through the air, Machida's focus shifts from offense to the intricate art of defense. With a practiced maneuver, the blade is angled slightly downward, allowing any detriments—be it blood or disruption—to fall away like excess ingredients discarded from a dish.
The crescendo arrives as Machida deftly returns the blade to its ebony sheath, embodying the essence of iaido's swift resheathing—an art that transcends time and now encompasses defense. As the blade clicks home, a transformation transpires. Machida channels the katana's innate energy, erecting an imperceptible barrier borne from the same tranquility that imbues his culinary creations. This newfound barrier mirrors the unspoken prowess of a chef safeguarding the essence of a dish. It seamlessly repels oncoming assaults, combining Machida's finesse with the blades potency. The iaido-inspired stance encapsulates the harmony of defense and artistry, unveiling an embodiment of tranquility that stands as a testament to the dual mastery of blade and kitchen.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action or Reaction. Select a Animate target within arm's reach. You must actively and obviously use Any Sword to activate this Effect. Roll Dexterity + Melee at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, you create a barrier around your target, which absorbs the next Outcome + 2 Damage. Half the damage absorbed is reflected back at the attacker, which they can Defend against as normal. The Damage reduction from the barrier is applied before Armor. You may only have 1 active barrier at a time.
You must maintain Concentration while using this Effect. The barrier will fall if you are interrupted, or if it absorbs the full amount of Damage. When a barrier falls, you cannot use this Effect again for a minimum of 2 Rounds.
A ghastly silhouette perches atop the treeline, it see's a human alone and unarmed in the middle of a shadowed clearing. The figure readies itself, then pounced. Just as quickly as it leaped the human turned into a blur then a sudden collision met its jawline shattering it, tumbling mid-air hitting hard on the dirt ground the creature fumbles trying to stand. Suddenly, realising the tingling of a warm sensation flowing down it's neck the creature grasp it's throat, moving it's hand to meet it's eyes the creature saw a dark fluid clinging to its hand. Afterwards, darkness.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
Your Dexterity rating is increased by 1. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Dexterity (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).
Dennis, having adapted to the magical girl powers enough, now immediately spreads dove's wings upon transformation, allowing him to fly or glide around.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are transformed.
As long as you are conscious, you are immune to falling Damage and may hover in place mid-air. Additionally, you may glide as you fall, traveling 35 feet horizontally for every 10 feet you fall. While gliding, you fall at a minimum speed of 10 feet per Round.
You may ascend into the air and fly using your Dove Wings. You require 10 feet of clear space on all sides to fly. You may add 50 feet to Movement you take while flying. If you take more than a Severity 4 Injury to your Dove Wings via a called shot or Battle Scar, you can only glide until they are healed.
You are subject to the following effects while gliding or flying:
tattoos of archerfish and rippling water cover his entire body, swimming around aimlessly.
gull found an ancient-looking stick-and-poke tattoo kit suspended in a bubble during a trip to the beach as a teenager, and decided that he might as well use it, since it was free and cool-looking and couldn't possibly have any unforeseen magical consequences. as it turns out, it did, in fact, have consequences, and now he looks like an aquarium. on the plus side, he spits like a pressure-washer.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You are permanently and visibly transformed: animated tattoos of fish and rippling water. You are considered to be a Sapient, Living being when targeted. Your Charisma is increased by 1.
You may make a +2 Weapon Damage water-spitting attack without additional equipment.
Keys wields curses and insults with such verocity to make anybody within hearing range recoil. Sometimes the end result is just nonsense though.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Location no further than 40 feet from you and in your line of sight. Roll a single d10, Difficulty 4. If you fail or botch, the Effect fails and you cannot activate it again for an hour. The area within 25 feet of the chosen Location immediately and obviously becomes imminently dangerous. Roll Charisma + Performance at Difficulty 6. Targets inside the radius may attempt an appropriate Reaction at GM’s discretion. Finding a physical barrier to use as cover will cut total Damage taken in half (applies after Reaction roll but before Armor).
If the Outcome is positive, your blast hits everything within 25 feet of the chosen Location with Damage equal to your Outcome + 4.
No change to appearance
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You are permanently and visibly transformed: ________. You are considered to be a Sapient, Living being when targeted..
You are immune to damage from cold. If cold is a substantial component of other damage you would take (e.g. falling from a great distance into a vat of liquid nitrogen), that damage is reduced by 2 (in addition to Armor)
No single organ in your body is critical for life. Called Shots do no additional Damage to you. You may perceive the world through separated body parts, take Actions with them, and reattach them by spending an Action and Exerting your Mind.
You are immune to damage from heat and flames. If heat is a substantial component of other damage you would take (e.g. slashed with a flaming sword), that damage is reduced by 2 (in addition to Armor)
Your appendages have 30 feet of reach.
You can squeeze through any cracks and passageways a cat would be able to.
Any Animate being that consumes or is injected with your bodily fluids receives a Severity-1 Injury. Every Round, they must roll Body Difficulty 9. If they fail, the Injury worsens by 1 Severity. If they succeed, the Injury stops worsening.
You cannot be mistaken for a normal human. You cannot always use standard human clothes, equipment, vehicles, and facilities, and when you can, you suffer an increased Difficulty.
You cannot speak any coherent verbal language and must resort to other means of communication.
This is a doctor who exists on the front lines. They're most at home working under stressful conditions when the stakes couldn't be higher.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
All Stabilizations you attempt are considered Proper Stabilizations.
You also gain the following effects:
The beastmaster can speak to and understand any animal.
You gain the following benefits at all times.
You may understand and communicate to terrestrial animal as if you are fluent in a relevant language.
The magician reaches into their hat and focuses. Inside, light wells and flows like a viscous liquid. Then, they withdraws the item of their choosing.
Exert your Mind and spend 1 minute. You must actively and obviously use a top hat to activate this Effect.
Choose an Object which could fit inside a regular backpack (up to 27 liters). It must be Non-Alien and generic. You cannot create explosives. You may create firearms.
Roll Perception + Occult to fabricate your chosen Object. The Difficulty is assigned by the GM and depends on the specificity of your chosen Object. The created item lasts 2 hours.
The witch knows bad things happen to bad people. By bringing attention to a karmic imbalance, she can hurry it along, causing her target's bad luck to catch up with them. The target finds themselves suffering injuries due to freakishly bad luck until they cleanse themselves or perish.
Exert your Mind and spend one minute. Select a Living target within 25 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the target deserves it. Roll Charisma + Occult at Difficulty 6. Your target may resist by rolling Body at Difficulty 7.
If you succeed, the target is afflicted with a Condition that causes one of the following symptoms:
The affliction is not treatable by modern medicine. It may be diagnosed by rolling Intellect + Occult at Difficulty 6, and can be cured by bathing fully in clear running water.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is you staring at the target, speaking calmly. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
By slowing the hands of one of their watches, the time-traveler may interrupt and slow a target's movement through time. The target appears to be moving in slow motion for the duration.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Animate target within 20 feet. You must actively and obviously use a watch or clock to activate this Effect. Roll Intellect + Science at Difficulty 7.
If you succeed, the target will suffer a dice penalty equal to the Outcome for the next 2 Rounds. Dice pools may be reduced all the way down to 0 by this penalty. This breaks Concentration.
You may activate this Effect as a Reaction to contest any Action a valid target is taking, reducing their Outcome by your own. Your command has no impact beyond disrupting their Action.