Itamae Style: iai, Calm Fortress Form. "The roar of a dragon."

1
The power to create a protective barrier.
Used by Machida Yoshiyuki, Created by KaijuTV.
(The target and source of this Effect are obvious to bystanders.You must actively and obviously be using Machida's Katana.)

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 Machida's Katana 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.

  • If you use this Effect as a Reaction to dodge, you still need to make a roll to dodge. The Effect will occur regardless of the Outcome of this roll, but if you fail you will be hit by the relevant attack prior to the Effect occurring.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Community Power Gifts

You gain the following benefits at all times.

Your Intellect rating is increased by 1. You may Exert your Mind to automatically gain an Outcome of 5 on any roll that uses Intellect (Cannot be used on combat rolls or Power activations).

  • Attribute bonuses from multiple sources do not stack. Instead the highest bonus is used.

This exertion of power causes Liev to become extremely tired and leaves her unable to move shortly after using it.

Exert your Mind (unless you win a coin flip) and spend a minute. Select a Battle Scar on yourself to treat.

The treated Battle Scar will heal immediately.

Healing a Battle Scar in this way leaves behind the area becomes covered/made of water. on the target which cannot be healed.

After you finish activating this Effect, you cannot move quicker than a walk (max 15 feet per Round) for one minute and suffer a -1 dice penalty for an hour. Exhaustion’s penalty and duration stacks with multiple activations.

  • Exhaustion penalties and duration stack. If you activate this Effect or another Effect with Exhaustion, your penalty will worsen, and the duration is increased by one hour.

You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in unarmed combat.

+2 dice to rolls for Attacking, Defending, and Clashing without a weapon. Unarmed attacks do +2 Weapon Damage (instead of -1). The target's Armor is fully effective against this damage.

You also gain the following effects:

  • Meat Shield: If you have successfully grappled a target, you may use a Reaction to redirect any incoming attack to them instead of you.
  • Transcendence: You may Exert your Mind to Defend against any number of incoming Attacks this Round as a Free Action. While active, you can only Defend against attacks directed at yourself. When Defending against a mob using the Mob Combat rules, their Attack does not gain the normal Outcome bonus.

  • Unlike the Ability Brawl, this Effect does not affect small weapons such as knives.

You gain the following benefits at all times.

You have 4 Armor, which reduces incoming Damage. Armor from multiple sources does not stack. This Armor cannot be circumvented with Called Shots.

You may spend an Action or Reaction and Exert your Mind to double your Armor rating for one Round.

When you take Damage from a source which is within 5 feet, deal back as much Damage as your Armor prevented.

Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Nightmares of Fleeting Light.

  • This Effect’s Armor rating cannot be increased by any other Effects.
  • When shredded, it returns to full potency in one hour.

Exert your Mind and Spend an Action. Select a Living target within 20 feet. Roll Intellect + Occult at Difficulty 6. The target may roll Body, -2 dice at Difficulty 7, as a Free Action to resist.

If you succeed, the target receives a new Battle Scar of your choosing, limited by the contested Outcome:

  1. A Minor Battle Scar E.g. an aesthetic-only body modification (a disfigured face, a pig's tail), impacted hand or foot, or vocal changes that complicate communication
  2. A Major Battle Scar E.g. a disabled/removed hand or foot, an inability to speak, an impacted major sense, removal of a minor sense, impacted movement.
  3. A Severe Battle Scar E.g. a disabled/removed arm or leg, deafness, aesthetic changes that are nearly impossible to conceal.
  4. An Extreme Battle Scar E.g. removal/disabling both hands or both legs, blindness, a full-body deformation that leaves the target humanoid but makes it difficult to use clothes, vehicles, and equipment designed for humans.
Refer to the stock Battle Scars on the Character Sheet for specific systems.

When you activate this Effect, instead of occurring immediately, you may choose to delay its effects until the target takes a particular Action. For example: "when they fire a gun" or "when they swim in deep water."

Possession of this Power grants the following Battle Scar: Witchy Appearance. You have a long, warty nose and chin, wrinkled skin, and a hunch back. Social rolls are at +2 Difficulty, and your free movement is reduced by 10 feet.

Your alteration "heals" over the course of the next month, after which it is fully cured.

Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Compulsion for payback. You must roll Self-Control to avoid using this Gift on anyone who wrongs you in a major way.

  • A given target can have a maximum of one Suspended Effect on them at a time. The selected triggering Action cannot be used to reveal information about the target (e.g. no "activate when they are a vampire"). It must be an Action they take, not a thought or something that happens to them.
  • Remember: A Contractor’s Body rating is reduced by 1 for each Battle Scar after their fourth.
  • You may opt to inflict a Battle Scar that is less severe than what your Outcome allows.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Stock Power Gifts

Exert your Mind (unless you win a coin flip) and spend 1 minute. This Effect cannot be used unless you drink blood directly from a human until it injures them. Choose a specific Injury on yourself that has not yet been treated with this Effect and roll Brawn + Occult at Difficulty 6.

If you succeed, the Injury is reduced in Severity by your Outcome. If you reduce its Severity to 0, the Injury is fully healed. Otherwise, it is partially healed and will heal the rest of the way at its natural rate.

This counts as a successful Makeshift Stabilization if the Injury was not already Stabilized; any Battle Scars caused by the Injury will remain.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation or for its duration will almost certainly be disturbed to see you drink blood directly from the vein.

  • When narrating disturbing content, be cognizant of your group's tone and accommodating to those who would like to "fast forward" through the description.
  • Unstabilized wounds do not degenerate during treatment.

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).

  • Attribute bonuses from multiple sources do not stack. Instead the highest bonus is used.

Spend an Action. Select a door, lock, or locked target within arm's reach. Cannot be used on Alien technology. This Effect cannot be used unless the targeted lock or door is being used to restrain or imprison you.

You may lock, unlock, and/or open your target.

  • Any door or restraint that is fastened or shut with a mechanism may be considered locked, at the GM's discretion. Can be used on control panels or other electronic locks, but not computer security systems.
  • If you operate a locking mechanism through this Effect which has some other secondary effect (such as the ignition on a car causing the car to start) you may cause that effect as well.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. All Sapient, Living targets within 50 feet who can perceive you through sight are affected. Roll Charisma + Performance at Difficulty 6. All affected targets may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.

If you succeed, the targets will keep their full attention focused on you for contested Outcome in Rounds. They will automatically fail any rolls related to noticing anything other than you. If they cannot perceive you through sight for three Rounds, the Effect is broken. The Effect ends early if the target is Injured or violence occurs nearby.

This does not affect the target’s opinion of you or their mood, and they may take any Actions while affected (including attacking), as long as that action centers on you. Fascinated targets cannot Concentrate.

  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

This Effect activates whenever you receive a Severity 2 or higher Injury from an attack. It does not require an Action or Exertion. Select a Living target within 45 feet. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. Affected targets can resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.

If you succeed, for the next minute, your target will do things they otherwise wouldn’t have done, inspired by remorse for hurting such a pure soul. They will not necessarily display their emotions in an obvious way.

Actions they take will be in keeping with their character and the way they tend to deal with strong emotions. They will be unlikely to change their mind about any actions taken or decisions made until after the Effect ends.

  • When triggered, the Effect activation resolves immediately after the triggering Action. It is not Reaction speed.
  • Common emotions and the actions they inspire
    • Anger (shouting, cruelty, denying requests, attacking)
    • Pity (stopping an attack, executing an injured target)
    • Happiness (generosity, dancing, joking, socializing)
    • Sadness (finding solitude, openly crying, demotivation)
    • Fear (running, attacking)
  • If you succeed, the target MUST take at least one Action they otherwise would not have. Hey, GM who is reading this, I'm talking to you. You have to enforce this. Remember: Gifts must feel powerful.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.