Welcome to Aurora Sky! We are a Sword and Sorcery roleplay. Check out the area above this box if you're interested in making a character, and check out the cbox below if you have any questions! Hope to RP with you soon!
Overview
Each player character begins with 1 or 2 Aspects (the second Aspect can be chosen later). With the exception of True Mage and Forged Road, every aspect’s benefits includes a choice between a number of related leveled talents (LTs).
All leveled talents currently fall into two categories:
Spell-Based leveled talents (Fire, Water, etc): Each of these talents are leveled through spell knowledge – if you have the Mantle LT and your highest level fire spell is level 5, then you have the level 0-5 benefits of the Mantle leveled talent.
Battle-Post-Based leveled talents (Fire, Water, etc): Each of these talents are leveled through number of posts spent acting in combat situations, with each level noting how many posts are needed to gain the benefit of that level. Each Battle Post (BP) LT is tied to an art, with your level in that talent counting as your highest level spell known +2 for the purpose of determining your level in a spell based LT (so if you have reached level 5 in Enlightened Combat your effective highest level Vital spell known is 7, unless you actually know a level 8+ Vital spell)
Battle Post Leveled Talents (used by Warrior Prodigy Aspect)
Vital – Enlightened Combat –The art of fully perceiving and utilizing your environment in combat. Lvl 0. In order to fully take advantage of the environment, one must first master themselves. As such, novices of of the enlightened combat style first master basic acrobatics (superb balance, simple maneuvers, etc). You are no exception, and thus possess the equivalent of basic acrobatics training. Lvl 1 – 5BP – Your situational awareness increases, allowing you to easily note things with a glance and recall the specific details of everything that happened during a fight. Lvl 2 – 15BP – Your grip and leg strength are honed, allowing you to easily scale and bound around obstructions and landmarks. Lvl 3 – 30BP- Your mastery of self is further refined, granting you the benefits of mastering either advanced acrobatics OR the catapult grip and bear drills warrior techniques. Lvl 4 - 50BP – Your situational awareness increases again, allowing you to fight over and around obstacles seamlessly and improving your ability to dodge mindless hazards and adjust to their effect on the area (falling trees, undirected spells, etc). Lvl 5 – 75BP – Your coordination is enhanced, improving your aim and allowing you accurately strike or kick objects so they fly in any given direction. Lvl 6 – 105BP – Your awareness is further refined; you can use the motions around you to aid your own, like the gears in a clock. Anyone can take advantage of an opponent’s motions to power their own, but few do so as effortlessly and skillfully as you. Lvl 7 – 140BP – You intuitively grasp how things might be used together, enabling you to swiftly create improvised weapons and devices and expertly set up and initiate (or avoid) chain reactions. Others might be able to set up a multi-step door trap of falling objects and that thing you just made from string, a sandwich, and a hairpin... but few can do it in the time it takes the target to run down a hall. Lvl 8 – 180BP – You achieve a state of oneness with everything around you, making it almost impossible to catch you completely off-guard and granting you a sort of sixth sense for knowing when things are about to take an ill turn. Lvl 9 – 225BP – Once per encounter you can, with a moment of focus, enhance the unity between yourself and what is not yourself. This effectively allows you "see" in all directions, even through obscuring objects, and predict what is going to happen moments before it does. Lasts for two posts. Lvl 10 -275BP – You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
Water - Drunken Style - The art of fighting through mimicry of inebriation, using feigned unbalance and extremely fluid movements to fool, disorient, and surprise your opponents. Lvl 0 - Fighting as though drunk is not for those who have not even mastered regular motions -novices of drunken fist master basic acrobatics (superb balance, simple maneuvers, etc). You are no exception, and thus possess the equivalent of basic acrobatics training. Lvl 1. Though practice you greatly enhance your balance, allowing you to more easily maintain it even when you appear to be on the verge of teetering over. Lvl 2. If you do fall, you can either immediately go into a roll to your feet or land in a precisely aim where and how you land. Lvl 3.You further refine your motions, granting yourself the benefits of mastering advanced acrobatics training AND the Unhinge warrior's technique. Lvl 4. Your knowledge of bizarre stances deepens; you can accurately attack from all manner of odd positions, even against foes that are behind you. Lvl 5. Your arms and legs become interchangeable for all acts of violence and locomotion. This allows you to walk on your hands, deliver fantastically dexterous kicks, etc. To a lesser extent every part of your body can be similarly substituted for others. Lvl 6. You can seamlessly switch from one style/position to another, expertly chaining rolls, kicks, etc. Lvl 7. While in close combat with an opponent, you can latch onto a limb or joint and then seem to pass out, dropping to the floor like a dead weight and throwing your foe with great strength in a random direction. Lvl 8. You become so pliant and flexible that blunt attacks against you are reduced in their effective strength by two levels. Lvl 9. Your motions defy understanding, confounding those who otherwise excel at predicting attacks and allowing you to easily hide your true skill and/or violent intentions. Lvl 10. You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
Umbral - Stealth Tactics - Why fight in the open when misdirection works so much better? Lvl 0. Wielding stealth and misdirection in battle benefits from a more general understanding of deception, and it is common for those who follow this path to be rather surreptitious. You are no exception, and thus possess the equivalent of basic stealth training. Lvl 1. You learn how to hide weapons on your body in such a way that they are nearly undetectable and easily, quickly drawn. Lvl 2.You learn how to quickly surmise what your opponent is and is not seeing/looking at with great accuracy and develop sixth sense for quickly maneuvering reflective objects to hinder vision. Lvl 3. You gain the benefits of having mastered either the quiet combat warrior technique, the Feint or Flight warrior technique, or a level of the sleight of hand specialist skill. Lvl 4. Your environmental awareness allows you to quickly surmise if anyone else is around and alert you to others using stealth. Lvl 5. When on an unprepared foe, your first attack against someone is almost certain to disarm them if that is your aim. Wielders of unusual weapons, and/or foes that also know a disarming technique are more likely to resist this attempt. Lvl 6. Your attentiveness increases to give you a precise estimate of how a target’s armor and accessories are connected to them. This allows you to make attacks against those straps and fastenings with much greater accuracy. Lvl 7. While following, fighting, or otherwise interacting with a target you can synchronise your movements with theirs, matching/mirroring every movement they make precisely. This can make you harder to detect, aid in combat, etc. Lvl 8. You learn a precision neck hold that will render the victim unconscious. Cannot be done if the person is tensed (such as because they are expecting an attack). Lvl 9. You are the epitome of silent movement and stealth. You may run, jump, roll and perform any number of actions while remaining silent and unseen unless you become a direct threat. Lvl 10. You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
Fire - Rush-Down - Learn to attack with explosive starts and raging ferocity. Lvl 0 – Unleashing explosive force is ill-advised for those who tire easily - novices of Rush-Down diligently build up their endurance before moving on to more difficult maneuvers. You are no exception, and thus possess the equivalent of endurance training. Lvl 1. You learn how to expertly maintain your footing while in motion, allowing you to more easily fight on the move. Lvl 2. Uneven or shifting terrain barely slows you down, your feet naturally fall where they need to in order to compensate for instability. Lvl 3. You gain the benefits of having mastered the Flash Step and Pillar Training Warrior techniques OR basic acrobatics/parkour training. Lvl 4. You learn how to perform diving tackles which knock the breath from your opponents, rendering them shocked and unable to speak for their next post. Lvl 5. Your unstoppable momentum overrides any abilities that make people sure-footed or unmovable. You also become an expert at quickly recovering from prone positions. Lvl 6. As long as you are moving forward, you gain an additional strength level. Lvl 7. You have trained yourself to keep fighting through the most intense levels of fatigue, allowing you to undergo truly absurd amounts of physical exertion with relatively little drop in ability. (Injuries are just as much an impediment as ever.) Lvl 8. You learn how to temporarily block pain from your mind and wield your emotions to resist mental effects. This ability can be used every other post, although you are somewhat resistant to pain at all times. Lvl 9. You may shrug off all but the deadliest blows while charging, allowing you to create an unexpected opening in your opponent's defense (you are still injured, it just doesn’t slow you down/hinder you until the post after the charge). Lvl 10. You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
Earth – Mountain Style - Some seek to get out of the way. You seek to get in the way instead. Lvl 0. The first thing you need to be in the way is the ability to stay there. You possess the equivalent of strength training. Lvl 1. You learn to be unmovable so long as both your feet are planted firmly on the ground. Lvl 2. You master various blocking techniques that allow you to better utilize your strength; your blocking motions are effectively one strength level higher. Lvl 3. You gain the benefits of mastering either Pillar Training and Bear Drills OR Grounding Grapple. Lvl 4. Basic defensive techniques are second nature to you; attacking while blocking, cautious strikes, etc. do not strain on your concentration unless very elaborate blocking is involved. Lvl 5. You become virtually impossible to knock unconscious with blows to the head and learn the correct technique for performing devastating headbutts. Lvl 6. Learn to effectively redirect striking attacks safely towards the ground so long as they have no upwards momentum. This move grows less likely to succeed against a specific enemy the more often you use it against them. Lvl 7. Your shoves, pulls and grapples gain yet another effective level of strength so long as you remain mostly stationary. Lvl 8. Once per encounter you can channel all your strength and all the force of an opponent's attack/charge into one throw of incredible strength in the direction of your choice. Less likely to work against cautious foes, virtually certain to work against lunging/charging ones. Lvl 9. You are a master of beating down your enemies, each impact from fist or foot induces a sense of increasing vertigo. You are able to effortlessly incorporate shoving, pulling and/or tripping into your attacks. Lvl 10. You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
Storm – Leaping Dervish - It's harder to hit a moving target. You have learned the art of continuous movement while fighting. Lvl 0. The leaping dervish style relies heavily on the maneuverability of its practitioner. As such, novices of of the leaping dervish style first master basic acrobatics (superb balance, simple maneuvers, etc). You are no exception, and thus possess the equivalent of basic acrobatics training. Lvl 1. You master the art of moving stances – ways of constantly dancing about in a small area that do not hinder your ability to attack or defend. Lvl 2. Any solid surface provides a perfect anchor for you to launch from, you may use any surface no matter how sturdy to help launch you skyward as if it were a springboard. Lvl 3. You gain the benefits of mastering either advanced acrobatics or the flowing form warrior technique. Lvl 4. Your mastery of leg motions enable you to move, kick, and the like while fully concentrating on other things. Lvl 5. Your leaping ability is twice its original distance/height. Lvl 6. Learn to do a sudden rolling dodge designed throw the attacker off balance with the momentum of their own attack. This gambit grows less likely to succeed against a specific enemy the more often you use it against them Lvl 7. You train in perfecting a custom, staff approved, attack that involves maneuvering in some way, such as involving jumping or flipping, granting that one maneuver an additional effective strength level and making it second nature to you. Lvl 8. You have a home field advantage above the ground. When you collide with an opponent in the air you may expertly throw them to the ground beneath you with incredible force. Lvl 9. Once per encounter, you may utilize your mastery of motion to perform a single maneuver or dodge that truly strains any notion of reasonable movement. Make the technically not impossible the this is actually a thing that I just did flawlessly. Remember that you still can’t control other characters. Lvl 10. You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
Body – Needle Style -The art of landing extremely precise blows to induce certain effects. Techniques that rely on a hitting a precise location can only be done unarmed and/or with weapons with very fine points (blunt or otherwise). Lvl 0 – Attempting precision strikes in combat can be dangerous to those for whom such things are not second nature- novices of the needle style carefully memorize vast amounts of anatomical information and exact, extremely precise hand motions . You are no exception, and thus possess the equivalent of level 1 and 2 Medical and Anatomy training. Lvl 1. You learn a striking technique that greatly increases the pain caused by your strikes. Does not work through armor. Lvl 2. You learn the precise location, angle and technique to strike the lower back that will cause the victims emotions to run out of control for a couple posts. Does not work through thick armor. Lvl 3. You gain the benefit of either mastering the Scaling Lethality technique or the Shutter Punch and Sight Chop warrior techniques. Lvl 4. Armor needs to account for the body, which in turn necessitates certain stress points. Your understanding of these points effectively increases the material modifier of your attacks by two when determining whether their armor is damaged or disabled (e.g., you can damage leather armor with a wooden sword as though it were made of iron). [size=x-small]Yes, this stacks with the Shell Breaker technique.[/size] Lvl 5. You learn the precise location, angle and technique to strike a blow to the back between the shoulders that will leave the victim stunned, gasping and momentarily unable to breath. Does not work through thick armor. Lvl 6. You have cultivated a sixth sense for figuring out the weak points of any living thing you see in motion (unusual species, humanoids with old injuries, etc). This ability applies, to a lesser extent, to objects with moving parts as well. Lvl 7. Learn the precise location, angle and technique to land a stomp to the foot that will weaken and possibly cause the leg become paralyzed for a couple posts. Does not work through armored boots. Lvl 8. Learn the precise location, angle and technique to apply a nerve pinch at the neck that will render a person unconscious. Can be easily resisted if the target realizes they are being attacked before the pinch is made. Lvl 9. Twice per encounter you may attempt a precision strike against any reasonable pressure point, body part, etc with flawless accuracy. This does not mean it automatically hits, but the attempt is presumed to be no easier to dodge than a regular swing. [size=x-small]If there is disagreement over what hitting the pressure point in question does, go with defender’s interpretation.[/size] Lvl 10. You develop a custom, staff approved technique that represents your personal take on this style.
