Welp, here we are again, with me getting ready to write up another Exalted: Essence (aka ExEss) character, something a little more straightforward this time. I've got a vague idea for a Dragon-Blood that'll slightly back to Branek, the Getimian I wrote up last time. I'll try to write this such that you don't need to have read the other post before this one, but I am going to go into less detail on character creation's fiddly bits this time around.
And, again, if you find these interesting, let me know! I'd be up for doing characters for other games I own (which is many), and I'm more than willing to take requests. Just leave a comment here or on whatever social media post led you to my blog.
Anyhow, with no further babbling-on...
Step 0: Session Zero
Again, I'm doing this without a group, though I think I will lay down a few setting assumptions for this character. Because I like the idea of writing up a character who could be an ally to my Getimian, I'm going to suggest that this character is someone from Cherak, in the near North. Cherak is home to House Ferem, a Cadet House that gets many of the privileges of being Dynasts but their holdings are away from the Blessed Isle. House Ferem are descended from the Shogunate families that used to make up the empire of Grand Cherak, before they got screwed over first by a mad wizard and later by the Scarlet Empress.
I explain all this to contextualize that I'm envisioning a hypothetical game at least tangentially about House Ferem and their ambitions to rebuild Grand Cherak (or Old Cherak, if you prefer) in some form, to take advantage of the Empire's rapidly-decreasing stability to seize independence for themselves. Which suggests a lot of intrigue involving a rebellious movement. Sounds like fun!
Step 1: Concept
So now we get to this character. Normally, combining a Dragon-Blood and a Celestial-'tier' Exalt (like a Getimian) in a group would be a recipe for disaster, as there are disparate power levels at work. But ExEss has taken that into consideration and made it a lot more viable for Dragon-Bloods to team up with characters ostensibly more powerful than they are.
In case you're just now joining us, Dragon-Blooded are a variety of Exalt with less raw power than other types, but there's a buttload more of them because their powers pass through bloodlines rather than something akin to reincarnation (or conjuring via forbidden relics of a lost age). At any given time, there are less than a thousand Celestial Exalts in total, whereas the setting assumes there are something like 25 thousand Dragon-Bloods throughout Creation. They wield elemental powers by the grace of the Elemental Dragons, and since the Usurpation have been the dominant force in Creation by dint of their sheer numbers (among other factors).
As I read Cherak and House Ferem's write-ups in The Realm and Heirs to the Shogunate respectively, an idea comes to mind of a young but promising Fire Aspect warrior, still coming into his gifts, the essence of Hesiesh (another name for the Elemental Dragon of Fire) stroking the flame in him. He's on-board for seizing advantage of an opportunity to bring back Cherak's lost greatness, to rebuild empire it used to be. Some want to see Ferem join the ranks of the Blessed Isle's Great Houses, but I'm thinking this character's more seeking independence.
That reminds me, let's pop over to... actually, rather than FNG.com, let's head over to Erinys' Scarlet Dynasty Name Generator. Even though my character's not going to be a traditional Dynast, I like the contrast of giving him a Dynastic name -- and because I can come up with a reason to have it. Erinys' generator spits out full names with Houses (except for V'neef for some reason) and sometimes specific households/bloodlines, so I'm just gonna randomize until I see a given name I can swipe. Here we go. Ferem Jago. That works.
I'm thinking that Jago was born of a marriage between a mortal woman from House Ferem and a House Ragara Dragon-Blood. In the matrilineal Scarlet Dynasty, children belong to the mother's family and male Dragon-Bloods are sometimes loanedmarried to mortal wives in other Houses, expected to return once they outlive their mortal spouse. House Ragara currently administers the satrapy and is trying to strengthen their grip on House Ferem and its very profitable naval ventures, though off the top of my head I don't know if that was the case when Jago was born. But even if it wasn't, Ragara's rival House Cynis is also very interested in Ferem, so anything that leaves Ferem feeling like they owe Ragara is a good thing.
Dragon-Bloods usually aren't terribly involved in raising their children, and Jago's father -- let's call him... *randomizes* Ragara Sekima -- probably wasn't substantially different. So that left Jago positioned to absorb stories of Ferem history from his mother... okay, now I dip back into FNG's Slavic name generator for something appropriate to the region... his mother Ferem Katia. I'm thinking on her side he actually has roots deep in Cherak, maybe even ties to the House founders.
So while Sekima was off being... oh, off the top of my head, I'm thinking he's some sort of failed-marine-commander-turned-bureaucrat trying to backseat-drive Ferem's navy. So while he was off doing that, Jago's imprinted on the idea of Cherak's history and the rotten luck that left it open to being conquered by the Realm, and perhaps even a little bit of a nudge towards trying to surpass his father. I'm thinking perhaps he Exalted in the middle of a training exercise that got metaphorically blown off-course by a surprise pirate attack and now he's caught between his father trying to get him enrolled in a proper secondary school back on the Blessed Isle and his desire to remain in Ferem and continue training in his mother's family's traditions.
While he's still getting a grip on his Essence, he's probably staying off of boats because literally-fiery auras can be an issue at sea, so he's casting about for some opportunity to seize on to advance the larger agenda of building up Cherak. (Seems like the sort of person who might latch onto some weird engineer with some power-armor and team up, perhaps.) Technically, in actual gameplay that's not likely to be an issue unless I think it'd be dramatically-appropriate, but I feel like having it temporarily derail his training and future career counts.
So before I move on, time to note my Exalt type advantages: First, Dragon-Bloods get Prince of the Earth, which lets them temporarily get access to Merits by leveraging the fact that they rule over so much of Creation. After all, either a Dragon-Blood has some actual tie to their current location, or their reputation as champions against monsters and Anathema, so by and large they can mostly take what they want. (Not that that's necessarily a good thing.) Next, he gets Ten Thousand Fight as One, which boosts his participation in teamwork actions. After all, Dragon-Bloods were literally created to fight in groups, preferably mixed-element groups, and culturally they're trained to lean into that so as a result they have natural talents for coordination. Finally, he has Resonance with jade of all colors.
And now I should note his advantages for being a Fire Aspect. First, his passive anima ability that he always has access to, Where There's Smoke: At the start of any scene, Jago may sense anyone present who harbors grudges or heated emotions, and he gets a bonus on actions to uncover or leverage those emotions. Next is his active ability, Hesiesh's Passion. So when his anima banner is flaring enough, he gets his Essence in automatic successes in on social actions to inspire crowds or persuade targets to act on his ambitions. He also becomes immune to any sort of mundane fire or heat-based hazard and resistant to magical sources of fire. Finally is his iconic ability, when his anima banner is at its peak, Wildfire Dance. This ignites his weapons, reducing enemies' soak and catching them on fire if he hits them.
I should also take a moment to describe his anima banner. As a Fire Aspect, it's gonna be red and flame-y. When he goes iconic, I'm imagining him being surrounded with sort of... fire storm imagery, like a fire whirl whipping around him. Which feels generic, I know but Dragon-Bloods' animas simply aren't always as distinct as more potent Exalts.
And I think that sorts Step 1 for me. What's next?
Step 2: Attributes
Ah, right. That makes sense. Okay, so, I get ratings of 4, 3, and 2 to divide up among Force, Finesse, and Fortitude. I can see him as being very active in a way where it'd be a coin flip to see whether I prioritize Force or Finesse, but I'm thinking he's more 'move fast and break things' rather than 'break things and move fast.' Also, since I went with Force for Branek, I'll put the 4 in Finesse and the 3 in Force. Fortitude gets the 2 -- this guy's more about dancing around danger than taking hits, I think.
Yeah, that feels right. Force 3, Finesse 4, and Fortitude 2.
Step 3: Abilities
Alright, so I get one 5-rating, one 4, three 3s, two 2s, and one 1 to assign to my Abilities.
So like I said before, this guy's a warrior, and I imagine him wading into battle with paired blades of some sort. So I'll put his 5 into Close Combat, and he feels very maneuverable in my head so Athletics gets the 4. He was raised and trained with the expectation of going into Cherak's navy, so I'll put the first 3 into Navigate as that's the ability for sailing and, um, navigating. Hm, what else should be a 3... let's go with Awareness, and Physique. This is someone wired for being in the thick of the action, watching out for danger or opportunities, and busting his butt to put in the work.
Now, given all I've said about his military upbringing, you'd think this would be higher, but I'm putting one of the 2s into the War ability because at his age and stage of training, he's put more time and interest into personal combat than overall tactics. Let's put the other 2 into Sagacity. He hasn't had much book-learning, but he's learned his history at least. And let's put that 1 into Presence, as he's learned a little about leadership but hasn't had any experience yet. Actually, scratch that, let's swap Presence and War, that feels more appropriate for his natural proclivities.
This leaves him with 0s in some skills like Embassy (navigating social structures) and Ranged Combat, but those don't feel like big losses. This guy's a hothead, if he wants to stab someone across the room he's gonna cross the room and do it rather than throw something or get someone else to do it for him.
So before we move on, this means his Ability arrangement is Athletics 4, Awareness 3, Close Combat 5, Navigate 3, Physique 3, Presence 2, Sagacity 2, War 1.
Step 4: Charms
Alright, now we get into the sparkly bits. Let's see if any of the suggested Charm archetypes at the end of the chapter... oh, yeah, here we go. 'Untouchable Skirmisher.' Obviously these are just suggestions, but...
Okay, so, I start with an Excellency or Ox Body Technique. So that'll absolutely be the Close Combat Excellency.
And now, four Charms. So looking at the suggestions in the book, I definitely like the idea of giving him Guard-Breaking Technique (which reduces enemies' defenses), and Monkey Leap Technique, which gives him some wuxia-style jumping tricks, lets him do parkour, that sort of thing. Oh, hey, Monkey Leap Technique has a Dragon-Blooded Mode so let's make a note of Effortlessly Rising Flame, which in addition to granting prodigious leaping abilities also lets him reflexively rise from prone.
Now some of these other suggested Charms are for ranged attacks, which Jago just doesn't do, and it feels like now's a good time to dip into the Exalt-specific Charms and see if something jumps out at me. And while it feels like I'm really specializing here, well... I kinda am. Let's get Dragon-Graced Weapon, which let's Jago apply his Elemental Aura to his melee attacks. By default that element is normally going to be Fire, which boosts the overwhelming rating (which is the minimum amount of Power you gain from a successful attack), but it's possible for him to switch to other Elemental Auras under certain circumstances. I understand it correctly, I think Dragon-Graced Weapon lets him pick any element and assume that Aura as part of the Charm.
(That said, if he hits Iconic anima, he gets locked into Fire. All will burn.)
And one more Charm, which I'm going to put into a martial arts style. Again, leaning into a specific archetype and expression, that's gonna be Fire Dragon Style, which is all about being intense and good at violence and trying to temper it with discipline. Also, it specializes in attacks with paired swords. Reading up on the description it looks like Jago's gonna have to invest in some Performance down the line as part of his training in the style, but that's not gonna effect his ability to start with Searing Edge Attack, which lets him boost his attacks to weaken his opponents when he hits them, as his 'killing intent expresses itself through the overwhelming heat' of said attacks.
And now that brings us to...
Step 5: Merits
Okay, this is a tricky one, actually. Jago is a young up-and-coming hero, and I'm having trouble seeing anything I want to do for his Primary Merit. If this were the core system (and I may do a Core system version of him if I get the itch and don't have anything else on my plate), I'd probably distribute Merit points pretty thin. Though it occurs to me, someone's gotta be teaching him Fire Dragon Style... okay, yeah, this can work. Let's give him an Ally.
Flickering Flint is an old Fire Aspect Immaculate monk, someone who's spent decades scrubbing floors, training acolytes, riding on the occasional Wyld Hunt, and he's getting on in years for a Dragon-Blood so he's gotten assigned to a temple in Cherak as what he's hoping should be an easy retirement assignment. But he's cooled on the fervor of the Immaculate Philosophy and has come to appreciate the more laid-back Immaculate Faith as practiced in the days of the Shogunate, thanks in part to being surrounded by the remnants found in the former lands of Grand Cherak.
He wouldn't go so far as to consider himself a rebel, and wouldn't necessarily go out of his way to support an independent Cherak but he hears the rumblings from House Ferem and he knows that something is coming. In Ferem Jago he sees the potential for greatness, for leadership, so he's taken it upon himself to make sure the boy burns brightly and steadily without flaming out or winding up at the top of an ashen heap.
(I should have warned you going in, elemental wordplay is going to be a big part of any Dragon-Blood story.)
Now, the secondary Merit. Let's go for an Artifact, but simpler than Branek's. In this case, a paired set of red jade short daiklaves, Shogunate-era relics passed down through House Ferem. Oh, I know: red jade daiklaves with veins of black jade running through the blades as they were forged from jade expelled from an underwater volcano. The interplay of fire and water-aspected Essence (from the red and black jade, respectively) causes them to constantly steam when drawn, or maybe just when the wielder's anima is lit up. Maybe it's not even literal steam but some sort of magical effect, but either way the sound is why they call them the Whispering Talons. As secondary Artifacts, they're not likely to have a grand backstory or any weird powers, so that's something I can flesh out later.
And finally, the tertiary Merit, which is going to be Resources. Between his Ragara father and House Ferem being pretty financially successful through their assorted nautical ventures, Jago's got access to a decent bit of money for a young Dragon-Blood -- especially one that isn't from a Great House.
And as I look back on this, I find it interesting that Jago's kind of shaped up into a kid of privilege who's gotten lucky. Family passing down cash and artifacts to him, a mentor who's taken an interest, and the remnants of a lost empire waiting for him to discover and rebuild. Contrasted with Branek's whole deal about building up mortals with blood, sweat, and tears, these two would be quite the odd couple. Maybe there'll be a novella for the Storyteller's Vault in there somewhere...
Step 6: Virtues and Intimacies
Now let's put what drives Jago down on paper, as best we can. I've got a list of seven Virtues to pick from. I could go with Ambition and tie that to rebuilding Old Cherak. But for the sake of not seeming repetitive (after all, Branek has an Ambition as well), I'm gonna go with something else. After all, Jago probably has only a vague idea of what a reborn Cherak would actually look like, so it's more an ideal than a goal.
And when I put it like that, combined with everything else, it seems obvious. His Major Virtue will be Loyalty: House Ferem (because you have to dedicate your Loyalty to something if you pick that), and his Minor Virtue will be Courage. He wants to be a champion of House Ferem, to take on whatever challenges he can to bring it to greatness. (which can take a few different forms depending on what sort of game he'd be in)
And now, Intimacies. I pick one Major Intimacy and two Minor Intimacies, and each must be tied to one of the above Virtues. (I can also do more, if I so desire, or I can even leave some undefined to work out in play.)
So his Major Intimacy is going to be a belief: "I will be the champion Grand Cherak needs," tied to his Loyalty. This is his dedication to the ideal of the Shogunate warrior-nation Cherak used to be. One of his Minor Intimacies is... let's see, we've talked about his father, his mentor... he'll have a Minor Intimacy to his mother. Ferem Katia, as a mortal from a Cadet House, isn't a 'proper' Dynast and probably would have actually been involved in Jago's life (were he brought up on the Blessed Isle, he'd have been raised by nannies and servants and probably barely know his parents' faces), impressing upon him stories of the glorious past that was snatched away from the House. She's shown him the path he's going to walk, and he'll refuse to leave her at the side of the road. So his Minor Intimacy is going to be Ferem Katia (Love and Respect), also tied to his Loyalty.
And I need one more Minor Intimacy... I could put it off until play, but I kinda did that with Branek. And I want to do another belief... I know. "I will stand against my father's House if I have to." Less confident, less assertive than a Major Intimacy. And on some level he means the Realm as a whole, but most of what he knows of them he knows through his father and the machinations of the House Ragara satrap. Subconsciously, Ragara Sekima probably represents the Realm to him more than the Empress does. And even though he'd likely be doing it for House Ferem, I feel like this intimacy is tied more to his Courage, as a 'this is something I have to do and psyche myself up for' thing.
And since I can do more, lemme toss in another Minor Intimacy: Flickering Flint (Basically Family), tied to his Loyalty. He sees the old monk as an older brother or uncle, or at least a good friend, more than an instructor. That could get him in trouble down the road, if Flint's own loyalties got pressed. Sure, guiding Jago is more than just a job for Flickering Flint, but he assumes Flint will always have his back, and there may come a time when he tragically learns that's not the case.
Oh, and before we move on to Step 7, I go over the Great Curse. The Chosen of the Dragons don't feel the Curse as strongly as other Exalts, but sometimes their elemental natures overtake them. As with other Exalted, Jago potentially incites the Great Curse when he acts against a Major Intimacy or his Major Virtue. As a Fire Aspect, it can also kick in when he undergoes extremes of his own emotion and passion, whether due to his own actions or others'. At which point he suffers from an Elemental Behavior, which for someone like him means he'll go into something of a manic state, putting his intensity into a cause tied to the inciting incident or fall into an equally-intense despair if he blames a personal failing.
Step 7: Finishing Touches
Okay, his Essence starts at 1. Easy.
Next he starts with the usual seven Health Levels since, again, I didn't take any levels of Ox Body Technique. So two -0s, two -1s, two -2, and Incapacitated.
And now, derived values. His Parry is highest Attribute (4) plus Close Combat (5), divided by two (rounding up), which is gonna be 5. His Evasion is highest Attribute (still 4) plus Athletics (4), divided by yaddayadda... so 4. So barring any weirdness, he's got Defense 5.
Next is his Soak, which starts at 1 and gains another 1 because his Physique is 3. If he's wearing armor, it'll be some sort of light armor (since Fire Dragon Style allows it), likely... okay, this is annoying, ExEss doesn't actually have any armor examples and the categories are a little different from core (light and heavy vs light, medium, and heavy). In core, most naval armor seems to be stuff like reinforced buff jackets, which are medium, which is allowed in core Fire Dragon Style. So yeah, reinforced buff jacket it is. But that's a long, complicated way of saying his is boosted by 1 when he's armored. So he's got Soak 3 when armored, by default.
His Hardness starts at 2, increased by 1 for his Essence score, and his armor isn't heavy enough to boost it so he's got Hardness 3.
Since he doesn't have Integrity, he's still got the base Resolve 2, modified by Virtues and Intimacies depending on circumstances.
And now we get to the Spark of Life, which is where I get into habits, quirks, who is friends are, etc. That I'm willing to leave open depending on what's appropriate for the game he'd be in. Though I will take a moment to describe him (which I totally remembered to do on Branek and didn't go back later and edit the post, shut up).
Ferem Jago is young, probably late teens or 20, with a strong swimmer's build. I imagine that like most Northerners, he was kind of blond growing up but his hair darkened as he aged, and that plus his elemental aspect manifesting has given him red, yellow, and orange hair that he leaves kinda spiky and unkempt. Again, as a Northern he was probably naturally pale as a kid but the grace of the Fire Dragon has probably permanently, subtly 'bronzed' his skin so he stands out among a crowd of normal humans from back home. He's probably too young to have any scars, and is holding off until he's got something to commemorate before he gets any tattoos.
And that's it! Now lemme distill all this into one of Mr. Gone's sheets, and... voila!
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