>A Traveller, always on the move, righting wrongs where he can

>>31874114

I'll give this a shot.

>What's your one-sentence-or-less character concept?

Smooth talking con-artist and thief in trouble with a major criminal syndicate.

>>31874221
Supported.

>>31874114
A sword wielding demon of justice.

>>31874221
>>31874247
Either of these.

>Wandering Shaman who bargains with gods and spirits on the behalf of troubled communities.

>>31874114
A former Immaculate whose life was saved by an Anathema

>>31874114
>>What's your one-sentence-or-less character concept?

Rebel in one of the empire's satrapies. We've seen the corruption and decadence of the dragonblooded and want to purge it from our land.

>>31874247
This

>>31874247
Demons are neither human nor mortal, unless that was a metaphor.

>>31874301
>>31874247
>>31874221
These can all be combined without clashing. I'll support any one of them, but they can all work together.

>>31874327
It's a metaphorical sobriquet. You know Exalted likes to affix "demon" to people's names to signify that they are, indeed, pretty good at something.

>>31874301
This is starting to sound worryingly Solar.

We've already got a Solar quest, let's do something different.

>>31874373
Solars are cool. I don't care.

>>31874292
I like this one

>>31874221
>>31874247

Guess I'll put myself down for Wu Xia drifter-hero too.

>>31874373
I have no problems with a solar quest, since I'm not taking part in the other one.

And pretty much everything can sound like a solar plothook.

>>31874301
>>31874247
Supporting.

>>31874373
>>31874386
We don't have to be a Solar. It's not like they monopolize hero swordsmen.

>>31874247
Sure.
>>31874221
This works too.
>>31874301
Nah.

>>31874420
A Chosen of Journeys might work here. That'd be cool.

>>31874420
But I like how there's no extra baggage with Solars. I vote Solars over something else.

>>31874420
It was mostly the "fuck the Realm" bit that made me think "Anathema".

>>31874451
There's no vote for exalt type. You'll exalt based on your actions. You're starting as a heroic mortal.

>>31874440
Chosen of Journeys certainly fits the "wanderer" part.

Plus Sidereals get all the best kung fu.

>>31874420
No, they don't monopolize them, but they are the coolest.

>>31874476
Any Exalt fits the wanderer type.

>>31874420
>>31874373
Well, this quest is already going great places. I just love it when people get caught up in this stupid crap.

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>>31874301
>>31874247
>>31874221

Combine these, a wandering swordsman who dolls out justice as he sees fit, living off of bounties and the goodwill of others.

>>31874292
I'll go with this, it's slightly less cliche than "random traveler who rights wrongs"

>>31874532
>caring about whether something is cliche or not.

>>31874540
>not caring about cliches

Turn in your hipster card.

Sounds like the consensus is that of a wandering vigilante swordsman. Is that accurate? I'll get started on the next bit if it is.

>>31874521
i really wish i had a picture of a doll with the word justice pinned to it...you meant dole btw

>>31874532
>>31874292
The only prob with this, though I like it, is that he said he wants the PC to exalt based off his actions

>>31874557
Yeah, that's the general consensus. We are the nameless ronin!

>>31874521
>living off of bounties
We Gennosuke now?

>>31874540
I also liked it better as a concept anyway, not that it has any chance of winning

>>31874466
So regardless of intentions, how we exalt will depend on how well we succeed/survive/fail at our decisions right?

>>31874575
Aren't there mortal immaculates? I'm pretty sure there are, or I've been doing this wrong the whole time

>>31874532
The nice thing about the cliche is it's really broad. We can fill it in with details, an actual character and personality, and make something distinctive and good from it.

>>31874564
whoops, yeah

>>31874577
We are the lone wolf.

>>31874585
Correct. The exaltation will be based on in-character action.

>>31874603
Good point.

>>31874466
How do actions result in a Terrestrial or Sidereal Exaltation?

>>31874628
They don't.

>>31874628
I think he said we'd need Breeding for Terrestrial, and Destiny for Sidereal

>>31874645
So we're playing a Solar, Lunar, Infernal, or Abyssal then?

What actions make us an infernal?

>>31874667
Sucking but not dying?

>>31874667
Fucking up royally somehow is the normal way of doing it, though the Internals book suggests there are others.

>>31874628
You can take Breeding or Destiny to make them much more likely. Otherwise, they're what happens if you don't do anything exaltation-worthy within the admittedly-narrow window of the prologue.

>>31874660
Not necessarily.

>>31874667
Failing in a fantastically tragic way, especially due to a character flaw like arrogance or cowardice.

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>>31874667
>>31874660
>>31874659
Forget deciding what actions lead where, we should make a character and see where they lead.

I vote a pompadoured man of action with a fabulous sense of style and a dandy charm.

>>31874720
Pompadoured vigilante swordsman?

>>31874736
ugh. no.

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You are a wandering warrior, righting wrongs with your own sense of justice. But that's the what, not the who, after all. Who are you? Where are you from? Where are you now? What's your life been like? Are you a man or woman? Short or tall? Fat or thin? Do you have money, or are you poor? Are you from a good family?

Tell me, in very general terms, about this warrior - what they look like, and what led them to this life. This is the second question.

>Who is this warrior?

>>31874720
>>31874736
I wanted to be female, the people who always bitch about every protagonist being female has made it so none are recently

>>31874798
I see no problem with this.

>>31874789
We're a retainer from a Dynastic holding out in the threshold. Got let go, took up a job hunting bounties. We're male, tall, fairly wire. Our monetary situation varies wildly based on when we collected our last bounty and how big the reward was, but we can usually live relatively comfortably (if never as nicely as we did back when we were employed by a Dynastic family).

>>31874789
We're a dirty, scruffy man who taught himself the ways of the sword. Forced to take care of himself at a young age, he lacks money and has rotten luck but his position has caused him to see more value in seeing that justice is done. Most would only see him as a beggar instead of the expert warrior he is.

>>31874853
My jidaigeki senses are tingling. I'm going to support this.

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>>31874836
>>31874853
Both of these work. We're an archetypal ronin, buying food with our prowess at the blade.

>>31874789
Average height, attractive blonde male. We were in the legions until our force ran into something nasty and supernatural. Virtually everyone died, and the survivors scattered. Rather than face imperial justice for desertion, we moved on and make a living as a sellsword.

>>31874853
Add in an appropriately rough beard and a bitchin katana and we're set.

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>>31874836
>>31874853
I like the sound of these.

>>31874917
Keep the beard, nix the katana. Maybe a Jian or a Scimitar, Exalted is more than just Japan, dangit.

>>31874789
>Name
I suck at names I'll skip this one
>Where are you from
The East, the Scavenger lands Specifically
>What's your life been like
We've been traveling most of are adult lives, never staying in one place too long, we've made enough money from bounties that we're not hard up, but we're not rich either
>Man or Woman
Woman
>Short or tall
Tall
>Fat or thin
Average wieght
> Do you have money, or are you poor?
We've made enough money from bounties that we're not hard up, but we're not rich either
>Are you from a good family
From what we can remember, yes

>>31874947
We can only go whole hog on the Ronin references from here on out.

>>31874853
>>31874836
Don't forget, he has no name.

Suggested name for our swordsman: One Blade Army.

>>31874853
Will also support this, but rock a dadao instead

>>31874975
Don't get me wrong, I'm okay with a katana. It's just, I like having some neat incongruities.

>>31874989
>>31874947
Compromise: A Nodachi. Suitably big and impressive for Exalted, but also distinctly ronin.

>>31875014
Or just a straight up zweihander, since
>exalted is more than just japan.

>>31874836
>>31874853
I think these two aren't mutually exclusive. Nothing in >>31874836 says anything about our childhood, and nothing in >>31874853 says things about specific jobs we've had in our adulthood.

Grew up poor in the Threshold, got hired on (or bought) by a rich Dynastic family (possibly to teach their children swordsmanship or something), had a bad run of luck and ended up fired. Wanders around earning a living doing his best to dispense justice via the blade.

>>31875031
Exalted has always been more china than Japan, really. An actual nihonto would be more unusual rather than less.

>>31875014
What about a Daikatana if we wanna go big sword without going xbawx hueg.

>>31875075
>>31875072

Ugh, too much weeaboo for my taste in this thread.

Dropped.

Shisengumi dude from Rorouni Kenshin?

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>>31875014
Dunno, lacks OOMPH

I mean, look at this sexy beast.

>>31875075
That is a(n) (n)odachi. Do you mean a daito? That's just the regular katana

>>31874853
>>31875041
"Bad luck" you say? Might this have something to do with that "Destiny" option that's been mentioned a couple of times?

>>31875106
That IS a pretty sexy sword. It doesn't really scream "duellist" or "bounty hunter" to me, though.

>>31875127
It screams shitkicker, though, which is what we intend to be.

can we go all roman style with a gladius instead? kataners are overdone imo.

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>>31875109
The opposite.

>>31875106
The odachi is larger and almost as broad.

>>31875106
Better yet Chinese sword breaker, powerful yet elegant.

>>31875144
Reiterating my point, I'm all for anything that isn't Japanese. The ronin motif is more than sufficient.

>>31875153
Okay, that's almost stupidly huge.

Then again, stupidly huge is the norm for daiklaives.

>>31875166
Nah, we full mifune now.

>>31875106
This or a jian has my vote.

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>>31875166
In the Dadao vein, a german sword

>>31875193
Yes, the odachi is a really, really big weapon. Not properly pictured is how damn thick the blade is. This thing will krump like crazy.

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>>31875153
Another pic of big ass sword

Consensus sounds like a man from the Scavenger Lands who grew up poor and learned how to fight through trial, error, necessity, and grit. A man who worked his way up from mere sellsword to being employed full-time by a dynastic family at the peak of his career but - through bad luck or a fuckup - ended up fired, but still alive, and set to wandering. Someone who's gotten the cold, hard end of life, and decided to get idealistic instead of cynical.

Is that accurate? I'll get started on the next bit if it is.

>>31875296
Looks like it. Carry on, MAIDEN.

>>31875296
Yes. Don't forget the scruff.

As for childhood, we should belong to a patrician family but were exiled to the north for starting shit with our Exalted relatives. We learned most of our skills from the masters of the slave coast and its there we learned about true law and the application of it. After starting a minor riot we left and now we have no where to go but the open road.

>>31875296
Sounds about right.

>>31875262
It's almost a daiklave already!

>>31875317
I imagine we were clean and well-groomed back when we worked for important people, but nowadays we're more concerned with where our next meal is coming from than how our beard looks.

>>31875322
Thaaaat's actually a good question. Which Direction are we in?

Please, not the West again.

Now we're to the meat of the matter - what you're good at. Mortals have five skills, each rated 1 to 3. The skills are Warrior, Priest, Scholar, Criminal, and Broker. You'll start with one skill at 3, two at 2, and two at 1. Here's the layout I have pictured based on the concept as-presented:

>3 Warrior
>1 Priest
>1 Scholar
>2 Criminal
>2 Broker

Warrior is for fighting ability and battlefield tactics and leadership. Priest is for the ability to lead and inspire, to survive and be stalwart. Scholar is all manner of knowledge, from technology to history to magic to medicine. Criminal is about speed and dodging, athletics and brute strength, stealth and awareness. Broker is for traveling, speaking languages, and making deals with others.

Does that layout I presented look right, or should your character have points moved around?

>>31875463
Consensus was Scavenger Lands - the Near East.

>>31875466
I kind of want to move 2 from Broker to Priest, but otherwise it looks okay.

>>31875463
MAIDEN said "Scavenger Lands", which means the near East.

i.e. not far enough out that everything is trees.

>>31875466
I think Broker and Priest should be switched. While the ronin often strikes deals and does trade, he's poor so he's obviously not good at it. He's been forced to survive instead.

>>31875466
This looks right.
>>31875501
"Travelling, speaking languages, and making deals" sounds very important for a wandering sellsword or bounty hunter or whatever it is we were/are. I'd keep Priest at 1 for now.

>>31875466
looks fine for stats.
can we be north-side of scavenger lands? it's a bit more ambiguous/less defined, so less cannon conflict.

>>31875501
>>31875517
That would make your traveling swordsman bad at the actual act of traveling, learning new languages, and dealing with new cultures and customs - keep that in mind.

>>31875466
I agree with what you have.

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Official Artwork from Compass of Terrestrial Directions: The Scavenger Lands

Lookshy chapter specifically.

>>31875466
Prioritizing the skills, from most important to least important:

Warrior: This is practically our stock in trade, after all.

Broker: A wandering swordsman needs to be very good at wandering

Criminal: Nobody gets the better of us.

Priest: We may not be the friendliest person, but we have to eat.

Scholar: We're STREET smart.

>>31875538
Hey, he gets lost a lot. That's not HIS fault.

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>>31875550

>>31875517
We live off of our skills, not off of the land. If we had Survival we wouldn't NEED to fight people for money.

That being said we should probably bump it up at some point, if only because Integrity is kind of important for this character.

>>31875552
Dear god, we're gonna be a giganigga

So, which way do you guys want to go, Priest 2 or Broker 2? This is an official vote - I'll count responses linked to this post.

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>>31875581

>>31875651
Broker 2, though consider bumping up Priest later with XP depending on how things go.

We need to be good at travel and negotiation so it's legal when we stick our sword through people and we can get paid for it.

Or successfully figure out where to go to get the heat off of us when we fuck up, or kill someone with powerful friends.

>>31875651
My gut says Priest 2 for the inner fortitude, and also for the hilarity of getting lost and speaking broken tongues.

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>>31875615
Cold-ass ronin pimp.

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Now THAT is solid steel sex appeal.

>>31875651
Priest 2. You can't have a warrior of justice without integrity, but you can have an ass backwards ronin.

>>31875651
Voting Broker 2, if only because I'd rather be an experienced wanderer rather than a pillar of virtue.

>>31875651
Voting Priest for shenanigans

>>31875651
Broker 2.

>>31875651
Priest sounds like it's going to be more funny, and we need a source of levity.

>>31875615
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shuoW_N1cNE

>>31875690
>We need to be good at travel and negotiation so it's legal when we stick our sword through people and we can get paid for it.
Legality is for chumps. A true warrior fights according to his heart.

>>31875799
We need it to be legal so we can get paid.

This is our livelihood.

Things might be different after we Exalt, but for now...

>>31875821
Remember, he's poor. So he's obviously pretty shit at the fiddly bits of his livelihood.

>>31875651
Broker 2, though upping Priest in the future is probably a good idea.

>>31875651
Priest ultimately matches the concept as established better than Broker. Much as I love Eclipse shenanigans.

>>31875845
That is a point.

Whichever one we pick, we should probably bump the other one up using XP pretty early on.

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>>31875703
>>31875795


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsO4v0K-JGg
Mah man!

Broker 2


We need money for blingin'

Warrior 3, Priest 2, Scholar 1, Criminal 2, Broker 1 it is. You're always an outsider, can't ride a horse, and don't know your way around languages, but you can survive in the wilderness, know which way is north, and can scare a man without ever drawing your blade.

The next are your Backgrounds. They're all ranked 0 to 2, with 0 meaning you're shit at it, 1 being decent, and 2 being absolutely fantastic. Someone with 0 resources is poor and spend most of what they get on food and shelter, someone with 1 resources is a decently-paid professional with a good amount of disposable wealth, while someone with 2 resources is really fucking rich.

You have four points to spend on Backgrounds. They are as follows:

>Allies
>Backing
>Breeding
>Contacts
>Destiny
>Influence
>Resources

You're pretty poor, so Resources isn't likely. You're also low-born, so neither is Breeding. You move around enough that Allies are hard to build up, and you lost your Backing when you were fired from your dynastic job.

So, your most likely backgrounds to have points in are Contacts, Destiny, and Influence.

Vote on where you want to spend your points.

>>31876002
Destiny 2/Contacts 1/Influence 1

>>31876002
Destiny 3/Contacts 1

>>31876045
2 is the max for Backgrounds.

>>31876045
Backgrounds are capped at 2.

>>31876074
>>31876077
Oh, I'm sorry, I missed that.

I'll go with >>31876033 , then.

>>31876002
This >>31876033 seems to pretty much cover what I'm looking for.

>>31876002
>>31876002
>>Allies
>>Backing
>>Breeding
>>Contacts 1
>>Destiny 1
>>Influence 1
>>Resources

>>31876033
This is just what I was about to post. And in fact I will.

>>31876002
Destiny 2/Contacts 1/Influence 1

>>31876130
Four points to spend, not three. You've got one left.

>>31876002
Contacts 2, Destiny 2, Influence 0. We know people and fate keeps conspiring to stop us from dying, but no one actually gives a shit about what we think.

>>31876130
oops add 1 to allies

>>31876002
2breeding2destiny

>>31876160
This is a really good setup if we want to end up Sidereal later, actually.

>>31876002
>Destiny 1/Contacts 2/Influence 1
Destiny is less important than you think, since you can break your fate with a force of will. People, however, knowing people is important. Especially when we're socially inept

>>31876002
Destiny 2 / Contacts 2
Fame doesn't really go with dirt-poor either. Infamy does, but I don't think we want that.

>>31876002
2 destiny, 1 contacts, 1 allies.

We have a destiny, and we've made some friends along our travels. We are, after all, a big hero-guy.

>>31876176
Being a sidereal would be the opposite of where we're going with this idea. Destiny is good for all Exalt types, though.

>>31876193
If that was genuine, you're free to join in.

If that was sarcastic, you're free to hide the thread and get on with your night.

>>31876216
Nothing about this idea is mutually-exclusive with being a Sidereal.

Hell, Sidereals are the one splat to literally have Ronin.

>>31876265
They're called Ronin sidereals, but that really means "even worse sidereals". I'd rather not play the intrigue and espionage focused splat without any of its tools, okay?

>>31876216
What do you consider the "opposite" of a Sidereal?

So, sounds like two main camps. Contacts 1/Influence 1 for having a reputation and knowing people in a few circles, and Contacts 2 for being very well-connected but relatively unknown.

Either way, Destiny 2 is a go.

So vote, reputation or discretion? Know some people or know tons of people?

>>31876298
an Abyssal, I guess? Maybe an Infernal?

There are Sidereal factions that are pro Solar, Terrestrial, and Lunar, respectively.

>>31876298
Direct confrontation and intervention. Competency. Relevance.

>>31876321
>Discretion
I like being a nobody.

>>31876321
We're a big damn hero, everybody knows us.

>>31876321
I like the idea of us being at least mildly famous at being a bounty hunter, but having lots of contacts is good for getting more work.

I guess I'll abstain for now.

>>31876321
I'm with Contacts 2 all the way.

>>31876337
Okay, I laughed.

Sidereals DO have Neighborhood Relocation Scheme, though. And Cash and Murder Games! And...

...okay, that's all that comes to mind as really cool things they have.

Guys can we stop trying to hedge our bets on the one Exalt type we have literally no choice in getting?

>>31876321
Reputation.

>>31876321
I'd probably go with Contacts 2. We'd be able to find work that way, while avoiding people pointing at us in the streets and going "It's him!"

>>31876328
The Silver Faction barely counts as an actual thing. It's maybe 3 guys who are into furries.

>>31876321
Gonna vote reputation. We've done some flashy takedowns in our time.

>>31876321
It's gotta be reputation. We're the Lone Wolf. The Demon Sword. Other cliche names!

>>31876389
"Maybe 3 guys" is enough ro be a faction when there's only 100 guys total.

A bit of reputation it is. You've got a big destiny, know some people, and have more than a bit of a reputation.

What circles do you know people in?

What's your reputation?

In extremely general, extremely vague terms, what are you destined to do? Right a major wrong? Die in the right place at the right time? Start a dynasty? You don't necessarily know in character, but it's important for how the background works.

>>31876535
Destiny: wander across all 5 directions

>>31876535
Destiny: Tell someone something they need to hear at the right time.

Solar would be kind of boring, but Infernal would be interesting. Abyssal and Lunar might be good might be terrible.

how do we infernal

>>31876535
Destiny: Slay a "dragon".

>>31876607
Being otherwise awesome, but fucking up at the worst possible time.

>>31876607
fail like a faggot

>>31876607
>Solar
>Boring
They're actually really damn fun because they're really competent and they get to be themselves more than any other splat. Free reign on so much shit

>>31876535
Destiny: Witness the dawn of a new age

>>31876611
I like how it's in scare quotes. Support.

>>31876607
Infernal isn't really that interesting. Like, half of your shit is just aping the yozi and going through meaninglessly byzantine upgrade trees

>>31876535
>In extremely general, extremely vague terms, what are you destined to do?

To save the life of the young Dynast who will become the next Scarlet Empress.

>>31876535

Contacts: Bounty offices

Reputation: Grizzled loose-cannon, causes lots of property damage.

Destiny: To die killing the most horrifying things in creation

>>31876693
>extremely general, extremely vague

FFFF

>>31876535
We know merchants. Merchants are cool, and also give us news and jobs.

Our reputation is being reliable and competent but prone to bouts of appallingly stupid idealism. That lost us our cushy job way back, you know.

We are destined to become trusted by the great, and then betray their trust. Not that, uh, we've ever done that or anything.

>>31876693
>>31876611
One of these.

>>31876607
I don't see how you can think Solars are boring. They have really cool flavor and aesthetics.

>>31876607
Infernals basically require you to be a huge fag and then go willingly sign up with the biggest losers in the universe

>>31876732
When we exalt, half of us are probably going to quit in a huff no matter what kind of Chosen we actually become. The rest of us get to see where this goes.

>>31876724
I like this idea. Seconded.

>>31876535
>Circles
Bounty offices

>Reputation
Hero for Hire.

>Destiny
Change the status quo.

>>31876535
>What circles do you know people in?
Merchants and patricians who need a sword for cheap.

>What's your reputation?
Prodigy swordsman with a boorish personality.

>destiny
Deliver the dolorous stroke.

>>31876535
>Contacts:
Criminals, other bounty hunters, police
>Reputation:
Bounty hunter. Always gets his man. Don't start shit around this guy.

>Destiny:
I want to go with "Right a major wrong". A death-based one will probably involve the end of the quest (or an Abyssal game).

Sounds like there's a general consensus to have contacts with bounty offices and law enforcement, and to have a reputation as a competent mercenary with the fatal flaw of being occasionally idiotically altruistic, often going phenomenally high-profile in the process.

The destinies, however, are all over the place. Chat with each other about them until there's something even resembling a consensus.

>>31876535
>>31876671
I can get down with this, but I'd change it to:
>Destiny: Lay the foundations of a new age

I like the idea of a protagonists who sets in motion things even bigger than himself. Perfect formula for nerd-hype and sequel bait.

>>31876924
Okay, well, I think that quite a few of them revolve around "Defeat a powerful enemy." Does that work?

>>31876924
Okay, how's this for a destiny.

>Slay your brother, spare your enemy.

>>31876924
>The destinies, however, are all over the place. Chat with each other about them until there's something even resembling a consensus.
Guys, can I bring my suggestion at >>31876724 to your attention? General subversive stuff, changing the world, all of that... it's frankly fairly generic. So we're going to change the world- literally every PC does that at some point! Let's pick something interesting, something both useful and practically made of plothookium.

>>31876998
Sure, I'll cast my vote for that and see if that doesn't get the ball rolling.

>>31876924
Gonna vote for causing the death of something big, directly or indirectly. Incarae, Yozi or Deathlord big.

>>31876998
I see your point, but why not BE the one betrayed?

>The greatest among your peers shall betray you.

all I really want is, in the event we end up with a Lunar, we avoid turning this into Literal Dogfucker Quest

please

>>31877056
Et tu Brute?

Sounds like the consensus/compromise answer is to end up at the side of true power, and then betray them. Is that accurate?

>>31877056
Mostly, because I'd rather play someone destined to betray (so we're constant worried about fulfilling it) than destined to be betrayed (so we're constantly MAXIMUM PARANOIA, which we will be anyway because /tg/).

>>31877114
It can go either way. With power comes betrayal.

>>31877114
Yeah sure.

>>31877114
It works for me.

Alright, one last question before the first proper post.

What's our protagonist's name?

>>31877209
Fuck. This is going to be hard.

Putting in the suggestion of One Blade Army, as discussed upthread.

>>31877209
Frank.

>>31877209
Blast Hardcheese.

Wait, no.

Barst Hua'shiz.

There, that's sufficiently disguised.

>>31877056
Motherfucking Samurai Jesus all up in this bitch

>my altruism rubbs off on some desperate fucks, leaving a trail of unwanted vigilantes in my wake
>my philosophy gets spouted as gospel by self-proclaimed apostles
>shit spirals out of control into a full blown religion as darker powers pull the strings behind the scenes
>MFW only Black Nazareth can deal with this kung-fu treachery

>>31877209
Whiskey John

>>31877251
>Black Nazareth
For some reason I find this name strangely compelling.

>>31877209
Nobody knows his name, every person refers to him in a different way through titles and nicknames. He's not the type to correct them.

>>31876998
I was your second once, and I'll back you again. It's a good hook, and a lot of the others feel like they're customized to make us into a specific exalt type.

>>31877322
Willing to go with this, if only because /tg/ is really sucking at names so far.

>>31877322
That is so ridiculously special snowflake, though. One can practically choke on it.

>>31877219
I'm cool with the concept, but I think something like First Cut Triumphant would be more our style.

>>31876998
I like the Destiny >>31876724 yeah

>>31877400
Nah, it could just as easily be "Him" or "That one asshole with the sword." Or "Scruffy." Basically we're the man with no name, rolling into town whenever there is trouble.

>>31877400
It is, and it would make it really hard to talk about him. I also oppose.

Wandering Crow.

Captcha says Sineeser Consequence, but I'm really not sure about that one.

>>31877322
>>31877342
So would we just give a bunch of weird titles whenever someone asks for our name?

I vote for Kabuto.

>>31877400
All it means is that we have a bunch of nicknames, whichever is appropriate to the NPC. Also, it's Exalted. Being a special snowflake is the point.

>>31877446
"They call me Scruffy."

>>31877322
Go for this. I do not trust /tg/'s naming sense.

>>31877475
Screw it, I'll back Scruffy.

>>31877322
I like it.

>>31877322
The sad thing is that this is the most Exalted suggestion, because most people's names ARE titles instead of birth names.

>>31877549
I approve because it makes us Toshiro Mifune from Yojimbo, or Clint Eastwood from the Dollar's Trilogy.

>>31877569
Part of his Destiny is that everyone forgets to properly ask his name.

>>31877475
Thirding Scruffy

File: Firewand Sniper.jpg (580 KB, 688x900)

580 KB JPG

You doesn't tell people your real name - that's private, and from a past that you don't like to spread around. But you have a lot of nicknames, all tied up in your reputation - One Man Army, Wandering Crow, First Cut Triumphant, and more. Nobody remembers how you got half of them anymore - the rumor's that you fought an entire army to a standstill single-handedly, for example, but that's bullshit. You're good, but not that good. Nobody is, except the gods themselves and their Princes.

You're as fond of 'Scruffy' as anything else, truth be told.

That's not important, though. What is important is that you've just wandered into a two-street frontier town with empty pockets, a sword whose tip broke off in someone's rib nearly six months back, and a wanted ad clutched in your hand. You're following a wanted man - a man called Cannibal Hohei.

He's killed more than a dozen men, which gives you something in common, you suppose, and has a reputation for taking bites out of folk to fight dirty and intimidate. He's a mean son of a bitch, to be sure, and there's a big enough bounty on his head to fix your sword and feed you for a month. Supposedly, he and a gang nailed a caravan in these parts a month or so back, so this is where the search begins.

The streets are busy for a town this size. The saloon seems bustling, the general store is open, and you can see a sheriff's office down the way.

Where do you begin?

>Samurai spaghetti western go!

>>31877627
>We Samurai Jonah Hex now.

Head to the Sherrif's office, if anyone has an inkling of where to start looking, it'll be him/her.

>>31877627
>>Samurai spaghetti western go!
FUCK YEAH

Go to the saloon. If the sheriff knew where Hohei was, he'd be doing something about it.

>>31877627
Sheriff can wait. Get a drink.

>>31877627
Disregard money, acquire booze... is what I'd like to say, but we're dead broke.
>Talk to Sheriff

>>31877627
I guess we go see the sheriff of these parts.

>>31877627
Head to the saloon and get a feel for whose in town. Someone has info and we am to get it, and maybe a free drink.

>>31877627
let's go see the law of these here parts.

You start the walk down the dirt streets of the town to the sheriff's office. You'd really like to take a load off your sandals before you finish walking a hole in the soles - it's your feet that take a beating instead of a horse's when you don't know how to ride and can't afford to have a horse even if you knew - but you can't afford a drink, and that tends to be the admission fee to barside seating at a saloon.

The sheriff's office is a simple wood building with benches out front and hitchings for manacles and horses, something halfway between a silver star and a five-petaled lotus on the hanging sign. You stride right in, eyes scanning left and right under the brim of your hat. The cells - all two of 'em - are empty. A deputy's asleep at the desk, a wide-brimmed straw hat tipped down over his face and a half-empty cup of what you're pretty sure is sake on the desk, right next to his propped-up feet.

There's a board next to the desk covered with wanted posters - crude drawings and clumsy calligraphy declaring names, crimes, and bounties offered. Most of the pages are yellowed and faded. Old ones they never bothered to take down. No sign of the actual sheriff.

What do you do?

>>31877989
Cough politely to wake the deputy and explain that we're hunting a man. A killer. He wouldn't be able to point us in the right direction, would he?

>>31877989
"I'm looking for Cannibal Hohei. Any leads?"

>>31877989
Drink the lazy asshole's booze, then maybe wake him up.

"Are we... awake?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNTw3x40I0o

Once he gets up, flash him a very pleasant smile and hold up the wanted poster of Hohei. "Have you seen this man?"

>>31878023
Second, except make it a somewhat obnoxious cough. Lawman sleepin' when he should be doin' his job.

>>31877989
kick the desk as hard as you can, and ask for information.

>>31878054
Hey now, don't take a man's booze, even if he might be a layabout. That's dirty.

You walk on over to the deputy's desk and - figuring that it must be set up as a free bar, what with the open booze and the sleeping drunk - finish his cup of terrible-but-still-booze sake, turn the cup over, and then clear your throat to both wake this lazy deputy up and get rid of the burn. After all, you didn't want him to accidentally spill when you wake him up. You're nothing if not practical.

The deputy jerks awake at the sudden noise, tilting his hat back and blinking groggily in the afternoon light soaking in through the front windows, slowly focusing in on your face. "Who the hell're you?" he grunts, taking his feet off the desk and sitting up. The change in posture reveals a short, iron-shod club resting against the chair.

You answer by completely ignoring his question, tossing the bounty notice down on his desk, saying, "I hear Cannibal Hohei was in these parts not too long ago. I'm hoping you might have a thing or two to help point me his way."

He blinks, apparently not used to not getting a proper answer to his questions. "Son, I asked who the hell you are," he says, moving like he's about to stand. You can't tell if it's confidence or entitlement - by the afternoon sake nap, you'd guess the later.

"Scruffy," you answer, doing your best to convey an air of bored professionalism.

"Well, I can see that, damn it, but it don't answer my question."

"No, I suppose it don't," you agree.

(Continued)

>>31878386
He glares at you for another few moments before settling back down. "He hit a caravan a month or two back," the deputy says, seeming more resigned to getting you to leave by giving you the information you want than anything else. "Wasn't one of ours, though, just passing through to the Soaring Eagle lands north of here. Now, folks don't usually care about tribals not getting to trade, but after that hit, the tribals been getting desperate, grabbing things from farms and such. That's about all I know - the Soaring Eagle Tribe might know more."

He seems honest, if slow.

What do you do?

>>31878416
Looks like we're going to see the Soaring Eagle tribe.

>>31878416
I guess we start walking.

>>31878416
Ask him what the caravan was carrying how well armed it was, it'll give us an idea of what their capabilities are.

Which skill category is Investigation under?

>>31878416
We take some time to rest ourselves. Our feet took a beating on this trip, after all.

>>31878543
Scholar. You're good at bringing people in once you find them, but you're no Sherlock Holmes.

>>31878543
Pretty sure it's Scholar. In other words, we shit at it.

>>31878591
Incidentally, what's the plan for when we roll dice?

>>31878684
May as well stick dice+1d10 in your email field. I'll grab dice linked to my posts as they become relevant.

>>31878416

"Thanks for the infomation. I might swing by with Hohei in a week or two. Buy yourself some better sake, friend."

Head out for the Soaring Eagle trible.

"...I see," you answer. You're pretty sure that he's telling the truth, but also that he's more interested in getting rid of you than anything else. Must want to get back to that nap. That's the kind of attitude that makes you want to ask more questions, because fuck his nap. "What was in that caravan?"

"Dry goods, medicine, some metal tools," he says, bored, not really paying attention. This is old news to him, and not news he finds particularly interesting. "The tribals are raiding chicken coops, stealing farm implements - their nuisances, but haven't gotten too dangerous yet. Won't, if they get another trader up there before they get too desperate. Ain't enough game to keep 'em fed anymore, and they don't do too much farming."

"Right," you respond. That actually gave you a clearer picture than you had been expecting. "So, just north, or...?"

"They're on the road north," he answers. "They're tribals, not idiots. 'Bout a day by horse in good weather." That means at least two by foot, probably more. You'd been hoping you could make your payday without another trip, but you've always been an optimistic fool.

"I'll leave you to your... work, then," you say, tipping him your hat and snatching back up your bounty sheet before strolling back into the afternoon street.

Do you do anything while you're here in town, or just head straight out immediately?

>>31878886
Rest before we head out.

>>31878886

>it would be smart to get a lay of the land
>but our character doesn't really strike me as very bright, just determined

Let's head out.

>>31878886
Can't afford dick, so we may as well just walk.

>>31878886
Get some water if possible then roll out.

>>31878886
It's time to start walking. And grumbling.

>>31878920
We have Survival, we can get a lay of the land.

With a grumble and a forlorn glance at the saloon - your love was never meant to be - you set out. Your best lead is already a month old. No reason to let it get any older. The next three days - just like every other part of your life - is hell on your feet, but you feed yourself well enough jabbing fish with pointed sticks, and the weather stays clear. It would be a lie if you said you were in good spirits when you hit Soaring Eagle territory, but at least you're making progress.

It's late morning when you arrive at a tribal town. There's a rough wooden palisade decorated with totems and patterns, and men and women in hides and tattoos come and go. They give you all suspicious looks, and you can't blame them. A scruffy, battered swordsman? You'd be suspicious too.

They don't stop you at the gate, though, and the town itself is nothing to be impressed with. A pond in the center, probably fed by a spring. Wolf-dogs walking around, children playing. No crops, in or out of the walls. Longhouses made of wood.

And people eying you like you might draw your sword and start swinging at any moment.

Where do you start?

>>31879272

Best way we can.

Walk to the center of town, sit down, and wait for someone to come and talk to us.

Rolled 5

>>31879272
We start by offering these nice people our most winning smile, and show them that we are friendly.

>>31879318
I wonder if baring teeth is a sign of aggression in this area.

>>31879272
"I'm looking for Cannibal Hohei."

>>31879327
You don't have to bare teeth for a smile!

>>31879327
They're tribals, not idiots. I'm sure they've seen traders smile, before.

>>31879293
Second this, also soak our feet in the pond.

>>31879293
Sure, why not.

Go ahead and start rolling.

You give all these presumably-nice people a smile, but it doesn't do much to disarm their worried, by the looks of it. Still, the best you can do now is wait for one of them to talk to you, you reckon, so you head to the center of town to see if you can get a drink of water and maybe rinse your hands and feet in the pond. Your feet are already almost dry by the time someone - a young man with dark skin and blue tattoos on his face and upper arms - approaches you.

"What are you doing here?" he asks bluntly, afraid, but still standing up to talk to you.

"I'm trying to hunt down Cannibal Hohei," you tell him. He spits on the ground in response to that name. "I reckon you've heard of him?"

"Heard of him!" he shouts, throwing his hands up. The fact that you're hunting that particular man down seems to have almost immediately opened this guy up, at least a little. "He and his filthy thieves come to this road, attack a caravan with much-needed tools and grain... He killed one of our men guarding the caravan, injured two more!"

"What kind of tools?" you ask with a frown, standing up and slipping back into your sandals.

"Hatchets, knives, pots, pans," he says, waving a hand. "We don't have much metal or farms, but we do have furs." Yeah, you've heard of deals like that before. Leads to over-hunting - but that's not a problem you know how to fix.

What do you ask, and how?

>>31879624

"Where was the caravan attacked? Can I speak to a survivor? I would like to bring this man to justice."

Rolled 7

>>31879624
Does he know when Hohei tends to attack? What sorts of caravans he goes after? What his tactics are like?

>>31879624
"Then I gotta know everything about the attack and where the bastard headed next"

Rolled 2

>>31879624
"Knows where his usual hunting grounds are?" Be sympathetic but professional.

>>31879624
"Where does he hole up? I want to get this over with an kill the bastard already."

>>31879293
Sounds pretty ballsy. Let's do it.

>>31879756
We're a swordsman, not an assassin. Attacking him at his camp is suicide.
Unless we're the best swordsman.

Rolled 7

>>31879849
We're a damn good swordsman, but we're still mortal. Getting stuck with a sword will kill us.

>>31879849
>>31879944
Well, let's find out where he is, first. How many he has with him, too. Then maybe we can formulate some sort of plan.

Intel comes first.

"Tell me everything you can about the attack," you say, starting to get serious. "Let me talk to one of the survivors. And if you can, tell me where Hohei's holed up."

"I don't know about any of that," he answers, scratching his head nervously. "Except the survivors. I wasn't there. Come on, I'll take you to one of them."

He waves you over and leads you to one of the longhouses, to a pile of furs which looks WAY more comfortable than the pile of leaves you slept on last night. Lying on it is a man in pretty bad shape - plenty of bandaged wounds, and what looks like teeth marks on his nose and a partially-bitten-off ear. One of the wounded, you'd guess. After brief introductions, you sit down with him, and say, "Tell me about the attack, and, if you know it, where Hohei's hideout is."

"I don't know about the hideout," the man wheezes. Broken rib? You're not really a doctor. "But they came from the west. Lost the tracks eventually. Hit us hard and fast - knew where the caravan would be, or were following us. Came in the middle of the day, blood everywhere. Bastard took my ear. His men are just bandits, but he's a savage - a monster."

Do you ask anything else?

>>31879975
How does he fight? Is he a swordsman, a brawler, or something else? What do you mean when you say 'monster'?

>>31879975
"How many people attacked the caravan?"

>>31879975
Ask for more information about him. How did he fight? Weapons, armor? Did he or any of his men use magic? How many were they?

Rolled 3

>>31879975
"What else can you tell me about Hohei? Did he say anything?"

Rolled 5

Feel free to roll your dice as you're posting responses, folks. QM did call for dice.

"How many men did he have?" you ask starting off the salvo of questions.

"About a half dozen, I guess?" he says. He clearly didn't do a precise count. "They hit us hard and fast. Wanted to scare us off, I think - not many men want to die over a sack of grain."

"And how's he fight? Why'd you call him a monster?"

His face goes a bit pale at that. "Because he is one. He's got gauntlets with hooked claws, his teeth are pointed and sharp like a devil's... He pounces on you, tears you up, makes a show for everyone else." Those injuries make a lot of sense with that in mind.

"How'd he get all of the stuff? A caravan doesn't just bring six men worth of goods," you ask.

"He drove us off - got us dragging the dead and injured off to regroup. By the time we got back, most of the wagons were gone, along with the yeddim," he tells you.

"And did he say anything?"

"He said... He said that if anyone tries to find him," he says, having a hard time reiterating what got spoken. "That he would take more than just a bite or two. I'm sorry, I need to rest."

He doesn't want to talk anymore.

And I think I'll end here for tonight. I'll try to start up another thread around noonish GMT-5 tomorrow/today depending on your time zone.

By the end of the next session, our protagonist should be a Prince.

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Princes%20of%20the%20Earth
And there's the archive, for anyone interested.

>>31880305
This had better be our theme music at some point.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEJ8lpCQbyw

>>31880251
So in a little over ten hours?

>>31880352
You can consider that one of my stated design goals. Goodnight!

Oh, and for reference purposes, this is the current character, more or less:
>Warrior 3
>Priest 2
>Scholar 1
>Criminal 2
>Broker 1

>Destiny 2
>Influence 1
>Contacts 1

I'll try to whip up a fancy-schmancy character sheet someday or something.

>>31880407
Ish, yeah. Goodnight!

I'm not gonna lie. Right now, this character is positively an archetypal Dawn Caste. Even though I was one of the guys against it, I think the way Scruffy has presented himself makes it sound great.

>>31880352
I also submit Battlecry https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OobUV9q0aDA

>>31880251
>six men
Better get six coffins.

We had better damn well use this line next time.

>>31880461
Dawn/Night, Full Moon, Battles/Journeys, Fire. Those are the castes/aspects he fits. And the Dawn/Night equivalents of the other Solaroids too.

>>31880544
I'm loving the spaghetti western ronin thing. Those two styles mesh so damn well.

>>31880580
Dawn is fitting the most, at least to my eyes. Nobody would think that the Man with No Name is anything but a warrior first and foremost, and is defined by his mastery of the craft.

>>31880461
I still want him as a Chosen of Journeys or a Chosen of Battles, if only so the Highest Power he can betray is someone like Chejop Kejack.

Or even the Sun.

>>31880679
Although him being "YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE A SIDEREAL" and then getting a Solar Shard and pissing off Heaven that way would also be really amusing.

>>31880679
I feel like having him get embroiled in the secret societies of Heaven would diminish this great feel he's got going for him right now. I think that if we play him according to this spaghetti ronin theme like we have been, he's most obviously a Dawn.

>>31880707
Nothing says he can't spend the vast majority of his time on Creation, especially if he's Journeys.

>>31880707
Well, that or a Dawn derivative, depending on how monster-y Hohei is

>>31880671
He hunts down criminals who no one else can bother, chasing them to the ends of the earth in order to bring down the law.

Night fits just as well

>>31880736
>tfw we pussy out and end up Slayer