Ask the Devs

[Anasurimbor]

Ask again in two weeks, when we go from being eyeball-deep in Arms of the Chosen to being eyeball-deep in Dragon-Blooded: What Fire Has Wrought.

In that case, roughly how many Evocations does an average Artifact in that Arms have? What's the greatest number of Evocations on a single artifact?

[The Wizard of Oz]

Ask again in two weeks, when we go from being eyeball-deep in Arms of the Chosen to being eyeball-deep in Dragon-Blooded: What Fire Has Wrought.

Is that because Arms of the Chosen will be finished and totally awesome in two weeks?

[Robert Vance]

Sounds like a realm party.

On a more serious note,

This may be a wait til that comes up or may be answerable now. Will starting immaculate characters be able to be more versatile than simply "you only have a few MA charms"? And are the immaculate styles ones where the form will be essence 1 or essence 2, or will that vary by style?

Immaculates use the same character creation as other Dragon-Blooded.

I haven't gotten to revising the Dragon Styles yet, so I can't answer your last question. My goal is always to get the form at Essence 1, but sometimes it's just too powerful for that.

[Eric Minton]

In that case, roughly how many Evocations does an average Artifact in that Arms have?

It's hard to give a definite answer here, as some Evocations may be added or cut in second drafts, but right now it looks to average around six or seven, with weapons tending to have more Evocations than armor. (This is specifically about weapons and armor; warstriders have a ton of Evocations, while the vast majority of miscellaneous artifacts and hearthstones have no Evocations at all.)

What's the greatest number of Evocations on a single artifact?

One weapon currently has ten, but it's an outlier. I'm not even going to count for warstriders.

[Kell_Tamer]

Immaculates use the same character creation as other Dragon-Blooded.

This pleases me to no end. I already have a character planned for immaculate martial arts and I am excited to be able to play her.

[glamourweaver]

Will WFhW have any new Sorcery Initiations? I'm wondering if the Heptagram or Lookshy have institutionalized ones.

[danelsan]

Hmm...assuming Warstriders having a lot of Evocations means you can get a lot of XP tied up in one (though there are those cases of Evocation unlocking for free under certain conditions, I doubt getting "a ton" of them that way would be very balanced) and considering how they are often seen as weapons to fight mighty armies, behemoths and so on, and how advanced Craft is needed for their maintenance, how practical are they for fighting one-on-one against normal-sized foes or against only a few enemies, and in as many fights as the huge thing can fit?

Would it be unwise to tie up most of your XP in Warstrider Evocations unless the game is particularly tailored to fighting in a gigantic godmetal golem-armor pretty often, with plenty of armies, kaiju and other 'striders to fight?

[Robert Vance]

Hmm...assuming Warstriders having a lot of Evocations means you can get a lot of XP tied up in one (though there are those cases of Evocation unlocking for free under certain conditions, I doubt getting "a ton" of them that way would be very balanced) and considering how they are often seen as weapons to fight mighty armies, behemoths and so on, and how advanced Craft is needed for their maintenance, how practical are they for fighting one-on-one against normal-sized foes or against only a few enemies, and in as many fights as the huge thing can fit?

Would it be unwise to tie up most of your XP in Warstrider Evocations unless the game is particularly tailored to fighting in a gigantic godmetal golem-armor pretty often, with plenty of armies, kaiju and other 'striders to fight?

Warstriders are much better at battling behemoths and armies than individual wuxia demigods, but they still represent a massive force multiplier for their pilot. Their Evocations are the most powerful in the game. I don't think anyone will regret XP spent on them.

[BrilliantRain]

Warstriders are much better at battling behemoths and armies than individual wuxia demigods, but they still represent a massive force multiplier for their pilot. Their Evocations are the most powerful in the game. I don't think anyone will regret XP spent on them.

Are warstrider evocations universally combat centric? I assume so, given that they're ancient warmachines designed to fight giant monsters and armies, but it does make me wonder if they can be useful in any other arena.

....Well, ok, they obviously should give a bonus to Intimidation rolls, but....

[Nilihum]

Warstriders are much better at battling behemoths and armies than individual wuxia demigods, but they still represent a massive force multiplier for their pilot. Their Evocations are the most powerful in the game. I don't think anyone will regret XP spent on them.

Will these be game defining artefacts where if some has one, everyone else will need one in order to keep up, or will an Exalt wielding a Daiklave and a decent combat load out be able to keep up?

[glamourweaver]

Will these be game defining artefacts where if some has one, everyone else will need one in order to keep up, or will an Exalt wielding a Daiklave and a decent combat load out be able to keep up?

Warstriders take a ton of support. It's not something most characters can just have on its own. There's a reason they're generally attached to and maintained by large military units.

Considering Vance already said they're not ideal for fighting individual Exalted (they're geared to fighting enemy armies or behemoth scale foes), I'm not worried about Daiklaive duelists holding their own.

[KymmetheSeventh]

Does God-Forged Champion of War (the spell) exist in any state in 3rd Edition? If so, is it still Celestial Circle? I'd assume it's something like Wood Dragon's Claw or Incomparable Body Arsenal where the 'strider summoned is somewhat basic and comes with a handful of free Evocations, but I'm still grasping at straws here.

I don't really expect Arms of the Chosen to come with spells or anything like that, but this is just something I'd like to know to satiate my desire for Super Fighting Robots.

Another question: A long time ago one member of the dev team (no idea who it was, exactly. Might have been Holden?) said that it would be easy to convert some of the Final Fantasy-esque things from Wonders of the Lost Age like Swift Riders and Windblades and flying triremes to 3e, and that guidelines or a sidebar for such a thing would be included in Arms of the Chosen. Is this still part of the MO?

Also, just want to say that I love both of you guys and I wish you the best of luck in this great unfinished symphony we call Exalted. I'm rooting for you!

[glamourweaver]

Are potion/elixer/salve based magic, ala Medea, something you see as...

a) Simply not a thing in Creation
b) Exclusively the domain of Thaumaturgy (creating individual concoctions being individual rituals)
c) Something currently possible under the Craft or Sorcerous Working system (if so, could you comment on how?)
d) Something that is possible in setting at the Exalted power-level, but not currently represented in the system

[Robert Vance]

Are potion/elixer/salve based magic, ala Medea, something you see as...

a) Simply not a thing in Creation
b) Exclusively the domain of Thaumaturgy (creating individual concoctions being individual rituals)
c) Something currently possible under the Craft or Sorcerous Working system (if so, could you comment on how?)
d) Something that is possible in setting at the Exalted power-level, but not currently represented in the system

Mundane Craft can't really make "potions" proper—alchemical solutions, sure, but those are more chemistry than magic.

The recipe for brewing a magical potion could be a thaumaturgical ritual. It could also be done as a one-shot working: once the buff or curse conveyed through the potion ends, the working is no longer relevant to the ongoing story, and so you regain the XP spent on it.

[CycloneJoker]

A question that just recently crossed my mind. Will the Mountain Folk appear or be mentioned in 3e at some point?