Jade and Cattle semi-log (part 2)

[leticia]

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Yeah, I'll take motes for that one. Speed 4. Thank you, Jade PKB. :-)"

<<OOC>> Brian says "... Or was it - ah, okay. You go just before he does, then. :) Your turn!"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "The temptation is to play with some of my other charms for a bit, but the combo is so powerful that it's almost silly not to use it."

"This place was once sacred to the glory of Sol Invictus, spawn of the Wyld. I will return it to that glory, as the Chosen will eventually return all of Creation to the glory that once existed. You seek to stand in the way of progress, and you will swept aside like all the rest." As he speaks, the Hunter once more carves his glowing sigil into the air before him. As he draws back his fist to swing the final blow of his deadly attack, an enormous burst of Essence gathers together; his powerful hand crashing down upon his foe with all the weight of his anger.

<<OOC>> Brian says "2 point stunt this time, go ahead."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Hitting the combo, and buying a big stack of dice on the final strike with 1st MA."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I've still got enough left for a couple more tricks. I'll buy the full 11 dice on the final strike."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "And I'll take the Essence from the stunt for this one."

Brian says "The Fantastic Nemesis Prince smiles with delight. "The Sun is setting-- an old man on an old throne whose mind is addled by the sweetest of drugs," he tells you. "His mind is far from here and his eye is lidded!" he declares as he brings his razor claws around in a whirlpool SMASH, letting the mists curl into a watery splash against your claws. "I will take much pleasure in revenge against one of his pitiful defenders!""

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <4 9> for 1 success.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <2 4> for 0 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <10 10> for 4 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <3 7> for 1 success.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <2 4> for 0 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <2 10> for 2 successes.

<<OOC>> Brian says "DV on the first one is 13; second is 11, third is 14, fourth is 10, fifth 8, sixth 9."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 25 dice: <1 1 1 1 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 8 9 10 10 10> for 13 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 25 dice: <1 1 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 8 8> for 7 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 25 dice: <1 1 1 1 1 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 6 8 8 8 9 9 9 10 10> for 10 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 25 dice: <1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 7 7 7 7 8 8 8 9 9> for 9 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 25 dice: <1 1 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 6 7 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10> for 12 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 36 dice: <1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10> for 19 successes.

<<OOC>> Brian says "Roll your Essence minimum for #5; we'll do 6 in a second."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Hmmm. 3rd MA on that 4th roll. I'd love to do the second roll as well, but I'm actually running a little low on Essence."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Ah, okay. Go ahead."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 25 dice: <1 2 2 2 2 4 5 5 5 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10> for 15 successes.

Brian chuckles. "Alrighty, never mind, in that case. When your first strike passes his defenses he brings the strap-covered palms of his long, elegant hands together in a loud CLAP that resembles the sound of surf breaking over water and Essence infuses the shimmering sparkles. A whirlpool of energy sparks from the Heart of the Fae noble, grasping and spinning for the force of your claws, turning them aside in a spinning fury.

<<OOC>> Brian says "All damage is ignored until his action. Which would be next time. I take it you combo'd again?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Yeah, that was combo."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Bah, defenses you still have. :)"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "And phooey. I wanted to see if 36 dice would beat his soak."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Running a bit low on essence for defenses, alas. But we shall see. Your turn, I assume?"

<<OOC>> Brian patpats. "Yup!"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "When we're done, I'm curious to know whether that 27LP *would* have gotten past soak, if he hadn't perfected."

The Fantastic Nemesis Prince tosses back his head. "A fighter! A true fighter!" The warm, caring look in his eyes has a mad tint to it as he smiles luxuriously at you, the slash of his lips parting broader. "Truly, you must -enjoy- the test of valor-- more than that idle meddler you call a master. Let your blood flow in anger and defeat!" he urges you while his hands shift together, fingers curling in exotic mudras as he sends his blade-backed hands flying through the increasingly dense mist-- no, fog, now-- of dry-hot water. You can feel the subtle shape of his strike drawing towards your wind-chakras, carrying choking and tainted water with them.

Brian [to Aidan]: He's using a combo on you, involving some sort of magical flurry aimed at your lungs and breathing.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "How many strikes in the flurry?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "5."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I don't have enough Essence to SSE that many, so I'm just going to fall back on Parry and hope he doesn't have enough dice to do too much harm. I still have option on 3rd MA if he gets a little past."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Remember your 3rd Excellency adds +3, not +2. And it is post-roll, yeah. Give me your defense stunt?"

Aidan waits calmly for the sinister attack to get within range before exploding into action with the second defensive kata of the Hungry Raptor, claws and body whirling in harmony, moving quickly enough to create eddies of wind, hoping to disrupt the choking wind-mist.

<<OOC>> Brian says "2 point stunt."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Do I roll the stunt dice to add to Parry?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "And can I take more Essence back please? :-)"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Indeed, to both. :)"

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 2 dice: <9 9> for 2 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 2 dice: <1 3> for a botch!

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 2 dice: <6 6> for 0 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 2 dice: <7 10> for 3 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 2 dice: <4 8> for 1 success.

<<OOC>> Brian says "Question-- what's your base Parry total, before halfing for DV?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Sec."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "21, when I'm at essence 4. Rounded up to 11, -1 for action. And I'm at -1 wound, if that changes numbers."

<<OOC>> Brian says "it does, so that puts you at a base of 9. But he's pretty injured, too."

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 7 7 8 8 9 9 9> for 7 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 1 1 3 3 3 3 4 4 5 5 5 5 6 6 7 8 9 9 9 9 9> for 7 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 1 1 2 2 3 3 3 4 5 6 6 7 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 10 10> for 12 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <2 2 2 2 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 7 8 9 9 9 9 10 10> for 12 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 6 8 8 9 9 9 9 10 10> for 10 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "So 3rd MA actually only adds 2 to my DV. Adds 5 to my MA pool, brings me to 26, half to 13, and penalty to 11."

Brian says "he's currently only hitting on the third one, at 12 over 9."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Which means that those two 12s are going to hurt. Why not the 4th? Oh, duh. 3 succs on the stunt."

<<OOC>> Brian patpats.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I can't beat 12, even with 3rd MA. So ow."

Brian [to Aidan]: No damage this time; instead, you feel burning pain in your lungs. You feel the blood circulating around them penetrate the membranes, corrupting the flow of air and causing terrible pain. You are at -1 stamina for 3 actions.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Which doesn't do much, aside from -1 soak. I assume something dire happens if he reduces me to zero stamina?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "You die."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Yeah, that'd be bad. Don't want him to do that."

<<OOC>> Brian says "You recognize the style, by the way. Somehow, this Fae has learned Water Dragon style."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Well, the question then becomes this. Do I start putting up more defenses, or do I just hit the combo again and hope that he dies. Can I get any kind of estimate of how much damage I've done? How wounded he looks?"

Brian [to Aidan]: It's hard to tell-- he's a Fae. He's a LOT more wounded than you are; deep into the 'serious' phase whereas you're just at the moderate, though you don't have the expertise in his physiology to tell how close he is to critical and/or death. And he -did- have to sacrifice life energy to that defense.

"You trouble me, creature of the Wyld." The Hunter's voice is quiet now, and his expression almost curious. "The arts of the Immaculates are carefully guarded, and should never be taught to other than those with the blood of the Dragons in their veins. I must ask you where you learned them." As he speaks, Aidan steps carefully backward, disengaging from the Fae as his arms move in the first defensive kata that the Hawk-lord taught him so long ago.

Brian [to Aidan]: What are you doing?

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Taking my zero-tick Move action full distance backward, and activating Beak Rends, Wings Fly from FLMAS motes."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "+2 to both of my DVs for the rest of the scene."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Speed on that is?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "It's Speed 5, DV -1."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "A little slower than my attacks, but I want to play this out a little longer, and a little safer."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "And I think, depending on his Dexterity, he might not be able to get back into melee immediately. Since Move is based on Dex, and I have a 6."

<<OOC>> Brian says "His Dex is 8."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Subtract Wound penalties, for the zero-tick Move. So I created 5 yards distance."

<<OOC>> Brian says "He can cross 6 at this point, so..."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Sorry, I don't usually like rules-lawyers, but it helps with the 'learning the system' bit, too. Since I had to go look that up."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Alrighty."

<<OOC>> Brian says "No worries, that's what this is FOR. :)"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "That's a lot of Dex, man. :-O"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "And I'm totally not keeping tracks of ticks at this point, just so you're aware. You seem to be handling it just fine without my help, though."

The Fantastic Nemesis Prince smirks haughtily. "Claimed from the soul of someone almost as stupid and addled as your master-- and like his soul, I will own yours too!" he declares before flashing forward left right and center, dashing across the field of battle to rejoin you with a father's smile crossing his angular face. "You'd think someone sent to rescue a -fire- dragon would be more... expressive. At least he knew the purity of Water!" he says as he swishes around you, breakwater slashes cutting in a triangular motion around your body.

<<OOC>> Brian says "Yup. Stunt defense, btw."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Oh, and no combo this time."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Three attacks?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "but the triangle pattern is going after your wind-chakras. Yeah."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "If I use SSE, does that count as enough of a "dodge" to make it a hopping defense with Raptor Form?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Since he's already taken most of his Move distance for the turn. *grin*"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "In other words, SSE the first attack, and I'm out of range of the other two?"

<<OOC>> Brian ponders. "Yes, that works."

<<OOC>> Aidan glees.

Brian [to Aidan]: Okay. How many yards back are you now?

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I *could* go up to 22 yards, if I'm reading this right. But I want to be able to re-engage without needing Prey Swooping, so I'll just jump to my Move limit, which is currently 5 yards."

Brian [to Aidan]: Okay. Given that, you'll be about one yard apart-- let's say within attack range 4 ticks from now, when you guys act simultaneously. So just pose; I'll be posing at the same time and we'll pose the responses to each other after they're both done.

Brian says ""Only the blind, the beaten, and those who do not know that they are beaten and -taken- require masters," replies the fae, racing to rejoin you with fanglike claws outstretched. "Perhaps when your bright soul beats within a crystal, then you will understand!" he tells you, leaping like a tidal wave rising over a beach, the trail of his essence-sea following him as he attempts to strike hard and fast at you three times."

"You still do not understand. You *will* be beaten. The glory of the Unconquered Sun is coming back to Creation after too much time away, and I am one of his messengers. Those who will not stand aside and accept the natural order of things shall be destroyed, and their ashes used to fertilize the crops that shall grow in the new era. Witness now his wrath." The Hunter once more brings forth the essence within himself, forcing it down into his arms before spreading his arms wide and raising them, wings of essence fire taking shape behind him.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I'm going to bring up Rage, so that I have some better offensive options without blowing so much Essence on the combo. And because I still want to stretch out a bit, and see how this all works now."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Like, what's the Speed on Rage, and do I get the Extra Actions on this tick, or on my next one?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Next time, and Speed is 6."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Alrighty. I was afraid of that."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "DV -1, probably?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Yup!"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Stunt your defense. :)"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Well, I don't have too many options, now do I? :-)"

<<OOC>> Brian says "You can still defend. ^^"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "One sec, I have to go ahead and pay for Rage, and see where my Essence is at."

MAIL: Mailbox purged.

As the wings of fiery essence flare into life and begin to fade, The Hunter brings his hands down sharply, the wings of Essence propelling him upward and away from his foe's claws reaching for his life's blood.

Brian [to Aidan]: 2 point stunt. Roll after I do, okay? What's your base, pre-stunt DV right now?

<<OOC>> Aidan says "6 motes into 2nd Dodge to bring my Dodge DV up to a 12 after penalties, and leaping to get out of range again."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Base Dodge is 18/2=9, -1 for wound, -1 for action, +2 for Beak/Wings, +3 for 2nd Dodge."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Taking 4 Essence for stunt, since I'm very drained by now."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Alrighty. I'll just roll the first, the 22, then; let's see if you need to roll stunt at all."

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 2 2 2 2 2 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 9 9 9> for 9 successes.

Brian says "Not even. How far do you jump back? His next action will be before yours."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "If I was the Fae, I'd be getting annoyed by now. "Hold *still*, dammit!""

<<OOC>> Brian says "He's very disappointed in you for not losing yet."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "This time I'll take my full distance, since I can just use Prey-Swooping to come back if I combo. 22 yards leap."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Are you going to continue circling out of range, or staying at 22 yards away?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Well, that depends, since you said it's his action next. :-)"

Brian [to Aidan]: It matters for when he's running towards you over the next 4 ticks, dude. You both have the option to Move during that time.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Ah. I was under the impression that you could only take a Move action on the same tick that you have your regular dice action."

<<OOC>> Brian says "No, it's per tick."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I'm going to stay at maximum distance until my next action. I want to try to keep him out of range until *I'm* ready to close the gap."

<<OOC>> Aidan sorries.

<<OOC>> Brian says "S'okay. Let's see... that's ... he'll be Guarding on your next action, and you'll both be within 10 yards of each other. He's still chasing you, so it's more or less your decision whether or not to close."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Alrighty. And I can assume he'll abort his Guard as soon as he's in range. :-)"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Oh, yes. :P"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I'm going to close, then, and just perform a Rage flurry. If I use a Leaping Dodge after his first strike, I assume it also aborts most of my flurry, since we're simul?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Yes. Your attacks match his on timing."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I just thought of a *really* annoying tactic, that could actually end this fight without him ever landing another blow on me. But it'd be cruel, and it'd take forever."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Bastard. :)"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Attack, SSE+Leap, wait. Attack, SSE+Leap, wait....."

<<OOC>> Brian P

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Going to pose a Rage flurry, he poses his attack, then I figure out what defenses."

<<OOC>> Brian says "You're going to have to pose first, since I have no idea what he can do until you show up."

"The first rule of the Hunt is this. Before you can fight and devour your foes, first you must *catch* them. So far, you're failing the lesson, my friend. It works like this." The Hunter pauses in his swift flight, turning to face his foe. He races to meet the charging Fae, drawing back his Talons to strike a fierce blow as soon as the enemy comes within his range.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Interesting question is whether I defeat him first, or drive him completely berserk."

<<OOC>> Brian says "He's... very strong minded."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Heh."

"And the first rule of swimming, pretty bird, is to never go further than you have the strength to return!" he replies as he falls back in a classic Water dragon style-- like the deceptively calm surface of the water, parting before your attack-- and viciously striking with riptide speed once more towards your throat!

<<OOC>> Brian says "Consider that a combination attack/defense stunt for him this turn. What's your defense stunt?"

"Worry not, I have strength enough for this this." The Hunter voice is calm, the quiet in the eye of the maelstrom as his Talons flash faster than the eye can track, alternating between strikes against his foe and defensive postures to catch the retaliation that certainly comes.

<<OOC>> Brian says "2 on offense, 1 on defense. Let's do the first offense/defense pair-- are you using any offensive Charms? He isn't."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I get 4 essence back? And I'm not using any charms on Offense, aside from the magical flurry produced by Rage."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "No plans to use defensive, either, although I reserve the right to use 3rd MA, as usual."

<<OOC>> Brian says "6 total, or 2 and 1 wp."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Roll for first attack. What's your current DV?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "two and a WP, I'm down to 2 of 7."

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 1 1 2 3 3 4 5 5 5 7 7 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 10 10> for 14 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Parry DV is 11, -1 wound, -1 action, +2 Wings, still 11. 13 if I use 3rd."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Sec, need to figure my acc."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "-1 total penalty still?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Yup."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 22 dice: <1 1 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 6 7 7 7 9 10 10 10> for 10 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Curse you for lucky dice. I'm going to have to take that hit. :-P"

<<OOC>> Brian says "You've forgotten our stunt rolls. You have a chance there, especially with a Channel or an auto-success. Speaking of which, he's not channelling, just rolling his stunt die."

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <2 7> for 1 success.

<<OOC>> Brian says "So he is currently at 13 there, unless you opt to reroll on your first attack. How are you going to handle your stunt?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Ooooh, I can still add WP success this late in the resolution?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Timing is weird. Does rolling my stunt die change my options for channelling WP or using 3rd MA? Or can I try the stunt die first before I decide?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Of course. Or channel Valor or (since he's insulted your god) temperance)"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Stunt is during step 4; reroll is step 6."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Can I stunt and still choose to buy auto-succs with WP after I roll?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Because 3rd MA + WP is enough to beat the attack."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "But if I roll a success on the stunt, I can save the WP."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "And crap, I forgot my +2 stunt on my attack roll. :-P"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Complicated! Argh!"

<<OOC>> Brian chuckles. Okay. Reroll the 24 to hit, without the 3rd MA, and, no, you have to spend WP after.

<<OOC>> Brian says "er, before."

<<OOC>> Brian says "WP _before_ you roll."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 24 dice: <1 2 2 2 2 3 3 5 5 5 6 6 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 9 9 10 10 10> for 15 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Spending the WP for +1 succs, I don't want to gamble a hit or miss on a single die."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Okay. Roll anyway, just for my amusement."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "So my stunt die on that defense is irrelevant. I spend 1wp, and 3rd MA, and I beat it."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 1 die: <5> for 0 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Motes for 3rd MA come from FLMAS, which I haven't used yet this action."

Brian says "Okay. Successful hit with 2 successes means Essence ping to damage for the first strike..."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 4 damage dice: <2 2 4 7> for 1 success.

Brian says "Next pair, one to one..."

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 2 3 3 3 4 5 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 10 10 10 10 10> for 16 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <1 3> for a botch!

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 24 dice: <1 1 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 9 9 10 10 10> for 14 successes.

Brian says "His DV is 11, and has 16 over 11 to attack. So you're hitting him, but currently being hit."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "It would take a virtue channel with lucky rolls to get 5 more points on my DV. I think I have to just take that one."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Has it been 3 actions yet since he drained some of my Stamina?"

Brian [to Aidan]: Yup! Also, roll your stunt anyway, to see if it reduces the difference.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 1 die: <5> for 0 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Soak is 5L, then."

Brian says "Oookay. Let's see."

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 11 damage dice: <1 2 2 5 5 6 7 7 8 9 10> for 5 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "This is gonna hurt."

<<OOC>> Aidan owie.

<<OOC>> Brian says "You -do- have ox-body, right?"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Two of them."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "That pushes me down into -2 wounded now."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Oh, good. So you're definitely still alive! :)"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I still have four more -2 levels."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Your turn to roll damage at Essence ping."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 4 damage dice: <5 5 5 9> for 1 success.

<<OOC>> Brian says "The dice do not like you, sir."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Not this round, no."

Brian says "next pair; this is his last chance to do anything for you before the remainder of your attacks. Does your DV go down any, or just your to-hit?"

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <3 10> for 2 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 22 dice: <1 1 1 1 1 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 6 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 10 10> for 9 successes.

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <3 3> for 0 successes.

<<OOC>> Brian says "Okay, his attack is missing and his DV is 10."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Wound penalty is -DV, right? Or is it -(dodge pool), so only half the DV change?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "-dodge pool."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Then it doesn't change for this one."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Still 11."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Like I said, missing. Roll your 23 attack. :)"

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Which means there was an error in there earlier. I should've had +1 DV on all those parries where I was -1 wound. *shrug*. Not gonna try to unravel any of it."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 23 dice: <1 2 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 7 7 7 7 7 8 9 9 10 10> for 12 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Ping?"

<<OOC>> Brian says "Let me think... Yeah, still ping."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 4 damage dice: <2 4 9 10> for 2 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Sooner or later, he's *got* to run out of health. I've done a lot of pings."

Brian [to Aidan]: Actually, you just put him in Critical, which means his DVbase is ... 10, minus another 1 is 9 against your fourth attack. Roll it!

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 2 dice: <2 5> for 0 successes.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 23 dice: <1 2 2 2 3 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10> for 15 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I get Essence+1 total actions in a Rage flurry."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "So one more after this."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Damage on Rage isn't as big as the combo, only 19LP for 6 over. Still just ping."

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 4 damage dice: <3 5 6 7> for 1 success.

Brian [to Aidan]: He's incapacitated now, but just before you do that...

<<DICE>> Brian rolls 20 dice: <1 2 2 2 2 2 3 5 6 6 8 8 8 8 8 8 9 10 10 10> for 13 successes.

Brian [to Aidan]: Roll Essence + willpower vs. a difficulty of 6.

<<DICE>> Aidan rolls 11 dice: <2 4 4 4 7 7 7 9 9 9 10> for 8 successes.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "My Essence is *strong*."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Ah, well. It would have been nice, but apparently no go. Anyway, he's incapacitated. Are you going to kill him, or let him live? You can abort the last attack if you want."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "I don't really see any purpose in letting him live, and he'd have a pretty solid chance of killing me if I let him get his strength back. Not going to abort."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "What was the Essence + Willpower roll for? Out of curiosity."

<<OOC>> Brian says "Cup-shaping attack."

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Ah."

Brian [to Aidan]: There's no reason to roll for your last attack; he -has- no defense after that one. I'm going to assume you don't botch; that would suck. Instead, as your fist passes into his sternum right behind the sun-sharp blades of your Talons, he looks up you and smiles beatifically one last time, saying, "Perfect. We -will- meet again, Exalt!" before dissolving completely into water and disappearing entirely... weapons and all.

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Nifty."

Brian [to Aidan]: Over the next few days, you meditate, soaking in the unchanneled Solar essence from the uncapped Demesne. It -does- require avoidance of mutation, but with the defeat of the Fantastic Nemesis Prince, the place seems less angry. It's also less WET, but that is only an arguable improvement-- there's not even the -sensation- of wetness to cut the dry, blistering heat. Nevertheless you survive, unmutated-- save that your essence opens in a flowering. But before you go, you do find something at the very center of the demesne, surrounded by a (tasteful) altar of bones...

Brian [to Aidan]: A sphere. Crackling and whirling with energy within, covered in crystalline flames where lights within dance and play. The flames coil about the sphere, ever-frozen like a serpent in frost, and within, black and red war for dominance. The energies clash and fight, bolts piercing between them as the violence continues. And sometimes, just sometimes, the head of a dragon rises from within... the familiar, feathered, -mad- head of Swan Dragon. Though you've only seen that form once, it's unforgettable...

Brian [to Aidan]: Are you going to take the sphere home with you?

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Assuming I can do so without breaking it or having it asplode, yes."

Brian [to Aidan]: Yup, seems to carry fine!

<<OOC>> Aidan says "Definitely."

Brian [to Aidan]: Congratulations, you have Essence 5! Now is the time on sprockets when we cut scene until tomorrow.