Note the structure, and then note the modification shown here:
Contemporary dramas increasingly use the fall to increase the relative height of the climax and dramatic impact (melodrama). The protagonist reaches up but falls and succumbs to his doubts, fears, and limitations. Arguably, the negative climax occurs when he has an epiphany and encounters his greatest fear or loses something important. This loss gives him the courage to take on another obstacle. This confrontation becomes the classic climax.
The fall after the climax leads to a greater climax.
I mention all this b/c it is pertinent to our exalted game. We have basically been playing through all of these stages in each of our stories. But the game as a whole also plays out in this manner. We have been, to this point, playing somewhere in between the Exposition and the Rising Action phase. We could continue this phase indefinitely, but it would not benefit the story, nor would it provide much in the way of entertainment.
Rather than continue with the current phase, I propose that we cut scene, and move to the next part of our play, somewhere between the rising action and the first climax.
Last edited by rydi on Mon Apr 22, 2013 9:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
A year passes, with Wonderfalls growing, and the protagonists pursuing their own intersts. But in the meantime...
The First and Forsaken Lion has martialed his troops, and renewed his alliance with Eye and Seven Despairs, who provided the FaFL with much needed necrotech and soulsteel. The Eye even provided a few deathknights of his own (several were given back to him over the year, after he proved himself useful in various ways...), adding to the already impressive forces assembled at the southern border of creation.
With his forces amassed, the FaFL suddenly struck, sweeping across the South like a wildfire. The conquest of the entire south took place in a matter of weeks. Before the rest of creation could even react, the conquest was complete.
The FaFL's attack was the straw that broke the damn, so to speak. The various forces across creation that had been holding back, awaiting the right time to make their move, suddenly had their hand forced.
The Bhodisatva Anointed By Dark Water sent his great fleet out into the waters of the West, claiming the entire northwestern region of creation.
The Mask of Winters expanded his territory out, moving further south and placing a buffer between the East and the South, taking control of the beleaguered Harborhead, and allying with (the Deathlord whose shadowlland is between Harborhead and Thorns).
The Yozis, observing the chaos, saw their opportunity. They martialed their Akuma in the far east, calling even on their most powerful servants, the Lunars they enslaved centuries ago. The Yozis ordered them to muster the societies they had been shaping for the past centuries, and to send them to claim the East for their demon masters. The hordes swept over the East, crashing into Wonderfalls, Nexus and the other kingdoms of the center-east like a wave upon a great wall.
A separate host of demon blooded and Infernals claimed the broken city of Denandsor as their new base of operations for the region. They then reinforced the area, and began work on repairing the area in hopes of claiming its factory cathedrals and manses for their own.
The final reaction was the grandest however. Seeing the destruction of the natural order of Creation, the making of a new Hell, the Ebon Dragon struck. With an escort of countless demons, demonbloods, and akuma, along with an honor guard of the mightiest infernal exalts, the Ebon Dragon sent his bride into creation before entering it himself. Changed, but still in control of the greatest weapon in creation, the Empress sent her image out across the realm... And ordered her descendants to follow the orders of the Ebon Dragon. Backed by powerful dynasty charms that pulled most at the those with the strongest ties to the Empress herself, the great houses fell to her will.
Only those of weak blood, such as House Nellens and the remains of House Tepet, resisted her for long. Those of pure intent, such as Cathak, and those who refused to submit to a will not their own, such as Mnemon, were able to resist for a time, but eventually their own houses turned against them... Their fates are currently unknown.
In the span of a season, Creation was at the whim of its former masters. The Yozis and the Neverborn had the majority of Creation in chains. Only a few points of light remained to resist them.
The Wonderfalls Republic, with its many exalted, well trained troops, and factory cathedral, was a bastion of safety in dark times. But could it last, with its trade dwindling, and its people constantly beleaguered by guerrilla fighters?
Nexus was also, ironically, a bastion of safety. Its many essence weilders and exalts allowed it to resist the ravages of the infernal hosts, and its denizens came together, presenting a united front. But now that the siege has set in, how long will it be until the city eats itself?
The Bull of the North saw his dream realized, the Realm was defeated. But it was a victory that tasted like ashes in his mouth, a victory that left creation burning away, and all hope for the future lost. The Bull had found his true enemy, and he would do whatever he had to in order to see that enemy destroyed. When the Tepet came north, the Bull welcomed them with open arms. When the Haslanti League begged for his protection, he gave it to them. Now he amasses his forces for what may be the final war for creation. But will his zeal be a boon to creation, or help bring its final destruction.
Heaven scrambled to adjust to what was occuring. Meru fell, and the bronze faction retreated, with only a few casualties. The gold faction lost their stronghold as well, the Cult of the Illuminated in the South falling after a protracted battle against the FaFL's forces; their losses were heavier, with many solars defeated and the gold faction sidereals retreating to heaven. When they reached Yu Shan, a great meeting was called, and the sidereals put a final end to the factionalism and infighting that had paralyzed them for the last several millenia. But would it be enough, or simply too little, too late? And would the curse again strike them, sabotaging their plans before they could even be laid?
The silver pact came together once again, but with many of their members killed by surprise attacks from infernals and their own lunar akuma brethren, the Pact was only a shadow of what it once was. Many forged nomadic bands, and are now wandering across the edges of creation, slipping in and out of the wyld to avoid notice, while the strongest of them mass their forces for final, suicidal strikes against their foes.
Stray or newly exalted Solars, Lunars and Sidereals roam the land, aiding the innocent and fighting the horrors that stalk the land, but the dangers of the wyld hunt have only grown greater. The Infernals and Abyssals assist in the hunts, and would like nothing more than to have new exalts to experiment upon. Will their heroism give faith to the fearful masses, or will it all be in vain?
So. Please add to this, those with ideas for what is going on. If I missed something, or if there is something cool worth adding, please do so.
Also, prepare to discuss (or post) what you are doing with your year of down time.
We will distribute xp as a group, and will come up with details on what happens to Wonderfalls in the downtime.
I may have scheduling difficulties next week however...
Also, the xp breakdown so far:
5 Backgrounds (4+ requires group approval)
2 1-dot skills
3 specialties (max 2 in one spot)
15xp on atts and virtues
35 on combos/skills/essence/will
5 Favored Charms
1 non-favored charm
rydi wrote:The Mask of Winters expanded his territory out, moving further south and placing a buffer between the East and the South, taking control of the beleaguered Harborhead, and allying with (the Deathlord whose shadowlland is between Harborhead and Thorns).
As a note this shadowland (the field of woe I think? something like that, the really long one) is nominally claimed by the Eye and Seven Despairs, but the Mask of Winters has canonically been making forays into the area since his conquest of Thorns.
Unfortunately he's strongly tied to the Dynasty by blood. On the upshot he's probably Essence 6+, has at least 4 generations from the Empress (he's the grandson of Ragara, who was the Empress's child), Earth Aspected, and a fuckin' MA machine.
The question really becomes something more like this:
Does he explode when he learns the first charm of SMA. If yes, he died an unforutnate and bloody death. Aizan lights some incense in his memory every year. If no, he probably either self-initiated himself as a new Gaian Exalt and escaped the horrible fate of Yozi domination or otherwise was disciplined enough to be able to ignore the influence (Earth Aspects favor Integrity, plus he's a monk) and escape the island, probably with Bronze faction assistance.
OK, a couple things, I think that Fallen Petal would approach us or perhaps send an emmisary, after everything has gone down or perhaps as things are going to Hell. He has fought us and has seen personally what we have built with the Wonderfalls Republic, so I think that he would view us as a way to correct some of this shit, and might even aid us in getting the backing of Heaven.
One of the things that I personally am going to do is to go out to the areas where uncorrupted Lunars and Beastmen are habitating and I am going to lead them back to Wonderfalls (assuming that they would go), in order to increase the number of Exalts that we have or can call upon, if nothing else take down their names so that if we have to use an infallable messenger in order to contact them we can.
We need to work on making ourselves self-reliant before we begin expanding out. By that I mean we need to find ways to meet the physical needs of all of our people without the need for trade or at least without the need to rely soley on trade. So set up farming communes and hunter tribes/groups. We should also have begun to implement our super-soldier plan with all the jade that we have and should have continued to mine Orichalcum.
I don't know what we can do to deal with this, but of utmost concern I think is the Defense Grid. All of our plans will mean nothing if we end up getting blasted by that damned thing.
Something that hasn't been discussed at all is the Wyld....what is going on with the Raksha and the Fair Folk now that basically all the edges of Creation have been taken over by very bad things. How are we going to take our troops into the Wyld in order to mutate them, or would it be better at this point to attempt to build a Desmense whose mutation effects is to turn inhabitants into giants....
It is considerably faster to just haul them out to the Wyld. Considering that both the Yozi and the Neverborn fucking hate the Fair Folk, I think its fair to assume that they'll do their part to keep them the hell out of Creation (so that we don't have to deal with them). :P
It would take a few years living within the demance before it would mutate you. Let alone the time it would take to make a demance that would increase the size of things living in it.
Being self sufficient on food shouldn't be a problem. The Hundred Kingdom area is alot like the midwest of the US. The land is perfect to grow crops and herd animals on.
Out there somewhere there is a Tarrasque eating delicious epic corn waiting to start a journey...
The area is already self-sufficient from a food and water and most materials point of view. Luxuries are the main thing they don't produce natively.
Also, Adam is right, actually creating and using a demense for this purpose is impractical because of the extreme time investment involved. It is -much- easier to just haul them out to the Wyld for a week or two.
