< Wood Dragon Style? | Martial Arts | Dreaming Pearl Style? >
Many have envied the monkey, who benefits from many of the advantages of a humanoid form while lacking the many complications that weigh down humanity. This style was developed early in the First Age, and is designed to enhance a simpler and more direct view on the world, divorced of both the complexities of deep thought and worries about etiquette or "fair play". Practitioners of this style were renowned as hopelessly dirty fighters, with no compunctions against any effective tactic, and indeed who are perfectly content to smile like a madman while engaging in the most unfair tactics imaginable.
This style is mostly practiced among Lunars, and the newly returned Solar Exalted.
Complimentary Abilities: Brawl Primary, with Dexterity as it's Secondary Ability. Lunars reverse these.
Weapons and Armor: Until the stylist learns Celestial Godbody Understanding, this is an unarmed only style that uses strikes and kicks that forbids armor.
Monkey Tail Distraction Technique
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1; Type: Simple Keywords: Combo-OK, Reaction Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: None
The monkey's every movement is unexpected, for who can know what she might do next? This charm can only be used before combat starts, and allows the stylist to make an unarmed attack using her normal traits. Unless the target of this attack can make a reflexive (Perception + Awareness) roll with a difficulty equal to the stylist's Essence rating, this attack is unexpected and can only be defended against with charms that function against such.
If the attack was unexpected, and either incapacitated or killed its target, the monkey can return instantly to a relaxed poise. With any other outcome, everyone involved must immediately Join Battle and the stylist receives no especial bonus or penalty to such rolls from this charm.
Flowing Mirror of Opposition
Cost: 1m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1; Type: Reflexive (Step 1 or 2) Keywords: Combo-OK Duration: Special Prerequisite Charms: Monkey Tail Distraction Technique
The monkey doesn't care about etiquette, only effectiveness. When using this Charm, the stylist becomes a very frustrating opponent. He must choose a single target when activating this charm, moving toward that opponent and remaining in his face for the duration of the Charm. Until the two separate, the chosen target suffers an internal penalty to all Attacks equal to the bonuses granted by her weapon's Accuracy and any specialties she has with its use. She also raises the Speed of her attacks by 1 (max 7). If the target takes a move action, the stylist reflexively matches it, but a jump or dash immediately ends this charm unless the character can follow her that very instant.
Withering Paw Strike
Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 2; Type: Supplemental Keywords: Combo-OK, Crippling Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Monkey Tail Distraction Technique
The monkey grabs hold of a limb, and twists, showing no satisfaction at the sound of torn muscle and popping ligaments. This Charm supplements a Called Shot to a target's arm or leg, negating the external penalty and enhancing the effects. On any successful attack, a struck leg causes knockdown and requires a (Dexterity + Athletics) roll on the victims next action to regain his footing, while a struck arm sends anything in that hand flying (Martial Arts) yards away or allows the Stylist to take it for herself. If two levels of damage are inflicted, the limb is disabled (Exalted, p. 152) for the scene as a Crippling effect.
Celestial Monkey Form
Cost: 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Simple (Speed 4) Keywords: Form-type, Social Duration: One scene Prerequisite Charms: Flowing Mirror of Opposition, Withering Paw Strike
The stylist centers himself and falls into a state of careless confidence referred to by practitioners as the Selfless Mind. All outside concerns fall to the wayside, while the Martial Artist quiets all her emotions and inner drives and brings them under her control. The end effect is profoundly relaxing, tremendously liberating, and brings a blissful smile to the Stylists' face in any situation.
For the rest of the scene, the Exalt need not make virtue tests and can freely channel Willpower through any virtue so long as the action she enhances is not inimical to the virtue channeled. She is also immune to all forms of natural mental influence while maintaining the Selfless Mind, regardless of compatibility with the character's motivations or intimacies. This does not mean that the Stylist shuts up for even a second; lower the Speed of the Banter and Taunt actions by 1, and increase the Rate of all Social Attacks by 1 in Social Combat. The Martial Artist remains vulnerable to Unnatural Mental Influence.
Body of War Meditation
Cost: --; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 2; Type: Permanent Keywords: Training Duration: N/a Prerequisite Charms: Celestial Monkey Form
The stylist learns an exercise regiment and meditative technique that hones the body and sharpens the mind. This charm permanently enhances the character, allowing him to raise any of his Physical Attributes or his Willpower as a Training effect. This requires seven hours a day of meditation and exercise, for (Current Rating) days, and he cannot have any outstanding experience point debt when he begins training. The stylist must also maintain a controlled diet while training and while he retains any experience debt from this charm. Many stylists maintain this diet even when not in training, and after three months this gains them a Resistance Specialty, "Good Diet x3", which does not stack with existing specialties.
These techniques may be used to regain lost dots of Strength, Dexterity, Stamina or Willpower whether these were lost as a Crippling effect. This function costs no experience points, but takes the usual amount of time. As a final benefit, an Exalt with this charm may raise his Physical Attributes one dot higher than the natural limit imposed by his Essence. A second purchase of this charm at Essence 5 raises this limit by another dot. Thus, an Exalt with two purchases of this charm can raise his Physical Attributes to 7 or higher while only Essence 5.
Ten-Thousand Footsteps Preparation
Cost: --; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Permanent Keywords: None Duration: N/a Prerequisite Charms: Celestial Monkey Form
Every warrior has a weakness; it's just a matter of finding it and using it against him. Monkey can become anything he needs to in order to defeat his opponent. In order to benefit from this charm, the Exalt must watch her target fight for a scene, or have just fought or sparred with him herself. After this requirement is met the stylist may spend 1 willpower and take three consecutive Simple actions to gain an artificial "(Opponent x1)" specialty. Multiple scenes can stack this up to "(Opponent) x3", or allow observation of another target, but the stylist can never have more specialties than her Essence rating.
On any roll to which the stylist could apply this specialty, double the dice bonus (but not the actual level) of any stunt made to enhance unarmed Martial Arts actions. The character need not actually use her artificial specialty to gain this bonus. This artificial specialty wears off over time. If more than a month passes without the Martial Artist either observing it's target in combat or actually fighting her, reduce the Specialty by one level. Should the specialties target learn a new Martial Arts style or otherwise greatly alter his fighting technique, the character loses the specialty outright. Such a change is possible even in the middle of combat but the changes must be extreme, and feature something that the Exalt hasn't seen yet.
This charm also permanently enhances Celestial Monkey Form; whenever the character is under the effects of that charm she may convert the dice bonus for a stunt into automatic successes, provided the stunt involves fighting dirty, taking advantage of a weakness or the use of unsportsmanlike techniques. If the stunt succeeds the character has already received the rewards of his cheap trick, and gains nothing further.
Birth From Stone Technique
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive (Step 2) Keywords: Combo-OK Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Ten-Thousand Footsteps Preparation
The Monkey performs ten-thousand impossible things before lunch; what matter is one more? This charm is activated in response to an attack, and removes all automatic successes granted by charms or magic. This has no effect on rolled successes from a dice pool, even dice granted by charms. In addition, with a stunt explaining how he accomplishes this feat, the stylist may use this charm to remove the Unblockable tag from an attack and compare the rolled successes to his unarmed Parry DV. If the attack does not normally involve a roll, this invokes a roll-off.
An Exalt with Mastery of Celestial Monkey Style may purchase this charm a second time as charm with the Secret keyword. This permanently upgrades Birth From Stone Technique such that it provides a unarmed parry that perfectly defends against any attack, though a stunt is still required to block unblockable attacks. If so upgraded, this Charm gains one of the Flaws of Invulnerability.
Stryck Wiki