< Dreaming Pearl Style? | Martial Arts | Snake Style >
The deceptive and deadly mantis combines patience with haste. She seems remote, though approachable in her stillness. Her small, precise movements seem too small to warn of any danger. When her prey comes too close, however, the mantis strikes with incredible speed and savage strength. Martial artists who emulate the mantis use small, irregular steps forward, back and side to side to break their opponents rhythm while holding their hands poised, giving no clue when they intend to strike. When the opponent momentarily moves too close and off balance, the Mantis stylist traps him in a dread embrace. Mantis Style includes lightning-fast chops and punches, but its greatest strength lies in blocking attacks and disarming or disabling a foe without killing him. There's plenty of time to slay a helpless foe, if that becomes necessary.
Complimentary Abilities: Brawl Primary, with Athletics as its Secondary Ability. The Grapple Rules are important for Mantis Style.
Weapons and Armor: A Mantis Stylist can fight with any of the normal Unarmed Combat moves, including Striking, Kicking and the Clinch. The style has the Seven-Section Staff and the Tonfa as it's Favored Weapons. Mantis Style may only be practiced in Light Armor with a Mobility Penalty of -1 or less.
Leaping Mantis Technique
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 2, Essence 1; Type: Reflexive Keywords: Combo-OK, Obvious, Reaction Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: None
The character may add his Brawl rating in yards to his Move and Dash rates, and to his base vertical jumping distance, until his next action. This charm can also be used prior to the start of combat as a Reaction, adding the character's Brawl score to her Join Battle dice pool and raising her Dodge DV by 2 until her first action, but only if the character moves or leaps toward her opponent and thereby takes advantage of the unexpected burst of activity.
Iron-Arm Block
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 3, Essence 1; Type: Reflexive (Step 2) Keywords: Combo-OK Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: None
The character takes the defensive stance of a mantis. From this position, she can add her Brawl score directly to Parry DV for one action and may parry lethal attacks unarmed without a stunt. She also reduces the DV penalty caused by taking any non-movement action by 1 (min 0).
Mantis Form
Cost: 6m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Simple (Speed 3) Keywords: Form-type Duration: One scene Prerequisite Charms: Leaping Mantis Technique, Iron-Arm Block
The character adopts the stance of a mantis, keeping her legs bent and her center of gravity low as she watches her enemy with unfeeling disregard. In this posture, she adds her Essence to her (Manipulation + Socialize) total to resist the Read Motivation action, or any similar attempt to read her intentions or divine anything about her actions. When calculating her Bashing and Lethal soak values, add her Brawl to her Stamina. She inflicts lethal damage with her unarmed attacks, and may parry lethal attacks while barehanded without a stunt. Finally, so long as she fights either barehanded or with one of this styles favored weapons, she does not suffer onslaught penalties to her DV.
Sudden Raptorial Onslaught
Cost: 5m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Extra Action Keywords: Combo-OK Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Mantis Form
The stylist weaves constantly from left to right, waiting for an opening, and when that opening presents itself... This Charm produces a magical flurry of two Attack actions each of which produces an Onslaught Penalty of -2. If the stylist's last action was Aim, the character's Onslaught Penalty becomes a general Defense Value penalty against the attack that provoked it but provides no other benefit. Neither attack takes multiple action penalties, and the flurry's DV penalty is equal to only the highest penalty for either of the attacks. This charm may only be used unarmed, and cannot be used on two consecutive actions.
Flying Mantis Kick:
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 2; Type: Reflexive (Step 1) Keywords: Combo-OK Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Sudden Raptorial Onslaught
The stylist bounds away with a tremendous flying kick! This charm can be used with an Attack action to make an unarmed Kick attack, or in a flurry of such actions, allowing the Exalt to make a single reflexive Jump along with her other actions. The Exalt's kick replaces its normal Defense Modifier with a +2, and increases its base damage modifier by the character's Brawl. The reflexive Jump is resolved identically to the Jump action; it thus imposes a -1 DV penalty. If any kind of Athletics roll is needed to make the jump or land successfully, the Stylist gains his Athletics in bonus dice to that roll. Finally, if this Charm is used during a flurry or in a combo with an Extra Action charm, the stylist may kick anyone along the length of their jump or a single target multiple times. Anyone required to make a Knockdown check makes the roll at difficulty 3, 4 if the Stylist literally leaped onto him.
Cannibalistic Enlightenment Methodology
Cost: --; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Permanent Keywords: Training Duration: N/a Prerequisite Charms: Flying Mantis Kick
After the Mantis has taken everything necessary from her partner, that unfortunate is then devoured. A stylist mimics this behavior, viewing every fight as an opportunity to emerge victorious and thus "devour" her opponent.
After an actual battle or a competitive match in which the stylist is the victor, the Exalt may spend experience points as a Training effect to learn additional dots in Brawl, a Brawl Specialty, or Martial Arts Charms of either Mantis Style or a Style practiced by her opponent during their bout. If learning Martial Arts Charms, the Stylist must meet all Minimum Prerequisites. You can only use this charm after a victory; a draw or a loss gains the Stylist nothing. You also cannot benefit from this charm if you are already in experience point debt.
Joint-Locking Technique:
Cost: 2m; Mins: Martial Arts 4, Essence 2; Type: Simple Keywords: Combo-Basic, Clinch(Hold) Duration: Clinch Prerequisite Charms: Mantis Form
The Stylist puts his opponent into a painful lock, maintaining effortless control through a combination of leverage and pain without otherwise harming his opponent. This charm may be activated when the character is choosing a Clinch Option after a successful roll to control a clinch. This option does no damage to the target, but gives the held target a External Penalty to rolls to control the clinch equal to the character's Essence rating. This penalty lasts as long as the essence is kept committed and the Stylist maintains control of the Clinch.
In addition, while the charms remains in effect the Stylist is not denied the use of his Defense Values and may take a Move action that doesn't involve a Jump irregardless of his Strength. This charm instantly terminates if the character loses control of the Clinch or takes a Clinch Option other than Hold, Move, or Wrench.
Joint-Disabling Attack
Cost: 4m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 2; Type: Simple Keywords: Combo-Basic, Clinch(Wrench), Crippling Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Joint-Locking Technique
The Stylist twists one of her target's limbs painfully out of alignment. This Charm may be activated when the character is choosing a Clinch Option after a successful roll to control a clinch. Instead of inflicting damage normally, the character rolls a number of dice equal to his Brawl rating regardless of the subject's Soak or Hardness. Each success gives the target a -1 internal penalty to all rolls and every two points reduces his Parry DV pool by 1. This is a crippling effect that lasts for the remainder of the scene.
Another character may attempt to remove this penalty with two Miscellaneous actions (Speed 6, -2 DV) and a pair of successful (Intelligence + Medicine) rolls at difficulty 1. This treatment renders the patient Inactive. This charm is also exceedingly painful; the target suffers a -1 internal penalty from pain. This is not cumulative with the first penalty but applies even if the target is immune to Crippling effects or no successes are rolled.
Crushing Claw Technique
Cost: 4m, 1wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 3; Type: Reflexive(Step 9) Keywords: Combo-OK, Counterattack Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Joint-Disabling Technique
Anyone who attacks the Mantis must beware of its embrace. This Charm may be activated in response to any close combat attack, and provides an unarmed ([Strength or Dexterity] + Brawl) counterattack in the form of an attempt to initiate a grapple. This counterattack may be defended against normally, though the defender may not respond grapple of his own in response. If the stylist's grapple succeeds, he may take an immediate Control Option but is limited to Wrench, Throw or Hold. This charm has no effect on the initial attack it was invoked in response to, are compared normally to the opponent's defenses, but any additional attacks in a flurry are automatically reduced to 0 dice before charm bonuses.
Unfolding Retribution Stance
Cost: 7m, 2wp; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 4; Type: Reflexive (Step 9) Keywords: Combo-OK, Compulsion, Reaction Duration: (Brawl) actions Prerequisite Charms: Cannibalistic Enlightenment Methodology, Crushing Claw Technique
One of the darker Charms in Martial Arts, Unfolding Retribution Stance acquired a bad reputation during First Age for it's use in the duels and tournaments of the Exalted. In the time prior to the Usurpation, many Solars used this charm outside of the battlefield or the tournament, but instead in day to day life to punish subordinates.
This Charm may be activated outside of Combat as a Reaction, and if used such the character automatically matches the combat's Reaction Count and the stylist explicitly acts before anyone else on Tick 0 who is not using a similar effect. In or out of combat, When activating this charm, the character must name a singular opponent whom she is focused upon. Every action she takes must be toward that opponent's end, though she is permitted to act with her full intelligence and cunning while seeking this end.
Until that opponent lay broken at the character's feet, the stylist receives a number of special bonuses.
After the duration of this charm ends, the character must pay two willpower to allow the charm's duration to lapse if she hasn't yet finished with her named opponent. This counts as resisting a Compulsion effect, and is only possible after the charm's duration runs out. If the character is not yet ready to yield, he may pay 7m to renew the charm duration for another (Brawl) actions. These motes are not committed, nor are any motes released from commitment at this point. This is not a charm activation.
Once the named opponent lay beaten at the character's feet, the character is compelled to perform a Coup De Grace prior to the charm's ending. This doesn't cost any willpower to resist, if the character is inclined to spare his opponent, but the character gains one limit if he does not finish off his hated opponent. In either case, the charm then ends.
Grasping Claw Method
Cost: 3m; Mins: Martial Arts 5, Essence 2; Type: Simple (Speed 4, DV -2) Keywords: Combo-OK, Secret Duration: Instant Prerequisite Charms: Mantis Form
The character can snatch weapons from an opponent's hands in combat. This charm is a Disarm Called Shot, as outlined on page 158 of the Corebook, with the following changes to the system. First, the character's unarmed attack roll takes no external penalty from the called shot and in fact gets one bonus success. If the disarming attack is successful the target's (Wits + appropriate wielding Ability) roll suffers an internal penalty equal to the Stylists' Brawl rating and is against a Difficulty of the excess successes on the attack roll. The stylist may reflexively place his foot on the weapon, kick it across the room or otherwise render it harder for his opponent to retrieve on his next action. If the stylist has sufficient hands free, he may instead reflexively ready the weapon.
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