Scion: Deities and Demigods
Aug 10, 2018 12:26:55 GMT -6
Post by Traskus on Aug 10, 2018 12:26:55 GMT -6
Scions of alternate pantheons are found here.
Before the Dragons, before the Syrne, before even other gods, were the Dead Gods. The Dead Gods were various pantheons of gods that lived and died countless eons ago, perpetuating themselves to the best of their ability after overthrowing a force even more ancient than themselves. Their only legacy -nay, their only evidence for existence- are the Scions. To see a Scion is unmistakable: they are epic. They are an exaggeration of everything in the living condition to the point of reaching legend. They are bigger, stronger, smarter, more arrogant, more impatient, everything is simply more. Scions overshadow every mortal, and even some exalts at times. Their presence is suffocating, and they have powerful egos.
Scions come in a variety of forms. They are progeny, Chosen, and avatars for all that is left of these dead gods. Most Scions are the surviving Chosen and children of the Dead Gods, simply wandering the Wheel watching empires rise and fall. Most Scions are ancient, but there are ways to find a young one: the Dead Gods turned into an essence when they died out and occasionally bind themselves to newborns. Those newborns are accompanied by celestial phenomena relevant to the god whose essence bound to them.
Scions no longer have orders but they do sometimes have goals. One Scion recently served a young woman's champion in a tournament to the death. The most common activity Scions partake in is influencing the worlds they visit. They clear mountain ranges so that cities may be built there, they redirect rivers to make agriculture easier, they even teach primitive species the art of making and using tools. They work behind-the-scenes, even when founding cities directly. They once tried to convert people to the Dead Gods, but now know there is no point. They simply act now because they know it's what their patron would want.
To be a Scion is to be alone. Not physically, but emotionally. Scions were once the manifestation of divine will like a Chosen. Now, they are merely wandering forces of nature.
Static Powers
Divine Stature: A Scion's base size and static defense are increased by 1 each. Scions are immune to blood loss. When a Scion's blood is spilled, it sprouts random plant life wherever it falls.
Hubris: Whenever the Scion fails a test they spent an ichor on, they suffer a check on the next 1 + Divinity tests they make.
Olympic Games: The Scion has a specialty (Competition) in Acrobatics, Athletics, and Brawl and can go up to 6 dots in these skills.
Scionic Techniques: The Scion gains a free rank in any magic school or sword school of their choice, and can advance it as part of their class. A Scion adds their Divinity as a static bonus to attack rolls on martial techniques using advantages from the school chosen and focus power tests from the school they chose.
Tell: When a Scion spends ichor, their body starts to lose its color and softness. As more ichor is spent, they appear more and more like statues made of stone or metal.
Power Stat: Divinity
The Divinity of an Scion is increased as the power of a Dead God grows inside them. They become larger than life, an exaggeration of everything in the living condition. Longer hair, more pronounced muscle definition, exaggerated gestures, and thinner skins all par for the course.
Resource Stat: Ichor
A Scion's maximum ichor equals Divinity + Charisma +3. Their full ichor pool is restored by sacrificing an animal of at least size 3 that the Scion killed either on a specially constructed pyre or an altar. This may only be done once per day, and takes five minutes.
Divinity | Power Gained
α. Legendary Charisma: The Scion's Charisma-based rolls have a static bonus equal to the amount of ichor they have.
β. Aegis: The Scion reduces damage from all sources by their Divinity.
γ. Animal Shape: The Scion gains the Wild Shape and Improved Wild Shape feats. They need not look like a natural animal, mixing and matching features as they see fit. They can also cast the Disguise spell using Divinity in place of the spell school rank. Doing so poses no risk of triggering Perils of the Warp (if rolled, it triggers Warp Madness instead).
δ. Bone of Pelops: The Scion's right arm/s has/have the properties of an artifact bionic arm of choice. Their power stats can go up to 6.
ε. Divine Presence: For one scene per session, the Scion may add 1 dot to each Power characteristic and Aegis reduces twice as much damage.
Scion Drachma Assets
Scions: Mighty and Powerful Gods
Scion Physical Features:
Scions are epic; an exaggeration. They are taller, prettier, and more sculpted than other members of their race much like a statue. They have longer hair, more pronounced features, and often unnatural eye colors for their race. Scions are often mistaken for a race somewhat larger than their own, but this is relatively simple to discern. A human Scion is as tall as an Aasimar, but is still built and proportioned like a human.
Scions dress in a variety of garb and grooming, mostly in reference a culture that worshiped their god. Scions have no care for modern fashions unless they actually find them appealing. In formal settings they often wear gold adornments.
Scion Tells:
A Scion's tell is subtle at first. Their tell first begins as a tension in the Scion's skin. As they spend ichor, their body loses all softness and their eyes begin to glow their native color. Eventually, the Scion turns into a statue of stone, metal, or even water. It has no showy imagery nor a too-subtle call for attention. It is merely a statement, "I am a Scion, and I am exercising my power."
Becoming a Scion:
Scions used to be born or made, but that time has long past. They are now born or self-made. A newborn is imbued with the free-floating essence of a dead god and grows quickly to become a fine specimen of their race in most modern cases. This is accompanied with a celestial body undergoing phenomena. Venus is in retrograde, Phobos is at apogee and Deimos is at perigee, the sun undergoes solar maximum, etc.
There is one other way that other Scions have disclosed, however. They say that if you find and perform an offering at an altar of a Dead God, the free-floating essence of that god will bind to the performer. They also say this is no easy task: altars to these gods rarely survived to the modern day. The oldest Scions agree there is a shortcut, but no one who knows is willing to say.
Playing a Scion:
A Scion is a person who cannot relate to others. They will never fit in, but are seldom run out. When playing a Scion, keep this in mind. Do what you believe to be the right thing, even if it makes you enemies. Do not ever allow a slight against you to go unpunished. Do not retaliate, escalate.
The largest hurdle to playing a Scion is alignment. This is an explicit mechanic that no one can opt out of, and has been brought up as a fault in this exaltation. It's easy to cop out and pick unaligned, but a relatively more acceptable to select a god whose purview is related to the Dead God a Scion comes from. Luna is a good choice for most nature gods, where Khorne would love to have a Bloodshed Scion.
The oldest Scions come from cultures before the Syrne, lost to time. There are only so many left, but they have a wealth of knowledge. They have lived through cultures and empires. When playing one of these great old ones, think of things that no longer exist. Try nostalgia on a geologic time scale. Ask for extinct animals as food, reminisce on how that canyon was once a river.
When selecting a class, choose one that makes use of the skills and characteristics a Scion exemplifies. This brand of Scion is offensive, and should be classed as such. Fighter, monk, and magic user are good choices for their emphasis on Strength, Charisma, and Intelligence. Legendary Charisma allows a Scion to be a general like none other. Alternatively, choose classes that have a timelessness to them. Martial classes are common, because war never changes. Things like clerics, mechanics, and diplomats are built on fleeting things like language and religion, things that Scions know come and go. Bards are also strangely a good choice, owing to the near-timeless nature of music.
Scions in Game:
Scions present a plethora of adventure opportunities from the get-go. Old Scions have been around so long and so many places that they can remember a lot of things, though imperfectly enough for there to be conflict with how much things have changed. They could have founded a city long ago that has grown into a horrible force they feel guilty for starting or is in trouble and they want to help it. New Scions most likely want to get in touch with the source of their power, which presents opportunity for smaller adventures to journey into uncharted territory.
When multiple players are playing Scions, compare and contrast. If they come from the same pantheon, they might be working together for a common goal. If they come from different pantheons, they might argue or politely compete to determine which is the best at what they do.
There are about 12 Scions per Crystal Sphere in the Wheel, and about one is born every ten years in a Crystal Sphere.
Scion Culture:
Scions are usually solitary, but they can instantly pick each other out in a crowd. They gather together to exchange information and put on shows for crowds. Scions often form their own petty pantheons together, shaping the course of history, culture, and even geography of the places they visit. They often take shelter in churches that accept them. Failing that, abandoned buildings. Scions are as accepted as any force of nature. At first they are a source of stimulation and novelty for people, but eventually they grow suffocating and overwhelming to be around.
Adapting Scions:
Scions are a rather varied bunch as it is, but things can be done to adapt them. They can be petty gods or spirits of nature, completely divorced from a near-setting-breaking cosmology. They can be an alternate form of Chosen, falling under an established god but made for a specific task. Like paragons, you can refluff them as some sort of evolutionary throwback or ultimate life form if you don't think about animal shape too hard.
Before the Dragons, before the Syrne, before even other gods, were the Dead Gods. The Dead Gods were various pantheons of gods that lived and died countless eons ago, perpetuating themselves to the best of their ability after overthrowing a force even more ancient than themselves. Their only legacy -nay, their only evidence for existence- are the Scions. To see a Scion is unmistakable: they are epic. They are an exaggeration of everything in the living condition to the point of reaching legend. They are bigger, stronger, smarter, more arrogant, more impatient, everything is simply more. Scions overshadow every mortal, and even some exalts at times. Their presence is suffocating, and they have powerful egos.
Scions come in a variety of forms. They are progeny, Chosen, and avatars for all that is left of these dead gods. Most Scions are the surviving Chosen and children of the Dead Gods, simply wandering the Wheel watching empires rise and fall. Most Scions are ancient, but there are ways to find a young one: the Dead Gods turned into an essence when they died out and occasionally bind themselves to newborns. Those newborns are accompanied by celestial phenomena relevant to the god whose essence bound to them.
Scions no longer have orders but they do sometimes have goals. One Scion recently served a young woman's champion in a tournament to the death. The most common activity Scions partake in is influencing the worlds they visit. They clear mountain ranges so that cities may be built there, they redirect rivers to make agriculture easier, they even teach primitive species the art of making and using tools. They work behind-the-scenes, even when founding cities directly. They once tried to convert people to the Dead Gods, but now know there is no point. They simply act now because they know it's what their patron would want.
To be a Scion is to be alone. Not physically, but emotionally. Scions were once the manifestation of divine will like a Chosen. Now, they are merely wandering forces of nature.
Static Powers
Divine Stature: A Scion's base size and static defense are increased by 1 each. Scions are immune to blood loss. When a Scion's blood is spilled, it sprouts random plant life wherever it falls.
Hubris: Whenever the Scion fails a test they spent an ichor on, they suffer a check on the next 1 + Divinity tests they make.
Olympic Games: The Scion has a specialty (Competition) in Acrobatics, Athletics, and Brawl and can go up to 6 dots in these skills.
Scionic Techniques: The Scion gains a free rank in any magic school or sword school of their choice, and can advance it as part of their class. A Scion adds their Divinity as a static bonus to attack rolls on martial techniques using advantages from the school chosen and focus power tests from the school they chose.
Tell: When a Scion spends ichor, their body starts to lose its color and softness. As more ichor is spent, they appear more and more like statues made of stone or metal.
Power Stat: Divinity
The Divinity of an Scion is increased as the power of a Dead God grows inside them. They become larger than life, an exaggeration of everything in the living condition. Longer hair, more pronounced muscle definition, exaggerated gestures, and thinner skins all par for the course.
Resource Stat: Ichor
A Scion's maximum ichor equals Divinity + Charisma +3. Their full ichor pool is restored by sacrificing an animal of at least size 3 that the Scion killed either on a specially constructed pyre or an altar. This may only be done once per day, and takes five minutes.
Divinity | Power Gained
α. Legendary Charisma: The Scion's Charisma-based rolls have a static bonus equal to the amount of ichor they have.
β. Aegis: The Scion reduces damage from all sources by their Divinity.
γ. Animal Shape: The Scion gains the Wild Shape and Improved Wild Shape feats. They need not look like a natural animal, mixing and matching features as they see fit. They can also cast the Disguise spell using Divinity in place of the spell school rank. Doing so poses no risk of triggering Perils of the Warp (if rolled, it triggers Warp Madness instead).
δ. Bone of Pelops: The Scion's right arm/s has/have the properties of an artifact bionic arm of choice. Their power stats can go up to 6.
ε. Divine Presence: For one scene per session, the Scion may add 1 dot to each Power characteristic and Aegis reduces twice as much damage.
Scion Drachma Assets
Drachma of Agriculture
You abduct and marry a woman's daughter and suddenly I'm the bad guy. The Scion can spend an ichor to give up to 1 acre of plants vibrant life to the point of bearing crop, no matter the state they were in before. Ignore difficult terrain resultant of plant life.
Drachma of Bloodshed
The god of bloodshed was alternately one of brutal rage or martial prowess. It depends on the author. You may spend an ichor to increase your brawl, weaponry, and strength by 1 until the end of the scene.
Drachma of the Forge
The Craftsman worked day and night for the other gods, and even Salamanders will find it hard to keep up with you now. Crafts tests benefit from Legendary Charisma. The Scion may spend an ichor to add their Divinity in rolled dice for Crafts tests. The Scion may spend a hero point to use a Crafts test in place of a Wealth test.
Drachma of the Home
This goddess dressed strangely, but she was kind enough to offer her seat at a table for an unexpected guest before anyone else. The Scion may start a small fire at will, as long as a fire could possibly exist. As long as The Scion is indoors, the regenerative abilities of themselves and allies in the same building double in speed.
Drachma of the Hunt
Not as much a moon goddess as Luna, she used the moon's light to hunt. The Scion gains a best-quality bow with the Composite quality and generic artifact qualities. The Scion cannot lose this bow. The Scion can spend an ichor to gain five silver arrows.
Drachma of the King of Gods
Once ruler of the universe, this god had no superego. Just one giant ego and an even bigger id. The Scion's tell makes them look like tin. The Scion is immune to stunning and their status is increased by 1. The Scion may spend an ichor to grant the shocking property to a successful attack.
Drachma of Love
This goddess could scarcely make up her mind, but she married a good man. The Scion gains the appearance and dangerous beauty assets. The Scion's Charm and Persuasion rolls benefit from Legendary Charisma. The Scion's tell makes them look like copper.
Drachma of Medicine
According to this god, "medicine" was getting you rip-roaring drunk and drilling a hole in your skull. His actual techniques are better. The Scion may spend an ichor to add half their Divinity (rounding up) to rolled dice for Healing spells they cast. All ordinary ranged weapons the Scion uses have the toxic property.
Drachma of Merriment
You thought it was the god of tee-totaling, but it was I, Dionysus! The Scion gains a dot in Perform, which can go up to 6 and can be used with Legendary Charisma. The Scion can refill any beverage container as long as the beverage it contained was alcoholic. The Scion also gains the Decadence feat.
Drachma of Messengers
Messengers are strangely upbeat at all times. Some say that's just their disposition, others say it's mercury poisoning. The Scion's base speed is increased by their Divinity and is immune to fatigue from Fleet of Foot. The Scion's tell makes them look like liquid metal.
Drachma of the Queen of Gods
It's considered good luck to get married during this goddess' month, but her marriage was a disaster from beginning to end... The Scion can control the weather. The Scion may alter the weather (overcast, temperature, precipitation, wind, etc.) in the local area for the next 24 hours by spending an ichor as long as the effects do not become actively hazardous.
Drachma of Seas
Insert "Aquaman is useless" joke here. The Scion can spend an ichor create fresh or salt water anywhere, no matter how unlikely. It fills any container indoors and creates a natural water source at ground level outdoors. The Scion can verbally communicate with non-sapient marine life.
Drachma of Strategy
A more long-term military mind, you have gained the powers of a master strategist. The Scion gains a free dot and specialty (Strategy) in Academic Lore and Command. The Scion may buy the skill focus (any mental) feat once per class level as though it were part of her class.
Drachma of the Underworld
You've gained the power of a god who, while not the nicest guy around, has been literally demonized time and again. The Scion's wealth strain rolls are reduced by their half their divinity +1 to a minimum of 1. The Scion can cast Speak With Dead, using their level in place of a Necromancy rank. If psychic phenomena is triggered, it automatically causes Warp Ghosts.
You abduct and marry a woman's daughter and suddenly I'm the bad guy. The Scion can spend an ichor to give up to 1 acre of plants vibrant life to the point of bearing crop, no matter the state they were in before. Ignore difficult terrain resultant of plant life.
Drachma of Bloodshed
The god of bloodshed was alternately one of brutal rage or martial prowess. It depends on the author. You may spend an ichor to increase your brawl, weaponry, and strength by 1 until the end of the scene.
Drachma of the Forge
The Craftsman worked day and night for the other gods, and even Salamanders will find it hard to keep up with you now. Crafts tests benefit from Legendary Charisma. The Scion may spend an ichor to add their Divinity in rolled dice for Crafts tests. The Scion may spend a hero point to use a Crafts test in place of a Wealth test.
Drachma of the Home
This goddess dressed strangely, but she was kind enough to offer her seat at a table for an unexpected guest before anyone else. The Scion may start a small fire at will, as long as a fire could possibly exist. As long as The Scion is indoors, the regenerative abilities of themselves and allies in the same building double in speed.
Drachma of the Hunt
Not as much a moon goddess as Luna, she used the moon's light to hunt. The Scion gains a best-quality bow with the Composite quality and generic artifact qualities. The Scion cannot lose this bow. The Scion can spend an ichor to gain five silver arrows.
Drachma of the King of Gods
Once ruler of the universe, this god had no superego. Just one giant ego and an even bigger id. The Scion's tell makes them look like tin. The Scion is immune to stunning and their status is increased by 1. The Scion may spend an ichor to grant the shocking property to a successful attack.
Drachma of Love
This goddess could scarcely make up her mind, but she married a good man. The Scion gains the appearance and dangerous beauty assets. The Scion's Charm and Persuasion rolls benefit from Legendary Charisma. The Scion's tell makes them look like copper.
Drachma of Medicine
According to this god, "medicine" was getting you rip-roaring drunk and drilling a hole in your skull. His actual techniques are better. The Scion may spend an ichor to add half their Divinity (rounding up) to rolled dice for Healing spells they cast. All ordinary ranged weapons the Scion uses have the toxic property.
Drachma of Merriment
You thought it was the god of tee-totaling, but it was I, Dionysus! The Scion gains a dot in Perform, which can go up to 6 and can be used with Legendary Charisma. The Scion can refill any beverage container as long as the beverage it contained was alcoholic. The Scion also gains the Decadence feat.
Drachma of Messengers
Messengers are strangely upbeat at all times. Some say that's just their disposition, others say it's mercury poisoning. The Scion's base speed is increased by their Divinity and is immune to fatigue from Fleet of Foot. The Scion's tell makes them look like liquid metal.
Drachma of the Queen of Gods
It's considered good luck to get married during this goddess' month, but her marriage was a disaster from beginning to end... The Scion can control the weather. The Scion may alter the weather (overcast, temperature, precipitation, wind, etc.) in the local area for the next 24 hours by spending an ichor as long as the effects do not become actively hazardous.
Drachma of Seas
Insert "Aquaman is useless" joke here. The Scion can spend an ichor create fresh or salt water anywhere, no matter how unlikely. It fills any container indoors and creates a natural water source at ground level outdoors. The Scion can verbally communicate with non-sapient marine life.
Drachma of Strategy
A more long-term military mind, you have gained the powers of a master strategist. The Scion gains a free dot and specialty (Strategy) in Academic Lore and Command. The Scion may buy the skill focus (any mental) feat once per class level as though it were part of her class.
Drachma of the Underworld
You've gained the power of a god who, while not the nicest guy around, has been literally demonized time and again. The Scion's wealth strain rolls are reduced by their half their divinity +1 to a minimum of 1. The Scion can cast Speak With Dead, using their level in place of a Necromancy rank. If psychic phenomena is triggered, it automatically causes Warp Ghosts.
Scions: Mighty and Powerful Gods
Scion Physical Features:
Scions are epic; an exaggeration. They are taller, prettier, and more sculpted than other members of their race much like a statue. They have longer hair, more pronounced features, and often unnatural eye colors for their race. Scions are often mistaken for a race somewhat larger than their own, but this is relatively simple to discern. A human Scion is as tall as an Aasimar, but is still built and proportioned like a human.
Scions dress in a variety of garb and grooming, mostly in reference a culture that worshiped their god. Scions have no care for modern fashions unless they actually find them appealing. In formal settings they often wear gold adornments.
Scion Tells:
A Scion's tell is subtle at first. Their tell first begins as a tension in the Scion's skin. As they spend ichor, their body loses all softness and their eyes begin to glow their native color. Eventually, the Scion turns into a statue of stone, metal, or even water. It has no showy imagery nor a too-subtle call for attention. It is merely a statement, "I am a Scion, and I am exercising my power."
Becoming a Scion:
Scions used to be born or made, but that time has long past. They are now born or self-made. A newborn is imbued with the free-floating essence of a dead god and grows quickly to become a fine specimen of their race in most modern cases. This is accompanied with a celestial body undergoing phenomena. Venus is in retrograde, Phobos is at apogee and Deimos is at perigee, the sun undergoes solar maximum, etc.
There is one other way that other Scions have disclosed, however. They say that if you find and perform an offering at an altar of a Dead God, the free-floating essence of that god will bind to the performer. They also say this is no easy task: altars to these gods rarely survived to the modern day. The oldest Scions agree there is a shortcut, but no one who knows is willing to say.
Playing a Scion:
A Scion is a person who cannot relate to others. They will never fit in, but are seldom run out. When playing a Scion, keep this in mind. Do what you believe to be the right thing, even if it makes you enemies. Do not ever allow a slight against you to go unpunished. Do not retaliate, escalate.
The largest hurdle to playing a Scion is alignment. This is an explicit mechanic that no one can opt out of, and has been brought up as a fault in this exaltation. It's easy to cop out and pick unaligned, but a relatively more acceptable to select a god whose purview is related to the Dead God a Scion comes from. Luna is a good choice for most nature gods, where Khorne would love to have a Bloodshed Scion.
The oldest Scions come from cultures before the Syrne, lost to time. There are only so many left, but they have a wealth of knowledge. They have lived through cultures and empires. When playing one of these great old ones, think of things that no longer exist. Try nostalgia on a geologic time scale. Ask for extinct animals as food, reminisce on how that canyon was once a river.
When selecting a class, choose one that makes use of the skills and characteristics a Scion exemplifies. This brand of Scion is offensive, and should be classed as such. Fighter, monk, and magic user are good choices for their emphasis on Strength, Charisma, and Intelligence. Legendary Charisma allows a Scion to be a general like none other. Alternatively, choose classes that have a timelessness to them. Martial classes are common, because war never changes. Things like clerics, mechanics, and diplomats are built on fleeting things like language and religion, things that Scions know come and go. Bards are also strangely a good choice, owing to the near-timeless nature of music.
Scions in Game:
Scions present a plethora of adventure opportunities from the get-go. Old Scions have been around so long and so many places that they can remember a lot of things, though imperfectly enough for there to be conflict with how much things have changed. They could have founded a city long ago that has grown into a horrible force they feel guilty for starting or is in trouble and they want to help it. New Scions most likely want to get in touch with the source of their power, which presents opportunity for smaller adventures to journey into uncharted territory.
When multiple players are playing Scions, compare and contrast. If they come from the same pantheon, they might be working together for a common goal. If they come from different pantheons, they might argue or politely compete to determine which is the best at what they do.
There are about 12 Scions per Crystal Sphere in the Wheel, and about one is born every ten years in a Crystal Sphere.
Scion Culture:
Scions are usually solitary, but they can instantly pick each other out in a crowd. They gather together to exchange information and put on shows for crowds. Scions often form their own petty pantheons together, shaping the course of history, culture, and even geography of the places they visit. They often take shelter in churches that accept them. Failing that, abandoned buildings. Scions are as accepted as any force of nature. At first they are a source of stimulation and novelty for people, but eventually they grow suffocating and overwhelming to be around.
Adapting Scions:
Scions are a rather varied bunch as it is, but things can be done to adapt them. They can be petty gods or spirits of nature, completely divorced from a near-setting-breaking cosmology. They can be an alternate form of Chosen, falling under an established god but made for a specific task. Like paragons, you can refluff them as some sort of evolutionary throwback or ultimate life form if you don't think about animal shape too hard.
