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Message: <blockquote data-quote="grymn" data-source="post: 4500627" data-attributes="member: 18354">DevBlog 002 - Immortals, Guardians & Sentinels...Oh, My!Welcome back for another round of the Sands of Destiny DevBlog. Its been quite a struggle to write this one, as I live in central Ohio. For those of you unaware, we were hit by some of the leftover weather from Hurricane Ike. It was in the form of a unusually strong wind storm that pretty much wiped out power for the majority of the state. There were around 378,000 people out in my county, alone. Luckily I had a handful of candles I had been dying to burn. I did end up having to throw out all the groceris I bought the day it all happened. Although my own "hardship" doesn't compare to what those in Galveston,TX went through, it was still a rough time. After the power was back on, my cable (and thus my trusty broadband internet) was out, leaving me cut off from the world wide web. I went through technology withdrawal and ended up going to see lots of movies, as the theatre is within walking distance. There was also a tenacious little squirrel that held onto a tree brach through the storm, only to be blown into the next yard. He came back. I think he nawed through my cable lines...the little bugger. Anyways, enough talk of hurricane weather in Ohio. Last time I mentioned Immortals and Legacies. Here goes. One of the biggest influences that I've had since day one for this setting is the wuxia genre. They're the high flying magical martial arts of movies such as Storm Riders, Hero, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and The Legend of Zu. Ever since I was a kid, I've always enjoyed the genre. In fact, the history and culture of China (especially ancient china) has always intrigued me. The creation myth of the world draws heavily on Chinese mythology. Where is this going you might ask? Well, the Immortals and Legacies. Underneath the fiction coating, the Immortals are heavily influenced by Chinese culture. They are the oldest civilization in the setting, coming well before any of the other character races. The Five Elements of Chinese mythology are woven into their culture and the world itself. A wandering Immortal is very akin to the wandering swordsman of a wuxia epic, in fact. The Legacies are pretty much their version of magical Kung Fu powers and styles. Now, you might be thinking that their name, Immortal, implies that they may be a broken character race. They do live for ever....thematically. In game, immortality translates to a few racial traits and abilities. A example abilities: Immortal Body: The immortal chi within conceals all injures. You are not considered bloodied by your opponents.You do not trigger powers that target bloodied opponents. Knowledge of Ages: Immortals have lived for countless lifetimes and have accumulated a vast wealth of knowledge. You can select a single skill as a minor action and grant it a +2 bonus until your next extended rest. After an extended rest, your Knowdged of Ages fades and is availble to re-use. Immortal Breath: You can use Immortal Breath as an encounter power. Immortal Breath Racial PowerYou call upon the immortal chi within yourself to mend your body.Encounter (Special) ~ Chi, HealingMinor Action PersonalTrigger: You must be bloodied.Effect: You may spend a healing surge to heal yourself.Special: You can use this power a number of times per day equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum 1), but only once per round. In addition to the above, Immortals are not as "Immortal" as the once were. In ancient times, they were trully immortal: immune to aging, disease, and trauma (also know as weapon-to-head syndrome). When a large group of Immortals conspired with a large number of Dragons against the gods (The Dragon-Immortal War) they lost full luxury of true immortality in the aftermath (along with near-destruction of the world and existance as they knew it). In the current times, they are still immortal. If they die, they will eventually revive if their body is protected. This process can take anywhere from 3 to 12 months. Rituals and magical items can speed this process up. If the immortal's body is destroyed, however, they will reform at the Five Pillars of Destiny (the pillars are for a later discussion). In fact, a whole city has sprung up around the base of the Pillars and an industry geared towards catering to and aiding reformed immortals thrives there. There are also some circumstances that will destroy an immortal permantly (certain monsters, rituals and items).  The next thing I want to talk about a bit are Legacies. They are the amazing powers of the ancient immortals. These powers are a birthright and gift, given to immortals by the heavens. At least thats how it was back then. Nowadays, most of these powers have been lost to the pages of history with only a select few who still retain the knowledge of the varied ancient styles: Guardians and Sentinels. In 4th Edition terms, Legacies are powered from the Qi Power source. Many of you know of it by the name Chi. This is the supernal flow of energies that make up all of existance. The powers of the legacies are known as Techniques. See the similarities to wuxia? Its there, trust me. Legacy powers are categorized a little bit differently than those of other classes. They are not necessarily tied to a class. They are grouped into Heroic Styles, Paragon Styles, and Epic Styles. Guardians and Sentinels (two new classes in the Prime Codex) both have access to these styles, as do characters who choose to take Legacy feats. Guardians and Sentinels are unique classes in that they are only available to Immortal characters...with an exception. Non-immortals can trick the Legacies into accepting them by being Graved by an Immortal. This process consists of an Immortal taking a part of his own Qi flow and graving a bond into the flesh of a non-immortal (like a tattoo or brand). This graving grants the non-immmortal the ability to access the Qi within themselves and mold it into Legacy powers and abilities. What this means is that the non-immortal can access classes, powers, feats, etc as if they were an Immortal. There is a downside to this process: you become a scion of the Immortal who graved you. Now, while most Immortals are honorable and respectful of their scions...there are some twisted Immortals aligned to the darkness who will use scions as tools and puppets to exert their will. In my next DevBlog I hope to go into the Legacy Powers and the Legacy-Tech from the setting. I also want to shed a bit of light on our method of bolstering the core D&D classes as well. See you next time.</blockquote>

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