Editing WotGZHBLoresheet

== The Weapons of the Gods – a Zaijian Honey Blues Episode Lore Sheet! ==

'''Destiny Cost''': (Waivered – part of the Destiny reward for this episode!)

'''Study Difficulty''': blarg

''There is blackness. 

There is silence. 

And then, the sound of a dry wind on stone and rock. The picture clears to a vague vision of mountains, like the dry peaks of western Zhen Zhou City. 

A voice speaks - it is also dry, cracked, ancient - but with an undercurrent of stability and power: 

"These are the four Yugas, the stages of the world - following on one another and repeating themselves in endless cycles." 

In the distance, a flash of light - the sound of metal on metal. 

"There is the '''Satya Yuga''', when the world is virtuous. Knowledge and meditation brings strength and vitality." 

We pass by a series of half-buried ruins - the wind howls as it tears through the empty holes of doorways and where windows used to be. The sounds are getting stronger, and a vague heavy-bass rumble is added to it. 

"There is the '''Treta Yuga''', in which we see the first rise of evil and the seeds of conflict sown. This is where Ravana, he who you know as the Enchanted Demon, rose to oppose the world. There are other tales, too." 

We are moving faster now - zooming in and out between natural mountain pillars, moving toward the light. The ground rumbles. Lightning flashes. The strikes of metal on metal are getting louder, more resounding, 

"From there, we move into the '''Dvapara Yuga''', where truth is broken and the first lies are spoken. The divine intellect no longer guides the world, and through lies ailments and illnesses plague the earth. The knowledge of the wise ones is fracturing, succumbing to the maws of entropy - they are no longer All-Enlightened, but only in possesion of bits and pieces of sutras. The whole is known to none, and priceless knowledge is lost and buried." 

The pillars separate like an ephemeral curtain - a second passes before we become aware of the fact that they are simply blown away, scattered like dust by a shockwave tearing through the mountains. Before us, a valley - no, a crater, buries down through the mountain, and balanced on two remaining outcroppings of rock, two shapes are fighting. The sounds of their weapons clashing resounds through the mountains, cutting through stone and scattering it like dust. 

"And then... then comes the '''Kali Yuga'''. This is the time of strife, and of conflict - knowledge is a rare and precious thing, and enlightenment the farthest from the minds of humanity."

Swords clash again - one of them almost sings as its´ crystalline edge dances through the air, the other growls as its´ serrated edge tears through it. Azure light clashes with the bubbling radiance of fire, of magma, of blood. 

"This is the time when the world is destroyed." 

And then, there is darkness.''

'''[The Weapons of the Gods: discussion]'''

In times past, Zhen Zhou City was almost destroyed as the Wulin waged war upon itself – brother turned upon brother in a mad bid for Tiger Soul, the weapon of incomparable destruction, and Heaven´s Crystal, the Monk-King Blade.
As the city burned and the excesses of the mightiest threatened to call down Heaven´s fury on the world, some of the most insightful scholars and mystics of the crumbling age gathered together to seek the wisdom of the ancient Sanskrit sutras. With the help of powerful mystics from faraway Bharat, where Tripitaka once travelled to gain the wisdom of the perfected Buddha, they came up with a way to stop the Time of Chaos – to cull the destruction caused by the Kali Yuga by putting the God-Weapons to sleep.
The solution was not perfect, because the turning of the world can not be stopped – like damming up a flood, you only strengthen the potential onslaught. Still, the world prevailed – over the course of a Lunar month, the God-Weapons withdrew into themselves, seemingly turning into mundane weapons or objects; by strange twists of fate, they tended to slip out of the hands of the heroes who still wanted to keep their hold on them.

Not all weapons were affected, though – the spell was not perfect, and there is always an element of untamed chaos to manipulations of nature. Some weapons were preserved by scholars who wanted to use their power for order or their own, shadowy goals. Some simply escaped the spell, like how water runs of a goose´s feathers.

All in all, though, the age of god-weapons had ended. The accomplishments of the Wulin now had to rely on superior Kung Fu.
Until now.

In the Year of the Black Crow, the spell is shattered.

=== [The Awakened Weapons: discussion] ===

Some weapons grow in power. As they cut through the world in the hands of their owners, they gain a powerful Destiny of their own. Some are higher-ranked weapons who simply made a partial awakening – like slumbering giants, they opened one eye before fully rused into wakefulness (or similarly, were only sent halfway asleep, once upon a time). Some seem to find the divine spark through the heroic Deeds of their wielders. Perhaps, like all true warriors, they simply thrive by conflict.

'''Secrets of Destiny: Awakened Weapons
'''

'''5 Victory''': Your weapon grows in power, or casts off its´ half-awakened shell to release the true power within! This allows you to pay the inbetween cost between the current Class and the next one, making a Class III weapon into a Class II, or even a Class II weapon coming into the enormous power of a Class I! It is not possible to raise a Class I weapon any higher.

'''(-2)''' If you buy this immediately while gaining an appropriate Deed (as per discussion between you and the Sage), you can sacrifice the Deed to make the transition cheaper; your glorious heroics directly feeds the ascension of your weapon!

'''(-2)''' You don´t get to pick the powers or stats added to the weapon; this is entirely up to the Sage´s discretion.

'''1 Fortune''': once per game (and weapon, with the Sage´s discretion), your God-Weapon goes through a complete metamorphosis – finding its´ true Destiny, it warps into a more thematically appropriate form. This allows you to create a new God-Weapon of the same Class out of the old one, and pick an appropriate new permutation of its´ name.

=== [The Gods of the Weapons: discussion] ===

The higher the rank of a God-Weapon, the stronger the spark of divinity within; while Class III weapons are “merely” the finest weapons to spring from the ingenuity of man, the higher-ranked weapons are gifts from Heaven (or, in the case of the Weapons of the Devils, the Thousand Hells) itself. An object touched by such great powers can´t help but develop a soul
of its´ own. These souls are the Weapon-Gods, the Sword-Souls, the Awakened Weapons. Reflections of the weapon in question, its´ powers and destiny, their knowledge and powers are impressive. Their personalities and personal appearance are incredibly varied, but always connected to the weapon that is both their home and the essence of their beings.
These Gods can serve as mentors, allies and sages for their wielders – in some cases, they have taught powerful Kung Fu connected to their weapon. In others, they have simply facilitated personal growth. For yet others, the relationship has turned near-adversial or simply apathetic; a weapon and its´ wielder do not always harmonize.

'''Secrets of Destiny: The Gods of the Weapons'''

'''1 Fortune''': Your weapon goes through its´ Second Awakening, and the Weapon-God comes into existence! You can communicate with the weapon, but gain no special privileges out of this without further options.

'''3+ Fortune''': Your Weapon-God becomes a Mentor, with all the usual perks, as the God teaches you how to enter the Edge-Realm within the weapon.

'''(Variable) Victory''': Your Weapon-Mentor reveals to you the secrets of your weapon´s ultimate Kung Fu! Write the Lore for the Style – your character gains the Lore for free. It has the unique Restriction “(Unique God-Weapon) only”, which gives you 3 points. (Note: variable costs for Uncommon/Rare styles, and this should map to Weapon Class as well. Common/Uncommon for Class III, Uncommon for Class II, Rare for Class I? Too rigid?)

'''5 Discovery''': Your God hates your guts! Gain the Hated by God Flaw, and gain a bonus Destiny whenever it messes up your life. (needs details)
'''(-5)''': This is your first or second Disadvantage.

=== [The Legacy of the Blind Sages: discussion] ===

The Great Sealing, the Daoist spell which lulled the God-Weapons into sleep and prevented Zhen Zhou City from being laid to waste by Tiger Soul, has been maintained throughout the ages by the elusive society known as the Forty-Six Blind Sages. It was named after the initial Scholars who performed the spell and who metaphorically closed their eyes – as the ages passed, there were considerably more than forty-six, but as the new Time of Chaos nears they have suffered misfortune after misfortune and is now very few in number. One of the last ones who maintained the vigil was the slum lord Blind Fox, who recently fell in battle against a lieutenant of the Black Crow King!

'''Secrets of Destiny: [[Blind Fox]]'''

As the Time of Chaos drew near, Blind Fox suspected that he, too, would fall – and he tried as best as he could to make up a contingency plan! The Six Phantoms Consortium played an important part in this somehow, as does his adopted daughter, the Black Crane´s [[Red Star Dervish]].

'''*Bonus''': if you are [[Red Star Dervish]], you are [[Blind Fox]]´s last pupil and for better or worse a key part of his plan! You gain an Entangled Destiny with his Legacy!

'''3 Victory''': After being made aware of your legacy, you ascend as the true leader of the Six Phantoms Consortium! This grants you Status 3: Leader of the Six Phantoms Consortium as well as the equivalent of Followers 3 (Ten Gang-level followers).

'''(-3)''': Unfortunately, the gang has been targeted by Blind Fox´s enemies, and are fated to be destroyed before the end of this episode! When this happens, you lose your Status and Followers as well as the friends that you grew up with. You also immediately gain a point of Transcendent Destiny as your world crumbles.

'''1 Entangled Destiny''': Your Destiny will, during the course of this episode, touch that of the newly awakened Class III God-Weapon Thousand-Form Sun.

'''4 Victory''': After an epic struggle, you obtain [[Thousand-Form Sun]], who has chosen you as its´ new wielder.

'''* Bonus''': If you are [[Red Star Dervish]], you gain Blind Fox´s murderer as your hated Enemy!

'''0 Discovery''': The murderer is [[Dog Brother]], the insidious Courtier who is destined to wield the God-Weapon [[Stinging Iron Wasp]].

'''0 Discovery''': The murderer is [[Fat Cobra]], the powerful Warrior who is destined to wield the God-Weapon [[Thousand Hell Furnace]]!

'''0 Discovery''': The murderer is [[Three Smiles]], the Huli Jing Scholar who is destined to wield the God-Weapon [[Fox-Spirit Blade]]!

'''3 Victory''': After facing off with Blind Fox´s murderer for the first time, you get the opportunity to change your entire outlook to match the struggle before you! Should you so choose, you can change your Archetype and re-create your entire character sheet from the ground up, subject to Sage oversight.

'''(-1)''': You contribute with a kickass training montage or the like to illustrate this change and growth in Dervish.

'''X Discovery''': Your hated enemy has a closer and more personal bond to you than you could have imagined! ''Some sort of appropriate Chi Condition goes here.''

=== [The God-Forms: discussion] ===

Some Wulin considered putting your trust in the God-Weapons to be a moral failure. Some considered true mastery to be a mastery of internal rather than external force. Yet others feared being unarmed and in a position of weakness! Is it then so odd that some of them went to great lengths to strengthen their Kung Fu Forms by study of the Chi of the God-Weapons, seeking to emulate their power within their own bodies?

The foremost master of this lost Kung Fu was the Warrior-Scholar First Rank '''Dragon Saint Kun''', who was relentless in her search for the hidden power of the Internal Weapons. She travelled Zhen Zhou and beyond – finding lost secrets, bartering for them or simply slaying those who jealously protected them!

The result of her studies was the creation of the '''Jade Crucible''' – an artefact whose form have been lost to memory, but who is claimed to be a reflection of the Million Style Manual – an instrument with which you translate the power of God-Weapons into Internal Forms that can be learned by masters! In essence, Dragon Saint Kun could wield a weapon in her soul.

'''Secrets of Destiny : The Jade Crucible'''

'''3 Entangled Destiny''': Your Destiny will touch that of the [[Jade Crucible]] soon enough, as the Rite of Sealing crumbles.

'''(-3)''': You are [[Thrice-Radiant Ping]].

'''10 Victory''': You manage to pierce the secrets of the Hidden Scrolls and discover the location of the [[Jade Crucible]]!

'''(-5)''': Unfortunately, there are others who have come to the same conclusions – whether by spying or you or by parallel research! Getting to actually use the crucible will not be easy!

'''* Bonus''': After finding the Crucible, you gain the Lore Sheet: Weapons of the Soul for free.

'''(-5)''': (''Only available to [[Thrice-Radiant Ping]]''): You arrive to the conclusion that the God-Forms are simply yet another trap for the imperfect warrior! Showing your contempt for such a pathetic attempt to tempt you away from the path of self-reliance, you destroy the Crucible! This immediately gains you 3 points of Transcendent Destiny, and forever bars your access to God-Forms. The strong walk alone, and the road is tough.