Janne Walks-The-Sky

A_New_Beginning

• Janne Walks-The-Sky

• Caste: Dawn Caste Solar Exalted

• Concept: Divinely Inspired Warrior-Leader

Motivation

• (TBD)

Intimacies

Natural

Positive

• Anata (attachment, free)
• The sick / helpless (protective sympathy)
• Girl-on-girl (very yes)

Anima

Janne adds +4 to DV, regardless of the opponent's Valor. Mortals and normal animals automatically flee in terror if they attempt to oppose her. Heroic mortals and demons of the first circle (and non-noble fair folk) may avoid fleeing if they succeed at a Valor roll with a difficulty of 4. Otherwise, as per normal.

Attributes

Physical

• Strength 5 (12)
• Dexterity 5 (8)
• Stamina 1 (4)

Social

• Charisma 5
• Manipulation 1
• Appearance 3

Mental

• Perception 5
• Intelligence 1
• Wits 1

Abilities

Caste

• Melee 5 (Swords +3) (1.5 BP)
• War 5 (Tactics +3) (1.5 BP)

Favored

• Performance 5 (Solo Performances +3) (1.5 BP)
• Presence 5 (Persuasion +3) (1.5 BP)
• Integrity 5 (Against Essence Channellers +3) (1.5 BP)
• Resistance 5 (In Combat +3) (1.5 BP)

• Medicine 5
• Occult 5 (5 BP)

• Athletics 5 (Combat Mobility +3) (6.5 BP)
• Awareness 5 (Vision +3) (6.5 BP)

Unfavored

• Linguistics 1 (1 BP)
• Sail 1 (1 BP)

Backgrounds

The Sword From The Stone (Artifact 5)

This ornate daiklave is named for its origins in the Primordial War, when a Solar Exalt of the Dawn Caste pulled it from a vast boulder, and by doing so, cemented his right to lead the Exalted host against the Primordials. Though its bearer was slain swiftly in the opening moves of the Primordial War and the sword thought lost, its mystic link to the Solar's Exaltation ensured that it could always be drawn by the Lawgiver whose soul-shard it was attuned to. The Sword passed from Exalt to Exalt, some of whom favored the blade, others who did not, but in all cases, possession of and attunement to this daiklave was considered official proof of the right to command the Exalted in the Titanomachy.

The Solar Merela was the last person to carry it during the Primordial War, and she kept it on her person as a symbol of the burden of leadership she and all her predecessors had to bear. When she was laid low by the Usurpation, the Sword vanished with her... only to reappear in the hands of Janne's Jomsdottir, when she drew it from the light of her soul to defend her people from harm. Now, it only has a fraction of its former power... but it is still a potent relic of a bygone Age, and none can deny its puissance in a capable wielder's hands.

The Sword from the Stone is an improved base daiklave with the orichalcum magical material bonus. It has two hearthstone sockets and the following statline: Speed 4 Acc +5 Dam 6L Def +3 Rate 4, Keywords: P and costs 8 motes to attune. In addition, it has the following special abilities, most of which must be activated with the expenditure of Essence. It costs 8 motes to attune.

• Edge of Morning Sunlight: The Sword's edge is sharpened by its wielder's focus and dedication. By spending 3 motes, it becomes Holy and adds the wielder's highest Virtue to Accuracy and Damage for the scene.

• Barrier of the Wind King: An ancient blessing by the spirits of air ensure that it strikes with the speed of a gale and the silence of a breeze. By spending 3 motes, the Sword is cloaked by an invisible mass of flowing wind currents, reducing the DVs of anyone who defends against it by 2.

• Man And Sword As One: Without its original scabbard, the Sword of the Stone is sheathed in the soul of its wielder. The bearer may sheath it within her anima for 1 committed mote and draw it by releasing the commitment, both as reflexive actions. The Sword cannot be deattuned, damaged, or disarmed in any way while the owner commits motes to it.

Artifact 5: The Crown Of Thunders

The symbol of the Creation-Ruling Mandate, the Crown of Thunders is not only a potent tool of rulership, but reinforces its wearer to better bear the crushing weight of authority. Janne received it from Little Beam, an agent of the Unconquered Sun, who seemed to have a particular interest in her...

The Crown costs 10m to attune and adds +3 to the wearer's physical Attributes. Janne may spend 10 motes to evoke an aura of awe, which adds 5 dice to all social roll she makes for the scene. While the aura is active, Janne may spend another 10 motes to appear glorious and mighty. Mortals may not attack her and treat her commands as compulsions. Magical beings may resist by comparing their MDVs to her social roll, which gains three bonus successes. This is unnatural mental influence which may be ignored for 2 points of Willpower, after which they become immune for a month and a day.

Artifact 3: Blessing of the Lapis Ewer

Granted to Janne by Dulcet Nightingale of the Cerulean Lute of Harmony, this blessing grants Janne supernal competency in most tasks conforming to that bureau's purview. By spending 3 motes, she can create any tool required for just about any task out of Essence, adding 4 successes to any task requiring fine manipulation which she performs with them. This includes most delicate Craft work, surgery, cooking, and the like.

Artifact 1: Orichalcum Reinforced Breastplate - The White Lily Armor

This suit of armor is crafted to resemble a blossoming Lily when Janne moves in it. Though its only overtly metal components are the vambraces, greaves and chestplate, the luxurious cloth fittings are reinforced through with Essence Silk and orichalcum threads, granting exceptional amounts of protection. It grants 12L/11B/12A soak and 9L/9B Hardness.

Artifact 1: Blessing of the Golden Barque

The Silent Wayfarer of the Golden Barque gave her the blessing of his division to ensure that Janne could travel the long road ahead of her. Essentially, this blessing functions as a set of aegis-inset amulets, reducing the burden of attunement to her armor by 2 motes.

Allies 1: P-chan, the miniature dragon

This little white dragon is about two feet long with approximately the same wingspan. Its man runs down the full length of its sinuous body and it has the habit of nibbling Janne's bits (usually her hair and ears). Pii (or P-chan, as Janne calls him) is generally very friendly and companionable and enjoys curling himself around her body (usually her shoulders, though he sometimes hides in the folds of her armor's skirt).

P-chan is capable of human speech and is generally about as smart as the average person. He and Janne share an empathic link, and since each of them is comfortable around the other, it usually leads to lots of skinship between them.

Merits

Priest

It seems Sol Invictus has favored Janne particularly, because not only is he as receptive to her words as any of her Zenith brethren, she can entreat him to aid her with his miracles - and the Sun will respond. Clearly, Janne is his avenging angel made flesh, and she is the vessel of his absolution and his purgation.

Paragon of Conviction

With her mind steeled by intimate access to the Unconquered Sun's words, Janne's will is rivalled only by similarly monomaniacal deities.

Flaws

Code of Honor

The concept of lying or deception is entirely alien to Janne.

Multiple Personality Disorder

While she used to be a simple fisherman's daughter, Janne's exceptionally close connection to the Unconquered Sun has sparked a form of madness in her - a "crusader" that is entirely separate from her usual meek and docile persona. This "crusader" personality is usually triggered by such situations as the extermination of the wicked by fire and sword - and it manifests her zealous conviction to its inhuman extremes.

Throwback

Of all the past lives Janne's Exaltation has led, the most prominent is that of the Solar queen Merela, the original bearer of the Crown of Thunders and sometimes-lover of the Unconquered Sun. Small wonder that he is so fascinated with Janne. Echoes of her personality still remain on her sun-shard, enough to influence and sometimes dominate Janne's behavior.

Weak-Willed

Janne is not weak-willed in the conventional sense; rather, she struggles with the influence of her past lives and the Sun on her mind, which takes a toll on her mental fortitude.

Charms

Melee

• Melee Excellency Package
• Dipping Swallow Defense
• Bulwark Stance
• Heavenly Guardian Defense

Performance

• Performance Excellency Package
• Heart-Compelling Method

Presence

• Presence Excellency Package

Resistance

• Ox-Body Technique x5 (Free from Resistance)
• Durability of Oak Meditation
• Iron Skin Concentration
• Tiger-Warrior's Endurance

Medicine

• Flawless Diagnosis Technique

Athletics

• Graceful Crane Stance
• Monkey Leap Technique
• Increasing Strength Exercise
• Feather-Foot Technique
• Unparalleled Acumen Meditation

Awareness

• Surprise Anticipation Method

Essence

• Essence: 4 (7 BP)
• Personal: 22/22
• Peripheral: 40/40
• Tiger-Warrior's Endurance: 0/14
• Committed to Charms: 6
• Committed to artifacts: 20
• Willpower: 10/10
• Anima status: Quiescent

Virtues

• Compassion: 2
• Conviction: 6
• Temperance: 1
• Valor: 5
• (Virtue channels used: None)

Limit Break

Heart of Flint

Conflict

Physical

• Join Battle: 9
• Dodge DV: 5 (base 6, -1 mobility penalty)
• Parry DV: 10 (with the Sword From The Stone)
• Soak: 14L/15B/12A (Hardness 9L/9B)

Movement

• Move: 8 (80y horizontal, 40y vertical with MLT)
• Dash: 14

Social

• Join Debate: 9
• Dodge MDV: 11
• Parry MDV: 7

Health Levels

• -0x1 -1x7 -2x12 -4x1 Incapacitated
• (wounds are designated as bashing, lethal or aggravated)

Equipment

• Crown of Thunders
• The Sword From The Stone
• White Lily Armor
• Blessing of the Lapis Ewer
• Blessing of the Golden Barque
• Furs

History

Janne Jomsdottir was once a simple fisherman's daughter, helping her father cast nets as soon as she was strong enough to help on the boats. She learned the prayers to appease the spirits, and even had the good fortune of greeting one of the inlet-gods who protected her village's boats when they went out to sea (he was quite pleased, actually). In addition to the simple trade of fishing, she secretly learned the use of the sword from her big brother, who found it amusing to teach his little sister to fight, and the arts of bonesetting and wound-binding from her mother and sister, who insisted on giving her a proper woman's education, at the very least.

She might well have gone the rest of her life in blissful obscurity had her village not been attacked by a pack of raiders from down the coast. The men had gone out on their boats, which meant the only people in the village to meet the huscarl's axes and swords were women and children. This was not an unusual occurence; the standard procedure was to run away until the raiders lost interest, because there was no way to fight them even with the men on their side.

Except, this time, one person did not run. Janne took up her father's rusty sword and parked herself between the incoming raiders and the fleeing villagefolk. She hadn't really thought it through, of course, but the general idea was that she would buy time for the others to escape with her sacrifice. And it certainly looked like a sacrifice - she was one girl against dozens of hardened warriors, with a sword that was mroe rust that steel and a thin leather tunic for protection against heavy axes, shields and mail coats. But something inside her said she had to stand her ground - that when she learned how to use the sword, she'd accepted the fact that she would have to use it for the good of others. And if protecting her family and village wasn't "the good of others", then she didn't know what counted.

As the first man swung in, she parried well, and even got a good riposte in that, unfortunately, glanced off his armor. She tried for another attack, and it got stuck in his shield. Naturally, her opponent wrenched it away, leaving her weaponless in front of upwards of fifty hostile armsmen. But she didn't run, didn't even consider finding higher ground. The burning desire to stop them all and protect her people burned in her heart, as bright and as fiercely as the golden sunburst on her brow. A shining golden sword filled her empty hand, and when she swung at the man who had disarmed her, the blade cleaved through his shield, his axe, his armor, his body, and out through the other side, dropping the gruesome halves on the frozen ground like a sliced apple. Shocked by the sudden reversal, the other raiders didn't even react to Janne leaping the full fifty yards at their group until she landed like a meteor amidst them, and by that time, it was too late.

It was the raiders who fled back to their ships, willing to risk the certain torture-execution for cowardice rather than face the little slip of a girl glowing with the light of the dawn and holding a sword forged from her soul. Janne systematically slaughtered everyone who had been foolish enough to remain behind, then ran across the surface of the water alongside the ship, practically bisecting it and leaving the luckless raiders to drown under the weight of their heavy mail and weapons.

Then a sudden cry jerked her head up, and she saw the familiar sight of her village's fishing flotilla, returning from their voyage. She began running toward them, eager to tell them what she'd done... when she realised the people aboard were making the signs of warding against her. In that moment, she realised that despite her actions, she had lost her village, in the end. With a heavy heart, she turned away from the people she'd fought so hard to save, bounding across the stormy seas as though she could outrun the despair in her heart...

Janne made her way down south, to warmer climes, fighting in various places and winning the heavy purses wagered against a seeming slip of a girl like herself. Though her days were filled with violence, her nights were filled with visions; visions that led her to an island in the Coral Archipelago, the Oceanic Oasis, where she received gifts and blessings from three spirits who claimed to have been sent to render aid to her by the Unconquered Sun himself. It was then, after taking the surname Walks-The-Sky over her former surname of Jomsdottir, that she began to understand her true nature as a Solar Exalt, and gradually, the dreams began to make more and more sense. This time, they pointed her to a supposedly haunted island, which the seafolk she spoke to claimed was the lair of a sea witch. Janne steeled herself to slay this sorceress... and instead found Anata, her soulbound Lunar mate. What was supposed to have been a bloody battle ended with them tentatively exchanging confidences, and as the Sun and Moon met above them, they knew that they would seek their destiny in each others' company.

Now, the dreams and visions have brought them to other Exalts, Solars and Lunars like themselves. What legends will they tell about their deeds?

Personality

In general, Janne is a kind, determined and brave girl, who's committed to doing the right thing to help "her people", whoever they may be. Sometimes, under stress, she changes in personality and embodies the fire and brimstone more commonly associated with a crusading zealot, using her social Charms to whip her followers into a murderous frenzy and leading the charge into whichever unlucky foes stand in her way.

Janne is still quite confused about her relationship with Anata. The Lunar has been amazingly accommodating of her requests thus far, and Janne is still exploring how far she can push her mate before she can push no further...

XP

• Earned: 0
• Spent: 0
• Unspent: 0