Post by Gaea on Jul 28, 2013 2:12:03 GMT -8
Taguel channel their power through Beaststones, which are a representation of their bestial side. While in human form, Taguel only gain half the bonus from their stones, but can channel power to reinforce their body and limbs, allowing them to block weapons while unarmed and tap into their unnatural abilities. They can transform into their Beast form, which can be anything from the animal itself to a hybrid, loosely humanoid but clearly inhuman. While Taguel with Beast forms with appropriate limbs can still wield weapons and magic unlocked via Mastery, they do so without the offensive benefits otherwise offered by their stones - it is unnatural for beings so in tune with nature. As such, attacks using their Beaststone are generally more powerful; Rabbit Taguel can kick with tremendous force, while Bear Taguel often have truly impressive strength.
Beaststones initially offer +10 total to your stats. Beaststone+ and Beaststone++, available at the shop for a modest fee, allow you to boost those caps to a total of 40 and 80 respectively. Taguel can buy Melee Skills normally from shops, and can access weapon/magic Skills if they have the appropriate Mastery and own a weapon of that type.
Taguel Species
All Taguel fall into one of five general families, which are further divided into Tribes. Some - though far from all - Taguel identify with a specific subspecies within that Tribe, but most simply think of themselves as "bear Taguel" or "rabbit Taguel" without any interest in how else they could possibly be identified.
Feline Taguel (Cat tribe): lions, tigers, leopards, etc.
Canine Taguel (Wolf/Fox/Hound Tribes): dogs, foxes, wolves, etc.
Ursine Taguel (Bear Tribe): grizzlies, black bears, polar bears, etc.
Leporine Taguel (Rabbit Tribe): cottontails, hares, Amami, etc.
Avian Taguel (Bird tribe): ravens, hawks, eagles, etc. All avian Taguel are weak to Wind magic.
Overdrive
The distinction between human and monster is far more present in Taguel than in any other race - where both forms of a dragon are simply different reflections of the same soul, Taguel tap into a more primal and bestial side of themselves to transform, trading a degree of humanity for power. Normally this is purely temporary, but by throwing aside their humanity willingly they can access even greater power, becoming in some ways eerily similar to the monsters they face.
Overdrive is a state in which the Taguel's focus and clarity are dramatically amplified, doubt and weakness purged from their psyche. Instinctual but intelligent, this mode removes their ability to speak, as well as dampening or removing emotion entirely for the duration, in return for reducing all cooldowns by one and granting them significant power (+20 stats from beaststone). It follows the rules of a Buff skill, including duration and cooldown. It may have longer-term effects on characterization in-RP, but this is an optional and purely RP-based effect, described in detail in the Taguel Lore topic.
Paths
As befits Elibe's avatars of evolution and adaptation, Taguel develop unique abilities as they grow in strength, somewhere in between human skills and natural dragon abilities - any Taguel can learn any of these abilities, though some tribes tend to gravitate towards certain thematically appropriate ones; many bear Taguel end up with Shockwave, for example. Teleporting invisible magic war bears are totally cool though. These abilities are split into four major Paths: the Slayer, the Immortal, the Stalker, and the Vampire. One ability is granted for free at 0 posts, while three more are unlocked at 200, 400, and 600 posts respectively.
Instant abilities have a 4-post default cooldown, but this is reduced at 100, 300, and 500 posts to a 3/2/1-post cooldowns respectively. For skills with a duration instead of an instant effect, they begin with a two-post duration and equivalent cooldown, with duration increasing by two at each breakpoint (100/300/500) while cooldown remains the same. For easier reference, skills will be tagged (Instant) or (Buff) to easily differentiate between the two rulesets. Some will be tagged (Passive) which is eexactly what it says on the tin - they are always on or automatically activate when appropriate, depending on the skill, and may not upgrade at all.
Slayer
Immortal
Stalker
Vampire
Milestones
000 posts: Can assume Beast form, an entirely bestial or hybrid human/beast form representing your tribe's animal. Gain one ability of your choice.
100 posts: Skill improvement breakpoint.
200 posts: Second skill unlocked.
300 posts: Skill improvement breakpoint.
400 posts: Third skill unlocked.
500 posts: Skill improvement breakpoint.
600 posts: Fourth skill unlocked.
Beaststones initially offer +10 total to your stats. Beaststone+ and Beaststone++, available at the shop for a modest fee, allow you to boost those caps to a total of 40 and 80 respectively. Taguel can buy Melee Skills normally from shops, and can access weapon/magic Skills if they have the appropriate Mastery and own a weapon of that type.
Taguel Species
All Taguel fall into one of five general families, which are further divided into Tribes. Some - though far from all - Taguel identify with a specific subspecies within that Tribe, but most simply think of themselves as "bear Taguel" or "rabbit Taguel" without any interest in how else they could possibly be identified.
Feline Taguel (Cat tribe): lions, tigers, leopards, etc.
Canine Taguel (Wolf/Fox/Hound Tribes): dogs, foxes, wolves, etc.
Ursine Taguel (Bear Tribe): grizzlies, black bears, polar bears, etc.
Leporine Taguel (Rabbit Tribe): cottontails, hares, Amami, etc.
Avian Taguel (Bird tribe): ravens, hawks, eagles, etc. All avian Taguel are weak to Wind magic.
Overdrive
The distinction between human and monster is far more present in Taguel than in any other race - where both forms of a dragon are simply different reflections of the same soul, Taguel tap into a more primal and bestial side of themselves to transform, trading a degree of humanity for power. Normally this is purely temporary, but by throwing aside their humanity willingly they can access even greater power, becoming in some ways eerily similar to the monsters they face.
Overdrive is a state in which the Taguel's focus and clarity are dramatically amplified, doubt and weakness purged from their psyche. Instinctual but intelligent, this mode removes their ability to speak, as well as dampening or removing emotion entirely for the duration, in return for reducing all cooldowns by one and granting them significant power (+20 stats from beaststone). It follows the rules of a Buff skill, including duration and cooldown. It may have longer-term effects on characterization in-RP, but this is an optional and purely RP-based effect, described in detail in the Taguel Lore topic.
Paths
As befits Elibe's avatars of evolution and adaptation, Taguel develop unique abilities as they grow in strength, somewhere in between human skills and natural dragon abilities - any Taguel can learn any of these abilities, though some tribes tend to gravitate towards certain thematically appropriate ones; many bear Taguel end up with Shockwave, for example. Teleporting invisible magic war bears are totally cool though. These abilities are split into four major Paths: the Slayer, the Immortal, the Stalker, and the Vampire. One ability is granted for free at 0 posts, while three more are unlocked at 200, 400, and 600 posts respectively.
Instant abilities have a 4-post default cooldown, but this is reduced at 100, 300, and 500 posts to a 3/2/1-post cooldowns respectively. For skills with a duration instead of an instant effect, they begin with a two-post duration and equivalent cooldown, with duration increasing by two at each breakpoint (100/300/500) while cooldown remains the same. For easier reference, skills will be tagged (Instant) or (Buff) to easily differentiate between the two rulesets. Some will be tagged (Passive) which is eexactly what it says on the tin - they are always on or automatically activate when appropriate, depending on the skill, and may not upgrade at all.
Slayer
- Berserk (Buff) - tapping into primal rage, the Taguel gains complete immunity to pain, usually accompanied by some combination of deadly calm, pulsing veins, or an aura of some description.
- Reaver (Buff) - Dedication to hunting one of Elibe's major groups and a familiarity with their magical essence allows the Taguel to cut into the spirit of their target's rather than simply their flesh. Valid targets: dragons, humans, Taguel, monsters.
- Venom (Passive) - While the actual method of injection varies from Taguel to Taguel, and the venom itself can be liquid or magical, the general theme of this ability revolves around weakening an opponent by interfering with their body, magic, or spirit. Pain, damage, weakness, magic dampening, and status afflictions are all possible, but should not be fatal or overpowering. Discuss specifcs with staff.
Immortal
- Regeneration (Passive/Buff/Instant) - there are three different takes on this ability. The passive variant speeds natural healing and renders the Taguel completely immune to natural venoms, but has minimal effect in battle. The buff variant offers [duration] posts of clearly unnatural regeneration, with wounds closing quickly and poison, natural or otherwise, quickly - but not immediately - neutralized or forcefully expelled. The instant variant can regenerate limbs entirely or instantly negate any variety of poison.
- Shockwave (Instant) - common among bear Taguel, who often create its effects via a roar, Shockwave is at its core an ability that stuns opponents and knocks them back. This can be induced by anything from sound, raw force, or a magical burst, but damage is never the primary effect.
- Bulwark Stance (Buff) - there are stories of beasts who single-handedly butchered dozens of men in an engagement, always a step ahead of their opponents and able to deal with any number of foes at once. Bulwark Stance is essentially that - the ability to fight without penalties imposed by being outnumbered, always able to react to an melee attack no matter how many others might come at once. Note that, much like Lightning Reflexes, this does not bypass Skill/Speed, nor does it overwrite or replace Attunement - having the mental acuity to react to multiple simultaneous attacks is not the ability to actually physically react to them all at once.
Stalker
- Flashstep (Instant) - a sudden burst of inhuman speed, even for a Taguel; the Taguel often seems to simply blur out and reappear elsewhere, though cat and rabbit tribe Taguel often accomplish this through a powerful leap. Regardless, the ability is by its nature extremely difficult to react to, and unless the opponent is on par with or stronger than the usual they will be lucky to even follow the movement.
- Active Camouflage (Instant) - Whether by means magical or natural, the Taguel simply ceases to be a part of the fight for a few brief moments, cloaking themselves in magic or blending into the foliage in an instant. Can be used twice per cooldown period, or both uses combined for a longer period of invisibility.
- Lightning Reflexes (Passive) - a truly inhuman level of reaction that puts even other Taguel to shame, this ability grants the ability to react to what others would consider impossible - arrows and other projectiles in particular, as well as the contortion necessary to do so. Note that this does not grant perfect area awareness (see Attunement), the ability to see everything coming (Skill/Attunement), or the ability to dodge everything (Speed), merely the ability to react normally to otherwise undodgeable/unblockable attacks.
Vampire
- Attunement (Passive) - a combination of danger sense and area awareness gained by attunement to the natural flow of magic in the world. This gives area awareness (troop movements in the vicinity) as well as a sort of sixth sense in terms of danger, as well as extreme clarity in recognizing and identifying the use of magic in the vicinity. Each breakpoint upgrade essentially increases the magnitude of the area that can be tracked, starting out relatively small and ending in a more-or-less total immunity to surprise attacks.
- Vampirism (Passive) - all nearby magic save for the Taguel's own is weakened, excess power drawn into the owner of this ability. This effectively lowers the tier of nearby spells by one and draws the excess power into the user, which does not add a direct bonus but can be used as an explanation for how other skills work. For example, Active Camouflage with magic as an explanation can be tied to this.
- Shaman (Passive) - their natural attunement to magic allows Taguel to cast more fluidly than other races, able to launch spells while in motion as easily as if standing still. Without it, they are constrained to limited mobility while casting in much the same way human mages are.
Milestones
000 posts: Can assume Beast form, an entirely bestial or hybrid human/beast form representing your tribe's animal. Gain one ability of your choice.
100 posts: Skill improvement breakpoint.
200 posts: Second skill unlocked.
300 posts: Skill improvement breakpoint.
400 posts: Third skill unlocked.
500 posts: Skill improvement breakpoint.
600 posts: Fourth skill unlocked.
