Earth Molding

By Rob Pool (rpool@bayserve.net). Also see the other Elemental arts: Fire, Wind Master and Oceania.

Description

Earth Molding allows a changeling to mold and affect all forms of earth, stone, rock, and even metal, glass, and gems in some cases. Cantrips of the art allow changeling sorcerers to alter their skin color and clothing to mesh with stone, mold earth and stone into pleasing shapes, or even cause an earthquake for maximum chaos.

Attribute

Stamina

Damage

Unless noted otherwise, the damage caused by any of the below offensive cantrips corresonds with the below table:

Successes	# of health levels lost
1	1
2	3
3	5
4	7
5	9
6+	+4 each success

* Earth Melding

Earth melding lets the caster shift his skin and gear's color tone to match that of any stone surface the character might be standing near (in fact, the character has to be standing by some type of stone surface although buildings count). The cantrip's main use, as one can guess, is for hiding and not getting caught. The more successes a character makes, the more he looks like natural stone. Just don't move or sneeze...

Successes: Each success over the first adds to the difficulty of being found with a perception + alertness test.

** Earth Armor

This cantrip creates a layer of stone skin around the recipient's body effectively increasing the character's resiliance to attacks. The cantrip lasts until the character takes twice the number of successes obtained in damage or the character wishes to go back to normal. Earth armor tends to alter the character's appearance as well since the armor is visible.

Successes: Each success increases the character's stamina roll by one die for soak rolls.

*** Stone Shaping

Stone shaping allows its caster to alter the shape and form of any type of rock and stone as well as metal and gems (despite the name, the cantrip can affect any solid inanimate substance). The cantrip can be used to fuse multiple pieces of stone together or just alter the shape (such as smoothing out a passage way in a cave). There are legends of citadels and cavern freeholds made by Nockers and sluagh who utilized the cantrip. Difficulties depend on the substance being altered: regular rock and stone will be around 4 or 5, gems, metals and processes stone will be more around 8. STs should note that non-stone substances have half the effectiveness as usual.

Successes: Each success allows the caster to manipulate more and more amount of stone:

Successes	Weight (in lbs)
1	30
2	65
3	100
4	150
5	200

(+100 each additional success)

**** Shatter Strike

Shatter strike causes inanimate solid substances (such as stone, rock, gems, and steel) to crack, crumble, or break. Like other Earthmolding cantrips, it has no affect on living things although when aimed at a ceiling it can have certain effects...

Difficulty: Normally, the difficulty depends on the substance (rock/stone: 4, Metal/gems/etc.: 6-8) but if there's a mundane around it switches to her banality+2. Also there may come a time when someone gets the idea of using the cantrip on your favorite treasure. In such cases, the difficulty is equal to the substance + the rank of the treasure. As such, don't expect to be cracking any legendaries anytime soon.

Successes: See the damage table at the top.

***** Earthquake Chaos

I think you don't really need a big explanation on what this does -- it makes earthquakes happen. As such, every character in the immediate area of effect (equal to 10' times the number of successes) takes a +3 to all difficulties unless they are somehow capable of flight or levitation. It can also do structural damage to buildings equal to 3 health levels in damage per every success the caster achieved when casting the cantrip (in other words, don't cast this in your house! ;-)). This cantrip will do real physical damage, not chimerical. Also, the cantrip always requires the use of prop and scene (at least a rating of 3-5) for 1 point of temp. glamour.

Difficulty: The difficulty for casting Earthquake Chaos is almost always equal to the highest banality in the area (6-7 on average although you never know when Dauntain or Autumn People are around).

Successes: Every success increases the range of the earthquake by 10'. It also will increase how much damage it does to building equal to 3 health levels per success in damage.

House wound levels: heh. never thought I'd be writing this. Anyhow, this little part is to mesh out the Earthquake Chaos cantrip and obviously you can probably tell why. I think it's more of a joke than effective and there's probably some kinks... Regular medium-sized house:

1-3: Minor damage. Could probably fix it in a couple days by yourself if you really needed to. might come back to haunt you in the future when you least expect it.

4-6: Moderate damage. You might have some damage to the plumbing or the base. 7-9: Major damage. Normally means the roof caved in or one of the floors did. Repair will require some heavy $$$ and a few weeks of repair work.

10+: KABOOM. No more house :-)

Large hotel/skyscraper

1-4: Nothing. a few shakes but the place still stands. Some cracks might form in the walls at best.

5-9: Moderate damage. The super/manager is going to be getting some calls about plumbing problems and cracks in the walls but nothing destructive.

10-14: Major damage. Big trouble. a floor might cave in and there will probably be some media bullshitting going down as well as some casualties.

15: KABOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!. the whole fuckin' city hears the earthquake blow up the hotel/skyscraper.