The Bearer of the Ebon Blade
I’ve been watching a bit of Witchblade on Netflix. I’ve always been a fan of animé of this type:where the main characters are given superpowers via magic or super-science. Some of you may be more familiar with other stories in the same vein: Bleach, Devil May Cry, Sailor Moon, Ronin Warriors, etc.
In my Dresden Files game, we’re all making a secondary character in case we want to play someone different, or if our “main” character gets killed. So I’m basing my new character around this type of hero. So I present to you the Bearer of the Ebon Blade!
Background
The tatoo of the ebon blade was originally designed to aid in supernatural assassinations. The assassins were trained to eliminate mortal targets who were getting too close to the supernatural—especially if the target was threatening to expose the supernatural world.
The tattoo is more than just ink on the skin. It’s the actual blade, magically bound to the bearer of the tattoo. When drawn, the magic of the blade allows the bearer to be a better assassin than any mortal can be. They are covered in armour, their eyes turn silver, and they are able to blend into shadows more aptly than ever before.
The creators of the tattoo knew that imbuing that much power into an assassin could backfire in the worst way. Foreseeing that their greatest weapon could be bought (they are mortal, after all), those who bear a tattoo are not able to turn their powers against the wielders of magic.
Game Stats
Musts: An aspect that is in line with their nature as someone of shadow, guile, and intrigue.
Bearers of the Ebon Blade should have a high Fists score to use the blade well. In addition, Athletics are important to help get away, and Stealth to not be seen. Also, Bearers of the Ebon Blade are required to take the following supernatural powers:
- [+1] Human Form, affecting the following:
- [-1] Claws
- [-2] Inhuman Toughness with
- [+1] The Catch of magic[1]
- [-1] Cloak of Shadows
- [-2] Inhuman Speed
Minimum refresh cost: -4
Bearers of the Ebon Blade may upgrade the speed or toughness powers. In addition, [-2] Breath Weapon may be taken to represent thrown weapons. After being bonded to the tattoo, some bearers develop recovery powers[2] that are not affected by Human Form.
Closing Thoughts
Well, that’s it in a nutshell. I did, however, want to discuss some of my design choices.
First off, I went with Human Form instead of Item of Power because items can be taken away. Sure, that’d work better for a Devil May Cry item, but a tattoo cannot be taken away without extreme harm to the bearer.
Second, Claws seemed the best power to represent the weapon. Again, it’s a decision that I made to represent the fact that the weapon cannot be taken away. Also, with Claws, it’s not a stretch to take Venomous. Either real poison, or for those weapons that are said to be covered in flames/ice/electricity/etc. Ongoing damage is ongoing damage, and it works well for those who need to stab and run!
[1]This is actually a -2 refresh catch (-1 for magic, -1 for being researchable). However, toughness powers cost a minimum of 1 refresh
[2]Remember that the catch is worth +2, so any upgrades to toughness—or addition of recovery—is discounted by 1 refresh
