Dragon Vortex Attack
Cost: 15m, 1wp; Mins: War 5, Essence 5; Type: Simple
Keywords: Cooperative, Elemental, Obvious, War
Duration: One scene
Prerequisite Charms: Dragon-Seared Battlefield
This Charm is identical to Dragon-Seared Battlefield except as follows: In addition to the environmental penalty imposed on all persons caught on the battlefield when the Charm is invoked, the Dragon-Blood can direct the raging miasma of elemental energy to injure his enemies. On the tick that this Charm is activated, everyone within the area of effect suffers a number of levels of lethal damage equal to the Dragon-Blood's Essence. The same amount of damage is inflicted again five ticks later and every five ticks thereafter while the Charm is in effect. This damage takes the forms of flying shards of stone or razor-sharp ice, swirling gouts of flame or steam, or even explosions of needles from enormous thorn bushes that spring from the ground. The damage cannot be dodged or parried except with perfect effects. The Dragon-Blood who initiates the Dragon Vortex Attack is immune to its effects, as are any Dragon-Blooded of the same aspect and any Dragon-Blooded regardless of aspect whose anima banners are at the 8+ motes level. If the Dragon-Blood who invokes this Charm has protected mortal soldiers with Enfolded in the Dragon's Wings, they too are protected from the vortex.
If several Dragon-Bloods who know this Charm use it cooperatively, their combined Essence is used to calculate the radius of the damage, and the damage inflicted is equal to the highest Essence of any participant plus one for each additional participant, in addition to the combined environmental penalty described under Dragon-Seared Battlefield. Also, if the participants have different elemental affinities, every Dragon-Blood within range who shares affinity with any participant is immune to the Charm's effects, as is every mortal soldier who is protected by an application of Enfolded in the Dragon's Wings used by any participant. Therefore, if an Air Aspect, a Water Aspect and a Wood Aspect combine their powers to invoke the Dragon Vortex Attack, the radius would be equal to their (combined Essence x 100) yards. Every Dragon-Blood within range who was an Air, Water or Wood Aspect would be immune, every Fire or Earth Aspect would be affected normally, and every mortal soldier who was protected by Enfolded in the Dragon's Wings by any of the three Dragon-Blooded would be immune. The maximum number of participants in the application of this Charm is five, so, common military practice is to have one participant of each aspect, thereby ensuring that every Dragon-Blood within the Vortex radius would be immune.
Latest Errata: This Charm creates an environmental hazard within its radius that inflicts (Essence rating)L dice of damage (not levels, unless Essence 7+) per action with Trauma (Essence rating). If a Dragon-Blood is immune to a vortex, characters she has protected with Enfolded in the Dragon's Wings are also immune (not just those protected by the vortex's creator). A second purchase of this Charm at Essence 6+ adds the Holy keyword, inflicting aggravated damage to creatures of darkness.