James Bell
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Project Update: Crowned by Hellfire - Chapter Five
Infernals: Crowned by Hellfire
-Previously-
Chapter Five
With the new moon high in the sky, Nehramus called upon Astogal, the Hemlock Sigh, demon of the Second Circle, and waited for his noxious form to coalesce. A mandala of sickly green flame licked at the smooth stone floor; its shape was that of Astogal’s sigil. Astogal himself appeared within heartbeats, heralded by a wind that was like a hundred people gasping for air as their throats closed. Raindrops swirled around his lumpen shape. Where he touched the floor, the stone hissed and smoked. Flowers budded and bloomed and rotted on his skin: oleander, foxglove, brugmansia.
Nehramus wasted no time, binding him to her will with a word. The sound of the spell reverberated in the air. As it faded Astogal went rigid, as though she’d bound him in chains and pulled them taut. The demon howled with displeasure at such an insult. He was her ally, after all, and had visited her in the Shifting Gardens many a time of his own volition. “Are we not friends?” he asked, in a voice dripping with malice.
“That’s one of the reasons I’ve called upon you,” she said. “Word has reached me of trouble in my duchy, and I see your mark upon it. I need the truth from you.”
Astogal remained silent a moment, testing his will against his binding. Soon, though, the pain of resistance grew too great to bear. “Yes,” he let slip through broken resolve. “Yes, but it’s your own doings that caused it. Your meddling with a hierarchy far older than you. Your vainglorious love of the least.”
Demons of the First Circle were welcome in her estates in Hell. Those who sought her out received her protection, no matter who demanded she hand them over. Their treatment had horrified her from the moment of her Exaltation — who was she if she railed against injustice in the mortal world and did nothing for those who were abused in the Demon City? Yet, helping them had proven far harder than she’d dreamed: too many came seeking her help, all requesting the wrong things, or with needs she couldn’t meet with the time or resources she had.
“They rise above their station and you offer them aid,” Astogal said, his voice now that of a jaded mentor. “Cecelyne’s priests have taken it out of my flesh, since you’ve been so busy here. They have a message for you.”
“Tell me.”
This, she didn’t need to force out of him. Astogal drew himself up and said, “It is not your place to make a paradise for the worms of Hell.”
Nehramus didn’t know whether it was the insult to the demons she’d sworn to aid, or the audacity of the rebuke: a demon, daring to speak to her of her place. Scouring winds whipped around Astogal at nothing more than a gesture, scattering his rains. Shredded petals fell all around him as the gales flayed him to the bone.
“Go,” she said when he lay gasping. “Show them my answer.”
When he was gone, her companion stepped out of the shadows. Six had come in case anything went awry. Though she hadn’t needed him, she was grateful for his presence. “You’re doing too much,” he said, and took her tired hand to kiss with a brotherly tenderness she had never expected of him. “What’s even left of yourself to give?”
The question startled her. Six was usually quick with a joke or a song. For him to let down his guard and voice concern meant her exhaustion must be showing. “It’s my duty. What happens to them is unspeakable.”
“Is it about them, or what happened to you?”
“Don’t,” she said, and pulled her hand away. They’d all said awful things to each other since taking the city, insults that cut to the bone. Those, she could handle. Kindness? That she had no idea how to receive.
“Is it worth it?” he asked gently. “All your work for no reward? I don’t even know that Hell can be fixed.”
“I have to try,” she whispered as she began sweeping up discarded petals. “I have to try.”
Hello Green Fire Prices,
We're in the middle of the campaign, a time when things usually slow down as we plateau. Except... except we aren't. We're ahead of schedule and ahead of my projections, and in fact, we've already unlocked another Stretch Goal!
ACHIEVED! -At $145,000 in Funding - Infernals Companion: Charms 3
INFERNALS COMPANION SUPPLEMENT: CHARMS 3 - Further Charms for the Infernal Exalted will be added to the Infernals Companion supplement. Backers receiving the Infernals PDF will receive the Infernals Companion PDF as a bonus reward. Backers receiving the Infernals Deluxe hardcover will also receive links to purchase a discounted Print-on-Demand version of the Infernals Companion book.
So, let's set up our next goal and give ourselves the task of unlocking this one before the end.
At $155,000 in Funding - Infernals Companion: Hell on Earth
INFERNALS COMPANION SUPPLEMENT: HELL ON EARTH - New locales and plot hooks for Infernals in Creation will be added to the Infernals Companion supplement. Backers receiving the Infernals PDF will receive the Infernals Companion PDF as a bonus reward. Backers receiving the Infernals Deluxe hardcover will also receive links to purchase a discounted Print-on-Demand version of the Infernals Companion book.
And with that ahead, we've got our final Charms section tomorrow. Let's hear from the developers with another great sneak peek!
The Infernal Charmset approaches its terrible conclusion! Here’s a sneak peek at something brand new this edition — Infernal War Charms.
Brass-and-Iron Marching Camp
Cost: 5m, 1wp; Mins: War 5, Essence 3
Type: Simple
Keywords: None
Duration: Until next sunrise
Prerequisite Charms: City-Flesh Teratoma
The Green Sun Prince commands the very flesh of Malfeas to come forth into the world, raising up ramparts of brass and basalt.
The Infernal rolls to enact a Fortifications stratagem in mid-combat, raising battlements of the Demon City’s architecture. Their difficult terrain applies only to enemy battle groups, not individuals, unless the Infernal wins Join Battle and uses this Charm on her first turn. If she’s already fighting under a Fortifications stratagem, she instead grants allied battle groups the benefits of heavy cover for the scene.
Outside of combat, the Infernal can create a fortified camp that can accommodate up to a Size (higher of Essence or 3) battle group. It has little in the way of amenities, but solid defenses: if an enemy attempts to attack her forces while they’re encamped, they automatically receive the benefits of a Fortifications stratagem. Enemies infiltrating the camp suffer an (Infernal’s Essence) penalty on Stealth rolls.
The battlements crack and crumble the next time the sun dawns or the tomescu cry out in Malfeas, unless the Infernal renews this Charm, waiving its Willpower cost. She need not be present to do so.
The fort normally dissolves within an hour of Creation’s sunrise or the next Tomescu cry, but the Infernal may activate this Charm again to reset the duration, waiving the Willpower cost.
Reset: Once per scene.
Keys
Brazen Fortress Conjuration (+5i): For a five-Initiative surcharge, the difficult terrain from Fortifications applies to all enemies. If the Infernal wins Join Battle and uses this Charm on her first turn, she succeeds automatically on the roll. Outside of combat, she can create a fortress capable of holding up to (Essence/2, rounded up) Size 5 battle groups over the course of ten minutes. Its gates, walls, and other defenses are nigh-impervious, adding (Essence) to the minimum Strength required and their difficulty. The penalty on Stealth rolls subtracts successes instead of dice.
From My Dread Keep (Essence 5, Brazen Fortress Conjuration) (+2wp): Once per story, the Infernal pay an additional two-Willpower surcharge when she uses Brazen Fortress Conjuration outside of combat to create a greater fortress-manse. It’s capable of holding up to (Essence) Size 5 battle groups, and increases the minimum Strength and difficulty of feats of strength by (Essence x 2). The fortress counts as a greater Infernal manse, and the Infernal recovers an additional point of Willpower when she rests within it. However, it produces no hearthstone: instead, the Infernal gains the benefits of a hearthstone suited to her fortress for as long as it stands, chosen when she first uses this Charm. She gains an additional. Characters within the fortress count as having a Minor Tie of terrified awe to her, or treat existing fear-based Ties as one step higher.
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