Plum Garden Fangs

Green Jade Hooked Daiklaves, Artifact 3

In order to break her curse and free her sisters from the clutches of the raksha Scorpion King, Jurul Sparrowhawk agreed to complete eight trials. The third of them was to slay Tsichu the All-Consuming Maw.

Tsichu was a spider-serpent of immense size, ravenous and cruel. It had made its nest among the roots beneath the Plum Garden, a sacred tree deep in the Eseon Forest whose fruit could heal any wound. There Tsichu had chewed out a labyrinth in the earth. It had gnawed jade until it’s fangs were stone and swallowed demon-gold until its hide was like mail.

Sparrowhawk enlisted the help of the blossom-spirits. Protected from Tsichu’s deadly venom by their plum wine, she slew the beast by grabbing it’s glittering jeweled fangs and tearing the spider-serpent apart.

The Plum Garden Fangs served House Jurul for many years, and were one of the many Artifacts awarded to House Ledaal upon Jurul’s destruction.

Attunement: 5m

Type: Medium Artifact (Accuracy +3, Damage +12L, Overwhelming 4)

Tags: Artifact, Disarming, Lethal, Martial Arts, Poisonable

Hearthstone Slots: 1

Aesthetics

The Plum Garden Fangs are a pair of green jade hooked daiklaves. Their handles are eastern steelwood and wrapped in black spider silk. The detailing on the handles is hungry silver, to contain the ravenous hunger of Tsichu lingering in the fangs.

Evocations of the Plum Garden Fangs

The Plum Garden Fangs are normally quiescent. When they deal at least two levels of lethal decisive damage, or when poison produced by the blades deals at least 1 level of lethal damage in a scene, the blades become ravenous.

While ravenous, the edges of the blades become serrated and the jade shifts with hungry shadows. The Plum Garden Fangs get +1 Overwhelming, and can only deal lethal or aggravated damage.

New Keyword: Ravenous

Ravenous. This Evocation can only be used while the Plum Garden Fangs are ravenous.

Essence 1

Tsichu’s Venom

Cost: 3m; Mins: Essence 1

Type: Supplemental (Attack); Duration: Instant

Keywords: Decisive-only

Prerequisites: None

The core of each of the Plum Garden Blades is a fang from Tsichu itself. After all this time, the jade itself has been suffused with shadow of the spider-serpent’s deadly venom.

If this attack deals at least one level of damage, you poison the target with arrow frog venom.

Arrow Frog Venom: Damage 3i/round (L in Crash), duration 5 rounds, penalty -2.

If you also know The All-Consuming Maw, Tsichu’s Venom can enhance the savaging attacks for 2m instead of the usual 3m.

Nettle-Bite Blades

Cost: 2m; Mins: Essence 1

Type: Supplemental (Attack); Duration: Instant

Keywords: Uniform, Stackable

Prerequisites: None

The urticating hairs that adorn the Plum Garden Fangs burrow into your victim, stinging and sour.

Onslaught from this attack doesn’t reset next round. This effect can stack up to (Essence) times. If you fail to attack the same target or you move away, then their Onslaught resets as usual.

Weaver in Darkness

Cost: –; Mins: Essence 1

Type: Permanent; Duration: Permanent

Keywords: None

Prerequisites: None

Tsichu’s nature was to weave safe harbor in its dark tunnels. This same trait manifests in the blades.

You may manifest silk and thread from the Plum Garden Blades, which counts as exceptional equipment for what you choose to use it for. The threads are gossamer and glow softly. They persist indefinitely in the dark, but only persist for one full day of exposure to sunlight before they disintigrate.

You gain +1 Parry against Disarm attempts as long as you are attuned to the Plum Garden Blades.

RAVENOUS – Once per turn, you may reflexively deal (Essence) dice of damage to a nearby trivial group, as long as you describe how you tangle, strangle, or poison them with the Plum Garden Blades.

Essence 2

The All-Consuming Maw

Cost: 4m, 1wp; Mins: Essence 2

Type: Simple; Duration: Instant

Keywords: Decisive-only, Ravenous

Prerequisites: Tsichu’s Venom

As Tsichu once devoured the many, so the Plum Garden Fangs now devour the few. They fly through the air, tethered to your wrists by glowing Essence, and drag your prey into your maw.

Make a grapple gambit against an opponent out to short range. You use Martial Arts or Melee instead of Brawl for the gambit and control rolls.

If you win control of the grapple, you drag your opponent into close range if they are not already. You must make a savage action as your first action in control.

Hunter in the Tunnels

Cost: 6m, 1wp; Mins: Essence 2

Type: Reflexive; Duration: Instant

Keywords: Counterattack, Decisive-only

Prerequisites: Tsichu’s Venom

The Plum Garden Fangs are meant to strike and kill with the blinding speed of a devouring predator. Easy for Naiyo, a hunter himself.

Make a counterattack against an enemy out to short range.

If your target is at short range, you automatically leap one range band toward them. If your target is at close range, you get a surprise attack against them.