#artisanal monks

[gregdotorg]

Something's in the air, or maybe it's just LA, but I've been getting wafts of incense from the art lately. Conceptual perfume artist Chris Rusak published a zine survey of liturgical incense, including some made by artisanal monks. Meanwhile, in New York, artist/mage L is showing an altar made from a vestment rack from an anarchist priest, which includes a custom collab incense made with Maison Anonyme. It was last seen/sensed at Documenta 15.

[jeeaark]

I apologize if someone's already asked you this question, but if Greygold wasn't a ranger, what class do you think they'd be? Would they be a paladin with an oath of friendship?

I think somebody made a delightful analogy of it at one point, but nay, not in a form of a question!

And I continue to absolutely love the idea of a paladin with an oath of friendship as Greygold's alternative class.

But! Deciding to become such a fancy class probably would've never have happened until after forming the tadpole squad. Gotta have friends to believe in friendship.

But a before-times choice if the call to ranger knighthood went unsung?

Shoot. Greygold probably would've been a whole different person if they never joined the Ranger Knights and befriended killer animal buddies.....I'm gonna be unfun and say it's a toss of the dice where their fate would've led them otherwise.

They joined the knights just so they can get a free meal, so....Whoever offers ✨the next best thing✨ to a young, hungry, and impressionable Greygold, is the pathway they'd've follow.

but then later with Tadpole Friends R "US", first opportunity, respec into Paladin: Oath of Friendship totally.

[hyakunana]

Better late than never, here's my #artrecap2023 ✨ testing a different design because... yeah, felt like doing something new. Hope it still works well 👀💦

Happy 2k24!!! 🌠

[ryssbelle]

Baldurs Gate 3 blorbos go brrr

[captain-lonagan]

a dnd trio: a drunken master monk, an alchemist artificer, and an enchantment wizard. their quest? to open a successful bar and grill

[borifle]

playing bg3 via a friend’s steam library, and I am predictably playing an androgynous looking elf (half drow in this case) as I do every time I play a fantasy game for the first time. same goddamn type of hair too, an undercut with a flop of hair on top.

except this time I can actually do gender fuckery!! was a bit disappointed in the lack of detail editing on the face and body, just choosing 1 of 4 body types and a face preset was underwhelming tbh. not unhappy with how my funky little guy (gender neutral) looks, but I wish I could’ve made a fat character 😔

still really enjoying the game so far tho

[wtfforged]

my campaign hiatus has gone on for too long so to cope ive combined my interests at their maximum potency and had some dnd-strawhats thoughts

thoughts in depth under read more... :)!

this is SO self indulgent. their designs literally did not change. but i am a firm believer that dnd doesnt have to be european high fantasy. and also one piece literally IS fantasy. no changes are necessary to fit into dnd. ive already imagined plenty of campaign/oneshot ideas inspired by one piece. so this was basically just an exercise of trying to replicate their canon abilities in dnd 5e as much as possible without totally homebrewing everything. well. aside from luffy. you just cant take away or change his stretching.

LUFFY: (human monk. drunken master subclass. outlander)

the only plain human of the crew to balance out with the fact that he still has rubber powers. obviously a monk. but drunken master subclass specifically because i think the flavor(not the fact that its about being a drunkard) and abilities both fit him really well. this line in the subclass' flavortext especially fits him: "A drunken master often enjoys playing the fool to bring gladness to the despondent or to demonstrate humility to the arrogant, but when battle is joined, the drunken master can be a maddening, masterful foe."

ZORO: (tiefling fighter. samurai subclass. bounty hunter)

a fighter with the samurai subclass is so very incredibly obvious... but i actually had a lot of fun geeking out while comparing the abilities to what he can do in canon; Fighting Spirit, Rapid Strike, and Strength Before Death especially! tiefling is also pretty on the nose for his demon pirate hunter shtick and asura form, but i thought he'd be really human-passing for a tiefling and theorized about his tail getting cut off at some point or another before joining the strawhats. initially wasnt gonna give him a feat, but i gave sanji a feat so i thought itd be unfair to not give him one as well, so sentinel fits the bill pretty well i think!

NAMI: (tabaxi rogue. arcane trickster subclass. criminal)

cat burglar -> full grown literal humanoid cat. this one is INCREDIBLY self indulgent... i love... cats... theres nothing deeper to this and no other reasoning. i took cat burglar and ran with it. can you tell that i love izutsumi dungeon meshi? rogue for the aforementioned burglar-ing as well, and the arcane trickster subclass for when she picks up climatact! the mage hand will be very useful for her pickpocketing. in the future as she levels up with timeskip, i can totally see her multiclassing into wizard as well! weather wizard!

USOPP: (lightfoot halfling artificer. artillerist subclass. urchin)

I HAD SO MUCH FUN THINKING ABOUT HIS CHARACTER SHEET. halfling's Naturally Stealthy ability lets him hide behind his crewmates since theyre (almost) all bigger than him, so its perfect for hiding behind zoro or sanji all the time. Lucky is also perfect for him, and I think Brave fits pretty well too when he puts on the sogeking mask. artillerist artificer is also very fun! tinkering and making magic items for his crew, and i think Eldritch Canon or Arcane Firearm could both be easily reflavored as kabuto or any of his inventions. for emphasizing his sniper-ness, the spell sniper feat was also necessary. i think hes my favorite of all the concepts. big ears and long nose combo is so cute to me.

SANJI: (half-elf monk. drunken master subclass. guild artisan (cook!))

race was mostly based on vibes i wont lie. squints. and that vinsmoke balogna or whatever too ig. but mostly vibes. along with the idea that i think a dwarf zeff raising him would be really funny and cute. monk is also obvious, and same subclass as luffy for mostly the same reasons. though the flavor fits him much less, i think the abilities still fit him perfectly, and this blurb specifically; "Your martial arts technique mixes combat training with the precision of a dancer." i really wanted to give him a different subclass from luffy, but i dislike all the other monk subclasses a lot and i found none of them fit him as well anyways, so to try and give them SOME differences, i gave him the crusher feat.

CHOPPER: (awakened deer(shifter statblock) cleric. life subclass. hermit)

this ones definitely a mouthful im sorry. awakened deer for obvious reasons, but due to magic instead of devil fruit stuff. when i was struggling with his race, i looked a lot at shifter because of his forms, but it occurred to me that itd be super cool if he could shift between all of the different shifter options instead of being stuck with just one to replicate his rumble balls. something like heavy point/guard point=beasthide, horn point/arm point(?maybe?)=longtooth, walk point/jumping point=swiftstride, and brain point=wildhunt. hed definitely need some kind of nerf though to balance out that homebrew... and cleric for class. duh.

ROBIN: (high elf wizard. order of scribes subclass. criminal)

robin is definitely the one i struggled the most with just because of her class. elf came pretty easily- shes very elegant and i think shed look cute with super long ears- and i landed on high elf instead of wood elf for the int-based abilities. i was really on the fence between sorcerer and wizard for her because i knew shed be a full spellcaster, but i didnt feel that any of the subclasses really fit her. i ended up going with wizard for order of the scribes since it focuses on texts and knowing everything. but also because robin with a flying talking sentient book would be crazy cool. it could also be similar to how she spawns mouths and eyes places to talk to or watch people. my "fuck it, why not. this would be rad. its my house" mindset kicked in with her i will admit. also the One with the Word ability made me cackle out loud when i read it. thats the funniest ability ever. anyways, i cant really think of a way to replicate her powers, but maybe we could just reflavor a bunch of spells to be her limbs or clutch; hold person, maximillian's earthen grasp, or evard's black tentacles. thatd probably work okay, and theres a handful of spells to replicate her ability to spawn eyes or mouths. unrelated, but i imagine nico olvia to be a drow. why? her hair is white. i am a simple man!

[whencyclopedia]

Deir el-Medina

Deir el-Medina is the modern Arabic name for the worker's village (now an archaeological site) which was home to the artisans and craftsmen of Thebes who built and decorated the royal tombs in the nearby Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens.

The ancient inhabitants called the village Pa Demi (“the village”) but it was referred to in official correspondence as Set-Ma'at (“The Place of Truth”) because the workers there were thought to be inspired by the gods in creating the eternal homes of the deceased kings and their families. Early in the Christian era the village, then deserted, was occupied by monks who took over the Temple of Hathor for use as a cloister. The temple was referred to as Deir el-Medina (“Monastery of the Town”) and this name finally came to be applied to the entire site.

Unlike most villages in ancient Egypt, which grew up organically from small settlements, Deir el-Medina was a planned community. It was founded by Amenhotep I (c.1541-1520 BCE) specifically to house workers on royal tombs because tomb desecration and robbery had become a serious concern by his time. It was decided that the royalty of Egypt would no longer advertise their final resting places with large monuments but, instead, would be buried in a less accessible area in tombs cut into the cliff walls. These areas would become the necropolises now known as the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens and those who lived in the village were known as “Servants in the Place of Truth” for their important role in creating eternal homes and also remaining discreet regarding tomb contents and location.

Deir el-Medina is among the most important archaeological sites in Egypt because of the wealth of information it provides on the daily life of the people who lived there. Serious excavation at the site was begun in 1905 CE by the Italian archaeologist Ernesto Schiaparelli and furthered by a number of others throughout the 20th century CE with some of the most extensive work done by French archaeologist Bernard Bruyere between 1922-1940 CE. At the same time Howard Carter was bringing the treasures of the royalty to light from Tutankhamun's tomb, Bruyere was uncovering the lives of the working people who would have created that final resting place.

History of the Village

The earliest extant ruins at the site are from the reign of Thutmose I (1520-1492 BCE), son and successor of Amenhotep I, but there is no doubt that it was Amenhotep I who first planned the site. He and his mother, Ahmose-Nefertari, were worshipped as protective gods at the site throughout its history. The workers also venerated the cobra goddess Meretseger (whose name means “She Who Loves Silence”), the personification of the Theban necropolis and protector of the dead and, especially, of their tombs.

By the time of the New Kingdom (c.1570-c.1069 BCE) tomb robbing had become almost epidemic in scope. Although measures such as false doors and labyrinths had been a part of tomb building since the Old Kingdom (c.2613-2181 BCE) they were not effective in keeping robbers from reaching the burial chamber and the vast treasures left there with the deceased. One gains an understanding of exactly how great the wealth in these tombs was when one considers the treasures of Tutankhamun's tomb discovered by Howard Carter in 1922 CE. Tutankhamun died before he was 20 years old and had not yet amassed the kind of wealth a king like Djoser (c.2670 BCE) or Khufu (2589-2566 BCE) would have had entombed for the afterlife.

The Valley of the Kings was selected as the new necropolis for royalty and the village was planned for easy access (a half hour's walk) from a worker's home to the tombs. The village was in continuous use from the time of Thutmose I until the collapse of the New Kingdom in c. 1069 BCE. Although the community and nearby necropolises were planned to safeguard the tombs of the kings, human greed and opportunity would eventually work to undermine the plan and some of the workers themselves would turn to robbing the tombs they had helped build and protect for an easy and quite substantial payoff. For most of its history, however, the village seems to have functioned as it was intended.

Continue reading...

[drawing-every-rw-ship]

All the artists are so cool, I really like it. Can I ask for solar eclipse (monk x night cat) or karmaflower (artisan x saint)

Your creativity is great, I want you to know it :D

HII SNAKE!! I love all the art you draw for me so I decided to do karmaflower for u

[calabria-mediterranea]

Serra San Bruno, Calabria, Italy

The village of Serra San Bruno, perched at 790 meters above sea level among the lush peaks of the Serre Calabresi, with its Churches, andMonasteries is immersed in an aura of mysticism and profound spirituality.

Its fame is inextricably linked to the figure of San Bruno of Cologne, a German monk who founded the Carthusian order. In 1091, in search of a place of hermitage and prayer, he chose this uncontaminated area to create the Certosa di Serra San Bruno, a monumental complex surrounded by greenery which still represents the beating heart of the village today.

The surrounding area, included in the Serre Regional Natural Park, offers a variety of trekking paths and mountain bike routes immersed in centuries-old fir forests, beech forests and lush pastures.

In addition to the Certosa and nature, Serra San Bruno boasts a picturesque historic center to explore on foot. Among the narrow cobbled streets you will come across artisan shops where you can buy typical local products, such as liquorice, cheeses, porcini mushrooms and cured meats.

Follow us on Instagram, @calabria_mediterranea

[niteshade925]

Apr 11, Xi'an, China

I made a mistake with the dates on the prev two posts, I went to Beilin Museum on the 11th, not the 10th......I think it's because my phone was still stuck in NA time, which would explain why my phone thought those pictures were taken on the 10th.

Anyway, a random doorway in an alley in Xi'an that looks very traditional:

Traditional embroidery painting sold on the street. There were artisans, painters, calligraphers, and seal-crafters selling commissions in stalls. I couldn't think of a cool phrase for a commission, so I didn't spend any money there. This was one of my biggest regrets from this trip lol

Stuff from a souvenir shop, I thought these little monk figurines were cute

Xi'an city scenery, taken right in front of the Xi'an Museum/西安博物院

[raviollies]

Anytime I look anywhere for low carb/protein alternative for snacks/pasta it always costs like I'm paying someone to make every single cheese chip by hand using artisanal cheddar made by a cloistered monk in isolated rural Europe

[jesterology]

Seafood Sandbox! (...au?)

@pmpwbrrs , @shitboss tagging since you both mentioned wanting to know about my au !

typically i like to follow the rain world canon, but my non canon ideas i draw exist in a sort of sandbox / blank space. some of the ideas I've left in this sort of sandbox have grown into something i enjoy and thus is the creation of seafood sandbox!

seafood sandbox is mainly about gourmand and rivulet (accompanied by monk and survivor, who i see as gourmands adopted children) adventuring and exploring new areas and regions outside of the ones seen in game!

the main focus of this au like previously mentioned is the exploration of new regions, but i also wanted to focus a lot on gourmands abilities as a crafter! i see him as an artisan of sorts, considering he can craft all sorts of things with only a couple items. i enjoy thinking of them as something of an inventor and perhaps the purpose of the journey is to learn what else there is to create in the world!

rivulet in this au is something of a collector to me, i think they're the type of character where if you went on a walk with them, they'd pick up 10 rocks and a big stick on the way and keep it with them for the rest of the journey.

really in my head i sort of picture them as an adventuring/artist duo.

some examples for the sort of dynamic between gourmand and rivulet in this au would be: frog and toad, frodo and samwise and the moomin franchise as a whole!

this au mainly exists to be a relaxing passtime for me to think about and thus is not serious at all! i am very aware about how far from canon this is! but I'm still very fond of it no matter how far from canon it is!

[imaginalstudio]

The Hidden Treasure:

In the 13th or 14th century, a massive statue of the Buddha was cast from solid gold by artisans of the Sukhothai Kingdom. This golden Buddha stood about 10 feet tall and weighed over 5 tons. It was a symbol of peace, wisdom, and the richness of Buddhist tradition. However, during the 18th century, as the Burmese army was preparing to invade Thailand, the monks feared the priceless statue would be looted. To protect it, they covered the Golden Buddha with a thick layer of plaster and clay, hiding its true value.

For generations, the true nature of the statue was forgotten. It was treated as just another large but unremarkable Buddha image, revered for its spiritual significance but not for its hidden treasure. Eventually, the statue was moved to a small, modest temple in Bangkok, where it sat for over 200 years, unnoticed for its extraordinary worth.

The Remarkable Discovery:

In 1955, plans were made to move the statue to a new temple, Wat Traimit, but the statue was so heavy that a crane couldn’t lift it properly. As it was being moved, the ropes holding it broke, and the statue fell hard onto the ground. To make matters worse, it began to rain. The monks quickly covered the statue with tarps and left it for the night.

The next morning, as one of the monks went to check the damage, he noticed something strange. A small crack had formed in the plaster, and beneath it, he saw something shiny. As the monks chipped away at the plaster, they were stunned to discover that underneath the ordinary-looking exterior was the solid gold Buddha, resplendent and gleaming.

The Significance:

The rediscovery of the Golden Buddha was not just a remarkable archaeological find; it carried deep symbolic meaning. For many, it represented the idea that all beings have a hidden “golden” nature or inner greatness, often concealed by the layers of conditioning, fear, or external pressures we carry throughout life. Just as the Golden Buddha’s true form had been hidden for centuries, people too might need moments of breakthrough or “falling” to realize their true potential.

Today:

The Golden Buddha, now restored to its full glory, sits in Wat Traimit, attracting visitors from around the world. Its story of concealment, rediscovery, and transformation continues to inspire people, symbolizing both physical and spiritual treasures that might be hidden, awaiting discovery.

[grailfinders]

Grailfinders #348: Zhang Jue

today on Grailfinders we are actually done with Traum for real this time, I promise. I mean we aren’t, we’re nowhere near finished, but the builds are- at least once we’re finished with Zhang Jue. he’s a Conjuration Wizard to summon puppets, puppets, and more puppets- and I know we’ve been playing fast and loose with summons lately, so we’ll try to keep this one constructs-only. he’s also a Battle Master Fighter for more focus to lead those puppets to victory with good old-fashioned tactical knowhow.

check out his build breakdown below the cut, or his character sheet over here!

next up: eight-part ouppy bap attack

Ancestry & Background

Zhang Jue is, unsurprisingly, a Human, so he gets +1 Dexterity and Intelligence; as well as the Observant feat for +1 Wisdom, the ability to read lips, and a bonus to passive perception. speaking of, you’re proficient in Perception to boot. you can’t tactic if you can’t see the other guy’s tactics- I think Sun Tzu said that, right?

according to Zhang Jue’s backstory, he wandered off into the wilderness and returned with a big book full of holy strategy stuff, so that’s a classic Hermit background, even if they’re usually getting more “nature of the multiverse” knowledge. that gives him proficiency in Medicine and Religion, so now you have two ways to manipulate- I mean, help- your followers.

Ability Scores

your highest score is Intelligence- you use that to scheme and to blast magic all over the place. after that is your Charisma to keep your human soldiers in line. Dexterity is next, mostly because you don’t wear armor and I’m not that cruel. third is Wisdom, which helps out a bit both with schemes and manipulating your followers. this means your Constitution and Strength are both pretty low- you are an old man, after all.

Class Levels

1. Fighter 1: starting off as a fighter nets you proficiency in Strength and Constitution saves, as well as History and Insight to be a giant nerd. if you’re starting off at level one in your home game I’d recommend starting as a wizard so you don’t crumple into a paper ball before reaching level 2, but most games don’t start there, constitution proficiency is super useful, and tactical prowess is a much easier goal to reach than puppets and immortality.

speaking of, first level fighters get a Fighting Style. if your DM allows it I highly recommend the old old UA style Mariner for the extra AC and movement since we’re not going monk at all this build, but otherwise pick up Superior Technique and a battle master maneuver of your choice. as a fighter you also get a Second Wind once per short rest, giving you a little HP back as a bonus action. wizards usually don’t get any healing, so appreciate what you can get.

2. Fighter 2: second level fighters get Action Surge, and unlike sorcerer’s quickened spell this doesn’t come with any caveats- you can cast two full-action spells in a single turn, no sweat. I mean not now, now you can just hit things twice. something to look forward to.

3. Fighter 3: third level fighters can become a Battle Master, making them a Student of War. that’s just proficiency in one artisan’s tool, but you also learn how to leverage your Combat Superiority up to four times a short rest, which can be used in three methods of your choosing. a Commanding Presence lets you add your superiority die (a d8) to an Intimidation, Performance, or Persuasion check, while your Tactical Assessment adds it to an Investigation, History, or Insight check. finally, you can lay an Ambush to add the die to a Stealth check or your initiative roll. the clever guy’s good at skills, who’d’ve thunk it?

4. Wizard 1: now that we have some basics to keep you occupied, we can move on to our long-term goals! going over to wizard gets you an Arcane Recover once per long rest, recovering a couple spell slots as part of your short rest! speaking of, you can cast and prepare Spells using your Intelligence and your spellbook, which lets you copy spells you find written down out in the world.

Zhang Jue’s abilities are pretty open ended, and you get a lot of spells this way- 6 spells this level and two more every other wizard level you take- so you’ll have to forgive me for giving you a few empty slots here and there to fill as you see fit.

that being said, we’ll start off the build with some elemental effects- Create Bonfire, Gust, and Mold Earth for your cantrips. we also get some classics like Alarm and Detect Magic for counter-wizard ops, as well as Mage Armor and Magic Missile for direct combat. and while Find Familiar and Unseen Servant aren’t combat-ready, every puppeteer has to start somewhere.

5. Wizard 2: at second level you learn to specialize in Conjuration, making you a Savant. when you copy conjuration spells into your spellbook, they take less time and money to do so. why they decided every wizard subclass should have a feature that actively disincentivizes learning the spells you supposedly specialize in I don’t know, but you can get Silvery Barbs this level anyway. it vaguely makes your allies better and your enemies worse, which is what all magic in Fate does if you think about it.

also, you can use Minor Conjuration as an action now, creating any nonmagical object you choose smaller than 3’ in any dimension. the object is obviously fake, so you can’t really use it to make fake money, but as long as you’re creative you should be fine. if you can’t actually have foresight, store-conjured is fine.

6. Wizard 3: third level wizards get second level spells like Arcane Lock- it’s a lock, but arcane! if that sounds a little boring you can also tell the future with Augury. strategy is easy when you can just ask the DM to help you.

7. Wizard 4: fourth level wizards get their first Ability Score Improvement to improve one stat of their choice, like your Intelligence. that’s all your spells, so it’s important to keep intelligence on the up and up.

8. Wizard 5: fifth level wizards get third level spells, and now you can Bestow Curse! BC is pretty open-ended, so now I don’t need to keep track of every random thing tao arts can do, hooray!

9. Wizard 6: sixth level conjurers have Benign Transportation, so once a day (or after casting a conjuration spell) you can use your action to teleport up to 30’ away, possibly swapping places with another creature. pro tip: keep enemies pointed at the puppets.

10. Wizard 7: speaking of, with fourth level spells you can now Summon Constructs! only one at a time right now, but a puppet’s a puppet, and this one can be built out of different materials! clay and metal puppets have counterattacks, and stone puppets can slow down enemies.

11. Wizard 8: use this ASI to become Resilient, rounding up your Wisdom score and giving you proficiency with Wisdom saves! it’s not complicated, but it is effective.

12. Wizard 9: ninth level wizards get fifth level spells, and now you can finally summon more than one puppet at a time… so long as you carry them around with you. Animate Objects lasts a minute, turning up to ten small objects (each size up doubles how many objects said object counts as) into up to ten creatures, absolutely destroying the action economy in your favor! with five puppets and one PC, you can fill a whole party with just Zhang Jue and his backup dancers.

13. Wizard 10: tenth level conjurers have Focused Conjuration, preventing you from losing concentration on any conjuration spells. sadly this doesn’t work on Animate Objects, but your bigger puppets will stay safe!

14. Wizard 11: eleventh level wizards get sixth level spells like Guards and Wards, letting you make any house you stay in as convoluted to enter as the Xanten Tower! I’m sure your party will be thrilled.

15. Wizard 12: another ASI, bump up your Intelligence to be the smartest you can be, and your spells as deadly as possible. speaking of deadly spells…

16. Wizard 13: thirteenth level wizard, seventh level spells. Simulacrum lets you make a puppet copy of any person, with the caveat that they only have half the real deal’s HP and can’t heal or regain spell slots. still, they’re a perfect copy, so if you’d say… die, or something silly like that, it can just be a copy all along.

also, you finally get your third skill! at least, part of it. Mirage Arcane lets you warp your environment to benefit you, so while we don’t have the whole gamut yet, you can at least turn the battlefield into forest or near water stages. don’t worry, we’ll be getting upgrades for both of these spells in two levels.

17. Wizard 14: with Durable Summons, every creature you summon with conjuration spells get an extra 30 HP. annoyingly, this doesn’t help your simulacra or animated objects, but at least your puppets are tougher. maybe ask your DM for an extension.

18. Wizard 15: with our last level in wizard, you get eighth level spells! to upgrade your emergency puppet stash, grab Clone to make spare bodies you can sneak into after your regular one dies. sure they take an hour to make, and aren’t available after that for a good three months, but death is a lot longer than that normally so a plan b is never a bad idea.

as for your third skill, you can now use Control Weather to heat up a five mile radius around you, letting you make the whole battlefield super sunny and on fire. or cold, rainy, windy, etc. you can meddle with the meteorological minutiae for up to eight hours, so don’t feel like you have to decide right away.

19. Fighter 4: going back to fighter is a bit of a downgrade after learning to control the weather, but I’m sure you won’t complain too much about getting more Dexterity with this ASI. not dying is important!

20. Fighter 5: fifth level fighters get an Extra Attack each action. you probably shouldn’t be attacking at all with this build, but it’s an option if you find yourself in trouble.

Pros & Cons:

Pros:

we’ve touched on how powerful spells like clone and simulacrum can be before with Morgan, and that’s all still true here. it literally doesn’t matter how strong you are when you can roll up to a fight with 20 copies of yourself.

that being said, those 20 copies take time to make, so at least you can use your Tactical Mind in the meantime to be useful to the party even when you’re out of spell slots early on. usually wizards just kind of. stop working. when their spells are done, but you can still help out without being completely reliant on a limited resource.

like with Zhuge Liang, you’re able to heavily alter any area you’re in to your party’s advantage. if you can choose where a fight takes place, you can make every possible thing in that place work in your favor and against your enemies. why fight at all when you can mirage arcane an avalanche into their way?

Cons:

if you do get into a fight you’re just an old man. you’re really banking on those puppets and other party members keeping you from being kebabed. also your HP is below Power Word Kill range, so maybe don’t skip too many fights or your DM might notice that.

conjuration is way too fickle for this build to be all that great. there’s a ton of pseudo-summoning spells that are powerful, but none of them are conjuration- all of those are super under-powered bc WotC became cowards ever since they realized conjure animals might be halfway useful in a fight.

Zhang Jue is all about tactics, and while wargaming in D&D is not only valid but also arguably the intended way to play, some people want a chance to turn their brain off when it’s D&D time. having to think and be clever to get the most out of a build certainly isn’t a negative, but it is something to keep in mind when you’re picking a character to play as.

[eatenbyfaeries]

tell me more of your exalted game :3

Oh!! So much to tell. My original players were a craft supernal, Irridescent Azamath who is a fire magic sorcerer and fireworks artisan who turned her craft into a weapon to fight the realm invasion. She leads a group of loyal rebels and spent a year repelling the realm through guerilla warfare in the mountains before exalting (unfortunately not before the realm took over her home city, situated above a Great Lake in the caldera of a semi-active volcano). She has invented the art of rocketry, and scarred many realm soldiers for life!

The other solar is a brawl supernal, Athena, a classic folk hero who returned from a ten year pilgrimage to find her farming village of rabbit-people under attack, and held the realm off single handedly for 3 days and nights before exalting. She has had a complicated time as her lunar mate is the sorceress responsible for co-leading the realm invasion (she had been disguising herself as a dragonblooded) and when it seemed as though they were going to fix things together, she was betrayed and the sorceress helped to complete the necromantic ritual that brought the soul of the first age solar necromancer back to life (via cursed jade armour that had possesed the dragonblooded general, and the sorceress's sister.) Needless to say, she has many complex gay feelings about this.

And finally the Centrepede Lunar Monk Ruby Dusk Fang whose entire sect of pacifist martial artists was murdered by the realms initial occupying force, leaving him the sole survivor. His killing of the dragonblooded commander earned him an exaltation, but opened the door for the previously mentioned sisters to take the lead on the invasion.

They did manage to repel the realm, and stop the necromancer from turning the entire area into a shadowland, but at the cost of the craft supernal's mentor, and patron god of Caldera, an ifrit lord.

So that's the story we're in now! Taking his remains far south to the pillar of fire to resurrect him! They were already at the border of the southern desert and are now travelling in a giant bedazzled derrigible powered and manned by fire elementals because Craft Supernal.

I wanted to start off with a very intense dramatic story with high stakes and introduce the big bad of the campaign before having him fuck off, and leave them for a little bit more light hearted adventure and such. Like, climbing down a huge manmade hole that turned out to somehow be a mouth and almost getting eaten, and being tricked and almost murdered by sidereals (they have drawn so much attention to themselves lol) and other fun goofy stuff like that.

We are also now joined by a second Lunar who they met out in the desert, The Night Heron, a death moa who seems to be more beast than person! Appearing at first as a child with little to no understanding of civilisation, but who has since become an angsty teenager the more it learned about the world. What's up with that? Who is to say.