Class Feature Friday: Exergy Aspect (Vanguard Aspect)
In physics and engineering, exergy is a term which refers to the total amount of usable work that can be gotten out of a stable system after the loss from entropy has been accounted for.
That dry summary of a physics term can only mean a few things: we’re back with another aspect for the vanguard class that plays fast and loose with terms related to entropy!
The vanguard is all about manipulating entropy to be able to absorb the energy of attacks and dish them back out again. This manipulation of entropic energy also lends itself to manipulating other forces as well, specifically entropy’s complementary partner: work.
Essentially, this aspect focuses on the vanguard using their power to maximize the impact of their strikes, directing the energy to every stress point in their target to in turn maximize the destructive results. Ironic that an application of work would be used to improve chaotic breakage, isn’t it? (Or it would be if we didn’t remember that the destruction of the vanguard’s enemies is the desired result)
Technicalities aside, these vanguards are the heavy hitters among a class already full of bruisers, able to overwhelm foes and set up devastating attacks.
Radiating raw power, these warriors can be quite terrifying on the battlefield. What’s more, they are adept at knocking foes over with their strikes.
Using as much energy as possible within a span of time is the staple of these vanguards, so it only makes sense that they can gain a little entropy by attacking repeatedly.
The most impressive power of these vanguards is their catalyst, allowing them to expend energy to afflict all nearby foes with a sort of catalytic curse, an energy field that causes the next attack to transfer energy to all the foe’s stress points, dealing extra damage. If the ability was triggered by their own energy, however, the potential damage becomes considerably more.
Those vanguards that have this aspect as their primary are adept at getting the most out of their weapons, triggering the benefits of their weapon normally reserved for a critical blow when they land strikes that are close, but not quite critical in nature.
This aspect is much more focused on direct damage than even other aspects, dealing it in a unique way by setting up foes for additional extra damage, though not necessarily with the vanguard as the source, letting allies get in on the action. Like most vanguards, you’re going to want to build for getting stuck into melee combat quickly, or midrange if you take entropic shot. Naturally extreme long ranges are not good for this aspect due to the nature of their catalyst.
Given their nature as heavy hitters, some might assume that vanguards with the exergy aspect might be brutes or otherwise prefer the simplicity of solving problems by hitting them very hard. However, there is plenty of precedent for them to wax philosophical or have other interests. Their focus on exergy might give them a strong work ethic, as they are intimately familiar with the loss of opportunity and efficiency caused by entropic forces. They may have trouble relaxing or cutting loose, however, or they might play just as hard as they work, if not harder.
The Battle Tunnels of Nyact are a maze of subterranean caverns that have been converted into an arena of sorts, individual competitors being dropped in random sectors to explore and hunt down their fellow gladiators, with a multitude of hidden cameras to watch the whole thing. The show is infamous for being especially grueling to newcomers who are disoriented by the unfamiliar, winding tunnels, but those who rise to the top become crowd favorites, like the current champion, a kayal swordsman whose mono-edge blade seems capable of cutting through anything, especially once he’s taken a few hits himself.
Eager to explore parallels between her power and that of other natural forces, the vanguard Kiera has accepted a position as bodyguard on a xenogeological expedition studying the volcanic lakes of a frontier world. However, while there, she hears a voice in her head calling for release. The source of the voice is a dreaming xaxmellia kaiju, eager to be awakened to rain down acidic havoc once more.
Last night the foundation of the Micrad local office building collapsed spontaneously, despite the building being brand new. Some believe that faulty construction is to blame, but the destruction was so sudden that sabotage is another possibility. Upon further investigation, it seems that something accelerated all the weaknesses in the design in a single moment with shocking efficiency.
