I have a couple concepts, and I'll go with which one you think best fits the game.

1. High Concept: Street urchin sneak thief
   Trouble: No-one takes me seriously
   About the character:  Kind of and Artful Dodger type character, but more breaking and entering than pick pocketing.  She was raised on the streets, without family.  She gets into things easily, and takes what she needs.  The Veiled Hand saw potential in her and used their influence to get her out of trouble in exchange for her skills.

2. High concept: Tracker from the boarder lands
   Trouble: I need to protect the helpless
   About the character:  She is a hunter from a small wilderness village on the edge of the kingdom.  Her people were captured by raiders, and she set out to find them.  With help from a Veiled Hand member, she was able to track them and free them.  The Veiled Hand agent was impressed with her tracking skills, and offered her a position. Partly in gratitude for the agents help she accepted.

I hope one of these works for your game.  I can modify them if need be.

One of my favorite characters was Niphredil the bard.  There was an extensive session 0 in that game from childhood to adult.  One of the characters was her brother, a wizard, and all the characters knew each other since childhood, so it created a close RP bond.  The other players couldn't make it often so the two siblings spent a lot of time adventuring with just the two of them. Both were city people in a wilderness setting and spent a good deal of time running away from the wild life.  I know that coming in at the middle I can't quite do that, but I like the dynamics between characters.  I like collaborative story telling.

2. High concept: Tracker from the boarder lands
   Trouble: I need to protect the helpless
   About the character:  She is a hunter from a small wilderness village on the edge of the kingdom.  Her people were captured by raiders, and she set out to find them.  With help from a Veiled Hand member, she was able to track them and free them.  The Veiled Hand agent was impressed with her tracking skills, and offered her a position. Partly in gratitude for the agents help she accepted.


I have a NPC I was planning to bring in to the group as a GM mouthpiece that your character would probably be better suited to replace.    She's not going away, but she doesn't have to play as big a part in this story ('cause, seriously... NPC.  I've got dozens of them!)  And, it kinda allows me to sidestep creating a mantle for her, which I appreciatre at this point.

In the great war, the Plains of Aren got squeezed between the Mondain coming from the Mondat Mountains to the north and the horrors that had taken root in Northern Khadid.   Their contribution to the war led to them being "ceded" the plains of Aren (which was theirs anyway)...  such that Kumlar accepted them as a protectorate and promised that there would be no aggressive action to annex the plains.  It's now generations upon generations later.  Relations with Kumlar are good.  The Riders of Aren provide fantastic horse-stock, and other trade-goods.

The Riders of Aren live a nomadic life, typically moving about to different parts of the plains in a seasonal manner.   But recently, the Mondain have been coming down from the mountains again, in greater numbers than anyone living has seen.

Tabeta T'Mont (Literally Tabeta No-Mount) was a sentinel of the Riders of Aren, she defended a group of families setting up camp near the mountains, against a Mondain attack, and in the process lost her soulbound mount.   She's grieving, and has shorn her braids in ritualistic mourning.   She volunteered to travel to Kumlar to formally petition for aid to the Riders against the Mondain.  Anyway, that's her back-story.

Your tracker character could be a Rider of Aren.  The Horse-clans are pretty blatantly a reflection of North American nomadic societies.  And certainly not all of the People of Aren stay on the Plains.    But tracking, wilderness knowledge,...  those fit real nicely with how I envision them.

There's no obligation to go with this at all.  If you want to go in a different direction, so be it.

That introduction works for me

Okay.    I'm not giving her Tabeta's backstory... 'cause Tabeta is still going to be a NPC.  But it is saying that Arui is of the Tarenti, the Riders of Aren.

At this point, we haven't defined much of anything abotu the Tarenti culture.  We don't need to... and we can d it as it comes up in play.    But Aspecting her origin gives her a lot of leeway for bringing that in.

Given the story-pitch you'd given, would you prefer that Arui had spent most of her life among the Tarenti, or more so in Kumlar proper?

I'm interested to know who you see might be the member of the veiled hand that worked with her and recruited her?  In this setting's back-story, this would be someone who once served as a queen's attendant and, having served out there term, retired to wherever they went next...   While our PCs are the first active cell in the Veiled hand, there were probably a good handful of people acting solo.

Why I like the back-story is because slavery is very likely going to be a hot-button trigger for conflicts between the two big nations: Kumlar and Khune.


Now...  I have some fundamental questions...

In this world, everyone can do ritual magic.   But only those who have somehow been born with the ability to cast evocation develop a mana-pool.  Is Arui an evoker?

So, this story is startin in Druvir, the capital city of Kumlar.    Druvir is the biggest city in Kumlar, housing both the royal court and the College of Magic.  Why would Arui be there now?


Tracker from the border lands
This is fair.  We might revisit it down the road as we start to drill down into the character.   I don't feel we need to dissect the character, but I do wanna get a feel for her...

Trouble: I need to protect the helpless
So, the big question I have to ask--especially since this is her signature Trouble Aspect... is why?  Why does she need to protect the helpless?  Is this a moral obligation?  Has she been assigned this task?  Is it a magical geas?


In the mean-time, you can go ahead and put forth suggestions for the other three Aspects and start in on the skill-pyramid.

I left a lot vague at the time because I didn't know much about the game world. We can drill down now for better detail

Arui isn't an evoker

I like the Tabeta backstory, and I'd like to link it to Arui.  It could be a better intro than I had thought of.

Arui was with her defending against the Mondain attack. I think they came to Druvir together.  Tabeta probably didn't travel the whole way alone.  Arui could be part of an escort group, or maybe a relative, or both.  I like the idea of them being relatives; for a tribal society, family is important. I'm thinking cousin or niece.  Arui is a young adult of 19.  If Tabeta is much older she could be her aunt, or cousin if they're closer in age.

Even though Tabeta couldn't reach the King, some at court wanted to bring the Tarenti further into the fold, and saw this as an opportunity to influence them.  Captain Philip LaMare was one, a retired cavalry soldier and court regular who secretly served the Queen as her agent.  He learned of Arui's part in the battle against the Mondain in which her scouting skills helped find the kidnapped villagers, and he felt that she could be useful.  He told the visitors from Aren that through service to the greater kingdom they could prove the value of their people which would only help Tabera get the aid she requested.  As a sign of good will Arui volunteered her service.  Tabeta was the wise and diplomatic one.  Arui was useless in political matters.  Here was her chance to be useful.

The character of Captain LaMare isn't written in stone.  If you have an existing character who could fit a similar role that works too.

High concept:  I'm playing up that as an outlander, she's a bit naive about city life. She comes from a small close knit society where people are more forthright. She has her own ways that might make her stand out.  She respects the spirits of nature and she has rituals and customs that would differ from city folk.  She sees Tabeta as the wiser between them, and better at negotiating, but she wants to do her part. Maybe "rustic scout from the Tarenti"  I need a better adjective.

Trouble: She's a warrior, and guardian for her people.  I think protection is her role in society.  Maybe "guardians protect the weak and strengthen the people"

I think both aspects come from her connection to the Tarenti even when she's separate from them.  Maybe because she's separate she doubles down on her feeling for her people and projects it on her new environment.  Through demonstrating the value of the Ternti people she can help get the aid they need.

Rereading what I just wrote, I wonder if a should make the outlander part be her trouble, and the protection be another aspect

This is Skills to start with.  It may adjust a bit before we're done.

SKILLS
Two Great, Three Good, Four Fair, Five Average.  Please do not delete the
Mediocre(+0) ranked skills.
02 *    Great(+4): Shoot, Notice
03 *     Good(+3): Athletics, Knowledge, Stealth
04 *     Fair(+2): Blades, Craft, Investigate, Ride
05 *  Average(+1): Empathy, Fight, Physique, Rapport, Will
05 * Mediocre(+0): Burglary, Contacts, Deceive, Lore, Provoke

Here's a revised aspect list

High concept: I'm a hunter from the Tarenti

Trouble: I'm bound to my people and their customs

aspect: I strengthen the people by protecting the weak
This message was last edited by the player at 03:02, Wed 22 Apr 2020.

Okay!

This is going faster than I'd expected, since you're being so amenable :)

Let's go with Tabeta as an aunt.  Arui's presence here will allow me to background Tabeta, which allows her to play more of the role I'd given her in her background.

Lamare is a good addition.  Let's run with that.

I'm playing up that as an outlander, she's a bit naive about city life.
There'll be some nice parallels with Manaolama.  I can't wait to pair the two of you together and get you into some city trouble...

Maybe "rustic scout from the Tarenti"  I need a better adjective.
I'd prefer to avoid the "rustic"... if only because we don't know where the game will take us.  Travel across Kumlar Khune, Aren, and Khadid are all possible.  And you'd lose the value of "rustic" outside of a city setting.  The cultural identifier carries a lot of weight, though.  It's a different enough society that many people just don't have a clue what that means.  I think a lot of the "outsider" element is intrinsic to this when she's outside the Plains.


Trouble: She's a warrior, and guardian for her people.  I think protection is her role in society.  Maybe "guardians protect the weak and strengthen the people"

I hadn't really come up with a name for the outriders who protect the families.    I think I'd used "Sentinel" when describing her to you earlier.  It's not bad... but doesn't really capture the fluidity of the role.  You use the term "guardian".. let's try that on for size... until something better comes along.  I think it carries the weight of what you're saying really well.

However, we want to be careful of not having too many Aspects referring to the same thing... while it confers potential mechanical advantages, it does so in ever increasingly narrow circumstances.  So since we've got the Tarenti people's referenced in the high-concept, let's look a little closer at the Guardianship role.  Because there's something there I find fascinating.

How do you feel about Guardianship being a series of vows?  I'm thinking like a monk's vows, but specifically relating to duties and obligations, establishing a code of ethics...   Having taken The Vows of Guardianship, Arui has a lot of liberty in how to apply those vows...   So, she's left the plains to accompany Tabeta.  While she might not be among the families, it doesn't necessarily release her from her vows.  She still has an obligation to look out for the undefended.  (Note, I specifically avoid saying "the weak" because I don't want the Tarenti to typically think of people as "strong" or "weak" as a general identifier.  "a weak fighter"? sure. just "weak"? not so much).

So... I do rather like the idea of splitting the protection Aspect away from the trouble...    For the Trouble, would you consider dramatically shortening the "Bound to my People" into the element that's going to cause her the real trouble?  Simply Strange Customs?  This gives you a lot of leeway to invoke, wile at the same time, really helping to fill out the culture of the Tarenti and the Tarenti Guardians.

So... High-Concept:  Tarenti Hunter
Trouble:  Strange customs
Other Aspects:  Vows of Guardianship

What do you think?  In the end, it's your character, so if you don't like where these are going, we continue to discuss...

02 *    Great(+4): Shoot, Notice
03 *     Good(+3): Athletics, Knowledge, Stealth
04 *     Fair(+2): Blades, Craft, Investigate, Ride
05 *  Average(+1): Empathy, Fight, Physique, Rapport, Will
05 * Mediocre(+0): Burglary, Contacts, Deceive, Lore, Provoke

Skill list looks okay.  I'm also quite amenable to tweaking things later on, if you decide it doesn't quite model her that well...

That works for me.  I like keeping the aspects more open ended like that, but I'm going to put notes after the aspects to signify where they come from. I'd like to develop the other aspects in game, if that's alright.  It helps tie the character to the story and/or the other characters.

I think I just need stunts at this point, and equipment if you do that.  I didn't see anything explicit on equipment. I'm assuming She gets her weapons and basic items.  She's from a horse based society; would that qualify for her to get a horse?

Stunts
1. specialist: page 115 of the core book.  I want to specialize in wilderness knowledge

2. danger sense: page 117.

3. tough as nails:  page 119.  She's not particularly strong, but she is resilient

That works for me.

I dislike itemizing equipment in games.  So, we're not doing it.  If it's narratively important we'll mention it, and possibly Aspect it for a scene.  Otherwise... go with what makes sense.

A horse?  Yup!  That makes sense.  As the best rider in the group, if anybody's going to have a horse, it'll be you.  Does she value this particular horse such that she'd be holding onto it, or would she be selling it and buying another as needed?  If it's Tarenti breed, she'd get a damned good price for it.  Especially if it's a mare... breeding stock, you know...

The stunts work for me.  Thanks for the page-references.   This'll take you down to +1 Refresh, so you'll start each session with +1 fate-point or better if you already had better).


So...  Where are they staying, while in Druvir?

Given that an excursion like this isn't something many Tarenti will have done outside of the traders, this may be an excuse to play tourist.   Or, has Arui been on a trading expedition before?

I'm going to start you off solo for a little bit with the aim of getting you and Nathan together quickly, then angle you to (no idea how, yet) hook up with the other four.

Also, when you get  chance, can you please consolidate the info as you see it, and post it to The Current cast thread?

I've added a concatenated sheet to the Tracking thread, but The Current Cast thread holds all the important details...  so, we don't have to necessarily go trolling through the character-creation discussion thread to find stuff.

And finally...
We have the option of creating a little mini-rules sub-system for your character in the form of a Mantle.  It's available if you want it, but there is absolutely no requirement to take on a mantle.  In fact, I don't feel that your character needs a mantle.    But if you'd like to discuss it, we can explore some options.

Tabeta has a "Braided" Mantle and the "Evocation" Mantle, to represent her soul-bond with Lachar, her former mount, and her ability to cast evocation.

I could potentially see Arui taking on a mantle to codify the Vows of Guardianship.  But, again, it's not necessary.  It adds an extra level of complexity that isn't absolutely required.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:06, Wed 22 Apr 2020.

I misread the creation rules.  I though you could choose a mantle or a stunt, and get another stunt that didn't have to be connected to the mantle for free.  So I'm going to drop tough as nails, and have 2 stunts and 2 refresh

Vows of guardianship could work.  I was also thinking strange customs. I had an animistic magic system I made for the game.  Basically You could get aid from nature spirits, but then you owed the spirits a favor usually in the form of rituals or totem objects.  You can also use it to have the spirits call on my assistance as a favor.  It can help move plot along. I was going to do something like that for flavor anyway, but we could expand on it to make specific stunts.

I probably need a dot of lore if I go with animistic spirits

If you take on a mantle, you'll get the core stunts of that mantle for free.

I suggested Vows simply because it closely relates to my concept of mantles as a reflection of both perks & obligations of a role...  you get some sort of special power in exchange for performing your duties.  If you should fail to do your sworn duties, you lose the perks...    I'm not married to this in any way.

I'm not certain we'd need to make many changes to a system that involves negotiation with other entities.  That's kind of wrapped up in the Indebted Condition/Stress-track.  But we can see about deriving a couple of stunts for it...

We will want to open that topic to the other players, though, because we haven't discussed the wider cosmology of the world other than to say infernals/demons aren't a thing in this setting.

Using strange customs was my first thought for a mantle, but I would like to hear your ideas for using vows of guardianship.

Okay, I'm thinking of a mantle specifically for Guardianship...  based on my preconceptions that there are both responsibilities and perks of the role.  In general:

Responsibilities:

• Among the Tarenti, you have the right to take action up to and including taking a life without needing to seek authorization.
• You may detain someone if you have reasonable grounds to believe they have been involved in a crime against the people   (what those are, precisely, isn't defined)
• You may be privy to confidential social and tactical information of the leadership
• You may speak on behalf of the people with others not of the people
• You may make binding short-term agreements on behalf of the people with people not of the people

Your freedom to act is not unlimited;  you are subject to frequent reviews of your actions.  If you push the boundaries too far too often, you may find yourself warned or "muzzled" (not literally).

Warned is a fleeting condition that just says that the leaders of the five families (I just made that up, how does that sound?) are watching you and your actions with some concern.

Muzzled is a sticky condition (meaning you need to jump through some narrative hoops to get out of it) that means you can no longer exercise the rights and responsibilities listed above, nor use any of the stunts (yet to be defined) that depend on those rights.

Nothing in this, so far is mystical or meta-powered.  It's a straight riff off the "Law Enforcement" mantle from the Dresden Files Accelerated game.

Bu, I wanted the "you may make binding short-term agreements" part in place to act as a gateway to negotiating with supernatural entities, animal spirits, etc...



I like the negotiations thing, because it reminds me of three sources:

• Elric of Melnibone by Michael Moorcock
• Werewolf: The Apocalypse
• Changeling: the Lost

I really like how Changeling: The Lost describes all the multitude of contracts the fae have with all sorts of things.  If you can imagine a thing, then it probably has a spirit.  and if it has a spirit, it can be negotiated with.   But they are also tied within a web of contracts...   Some of the stunts, then, can edge into the supernatural, based on the negotiating of contracts.

So, maybe we do want to make the negotiating with teh spirits a foundation for it.  The Vows is just the pretext for extending your authority to speak on behalf of the people you are guarding.  That's a key term for me, because in the context of this game, you will be guarding the PCs, even if they don't necessarily understand or accept that you speak with the spirits on their behalf...

I'm just throwing stuff out there.  But does this sound reasonable as a foundation to start from?
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:59, Mon 27 Apr 2020.

I was kinda thinking that maybe, as an Outrider, she is a scout, and an envoy, first to travel into areas the families haven't been into in a while.  She would commune with the spirits, barter, negotiate safe passage, be informed of anything going on, that kind of thing.

Most of the time, the "law enforcement" side doesn't come up that often, but as an Outrider, she does have the authority to take action to safeguard the community.

I see her more as a protector than a law enforcer.  "she has the authority to take action to safeguard the community," covers that idea well enough to replace the first two responsibilities.

I think since her mantle is derived from guardianship, I'd like to downplay her role as a negotiator with the spirits.  It's a cool idea, but I think it works better for a shaman type character.  I'm worried that if I went that rout I'd have to change the character too much.

Her stunts could be spirit derived though.  However, I think they should should be limited to a protection theme, at least where it concerns her mantle.  One stunt I was thinking of was sentinel spirits that alert her of danger.  It's basically a reskin of danger sense.  Another, was that she can call on ancestor spirits for advice that she can use as a bonus for creating protective advantages.

Fair enough.  It's your character, your vision.

Danger sense as sentinel spirit
Sure, why not?   The mechanics remain the same, but the narrative explanation is different. That's totally cool.

Another, was that she can call on ancestor spirits for advice that she can use as a bonus for creating protective advantages.
Oh, that's nice.  And it plays to my affinity for using a NPC...   I think this might need to be Aspected too, so that I can compel it from time to time.  Do you envision this as a specific ancestor or simply s connection to  lien of ancestors?

Have you any thoughts on the use and integration of totems?


Vows of Guardianship
Also...  I had an idea about the vows of guardianship.  So, tell me what you think about this:

The role of the guardian is precisely that:  a protector.  While it is formally recognized among the Tarenti, the vows of Guardianship do not tie it to that specific group, nor people.

The Guardian's vow is a fundamental covenant, witnessed by the spirits, that draws upon the core of the Guardian's identity, binding them to whatever or whoever they have vowed to protect.  The conditions of the guardianship would need to be defined at the time the vow is made.

I see two ways of going about this:

Option 1: A Single Pool of Power
This would be a pool of power with a title like "Vow of Guardianship" with six boxes, each of which might be pegged off to power a stunt that's under it's purview.   (might not, depending on the stunt).   Breaking a vow would deplete the amount of power available to the Vow track until appropriate restitution is made.  Note that failing a vow is not the same as willfully breaking a vow.


Vow of Guardianship [X][_][_][_][_][-] Broken Vows


Option 2: Several Vows, each with Limited Pools of Power
In light of hashing out the Oathsworn mantle with Cara, I can see the possibility of having several active vows, each granting a limited one-use-per-box track to power stunts that can only be used in the furtherance of that specific vow.  The length of the track would have to be based on a role of some sort...  Although I think a ritual would make sense to bind the guardian to a cause.

Breaking a vow should lessen the potency of other vows or make it unavailable for her to take on new vows until restitution is made.  So, I'd suggest a similar track "Broken Vows" which would hamper the ability to take on new vows (but not outright prevent until there are too many Broken Vows).  The Broken Vows track would also give me all sorts of possibilities to compel.

Vow: Protect The Virtue of Princess Margaret [_][_][_]
Vow: See Rolf safely to the Summit Meeting [_][_]
Vow: Prevent Tolliver from makign a fool of himself at the Dancing Frog [_][_]
Broken Vows [-][_][_]


Possible core stunts (that you'd get for free):
Note that I'm not suggesting we take all of them... we should find a nice balance.  But these all make sense within the scope of the powers granted.

1. Faster, Stronger, Tougher:
   Mark a box of Vow of Guardianship to add +1 to any physical action.
   
2. Superior Speed:
   Mark a box of Vow of Guardianship to gain +2 to use Haste to defend or create an advantage.
   
3. Vow-Imbued Physique:
   When brute strength or sheer speed is requisite, call upon your vow to gain a bonus of +2 per box of Vow of Guardianship marked.
   
4. Vow-Imbued Toughness
   Mark one box of Vow of Guardianship to absorb two shifts from a physical attack.
   
5. Vow-Imbued Recovery
   Outside of conflict, mark one box of Vow of Guardianship to clear a sticky condition, or two boxes to begin recovery from a lasting condition. These conditions must represent physical injury.

Additional Stunts (that you'd have to pay for):

1. Designated Defender
   Once per session you may elect to suffer the outcome of any attack inflicted on any character in your immediate presence, preventing it from befalling them--so long as it relates to your vow.   This harm is taken at the same value as the original recipient and you may not roll a separate defense.
   
2. I can probably dig up a few more

Note that while the vow might be made to an individual ("I will protect you") the power of the vow comes from the vow being witnessed by the spirits.  Breaking the vow upsets the spirits, and that's the angle you need to take to make restitution.   It doesn't matter that the odds were overwhelming.  If you chose to break the vow (rather than fail at the task), you are a vow-breaker.


Okay, I think I've about tapped out what I wanted to suggest here.

Any thoughts so far?

I hadn't thought of a specific ancestor, but that could be fun if you want to RP them.

I'm not sure if it qualifies as a totem, but I was thinking that the Tarenti could have spirit bonds in the form of an animal companion. Tabeta's bond with her horse could be one type, but it could be various kinds of animals.  It's a tight bond that requires a lot of dedication representing Tabeta's mourning her horse, and cutting off her hair. I'm not looking at this for Arui right now, but I'm thinking of a potential hawk familiar for the future.

I'm getting a handle on the power pool.

From what I understand, it works like a stress track, so for the single power pool Arui would start with 3 mana pool plus 1 to the pool if she had a lore rating of 1 for a total of 4. This would be used to power all relevant mantle stunts.  Breaking her vow would decrease the maximum pool.  If that's the case, I think I like that better as a general pool than specific pools for specific vows.

I like all of your stunt suggestions especially vow imbued toughness, and vow imbued recovery.  The other three seem to overlap somewhat some being more potent but more limited in application.  The superior speed is also similar to the idea I had for the ancestor spirit, so maybe we could look at those together making one or the other a stunt.  Maybe if we made one physical boost stunt, and one defensive bonus stunt.  I lean toward Faster, Stronger, tougher.  I like the in game justification of ancestor spirits, but it could use the mechanics of superior speed, One box of the pool for +2 on a skill check to defend or create a protective advantage. Also we could make any that we don't use as core stunts into additional stunts

Designated defender is good for a tankier character, but probably isn't one that Arui would take as she is

I hadn't thought of a specific ancestor, but that could be fun if you want to RP them.
I'm just throwing ideas out there...  If you like this and you wanna run with it, great!  If not, no biggie.  I don't have anything hard and fast planned for this.


I'm not sure if it qualifies as a totem, but I was thinking that the Tarenti could have spirit bonds in the form of an animal companion.
That's precisely what I'm thinking.   At a basic level, a totem might just be an Aspect.  You invoke it and I compel it, and special system is necessary.   More complex effects (and potentially more powerful) would probably require more complex mechanics.  I don't think we need to go there at this point.   A Totem should probably just be Aspected.


I'm thinking of a potential hawk familiar for the future.
I'd suggest naming it and making an Aspect out of it somehow.

Mantle Stuff

From what I understand, it works like a stress track, so for the single power pool Arui would start with 3 mana pool plus 1 to the pool if she had a lore rating of 1 for a total of 4.
It'd actually be 2-shifts to start, but yeah, you understand right.  Only we'd have to call it something else, because mana is just for evokers.  This is the respect she's got with the Spirit world...  Werewolf: The Apocalypse used Gnosis to represent insight into th mystical mysteries.  That would probably work...


Breaking her vow would decrease the maximum pool.
Precisely.


If that's the case, I think I like that better as a general pool than specific pools for specific vows.
Okay.   I'll have a revision up shortly...


Re: Faster, Stronger, Tougher
One box of the pool for +2 on a skill check to defend or create a protective advantage. Also we could make any that we don't use as core stunts into additional stunts

Just to make sure I'm clear about this.

You're thinking:
Burn a box of Gnosis for +2 on a skill-check to defend or create a protective advantage.

One of the keys, for me, of Faster, Stronger, Tougher, is that it does specifically reference a physical bonus--right there in the title.   Are you thinking this, or are you thinking of opening it up to any Defend action or Create Advantage, so long as it's protective in nature?   If so, I think we need to change it's name.


I like all of your stunt suggestions especially vow imbued toughness, and vow imbued recovery.  The other three seem to overlap somewhat some being more potent but more limited in application. 
Also, Precisely!


So, how about we simply make the core stunts:
Faster, Stronger, Tougher and
Vow-Imbued Recovery


The superior speed is also similar to the idea I had for the ancestor spirit, so maybe we could look at those together making one or the other a stunt. 
Right!  Sorry.  I got all into kludging the mantle suggestion together, I forgot to integrate your stunt suggestions, which totally make sense, btw!

SO, let's make this a third core stunt of the Guardian mantle:

Sentinel Spirits
This stunt does not draw on the Gnosis pool.
Your Notice skill works unimpeded by conditions like total concealment, darkness, or other sensory impairments in situations where someone or something intends to harm you.  Narratively, this is represented by getting premonitions or warnings from the spirits "just in time"...


Another, was that she can call on ancestor spirits for advice that she can use as a bonus for creating protective advantages.
I think this can be modeled by invoking the high-concept or an Aspect specifically referencing ties to an ancestor or the ancestors...   I don't think we need a separate mechanics for it.



Also we could make any that we don't use as core stunts into additional stunts

Of course.  But, in my mind, it's basically tabling that discussion until it's time for you buy a new stunt...  We don't havwe to predefine the stuff we aren't using right now.



Designated defender is good for a tankier character, but probably isn't one that Arui would take as she is
Fair enough.

Sorry I was talking about Faster, Stronger, Tougher in the same passage as superior speed, and I think the two things got muddled in my statement.

So to recap.

1. we change the name of the standard stunt from danger sense to sentinel spirit, but it functions the same.

2. We make calling on ancestor spirits for protective advantage as part of her high concept.

3. we make a mantle around Vows of guardianship
-It has a power pool 2 boxes plus 1 for each level of lore skill
-It has 2 core stunts

  1.Faster, Stronger, Tougher:
    Mark a box of Vow of Guardianship to add +1 to any physical action.

  2.Vow-Imbued Recovery
    Outside of conflict, mark one box of Vow of Guardianship to clear a sticky condition, or two boxes to begin recovery from a lasting condition. These conditions must represent physical injury.

-Additional stunts include
  1. Superior Speed:
Mark a box of Vow of Guardianship to gain +2 to use Haste to defend or create an advantage.
  2.Vow-Imbued Physique:
When brute strength or sheer speed is requisite, call upon your vow to gain a bonus of +2 per box of Vow of Guardianship marked.
  3.Vow-Imbued Toughness
Mark one box of Vow of Guardianship to absorb two shifts from a physical attack.
  4.Designated Defender
Once per session you may elect to suffer the outcome of any attack inflicted on any character in your immediate presence, preventing it from befalling them--so long as it relates to your vow.   This harm is taken at the same value as the original recipient and you may not roll a separate defense.

If that's good for you, I think we have enough to get this character finished up, and in game

Hey, a heads up.

New character Angharad has chosen to go with a Tarenti mystic of some sort.

I'm going to re-read a lot of what we've discussed to get my ground under me for that, but I'd very much appreciate if you wanted to get involved.

At the moment, you're my resident Tarenti expert (hah! didn't expect that, did you?)