My contests had a lot of entries for the 3rd section but not as many for the Essence section. I'm not necessarily surprised about this, as Essence is still very new and I think everyone is still sorting through it.
I want to say thanks everyone for participating, everything presented was quite cool, and everyone clearly has interesting ideas in their heads for Daiklaves, so hopefully getting them out into the open gives you the confidence to keep sharing and refining them. The best part of making homebrew is when someone uses it, and the second best feeling is when someone comments on it, so I'm gonna take the time to offer comments on all of these.
@Tikor's
Loyal Arc
I love the lightsaber thematic. I was actually thinking about something similar to this in 3E myself, though mine was the idea of using a water cutter to replace the idea of a Lightsaber. The amount of permanent Evocations give this weapon a significantly different profile from other weapons in a positive way; the weapon already is quite powerful through it's base effects, and having to pay 3 motes to activate it is effectively an Evocation on it's own. I'd love to see it have a few non-permanent evocations, but as it is, it's an interesting weapon worth checking out.
@Black Quartz Sphinx 's
Reach
Another interesting weapon, here I think about comparisons to Gin Ichimaru's Shinso and it's expanding blade, and making it out of wood is a cool factor. While it's only really got the one trick, it's a simple trick that I think a lot of people have thought about, so writing it out in a good way is enjoyable. There's a lightheartedness to the descriptions that belie the dark history of the weapon as well, in a way that helps sell it as a weapon that was meant for a good thing and then did a bad thing. I'd like to see further evocations lean in on that concept or explore the ground of it expanding and retracting and it's ability to regenerate more, but it's cool.
@AutXAutY 's
Stormcutter
This is a weapon that definitely deserves to be in the Index, no doubt about it. Cutting people down without them being aware of it, manipulation of the turn order, slicing a castle in half, this weapon is designed around doing things like that and it's extremely effective in presenting those abilities. It might be on the higher end of power, but sometimes you want to go a bit gonzo. This is one of those weapons you'd have to see in play to really get an idea of what it does, because it's intensely unique, to the point I'd honestly say it feels more like an Artifact 5 instead of an Artifact 4.
@AutXAutY 's
Test of Hope
Another excellent weapon, literally choking your opponents with despair is a really cool idea for a mystical sword. The effects are simple and precise, and they generally come together in a complete package of what the sword user wants to do and how they want to do it. Weapons like this that come bundled with their own combat sequence are great for players and antagonists both, because they add flavor to both your attacks and your defenses. Because this weapon's combat sequence is so well defined, it doesn't really need any additional Evocations or anything, it really is a total package of what you want to do as a user just by itself, which is an impressive creation and helps it fit into any Exalt's repertoire.
However, while each of these are unique and impressive in their own ways, I can only give one 3rd weapon a prize, and there is one I had my eye on when it went up and, at this point, can only say it's impressed me the most.
@SamuraiMujuru 's
Bitter Fury has to be the winner of my contest for 3rd Edition proper.
What's there to say about this weapon? What isn't there to say? A gripping story of rage that persists even though the individual is dead, simple and not overwrought, but still full of emotion, and Evocations that progress and further that story. The mechanics are in tandem with the fluff, representing the Dragonblooded chained into the sword and his anger, and the mechanics themselves are excellent; There may only be three Evocations, but each has a distinct use and can clearly be the basis of further building upon for larger charm trees. This is a weapon I'd like to use in my own game, either for a PC or an NPC, it's that enjoyable to think about where you'd bring this story.
Then we move onto the Essence side, which only has two entries, which I sort of expected might happen, given how new Essence is, but it would also feel wrong to effectively single out one as being better then the other, since Essence is so new.
Because of that, I'm actually going to award the prize to both Essence entries.
Is it a cop-out? Eh, maybe. But I really like the idea of both of them, so here's a little commentary.
@AutXAutY 's
Sculptor of Cenotaphs
Not too complex, but quite effective, this weapon is extremely powerful with it's permanently stacking Defense penalty. The ability to turn people into statures for their sins makes it a perfect antagonist weapon, but it can also work as a protagonist's weapon for those whose crimes are too terrible. The ability to study the created sculpture to learn abilities from it is quite interesting, and a unique take on the idea.
@QafianSage 's
Dawn's Wound
Now this isn't a sword in the traditional sense, but it certainly a magical item you wouldn't want getting out. Seemingly as dangerous to the user as their opponent, it's an interesting take on a weapon that is much easier to hide then a big sword, but comes with it's own drawbacks. Calling it simple would be rude, it's got an interesting effect suite and how it works is unique, but I think this is a very interesting type of weapon that could find some real use in a campaign.
