Kinaniz

When the spirit of the city of Q'in Sanizaj, in a desperate attempt to stave off the Wyld forces assaulting it, attempted but failed to create a stable merger of itself, the city and its inhabitants, the tragic result was an unshaped, Wyld monstrosity, an entity now known as Kinaniz.

Formed from a slowly shifting mix of environments, some urban, some natural, some a disturbing or wondrous melding of both, Kinaniz moves slowly, using its outer waypoints like the legs of an insect to propel itself. When stationary, it will elevate itself on a tree trunk miles in diameter and a hundred miles high, and arrange its waypoints into a more defensible arrangement, generally forcing visitors to enter through the hall of glass.

History

Little is known about Kinaniz's history, even to Kinaniz itself. Barely sentient when initially formed, it's first act was to eject Wyr'palja's mausoleum, it's reality engine irritating the innards of the beast. It then assimilated, destroyed or expelled the vast majority of the raksha who had been trapped by its formation, shaping what remained of them and their freeholds into itself. Those citizens, both alive and dead, who were incorporated into Kinaniz remained protected by the unshaped as best it could manage, and many of these ghosts remain within Kinaniz today. As the Fair Folk invasion of Creation continued, it wandered the Wyld. By the time the Empress had expelled the invaders, Kinaniz was in the Deep Wyld, slowly mutating even further.

Stories of its existence would surface occasionally in Fair Folk courts, usually as an unstoppable force that wondered in from the deep Wyld, absorbing or destroying those foolish enough to try to tame it, then wandering back out again.

As time progressed Kinaniz become more intelligent, self-aware and focussed. About a century ago, it realized that it was once a city, and wasn't sure what to make of that. A few decades later, it realized that not only had it been a city, but it was possibly one of the greatest cities ever made. A few decades after that, he decided it could be so again and began looking for its original location. During its search, it also realized that, quite naturally, it was the site of a great deal of treachery, murder and conflict. Concluding that this must be the natural state of all great cities, certain changes began to take place within itself to embody this idea.

Most recently, it came across Wyr'palja's mausoleum, which had come under the control of Cahlenna a high ranking member of the Opal Court. Without realizing exactly what it was, Kinaniz realized the tomb was once important to the city and promptly surrounded it. Cahlenna, of course, led an expedition into Kinaniz to get the tomb back, which did not end well for Cahlenna. Most of the expedition was destroyed, and Cahlenna and her entourage were bested and force to swear an oath to protect the tomb. She remains within, torn between scheming to escape and scheming to gain control of Kinaniz.

The tomb itself is now nestled like a pearl within Kinaniz, its reality engine now more of a source of comfort than irritation to the rest of the unshaped's body.

Structure

The urban landscape is more dense with both structure and ideas. As such, the narrative waypoints that make up Kinaniz are fairly compact for waypoints, usually only a one or two miles across. Some are even smaller.

waypoint map

Arcane Redoubt

Bonefire

Stronghold

Center for active and aggressive strength

Glory

Center and focus of majesty of the freehold. Magical and wondrous place. Hall of Memory? Causes beguilement throughout freehold (pg 190)

Fountainhead

gives freehold self-awareness and identity.

Hall of Glass

Guarded by a glass dragon behemoth?

Graveyard/Labyrinth

Transluscent Drem Sheathing Technology

Tomb Nest

Web of streets. You can fly inside if you want, but this makes you vulnerable to shaping?

Within this reality, rasksha will use a shaping action to declare that "the heroes see the impressive display and run away, avoiding the freehold's guards." If the players accept this reality, they will have +1 die to escape the freehold. If they refuse, they suffer environmental penalties as per pg 134. Other raksha will form similar realities. Single target at a time?

Perhaps other locations attempt to move the party in specific directions.

Inhabitants

Guidance

The primary guiding intelligence of Kinaniz, Misplaced Promise is all that remains of the original spirit of Q'in Sanizaj. He has embedded his own graces in both the redoubt and the glory, and spends most of his time enfleshed in the body of Kinaniz. He occasionally takes the form of a winged, parrot-headed man. He seeks to return the city to its former glory, but has some confused notions about what its former glory. He will be torn about intruders trying to breach the tomb, concerned about what they might take or damage, but extremely curious about what is inside.

Secondary Guidance

Regency

Assertion of a Greater Vision, God- Humbling Victory Sword, Ill-Approving Eyes, Radiance of the Invincible Warrior, Scattering the Foe, Unparalleled Terror Technique; plus All-Consuming God-Monster Stance (Chain-Defying Art, Lumbering Feet of God and Untouchable Infinite Spirit), Endless Armies of the Storm, Pincer of Transcendent Time and Fate, Spirit-Flaying Meditation, Waypoint-Sealing Stance and Wyld Communion. Variation: Replace Endless Armies of the Storm and Pincer of Transcendent Time and Fate with two more purchases of All-Consuming God-Monster Stance (Heart-Stopping Numinous Power, Miasma of Principle, Terrible Shaping Suasion and Unshapeable Transcendent Essence). This model is suitable for an unshaped wielding a horror or a Nishkriya mask. Its combat style is somewhere between that of a Solar and a Lunar Exalt � basic, straightforward attacks, backed with moderate dice pools, regeneration and a good reflexive defense. A typical Combo features God-Humbling Victory Sword, Ill-Approving Eyes and Assertion of a Greater Vision. A guiding intelligence may augment this with Endless Armies of the Storm. Because Radiance of the Invincible Warrior allows the creature to reflexively parry Staff and Sword attacks, its Bastion of the Self probably defends against attacks by the Cup or the Ring.

Secondary Guidance

Hoi Polloi

Pulled in during the merge. Slightly insane

Deeper Into Trouble Technique, Furiously Stalling Destiny, Ill-Approving Eyes, Inauspicious Moment for Attack, Laughing Monster Stance, Subtle Hammer; plus Assertion of a Greater Vision, Howling Dream Consumption Prana, Sapphire Emptiness Kata, Shuffling the Pieces, Thieves Fall Out and Unitary Being Forge. This model is suitable for an unshaped wielding litany bones and focusing on defense and support. The guiding intelligence with this model would enter into battle with Howling Dream Consumption Prana and Laughing Monster Stance active, using Shuffling the Pieces to collapse the defense of enemies already wounded by its lesser minds.

Potrait

Inhabitants

1. Behemoth representing the rebellion of the citizens? "Revolting Proletariat" or "Soul of the Junta", sprouting or shooting armed peasants as weapons. Artifact: 5. Attacks as Jade daiklave. Mutations (15):Giant (4), Grace of the Infinite Revolving Spheres (4), Regeneration (2), Tough (2), Long-Arm Technique (3). May also be used as Cup-shaping weapon, but only dealing with revolution-like emotions. 2 motes to make ranged attack?
2. Representation of the neighborhood turned into glass by Wyr'palja.
3. Freehold
4. Diamaskratos Glass dragon. Attack as starmetal reaver daiklave. Colossal (6), Dragon's Breath (6), Surpassing Excellence (1), Ambrosial Ascension (1), Raging Vortex Form (1, provides half Willpower additional = Grace of the Infinite Revolving Spheres (4)). Lost in Conviction Bedlam? Erratic Threnody
5. Poppets

Captive fairfolk? Awakened Dream Manufacture Shape Forged Servant Tainted Creature Command

Booty

• Regrettable Evacuation Curse - Held by Misplaced Promise

Statistics

Freehold ●●●●●
Heart: Embedded by Misplaced Promise.
Stronghold: ?● primary embedded warriors sword grace. 10 waypoints per rating
Glory: ●●●●● Misplaced Promise embedded own cup grace
Fountainhead: ?● primary embedded crazy's ring grace Tokens: Cyst ●● (Misplaced Promise), Cyst ● (other), Cyst ● (other), six pennants