Aulaya, Ballista of Our Lady, is the personal greatbow of Alaïaam: youngest sister of Talea, the first Allorn Empress. After her passing, it proceeded as an heirloom down the Allorn lineage, residing in the hands of warlike Princesses who renounced the right to succeed to the throne. It continues in this way through available records until the Empire's division and collapse. There, Aulaya's wielder disappears from the historical record. It is unknown just what transpired, but Aulaya appears again shortly after Cataclysm in Solleria, purportedly rescued by the Goddess Sinnavei and given to a loyal Mistwatcher bannerman. Since that point, it has bounced between warriors as a gift for winning tournaments or a present to seek favor, much of its legendary portent and royal bloodline lost to the depths of time.
Lore
Aulaya is wrapped up in the history of the first generation of the Allorn imperial family, most of which was lost during the collapse of the Empire and the burning of important Estellon records (the records that the Elves possess now being a mere fraction of the complete historical transcript). Talea is known by all, and her younger brother Sanraan is remembered as the forefather of the Suvial people, but Aulaya is the weapon of the younger sister Alaïaam, third in line for the throne. Oral retellings suggest that she was blunt and mirthless for a Teledden, a muscled giant of a woman who seldom laughed, caring little for politics. Aulaya's appearance would back up this claim: a greatbow so large as to be wielded by a person at least four meters tall, it Magically adjusts its height down to fit the lesser mortals who have acquired it since Alaïaam's days. Not formed of wood, Aulaya has lasted the ages because it is cast in flexible silver metal which glimmers blue when light is shone upon it, once forged by a smith much like a blade could have been. Aulaya's length is decorated with etchings and brocade, the contours of which can be read as court Allorn runic script by a discerning linguist who has the patience to hold it at the right angles. Its string, too, is metallic. Since Aulaya cannot be unstrung, it is commonly worn across the shoulder or slung over it, or otherwise carried string-down in a hand. Although its power is great now, the tales of what it accomplished in Alaïaam's hands are greater; the one most oft repeated being her execution of an extortionate tyrant from a distance five days away as a horse rides merely by meditating for thirty minutes, praying, and loosing a single arrow into the endless depths of the sky.
Artifact Custom Kit
Aulaya is an Exist Artifact. As Aulaya is an artifact, there are several rules associated with Artifact Ownership. Foremostly, Artifact conflict is not opt-in. A Player may never be "too drunk", "too tired", or "not interested", in a third party attacking them to try and steal the Artifact. Artifact owners may not RP-log from being ambushed. Secondly, Artifact owners Rentals/Estates/Bases can be Raided following the Mage Vault rules, requiring the attacking party to initiate a Ticket with Lore Staff for the planning. Artifacts cannot be destroyed, disarmed, magicked away, yanked from an owner's hands or otherwise disappeared with Abilities, they can only be dropped when the wielder has been Knocked Out or willingly hands it over. Artifact owners are also permanently Control Power Immune, and are also immune to any Special that would establish control over them.
Name: Thirdborn
Type: Constant Passive
Cooldown: N/A
Aulaya passively penetrates all shields and armor, including those generated by Custom Kits. There is no Ability, Technique, method, or exception to block or dodge one of its basic attack rolls. Additionally, it ignores all loading times, interruptions, or delays on loading time, being able to be fired once per emote. Its wielder also cannot be Disarmed. Any arrow shot from Aulaya glows a radiant blue color, and the twang of its bowstring sounds like the pleasant strum of a harp.
Name: Royal Prerogative
Type: Constant Passive
Cooldown: N/A
The user is immune to any (non Racial) Power or Special from a Primal Mage, Archon, Primal Revenant Theurgist, Dragon, or Primal Artifact. This Immunity generally only applies to Abilities & Specials targeting the user. Additionally, Aulaya can curse those its wielder defeats with the Spell of Swordsman's Arrogance, making them unable to use any Technique or Power that moves them closer to an enemy for the next 24 hours or until they are exorcised.
Name: Allorn Bowguard
Type: Constant Passive
Cooldown: N/A
Aulaya is capable of being used as a shield, granting them the passive benefit of wielding one without being able to utilize Mundane Techniques tied to holding one. The user gains the following effects, which must be clearly added onto the Character Application: The user gains +7 Dexterity Proficiency (that does not grant Point Buy Packs) that exceeds Proficiency Limits. The user may also choose 2 Firearm Point Buy Techniques for free, that can be used through Aulaya.
Name: Castle Breaker
Type: Exist Power
Cooldown: 30 Minutes
The user must target two or more enemies who are standing in a direct line, one behind the other. The user then instantly makes a basic ranged attack on all of those enemies, rolling separate attack rolls for each of them. If the user hits all enemies targeted by this Ability, they may also immediately blink up to 10 blocks in any horizontal direction as soon as it is completed.
Name: Memory of Splendor
Type: Constant Passive
Cooldown: N/A
Aulaya is one of the most important Weapons in the ex-Allorn world. Its wielder gains favor and potential responses that would not normally be available with them. Aulaya can also impart visual changes to the user, either while using its abilities, just wielding it, or passively. Such aesthetics are including but not limited to: increased height, blue glowing eyes, echoing voice, white fire crown, and cyan Exist glyph tattoos running up the arms. For more, inquire with Lore Staff.
Name: Radiant Armament
Type: Exist Power
Cooldown: N/A
The user has five Charges of Radiant Armament, represented in whatever aesthetic they like. Each Charge can be sacrificed to use any Melee Weapon Point Buy Ability. Instead of Mundane Techniques, these Melee Abilities are classified as Exist Powers and do not require a Melee Weapon to use, using Aulaya itself. Charges are per day, meaning that when the server restarts, all Charges are refilled.
Lingering Blessing of Aulaya
Tier III Artifacts have lingering effects on their hosts, if the hosts have been identified by Lore Staff as "Honorable Users", a definition somewhere between properly using the Artifact beyond self-gain and for community betterment, and also not powergaming with it. A Lingering Curse or Blessing will remain with the host until they retake the Artifact, after which all effects are immediately removed. The following effects are given to the host:
Specials
Artifact Hunger: This Artifact has thoroughly manifested in the person's mind that they have a permanent tracking Ability on the current owner of the Artifact. Wherever this new owner is, this person can track them down know where they are even if they use a disguise or shapeshift. This effect is cancelled if the new owner of the Artifact is also an Honorable User, in which case they cannot track the Artifact owner.
Artifact Heritage: This user has a lingering power that once belonged to the Artifact, but that they can now use independently of the Artifact. When they re-take the Artifact, this does not stack as all lingering Blessing effects are removed when they retake the Artifact. The specific Ability of Aulaya that is given by the Lingering Curse is Castle Breaker.
Artifact Memory: This user no longer owns the Artifact, but are still recognized as an Honorable user of the Artifact and worthy of its legacy. For this Artifact, it means the now ex-owner still has lingering favor from ex-Allorn figures in Progressions and the wider world.
