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Hydtithe, the Second Skin, was once an urban legend; a parasitic artifact that on finding a wearer would drain them of vitality and be found by the next unfortunate soul. Though it was never studied up close, its victims were drained of their genetic potential and withered under the grasp of a mindless, absorbent thing. Assumed to be created by the Body Arken, the Hydtithe had some adjustments over the years, eventually becoming more symbiotic on second appearance. Though it no longer kills its wielders, the pursuit of perfection can often be a self-destructive thing, and the Second Skin has more lives to twist into tragedies.
| Hydtithe, Second Skin | |
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| Artifacts | |
| Name | Hydtithe, Second Skin |
| Origin | Body Arken? |
| Type | Armor |
Origins
Hydtithe is a recent creation with a nebulous history. Most scholars account it as a creation that first made itself known around 272 AC, but assume that it existed for at least ten years earlier thanks to whispers of its name before its large reveal. It’s assumed to be an awkward middle child of Body’s experiments with Creation Particles, not intelligent enough to work on its own but too magically dependent to be considered its preference for life. Its first real appearance was in the Regalian Sewers during the middle of the Regalian Pessimism. Drained cadavers and puppeteered corpses would leap into gang wars as storms of flesh-blades and subsequent misery, leading to an explosive reputation as a parasite which shifted from many quickly-expiring hosts. When the Azure Order grew more blatant, Hydtithe disappeared with a nameless wearer, disappearing from the Azure Spire when it fell. It existed as but a rumor for years on end, until surfacing again in the wake of a tragedy in Amontaar, different to the stories surrounding it. Once a parasite, Hydtithe seems to have taken a symbiotic relationship with its new wearers, completely subservient to their goals and ends. It hasn’t the mind or mouth to whisper of self-destruction, nor does it seem to require sustenance from the wearer as it did in the past. Something changed in those dark dirges of the Spire, or perhaps in the blood-soaked death pit it was found at in Amontaar, and it’s unclear if Hydtithe is better off a parasite or a symbiote.
Appearance
Per its namesake, the so-called second skin manifests as a coiling mass of flesh, bone and muscle, colored red, white and gold. When not tethered to a host, it is but a coiling orb of meat with a single spying eye, usually quite thin and small from malnourishment. It clings to its wearer as a set of armor, either in just coating an arm or spreading so far as to coat the entire body. It can forge weapons off the arms or spines off the body, or even a carapace-like protective armor, but it must be told to do so first. It seems to respond to vocal commands, but it has been known to work instinctively after enough time with a wearer.
Artifact Mechanics
Hydtithe is a Void Magic Artifact. As Hydtithe is an Artifact, there are several rules associated with Artifact Ownership, see Artifact page. Hydtithe also provides the following specials:
Permanent Mechanics
- Hydtithe works best in more extreme conditions. The wielder gains +2 Attack Stat (breaks cap up to 11) when in the Sewers or Countryside (Gloomrot, Badlands, etc).
Artifactspark Mechanics
- Choose 2 Free Packs from the following Categories: Adapt Point Buy, Magic Point Buy, Bruiser Point Buy
- Hydtithe may travel anywhere, and adapt to any place. The wielder gains Fin’ullen Mechanic 3, and Urlan Mechanic 3
- Hydtithe grows with its wearer. When the wielder makes a Basic Attack with range of Emote Range, they gain +2 to the Minimum of their next Attack Dice Roll. When the wielder makes a Basic Attack with range of Melee Range, they gain +2 to the Minimum of their next Defense Dice roll.
Legendary Artifactspark Mechanics
- Choose 1 Free Pack from the following Category: Adapt Point Buy
- Hydtithe longs to transform its wielder into the apex being. The wielder gains all Savent Asha Heritage Mechanics, except Mechanic 1, and all Urlan Heritage Mechanics. Additionally, the wielder’s Max HP is 12.
- The Legendary Artifactspark Armor grants the user +1 Attack Stat (breaks cap up to 11) and +3 Defense Stat (breaks cap up to 9), and sets the minimum for their Defense Dice Rolls to 5. When the user is KO’d, they can choose to instantly teleport them, and the Artifact, safely to their home. This can only be done once (and must be reported to Lore Staff). Subsequent uses of this teleport mechanic must sacrifice the Artifact’s Spark in order to teleport the user and the Artifact. The Artifact is considered de-sparked, and the Artifactspark is granted to whoever KO’d the user.
Trivia
- Many of the past wearers of Hydtithe had absolutely no idea they were wearing it at all. While it is certainly different now, the first people to ever interact with the artifact did not realize it was on them, and died too soon to find that out.
- The idea that the Body Arken made Hydtithe is a widely accepted assumption, as while it has never explicitly confirmed its involvement, the Artifact’s nature and its preference to only arrive where Body has been imply a connection.
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