Ronald is a big believer in giving his precious
bovine servants every advantage that he can think of - and, given the obsessive
tendencies of your average Djinn Superior, he thinks of cows a lot. A workable martial arts form was probably
inevitable, all things considered.
What wasn't considered was that a certain
Archangel and a certain ethereal pantheon would decide that the idea should be
considered on its own merits...
Creating a Moo Thai Adept
First, you need a cow, or a cow vessel, or somebody
with Numinous Corpus: Cow. If the
first, fiddle with the Supercow Attunement that Ronald uses so that the
doubling of Corporeal Forces applies to hoof-to-hoof attacks; a few
modifications to your potential Servitor's skeletal and muscular system are
also necessary, the better to let the cow stand fully upright. If the second, just make sure similar
modifications are incorporated into the vessel's design. If the last... actually, you're good to go
as is.
Second, find a teacher. The only teachers of Moo Thai are among Cows, Animals and the
Hindu pantheon; well, Michael is an adept, but that's because the Archangel of
War collects fighting styles like other entities collect pocket lint. Anyone who isn't a Servitor of Cows, Animals
and/or the Hindu gods is going to have to jump through hoops to prove his or
her worthiness: that's how it goes, and there isn't much you can do about it,
so suck it up.
The third and final thing to do is to get a stock
explanation ready about why you want to play a bovine martial artist: a certain
ability to ignore pointing and laughing might not be amiss, as well...
This skill represents the ability to fight using a
bovine body. It is an unarmed skill -
well, obviously it is; cows don't have hands.
What I mean is that you can't use weapons at all. Ronald's working on that, but don't hold
your breath. Also, this skill can only
be used on the corporeal plane: the Hindu gods are working on that, but
see previous comment re breath holding.
What makes this skill interesting is that it takes
advantage of the superior bulk of your average bovine: being kicked by a cow hurts,
damn it (how do I know? I refuse to
answer on the grounds that it might incriminate me). The available maneuvers are listed below:
Maneuver Power Accuracy
Fore Hoof Strike -1 +0
Back Hoof Strike +0 -1
Horn Strike +2 -2
Fore Hoof Jab -2 -1
Back Hoof Jab -1 -2
Push n/a -3
Pin 0 -3
Piledriver +4 -5
Fore Hoof and Back Hoof Strikes are more or less
equivalent to punches and kicks, respectively.
Bonuses for weighted hoofs are already factored in. A Horn Strike is a head slam: sharpening the
horns is worth an extra +1 to Power, but the horns must be sharpened before
every combat, and cows don't have hands to hold the file. Fore Hoof Jabs and Back Hoof Jabs are quick
attacks that sacrifice power and accuracy for speed: the Moo Thai practitioner
can make a number of attacks equal to (Corporeal Forces): Supercow does not
help with this. A Push does no damage,
but a successful attack requires the target to make a Strength roll, minus the
CD of the Moo Thai roll, or be flung back 1d6 yards. Pin is a sit on the target and suffocate him roll: the target
must win a Quick Contest of Strength roll to break free; failure to do so means
that the target will take 1 hit of damage each turn after the first Pin. Piledriver is just what it sounds like.
There is one other, generic maneuver: all
practitioners of Moo Thai may add their base skill level to any Dodge rolls
made to avoid a unarmed or hand weapon attack.
A Moo Thai practitioner may buy off the above
accuracy penalties. Each Accuracy
penalty must be bought off separately at a rate of 1 point per CP, and cannot
go above 0. Also, the level of penalty
bought off cannot be higher than the base Moo Thai skill: for example, a
Hellcow with Moo Thai/3 must spend 3 points to reduce its Piledriver penalty to
-2, and cannot further reduce that penalty until it raises its base fighting
skill.
Well, more esoteric - but you know what I mean. The skill roll is (Esoteric skill + Moo Thai skill + Characteristic): no Forces are added to the roll.
Bovine Stare (Perception) (Requires Moo Thai/1)
A successful roll will give a +(CD-3, minimum 1) to
all Dodge rolls involving the opponent.
This skill takes two rounds to use.
Cud of Rejuvenation (Will) (Requires Moo Thai/3)
A successful roll will heal CD/3 hits, rounded down
(minimum 1)
Moo (Precision) (Requires Moo Thai/4)
This is the bovine Kiai skill: a successful roll
will stun an opponent for CD/2 rounds.
The opponent may resist with a Will roll.
Udders of Death (Precision) (Requires Moo Thai/6)
Ranged milk attack, and that's all I'm going to say
about it. Power +6, Accuracy -1, Range
5 yards.