Ziz

Represents: Predatory and Malicious Destruction; Obscuring of Perception; Fearsome Presence; some association with Stealth and Dominating Strength

Ziz have the body of a lion with some characteristics of an eagle, including massive wings. Ziz patrol the skies above the earth, pouncing upon any holy elohim they find foolishly descending above unholy controlled territory. They don't usually involve themselves directly in human affairs, but do occasionally overshadow human situations, casting their darkness and clouding minds and muddying thoughts, bringing uncertainty and anxiety. Those who are anxious and see no way through their circumstances may be under the shadow of a Ziz.

Ziz prowl about, sometimes roaring to proclaim their great power and other times quietly stalking a victims. Ziz are among the most fearsome unholy elohim you can encounter. They have a more weighty presence than others and will make others feel lesser in comparison. Few can fully resist the fear they inspire. Their roar can be heard from great distances away and will challenge the Resolve of the hearer. Ziz can choose to be stealthy if desired and can cast darkness far and wide. and can pounce past those who would stand between them and their victim. They attack with tooth and claw. After successfully striking an enemy, Ziz can rend, adding significantly more damage.

Ziz are only seen at strengths of 3rd Domain or Ziz Beast.

Special Abilities

When using a known Maneuver, Martial Mastery grants the Ziz a bonus to Precision (or Guard, whichever is applicable) equal to half the Mastery Level of the Maneuver. 

Martial Mobility allows the Ziz to remain somewhat mobile while in Defensive Stance. Each Turn they are in Defensive Stance, they can perform one Maneuver without halving the distance travelled. Alternatively, they can add 1" (unhalved) to a single Move during that Turn. (Martial Mobility cannot allow the character to exceed the distance they would have travelled without Defensive Stance.)

Strength in Struggle reflects the Ziz's toughness by reducing damage related to Strikes received by 10%. Damage related to Strikes dealt by Ziz is increased by 10%. Ziz also gain +1 to all Resist Checks.

Strength in Struggle	Tier:1	Tier:2	Tier:3	Tier:4
Ziz	-10% damage dealt with and received from Strikes	no change	+1 to Resist Checks	no change

Situational Awareness gives the Ziz 3 to Perceive and 3 vs. Perceive.

Situational Awareness	Tier:1	Tier:2	Tier:3	Tier:4
Ziz	3 to Perceive and 3 vs. Perceive	6 to Perceive and 6 vs. Perceive	9 to Perceive and 9 vs. Perceive	12 to Perceive and 12 vs. Perceive

Trained Eye lets the Ziz choose a Target to watch. The Ziz must pass a Perceive Interaction vs. the Target (with a Difficulty of 0) and will then have certain benefits against the Target. The Ziz ignores any Guard the Target gains from Defensive Stance. The Ziz also gains 1 Adjustment in their favor vs. any Strike made by the Target or when making Check Rolls and Resist Checks vs. the Target.

The Ziz may attempt to establish Trained Eye only once per Turn. The Ziz may drop the current Target to attempt to watch a new Target. If the Ziz loses line of sight with the Target for an extended time, Trained Eye may be lost.

Trained Eye	Tier:1	Tier:2	Tier:3	Tier:4
Ziz	1 Defensive Adjustment and  ignore Guard from Defensive Stance on 1 Perceived Target	no change	2 Defensive Adjustments	no change

[In Dry Bones, none of these Special Abilities are in effect.]

Weapons

Ziz Strike with strong jaws and rending claws that deeply wound the Target.

Weapon	Standard Effect	Passion Effect
Jaws & Claws	12 = +20% damage (1/Strike)	+10% damage

Maneuvers

Ziz can Pounce, leaping or swooping upon their prey. They can also use their powerful jaws for a Tearing Bite, inflicting massive damage.

Pounce (2 AP)

Pounce allows Ziz to Move a greater distance while making a Strike. When doing so, Ziz may ignore the area occupied by other elohim while Moving, but cannot ignore occupied area where ending the Move. At Mastery Levels 4 and 5, Pounce also grants additional Force for the Strike.

Pounce may be employed without actually Striking a Target. If doing so, Exertion is still gained. Unlike other Strikes, the Ziz can only Strike a Target within Range from where they end the Pounce. Ziz have Pounce at Mastery Level 4 as a Tier:3. Mastery Level 5 upon becoming a Ziz Beast.

[For Flesh, Pounce cannot be used when not Striking an opponent.]

Mastery Level 1	Move 3" with this Strike, ignoring others in the path may only Strike Target at the end of the Movement
Mastery Level 2	Move 3"-4" with this Strike, ignoring others in the path may only Strike Target at the end of the Movement
Mastery Level 3	Move 3"-5" with this Strike, ignoring others in the path may only Strike Target at the end of the Movement
Mastery Level 4	Move 3"-6" with this Strike, ignoring others in the path may only Strike Target at the end of the Movement +3 Force
Mastery Level 5	Move 3"-7" with this Strike, ignoring others in the path may only Strike Target at the end of the Movement +6 Force

Tearing Bite (3 AP)

Tearing Bite uses the strong jaws of the Ziz to cut through the Target's defenses. The Ziz may not Move during this Strike, but can ignore a number of Stops determined by the Mastery Level. If the Ziz has uncancelled Hits, they may spend 1 Action Point to make another Strike using a Might Check vs. the Target’s Might instead of Precision and Guard. At Mastery Level 4, one 1 Effect is ignored. At Mastery Level 5, up to two 1 Effects are ignored.

Ziz have Tearing Bite at Mastery Level 4 as a Tier:3. Mastery Level 5 upon becoming a Ziz Beast.

Mastery Level 1	may not Move if uncanceled Hits, may Tear for 1 AP (Might vs. Might Check)
Mastery Level 2	ignore up to 1 Stop may not Move if uncanceled Hits, may Tear for 1 AP (Might vs. Might Check)
Mastery Level 3	ignore up to 2 Stops may not Move if uncanceled Hits, may Tear for 1 AP (Might vs. Might Check)
Mastery Level 4	ignore up to 3 Stops ignore one 1 Effect may not Move if uncanceled Hits, may Tear for 1 AP (Might vs. Might Check)
Mastery Level 5	ignore up to 4 Stops ignore one 1 Effect may not Move if uncanceled Hits, may Tear for 1 AP (Might vs. Might Check)

[In Dry Bones, there are no Maneuvers.]

Spiritual Effects

Ziz can use Spiritual Effects called Darkness and Pervasive Darkness, stretching out their wings in the sky, blocking the light, and spreading a thick cover of darkness.

Darkness

To initiate Darkness, the Ziz flies up into the sky and spreads its wings wide, blocking out the sun (or moon, at night). As it does this, a shadowy darkness spreads from the Ziz, blocking out almost all light. In the spiritual realm, this darkness obscures the Ziz's exact location and also increases the Ziz's Magnitude by 3. In the material realm, this darkness effect will usually bring a noticeable shadow as clouds move to block much of the sun (or moon). As long as the Ziz maintains Darkness, all non-Ziz elohim within a 40" area of the Ziz have -7 to Perceive and lose line of sight of any elohim outside of 12". When outside of Melee Range, affected elohim must pass a Perception Interaction in order to target the Ziz with a Ranged Strike or Spiritual Effect.

Darkness does not affect Spiritual Effects that do not require a Target, nor does it affect Songs. Trained Eye makes further Perception Interactions unnecessary unless the Ziz breaks line of sight with the Messenger (for example, by Moving outside 12" from them). Likewise, Detection eliminates the Perception Check requirement for the Ministering Spirit. Radiance counteracts the effects of Darkness while the Ziz is within 7" of the Ministering Spirit.

Fierce Ziz gain 5 Magnitude instead and Ferocious Ziz instead gain 7 Magnitude.

	Class	Allotment	Effect
Darkness	Manifesting Ongoing Self	Fixed 80	+3 Magnitude for Ziz (+5 for Fierce, +7 for Ferocious) non-Ziz elohim have -7 to Perceive non-Ziz elohim have no line of sight outside 12" targeting Ziz outside Melee requires a passed Perception Interaction

Pervasive Darkness

To initiate Pervasive Darkness, the Ziz flies up into the sky and spreads its wings wide, blocking out the sun (or moon, at night). As it does this, a shadowy darkness spreads from the Ziz, blocking out almost all light. In the spiritual realm, this darkness obscures the Ziz's exact location and also increases the Ziz's Magnitude by 7. In the material realm, this darkness effect will usually bring a noticeable shadow as clouds move to block much of the sun (or moon). As long as the Ziz maintains Darkness, all non-Ziz elohim within a 40" area of the Ziz have -12 to Perceive and lose line of sight of any elohim outside of 12". When outside of Melee Range, affected elohim must pass a Perception Interaction in order to target the Ziz with a Ranged Strike or Spiritual Effect.

Darkness does not affect Spiritual Effects that do not require a Target, nor does it affect Songs. Trained Eye makes further Perception Interactions unnecessary unless the Ziz breaks line of sight with the Messenger (for example, by Moving outside 12" from them). Likewise, Detection eliminates the Perception Check requirement for the Ministering Spirit. Radiance counteracts the effects of Darkness while the Ziz is within 7" of the Ministering Spirit.

Fierce Ziz gain 8 Magnitude instead, Ferocious Ziz gain 10 Magnitude, and Murderous Ziz instead gain 12 Magnitude.

	Class	Allotment	Effect
Pervasive Darkness	Manifesting Ongoing Self	Fixed 144	+6 Magnitude for Ziz (+8 for Fierce, +10 for Ferocious, +12 for Murderous) non-Ziz elohim have -12 to Perceive non-Ziz elohim have no line of sight outside 12" targeting Ziz outside Melee requires a passed Perception Interaction

Songs

Ziz have a powerful and pervasive roar that shakes the core of all who hear it, even from a great distance. These roars do not work like regular Songs. They require the use of Action Points during which the Ziz cannot Move. They also add Exertion to the Ziz immediately when used. They can be initiated during Turns later during the Cycle instead of only during Segment 1, but can still only be used once during each Cycle.

Song Name	Tier	Class	Comp.	Effect
Disheartening Roar	3rd	A-I-W	80	Causes WearR and Falter at a great distance
Bestial Disheartening Roar	Arch	A-I-W	144	Causes WearR and Falter at a great distance

Disheartening Roar

Disheartening Roar produces a wave of percussive force that presses in on all enemies who hear. It deals 30(10) Resolve damage and causes Falter:6(2). Unlike usual, Disheartening Roar affects all enemies out to a Range of 24" and can be heard out to 40". Disheartening Roar is Resisted as a Tier:3 Song using Resolve or Passion, whichever is lower. Enemies outside 12" gain 1 Pass to their Resist Check.

The Ziz cannot Move while Singing Disheartening Roar. The SPP is figured at the Ziz's current SPP, up to 12 (minus any invested in singing regular Songs this Cycle). Unlike a regular Song, Fiery Roar uses 4 Action Points and adds 3 Exertion.

	Class	Complexity	Effect
Disheartening Roar	Affecting Immediate Damaging	80	27(9) Resolve damage out to 24" +1 Pass if outside 12" causes Falter:6(2) Resisted using lower of Resolve or Passion

Bestial Disheartening Roar

Disheartening Roar produces a wave of percussive force that presses in on all enemies who hear. It deals 42(14) Resolve damage and causes Falter:6(2). Unlike usual, Disheartening Roar affects all enemies out to a Range of 36" and can be heard out to 80". Disheartening Roar is Resisted as a Tier:4 Song using Resolve or Passion, whichever is lower. Enemies outside 12" gain 1 Pass to their Resist Check. Enemies outside 24" gain 2 Passes to their Resist Check instead.

The Ziz cannot Move while Singing Disheartening Roar. The SPP is figured at the Ziz's current SPP, up to 12 (minus any invested in singing regular Songs this Cycle). Unlike a regular Song, Fiery Roar uses 4 Action Points and adds 3 Exertion.

	Class	Complexity	Effect
Bestial Disheartening Roar	Affecting Immediate Damaging	144	36(12) Resolve damage out to 36" +1 Pass if outside 12" causes Falter:6(2) Resisted using lower of Resolve or Passion

Attributes

Ziz are treated as Warrior-Messenger elohim and also have enhanced Might and Swiftness, receiving an additional 40 in each at 3rd Domain. This is increased to 80 once becoming a Ziz Beast.

Ziz also gain Boon:1 to Excite Enemy Social Interactions.

[In Dry Bones, there are no Social Interactions.]

Size and Variants

Ziz do not gain Mutations. However, some Ziz may be of a larger variant. The variants are Fierce Ziz, Ferocious Ziz, or Murderous Ziz. A 3rd Domain Ziz cannot be Murderous.

Fierce Ziz gain an additional 14 in every Basic Attribute and deal 30(10) with Disheartening Roar and 39(13) with Bestial Disheartening Roar.

Ferocious Ziz gain an additional 28 in every Basic Attribute and deal 33(11) with Disheartening Roar and 42(14) with Bestial Disheartening Roar.

Murderous Ziz gain an additional 42 in every Basic Attribute and deal 36(12) with Disheartening Roar and 45(15) with Bestial Disheartening Roar.

Ziz exceed the standard rules of Occupying Space for elohim.

As a 3rd Domain, their standard occupied width of 1.75" from center of the Ziz and height of 3.5". Fierce is 2"/4" and Ferocious is 2.25"/4.5".

A Ziz Beast's occupied width is 2.25" from center and height 4.5". Fierce becomes 2.5"/5", Ferocious becomes 2.75"/5.5", and Murderous becomes 3"/6" The height is of course skewed when not standing upright.

3rd Domain Ziz followed by 3rd Domain Fierce & Ferocious Ziz

Ziz Beast followed by Fierce, Ferocious, & Murderous Ziz Beasts