Are Calabim obvious?

[Acolyte]

...

Regarding Transit Time, the Malakite can't return immediately even if it reforms instantly around its Heart, because it needs to get back to the spot of the fight. This means finding the Tether closest to the fight, negotiating with the Seneschal for passage, flying in celestial form (risky and noisy) or traveling in the new Vessel to the spot of the fight, and resuming combat. That might not take MUCH time, but it certainly presents a few obstacles (even an RP obstacle! mwahahahaha) to "instant return."

A demon lucky enough to drop a Malakite's Vessel should still get the heck out of the situation, since other Malakim are probably on the way, but it's not as if 6 seconds from the first Vessel Death the other Malakim arrive on the heels of the new one...unless you're assaulting a Divine Tether, in which case you really brought that on yourself.

[William]

Originally Posted by Acolyte

...

Regarding Transit Time, the Malakite can't return immediately even if it reforms instantly around its Heart, because it needs to get back to the spot of the fight. This means finding the Tether closest to the fight, negotiating with the Seneschal for passage, flying in celestial form (risky and noisy) or traveling in the new Vessel to the spot of the fight, and resuming combat. That might not take MUCH time, but it certainly presents a few obstacles (even an RP obstacle! mwahahahaha) to "instant return."

You can always descend to the spot of your last corporeal location.

JCD: In answer to your question, it's that Vessels are expensive. The Malakite can climb into his new Vessel and whistle up some buddies -- once -- but in GURPS he pays a cool 30 points plus 2 per posse member for the privilege. This is the kind of expense that players try to avoid, and that Superiors won't continually subsidize. If you got killed, you lost the fight. The Malakite just gets to hit reset, as long as he has Vessels around.

Not every Malakite will have that spare Vessel. Those that do have earned one. If they've spent one in the past, they've earned it again. Same with the authority to order reserve troops in to battle. This much is true for any celestial. It's the Malakite's inconvenient refusal to stay decently beaten for a few days that makes fighting them a lower-percentage option than it is with other angels. (And even if they don't have the spare Vessel, micro-Trauma means they can still alert their reserves, who can be on their way to the scene immediately via longer routes.)

[Acolyte]

Originally Posted by William

You can always descend to the spot of your last corporeal location.

Sure, if you left the corporeal realm in your celestial form. I didn't extend that concept to cover Vessel death.

[JCD]

Originally Posted by Acolyte

Sure, if you left the corporeal realm in your celestial form. I didn't extend that concept to cover Vessel death.

I tend to agree...but it is not clear in the rules.

[banditangel]

Originally Posted by JCD

Meh. What are you basing that on? As has been noted before, they are no better at combat then a Mercurian with similar Songs and Skills.

When a Mercurian charges a gang of four demons and takes a couple down fighting, he's in Trauma afterwards. This is, presumably, a very unpleasant experience and thus, psychologically, the Mercurian is not as prepared to take this route.

The Malakim, by contrast, are ready to go immediately afterwards. The only cost to the superior is a new vessel - the Mercurian means that he also has one fewer corporeal agents for a few days.

If you only have one angel in the area, and no reinforcements: the Malakim can kill a couple demons and STILL be around to interfere with their plans. The Mercurian needs to be subtle or else leave the remaining demons unchecked for a few days.

Plus, Hell will react differently just knowing Malakim are out there: demons know that every note of disturbance is another chance that a black wing drops them in to trauma. Without Malakim and their near-suicidal attitudes, I dare say the war would be a far noisier thing.

In short, Malakim can focus on making the war very, very expensive for Hell. And no demon wants to be the one explaining the expense report to his superior.

(I'd also argue that, in general, Malakim are more likely to have 6 corporeal forces, fighting skill 6, numinous corpus: tail, etc. simply because their job focuses on "combat" whereas a Mercurian is probably assigned to roles where social skills are more important.)

Edit: It's also worth noting that a Malakite pretty much never has to worry about dissonance for smiting evil. A Mercurian who ends up smiting a sorcerer or infernal soldier by accident is in a world of hurt. Malakim just care that it's hell-sworn. (And Seraphim can't lie to demons, Cherubs in trauma can't protect their attuned, Kyriotates need to be paranoid about getting their body hurt... that leaves Elohim and Ofanim as the two others that can really have a field day with demons.)

(Huh, Elohim, really? I just never saw them as the bashing types, but destroying 2 demon vessels and sending both of them in to trauma is objectively worth the cost of suffering the same themselves... :))

[Edman]

Originally Posted by banditangel

Seraphim can't lie to demons

I'm pretty sure lying doesn't matter in combat. Hitting a guy in the head with an axe does not demand conversational subtlety, as far as I know.

[Rocket Man]

Originally Posted by Acolyte

Sure, if you left the corporeal realm in your celestial form. I didn't extend that concept to cover Vessel death.

Put it this way. When you escape Limbo, your new Vessel appears at the spot of the old one's death. If it works for a Heartless angel, why wouldn't it work for one with a Heart? Your "soul" still left the corporeal realm ... it was just involuntary.

--Scott

[Rocket Man]

Out of curiosity, did we answer your Calabite question satisfactorily, banditangel? I was just thinking that the subsidiary Malakim/Vessel question probably deserves a thread of its own ... 8-)

[banditangel]

Originally Posted by Rocket Man

Out of curiosity, did we answer your Calabite question satisfactorily, banditangel? I was just thinking that the subsidiary Malakim/Vessel question probably deserves a thread of its own ... 8-)

Quite well answered, yes.

If I had anything more to say on the Malakim point, I'd go make a new thread :)