Bursting Ember
Aspect: Fire Rating: • Notable Manses: Hall of Lambent Flames , ? Source: Edited from the Hot Potato hearthstone by Ikselam on the Exalted unofficial wiki.
This lumpy brown stone is uncomfortably warm to the touch. It is an unusual hearthstone, and some savants have argued it is not a true hearthstone at all but a potent form of Essence Token, for it seems to grow naturally from Fire manses whose geomancy has been disrupted, but which remain at least partially capped. Broken conduits and formations cause essence to pool and accumulate at certain points, and here Bursting Embers can occasionally appear, half-buried in the ground like warm Essence-infused tubers. The methods of leaking essence to create Bursting Embers are understood well enough by the geomancers of the Realm that such stones occasionally appear in Manse design as alternatives to Essence Vents when capping demesnes too powerful to be fully utilized by the manse built upon them.
The Bursting Ember’s level for the purposes of Essence regeneration is equal to the number of times it has been attuned (though the level of its manse, and for satisfying minimums such as being power source for artifacts, remain unchanged). A bearer de-attuning the stone does not remove their original attunement, so the stone’s level will continually increase with each attunement, and can even raise the Bursting Ember's effective level above 5. However, each time it is attuned, there is also a chance that the hearthstone will explode.
Mechanically, when a character attunes to the Bursting Ember, roll a die. If it comes up a success, the Bursting Ember detonates in a blast of searing Essence. The character attuned to it suffers damage of lethal health levels equal to the Burning Ember's current level. After the Burning Ember explodes, it reforms back at its Manse as normal, losing all its bonus levels in the process. If an artifact containing a Burning Ember in one of its sockets is destroyed, or if the hearthstone is destroyed (by being targeted or geomantic manipulation of its manse, the stone will also detonate in the same manner.
The Burning Ember always counts as level 1 unless it is attuned; a character cannot benefit from its bonus levels unless he actually places it in an artifact (and risks it exploding). As it gains bonus levels, the Burning Ember's temperature rises, and may inflict environmental damage on its bearer and people or objects which come into contact with it (including setting flammable materials alight); use the following chart as a guideline.
| Level | Temperature | Damage | Trauma |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freshly Formed | Hot as fresh bread. Pleasantly warm. | - | - |
| • & •• | Hot as a freshly-filled teacup. Uncomfortably warm, but not dangerously so. | - | - |
| ••• | Hot as a stovetop. Can boil water and cause first-degree burns. | 1B/minute | 1 |
| •••• | Hot as a torch flame. Can cause second-degree burns. | 1L/action | 2 |
| ••••• | Hot as a branding iron. Can inflict third-degree burns if touched. | 4L/action | 3 |
| •••••• or greater | Hot enough to melt lead. Can burn clear down to bone in seconds. | 6L/action (1L/tick if you are a scrib) | 4 |
