Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Notes:
1) This is packet is designed to be a more complete set of the existing Thaumaturgy
and other Blood Magic printed in the White Wolf source material, and created in OWbN.
2) The rules set forth in this packet are only proposed as a resource for OWbN
Storytellers.
3) The rarity rules previously used in this packet’s forerunners don not apply to this
packet as a whole. Each section has the rarity only for the Clan whose magic is covered
in it.
Contents:
Sections
5 - Koldunic Sorcery (pages 119-
1 - Introduction (page 1) 134)
Table of Contents (pg 1) Background (pg 119)
Ways (pg 121)
2 - Tremere Thaumaturgy (pages Rituals (pg 133)
2-39)
Introduction (pg 2)
Paths (pg 5) 6 – Dark Thaumaturgy (pages 135-
Rituals (pg12) 138)
Paths (pg 136)
3 - Setite Sorcery (pages 40-99) Rituals (pg 137)
Background (pg 40)
Paths (pg 45)
Rituals (pg 61) 7 – Necromancy (pages 139-158)
Paths (pg 141)
4 - Assamite Sorcery (pages 100- Ritual (pg 144)
118)
Introduction (pg 100)
Paths (pg 103) 8 – Credits (page 159)
Rituals (pg 108)
1
Tremere Thaumaturgy
Note: Path of Blood is the Primary Path for all new starting Tremere, barring ST
approval.
Very Rare: Sabbat Paths/ Rituals or anything that PCs should NOT be allowed to have at all, or have
created themselves and shared with no one. Getting these would require you breaking into the chantry in
Vienna, slipping in the Sabbat HQ in Mexico City, or getting it from the one who made it.
Unique: Created by a Player Character. These can only be acquired through the PC who created the
ritual or through someone who acquired the ritual through legitimate means from the one who created it.
Note- Non-Tremere clans that have some type of Thaumaturgy may not have
rituals listed in this section unless instructed by a Tremere/Thaumaturgist or their clan
already has those rituals or that accompany style of Thaumaturgy in question
2
Learning Thaumaturgy
Thaumaturgy is not simply a discipline of the blood like many other powers, but is
almost a separate power. With rare exception, only members of house and clan
Tremere may learn Thaumaturgy with the same ease that other disciplines are learned.
Tremere get one path of Thaumaturgy at in clan costs. Along with this, two
basic, two intermediate, and one advanced ritual are learned. The first basic ritual must
be Rite of Introduction. Other “Freebee” rituals are available at the discretion of the
Storytellers.
Rituals may be learned at a cost of two points per level of the ritual (two for a
basic, four for a intermediate, and six for a advanced). You may not learn a ritual of a
level higher than your primary path of thaumaturgy. Learning Rituals requires that you
either have a teacher or have made arrangements for the appropriate tomes to be in
your possession, and that you have the permission of your superior to have the Rituals.
4
Paths
Note: All Paths listed here have their most recent text reference listed in the chart below. Any Paths not
listed in a MET book are listed in their full text, in the section directly following the Ritual Chart.
*The following paths are Dead Paths, and cannot be learned by anyone. No
conversions are given for them for just this reason.
Way of the Worlds Blood (Original Source: Libra Sanguinus II: Keepers of the Word)
Way of the Shadow World (Original Source: Libra Sanguinus II: Keepers of the Word)
Way of Passage (Original Source: Dark Ages Compendium)
Prey on the Soul’s Fear (Original Source: Dark Ages Compendium)
5
Path Name Rarity Location
Path of Blood 1 LotN Revised: 177
Path of Flames 1 LotN Revised: 178
Movement of the Mind 1 LotN Revised: 180
Path of Conjuring 1 LotN Revised: 182
Hands of Destruction 3 LotN Revised: 183
Elemental Mastery 2 MET Camarilla Guide: 76
Green Path 1 MET Camarilla Guide: 78
Neptune’s Might 3 MET Camarilla Guide: 81
Corruption 3 MET Camarilla Guide: 83
Technomancy 3 MET Camarilla Guide: 86
Path of Spirit Manipulation 2 MET Camarilla Guide: 89
Thuamaturgical Counter Magic 4 MET Camarilla Guide: 92
Weather Control 1 MET Camarilla Guide: 93
Path of Mars 4 MET Sabbat Guide: 125
Father’s Vengeance 4 MET Sabbat Guide: 127
Alchemy 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 47
Biothaumatrgy 4 MET Storytellers Guide: 48
Focused Mind 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 50
Hearth Path 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 51
Mastery of the Mortal Shell 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 53
Onieromancy 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 54
Path of Blood’s Curse 4 MET Storytellers Guide: 56
Path of Curses 4 MET Storytellers Guide: 58
Transmutation 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 60
Vine of Dionysus 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 61
Spirit Thaumaturgy 4 Laws of Elysium: 74
Gift of Morpheus 4 Laws of the Night: 103 (below)
Way of the Levinbolt 4 Tremere Clan Book: 51
Path of Shadow Crafting 3 Tremere Clan Book: 53
Faux Path 4 Blood Magic: 84 (below)
Way of Warding 4 Dark Ages
Borealis 5 OWbN
6
Additions & Table Top Path Conversion
Alchemy
This power is rated in levels rather than the typical system found on other paths,
this is to facilitate its use. A character can affect a transformation up to the level he
knows. To do this he must win a Mental challenge vs. a difficulty equal to the level of
the change +5. Furthermore, he must spend one mental trait per level of this path that
he is using. This path must be used in a controlled, laboratory setting. The amount of
Mass/Volume that the castor can affect is based on the amount of additional mental
traits that the castor expends when the path is activated. Nothing larger than a Car can
be affected. As it would not fit into a Lab very well if it were bigger than that.
Way of Warding
General Notes: Each level of this path requires the magus to paint a glyph on a
object with their own blood (spending a blood trait), and succeed in a simple test.
Contact with fire or sunlight will destroy all wards created by this path.
Basic
Bar the Common Passage
This will reinforce the physical stature of any object. After activated (see above)
the affected object doubles it traits to resist breaking/battering. This may allow it to
overbid in challenges against it if applicable. Traits of items affected are subject to the
storyteller’s discretion. Any object affected by this power will receive a free retest
against any use of thaumaturgy to destroy it or alter its state (Path of Flames,
Thaumaturgical Alchemy, etc).
Glyph of Scrying
The magus can see the area around the ward as if she was there. This can be
placed on portable objects to act as remote sensors. Sensory amplification (heightened
senses, spirit eyes, Eyes of the Beast) can be used through the ward. While looking
through this glyph, the magus has no awareness of her current physical surroundings
save for if damage is dealt to her (must be damage, a touch will not be noticed).
Intermediate
Runes of Power
7
This protective ward will do lethal damage equal to the number of mental traits
the magus permanently expends at the time of use. The ward cannot be moved more
than it’s normal range of motion (a door can swing on it’s hinges, but a sword would
loose the effect as soon as it was picked up) after this rune is inscribed on it.
Furthermore, any sentient creature will feel the power emanating from the rune, and will
not be able to willingly touch it unless they expend a willpower trait (cannot be
dominated into touching it).
Glyph of Enlightenment
The caster may create glyphs that can both act as glyph of scrying, and allow for
2-way communication. Thaumaturgical effects that you can meet the restrictions on can
be used through this conduit (Generally, no touch. Theft of Vitae will steal the blood and
find the most direct route to you if there is one). All restrictions of the second basic of
this path still apply.
Advanced
Secure the Sacred Domain
This powerful incantation allows the magus to protect an entire building. She
draws a glyph at the exact center of the building (requiring the expenditure of a
willpower trait and a static mental test vs. 10 traits). If successful, all windows, portals,
and doors shut and become magically sealed (Cannot be opened but can be destroyed.
Current breaches in the original structure are covered with a magical wall of force that
cannot be destroyed, but can be circumvented (by knocking down a different wall).
Multiple uses of this power will not have any effect other than sealing new breaches in
walls.
Gift of Morpheus
This path allows you to control others’ sleep and dreams.
Basic
Cause Sleep
By winning a Mental Challenge with the victim, you can cause him to fall asleep.
The victim will not fall over and snore on the floor, but he will, over a period of five
minutes, gradually drift into a sleep from which loud noise or physical contact can wake
him. While the ritual is intended primarily for use against mortals, you can spend a
Willpower Trait to affect a vampire (you must still win a Mental Challenge).
Mass Slumber
By spending a Willpower Trait, you can cause a group of mortals to fall asleep.
To resist, mortals must spend a Willpower Trait and test against you in a Mental
Challenge. If there are ghouls or Garou present in the “mortal” crowd, you must engage
in individual Mental Challenges with each non-mortal. This ritual is best invoked in the
presence of a Storyteller.
8
Intermediate
Enchanted Slumber
This ritual allows you to cause a person or creature to fall into a sleep from which
she cannot be wakened until a specific event occurs (like a kiss from Prince Charming).
This event should be achievable, though not necessarily easy. The target will rouse if
her life is threatened, although she will be down two Traits in all areas. To invoke this
sleep, you must spend a Willpower Trait and initiate a Mental Challenge.
This is best used on a Narrator character. If used on a player character, you
should remember that if the conditions are unachievable in-game, they could cause the
player to be effectively cut out of the game for at the least the duration of the evening.
Storytellers may choose not to allow you to set impossible conditions such as, “She may
not awaken until her body is physically transported to the planet Mars.”
Dreamscape
This allows the caster to enter the dreams of a sleeping target. The caster may
not use any powers or harm the target in any way, nor does this power grant any control
over the dream itself. The Target is not aware of the presence of the caster in her
dream.You must possess a personal item of the target and engage in a Static Mental
challenge with a difficulty equal to the total permanent (not temporary) willpower of the
target.
Advanced
Dream Mastery
You may enter the mind of a specific sleeper and induce nightmares or use
Disciplines such as Presence, Dominate or Auspex if you possess them. You effectively
gain control over the sleeper’s dreams and can do as you wish. Any Discipline used on
the sleeper must incorporate the usual number of challenges and other Blood and
Willpower expenditures. This requires you to win a Mental Challenge and spend one
Mental Trait. The sleeper may take normal action in her dream.
Borealis
Basic
Ran’s Touch
By concentrating the thaumaturge can freeze a small area, rendering simple
devices useless. To activate this power the target must be touched and single blood
trait must be spent, then the caster engages in a Mental vs. Physical challenge. An
additional Blood Trait must be spent for a currently moving target. This cannot be
employed on a living or undead target.
Grasp of Magni
A slightly larger area of space can now be frozen and the thaumaturge no longer
needs to touch the target. By spending a Mental Trait the caster may create a small (up
to a cubic foot) block of ice. If targeting a person or something that a person is grasping,
the caster must engage in a Mental vs. Physical Challenge. The Ice can halt movement
of a person or machine, and will last until melted or broken (static Physical vs. 6 traits).
9
Intermediate
Forseti’s Silence
With this level of control the thaumaturge can create a wall of Ice. The wall is
three cubic feet of ice for each Mental Trait spent to cast it, has as many Enduring
Physical Traits as Mental Trait spent to cast it, and has health levels equal to half of the
Mental Traits spent to cast it, rounded down. The wall must be summoned in
unoccupied space within 50 feet of the caster.
Hel’s Kiss
The thaumaturge can literally freeze the blood of his chosen target. By spending
a Willpower and winning a Mental vs. Physical challenge against the target, up to 3
Traits of Blood are frozen in the target’s veins. A Mental Trait must be spent for each
Blood Trait frozen. For mortals this would cause a lethal wound for each blood frozen,
and render that blood permanently useless fluid. For Kindred this would make the blood
unusable for 5 Minutes or the end of a scene. In both cases the target would be down
one Physical trait for each blood trait frozen.
Advanced
Tomb of Buri
This power can completely incase a single target in a Tomb of Ice. The
Thaumaturgist must concentrate for a full turn, expend a Willpower Trait and initiate a
Mental vs. Physical Challenge against the target. The Tomb has as many Enduring
Physical Traits as Mental Trait spent to cast it, and has health levels equal to half of the
Mental Traits spent to cast it, rounded down. If a Mortal is trapped in the Block of Ice he
or she will take one Lethal wound each round until broken free. The victim of this power
may attempt to break out, destroying the health levels of the ice, by initiating a physical
challenge from within it.
Faux Path
As with nearly all Thaumaturgy, the Faux Path requires the expenditure of one
blood trait and an entire turn of casting in addition to any other requirements specified in
the power description. The symbol for use of the Faux path is crossed fingers, where
appropriate.
Basic
Hello, Goodbye
The player makes a Static Mental challenge vs. six traits to invoke this power.
The next sentence the thaumaturge utters will be perceived as a lie for the duration of
the evening. At dawn, the affected characters may once again exercise their own
judgment regarding the veracity of the statement.
Disciplinary Identification
The thaumaturge may identify a discipline he witnesses being used. In the case
of disciplines such as Dominate or Dementation, an Awareness challenge may be
10
required to notice that a discipline is in effect. Powers belonging to other Supernatural
creatures, with the exception of Hedge Magic, register as "Unquantified.” The effects of
Hedge Magic, True Faith, Dark Thaumaturgy, and all other Sorceries, will always
register as "Thaumaturgy" at this level of mastery. The Thaumaturge throws a Static
Mental challenge vs. six traits to invoke this power. The Thaumaturge must know at
least cursory information about the discipline’s powers. Note that this power may never
be used in combat.
Intermediate
Thaumaturgical Identification
The third level of The Faux Path allows the Thaumaturge to identify the specific
paths of Thaumaturgy and other path-based disciplines, provided he is at least familiar
with the effects of the path under scrutiny and has first used Disciplinary Identification to
identify the Discipline. Any use of this power without first successfully using Disciplinary
Identification will result in an incorrect result. The Thaumaturge makes a Static Mental
challenge vs. eight traits to invoke this power.
Ritual Madness
By making a Static Mental challenge vs. eight traits, the Thaumaturge can place
the physical, somatic effects or extrapolations of the effects of any ritual he is familiar
with on an object or person, but the ‘ritual’ will have no actual effect. In the case of faux
wards (Ward vs. Fools) or similar effects, a courage check may be needed to touch the
affected item. Such items will get any sensory-based traits incurred by the actual ritual.
These effects last until the next sunset.
Advanced
Disciplinary Affectation
The Thaumaturge can duplicate the outward appearance of any Discipline or
Path power up to the Advanced level, provided he is familiar with the power in question.
The Thaumaturge may mimic any and all outward effects of a Discipline with a Static
mental challenge vs. ten traits, the expenditure of a Willpower trait, and by meeting the
costs associated with the mimicked power as well. The burden of proof is with the
Caster. Powers such as Obfuscate and Chimerstry will appear to have been used, but
not successfully, against the viewer, i.e., the observer will believe that the discipline was
used, but that it failed to deceive her. Bonus traits and negative traits conferred by the
powers mimicked are not actually conferred, nor are the actual benefits of the power
generated.
11
Rituals
Note: All Rituals listed here have their most recent text reference listed in the chart
below. Any Rituals not listed in a MET book are listed in their full text, in the section
directly following the Ritual Chart.
14
Ritual Name Rarity Location Level
Abandon the Fetters of Blood 2 Tremere Clan Book: 65 Advanced
Active Defense 5 Westchester by Night Advanced
Alter Blood 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Basic
Beacon of the Self 4 New York by Night: 38 Intermediate
Bind the Accusing tongue 2 Camarilla Guide: 109 Basic
Binding the Beast 1 Laws of Elysium: 82 Intermediate
Blade of the Forbidden Flower 4 Blood Magic: 99 Methuselah
Bladed Hands 2 Laws of Elysium: 82 Intermediate
Blood Allergy 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Intermediate
Blood Certamen 3 Tremere Clan Book: 61 Intermediate
Blood Contract 2 LotN Revised: 187 Advanced
Blood Into Water 1 New York by Night: 48 Basic
Blood Mastery 1 Tremere Clan Book: 56 Basic
Blood Mead 1 MET Storytellers Guide:64 Basic
Blood Rush 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 130 Basic
Blood Test 4 Chicago: Dark Requiem Basic
Blood Walk 1 Laws of Elysium: 80 Basic
Bone of Contention 4 Tremere Clan Book: 66 Elder
Bone of Eternal Thirst 4 Blood Magic: 99 Master
Bone of Lies 1 LotN Revised: 186 Intermediate
Bone of the Kindred 4 2nd Ed. Players Guide: 92 Elder
Bottled Voice 3 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
Brand of the Paramour 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Bring Forth the Light Within 5 C-U: Fires of the Wise Basic
Bureaucratic Condemnation 1 Blood Magic: 91 Basic
Calling the Restless Spirit 1 Laws of Elysium: 80 Basic
Chain of the Bloodline 4 2nd Ed. Players Guide: 92 Master
Chill of the Windsaber 4 MET Journal #1: 44 Advanced
Cleansing of the Flesh 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Intermediate
Clinging of the Insect 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 132 Intermediate
Cobra’s Favor 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 73 Advanced
Communicate with Kindred Sire 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Court of Hallowed Truth 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 73 Advanced
Craft Bloodstone 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Craft Dream Catcher 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 70 Intermediate
Craft Spirit Bloodstone 5 Shadows of Cincinnati Advanced
Crimson Sentinel 2 Laws of the Night: 101 Basic
Curse Belated, the 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 70 Intermediate
Curse of Clytaemnestra 2 Laws of Elysium: 85 Advanced
Dedicate the Chantry 4 Tremere Clan Book: 57 Basic
15
Defense of Sacred Haven 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Deflection of Wooden Doom 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Deny the Intruder 4 Tremere Clan Book: 58 Basic
Deny the Sun’s Weight 5 Milwaukee: Nocturnal Rapture Intermediate
Devil’s Touch 2 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Diamond’s Doom 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Advanced
Divorcing the Soul 4 2nd Ed. Players Guide: 92 Master
Dominion 4 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Dominoe of Life 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 130 Basic
Donning the Mask of Shadows 1 Laws of Elysium: 80 Basic
Drawing upon the Bond 4 2nd Ed. Sabbat Players Guide: 119 Elder
Eldritch Glimmer 3 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
Enchant Talisman 3 Camarilla Guide: 113 Advanced
Encrypt Missive 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Engaging the Vessel of 1 Camarilla Guide: 110 Basic
Transference
Enhancing the Curse 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Escape to a True Friend 3 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Ex Libris (Fire Trap) 5 C-U: Fires of the Wise Basic
Expedient Paperwork 1 Blood Magic: 87 Basic
Extinguish 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Extreme Care 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Basic
Eyes of the Beast 2 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Eyes of the Ever Vigilant 4 MET Storytellers Guide: 75 Ascendant
Eyes of the Nighthawk 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 130 Basic
Eyes of the Past 2 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Fire in the Blood 4 Laws of the Night: 105 Intermediate
Firewalker 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 132 Intermediate
Flesh of the Fiery Touch 3 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Friend of the Trees 2 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
Gentle Mind 1 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Ghost in the System 2 Blood Magic: 97 Advanced
Gift, the 4 MET Journal #1: 45 Master
Graves Defiance 5 Columbus in Darkness Intermediate
Haunted House 3 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Haunting, the 2 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
Heart of Stone 2 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Illuminate Trail of Prey 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 131 Basic
Illusion of Peaceful Death 1 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Imp’s Affliction, the 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Impassable Trail 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Impede the Gifts of Caine 4 Archon’s and Templars: pg 146 Master
Import Item 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Advanced
16
Impressive Visage 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Incantation of the Shepherd 1 Camarilla Guide:110 Basic
Incorporeal Passage 2 LotN Revised: 186 Intermediate
Infirm Inert 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 70 Intermediate
Inherited Affinity 3 Tremere Clan Book: 59 Intermediate
Innocence of the Child’s Heart 3 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Inscription 2 Tremere Clan Book: 58 Basic
Invisible Chains of Binding 3 Laws of the Night: 106 Advanced
Invulnerable Weakness 4 2nd Ed. Players Guide: 93 Ascendant
Iron Mind 3 MET Journal #1: 46 Intermediate
Jinx 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Keening of the Banshee 3 Laws of Elysium: 91 Intermediate
Knowledge of the Childe’s Peril 5 Tuscola: Buried Destiny Intermediate
Learning the Mind Enslumbered 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
Lightning Rod 5 Night Falls, NVA Intermediate
Lion Heart 4 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Luminous Vitae 2 New York by Night: 48 Basic
Machine Blitz 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 131 Basic
Major Creation 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Mark of Amaranth 2 Tremere Clan Book: 63 Intermediate
Mindcrawler 3 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Mirror Attunement 5 Shadows of Cincinnati Advanced
Mirror of the Second Sight 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 133 Intermediate
Mirror Walk 3 Laws of Elysium: 91 Intermediate
Mourning Life’s Curse 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
Nectar of the Bitter Rose 4 LotN Revised: 187 Advanced
Night of the Red Heart 3 Tremere Clan Book: 65 Advanced
Obscure the Malice 2 New York by Night: 48 Basic
One Mind of the Covens 3 2nd Ed Players Guide: 91 Advanced
Open Passage, the 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Paper Flesh 4 MET Sabbat Guide: 133 Advanced
Pavis of the Dark Dementia 5 Crown of Thorns, Gary Advanced
Pavis of the Foul Presence 1 LotN Revised: 187 Intermediate
Power of Invisible Flame 3 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Power of the Pyramid 2 Tremere Clan Book: 60 Intermediate
Preserve Blood 1 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Principle Focus of Vitae Infusion 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Protean Curse 2 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Purge the Inner Demon 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
Purify Blood 1 Tremere Clan Book: 57 Basic
Purity of the Flesh 1 Camarilla Guide: 110 Basic
Raise the Dead 4 MET Journal #1: 41 Master
Rebirth of Mortal Vanity 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
17
Recure the Homeland 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 131 Basic
Refined Digestion 4 MET Storytellers Guide: 74 Master
Rend the Mind 2 Blood Magic: 96 Intermediate
Rending Sweet Earth 2 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Respect of the Animals 2 Laws of Elysium: 91 Intermediate
Return the Heart 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Rite of Introduction 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
Rite of the Vanishing Blemish 5 Milledgeville, Habit of Being Basic
Ritual of Holding 4 MET Journal #1: 42 Master
Ritual’s Recognition 1 Tremere Clan Book: 59 Basic
Rotten Wood 4 Laws of the Night: 105 Basic
Rutor’s Hands 2 LotN Revised: 187 Intermediate
Sanguine Assistant 2 Camarilla Guide: 111 Basic
Sanguineous Phial 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
Scent of the Lupine’s Passing 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Scribe, the 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
Scry 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Sculpting the Perfect Servant 2 Blood Magic: 97 Advanced
Sense the Mystical 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
Serenading the Kami 1 Blood Magic: 91 Basic
Serenity of the Heart's Blood 5 Milwaukee: Nocturnal Rapture Intermediate
Severed Hand 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 73 Advanced
Shadow of the Wolf 4 MET Journal47 Ascendant
Shaft of Belated Quiescence 3 Camarilla Guide: 112 Intermediate
Sight of the Dead 5 C-U, Fires of the Wise Intermediate
Soul of the Homunculi 2 LotN Revised: 187 Intermediate
Spider’s Web 4 MET Journal #1: 49 Master
Spirit of Torment 3 Laws of Elysium: 93 Advanced
Splinter Servant 2 Camarilla Guide: 113 Intermediate
Stalk the True Body 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Advanced
Steps of the Terrified 1 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Stolen Kisses 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Stone of the True Form 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 74 Advanced
Stone Slumber 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 74 Advanced
Summon the Guardian Spirit 2 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Summon Mischievous Spirit 4 2nd Ed. Sabbat Players Guide: 118 Intermediate
Telecommunication 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 72 Intermediate
Teleport to a Safe Haven 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Advanced
Thirst Unquenchable 4 Laws of the Night: 106 Advanced
Touch of Night Shade, A 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 72 Intermediate
Track the Transgressor 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 72 Intermediate
Transubstantiation of the Seven 3 Tremere Clan Book: 61 Intermediate
Tremere’s Bane 5 Chicago: Dark Requiem Advanced
18
Trima 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Basic
True Sight 3 Diablerie Britain Basic
Umbra Walk 2 LotN Revised: 188 Advanced
Unseen Change, the 2 Laws of Elysium: 85 Intermediate
Unweave Ritual 2 Tremere Clan Book: 64 Intermediate
Utter Destruction of Bonds 4 MET Journal #1: 43 Master
Verdant Blade, The 4 Archon’s and Templars: pg 146 Advanced
Vires Acquirit Eundo 3 Blood Magic: 98 Advanced
Wake with Evening’s Freshness 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Walkin’s Purity of the Flesh 5 C-U, Fires of the Wise Basic
Ward vs. Demons 2 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Ward vs. Fae 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 73 Intermediate
Ward vs. Ghosts 2 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Ward vs. Ghouls 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Ward vs. Kindred 2 Camarilla Guide: 113 Advanced
Ward vs. Lupines 2 Camarilla Guide: 113 Intermediate
Ward vs. Spirits 2 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Warding Circle vs. Demons 3 Camarilla Guide: 111 Advanced
Warding Circle vs. Ghosts 2 Camarilla Guide: 111 Advanced
Warding Circle vs. Ghouls 2 Camarilla Guide: 111 Basic
Warding Circle vs. Kindred 1 Camarilla Guide: 111 Advanced
Warding Circle vs. Lupines 2 Camarilla Guide: 111 Intermediate
Warding Circle vs. Spirits 2 Camarilla Guide: 111 Advanced
Watcher, the 1 Laws of Elysium: 85 Intermediate
Weapon of the Kindred Soul 4 2nd Ed. Players Guide: 92 Methuselah
Whispers of the Ghost 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Basic
Widow’s Spite 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 132 Basic
Will o’ the Wisp 2 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Wizard's Gold 5 Night Falls (NVA) Intermediate
Wizard’s Gift 5 Night Falls (NVA) Advanced
19
Table Top & OWbN Specific Thaumaturgy
Ritual’s
Some of the rituals listed below will not be found in any White Wolf publication.
Players of OWbN have created these Rituals. They are included here for players and
STs to appreciate the devotion that these players have had to their characters and the
Tremere. They have been approved by the Tremere Coordinator, and may be included
in your game with STs permission.
Basic
Alter Blood
This ritual will temporarily mask, but not change or produce false readings, when
Path of Blood’s Taste of Vitae is used upon the ensorcelled Thaumaturgist or a Trait of
Blood that she has likewise enchanted.
System: With the expenditure of a Mental Trait by the Thaumaturge, this ritual
will temporarily alter the readings of Taste of Vitae if used on the Thaumaturgists blood.
The only information that is obtainable is the relative generation of the Kindred,
compared to the inquisitor, i.e. higher or lower generation only.
Note: this ritual only effects Taste of Vitae, it will not fool other rituals such as
Blood Walk, etc. from discerning information from the Blood. The effects of this ritual, if
cast on the Thaumaturgist, will last until the following sunrise. The Thaumaturge during
this time may only use her blood to heal wounds, as it becomes somewhat alien to her.
This ritual may also be used to enchant a Blood Trait in a vessel. This enchantment will
have the same effect but will permanently alter the Blood Trait.
Blood Test
20
When this Ritual is used, if there is enough Kindred Vitae in the ‘tested’ sample
to cause a step in a blood bond or viniculum, the Kindred Vitae will move in a visible
spiral within the blood sample. The movement is visibly apparent to all present. The
more Kindred Vitae present in the sample, the larger and more spectacular the
movement.
System: Casting Blood Test requires the expenditure of one Willpower, one
Mental trait, and an extended static Mental challenge. The number of successes or ties,
against a difficulty of five traits, equals the number of blood points that can be tested
during a one-hour time frame. The caster’s hands acquire a slight bluish tinge while the
ritual is in effect.
Bureaucratic Condemnation
This ritual was created to be the opposite of Expedient Paperwork.
System: Once cast the influence actions of the target of this ritual take three
times as long as they normally would. A Storyteller may allow a player with a significant
amount of influence may decrease this time, but that is up to each local game.
Expedient Paperwork
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This ritual allows a thaumaturge to avoid delays that are created in modern
bureaucracies (church, government, financial, etc…). It requires the hair of a dog that is
considered loyal and protective (could be bound).
System: Once cast this decreases the amount of time that influence actions
might take. The amount of time saved is up to the ST. It is suggested that the time
required is reduced to one third of the original time. The ritual takes 8 hours to
complete.
Extreme Care
This ritual allows for the creation of enchanted elixirs. These elixirs have the
ability to miraculous heal mortal creatures of disease and wounds.
System: This ritual, usable only on mortal living creatures (humans, ghouls,
Garou, etc.), requires that one trait of Vampiric Blood be injected, or ingested, into a
subject's body. This has the usual effects - the subject moves a step closer to becoming
blood bound to the vampire whose blood is used, and temporarily becomes a Ghoul. In
addition, the mortal automatically heals one Wound Level of damage and the
Thaumaturge, if in the presence of the use of the elixir, may spend one Medical Ability
to cure the patient of one viral or bacterial illness (Not cancers or hereditary diseases.
AIDS, Ebola, and other such particularly nasty things should be immune to healing, but
the life span of the infected person could be extended).
Mortals drinking this elixir may be brought back from the threshold of death,
without being made into a vampire. The blood leaves no trace in the patient's system,
and all but the partial Blood Bond fades completely within 3 days. Once the
Thaumaturgist’s blood is transformed into the elixir it loses most of its connections to the
Thaumaturge. Thus, it may not be used for Discipline or rituals against the
Thaumaturge. And, rituals such as Blood Walk or Disciplines such as taste of Vitae
merely reveal that it is altered Kindred vitae and little else.
The elixir will only retain its potency for 72 hours after casting.
Luminous Vitae
This ritual duplicates the effects of alternate light sources on vitae, causing blood
to glow in the caster’s sight. This is most often used to make sure an area has been
cleaned sufficiently in a chantry laboratory, but it has a number of useful applications
outside the chantry as well. The caster looks through the eye of a needle when using
this ritual.
System: To enact this ritual the caster must engage in a static mental challenge
vs. six traits while pouring water through his fingers. The power of this ten-minute ritual
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lasts for one scene or one hour, during which blood on a surface no matter how small
an area or how faint glows an iridescent purple. From the oldest bloody fingerprint on a
desk drawer to a pool of blood gathering beneath a murder victim’s corpse, it all
becomes visible.
The power has no effect on blood inside a person or container. If the
thaumaturge opens a vessel containing blood, he will see the vitae in the usual purple
color, but this ritual does not allow him to see though other objects.
True Sight
"This ritual turns a vampire into an undead polygraph. It is often used by
Justicars to catch Diabolists. Once the short ritual is performed (requiring about five
minutes), the vampire's senses become amazingly enhanced, allowing her to hear the
slightest quaver in a person's voice, see the minute twitching of a liar's mouth, or notice
how a liar's eyes blink too much."
Mechanics: "True Sight only detects deliberate, willful lies. If the other party
believes she is telling the truth, then what she says will appear to be true. The ritual
detects the state of nervousness, not whether the truth was spoken."
In effect, the Thaumaturge has a single extra investigation ability and five extra
mental traits, for the duration of the ritual, for the purposes of Auspex challenges that
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they initiate. These traits may not be bid, but are added to the caster's total for purposes
of comparison or overbid. They do not aid in Auspex challenges initiated against the
caster because the ritual does nothing to alter the Thaumaturgists ability to hide their
own reactions, nor the other person's ability to perceive the Thaumaturgists. To indicate
that this ritual is in effect, the player should get a card denoting the extra traits and the
time cast from a storyteller.
This ritual takes five minutes to cast and last’s one hour.
Intermediate
Beacon of the Self
While Calebros ascribes a great deal of power to this ritual, it is not so potent as
he believes it to be. In fact, the ritual itself is quite rare, owing to many Tremere elders
harboring some degree of paranoia. While the ritual does indeed locate Kindred with
ease, few of those elders want themselves so effortlessly found, and guard the secrets
of its performance. This ritual reveals the location of a specific Kindred to the caster, so
long as she is within a night’s travel of the caster’s current location. The caster receives
a dream-like but identifiable mental image of the subject’s current location. This ritual
requires some portion of the subject’s body, however small: a hair, a severed finger, a
fang, or a thumbnail.
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System: The thaumaturge performs this 20-minute ritual as normal, which
destroys the subject’s left-behind matter in a whiff of yellow smoke. The caster inhales
the smoke, which creates the vision in her mind. The caster then engages in a static
mental challenge vs. six traits. If the ritual fails, or if the subject is out of range (“within a
night’s travel” seems to be an arcane measurement, equal to the distance the caster
could travel on foot in one night), it provides no image at all, though it does destroy the
tissue sample.
Graves' Defiance
With this ritual the Thaumaturge can protect against the removal of her soul from
her current body. Based upon the ritual uses of "Body Hooks" by some Native
Americans and a few African Spiritualists the Thaumaturgist "hooks" her soul to her
body.
The Thaumaturgist must soak an Iron Hook (of at least 2 inches in length) in a
mixture that must include: a point of the Thaumaturgist 's blood and the ashes of a
recently (within one day) slain and cremated ‘Innocent’ human (Innocent requires the
victim be of Humanity 5, this will require a conscience/conviction
test if appropriate to the Thaumaturgist’s morality). The Hook must soak for a period of
seven days, at the end of which the Thaumaturgist begins the casting of
the ritual.
The ritual takes the normal twenty minutes to cast. At the conclusion of the ritual
the Thaumaturgist expends a Temporary Willpower and inserts the hook through the
flesh of her chest. This action causes a lethal damage, which can neither be prevented
nor soaked (you must take the damage for the ritual to work). For the
rest of the evening, or until the Lethal inflicted from the Hook is healed (whether or not
the healing was intentional), the Thaumaturgist 's soul is "hooked" to her body.
For the duration of the ritual, any time an event (other then Final Death) would
cause the Thaumaturgist's soul to leave her body she instead suffers one
level of lethal damage. This damage cannot be soaked nor prevented (but may be
healed). Events include Disciplines used on the Thaumaturgist as well as
Disciplines the Thaumaturgist may use (i.e. the Thaumaturgist will take a lethal if she
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attempts to use Psychic Projection, Possession, Subsume the Spirit, ect, and the
Discipline will fail). If the Thaumaturgist uses this ritual while possessing
another shell (mortal or otherwise), her soul is "Hooked" in that shell. If the shell dies
she dies (Final Death).
When the ritual ends (either at sunrise or when the lethal inflicted during casting
is healed) the Hook crumbles to a pile of rust and a new one must be procured to enact
the ritual again.
Lighting Rod
With this Ritual a Master of the Path of Weather may utilize a Bolt of Lightning for
later use.
System: An appropriate item must be pre-prepared to accept the bolt. A Staff or
Sword is appropriate (though if a sword the Lightning Bolt cannot be released as part of
a strike of the Weapon). This takes a week, with a series of challenges (one static
mental challenge each night difficulty of 10). If any fail the item is destroyed and the
process must start over again. On the last night a Permanent Mental Trait must be
spent to attune the item to the castor. Only the castor may release her own Lightning.
Once the item is created it may hold One (1) Lightning Strike, for each of the Permanent
Willpower that the castor has. Following the rules of Lightning Strike (Advanced
Weather) the castor must summon Lightning to the Rod. She or she will take 3 Lethal
Wounds doing so, but the Lightning is also stored. If the Rod is broken the Lightning
will harm anyone holding it. To release the Lightning Strike the castor must again follow
all rules of Lightning Strike, save the weather requirement, since the lightning already
exists.
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System: This ritual allows the castor to make one telepathic attack before the
next sunrise. If she wins a mental challenge against her target she will cause a number
of bashing wounds equal to her permanent willpower. This ritual takes one hour to cast.
Also the castors Primary Path must be at the second intermediate and have Telepathy.
Sanguine Assistant
Tremere often need lab assistants that they can trust implicitly. This ritual allows
a thaumaturge to create a temporary servant that was utterly loyal.
System: The caster spends 5 blood and makes a static test against 10 traits.
The resulting servant is about a foot tall, and roughly humanoid shape and is formed out
of random objects in the room (but oddly enough it will never take anything that you will
be using).
The servant will last for a number of days equal to the caster’s mental traits.
The servant will follow the orders of the caster, and will take on the personality
and mannerisms of the caster. When the ritual expires, it will return to the bowl it was
summoned in, and fall apart. The caster may re-summon the same servant and it will
retain its personality and memories.
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If a stake enchanted with this ritual is used on someone that has her heart
removed by Heart of Darkness (advanced Serpents), the stake will do normal combat
damage on the initial hit, but the tip will not break off, and the ritual is not expended.
Splinter Servant
Another ritual designed to enchant a stake, Splinter Servant is a progressive
development of Shaft of Belated Quintessence, and the two rituals are mutually
exclusive (They cannot be placed on the same stake). The stake itself becomes a
minion bent on staking its target.
System: The stake must be made from a tree that has been nourished by the
dead (a tree from a graveyard would be a good choice) and wrapped in sheath made of
nightshade twine and wax. When the binding is torn off, the splinter servant springs to
life, ripping little legs out of itself, and attacking the person that it is commanded too
attack (by pointing it at the target as the sheath is ripped off).
The splinter servant has a number of Physical Traits equal to half the Mental
Traits of the caster, a number of melee equal to the caster’s occult rating, and is
immune to mental and social challenges. It has three health levels, and ignores wound
penalties. It can move up to 30’ (9 paces) per turn. It will remain active and attacking
until it stakes its victim, it is destroyed by damage, or 5 combat rounds have passed. It
looses traits normally, and must succeed in the normal staking challenges. It is up three
traits to avoid attacks due to small size.
Any damage increasing effects (Scorpion’s Touch, Wards, ext.) will ruin the ritual.
Wizard's Gold
Description: The elders of Clan Tremere have newly created this ritual. It was
created in an effort to reduce the amount of rare and restricted rituals and paths that are
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being taught by members of House and Clan that should not be teaching such things.
This Ritual is cast whenever a ritual or path that is restricted to Regents or above is
taught to an Apprentice.
System: A Gold coin of the highest quality is used. Stamped on one side is the
shield of House and Clan Tremere. On the other are the names of the teacher and the
student and the name of the ritual or path that is being taught. The teacher places the
coin in a Silver chalice with a trait of her vitae as well as a blood trait of the student.
During the casting of the ritual the coin absorbs the blood and takes on a slightly red
hue. Another trait of Vitae must be used to fuel the ritual itself. Once completed the
student is unable to teach the ritual or path. She can speak of the path and what affects
that it has. But she is unable to impart enough knowledge to another person so that
person can then learn that power.
Advanced
Active Defense
This ritual is used to assist in the defense of a chantry when needed. This ritual
helps the Chantry to actually defend itself, in a way reminiscent of Hearth Path. The
ritual allows items such as furniture and ornaments to fly about of their own accord to
follow simple orders given by the caster. Other casters may be added into the ritual and
assigned area's or specific items that they may control in the same manner, so that
multiple defenders may place themselves strategically to defend the Chantry. To invest
others in the ritual requires that they and their blood to be involved in the initial casting.
System: Casting time for this ritual takes a week, and the investment of 14 Blood
Traits and the expenditure of 21 Mental Traits during that week, "consecrating" the
grounds, and attuning themselves to it. Any others to be included in the ritual must be
present during the initial casting. This ritual must be recast after one lunar month to
maintain integrity.
Enchant Talisman
Create talisman allows the thaumaturgy to enchant a personal magical item (the
fabled wizards staff) to act as a amplifier for her Thaumaturgical might. Many such
talismans are covered with magical writing and runes (like every ward the caster
knows). The object must be rigid and about a yard in length (swords and walking staffs
are the most common, but some may enchant shotguns, pool cues or other more exotic
objects).
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System: This ritual takes 6 hours per night for a complete lunar cycle, beginning
and ending with a new moon. The caster enters one extended challenge per week.
The challenge is 10 static mental challenges against 16 traits. The caster must win or
tie (be sure to compare traits on a tie on the RPS) 20 times over the course of the 4 sets
of challenges. Failure means that the effort has been wasted, and the thaumaturge
must start over.
If successful, the caster now has a potent weapon and tool.
With the following benefits (as long as the Talisman is in the hands of the caster):
1.The caster is considered 1 trait up on any Magical attack made against her.
2.The caster is considered 2 traits up on any challenge with her Primary Path.
3.The caster is considered 1 trait up when casting her rituals.
4.If the item is used as a weapon, it has no negative traits.
If another person ever takes this item, being that it is inscribed with the true name
of it’s creator (and if you are a product of western society, your birth name IS your true
name), they are considered three traits up in any Magical attack against you.
You always have an innate mental connection with your talisman, and you can
track it if moving at a normal walking pace. You can always tell general direction and
distance. You know if it is destroyed. You can only have One Talisman in existence at
a time.
Diamond's Doom
This ritual is the trademark of John Diamond, Jonestown's sire. It enchants a
wooden object into a powerful anti-Kindred weapon. The object can be as large as a
wooden stake or a cane, or as small as a letter opener; in any case, it must be roughly
shaped like a stabbing weapon.
System: A Diamond’s Doom stake gains an additional trait for use in combat
challenges. Like any common stake, it can be used to impale the heart of and
immobilize a vampire. The attacker makes three simple tests, not two, and if any two of
them succeed, the defender is staked.
Once the enchanted weapon is in a vampire's heart, it takes root, and cannot be
removed without ripping out the heart and putting the vampire into torpor--a disaster for
low-generation Kindred. Furthermore, if weapon and heart are removed--a task
involving considerable strength or crude butchery--the vampire remains staked, similar
to the results of staking a removed heart as in Heart of Darkness. If the heart is burned
or exposed to the sun, the vampire is destroyed. Furthermore, if the heart is outside of
the body of the kindred for more than one hour, it begins to decay, and will lead to the
death of the kindred who’s heart it is (this ritual is not a cheap alternative to Heart of
Darkness, and does not provide the protections of the heart that the Advanced
Serpentis does). Aegis may be blown to avoid death by heart deterioration. The heart
will re-form in the body when Aegis is blown.
The weapon will release its grip and slide out easily if the true name of the one
who wielded it is spoken as it is pulled. Anyone may remove it by this method.
Other methods of removal would be by the use of Vicissitude (up to Bonecraft is
required), the ritual Rotten Wood will destroy the stake, Decay (First Basic Hands of
Destruction) will destroy the stake (the Second Basic Gnarl Wood will not work). Other
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methods such as burning the stake out with a blowtorch will only result in the death of
the person so staked.
The ritual Purity of Flesh will also expel the stake.
Those who can see auras will notice a shimmering cloud of menace and hate
around the weapon if they think to check. Anyone who tries to use Spirit's Touch or its
equivalent will be overwhelmed by visions of pain and violence from the malevolent
intelligence that inhabits the weapon if they attempt to "read" it. Whether they win or
lose, they will gain no useful information from the Spirit's Touch.
This ritual can by no means be combined with Shaft of Belated Quintessence or
Splinter Servant.
Import Item
This ritual allows the Thaumaturgist to call forth an enchanted item into their
presence, avoiding all physical barriers in its path.
System: Unlike this ritual’s Infernal predecessor, ‘Aport Object’, it does not use
external forces – such as demons and their ilk – to accomplish its task. Without these
forces to make the ritual possible the Tremere looked to other rituals, such as ‘Escape
to a True Friend’, to re-derive their means of translocation. The Shadowlands, while not
as secure as an Umbral Pocket realm, was deemed to be the most achievable means
by which this translocation could be accomplished. Although this was the decided upon
means – it does take a considerable trained Thaumaturgist to master it’s utilization.
Unlike its Infernal cousin that even a neonate can master – or is that ‘its masters will
utilize them’? To enchant an item, so its capable of such a journey, the Thaumaturgist
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needs soak the item in three of her Blood Traits, for the ninety-minute ritual, and expend
a Willpower Trait. Items attuned in this manner may be no larger than the Thaumaturge
can hold in both hands or be more than twice her mass. Items, which are so attuned,
must have this indicated on their respective ‘item cards’ or recorded on the
Thaumaturgist’s character sheet for the ST’ review.
To summon an object so ensorcelled through the Shadowlands, the
Thaumaturgist must will the object into her presence, thus expending a Mental Trait
(taking one full combat turn). If however she does not have either hand free, the item
will appear where she wishes but no more than five feet from her. Note: the item will not
imbed itself within anything or anyone. Also noting the medium by which the ensorcelled
item travels, Ward versus Spirit prevents the use of this ritual.
Upon reaching the Thaumaturgist, items summoned in this manner lose their
enchantment. This is important because a Thaumaturgist may only have one
enchantment of this type at any given time. Hypothetically two Thaumaturges may each
have an item enchanted by this ritual. However be warned, if both Thaumaturgists
summon the same item at the exact same instance (same action) the object goes to
neither. In fact Arcades, the creator of this ritual, postulates that items lost in this
manner are displaced into the depths of the Shadowlands – but as of now this is only a
hypothesis.
Mirror Attunement
This ritual requires a glass mirror. The caster must etch (properly and with good
craftsmanship, as hieroglyphics are not only a language but a set of magical symbols as
well) into the glass, a border of text. That text being a very lengthy and poetic
description of a soul passing through it’s own reflection.
Then the "mate" of this mirror must have the *exact* mirrored set of hieroglyphs
etched in by the caster, including any flaws or extended artistic whim. The caster then
paints in, with her vitae, the etched hieroglyphs (the mirror image reflection on its mate,
identically) and brings them 'to life'. The blood then must be left to dry, in the waxing
half-moon moonlight.
After this preparation, these two mirrors, no matter what location, distance, or
angle, can be entered by someone using the ritual "Mirror Walk", and exit out the 'mate'
of the mirror entered.
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Introduction, alerting her to the fact that there is another that seeks her attention. Many
Tremere carry pocket mirrors in compacts or cigarette cases for just such an event.
Tremere’s Bane
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This very potent ritual takes five people to cast, though only one person needs to
have the ritual. All five castors must succeed in a Static Challenge (Diff 12). This is a
two hour long ritual where the five mages chant while the blood of a recently (same
night of ritual) embraced and willing (not coerced with disciplines) virgin (male or
female) is sacrificially drained into a chalice with a ceremonial dagger. A five-pointed
star is drawn on the floor (facing north), each mage sits at one of the points, the virgin is
placed in the center. The mage at the north point takes the dagger and chance, places
the chance next to the virgin, and then holds up the dagger and everyone begins to
chant. After the chanting has reached its rhythm the dagger is plunged into the heart of
the virgin. The blood then begins to drain into the chalice. The blood in the chalice does
not stay it mystically evaporates. This process takes the whole two hours. The virgin will
feel no pain during the ritual and she will not be killed, just her blood will be drained.
If this ritual has been successfully cast then anyone who is not of Tremere blood
will experience a difficult time employing any of the Paths of Thaumaturgy, not rituals
just Paths. The system for this is as follows; when any discipline is used the cost for that
discipline is doubled and if it doesn't already have a test then it will require a simple test
to use. If the tests are failed then the opposite effect of the discipline will occur.
The Ritual lasts for One year and affects a single building.
Here are two examples:
An 11th generation Brujah tries to lower her generation to 8th with Potency of the
blood. Normally it would cost her 6 Mental traits and one Blood, but with Tremere’s
Bane being present it will cost 12 Mental traits, 2 Blood and a simple Test. If she fails
the test then instead of lowering her generation she raises her generation to 13th. If a
Malkavian tries to Forcebolt another vampire, it will cost her 2 blood traits instead of
one. If she loses the challenge she suffers the effects of Forcebolt herself.
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Vires Acquirit Eundo
This ritual when cast in tandem with another ritual can increase some effects of
that ritual
System: The affects that are extended are completely up to the ST. The player
can suggest possibilities as to what affects are changed, but the ST has the final say so.
It is suggest that the player carry an index card signed by an ST that says that the
change is legit. It is strongly advised to STs that allow this ritual that they use common
sense before approving some extended requests.
Wizard's Gift
Description: This ritual was created as the opposite of Wizard's Gold. Once an
Apprentice attains the position of Regent she must be able to educate those
Apprentices that she has been chosen to educate.
System: The coin, or coins (as this can be cast on any coins that have the
persons name on it) have this ritual cast on them in the presence of the person that they
affect. If successful the thaumaturge is now free to teach the rituals and paths that were
before closed.
Elder
Bone of Eternal Thirst
This three night Ritual creates an ensorcelled weapon made of bone and ivory.
The Thaumaturge must carve the weapon himself and then bathe it in the lifeblood of a
year-old fledgling each night. All of the blood is absorbed into the weapon and cannot
be used for any other purposes. The third “contributor” must be the caster’s own Childe.
The enchanted weapon becomes a powerful tool, able to sever flesh and even bone
with ease, draining the strength of those it injures. It is nearly impossible to destroy this
weapon.
System: All damage done by this bone-weapon is aggravated. In addition, for
each level of damage it does the weapon “drinks” a trait of the victim’s blood. The
weapon can be destroyed only if it absorbs 20 traits of blood from a single victim. If this
happens it is immediately incinerated Any weapon that can be carved from ivory or
bone may be used in this ritual, and does damage per that weapon type
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Drawing upon the Bond
This Ritual allows the caster to draw upon the power of her thralls.
System: The caster may utilize any disciplines that any of her thralls possess.
All challenges using that discipline uses the caster’s traits, willpower and blood.
This Ritual should be NPC access only as it can be very unbalancing.
Master
Chain of the Blood Line
This Ritual grants the Warlock power over another vampire’s extended brood.
This Ritual takes three nights and must end on the night of a new moon with the death
of the Kindred whose brood the caster wishes to control. The Warlock must kill the
Kindred by successfully committing Diablerie upon her. When the Ritual is completed by
the Diablerie, the Warlock then learns the brood of the victim, and in turn their brood,
and so on. When the caster encounters any of these Kindred, he may command them in
any way, impelling them to obey.
System: Those commanded in this manner may resist by making a Static Self-
Control challenge against the number of permanent willpower traits of the caster. If the
caster wins, the victim must wait an hour before attempting to challenge again, and
conversely if the caster loses he must wait an hour before attempting to command the
victim again via this ritual. While successfully under the effects of this ritual the victim is
rendered incapable of attacking the Warlock.
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thaumaturges (though only one need know the ritual). Discipline use in this area is
substantially more difficult. The effect lasts for as long as the device is active.
System: To cast this ritual the thaumaturge must expend a blood trait in addition
to those in which the focus must be submerged, engage in a static mental challenge vs.
ten traits, and requires a full hour of casting. Upon completion of the ritual, successful
or not, the focus of the ritual is set briefly aflame (if the ritual succeeds, the damage
done to the item fades), and must be extinguished by the bare hand of the thaumaturge
(causing one level of aggravated damage, as well as a Courage test to avoid
Rotschreck). Once activated, the device creates an area of power one hundred feet in
diameter, centered on itself. Once active, anyone attempting to invoke or use
disciplines in the area must first enter a static mental challenge vs. a difficulty of ten
traits. Kindred of a lower generation than the caster remain unaffected, but the caster
herself is affected if she steps inside the area. The item functions until “turned off” or
until dawn. In either case, once deactivated, it becomes nonmagical and cannot be
reused.
Methuselah
Weapon of the Kindred Soul/Blade of the Forbidden Flower
"This ritual creates an enchanted weapon much like the "Bone of the Kindred"
weapon from the above ritual. The ritual requires the lifeblood of a Kindred who is also
an expert in the use of the weapon to be enchanted. As above, this blood is absorbed
and may not be used in any other way."
"The weapon created by this ritual becomes the vessel for the slain Kindred's
soul and Willpower. The Thaumaturgist conducting this ritual has a great deal of control
over the weapon's new personality and goals, and commonly imbues the weapon with
an overriding desire to protect the Thaumaturgist. The weapon maintains all of the
Abilities, Disciplines, etc. of the Kindred slain to create it, but all of its memories seem
distant and unimportant. The weapon is given a new name during the ritual, and can
communicate with its user telepathically. In effect, the weapon is a freethinking being
with its own goals, Abilities and mystical Disciplines." Note that you cannot actually use
the disciplines or abilities of the weapon, but the weapon can use them (to the
limitations of it’s form) to follow it’s own goals and desires.
Invulnerable Weakness
This is a jealously guarded Ritual, allegedly known only to Tremere himself. The
Ritual takes an entire year to cast and a massive number of complex components to
complete. The most important component is a large diamond bathed in the sun’s rays
for an entire, cloudless day and engraved with the symbols of life and death. The gem is
then consumed on the final night of the Ritual. It will stay inside the Warlock’s body until
it slowly and mystically decomposes over a period of years. During that time the caster
is immune to fire, heat and sunlight. Furthermore, the kindred may stay awake during
the day. During the duration of the Ritual’s affect those who drink the blood of the caster
will gain all the same benefits for an hour per trait.
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System: An extended physical challenge (stamina based) is entered into with
occult as the appropriate retest. The number of successes is the amount of years this
ritual will work for.
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Credits
Firstly, I thank Ian James. He put together both the most recent Alpha, and now
Beta releases of the ‘Thaum. Packet’, both beautifully done and sorely needed. Second,
Scott Little is to be commended in his effort to release the first version of this packet.
Before them, and aiding them in their endeavors were others. I acknowledge their aid as
well as those who they acknowledged: Mark Roemer, Brian Goudie, Jessy Larpenter,
Lance Larson, P. David Gill, Adam Gibson, Ross Anderson, Ken Cummins, Marcus
Kim, Adam Madlinger, Dylan Parker and Aaron Wiseman. Thanks to you all, as well as
all those who are not mentioned here.
To date, many people have created their own Rituals and have aided in
converting many table top Rituals to accommodate the LARP rules systems. It is my
hope that this sort of initiative continues. OWbN is only as strong as it’s members, and
the cooperation on this project has shown that we are a grand organization indeed.
Thanks to all,
Dennis Sharpe
This document is an entirely unofficial use of the Vampire: The Masquerade and A
World of Darkness gaming materials published by White Wolf Game Studios and not
intended as an official or profit making venture in any way, shape or form. Although the
use of these concepts, rules, etc., is unauthorized, no infringement is intended. The
creator of this document is not affiliated with White Wolf Games Studios in any way
39
Setite Sorcery
Introduction
Not a few vampires know that the Followers of Set claim an ancient magic quite
different from the Thaumaturgy of the Tremere. Most of these Kindred simply call this
magic “Setite Sorcery”. This magic art has an actual name of its own, though. The
Setites themselves call it Akhu, and they are not the only vampires who practice this art.
Unlike Europeans, the ancient Egyptians regarded magic as a profoundly
legitimate art. A sorcerer did not blaspheme against the gods by casting spells: The
Egyptian gods gave magic to humanity as a gift, and each spell reaffirmed this bond
between the human and the divine. Priests doubled as community magicians. The
Egyptians saw no fundamental difference between a rite conducted in a temple for the
benefit of Pharaoh and the state and a spell cast at a client’s house for personal benefit.
The ancient Egyptians also did not distinguish between “black” and “white”
magic. All magic was ethically neutral. An Egyptian certainly did not like becoming the
target of a curse, any more than a modern person likes being shot at; but an Egyptian
responded to hostile magic by consulting his local priest-magician for spells to protect
him – and to let him shoot back. Historians find only one record of an Egyptian trial for
criminal sorcery, in the case of an official who attempted a sorcerous coup using magic
books he stole from Pharaoh’s library. The official’s crimes, however, lay in the theft
and the assassination attempt – not in the magic itself.
The Egyptians had several words for magic. The most important were Heka,
“Magic”, and Akhu “Spells”. The ancient texts use these words interchangeably. As
early as 1000 BCE, however, Egyptian vampires used Heka to refer to mortal sorcery
and Akhu to refer to their blood magic. Except for the use of vitae, Heka and Akhu used
much the same tools to cast similar spells.
Egyptian attitudes changed during Roman times. The Romans forbade priests to
cast spells, though the practice continued in secret. Egypt’s conversion to Christianity
completed the transition. After centuries of decline among mortals, only vampires
remembered and practiced the ancient sorceries. Heka apparently died, while Akhu
went underground.
In the ancient world, Egyptian priests enjoyed a reputation as the world’s greatest
sorcerers. Thanks to Akhu, the Followers of Set inherited this reputation. Suspicion of
the “pagan” Setites and of “Satanic” sorcery fed on each other in the Christian and
Muslim world. Some undead historians argue that the Setites themselves came to
believe the baleful rumors spread about them and their sorcery, and that many Setite
practices grew from these centuries of propaganda.
In the Middle Ages and Renaissance, Clan Tremere replaced the Followers of
Set as the leading purveyors of magic in Europe. A dreadful Inquisition in their native
40
Egypt further reduced Setite power and destroyed most sorcerers from other clans.
Egyptian sorcery became an increasingly rare art. Relatively few Setites (or Egyptian
vampires of other clans) bothered to learn Akhu – not least because so few Kindred
could read the ancient papyrus grimoires.
In the 19th century, however, Champollion’s translation of Egyptian hieroglyphs
led to renewed interest in all things Egyptian among Kindred and kine. Some Tremere
became interested n the magic of their old rivals and sought to learn Akhu. A large
percentage of these Warlocks rebelled against their clan’s hierarchy and became Set-
cultists themselves. In 1930, the Council of Seven banned research into Akhu. In
1973, Muharram Rasul ibn Babar, Pontifex of Antioch, persuaded the Council of Seven
to lift the ban. The Pontifex, known for his hatred of the Setites, argued that House and
Clan needed to master the Serpents’ magic in order to defend against it. The clan’s
elders, however, still look askance at any Warlock who shows too much interest in
Egyptian magic. The Tremere have lost too many secrets because of defectors.
Not all Setite vampires actually worship Set directly. A large minority of Setites
identifies the Dark God with deities from other pantheons. One prominent cult, for
instance, identifies Set with the Greek monster Typhon and the Roman gods Mars,
Bacchus, and Pluto. Another cult actually links Set to Jesus through some truly
amazing “secret doctrines”. A handful of lector-priests translate Akhu to exploit these
other pantheons. Most Setites who learn Akhu simply move beyond the “mask” of the
other pantheon to worship Set directly and use the old Egyptian forms. So far, no
vampire from any other clan has learned any of these hybrid forms of Akhu.
Not all lector-priests come from the Followers of Set clan. They are all Setites in
the sense of worshipping the Dark God, but a significant percentage come from other
lineages – such as the Tremere defectors and their childer. Few Kindred of other clans
adopt the Setite faith, but the Followers of Set teach them Akhu as freely as they teach
their own childer.
Unfortunately for the Kindred, the Egyptian religion did not grant them the
benefits of divine magic. Vampires lacked breath and vital force; their banishment from
the sun’s light proclaimed them anathema to the gods. No divine contract gave them
the right to cast spells. Just as vampires stole blood from the living, however, the
ancient Egyptian Kindred found ways to steal magic from the gods.
Even so, the Egyptian blood magicians drew their charter from a divine legend:
the Myth of Set and Osiris. When the sun-god Ra grew too old to continue as king of
the gods and the world, he appointed Osiris as his successor. This decision outraged
Osiris’ brother Set. The warrior-god reminded Ra of his nightly service, battling the
chaos-serpent Apep so the sun-boat could pass the gates of dawn, but Ra would not
change his mind.
Set took revenge by murdering Osiris and dismembering his body. Isis, the
sister-wife of Osiris, recovered his body, mummified it and magically conceived a son by
her dead husband. This son, Horus, grew up to avenge his father and become the next
41
king of the gods, while Osiris became king of the dead. For a time, however, Set
successfully usurped the powers of light and life.
In the same way, all blood magicians fuel their spells with the life force they steal
from the living. Practitioners of Akhu go even further. They additionally steal power
from the dead by reenacting the dismemberment of Osiris, the greatest act of
blasphemy in Egyptian legend. The Book of Going Forth by Night, - a text written by
Set himself, according to legend – tells them how to do it. This power enhances their
magic. Lector-priest can cast many spells without expending vitae, relying entirely upon
the power stolen from the dead and from Osiris himself.
Blasphemy-Shrines
As the Egyptians condensed their funerary magic from the Pyramid Texts to the
Book of Coming Forth by Day, they allowed more people to enjoy the afterlife privileges
once restricted to pharaohs. By Hellenistic times, the Egyptian priests opened the
Western Lands to any commoner who could afford the mummification process and a
copy of the Book of the Dead. All these people joined the kingdom of Osiris. By
emulating the god’s mummification, they mystically became Osiris.
Cultists of Set take this claim seriously. They interpret “becoming Osiris” to
mean that these souls become extension of the god and feed his power through a
spiritual vampirism. Even tonight, they believe, souls can find themselves in Amenti and
become the happy, deluded slaves of the god. The Egyptian religion may have died
out, but people still seek immortality through extravagant burials, monuments or a
cadaver preserved for the ages.
Since people pass to Amenti through obsession with their cadaver or the pomp of
their burial, lector-priests free them from the Western Lands by reversing these
conditions. They desecrate the body by breaking bones, splitting the ribcage and using
hooks and cords to pull the corpse into a torturous position. By mutilation the corpse,
they imitate Set’s murder and dismemberment of Osiris.
The Setite magician likewise mocks and perverts the grave goods. In a full
Egyptian burial, the viscera went in four special “canopic jars” placed in a specific
arrangement. A Setite reverses that arrangement, placing the northern jar in the south
and the eastern jar in the west. Other grave goods join the tableau after suitable
defilement. The magician might load a beautiful coffin with manure and turn it into a
mushroom farm. Rich clothing becomes a rag-rug for the magician to wipe his feet
upon.
Set’s book supplies insulting uses for classically Egyptian grave goods such as
amulet and jewelry, usabti figures, furniture, weapons and cases for unguents. Setites
dealing with latter-day burials must exercise their ingenuity. For instance, given a
person who sought immortality by endowing a library, museum or hospital, a Setite
might steal and defile the commemorative plaque, the official stationary and other
objects from the building.
The Book of Going Forth by Night says that this desecration withers the soul in
the Western Lands and inflicts eternal torment upon it. At least, part of the soul writhes
and howls in pain. Some Setites believe that the wailing spirit is merely the person’s ka
or “astral double”. The imperishable true soul, the sahu, slips free of the broken ka like
a snake sloughing its skin, a second death to a genuine and transcendent new life.
42
Other Setites omit this point of doctrine. They say that anyone who serves Osiris
deserves a few millennia of torture. After all, the tortured cadaver eventually falls apart.,
no matter how carefully a Setite preserves it, and then the soul’s torment ends.
Metaphysics aside, an Akhu practitioner absolutely must perform this rite of
desecration in order t work magic. The broken cadaver and tortured ka pull magical
power from Amenti to the lector-priest’s ritual chamber. A lector-priest can perform
magic elsewhere, but must conduct monthly rites to honor Set in the blasphemy-shrine.
If some ill luck destroys the blasphemy-shrine, the lector-priest can no longer perform
even the simplest magic ritual.
For a full description of the game mechanics behind the blasphemy-shrine, see
the ritual Opening the Gate below.
Set’s book gives full instructions for “Opening the Gate”. The Book of Going
Forth by Night also tells how to inscribe a consecrated copy that makes other magic
rituals more likely to succeed, and how to brew a vitae-laced sacramental beer (see the
Rituals section for a full description of these rituals). The Book of Going Forth by Night
contains no other rituals of Setite sorcery. Many Akhu rituals employ its legends and
liturgies, though. Some sendings demand the physical presence of a copy. A tradition-
bound Setite would insist upon a copy of The Book of Going Forth by Night written in
hieroglyphics upon a genuine papyrus scroll. Less formal lector-priests accept printed
copies bound as a modern book (scrolls are not very convenient), and written in hieratic,
demotic, or Coptic script. Setites have translated the book into Greek, Arabic, English
and several other languages for their neonates to study, but these have no value in
magic
44
Setite Paths
Setite sorcery is unlike normal Thaumaturgy, in that its paths don't necessarily
require inherent vitae expenditure, and may not require a mental challenge. The power
for these paths usually comes from the Western Lands, not from the sorcerer herself. In
fact, these paths are more like closed-ended Disciplines than more traditional
thaumaturgical paths, though they are finite and depend on the larger theory of Setite
sorcery.
A lector-priest character needs at least one level of Occult and one level of
Linguistics: Egyptian to know the requisite mysteries of Egyptian myth, magic and
language. Alchemical rituals demand that the magician possess at least one level of
Medicine or Science. If a character lacks at least one level of (an appropriate type of)
Crafts, the lector-priest is down one trait on all rituals that involve written spells,
engraved amulets or other inscriptions. Additional levels in Mummification, Crafts:
Calligraphy, Crafts: Sculpture, etc. may be needed for specific paths or rituals.
Storytellers may impose other difficulty penalties or bonuses upon a player’s
challenge, depending on how thoroughly the character adheres to the full pomp of
Egyptian priestly tradition. For instance, rituals that involve writing assume that the
character employs an authentic reed pen, ink, and papyrus. She could also draw her
inscription on a moist clay tablet and bake it hard. Chiseling the spell into a stone stela
and painting the hieroglyphs would merit a two-trait bonus. Conversely, scribbling spells
with a ballpoint pen on a three-by-five note card would incur a two-trait penalty. Other
factors that could reduce difficulties include the use of genuine Nile water, ancient ritual
tools or a congregation of fellow Set cultists (such as a personal blood cult). Negative
factors include wearing synthetic or animal-derived fabrics (Egyptian priests wore linen),
or improvised ritual tools. We recommend that Storytellers do not adjust bonuses or
penalties by more than three traits.
Presented below are Five Paths unique to Setites. Akhu also employs its own
versions of other paths practiced by the Tremere or others, but often gives them
different names. Each path relates in some way to Set or Set-cultist activities. The
following Paths can be found in previously published source books from White Wolf.
They can be used with the same game mechanics, though usually the performance is
significantly more “Egyptian-ized” and they rely on Social instead of Mental Challenges.
Read over the section on “Tools and Techniques” (Blood Sacrifice: the Thaumaturgy
Companion pg. 21) for ideas of how to subtly change these paths to the Follower of Set
outlook.
Cross-Addiction
The Setite temporarily changes the focus of an addict or compulsive's
dependency to a substance or behavior of her own choosing. For example, a cocaine
addict could be made to crave the act of sex while on the rush, or a compulsive gambler
may become a kleptomaniac as well.
With a successful Social challenge the Setite can force a target that is currently
under the influence of an addiction to tack on a second addiction of the Setite’s choice.
The target must then satisfy both of the addictions, usually through role-playing. The
second addiction’s duration is a number of hours equal to the Setite’s permanent
Willpower.
46
Fatal Compulsion
The Setite twists a victim's dependency, turning it into a literal hunger. If the
subject doesn't satisfy his addiction, he starves to death.
A Social challenge against the target and the expenditure of 3 blood points are
necessary to invoke Fatal Compulsion. Whenever she goes for three consecutive nights
without indulging her addiction or compulsion, the subject suffers one health level of
unsoakable lethal damage. The only way to regain health levels lost in this way is to
satisfy the compulsion; the character recovers all of them immediately and the power's
influence ends.
The sorcerer's player must select one and only one craving for Temperance to
affect. The character may use the power more than once, however, to block multiple
addictions. Temperance does not work against true physiological necessities such as
food (for mortals) or blood (for vampires).
Trust Withers
The victim begins to suspect that a specified, trusted ally or associate intends to
betray him. The victim's delusion escalates from mild unease to wild-eyed paranoia.
With an extended static Social challenge (against a difficulty of twice the target’s
willpower) and the expenditure of a blood trait, the Setite can induce a feeling of unease
or even paranoia on a Target towards a specific trusted ally. It takes 9 weeks minus the
amount of success to induce the paranoia. As listed above the target will continue to
have this feeling while the faience is amongst her possessions. The target gains the
derangement Paranoia towards the person chosen by the Setite. This derangement is
to be considered active when around that person. Appropriate role-play should be
encouraged.
Hope Dissolves
The Setite's victim subject can't shake the absolute conviction that a specified
goal he meant to accomplish can under no circumstances be achieved. He rapidly
grows disheartened and indolent.
The Setite must be in the presence of the subject at the time he invokes this
power. The player engages in an extended static Social challenge against a difficulty
equal to twice the target's Willpower and spends three blood points. If successful, the
subject sinks into a deep depression over the course of one day or night, and becomes
distinctly morose. While in this state, a character may only bid a number of traits equal
to her Self-Control Virtue. If she wishes to use her full Traits, she must spend a
Willpower point to undertake that action. Although this power is unlikely to drive a
character to suicidal depression, a character already predisposed toward that end may
find the urge more compelling.
The duration of this power varies by the number of successes the Setite
acquired. It may be cured through therapy, drugs, etc., before this time period, however,
should the victim seek help.
Hand of Khnum
At this level of mastery, a magician gains the power to affect mortal beings –
humans and animals – with the Divine Hand. The magician takes on the power of
Khnum, divine shaper of life. Innately supernatural creatures such as vampires and
werewolves, however, remain immune.
To cast the Hand of Khnum upon a mortal, the magician inscribes the person’s
name on the wax doll and incorporates bits of the person in the doll – a snippet of hair,
say, or fingernail clippings. A supernatural “True Name” removes the need for body
relics, but most modern people do not have a True Name, or at least they do not know
it.
The magician can also affect more massive objects, up to 1,000 pounds, such as
a telephone pole, steel support beam, large motorcycle or dumpster.
The magician can inflict one level of Lethal damage upon a mortal victim or
attempt to manipulate the victim (for instance, the magician could wrap her hand tightly
around a doll to immobilize the victim). If used against an inanimate object she can
inflict two levels of damage.
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Intermediate Divine Hand
Hand of Anubis
t this level, the magician gains the power to influence corporeal
supernatural entities: vampires, werewolves, changelings, and other such creatures of
mixed natures. The character calls upon Anubis, the mediator between worlds. He
cannot affect wraiths or other sorts of spirits. As with the Hand of Khnum, the magician
needs the victim’s True Name or a sample of her body and her mundane name. The
magician must make an extraordinary effort (spending two points of blood and two
Willpower), however, to overpower the innate magic of the victim’s being (and inflict one
health level of Lethal damage).
The magician can also now affect inanimate objects weighing up to 5,000
pounds, such as a car or a large speedboat, and can inflict three levels of damage.
Hand of Thoth
At this level of mastery, the magician can employ the Divine Hand against all
sorts of spirits, including wraiths. Since spirits do not have corporeal forms, the
magician needs the spirit’s True Name or (in the case of wraiths) a relic of the
deceased’s khat (body) or some object (called a Fetter) that was supremely important to
the person in life. The lector-priest can also affect a spirit that she sees directly. The
magic only affects spirits who manifest on Earth. The Hand of Thoth cannot reach
spirits in their own realms.
At this level, the magician can use the Divine Hand against inanimate objects
weighing up to 20,000 pounds, such as an armored limousine, a semi, or a Learjet.
The magician’s player spends two blood points and two Willpower to inflict one
level of damage on a spirit. She can also inflict four levels of damage on an inanimate
object or two Lethal damage to an animate or supernatural creature.
Path of Duat
Through the Path of Duat, a practitioner of Akhu conjures the attributes of the
Egyptian netherworld and inflicts them upon an enemy. The effects are mental and
hypnotica rather than physical; an observer sees no physical cause for the victim’s
malady.
Each power calls for a Social Challenge against the victim. Except for the
Advanced Level, the effect lasts as long as the magician concentrates upon maintaining
it. This means that the magician cannot engage in any violent physical activity, or
employ other path or ritual magic. The character can, however, use passive amulets.
None of the Duat powers cost blood points. The magician relies upon her blasphemy-
shrine’s power.
To use the Path of Duat, the magician must carry a talismanic gem of black onyx
carved in the image of a mummified man – the form of Sokar, the god of Duat. A few
minutes before using the path, the magician smears the talisman with a drop of her own
blood as an offering to Sokar, and whispers a short prayer.
The hypnotic aspects of the Path of Duat mean that the player is down two traits
if the lector-priest does not catch the victim’s attention using the darkly glittering
talisman on the turn when she initiates the magic. The victim does not need to see the
magician on subsequent turns. If the character does not feel the need to attract the
victim’s attention, the Path of Duat can affect any victim that the magician can see with
his own eyes. Once the magician can no longer see the victim, the Path of Duat attacks
end.
Darkness of Duat
The dead in Duat exist in darkness, relieved only by the nightly passage of the
ship of Ra. This power casts the darkness of Duat into a victim’s eyes, rendering him
blind (the victim suffers under the darkness penalties listed on p. 164 of Laws of the
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Night: Revised under Shroud of Night). The victim also hears the soft lapping of the
River of Death as it flows through the Underworld.
53
Torpor induced by Consignment to Duat lasts the normal duration set by the
victim’s Humanity or Path of Enlightenment rating – baring further action by the
magician.
Ushabti
The name of the path comes from the figurines that prosperous Egyptians had
buried with them. In the Afterlife, these figurines supposedly became servants who
would work for the interred person’s soul. Images of objects also became real in the
death-realm. Egyptian magicians also brought images to life in this world.
Each use of this path requires a separate figurine. Thus, a magician who wants
to create a crocodile, fashions a model crocodile; to create a falcon, he uses a model
falcon. Animal figures are as easy to animate as images of humans. A magician can
use a figurine only once.
In every case, the magician makes the figurine out of wax, or clay mixed with one
blood point’s worth of her own vitae and speaks an incantation. The lector-priest writes
words of power upon the model, including its name in Egyptian hieroglyphs – “digger”,
“bullock”, “guard” or the like. Then she bathes the figure in honey and beer and
fumigates it in the smoke of various herbs. At this point, the player makes a Mental
Challenge (retest with the Crafts ability) against a variable difficulty (6 traits for a Basic
working, 7 for an Intermediate, 8 for an Advanced) to determine whether the magic
succeeds. If the magic works, the statuette expands into a life-sized, animate figure. If
the player fails – after all appropriate retests – a second Static Test is made. If this
challenge fails as well, the statuette animates, but an evil spirit possesses the ushabti
and sets about making the character’s unlife miserable.
Ushabti creatures have Attributes and Abilities. Attributes are limited only by the
magician’s mastery of the path. A lector-priest cannot give an ushabti any Ability that
she herself does not possess, and cannot grant an Ability rating above her own. Only at
the highest level of mastery can an ushabti have Virtues, Humanity, or Willpower,
because they have no genuine minds or free will. Most ushabti can only follow orders.
They cannot think for themselves, even to preserve their own existence.
An ushabti has health levels identical to a human or vampire. Although ushabti
can possess the physical abilities intrinsic to an animal form, such as flight for a bird or
a lion’s claw’s and teeth, they cannot have any sort of magical powers.
Ushabti range from obviously animate manikins to simulacra almost
indistinguishable from life. The number of mental traits spent at the time of creation
indicates the realism of the animate figure.
An ushabti’s “realism rating can never exceed the level of the power that created
it (one trait for Basic, two for Intermediate, three for Advanced).
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An ushabti creature remains active for one lunar month, so long as it has no
contact with mundane humanity and stays within the vampire’s haven. At the end of
this period, the magician can extend the ushabti’s existence for another lunar month by
feeding it another blood point. If an ushabti interacts with ordinary humans outside the
creator’s haven, the magic degrades rapidly: within an hour, the ushabti reverts to wax
or clay and becomes a crumbling statuette again. A “slain” ushabti becomes a figurine
at the moment of its “death.”
Ushabti figurines are always made for use by a specific person; no one else can
employ them. Most of the time, the magician makes ushabti for his own use, but she
can prepare ushabti for another person to use at a later time. This costs the magician a
point of Willpower. The other person activates the ushabti using the requisite magic
words, but does not need to expend vitae.
Basic Ushabti
Laborer
At first the magician can produce only simple, nearly mindless servants. These
ushabti can perform simple repetitive tasks such as digging, sweeping, pulling and
carrying. Laborers cannot fight.
Whether human or animal, these basic ushabti have three Physical traits, one
Mental trait, and no Social traits. (Ushabti can be beautiful, if their maker fashions them
so. Having no Social Traits represents an ushabti’s inability to perform any task
requiring Social Traits.) They have no Abilities.
Servitor
A more skilled magician can produce ushabti with greater intelligence and
usefulness. Servitors can perform moderately complex tasks that require some small
degree of common sense.
To the basic Laborer, add three more Traits (but Social and Mental Trait totals
cannot rise above three). Also add two dots of Abilities. At this level these cannot be
combat Abilities.
Intermediate Ushabti
Guard
At this level, the magician can create ushabti with simulated minds that work
quickly enough to handle combat. An ushabti created with this level of mastery doesn’t
have to be an actual guard, but it is a common application.
To the basic Laborer, add six more Traits and four Abilities. Guards can have
Social Attributes, but Social and Mental Trait totals cannot rise above three; neither can
any Ability.
Overseer
A truly skilled magician can create formidable ushabti – powerful beasts, or
servants more skilled than many humans. Such an ushabti can command lesser
ushabti, and perform complex tasks without supervision.
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To the basic Laborer, add nine Traits and six Abilities. Social and Mental Trait
totals cannot rise above four; neither can any Ability.
Advanced Ushabti
Gift of Khnum
The ancient Egyptians believed that the god Khnum shaped human beings in the
womb, as a potter shapes clay. A master of Ushabti can create servants of remarkable
skill or power who are utterly loyal, but do not know that they are fakes. Even more
remarkably, a magician can craft a body for a spirit and that spirit and body will truly live,
as a free-willed being from then on. Through the Gift of Khnum, a blood-sorcerer can
raise the dead – or release demons on the world.
To the Basic Laborer, add 12 Traits and eight Abilities. The ushabti also has
Virtues, Humanity and Willpower like a starting Vampire character. It can think for
itself, but remains emotionally bound to its creator as if blood bound. Alternately, the
magician can simply craft a body and infuse it with a pre-existing soul: either a wraith or
some other sort of spirit. The ushabti then has whatever Abilities, Virtues and other
Traits the spirit had. The magician can create whatever body he pleases, but the spirit
must agree of its own free will to occupy the body.
The Gift of Khnum costs two Willpower traits. For every Willpower Trait past the
two required Traits spent raises the level of the ushabti’s “realism rating”.
An ushabti created by the Gift of Khnum does not degrade in the presence of
ordinary humans, or at the end of a month. It will degrade within minutes, however, if
someone challenges it identity and convinces it that it is not a real person. One Setite
legend tells of a faithful ushabti who served its creator for a hundred years before it saw
its reflection and realized that it was just another of its master’s statues. Another story
tells of a perfectly lifelike ushabti who married and bore children to her husband. She
crumbled to dust, however, when her husband sought to discover he past and found
that she did not have one.
NOTE: Attempting to Embrace an ushabti created with the Gift of Khnum is
enough to challenge its identity and destroy the creation. Similarly, attempting to ghoul
one is a waste of vitae. Ushabti cannot learn Disciplines, though they are subject to the
Blood Bond.
“Lost” Paths
The following Paths aren’t lost in the sense that no one knows them, they are
merely extraordinarily difficult to learn. One Path has fallen out of general use since the
middle ages, while the other is an adaptation of a Tremere Path, learned by the Lector-
Priest converting her to Set. To begin learning one of these Paths a practitioner of Akhu
must have heard about the existence of the Path – difficult due to their obscurity – have
a Mentor of Level 4 or greater who already knows the Path, an Occult and Setite Lore
rating of 4 or greater. In addition, due to their obscurity, they require a Blasphemy
Shrine of rating 3 or higher to use.
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The Immanence of Set
The Setite clan is grounded solidly in the belief that their creator is nothing less
than a god, and the blood that courses through their veins is the essence of Set himself,
shared amongst his followers to grant them powers over mortals and supernatural
creatures alike. Along with this belief comes the sure knowledge that they have
become houses of the god – they are utterly joined with their creator, and he may touch
his children no matter where they are. Setites employ this sorcerous path to call upon
the energies of the god for purposes of communication, manipulation and destruction.
Lord of Storms
Long before his incarnation as a tempter, Set was the god of darkness and
storm. This ability allows the lector-priest to summon up a sandstorm (or thunderstorm)
of ferocious intensity, blocking out the sky and driving any sane person to cover, but
allowing the Setite to move about quickly and easily.
The Setite spends three blood points and a Willpower point, summoning a raging
storm that blankets the area within a square mile of the lector-priest who summoned it.
She may increase the radius of the storm by spending additional Willpower, increasing
the area by 10 miles per Willpower point. While the howling winds and sand (or rain)
are severe enough to drive most sensible creatures to cover (as per the Intermediate
levels of the Breath of Set, time to summon the storm is based on the same table as
well), the Setite (and anyone in his immediate retinue) may travel untouched by the
raging weather, as though it were a calm, clear night. The effects of the storm last for at
least one scene, but can last much longer, at the Storyteller’s discretion. More than one
Setite has used this power to hinder the movements of his enemies while making a well-
timed escape, most notably during the catastrophe at Tanis.
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curse, as well as its affect and duration, and this information must be inscribed around
the place or object in question.
Scaleskin
When this application of the path is invoked, the user’s outer layers of skin
become smooth and scaly like those of an anaconda or other river snake, allowing for
greater flexibility on land as well as considerable freedom of movement through water.
The character gains the Physical Trait Dexterous, and she gains the ability to
pass through any opening large enough for her head. In addition, swimming in this form
is exceptionally efficient, allowing the user to travel through water at normal land speed.
While use of this power is obvious (to say the least) it does allow for some nick-of-time
escapes from handcuffs and other difficult situations.
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The character coughs a point of vitae into her mouth, where it transforms
mystically into a deadly blood-venom. The vampire then spits the venom at any one
opponent within range (equal to three feet per Strength related trait + level of Potence
(i.e. Basic, Intermediate, Advanced)). The player engages the target in a physical
challenge (bidding two traits due to the difficulty to hit the eyes). If the attack succeeds,
the target must immediately make a static Physical Challenge (bidding a Stamina-
related Trait) to soak the toxin. If the Stamina Challenge fails the victim remains blind
until the venom has run its course.
The blindness lasts for a scene or an hour. Supernatural targets can conceivably
shorten this time. Vampires may spend three blood points to eliminate the problem.
Lupines will regenerate the blindness in short order, reducing the duration to 1 minute.
The blood-venom is extremely toxic to mortals, however, who are blinded for live unless
they receive immediate medical attention (within the hour). Thankfully, this supernatural
venom is quite thin, and its potency cannot be maintained outside of the lector-priest’s
body.
Touch of Typhon
The lector-priest can now metamorphose her entire forearm and hand into a
deadly asp, complete with a writhing, venomous snakehead.
Effective range is only five feet, but the bite of the serpent “arm” is deadly, doing
an additional level of aggravated damage to anyone struck in combat. Mortals bitten
thus must immediately succeed in a Static Physical challenge (vs. 7 traits, bidding a
Stamina-related Trait) or die within (total number of Stamina related traits possessed +
5) minutes from the snakehead’s virulent toxin.
If a mortal is killed in this way, the venom begins to seep out of the corpse’s
wound shortly thereafter, carrying the unfortunate mortal’s essence along with it. The
blood-venom then pools nearby, slowly coagulating to form a small supernatural asp
under the control of the lector-priest. From that point forward, that mortal’s soul knows
no peace until such time as its new “boy” is killed, thus freeing the tortured spirit within.
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single serpent remains. This transformation last until the Warlock wills herself to
assume normal form once again, which takes another three turns.
Rituals
Unless otherwise noted within the ritual’s description, all follow the similar
challenges to those laid out in LotN:R –the only difference is in Trait type, Social instead
of Mental. Basic rituals require a Static Social Challenge versus five Traits,
Intermediate is vs. seven Traits, and Advanced is vs. nine Traits.
Basic Rituals
Dreams of Duat
By invoking Set, the magician curses a victim to suffer terrifying dreams. The
magician needs some part of her victim’s body, such as hair or nail clippings. She seals
them inside a wax figurine that she inscribes with the person’s name (as closely as
hieroglyphic script can approximate it). While reciting the curse, the magician bathes
the figurine in water made bitter with natron and declared to come from the river of
Duat. The victim then dreams of Duat’s horrors.
Unlike most rituals, this one uses the victim’s Willpower as the difficulty. For
each night in which the magician successfully curser her with nightmares, the victim
loses one point of temporary Willpower.
If the magician’s player fails the ritual test, a second Static Challenge should be
conducted. On a loss of the second challenge, the victim has a different dream. Into
the nightmare of darkness, monsters and death sails a shining boat staffed by animal-
headed men and women. An ibis-headed man – the god Thoth – tells the dreamer how
the magician has cursed her, and gives the magician’s name. (Religious magic has the
problem that it goes wrong in religious ways. By accepting the reality of one god, Setite
magicians also accept the power of other gods to interfere.)
Milk of Set
This entry is a catchall for a range of rituals too numerous to mention, though
many Setites have their own names for concoctions created in this fashion. In each, the
Setite creates a salve or unguent with magical properties. The exact details of the ritual
and ingredients of the salve vary depending on the desired effect.
Each effect must be learned as a separate ritual. When he wants his character to
gain a new ritual, the player specifies a desired effect; the Storyteller determines its
level, according to her judgment of the unguent's effectiveness as compared to other
ritual effects. She should rule out any effect that too closely resembles an existing path
or ritual from any tradition, unless the effect is a common one already available to a
number of Disciplines. Effects must change their targets for the worse, or alter them so
that they serve a new purpose. It takes one week per level to produce a single dose of
salve or unguent. It stays potent for two weeks times the level of the ritual, and then
becomes useless.
To adversely affect an inanimate object, the starting level of the ritual is Basic.
To harm mortals requires an Intermediate ritual. Other supernatural creatures are
resilient enough that only Advanced rituals (or above) have any effect. The more
complex effects (note the gas tank ritual) raise the level of the ritual. For instance, the
ritual to burn through steel or concrete is a Basic one. The same salve, if used to burn
the flesh from mortals is Intermediate, and if you want to use it on the Prince, it must be
created at the Advanced level.
Here are some common manifestations of the Milk of Set.
Effect Level
Add to gas tank of vehicle, so that it goes where Setite Intermediate
wants, not where driver steers it
Alter a lock so that it conforms to a key the Setite owns Basic
Bum through steel or concrete Basic
Make drug more addictive Basic
Make hollow replica of object coated in salve Varies by object size
Intermediate for mortals
Advanced for
Melt flesh on contact supernaturals
Two health levels of
damage dealt
Salve slithers along the ground in slug-like manner, Basic
following trail of specified individual
Seek out a computer and maliciously alter contents of Basic
its hard drive.
Typhon’s Brew
Most preparations of Setite alchemy begin with this magical, vitae-laced beer. A
lector-priest who does not know how to create Typhon’s Brew can forget about pursuing
further knowledge of alchemy. This beer sustains ghouls as if it were true vampiric
vitae. Vampires can drink it too.
By itself, Typhon’s Brew has no other properties. It cannot be used to Embrace a
mortal, nor to blood bond the imbiber: The brewing process negates this aspect of vitae.
Brewing the Typhon’s Brew takes a full month, beginning and ending at the dark
of the moon. For every gallon brewed, the alchemist includes one blood point’s worth of
his own vitae. The brewing process multiplies the vitae, so that a ghoul can gain one
blood point per quart of the magic beer. Vampires, however, gain only one blood point
per gallon consumed – the same rate as in brewing the beer. For vampires, the beer’s
magic is limited to the fact that they can drink it at all without heaving it up seconds
later. They can even get drunk on it, and suffer a hangover later.
Intermediate Rituals
Dismemberment of Osiris
The Setite ritually dismembers the captured leader of a group or organization,
starting with the limbs and finishing with the penis. (The ritual works only on male
victims.) At the conclusion of the ritual, the Setite drops the phallus into a tank full offish.
It only works if the fish devour the severed organ.
The organization headed by the victim suffers a serious calamity, as determined by the
Storyteller. A corporation might lose half of its stock value overnight, a military unit could
fall in battle, or a religious order might experience mass defections.
The ritual takes six hours to complete.
Scorpion Sending
Set dispatched a scorpion to sting the Infant Horus. This ritual emulates
the myth by creating a magical scorpion that attacks a single, predetermined victim.
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The scorpion’s magical venom has an excellent chance of killing a mortal and can
seriously inconvenience a vampire.
The magician makes a model scorpion out of wax; incorporating hair, nail
clippings, spittle, or something else that came from the victim’s body. She writes the
name of Set on the wax scorpion in green ink and recites the myth of the poisoning of
Horus. Then she leaves the model scorpion in a place frequented by the victim. The
next time the victim comes near the model it becomes a real scorpion and stings him.
The scorpion’s venom inflicts one health level of lethal damage every 15 minutes.
The damage ends if the victim’s player succeeds in a Physical Challenge (bidding a
Stamina related trait) at a Static difficulty of 9 (check at every increment of damage).
The venom harms both mortals and vampires. It also affects Lupines, changelings and
other supernatural races that have physical bodies.
The victim might see the scorpion before it strikes (a Mental Challenge difficulty
11, reduce the difficulty to 9 if the character is actively looking). If the target kills the
scorpion before it stings him, it reverts to a wax model. If the scorpion dies after
stinging, it stays a real scorpion.
Severing Sand
A handful of consecrated Nile sand can force all sorts of spirits to return from
whence they came. Indeed the Severing Sand possesses a limited power over all
supernatural creatures. For instance, one magician used Nile sand to prevent a
magical giant snake from re-joining its severed halves.
The magician must obtain authentic Egyptian river sand, washed clean and dried
in sunlight. She sprinkles the sand with perfumes, natron and a few drops of her own
vitae and chants a litany of praise to the Nile.
When using the Severing Sand, the magician invokes an appropriate Egyptian
god counter to whatever supernatural creature he faces. Against wraiths, a magician
might call upon Anubis to pull the ghost back to the Underworld; Ra or Set work equally
well to banish the demons of Duat. Seker affects vampires. A wise magician intuitively
knows what god works best for particular circumstances.
A magician may enchant Severing Sand in advance. The sand retains its power
until sunrise. An exorcised spirit returns to its home; the magic sand works against all
spirits, not just Egyptian ones. The spirit cannot return to Earth until the next nightfall.
A vampire, werewolf or other supernatural creature temporarily loses whatever
healing powers it may possess. This effect lasts one minute.
Summon Sebau
A lector-priest can use a clay model to summon sebau – the demons of Duat –
and send them to harry her enemies or perform other tasks. The magician must make
the model with his own hands, using clay mixed with one blood point of his vitae.
If the ritual succeeds, the magician can command one service from the sebau-
fiend that the demon can accomplish in one night. If the player fails the ritual challenge,
he must immediately make another Static Challenge (no traits risked). Failure of the
second challenge means the demon attacks the magician. If the magician wants the
sebau-fiend to attack a specific enemy, he needs the victim’s True Name or some part
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of the victim’s body. For information and stats on Sebau see the Sebau and Others
section on page 21.
Advanced Rituals
Dismembering the God
The Setite removes from a canopic jar a tissue sample taken from the chosen
victim; the sample must have steeped in the urine of a jackal, hyena or other
scavenging predator for at least 24 hours. She brews an unguent in which the tissue
sample, vitae and papyrus are ingredients, then covers her genitals with this unguent.
The Setite completes the ritual by coming into skin contact with the victim before the
next sunrise.
The lector-priest spends a between one and three Social traits and engages in a
Social challenge against the target of the spell. If the ritual succeeds, the victim loses
both a number of Willpower points and a number of blood points equal to twice the
caster's number of Traits spent. Further, the victim can't refresh either pool for one
night. Note that a significant blood loss (3 or more points) may very well kill a mortal, or
at least require medical attention.
Warding Cippus
The ancient Egyptians prized stelae carved with the figure of the infant Horus
trampling on crocodiles and strangling serpents or scorpions in his fists. Such statues –
called cippi – served as amulets to repel these harmful creatures and, more generally,
all the malign forces of the world. The Followers of Set still craft these cippi on rare
occasions. Setites seldom use figures of Horus in their magic, but the power of an
enemy is still power.
This enchanted stela protects against spirits, not material animals. A
consecrated cippus bars all but the most powerful or determined demons of Duat from
its proximity. Spirits of Duat cannot approach within 100 feet of a Warding Cippus. If
they try, they vanish back to Duat.
No special conditions apply to the carving of the cippus. Enchanting the stela
requires several hours of prayers, exorcisms with sand and water, incense, and bathing
the stela in honey, beer and the blood of a crocodile, an asp, and crushed scorpions. At
the end, the magician lets the rising sun burn his hand to ash while it rests upon the
cippus. Completing the final prayer while burning off one’s own hand costs a point of
permanent Willpower. Note that this also means taking one health level of aggravated
damage. The Warding Cippus works by itself from then on, continuously. Some
Warding Cippi are thousands of years old.
Elder Rituals
Hybrid Mummy
A magician can stitch together parts of human and animal cadavers, mummify
them and invite a spirit to occupy and animate the patchwork khat. Typical hybrid
mummy forms included animal-headed men and women in imitation (or parody) of the
Egyptian gods, or beasts given human heads and hands.
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Creating a hybrid mummy requires suitable human and animal body parts and
typical mummification equipment. The physical process takes 40 days, just like a
normal, non-supernatural mummy, and includes various subsidiary rituals. At the end,
the magician conducts an hour-long invocation to Apep and other dreadful, deathly
powers of the Underworld while smoking the wrapped, patchwork cadaver over a
noxious and stinking fire.
Few normal ghosts consent to occupy such a butchered, composite cadaver.
Instead, debased lector-priests call upon evil and insane ghosts called specters who
somehow escaped judgment and the Eater of Hearts, or demons of Duat that were
never human at all. A few powerful Setite magicians employ hybrid mummies as their
servants.
Although the Hybrid Mummy spell requires the normal Social Challenge to
succeed, the magician’s player also spends a variable number of points of Willpower in
the final rite. Hybrid mummies are more durable than Necromantic zombies: They can
endure for thousands of years as long as they remain in subterranean crypts and
labyrinths. Mercifully, they decay quickly when exposed to sunlight and a incredulous
modern world.
The magician’s player defines a hybrid mummy’s Traits beforehand. A hybrid
mummy starts with three Traits in the Physical and Mental categories. A lector-priest
can make a hybrid mummy with up to three Dexterity-related Traits, while Strength-
related and Stamina-related traits can go as high as the magician wants (as adjudicated
by the Storyteller): the sorcerer just uses bigger, stronger parts. Hybrids can also have
up to two Traits in each Intelligence-, Wits-related Traits and Abilities. (They have no
Social Traits, though.) For every three traits in Attributes or Abilities they hybrid mummy
receives, the magician spends one Willpower point. A new hybrid mummy cannot have
any Ability that its creator does not, or at a higher level.
Hybrid mummies can learn through experience, however, and raise their
Charisma-, Manipulation-related, Mental Traits or Abilities. Raising a Trait costs four
experience points each.
The hybrid mummy is a character in its own right. Its creator may bind its will
with other spells or Disciplines, but the hybrid has a mind and interests of its own.
Other Rituals
The following rituals have been culled from other sources, but are considered to
be accessible to lector-priests who have the appropriate resources to gather them. The
sources each ritual can be found in are listed following the ritual name. Similarly, if a
ritual is traditionally common among the Priests or Warriors of Set a notation is made as
well.
Basic
Blood Rush (Sabbat pg 130)
Brand of the Paramour (ST Guide pg 65)
Defense of Sacred Haven (Warding of the Tomb) (LotN: R pg 185)
Devil's Touch (Bes' Disfavor) (LotN: R pg 185)
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Domino of Life (Return from Du’at) (Sabbat pg 130)
Encrypt Missive (Secret of Thoth) (ST Guide pg 65) - Priest
Eyes of the Night Hawk (Sabbat Guide pg 130)
Illuminate the Trail of Prey (Sabbat Guide pg 131) - Warrior
Incantation of the Shepherd (Calling of the Worshippers) (Camarilla*) - Priest
Rebirth of Mortal Vanity (ST Guide pg 67)
Recure of the Homeland (Nile's Favor) (the Akhu version of this ritual requires Nile mud
instead of soil from one's homeland) (Sabbat pg 131)
Steps of the Terrified (Pursuit of Set) (Laws of Elysium pg 89) - Warrior
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Ghouls (LotN: R pg 186)
Intermediate
A Touch of Nightshade (Scorpion’s Sting) (ST Guide pg 72) - Warrior
Cleansing of Flesh (the Akhu version requires the subject to be ritually shaven from
head to toe before immersion in water) (ST Guide pg 69) - Priest
The Curse Belated (Osiris Defied) (ST Guide pg 70)
Major Creation (Gift of Ptah) (ST Guide pg 71)
Return of the Heart (Balance of Ma'at)(ST Guide pg 71)
Scry (Eyes of Hathor)(ST Guide pg 71) - Priest
Splinter Servant (Ptah’s Shaft pg 113) (the Akhu version requires the lector-priest
possess at least the Intermediate Level of Ushabti before this ritual can be learned)
(Camarilla*) - Warrior
Stolen Kisses (ST Guide pg 71)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Fae (Eshu) (ST Guide pg 73)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Lupines (Camarilla*)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Spirit (Bau)(Camarilla*)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Demon (Sebau) (This should be fairly prevalent
considering the use of Sebau in Akhu)
Advanced
Cobra's Favor (Blessing of the Asp)(ST Guide pg 73) - Warrior
Severed Hand (Set's Judgment or Rending of Osiris)(ST Guide pg 73)
Ward vs Ghosts (Ka)(Camarilla*)
Ward vs Cainite (Camarilla*)
Note: Since no rituals from the Table Top Guide to the Camarilla appeared in Laws of the Night: Camarilla Guide, use the
commonly accepted guidelines for these rituals.
Player-created Rituals
Basic
Milk of Set Variant: Snake Oil
This ritual takes one week to cast and the lector-priest may only have one
measure of this ritual undergoing ritual preparation at a time. A few drops of cold
pressed extra virgin olive oil from Egypt are placed on a platter decorated with
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hieroglyphs of and incense must be burned on the platter each night while the ritual is
being cast. At the end of this time the olive oil is enchanted such that if it is placed in a
bottle of perfume (or another cosmetic scent – aftershave and cologne work just as well)
it will raise the perceived quality by one (Crafts +1). The wearer of the scent is also up
one trait in social challenges for determining ties if the challenger can smell the scent.
The sorcerer who enchanted the oil is up two traits in social or mental challenges that
attempt to influence the wearer (Presence, Dominate, Path of Corruption, etc.) All
effects of this ritual fade two weeks after it is cast. No sorcerer can have more than
three preparations of this ritual in existence at a time.
Submitted by Aaron Rice, in use in Milwaukee, Chicago, Green Bay, Winona,
and Gary.
Intermediate
Courtesan’s Smile
When worn, this amulet will raise the wearer’s visage to the levels usually
reserved for supermodels and Tzimisce.
This talisman grants the user four Social Traits, determined by the caster when
the item is made. These traits stack with the wearers and can even raise them above
her normal generational maximum. They may be bid and lost as normal traits. However
it takes one full day for the traits to refresh once lost. Alternately, they may be refreshed
at the cost of one willpower point per trait. With beauty comes vanity, though, and the
wearer gains the negative Social Trait: Vain. She must also pass a static Social
Challenge each time she passes a mirror – or other reflective surface – to avoid staring
at her own perfection. If the possessor of the talisman attempts to use engage the
caster in a Social Challenge, the magical item fails to perform as usual, granting no
supplementary Social Traits. In addition the caster need not bid a Social Trait against
the user, and gains a free retest. The enchantment of the talisman lasts for 1 month
after creation unless it is bathed in the suns rays and one blood trait from the caster at
least once during that month.
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This ritual lasts for one night and immediately fails if Caitiff or bloodline blood is
used.
Advanced
Celebration of the Defeat of Osiris
Castable only on the anniversary of Set's victory over Osiris, this is ritual allows
the Sorcerer to sacrifice dark energy directly to the Father himself. The ritual takes the
form of an entire night of prayer and sacrifice, requiring massive amounts of "dark"
emotions (a minimum of 2,000 "vessels") and a minimum of three sacrifices of either
mortals or kindred. The ritual is very taxing on the will of the Sorcerer as well requiring a
minimum of one willpower point spent every two hours, and a willpower test (vs. your
new level) every hour. Success however has great rewards. Powers placed inside the
uas (common priest-architect’s measuring-rod with a twisted crossbar at the top) are
determined by the lector-priest's ST and should reflect how "appropriate" the sacrifice
was, how many of the willpower tests the sorcerer won, and mostly the personality of
the sorcerer. The caster has no control over what powers the Father gifts him with.
Wanga
Voudoun. Santería. Candomblé. Shango cults. Palo Mayombe. Obeayisne.
All these religions and more developed from the slave populations taken from the
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Yorba, Ewe and Fon tribes of Western Africa. They share another common feature in
the sorcerous practice we call Wanga. Created from the multitude of religious practices
born in the slave dens that most Americans call Voodoo, Wanga is as much a religion
as a method of magic. While some vampires adhere to the precepts of a specific Afro-
Caribbean faith, most Kindred wangateurs practice a mishmash that combines many
aspects of any or all of these religions. Despite their varied practices, all wangateurs
must have real faith (though not necessarily True Faith) in the God and spirits revered
by these religions. Those who don’t believe have a great deal of difficulty with Wanga.
The player of a Kindred who is not one of the faithful must bid two Traits in any Wanga
challenge and must succeed in an additional Static test. Storytellers are encouraged to
treat those who fail both challenges as having “botched” and should show the faithless
wangateur how the spirits feel about those who call upon them faithlessly.
Several standard paths of Thaumaturgy are available to practitioners of Wanga.
In addition, Wanga claims at least three unique paths detailed below. Unless stated
otherwise these paths are activated in the standard manner (with the expenditure of one
blood point) and require a mental challenge. In addition, the wangateur must call aloud
(though it need not be at great volume) upon the power of an appropriate spirit (orisha,
loa, Enkisi or the like), and many require the presence of specific items or components.
Many wangateurs eventually branch out towards necromancy considering the degree of
ancestor-worship inherent in Wanga.
Blood: Laws of the Night
Conjuring: Laws of the Night
Corruption: Laws of the Night Storytellers Guide
Curses: Laws of the Night Storytellers Guide
Spirit Manipulation: Laws of the Night Guide to the Camarilla
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Basic Flow of Ashé
Touch of Life
The wangateur may perform the most minor feats of blood – causing her skin to
flush, causing her heart to beat and the like – without actually spending a blood point
The character must have in her possession two handfuls of herbs and powdered
minerals including aroeira (a Brazilian herb used to treat skin ailments) and copper
shavings. The effect lasts for one scene.
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Advanced Flow of Ashé
Gift of Ashé
At this level, the powders or pastes created by levels 1 through 3 of the Flow of
Ashé may be imbued with enough power that they hold their magic for a time, and need
not be used the following turn. Furthermore, the ashé in these components may be
granted to other Kindred for their use if the wangateur chooses to do so.
The effects of the power may be delayed for an entire scene. At any point, the
character may activate the stored power, either on her own person or on another
Kindred. For instance, a wangateur who anticipates combat might invoke the Breath of
Life and mix the paste, then give the paste to a companion, allowing her to heal a single
wound level without spending blood should be forced to do so. A wangateur may have
a number of pastes and powders prepared at any time equal to her Intelligence.
Orisha’s Fortune
Orisha’s Fortune allows the thaumaturge to manipulate the whim of luck, the
vagaries of random chance. By spending his own blood in sacrifice, the wangateur
beseeches the spirits to bring fortune to herself and his allies, and misfortune to his
foes.
The blood point required cannot simply be spent; the wangateur must physically
shed the blood point when the power is activated. The wound need not cause any
health levels of damage; merely get the attention of the spirits. Because of this
requirement the fourth level of the Flow of Ashé cannot power Orisha’s Fortune.
Similarly the blood point shed is magically consumed shortly after it leaves the
wangateur’s body and cannot be collected by other thaumaturges for use against her.
The wangateur can target anyone in her line of sight.
Fortune’s Blessing
The wangateur requests the orisha’s aid for herself or an ally. Luck is with her;
tasks become simpler and less likely to fail and the recipient may even find herself
capable of feats that would normally be too difficult to perform.
The specific task – hacking, driving, shooting, or any other mundane action –
must be declared when the power is invoked. For the duration of the scene the target is
considered to have one bonus Ability of that type (for use in retest or for the ability to
perform a task that the subject does not normally have the Ability to do).
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Multiple uses of this power are not cumulative. Any attempt to use it on someone
already under its influence automatically fails. To enact Sheltering Hand the player
must succeed in a Static Mental Challenge vs. 7 traits.
Fortune’s Favor
The wangateur calls upon the spirits to perform some truly hefty twisting of the
laws of probability. Blows that should land, contests that clearly favor the opposition –
all seem to shift inexplicably in favor of the wangateur.
At the moment of casting, the caster must choose a specific individual against
whom this power operates. Once this power is invoked, the wangateur is protected by
an effect that seems to combine aspects of the previous two powers. The target must
bid an additional trait on all challenges, the caster is considered to be up one trait, but
only when they are in direct opposition. To enact, the caster must spend a variable
number of traits (between one and three) and defeat the target in a Mental Challenge.
Fortune’s Favor lasts for a number of turns equal to the number of Mental Traits spent
by the wangateur’s player.
The caster cannot use Fortune’s Favor while under the effects of Fortune’s
Bless, nor can she use it against anyone already influenced by Fortune’s Curse.
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Voice of the Wild
Quite possibly the oldest Wanga path still practiced, Voice of the Wild was
originally created to grant influence over the predators of the savannas and jungles. In
addition to vitae, this path requires certain materials that are consumed by the magic
during casting.
A wangateur may attempt to influence the same animal as a Kindred utilizing
Animalism. Assuming both challenges are successful, control goes to whoever has the
highest rating in their respective Discipline (tied levels go to the character with
Animalism).
Guiding Spirit
This power allows the wangateur to manipulate the emotional state of an animal.
This means more than just “angry” or “sad”. The caster can achieve a specific degree
of control by causing the animal to react one way to some stimuli, and entirely differently
to another. Although not as particular as the control granted by Animalism, Guiding
Spirit can create some truly impressive results.
The caster must have in his possession some body part (see above) from the
type of animal to be influenced. The caster must make eye contact or direct physical
contact with the animal as she spends vitae and engages in a Static Mental Challenge
(vs. 7 Traits) to invoke this power. The animal may make this a contested challenge
instead of a Static by spending a Willpower and only if the wangateur is influencing it to
do something totally against its instincts or training. This power lasts for one scene.
The target can be made to calm down, grow enraged enough to attack a specific
target, become playful or any other emotional effect on which the Storyteller and the
player can agree. The animal cannot be made to perform specific tricks for which it has
not been trained, nor can it be made to place itself in the path of certain harm (though it
can be made to take risks). The exact limits of this power are deliberately vague, as
animals react on a much more emotional and instinctive level than humans. It is
ultimately the Storyteller’s call as to what is and is not possible with Guiding Spirit.
Wanga Rituals
To perform a ritual, a wangateur must wield an asson, an ekwele, a kisengue or
other religious talisman, in addition to listed components. Unless otherwise noted within
the ritual’s description, all follow the similar challenges to those laid out in LotN:R –
basic rituals require a Static Mental Challenge versus five Traits, Intermediate is vs.
seven Traits, and Advanced is vs. nine Traits. A failure on this challenge indicates that
the magic has not been properly invoked; any required components are still consumed,
and must be replaced if the caster wishes to try again.
Some rituals, such as Grandfather’s Gift, Ori Sight, and Shackles of Blood, call
specifically on ancestor spirits. The Ara Orun, while often generous and helpful, can
also be malicious and cruel on whim. Any time such a ritual is attempted and failed, the
player must engage in a Simple Challenge (success on a win or tie). If this challenge
fails, the failed ritual backfires on the wangateur in some way; the Ara Orun have
proven exceptionally hostile this night.
Wangateurs have access to several rituals of “traditional” Thaumaturgy. These
include many wards and other defensive rituals, divinations, various bone-related rituals
and those that are designed to cause injury or consternation from a distance (“curse”
rituals). In addition, Wanga has its own rich library of unique magics that call upon the
spirits and the ashé of the world around them. Suggested rituals include:
Basic
Devil's Touch (LotN: R)
Defense of Sacred Haven (LotN: R)
Impassable Trail (ST Guide)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Ghouls (LotN: R)
Intermediate
Bone of Lies (LotN: R)
Bottled Voice (LotN: R)
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The Curse Belated (ST Guide)
Scry (ST Guide)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Fae (ST Guide)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Lupines (Camarilla*)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Spirit (Camarilla*)
Ward (and Warding Circle) vs Demon
Advanced
Ward vs Ghosts(Camarilla*)
Ward vs Cainite (Camarilla*)
Note: Since no rituals from the Table Top Guide to the Camarilla appeared in Laws of the Night: Camarilla Guide, use the
commonly accepted guidelines for these rituals.
Basic Rituals
Singing Charm
A small item is enchanted to send out a constant call that only the caster can
hear. This “song” is audible for many miles, and the magician can always determine
direction and approximate distance to thee charm. On Sunday night, the caster slices
off an earlobe, which is then placed in a pot or other metallic receptacle. To this is
added one point of the caster’s blood and the tongue of a bird. The entire mixture must
be burned and the remains mixed with the ashes of a cremated corpse. The ash is then
placed in a small leather or hide pouch (about the size of an apricot), which must be
sewn shut.
The Singing Charm can be heard by the wangateur as long as he is within a
hundred miles, and the charm sings for a week. During this time, the caster need
merely concentrate to learn the object’s approximate direction and distance (direction is
accurate to within a few degrees, and distance to within a few yards).
Craft Garde
The caster creates gardes (also called paquets Congo), talismans designed to
protect the bearer against hostile magics. The garde may look like nearly anything – a
small leather pouch, a doll or a bit of ornamental jewelry are all common forms. The
caster mixes two points of her own blood with various powdered healing herbs (such as
jurubeba), exactly nine drops of rum and some sample (hair, fingernail, etc.) from the
intended recipient of the garde. The garde thus created will function only for that
person. This ritual does not allow the caster to create a talisman to protect herself.
The garde functions for a week. It must be worn at all times to be effective, and it
much touch the bearer’s skin. For the duration, any attempt to use blood magic rituals
(but not paths) against the bearer has its difficulty increased by 2 Traits.
Craft Gris-Gris
The wangateur creates a gris-gris that will bring harm and misfortune to the
recipient. The victim feels ill, suffers from ailment such as headaches and muscle pains
and is unable to concentrate. The caster must mix two points of his own blood, the
finger bone of an infant, nine pinches of graveyard dirt and a sample taken from the
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intended victim. The gris-gris must then be hidden within a few feet of the victim’s home
or haven.
Against Kindred the gris-gris functions for one night per Mental Trait spent during
the ritual, (to a maximum of three Traits) unless the gris-gris is moved first; against
mortals, the magic is permanent until the gris-gris is located and removed. All actions
performed while under the effects of the gris-gris have a one trait penalty. A wangateur
with a higher level of Wanga than the caster who finds the hidden gris-gris can turn its
effects back on the caster with a successful Mental Challenge.
Grandfather’s Gift
The wangateur contacts the Ara Orun and asks them to grant her their skills and
knowledge. The caster must mix one full handful of graveyard earth and an offering to
the spirits into a small container while spending between one and three Mental Traits.
This offering should consist of rum, fruits, cigarettes, pennies and any other gifts she
feels appropriate. If successful, the spirits grant her temporary knowledge.
Every mental trait spend must be divided between Abilities and turns of duration.
For instance, three Mental Traits could be used to raise the caster’s Occult by two for
one turn or by one for two turns. The ability raised must be one that the caster’s
deceased ancestors – Kindred or kine – could reasonably have possessed.
Intermediate Rituals
Curse Candle
On a Friday night, the magician creates a black candle incorporating the brains
and bones of a dead man, nine pinches of cemetery dirt, pepper, the leaves of an
itching plant and other herbs. By burning the candle for 20 minutes each night while
concentrating on the victim, the magician plagues the victim with poltergeist-like activity
such as thrown objects or furniture that moves to trip him. This only happens when no
one else is looking. Other people will soon think that the victim is crazy, clumsy or both.
Most of the time, the curse is merely a nuisance. If the ghostly force shoves a victim
while he walks down a steep flight of stairs, though, or throws something while the
victim drives a car, the victim might be seriously injured.
The Curse Candle does not require any expenditure of vitae to create, but each
20 minutes of use costs the magician one blood point. The poltergeist plagues the
victim for 24 hours for each use. The magician must be within (Willpower x 10) miles of
the victim. The poltergeist has six Physical Traits for enacting all of its pranks and
attacks. It will try to cause serious harm at least once every night that it harasses the
victim, using whatever props it finds on hand. The candle is large enough to burn for
three 20-minute periods.
Ori Sight
In voudoun, the ori is the soul, of both the individual and her family, that resides
in the head. By petitioning the Ara Orun, the magician may attempt to use the senses
of someone else’s ori, thus seeing through the subject’s eyes and hearing through her
ears. The caster must burn one of her own eyes and ears (removing these causes
three levels of unsoakable aggravated damage, which can be healed in the normal
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fashion). The resulting ash must be placed inside a human skull and mixed with a
splash of rum, tobacco and an eyelash or drop of blood from the individual in question.
The resulting paste must be applied to the caster’s empty eye socket and the flesh
where her ear used to be. She may then see and hear everything the target
experiences.
The caster may shift back and forth between her own senses and those of the
target at will. If the caster has eyelashes or blood from more than one individual, she
may include a number of people in the spell equal to he level of Wanga, and may shift
back and forth between her own senses or any of theirs as she chooses. The gauging
out of an eye and the slicing off of an ear each require a Willpower challenge (difficulty
8). The ritual lasts until the player spends blood to heal the injuries to her eye and ear.
Candle of Rage
This is constructed much like the Curse Candle, save that the brains and bones
must come from a man who died violently, and that nightshade is substituted for pepper.
By burning the candle for 20 minutes each night while concentrating on the victim, the
caster may influence the victim’s emotional state. The most common result is to drive
the target into a rage, but other options exist.
The Candle of Rage does not require any expenditure of vitae to create, but each
20 minutes of use costs the magician one blood point. Every night the candle is burned,
the wangateur engages the victim in a mental challenge, defeat means the candle has
no effect that night, but the magician may try again the following night. If the ritual
functions, the victim finds the difficulty of all Self-Control Challenges raised by two traits
for the night. This often results in a great deal of bloodshed as the victim loses his
temper or frenzies on a regular basis. The candle may be burned three times.
The Candle of Rage will affect mortals and other creatures that do not normally
frenzy. These enter into a near-mindless, berserk rage, though they gain none of the
benefits normally associated with a Kindred frenzy. Targets that do not have a Self-
Control Trait (such as animals) should use instead use their Willpower at half its normal
level.
Advanced Rituals
Shackles of Blood
The wangateur must spill three points of her own blood, numerous herbs (with
both healing and hallucinogenic effects), various peppers, tobacco and the heart of a
recently deceased person (male if the intended victim is female and vice versa) into a
nganga. The mixture is then stirred with an iron rod as many of the orishas, including
the Ara Orun, are invoked. This takes three full hours of stirring. The result must then
be strained through unbleached cotton. The liquid produced, when drunk by the
subject, creates an instant – though temporary – emotional attachment that is
equivalent to a blood bond. This occurs even if the victim has never fed from the
magician.
The false bond lasts for a number of nights equal to the number of Mental Traits
spent at the time of creation (between one and three). The caster may attempt to
create a true blood bond with the victim during this time. If the ritual expires before a
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true bond is formed, however, any partial bonds are instantly nullified, as if the victim
had never fed from the magician.
Kindred who feed from a mortal who has consumed this mixture within the past
24 hours are themselves affected as though they themselves had drunk it directly.
Sadhana
Sadhana, Hindu for “Ganing”, is the blood-magic of the Indian sub-continent.
Practiced primarily by Daitya and Ravnos rakta-sadhus (blood sorcerers). Based
largely on ancient practices of the Hindu religion, it is the closest to Hermetic
Thaumaturgy of the theocratic sorceries. Along, with meditation, mantras, fasting and
mandalas, the Brahminist tradition holds that a letter-perfect sacrifice compels the gods
to work the sadhu’s will.
Like Tremere Thaumaturgy, Sadhana paths call for a Mental challenge (unless
otherwise noted) and rituals function the same. Unlike Hermetic magi, a sadhu must
learn the Meditation ability to practice her sorcery. A sorcerer cannot employ path
magic at a higher level than her Meditation Trait rating, though she may perform rituals
at a higher level. She still knows her primary path to the level of her full Thaumaturgical
mastery; she simply lacks the spiritual force or focus to use it. When her player raises
the character’s Meditation Trait, she can use the path to a higher level. At the
Storyteller’s discretion, a sadhu’s player can retest Sadhana with Meditation instead of
Occult – but at the cost of the power taking as much time as a ritual of the same level.
Meditation is not quick.
Sadhus independently developed some versions of well-known Hermetic paths.
Contact with the Middle Eastern ashipu inspired other paths. Ancient contact between
the Daitya and their Setite cousins in Egypt led to a Sadhana version of the Path of
Duat. This “Path of Yama” named after the Hindu king of the Dead, employs a mental
challenge, rather than a social one, and does not require any sort of talisman. Many
Indian Path names include the suffixes –Raja, “Rulership, Mastery” or –Vidya, “Lore”.
As mastery of the Path of Blood Nectar increases, a sorcerer can store a Discipline to a
higher level
Confer the first Basic level of a Discipline or Path.
Confer the second Basic level of a Discipline or Path.
Confer the first Intermediate level of a Discipline or Path.
Confer the second Intermediate level of a Discipline or Path.
Confer the Advanced level of a Discipline or Path.
Past Lives
At this level, a Sadhu obtains moderately detailed, capsule biographies of a
person’s previous incarnations. A sorcerer can examine her own past lives, too. In
India, people believe that events in this life reward and punish their deeds in past lives,
so knowing previous incarnations can help one cope with life’s trials. The sooner you
expiate your sins, the sooner you can accumulate merit for a better life in your next
incarnation.
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On a more practical level, a sadhu can use this power to temporarily gain
Abilities that she knew in her past lives. She can thus gain virtually any skill she wants.
Each use of this power (by defeating the subject in a Mental Challenge) provides
an overview of one of the subject’s past lives. By itself, this has no immediate, practical
benefit, but it’s a great way to impress one’s aptitudes on other people: They
instinctively know that the sadhu tells them the truth.
A sadhu can also use this power to “remember” Abilities from her own past lives.
After winning a Static Mental Challenge (vs. 8 traits) the sadhu gains one Ability of her
choice, subject only to the limitation that she cannot raise any Ability above three “dots”.
The Ability lasts for a single scene. Not that the Ability comes from a past life, and are
thus limited by the age of the Cainite in question. For example, a thousand-year-old
sadhu would not be able to call upon her past lives for potential with the Computer
Knowledge.
Sadhana Rituals
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Unless otherwise noted within the ritual’s description, all follow the similar
challenges to those laid out in LotN:R – basic rituals require a Static Mental Challenge
versus five Traits, Intermediate is vs. seven Traits, and Advanced is vs. nine Traits.
Basic Rituals
Armor of Diamond Serenity
This tantra beseeches Shiva, the demon king Bali or some other ascetic god to
purge the magician’s mind of all the snares of mortal passions. This foretaste of
Enlightenment temporarily grants a will as unyielding as diamond
If the ritual succeeds the magician becomes immune to frenzy and Rötschreck
for the rest of the night. The character is also up 2 Traits on Willpower challenges. On
the other hand, the magician cannot expend vitae to gain Physical Traits while this ritual
remains in effect.
Rakta-Maya Rituals
This label covers numerous rituals. Each ritual enables a magician to hypnotize
a willing audience into seeing one specific illusion. For instance, one maya ritual makes
and audience see the Indian Rope Trick. Another ritual makes the audience seen the
magician levitate. A third produces the hypnotic illusion of maidens leaping out of a
basket, dancing for the amusement of the crowd, then vanishing into the basket once
more.
Unlike other rituals, these illusions call for a Social Challenge against the
audience (simply choose any one member of the audience to contest the challenge
without risking a trait). These rituals can affect several dozen people, whom the
magician sets apart form the mundane world through an enclosure scratched in the
ground.
Water Walking
Through a sacrifice of porridge and ghee to Varuna, the god of waters, the sadhu
gains the classic holy man’s power of walking on water.
If the tantra succeeds, the magician can walk on water. The power last a full
scene. If something should knock the sorcerer off his feet, however, the magic ends
and the sadhu splashes into the water.
Animaa
This ritual grants one of the classic sidshis, the power of clairvoyant shrinking, or
microscopic vision. The magician can see tiny things clearly, as if he were the size of a
bird, a mouse, an ant, a grain of dust, or even smaller.
For each mental trait spent while casting the ritual, the magician gains
magnification on her eyesight as per the table below. She concentrates and closes her
eyes. Then she imagines opening her eyes, and finds herself apparently shrunk to the
appropriate size. The power is entirely clairvoyant, though; the magician does not
physically shrink.
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Traits spent Magnification
1 Mental Trait 10x
2 Mental Trait 30x
3 Mental Trait 50x
Garimaa
This ritual grants another classic siddhi, the power of becoming “immovably
heavy.” For a time, the magician becomes almost impossible to knock off her feet or
push in any direction she does not want to go.
If the ritual succeeds an effective 17 Physical Traits resists any force that
attempts to move the magician against his will. The sadhu does not personally gain any
Physical Traits; he cannot lift boulders or crash through walls. The magical force acts in
a purely passive way to resist other forces.
Intermediate Rituals
Destiny’s Call
Indian magicians have a reputation for weaving the strands of fate. This tantra
enables the magician to meet a person having whatever qualities she wants.
Somehow, coincidence brings the magician and the target together – although the
magician does not know in advance precisely who comes at Destiny’s Call.
This ritual acts like the Presence power of Summon, but instead of a specific
person known to the sorcerer, Destiny’s Call draws in an unknown person who meets
three conditions set by the magician. The sadhu can set physical conditions, such as
“an old man with green eyes” or a “blonde virgin girl”; or mental conditions such as “a
person interested in Ming pottery,” “a skilled mathematician” or “a person of absolute
honesty”; or social conditions, such as “the richest man in Benares” or “a recently jilted
lover.” She cannot set supernatural conditions, such as “a werewolf” or “a Methuselah.”
Since the sorcerer cannot specify every aspect of who comes, she must stay alert to
recognize when the desired person appears. Sometimes the sadhu calls a person who
fits all the conditions, but who proves surprising in other ways.
Destiny’s Call dissipates at dawn. The desired person might not appear by then:
This may happen if the only person who fits the conditions started at a great distance.
The magician can perform the ritual again on subsequent nights, until the person
appears or the sadhu gives up. The target feels drawn to the sorcerer’s location without
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knowing why, and may well resist the call even though outrageous coincidences help
her along the way.
Leper’s Curse
The Atharva-Veda includes several charms to cure leprosy… but a Brahmin can
reverse a sacred rite and turn it into a curse upon an enemy. To curse a mortal with
leprosy, a sadhu calls upon Agni, Indra and other gods of light and life to deliver the
victim unto Nirriti, the goddess of misery and destruction.
If the sadhu performs the curse correctly, the mortal victim contracts leprosy
within a week. This is true leprosy, not a magical simulation. The leprosy-curing spell
from the Atharva-Veda can remove the curse, however if the victim uses it within one
month of contracting the disease.
Milk of Puutanaa
Indian legend tells of a demoness called Puutanaa who kills infants by suckling
them with her poisoned milk. Undead sadhus can all upon Puutanaa, by their family
connection as fellow demons, to poison a child of their choice.
The sadhu needs a sympathetic link to the victim consisting of the child’s name
and the names of the child’s parents. The next milk that the child drinks carries
Puutanaa’s venom, which always kills. The curse cannot affect anyone after his first
adult tooth grows in.
Aurava
Some Indian sorcerers can conjure aurava, a magical fire that burns under water.
Sadhus have learned to imitate this feat. The ritual involves drawing a mandala on a
golden tray underwater, placing an offering at the center, and challenging Agni to claim
his due. When the offering bursts into flame, the magician can carry the tray about and
use the aurava to set other things on fire.
The magical golden fire burns on the tray for a full scene. Substances that would
be flammable in air can catch fire from the aurava, and they burn until the magic fire
runs out of fuel, or something other than water extinguishes them.
Warded Womb
The Indians have a story about a snake-demoness who destroys a pregnant
woman’s embryo and replaces it with one of her own spawn, so the woman gives birth
to a snake. Through an oblation of milk and ghee and an amulet of lead, a sadhu can
ban the snake-demoness from a woman’s womb and guarantee that she delivers a
safely human child.
Correctly performed, the ritual protects a pregnant woman against miscarriage
and guarantees an easy delivery of a healthy child. It also eradicates any supernatural
taint from the infant. Progeny of werewolves, werecats, or (most particularly) the
weresnakes of India do not inherit any supernatural heritage. The ritual also negates
the condition of being born a revenant and the potential for any other innate
supernatural talent other than True Faith.
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Advanced Rituals
Transcendentally Satisfying Body-Filling
In Sanskrit, this powerful tantra has the sesquipedalian name of
parapurakayapravesa. It enables a magician to enter and possess the body of anther
person. The sorcerer can then “learn his mind, understand his experiences, and even
enjoy his wives.” Although the sexual possibilities are not lost on sadhus, they also find
more practical uses for the ritual. For instance, this ritual enables an undead sadhu to
live again in another person’s body, if only for a short time.
The tantra requires a drum made from the top of a human skull, the sacrifice of a
horse to Shiva, an oblation of soma and finally drinking the soma dregs mixed with the
horse’s blood. The spell also requires something that came from the mortal victim’s
body, such as hair or feces, which likewise burns in the sacrificial fire. The sadhu
vanishes and merges with the victim, wherever he may be. The sadhu performs the
ritual at a shrine to Shiva previously consecrated by the magician and used for worship
for at least a year.
The ritual works only on mortal humans (not anyone with any sort of supernatural
powers), but they cannot resist its power – assuming the ritual challenge was
successful. The ritual works no matter how great the target’s distance.
The effect resembles the Dominate power of Possession, but with certain
advantages and limitations. The possessing sadhu can act freely during the day – her
own body doesn’t have to stay awake because it doesn’t exist – and she can riffle freely
though the victim’s memories and use his Abilities as if they were her own. If she
wants, the sorcerer can simply “ride along” and share the victim’s mind and experiences
while remaining hidden. On the other hand, the possessor cannot use any Disciplines
at all. The possession ends at the next sunset, when the sadhu reappears in his own
body at the site of the sacrifice. The sadhu can voluntarily end the body-filling before
then, but had best be sure that her shrine is not then in daylight….
When the possession ends, the victim regains control of his mind and body. The
effect on the victim depends on the Storyteller’s discretion. If the magician passively
“rode along”, the victim might suffer nothing worse than a few nightmares. If the sadhu
engages in abhorrent crimes and degradations while in the victim’s body, the spiritual
violation might place the victim in a coma for days, or even have accompanying
Humanity problems.
Master Rituals
Loom of Vishnu
This potent tantra enables a magician to usurp the god Vishnu’s power of cosmic
illusion. The magician burns an oblation of milk, ghee, soma and her own vitae within a
special mandala, then burns a picture of a scene she wants to create. That scene then
appears in solid form – real to every test that mortal senses can devise.
The zone of maya lasts until dawn. At the sun’s rising, it vanishes like a dream.
The power of illusion has three limits.
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The illusion has a maximum diameter of 60 feet (although it may seem much
larger from inside). If a person steps outside the illusion’s actual boundary, he returns
to normal reality.
The illusion cannot cause real harm to anyone who enters it. The magician can
set whatever rules he wants for this pocket of altered reality: People can fly, they
become rotting animate corpses, anything, but the maya itself cannot inflict any real
damage. If a person dos something stupid and hurts himself, however that’s not the
illusion’s doing.
The zone of maya must include the magician’s sacrificial fire. The magician can
place it in some context that hides its significant, such as placing it in a fireplace or
disguising it as a campfire. Extinguishing the fire instantly breaks the illusion
Auspex hints at the falsity of the scene. To Heightened Senses, everything in the
scene looks a little too regular, without the fine detail of real things. Illusory creatures
lack auras; the Spirit’s Touch detects no psychic impressions on objects. The
Storyteller should not come out and tell players that their characters have entered an
illusion; let them figure it out for themselves.
Nahuallotl
Like Wanga, Nahuallotl is as much a religious system as a form of magic. The
Tlacique believe that their magic comes from Tezcatlipoca and other ancient gods of
Central and South America, gods upon whom the Tlacique still call. They believe these
gods demand sacrifices, that the sun requires blood and hearts to keep it alive from day
to day. Aztec faith maintained that the Earth has already died four times and that the
end of this, the fifth age, will be the end of all that is. The Tlacique believe this still, and
their religious rites – and their magic – reflect the need to offer constant sacrifice to the
powers that be.
No recorded occurrence of a Tlacique willingly teaching Nahuallotl to an outsider
exists, but even if one did, a “heathen” nahualli suffers the same penalties to her
challenges as do faithless wangateurs (see the Wanga section).
Nahuallotl employs the same mechanics as Hermetic thaumaturgy, but it remains
a distinct and incompatible Discipline due to its forms and procedures.
Although they were created independently, most of Nahuallotl’s paths emulate
those invoked in more familiar forms of blood magic; only names and procedures vary.
When a nahualli invokes a path power, she must physically spill the blood points spent.
The Aztecs believed that blood from the earlobe, tongue and genitals was of particular
potency, and many nahualli carry a large cactus spine used to draw the required blood.
In addition, the caster prays aloud to the gods. The most common paths of Nahuallotl
and their Thaumaturgical equivalents follow. In addition Nahuallotl claims one unique
path.
Obsidian Shattered
The nahualli may temporarily ignore wound penalties. This does not actually
heal any damage; it simply dulls pain. This power may be used on the caster only.
The nahualli sheds a blood point and prays to Xipe Totec. After engaging in a
Static Mental Challenge (vs. six Traits) and spending between one and three Mental
traits the caster’s wound penalties are considered to be at one wound category
(Healthy, Bruised, Wounded, Incapacitated, or Torpor) higher for each Trait spent.
Obsidian’s Edge
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The nahualli may now cause actual damage at a distance. Wounds appear on
the target’s skin as though an invisible blade is being applied.
Obsidian’s Edge requires the standard prayers and shedding of blood. The
challenge in this case pits the caster’s Mental Traits against the victim’s Physical Traits
and the caster inflicts one level of damage per Mental Trait spent (to a maximum of
Three Traits). This power may target anyone within line of sight.
Nahuallotl Rituals
When invoking paths, the nahualli’s own vitae serves as sufficient sacrifice.
Where rituals are concerned, however, the gods demand more. Rituals require an
offering of life, not just vitae. Some less potent rituals function with animal sacrifice, but
the most powerful require human life. The nahualli normally sacrifice a human by
opening the chest and rib cage and removing the heart. When they feel they can get
away with it, the Tlacique perform such sacrifices regularly, even when not casting
Nahuallotl rituals. They see this as doing their part to keep the sun rising day to day.
Most of the Tlacique’s sacrifices come from three potential groups. Occasionally,
they find members of their community desperate enough to go under the knife willingly,
in exchange for promises of wealth and protection for their families. Other sacrifices
come from those criminals who dare prey upon a Tlacique’s community. Finally, many
Tlacique hate the Sabbat so much that anyone connected with that sect becomes an
enemy, and a potential sacrifice. The Tlacique treasure those few people who volunteer
for the procedure; a willing sacrifice lowers the difficulty of the ritual by 2.
Unless otherwise noted within the ritual’s description, all follow the similar
challenges to those laid out in LotN:R – basic rituals require a Static Mental Challenge
versus five Traits, Intermediate is vs. seven Traits, and Advanced is vs. nine Traits.
Basic Rituals
Mirror of the Gods
The nahualli utters a prayer to Tezcatlipoca and smears a mixture of his own
blood (one point) and the blood of a sacrificial animal (anything the size of a cat
suffices) across the surface of a mirror. The blood fades as it is smeared. For the rest
of the night, the reflection of any person or item currently under the effects of a path or
ritual (from any variety of blood magic, be it Thaumaturgy, Necromancy, or any others)
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glows softly when viewed in the mirror. If the mirror is made of obsidian, the ritual lasts
an additional night.
Shroud of Day
Developed so the besieged Tlacique might move or otherwise make use of
captured foes without their knowledge, Shroud of Day is cast upon a sharp wooden
implement of sufficient size to stake a vampire. The ritual requires the sacrifice of two
small animals, one nocturnal, one diurnal. Their blood is mixed with a single point of the
caster’s own vitae, and the stake is soaked in this mixture for two hours. The next
vampire staked with that particular weapon is put to sleep (as though the sun were up)
in addition to being paralyzed. This prevents the victim from seeing or hearing what is
happening around him; he is not aware that time has elapsed at all. This ritual does not
grant any other special powers or qualities to the weapon.
Intermediate Rituals
Brother’s Eyes
This ritual is identical, in most respects, to Ori Sight (see the Wanga section), in
that it allows the nahualli to see and hear through the eyes and ears of another. To
invoke this ritual, the caster spends a blood point while uttering a prayer to
Tezcatlipoca. If she wishes to see through the eyes of a mortal, she must have in her
possession the heart of a close blood relative of the person. If the subject of the ritual is
Kindred, she must have in her possession the heart of the Kindred whose eyes and
ears she wishes to use. The ritual does not, however, require the caster to remove her
own eye and ear, as does Ori Sight.
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Organ Attribute category
Heart Strength
Soles of Feet Dexterity
Lungs Stamina
Lips Charisma
Tongue Manipulation
Face Appearance
Eyes Perception
Brain Intelligence
Spine (a portion only) Wits
Advanced Rituals
Severance
This ritual is one of the most important to the Tlacique blood sorcerers, as it
connects to fundamental aspects of their religious. It is also their greatest secret. The
ritual greatly resembles the Serpentis power Heart of Darkness, but it works on other
body parts as well as the heart. Using this ritual a nahualli can remove any part of a
vampire’s body without killing the vampire – heart, head, whatever – and keep the body
part undead and potentially animate. Most often, however, the nahualli will remove his
or another vampire’s heart.
A vampire with a removed heart is affected just like Heart of Darkness, with all of
the benefits and the drawbacks. Causing one level of damage to a mortal’s heart kills
her.
Nahualli who know this ritual routinely extract the hearts of captured enemies,
preferring to force service from them instead of simply killing them. A nahualli who
holds a vampire’s heart may use Disciplines on that vampire as if he were actually
present, no matter how far away the other vampire might be. Crueler nahualli use the
ritual to sever an enemy’s head and send it, still animate and speaking, to the victim’s
allies as a warning while keeping the vampire’s body.
The magician can cast this ritual only at the dark of the moon, when Texcatlipoca
is most powerful. The ritual itself demands an obsidian-bladed knife, a previously
consecrated urn, a variety of amulets, and a human sacrifice to appease Mictlantecuhtli,
god of the dead, for cheating him of a death. The magician must inflict one health level
of aggravated damage while cutting out the body part, even if she uses this ritual on
herself. The severed part must immediately be placed in the consecrated clay urn with
a blood point of the magician’s own vitae. Cutting out one’s own heart or severing one’s
94
head or hand (unlikely, but it could happen) demands the expenditure of two Willpower
points.
95
Sebau and others
Egyptian demons and spirits can come in many forms. It is recommended
that previously established rules be used for each category of entity. Akhu should use
the rules for Wraiths (Oblivion), Mut should be considered Spectres, and Bau uses the
spirit rules from Laws of the Wild: Revised.
Sebau, on the other hand, are the demons of Egyptian myth. That being said
they aren’t demons in the Judeo-Christian-Muslim sense. Nor are they just spirits or
banes in the Werewolf-oriented sense. In Egyptian myth and legend the sebau would
cause mischief among humans and sometimes cause harm, yet they were also praised
and feasts held in their honor as invisible and unknown. Sebau were usually uprooted
from wherever they were causing trouble by gods (through their statues) or more
powerful spirits. In game terms we will be using the demon traits from LotN: Sabbat pg.
108. Lector-Priests can summon a sebau by spending the appropriate number of traits
listed up to their Akhu level. They are not barred by demon wards, nor by spirit wards,
and do not show up as “Infernal” by the usual means of detection. Due to its unique
nature, only a Warding Cippus can keep a sebau out 100% of the time. Storytellers
may rule that heavily warded areas (that incorporate both demon and spirit wards) may
keep sebau out, but their unique nature should pose an interesting storytelling
experience for those (read: Tremere) who thought they knew everything about “spirits”.
The following Traits define the power of the sebau that the lector-priest may
summon with “Summon Sebau” varied by her mastery of Akhu. These Traits are
restricted by exact level, rather than by Basic/Intermediate/Advanced classification: a
character who only knows Akhu at the first Intermediate level cannot summon sebau
with the second set of Intermediate traits. The Storyteller creates the exact traits for the
sebau, keeping in mind that every one has Serpentis up to Form of the Cobra.
Any sebau has a number of Health Levels equal to its number of Physical Traits,
and it suffers no wound penalties. A “killed” sebau returns to Set and Seba, and that
particular creature may not be summoned again for a year and a day. A demon who
displays “Disciplines” usually does so in accordance with its role in service to Set.
Commonly they display Potence, Obfuscate, Presence, Path of Corruption, Auspex and
Celerity, though any Discipline is available and no “blood” needs to be spent to power
them (spend Attribute Traits instead).
Basic
Imp (cost 1 Social Trait): 6 Attribute Traits, 2 Ability Traits, 1 Willpower Trait
Fiend (2 Socials): 10 Attributes, 3 Abilities, 2 Willpower, 2 Basic Disciplines
Intermediate
Shade (4 Socials): 15 Attributes, 5 Abilities, 4 Willpower, 4 Basic Disciplines
Servitor (6 Socials): 21 Attributes, 8 Abilities, 6 Willpower, 6 Basic &
Intermediate Disciplines
Advanced
Duat Lord (8 Socials): 28 Attributes, 13 Abilities, 8 Willpower, 10 Disciplines
through Advanced
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FAQ
I’m playing a Tremere/Assamite/Caitiff can I “steal” Setite Sorcery? Yes, and no.
People with Thaumaturgy In-Clan can "steal" Setite Sorcery. HOWEVER, if they just
attempt to duplicate what they saw, it will fail to work. In order for them to make it work,
they must "convert" the Path/Ritual/Whatever from the Setite religious/social paradigm,
to their Hermetic/mental paradigm. This requires them to spend the learn time,
multiplied by ten, to convert the power, in effect, reconstructing it to achieve an identical
effect from their paradigm, and in addition, they must then spend the learn time,
learning the power (ie. they take 11 times as long to learn it..) If they do not convert the
power, they are effectively trying to spend the wrong types of traits, and the power
simply fails.
Can someone not of the lineage of the Followers of Set learn Akhu? Yes. To
quote from Blood Sacrifice: the Thaumaturgy Companion p. 23,
“Not all lector-priests come from the Followers of Set Clan. They are all Setite in
the sense of worshipping the Dark God, but a significant percentage come from other
lineages…. Few Kindred of other clans adopt the Setite faith, but the Followers of Set
teach them Akhu as freely as they teach their own childer.”
In other words if you are a Cainite who wants to learn Akhu, you must find a
Setite teacher and be on the Path of Sutekh (or at least Typhon). Akhu is religious
magic and fails without belief in the Dark God (and the rest of the Egyptian pantheon)
that can bring forth the magic.
I’m playing a member of the Cult of Typhon. Can I learn Akhu? Yes, but you will
have to be taught by a lector-priest who shares or can incorporate your beliefs.
Can I build an ushabti to bring to life at a later point? Yes, as long as all of the
prerequisites are carried out before hand, one can create the statue (win the Mental
Challenge, etc.) but spend the vitae and speak the “words of power” at a later date.
Are these the only Paths of Blood Magic that I, as a Setite Sorcerer can learn? To
quote from Blood Sacrifice, page 24:
"Akhu employs its own versions of other paths presented in various Vampires
supplements, but often gives them other names.... This list does not exclude Akhu
versions of other paths, but we recommend that Storytellers not import too many paths
from other styles, as this can dilute the mystique of each school of blood magic."
97
If your game wants to add Path of Blood, Lure of Flames, Movement of the Mind,
or Hands of Destruction (listed in the newest sourcebooks as common to “all sects”) or
any of the other paths, they may feel free to do so. Note that other games may not
accept them as Setite Sorcery Paths. In fact it is recommended that the specific cults
have their own paths outside of the normal realms of Akhu. For instance one potential
variation would have the Cult of Typhon use the Greek Rituals and Paths from Blood
Magic (Vine of Dionysus, Onieromancy, Blood Mead, Trima, etc).
Priests - some hear Set's call to worship and that brings them to a more spiritual
outlook and leadership role. As Akhu is a greatly religious working, they tend to learn
the most paths of sorcery, and those relating to the spiritual aspects of their god.
Breath of Set (aka Weather Control) - the primary path for the followers of theLord of
Storms
Alchemy
Conjuring
Curses
Spirit Manipulation
Path of Duat
Divine Hand
Immanence of Set
Path of Thoth (aka Focused Mind)
Ushabti
Citizens - defined as those Setites not of the Warrior way who have not chosen to
become Priests of Set. Hesha Ruhadze is a great example of this; he has no temple yet
he conducts Set's will in other ways. For them the Paths of Influence and Corruption are
foremost.
The False Heart (aka Corruption)
The Snake Inside
The Dry Nile
Warriors - as Set's Vengeance made manifest, they are best suited to those paths that
in some way aid them in their martial aspect. Therefore the following paths are
recommended for Warriors:
Valor of Sutekh (aka Mars) - should be the Warrior's primary Path
Vengeance of Khnum (aka Mastery of the Mortal Shell) - control over the body of others
Path of Thoth (aka Focused Mind) - a Warrior must have mastery over the mind as well
as the body
Ushabti - How better to learn the physical form, then to create it?
This is not to say that any of these Paths are exclusive to any of the divisions within the
clan, only that these are the Paths most often learned by those Followers.
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Credits
Parts of this document have been adapted or reproduced without permission from:
Libellus Sanguinis 3: Wolves at the Door (softcover), ISBN 1-56504-203-4, pages 105-
106.
Author: Michael B. Lee
(c) Copyright 2000 White Wolf Publishing, Inc.
I’d also like to thank the following resources that helped me cross-reference and keep
everything in balance:
Jeff Meehan (with the assistance of my lovely wife) for showing me the depths of
depravity that a Deacon and Sunday school teacher can conjure up.
And, of course, Tony Davis, the lovable, huggable, Followers of Set Coordinator for One
World by Night, his subco-ord, Sarah Klein, Jefferson Davis, Aaron Rice, Wyatt Wheeler,
and everyone else who suggested and debated with me.
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Assamite Sorcery
Introduction
The Purpose of this packet is to create a consistent set of rules for OWBN for
Assamite Sorcery. This is only a set of suggested rules, and conversions. It is for the
reference of storytellers and players alike. Do not assume that anything in this packet is
official in your chronicle unless your storyteller has said so. Also this is a work in
progress. This will never truly be finished. When new products are published by White
Wolf, if there is stuff in there that should be converted and a need is shown for that
conversion, we will get to it in due time. If there is something that you have done
yourself and would like to submit it, please do so.
Assamite Sorcerers (from here on just referred to as sorcerers) get one path as
their primary at in-clan costs. Along with this, two basic, two intermediate, and one
advanced ritual are learned. Others “Freebee” rituals are available at the discretion of
the Storytellers.
Rituals may be learned at a cost of two points per level of the ritual (two for a
basic, four for a intermediate, and six for a advanced). You may not learn a ritual of a
level higher than your primary path of thaumaturgy. Learning Rituals requires that you
either have a teacher or have made arrangements for the appropriate tomes to be in
your possession.
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Learning Sorcery out of Clan
As stated above Sorcery is very different from other blood magic, however there
is still the basic similarity that you are bending the universe to your will (never an easy
task). It is my suggestion that like Tremere thaumaturgy, it should take a monumental
amount of time to learn sorcery. If a player wishes to Learn Sorcery, on her own, it
simply shouldn’t happen. Without an Assamite to instruct in even the rudiments of the
discipline there is no basis for even the simplest concepts within such a diverse form of
sorcery, as the ritual, and somatic gestures of the paths are not from where the magic
flows.
Should the individual find and Assamite instructor than, a minimum of a year of
study to retrain the individuals understanding of the universe. This study should
interfere in the learning of other things (disciplines, abilities, gaining influence, etc…),
because of the intense amount of time that the student needs to put towards breaking
her paradigm, (almost impossible for most vampires).
At this point I would like to note that simply because the Assamites have joined
the Camarilla does not mean that they are everyone’s buddy and are willing to teach
their magic. Like the Tremere they would rather sell you their services rather than teach
you how to do it yourself. “Give a man a fish he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish, he
doesn’t need you anymore.”
Rating:
Common: These Paths and Rituals are common to most Assamites. They are
likely to be found by any Assamite researcher. They still require a teacher for Paths
and access to tomes for Rituals.
Uncommon: These Paths and Rituals are more difficult to find and require more
effort. A mentor is of some merit (L3 or higher) recommended
Rare: These are taught only to the most trusted of the Clan. These Paths and
Rituals are nearly impossible to find to find and require en expenditure of great effort
101
and resources (L6 occult for example). A mentor is of some merit (L5 or higher) is also a
possibility.
Most Rare: These Paths and Rituals are restricted in such a manner that they are
Rarely seen outside the fortress of Alamut.
The following paths are Dead Paths, and cannot be learned by anyone. No
conversions are given for them for just this reason.
Way of the Worlds Blood (Original Source: Libra Sanguinus II: Keepers of the Word)
Way of the Shadow World (Original Source: Libra Sanguinus II: Keepers of the Word)
Way of Passage (Original Source: Dark Ages Compendium)
Prey on the Soul’s Fear (Original Source: Dark Ages Compendium)
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Paths
Path Name Rarity Level Location
Awakening the Steal A, 3* special note (a) Clan book Assamite
Revised: 74
Blood’s Curse 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 56
Path of Conjuring 1 LoTN Revised: 182
Curses 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 58
Elemental Mastery 2* MET Camarilla Guide: 76
Father’s Vengeance 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 127
Hearth Path 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 51
Hunter’s Wind A, 3* Secrets of Blood Magic:
123
Mars 4 MET Sabbat Guide: 125
Mastery of the Mortal Shell 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 53
Morpheus 4 LoTN 2nd: 103;Below
Neptune’s Might 2* MET Camarilla Guide: 81
Hands of Destruction 2 LoTN Revised: 183
Lure of Flames 1* LoTN Revised: 178
Movement of the Mind 1* LoTN Revised: 180
Weather Control 1* MET Camarilla Guide: 93
Whispers of the Heavens A, 4*, special note (b) Libellus Sanguinis (3): 67
* - These paths may be chosen as the sorcerer’s primary path (with storyteller’s
permission of course).
A - Paths so marked are clan Assamite specific.
Special note (a):
It may be seen by some STs that Awakening the Steel level 5; Strike the True Flesh can
be somewhat unbalancing.
For those games that would prefer a house rule to limit this discipline to
something less powerful (rather than ban it altogether), I recommend one or more of the
following:
- No more than 2 points of damage be unpreventable by this attack.
- Only allow this discipline’s use once per turn.
- Only allow this to be used in conjunction with non-wooden edged weapons.
Also note: Quietus 2 and 4 are supernatural enhancements for the purposes of
this power’s limitations.
Special note (b): It is strongly recommended that an ST closely review
Whispers of the Heavens before allowing a player to purchase it. In addition, due to the
prophetic nature of said path an ST will likely be required for any use of its powers.
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Table Top Path Conversions & other Path information
When a new path is released in a White Wolf book, please submit your version of
the MET write up to the Sorcery Co-ord. This will facilitate the use of this path by
others. As well as have a consistency of Sorcery rules throughout OWBN.
Please always remember that in ALL uses of the Paths of Sorcery a blood trait
must be spent ABOVE any cost that is listed by the path, unless specifically mentioned
in the description of a power in a Path.
Gift of Morpheus
Hunter’s Wind
I have reduced the power level of this path a bit more so as to make it playable in
MET.
Basic
Scent of deception
The Assamite sorcerer may alter or eliminate his scent.
If he chooses to eliminate his scent, individuals attempting to track him are
receive a –5 trait penalty to their tracking attempts and he may use his occult abilities to
retest against his pursuers.
If he chooses to alter his scent to that of another individual (to incriminate
someone else in an assassination for example), those attempting to determine the scent
of the individual must defeat the sorcerer in a mental challenge with occult being the
sorcerer’s retest and investigation being the investigator’s retest. There is no inherent
penalty to this test as with deadening the scent. In many ways this is like Mask of 1000
faces for smell, with the additional effect that the effects of the power linger.
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Intermediate
Unassuming Pose
The sorcerer may make himself unnoticed by those perusing him by fading into a
crowd.
Once activated with a static mental challenge against a static difficulty of 6, the
sorcerer cannot be detected by anyone with less Auspex than his path rating in Hunter’s
Wind. So long as he remains within a group of at least two other characters and does
not look entirely out of place. Example: Dressed like a bum at a Ventrue board meeting,
or a clown at the local biker bar. If the Auspex rating is equal to or greater than the
Sorcerer’s Hunter’s Wind rating than the character must make a mental challenge with
the sorcerer to notice his target.
Just like obfuscate unseen presence, he will be completely ignored by all those
around him including the crowd he has faded into.
Whiff of Khalif
The sorcerer may engage any and all targets that are paying attention to him in a
mental challenge. If he succeeds they become blissfully unaware of their surroundings
for 15 minutes or the remainder of the scene which ever comes first. If an obvious threat
becomes present or a noticeable combat ensues this power ends immediately.
Advanced
Ghost body
With the expenditure of three blood traits (instead of the usual one for
thaumaturgy) the sorcerer becomes completely intangible, and invisible. He cannot use
any disciplines while in this form. He cannot hear, but he can see, though strange
visions have been known to haunt a sorcerer while in this realm (possibly ghosts or
nearby astral travelers). He can be detected in the same manner as one would attempt
to detect those on the astral plane. He can be attacked by other Ghost Bodies, or by
astral travelers who have detected him. However, a Ghost Body cannot be lost to the
astral plane nor does he suffer any real damage or wound penalties, he is simply
knocked back into the “real” world if his health levels are reduced to zero. Astral
travelers attack with mental traits, use willpower for health levels, and investigation as
retests as normal. The Ghost body uses physical traits, his normal health levels, and
occult as retests. Note: someone is astral projection does not automatically see the
ghost body they must perform the normal aura perception challenge after the
expenditure of a mental trait to find the Assamite first. If the astral traveler fails to see
the ghost body he may not attack him. Note: Though a combat for the Ghost Body is
physical, no disciplines can be used, as such Potence and Fortitude do not apply.
Though he may heal as normal with blood.
Also Note: Should the Assamite be in Blood of Potency before he enters the
ghost body plane he retains all its benefits.
Travel limitations for Ghost Body:
You only travel at your normal unaided walking/running pace.
You cannot benefit from vehicular travel.
You can walk through walls.
105
You cannot go under ground though you may travel through floors to lower levels of
buildings.
Basic
Map the Skies
The player performs a static mental challenge against a difficulty of 4. If
successful he then performs a simple test with the following results:
Loss - He is aware of his location within 100 miles.
Tie – 1 mile
Win – 10 yards
Intermediate
Call Down the Hunter’s Moon
“To everything, there is a season” This power allows the sorcerer to predict the
best time to perform a given task. The caster performs a static mental challenge against
difficulty 8. If successful, the beneficiary is considered one trait up in any action directly
related to the performance of said task (aside from combat challenges).
For example: Mohamed wishes to kill a prince. He consults the sorcerer who
casts this power on him.
He tells Mohamed that Friday June 14th will be the best night to make his attack,
as the prince will be traveling to a far away land, and will be away from guards and the
safety of his castle. Mohamed takes his advice and uses said night to attack. While
sneaking past a guard he is one trait up in the stealth challenge. When picking the lock
on the door to the prince’s chamber he is one trait up on the security test. However,
once he enters combat Mohamed’s own skills will have to suffice.
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At narrators discretion this power may give a more tangible effect such as giving
the time to sneak into the Giovanni mansion when he (the ST) knows the Giovanni
player will be visiting another chronicle, or the tempest will be strong and the wraith will
be unable to defend it, etc…
Storytellers are strongly cautioned regarding this power to strongly consider the
benefits it will confer as it can easily lead to, or be viewed as, favoritism.
Advanced
Ripples on the Sea of Stars
You can perceive any scene that is occurring beneath the same the same stars
that he sees (roughly 100 miles).
You must perform a static challenge against difficulty 10 to perceive the scene,
for one turn. If successful the difficulty drops by two for each subsequent turn, until it
reaches four. Any failure resets the difficulty back to 10. You may use no other powers
in conjunction with this discipline to effect the scene in question unless those powers
specifically allow it of their own accord such as summon.
Note: People with WW lore 5 will note that this is considerably different from the
actual mechanics of the tabletop version of this path. This is because the original text of
the path grants a more powerful version of the Elder Auspex: Clairvoyance.
Also note that each turn you wish to perceive the scene costs a blood trait as
with any use of thaumaturgy.
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Rituals
Ritual Name Rarity Location Level
Approach the Veil A, 2 Blood Magic: 125 See Intermediate
below
Bind the Accusing Tongue 3 Camarilla Guide: 109, Basic
Below
Binding the Beast 1 Laws of Elysium: 82 Intermediate
Bladed Hands 1 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Blood Allergy 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Intermediate
Blood Call A, 1, Q Laws of Elysium: 86 Basic
Blood Contract 3 LotN Revised: 187 Advanced
Blood of the Chameleon A, 4 See Below Intermediate
Blood Rush 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 130 Basic
Blood Walk 3 Laws of Elysium: 80 Basic
Blood’s Cry for Vengeance 3 Libellus Sanguinis (3): 71 Basic
see Blood Call; LoE: 86
Blood of Peace A, 1, Q Laws of Elysium: 86 Basic
Bone of Lies 1 LotN Revised: 186 Intermediate
Bottled Voice 3 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
Brand of the Paramour 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Burning Blade 2 Cam Guide: 110 Basic
Calling the Restless Spirit 1 Laws of Elysium: 80 Basic
Cleansing of the Flesh 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Intermediate
Clinging of the Insect 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 132 Intermediate
Craft Bloodstone 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Curse of Clytaemnestra 3 Laws of Elysium: 85 Advanced
Defense of Sacred Haven 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Deflection of Wooden Doom 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Devil’s Touch 2 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
Directing Ahriman’s Lance A, 3 Blood Magic: 125 See Intermediate
below
Dominion 4 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Dominoe of Life 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 130 Basic
Donning the Mask of 1 Laws of Elysium: 80 Basic
Shadows
Eldritch Glimmer 4 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
Engaging the Vessel of 1 Camarilla Guide: 110 Basic
Transference
Enhancing the Curse 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 65 Basic
Expedient Paperwork 1 Blood Magic: 87,89; Below Basic
Extinguish 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Eye of the Translator 1 Libellus Sanguinis (3): 70 Basic
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See below
Eyes of the Beast 2 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Eyes of the Nighthawk 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 130 Basic
Eyes of the Past 2 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Flesh of the Fiery Touch 2 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Friend of the Trees 3 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
From Marduk’s Throat 4, A Blood Magic: 126 See Master
below
Gentle Mind 1 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Ghost in the System 2 Blood Magic: 97; Below Advanced
Gift of Mithra’s Bull A, 3 Blood Magic: 125 See Basic
below
Haunted House 3 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Haven’s Passage A, 4 See Below Intermediate
Healing Blood A, 2, Q Laws of Elysium: 87 Advanced
Heart of Stone 2 Laws of Elysium: 83 Intermediate
Illuminate Trail of Prey 2 MET Sabbat Guide: 131 Basic
Illusion of Peaceful Death 1 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Impassable Trail 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Impressive Visage 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Incantation of the Shepherd 1 Camarilla Guide: 110 Basic
Incorporeal Passage 2 LotN Revised: 186 Intermediate
Infirm Inert 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 70 Intermediate
Innocence of the Child’s 3 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Heart
Jinx 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
Keening of the Banshee 2 Laws of Elysium: 91 Intermediate
Learning the Mind 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
Enslumbered
Light of Vengeance A, 2, Q Laws of Elysium: 86 Intermediate
Lion Heart 3 Laws of Elysium: 92 Advanced
Machine Blitz 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 131 Basic
Major Creation 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Messenger of the Wind A, 1 Libellus Sanguinis (3): 71 Intermediate
See below
Mirror of the Second Sight 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 133 Intermediate
Mirror Walk 4 Laws of Elysium: 91 Intermediate
Paper Flesh 4 MET Sabbat Guide: 133 Advanced
Pebble from the Mountain A, 2 Blood Magic: 124 see Basic
below
Power of the Invisible Flame 3 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Principle Focus of Vitae 1 LotN Revised: 18 Basic
Infusion
109
Protean Curse 3 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Purge the Inner Demon 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
Purity of Flesh 1 Camarilla Guide: 110 Basic
Rebirth of Mortal Vanity 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 67 Basic
Recure of Homeland 3 MET Sabbat Guide: 131 Basic
Refined Digestion 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 74 Master
Rending the Sweet Earth 2 Laws of Elysium: 84 Intermediate
Respect of the Animals 2 Laws of Elysium: 91 Intermediate
Return the Heart 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Rite of Marduk Triumphant A, 4 Blood Magic: 125 See Intermediate
below
Rite of Marduk Slain and A, 4 Blood Magic: 126 See Advanced
Risen below
Rutor’s Hands 2 LotN Revised: 187 Intermediate
Sanguineous Phial 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
Scent of the Lupine Passage 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Scry 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Sculpting the Perfect Servant 2** Blood Magic: 97; Below Advanced
Seeing with the Skies Eyes A, 4 Blood Magic: 126 See Advanced
below
Sense the Mystical 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
Serenading the Kami 1 Blood Magic: 91; Below Basic
Severed Hand 4 MET Storytellers Guide: 73 Advanced
Shaft of Belated Quiescence 3 Camarilla Guide: 112; Intermediate
Below
Spirit of Torment 3 Laws of Elysium: 93 Advanced
Splinter Servant 2 Camarilla Guide: 113; Intermediate
Below
Steps of the Terrified 1 Laws of Elysium: 89; Blood Basic
Magic: 93
Stolen Kisses 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 71 Intermediate
Stone of the True Form 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 74 Advanced
Summon the Guardian Spirit 2 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
The Haunting 2 Laws of Elysium: 90 Intermediate
The Imp’s Affliction 2 MET Storytellers Guide: 66 Basic
The Open Passage 1 LotN Revised: 185 Basic
The Scribe 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 68 Basic
The Unseen Change 2 Laws of Elysium: 85 Intermediate
The Watcher 1 Laws of Elysium: 85 Intermediate
Touch of Nightshade 3 MET Storytellers Guide: 72 Intermediate
Touch the Earth A, 2 Blood Magic: 124 see Basic
below
Vires Acquirit Eundo 3 Blood Magic: 98; Below Advanced
110
Wake with Evening’s 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Freshness
Ward versus Demons 2 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Ward versus Ghosts 2 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Ward versus Ghouls 1 LotN Revised: 186 Basic
Ward versus Kindred 2 Camarilla Guide: 113 Advanced
Ward versus Lupines 2 Camarilla Guide: 113 Intermediate
Ward versus Spirits 2 Camarilla Guide: 114 Advanced
Warding Circle versus 3 Camarilla Guide: 111, Advanced
Demons Below
Warding Circle versus 2 Camarilla Guide: 111, Advanced
Ghosts Below
Warding Circle versus 2 Camarilla Guide: 111, Basic
Ghouls Below
Warding Circle versus 1 Camarilla Guide: 111, Advanced
Kindred Below
Warding Circle versus 2 Camarilla Guide: 111, Intermediate
Lupines Below
Warding Circle versus Spirits 2 Camarilla Guide: 111, Advanced
Below
Whispers of the Ghost 1 MET Storytellers Guide: 69 Basic
Widow’s Spite 2* MET Sabbat Guide: 132; Basic
Below
Will o’ the Wisp 2 Laws of Elysium: 89 Basic
Words of Undoing A, Q, 1 See below Intermediate
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Some of the rituals listed below will not be found in any White Wolf book (unless
they deicide to include them some day). Players of OWBN have created these rituals.
They are included here for a sense of completeness and to stay in line with the Tremere
Thaumaturgy packet. They are only to be included in your game with the STs
permission. As noted above I strongly recommend against customized rituals and paths
as they are often not properly tested and created by the player of the character that will
be learning them.
Basics
Widow’s Spite
This ritual will cause pain and uncomfortable sensations in another person – The
traditional voodoo doll.
System: The caster must create a doll that resembles (no matter how crudely)
the target. The target may be tormented with pain and uncomfortable sensations by
manipulating the doll (sticking pins in it, tickling it with feathers, punching it, etc…) but
no damage is actually dealt.
It is recommended that the STs encourage appropriate Role-playing with the
target of this ritual.
Words of Undoing
This ritual allows the Assamite to commit suicide if necessary to avoid capture
(and to prevent closet teachers for Sorcery, Quietus, and Assamite lore 5). System: The
sorcerer may cast this ritual upon himself or another.
He does so by soaking the recipients weapon in a mixture of their own blood, the
venom of a scorpion, and ashes of nightshade. The sorcerer then uses the weapon to
trace the symbol of death over the recipient’s heart.
Once cast the recipient of this ritual may at any time immediately destroy himself,
this is not considered diablerie and he does not become a wraith. So long as the
recipient of the ritual is conscious and willing (no coercion of any kind) he may activate
this effect. Once cast this ritual is active until used.
Intermediate
Haven's Passage
First, the Sorcerer needs a stone, rock, or pebble from the excavation site or
other original interior space of a building or other structure. Then while pouring vitae
over the stone, the Sorcerer performs the ritual. Once completed, the donor of the vitae
may hold the stone and speak the words, "Guide me spirits of earth and air, and give
me your conveyance," in any language while facing an exterior of the wall of the space
the bearer wishes to enter. The bearer may then begin moving forward at which point
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he become incorporeal and can pass through exterior walls. The bearer becomes
corporeal again when he stops moving or reaches a second exterior wall.
116
will do 1 point of lethal damage win, lose or tie. Healing the wounds closes the incisions
and the surgeon must start over.
If a stake enchanted with this ritual is used on someone that has her heart
removed by Heart of Darkness (advanced Serpents), the stake will do normal combat
damage on the initial hit, but the tip will not break off, and the ritual is not expended.
Splinter Servant
Another ritual designed to enchant a stake, Splinter Servant is a progressive
development of Shaft of Belated Quintessence, and the two rituals are mutually
exclusive (They cannot be placed on the same stake). The stake itself becomes a
minion bent on staking its target.
System: The stake must be made from a tree that has been nourished by the
dead (a tree from a graveyard would be a good choice) and wrapped in sheath made of
nightshade twine and wax. When the binding is torn off, the splinter servant springs to
life, ripping little legs out of itself, and attacking the person that it is commanded too
attack (by pointing it at the target as the sheath is ripped off).
The splinter servant has 10 dexterous physical traits, a number of melee equal to
the caster’s occult rating, and is immune to mental and social challenges. It has three
health levels, and ignores wound penalties. It can move up to 30’ (9 paces) per turn. It
will remain active and attacking until it stakes its victim, it is destroyed by damage, or 5
combat rounds have passed. It looses traits normally, and must succeed in the normal
staking challenges. It is up three traits to avoid attacks due to small size.
Any damage increasing effects (Scorpion’s Touch, Wards, ext.) will ruin the ritual.
Advanced
Elder
Credits
I’d like to thank all the people who worked on the OWBN Tremere packet, as I
horribly plagiarized their work.
This was to have both a sense of completeness as well as a standard format that
everyone would be used to.
Other than the OWBN Tremere thaumaturgy packet being used as a template, I’d
like to thank; Mike Dusseau, Ian Wolfenden, John Mann, Adam Bisco, and Adam Sartori
for their help in putting together this packet.
Thank you,
Dave Hoffman
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Koldunic Sorcery
Part One - The Tzimisce
For years immeasurable, the ancient vampiric clan of the Tzimisce ruled the
lands of Eastern Europe. No one really knows much about these elusive vampires;
even their name is only so recent, named as it were for the famous lords of the
Byzantine Empire in Eastern Europe. They claim to have always lived in the Carpathian
Mountains, and it is said that their founder was Diablerized beneath an ancient church
in the Carpathians. Stories also whisper of other things buried beneath the
Carpathians.
Three main branches of the clan exist; by far the largest is the brood of Yorak the
Metamorphosist, who was said to live beneath the Transylvanian Mountains in the
Cathedral of Flesh. The get of Bylebog lived in the lands of Lithuania to the north,
keeping an unholy vigil over the twisted swamps therein. And the religious figure known
as the Dracon, or Obertuse, lived in the metropolis of Constantinople. All three were
known as masters of Auspex, for they knew all that took place in their domain. They
were also fleshcrafters of incredible means. And they were unparalleled Sorcerers like
their sire. It is said that all three died during the Anarch revolts with their sire, called the
Eldest. Some even believe these rumors.
Most Tzimisce learn Animalism, Aupsex, and Vicissitude as clan Disciplines.
Vicissitude may, however, be replaced by Dominate or Koldunic sorcery. Some would
argue that the Tzimisce of Old once knew Koldunic sorcery, but that the young Tzimisce
today learn Thaumaturgy. This is a trite argument, however, for two reasons. First, it
explicitly states that the elders of clan Tzimisce are once again teaching the lost arts of
Koldunism to their childer, in part because of the recent death of the Sabbat
Thaumaturges of House Goratrix. Second, as pointed out in the book Blood Magic:
Secrets of Thaumaturgy, technically all disciplines are Thaumaturgy of sorts, and the
true Thaumaturges have found the secret of linking and codifying similar arts together
under a general Overhang. Koldun operates under the same principle, and thus it is a
moot point; Koldunism, like Thaumaturgy, is an umbrella hedge magic and discipline.
Sources:
The following are a list of books that storytellers may find helpful when dealing
with Koldunic powers:
Libellus Sanguinus 1, pgs. 62-63
Transylvania by Night, pgs 110-114
Guide to the Sabbat, pg. 121
Children of the Night, pgs. 23 and 96
Blood Magic: Sectrets of Thaumaturgy, pgs.126-133
Clanbook: Tzimisce (2nd ed.), pgs. 63-67
Sins of the Blood, pgs. 97-101
“The practice of Koldunic Sorcery is a well-kept secret among the Tzimisce of the
Sabbat. Once exceedingly rare, even among the Tzimisce, the lower levels of this dark
art are becoming more readily available among the covens. Now that the Tremere
influence has suddenly vanished from the sect, the ancient sorcerous arts of the Fiends
seem to be on the rise in popularity”. - Guide to the Sabbat, pg. 121
“Koldunic Sorcery used to be the province of a few Old World koldun. Now, the
art trickles down through the generations. Even a few neonates know the ways....
Koldunism has always been a young Cainite's art.... Neonates, wide-eyed and newly
undead, cling to no myopic opinions about the nature of reality and have yet to fortify
their emotional walls against the spirit world. The voice of the land speaks more clearly
to the young, as it did to Lugoj and Velya.” - Clanbook Tzimisce, pg.63
120
Ways of Koldunic Sorcery
The Way of the Spirit
The Koldun are, if nothing else, masters of their surroundings. This is no more
so evident than in their ability to manipulate the spirit realms. Koldun may switch their
perception to the spiritual realms, gaining insight and understanding of their
surroundings. This is different than Auspex, and should not be considered merely
another way of seeing those things hidden.
This power is exceptionally difficult to translate from the book Blood Magic into
LARP terms, in part because it is extremely difficult to role-play through a vampire
knowing about everything going on in up to a five mile radius. For this reason, like the
disciplines of Celerity, Potence, and Fortitude, this path has been modified from its
original form. Every effort has been made to maintain both the feel of the power and
playability.
One of the abilities Way of the Spirit allows is for a Koldun to "watch" events in
another locale. A set distance is given with each level of power; the Koldun may view
alternate locales within the given distance as if she were there. She may not, however,
listen; the Koldun may "see" the events, but not hear them. The books state that the
koldun "feels" events, and storytellers are encouraged to attempt to maintain this "feel"
in game.
A second ability that the Koldun has is that she may never be surprised by
anything in the radius of effect. All rules for surprise in combat are nullifed by this
power; the Koldun must be informed of the attacks so that she may react accordingly.
Ranged attacks that originate outside the radius of influence are unaffected by the Way
of the Spirit.
Way of the Spirit does allow a Koldun to activate other Koldunic paths from a
distance of up to the radius given, but only of an equal level. Thus if the Koldun knows
the first intermediate level of Way of the Spirit, she may use other Koldunic paths up to
first intermediate within her sphere of effect.
The Way of the Spirit costs one willpower to activate, and may be maintained for
one scene per willpower spent. To pierce any of the disciplines and powers listed below
requires a static social vs. mental challenge. Initiating challenges during the duration of
this art does not cost any additional willpower. Using other koldunic paths with this
power still require their willpower activation costs.
Basic
50-foot radius
The Koldun may "see" through such sight altering powers as Obtenebration and
Chimerstry and other sense-altering powers. Note that Horrid Reality and the discipline
of Dementation affect the mind, not the senses, and are thus not countered by
knowledge of Way of the Spirit.
100-yard radius
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At this level, the Koldun may pierce the illusion offered by Obfuscate. This
applies to all levels of Obfuscate below Mastery, and is not handled as per Auspex vs.
Obfuscate. The Koldun may simply make a static social vs. mental challenge to pierce
the Obfuscted targets.
Intermediate
Quarter mile
At this level, Koldun begin to pierce the barriers that divide the realms. The
Koldun may now pierce the near Umbral realms, and are now capable of seeing those
in psychic projection and astral form. This requires the same challenge as the other
arts of this path.
1-mile radius
The Koldun may now pierce most of the Umbral realms; indeed, only the furthest
of the realms escape her notice. She may now detect Umbral spirits and shapeshifters
who have traveled into the Umbral realms. Only the most distant of realms (such as
Arcadia and the Horizon realms) are beyond her.
Advanced
5-mile radius
At this level, the Koldun is utterly aware of her surroundings. She may peer into
the deep Umbral realms, including the Shadowlands, where she may see wraiths and
Necromancers who are traveling in the lands of the dead. Again, the challenge is a
static social challenge vs. the target's mental traits.
Basic
Soil Silhouette
The Koldun can cause the earth to rise up and immobilize anyone target within
100 feet. The earth crawls up the victim and hardens, somewhere between the knees
and the hips. The Koldun must make a physical challenge against the target. If
successful, the target is immobilized. Thereafter, the target may escape with a static
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physical challenge made against the Koldun's physical traits. While immobilized, the
target may not move from the waist down.
Unearthly Stamina
The Koldun may spend a willpower trait and gain two stamina traits for the
duration of the scene. These traits only last for one scene, and may only be used for the
sake of absorbing damage. The Koldun gains the ability to soak Aggravated damage for
the scene as well.
Intermediate
Soil of Death
The Koldun can cause the very earth to swallow a target up, hopelessly trapping
her within the soil. The Koldun spends a willpower and makes a physical challenge
against her target. If successful, the target is sucked into the ground, up to her head.
Thereafter the target is trapped unless they can win a static physical challenge against
the Koldun's physical traits. Mortals, ghouls, and creatures that still must breathe will
risk a level of lethal damage each round trapped beneath the earth from suffocation; this
damage may be soaked.
Root of Vitality
The Koldun must spend a willpower trait to activate this power, but no challenge
is made; the target must relent. The target is pulled into the earth up to her neck, where
the rich soil will slowly heal her wounds. For each round that the target remains
underground, she heals one wound level. Aggrevated wounds are more problematic,
and require a blood trait to be spent by the target per aggrevated wound level. The
target may leave the ground at any point she chooses.
Advanced
Dracula's Restless Soul
The Koldun can command the very ground to tremble and quake, creating in
effect a very localized earthquake. This requires not only the expenditure of a willpower
trait, but the expenditure of a physical trait per level of effect (see below). All those
within the area of effect will take a number of lethal damage equal to the number of
physical traits that the koldun spends on the art, to a maximum of five; such damage
may be soaked or dodged as appropriate. Nevertheless, the effects should be felt very
much by all those present, and storytellers are encouraged to announce the dramatic
affects of the localized earthquake that will certainly damage many things during the
brief quake (it lasts but one turn).
Basic
Shatter
The Koldun spends a willpower trait and a number of social traits, and points at
an object. The object will superheat and combust, either bursting into flame or
shattering instantly. The size of the object determines the number of social traits that
must be expended by the Koldun: one trait for a small object (ie. A book), two for a
medium sized object (a chair), and three traits for a large objects (a motorcycle).
Objects up to the size of a car cannot be affected by this power. Living beings (and
vampires) cannot be affected by this power.
Intermediate
Gates of Magma
The Koldun spends a willpower trait and a social trait to call up a ring of magma
ten feet tall that surrounds the Kodlun. The ring of magma can be maintained for two
rounds per social trait spent. Any vampires attempting to approach the wall of magma
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must succeed in a courage challenge and suffer a level of Aggravated damage. To
cross through the magma requires that a vampire spend a willpower trait and suffer
three levels of Aggravated damage. Normal mortals need not make the courage check,
but do need to spend a willpower trait if they intend to pass through the magma.
Heat Wave
The Koldun summons a gust of superheated air that blasts her opponent. She
spends a willpower trait and makes a social challenge against her target, who resists
with a physical challenge. If the Koldun succeeds, the target takes 3 levels of lethal
damage from the superheated air. Kindred also lose three blood traits as the vitae
evaporates from their system.
Note - This power has been modified from its original format in Blood Magic, and
has been placed on a level of power on par with the Tremere Thaumaturgical power of
Cauldron of Blood.
Advanced
Volcanic Blast
The Koldun can summon a fiery blast of magma to erupt from the earth in a rainy
torrent that showers down upon all within twenty feet. All those within the radius suffer
three levels of Aggravated damage. The magma will flow thereafter and continue to do
three levels of Aggravated damage each round it lasts, which is one round per social
trait spent by the Koldun. The magma cools at a rate of one less level of Aggravated
damage per round.
Basic
Winds of Guilt
The Koldun can afflict a target with whispering voices that only the target can
hear. These voices plague her for the duration of the art, whispering to her greatest
sins and all the terrors a Koldun could afflict on the person. At the cost of a willpower,
the Koldun engages her target in a mental challenge. If she succeeds, the target is
considered down two courage traits, to a minimum of one, whenever she is in the
presence of the Koldun. This lasts for the duration of the night. The effect will last for
one night, and one additional night per mental trait spent. Combined with the Way of
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Spirit, the power can have effective range. The target will be aware of who she is afraid
of.
Biting Winds
With the expenditure of a willpower trait, the Koldun can cause an extremely cold
biting wind to mystically fill an area, subtracting two physical traits from all within. The
wind springs up gradually (a breeze the first round, minus one physical trait the second
round, and minus two physical traits the third round), and lasts one scene. Those
attempting to enter the area must spend one willpower trait and suffer a level of bashing
damage from the sudden onslaught of the wind. Movement within the area is severly
limited, and everyone loses a "step" per round movement.
Intermediate
Winds of Lethargy
The Koldun spends a willpower trait and summons a harsh wind that
encompasses an entire 200-foot radius (roughly one building). All those within must
succeed in a static physical challenge (vs. the Koldun's mental traits) or halve their
physical traits for the remainder of the scene due to the extreme lethargy that
encompasses them. They also suffer a one step per combat round movement penalty.
This art lasts for two rounds per mental trait spent on the power.
Advanced
Body of Zephyr
The Koldun must spend a willpower trait to activate this art. It takes one full round
to activate, thus the round the willpower is spent is not the round the Body of Zephyr
may be used. The Koldun becomes intangible and indistinct, and may now walk through
walls and crowds effortlessly, and may double her movement rate (6 steps per combat
round). She may only use other Way of the Wind arts; no other disciplines may be used
by the Koldun while in this form. The Koldun may remain in Zephyr form for as long as
she chooses.
Basic
Pools of Illusion
The Koldun can command the mists above the water to swirl into a three-
dimensional illusion. This requires a static mental challenge (difficulty determined by the
storyteller, based perhaps on the amount of water available). The illusion may move
and even speak mystically, but may never leave the water, and is itself effectively
intangible. The illusion lasts three rounds before it begins to dissipate.
Watery Solace
Unlike other Koldun powers, this art neither costs willpower nor requires a
challenge. The Koldun spends a mental trait and sinks into the water to slumber away
the day, similar to the Protean power of Earth Meld. The water need barely cover the
Koldun, but will mystically protect her from the harmful light of the sun.
Intermediate
Water Walk
Quite simply, the Koldun spends a willpower trait and a mental trait and may walk
on water for an entire scene. This does not protect her from hazards in the water (such
as sharks). The Koldun may walk on water for a number of scenes equal to the number
of mental traits spent to activate this art.
Watery Minions
The Koldun spends a willpower trait to activate this power, and a mental trait per
watery minion summoned. For each mental trait, one creature is summoned. The stats
of the minion should be determined by the storytellers. Bashing damage will not harm
them at all, although fire does an extra two points of damage. The creatures may leave
the confines of the water, but only follow the most basic of commands.
Advanced
Doom Tides
The Koldun can create a mighty whirlpool with the expenditure of a willpower trait
and a mental trait. The whirlpool is assumed to have 15 physical traits; each additional
mental trait spend increases the strength of the whirlpool by five traits.
Things get even more curious when you throw the mages of House Tytalus in.
Tytalus was a group of wizards in the Order of Hermes that declared war on the
neighboring House Tremere at one point, even going so far as to ally themselves with
the Tzimisce. It is interesting that nearly a thousand years later House Tytalus has
reversed its stance, begging the Order of Hermes to readmit House Tremere. The
stories say that House Tytalus taught the Tzimisce a few things...
Be that as it may, the Koldun's claim to have practiced Blood Magic as long as
they can remember, for they define it as one of the six cardinal elements. The Blood is
Life, and they deal with it as they would any other element; they consider it no more
central to their existence than the other elements, for unlike the Tremere the Koldun do
not put as heavy an emphasis on Blood as they do on exercising one's will over her
surroundings.
As such, like the other Koldunic paths, the Path of Blood requires the expenditure
of a willpower trait for each spell. Moreover, all challenges made are physical
challenges, for the Koldun's see the Blood of Life as the Strength of reality. When using
the Way of Blood, the Koldun's eyes will turn blood red.
Basic
A Taste for Blood
With the expenditure of a willpower trait and a static physical challenge (difficulty
equal to the physical traits of the target), the Koldun may determine a piece of
information from a taste of the target's blood, such as generation, the amount of blood
in a target, or such.
Blood Rage
The target grabs her opponent with a physical challenge and spends a willpower
trait. If she does grapple her target, she may force the target to spend a blood trait
(even beyond her generational limit) as the Koldun sees fit.
Intermediate
Blood of Potency
The Koldun may temporarily lower her generation for a scene, effectively
mimicking the Methuselahs and elders of the clan. The Koldun must spend a willpower
trait for each generation the Koldun will drop, to a maximum of three. This lasts for one
scene, and is especially useful for purposes of Dominate and blood expenditure. The
Koldun's eyes remain blood red for the duration of this art.
Theft of Vitae
128
The Koldun spends a number of physical traits equal to the amount of blood she
wishes to steal (to a maximum of three) and one willpower trait. After this expenditure,
the Koldun engages her target (from afar) in a physical challenge. If the Koldun wins,
the target loses a number of blood traits, equal to the amount of physical traits spent.
This blood rushes across the distance and is absorbed into the Koldun, quite visible to
those around.
Advanced
Cauldron of Blood
The Koldun may engage her target in a physical challenge and spend a willpower
trait. If the Koldun wins, she may spend up to three physical traits to cause the target's
blood to boil and do one aggravated wound to the target per physical trait spent.
129
Koldunic Rituals
Unlike the Paths of Koldunic Sorcery, the Rituals of Koldunic Sorcery do in fact
require the expenditure of a blood trait per level of the ritual (unless otherwise noted).
In this they function like Thaumaturgical Rituals. The following is a list of the Koldunic
Rituals found in the White Wolf books.
Note that many of these rituals are quite powerful and players may in fact want to
perform many of them nightly. Storytellers should be kept aware of this, and modify the
available blood pool of Kolduns accordingly.
Basic
Hospitality
(Libillus Sanguinus 1 pg. 62)
The Sorcerer can summon the local spirits to inhabit and possess the furniture
and belongs of the Koldun. The possessed objects may speak, and will develop unique
personalities, often to suit their form. They are, however, incapable of any movement,
and serve merely for information, companionship, and warning. This ritual must be
performed nightly.
Enlightenment
(Sins of the Blood pg. 98)
The koldun may attune himself to the spirits around him by casting this ritual. For
the duration of the night the koldun is up two traits for the purpose of dealing with any
elemental spirits (such as casting the level three ritual Conjure Lesser Demon).
Mephistophelean Minx
(Sins of the Blood pg.98)
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The koldun feeds a number of blood traits to a cat (or a number of cats).
Thereafter the cat will seek out sleeping children and "steal" their essence, which is
mystically transferred to the koldun as willpower points throughout the night (one point
per blood trait invested). The willpower traits so gained must be spent that evening, for
they will dissipate at sunrise. Children drained so three nights in a row will die from a
loss of essence.
Reflections
(Blood Sacrifice pg.85)
The Koldun may "steal" an artifact from a location, and then perform this ritual
over the stolen object sometime during the next twenty-four hours. The koldun will then
be able to fully examine the "room" that the object came from, even looking behind
curtains and in desk drawers. The object must be primarily natural (i.e. wooden pencils
count, but not plastic ones). Each object may only ever be used once for this ritual.
This ritual lasts for a number of minutes equal to the number of willpower traits the
koldun has.
Withering Agony
(Sins of the Blood pg. 98)
By spending a blood trait and inscribing a glyph on a victim (and making a social
challenge against her), the koldun entices the spirit of a dying tree to enter into the body
of the target. The target will visibly sicken; his hair will begin to fall out, his skin turn
ashen gray, rapid weight loss will occur, and a sickly sap will ooze from his pores. The
target loses two physical and two social traits for the duration of the power, and suffers
an immediate level of non-soakable damage. Moreover, vampires spend two blood
points to awaken each night instead of one for the duration of this art. This power lasts
for one week.
Intermediate
Conjure Lesser Demon
(Libillus Sanguinus 1 pg. 62)
This power is a bit of a misnomer, for it doesn't actually summon demons, but
rather Umbral spirits. The Koldun summons a spirit, and can "bind" it to servitude if she
can convince it to drink a point of her blood. Otherwise the demon is free to negotiate
and bargain at will. The Koldun may maintain a number of sworn demons equal to her
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intimidation traits. Even when sworn, the demons still retain freedom of will, although
they will be favorably disposed towards the sorcerer. Similar to the ritual Service for
Souls, this art does not require that the "permanent loan" of a blood trait to the spirit.
Incubus Visage
(Sins of the Blood pg. 99)
By ingesting (and spending) the blood of a boar and eating a piece of the victim's
skin, the koldun can command a malicious spirit to inhabit and manifest in an offending
target with a successful social challenge. Thereafter, the target will manifest a number
of negative appearance traits, gaining the flaw of the Nosferatu vampires (unable to
initiate social challenges), will lose all appearance related social traits, and gain the flaw
Eerie Presence for the duration of about two weeks. This ritual must be cast on the
night of a half moon, and lasts until the next half moon. The target also gains a number
of "bestial" or "repugnant" traits equal to the number of social traits the koldun spends,
to a maximum of five.
132
Merging of the Souls
(Sins of the Blood pg. 100)
The koldun can command the various spirits to inhabit a ghoul, thus providing
extra prowess to the ghoul. Each blood point spent on this ritual (used to "mark" the
ghoul) binds a spirit into the ghoul, and each such bound spirit increases the ghoul's
physical traits by one. The ghouls can be quite enhanced by this power, to a maximum
of 18 traits. However, each trait after the third gives the ghoul a derangement and the
negative social trait "bestial" or "repugnant", and the ghoul will be difficult to control due
to the number of conflicting personalities that possess it. This art lasts for a number of
nights equal to the number of social traits spent when activating this art.
Note that this power turns mortals into inanimate objects for the duration of the
power, and will not work at all on other supernatural creatures.
Earth's Embrace
(Blood Sacrifice pg.86)
This ritual allows a Tzimisce to avoid their clan's curse, if but for a night. Cast
within an hour of dawn, the Tzimisce may substitute the local soil for her native soil,
thus gaining a good night's sleep. This ritual lasts for one day, and may only be
performed once per week. Two blood traits and one willpower trait must be spent for
this ritual to succeed.
Advanced
The Inmost Tug
(Libillus Sanguinus 1 pg. 62)
Unlike other rituals, this ritual requires no blood expenditure. The Koldun
engages a target in a social challenge. If she succeeds, the Koldun may intensify the
feelings of a blood oath. Love may be turned to lust, or refined to fraternal devotion.
The blood oath may even be warped into abject fear, resentment, or even hatred.
Elemental Savior
(Sins of the Blood pg.100)
By spending four blood points, the koldun entices one the spirits in his command
(via Service for Souls, Conjure Lesser Demon, etc.) to take on physical form, thus
becoming an elemental. The spirit will cause available material to form into a body for it,
but will lose a level of creative intelligence, obeying only simple one sentence
commands. Such elementals will last one night before their body will revert to its
original form and the elemental will return to the spirit plane. In days of old the Tzimisce
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found that golems of rock and tree were useful, but modern koldun have discovered that
concrete and stainless steel golems are quite impressive.
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Dark Thaumaturgy Rules
Notes:
1) There is no Primary Path for those starting on the road of Dark Taumaturgy
2) This format is based off both the East Coast Thaumaturgy Sub-Coord Ian James'
"Alpha" Release of compiled Thaumaturgical related material, and Jon Matras’ Midwest
Thaumaturgy rules.
3) These rules are only proposed, as a more complete set of the existing Dark
Thaumaturgy printed in the White Wolf source material.
Very Rare: Only in the MOST dire situations, or with huge amounts given in exchange
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Paths
Common:
Fires of the Inferno
Path of Torture
Path of Pestilence
Uncommon:
Path of Phobos
Chains of Pleasure
Rare:
Path of Secret Knowledge
Very Rare:
Taking of the Spirit
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Rituals
Common:
Aport Object
Haunting Memories Rare:
Spectral Mask Bind Tivilio
Video Nefas Dismiss Tivilio
Inner Furnace, the
Soul Leech
Uncommon: Summon Grantel
Bind the Interloper Summon Lucricia
Call Forth the Host Summon Tivilio
Close the Ways
Curse of Oedipus
Felis Negrum Very Rare:
Plague’s Secret Domain Into the Abyss
Sign of the Moon Summon Barliagus
Sign of the Wraith Transfer Essence
Turn to Toad
End Note:
To the Best of my knowledge this is the first attempt to be made, to date, to log
Dark Thaumaturgy. It will, most likely, not be the last. This Project is the combined work
of Aaron Wiseman, Adam Madlinger, and myself. We hope it aids you as it was
intended.
Thank you,
Dennis Sharpe
This document is an entirely unofficial use of the Vampire: The Masquerade and
A World of Darkness gaming materials published by White Wolf Game Studios and not
intended as an official or profit making venture in any way, shape or form. Although the
use of these concepts, rules, etc., is unauthorized, no infringement is intended. The
creator of this document is not affiliated with White Wolf Games Studios in any way.
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Necromancy
Key to Book References:
LotNR Laws of the Night Revised
LotNR-C Laws of the Night Camarilla Guide
LotNR-S Laws of the Night Sabbat Guide
LotNR-ST Laws of the Night ST Guide
DE Dark Epics
CB:G Clanbook Giovanni
CB:G2 Clanbook Giovanni 2nd Ed
BM Blood Magic
BS Blood Sacrafice
Necromancy basics
There are three different types of necromancer:
1) Those with necromancy In-Clan (Giovanni, Harbingers of Skulls, Nagaraja)
2) Those with necromancy Out-of-Clan (Nearly everyone else)
3) Those who can learn necromancy on their own, out-of-clan (Samedi, Some Serpents
of the Light (BM 110)
These are not interchangable, much like different schools of Thaumaturgy. They are
based on very different belief systems, and as a result, Interact with the world in a very
different way.
Learning Necromancy
For those with Necromancy In-Clan, necromancy comes about as easily as any
other discipline. It is part of the blood, and inherent to necromantically inclined
vampires. Individual paths and rituals of necromancy do require some instruction, but
for these clans, instruction in several paths is easily found. All clans currently with
Necromancy as an In-Clan discipline practice Western Necromancy.
For those with Necromancy Out-of-Clan, every level of necromancy must be
taught separately, by a Vampire with Necromancy In-Clan. They learn they type of
Necromancy that their teacher knows (Voudoun or Western). In practice, there are no
Vampires with Voudoun Necromancy in-clan, so all Out-of-Clan necromancy is
Western.
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Those who can learn Necromancy without a teacher are actually learning from
the Baron (BM 106-112). It is suggested that Storytellers reinforce this concept. The
Baron only teaches Voudoun Necromancy.
Path Basics:
Repeating from LotNR 152: There are different paths of Necromancy. All
Necromancers have a primary path, and may have one or more secondary paths.
When the Primary path is known at only the Basic level, they may not know any
secondary paths. When the Primary Path is raised to the intermediate level, they may
learn the basic levels of one Secondary Path. When the Primary Path is known to the
Advanced level, additional secondary paths may be learned, and all paths may also be
learned to the Advanced level.
Teaching Necromancy
A student necromancer always receives as their Primary path, the Primary Path
of their Teacher. Advanced paths of necromancy may only be taught Out-of-Clan by
elders of 7th Generation or better.
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The Paths
The Sepulchre Path
(LotNR 152)
This is what most people think of when they think about necromancy (and who
doesn't). The sepulchre path deals with contacting, summoning and controlling wraiths.
This is the most basic of all necromantic concepts, and as such, is the Primary Path for
all necromancers other than the Harbingers of Skulls.
Rarity: If you know necromancy, you know this.
Common Variations:
The Ash path deals with the shroud, the barrier between the skinlands and the
Shadowlands.
Common Variations:
Voudoun Variation: For the power Ex Nihilo, the Voudoun version of the power requires
a six hours trip across a body of water, slipping through the surface. (BM 111)
Ex Nihilo: Depending on the Maelstrom, kindred will generally take one level of lethal
damage per hour/scene unless they win/tie a Simple Test.
Common Variations:
Soul Stealing: Targets of soul-stealing get a one-trait bonus to resist. For each
hour/scene that a soul is forced from its body, it must spend a Willpower trait or gain a
permanent derangement. If unable to spend Willpower (out of traits/quelled) permanent
willpower may be sacrificed to prevent the acquisition of any derangements.
The Mortuus path is a path-based offshoot of the Dark Ages power, Mortus. It
deals with the physical effects of death.
Rarity: Known primarily to Harbingers of Skulls. However, due to it's origins, Giovanni
embraced prior to 1444 (Premascines) also have access to this path. It should rarely be
taught to PC Giovanni, and only those whohave proven both competence and loyalty
over a period of time.
Comments: With the publication of the Revised Dark Ages, Mortus, the Capadocian
discipline, has been converted into a handful of paths. I expect some of these will turn
into necromancy in the future.
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The Vitreous Path uses the entropic energies of the underworld to various
effects.
Rarity: This path is only known to the Nagaraja. PC's with this pathshould not exist.
Variations:
Rarity: only members of the Ghiberti sub-family of the Giovanni, and possibly Giovanni
who have studied in African for some amount of time know this path.
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Rituals
Rituals must be of the necromantic type the necromancer is familiar with.
Voudoun rituals will not work for Western Necromancers, and Vice-Versa.
What follows is a list of published necromantic rituals, where they may be found,
level, what type they are, and any comments.
LotNR (157-158):
Basic
Call of the Hungry Dead
Eyes of the Grave
Spirit Beacon
Intermediate
Cadaver's Touch
Call on the Shadow's Grace
Ritual of the Unearthed Fetter
Advanced
Grasp the Chostly
All rituals in LotNR can be found in both Western and Voudoun versions fairly
easily.
These rituals are uncommon for the Sabbat, and Rare for Non-Sabbat
necromancers. They are all based in Western Necromancy.
These five rituals are Pisanob Necromancy. The Pisanod are a South American
branch of Giovanni. Non-Pisanob Giovanni characters are unlikely to know any of these
rituals besides the Ritual of Pochtli. Non-Giovanni should consider these five rituals
very rare. These rituals are considered Western Necromancy.
These rituals are Rare to non-Giovanni, and Uncommon among the Giovanni.
They are all Western Necromancy.
These rituals are all Western Necromancy. They should be considered Rare for
all Necromancers.
These rituals are all Voudoun Necromancy, and should be considered Rare for
all necromancers.
OWBN Rituals:
The following rituals have been created by players and storytellers in OWBN.
Their inclusion here should not be taken as a sign of official approval; they are simply
presented for reference. Storytellers are encouraged to use their own discretion when
allowing any of these rituals to be used, taught, or learned by characters in their games.
Again, disclaimer: None of these rituals are "approved" by OWBN. They have all
been approved by a Storyteller, but you are free to allow or disallow them as you see fit.
Basic
Approaching the Shroud
This disturbing ritual brings a vampire closer to the grave, making her body
unfeeling and pale, like that of a bloodless corpse. It takes an hour to cast, and requires
a handful of soil from the grave. When the ritual is activated, the caster will feel her body
grow cold and numb. During the ritual, the caster is down one trait in all Social
Challenges and acquires the Negative Physical Trait "Sickly" for the duration of
the ritual. However, because the Vampire can feel no pain, she suffers no wound
penalties to traits bid. The effects of the ritual last for one night.
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this ritual. Then the recipient drinks a bit of blood from the Giovanni to complete the
ritual. For the duration of this ritual's effect, whenever the recipient of this ritual believes
that he is in mortal danger, the caster will sense this, and get a sudden mental image of
whatever the subject sees at that moment (for instance the vampire about to put a bullet
through the subject's head). Of course, if the victim dies suddenly and is taken by
surprise (such as from a knife in the back), he will not know that he is in mortal danger
and the ritual will not activate.
Wisdom of Bone
By obtaining a fragment of bone from an individual, as well as some of that
person's blood, the caster can gain supernatural knowledge of that person's thoughts.
The ritual takes an hour, and the bone must be crushed into a powder and mixed with at
least one blood point from the target until it becomes a paste, which the caster swallows
at the end of the ritual. For the rest of the night, the caster may use the Auspex power of
Telepathy upon the target, from which the blood and bone were taken, even if the caster
does not possess that power. Note that if the subject is a Cainite, the caster is one step
towards becoming Blood Bound to the target when he drinks the paste.
Preserve Corpse
Time Required 30 min to prepare elixir
Duration: Permanent once applied
Components: A liquid composed of decaying organic materials and rare herbs.
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Basic, Ability: Occult 1.
This ritual enables the user to create a special elixir that keeps dead things from
rotting and deteriorating. It is a widely known ritual among the Nagaraja as well as a
rare few Giovanni Necromancers.
Mechanics: The ritual requires the caster to use her hand, coating the material to
be preserved, a special liquid composed of decaying organic materials and rare herbs.
Once the liquid dries into the surface, the material is protected indefinitely. The ritual
produces enough of the liquid to cover one large adult corpse. The elixir will lose
potency unless applied within a week of its manufacture.
Intermediate
Haunted House
(Milwaukee by Night pg. 54, LoE pg. 83)
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Time Required: Three hours. Duration: Ten years.
Components: Three Blood Traits.
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Advanced Ability: Spirit Lore I or Occult 2.
"This ritual may be cast on any Kindred's haven. After casting, rumors begin to
circulate of the location being haunted, leading many to shun it. Even those who profess
disbelief will avoid the place."
Mechanics: "You must spend three Blood Traits to cast this ritual, with more
Blood Traits increasing the effect. The ritual will last for IO years, at which time, mortals
will begin to rationalize the place as merely run-down or just weird." Any mortals,
including ghouls and Garou, who wish to approach the 'Haunted House', must succeed
in a Static Mental Challenge against the number of Blood Traits that were expended in
the ritual's casting. If unsuccessful, they experience a sense of macabre and must avoid
the area completely for a week's time before they can muster up the courage to try
again, if ever.
This ritual may have negative effects, however. In terms of Wraith: the Oblivion -
the ensorcelled location is considered a Haunt (W:10 pg. 16 1) and a wraith "...
automatically gains a Mental Trait (which can be bid for purposes of crossing the
Shroud)." Therefore the Haunted House may in fact actually become legitimately
haunted. Commonplace Shroud ratings vary from 4-10, with the average at 8, but
buildings so ensorcelled have Shroud ratings from 2- 8, with the average at 6.
Haunting Breeze
(Black Hand Book pg. 79)
Time Required: One hour.
Duration: As long as the Necromancer remains within visual range of at least a portion
of the affected area.
Components: None.
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Intermediate Ability: Spirit Lore I or Occult 2.
The Necromancer can summon a light, supernatural wind, which serves more to
frighten than to harm. It is chilling, and those who listen can hear the warnings, curses,
screams and laughter of the dead carried on it. Those who look closely can see the
shapes of people swirling about in the wind. The wind can even be summoned inside an
enclosed area.
Mechanics: The Haunting Breeze increases the difficulty of all perception-based
Mental Challenges by four Traits, even for the Necromancer. And, unless individuals,
save for the Necromancer, within the affected area succeed in a Static Mental
Challenge against the Necromancer for each round they attempt to take an action, they
are down two additional Traits in all Challenges. Any mortals within the area, who fail
the Static Mental Test, run away in fear and cannot return for a minimum of one hour or
until they spend a Willpower Trait to regain their nerve.
The ritual lasts as long as the Necromancer remains within visual range of at
least a portion of the affected area (she need not remain within, or even relatively near
the area), expiring when she leaves the area or causes the ritual to end.
This ritual actually opens a type of window into the Shadowlands for its duration.
And, in terms of Wraith: the Oblivion - the ensorcelled location is considered a Haunt
(W:tO pg. 16 1) and a wraith automatically gains a Mental Trait (which can be bid for
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purposes of crossing the Shroud)." Also, the Shroud within the area is reduced by half
of its normal rating. Commonplace Shroud ratings vary from 4-10, with the average at 8.
History: Note, most wraiths will look most favorably upon the Necromancer whilst
this ritual is in effect -for it gives them the chance to more easily interact with the
material realm - one in which most 'gravely missed. Some Necromancers actually utilize
this ritual as a sort of reward for wraiths that have served her well.
The Haunting
(Sabbat Players Guide pg. 120, LoE pg. 90-91)
Time Required: One hour.
Duration: Variable.
Components: None.
By casting this ritual, you may summon a malevolent spirit to cause fear in a
target. Like a poltergeist, this spirit will play tricks on a subject, but its intentions are to
frighten, to death if it can.
Mechanics: This spirit cannot directly harm the victim but if it wins a Social
Challenge against her, the spirit makes Simple Tests until it loses to determine how
much harm it can do. The customary spirit that is summoned with the ritual will possess
12 Social Traits; this may vary with ST discretion. The Narrator playing the spirit
determines exactly what the spirit does.
1 success - Panic and alarm freezes the target in place for a few minutes. After
the incident the victim is down one trait on all challenges for the remainder of the
evening.
2 successes - Horror and shock causes her to faint. Upon waking the victim is
down 2 traits on all challenges for that evening and the following evening.
3 successes absolute fright causes her to become Incapacitated. When
consciousness is regained she will be three traits down on all challenges for the
following three evenings and temporarily suffers from Paranoia of Spirits. At the end of
the three days the victim engages in a static test Vs 8 traits to see if she suffers a
permanent derangement.
4 Successes Terror incarnate "...can kill the target unless she wins a Static
Physical Challenge..." versus 12 Social Traits. If successful, survivors "...may awaken to
find their hair turned white from the experience." In addition, survivors must engage in a
Static Test versus 12 Traits to see if they suffer a permanent Derangement from the
incident. The Necromancer may use those not so lucky as to survive in their next
existence on other victims of this ritual.
While Kindred cannot be 'frightened to death' - they can and will be terrified if
they are relatively ignorant of the Spirit World. Being told that such a place exists does
not in itself strengthen one's reality against the terror that can be unleashed by one of its
denizens.
This ritual will affect kindred that are on the Path of Humanity with two or fewer
Beast Traits, or any others that are similarity following naive ideologies unless they
possess at least one point of Spirit Lore or two Occult Abilities. If four successes are
scored against the Kindred victim, instead of dying, she receives a Morality check or a
Psychological Flaw as she is driven insane - STs discretion. Morality Traits lost and
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Flaws gained in such a manner should have some correlation to the Haunting - such as
Phobia of Spirits or Paranoia.
The spirit will remain for a period of time based on the number of Occult Ability
that the Necromancer possesses (as follows). Each night, past the first, the poltergeist
will attempt another 'haunting' against the victim of this ritual.
1-2 Occult One Evening
3 Occult Two Nights
4 Occult Four Nights
5+ Occult Seven Nights
Shadowgate
(Black Hand Book pg. 79)
Time Required: Five minutes
Duration: One hour
Components: None.
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Intermediate, Ability: Occult 2.
This ritual allows the Necromancer to enter or leave the Shadowlands by painting
an X over each eye and then stepping into an extremely dark shadow.
Mechanics: The shadow will open up into the corresponding Shadowland, and
the character can bring anything that he can carry. The X must be marked on with
powder made of coal and human ashes.
Spirit Contract
(See Blood Contract in VPG pg. 90 and LoE pg. 85)
Time Required: One Night.
Duration: Permanent or until the one meets the criteria for contractual completion.
Components: The contract must be signed in the Blood of both parties.
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Intermediate, Ability: Occult 3
This ritual creates an unbreakable bond between the two parties of a contract.
The contract must be written in the caster's blood and takes about one night to
complete. The ritual is finished when both parties sign the agreement in their own blood,
after which they are compelled to abide by the terms as stated. The only way out is to
complete one's part of the bargain or burn the contract.
Mechanics: To initially create a Spirit Contract the Necromancer must enchant a
parchment, during the course of a night, and legibly inscribe it's written contents in the
Necromancer's own blood. During the process of enchantment, the Necromancer
designates a specific number of individuals, naming one, needed to sign the Spirit
Contract. Until the specified number of individuals signs the Spirit Contract it remains
inactive. The name, or names, signed on the Spirit Contract do not affect its viability,
the Blood by which the name, or names, is signed does. For a Contract to be valid the
signer, or signers, must sign in their own blood. If any one of the individuals signing the
Contract does not sign in her own Blood the Contract becomes active but is non-
binding. Thus, the Contract turns to ash - reference the select ways in which a Contract
can be destroyed below for more details. Spirit Contracts can be utilized to restrict or
compel the actions of those that sign them. The nature of Spirit Contracts dictates that
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Those who sign the Contracts are "compelled to abide by the terms" of the Spirit
Contract. Thus, the signers cannot unwillingly or unknowingly breach any portion of the
Contract by delusion, trickery or other such means. If the individual who is contractually
bound unwittingly attempts to break any clause in the contract she feels a sense of
"impending doom." If she ignores the sense of "impending doom' and wishes to
continue with her course of action she must expend 3 Willpower Traits and succeed in a
Simple Test. If she is successful in breaching the Spirit Contract, in the aforementioned
manner, a Spirit then haunts her. Note Ward vs. Spirits, Circle vs. Spirits, Ward vs.
Wraiths, Circle vs. Wraiths, etc will not save someone that breaks a Spirit Contract; the
Spirit will just haunt them in more roundabout ways. In fact, as long
As the Contract is intact the Spirit will continue to haunt those who are in
abeyance of its contractual agreements.
The spirit has 13 Physical Traits, seven Social Traits and three Mental Traits, It
has three Willpower Traits, the Abilities of Brawl x 3, Subterfuge, Intimidate x 3 and
Occult. It also has the following:
Disciplines: Heightened Senses, Aura Perception, Might, Unseen Presence,
Mask of 1000 Faces and Cloak the Gathering. When trying to frighten someone, the
spirit gains three bonus Social Traits (Frightening x 3). Furthermore, the Spirit has the
ability to move objects weighing less than 25 lbs. with its mind and while Unseen. In its
normal form, the spirit is incorporeal, but it can spend a Mental Trait in order to become
corporeal for five minutes. The appearance, actions and other details of the spirit are left
up to the discretion of the Narrator.
There are, in fact, only a select few ways out of a Spirit Contract and they are as
follows: A Spirit Contract's power will fade once the completion of one's part of the
bargain is achieved, such as the acquisition of an item or the completion of a specified
task. The next way out of a Spirit Contract is to have the actual Contract physically
destroyed by burning the contract. Note no other means of physical destruction is
possible. The Contract cannot, for example, be torn asunder and will not deteriorate
over the centuries. Also, the Spirit Contract will be destroyed if the Contract was, when
originally drafted, signed by multiple individuals (this is not a requirement) and only one
individual remains, others having met Final Death or the final criteria, which follows.
Overall, once a Spirit Contract is non-binding the Contract turns to ash and the
Necromantic Aura surrounding it dissipates.
Note, regarding the Discipline of Dominate, because “The command cannot be
blatantly suicidal or self-destructive... attempts to Dominate someone, who is bound by
a Spirit Contract, into breaking said Contract will fail outright. But note, Dominate may
be utilized to force some to sign a contract in as far as the Contract is not "...blatantly
suicidal or self-destructive. In other words; if the Contract allows the individual a means
of survival, no matter how stringently their actions may be restrained, they cannot avoid
signing it in this manner. It should also be noted, to players and Storytellers alike, that it
is a VERY bad idea to leave any of the clauses in a Spirit Contract AT ALL ambiguous.
Clauses for the most part should be black and white in their interpretations; this cuts
down on endless amounts of strife over interpretations of the clauses. Thus, things like
"One must follow the Oath of the Tremere", something that is purposefully riddled with
inconsistencies and contradictory phrases, should NOT be included in a Spirit Contract.
Specific clauses out of the Oath, on the other hand, which have black and white
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interpretations such as "I shall obey those the House sees fit to name my superiors...”
are commonly found in Spirit Contracts. Also, such sweeping statements like "One must
follow the Traditions of the Camarilla" are highly unadvisable (for example, if a Prince
removes her "acknowledgement" from a Kindred within her Domain, whose contract
bears the aforementioned restriction, the individual is in abeyance of the 5th Tradition of
Hospitality, which brings a more literally deadly meaning to "Without the word of
acceptance, thou art nothing." Also, the contracted individual may not even disagree on
any level with a Prince without breaking the 2nd Tradition of Domain, for "None may
challenge thy word while within thy domain.") So overall, it is suggested that one does
not allude to any other 'laws' or 'codes' from within a Spirit Contract - instead writing
them out in detail to avoid any potential problems or contradictions.
Bottled Death
To cast this ritual, the caster needs a small bit of flesh from a Cainite. The flesh
(preferably fresh), must be mixed with at least two blood points from either a lupine or a
changeling (ingredients which are both difficult to obtain, due to the ferocity of the first
and the elusiveness of the second). The mixture of flesh and blood is then placed in a
small glass vial that is engraved with a mystical symbol. After chanting the words of the
ritual, the vial is stooped and left in absolute darkness for a week. After this period, the
flesh gobbets have liquefied and become absorbed into the blood, which has become a
deadly poison to kindred. If the from the vial is subsequently drunken by or injected into
a Vampire, it inflicts three health levels of Aggravated Damage for each point
consumed. The blood is especially lethal to the Cainite whose flesh was used in the
ritual, for if he so much as touches the blood, it is instantly absorbed into his skin, and
he takes damage as though he had consumed the blood.
Skull Sentry
This old ritual was allegedly developed by the Giovanni during the Dark Ages, to
protect them from spies using Obfuscate (although some say that the ritual was actually
taught to a Giovanni by a Celtic necromancer). The ritual is also effective against
kindred using Vicissitude to change their appearance so they can infiltrate the Giovanni.
To cast this ritual, the Giovanni must cut the head from a living creature using a special
knife that is engraved with runic symbols and lightly powdered with gold dust. Then the
severed head must be completely drenched in blood. Any blood may be used, but
typically the caster uses her own blood as well as that of a few trusted ghouls (because
the ritual activates when an individual whose blood was not used in the casting
approaches the head). The head is then buried underground until all the flesh has
decayed from it. At this point, the skull is extracted, polished, and placed near an item or
area that the caster wishes it to guard. Thereafter, any individual whose blood was not
used in the casting of the ritual will, when approaching within twenty feet of the skull,
activate a disturbing effect. Blood will drip from the eye sockets of the skull, which starts
to glow with a ruddy hue. This effect ends when the person that has triggered it leaves
the area.
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This ritual is very useful for Giovanni that are trying to locate Kindred that are
attempting to lose pursuit by blending into a crowd of Kine. However, it does have some
drawbacks, and is best used only by those kindred who have few, if any, Beast Traits.
The 30-minute long ritual requires some fetid water be drunk with at least one blood
point of Kine Vitae. At this point, the caster will be unable to gain any nourishment at all
from human vitae for the rest of the night; only the blood of vampires will provide any
nourishment whatsoever. The advantage is that should the caster's blood pool fall to
five or fewer traits during the night, he will be able to identify all vampires within fiftyfeet
by succeeding in a Static Mental Challenge against a difficulty of two traits. He senses
the Vampire by the distinctive odor of their blood. Unfortunately, the caster must spend
a point of willpower to avoid frenzy and exsanguinating the Kindred whose blood he
smells. It is rumored that if this ritual is used overmuch, its effects become permanent,
especially upon Vampires that are already quite old and are beginning to experience the
thinning of the blood.
Ancestor's Graces
Dismisses Summoning one whole evening, like the Thaumaturgy ritual Pavis,
and acts as if the summoning simply fails. The requirements for this ritual are the at
least 200 years old bones of one of the caster's direct mortal ancestors that have lain at
least one evening in The Loggia. The bone must then be pulverized into a fine powder
and placed on the Giovanni's forehead in the sign of the cross (just like Ash
Wednesday.) Due to the specific component only the Giovanni Clan know and use this
ritual.
Advanced
Curse of Clytaemnestra
(Milwaukee by Night pg. 53, LoE pg. 85)
Time Required: One day
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Duration: Permanent
Components: A personal possession of the target as well as some of his blood.
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Advanced, Ability: Occult 3.
Through use of this ritual the Necromancer, “rapidly, decaying him into nothing",
is able to destroy one male mortal (including ghouls) by aging him
Mechanics: The Necromancer "must have a personal possession of the subject,
as well as at least one Blood Trait, The ritual takes one full day to cast. The target can
resist by winning a Static Physical Challenge, the difficulty determined by the number of
Blood Traits invested by the caster during the ritual. If the subject ties, then he is merely
crippled and takes three normal wounds." (3-7-99)
Mass Grave
(Black Hand Book pg. 80)
Time Required: Ten minutes
Duration: varies
Components: A silver dagger, a sentient sacrifice and empty graves
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Advanced, Ability: Occult 3
This ritual is like Shadowland Passage except that it can affect an entire group.
Everyone going to the Shadowlands must be buried together in one grave, using dirt
mixed with the remains of at lest one freshly killed intelligent creature.
Mechanics: To enact this ritual the Necromancer must sacrifice a sentient
creature (Mortal, Vampire, Garou, etc.) by plunging a specially prepared pure silver
dagger into its chest. The blood, flowing from the dagger's wound, then pours out and
soaks the moist soil of the empty grave. This blood soaked soil is then used to lightly
cover the Necromancer and her entourage. This is usually accomplished by having
Ghouls do so, whist they lay in graves. Due to these actions, the Necromancer and her
entourage will cross the Shroud into the Shadowlands.
The Necromancer must have been in the location in the Shadowlands sometime
previously if she is attempting to transport herself, and her possible entourage, to
somewhere other than the directly corresponding Shadowlands. Once in the
Shadowlands, the Necromancer can return herself, and the -other- to either where the
ritual was enacted or to their current corresponding location in the Skinlands, and
therefore ending the ritual. If she does not accompany them, they my only step into the
corresponding Skinlands.
Shadowland Passage
(Black Hand Book pg. 80)
Time Required: One action
Duration: varies
Components: A silver dagger
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Advanced, Ability: Occult 3
"The vampire can physically pass into any location of the Shadowlands,provided
that she has been in that location before." "Members of the Black Hand use(d) this ritual
to get to Enoch."
Mechanics: "The necromancer symbolically kills herself by plunging a specially
prepared dagger into her heart..." (doing one Wound Level) "...and failing into a body of
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water deep enough to cover her. The dagger must be made from the purest silver, and
the hilt must have at least one vampire fang worked into it. The Necromancer, in a
method similar to Shadowgate, may carry any items that she carried on her while
casting this ritual into the Shadowlands.
The Necromancer must have been in the location in the Shadowlands sometime
previously if she is attempting to transport herself to somewhere other than the directly
corresponding Shadowlands. "When she returns from the Shadowlands, she will
reappear in the water."
Spirit Of Torment
(Sabbat Players Guide pg. 121, LoE pg. 93)
Time Required: Ninety minutes
Duration: Varies
Components: None
Prerequisites: Necromancy: Primary Path - Advanced; Ability- Wraith Lore, Occult 3
"Similar to 'The Haunting', this ritual lets you summon a spirit to do your bidding.
This time, the spirit is capable of taking on physical form and doing real damage to
others."
Mechanics: "in order to summon the spirit, you must win a Social Challenge.
Once the challenge is won, the spirit obeys your commands to the letter, until to it takes
damage to its physical form. At that point, the spirit flees." ...unless other means of
control are exerted over the spirit. "The spirit will stay only for a limited time based upon
the Necromancer's Occult Ability and/or her Spirit Lore. Only one such Spirit can be
summoned and sustained, without other means of control, at any one point in time.
"The spirit has 13 Physical Traits, seven Social Traits and three Mental Traits, It
has three Willpower Traits, the Abilities of Brawl x4, Intimidate x 3 and Occult. It also
has the following Disciplines: Heightened Senses, Aura Perception, Might, Unseen
Presence, Mask of 1000 Faces and Cloak the Gathering. When trying to frighten
someone, the spirit gains three bonus Social Traits (Frightening x 3). Furthermore, by
winning a Mental Challenge, the spirit can see and identify anything in the local Near
Umbra." In its normal form, the spirit is incorporeal, but it can spend a Mental Trait in
order to become corporeal for five minutes. The appearance, actions and other details
of the spirit are left up to the discretion of the Narrator.
Echoed Sacrifice
To begin this ritual, the caster must have at least one drop of blood from the
individual that she wishes to subject to this gruesome torture. She then must cut off the
limb of a living Kine, and draw mystical symbols upon one of her own limbs. That limb
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will suddenly shrivel and become unusable. The caster will experience no pain from this
self-mutilation; however, the target of this ritual will be subjected to hellish agony, and is
one trait down in all three categories while this ritual is in effect. The caster may end the
ritual at any time by severing her shriveled limb (this may be regrown in one week
through the expenditure of Blood Traits). It should be noted that this ritual is used only
to torture an enemy, and almost never to weaken them in preparation for an attack upon
them. Should the tormented subject die or drop into torpor before the caster ends the
ritual, all effects of this ritual become permanent (i.e., the caster's limb is permanently
shriveled and unusable and the subject suffers permanent trait loss due to severe pain).
Spirit Bringer
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Time Required: 16 hours (minus 1 hour for every level of Occult Ability and
Wraith Lore possessed by the caster)
Duration: Permanent
Components: Object to be imbued with Spirit Bringer. Three destroyed fetters
and at least one blood trait from each Necromancer that will be attuned to the item.
Prerequisites: At least one Necromancer with two Necromancy Paths at
Advanced. Plus the total Occult and Wraith Lore abilities must be, at least, 10 (i.e. One
Necromancer with Occult 3 and Wrath lore 3 another with Occult 3 and Wraith lore 1).
This ritual allows 2 or more Necromancers to imbue an item with the ability to
create a fetter with any Wraith that is created in its presence. This means that if
someone dies in the presence of the item and they become a wraith there is a chance
that the wraith becomes fettered to the item
Mechanics: To create the ritual the Necromancers prepare an appropriate item
and then bathes the item in their blood for 16 hours (minus 1 hour for every level of
occult ability and wraith lore). Each Necromancer involved in the ritual must expend
one willpower trait. Once the ritual is complete, the Necromancers involved are attuned
to the item and the item has the following properties. When a creature that can become
a Wraith dies in the presence of the item, they get two extra retests to become a Wraith.
These retests are used after any normal retests. If the creature becomes a Wraith and
had to use these retests, it becomes a drone with only the staff as a five-point fetter.
This drone cannot escape the presence of the item and is considered compelled to the
owner. If the creature becomes a Wraith without using the two extra retests, the wraith
does up to five mental challenges vs. the traits of the Necromancer who created the
item until he wins. Each failure means the item becomes a one-point fetter. If someone
not attuned to the item grabs it, they are highlighted in the Shadowlands with a pale red
aura and all wraiths fettered to the item will attack the person until the item is in the
possession of someone attuned to it. All Wraithly powers affect this individual with
greater ease and severity (Storytellers using Oblivion should require the target to bid an
additional trait when Arcanoi are directed against the bearer of the beacon).
A Necromancer attuned to the staff may choose to make any of the item's drones
visible to the skinlands All effects are permanent until the item is destroyed.
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End Credits
To tell the truth I really can’t believe it’s finally done. This project has eaten more
hours than you could possibly realize. Free time went out the window, and real life was
on hold. It’s done. More than 160 pages of it, with more than 30 people’s contributions
in submissions, editing, formatting, and loads more help. I couldn’t be more proud with
this final product. I may not agree with all that is contained here, but the effort that
brought it to you in this format is thanks the cooperation of many people that, to be
honest, just didn’t have to cooperate. Everyone did. They worked their butt’s off, and
you have in front of you the first packet of it’s type.
There were so many more contributors that I can’t begin to name them all. If You
aren’t mentioned here, and you know you helped, then know that I will thank you in
person, or have thanked you in person. Without the contributions of all on this project it
wouldn’t be as good as it is.
All My Thanks,
Dennis Sharpe
OWbN Tremere Coordinator
This document is an entirely unofficial use of the Vampire: The Masquerade and
A World of Darkness gaming materials published by White Wolf Game Studios and not
intended as an official or profit making venture in any way, shape or form. Although the
use of these concepts, rules, etc., is unauthorized, no infringement is intended. The
creator of this document is not affiliated with White Wolf Games Studios in any way.
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