Wraith_the_Oblivian

The Maelstrom Mortals

From rime to time, Maelstroms sweep across the

Sh>dowlands and cluough the Byways. Maelstroms are vorti· ccausc wrairh• frequently de.1l with humans,
oes of pure Oblivion that originote in the heart of the Void. ir is impormnr ro understand what injures
d'cm. 1-luonn.n.s' state ofinjury is measured hy
Sec Maebrrmm, pg. 41, for more Information. Aside from the u Trait called Health Levels. Humans have
fact that Maelstroms carry spcc~res with them, they also c~n 3even Health Levels, aso~ to a wrairh'$
do great damage to a wraith depending upon the level of the 10 levels of Corpus. Health can lx: rhrnd>t
of as a specrnom with "Bruised" 3t one eoo
Maelstrom: and "lncapacirared" at the ather. Each Health Level suffered be·
)-ond "Bruised" causes a human to suffer penalties 10acuons:
Maelstrom Level Damage
MortalHealt~ levels
One fourdke

Two slxdice

Three eight dice

Four 12 doce

Five 14 dice Bruised No effect

A wraith may resist this damage by using Casrigate or by Hurt · I

seeking shelter wiLhin a Haunt. Damage Is per turn ofcontact Injured .J
Wounded
with rhe Maelsrrom. .z

Mauled ·2

Crippled -5

lncapacicated

Mark offone Health Level for each wound that a char.x·
ter takes. Wr-Aiths suffer pen:~lties for wounds when they are

1113terlalited. The first four wound le••els hove no effect; the tNot only do mortals have to he.1lthls Health Level. but
last six function just like the six lc••cls for mortals (ranging
from Hurt 10 lncapacir:tted). the)• lose one point from one Physical Allribute as well. Mor·
tals who reach Incapacitated heal at the Sooryrellcr's discre·
~lortal Death
tiOni smnc cnrcrcomas for lhe rest of their lives.

If a mortal die> while possessed with Puppetry, the wraith

A n1urtnl or nnim~l who reaches lnc;;:tp3cittlted is one Health possessinA her may receive Corpus thunngc. Nmc rhar wrairhs

Level owJy from denth. If she is injured one more time, or if it is con healmorr.ls using the Usury Arcnnos (pg. 170). ,.,._.,...,.,
impo&sible to stem the flow ofblood from her body, she will die.
ohli~on
0(course, mnrmls heal differendy than wraiths do. With

pmper medical attention. mortals recover based on the fol· fo< wraulu, final death means f.1lling into Oblivion. There
lowing chon. Note that the time given is how long ir takes ro are several ways a wrnith can reach his ftnal death.

rewvcr thru p:micular Heolrh Level- other Health Levels • A wraid' who loses all his Corpus Levels 10 aggravared
wounds will arrain Oblivion.
must be henled as well. Thus, if the mona! rakes three months
• A wraith who reaches n score of zero in Willpower or
10 recover from being Mauled, he ""'"still rake rhc rime to Corpus (from nonaggravated wounds) will undergo a final
Harrowing. (Sec Harr,wing, pg. 184). The Harrowing docs not
heal \Vuundcd. Injured and so on. involve a Fetter or Passion roll. At the end of the Harrowing,
the player must roll permanent Willpower venus an oppo><.-d
Hc:ohh Level Time roll of permanent Angst (both rolls are difficulty 6). (( the
player falls, the character passes Into Oblivion.
Bnoised One Day
• A wraith who is Harrowed by SJX'<:Ir<'S will nee-d to un·
Hun Three Days
n,edergo 1he process of Harrowing. The •pecrre will usually target
InJured One Week
a Feuer or Passion to obliterate. Harrowing ends with a
Wounded One Momh

Maule-d Three Months

Crippled Three Months t

•.... ....

Fetter or P~ssion roll. If the roll botches, the pl~y~r must roll Mortals may expend WillpowN to continue to hold ohcu
permanellt Willpower :~g:~inst an opposed roll of permanent breath; each point expended allows the murml;mothcr 30sec·
Angst. If the player fails this second roll, the characrer de· onds IfherStamina isJ or lower, or " full minute if her Smminn
scends into Oblivion. is 4 or higher.

• A wraith who loses all his Passions from Harrowing When a morro! can no longer hold her breath, she begins
immediately falls into Oblivion. to suffocate or drown as appropriaoc. A drowning charocoer
suffers one Health Level of damage per turn; this is not n{Wra·
Mortn ls nrc affected by poisons, but wrniths are not. ''"'cd, but may not be healed until the morral is om nf 1he
(Though It Is ~id that 'certain Stygian lords have access to honile environment. When the morllll reaches lncnpncltotcd,
foul, ghe»tly poisons distilled from spectres' ttars... ) she will die in one minute per poinc orStamina.

Suffocation and Drowning Mental States

MonoIs col\ die byurownlng. The length of time a mortal his section discu:<Scs the chan_ges that can
can hold his brcarh is determined by his Stamina rating, per ovcrcnme a characttr's psyche or the minds
rhe following chan: o f those around him. Manv of ohe•e
chnntoes involve the Sh.,dow; for norther ex·
Stamina Holding Brearh plan:~rion or these, sec Chapter Seven.
I 30 seconds
2 One minute
3 Two minmc.s
4 Four minutes
5 Eight minutes

rranscendence denizens of the Underworld that its path is best. Heretics be·
lievc that only by fom>ing mutually Stipporrive, like-minded
Among those who believe that such " thing is possible, communities can wraiths hope tO achieve Transccmlcncc. lt is
Transcendence i:> the ultimate goal to which a wraith can as~ too difficult to stand form against the Shadow alone, they in-
pire. It is said that some souls pass d irectly to a State of inne r sist. Nonetheless, even in the various realms formed b~· Her,
peace immediately upon theirdemise, wh ile otherssl ipdirecd~r cdcs, corruption, ~&busc, selfishne-SS and the taint of Oblivion
imo Oblivion.Whatever the truth is, the different beliefs about
Tramccndcncc form some o( the pri nulry schisms among the are everywhere.

mrious f.1cr-ions of wraiths. If the Renegades can be said to have a collective opinion
on anything, it is ch;lt ifTranscendence docs indeed cxisL, iLis
The llicrarc hy firmly believes rhat Transcendence is
something that each individual has to find for h imself. Many
merely" myth, "childish fantnsy SliJliXlrted by the Hererics for state chat ifTrnnscc-ndence is possible, it is not anainable by
1he J>urposc of obtaining more souls. If there were a Trnnscen.- trying to get it; it either comes about or doesn't, based on the
dencc, what would distinguish ir from Oblivion?Scholars are spirituality and ethics ofthe individual. Reneg"des believe rh"'
tvaSivc, bur l!lany Hicrnrchs have pointed ou1: that Oblivion
andTranscendence ;.1re borh :=~n end of sorrs, a lo~s of idenriry each wraith shouldact in accordance wh:h his own c.onscie-nce
andself. They dismiss the notion ofTranS<:endence as either a and beliefs. J( the result is Transcendence, grcati if not, who
fairy tole or a fool's paradise, and try ro make the best of their
prc.~nr sinmrion. On rhc mhcr hand. cerrain Hierarchs whis.. carcsr
per that Charon himselfwas pursuing Trnnsccndcnce, and may
in (act have achieved it:. .. Believers in Transctndence say that Transcendence is a
state in which Ps,,chc and Shadow arc one, in which Eidolon
The Hcrcricsarc rhc fi rmest proponcnrsofTransccndcncc. merges wirh rhc self m achieve a level of uldnmtc sclf~mvarc..
believing thor each person mllst followthe path that best suits ness and inner peace. Althot~gh there are no hard·and·fast rules
forhow to pursue Transcendence, most Heretics state th~u Lhe
him. Of COlii'SC, each Heretic Cllil tries to pcrst~ade the Other first srcp is to resolve ~ny matters srill q•ing o ne ro rhc living
world. This alone is enough to turn many wrniths from the

path to Tmnscendcnce, out of fea,· that if their Fetters are dis·
solved, norhing will hold rhem ro rhc hmd of rhc Quick.

The next step, and undoubtedly the most dif(icult one, is
to come to terms with the Shadow. Wraiths tend to think of

the Shadow as some thing outside of 1hc msclvc.s, no longer a

part of them. By externalizing all that the Shadowstands for,
the Psyche is often repulsed b1• her Shadow, seeing it as a re·
pugmm t monsu:r. Yet o nly by achieving a balance between
Psyche and Shadow, say the Heretics, may Transcendence be
found. Some stare that the Shadow must be defeated: others
insist chat the Shadow must be absorbed and intcgrntcd into
the Psyche.

Storytellers should emphasize that Transcendence is not
merely a maucr of mcch:mics, but a spiritual journey si•nilar
to those in countless myths and legends. The hero's journey
through d1c Underworld is ultimately a quest for enlighten·
mcnt, mtd each player is a Persephone, a Dante, an lmun)a or
an Orpheus. The search for Transcendence is ultimately a
search for self, and not every chr~racrer is prep:ned lO f.-lee chc
labors demanded by such a search.

The shroud

The Shroud reflects the relative difficuhy to perform

Arcanos in a given Mea of theShadowlands. A local Shroud is
affected by a numbe,· of factors, including time of da)', how
m:m)' and what sort of people frcqucm the place, and so on.
The following chart provides guidelines for general Shroud
ratings.

The Shroud in an area cannot be reduced below 4, rC·
gardless of modifiers.

Mortals do not want to Face their own mortality, and any Mortals affected by the Fog react to wraiths in a variety of
acknowledgement of wmiths means that they must also ac- bizarre ways, but inevimbly block the encounter fro1n memory.
knowledge that they too will one day die. The Fog is the name
wraiths ascribe to mortals' instinctive denial of their existence. Those who do not comprehend rhe ren-or of death (per.<,
children, the insane) are not affected by the Fog, and, as a

result, can perceive wraiths with a successful Perception +
Alertness roll (difficulty 8).



~

tne:

rama

White. A blank page, or canvas . The challenge' Bting order
10 rl1e u;hole Lhrough design, cmnJJOsirion, wne, balance, S)'mme..
try, and hannony.

-Stephen Sondheim, Srmday in rhe Park with George

1l1crc urc many actions a player m~ght want her character As a genera l n•le, have rhe player make a roll only when
there is substantial doubt in your mind as to whether or nor
to t<lke during a n.arn - jumping }I fence, seducing a new ac.. the character will succeed in her action. If you can reasonabll'
assume she will succeed, rhen just let her do it.
quainrance or researching ghost stories in the library. As rhe
Storyteller, you already know the rules (from reading Chapter When you do start making rolls and have the players do
Four) and can probably figure our how to adjudicate a playel''s rhc same, make the rollsspecial and make them different. Don't
roll, hut there are a few techniques and extrapolations rhar waste a lot of time on a dice roll rhar doesn't do anything spe·
you might find interesting. That's what thischapter is all about ciaI for the story or that is uninteresting for you or the players.
Each roll of the dice should be a game in miniature, with strat·
- it provides :u lvice o n rules systems for resolving dramatic egy and (('ICtics co masfer and luck to inject the unexpected.

actions. Scenes

TI>is chapter is not meant to be all-inclusive. These sys- scene is n moment in a srory when the
lemsarc only cxmnplcs of how to resolve the actions taken b\' uoupc focuses on the events at hand and
characters. Use the-se as guidelines and invent your own sys~ rolcplays through rhem as if [hey were ac·
temsfor l'unning things. Don't stop the action in the middle of tually occurring. A scene may only require
adrnmaric scene ro look up something in [his chaprcr- just roleplaying and a lot or conversation. be..
m3ke something up, perh:1ps b~sed on a rules sysrem you first tween the players and the Storyteller, or it
l"ncountcred here. may involve a number ofdifferentaceions,
some requiring dice rolls.
You should only usc one o( the systems described in this
d~1pter ifa roll is truly needed. If the roll in quesrion isa simple
roll, none of these systemsare needed. If you're not interested
in rhc dmnmcreated by putting Lhe game into che story, use
the :.lutomatic success rules. Gn m d1c Tmits ClHtpter and, by
rl"'ttding abour the Trnit in question, determine if the character
succctxls or noc, without rolling Oil)' dice.

A scene is l ike~ series of shots taktn in a movie, in the used (it can be relatively borilljl). you shouldn't avoid it alto·
same location and at the same moment in 1.hc stOry. h is rhe eerher. Use downtime to org;1ni:e players, direct the story more
<SSCnce of roleplaying, wh<"D players dcxribe rheir charncters' prtcbely, and progress the plat more quickly.
rcawons to events rother than explainine what they intend
to do. Tile story can tum into a scene m almosr any time. Often
it does so quite nan1rally, withotn anyone realizing it has hap-
You should do cvcl)'thing you can to make rhe .cents in pened. For insrance, while you and the pla1·ers discuss how the
yuur srory a$ drnmatic, complete and fulfilling as possible. The charaClers intend 1.0 make a journey to Chica.so's Necropolis,
you may begin to describe what they see along the way. You
more you give each scene an exciting bcginnins, an action· have gone from downtime ton SCCI\C. When you begin role-
pnckcd middle and a fulfilling (or srmtcgically fmstrntine) end, playing a Drone who noats up ro them nnd reenacts herstran·
the berrcr your story becomes. gula<ion, you have completely Immersed them in the scene.
Bysimply roleplaying without wnrninrl, you jump-star< the play·
Describe the scene not as a static picture, bu1. us u plncc or ers into their roles, instantly beginning a scene.

"I"'"tionc full of life und action. It should have irs own existence Turns
from rhc characters. The Renegade lender does not sim·
ply sit nt a table - while the characters are wmching, he culls sctne is di••ided into turns in order 1.0 or·
over one o(his henchmen and begins ro bernre him. Crtt\[e an ganizc and nrucrure rhe arrnngemenr of
open-ended story in your descriptiOn$ and Invite the ployers' even!$. A rum Is a variable period of tim<
charocters to enter it. Don't force the players to animarc your during which characters can do things.
crentioo - breathe life into it from the very beeinnine. Such a unil helps rhc Sror,~eller keep rrack
o( what is eolng o n and ensures that each
lime '" rhe story not spent in a scent is called downtime.
Thb can be when characters travel or conduct cxlcnsivc rc·
search, or can sionply be a period during wh1ch " 15n't neces·
••ry to roleplay every moment. Do\vntime is a b~nk from the
intensity of the scene. Though downtime should not be over·

-

playergets the same chance lO do something. In one rurn. e-ach and hear complainr:s like, u\Vait a minute, you didn't say an~·..
charocter should be able co do one rhing. Additionally, each one was over there!'' You may also w~mt co clescrihc rhe cnvi..
player should be given about the same amount of rime rode· ronmental conditions and how they might affect the scene.
scribe what she wants her character to do. Each rum. go :uound R3in, wind and smoke can affect the difficulties of rolls.
the table in order of initia<ive (see below), give each player an
opportunity to state an action, and then go co the next person. In general, ler a character do ne3rly 3nything she cares to
When you get to yourself, descl'ibe the actions of the non· rry, even if you assign a difficulty of 10.
player chMacters.
Organizing an Action Turn
Even if doing so might not make complete sense, you
•hould usc the tum structure pl'etty loosely. You might, for ex- Jusr as rums organize a scene. t:here are different stages
ample, let someone climb a rrec while someone else fires a within each turn. Still, you will probably not need to subdi·
guo,even though in nonnal circumstances climbing a cree usu.. vide turns unless they are action turns. Though you need nor
allymkes a minute, while shooting a gun takes only three sec· go exacrly by the following stages, look over this list to get
onds. Adrenaline makes people do amazing things, after all. ideas abom how you c...1n organi:e rhings when Lhe action gets
hot. The better you've organized a scene, the more smoothly ir
Multiple Actions
will go a ncl rhe more fun everyone will have.

A character can perform mulciple acrion.s in a tum (such •Describing the Scene
as dodging and shooting a gun), but he has to divide his dice.
To splir a Dice Pool among different actions, the character At the beginning of each turn, you should describe the
takes the dice from the action at which rhe charncter is least scene from the characters' perspecrive. You may want to sug·
1killed (the one with the smallest Dice Pool) and divides that gest what the characters' opponentS might be about to do, bm
Pool tlmong ;,ll the actions he wishes to perform. do not acruallydcscribc what will happen. Sometimes this will
be a wrap·up of the lasr turn, making it clear to all players
A character with multiple acrions rakes his first action what occurred. This son of constant description is cssenrial if
during the normal order of initiative (unless he deliberately you want to avoid confusion.
delays). He may cake no more than one action at this time.
After nil charncrcrs have completed their first (or only) ac- This is your chance ro organize and arrange things so that
lion. characters with more actions may cake their second ac.. all goes smoothly when the players begin ro inreract wirh rhc
tion, :tgt~in in order of initiative. After everyone has taken a environment you have created. You should make yourdescrip·
.ccond action, play proce<-ds with the third and subsequent tion as interesting as possible, leaving open all sorts of possi·
actions in order of initi::uive, as above. \Vhi1e a character may bilities for characters' actions.
delay his accion, he must perform it before the rest of the char·
ac-tc~ move on to their next action, or it is lost. However) a. The players need to roll for initiative (see lnioimive, be·
character can always use dice to dodge, as long as he has dice low) ro dctcnnine tl1c order in which their characters will ace.
left in his Pool. In espc<:ially complicated simations, you can have rhe players
describe to you what their characters intend ro do rhat turn,
Action Scenes starring with the player who rolled the lowesc initiative (the
chtm\cter \\'ith the highest initiative spcHks lasl, after she has
any scenes me so full of actions and dice heard everyone else's actions, and ~cts first).
rolls that they require special nrles to en·
sure everything runs smoothly. These are If you wish to be panicular1y free,spirited, eliminate the
times whe n adrcm1linc is racing and pac~ initiative roll alcog:erher and have the c::haraclers net in what..
ing is fast. Action scenes are rhe fights, eve1· order you wish - e.g., 10)0 the distance, you hear Hicmr..
races and featS of danger common to ad· chy gongs and sec that the Renegade at the end of the alley
vcnrurc swrics. Turns during an action seems to have nociced rhem ;,swell. He wins the initiative and
scene nrc usually very short, lasting only three seconds or so. sprintS toward the fence. What are you going ro do?"

Many different tys>es of actions can occur in an action •Decision Stage
scene, (lnd corrclaring everyrhingcan seem a little uicky. Make
sure you cnrefully describe where everyone is in the scene, as Going in reverse order of initiative (if rhc players made
well as what cover is available and how far it is from the char· initiative rolls), have each player explain what her ch"racter
:1Cters. Q{hem,isc, you will have ro describe the scene again intends to do <tnd how she intends to go about it. If you did
not call for initiative rolls, simply go around the t:tblc from
left to right, or in order of character Wits, or using wh:)tcvcr
consistent merhod you like.

You then decide how you want to resolve rhe action - •
what kind of roll each pl~yer must make, the difficulty of the
roll , and the number of successes needed. You can make the Initiative
process as simple or as complicated as you like - e.g., "If you
want to catch him before he gets over the fence, you need to At the beginning of most scenes, you need to figure ou1
make a Dexterity + Athletics roll, difficulty 6. You need to who goes firs£. Rolling for initiative is the best way ro decide
score six successes to calch up with him, bur he only needs the order in which players will rake their turns for the remain·
three more co get over the fence.n der of the fight. Sometimes it will be obvious who goes firs1,
such as when an ambush was set or when one combaranr is
· ~esolution Stage clearly <:-aught by surprise. In combat, however, if you intend
ro let the opponents have a free shot at the charae~crs, you
This is when the players roll tO see whether their chara.c- should not simplyspring the foes on the players. Let themmake
ters succeed or fail. The players roll dice to attempt the ac- Perccpti01\ rolls (di(ficult ones) ro see ifcharacters notice some·
tions they described in the preceding stage. rhing just before the bad guys open up. Othenvisc, you'll ha"e
a pack of whining jackals on your hands. l11c difficulty de-
At the end of rhe rurn, you need to summarize everything pends on how well the ambush was set (usually 8 or so). The
by describing what happened and translating all dice rolls into number of successes the players score indicates the number of
description, plot and story. Don't simply say, 11You manage to dice they can roll on their first actions (usually dodges).
hit the bad guy for three Corpus Levels ofdamage." Get more
C"' Phic and say, "After ducking away to the left, you sweep In a normal sicuation, each playermakes an iniciative roll,
across with your fist and strike him in the head. Your hand and you do so for each of the opponents. Everyone involved
stings, but you've wounded him for three Corpus.-.. Or, "With a makes a Wits+ Alertness roll (or you can have them roll Wirs
great burst of speed and a daring leap over a garbage can, you +Brawl, Melee, Firearms or any appropriate Ability). Thedif-
race down the alley after him. Next tum, you will be able to ficuh:y is usually 4 -characters with the most successes ac1
make a grab at him before he gets away. However, you see a first. 11esact simultaneously. Chamcrers who fail act after chose
Hierarchy coach pull in around the corner of the alley." who succeed{."{( last. A lxnch on an iniri:.uive roll means the.
char~crer does not ger to act that turn - his gun jams, or he
stumbles and cannot punch or dodge.

Jahng Actions

1be four b."l.IIC actions characters can take without mak-
ing rolls are:

• Yielding: The char:~crerallows the ptrson with the next
highesr inidotive to take hisaction, thereby yielding her tum.
She can still take her neeion at the end of the tum. If every·
one, incluuing her opponents, yields as well, no one does any·
thing chat turn.

• Healing: The character may usc her Parhos to heal
wounds to her C<>rpus nt a rare of one per tum. She muse not
take any other actions chat round; if she wishes to move, ; he
must make a Stamina roll (difficulty 8) to heal. Note that ag·
gravoteU wounds cannot be healed in this manner.

• Moving: The character may move by walking, jogging
or running. Ifshe walks, she may move seven yards. Ifshe jogs,
she may move 12 yards + Oexcericy. If she runs, she may move
lOyards + (3 x Oexcericy).

No roll is r~uired to move, but movement is rhe only
action alloweJ to rhe char:~crer in that tum. In some sirua·
tions, it can be hazMdous to jog or run, and a roll might be
required to maintain b.1lnnce when rhcre is glass on the ground
orbullets nrc raining down. lf :.l character wants to run n.way
fromaconflict or enco~lnter, she must dodge unless she is not
in the Oeld of Ore or otherwise hindered.

Dramatic Systems

!$Ctibed below arc a variety ofdifferent systems co resolve ac· indicores rhat the character has climbed five feet. Once he
tiocu, or, ro pur it simply, a bunch ofways to make rolls. Ifyou occumulntes cnou.gh successes to get tu where he wants ro go.
prefer co roleplay through dramatic scenes, just use rhe>e •ys· he can stop roll ing. For example, Samuel Is trying to climb n
25-foor wall, so he needs five successes to get to the to;>. A
rcnu .. suggestions of what sorn of things failure Indicates the character is unable to make any progress
can happtn during thescene. Physical dra· during the turn. A bmch indicates the char:~cter fallsand can·
not acain attempt co climb without expending a Willpower
mntic systems are the most numerous1 be· point.

Cllusc rhcse actionsare impossible ro resolve 2 Easy c limb: a tree wi<h manystout branches
rhrough roleplaying alone. Social and Men·
toIsystems can be simulated by the players. 4 Srmple climb: a cliff with many handholds
6 Straigh tforward: a tree with thin bmnchc:s
pnysical 8 Treacherous: \'Ct)' few handholds

The•e systems describe physical :octions and confront~· I0 ExrTemely difficult: a nearly sheer surface
tions-dromatic situarions in which Physical Attributes pre·
domin:nc.

Climbing

When a character auempts to climb any sort orsurface (a
tree, cliff or building), ask the player to roll the character's
O.xterity + Athletics. The difficulcy dep<nds on the sheer·
ness of rhcclrmbing S<trfuce, the cype of surface being climbed
and, to a lesser extem , the weather conditions. Each success

pursuit

A character's Strength is ofren u..d alone, without an Thi.s simple sysrem is used when o ne characlcr attcmprs
Ability, (or actions where bn~re force is all that matters. This to catch another. One opponent starlS with a ccrmin num~r
of successes. Tilis number is eirher determined by the Story·
sys<em works on the same basis as automatic successes. If the teller (this is the preferred method) or by having the pursued
cha..,.cter roll Dexterity+ Athletics (difriculry 6) for each tum
character's Strength equals or exceeds the difficulty ofthe cask of headstart he has. Add up rhc numberofsuccesses ~chievcd.
This number of successes must be achieved by the other char·
she is attempting, she succeeds automatically. Only i( the J if· acrerbeforehecancatch up. Once hedocs, he can rry togrnw!e
ficulry is higher than his Dice Pool must she make a roll. the fleeing person (sec the comb:n mles). The pursuer might
only want to catch up halfway, in ordtr to get a better shot ar
When the character nuokes the roll, however, it is based rhe fleeing character.

on Willpower, nm S=ngth. It is a simple roll, so the charac·

tcr gelS only one chance to make it. The difficulry is alrr>O$t

always 9, though it can vary according ro the surface condi·

tions, the structure of the object being lifted, and Storyteller

whim. Each success lncreases the character's cffec<ive Strength ~epair

by one step on the chart below (to a maximum offive steps).

TiluS, i( the characrer has a Strength of 4. but wants to nip Oetting something fixed is not always as easy as roking it
over a car, she needs three successes on the Willpower roll to to the garage; sometimes the task h:u to be performed oneself.
When a character wishes tO fix any sort of mechanical implc-
do it. menr, he must roll ~xteriry +Repair. Tite difficulty" deter·

Dice Pool Feau lift mined by the complexity of rhe r:uk (see the chan below).

I Crush a beer can 401bs. lle(orc the job can be considered complete, a certain number
of successes must be collected, usually between rwo and 20.
2 Break a chair 100 lb.. Each roll means that a certain amount oftime is spent- what•

3 Break down a wooden door 250 lbs. ever the demands of the story require. A botch indicates tlun
the device is somehow damaged in the attempt.
4 Break a 2' x 4' 400 lb..

5 Break open a mcrol fore door 650 lbs.

6 Throw a motorcycle 800 lbs.

7 Flip over a small car 900 lbs. This system can be fun to u~e during combat, as one char•
acter dcspcr•tcly tries ro start the car while the others (end o(f
8 Break a three-inch lead pipe 1000 lbs. the Hierarchy's lxlrghem.

9 Punch through a cement wall 1200 lbs. Job Difficulty II of Successes

10 Rip open a steel drum 1500 lbs. Simple mechanical «-pair 4 3

II Punch through I' sheet meCII 2000 lb.. Sokk:ring job 2
Electronic malfunetion ;
12 Break a met>~llamp post 3000 lbs.

13 Throw a car 4000 lbs. Fining in new part 10

14 Throw a van 5000 lbs. Repair stalled cor 5
Tough auto repair 10
15 Tilrow a <ruck 6000 lbs.

System overhaul 20

Technical glirch 2

j umping requires a Strength roll, or a Strength+ Athlet· sna~owing

ics roll if it is a horizonral jumpand the character gets a decent

running start. The difficulty for a jump is almost alwa)'$ 3 (un·

less there are difficult weather condnions or there is a narrow Sometimes a characler will want to follow someone. In
landin.~t space). The Storyteller calculates how manysuccesses order robe led somewhere interesting, this ne<-ds robe done 35
discreetly as possible. Titat is wh•r shadowing is all about -
arc required to make the jump. Tilere arc no panial successes following someone without the pursued knowing the chan.IC·

in jumping; the character either succeeds in one roll, or she rcr is rhere.

falls. There are two componcnrs w shadowing- keeping track
o( where the subject is and making sure he doesn't sec his tail.
Type of Jump Feet per Success Shadowing c:m be conducted on foot or in vehicles. Rolls can
even be made if someone else is driving, such :u a taxi driver
Vertical (up) 2 - "I'm sorry, but I can't remember the oddress - rou'll juor
have ro follow my directions. Take a right at the comer. No,
Horizontal (across) 4 wait. a left!"

The chamccer attempting to shadow must make a Percep-
tion + lnvescigation (or possibly Streecwise) roll. The diffi-
culty is normally 6 (though it con vary ftom 5 to 9 depending
on the rhickness of crowds, relative •pecds of vehicles, and
•~ather conditions). Each success indicates chat che tal'f(et has
been followed for " rum. A certnln number of succcs.<es is re·
quircd co follow the subject all the w:Jy co his destination. A
bilure indicates that the characttr has temporarily lost the
subject, but can try ag3in next rum. If she fails a S<.-cond time,
shehns lost the subject completely, nnd the chase is off (unless
she can think of a 1\ew npproach). A botch indicates chat the
character has not only completely lost the subject, but she is
10 involved in shadowing that she gets into tro<~ble of her own
-a gllng tries to beat her up, she mils inco an open manhole,
or she has a car accident.

TI1ough the Perception roll is the mosc important aspect
ol shadowing, a Stealth roll muJir olso be made to see if the
subject notices he Is being followed. Each tum the Pcrceprion
roll os made, the Stealth roll must also be made. The player
must roll Dexterity + Stealth (or Dexterity+ Drive If the char·
actcr is in a vehicle). The base difficulty is the subject's Per·
«1>lion + Alertness, but this can be modified by up to three
points in either direction dcpcndln.: on the circumstances
(empty strc<:l5 or thock crowds, for Instance). A single success
indicares the shttdower is not detected, and each odditionnl
success also makes it more difficult (or the subject to spot the
shadower, even if he Is actively looking. A failure indicates
the subject becomes suspicious and starts to glance surrepti·
uously over his shoulder (and may make Perception rolls of
his own; see below). A botch indicates thechar:tctercomp!erely
rcvcnls herselfand rhc subject now knows he is being followed.

If rhe subject Is alerted somehow (by the sh,.dower's fail-
ure on the Dexterity + Stealth roll) or simply looks to see ifhe
is being followed (oor of habit, perhaps), roll Perception +
Investigation (or Streetwise). The difftculcy is the Stealth+ 5
of the shadower. Each success on this roll indicates n higher
degree of suspicion. Successes can be accumulated from turn
to tum; see the chart below to see how alert the subject is to
the met that he is beinu followed. Failure means that nothing
out of the ordinary os seen and the "suspicion value• of the
subject decreases to <ero. A botch means the ;ubject is con·
vinced he isn't being followed und no longer looks behind him.

Successes Suspicion

I Hunch

2 Suspicion

3 Ncar·cerrainty

4 Positive knowledge

5 The shadower has been spoiled

Buddy System: Two or more chnracters can share shad·
OIYing responsibilities by trading off. llowever, Lhey mom have
prcvimosly worked/trained together in this rechnlque; ocher·
wise, the difficulties of all rolls for the pnir are increased by

one. One player shadows for a turn or more, trading off when·
ever her partner gives the signal. If the pair swirche.~ off, rhe
subject can't ttccumulate successes forvery long, which makes
it much harder for the subject to spot shadowers.

Snea~ng

When a character attempts to hide in shadows or sneak
up on a guard, she must roll Dexterity + Stealth (difficult)' of
the guard's Perception + Alertness). Anyone who is on watch
or actively looking for intruders can be considered a guard.

TI1e sneaking character needs to collect a certain number
of successes in order to make it to where she wanes to go. A
Perception + Stealth roll can be made if the player wants to
estimate how many successes will be needed; the difficulry of
this feat is usually 7.

Failure of any sort on a Stealth roll indicates detection.

Stunt Driving

Thissystem Is used to determine the outcome of nearly any
'l'P" of automobile chase or maneuver. Dice rolls in chases an:
made not only tO see how fuse a driver goes, but also co see ifshe
sc.~ys on the road. Each vehicle is raced for irs maximum safedriv·
ing speed, as well as its maneuverability. One vehicle is notal·

ways as fast or maneuverable a.'another,so the det<1ilsofthe chase

often depend on the make of the vehicle (see the chart below).

A character can make special maneuvers in ocdcr to catch
or lose another vehicle, such as spinning around a tight cor·

ner, doing a 180° rum, or wheeling about to block a road. Es·

sentially, one character makes a special maneuver, and the other
character must copy that maneuver by rnaking the same or an
approximate roll.

The player must roll Dexterity (or perhaps Perception)+
Drive. However, the vehicle's Mancuvcrabilicy rating dictates
the maximum number of dice rhat can be rolled. The com·
plexity of the maneuver and the speed of the car determine
the difficulty. You should ~ive each maneuvera basic difficulty
frorn 2 to 7, and then designar.e a speed at which it can be
completed at that difficulty. This is most often the Safe Speed.
but can be much less depending on how complicated or tight

the maneuver is. The difficulty increases by one for every LO

mph the vehicle exceeds that speed while performing the ma·
neuver. The driver decides how fast her vehicle pcrfonns the
maneuver, aldwugh she will nor always be able to decelerate
enough to avoid a crash or collision.

Six-wheel truck 60 100 3 ncr consistent with the rnood of your game. lt can be as
Buo 110 slaphappy or as deadly serious as you like.
18-whcclcr 70 120 4
Sedan 70 120 5 Willpower points can be expended to resist fast·ralk.
70 130 6
Min i ~van 70 140 Interrogation
100 150 6
Co mpac t 110 170 lmerroga<ton can be used in a number of different situa·
130 240 7 lions. It is a form o( questioning, not torture, though intimida~
Sporty COm(XlCt 140 8 lio n is cenainly employed. To nurc can be used, but you will
S(Xln coupe have to develop your own ntles for that if you wish to include
9 it in your chronicle.
Sponscar
FoonubOne r,lCecar 10 The player mahs a Manipulation+ Intimidation roll (dif·
ficulty of the v ictim's Willpower). The number of successes
~ocial indicates the a mount of information obtained (see the chart
below). A failure indicares rhe character le-arns norhing of
These systems involve social interaction ~tween people. value. A botch. indicates the subject tells the charocter noth-
ing and will never tell him anything - or worse, the subject
TI1cynearly always require a Charisma, Manipulation or Ap· lies. For this reason, rhe StoT)•teller should often make the roll
for the player.
pe:mmce ro ll. O fren rhese systems are be.sr left unused, with
tht succeos or failure ofa particular oodal ploy instead resolved Successes Interrogation
through roleplaying. I O nly a few mumbled facts
2 Some relevant facts
ereoioility 3 Much interesting information
4 The subject talks on and on
This system is used when a character attempts to con· 5 Everything of import is discovered
vince someone she is relling rhe truth: for example, when she
attempts to persuade a Hierarch magistrate she is not lying or Oration
tries to convince a police o((iccr of her identity. The player
must make a Manipularion +Leadership roll. The difficulty is ](a player wants hercharocter to give a speech, but doesn't
the other oubject's Intelligence +Subterfuge. Lower the diffl· actually want to recite it. you can use this system. The player
culty by one to three if the character io telling the truth (it should at lease describe what her character says and maybe
does make a difference). Each success indicates a higher de· reci(e a memorable phrase - that might even get her started
gree ofbelievabilir:y. Five successes indicate the subject is corn~ into roleplayin:g the speech verbatim. O ration is often very dif·
plttt ly convinced. A failure indicate> disbelief, and a botch ficultto roleplay, so never fo,·ce your players to do oo. j ust use
indicates the character is caught in a lie (or the subject think• this sysrem.
he has caught her in • lie).
The player makes a Charisma + leadership roll. The dif-
fast-Talk ficulty depends on the mood of the crowd, its willingness to
hear what rhe oraror.says, and its pcnch;:mt for throwing rot..
F::.sr~ralk is a means of verbally bro wbeating and confus~ ten vegetables (difficulty is usually 7). If the orator has any
ing someone into submission. Manipulation + Subterfuge is son of reputation, you may wish to adjust the difficulty ac-
the most common roll for such a feat; Charisma or Appear- cordingly. The numher of successes indicHu.-s how imprcssl.-d
the crowd is (~e the following chart) . It is a simple roll, so the
:mce can somerimes be substimtcd. The d ifficulty is the target's player has only one crack at it. A failure indicates the crowd
\Vits + Strcetwisc. ignore..s the cha racter. A bmch indicates the characteris going
to be attacked (or, if that oorr of thing isn't common, booing
Success indicates that the target becomes confused and is begins).
likelyro agree wirh the subjecr, :.u least momentarily. Failure
indicntes that the attempt has faltered, and the target can try Successes Crowd Reaction
to interje<:c something - an attempt to explain himself, or
even an attempt to fast-talk back. A botch indicates that the They listened, but aren'r excited
target doesn't get confused , only angry. Fast·talk attempts by 2 Tile character has convinced them somewhat
che character will never again work on him. 3 The crowd is won over

Rcp<:atcd rolls might be necessary to confuse the target. 4 The crowd is completely enthralled
As Storyteller, you need to r" n attempts at fast-talk in a man-
5 The crowd ioin the p3lmofthecharocrer's hand

If the speech is vital to the story, the player may make Me-diocre Polite applause
:.cvcrnl rolls. If you want 10 spend some time on it, you can
m.1ke It an extended acrion, inter>persing each roll with role· 2 Average Approval
playing. The character can spend as many rums "'she would
like on the speech; afrer rhe rhird tom, however, the difficulty J Good G<."Jluincappreciarion
increases by one e.1ch rum. More successes thai\ five might be 4 Superior Vit;orous applause
required to win over the c.rowd complerely. 5 Exceptional &static reactioll
6 Superb lmmt..Jiarc scnsarion
This system is used whenever" dmmctcr gives any type Mimcle, 11111gn11mopus
o( pedormunce, whether it be comedy, music, acting or 7 Brilliant
storytelling. It can be on a sroge or in a nightclub, and cnn be
formal or informal. Se~uction

The plnycr muse roll the appropriate Amibme + Pcrfor• nrSeduction is nn ummtuml mc:ms calnlngIntimacy with
mance (or Expression). The difficulty is bused on how recep-
tive the audience is. A failure indicates a lackluster, eminently anmhcr person, because everys<ep Is cnrefully smged nnd renl
forgettable perfonnance. A botch indicates a miserable perfor· feelings are not shared. A seduction 1nkcs place in sC~fJC.<, and
mance that cannot even be finished - the instrument breaks Ull less a person su<:<:c4...·ds durinJ:; cnch consecutive stage. he will
or the character is booed off the stage. nor succeed a< all. This sys<em Is designed to replicme the ac·

111c number of successes indicates how moved the audi· rlvities of a dominant person over n more submissive one. If
encc is (see the chart below). These successes determine the
artisric merit or technical verisimilitude of the pi~'Oc. the emotions and motives :ore true, then )'0<1 shOt•ld ignore
this sysrcm and roleplay it out.

Opening Line: The player rolls Appearance+ Subterfuge.
The difficulty is the WitS+ 3 of the '"hJCCt (the player gainsa
bonus of one ro rhrce dice if lr'$ " s;ood line, minus one to

rhree if it'< a smpid one). Each success after the fir~t adds an The player rolls Intelligence+ lnvesrigar.ion (or sometimes

mra die w the roll on the next stage. an appropriate Knowledge Abilir;y after a place to conduct re·

Witty Exchange: 1l1e player rolls Wits + Subterfuge. The search has been found). The difficulty is based upon the ob·
difficulr;y is rhe Intelligence + 3 of the subject. Again, give scurity of the information.

bonuses and penalties for roleplaying. Each success over and Difficulty Accessibility of Information

~bove the base adds an extm die to the roll on the next stage. 2 Generally available

Conversation: The player rolls Charisma + Emparhy.1l1e 4 Widely documented

difficulty is the Perception + 3 of the subject. Again, roleplay· 6 Accessible

ing bonuses cornc into play here. 8 Difficult to find
lnrimacic.o;c: At chis point, the couple may m.ove to a pri.. 10 Incredibly well concealed
1l1e number of successes determines how much the char·
vate area and become physically intimate. No roll is required.

Mental acter discovers. O ne success might mea11 that o11ly the most
obvious facts are found, while five succes.~es might mean that

These dramatic systems deal with the use of the mind and the full (a11d maybe truthful) story is uncovered. Depending
Mental Attributes. They arc employed in situations where on the precise information sought, 10 or even 20 successes
dmma iscaused nor so much by the action as by psychological might be required ro find all the available dara.
lension.
The player might want to continue r~search after gaining
a par{ial success. However, continued research rakes longer

Dreaminterpretation than the initial search. Basic research usually takes only an
hour - that's the first roll. More in-depth research (and a

Among wraiths, dreams often concain important informa- second roll) rakes one complete day. If the player·1vants a third
roll, further research rakes a week; a fourrh roll takes a month,
rion. Unforrumrtcly, this knowledge is often shrouded in mys· a fifth roll takes a year. After that, usc your imagination. It is
terious symbolism and obsct1re references. This can make it e.asy to see how some research projects can take years or even
very difficult for a wraith to decipher his dreams.
decodes to complete.
n,e player ofa wraith who decides to figure out the deeper

meanings of his dreams must roll Perception + Enigmas. The

SearchStoryteller decides the difficulty of this roll, based on the ob·

scurity of the drtnm and it'S importance lO the character. The This system enables a character to search for something
more important the information contained in a dream, the in a confined area, like a room. Have rhe player roll Percep-
more thoroughly it will be hidden, and thus the more dif(icult tion + Investigation; the difficulty depends on how well the
rhe roll will be. Not all dreams have information hidden within object is concealed (it is usually between 7 and 10). Each sue·

rhcm, hut go ahead and let the players roll anyway, to keep cess indicates that more is found. Somerimes a certain number

them guessing. ofsuccesses is required to find a deverly hidden objecr. If you

Dream$ should be rnysterious things, rich with bizarresym· wam:, a lower numberofsuccesses could warrnm a hint orclue

bolism >lnd personal myths. Stof)•tellers should spare no effort from you, thus encouraging roleplaying and a degree of puzzle

when designing important dreams. The players will appreciate solving. As much as possible, lead the player through the search

it. step by step. Have her describe to you where she looks. Don't

Sometimes, a Storyteller may decide to have a recurring let her succeed if she doesn't specifically search in the right

dream haunt a certain character. If this is desired, Dream In~ area, and let her succeed automatically if her description is

terpretation can become an extended action. The Swryreller derai led enough.

de<idcs the difficulty of the task and the number of successes Track
needed tO unravel the hidden mcanit\g within n recurring
dream. This system is ust-d to track people and things by follow·
ing the physicaI trails rhey leave. The player rolls Perceptioll
~e~earch + Strectwise (or Investigation, if applicable). The difficult)• is

RescMch is often the only way for a character to proceed based on weather conditions, terrain and the age of the trncks,

to the next stage of a story. A character may have to investi· but averages around 8. Eachsuccess lowers the difficulty of the

gare m:~ucrs in a library, inn newspaper office or through com, next roll by one.

puter files in order to obtain needed information. Research is The character needs to succeed for a certain number of

a great way to let a character with high Intelligence show off, rurns; the exact number depends on the length of the trnil.

aod mkcs r.he focus off ftiSt·paccd action. Each turn is usually about five minutes long. If the character

misses a roll, sht: can try again; this time, however, the diffi.. characters who rolled fewer successes take their actions in de·
culty Is one hi~her. O nce it cocs "bove I0, the character loses liCendlng order of successes. Some characters will act simulm·
the trail. neously because they rolled rhe same number of successes (or,
if the Storyteller chooses, the one with the highat Dexterity
Combat goes first). Th.ose who gain no successes ar all on this roll~
last, and those who borch do not get to take actiolls at all.
f some a.uhole swm ro think he's Chorles
Broruon, brtak his nose with the buu of -your Rcmcmbcr ro have players decln1'e whill actions rhey wont
their characters to cake during the cornbar turn before going
gun . to the Attack Stage. A player splitting hls character's Dice
Pool must declare how many dice he is allocating ro each :K:·
- Mr. Whire, Rewvoir Dogs tion.

Combat In Wraith aucmpts tn capcure A character's actions hoppen when it is her turn tOact.
the drama of violent confl ict without The onlyexception ro this is the dodge, which a characn:rcan
downplaying the grim reality of what is perform at any time as long as she has dice left in her Pool.
going on. We have made every effort to create a >ystem m1e to
the dynamics. limitations and viciousness ofreal combat while Stage Two:AttacK
srillleavlng room for the unique dements wraiths bting co it.
The attack is the meat of the comb.11 cum. This stage is
There nrc three types ofcomb.", all of which usc the same where the success or failure ofan action is determined,'" well
basic system yet have some minor differences. They are: as something of iu potentiol impact on the target.
forefight, melee and brawl.
The Roll: There arc three differcnr types of ottack rolls;
• A lircfight is any type ofarm«! combat using projectile the type of combat determines which one to use.
wcapoJU - things like Uzis and sawed-off shotJ:UnS. Oppo-
nents normally need to be within sight of e.1ch other to en- • For firearms combat, roll Dexterity + FirC>rms.
• For melee {wirh weapOns) combor, roll Dexterity +
gage in a lircfight. Melee.
• For hand-ro·hnnd (without weapons) combat, rnll Oex·
• Melee refers to fighting with hand weapons- anything tcrity + Brawl.
from broken bottles co darkstcd axes. Opponents need to bc The weapon 0< atmck used by the attacker determines the
within one or two yards of each a<her co engage in melee.
base difficulty of the mil. The number of dice rolled might be
• A bmwl describes a hand-to-hand battle fought with modifie-d by rhe &un's race of fire or d1e usc of a scope, but rhe
bare hand5 -unarmed combat. Opponcnu need robe within
r.ouching distance to engage in a bmvl. difficulty is usually modified only by the circumstances of che nt•
tnck. If no successes arc obtained, the character fails his >ltluek
The •·oils made in combat determine whether or not an and inflicts no damaJ:e. Ifo botch is obtained, then nor only does
attack succeeds, whether the rorget dodges and how much cl,m. the attaCk fail, but something nasty happens to the attacker; the
age rhe t~rget suffers. AlmO>tllll comhar turns are around three Sta<yteller nc«<s to invent something cruly awful.
-onds long, thoogh they ral:e somewhat lo~r than that ro
resolve. Any time someone arcacksa character, she has the uprinn
of dodging. In fact, a ployer may announce at any rime th.1t
As with all action scenes, comb:u ntrns begin with an ini~ her character is using an action (or p;trr ofone, by dividing her
tiative roll. However, bcc;tu~e combat can sometimes get a liule Dice Pool) to dodge, simply by declaring "Dodge!" before the
sticky, divide rhe cum into three stages - Initiative, Attack opponent makes on attack roll. Some situations may prohibit
and Rewlutlon - to make it c:JSicr ro keep track of things. a dodge, such as In confined quarters or when the character
has bcen surprised. The required roll is Dexterity + Ood~c;
Stage One: initiative each success subtracts one success from the attacker's roll. A
character can even subtract succcsscs from d1fferenc opponents.
This smgc organizes the rurn and is where characters de· though this means dividing successes between (or among)
clare their uctions. Ch~I'3Cter$ can take a number of different them.
actions- anything from leaping behind a wall tO shooting a
warning. Each player must declore what his character is doing The difficulty to dodge melee ur brawling attacks is a bose
in as much derail as the Storyteller requires. At this point, 6, Increased by one for each opponent after the first.
everyone needs to decide whnt weapon to use, if :~ny.

C haracters make initiative rolls using Wits + Alertness
(difficulty 4, though S10rycellers can vary this roll if they so
desire). The character with the most succeMes acts first, while

In fircfights, the difficult\' depends on the availability of
ne:>rb1• cover behind which a character can dive to avoid get·
ring hit. Each success removes one ofthe opponent's successes.
After such a dodge attempt, the character usually ends up be-
hindsome sort ofcover or, at the very least, lying on theground
(if there is no cover to be found) .

The difficulty to dodge during firefights is determined by
the proximity of cover.

Difficulty Terrain
2 By moving back lull(a step, the character is
back under full cover.
4 Full cover within divingdistance (one yard)
6 Full c<>vcrwicl>in runningdistancc (thn:c y•rds)
7 Panialcoverwithin n1nningdistance (th!'C<' yards)

8 Flat and featureless. no cover (the character
dives to the ground)

StageTnree: ~esolution

[)uring rhis srage, characrers determine rhe damage in-

flicted by their attacks, and the Storyteller describes what OC·
curs in the turn. The Resolution Stage is a mixture of game

~md smry, for though t he dice never lie, t he Storyteller musr

interpret what luck has decreed.
Damage: Each weapon or arrack allows the wielder to roll

a certain n umber of dice in order co inflict dam;:1ge (difficulty
6) . Each success causes the target to lose one Corpus Level.

Additionally, each success scored with a firearm (after any
dodge) adds one die to this damage roll. Melee and brawling

successes do not add ro the damage.

Soak: A target may make a roll to see howmuch damage
she "soaks" because of her natural hardiness. The target rolls

Smmina (difficulty 6); c;1ch succe.ss reduces inflicted damage

by one.
Exception: Damage and soak rollsarc two rolls in Wraith

that amnot be botched.

Complications

A number of factors de{ermine whether an atrack hirs.

Smart combatants head for cover as soon as bullets start fly·
ing. Others find that ganging up on one foe in a brnwl never
hurts. The following modifiersdelineate manyofthe variables
that affect combat.

General Complications

• Changing Actions: Ifa character changes her declared
action after the turn has srartcd, the difficulty for the new ac·
lion increases by o ne. Generally, the Storyrdlcr .should o nly
allow the character to change her declared action if events
have made it impossible. "Yes, I know Isaid my character would

Embody inside the car, but that Renegade jun used Outrage character's body is still out in the opell. However, though cover
on rhe g:..s mnk!" protects, it can also hampc:r n:tum f'irc, and in Mme rare ins.nmces
can complerely prevent ~ny rerum fore. For instance, docldngout
• Immobilization: If a mrgct is imrnobilizt-d (e.g., held from around a comer to shoot may increase the difficulty by one,
down by somc•mc), but sdll smo&&les, rhe difficulty for the at·
rack mil I• decre<md by two. However, if the rorget is com- while watching a shootoutthrough the cmcb on a barrered wall
pletely immobilized (e.g., is tied up or Otherwise pantlytt-d),
then no roll is r<-quin.-d and the arrnck succeeds mnomati~lly. probably prevents~ ch~mcter from Aring back :u all.

• Srunning: If, in one tum, a target loses a greater num· Cover Difficulry
ber of l lcalth or Corpus Levels than its Stamina rating, it must
>pend 1he en!ire ncxr rurn shaking off rhe effects of the debili- lying flat +I

r:n ing arrack. n,e target may nor arrack, and irs Dice Pool for Behind pole +2

defensive nclions (i.e., dod~in~) is halve'<.! (rounJ duwn). Behind wall +3

firefig~t Complications Only head exposed +4

• Ran~c• Getting dose to one's foe is n ~ood idcn if nne • Movement: Shoocinc ::at a moving mrget increases the
~,locMl'L mind taking a few shots in rerum. l11e r.ml,'C &;IVCn on the difficulry by one (or even more), ns docs shooting wh ile mov-
Forc:mns Chort Is the we.1pon's medium tM!l\'; the character re• ing at any speed foster than a wulk (such ns firing ouc [he win~
cclves no modifocr for shooting at this range. Twice tlmt "'"~"' is
dnw of a speeding car).
the 1\uthc'>t ohc wc:opon can shoot. SllOill whhin rhi< "'"1."' have
• Aiming: A character may add her Perccptioll rating to
theordofficuhles inci'C:l<ed by one. On the other hand, sllOill mnde her Dexrcriry + Fircanns Dice Pool if she spcncl• rome aiming.

at targets within a yardo(the attackerarc consi<lcrcJ "pouu·blank"; However, aiming rakes one nom per die added, and during this
d1c difficulty of:o point-blank shot is 4.
time the character can do llOlhing but oim - it takes time and
• C.wer: Intcllogcnr charoctcrs usc cover to protect them· Jllltieoce ro aim. Additionally, the tart..:t may""' be moving ar a
selves from enemy fire. Cover increases the diffocuhy of :m speed f.tsrcr than a walk. Shorgul15 and SMCs cannot be aimed.
ouack b)' a vnrinblc amount, depending em hnw much of the
Ifthe gun has a scope, thechamcrermay add nvodice to her

Dice Pool in addition to the dice added for Perception. The scope

honuscan beaddedonlyonce-nfterthe initial three dice added

in the first round (two for the sco~ and one for Perception), the The recoil ~nalty is cumularive. Thus, achar.octcradds twO

ch:tmcter conrinua aiming as outlined above. on rhe third shot and three on the fourth. lt is 110( usually wise to

• Targeting: Aiming for a •pccific location (gun hand, snap offshots blindly; the n:coilalways catches up with the gun-
the henrt) increases the difficulty by two. man. Using th~ rules. it is ~nni.,nblc to fore two or more three·
round burotS in a single turn, though ncharacter can only fore on
• Multiple Shots: If a character wants to roke more than full-auto once per tum (and must reload to do it again).
one shot In n rum, he must divide his Dice Pool into two or more
actions. Also, for each additional shot after the flror, the difficulty • Full-Auto: The full-auto option i; the most damaging

incre.1ses byone. Ten is, ofcourse, the maximum number to which armck a fircann can make; the attacker 1tnloods rhe full con-

thedifficultycan be raised. Acharncrcrcan fore a maximumnum- ttnu ofa gun's ammunition clip within a very short time span.
However, the gun becomes a bockme bronco, difficult to con·
bttofshOtS equal to the rate ofthe A<"'arm.

rrol and even harder to aim.

firearms C~art

Type Difficulty Damage Runge Rate Clip Concealment Pathos Use

ial) 6 4 12 3 6 p 1
7
Re,oolver, H''Y· 6 35 2 6 J 1
Colt Anacond.1 (.44 ma um) 7 p
4 20 4 17+1 J 2
Piaol, Lt. 8 5 30 3 7+1 2
Oloclc·l? 9mm 8 8 200 I 5+1 N
7
Pl$tol, llvy. 4 25 3 30+1 J
,.,..,.;;.Si~gP220 (.45 ACP)

Rifle
RemlllitOn M-700 (.30-06)

SMG, Smnllt

6 4 50 3 32+1 T 3

7 7 !50 3 42+1 N 2

6 8 20 1 5+1 T 3

Shor~:un, Scmi-•utn 7 8 20 3 8+ I T 3

Finnchi law-12 (12 • u e)

·t 1 I1

Archaic Pbtol (17rh Cemury) 6 lttt 20 J

Rimlock Duell Pistol

Archaic RiRc (1 7th Century) 7 8 50 1ttt 75 N 2

Brown Bess Flintlock Rille

R:mgt: ThiJ Is the practical range of the g·un in yards. A chonncter ml\y nre on a target at up lO double the li$ted range; however, thi.s is

consklcn:d n lunw·nmwc shot.

·n,eRntc: maximum numhernfhullet:4 or Uucc•rO\Ind bur,'tS the 1:\U"' con fire ln I'ISincle rum. The rate docs not upply to fuiJ,auto or spray fire.

Clip: The number of bulle" rh•• con be held in one clip or in the hmel. The +i indioues that a buller c.on be held In rhe chamber,

mak1ng Lhc gun ready to fire.

Coi\Ct~lnlent: P • can be hidden in a pocket: J• can be hidden inside a j3c:keri T • can be hidden inside a Lrcl\chc.oar: N =- c.·mnor he

hidd~n on one's penon at all.

t lndotes tht gun is a>pable of mree•round buna, ful~auto fin: ond Spni)'O.

tt Tht cr"""""', unlike a firearm, doc:s not add auack successes to rhe dam;~ Dke Pool. Additionally, • crooobow takes five rums ro rolmd.

ttt Thc:sc: archaic "·capons mu>t be rtlood<d meti<uiO<J5Iy or rhty will mllfir<. Rull Dexterity + Fireonm (difficulty 6) ro reload. If)'OU
cachicve more than ri\•e 5\1<:~!11 ym• mny flre cwo shot~ in one round. I( you bocc.h. the we:1pnn misfires and may damU.Js:C' you.

firefigntComplications Melee Weapons Table

Difficulty Dke We:apon Difficulty Damage Conceal

+I S.•p 4 Strength p

on ·2 Club 4 Strength +I T

+I Knife 4 Sucngrh + I J

Foil 5 Snength +3 T

•I Saber 6 Strength +4 T
+2
+3 Broadsword 6 Strcngrh +5 N

+I MeleeandBrawl Complications
+
+Z • Multiple Opponent$: If a character is bauling multiple
opponents in close combat, rhat chnmc~er's atrnck and dodge
+2 difncultles are increased by one per opponent (to a maximum
+1/extm shot - of 10).
+3 +10
+1 +3 • Aank and Rear Attacks: TI1e difficulry ol • fhnl a<·

s+1 +10 tack Is lowered by one, while that ofa rear attack Is lowered by
rwo.

A chnrnctcr gers I0 additional dice to roll on the attack, Melee Complications
thw increasing the chance to hit and cause dam.~ge. llowever,
rhe di((iculty is raised by three from the recoil. • Parry: A charncn~r using 3 melee weapon may ck'Ct ro
parry an attack, using her weapon to block the blow. Like a
Full-auto fire is pcrmi&sible only when a weapon has more dodge, a party can be performed at nny time, so long ns the
than half irs clip remaining. Whenever a character uses the character still has dice in her Dice Pool. A character cnnnm
full-auto option, he depletes the entire clip of the weapon. parry with a weapon as small as a knife, but she can use a swocd
Reloading takes one full action and requires the character's
full conccnrrnr;on {and Dice Pool). or axe. She rolls DexteritY+ Melee (di((iculty 6). E:lch success

• Three-Round Burst: The semi-auto option is the middle subtr~C.t$ one from an opponenl's number of attack successes.
ground bc[\vccn the full-auto and single-shot options, and has
some of the srrengths and weaknesses of borh. A burst gives A botch on a party roll usually means th31 rhe f"lrtying
the ;~tracker three additional dice on the anack roll. However, weapon is knocked from the character's hand.

the recoil incrcas.:s the d1fficulty by one. As implied by the Roll: Dex + Mekoe Difficulty: 6 Damage: none
Actions: Special
option's name, three bullets are expended per u.<e.
• Disarm: This maneuver is • n atrempr to knock the
• Spray: When on full-auto, " choracrer can decide to we~pon from an opponent's hand. The charac<er rolls Dexter·
spray across an area insrcad of focusing on ol\e foe. A spray ity + Melee; add one to the weapol\'s 1\0rmal difficulty. If at
uses the extm IOdice given by full-auto fire, bur rhe attack has least three successes are scored, she chen roll$ the weapon's
damage; if she scores more successes than the opponent's
a base d1fflculty of 5, incrcnscd by one per yard covered by the Srrength rating, the opponent Is disarmed. A borch usually
means the character drops her own weapon.
spray {In addition tu orher modifiers).
Roll: Dex + Melee ,Difficulty: +I Damage: SJ)<.-cial
The playerdivides any successes gained on the attack roll Acdons: I
evenly among all targers in the covered area. Ifonly one target
is in che $prayed area, only half rhe $liCCesses affect him. The Brawling Complications
player then assigns any Ideover successes.., she des1rcs. If che
auacker mils fewer successes than there are targtcs, the player • Block: A chat:.ICter can elect to block instead of dodge.
may only assign one per rarger until they are used up. This like a dodge, a block con be perforn1ed at any lime, so long as
attack nlso empties rhe clip. the character still has dice in his Dice Pool. Blocks may be
made only against fons, kicks or blunt weapons. A blocking
The difficulry ola dodge roll '*"i'"'' uspray is increased by two. actio!\ cannot block a sword, arrow or bullet unle&s the de·
fender has an Arcnnos that provides special protection (such
as the Martialty power). Roll Dexterity+ Brawl (difficuhy 6);

t.ach success subtracts one from an opponenes number of at.. Roll: Dc:x + Brawl Difliculty: 7 Damage: Special
mck successes. Actions: I

Roll: Dcx + Brawl Difficulty: 6 Damage: none • Grapple: An attacker can tty to grob a foe, hoping to
Actions: Special immobilize him and subsequently crush him. If the attacker
scores more :successes rhan rhe opponent's Strength, the atp
• Body Slam: A character charges forward, hurling his tacker can immobilize him. [n the next round, she can begin
weight into hisopponent. It is possible to damage oneselfwith to inflict harm. Any character struck by this attack loses his
this attack; bodies were nor meant to be used as bauering rams. attacks for the cunent rum.
A charncte:· needs three successes to unbalance an opponent.
He inflicts one Corpus Level of damage on himself for each If the attacker misses altogether (by failing the Dexterity
success fewer than three. + Braw[ roll), she is knocked down and must spend an action
getting to her feet.
If the attack succeeds, the opponent is thrown off bal·
:mcc; difficulties for the rest o( her accions this turn are in.. Continuing to grapple during each rum after the fir.;r re·
creased by two. Also, if the opponent does nm succeed in a quires the combatants to make opposed Strength+ Brawl rolls.
Dexterity+ Athletics roll (difficulty ofthe atrocker's successes \Vhoever accumular.es more successes may immobililC the
+3), she falls to the ground. The base damage done equals the other. lfboth score the same number ofsuccesses, neither gains
3tt3cker'sStrength; each success scored on rhe atcack roll above the upper hand this turn.
the minimum adds one to this base. If the attacker does not
score ~It least three successes, this maneuver fails; he falls to Roll; Del< + Brawl Difficulty: 6 Dam:lgc:Strength
the ground and is treated as though he has no dice left in his Actions: I
Pool.
• Kick: A kick can range from a very simple front kick to
The character can move his full running distance, but he aerial spins. Depending on the circumstances, the di(ficulty
musr n.m in a straight line; weaving around in circles doc~ not and damage modifier may be adjusted (Storyreller's discretion).
build sufficient momentum. The damage from a kick is never aggravated.

Roll: Dex + Brawl Difficulty: 7 Damage: Str + I
Actions: I

• Punch:The attacker balls her hand into a tight fist ond
swings it with all her might. The Storyteller 0\01' adjust the
difficultY and/or allow extr:t dice if the attacker decides the
rype of punch •he wishes to deliver: h<JOk, jab, haymaker, etc.
The damage from n punch is never aggr:tvated.

Roll: Ocx + llr.m~ Oifficulty: 6 O:unage:~

Actions: I

Brawling Cnart

Maneuver Roll Difficulty o-..mage Actions
Body Slam
Grapple Oex +Brawl 7 Special
Kick
Punch Dcx +Brawl 6 Strcn~ th
7
Dex • Brawl 6 Sucngrh +I
Strength
Dex +Brawl

Armor

A character with body armor can add dice to her smk
rolls. Different rype• of body armor have different armor tot•
ings, which (Ire the number o( cxm1 dice rolled on a soak roll.
Certain rypes of annor rcsrricr body motion and thus pcnahze
the character's Dcxreriry rolls (all rolls invuh•ing rhis Attribute
have rheir difficulties raised by an amoum equal to the pen·
airy).

Armor is nuoinlyused by morrals; there arc very few sets of
relic armor in the Underworld

Armor

C lass Armor Rating Penalty
0
ellS$ One (n.-inbeed ~) I
0
Class Twn (armor T-shirt) 2
I
Class nuee (vest) 3 I

Class !'our (flak jacket) 4 2

Cl"ss FIVe (full suit) 6

freeform Comoat (Optional)

The Storyteller should be flexible when arbitrating com·
bat situations; no mles c.1n fully reflect the voriety of slrun·
tions encountered Oil the bauleficlrl . The Storyteller should
feel free tO let the players devise mles for special >itua<ions not
covered by any of the existing combat maneuvers. For their
part, players should remember that rhe StOryteller is the uhi·
m~ue :ubiter in such situadons, :md hl'r word is (inal.

!(bickering or slowed combat results, go back to the stan·
dard manCU\"ef$ given above. n1cy arc broad enough tO handle
most siruarions. freefonn combat is meant to add depth to 1hc
game, 1\0t create ccmOict between the players >nul the Srory·
teller.

There: should only be two dice rolls involved in any com-
loot maneuver: an anack rolland a damage (oreffe<:t) roll. All
dll-.:ts from the maneuver should be fill'"ed chrough these two
rolls. An exception to this rule is a movement-based maneu-
,.,. (see below).

Ah:md-to-hond attack is made with a Dexterity+ Brawl
roll, while a melee tltlack is made with a Dexterity + Melee
roll. If a character Is trying to outsmart or fool an opponent,
the roll could instead use Manipulation plus an appropriate
Ability (such as Brmvl, Intimidation or Subterfuge).

Difficulty

The difficulty for a maneuver is usually 6, but this can be
raised or lowered depending on the maneuver's complexity or
prteision (for example, a hamstring has a higher difficulty be·
ause u anns for ;1 certain area).

Ifthe maneuver is dcsign<-d to fool an opponent, the diffi·
culty is usually the opponent's Wi~ (or Perception) with a + 4
conStanr modifoer. Sometimes the difficulty is an opponent's
Ability+ 4. or, rarely, an opponent's Attribute plus an Ability
(such as Wics + Omwl), In which case rhe constant modifoer Is

nor11secl.

~e~iste~ ~oils

Snmclimcs u chnrncter can resist an an.ack against him,
whether by dodging, performing an evasive action or using
ano~ler maneuver. The Storyteller should decide whether a
romboranr •hould receive a resistance roll. The resistance roll
•·ill ofton ""!Hire the combatant to split his Dice Pool if he
also ~'llncs ro attack that nom.

Tioc exception to this is resisting Arcanos. Characters can
r«lst Arcanos atmckJ without splitting a Dice Pool. See the
panicular Arcan05 wrlte·up for derails.

~uccesses

Generally, nn mmck need• only one success to hit; dam·
age is 1hen rolled. II\ some instances, however, a set number of
successes is required, ><och as when a character tries to crappie
an opponent (he wou ld need more successes than his
oppconem's Strcn~th score).

Damage (Effect)

Use ~le Brawling Ch.~n to detennine damage and adjust
from rhere fnr sp<:ciool conditions.

If the effect Is to fool or confuse an opponent, the ~neml
rule i> thnt each success on the at<ack roll subtracts one die
from the opponent'> Dice Pool. In this case, only rhe attack
roll is made: there Is no separate damage roll.

Multiple Actions: As always, a character will hav~ to split 212), while • leap from a hurtling train omo a running horse
his Dice Pool ro ~norm multiple actions in one rom. may have a difficulty as high as 9. TI1e churncrer must split his
Dice Pool between the acrobatic roll and rhe attack roll. How·
Movement: Normally, a charncter may not move and at· ever, the Storyteller should use the Automatic Succcs.< rule
whenever poosible.
tack in the snmc action. T he Storyteller can allow movement·
based maneuvers to be p~rformed with the following guide- There ar~ 50m~ exceptions to rhis rul~. In the interest of
dramatic license. If a charncter has se~n many sw<..shbuckler
lines. movies and practiced th~ flamboyant moves she has seen, the
If a charncter is ~rfonning 50me acrobatic feat, such as Storyteller might allow her to swing from a chandelier oud
attock without having rn split her Dice Pool.
leaping, swin~ing from a chandelier, etc., then ~ Dexttrity +

Arhletics roll may also be required. The difficulty depends on

the complexity of the m•neuver. A simple roll to de<ermine
leaping disronce has a difficulty of only 3 (see Jumping, pg.

of play

he Requiem was filled with breathers. Notes

Wendy danced by herself In the rafters, pre· I. Note that Requiem is a popular place for wmiths be·

cariously balanced on the highest beam. cause it is also a Haunt 3.

She drifted in the sounds of the techno· 2. Mouse used his Ricker Arcanos ro ger rhere. You\·e

industrial e.xplosion playlna: on the stage. gotta to give him style points.
[I) She danced, stepplna carelessly here
}. The player has invested five llackground points in an
alld there, totally absorbed in the lights, artifact pair of keys. Wendy loan<-d the keys ro lucl'·
!he music and he.r movements.
4. Mouse is t:~lking about the spectres who hang our in
A quiet voice called to her, a voice that she could hear
even through the poundillg music. Mouse appeared up in the Oakland Cemetery {see Necropolis• Atlanta for more infor·
ntftcrs with her. His straight razor gleamed as he snapped it
cloeed. [2) His voice seemed to grow louder as Wendy's ears matiun) .
adjusted to the Shadowlands. "Hello, Mouse," Wendy said.
What's up?" 5. TI>e Storyteller feels forgiving coda1• and lets Welldy
have a Wits + Fatalism roll to ovoid the impending danger.
"Wendy.Sweet Wendy.! was wonderlna: Ifyou'd seen Lucy.
Any klwr· Wendy's player rolls the dice ~md scores one sucoe.'iS: not grea.t.

Still , the Storyteller lets Wendy catch the first half of the plot
against her. Centurions are Skinriding Into the Requiem. She
doesn't have much time left.

"lucy? Why do you want her?She rhinks she'• a goddess 6. The Centurions Skinride the bounetrs. Normally this

or something. She's crazy." would be hard, but these Centurions have been attuning these

"Oh! Welldy, that's not a nice thing LO say. Crazy isn't morLals lo them forsome time. Titcy find the mtuncmcm usc·

bad. We're nil craty. l know for a f•ct that youarc. Lookat how ful when rhey have to raid clubs looking for people.

you dance. That's nor crazy? You're dead."

"Doesn't mean I have to be bored, does it?"

"You knowwhere she is, don't you? She has your car keys,

do<!n't sher' Mouse smiled a thin, wicked smile. "Can't do

much without your keys. can your· [3)

Wendy shrugged. "So? Yeah,! know where she is. Why do

)'OU want to knowr-

Mouse cupped her chin lightly, delicately. She almost

turned away from him. "I need her. I need...ngoddess. Some·
one to... invcstigate goings-on in Oakland. A nasty·nasty.

Gmvcs upon graves." (4)

Wendy llarrowed her eyes. "What...benscies?''

Mouse smiled, clapped. He looked toward the strobes and

laughed. "Give the girl a cigar." He $Wiveled reptilian eye$ in

her direction."Beasties. Nasty creatures.Spectres. Things that
go bump in the night. Saints preserve us!" he screamed, and

laughed manoacally.

"Shut up!" Wendy said. At that moment, the hair on the
back ofher neck prickled. She felt the movement of Fate shift

11.1 she hcnrd Mouse's laugh, and clapped her small hand over

his mourh. (5(

Wordlessly, she pointed down. Mouse squintc-d hard to

see in Lhc darkness, and then noticed the shadowy auras sur..

roonding three ofthe bouncers. She had seen this strategy used
in nightclubs before, and she could even see the hilt ofa sword
this time. Obviously, all three were possessed by Centurions.

161

Mouse nodded silently and opened his straight razor. He 7. Mouse usa h10 srraight razor to rip open a crack into
slashed it through the air, opening a hole down w the Tcm· rhc Shadowlands to enter the Tempest. Of course, this is the
pest, and held out his hand to Wendy. [7]She took it, <rying to s1, me Tempest that gives Wendy the jitters. He rolls his Strength
trust him as she listened to a far-off voice. +Argos and cuts open rhc Shadowlands to allow h imself ac·
cess.
"He's b..ck, isn't her' Mouse whispered."What's he sayingr•
Hegrinned as he ~ized Wendy's Shadow. Whenever itcalled 8. The Shadowguide player is trying to use reverse psy·
to her, italways imbued areddish tint to hereya and hair. Wendy
shook her head. "He s•ud that hecan't w:lit to play in theTempest chology. He's hoping to get Wendy to die In the club, so he
wanrs ro keep her from escaping.

•b'<'in. I...I don't wanno go in there.• [8] 9. The manacles are made of Stygian metal, so they can't

Mouse shrugged his shoulders. He looked at Wendy, then be broken.

at the cmck, and then back at Wendy... and past her. He saw I0. Wendy'sShadow takes over. This is done through role-
one of <he Centurions rising slowly to the top of the club, hi• playing or by using the simple rolling system in the book. The
gladius shimmering cold and sharp, his face a death's head with Shadow has a Relic Shotgun as a Thorn: itonly manifests when
fires for eyes. Mouse flashed Wendy an apoi<Jt:etic look, then the Shado"' is in control. Obviously, her Shadow has the Par·
turned and vanished inro rhe Tempest. cnt Archetype.

Wendy whirled as the Centurion landed on the rafter. 11. Wendy (playing her dominant Shadow) rolls Wirs +
"Cease and desist, Heretic. You will follow me to the Cimdel. Alertness for initiolivc ;tgainsr rhe Cenwrion ~nd wins. She
You must be properly registered. Come now... l won't harm then rolls her Dexterity+ Firea.rms (diff'lculty 6) nnd scores a

you..."The Centurion had a pairofmanacles in his otherhand, whopping three successes. Wendy then rolls her damage: eight
and Wendy doubted his intentions. So what lucy had said was
true. She'd been brande-d a Heretic after she'd sraned running dice plus three dice for her cxrra success equal$ II dice! Yikes!
with Shoo-Fly and his Circle. [9]
She rolls them, scoring six successes ngainst difficulty 6. The
Cennorion triesdesperately to soak thisdaffia8C, but to no avail.

"I don't think so," she said, trembling. "I'm nor into whips He scores no successeson his soak roll. TheCenrurion Is ripped
and chains!" Why was she so nervous! Couldn't she talk her apart by the scattershot, and Wendy has a chance to ~et away.
way out ofthis! She felt a sharp pain in her chest, and her eyes
srarred rogo wild .This isn't going 10 tuor, she thought. I'm going 12. Wendy expends a Corpus Level to ";>hasc" through
to have to... the wall. There is no roll necessary.

The darknw within her broke free. "I'm not into )'OUr 13. The Storyteller quickly rolls to see If Wendy takes
lirtle games. I'm Into this ...• she said, as with one fluid motion damage for the full. He's not sure if the roll is correct, bur he
she drew a shotgun from the empty air and pumped it one· decides that keeping the pace of the scene is more Important.
handed. Her Shadow £ent cold waves of approval. That's my Wendy doesn't 01ke damage, and the Storyteller moves oo.

ba/ry. No one messes with Daddy's girl... (10]

The Centurion froze. He had been mken by surprise, nnd
his backup was too busy Skinriding to notice. He frantically

reached our, hoping to wrench the gun from Wendy's hands.

He lunged into the shotgun blast, and flaming birs ofhis plasm
streamed out behind him, evaporating in midair. The rest of

the body twitched as it fell to the stage below. (Ill

Suddenly Wendy was back in control. Wru that what I rc•
ally toonted w dul Blnsro of soulflre from the dance floor inter·

rupred her reverie. She turned and ran.

She plunged through the wall. She felt the steel and mor•
tar as she passed through it, and the tingly feeling of the clcc·

tricity stung her M she moved through the club's wiring. (121

She jumped into the alleyway on the odtcr side, srill in·

corporeal. As she braced hc.rsclf for the fall, she fell to the

pavement below. (131 Her Doe Martens splashed in a pile of

greenish fluid. Battered trash cans lay strewn in front of her.
She turned, and snw the Cohort adv•mclng on her.

In chains, shaking in the middle of a Cohort of Centuri·

ons, Mouse gave her a pleading look. They had alrl!'•dy grabbed
him from the Tempest. We.ndy screamed as she felt the power
of the Ccnturio.u hold her fast.

An nrroganr Centurion walked slowly toward her, draw- 14. Lucy arrives!!! just in time, too. A combat ensues:
ing a pair of manacles. l-Ie grabbtd her arms roughly, rwisting this time the Storyteller moves throu~:h the action wid>out
them hchind her back. As she uied to summon the will to rolling. l-Ie only wants to use this scene to set up a fight, so he
move, he st:med to place the cuffs around her wrists. Then a uses rhe dramatic moment as an excuse to have a little fun
shaft of moonlight caught something falling from above. himself. The Storyteller grab<'! some miniatures, players reach
fur combat dice, and the story continues...
A p;tir ofcar keys, shadowy nlld indistinct, landed on the
ground nt the Centurion's feet. [14] Puzzled, the Centurion
looked down - and immediately paid the price for h is deci·
sion. Scrcmning from the darkness, descellding from above like
an angel of mercy, Lucy made her entrance.

One long leather boot slammed Into rheCenturion's neck.
As her black cloak swirled in thedarkness, Lucy kicked,snarled
andslashed. A silver locket gleamed in 1hedarknC$$, and shred-
d«< plosm sprayed on the walls.

A body fell. Lucy stood over the fnllen Centurion, beck·
oning to the rest with a delicately gloved hand. "You wanna
fi~ht!" ;he hisS<Xl, shaking with rage. "Fight me..."

Only cme nf tlte Centurions scayed in formation with the
gtO\IJl. As the other soldiers panicked, he took out his blade and
~All swinging his sword in an intrlcme pattern in front of him.

Mouse screamed in outrage, and Wendy grabbed her keys
Mshe rolled behind the rrash cans. Manacles fell to the ground,
and the sound of n shotgun being pumped echoed down the
alleY""'Y· Some Centurions were gonna pay..•



•

Antagonists When souls are lost to Oblivion and chot><e to embrace

~~ectres its power, lhcy arc mkcn over by [heir Shndows nnd b<:.c;onH:

~e Army of Darkness rcccpmcles fnr rhe power ofObliviorl. Such Speer res are called
Shades. Shades are hungry gho•rs wirh lirrle guiding intelli·
pcctrc.' •re wrnlths who have succumlx:d to gence: tht)' have tremendous cunning, however, and arc quite
Oblivion. They serve and worship ir even as clever in seckrn~ rhe sustennnce they need.
it COO$UOIC$ them. Many Spectre$ are weak,
even pathetic, but some are virtual ~- Shades can neither mnnifcst in [he living world nor visit
the Shadowlnnds (unles.< brought rher~...ond even then Lhcy
&cause ofthe fact tl>atOblivioneo<rrses c•m'r sray for long) because they do not poi»e>S Ferrers.
tluough Ulcir pl•sm, all Spectres possess a
form ofgroup telepathy -a sort ofcouun~V Shades appear in many fonns: some of them (the more
recently corrupted) appear b05ic.1lly human, while others have
nat hive-mind. The more powerful agiven Speare JS, rhe greater l>ccn damaged and twisted by the chaos ufObliviun muil they
resemble monsters. All of Lhcm rmliarc a cold, block phospho·
iu link to Oblivion, and the more informacion that Spectre re· rescence: the mys uf Oblrvion.
ceives. Malfeans commonly spy on the Shadowlands simply by
sending afew Spectres into an arta. Everything that the subordi· C~aracter Creation
r~uc SpectreS hear, the Malfean hears. It is said rhat Spectres can
abo use Nihils to eavcodmp on rhe Shadowlands. Artributcs 6/4/2, Abiliric~ 11/7/3, &ckgrounds 3. Will·
power 0, An~:-n 8, Corpus 7
11ltte arc many differtnt species ofSpectres: it is a c:uch-:>11
tcnn for the con\lpted entities who dwell in the Tempest and Suggested Attributes: Strcngrh 3, Oexrertty },Sramina J,
serve Oblivion. Two kinds '"'"' commonly Interact with wraidrs: Charisma 0, Manipulation 3, Appearance 0, Perception 4, In·
the near-mindlc.. Shades and the terrifyingly intelligent tclligcnce 2, Wirs I
Oowclgangers.

(A Shade's Perception is >~lwny..harp because oritspreda-
tory nature.)

Suggested Abilitits: RegardIt$$ or who or what they wert
in life, Shades have succumbed to rheir btstial nnrure and usu-
ally have at k..,, Bn"vl 2, Dodge 2. Alertness:>, nml Stealth J.

Powers: Shades have various special powers (see btlow).
Most Shades have only one power, although some of the larger
Shades have up to three. This power is most often "Pathos
Dmin"- Shades are incredibly hung!)' creanores and require
the warmth ofemotions to withsmnd rhe chill of the Tempest.

All Shades cnn fly unh indered through the Tempest and
have the abiliry ro locate entrances to the L1byrinth. They
also h.1ve the ability tO sense a wraoth by its amount of inner
Pathos: those wit!> !.'!"Cat amounts of Pathos (7+) bhnc like fire
in the Tempest's darkness.

Relics: Shades usually don't have relics, but some carry
knives or clubs or some sort.

S~a~e rowers

• Shark's Teeth- The Shade can do aggravnrcd damage
with a bite: Strength +2.

• Ectoplasmic Tentacles- The Shade can attaek twice
a cum, but usualll' doesn't wield weapons.

• Pathos Omin -The Shade can drain one point of Pa-
thos per success on art anack roll. Pathos points arc converted
directly to Angst poinrs for the Shade on a one-for-one basis.

• Spectral Scrt.'m-TheShade can scream onto1heTem-
pest, thereby summoning one to flve more Shades. Use of this
power cosrs five Angst points. Shl!des are generally loathe to
do this, however, bccm1se [hey might attract the aucmionofa
ravenous Malrean.

• Bind - The Shade must first successfully grapple his
GJ'l:et. (See Combat Manerwm, pg. 223) The round afler grnp-
plin~t the target, the Shade covers the target completely and
musr be destroyed to free tile targer. The encapsulated wraith
b usually calfied orr inro rhe Tempest to an unccrrain doom.
Use of this power eo5ts three Angst points. Some Shades use
thos power to conceal other Shades wrrhin them, burstingopen
at the appropriate moment.

• Numbing the Heart - The Shade can •nuck a wraith's
Passions directly. infecting 1he wrnirh's Passions with the cold
of Oblivion. First, n successful auack must occur. Then the
Shade rolls its An~;st In an opposed roll against the wraith's
Willpower. If the Shade succeeds, one of rhe corgct's Passions
is reduced by one. Usc of this power costs three An~tst poirm.

• Rend the lifcweb - The Shade can attack a wraiths
Fcn<'I'S directly. The Shade must flr>t make a succtS.Sful attack.
Then the Shade rolls its Angst on an opposed roll againsl the
wrnilh's Willpower.lftheShadcsucceeds, oneoftloc wraith's Fet·
tcrs is reduced by one. Use of this power costs five Ani!$! points.

• Hound the H arrowed - The Sh;>de cnn nttach itself Malfeans ore ancient Spectres who have consumed other
oo • Wl':lith's Psyche 35 it fnlls through the Tcmpe.t into the Spectres nnd wraiths. In the process, Lhc)' have grown enor~
labyrinth. While in the Labyrinth, the Shade can arrempr ro nu.ms, bloaccd, powerful, and utterly inhum~n. Some Malfeans
capture ~my Willpower or Parhos spent and convert it to Angst may never have been human at all. Malfeans are distinguished
lor iu own u~. The roll to do so is Dexterity +Alertness (dif· from Shades by their vast power, intellect and individual ~r·
flculty 9).
:;onaliticlJ.
• Chameleon Para<ire- This power nllows nShade to at·
13Ch iuelfinconspicuouslyto a wraith. The roll to doso is Dexter· Malfeans are incredibly powerful, but genernlly lethargic.
ity+Stenhh (difficulty ofthe wr4ith'> Pcrccpuon + Alenness). A Some wrniths say that entire colonies of Specrres live wirhm
litht oourcc held up rn rhe wraith's O>rpus might dettet the pres- them. 1llcy arc so gigantic rhar rhey defy description through
"""rlthe Shade-pnrnsite: roll Perception + Occult (difficulty normal Tl':lits.
l). Use of the Castigate Arcanos will abo dm-ct a Shade·p:tra·
Malfenns are attended by Nephwr•ck• and huge douds of
site. Su Ion& as it remain.< quiescent, the Sh3de can follow the Shades, who clusrer about rhem in rhe Tempest.

•nith whe~ver it goes, even into the Shadowlnnds. 'llle Shade TheOthers
may then demch itself, inOicting one Corpus Level ofdamage on
iiS host in the prncc.«, and arr:1cl: anyone neMby for one to five Many orhcr species ofSpectres live throughout the Tem·
huns before vanishing into the Tempest. Tile Shade can also act pesr, in the depths of the Labyrinth, and In the Void: there arc
as"tars" (or a Malfean.This power CO':.b five An~& poinrs m use1 as many different kinds ofSpectres as there are twistc't! souls in
pillS one Ang:n per d:.y spent our of rhe Tempest. the Underworld. The Ferrymen are familiar "'ith ma& kinds
of'Speares and can teach wmiths about them, especially how
Doppelgangers to recognite their common tricks and predatory panems.

More dangerous ro wrairhs in rhe Shadowlands are Barghests
Doppelg:mgers: wroirhs whose Shadows have consumed them.
Doppelgangers still maintain the appearance of nonnal-lonk· Elnrghests arc wraiths who have been cnsl:tvcd, disfigured
ing wraiths. Unlike moS< Specrre.•, Doppclgongers have ~r· aml lobotomized by rhe Hierarchy. In the process they have
sonnlirico, free will, ond knowledge of many Wl':lith Arcanos. been reduced to the level of animalistic servitors, not unlike
bloodhounds. &rgh ests have been "mur.led" wnh a device of
Doppelgangers still have Fetters thm tic rhcm to the liv· Stygian metal that negates all higher thnughr processes, re·
ing world. Oblivion has nor yer heen completely consumed ductng the wr.urh ro only slightly more than animal-level in·
them, and rhe Malfeans have considerable use for these most relligence.
fa,'Oted ogents.
Darghests roam the Shadowlands in packs, called "braces,"
Doppdgangers should be created a. nonn:ol wrairhs, bur and arc usually attended by one or more keepers. Their pur·
their Angst is alwa)OS 10, and they usually have low Willpower. pose is tO alert their keeper whenever someone's death falls in
The only way ro rell if a wroith is a Dop~lganger is to use the purview of one of the Seven Deathlords. In recent years,
Cascigo.te on hinl, and even that is noLnlwa\'S accurate. the Hierarchy has begun using braces of barghesrs to track iu
Doppelgangers continue to g:othcr P:.rhos, although usually enemies. 8.1rghesrs can attack savagely when ordered to, but
through soul-wrenching means. n,ey have a dislike for Pa· they are normally servile Cte'dturcs. 1llcy will obey any order
thos tinged wilh love or any other posiLivc cn•ociun. given by rhctr keeper, even unto death.

Storyteller Notes: Dop~lgangcrs make excellent villains. Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 2,Smmina 5. CllarismaO,
A. thctr name lmpliu, they enjoy 355Uming the sha~ ofother Manipulation 3, AppearanceO, Perception S,lntclligencc I, Wirs
wraiths - although nO{ all Doppelganger> automatically pns· 3
leSS the level of Moliate or rhc Thorn thor ollows them to
aswmc 110moone else's form. Abilities: Alermess 4, Brnwl 2, Intimidation 3, Tracking 5
Arcanos : Argos I, Keening 4 (primarily Dirge and C re·
Because Doppelgangers are not without personality, rhcy •ccnde>)
can acLUally have discourse wirh rhe c haraecers. A Willpower: 4
Doppcl&nn{,>er will often try to evoke a wraith's Shadow during Angst: 7/S
these conversations. Corpus: 6
'Equipment: Barghest Muzzle
A Doppelganger's usefulness m~ ~spy C\ICnwally runs out
as its will crodu under the force of Oblivion nnd its appear-
ance degenerates. A Doppelganger >a dcvolv<'t! i• ofrcn called
a Nephwrack, and many Ncphwrncks are servants to the
Malfcans.

Antagonists

The power of life

ver since the dawn of hum~niry, humans
have fought the shadowof death. Because
of this, human willpower has become
anathema co death irself: indeed, m~ny
people can stay alive through use of their
willpower alone.

llecause human willpower is directly
opposed co death, humans can use their Willpower Trait in
ccrmin ways to inhibit and affect wraiths.

Warding

Funerals; the practice of pressing two coins imo the eyes
of the dead; the presence of iron fence.~, a rusty nail over the
doorway, salt water, or a glass of &y rum and water; incense
smoke and offerlnas: humanity uses a plethora ofmeans to fend
off the supernatural.

In times when humanity responded more to myth thon w
science, rhese remedies proved effective n~air.st wraiths.Since
the Industrial Revolution these rcmedi<:.< have been ridiculed,
refuted, or forgotten. Still, mortals who find themselves
haunted or hounded by wraiths would do well to remember
their grandmother's remedies against them. The followlna
spells, wards, and superstitions still work for those who ore
willinu to invest their Willpower In them.

Nore rhar a morral must have the knowledge ro enact rhese
rituals (Occult 3 or higher). Furthermore, the mona! must
personally believe that rhe riroals will work; ifshe is a cynical
or hardened person who does not believe in the supernarurol,
she may not use Forbiddal\ce or Warding.

Any beliefor practice that protects humans from wraiths
docs so in one of two ways: it can actively Forbid them or It
CM passively Ward them.

forbi~~ance

Forbiddance hwolvcs driving a wmirh froman area. The
mortal enacting the Forbiddance rolls Willpower (di((iculty
7). A wraith mwt spend one Willpower point per success on
the Forbiddance roll to stay in the area. A wrnith m:~y coomer
this activity by aucmpting to frighten or unnerve the mortal
using his own Arcanos: In this case, the Forbiddance roll is
opposed by the appropriate Arcnnos roll .Otherwise, the wmlth
must leave the area as soon as possible. Once the morrol's at•
tention is focused clsewhert, however, rhe wraid\ may rcLum.

\V:ordmg os more of a passavc defense. All warding has a
!pecifoc focus b.1sed on the ancient lore u~d to protect the
area: it could be a rusty iron nail, a ring of snit, bun'ling in~
censc, nr ~1mc mhcr means. A morrnl can use such foci ro
prl)(cct nn oren, usuallyn building orotherwl~ permanentmuc-
ture, from iaurusion by wraiths. The mortal rolls his pcnna-
nc:nt \Vallpowcr (difficulry 7) and spends at lc;osr one rempo-
my Willpower to enact the warding. The number of successes
!<()fed on this roll indicates how long the warding lasts (see
tht Warding Chan), and the mortal's permanent Willpower
~<ore equals the diffoculty for using Arcanos to penetrate the

l11us, the Wao-ding must be renewed over time or it dissi-
pates. A Wunlctl nrc:1 is very solid in the Shndowlands. It is
impossible ro expend n Corpus Level and phase through a
Worded oren. Entering the area is ncorly impossible, requiring
the u:,c o( an Arcnnos like Moliatc (to Oow under a door or
ohrou~h a crack) or Argos (using Jump).

N01c that if a wraith chooses to aunck the focus of the
Warding with Arcnnos (like Ourrage or Embody), the wraith
an effectively end the Warding if >he c.•n somehow render
ohe focus ino(X'ratlve or ineffective (causing rhe nail to van·
i~1. disnopring the salt circle, extinguishing the incense).

~e fading of Oeat~'s image

Mortalscannot sense anything but the simplest of impulses

(rom u wrnith's pn:scncc: though they uvoid wmith.s uncon~

sciously, rhey connot feel them or see them exetpt when they
3rt drunk, exhausted, or otherwise weakened - or unless the
~mith wh.hcs 10 be seen.

Innocence

Tn1c innocence is rare in the Wurkl ofDarknc,ss:; it is m.-.uly
inapo,.<ihk I'll find in ""Y adult. Even children in the Gothic·
Punk world lose their innocence qu ickly. Still , in most cases, a
mounI who h yuung und free ofcxpc.:ricncc is innocent. Essen·
ocolly, one's innocence lam untilone lc:wes rhe things ofchild·

hood behind.

Innocent humans can often sec wraiths in the
Slm<k>Wiands. This usuallyoccursonlyar noghr, and only when

the Innocent one has a quiet moment during which he is not

COilccntrntmg on anything else. In gencraJ, the StOI')'teller rolls The Sons of Tertullian
the Perccprlnn of the innocent character (difficulty 6). Most
innocent ones will not m:ccssarily react to the wmith with Don't believe wltm you /tear
fear: pare of lhc nature of innocence is a belie( Lhat unc is im.. Don't believe whtu you see
mortal -death holds no fear for the innocent. Some chil·
dren, wise beyond their years, nmy see a wraith for what he i:s Whm you jtur clou 'Ot<T eyes
- a mons.ter- but for rhe mosf p.1rt, wraiths arc simply inrer.. You can feel the enem,.
esting charncters in an innocent's daily life. Many wraiths have
long conversations with children, and some children even do - U2, "Acrobat"
things brbcd on wh;u rheir wr:tith •'friends" tell them tn do.
Termllian Wt'S rt very early Chri:!!Lian wrirer who w;-~mccl
Pcrhap< because of their lack of fear of death, the inno- rhat t ht Devil would hide his evil in seeming goodness, even
cem abo hold a strong power over wraiths. They may forbid a going so far as to heal some people, but that imitating God w:ls
wrnith tO appro.och or rouch them, or may command them to the worst ofsins..
leave a place.
The Sons of Tertullian arc holj• warriors committed to
In pr~ctlce, innocem mCnllllsneed not know ancient lore destroying all wraiths and other "devil spawn." ·n,c Son• of
Tl:rtullian actively 8earch for peoplesuppo<Lxlly P"'"-'scd, those
in order w perform Forbiddance and Warding: they do nor who claim to speak with the dead (p•ychlcs, Gypsies, and the
Insane), and sometimes simply those faithful who ;peak o ur
instinctively know that they c.nn do it, but their ceneral mien
and c:t!toal words. "leave me alone!" or"Get out ofhere!" have against "the V.'Ord of God," and mt<SI therefore be posseM«<.
the same effect.
All Tenullians are trained cxorcosrs whn employ exorcism
A linn! norc about innocence: many of the insane are so :u their main tool of :mack. Such exorcisms vary sonoewhao
FAr removed from mortal concerns tharrhcy revert tO a stnce of from practitioner ro practitioner, but all arc ph)'liically hrutal
innocence. (This docs nut genc., lly apply to Malkavian vam· nnd demanding on the supposedly p<>Sscssed victim. The
pires.) Tertullians take the word.< of rhe Molltus Molleficantm to hc:on,
and arc experts ar applying the torture tt'Chniqucs ourhned

dltrtin. Their methods are crude, but can be surprisingly ef- The seer has developed prescribed ritua.ls to send its mem-
!.ctive if a wrairh nuly is Skinriding an individual. Unfortu- bers into rl>c Underworld ro face the enemy. Before any mem-
nately fa< rhe objectSoftheir vigorous exorcisms, the Tertullians ber 1s allowed to make such a journey, he must flnt prove him-
are unable to tell whether a victim is truly po~~Scsscd by • wraith self worthy of the honor. This is done by facing all manner of
orsimplypsycl\ic, cr.uy, etc., 1mtil the wraith le"ves the person's dangerous foes and learning all available Information regard-
body. ing wmlths. When the head of the sect believes a brother's
mind and soul are sufficiently prepared, he inStructs the brorher
Alas for those not wraith-ridden, the nor-so-render min· to create a weapon ofrighteousness with his own hands. These
inrations of the cxorcisrs become ever more violent. and such weapons can r•ke many forms (althou&h they are all edged
patients almost never survive the experience. Even those who weapons} and are highly individuali:ed. It often rakes more
are wraith-ridden often die in the exorcism's wake. The than a year to manufacture such a weapon. Once completed,
Tertullians find such deathssomewhat regrenable, bur feel jus- th<1' arc: among the most powerful wea.pons created by mor-

lified m the~r actions as they are pro••iding the individual with t.1ls.
achancearsalvation.lfthe newlydead victim becomes awraith
When the weapon is prepared •nd rhe brorher has proved
upon death, rl1c Tcrrullians simply all!ume she was the "pos· his worth beyond a shadow ofa doubt, the brother is inducted
iCS!ing spirir" ~nd attempt to ''kill" her for n second time. into ngroup known as a ''cross/' made up of (our to eight brorh-
ers. The brothers of a cross are spiritually bound together
The Sons have a variety of methods to ferrer our wraiths through a powerful blessing. The memben of across then com-
possessing mormls, most of which involve che use of certain mit suicide, using rhei.r specially prepared weapons. The rirual
biCIISed artifacts capable of alerting them to such a possession. !!an5poru the newly dead brothen to the Underwo.rld, where
These powen are considered divine, and Terrullians capable they immediately set about dewoytne :u many wraiths as they
cl such divinution arc highly respected among those of the can before they are themselves destroyed. Upon their destruc·
onlcr. tion, the brothcn believe they are rran<parted to Heaven it•
self, providing they fought honombly.
The Tenullians have other wcaporu at rhe~r disposal. A
small percentage of Tem1lli•n.~ are capable of more advanced Even many members ofthe Inquisition question the meth-
loons of exorcism. Through rhe application of specially pre- ods of the Sect of Saint James, and sevcml times the seer's
pared holy wnter, some Tertullians can sec, lOa limired ex[ent. teachings hnve nearly been declared heresy by the rest of the
into d1e Shadowlands. order. However, its members argue that jesus himself commit·
ted suicide by allowing his own death and that he even now
J~e Sect of Saint james sits at the right hand ofGod. They staunchly avow their claim
that they are following the words of their lord and master, and
Tllo1r&h ro,.,. repilll!, and rt<ISO!l chaf• , none can sway the brothen from their chosen coune.

Thtr• Cllllll! a mice wirhour reply - T~e Arcanum

""Tu rnnn's pmlirion to be Sll{t, The Arcanum is a secret society focusin~ on rl1c accumu-
lation nnd assimilation of occult inform:~rlon. It was founded
\~ f(ff w rncrh he ouO.r to die." in the late 1880s by a combination of mages and human schol-
ars seekini occult lore of all kinds. The Arcanum has many
-Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Sacrifice" chapter houses set up throughout the world. Three of the larg-
est are locared in Boston, Massachusem; London, England;
The Seer ofSaint James is a very small a11d radicalsubculr and Georgetown in Washington D.C.
ofthe Sons ofTertullian.TI\c all-male membership of the seer
&holan of the Arcanum focus on a Vllriety of occult ar·
(which numbers no more rhan 99 member$ at any time} fol- cas, including faerie, werewolf, vampire, and wraith lore. The
Arcanum does nor reveal itself to the world at large, as its
lows the reachings of Saint James. Specifically, the sect fol- membe1·s reason rltat most people 1trc unnble to undenmnd
lows a peculiar venion of rhc dictat<"S scr down in the Secret Lite greater rrurhs the Arcanum is dedicated to unlocking.
Book of James, one of the recenrly discovered Gnostic Gos-
pc.ls. Alrhough many scholan debate the authenticity of the The Arc.1num has had limited, but 5till promising, suc-
ICIOtl, the seer acceprs its reachirw uuerly. The scroll records cess in its studies of life and death, including rhe development
rhat God, through his disciples, raughr that ll\lly vinuous men of elixirs of health and other alchemical devices. However,
would kill themselves so that they might enter boldly imo the although $UGh devices have proved useful in delaying the on-
kingdom of Heaven. 1l1e rext goes on w say rhat rhose men set of aging, they are by no means a true cure for aging, which
who commit righteous suicide would be saved befor< all orhen is what many of rhe Arcanum's memben ultimately seel:..
at rhc day of Judgment.

The memben of the sect believe Ll1ey have a sacred duty
to kill themselves and take rhe b.rrle against the crearures of
darknCIIS into the Devil's realm itself. Only those TerruUians
who prove themselves most worthy (and fanatical} are invired
ro become membcn of the seer.

The scholars of the Arcanum have vasr libraries, labora· fused and must be cncoum~-d ro move on. Benand.,ntl ofttn
tories, and a great deal of money at their disposal. The schol·
ars have one of rhe largest bodies of factual lore on the Under· begin their wrairhly existence in positions of power in t.ht
world in all the Skinlnnds. In addition, their chaprer ho\t!eS Underworld - often among the Renegades or Heretics. The
comain the largest collccrion nf rrap~d wraiths in the livin~ Lady of Fate also employs a number of Benandanti wraiths.
lnncl!t llenandanti wraiths often bring powerful relics and artifacts
with them, including their fennel swords, rumored to he very
Members ofthe Arcanum ure scholars ancl seldom attempt effective at battling spirit crcamres.

n'uch active invcstigauun of rhelr own. The Arcanum usually The Benandanti comprises humans who were born with a
hires frcelancer.s of one ty~ or another to capture wraiths. still-intact Caul. Ifa Benandanci is present at the birth ofsuch
Tht Arcanum also has certuin ~associalc member$ who, aJ.. a mortal and/or can obtain a picoce ofher birth Caul, the )'OUng
though not scholars, arc quue adepc at tracking and tn'lpping mortal may become a member of this suange society. Each
wrdiths and orher spiritual entities. Benandanti carries a piece of his birth Caul on hi> ~rson ao
all times. Without a piece ofhis birrh Caul, a Benandantl can·
not. usc his powers.

T~e Orp~ic Circle

l ltave gone uw," tms.<e.<s<d witch, hounring rhe black air, The members of the Orphic Circle are a varied bunch of
s.cholars1 visionaries, vampires of che G iovanni chan, and
braver al night. Euthanatos death mages. 1l1c Circle is an ancient organiza·
tion (currently tocoling approximattly300 members) thattak<>
-Anne Sexton, "Her Kind" care to keep its existence hidden from other beings.
The llenandanti arc a human ~iety wh~ members have
the power ro see wraiths. Half-forgotten legends state that from The Circle's manifest purpose is ro discover the true na·
sundown ro sunup. the Benonc.Jnnti themselves can rr.wtl ro ture of death. Many acolytes of the Circlt scout the Under·
the Underworld. If one of the llenanclanri is ever caught away world, ~rforming ex~rl ments on the realm itselfas well as its
frnm her hody ar sunrise, however, she becomes u11ppcd in inhabitants to determine if there is a way for one's spirit to
move beyond the need for both life and death. Membeo·so( the
wr:11rh form. The now-soulless body becomes comarose, put- Circle are often willine co experiment with anythin8 fromdnoj;!
d ing physicians, wlm find no me<iical C<Juse for such nn occur· tO sacrifices (of the living and the d.,.d) in order to g;lin even
a shred of useful information.
t\!ncc. On rare occ:tSions, ~ Benandnnti has found her way b~1ck
Members of the C.rcle view the legtndaty Orpheus as a
ro her body on her own o(cer &nonths or even years in the hero who discovered a way to transcend both life and death.
Shadowlnnds. but su~h a return IS r.ue. Orpheus was the only mortal known ro journey into the Un·
derworld and rerum again lnro the rtnlm of the living, sups)o6·
The Benandami borh study and fear wraiths. Many cdlycartying the sacred tomes that outlined the great Mysrer·
A.,nnndanti believe wraiths are evil souls who must be de· its themselves. Some members of the Circle even clainl that
srroyed, while other members heheve rhe souls are merely con• O rpheus journeyed inro rhe Underworld speciflcally to find
knowledge.

Of all Skinlands societie-s, this group most aswredly has
the best grasp on both the physical and political nature of the
Underworld. What the Circle plans to do with this inform•·
cion is unclear, but the most persistent rumor m\·olves a plan
co rip away the Shroud rhar now separates the world of the
living from the world of the dead. There are also other nomors
that some members ofthe Circle have made paces wi th certain
Underworld figures, actually parricipa£ing in ••assassinations"
nf other wraiths. Officially. however, the Circle HlHinwins a
stance ofstrict neutrality ia\ such matters.

The Hiemrchy wishesro put an end to the Orphic Circle.
It is concerned about the ereat deal of knowledge the Circle
()OMCSStS, and believes such knowledge could be used b)• the
Renegades or the living.

Creatures

~ampires

owcrful, sleek, quick, hauchcy- V3mpires
move ~s freely through the mortal world
as wraiths do through the Underworld.
They rule the coucs w11h frighteningly
complex schemes th~t usu~lly rtquire hun-
dreds ofyears to eome to fruition. &:cause
they dwell in m;my places where wraiths
alkJ elwel l, h 15 lmponanc to know where the vampires are in
roor city, and whm they arc doing.

MiUW vnmpircs can sec wraith5 who are i n th e

Sloaduwlnnds hy looking in the eight place and mcempcing co
perceive the wrniths' auras. Certain "clans" of vampires (they
artcxgnniz<od into clans based on the bloodline of rheir founder)
h.vc a liule more power over wrniths chan others do - the
Giov~nni clan is spe<:ifically quite powerful, for its members
study the mllj:iC of the dead and have learned hnw ro summon
SpcoorCl< and wroichs from the Sh~dowlands. The vampires of
the Tremcre clan also know the secrets of che occult and of
Thnunmtur~y - they study paths of magic"I knowledge and
secret rituals rhar allow them to affect ghom and wraiths.

Many of the legends about vampires are mise, though some
are true. Vnmpir<."S must avoid fire and sunlisht, because these
!Ubsr•nccs cause them extreme pain and innice terrible dam·
'I>"'· They nrc unaffected by crosses or holy Items unless the
individual who uses them has True Faith. Garlic and running
t;ater have no effcc.t on them.

Bcc:no~~e a vampire who has recently fenned on blood is
usuolly much stronger and faster thall a ononnl, you must keep
tmckofthe vnonpire's current Blood Pool (the number of"Biood
l'uims"rhc vmnpirc h~s consumed recently). A vampire may
'IJC"d Blood Points to increase Physical Amibutes temporarily.
u~ may nlso spend a Blood Point to heal one nonaggravatcd
wwnd.

Below are some statistics for young, old, Giovanni, and
Trtmere wmpires.

Areanos: The Arcanos ratings in the listings don't accu•
rnoel)• represent che full scope of vampire powers. f-or example,
a vampire's ..Puppetry" Arc~lnOS rcprcM:nts nn abiliry ro con.-
orol muo·t:ols r:orhcr rhan actually posiS<!~ them. You should use
moreapproprl:lte vrtmpire Disciplines i1\ your gumc if you own
Vampire• The Masquerade.

Ncon~llcs: These are [he youngest v:tmplres, who havt
no< )'Ct reached 100 years of unlife. They are the "teenagers"
ol v~mpire soc iety. Wraiths are most likely tO encounter these
\'30\l>irC), bt,.-c;tusc nconares are prolific 10 the C-ities and usu·
ally w:mtler Into plac.s where wraiths dwell.

Cbaructcr Creation: Attributes 7/5/3, Abilities 13/9/5,
Backgrounds 7, Willpower 7, Arcanos 4, Blood Pooi iO

Suggested Attributes: Assume ratings of at IC3st 2 in all
Attributes.

Suggested Abilities: Alcrmess 2, Arhlctic.s I, Brawl 2,
Dodge I, Etiquette I, Expression I, Intimidation 2, Melee I,
Occult I, Stealth 3, Streetwise I, Subterfuge 3

Suggested Arcanos: Puppetry 2, Keening 2, Argas I (En·
shroud)

Equipment: Fashionable clothing, switchblade,sunglasses
Elders: Elderli arc rhe princes of their urban tcnlms and
often dominate a city's politics. Elder vampires have survived
between 300 and 1000 years, and thus have considerable in·
herent powers. The Trnits below represent a typical Amcricnn
or European elder.
Charucter Creation: Attributes 10/7/5, Abilities 21/9/5,
Backgrounds 12, Willpower 8, Arcanos 7, Blood Pool 20
Suggested Attributes: Assume ratings of at lc.1st 4 in So·
cial, 3 in Mental, and 2 in Physical Attributes.
Suggested Abilities: Alertness 3, Ath letics I, Brawl 2,
Dodge 3, Etiquette 3, Expression I, Intimidation 4. Melee 2,
Occult 2, Stealth 3, Streetwise I, Subterfuge 4

Suggested Arcanos: Puppetry 4. Keening 4, Argos I (En·
shroud)

Equipment: O utdated but expensive clothing, tinred
glasses. pocket watch, sword cane

Tremere

The Trcmcrc arc scholars of magical lore and rituals, and
are usually proficient in the vampire Discipline Auspex, which
allows them to see wraiths. They are aware of the existence of
wraiths and will take steps to protect their abodes from them.
In fact, the more powerful Tremere knowa ritual called Ward
versus Spirits, which prote<:lS them against wraid\S.

Suggested Abilities: Trcmcre rarely have Occult ratings
ofless than ),and many havespecialited Knowledges like Spirit
Lore. Other than that, you can use the above listings to repre·
sent them.

Giovanni

11leG iovanniare a clan offamasticallywealthy vampires

whose primary intere.'HS are business and necromancy. They
literally onlymake vampires from other members oftheirorlgi·
nat mortal (amity - there are a (ew Giovanni who are not

vampires, but rhey are prmected by their vampiric family.
Giovanni have p.'ISSed down wraith lore throughout the ages
and should be considered the single greatest vampiric threat
ro a wraith's existence. Of course, they may ahio make potent
allies...

Charucter Creation: Attributes 10/5/3, Abilities 21/9/5,
Backgrounds 7, Willpower 7, Arcanos 4, Blood Pooi iO

Sugg.,.rcd Attributes: Assume ratings of at least 4 in all
Mmtal Attributes and 2 in oil Physical and Social Attributes.

Su~e~:ested Abilities: Alertness 3, Athleric.< I, Bmw! 2,
Oodgo I, Enqueue 3, Expression !,Intimidation 3, Melee I,
Ocruh 4. Stealth 4, Streetwose 2, Subterfuge 3

Suggested Arc~nos : Puppetry 3, Keening 2, Argos I,
l.ifeweh I

Equipment: lmm:1cul~ce lralian suit, Onlate antique dog..
ger, Rolcx wotch

Spcci:tl Power: N~..:croumncy. Necromancy is a ~wer th~[

nllows a Giovanni ro 1mmipuhuc wraiths. Jn general, a
Gi0\1llnni musLow1l 01'c of the wmith's Fetters before she c:m
affect a wro irh. lr ;, nucd in levels just like an Arcanos.

1l>e forst level ofNecromancy lclli a Giovanni sec what a
ll'<<llllydc'Cl"llSOO onorrol last saw. Level Two gives the G iov:mni
the power to summon ghosts, but this power can ~ resisr«<
•·ith Willpower. Level Three bcsrows the power to command
.,••ill» (this is also re.istible with Willpower). level Four bc-
U(m'S rhe row·cr w force a ghost to remain in a spteific art-a in
the Shadowlands and not enrer the Tempest; this can be re•
~stcd with the Argos Arcanos. Finally, level Five allm•~ rhc
Giovanni ro extract a living person's spirit from htr body: this
effectively turns her Into a cempornry wraith (possessinR no
Arc:mos) with her body as a Fetter. All G iovanni knowat lcasr

one level of Nccrumuncy. ror more information o n Giov:lnn i
spednl powers. consult the Vampire Players Guide.

Werewolves

The wilderness ofthe World of[}•rkncss is not a safe plllCe.
just as predators ~~toard their territorial bo.ondaries againso c<Mn-
penng mv:><lcrs, ""the Garo.oguord rhe foresu and moor.s from
humankind. And:. VICIOUS defense it is.

The Oarou are a mce of wolfcn shapechangel'$ who claim pe.r tum (except for damage caused by silver, fire, mogic.k oc

a culruml heritage stretching far into the mists of prehistory. the teeth and claws of a supemarur:ol entity), nnd is immune

Theysee themselves as the defenders ofGaia, the El!rth Mother, to dice penalties for being wounded.

and in this role 1hey mete ou1 a violent jusrice against any In addirion. werewolves provoke reactions of unconuol·

who tmnsgrcss their Limny.l11eir legendupeak o(a monstrOUS, !able fear in mundane humans who wlmess them in wolfman

metaphysical being c.•lled the Wyrm, the source of all evil ac• form.

cordin!: ro rhe Oarou. They cnn sniffout the taint of this beast

on their enemi~. and they usc this "&ench" as justifk8lion to

Magesdestroy any who stand against them.

Cull urally, the Onrou nre divided into different tribes, 13 M<Wc is seldom specurcular because it seldom needs w bt.

in number, although d1erc is a 14th "lost tribe." the Black Spi· -Donald Tyson, Ri11Ull M~

ml Dancers, which joined the Wyrm long ago. Each tribe ha• Mages are enlightened humans who con bend reality ro
its own idemiry, cnusM and goals. For instance, the Black Fu· their whim. While many nrc limited in their power, some fe~v
ries are n tribe composed only of women, while the Fianna arc achieve near-godlike levels of powor. Whether these workers
all o(Cehic descent and celebmte their Celtic-bas<.-d culture. ofmagick are friends or enemies ofthe Restlessdepends largely
l11cre ure also rwo Native American tribes, emblnered over on cnch individual mage.
rhe los.s of their lands to the Europeans; and a tribe of technol·
ogy fetishists calk..! the Glass Walke!'$. There are a variery of mage factions, and they wage o war
over realiry iuelf, fighting forsomething they call"Asccnsion."
Powcn;: All Onroo can assume a variety offorms: human; Some mages, called "Dreamspeakers,"' respect rhc spirir world

wolf; and a host of intermediary forms, the most dreaded of and wish, for the most part, to commune wi<h the Restless and
which is the Crinoo form, the legendary half-man/half-wolf then depart. Others, such as the Technocmtic Void Engineers,
fonn. In all fonns, but ~lolly in the Crinos, Oarou are ex· seek to stamp our anything <hat does not fit inro their ideo!
pcrr wnrrlo~ and shamans. They arc Incredibly resistant to vision of reality. The enigmatic Eurhanaros have the closest
damage nnd can ulmost insmntly heal what damage they take dealings with the dead.; they themselves can pass into the
Shodowlands for short periods of time and work potent death
- except that delivered by a silver weapon, &&'Jinsr which magicks. The com1pt Nephandi also mrcmpr to rap the ener·
they hnve no defense. (Werewolves can soak aggravated dam· gies of the Underworld, but their purposes disturb ever\ the
age- except silver - but Cllnnor regenerate it quickly.) most ruthless wraiths.

The Oarou'• ma~;icalabilities ore gifted to them by nature

spiriu. These abilities mnge from conrrol over the elements to Mages genemlly prefer to work their art with as little fnn·

massive strength o.nd awesome prowes.s in war. fore as possible. Some mystic Restlw: claim thnt mages f<-ar a

l11e Garou h:lVe dose ties to the spirit world - the Um· force called "Paradox," which cancels their magick or destrO)'S

bra - •nd c.m easily enter this world via a process they eall mages utterly. While some mages do nor seem to c.~re about

"stepping sideways." They have such deep ties to nature spirits this so-called "Paradox," most usc subtle tnctics and quiet

that they regularly bind them into objects, creatinG magical magicks.
anif•cu. However, few Garou have ttuck with the spirits of
the dend. The glaring cxccp!lnns to this are the Silent Strid- Poweni: Mages have a brood range ofpowers to call upon;
using Arcanos to represent mage magick is problematic at best.
ers, a tribe of wnndcrcrs whose death-lore stretches back to The Storyteller would be within her rights simply to allow 3
their ori~;ins in ancient Egypt. The Stride!'$ know many differ- Storyteller character mage to accomplish a range of given ef·
ent methods ofentering the Underworld and gaining prophetic feet$ within one or two areas of expertise. ThMC effects would
have difficulties of5 ro 8; the effecrivenes.soflhe magic.k would
lore fro1n the dend. In addition, experienced Onrou shamans depend on how m.my successes the mage rolled -very litde
have certain powers that affect wrdiths, such as the ability to

exorcise wraiths from d1cir Ferrel'$. with one, noticeable effects with two, a fair amount with three,

Character Cn:arion: Amibutes 7/5/3, Abilitie.• 15/9/3, great success with four and exception al success with flve or

Backgrounds 5, Willpower 8 more.

Suggested Attributco: Assume mtings of 2, except in Most maetck does not inflict aggravated d~mage, but fire,

Physical AttributCJI, where you can nssume ratings of 3. electricity, or n powerful arrack of pu<e magickal force inOiccs

Suggested Abilities' A lcrmess 4, Animal Ken 3, Athlet• aggravated damage if It sco<es three or more successes (two

ics 2, Bmwl3, Dodsce 2, Enigmas I, Intimidation 2, Medicine levels per socce5S over the second). Give the mage two to six

I, Occult I, Stcahh 3 dice to roll for this, dependinG on the power of the mage. If

Special Rules: Werewolves have three main forms- man, you have Mage: The A&cension, use the Spheres and Arete

wolf and wolfmnn (Crino.). The first two are quite mundane. from that book Instead.

When in wolfman form, however, a werewolf adds three dots

to all l'hy•i01 l Attributes, can regenera<e one Health Level

The two mid·level mages below represent a Tradition adept
ofthe Euthanatos and a Void Engineer ghosr-humer. Both have
a degree of morral and magickal skill and may have skilled
allies or retainers ofsome sore.

Character Creation: Attributes 4/6/9, Abilities 20/8/3,
Backgrounds 10, Willpower 8, Magick Dice Pool 12/5

Suggested Attributes: Assume ratings of 2 in Physical
Amibures, 3 in Social, and 4 in Memal.

Eut~anatos Mage

Suggested AbUities: Alertness 2, Dodge 2, Empathy 2,
Etiquette 3, Expression I, Firearms 2, Linguistics 2, Melee 4,
Occult 4, Subtem•ge 3, Steal<h 2

Suggested Areas of Expertise: Entropy (magicksofbreak·
ing things down), Life (magicks of living things), Spirit (to
see or interne< with the Rcsrless)

Equipment: Dark practical clothing with many pockets,
ritual accessories, knives, poisot\

Void Engineer

Suggested Abilities: Alermcss 3, Athletics 2, Computer
4, Dodge 3, Drive 3, Enigmas 3, Firearms 3, lnvesrigation 3,
Repair 4, Science 4

Suggested Areas of Expertise: Forces (elements), Spirit,
Prime (the keystone energy of creation)

Equipment: Disrupter Cannon (Level 4 Device): fires
blasts of Prime energy linked to Spirit magicks, which disrupt

wraif:h.s. The cannon inflicts one Corpus Level of aggravated
damage per succ<Ss the mage rolls on a Dexterity + Firearms
roll. Good for 10 shots.

Spirit Goggles (Level I Device): allows the hunter to sec
into the Shadowlands with a successful Wits + Alertness roll
(difficulty 4).

Loose clorhing, nenchcoat, scientific P'•:traphcmalia

changelings (faeries)

On me day of me dead, when rhe year roo dies,
Musrrhe youngest open the ok!est hills.

-Susan Cooper, "Silver on the Tree"
Faeries are beings composed ofmagic and spirit. Although
wraiths do not usually enter faeries' schemes or stories, many
faeries ha,•e alliances with spirits of the dead dlrough ancient
pacts and agreements. Because the Dream Realms border on
Arcadia (the faeries' homeland) as well as the Underworld,
there arc several dark fey (particularly a group called the
Knights of the Poisoned Rose) who rravel back and forth be·
tween the Sunless Lands and the Summerlands as a matter of
course. Also, a number of wraiths (primarily those of Celtic
heritage) are rumored to travel through the Dream Realms to

Arcadoa. There, they serve some faerie nobihty •• banshees, Powers: To o:ranslore the abilities of faeries into Arcunos,
Keening and using Phantasm for their pleasure. assume noble faeroe.< (nor changtlings) generally have Argn.<
4, Keening 5, Lifeweb 3, Moliate 4, and Phamasm 5. Ofcourse,
During the Inquisition, mnsr rneries fled E.~rth for Arcadia. ~II faerie powers must be united under a specific affiliation or
Many fru.:rlcs, however, stayed behind for reasons of theirown, potentiality. For example, a faerie allied with Winter would
taking refuge In ancient halls and fortrc.scs under hi lls and in have powers ofcold, snow and ice. Changelin!}' genernlly spe·
the deepest oceans. When the Shroud laid itssuffocating power clallze in one area (usually Phanrasm, l'ondtmonium, Keen•
across the world, the remaining fatriesgrew insular, sradc, and ing, or Moliatc) and Are genernlly not as powerful as true facro...

conscrvarive. Changelings usually appear os young, adolescent, or eld-
erly humans. 1l1ey arc noble, powerful, and unearthly. True
Gh06ts and faerie-s sllllrc many characteristics: both are fey appear in thousands of shape$, forms, colors, anJ tcxwrcs.
creatures born nf spiri< and composed of magic. Bmh feel rhe
wcighr of reollry as it tries 10 erode their very existence. Both Others
mwr congregate in forguuen places. Both are affected by the
morral world in various way$. 1l1ere arc many other possible antngonim and ollie• for
wrairhs: Black Spirul Dancers, certain Silent Striders and orher
It i• mmored <hat some faeries have lx.-come so tainted wt rewolves, Pentex RS(Cnts using wr..irhs for"juice" in some o(
with human blood that they have forgotten their faerie heri- their vile manufacturing plants, unaffiliated psychics, manipu·
tage - these faeries are called changelings by true faeries, af· lative medium$, ere. For further infomtation on how to intt·
1cr the ancient prnctice of exchanging a faerie child with a grate other supernatural beinl}' into your Wraith campaign,
human baby. ChangelinJJ> Clln and dn die, and,lf they are some- see the Wraith Storyteller's Screen.
how cut o(f from rhe fundomenral power o( the fey, can also

become wr:1irhs.

Faeries are generally feared: because they are creatures of
spirit, they can c.asily make attocks across the Shroud.

Amihures: 7/5/3, Abi lities: 13/9/5, Patho; 8, Willpowtr
7, Corpus 7, Angst 6/6

he coys ill che aerie come out to play, used to sign documents, approve agreements,open special locks,
They lwce ic whe11 you lock chem away... and iclen~ify oneself and one's JX>:iition in Lhc Hierarchy.

- Marionene.~. "Ave Dementia,. This careful system of seals and iclenrification has since
broken down in the Shadowlands because of the general ~nar·
Within the Shadowlands thete are chy there. Now, only the Anacrcons possess chcse seals from
powcdul "magical" devices. commonly Stygia1 but many Freewraichs have begun using disct1rdcd and
stolen seals as rneans of marking what is theirs.
known as arcifact:s. Artifacr:s arc onc~of~a~
Occasionally, a wraith will usc a seal to ..prove" that he is
kind items, and each has its own powers of the Hierarchy.
and limitations. All artifacts ac·e empowered by the energies of
the soul. flask of liquid kate (level I)

Arcifacts are rare and ancient items. While new artifacts Emotion, properly distilled, can '"ke" rnngiblc form. It is
may be fashion(.-d by those rare few skilled in the arts, the pro· rumored that long ago, Renegade-s pursuing forgotten forms of
cess is never easy. In facr, owning an artifact means ownin.g a magic found" way to remove the hatred they kept inside them·
piece of Underworld mythology. Artifacts vary in form from • selves and distill it into a potable form. Whether they're still
magic !iword that curses opponents, to a headman's axe that capable of this is doubtful, but flasks filled with Liquid Hare
always aims for the head, to a love potion capable of over- are still secretly bought and sold in Hierarchy bazaars.
whelming any wraith with emotion, to wax-and-feather wings
chat allow a wraith to Oy. The possibilities are endless. A flask of Li.quid Hate usually conrains from one tO three
points of Hate Pathos. However, after a wraith has consumed
Mascer Artificers. ir is ~id, invest part of their essence rhar hate, he will slowly bleed it through his every action and
into artifacts created in the Underworld. Masks of office, po· gesture. As soon as the Pathos is <pent ro ficcl an Arc,.nu.s, that
tent weapons and special tools are built to specifications and action will also be tainted with hatred.
sold for very high prices. To receive such an item, a wraith
must perform some great service ordefeat some powerfulghoSt. A A"sk can be refueled by burying it under the ground in
Such artifacts are neither common nor easy co conctali many
c1. n be traced by the essence within them. an area minced by sufficient: intolerance, bigotry, oppression

Maintaining Artifacts oc·suffering. The rype of hate that rcfolls the flask will resemble
rhc hate that is stored there.
Each usc of nn artifact's power requires the expendiwre o(
one poinr of rhe Pathos stnr(.-d in th..: item. The wraith can use skeleton's key (kvel2)
a point of her own Parhos in place of the arrifacr's. When all
the Pathos inside an artifact is expended, the wraith ca.n no This lockpick is not used to open doors. It allows the user
longeruse rhe arrifacr's powers, though the artifact is still con~
sidered "enchanted" and may be recha.rged by channeling more w vinhnc the tomb o( an encrny. By inserting it in the soil
Pathos inco the item. Artifacts can only conmin a certain
amounr of Pa[hos, which is determined when the artifact is above a buried body, ir will open r.he c~1nh and uncover the
created. enemy's ~orpse. If the enemy is another wraith, he will feel a
brief, yet excruciating pain as his l-"eltea· is violated. Possessing
Funneling Pad'los into an artifact is simply a matter of a Skeleton's Key is a serious crime in rhe eyes of the Hierarchy.
cr;.msferring Parhos from the wraith's own Corpus it\lO the ar·
tifact. It only requires concentration and a few seconds to do Beaside Candle(level2)
so.
Wayfaring through the Uoderwnrld can often rc;;ult in a
Common Cic·cle of wraiths getting hopelessly lost. n,e Bedside Candle
is one J>O"Sible solution to this. Aftec· it has "1\celed" for one
day- that is, been allowed r.o soak up the rcsomml Pnssion
stored within a Haunt - it can be used to lead " Circle of
wraiths back co their Haucn. ·nte candle, when lit, will burn
for one dn)'· The smoke from rhe Amnc will waft in the dirCC·
tioll of the Haunt. Refueling the candle at the Haunt will re·
srorc ic.

Sealof Citizenship(kvell} Book of lies (level2)

In the nncient days of the Stygian Empire. citi!ens were When betraying the Renegades or the Hierarchy, an ethi ·
given these seals as symbols of their citizenship. They were cally challenged wr~irh may need a bit of advice Oil whac to

do. A wmith who has offcr<-d him.<elf to the Heretics made be Site and Shape Artifact Level
Shard (pocket-su<-d)
gmced with a Book of Lies if he is particularly promising. Prism (portable) I
Cone (luggable)
n,c wrnirh c:~n open the book at any rime (prefembly in Sphere (vehiclc-mounred) 20 2
Great Sphere (nationary) JO 3
private) to gain a bit of advice on what to do next. The Book 40

of lies will eradicate !Orne of the initiate's Pathos (two pomrs) 50 5
in exchange for~ brief ~ge SUM<.'Sting a p<>Mible course of
action. ln-gnme, the chamctcr gain.~ ~n extm three dice on a Nnudri's Embrace [evel: variable,see below)

SubterfuAc roll. Om-of-game, the Storyteller advises the player
(hopeful ly in priv~te) on a possible course of acrlon.

Nietzscnean Tig~trope [evel3) 11>csc chains, forged of jet-black steel, arc used m bind

It is rumored that a young suicide wamcd ro learn the art wraiths. They resist destruction by Arcanc>S and inhibit a
ofArgosahn06t immediately after hisd~th. He stumbled upon
n most unusual ritual: by raking the rope with which he hanged wraith's powers. The locks on these chains range from me-
hinuclf:ond throwing it into the Tcmp<.-st, he could walk across chanical (in which c:~se rhey can be picked) to magical (in
ir ro his destination. Many tried m emulate this ritual, but few
succeeded. He later revealed that alone in the Tempest, he which case one must know the proper pa..word or thoughr to
could trul1•explore thedepdtsofhisShadowand, byconfTont· unlock them).
ing 11, bener understand it.
A wraith in Nhudri's Embmce who attempts ro use
This philosophical journey has been studied in some cults
o{ the Hcrcrics, ~nd some of the ropes used by M""ters ofAraos Arcanos mu.st ovtrcome the virtue of rcsiuance in tht chains;
hove become holy objects. The user of • Nietzschean Toght·
rope must cnncL a rimaI, w·alk alone into the Tcmpc:n, and Leve.l Resistance
overcome his Shadow. The Shadow player will derail nil the
rccenr doubts, fears and failures of rhe w~yfMer. The experi· I Jdice
ence Issimilar tu a Harrowing, but the difficulties of nll rolls to
fl~ht uff the Shadow are reduced by two. If the wayf.1rer wins, 2 5 dice
rhc ritual reduc~ the Angst of the Shadow by flve and allows
the wayfarer to cnn;s the Tempest and reach his destination. 3 7 dice

Soulfire (level: Variable,see below) 4 8 dice

5 10 dice

The Storyteller rolls the resistance of the chains as an
opposed wll versus rhe character's Arcnn06 whc11 she at<cmprs
to usc an arc. The chains gee o boi)US of two dice for resistance

if the Arcanos is specifically focused o n them.

luxury

The Hiemrch1• reaps ucmcndous amounrs of Pathos en· Narcissus' Mask [evell)
ergy fTom the souls it collccrs. This Pathos is channeled through
str&I'I(C ebony crysralline rods aod collected in massove black Titis anifacr makes the wearer oppear absolurely, stun·
prosms. As the prisms flU up, they begin to elow from within ningly beautiful: during the time he wc:ars It, he gains an effec·
and cost shadow> much like fire: because of this radiance, the rive Appearance score of 5, or 6ifhis Appearance is already 5.
Hierarchy Clllls rhe collected enerAY "soulfire." Souln re is a Over time, however, u~ of this mosk oCOUk.'$ a wrairh•.s face co
resource among the l lierarchy, who use.< it to fuel!!$ Arcan06, become gradually more featureless until h is eyes and mouth
are just slits and his face is polished to a mirror sheen.
wcnponry, nnd 1nuchincs.
A wraith may wear a Narcissus' Mnsk for up to • day at a
Soulfire i' dispensed into smaller, spheric"I blnck crystals time without any ill effects. After th•t, however, he will begin
rhnt glow from within when full and t;mdunlly dim as they lose to lose Appearance poinrs ar the rate ofone per four hours the
power. These crystals arc reusahle: many wraiths cnn pick up a mask is worn. Ooly judicious use of Moliate can fix damage
few olx>li fmm rhc Hierarchy just by returning soulfire crys· done in this fashion, and even tltcn the wraith can never be
mls, no questions a.sked. There arc a limired number of them: fully restored to his prcviow beaury.
they nre mined out of the Venous Stair near Srygia.
luc~ pennies Qevell)
TI1erc arc severn! sites and shapes of th<-sc crystals, each
holdzng n different amount of Pathos:

Numerous small objccrs ger 1061 ench day. Many mortals
flnd the idea of findmg or losing a penny or two to be a rnrher
insignificant event. A few wraiths hav.: been known to collect
"Lucky Pennies" as a resulr of rhb.

A Lucky Penny iscapable of passing from the Underworld gain three poims in both categories. Some Renegades have
to the Skinlands without much difficulty. A wroith can toss a been known m weave entire garment~ from Silken lust. These
Lucky Penny into the real world, where it will land with a poor souls revel in the continuous effecL\ of this illicit sub·
small "ping." A nearby morral will be distracted for a brief stance.
moment by the sound, and the degree to which he ignores the
sound depends on a roll of Intelligence. (With four successes, Mirror of lucretia (level3)
the mortal will completely ignore it; on a botch, the mortal
will feel a brief shiver of terror and investigate.) Lucretia Borgia, after death, was rumored to have long
conve!Sations with her dark side. Her Shadow would whisper
If rhe penny comes up heads, it will fade into the Under- to her...and she would talk back. She was able to confronl
world after one scene and can be retrieved by the wraith. If and Castigate her Shadow by summoning a shard of it into a
the pem1y comes up tails, it will disappear and later be found reflective surface. Heretic Craftsman are rumored to have dis~
by a morral. Despite this, if a morral nips the coin later and it covered thesecret of crofting mirrors rhat can emulate her tal-
comes up tails, it will eventually drift inco the Underworld ent.
again, where it may be found by another wroith.
By spending a point of Angst and three points of Pathos,
Lucky Pennies are fairly rare, but they can be spent wisely a wraith can empower the device with a shard of her own
by ingenious wraiths. Shadow.She can then reason with it and even bargain with it.

Silken lust [evel2) This is represented in the game by having the player di·
rectly confront and argue with her Shadowguide to make bar-
Silks are a popular commodity in Hierarchy merchant gains with her Shadow. The Shadow, however, is under no
stalls, but sometimesa dealer can find something that's a little obligation to listen.
more precious. Silken Lust is a type of fabric woven from a
plasm of unknown origin. A wraith wh<> drapes the silk across
her Co,·pus will slowly gain both Pathos and Angst. Evoking
the effect usually takes a full day, but after that, the wraith will

Nasque of Tragedy (levell)

11le Masque ofTragedy is" l)•pe of disg>oise used co hide~
wrairh's rn.re emotions. Bernh:\rt. the masrer of emotional dis·
guise. is rumored tO have gone mad by usingone of thc~c masks.

A wraith wearing chis device appc<1rs ro h:we a P~rhos of
10 and may falsify his rrue p11rpose. Other wmiths will n.sume
that rhe wearer is driven by grief, pain or need.

cloa~ of Night [evell)

This dark cloak is woven from eoilingstmnds ofNihol>. h
can be used to shelter nooso of a wr:tioh's body. The Clo.,k of
Noghr adds three dice co ohe user's Srealth Dice Pool and ncos
as cwo levels of armor (two dice added to soak) :og:oin" ohe
damaging effects of Nihils und Maclmoms.

Bo~ia Dollhouse (level4)

lucretia Borgia carried her love of imrig>oc worh her IJe.
yond the grnve. She commissioned a ralemed defecoor from
ohe Hiernrchy to fashion a dollhouse made from ohc wood cl
spectral trees. She then h:od a Hcrct ic crnfn;man fashoon :t col·
lcction ofanimare voodoo dolls. Alrhough lucretia's (X'rsonal
dollhouse is unique, lmlrotlons nrc known ro exi>t.

Once ohe approprime rioual is performed, rhc dolls will
\\'fonder the hallways of the clollhousc cmul~ting the nctlvltlcs
of rhc wraiths to whom they t're attuned. A llerctic cct·cmony
is used to empower the <loll>. By wmching the farce enacted on
ohe dollhouse, one c:m g;tin mS~ghr inro the activities of one's
enemies.

\Yings of Ecstasy [evel4)

To craft Wings of Ecstasy, the feathers of dead bird> me
gathered and affixed tO a framework of Stygian metal ;hapccl
like the skeletal Strueturc of a hird'< wing. n1e CtC~tOr of this
relic must sha(X' his own plasm (or the plasm ofanother wraith)
to form the musculature. The only eleoncntmissing is ohe p,.,.
sion that fuels it. By misonc her Paohns abcwe 8, che wr:tith
wearing the Wings of Ecst"Sy eains rhe power of flight. She
musr be careful, however; if her Pathos drOpS bduw 8 whtlc
she is in the air, she will plummer ro rhe ground, losing ont
Corpus Level. Unless she scores ar leaso three successes on a
Dexoeriry +Athletics roll, she will also break her legs :md be
unable to walk for une day.

Weapons

Eternal Timepiece [evell)

This de,•ice appears as a waoch without hamb. A wrnuh
who wears it never lo..,. ornck of ohe passage of time in ohe

mortal world , has three dice ofcountermagick against any use uming, turning, wming through the )'ears,
ofa mage's Time Sphere, may nullify a vampire's Celerity (three Minwcs inco ho~trs and the hours into 'Jtors

dice, dif(iculty 7; e;tch success rcmovl'.S one level of vampiric Nothing changes; nothing ever could
Roundand round and bock where you began.. .
Celerity), and cannot be attacked more than once in a norn by
awcrewol( using Rage. - Victor Hugo, l.es Mis~rables
As living peoples throughout the ages
~elvet Glove (level4) have kept a calendar m:.uking sols(ices, equinox<.-s, ttnd other
special days, so too do the dead . The calendar of the dead var·
The appeanmcc of this relic is deceptive. Although it is ies somewhat from group to group. Certain da}'S are noted onh'
frngile and embellished with lace, the touch of a relic Velvet by followers o( the Hierarchy, while Renegades and Heretics
Clove brings unspeakable anguish. A w"'ith striking with the hold celebrations and vigils of their own ar other times. There
glove (a mere slap will do) gains an extra four dice of damage are, however, ccrmin days that arc obscrv(:d b)' all wraiths.Some
of the most import~nt of these days arc derailed below.
incombar. Many of the holidays celebrate dates on which the w~lls
between the worlds of the living and the dead are at their thin·
Broadsword of Damocles (~vel4) nest. The Inha bitants of the Underworld are unsure as tO why
this ebb and flow takes place, although it seems to be some·
Many times, rhe Angst of a wraith c~m be consumed by a
how connected to the phaSt.--s or the moon and the position of
otccd to avenge himselfon enemies. Some relic weapons chan·
nel dark cncruics into combat prowess. However, if these ener.. the EMth in the heavens.

gics arc not mastered, they can Uamn a wraith. The Broad.. All Hallows Eve

sword of Damodes is an example of this principle. All Hallows Eve, Samhain, or Halloween as it is often
called, is one of d1e most important times in the year for wraiths.
When the sword is drawn from its scabbard, the wielder's Of all days, s,unhain is the time when the veil beneath the
Shadow will offer to aid the sword's wielder in battle (giving worlds of the dead ~nd the living is at iu thinnest. On All
the wielder five extra dice in Melee). The weapon inflicts Hallows Eve, wraiths are free to interfere in the realm of the
Strength+ 5 damage and, ifthe wielder desires, adds one point living.
ofdamage for each point of Pathos expended. However, if the
Shadow o( the wielder becomes dominant, it will take over in From d~wn of October 31sr m dawn of November 1st
battle. The wielder will then suffer one point of Corpus for w"'iths may do as they please. This freedom a.nd the appear·
t..ch two points he inflicts. The Psyche can still choose to ancc ofstrange 14Cracks" in the Shroud between the worlds cause
spend Pathos to heal. many of the morral myths regarding this night. Such cracks
can suck unwary wraiths into the world of the living, tr<tpping
Souleo Weapons (level: varia~le) them there until dawol or November Ist.

The Hierarchy has developed a technique for affixing The Day of the Dead
soulfire crystals to weapons so that they do not require Pathos
from their wielders. Such a weapon is called a 1'souled'' weapon. Although the living have many feasts and celebrations
Asouled weapon is considered permanently charged with Pa· for the dead, the dead themselves mosr commonly hold a ccr·
rhos until it is used, at which point the Pathos drains from the emony on the first new moon in autumn. At thistime, wraiths
soulfire crystal and inco rhe weapon. ofcen make pi lgrimagcs of one sort or another, for it is said to
be easiest to collect Pathos and artifacu at this time of the
Explosives c;m ttlso he ••souled" co provide the energy to year. Common destinations forsuch pilgrimages include Haunts
fuel the explosion. in the Skinlands, theSea ofSouls in Srygia, and the Far Shores.

Possession of souled weapons is forbidden to all except Various Circles ofwraiths ttlso observe other feasts forthe
Hierarchy soldiers and other special officials. dead celeb,.,ted by different Skinlands cultures. In general,
however, wraiths view such festivals merely as opportunities
Pistol Level l to harvest gre3t amounts of Parhos from willing living vessels.

Rille Level 2

Machine Gun

Grennde