Spellbook
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Ambient Voice - Masks the caster's voice for all except those she chooses
Anhedonia's Kiss - Kiss causes pain to the target
Ankh (Staff of Life) - Temporarily gives the target extra Life Points
Ash Brew - Creates a drink that slakes a Blood Stalker's thirst.
Dispersal Dream - Damage leaps from target to target
Dreamcatcher - Talisman blocks nightmares and dream effects
Ezili's Boon - Summons a powerful creature to grant a Wish
Falcon Crown - Grants the caster control of nearby birds
Firestorm - Caster projects lines of fire
Frost Shards - Enchanted ice freezes targets
Hideaway - Causes a small group of people to ignore the caster
Kumo-de aruki (Walking the Clouds) - The caster astrally projects her soul
Life Bond - Links the caster's and target's Life Point totals
Luna Lends Me Her Eyes - The caster can see the world as if located far above it
Ma'at Feather - Enchanted feather detects lies
Mark of Aeolus - The target receives a bonus to Dexterity
Medicine Wheel - Talisman aids in healing
Murder of Crows - The caster transforms into a flock of birds and flies away
Pele da Pedra (Skin of Stone) - The target's skin is hardened and armored
Psychic Surge - Painfully suppresses supernatural powers in a small area
Raise and Bind Assassin Spirit - Summons an avenging ghost
Return to Rest - Creates a potion that burns zombies
Snake Tattoo, Coiling - Animates a tattoo to aid in grappling
Snake Tattoo, Hissing - Animates a tattoo to scare a target
Snake Tattoo, Hunting - Animates a tattoo to track beings
Snake Tattoo, Striking - Animates a tattoo to attack a target
Tongue of Fiends - The caster speaks and understand a demon's language
Udjat (Eye of Horus) - Improves the target's vision, possibly to supernatural levels
Unnatural Concentration - Causes the target to lose interest in all but a single task
Witch's Eye - Allows the caster to see at a distance
Ambient Voice
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A whispered incantation.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (five Turns) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), severe scope (caster and a few others) (+2), unusual requirement (must touch and/or lock eyes) (-1).
Effect: The next best thing to telepathy. The caster's voice becomes lost in the background noise; no matter how loudly she speaks, people around her will pay no more attention to what she's saying than they would to a rustling tree, scuffing chair, footsteps or whatever is appropriate to her surroundings. Anyone in locked eye contact with her or touching her during the casting of the spell, however, hears her voice normally. Moreover, anyone touching her at the time of the casting is also affected. Makes for a nice way to communicate more or less covertly even in public. This spell lasts for one minute per Success Level in the casting roll. It has no effect if there is absolutely no ambient noise, for instance in a sensory deprivation tank or anechoic chamber.
Any Cast Member affected by Ambient Voice may also attempt to subliminally influence people. For every Success Level in the casting roll above 3 the Cast Member gains a +1 bonus to any Willpower + Influence rolls made against characters who are not paying specific attention to her (e.g. unaware of her or just minding their own business). Failing this roll does not alert the target to the caster's presence or make him hear her voice.
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Anhedonia's Kiss
Quick Cast: Yes (by anyone, regardless of Sorcery)
Power Level: 4
Requirements: The caster must simply kiss the target's lips.
Aspect Analysis: Instant casting (anyone can Quick Cast) (+2), noticeable scope (one being) (+1), medium duration (one minute per Success Level) (+0), noticeable effect (two minor harm effects) (+1).
Effect: One Turn after the kiss ends, the target is wracked with agony. She takes damage equal to the Success Levels in the casting roll (which ignores armor and natural armor), and suffers an equivalent penalty to Dexterity for one minute per Success Level as she fights the aches and stabbing pains coursing through her body. Subtract any levels of the Resistance (Pain) Quality from this penalty, to a minumum of zero. Kissing someone usually does not require any kind of roll, although if the target tries to Dodge treat it as a Grapple maneuver.
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Ankh (Staff of Life)
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 3
Requirements: The caster draws an ankh on the recipient's breastbone using a paste made of chalk, clay and a small amount of silver.
Aspect Analysis: Very short ritual (one Turn) (+2), noticeable scope (one living being) (+1), long duration (+1), major effect (+3), restricted use (once per target) (-4).
Effect: The power of the ankh bolsters the target's vital organs for one hour per Success Level in the casting roll. She gains one temporary level of Hard to Kill per Success Level. Life Points from these additional levels are lost first when the character takes damage; only after all her extra Life Points have been lost does she lose points from her normal pool. Once lost, these extra Life Points cannot be restored.
Ankh does not heal injuries or disease - it merely serves as a temporary Life Point boost, or life support for a critically injured character. Undead are unaffected by the spell, but it may be cast upon a character who has been dead for five minutes or less, restarting her heart and lungs and permitting her to spend Drama Points and receive normal medical treatment. She will still die if the spell runs out and she hasn't received proper medical attention...
A character may only receive the benefits of this spell once. Ever.
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Ash Brew
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 2
Requirements: About one quart of water brought to a boil, two ounces of grated mandrake root, and 1/2 cup of vampire dust.
Aspect Analysis: Ritual (about 10 minutes) (0), affects one person (+1), only affects Blood Stalkers (-1), very long duration (+2), severe effect (+2), rare ingredient (vampire dust) (-2).
Effect: The caster mixes together a thick, bitter-smelling tea, which the Blood Stalker must drink down before it stops boiling. The life-giving property of the mandrake root turns the demonic residue in the vampire dust into something similar to (but nowhere near as satisfying or effective as) demon blood.
For one day per Success Level in the casting, the Blood Stalker experiences no ill effects from not consuming demon blood. She will still lose her Blood Stalker powers as normal, but she gets a reprieve from the debilitating cumulative penalty. Additionally, if she was already experiencing a penalty for not drinking, it restarts at 0 when the effect of the tea wears off.
Any non-Blood Stalker who drinks this tea experiences extreme nausea and must immediately succeed on a Survival Test with a penalty equal to the Success Levels of the casting or vomit violently and profusely.
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Dispersal Dream
Quick Cast: Yes (Sorcery 3+)
Power Level: 8
Requirements: A short incantation, or a 20-minute ritual for those without Sorcery. No matter what, the caster must sacrifice a specially enchanted rock called an Avatar Stone, and these are hard to come by (rumor has it there are three or fewer left in the world).
Aspect Analysis: May be Quick Cast (+1), major scope (large area) (+3), way-rare ingredient (Avatar Stone) (-3), beyond awesome effect (+7).
Effect: The target of the spell, who must be no more than five yards from the caster, takes Bash damage equal to 3x Willpower per Success Level, ignoring all armor and non-magical protection. If the Dream does enough damage to kill the target, she is gorily torn apout. Whether or not the first target dies, if there is another large creature (something the size of a housecat or larger) within one yard per Success Level, the spell will "leap" to it and have the same effect. As long as there is a creature within range of the last target, the spell will continue to propagate. (This effect is very quick: each Turn the Dream will activate a number of times equal to the caster's Willpower.)
The caster is not entirely immune to the Dispersal Dream - the effect will jump to her if she is the only target within range of its most recent victim. No other beings have any protection, though, and unless the targets are properly isolated this spell will end with a field of bloody meat, some of which used to be the caster and her friends.
(The Dispersal Dream is, down to its name, pretty much a direct porting of an effect from the Myth series of computer games.)
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Dreamcatcher
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 1
Requirements: A ritual performed while the caster fashions a webbed ring out of wood, sinew, beads and feathers. The process takes at least several hours.
Aspect Analysis: Very lengthy ritual (-2), creates a magical item (+1), very long duration (several days) (+2), unusual ingredients (-1), noticeable effect (+1).
Effect: The spell enchants a dreamcatcher, a traditional Native American talisman that, when hung over the head of a bed, will prevent anyone sleeping in it from suffering from bad dreams, which get caught in the webbing. The dreamcatcher gives the recipient a bonus equal to the Success Levels of the spell to resist Recurring Nightmares or any sort of psychic dreams or dream visitations. Each use of this bonus, successful or not, reduces the Power Level by one. Once the dreamcatcher is "full" of bad dreams, it provides no further benefit aside from being a pretty decoration. Whether spirits, ghosts or other incorporeal creatures are in any way affected by the dreamcatcher is entirely up to the Director. Likewise, the Director has the final say over whether or not a "full" dreamcatcher is in any way volatile...
The exact style of the dreamcatcher varies from talisman to talisman, but all incorporate a ring with webbing and at least one feather. Many Artists learn how to cast the Dreamcatcher spell using the Art Skill instead of Occultism - this is done as part of the process of making the dreamcatcher.
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Ezili's Boon
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 1
Requirements: An hour-long ritual conducted at a place of power on the Summer or Winter Solstice. During the casting, the caster must inflict sufficient damage upon herself that she will die. (This is usually done by slashing a vein or artery and allowing the blood to run free.)
Aspect Analysis: Lengthy ritual (-1), noticeable scope (summons one being) (+1), unusual component (caster's slow death) (-3), awesome effect (summons powerful near-deity) (+5), entity not under control (-1).
Effect: At the moment of death, Ezili appears to the caster and grants her one Wish.
Opinions vary over what exactly Ezili is. Most believe she is a voodoo loa also known as Erzuli, but whatever the case she is a powerful creative and destructive force. She is a primordial representation of motherhood, fertility and femininity, and most of her granted Wishes somehow fulfill one of these aspects. Unlike Vengeance Demons, Ezili doesn't usually arrange for the Wish to backfire on the Wisher, especially if it has altruistic motives. Instead, she tends to wreak some unintended havoc on the area around her: her presence will attract supernatural entities, tear open supernatural portals, and cause spells to backfire.
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Falcon Crown
Lisa: It's not your fault... you don't control the birds. Someday you will, but not now.
-The Simpsons 7.25 The Summer of 4 ft. 2
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 2
Requirements: A feather from an eagle, hawk or falcon, burned while reciting an incantation to Horus the Younger (Heru-se-Isis), the falcon-headed Egyptian god.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (+1), noticeable scope (one being) (+1), unusual ingredient (raptor feather) (-1), noticeable effect (+1).
Effect: For one minute per Success Level, the caster can control the actions of nearby birds (a maximum number equal to twice her Willpower). This can be as simple as causing them to fly or roost, or as complicated as directing them to deliver a small object to another character. These birds can do one point of damage per bird every round (half Bash, half Slash/stab) if ordered to attack.
Only normal, mundane birds are affected by this spell. Demons with bird-like traits, or birds that serve as familiars or are already being controlled by another caster, are completely immune.
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Firestorm
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A 15-minute ritual involving candles and ash-smearing, or a few words and gestures for those with Sorcery.
Aspect Analysis: May be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (+1), short duration (-1), slow damage (-1), major effect (+3).
Effect: For one Turn per Success Level, the caster gains the ability to project narrow lines of fire from her hands as an attack action. These flames do one point of Fire damage per Success Level in the casting roll, and will ignite flammable targets. Aiming and firing requires a Dexterity and Willpower roll (this does not suffer from or contribute to repeated casting penalties), and targets may Dodge. Flame lines use Pistol ranges.
For the duration of the spell, the caster's hands are covered in flames. Normally these don't harm her (and won't burn anything else, either), but if she fails any of her shooting rolls, there is a magical backlash doing 1 point of Fire damage per Success Level in the casting roll.
(Firestorm was inspired by a spell of the same name from the Hexen computer game.)
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Frost Shards
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 5
Requirements: A handful of frost, snow, slush or ice and a brief chant.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (five Turns) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), awesome effect (+3).
Effect: This spell enchants a small quantity of frozen water (the exact form doesn't matter) that, when thrown at the target, transforms into a flurry of ice that reduces said target's Dexterity by one per Success Level. Any target brought to Dexterity 1 or lower as a result of this spell is frozen solid.
A frozen subject is still alive, and will recover fully if thawed under medical supervision. Otherwise, she takes fifteen points of damage in the thawing process. A frozen target who is struck hard can shatter, which results in instant death. Targets who aren't frozen recover in about an hour.
This spell works best on animals and humans; for vampires and most demons, it takes two Success Levels to remove one level of Dexterity.
Inanimate objects are instantly frozen, but anything very warm (e.g. a space heater) will thaw almost instantly.
(Frost Shards was inspired by a spell of the same name from the Hexen computer game.)
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Hideaway
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 2
Requirements: 5 minutes of meditation for most casters, but just a simple gesture for those with Sorcery.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (two Turns) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (one being) (+1), short duration (-1), easily dispelled/countered (-1) noticeable effect (+1).
Effect: The caster causes one individual per Success Level to ignore her for one Turn per Success Level. Unless the caster does something to draw attention to herself (e.g. jumping up and down and screaming), those affected will walk right past without even glancing at her. This spell doesn't allow the caster to disappear from view, however - any target who can see her when she casts the spell is unaffected by it.
(The Hideaway name and effect are based on the Hideaway Invocation from the WitchCraft Mystery Codex.)
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Kumo-de aruki (Walking the Clouds)
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A few minutes of meditation while burning gingko incense.
Aspect Analysis: Noticeable scope (one being) (+1), severe effect (+2).
Effect: The caster collapses as her soul leaves her body. She can travel astrally at a speed of 2x Willpower per Success Level miles per hour. Completely intangible, she can travel through solid objects in any direction at will. She cannot interact with solid objects, and is not normally visible to corporeal beings. Certain ethereal creatures may be able to touch her, though. While her soul is traveling, the caster’s body is inert and totally vulnerable. The effect lasts one minute per Success Level, and at the end of that time she is instantly pulled back to her body.
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Life Bond
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 6
Requirements: A thirty second recitation, after which the caster must firmly place her bare hand on the target's exposed skin (treat as a Grapple if the target resists) within one Turn per Success Level. Both the caster and target must have souls.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (+1), severe scope (+2), limited target selection (-1), very long duration (+2), severe strength (+2).
Effect: For one day per Success Level, a link is forged between the caster and the target. Within that time period, any change in Life Point totals experienced by one of the parties that is not caused by normal daily healing or some form of personal regeneration is automatically mirrored in the other. (The effects of this spell are not mirrored.) It is the effect of Life Point loss that is mirrored, not the cause: there is a direct one-to-one correlation in Life Points, regardless of damage type or source. A character may only be part of one Life Bond at a time.
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Luna Lends Me Her Eyes
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A 20 minute ritual supplication to a moon goddess (Selene, Luna and Diana are popular). The ritual may only be performed when the moon is in the sky.
Aspect Analysis: Noticeable scope (one being) (+1), restricted use (moon must be visible) (-1), major effect (+3)
Effect: The caster is placed in a trance for one minute per Success Level, in which she sees the world "from the moon’s perspective": as if from high above, able to view almost half the planet at once. It takes a Willpower (not doubled) roll to sort out the sensory overload; otherwise the caster collapses in a heap for the duration of the spell. Once she adjusts to the visions, the caster can use a Willpower and Perception roll to zero in on any one person or place. (Each refocusing takes about a minute, and requires a new roll.) Only outdoor locations are visible, but the spell enables the caster to see in total darkness. With a Willpower (not doubled) roll, she can make an attempt to trace auras, ley lines and fields of magical force. (This spell doubtless has some interesting effects during a lunar or solar eclipse...)
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Ma'at Feather
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 1
Requirements: A feather enchanted and dedicated to Ma'at, the Egyptian goddess of truth and balance.
Aspect Analysis: Creates a magical item (+1).
Effect: The feather appears unchanged, except that if set on its spine it will stand upright indefinitely. If someone lies in the feather's presence, it will immediately fall over. The feather may be set up a number of times equal to the Success Levels in the casting roll, but after it falls over the last time it will disappear in a flash of light.
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Mark of Aeolus
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A brief invocation to the god of winds on a clear, windy day.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (five Turns) (+1), noticeable scope (one being) (+1), long duration (+1), restricted use (windy days only) (-1), severe effect (+2), easily dispelled (-1).
Effect: The caster paints a white mark on the subject’s face or hand. Anyone wearing the mark gains a +1 bonus to her Dexterity for the duration of the spell, about one hour per Success Level. She also has the ability to conjure a shield of swirling air that provides a +5 bonus to Dodge actions for one Turn per Success Level in the original casting. Using this ability immediately dismisses the Mark. Marring the mark may also dismiss the spell, at the Director’s discretion.
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Medicine Wheel
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 2
Requirements: The caster must make a medicine wheel, a Native American talisman consisting of a cross inside a circle with assorted tassles. It must be made of natural components, usually wood, leather and sinew.
Aspect Analysis: Very lengthy ritual (-2), creates a magical item (+1), very long duration (several days) (+2), unusual ingredients (-1), severe effect (+2).
Effect: The completed medicine wheel channels ambient magical energies (the positive, nourishing earth-centered stuff) into the air around it. Anyone sleeping (or resting) for a night near (e.g. in the same small room as) the wheel heals an additional Life Point that day. Also, she gains a +1 to any rolls to resist the effects of diseases or poisons while under the wheel's immediate influence. The wheel remains effective for one day per Success Level.
Sacrificing an active Medicine Wheel while casting a spell grants the caster a +1. The Medicine Wheel becomes an inert talisman - usually cracked or scorched from the strain of forcing so much magic through it at once.
Like Dreamcatcher, some Artists have learned to cast this spell using the Art Skill instead of Occultism.
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Murder of Crows
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 6
Requirements: A short incantation, during which the caster must visualize her destination.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (six Turns) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (+1), major effect (+3)
Effect: The caster freezes for a moment, and then explodes into a dozen magical crows that immediately fly away. When they reach their destination (a location within one mile per level of Willpower + Sorcery, which the caster must visualize while casting the spell), the crows flock and the caster reconstitutes. Crows created by this spell will take no action except flying in a flawlessly straight line toward their destination and Dodging attacks. The caster is vulnerable while the spell is in effect - she takes 10 points of damage for each crow that doesn't make it to the destination.
The caster has no self awareness while in crow form. She has no memory of traveling, cannot control the actions of the birds once they form, and her mind cannot be read by magical or psychic means.
A crow has 8 Life Points, flies at a speed of 30 MPH, and has a Dodge Score of 26.
(Murder of Crows is based on the rather nifty means of travel employed by Lucifer in The Prophecy and Soulblighter in the Myth games.)
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Pele da Pedra (Skin of Stone)
Pinheiro faz mogno, a nogueira a corvalho;
talco a arenito, a piçarra a granito;
estanho a bronzé, a ferro àço;
carne a osso, a chifre faz rocha!
Pele faz pedra!
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A ritual that incorporates throwing slivers of wood, stone, and metal into a fire, along with reciting the above Portuguese incantation. For Witches and Warlocks, touch the target and incant "Pele faz pedra!"
Aspect Analysis: May be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (+1), noticeable effect (+1).
Effect: The target gains the Natural Toughness Quality for one minute per Success Level (if she already has the Natural Toughness Quality, the effects stack). Although the recipient does not change visibly, her skin feels hard as stone when struck hard enough to do damage. Additionally, she gains Resistance (Demonic Powers) 2 for the same period of time.
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Psychic Surge
Quick Cast: Yes (Sorcery 2+)
Power Level: 4
Requirements: One minute of chanting and some sand thrown in the air above the caster's head. (Those with Sorcery only need to do the sand part.)
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (four Turns) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), short duration (-1), major effect (+3).
Effect: There is a bright green flash, and every character with psychic abilities (including the Sorcery Quality and pyschic demon powers) within about 20 yards of the caster takes 2x Willpower per Success Level damage. The caster herself is not completely immune, taking one point of damage per Success Level if she has supernatural powers. For one Turn per Success Level after the flare, all supernatural powers within the area of effect suffer a -2 penalty.
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Raise and Bind Assassin Spirit
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 3
Requirements: An hour-long ritual using dirt from the grave of someone who died by violence or treachery, and a part of her body. (Many casters also prepare protective circles and wards, just in case...)
Aspect Analysis: Lengthy ritual (one hour) (-1), noticeable scope (one being) (+1), restricted use (deceased victim of violence only) (-1), very long duration (+2), rare ingredient (-1), major effect (+3).
Effect: The spirit first appears before the caster mindless, ready for instruction. The spirit must perform one discrete task per Success Level of the casting roll, and will carry out one per day until its obligation is fulfilled. Once set on a task, the spirit is relentless, and if defeated will try again and again until the job is completed or the spell is somehow broken.
With each completed task, the spirit remembers more and more of its previous life, and before carrying out its final obligation its personality is almost completely restored.
One aspect of this spell that is rarely noted is that when the spirit's tasks are completed, the caster must succeed at a Willpower (doubled) roll against the spirit's Brains Score, or it will turn on her. This is almost universally fatal to the magician...
If the spell is broken, either by dispelling it or by returning the body part to the spirit or to its grave, the spirit disperses back to whatever afterlife it was in. In this case, the caster is safe from its retribution (although if summoned again, there's a chance it might regain enough self-will to track down the caster on its own...)
Assassin Spirit
Assassin spirits are built of electrically charged ectoplasm. Their most powerful attack involves channeling this electricity into a target, killing it nearly instantly.
An assassin spirit looks like it did in life and is solid to the touch but a little cold for a live being. The spirit can switch into an intangible vaporous form at will. In its human form it is limited to moving and attacking like a person, but in its vaporous form it can fly, and channel itself through electrical devices. It is in this form that it kills most of its victims: it reaches into the chest, touches the heart and grounds itself, sending obscene amounts of electricity right into the muscle and causing a heart attack. (Creatures that don't rely on beating hearts are immune.) Additionally, any electronic devices near the target during the attack are badly damaged by the discharge. Generally, the spirit will only use its most lethal attack against its primary target.
Assassin spirits are immune to all mundane forms of damage, except for two: being struck with something made of iron does normal damage, and being hit by a large discharge of electricity (including a lightning strike) will dissipate the ectoplasm instantly. However, unless the spell raising the spirit is broken, it will reform in a few hours and continue its mission. It takes damage equaling 2x the spirit's Brains Score to destroy any one ectoplasmic manifestation. These spirits may not pass through iron or steel barriers.
Name: Assassin Spirit
Motivation: Serve master, avenge death
Critter Type: Ghost
Attributes: Str -/1*, Dex -/2, Con -/1, Int 3, Per 4, Will 7
Ability Scores: Muscle -/8*, Combat -/10, Brains 20
Life Points: -
Drama Points: 4
Special Abilities: Flight, Insubstantial, Electrical Attack, Vulnerable: Iron
*Physical Attributes and Scores only apply when the spirit is in its human form.
Combat Maneuvers
Name Bonus Damage Notes
Dodge 20 -- Defense action
Punch 10 3 Bash
Electric Shock 20 26 Half Bash, half Fire
Heart Attack 17 104 Bash
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Return to Rest
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 2
Requirements: A 10-minute ritual invoking a psychopomp or god of death.
Aspect Analysis: Creates a magical item (+1), very restricted use (certain undead only) (-2), major effect (+3).
Effect: This spell creates a potion that undoes the effects of certain reanimation rituals. Generally it is included alongside such spells in case the result is not exactly what the caster wanted. The potion created is a pale yellow liquid that will evaporate in about a half hour if unused. It acts on zombies and similar animated corpses as holy water does on vampires. The spell creates two "splashes" of potion per Success Level.
Not all undead may be affected by this spell. As a rule of thumb, undead which are reanimated chemically, alchemically, or through a specific spell (like Jack O'Toole and his buddies from BtVS 3.13 The Zeppo) would be affected, while those reanimated through a direct demonic influence or mystical environmental phenomenon (like vampires and Ovu Mobani zombies) would be immune. Final say lies with the Director. The potion only affects corporeal undead.
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Snake Tattoo, Coiling
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A tattoo of a snake (usually a python or boa constrictor) looped around the caster's forearm and a short incantation in an obscure, sibilant language.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (one Turn) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (the caster's tattoo) (+1), short duration (-1), unusual ingredient (tattoo) (-1), severe effect (+2).
Effect: The caster's tattoo lifts off her arm and wraps around a target that she is touching for one Turn per Success Level. This allows her to Grapple a target using just that one hand, or to add a bonus equal to the Success Levels in the casting roll to a normal Grapple roll. The Coiling Snake can also wrap around an inanimate object, adding a bonus equal to the Success Levels in the casting to Strength rolls to avoid losing her grip on it.
When the spell effect ends the tattoo recoils quickly onto the caster's arm, instantly ending a one-handed Grapple or removing the bonus to Grapple or Strength rolls. A defender immediately gets another attempt to break free of a Grapple, or the caster must immediately roll again to maintain her grip on an object.
Note: This spell animates any tattoo of a snake that is permanently inked on the caster's forearm. The tattoo itself is not necessarily mystical in any way.
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Snake Tattoo, Hissing
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 3
Requirements: A large tattoo of a snake (usually a rattlesnake, or a cobra with its hood spread) on the caster's back and a short incantation in an obscure, sibilant language.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (one Turn) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (the caster's tattoo) (+1), unusual ingredient (tattoo) (-1), noticeable effect (+1).
Effect: The caster's tattoo lifts off her back and hisses loudly (a rattlesnake will rattle too, of course) for about five seconds before returning. One target, specified when the spell is cast and who has witnessed the snake's appearance, must immediately pass a Fear Test with a penalty equal to the Success Levels in the casting roll.
Note: This spell animates any tattoo of a snake that is permanently inked on the caster's upper back. The tattoo itself is not necessarily mystical in any way.
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Snake Tattoo, Hunting
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 2
Requirements: A tattoo of a snake (usually a pit viper) around the caster's neck and a short incantation in an obscure, sibilant language.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (one Turn) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (the caster's tattoo) (+1), short duration (-1), unusual ingredient (tattoo) (-1), noticeable effect (+1).
Effect: The caster's tattoo lifts off her neck and surveys its surroundings, its head swinging back and forth across the caster's field of view. For one Turn per Success Level the caster is aware of all living (or not-living-but-still-moving) beings within 5x Willpower yards per Success Level. Only supernatural or superscience invisibility can foil this spell, and even then the caster still knows that something is there unless the invisibility specifically masks heat, sound and air disturbances. When the spell ends, the tattoo immediately returns to the caster's neck.
Note: This spell animates any tattoo of a snake that is permanently inked on the caster's neck. The tattoo itself is not necessarily mystical in any way.
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Snake Tattoo, Striking
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 4
Requirements: A tattoo of a snake (usually a cobra or viper) on the inside of the caster's forearm and a short incantation in an obscure, sibilant language.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (one Turn) (+1), may be Quick Cast (+1), noticeable scope (the caster's tattoo) (+1), unusual ingredient (tattoo) (-1), severe effect (+2).
Effect: The caster's tattoo lifts off her arm and snaps outward at a target, doing Willpower x Success Levels in Slash/stab damage, as well as inflicting a Strength 3 poison (Strength-affecting, one roll per hour, automatically ends in six hours). This attack is made with a Willpower + Dexterity roll, immediately after the spell is cast. The target may Dodge normally.
The attack is instantaneous, and the snake immediately returns to the caster's arm. If the caster misses, she can't try to wield the snake like a whip. The snake has a maximum range equal to the caster's height.
Note: This spell animates any tattoo of a snake that is permanently inked on the caster's forearm. The tattoo itself is not necessarily mystical in any way.
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Tongue of Fiends
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 1
Requirements: A body part from the demon species in question.
Aspect Analysis: Very short ritual (+2), noticeable scope (+1), very unusual ingredient (-2).
Effect: The caster is imbued with the ability to speak, read and understand the language of any one demon species for one minute per Success Level. The ritual requires her to ingest a piece of flesh or another body part from a member of the demon species to be communicated with. Once performed, the ritual allows the caster to communicate with any demon of that species in its native tongue. Of course, the demon is under no obligation to talk back.
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Udjat (Eye of Horus)
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 2
Requirements: The caster draws an Eye of Horus, or udjat, around the recipient's eye using a paste made of charcoal, clay, and a small amount of silver.
Aspect Analysis: Recitation (two Turns) (+1), noticeable scope (one living being) (+1), very long duration (+2), unusual ingredients (-1) easily dispelled (-1).
Effect: Vision is improved in the eye decorated by the udjat. Until the symbol is wiped away (at most one day per Success Level), a character with Impaired Sense (Vision) can see as if she has Acute Sense (Vision), and a character with normal vision or Acute Sense (Vision) and no other supernatural Qualities or Drawbacks gains the Sight.
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Unnatural Concentration
Quick Cast: No
Power Level: 5
Requirements: A personal belonging of the target, and a lengthy ritual (about an hour)
Aspect Analysis: Long ritual (one hour) (-1), noticeable scope (one living being) (+1), unusual ingredient (-1), awesome effect (+5), difficult to dispel (+1).
Effect: The target of an Unnatural Concentration spell finds herself unusually focused. For a full day after the spell takes effect, she gains a bonus equal to the Success Levels of the casting roll to any mundane task that requires her full attention, including writing, reading, test-taking, research, performing music, or any number of other undertakings.
After this day has passed, the character becomes even more focused and single-minded - although she notices nothing wrong, she has in fact acquired the Obsession (whatever task she's engaged in) Drawback. After a week, she begins to take on the traits of the Emotional Problems (Depression) Drawback. For each further week that passes, she gains another Drawback: (in order) Talentless, Humorless, and Paranoid. Once she has all five of these Drawbacks, she is no longer able to function in society; by now she has probably been diagnosed with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder or a dissociative personality disorder and been locked in a mental ward for observation and treatment. If she already has any of the latter four Drawbacks, that is skipped over and the "disease" progresses faster.
A victim of Unnatural Concentration returns to normal over the course of a day if the spell is dispelled. It is far more insidious than most spells, though, and does not particularly "want" to be ended. The dispelling roll must be made against the full Power Level of the spell, plus the number of Success Levels in the initial casting, and a failed dispelling roll adds +1 to the effective Power Level for any future dispelling attempts. (The traditional decapitating-the-caster route has been known to end Unnatural Concentration as well.)
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Witch's Eye
Quick Cast: Yes
Power Level: 4
Requirements: A small, solid sphere that fits in the caster's hand, and a short incantation.
Aspect Analysis: Very short ritual (+2), noticeable scope (+1), very long duration (+2), caster must maintain spell (-1).
Effect: The sphere transforms into a gossamer-winged eyeball, through which the caster can see as if through her own eye. The eyeball flies as the caster directs at the caster's normal speed, and no matter how far away it travels, the images reach the caster immediately (although it only works in whatever dimension the caster is - if she walks through a dimensional gateway or portal without the eye, the spell automatically ends).
The Witch's Eye only transmits visual information, and shares the caster's Acute or Impaired Vision and/or any supernatural senses. Additionally, depth perception is tricky: any Perception-based rolls to determine exact distances and spatial relationships are at a -1 penalty.
The spell lasts for as long as the caster is able to concentrate on it - if she meditates or is otherwise sitting quietly and focused only on maintaining the spell, no rolls are needed. If she engages in moderately strenuous activity, she must get one Success Level in a Constitution + Willpower roll every minute, with a -1 penalty for each previous roll since her last break (10 minutes or longer) to concentrate on the spell. If she is engaged in very strenuous mental or physical activity, such as combat or taking a standardized test, this roll must be made every Turn.
A Witch's Eye has no Life Points, and pops like a soap bubble (leaving no trace) if damaged. The caster may attempt to Dodge attacks on the eye with a Constitution + Willpower roll, but even the gentlest attack (that connects) will destroy it. This also happens if the caster fails a concentration roll.
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