Thaumaturgy

In the old days it was called blood magic or blood sorcery, but its name has slowly evolved and so has it. Now practiced heavily by the Tremere as well as old clan Tzimisce, and other smaller circles.

## Biothaumaturgical Experimentation

This power is as much science as thaumaturgy, and a laboratory, with a lot of esoteric equipment is necessary. Assume that a single roll represents a week of work, and an expenditure of $1000 per level of the power being used.

\* **Thaumaturgical Forensics**

Roll: Intelligence + Medicine, difficulty 5
The vampire can learn things about a target from a piece of hair, skin, blood, or other tissue. Things that can be learned by this power include age, sex, race, clan, generation, tribe, Garou gifts, vampiric diablerie, infernal diablerie, disciplines, Vicissitude infection, etc.

\*\* **Animal Experimentation**

Roll: Intelligence + Medicine, difficulty 8
The vampire may alter an animal. Each success represents one attribute dot, two abilities dots, one instinct, one behavior pattern, one aspect of the creature's niche in the ecology (such as diet or habitat), or one feature that can be added, removed, or modified. The Storyteller must approve all such changes.

\*\*\* **Thaumaturgical Surgery**

Roll: Wits + Medicine, difficulty 7
The vampire may heal two levels of normal damage, or one level of aggravated damage, done to a target, per success. This power may not be used twice on the same injury. The surgery takes an hour; the recovery time is one week.

\*\*\*\* **Human Experimentation**

As Animal Experimentation, but may be used to alter mundane humans.

\*\*\*\*\* **Supernatural Experimentation**

As Animal Experimentation, but may be used to alter vampires, mages, mummies, werecreatures, spirits, faeries, etc.

## Chains of Pleasure

Infernalist have used this Path to corrupt many a soul. Some victims become dependent upon the Infernalist for the effects of this power. The effects are like a drug, sapping the will of the user over time. After an individual has experienced nthis power once, he will seek it out again and again. A victim must roll Self Control or Instincts (difficulty of 6) to resist another chance to experience the effects. After each subsequent subjection to this power, the difficulty increases by one, with a maximum of 9. This Path is extremely effective, garnering pleasure addicts who will serve the Infernalist just for a fix.

\* **Ecstasy**

Kindred, simply through skin to skin contact with the Infernalist who spends a Blood Point.

System: The victim will feel this pleasure as long as the Infernalist maintains contact and must make a Self Control roll (difficulty 6) to do anything but enjoy himself. This power may be used for any length of time; however, if contact is broken, it requires another Blood Point to reestablish Ecstasy.

\*\* **Overstimulation**

This power is a strengthened version of Ecstasy. It is so effective that some victims perceive it as painful, and they might be knocked unconscious by the pleasure.

System: The victim must spend Willpower to take any action, and then must make a Self Control roll as described in Ecstasy. Failure means the character has lost consciousness from resisting the pleasure.

\*\*\* **The Wave of Pleasure**

The Infernalist can cause pleasure in more than one victim, and no longer requires skin contact. She merely has to make eye contact with each victim. Once established, The Wave of Pleasure lasts as long as that particular target is in sight and as long as the Infernalist concentrates on maintaining it.

System: The actual effects are the same as Ecstasy. Contact can be made with only one person per turn and requires one Blood Point each, but as many contacts can be made as the Infernalist desires.

\*\*\*\* **Writhing Delights**

With but a touch, the Infernalist can send a victim into spasms of pleasure, leave him lying on the ground shaking and squirming uncontrollably for hours.

System: After touching the victim, the character rolls Charisma + Subterfuge (difficulty of the target's Willpower). For an amount of time depending on the number of successes, the victim can do nothing more than writhe on the ground:

2 Successes Five Minutes
3 Successes Thirty Minutes
4 Successes One Hour
5 Successes One Night

\*\*\*\*\* **The Flow of a Thousand Embraces**

This power severely injures a victim, causing extreme shock to her nervous system.

System: The vampire must touch the victim and spend a Blood Point and a point of Willpower. If the victim is a human, she suffers seven levels of damage, minus one for every success on a Stamina + Athletics roll (difficulty 7). Vampires make the same roll, but suffer no damage. Instead, failure sends them into torpor for as long as their Humanity mandates. If they succeed, they must still make Self Control rolls (difficulty 7) or go into Rotschreck.

## Corruption

These powers must be used on a victim within arm's length. Followers of Set may learn this path without knowing Thaumaturgy.

\* **Contradict**

Roll: Manipulation + Subterfuge, difficulty Willpower + 1
The vampire may cause a victim to do the opposite of what she was originally going to do.

\*\* **Disfiguration**

Roll: Intelligence + Disguise, difficulty 8
The vampire may alter the facial appearance of a target. This may be used to make someone look better, worse, or just different. The difficulty to use this power for impersonation is 10.

\*\*\* **Change Mind**

Roll: Manipulation + Empathy, difficulty Willpower + 1
The vampire may choose a Demeanor, and force a victim to adopt it, for the following time periods:

1 suc. one turn.
2 suc. one day.
3 suc. one month.
4 suc. one year.
5 suc. permanently.

\*\*\*\* **Cripple**

Roll: Willpower, difficulty Courage + Fortitude + 3
The vampire can make a victim effectively paraplegic, for the following time periods:

1 suc. one turn.
2 suc. one day.
3 suc. one month.
4 suc. one year.
5 suc. permanently.

\*\*\*\*\* **Corrupt Soul**

Roll: Charisma + Empathy, difficulty Willpower + 3
The vampire may choose a Nature, and force a victim to adopt it, for the following time periods:

1 suc. one turn.
2 suc. one day.
3 suc. one month.
4 suc. one year.
5 suc. permanently.

## Elemental Mastery

\* **Elemental Strength**

The vampire may spend two willpower points to increase all of her physical attributes by one. This power costs one willpower point per turn.

\*\* **Wooden Tongues**

Roll: Wits + Linguistics, difficulty 7
The vampire may communicate with, and get the impressions of, inanimate objects.

\*\*\* **Animate the Unmoving**

Roll: Willpower, difficulty 7
The vampire may animate and control otherwise inanimate objects. This power costs one willpower point per turn, and will not make an object perform tasks of which it would be incapable even if it could move.

\*\*\*\* **Elemental Form**

Roll: Stamina + Repair, difficulty 6
The vampire may turn into an inanimate object of size roughly equal to her own. At least three successes are required to be able to use disciplines in this form.

\*\*\*\*\* **Summon Elemental**

Roll: Manipulation + Science, difficulty 8
The vampire may summon an Elemental. With a roll of Charisma + Intimidation, it may even follow her instructions...

## Fires of Inferno

This Path of Dark Thaumaturgy relates to manipulating a form of energy found only in Hades. The energy looks very much like fire, but it is supernatural fire and can affect those with protection from normal flames.

The following information relates how much damage the hellfire inflicts. The higher the level of the practitioner, the hotter the flames. Flames bum for half damage (round down) every turn after the first until extinguished if its target is combustible (vampires are just as combustible as humans) and cause aggravated wounds. Hellfire can be put out in the same way as normal flames. Hellfire appears in many different colors, not just red.

\* One die of damage

\*\* Two dice of damage

\*\*\* Four dice of damage

\*\*\*\* Six dice of damage

\*\*\*\*\* Eight dice of damage

## Gift of Morpheus

\* **Cause Sleep**

Roll: Manipulation + Empathy, difficulty Willpower + 3
The vampire may put a victim to sleep. If the target is a vampire, a willpower point must also be spent.

1 suc. the victim loses one die from all pools next turn.
2 suc. the victim loses one die from all pools next turn.
3 suc. the victim goes to sleep.

\*\* **Mass Slumber**

Roll: Charisma + Leadership, difficulty 8
The vampire may affect several victims with the power Cause Sleep. Interpret successes as per Cause Sleep.

\*\*\* **Enchanted Slumber**

Roll: Intelligence + Subterfuge, difficulty Willpower
The vampire may put a victim to sleep, and name an event that must occur that will enable the victim to awaken. If the target is a vampire, a willpower point must also be spent. If the event does not occur, the victim will stay asleep for up to the following time periods:

1 suc. one turn.
2 suc. one night.
3 suc. one week.
4 suc. one month.
5 suc. one year.

\*\*\*\* **Dreamscape**

Roll: Wits + Dreaming, difficulty Willpower
The vampire may project her own image into a dream, but has no control over the dream other than by her own actions within it. The vampire must have a belonging of the victim to use this power.

\*\*\*\*\* **Master of Dreams**

Roll: Manipulation + Dreaming, difficulty 7
Resist: Manipulation + Dreaming, difficulty 7
The vampire may start changing the target's dreams, once she has entered them by using Dreamscape. If the target is a vampire, a willpower point must also be spent. Once this power has been used, the target may also change her dreams with resistance rolls, and both characters may act in the dream as if they were awake. If either character dies in this dream, the character also dies for real.

## Gifts of Faith

This Thaumaturgical Path is only known by Hajj, Arabian Nosferatu. They use this path to emulate True Faith. (It is the only path available to them.)

#### \* Saut Allah

Through a Charisma + Leadership roll (difficulty 6), the Hajj can verbally inspire his followers and grant then an extra point of temporary Willpower. This takes an hour of constant chanting to evoke.

#### \*\* Nuzra Allah

Using his Willpower against a difficulty of the opponent's current Willpower, the Hajj can prevent one attacker from assaulting him as long as eye contact is maintained.

#### \*\*\* Ruh Allah

By reciting a prayer, the Hajj can attempt to bring comeone out of frenzy (Charisma + Leadership vs. a difficulty of the target's permanent Willpower). The successes are substracted from 10. Once the target's Humanity rating is reached, the frenzy is quelled.

#### \*\*\*\* Ghaduh Allah

The smae as Nuzra Allah, the Haji no longer needs to maintain eye contact in order to stop an attack. Only one opponent can be so affected.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Kubda Allah

After establishing eye contact, the Hajj can demand that an opponent submit, using his permanent Willpower vs. a difficulty of the opponent's permanent Willpower. Successfully attacked opponents who do not submit suffer two levels of nonaggravated damage (they feel an outside force crushing them) per success the Hajj makes. If they do submit, they will no longer be able to attact the Hajj for the duration of the evening.

## Hands of Destruction

One of the most gruesome Paths, the Hands of Destruction provide Infernalists with powerful offensive abilities. The Hands of Destruction center around entropy and decay in one form or another.

#### \* Decay

This power ages an inanimate object, causing it to rust, break down or begin to corrode.

System: Every minute the Thaumaturgist touches an object and spends a Blood Point, the object ages 10 years. The Storyteller can then decide what sort of awful effects this can have.

#### \*\* Gnarl Wood

This power warps and bends any wooden object the Infernalist sees. The wood is otherwise undamaged.

System: For every Blood Point spent, 50 pounds of an object may be bent. This power may be used on any wooden object the Infernalist can see, so it is possible to bend all the hunter's wooden stakes in no time.

#### \*\*\* Acidic Touch

This power allows the Infernalist to produce a horrid secretion from anywhere on her body. It is capable of burning through wood and metal like a strong acid. It causes terrible chemical burns to anyone touched.

System: One Blood Point produces enough acid to burn through apiece of quarter inch steel plate in three seconds or enough for one attack. The acid causes any damage from a hand to hand attack to be aggravated, though the Infernalist must spend a Blood Point each turn she wants to use this power.

#### \*\*\*\*Atrophy

This power sucks the life from a victim's arm or leg, causing it to become a shrunken husk of bone, skin, and little more. The effects are instantaneous and, in mortals, irreversible. System: The victim receives one chance to resist the effects by rolling three successes on a Stamina + Athletics roll (difficulty the roll means the arm is arm crippled. If one success is rolled, then all difficulties involving use of the arm are increased by two; if two successes are rolled, those difficulties increase by one. Vampires can cure the arm by spending five Blood Points on it through the course of a night.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Turn to Dust

This awesome power ages a human victim so rapidly that he turns to dust in the Infernalist hands. The Infernalist rolls Manipulation + Intimidation (difficulty of the victim's Humanity); every success ages the victim by 10 years.

## Lure of Flames

Roll: Willpower, difficulty [level of power used] + 3

By spending a blood point, the vampire may create a flame, anywhere within line of sight, that will not burn anything until released. She must also roll Perception + Alertness to place it anywhere other than her own body. The level of the effect (the size of the flame) is limited to the number of successes on the Willpower roll.

## Movement of the Mind

Roll: Willpower, difficulty [level of power used] + 3
By spending a blood point, the vampire may telekinetically lift or manipulate things as if she were holding them in her own hands. At level three, the vampire is assumed to be able to telekinetically move herself, even if she exceeds 200 pounds. The level of the effect (the weight of the object being moved) is limited to the number of successes on the Willpower roll.
\* one pound
\*\* twenty pounds
\*\*\* two hundred pounds
\*\*\*\* one quarter-ton
\*\*\*\*\* one half-ton

## Might of the Sea

#### \* Eyes of the Sea

Roll: Perception + Occult, difficulty 7
By looking into a standing body of water, the vampire may see past occurances in that body of water. The amount of time by which the vampire can see into the past is as follows:
1 suc. one day.
2 suc. one week.
3 suc. one month.
4 suc. one year.
5 suc. ten years.

#### \*\* Jail of Water

Roll: Dexterity + Survival, difficulty 6
Resist: Strength, difficulty 8
The vampire may command water to rise, and trap a target. The vampire may dissolve the jail at will, but a target may only be in one of these jails at a time. This power must be used near a large amount of water.

#### \*\*\* Dehydrate

Roll: Willpower, difficulty 8
Resist: Stamina + Survival + Fortitude difficulty 9
The vampire may pull water out of a target, leaving exit wounds. Humans so injured lose one health level per success, and vampires so injured lose one blood point per success. To take an action the next turn, the target must roll Courage, difficulty 6, and score three more successes than the vampire scored. Failure means that she is in too much pain to act.

#### \*\*\*\* Flowing Wall

Roll: Willpower, difficulty 6
By spending three willpower points, and touching a standing body of water, the vampire may make a wall of water. Supernatural creatures must score three successes on a roll of Strength + Courage, difficulty 9, to cross this barrier. The vampire may dissolve the barrier at will.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Blood to Water

Roll: Willpower, difficulty Humanity + 3, to 10
By touching a victim, the vampire may convert one of the victim's blood points to water for each success. This is fatal to mortals, and vampires lose one die from all pools for each blood point lost this way. When the vampire sleeps, the water disappears, but the blood does not return.

## The Path of Aeolus

By Trey and Rob Greene
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

This path deals with the summoning up of mist and fog to shroud oneself and/or an area, as well as certain unusual means of melding with the magically suspended water vapors. The use of a level of this path costs, as usual, 1 Blood Point and a Willpower roll is required.

#### \* Summon the Fog

The Magus's vision will be unhindered by the mist, but all others must halve their perception rolls. In an odd way, the Magus mentally "feels" about himself *with* the fog.

System: A Blood Point of Energy must be expended and a Willpower roll is required. Note that the difficulty of the Willpower roll will range from 4 if the Kindred is upon or near a large body of water (Pond, Lake, Bay, Ocean), through 5 if it rained recently and the ground is wet, all the way up to 10 in a dry, arid desert, where the moisture will have to be pulled from far beneath the surface of the Earth. Performing the path near a large body of water also automatically moves the effect level (below) up by one.

The area the fog will cover is dependent upon the number of successes rolled by the Magus on a simple (Number of levels in path + Occult) roll:

 3
 4
 5

#### \*\* Summon Chilling Fog

: As above, but in addition the mist is creepy and unnerving (-1 to Willpower and +1 to Frenzy rolls). This costs an extra Blood Point's worth of Vitae to summon forth.

#### \*\*\* Shroud of Fog

: In the fog, the Magus moves silently and is effectively invisible. Other Magii with this path can also use the fog for this purpose, without the original summoner knowing it.

#### \*\*\*\* Silent Fog

: When this level of the path is exercised, the fog will grow thicker and more cloying. Sounds will only travel for a distance of four feet or so. The effective range of Protean level I, Gleam of the Red Eyes, will be reduced to only around ten feet or so. Mortals may panic. This is an unnatural condition, and if used in a City, should be considered a possible Breach of the Masquerade.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Become as one with the Fog

: At this level of mastery of the path, the Magus can become invisible and semi-etheral, floating within the fog. While in this form, the Magus benefits from four automatic soak dice (non-aggravated only) and gains the ability to walk on water.

## Path of Blood

#### \* A Taste for Blood

Roll: Perception + Occult, difficulty 7
By touching the blood of a vampire, the vampire may make an approximation as to the last feeding time, the amount of blood left in a vampire, her rough generation, etc.

#### \* Blood Rage

Roll: Dexterity + Subterfuge, difficulty Willpower
The vampire may force a vampiric victim to spend one blood point per success, and may decide how the blood is spent.

#### \*\* Blood of Potency

Roll: Manipulation + Survival, difficulty 8
The vampire may temporarily reduce her generation. Each success either reduces the vampire's generation by one, or adds one hour to the time period for which it is reduced.

#### \*\*\* Theft of Vitae

Roll: Intelligence + Medicine, difficulty Willpower
The vampire may steal blood from a victim, at a rate of one point per success. The difficulty is to use this power is 6 against a non-living source (IE a plasma bag).

#### \*\*\*\* Cauldron of Blood

Roll: Willpower, difficulty [blood points to be burned] + 4
The vampire may boil some of the blood of another vampire or mortal, which will burn all at once. This causes one aggravated wound per blood point boiled, in addition to blood loss.

## Path of Blood Rose

By Aimee Cohen (mbkqc@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

Due to the Complexity of this path, it cannot be learned by Kindred who are less than level 3, or preferably 4, in Blood Thaumaturgy.

This path involves the use and application of a combination of mortal and Kindred Vitae, the Kindred Vitae specifically having been drawn from those lower than Tenth Generation, and "Pure" red roses. A practitioner of this path grows more and more adept in the making and use of these mixtures to imbue certain crystals with reserves of life energy, as well as to enhance Kindred abilities.

Those who would walk this path must cultivate or procure a strain of rose that is only found in England and on the Northeastern American Seaboard, watering them with distilled water that has been mixed with a few drops of mortal Vitae. Once the roses bloom fully, the Magus must harvest them and crush their petals in a mortar and pestle, wetting them with a precise dmixture of Kindred and mortal Vitae (approximately ten crushed roses per pint (point) of Vitae) while murmuring a complex incantation in Latin. Once the roses and blood are completely combined into a muddy paste, they are set aside in a dark niche and allowed to rest for five nights. During this time the mixture will become crumbly and dried.

Once the five nights have passed, the dried mixture (known as *Los Negro Rojas* [nay-grow row-hoss]) can be wetted with mortal Blood (thus activating it) and used in the Casting of numerous rituals.

## Path of Conjuring

The vampire may not summon an object larger or heavier than herself with any power on this path.
\* Summoning the Simple Form
Roll: Intelligence + [ability], difficulty 6
By spending a willpower point, the vampire may create a simple, featureless object with no moving parts. She must spend a willpower point each turn to prevent it from disappearing.

#### \* Permanency

Roll: Intelligence + [ability], difficulty 6
By spending a willpower point and three blood points, the vampire may permanently summon a simple, featureless object with no moving parts.

#### \*\* Magic of the Smith

Roll: Intelligence + [ability], difficulty 7
By spending a willpower point and five blood points, the vampire may summon a complex object with moving parts. The quality and functionality of the object depends on the degree of success on the above roll.

#### \*\*\* Reverse Conjuration

Roll: Willpower, difficulty Willpower
By spending twice as many willpower points as the target did, the vampire may dissolve the conjuration of a target. The above roll is used as a roll to resist the Conjuration roll

#### \*\*\*\* Power over Life

Roll: Intelligence + Empathy / Animal Ken, difficulty 8
By spending ten blood points, the vampire may summon a creature that will intelligently follow her instructions. However, this creature will slowly become more insubstantial, and in a month will have faded away.

## Path of Corruption (Rego Venalis)

It is said that this Path was developed by Set himself as a gift to his childer. If so, they have made sure to spread it.

#### \*Night's Terror

The Infernalist can strike fear into opponents by reaching into the depths of their souls and pulling forth images of personal damnation. Even the strongest mortal can be cowed by this power.

System: Successes gained are subtracted from all the target's Dice Pools until the target can shake off the power's effects with a successful Road roll (difficulty 6), which may be attempted once per night. Vampires and other supernatural creatures may be driven into frenzy by this power; if the roll to shake off the effects is botched, the character frenzies, tormented by his own inner demons.

#### \*\*Poison Heart

Infernalists believe that all beings have dark sides. With this power, an infernalist may bring such darkness to the surface. The Dark Thaumaturgist may cause a victim to act on her dark impulses by meeting the victim's eyes and whispering a temptation.

System: The number of successes gained indicates the strength of the evil impulse. This power may be used on a Cainite, but it costs a Willpower point to do so. The target may resist with a successful Road roll (difficulty equal to the Dark Thaumaturgist's Willpower).

#### \*\*\* Fool the Heart's Eye

The Infernalist can assume the image of a victim's loved one by reaching out with his thoughts. This power is used to plot betrayal and bring about corruption.

System: Successes gained indicate the verisimilitude of the impersonation: One success yields a rough impression, while five successes result in a completely convincing simulacrum.

#### \*\*\*\* Name the Crime

The Infernalist suggests a sin to the target. This sin may consist of a single evil act, or a general attitude. Unless the target is very strong willed, he is unable to prevent himself from acting on the suggestion.

System: Successes gained determine the duration of the urge to commit sin. By spending a Willpower point, the victim may roll his permanent Willpower (difficulty 6) to resist this urge; successful resistance requires more successes than the Infernalist gained.

1 success One Turn

2 successes One hour

3 successes One Night

4 successes One Week

5 successes One month

#### \*\*\*\*\* Unleash he Dark Soul

No longer content to merely manipulate, the Dark Thaumaturgist with this power the may rip the shadow from a living mortal and imbue it with temporary, physical presence. The mortal is destroyed by the experience, and a diabolic servant is gained for one night.

System: To use this power the character must slay the mortal victim and project the remnant of the victim's anima into her shadow. The mortal's heartblood provides the animating force for the shadow wraith, which is under the vampire's control. The shadow wraith is a nearly invisible servant that can spy on enemies, pass through material objects and communicate mentally with its creator over any distance. The shadow wraith fades with the next day's dawn.

Those Lasombra who are familiar with this power are unsettled by its similarity to their own shadowy Discipline, Obtenebration.

## Path of Dreams

By Crowley (RPG118@uriacc.uri.edu)
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

This path requires the target(s) to be asleep. This is normally not a problem, as most mortals sleep while the Cainites stalk the World. It requires that the Magus either be able to see the target (scrying works) or know approximately where she is. The Magus will pass into a deep, trance-like state upon commencing use of this path, and will not awaken unless physically disturbed. Only one level of this path can be used a night, but the dreams of several people can be entered, so long as the caster has the appropriate number of blood points in his pool to expend.

## Path of Evil Revelation

This Dark Thaumaturgy Path was created to pry secrets from demons and mortals alike. Demons are often unwilling to teach it for that reason. Parts of this Path were taken from the magic of pagan oracles, and there is a pagan version of it known as Video Pellis.

This Path will fade into obscurity in the late 1 6th century, though it will re emerge as the Path of Secret Knowledge, under the guidance of Sabbat infernalists. The "Path of Evil Revelations," as practiced by the Sabbat, is a corruption of Video Nefas' tenets, whether by intent or the ravages of time. By the 20th century, the Path of Evil Revelations has very little to do with Video Nefas.

#### \* See the Unseen

The Infernalist can gaze into the spirit world.

System: No roll is necessary, and the Infernalist can see all nearby spirits, including demons and wraiths, as if they were physically manifest. Due to the mental concentration that this power demands, all difficulties are at + 1 while gazing into the shadow world.

#### \*\* Learn the Heart's Pain

The Infernalist looks into someone's heart and determines what grieves him the most. This is useful in deciding how to destroy a foe.

System: The successes gained indicate how much knowledge reveals itself to the infernalist; one success reveals whether or not the target feels guilt, while five successes reveal specific details of sins, enemies and failings.

#### \*\*\* Seize the Moment

The infernalist may reach into the mind of his victim and draw forth his memories and thoughts.

System: For each success gained, the infernalist may pull forth one specific memory. For example, to learn the plans of a local bishop, the infernalist Seizes the Moment. He gains three successes and discovers the bishop's immediate plans, what troops he has available, and whether he knows anything of the infernalist's existence.

#### \*\*\*\* Casting the Bones

This power allows the infernalist to part the mists of time and gaze into the future. To use this power, the infernalist must carve runestones from the bones of a sentient being (a new set of bones is required each time this power is used).

System: The successes gained indicate how far into the future the infernalist may look to find an answer to her question.

1 success Only the immediate future can be seen

2 successes Up to a week

3 successes A lunar month

4 successes A season

5 successes A year

The future is not fixed, so the infernalist's vision may be inaccurate it merely shows the likeliest course of events and so is more accurate when dealing with large groups (for example, "Will the crusaders recapture Jerusalem?") than with individuals.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Recall the Bloody Deed

The infernalist raises a spectre of vengeance to uncover past misdeeds. This power may only be used in a place where blood has been shed in anger.

System: If the roll is successful, the infernalist gives physical form to a minor demon (use the statistics for Custodes from Chapter Seven) which appears as the victim of the violence, and bears the victim's wounds. This demon has the power to track "its" murderer across land and sea to avenge itself. The only constraint on this pursuit is the number of successes gained by the infernalist: each success allows the demon to continue the pursuit for one day and night.

## The Path of Inner Silence

By Bryan Rendell, for his re-work of the Assamite Clan.
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

In understanding our awareness of reality, we appreciate the fact that there is no gap between ourselves and our perceptions. To speak of a notion such as pain, we must speak of experiencing pain, for this is exactly what pain is. However, Practitioners of the path of Inner Silence can achieve a dualism in their perceptions, inserting a gap between their experiences and themselves while still maintaining both. Whether this path actually achieves this end or simulates the effect in another manner is a matter of debate.

On a practical level, when this path is learned as a Primary Discipline, as is the path of Blood Thaumaturgy, the powers operate as described below. However, if the path is learned separately, as other paths are, then the Magus must make a Willpower roll and spend a Blood Point for each use.

Frequent use of this power will reduce Humanity! This fact seems to suggest that there is not the separation of mind and body that this path is meant to accomplish, but a different effect being performed. What, though, has yet to be determined.

#### \* Silence of the Lower Senses

At this base level, the path enables the disjunction of the practitioner from the senses of taste, smell and touch. While still fully aware of the perceptions of these senses, they are also distant and unconnected, as though belonging to someone else. Any effects caused by these sensations are muted by the degree of distance the Magus can achieve.

System: The Thaumaturge rolls Perception + Meditation against a difficulty of 8 to determine the duration and extent of the effect. Each success results in a duration of 1 minute. Each success will also result in a difficulty shift or a dice pool alteration for all experiences affecting the senses of taste, smell and touch. Thus the difficulty of Frenzy rolls inspired by wounds or by the taste or smell of blood, as well as wound penalties from injuries, are decreased by the number of successes attained. Note that these are only two examples of possible effects. The Storyteller must judge other cases that might also arise.

#### \*\* Silence of the Higher Senses

This level of ability is greatly similar to Silence of the Lower Senses, but affects sight and hearing as well.

System: Roll, difficulty and duration of effect are similar to Silence of the Lower Senses. Possible examples of use include increasing the difficulty of Rotschreck and Frenzy rolls. An interesting effect of this power is the ability to see through a number of levels of Obfuscate equal to the number of successes achieved.

#### \*\*\* Silence of the Unconscious Mind

This level of ability is greatly similar to Silence of the Higher Senses, but affects the subconscious as well.

System: Roll, difficulty and duration of effect are similar to Silence of the Unconscious Mind. This power primarily affects the acquisition and effect of derangements. As derangements are largely role played, the Storyteller must judge the degree to which the Derangement can be ignored based on the number of successes achieved. In the case of acquisition of Derangements from botched Humanity, Frenzy and Rotschreck rolls, the successes gained with this power is the number of botches that can be ignored, with the removal of all botches resulting in no Derangements being gained. This power can also be used to see through Obfuscate in the manner of Silence of the Higher Senses. These two effects are cumulative.

#### \*\*\*\* Silence of the Conscious Mind

This level of ability is identical to Silence of the Lower Senses, but affects the Conscious Mind. The question of how the Consciousness can separate itself from itself is a troublesome one, and has led into discussion on the nature of the mind/brain interface, and whether one is the copy of the other... whether the *tabula rasa*, or blank tablet, of the soul mimics the development of the brain, and consciousness arises from both segments, or whether they are already separate, but that copy which is the soul is simply not being used. Regardless of the cause, the power works quite well.

System: Roll, difficulty and duration of effect are similar to Silence of the Lower Senses. This power's effect comes into play in subtracting successes from any Dominate or Presence Discipline rolls if used against the Magus, ignoring wound penalties that do not physically prevent the body from moving (i.e., legs blown off), and subtracting from the difficulties of Frenzy and Rotschreck rolls. Note that the effects which duplicate those of earlier powers are cumulative with the use of Silence of the Lower and Higher senses.

Silence of the Conscious Mind largely reflects a disjunction of the character from the present, while Silence of the Unconscious Mind is a disjunction from the past. Once again, the Storyteller must make judgement on individual cases.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Silence of the Spirit

At this ultimate level of the path, the thaumaturge can divorce herself from her soul, and the power that Animates her as a Kindred. While this power requires the judgement of the Storyteller as to the effect of this, there are two particular effects that need discussion; the ability of the Kindred to achieve Final Death at will, and the effect on her Humanity.

System: Roll, difficulty and duration of effect (where applicable) are similar to Silence of the Lower Senses. If the Kindred so desires, and achieves 4 successes on the roll, she can expire on the spot as her soul departs her body. Why she may wish to do so may vary; she may be being held, awaiting horrible tortures and then death, and it is better to end her life there and then before she reveals secrets under torture that are best kept in the dark.

## The Path of Luminescence

By Trey
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

This path deals with the generation of light. This light is a soft greenish-white or bluish-white in color, and generates no heat. The light must be cast upon an area, and will be sourceless to any observers. To use this path requires the expenditure of a Blood Point and a Willpower roll against a base difficulty of the level of the path to be used + 3. Each success indicates that the effect will last for ten minutes. To use a level of this path that is two levels or less than your total level of Mastery of this path does not require the expenditure of a Blood Point.

At level 5, the Magus can alternatively choose to focus a projected burst of light from his or her hands that can temporarily blind Kindred and Kine in a small area (100 sq. ft., Target(s) must be facing the Magus). The Magus must roll a Contest of Wits + Alertness with a Base difficulty of 6 against the Target's roll of Stamina + Alertness against the same difficulty. The Target's successes take away from the Magii's. If there is a positive value left, it is the number of minutes the Target will be blinded. Double this amount if the Target was using Auspex to enhance their vision. While blinded, the Target cannot make use of the Protean Discipline's Gleam of the Red Eyes, Dominate or any Auspex level pertaining to Vision (Aura Sight).

## The Path of Nature's Touch

By Dark Whisper for the Avengers of Diedne Bloodline
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

This path is unique, and provides a great deal of insight into the true nature of that which is Vampirism. Somewhat akin to the Hermetic path of Elemental Mastery, it concerns connecting the thaumaturge to Nature, allowing communication and control over living plants and lower life forms. It does not allow control over or communication with organic materials that are no longer alive (leather). Kindred who are afflicted with the Flaw that Living plants will wither in their presence cannot, sadly, work this path.

#### \* The Voice of the Mother

This level of the path allows the Magus to receive impressions from plants, insects and low forms of life (worms, spiders, etc). Although these creatures are not sentient, by interpreting the impressions from a number of plants and creatures in an area, a Magus can gain an idea of what took place recently, or, in a densely populated place like a forest, what is happening elsewhere in the forest. Note that plants such as trees do not notice a great deal of what does not intimately concern them (fire, trees being cut down, etc). Use of this level of the path does not require a Blood Point. Drastic events taking place in densely crowded areas of vegetation such as forests can be communicated throughout the length and breadth of the region, from plant to plant.

System: The Magus rolls Wits + Linguistics against a difficulty of 7 to see if she can properly interpret the impressions that the surrounding plants and lower life forms are giving off. The more successes, the more that can be understood, ranging from brief flashes of disconnected concepts to a fairly clear impression of what has recently happened or is happening within the domain of these life forms.

#### \*\* The Mother's Influence

This level of Mastery of the path gives the Magus limited control over plants and lower life forms. By channeling his or her own potent life force through the expenditure of Blood Points, the Magus can cause vines to snake around opponents' limbs or direct swarms of insects at targets or areas. The life forms to be controlled must be in the immediate vicinity of the Magus (15 - Generation x 10'). The control lasts for approximately ten minutes, after which another Blood Point must be spent. Note that vines are not very strong unless in large numbers (figure 1 Strength dot per every 2 vines wrapped around an opponent); so unless one is near an ivy-covered wall, a Kindred or strong Kine could easily rip them apart. In addition, swarms of stinging insects may be horrifying and potentially lethal to Kine, but are a mere annoyance to Kindred. However, this ability comes in very handy in a variety of situations.

System: The Magus makes a Willpower roll versus a difficulty of 6 and expends a Blood Point to use the path level. Then she makes a Manipulation + Survival roll versus a difficulty of 7. The more successes gained on the roll, the more control the thaumaturgist gains over the plants or creatures she is attempting to influence (they must be within line of sight), ranging from being able to make a vine slowly creep towards a target at an inch a minute, or one or two insects to obey a limited directive, to having a great number of vines leap from a wall and entangle a target, or a large swarm of insects, as from a nearby wasp nest, will rush to obey.

#### \*\*\* Call to Arms:

At this level of Mastery, the Magus gains two abilities. She can summon lower life forms from a distance to serve her will, and has gained enough control over plant life to enable her to bond them into new forms. Thus, a Magus can draw on the plant life around herself and create a Wall of Thorns, or a new form of plant. There must be enough living organic material around the Magus to create the form; if done properly, the form will be able to exist, and will not die out over time. Extreme caution should be used while exercising this ability, as a new form of plant life may be too aggressive for the local environment to handle, and it may soon supplant other plants. It is highly recommended that new plant life created be created (a) sterile, and (b) without the ability to grow unchecked. Beyond these restrictions, the Magus can experiment freely.

System: There are two systems, one for summoning lower life forms and another for manipulating and bonding plants. Each requires a Willpower roll against a difficulty of 6 and the expenditure of two blood points.

To summon lower forms of life, the Magus must make a Charisma + Survival roll against a Base difficulty of 6 (or lower/higher, depending on the area and scarcity of creatures -- it's easier to summon large quantities of insects in a jungle than it is in the scorched heat of a desert). The number of successes rolled determines the number of beings that will show up, as well as from how far they will come to answer the Magus's call. It may also, at the Storyteller's discretion, represent the amount of control the Magus has over the summoning (i.e., she wishes to summon only wasps, not all flying insects). The summoning will be "heard" approximately 500 yards distant per success. All lower forms of life that are summoned will respond to the call.

To bond plants, the Magus rolls Manipulation + Survival. The number of successes indicates how well the bonding has occurred (three successes indicates a fully stable construct), as well as how large the form may be. This power will never make a plant intelligent, nor can it force a plant to perform instinctive actions that it would not have before the bonding (i.e., trying to turn a Rose into a Venus Fly Trap).

#### \*\*\*\* Becoming One with Nature:

This level of mastery of the path is somewhat similar with the Protean Discipline's Earth Meld, in that she who has achieved it may sink into the Earth. However, the Magus may also enter into other organic plant forms that are large enough to hold her (a large tree). This form must be solid, and cannot have spaces (such as bushes). This melding takes approximately a minute, as does exiting the melded form.

System: The Magus expends two blood points of energy and makes a Stamina + Survival roll against a difficulty of 7. If she is successful, she begins to meld with the Earth or plant form. The downside of this is that any damage taken by the plant form will also be taken by the thaumaturgist; it's easy to perish in a forest fire.

#### \*\*\*\*\* The Stream of Life:

This power allows the thaumaturgist to draw upon the life force of a plant or lower life form to replenish her own life force and heal herself. This level may effectively be used to help the Master of this path replenish her Blood Pool.

Note that this ability touches very closely upon the true nature of Kindred; they exist as parasites, by consuming the life-force of others. There is no need to consume it via the coarse medium of Blood; it can be taken directly from living creatures through the use of Blood Thaumaturgy level 4, or from living plants using this level of The path of Nature's Touch. Note that any lower life form, not just plants, can be used, including insects and bacteria. Though there is not much life essence in bacteria, draining it away effectively stops growth, killing the bacteria.

Extensive use of this utmost level wreaks changes in the Kindred. The skin, normally a pale white or sallow color, becomes suffused with a faint green tint, slowly darkening to a mottled green/grey and brown over the course of a century or so. After this century-long change, the Magus feels a strong attachment to the forest, and will rarely, if ever, leave it. Forest and nature spirits will come at the Magus's call as though commanded by the path of Spirit Thaumaturgy, and animals will have no fear of the Magus whatsoever. Indeed, they will act to protect her if she is threatened.

The thaumaturgist can draw from the life force of all forms of plants, from flowers to extensive, mile-long branching root networks and towering redwood trees. The Magus deals one point of damage to the target plant for every point of energy taken; that's not a big deal for giant trees such as redwoods, but smaller plants will become sickly and even die if more than half of their life force is removed.

General Guide

System: The Magus rolls (Stamina + Survival), and will gain one blood point per success, at the cost of one Health Level of damage to the form that she is draining.

## Path of Pain

Though the Baali created this dark magic, the masters of Rego Dolor are infernalists of Clan Tzimisce who use it to enforce discipline among their twisted creations.

#### \* Strike the Broken Limb

With this power, the infernalist may reopen an old wound in the target if he can touch her.

System: If the infernalist successfully touches his target, he inflicts one Health Level per success rolled; this damage can be soaked. This wound appears as an older one that has reopened.

#### \*\* Phantom

The infernalist can wrack an opponent's body with pain.

System: The target suffers the penalties of lost Health Levels, without actually losing those Health Levels. The successes rolled to use this power determine the Health Levels "lost." These phantom wounds can even knock a foe unconscious, if the foe suffers enough of them to bring her to Incapacitated. Vampires and other supernatural creatures can resist the infernalist's roll by rolling Willpower as if soaking. Any supernatural healing ( spending Blood Points or regeneration) removes imposed penalties as if they were wounds, at a rate of one phantom wound per Health Level. The effects of this power last until the end of the scene.

#### \*\*\* Curse the Senses

The infernalist can attack a victim's senses, rendering him blind, deaf and dumb.

System: Each success gained temporarily deprives the victim of one of his senses; sight is generally the first to go. This effect lasts for one scene, though a vampire so afflicted can spend a Blood Point to restore each lost sense. A variation of this power allows the infernalist to numb the target's sense of pain, reducing wound penalties by the number of successes gained (someone under the effects of this power may not even know he is being wounded).

#### \*\*\*\* Feed the Corruption

The infernalist calls upon minor imps and demons to infect the victim's flesh. Flies bite at her and maggots grow in soft tissue.

System: For each success the infernalist gains, vermin grow in the victim's flesh for one day. (If two successes are gained, the victim is afflicted for two days.) For each day of infection, the victim suffers one Health Level of damage from the biting flies, and the burrowing maggots inflict a number of Health Levels equal to the number of days that the process has continued (on the third day the victim suffers one Health Level from the flies and three from the corruption). This damage may not be soaked, and mortals are likely to be consumed, dying in agony. Vampires are able to heal the damage with Blood Points, but the corruption does not end until it has run its course.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Eternal Torment

This power inflicts wounds that cannot be healed by normal means.

System: The infernalist opens bleeding and pustulant sores on her victim's body. For each success gained, one Health Level of aggravated wounds is inflicted. Mortals cannot soak this damage or heal the wounds, but supernatural beings can resist with Fortitude (or similar powers) and heal as with any other aggravated wounds. In addition, so long as the wounds remain, the target suffers an equal amount of normal, soakable damage each night as she sleeps (or each day, in the case of vampires), as the wounds fester. For example, an infernalist uses this power on the Brujah Gregor. Gregor suffers two Health Levels worth of aggravated damage, and will suffer two more, non aggravated Health Levels of damage (though he may soak these additional wounds) each night until the initial wounds heal.

## Path of Pestilence

This Path focuses on the use of filth and disease as a weapon. An Infernalist skilled in this Path is immune to her own effects, but is not immune to other illnesses affecting vampires.

#### \* Sickness

This power means an Infernalist's very touch causes illness. The effects vary, but usually include some of the following: fever, cold chills, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, nausea, muscle cramps, watery eyes, open sores and stiffness in the joints. This power only effects mortals.

System: The exact nature of the infection varies from victim to victim, but the number of effects equals the number of successes the vampire haven a Strength + Intimidation roll (difficulty of the victim's Stamina + Athletics). The sick individual subtracts one point from each of his three Physical Attributes for each effect. Thus, a character suffering from four illnesses would have to subtract four points from Strength, Dexterity and Stamina. If any is reduced to zero, the victim must remain bedridden until recovered. A character will suffer the effects for one day per success by the Infernalist, but will regain one point in each Attribute per day.

#### \*\* Vampire Sickness

This power allows the Infernalist to create the same effect as Sickness but in vampires. Vampire victims suffer fevers, cold chills, blood vomiting, headaches, nausea, muscle cramps, bloody eyes, open sores and stiffness of the joints. Otherwise, the effects and the functions are the same as those for mortals.

System: This power works like Sickness, but the victim can add Fortitude to the difficulty level.

#### \*\*\* The Swarming

This power is similar to Animalism, allowing the Infernalist to summon all insects within 200 feet. In urban areas, roaches are the most numerous. The Infernalist can command the insects to perform simple tasks, such as invade an area, eat all food nearby, crawl down into things, climb all over people, bite and sting everyone but the Infernalist, etc.

System: The insects will stay in an area for an amount of time depending on a Charisma + Animal Ken roll (diffi culty 6), though the Thaumaturgist can dismiss them at any time:

1 Success One Turn

2 Successes 5 Minutes

3 Successes 30 Mins

4 Successes 1 Hour

5 Successes 1 Night

## Path of Phobos

This Path of Phobos is the Path of Fear. This Dark Path allows Infernalists to manipulate the fears of their victims as a weapon. Almost everyone has fears, but there are a rare few who have conquered them and are unaffected by this power. Those with Faith are likewise unaffected by the powers of this Path.

#### \* Induce Fear

The Infernalist with this power causes a victim to feel as if she is being watched and stalked.

System: The Infernalist can use this power on any target he can see. It requires a Manipulation + Empathy roll (cliff culty of the target's Courage or Morale + 3). The victim must make a Courage or Morale roll (difficulty 5 + the number of successes the Infernalist rolled) to take any action against him.

#### \*\* Spook

Using this power, the Infernalist causes her victims to feel an overwhelming sense of dread. They feel something terrible is about to happen to them unless they get away quickly.

System: Mortal victims must make a successful Courage or Morale roll (difficulty 7) to keep from running away. Vampire victims must do the same but, if they fail their roll, they suffer Rotschreck.

#### \*\*\* Terrorize

This power lets the Infernalist draw a fear from the victim's mind and present it to him. The victim will see or feel whatever it is he fears the most. If he fears snakes, he sees big, slimy snakes slithering around a corner just ahead of him and constantly hears rattlesnakes behind him. To the victim, the effects seem completely real, though they are illusions.

System: The vampire must roll Perception + Intimidation (difficulty of the target's Self Control + 3 ) to see how long the affects last; it will also end if the vampire cannot see the victim.

1 Success One Turn

2 Successes 5 Minutes

3 Successes 30 Minutes

4 Successes 1 Hour

5 Successes 1 Night

The Storyteller will then require Courage rolls (generally against a difficulty of 6 or 7) to allow the character to make any action.

#### \*\*\*\* Immersion

This power allows the Infernalist to call on the victim's most deep rooted fear and force her to deal with it, face to face. The power functions similar to Terrorize, but rather than placing signs of the fear all around the victim, the victim is immersed in the source of the fear. A person afraid of snakes becomes wrapped up to her neck in pythons.

System: This power works like Terrorize, but the victim must make her Courage rolls against a difficulty of 8, and the effect lasts even when the vampire cannot see the victim.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Leech of Fear

This power allows the Infernalist to temporarily feed on fear as though it were blood. Many Infernalist claim this experience is infinitely preferable to the Kiss.

System: As long as the Infernalist maintains this power, he gains Blood Points from the fear of others. Every time someone he can see fails a Courage or Willpower roll, the character gains one point of vitae. Note that the other powers on this path will not contribute to this feeding. A Manipulation + Empathy roll (difficulty 8) determines how long this power will last:

 2 successse
 3 successes
 4 successes
 5 successes

## Path of Secret Knowledge

Some Infernalist consider this the most powerful and difficult of Dark Thaumaturgical Paths. Storytellers may wish to leave this Path out of the game if they feel it will be too disruptive. This Path allows the practitioner to glimpse knowledge and secrets he should not be privy to.

#### \* Whispers

The Infernalist with this power can spontaneously sum mon common knowledge on an individual from the back of her own mind, even if she has never met that individual before. This information includes name, occupation, age, interests, where he lives, and if he has any family. It takes almost no time for the vampire to discover this information.

System: The vampire must make eye contact with the person, and the victim can be no more than five feet away. It requires the Infernalist make a Perception + Empathy roll (difficulty of the target's Willpower). This power does not work on any supernatural beings, including ghouls.

#### \*\* Secrets in the Dark

Very similar to Whispers, this power allows the Infernalist to gather a little more knowledge about the victim, including names of family members, their phone numbers, where they work, and what they enjoy and hate doing.

System: This power also requires a Perception + Empathy roll (difficulty of the target's Willpower + 1), but allows the Infernalist to take information from supernatural creatures. It will not reveal deeply held secrets, such as the fact that someone who follows the Masquerade is a vampire.

#### \*\*\* The Hidden

This power grants the Infernalist very private information about an individual. She will know one minor secret the individual is trying to hide from everyone. She will know the name of one person the individual claims to like, but actually dislikes. She will know the name of the last person he was intimate with. She can also learn the individual's strongest desire.

System: This power also requires a Perception + Empa thy roll (difficulty of the target's Willpower + 2), but it takes an entire turn.

#### \*\*\*\* Dark Prophecy

The Infernalist can tell the future, but these prophecies always focus on the darkest possibilities. Information gleaned is cryptic at best, and it is certainly possible that the future will change.

System: The Infernalist rolls Wits + Investigation (difficulty 8). The resulting information should always be mysterious, but the Storyteller can make it clearer with more successes. One success will give the Infernalist a vision that will be next to incomprehensible.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Unlock the Heart of Mystery

The Infernalist with this power holds a tremendous weapon. With it, he can uncover any knowledge lost to the world. The locations of hidden treasures, the secret names of demons, or the hiding places of powerful beings all become apparent.

System: This power requires a Perception roll (difficulty set by the Storyteller, but usually at least 9) and will only uncover those mysteries known by no mortals or vampires.

## Path of the Shadow World

Through this power, the Sielanic practioner reaches across the border between life and death, using her own unliving body as conduit for contact with the world of the dead. In addition, at more advanced levels of this path, the sorcerer is able to touch the essesnce of Tekyavek himself.

(Note: For more information on dealing with the souls of the dead, see Wraith: The Oblivion.)

#### \* See the Dead

The vampire can view the ghosts of the dead that inhabit the area upon which she focuses her attention. In addition, she can determine the general attitude of these wraiths.

**System:** The vampire must expend a blood point and concentrate on a specific area. The player then makes a Willpower roll. A single success allowa the vampire to detect the presence of any wraiths (or Spectres) in the vicinity of her concentration. More successes allow her to determine details about the ghost's attitude.

#### \*\* Repel the Angre Dead

With this power, the vampire can banish hostile ghosts from a designated area, such as the home of a relative of the angry wraith. In some cases, the banishment is only temporary or is attendant on the performance of some action intended to appease the ghost.

**System:** The vampire must first locate the angry wraith (through the use of See the Dead). His player then spends a blood point and rolls the character's Willpower. The number of successes obtained determines the number of hours the banished ghost remains away from the designated location (a house, a grave, etc.) The vampire can determine if certain actions need to be taken eo ensure the permanent repulsion of the ghost through a second Willpower roll (difficulty 8); ony a single success is necessary for the vampire to ask the ghost what must be done to satisfy it.

#### \*\*\* Command the Fresly Dead

The vampire can command any ghost she can see to obey her. With this power, the practitioner may receive answers to questions within the ghost's realm of awareness or require the soul to deliver a message to someone else. Additional simple tasks fall within the parameters of this power, although the vampire cannot compel the ghost to do anything that requires a material form to accomplish.

**System:** The vampire must first use See the Dead to locate a desirable ghost. The comes a contested Willpower roll against the wraith (most ghosts have 5 Willpower). For each success the Cainite achieves over the successes scored by the wraith, the ghost answers one question or performs one action at the command of the sorcerer.

#### \*\*\*\* Army of Souls

The Sielanic practitioner uses this power to raise a spectacular troop to act as defenders or to deliver warnings to her enemies. These ghosts appear as ethereal images of warriors long dead. Although the tattered images cannot materialize completely in the physical world, they can use their own powers to hurl objects or frighten away attackers.

**System:** This power costs two blood points and demands a Willpower roll (difficulty 7). The number of successes determines how many ghosts (mindless shells of the desd, called Drones) the Cainite can summon. The ghosts return to their rest at the end of the night upon which they were summoned.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Walk the Road of Shadows

This power enables the vampire to cross physically the barrier between the world of living and the world of the dead and enter the Underworld (or Shadowlands) for a brief period of time. While she is in this dark and barren realm, she appears to its denizens as a particularly solid wraith. She can interact with wraiths freely while in their realm, although she has no control over how they will regard her. Any combat that ensues causes real damage to both the sorcerer and her wraithly foe. Sielanic practitioners who function as priests sometimes use this ability to transpport mortals into the Underworld as part of a shamanic initiation ritual.

**System:** This power costs three blood points and two Willpoer, and requires a Willpower roll (difficulty 8). A single auccess allows the Cainite to penetrate the Shroud and enter the Underworld. Threee successes enable her to take another person along with her. The sorcerer may remain in the Underworld until dawn forces her to leave, until she flees, or she is driven out by its residents. This power does not allow travel into the deeper Underworld.

## Path of Spirit

This may be the oldest of all the Paths. It dates back to pagan times preceding civilization, when the spirit world was closer to the physical world. Though many ancient vampires know this Path's secrets, infernalists have turned it to its most potent use the raising of Hell itself. A demon who answers the infernalist's call may remain on Earth until the sun rises or until it hears church bells.

The older, pagan version of this Path is called Rego Mentem and allows the summoning of the spirits of nature rather than infernal creatures.

System: This Path has two powers. The first allows damage to be inflicted upon any spirit (demonic or otherwise) through ritual incantation (the player rolls Path rating as a damage Dice Pool against the target; this damage is resisted with Willpower rather than Stamina). The damaging powers of this Path take place immediately upon their use, and only require a few spoken words to enact.

Secondly, this Path allows the infernalist to summon beings from the spirit world. Rego Manes rating determines the power of a summoned demon:

Insignificant (Attributes 4/3/2, Abilities 3/ 2/1, no Disciplines)

Least (Attributes 5/4/3, Abilities 4/3/2, two points of Disciplines and/or Investments)

Lesser (Attributes 6/5/4, Abilities 5/4/3, four points of Disciplines and/or Investments) Minor (Attributes 7/6/5, Abilities 6/5/4, six points of Disciplines and/or Investments ) Specific demon (such as those presented in Chapter Seven), who demands sacrifices and serves only if it is in his interests.\

The number of successes gained determines how much control the infernalist has over what he calls up:

1 success The demon attends, but listens to the infernalist only if it can benefit. It may leave at will.

2 successes The demon arrives and listens to requests, and answers simple questions.

3 successes The demon is well disposed toward the infernalist, and answers questions withsome accuracy.

4 successes The demon is willing to serve the infernalist on simple tasks.

5 successes The demon is pleased with the summoning and serves the infernalist faithfully for the 5 sucesses night.

Failure: The ritual is wasted and cannot be attempted again that night.

Botch: The demon is angered by the infernalist's clumsy attempts, and attacks.

## Path of Torture

The Path of Torture is just what its name implies. This Path concerns pain and only pain. Many who practice this Path also practice the Chains of Pleasure. Infernalist with these powers are the most ruthless executioners and torturers.

#### \* Hurt

The Infernalist causes pain in a mortal through skin contact. The effects lasts as long as the vampire maintains contact with the victim. This pain is terribly strong and sometimes used during interrogations. The vampire has the option of specifying the exact nature of the pain sharp,, piercing pain; extreme nausea; tickling; muscle cramps; etc. —and whether it will affect the victim's entire body or just a particular part.

System: After touching the victim, the Infernalist rolls Manipulation + Intimidation (difficulty 6) while the target rolls Stamina + Courage (difficulty 6). Every extra success the Infernalist rolls causes the target to lose that many dice from any pools and to suffer extreme pain.

#### \*\* Hunger

This power allows the Infernalist to cause pain in vampires. Contact must be made with the victim for this power to function, and the victim feels as if she is starving, having almost no blood in her body. She will double over due to the sharp pains.

System: This power works in the same way as Hurt, except that most Sabbat resist with Morale instead of cour age.

#### \*\*\* Torment

This power affects both mortals and supernatural beings equally. The Infernalist causes tremendous pain in the vic tim, eventually causing mortals to pass out and Kindred to enter torpor.

System: The Infernalist makes skin contact and rolls Strength + Torture (difficulty 6). Victims resist with Stamina + Athletics (difficulty 6). Mortals beaten by this roll pass out, and vampires enter a form or torpor. The length of this unconsciousness is based on the number of additional successes the thaumaturgist rolled:

 2 successse
 3 successes
 4 successes
 5 successes

#### \*\*\*\* Agony

This is the same as Torment, but victims feels great pain throughout the period of unconsciousness. They writhe on the floor, eyes closed and a scream frozen on their lips.

System: This follows the same system as Torment, but the victim also suffers damage equal to the number of extra successes the Infernalist rolled. This damage can be soaked.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Pangs of Hell

Far worse than Agony, the Pangs of Hell can kill mortals and send vampires into torpor for years. The thaumaturgist actually taps into the depths of Hades to cause this pain. Often only death or destruction can end the pain these sufferers feel.

System: The Infernalist touches the target and rolls Intelligence + Demon Lore (difficulty 6), and the victim resists with a Humanity or Path of Enlightenment roll (diffi culty 6). Every additional success the Infernalist rolls causes the victim to be incapacitated by pain for one turn and take an aggravated level of damage.

## The Path of Transformation

By Deirdre Brooks.
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunixacc.qc.edu)

This path allows the Kindred to manipulate his or her own appearance through actual changes to the physical body. The Aura, however, remains unchanged, and those with Auspex that know the Kindred's Aura (and are well-learned enough to know that no two auras are exactly alike) can still identify the Kindred. It is rumored that there are ways to use this path upon others, both Kindred and Kine, but it is no doubt a tightly-held secret.

#### \* Skin Alteration

The Magus can permanently alter her own skin and hair color (including new hair, grown later with this path or the more commonly known ritual of Rebirth of Mortal Vanity), with the expenditure of a point of Willpower.

#### \*\* Face Alteration

Facial features, hair length and style can be altered at this level. Baldness can be cured. Expends a point of Willpower.

#### \*\*\* Reform Skin

Appearance can be raised or lowered to a maximum of 5 and a minimum of 0. Skin texture can be altered. Scars, the effects of Skin Diseases and similar problems can be added or removed. Requires an extended Wits + Medicine roll for a total of 3 successes against a difficulty of 7, with the Expenditure of a Willpower point for each roll.

#### \*\*\*\* Organ Transformation

Allows alteration of internal organs and surrounding flesh. Can provide a full sex change, removal of the effects of diseases, cancers, etc. Alternately, they can be induced as part of a disguise. Severe flesh wounds can be healed by closing and reshaping the flesh in the damaged region (a roll of Wits + Medicine is required, and the number of successes is the number of wound levels healed). Internal bleeding can be stopped or started. Tissue can be converted to or from fat. Muscle tissue can be added or subtracted by shifting it from other areas, up to a maximum of one Strength Attribute dot per fifty pounds (2.5 stone) that the Magus weighs. This level requires the expenditure of two Willpower points.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Bone Traaansformation

Bone alteration is now possible. The Magus can now heal or inflict spinal problems, including severed spinal cords and the effects of bone diseases. Height can also be modified; the Magus can shift bone tissue into other areas and alter height or width by as much as two feet in any direction. Note that mass remains constant; a thin, 100 pound (5 stone) Kindred who made himself/herself look like a professional bodybuilder would still only weigh 100 pounds.

## The Path of Traveller

By Deirdre Brooks
Modified By: Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

This path allows Magi to travel more quickly. In no event does it allow for extra actions, save those instances where circumstance and the Storyteller dictate that it does. The Magus can not be encumbered beyond light clothing while using these abilities, especially the higher-level ones.

#### \* Fast Running

This allows the Magus to move (run) at thrice normal speed. It requires the expenditure of a blood point and a Willpower roll (difficulty 6). The effect lasts for approximately ten minutes.

#### \*\* Wizard's Sidestep

At this level, the Magus can perform an unnaturally quick sidestep, allowing dodges to be performed as though heavy cover were nearby. This sidestep will take the Magus no more than 6 feet, at most, from his original location. Use of this ability expends a blood point.

#### \*\*\* Wind Running

The Magus can now move (run) at ten times normal speed. This costs two full blood points, and lasts only ten minutes.

#### \*\*\*\* Sidestep

The Magus has achieved the first level of true power in this path, and can Teleport instantly up to 100 feet distant, within his line of sight. There must be no intervening barriers which would stop the passage of air. To normal cameras and eyes, the Magi simply disappears with a sharp, cracking sound as air rushes in to fill the space he occupied. Stop-motion photography would reveal that the Magus turned into a blurred, dark form that darted with incredible rapidity, captured in only one high-speed film frame, in the direction of his destination.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Teleport

The Magus is now a master of this path, and can use it to Teleport instantly to any spot on the planet or, depending on his Generation, beyond, with a range of approximately twenty thousand miles minus (Generation x 1,000 miles). When teleporting, a Wits + Survival roll must be made, against a difficulty, and with Blood Point costs, as listed below:

 200 Miles
 2000 Miles
 20000 Miles

 7
 8
 9
 10

If a difficulty raises above 10 with a Modifier, it cannot be accomplished, and the Magus is very likely to emerge explosively in a solid surface, dying instantly. Willpower Points cannot be spent to achieve automatic successes in this instance, as the circumstances are wholly beyond control.

The ritual of Casting Thy Sight is an excellent companion to this path, as by thoroughly examining the area through the use of such Scrying Magic, one can lower the difficulty to that of a well-known, visited three or more times location.

## The Path of Voodoo

By Thomas Jensen (tj@hum.auc.dk)
Modified by Darrell Benvenuto (benvenut@qcunix.acc.qc.edu)

The Path of Voodoo originated in the Carribean Islands -- most Cainite scholars point to Santa Domingo and Jamaica as likely places of origin. This is mainly due to the regional concentration of Voodoo cults, but also because of the way in which Voodoo affects all stages of life on the islands; a so widespread, vital importance could not have been achieved if the Art had not been present from the very primeval youth of the islands, from before the petty colonial squabbles over the lush island of Santa Domingo or the days of Toussaint L'Overture and Dessalines.

The practice of Voodoo has been greatly feared through the centuries, and with good cause. Although many "investigators" believe they have revealed Voodoo to be a total hoax, in fact they have only seen the smoke screen that was set up by the true Cainite Priests that rule the islands and practice their dark arts.

The path of Voodoo involves using Spirits of the Dead to do one's work and bidding. For the unwary, this path can be a dangerous one, as failure to command the Spirits properly may very well gain the enmity of the Loa Spirits, such as Papa Legba or Baron Samedi -- but even the hostility of a normal spirit is a most unpleasant experience. If the Magus fails in the use of the path, she loses a point of Willpower and furthermore gains the enmity of an entity from the plane of the Loa. The Storyteller should decide what kind of Spirit the would-be user offends. Note that a high-ranking (and thus more powerful) Spirit could very well interfere with the Magus's plans, if it judges its underlings to be unable to deal properly with the offending Magus. Of course, the severity of the offense is dictated by the degree of failure; a small failure would be dealt with by a Spirit similar in power to a poltergeist -- with a correspondingly short period of punishment -- while a horrible, botched failure will attract the attention and wrath of one or more of the Loa.

The Path of Voodoo is very rare and is usually only possessed by Cainites who were either members of a powerful Voodoo cult while they were alive, or who were embraced by a Cainite to whom the Practice of the path would come instead of the path of Thaumaturgy, such as the Followers of Set and the Serpents of the Light.

Unlike the path of Spirit Thaumaturgy, which is somewhat akin to the Path of Voodoo, with Voodoo, contacting the Spirit Planes comes naturally to Kindred, as they are already attuned to the Plane of Death.

Quick Vocabulary:

\* The Mark of Guede:
The target of this power becomes invisibly Marked for Death, and it is primarily the way to prepare for more powerful Voodoo. Guede is the Loa Spirit of the Dead and is usually the one whom Houngans (male Voodoo priests), Mambos (female Voodoo priests) or Bokos (the notorious, evil Voodoo priests) address when they wish to curse someone. Papa Legba and Guede's Acolyte Baron Samedi are also used for such purposes, as the Opener of the Gateway and the Lord of the Cemetary, respectively. However, when the Gateway has been opened, the cursed character seems to attract malicious Spirits who follow him and torment him by hindering his actions to some degree. While these Spirits do not follow the Marked person constantly, they show up frequently.

System: The Cainite practitioner needs three things to use this power: A broad bladed knife, with a serrated edge, and a handle wrapped in skin torn from a freshly-killed animal (this knife is sometimes known as the Ku-bha-sah), a clay amulet engraved with the Veves (Voodoo Runes) of Guede, which resemble a stylized image of a white snake curling around a tombstone. The snake is normally perceived as the Snake Loa Damballah's mark, but it is believed that his Veves have been mixed with that of Guede, for he also represents Power. This Amulet must be bound to the handle of the knife, using a leather strap made from the skin of a one-week-old corpse. The final ingredient are three blood points of Cainite Vitae, which are used to baptize the amulet and knife. If the materials have been properly prepared and approved by Guede, the Vitae is absorbed into the Knife and Amulet.

The Cainite makes a Spirit Lore + Intimidation roll (difficulty is the target's Humanity). The number of successes indicates the number of days that the Mark of Guede will remain effective. At the discretion of the Storyteller, the difficulty of rolls made by the Cursed Victim may be raised at the appropriate moments (such as when he is in trouble).

If the use of the Power is successful and the Vitae is absorbed, the knife with the attached amulet must be placed in the door, or doorway, of the victim in order for the Spirits to find their way to him. Note that once the Knife has been placed, it matters not if the victim removes it, since the spirits will already have homed in on their target.

The level of the path of Voodoo must be used prior to the casting of any of the ritual Curses described below.

#### \* Ask of the Dead:

This power allows the Priest to learn secrets from the Spirits of Dead Individuals. The existence of this power is well known in the Carribean; both true Voodoo worshippers and Followers of Set go to great lengths to ensure that the corpse of any dead ally is destroyed in such a way that nothing can be learned from it through this method.

System: For this level of the path to work, the head of the dead person must be relatively intact; if it has been severely damaged, it will yield no information. Furthermore, the person must not have been dead for more than seven (7) days, for according to Voodoo lore, the soul does not leave this plane of existence until the end of the seventh day. Until then, the Lore states, it floats invisibly in the vicinity of the corpse, highly vulnerable to the powers wielded by those who know the path of Voodoo. In fact, a number of special Voodoo amulets are available to the families of deceased persons. It is said that if one is buried with such an amulet, the magick of the Voodoo Priests can never harm the deceased.

The Priest recites the Praise of Samedi and forcibly inserts his fingers into the back of the deceased's head as she gazes into its eyes. The Cainite rolls (Perception + Occult) against a Base difficulty of 7. For every second Day beyond the first that the person has been dead, this difficulty is raised by one. Thus, beyond the Seventh Day, this power cannot be used. Only two attempts can be made, one day apart. The number of Successes gained on the roll determines what is obtained, as follows:

#### \*\* Summon Snakes:

This power allows the Priest to summon all of the natural snakes in the vicinity. While this power does not place the snakes under the control of the Summoner, use of the other third level Step of this path, Control Snakes, will. The snakes called will move toward the place from which the Priest issued the summons, and will move in a fairly direct line unless stopped by obstacles. If the snakes come across an impassible surface or if their existences are threatened, they will "snap out of it" and resume their normal behavior, as they will once they reach the point where the summoner was standing when this Power was used. At this point, confused, they will usually attempt to leave. It is unlikely they will attack the Priest or anyone nearby unless they are stepped on, or the Priest Botched her Summoning roll. Remember that it takes a while for the snakes to arrive, and those who were further away take longer to reach the summoning spot than those nearby -- as they arrive, they awaken from the enchantment and try to leave, creating all sorts of turmoil. They must be Controlled as they arrive.

System: The Priest must make a (Manipulation + Leadership) roll against a Fixed difficulty of 7. Each Success grants a larger radius of effect. The chart below lists two circumstances; when the power is used in a city (where the response will be slim), or in the wilderness.

Note: If the Cainite summons the snakes while standing in a crowded place, there is bound to be trouble. If many snakes answer the summons and attempt to move into a crowded area, they will feel threatened by the milling people and start biting. Given the variety of snakes that will appear, it is likely to assume that there will be a few poisonous ones, or ones whose venom, while weak, can cause death from several bites.

#### \*\* Control Snakes:

With this level of the path, the Priest is able to control those snakes that she has summoned.

System: The Cainite must roll (Manipulation + Leadership) against a difficulty based on (10 - the number of successes rolled during the Summoning of Snakes). The Priest will then be able to mentally control the snakes for a period of ten minutes per success rolled with this power. Commands given must be very simple and mentally couched in a way that they are understandable to the snakes. Furthermore, commands must be within the physical capabilities of the snakes. Whether the snakes understand the order or if they are capable of executing it is determined by the Storyteller. Snakes will usually still withdraw from smoke, fire and other lethal situations, unless the Priest rolls Five or more successes to control them, in which event they would act without regard for their own safety.

#### \*\*\* The Curse of Samedi:

This terrible and feared level of the Path of Voodoo grants the Priest the ability to kill his or her victims without actually being near them. However, the Priest must have inflicted or caused someone to inflict a wound on the target (i.e., caused a loss of Health levels) with a Ku-bha-sah (enchanted knife) for this to work. When this has been done and this level of the path is used, the victim begins to die of a strange, wasting disease that slowly, painfully destroys the blood and eventually kills him.

System: For this Power to Work, the target must have been Marked for Death with the Mark of Guede. The Ku-bha-sah that is used to wound the target need not necessarily be the one that was used to mark him, and the Priest need not personally be the one to inflict the wound. As long as the Ku-bha-sah was enchanted by the Priest for this purpose, it will work.

The Cainite makes a Spirit Lore + Intimidation roll against a difficulty of the victim's Willpower + 2. The number of successes indicates the number of Health levels that the victim loses. At this point, the blood of the victim has been corrupted, and filled with the energies of death. Kine will lose additonal Health Levels as a result of this, at the rate of one level per 12 Hour period as their blood is slowly destroyed and their body mummified. When the Kine in question has no more blood left, he dies.

Kindred targeted by this Curse suffer a somewhat different fate. Their blood no longer runs naturally in their bodies, but rather is stored, for purposes of maintaining their "dead" bodies and expending in the use of Vampiric Disciplines. When a Cainite has been cursed and his blood corrupted, when he uses a point of Vitae, he loses a point of Health -- no matter what the Vitae is used for. So attempting to heal using Blood will only uselessly burn blood. The Cainite will eventually be forced into Torpor. Drinking fresh Vitae to cure the wounds will only prolong the agony, as the new Vitae will slowly become corrupted by the "bad blood" in the Cainite's system, and the process will begin anew. The only way to stop this magical disease is to remove all the Vitae from the Cainite's body. While this effectively removes the disease, the Beast will surge forth in frenzy and perhaps place the Cainite in more danger than he faced under the Curse.

#### \*\*\* Create Zombie:

This level of the path allows the Priest to create Zombies -- Corpse Minions, to the Tremere. These Zombies follow all the same restrictions and requirements of Corpse Minions. \*\* See the level 4 Voodoo Ritual: Create Zombie

System: The body must not have been dead for more than seven (7) days for this to work, and the Spirit of the Corpse must still be unclaimed by any magic or bindings. Standard path Willpower roll. The Storyteller is under no obligation to disclose *why* the Zombie does not rise if something happened to the Spirit; that is up to the Priest to discover. The ritual for Creating the Zombie must be properly performed before this level of the path is used.

#### \*\*\*\* Create Serviteur:

This ultimate level of the path of Voodoo allows the Priest to create a serviteur -- in this case an animal or Kine possessed by a Spirit, and not just a helper or acolyte, which are also called serviteurs. These True Serviteurs are probably one of the most feared servants of the Voodoo Priest (this being a Houngan, a Mambo or a Bokos). They are possessed of supernatural strength and abilities, and have no fear. Even Cainites fear these creatures, as none of the Mental Disciplines, such as Dominate, Presence, Obfuscate, etc) work against them. To confront one is to fight a tireless robot of flesh that will not stop unless it is utterly destroyed. And to face several... even the bravest might quail before the rush of a host such as these.

System: The serviteur is a human or an animal, into whom the Priest binds a Spirit. This actually creates a lesser form of a Demon Bound creature; though weaker in most respects, they do not suffer the overheating problem of the Demon Bound, and so are more useful at times. If the use of this path is successful, the Priest is left with a very powerful and utterly controlled servant. It is a much better tool than either a nearly mindless Zombie or a Kine or Childer with independent thoughts.

For this power to work, the Priest must have previously marked the target who is to be turned into a serviteur for death with the Mark of Guede, as previously described. Once this has been done, and the target obtained and tied to a tabletop, the spirit of the target must be driven out of the body, a function that this level of the path performs, after an Extended, Resisted Willpower Contest (The Priest's Manipulation + Occult versus the Marked Target's Willpower). The winner of ten cumulative successes is the victor. This attempt can only be made once a night. The target may be drugged to lower his or her Willpower. Once successful, the cast-out Spirit usually dissipates or becomes a Wraith (at the Storyteller's discretion).

When the body is bereft of Spirit, but still living, the Priest must Summon and then again enter into an Extended, Resisted Willpower Contest with the Spirit to be Bound into the body. If the Priest loses the Contest, the Spirit flees and may not be re-summoned. If the Priest wins, she has overwhelmed the will of the Spirit and forced it into the living flesh of the victim, and created a True Serviteur.

A True Serviteur adds two points to all existing Physical Characteristics of the Man or Animal, has Four Additional Health Levels that cause no loss in Dice Pools. Most devastatingly, the Serviteur has the equivalent of Three levels of Celerity and Three levels of Potence. A common True Serviteur has a Power Pool of 15 Points from which to power it's equivalence of Disciplines. Serviteurs are capable of seeing in complete darkness, similar to the Protean Gleam of the Red Eyes.

The Spirit will continue to inhabit the host body until freed or the body is destroyed. The Spirit, like a Demon Bound, will not destroy the body on purpose. Unlike Demon Bound, True Serviteurs can speak, and many have access to the memories and abilities of the body they now inhabit. When away from their Master, and without instruction, they grow restless, and occasionally lapse into the persona and mindset of the former host body.

## Path of Warding

Tremere who study this Path dedicate themselves to defending the holdings of the clan. They can practically hold off entire armies. They are also capable of expposing infiltrators before they breach the clan's havens and hiding places.

**System:** The Cainite paints a Blood Point's worth of vitae in the form of a sigil on the target. The glyph functions until it expires or the object is destroyed. Cantact with sunlight or fire automatically destroys the ward.

#### \* Bar the Common Passage

The vampire paints her ward on a door or other portal. The affected doorway is imbued with sufficient magical fortification to hold back the ferocious strength of a werewolf or the head of a battering ram. If something breaks the ward, the vampire is alerted subconsciously.

**System:** If the total Strength applied to portal equals double the warding successes, the door opens (or is shattered) normally. If the warded portal opens, the Cainite receives a mental alarm.

#### \*\* Glyph of Scrying

By focusing her will, the vampire can view the immediate vicinity of a particular ward. Paranoid Tremere princes can monitor entire cities through these glyphs. Portable objects can be imbued with these wards to function like remote senses.

**System:** The number of successes rolled indicates the number of days that the ward functions. The ward can be destroyed as usual, but always fades after the time limit expires. A clever Thaumaturgist hides a glyph from sunlight but still makes it useful.

The vampire can establish a telepathic connection with any one of her wards instantly, but never with more that one at a time. She can move about as notmal while focusing on a ward, but all difficulties increase by two. Once in contact with a particular ward, the Cainite can see and hear everything in the surrounding area as if she were actually there. When she focuses on a ward, the blood in the glyph gleams as if it were liquid again.

#### \*\*\* Runes of Power

Many elders place these wards on ancient tomes of magic. Unwary neonates or intruders receive a nasty suprise when they make contact with these runes.

**System:** The number of successes indicates the number of aggrevated wounds the victim suffers upon contact with the warded object (though the subject may soak if seh has Fortitude). The caster is only person who is immune to the effect. The rune remains potent until exposed to sunlight or the object is destroyed.

#### \*\*\*\* Glyph of Enlightenment

The vampire who paints these glyphs can use them as Glyphs of Scrying, above, and can communicate through them. Tremere with this ability can even use it to attack distant opponents.

**System:** The number of successes achieved on a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) determines the number of days the effect lasts. By focusing on the ward, the Cainite can see and hear everything around it. She can also speak through the glyph. The vampire can choose to "trasmit" another Thaumaturgical power through the glyph, as long as the power's requirements can be met (physical contact with the target of the power is not required, for example). Each such use of another power reduces the rune's effectiveness by one day.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Secure the Sacred Domain

This potent ability can be used to seal off an entire castle. One glyph, painted at the exact center of a castle or tower, secures all windows, portcullises, doors and other portals from all entry or exit. A single Tremere can hold off an entire army - for one night - this way.

**System:** A Willpower roll (difficluty 8) determines success or failure. The vampire must paint the ward at the exact center of the building. Failure indicates wasted effort. If the vampire succeeds, no doors, windows or portals will open, though they can be destroyed. Likewise, existing breaches in walls may not be passed, although new ones may be opened and entered. The effects of this power last until the following dawn.

## Path of the World's Blood

This power akkiws the vampire to becomepart of the natural world that surrounds her, partaking of the abilitiesinherent in the earth, trees, rocks and life forms of any ground ro which she has attuned herself. While most practitioners of this Path regularly use it within their "home" territories, a simple ritula (see rituals) enables the character to attune herself to any plot of ground provided she has sufficient time in which to do so.

This Path occasionally requires the vampire to ingest some rather foul concotions of her own blood mixed with animal blood, soil, even leaves and grass. It remains a continual mystery (particularly to those outside the Telyavelic circles) how the practitioners of thes Path can drink mixtures without pormptly heaving them. Some Telyavs claim that study of the Path prepares one for such necessities, while others position is that a form of transubstantion, such as that which is saidto change the bread and wine during Mass, is at work. Whatever the reason, the Telyavs continua to swallow and work their magic without difficulty.

**Note:** Sielenic Thaumaturgy is not quite traditional Thaumaturgy, As a result, it uses the same roll as the normal Discipline *except when specifically stated otherwise*.

#### \* Eyes of the Earth

The vampire #sees" everything that goes on within 10 miles of her haven (or shrine) by utilizing the spirits of the grass and other plants, trees, rocks and animals in the vicinity. Thus, a Telyavelic Tremere dwelling within her chantry may know instalntly of the spproach of worshippers or strangers. In adddition, she can also view events transpiring within the range of her attunement. Such visions do not come with handy explanations, though. No sound comes through, and unless the Telyavelic can read lips, she cannot know anything that is being said in a spied-upon location. Further, if sorcerer wishes to kepp track of a particular person as he travles, and if she views him for longer than one night, hse must locate him once again after each broken contact (to sleep or perform other actions, for example).

**System:** The vampire ingests an infusion of her own vitae mixed with soil, grass shoots, leaves, animal fur and bird feathers (or blood from these creatures). The number of seccesses achieved on the Willpower roll determines the duration of the subsequent "earth-night".

 2 successse
 3 successes
 4 successes
 5 successes

#### \*\* Roots of power

This ability enables the Sielanic practitioner to draw upon the power latent in the earth itself to enhance her own physical abilities - so long as she remains in contact with the soil.

**System:** The vampire expends a blood point by cutting the soles of her feet and letting her blood soak into the naked earth. The number of successes gained from the Willpower roll determines the number of points the vampire can add to her Physical Attributes. No single Attribute may be raised above 5. For example, three successes allow the character to add one point each to Strength, Dexterity and Stamina, three points to any one Attribute, or two poinsta to one Attribute and one point to a second. The duration of this effect is one scene, and the effect covers an area of approximately 50 feet around the vampire's original position (i.e., where the Cainite's blood first touched the soil).

#### \*\*\* Arbor of Protection

The vampire uses this ability to seek refuge within the living wood of trees. Thus, he is able to encase his body within any tree that stands inside his realm of attunement. In this fashion, he may conceal his presence from enemies. His aura blends with that of the tree in such a way that increases by two the difficulty of detecting his presence through Soulsight. In addition, the characteer may use any Disciplines and abilities not dependent on physical gestures that he possesses; although the vampire can "see" his surroundings, he cannot make eye contact with sspecific creatures, so any power which requires meeting the victimäs gaze does not function. Should the vampire enter a tree to avoid the coming dawn, he is protected from the sun so long as he stays within the tree. If the tree is chopped down, the vampire suffers five levels of damage and is forced out of the trunk; setting the tree afire inflicts the same amount of aggrevated damage.

**System:** The vampire drinks a mixture of blood and treesap prior to the player expending a blood point and making a Willpower roll. A single success allows the vampire to remain inside a tree for one turn; two successes extend the duration for an entire scene. Three or more successes allow the vampire to maintain his position within a single tree for up to 24 hours. When the time limit expires, the tree ejects the vampire.

#### \*\*\*\* Course of the Beast

This power gives the Sielanic practitioner the power ot assume the shape of any animal that exists within her domain and, in some cases, to change from one animal form to another. The vampire gains all the physical attributes and skills of the chosen creature, although she retains her undead nature in all forms. While transformed, the vampire mau use any mental Disciplines she possesses, as well as other powers the Storyteller considers reasonable within the limitations of her form. The ability lasts form moonrise to moonrise.

**System:** The vampire mixes her own blood with that of an animal and drinks it, then expends three blood points to activate the power. Each success on a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) grants the character the ability to shift into one animal form. Thus, three successes enable the vampire to assume the shape of a deer for swift travel, then transform into a fish to conceal herself and move about easily under water, and, finally, take on the form of a bird to fly to safety.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Wat of the Stone

The vampire uses this power to transform himself into what resembles a stone dolmen. As such he can withstand the rigors of daylight and is immune to flame. In addition, he can even move about in very limited fashion. The legends of stones that walk and move about during the night come from the practise of this potent art.

**System:** Yhe vampire expends three blood poinst by allowing his blood to drain onto a boulder, at which point he assumes the boulder's rough shape and consistency. The number of successes gained on the Willpower roll (difficulty 7) determines how long he may remain in his stone form. The features of the vampire become indisticnt, taking on a semicarved aspect with barely discernible facial features and body parts. Nevertheless, his eyes, ears, mouth and appendages all function normally, except that the difficulty for all physical actions are increased by two and movement is at one-fourth normal rate.

 2 successse
 3 successse
 4 successes
 5 successes
 6+ successes

These durations represent the maximum time limit; the vampire may abort the effect earlier if he wishes.

## Spirit Thaumaturgy

#### \* Evil Eye

Roll: Manipulation + Intimidation, difficulty Humanity
The vampire may inflict one botched die per success on the victim any time during that scene. These botches can be accumulated, and added to any roll, in any number, but any unused by the end of the scene are lost.

#### \* Spirit Sight

Roll: Perception + Occult, difficulty Willpower
The vampire may see spirits in whatever form they have taken, and may even communicate with them.

#### \*\* Spirit Slave

Roll: Willpower, difficulty 6
Resist: Willpower, difficulty 6
The vampire may demand a service of a spirit in her presence, and if the spirit is capable of this task, it must perform it. The spirit is free to leave afterward.

#### \*\*\* Fetishes

Roll: Willpower, difficulty Willpower
Resist: Willpower, difficulty Willpower
The vampire can force a spirit to inhabit an object, where it will become a permanent slave. She automatically loses one Humanity for doing this, if the spirit was not willing.

#### \*\*\*\* Journey

By spending a willpower point, the vampire may leave her body, and roam the physical world as a spirit. In this form, she may be attacked as a spirit, but not physically, and may use mental disciplines. She is generally visible, and appears naked, unless she uses Obfuscate.

## Thaumaturgical Alchemy

Thaumaturgist who practises this Path can transmute solid iron into a puddle of slag, or petrify wood with a thought. Thaumaturgical Alchemy ignores the laws of chemistry, forcing change in state regardless of temperature.

**System:** The palyer spends a Blood Point and makes a Willpower toll. Effects bary depending on the level of the power, but the number of successes determines the number of turns the effect lasts. The vampire can increase the duration of the effect by spending more Blood Points - each additional Blood Point extends the power's effectivenes by one turn.

#### \* Fortify the Solid Form

At this level, the vampire strengthens the physical structure of solid items. Doors become unbreakable, shield deflect the mightiest blows, and arrows pierce the hardest breastplates. Seemingly fragile items can become deadly weapons in the presence of an alchemist. The alchemist can even make wooden stakes that are as hard as stone.

**System:** For each success rolled, an abject used for defence can resist an additional Health Level. For offensive weaponry, every two successes (round down) increases the weapon's damage potentian by one die. Note that this means *two*successes are required to gain any bonus damage dice.

#### \*\* Crystallize Liquid

Tremere designated this ability to hinder other Cainites form imbibing vitae. Although the effect cannot alter the tissue within vampires or mortals, it can solidify blood as it exits a body. The effect can also freeze water instantly and even turn molten lead to solid metal. The temperature of the liquid is irrevelant - boiling oil or cold water solidifies at the behest of the vampire.

**System:** Each success changes one Blood Pointäs worth of liquid (about two pints) into a solid. The temperature of the substance does not change. When the solid reverts to its natural liquid state, it behaves normally. Vampires cannot consume solified blood.

#### \*\*\* Liquefy the Solid Form

At this level of ability, the alchemist can dissolve solid objects into liquids. Metal, wood or stone decays at he Cainite's behest. Swords dissolve in mid-swing and shileds ooze into pulp.

**System:** The number of successes determines the amount of material transmuted into liquid. For each success the player rolls, three pounds of material is changed.

 2 successse
 3 successse
 4 successes
 5 successes

Ehwn the liquid reforms, it solidifies into whatever shape it has taken. Even a finely crafted swod reforms into useless blob of steel. An object is either changed utterly or not at all; there are no "partial" transformations.

#### \*\*\*\* Ethereal Stone

The vampire can transform the very air into a solid prison. Air condensates to form a solid block of ice around the vampire's enemy. Crafty Tremere have used this ability to suffocate mortals by turning the air in their lungs to ice.

**System:** For each success the player receives, one cubic foot of air solidifies. The prison is inescapable until the effect wears off.

#### \*\*\*\*\* Vaporous Transformation

Walls and other obstacles no longer hinder the vampire. She can turn stone, metal or any other solid into vapor. Walls vanish and swords disappear into thin air.

Recoagulating solids are dangerous to those in their vicinity. Slags of metal or stone that suddenly re-form can crush mortals.

**System:** Each success transmutes three pounds of solid matter into vapor. When the effect expires, the solid material re-forms at the spot where air currents have moved it. A Dexterity + Dodge roll (diffilculty 6) must be made for each character in the vicinity; failure indicates that a character automatically suffers one Health Level of damage. A botch indicates that the character receives one Health Level of aggravated damage from entrapment in the now-solid material. Note that it may prove impossible to separate a trapped invidual without using this power again.

## Way of Passage (Libellus Sanguinis 2)

This Path allows the thaumaturgist to endow swifter than notmal movement and, in some cases, increase endurance to objects or creatures other than himself. Thus, horses can run faster and farther, and draft animals can pull wagons and siege machines at greater speeds and for longer periods of time.

**System:** In addition to the stnadard expenditure of blood adn a Willpower roll, the player rolls Manipulation + Animal Ken (difficulty 7) amd spends an additional Willpower point for each attribute the vampire wishes to affect. Only one roll needs to be made regardless of whentheror not hte vampire is affecting a mount's speed or endurance or both. The number of successes determines the number of days (24 hours) the effect last. Note that this is not useful in combat. Although the mount moves faster, the rider does not benefit from this extra actions and, in fact, may find the increased speed of his mount a detriment to successful combat manauvers. Rapid travel from one place to another remains the primary focus of this power. This power cannot be used on humans, Cainites or other supernaturals.

No invidual descriptions are necessary for each level of this Path, since the effects remain consistent; only hte number of inviduals or objects affected increases as the thaumaturgist gains mastery of the Path. The Storyteller may modify the following effects to allow for combination of ridden mounts and those used to pull wagons.

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## Way of the Levinbolt

This power allows the vampire to create and control the power of lightning.

**System:** The number of successes on the Willpower roll determines the length of time it takes the vampire to generate the desired electrical energy. One success indicates that a full minute is required to gather and shape it. Three successes indicate that the preparation takes two turns. Five successes indicate that the magic wors instantly. The Storyteller should reduce the number of successes needed for an instant effect in particularly dry regions or during electrical storms.

To attack, the vampire must make contact with the target. This can be achieved through touch or a conducting medium such as water or metal. The Tremere cannot hurl electrical energies through the air, but can route them along surfaces, such as a sword or the target's armor. Such power mau also cause fires in flammable substances and cause combustibles to explode. Damage from electricity is considered normal.

#### \* Spark

The vampire can create a small electrical discharge. She can shock a horse into motion or stun a small child. (Two dice of damage.)

#### \*\* Illuminate

The Tremere can illuminate a small room by covering her arm in an electrical nimbus. The effect can also render a mortal unconscious. (Four dice of damage.)

#### \*\*\* Body of Light

At this level the vampire manipulates potent amounts of electrical power. Her entire body can be sheathed in psarks. The effects of this power can kill mortal or stun a vampire. (Six dice of damage.)

#### \*\*\*\* Jupiter's Aegis

The force surrounding the cainite can destroy even the hardiest of vampires. (Eight dice of damage.)

#### \*\*\*\*\* Lightning dance

The vampire is engulfed in blinding aura (all who look directly at he vampire suffer -1 to Dice Pools and cannot employ Dominate against her). The Tremere very nearly transforms into a living bolt. (Ten dice of damage.)

## Weather Control

Roll: Willpower, difficulty [level of power used] + 3
By spending a blood point, the vampire may create weather anomalies. She must also roll Manipulation + Survival, difficulty dependent on the typical likelihood of the weather pattern being perpetrated. (Lightning on a sunny day in Kenya is difficulty 9; fog in London is difficulty 3.) In the event of lightning, treat the strike as a firearm, doing ten dice of damage. The level of the effect (the magnitude of the weather anomaly) is limited to the number of successes on the Willpower roll.