Demon Rules

### **Demon/Thrall Mechanics**

This all has to do with important mechanics pertaining to demon/thrall relations and general important demon or thrall mechanics. I decided to write out these mechanics because they can have very deadly costs, and it's good to have a system in place.

#### **Reaping Faith**

A demon may safely take faith from a thrall by draining their temporary faith pool. This can be done by force, or willingly, through donation.

#### **Ravaging**

However, once the thrall has drained the target’s temporary faith pool- the demon can force more faith through Ravaging. The demon can begin to drain willpower, attributes, and/or health levels to represent the faith it is leeching from their thrall/victim.

> "The thrall need not be present, nearby or even on the same plane of existence - the chains of Thralldom extend across the entirety of Creation. Wounds inflicted by Ravaging manifest as lacerations, burns, mangled bones, withered flesh and the like. A Thrall who is drained of all Willpower and Health Levels is immediately killed and perishes dramatically, consumed from within by fire, crumbling to dust or torn to bloody ribbons as if by an invisible beast. This can happen to thralls for a number of reasons, be it the patrons’ whims, failure to perform sacrifices and praise to their master in the agreed upon times, or failure to perform services demanded by their master, or if their altar to their master is lost or destroyed."
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##### **Nitty Gritty Rules**

Temporary Willpower replenishes at the normal rate after reaping. Health is leached via unsoakable agg damage, and can be replenished by the usual vampire healing time and costs. Attributes are healed through a more special system (see below).

Regaining Physicals: Treat the missing dots in physicals like missing health levels. Dexterity and Strength can be healed by spending blood like you’re healing lethal damage. Stamina can be healed like you’re spending blood to heal agg damage.

Regaining Mentals: Treat the missing dots in mentals like missing health levels, except you’re spending WP to heal, instead of blood. Treat it like the missing dots are missing health levels from lethal, and use WP to heal.

Regaining Socials: Appearance is regained like regaining health levels. Treat the missing dots like health levels missing from lethal damage, and spend the required blood. Treat the missing dots in Charisma & Manipulation like missing health levels, except you’re spending WP to heal, instead of blood. Treat it like the missing dots are missing health levels from lethal, and use WP to heal.

Optional/Suggestion Dot-to-Faith conversion (for demons use)
 1 health
 3 physical
 2 mental
 2 social

#### **Spy**

The demon may use their thralls as CCTV cameras, and look through their thrall’s eyes at any time. The extent of this, of course, is up to ST discretion. Some demons only can use this on their more close/powerful thralls. Others can use it on any thrall.

### **New Mechanics**

##### **Faith**

Faith is a new pool for certain characters which can be used to fuel empowerments and other cool pact-related abilities. Faith is also used for some demon rolls, to determine different effects. NOTE: this is *not* the same as *true faith*

A handy dandy guide
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##### **Using Faith for Empowerments**

Faith can be used to activate an empowerment you gain from demonic (and celestial) pacts.

**System:** Spend the required number of faith and roll willpower diff 6. Success means you can use your empowerment for the duration of the scene. Failure means you fail to manifest (and will be laughed at), but you *can* roll again if you have the faith required. Botch means you're fucked and won't be able to roll again for the remainder of the scene, and you loose temporary wp equal to the faith you just burned. Faith works like WP in the sense that you regain 1 faith every time you rise. Bla bla. However, unlike WP, you don't exactly gain back your temporary faith from acting by your nature. In general, you're stuck waiting until you replenish it all from resting. Sometimes, an ST/Narrator *might* give you a temp faith refill, but it's pretty rare.

#### **Infernal Empowerments**

Empowerments are special traits gained from infernal or celestial pacts. Here are the rules for some of our infernal empowerments. There are *some* passive empowerments, but most require expenditure of faith and other things to activate.

Syntax; >Empowerment name< [Faith Cost to Activate] *(specific requirement)*

Example; Becoming the Storm [4 faith]

Note: some (if not all) empowerments have a "cost" associated with them. This section indicates a drawback of using the power, similar to the "drawbacks" that abyss mysticism rituals have. Some drawbacks are physical, others are more subtle, and still others are just mechanical

##### **Wings [2 Faith]**

A pair of raven's wings extend from the character's shoulders. The character can use these wings to glide up to three times their running speed per turn. With practice, they may be able to learn to fly without crashing into things.

System: along with the faith expenditure and wp roll, you take 1 level of \*soakable \*lethal damage as the wings tear through your flesh. The transformation takes a full action. And yes, you will be a masquerade violation.

##### **Howl of the Damned [1 Faith]**

The screams of fallen souls and the fury of hell's imprisoner are unleashed, causing your voice to echo and warp your listener's minds in fear.

System: Difficulties of all intimidation rolls are decreased by 2.

Cost: Along with the usual faith expenditure shit, the use of this ability causes your infernal brand to shine bright, lighting your veins with balefire, causing them to eerily glow. You become a walking masquerade violation (duh), and your aura will suddenly reveal your infernal taint. These obvious signs of the damned will fade after the scene ends

##### **Unholy Lifeline[2 Faith\*]**

*(Slayer thralls only)*

The infernalist's hail mary, only to be used in situations of dire need on the brink of death. A thrall that has just received a death blow may activate this ability.

System: Spend faith and roll activation. Upon a successful activation, Roll maximum faith score, diff 6 (higher diff depending on severity of injuries and ST discretion). The thrall is temporarily "healed" a number of health levels equal to the successes rolled (minimum of one). These healed levels will last until the next dawn. If the thrall has not healed to a stable state by then, the thrall dies and their soul is forfeit to their master.

Cost: in addition to the usual activation wp roll and faith cost, this ability is extremely taxing on both thrall and master. The thrall and master work in concert to weave faith in a last ditch attempt to save the target/self through both spending faith and ripping faith from the thrall's soul to weave a final chance at life. The thrall looses a number of permanent willpower equal to the number of "healed" health levels they gained. The thrall's stamina drops to 1 and strength and dexterity are reduced by 2 dots which can be healed back as per the "healing physicals" rules for thralls that are victims to reaping. NOTE: If the thrall does not possess the faith required for activation, their master might reap faith from them instead (at ST discretion)

##### **Aura of Entropy[3 Faith]**

*(Slayer thralls only)*

Plants wilt in the demon’s presence, and living beings are suffused with an icy chill that saps their strength.

System: Mortals, Garou, Fae, mages, etc. and most vampires (some exceptions at ST discretion) within a number of yards equal to the thrall's Faith lose one die from their physical attributes and abilities unless a successful Stamina roll (difficulty 7) is made (no wp may be spent for this roll). The effects of this capability persist for the duration of the scene.

Cost: usual activation wp roll and faith cost, the vampire kills plants and shit within a radius equal to their faith score. This can be a potential masquerade breach. Botching on the activation of this ability, or frequent use of this ability (at ST discretion) can result in gaining the Hand of Hades flaw.

#### **Celestial Empowerments**

Empowerments are special traits gained from infernal or celestial pacts. Here are the rules for some of our celestial empowerments. There are *some* passive empowerments, but most require expenditure of faith and other things to activate.

Syntax; >Empowerment name< [Faith Cost to Activate]

Example; Becoming the Storm [4 faith]

Note: some (if not all) empowerments have a "cost" associated with them. This section indicates a drawback of using the power, similar to the "drawbacks" that abyss mysticism rituals have. Some drawbacks are physical, others are more subtle, and still others are just mechanical. Remember; vampires are, in the end, damned. Being holy doesn't exactly come naturally. Not all the drawbacks are as *grotesque* as those of infernal empowerments, but they can be just as distracting. Sure, you don't have a toxic gas cloud following you around, but glowing like a LED bulb is a bit distracting.

##### **Wings [2 Faith]**

A pair of white wings extend from the character's shoulders. The character can use these wings to glide up to three times their running speed per turn. With practice, they may be able to learn to fly without crashing into things.

System: along with the faith expenditure and wp roll, you take 1 level of \*soakable \*lethal damage as the wings tear through your flesh. The transformation takes a full action. And yes, smartass, you will be a masquerade violation.

##### **Fury of the Righteous [1 Faith]**

Your voice echoes and warps with heavenly conviction as it is imbued with the holy fury of the Elohim.

System: Difficulties of all intimidation rolls are decreased by 2.

Cost: Along with the usual faith expenditure shit, the use of this ability causes your eyes to blaze with holy light, and your voice to echo with the conviction of angels. Your veins may also glow with holy energy. You become a walking masquerade violation (duh), and your aura will reveal your dealings with the Elohim. These obvious signs of the Elohim will fade after the scene ends.

##### **Sparkle Power [3 faith]**

*(Selaphiel Specific Empowerment)*

An aura of glittering, sparkling light surrounds the thrall, distracting and bedazzling their foes.

System: Once activated, the thrall is surrounded by a distracting cloud sparkles and light. Melee attackers are put at a +2 difficulty to hit and a +3 difficulty to targeting specific areas. Ranged attackers are unable to target specific areas and also suffer a +2 difficulty to hit (Some exceptions apply, see below). The ability may also stagger opponents with the uncontrollable night sight flaw (at ST discretion) and add additional penalties to their attacks.

Cost: You are, very obviously, a masquerade breach. In addition to this, you do become, in a sense, a beacon for enemy fire. Though ranged attackers will have a harder time hitting specific areas, they may have an easier time picking you out at night. At ST discretion, often in dark combat environments or crowded battle fields, ranged attacks may actually hit you more easily, because you stand out. This doesn't apply to precision attacks, but mortar fire, machine gun sprays, and similar attacks will find it *easier* to target you.
Auspex, demonic, and similar abilities can be used to see through these illusions as usual.

**Healing Flood [1-4 points]**

*(For vampiric thralls only)*

Designed to be used in emergency situations, this allows the user to expend an additional bloodpoint per turn (regardless of generation limitations) to heal themselves.

System: The vampire thrall rolls the usual wp activation and spends a minimum of one faith to allow for additional healing. The vampire may spend an additional number of bp towards healing per faith spent as a reflexive action while healing normally with blood. This mystically allows the vampire to exchange faith for a flood of vitae to their wounds, ignoring usual generation limitations. Example; Bob the 13 gen salubri needs to heal a huge wound. He goes to heal as his reflexive healing action, and decides to also use Healing Flood. He then will roll the willpower activation and spend three faith. These three faith allow him to spend 3 additional blood towards healing, which goes over the usual limitation of 1 bp per turn.

Cost: The wound often heals with a strange, celestial warmth and sometimes a scar

##### **Hail Mary[2 Points]**

A last ditch attempt to cling to the waking world, a vampiric thrall may use the ability commonly known as the "hail Mary" for a chance to stave off torpor. Just after the vampire falls into torpor (e.g. you can't do this 2 years after torpor) the vampire may reflexively activate this power.

System: Along with the usual activation, the vampire rolls their maximum faith score base diff 6 (though it can be more, depending on what has put you in torpor). The vampire only needs one success, and upon success they immediately rise from torpor with one temporary health level. This health level lasts a number of turns equal to the success of the faith roll. This is designed so that, if you have taken all health levels of agg damage, you have a few turns to run away. However, you may NOT use this as a way to get free temporary health! You can only use this as a hail mary to be freed from torpor

Cost: The wound will leave a scar with strange angelic markings, and the vampire's aura will usually show signs of celestial meddling for months after the event