Lydia/Gifts
Lydia Saliberg, rited Myrina's Vengeance, born on four legs under the full moon, an Athro of tge Black Fury Tribe, Beta Wolf of the Moonguard Hunters, and emissary of the Bacchantes in Delphi.
BLACK FURY GIFTS
(1) Sense Wyrm: The player rolls Perception + Occult. The difficulty depends on the concentration and strength of the Wyrm’s influence. Sensing a single fomor in the next room would be difficulty 6, while detecting the stench of a Bane that was in the room an hour ago would be difficulty 8. Vampires register as Wyrm-tainted, save those with Humanity Traits of 7 or higher.
(1) Watchful Eyes: The player spends 1 Gnosis and rolls Perception + Investigation (difficulty 6). Success indicates the distance and direction to the nearest violator of Gaia’s laws (as interpreted by the Storyteller). Note that this Gift does not identify the lawbreaker, an it is somewhat vague: i has a margin of error of roughly 10% of the distance between the Garou and her quarry (that is, if the nearest violator is ten blocks away, the Gift will point out a one-block area). A botch causes this Gift to wrongly identify a potential target.
(2) Rend: System: Spend 1 Rage and roll Strength + Primal Urge (difficulty 6). For each success, the Fury gains the ability to rip through tough substances for one turn. When wearing any of the three “war forms” (Glabros, Crinos, or Hispo) and using hand-to-hand maneuvers, the character ignores the first three dice of the target’s soak pool – the target rolls three fewer dice to soak. This ability to pierce defenses also applies to inanimate objects such as walls and doors, making it considerably harder to hide from Black Furies inside buildings or underground. In case that a given object does not have a soak or armor rating, treat the Fury’s Strength as being three higher for purposes of the Feat of Strength needed to rip through the object. Successful uses of Rend to destroy a wall, door, or enemy add 3 dice to the Fury’s next Intimidation roll against those who saw her do so. *
(2) Sense of the Prey: Leads the garou to a known target. No roll is required unless the target is hiding actively (intent alone is not enough), in which case a Perception + Enigmas roll is made against a difficulty of the target’s Wits + Stealth. If the target is a spirit, the difficulty is the spirit’s Gnosis.
(2) Trail of Pain: The Garou must focus and spend a Gnosis point. At least one turn is required for the Gift user to attune herself to the mental anguish of the target. A Perception + Empathy roll discerns a single sufferer amongst many. The Fury can sense any living being in tremendous pain, physical or emotional , within 50 yards. The user senses only the general direction and urgency, but that’s typically enough for an angry Black Fury.
(3) Coup de Grace: The player spends one Willpower point and rolls Perception + Brawl (difficulty of the target’s Stamina + Dodge). If successful, the player doubles her damage dice on the Garou’s next successful attack.
LUPUS GIFTS
(1) Hare's Leap: System: The player rolls Stamina + Athletics (difficulty 7). If successful, she may double her normal jumping distance.
(1) Heightened Senses: The player spends a Gnosis point. The effects last for one scene. In Homid or Glabro forms, the werewolf’s Perception difficulties decrease by two, and he may roll Perception + Primal-Urge to perform sensory feats impossible for humans (such as tracking by scent). In Crinos, Hispo and Lupus forms, Perception difficulties decrease by three (which is not cumulative with the ordinary Lupus-form Perception bonuses), and the werewolf gains an extra die to Primal-Urge dice pools.
(3) Catfeet: This Gift gives the werewolf the agility of a cat, making him immune to falls under 100 feet (he lands on his feet just right). He also has perfect balance even on the most slippery surfaces, and the difficulties of all combat actions involving body slams and grappling decrease by two. Cat-spirits teach this Gift. Possom-spirits teach the Bunyip version.
AHROUN GIFTS
(1) Razor Claws: System: The player spends on Rage point, and the Ahroun must take a full turn to sharpen her claws. For the remainder of the scene, her claw attack do an additional die of damage.
(2) Spirit of the Fray: Once the character learns this Gift, its effects are permanent. The Ahround may add 10 to all his initiative rolls, which will nearly always ensure that he strikes first. If he chooses, the Ahroun may spend a Gnosis point to add another 10 to his initiative roll. Remember, though, that doing so prevents him from spending Rage to gain extra actions; werewolves can’t use Rage and Gnosis in the same turn.
(3) Purity of Spirit: The Garou spends a number of Gnosis points and immediately receives this many automatic successes to soak damage from silver, even if she has no dice to roll. The effects lasts for a number of turns equal to the Gnosis spent, not including the remainder of the turn in which it was activated. The Gift does not take an action to activate, and indeed can be activated immediately if the Garou has been struck by surprise with a silver bullet or blade to help ameliorate the damage… as long as the user hasn’t spent any Rage that turn of course. This Gift cannot be active at the same time as Luna’s Armor; whichever is activated last cancels the prior Gift.
OTHER GIFTS
(1) Spirit Speech: Once learned, this Gift allows the Garou to understand the communication of spirits intuitively. Particularly alien spirits may be difficult — or, in the case of many Banes, outright painful — to understand.
(1) Truth of Gaia: The player rolls Intelligence + Empathy (difficulty of the subject’s Manipulation + Subterfuge). This Gift reveals only whether the target speaks the truth or lies.
(2) Spirit of the Bird: The player spends one Gnosis point. The Garou can fly at 20 mph and hover as she desires. The difficulties of all combat maneuvers increase by one. This Gift lasts for one hour.
(2) Luna's Armor: The Garou concentrates for one full turn, and the player spends a Gnosis point and rolls base Stamina + Survival (difficulty 7). The player may add one die per success to the Garou’s soak pool for the rest of the scene. These bonus dice may also be used to soak silver damage, but only these dice. For example, if the Garou’s Stamina is 4 and the player rolls three successes, the Garou has seven dice to soak non-silver damage and three to soak silver.
RITES
(0) Hunting Prayer: This common rite takes many forms, but it always involves pausing before the start of a hunt to praise Gaia and all her creatures. In addition, the Garou must choose some item to hold her prayers. This can range from an old belt to a tooth, but the Garou must have it with her when she hunts. If she loses the item, she must choose another item and start her prayers anew. If a Garou performs this rite before every hunt for three turnings of the moon, she receives an additional die to all tracking rolls so long as she continues her prehunt prayers. If she hunts even once without praying, she must renew her prayers for another three months before again receiving the bonus.
(0) Prayer for the Prey: A specific form of the Rite of Contrition, this rite involves the Garou stepping sideways into the Umbra just after making a kill, subsequently thanking the spirit of the prey for giving its own life that the Garou might survive. Performing this rite is a sign of respect to Gaia, her children, and life itself. A Garou must perform this rite upon every beast of Gaia (not including Wyrm-spawn) he slays for one full turning of the moon. Should this be done, the Garou's difficulties when dealing with Nature-spirits are reduced by one. This bonus lasts until the Garou kills without taking time to thank the creature's spirit.
(1) Gathering for the Departed: This is a rite for the newly dead. It is most often performed by either a Galliard or a packmate of the departed Garou. This rite varies dramatically from tribe to tribe. For example, a Fianna ritemaster leads the sept in the telling of tales, both raucous and heroic, about the fallen Garou. In contrast stands the Wendigo's solemn rite, in which the ritemaster and all the fallen one's packmates stand on the highest peak available, tails to the wind, and howl out their pride and grief to speed their companion onward to her next life. What matters in not the exact form the rite takes, but the acknowledgment itself. The ritemaster leads the release of the Garou's combined emotions into the spirit world. Such emotions are said by the Uktena to have a real impact upon the Umbra and may help to ensure that the departed Garou remembers something of her previous lifetime (i.e., the character's next incarnation has the Past Life Background).
(1) Rite of Cleansing: This rite purifies a person, place or object, allowing it to be used without fear of contamination by the Wyrm. To perform this rite the Garou must inscribe a circle on the earth, walking widdershins (counterclockwise) around the afflicted person(s) or object(s) while holding a smoldering branch or torch. She must use a branch (preferably willow or birch) dipped in pure water or snow to asperge the object or person cleansed. As this is done, all Garou present release an eerie, otherworldly howl in an attempt to "frighten away" and thus banish the corrupting influence. Ideally, this rite is performed at dawn, but it can be performed at any time. This rite can be cast upon more than one person or object, but the leader must spend one Gnosis point on each extra thing or person in need of cleansing. The difficulty level equals the Gnosis of the spirit that inflicted the contagion (maximum of 10). Only one success is required. If the rite is performed at dawn, the difficulty level of the rite is reduced by one. Note that this rite cannot heal wounds or damage caused by contamination (see the Fianna Gift: Resist Toxin, pg. 127); it only removes any existing contamination.
(1) Rite of Contrition: This rite is a form of apology; it is often used to prevent the enmity of spirits or Garou whom an individual has annoyed, or to prevent war between septs or tribes. The rite most often involves the enactor dropping to her belly and sliding forward. the Garou may also whine and lick his paws or hands. If performed well, however, a simple inclination of the head may suffice. To enact this rite successfully, the Garou must either give a small gift to the offended individual, or in the case of a spirit, possess some aspect of the spirit in question (for example, a clay falcon if the Garou is appealing to the totem spirit Falcon). The difficulty level of the rite equals the Rage of the target spirit or Garou (maximum of 10). One success is considered enough for a gracious apology, but may not be enough to mend friendships or forgive grevious errors. The more successes, the greater the wrong that can be forgiven. Garou who refuse to recognise a Rite of Contrition are looked badly upon by elders; most spirits will always accept a well-performed rite. This effect lasts until the Garou performs an action that could harm or insult the other.
(1) Rite of Motherhood: This simple Rite marks a Fury's shift from Maiden status to Mother status. As noted elsewhere, the title "Maiden" is not strictly accurate; the spirits begin to treat a Fury as a Mother as soon as she becomes pregnant. In some septs, this spiritual change is sufficient, while in others it might take until the child is born, and in most conservative septs a Fury is considered a Maiden until she gives birth to a child who lives for one lunar year. Regardless of when the sept declares the Fury to be a Mother, when the time is right, this ritual is performed. Mother and child are separated, and the young mother is bound -- this may be simply a symbolic binding, a rope lightly draped over her, or it may be shackles and chains. The Mother breaks free of the bonds and comes to her child's side while the Mothers and Crones of the sept watch; when she reaches her child again, the older women of the tribe welcome her. There are no game mechanics to this rite, though the Fury may have to make a Strength or Willpower roll to escape from sufficiently strong bonds.
(1) Rite of Talisman Dedication: The cost is one Gnosis point per object dedicated, and a Garou may never have more objects bound to himself than his Gnosis score. Certain particularly large objects (Storyteller's discretion) are considered more than one of the purpose of "cost". For the purposes of Dedication, an entire set of clothing is considered one item.
(1) Rite of Wounding: This rite celebrates the first battle wound received by a Garou. Each tribe marks this moment differently, but all honor this sign of courage. Many tribes rub ash into at least part of the wound to form a scar of remembrance. The Get of Fenris always end this rite with a fierce all-night revel filled with drinking and fighting. By contrast, the Stargazers end their Rites of Wounding with long philosophical discussions on the nature of bravery and the spiritual significance of the Garou's place and manner of wounding. Only the wounded Garou and the ritemaster must be present for this rite, although it is normally performed in the presence of the Garou's pack and sept. The wounded Garou receives two points of Glory if this rite succeeds.
(2) Rite of Pure Breeding: This rite allows the Garou to observe a wolf or human of the opposite sex, and determine if he or she will provide certain desirable breeding traits. The Furies use this rite to find likely mates for female Garou. By spending one Gnosis point and making a roll of Intelligence + Primal-Urge, the Garou may determine if mating with the wolf will produce a particular characteristic. Such characteristics can include a large litter, the prevalent sex within the litter or a higher chance of Garou heritage being passed down. The difficulty is usually 7, but 9 for determining if Garou heritage may be passed on. If a wolf does not have the capability to bred for a particular capacity, it never will. However, it may be checked for other desirable traits. Note that the higher chance does not mean automatic. The Storyteller should decide what the actual chance is of a particular trait being bred, and modify it if this rite is used successfully.
(2) Soothe the Scars: Black Furies perform this rite on human women and children that have suffered at the hands of an abusive spouse or parent. Such abuse can harm the soul in ways still unknown to the Black Furies, but it is certain that sufficient abuse can open a shole wide enough for a Wyrmling to crawl into. It is in the Furies' nature to stop such a fate, and while it is their modus operandi to put a halt to such abuse (violently, if need be), Soothe the Scars is one of the Furies' best tools for healing abuse once it has been stopped. The rite itself is designed to put the victims at ease immediately; the smoke of gentle incense and scented candles should fill the air, and inoffensive, soft music - not necessarily 'spiritual' music; folk songs or children's music are equally appropriate - should play. In the case of victims not acquainted the Gaian spirituality, prayers are offered to the 'spirit of motherhood across the world', though prayers to Gaia can be said in their place. Memories of abuse are coaxed from the victim, and each one is symbolically cast into a purifying fire. When the rite is over, the victim can begin the long road to real spiritual healing without risking a fall backward into a dangerous cycle of self-degradation. The Soothe the Scars rite functions according to the normal rules for performing a rite, but has limited game mechanical effects. Typically, this is a subject for role-playing when the Furies hope to aid victims of abuse (hopefully, after dealing with their tormentors). The Storyteller may elect to give the subjects of a successful Sooth the Scars rite an extra Willpower Trait to resist further self-destructive impulses or Derangements related to their abuse, which can aid in the process of recovery.
(3) Birth the Fire Warrior:
(3) Fertility Rite: Many Garou and human women lack the ability to give birth on their own; perhaps they were born with congenital reproductive difficulties, or have become infertile due to the influence of Wyrm-created technology or chemicals. In the case of Garou, battle scars and similar wounds often lead to infertility. This ritual invokes spirits of fertility, often avatars of Gaia in the Mother aspect, to return fertility to those without. This ritual also improves any ordinarily fertile subject's chance of conceiving. The Fertility Rite does work on males, but it's almost never performed on them. It also works on wolves, and is occasionally used in secret by those Garou who have access to zoos and their wolf populations. The rite does not work on metis, not that Furies would be so arrogant as to try such a thing. The subject of the ritual removes all clothing save possibly a homespun robe, and sits or lays in an obviously growing area: in the midst of a healthy forest, or in tall grass. The Mistress of the Rite traces a circle around the subject, using the menstrual blood of a fertile woman. The Mistress of the Rite then invokes the spirits of Gaia for their aid in restoring the woman's birthright to her. In the case of battle scarring or injury, Gifts such as Mother's Touch may be brought to bear during the Rite, but those Gifts alone will not heal the woman's injury. At the heart of the ritual, the Mistress of the Rite should roll Charisma + Medicine (difficulty of the local Gauntlet) to heal the subject. Failure or botching has no further adverse affect on the target; otherwise, the woman's womb is restored to health in (6 minus successes) weeks. If, rather than healing infertility, the Mistress of the Rite intends to improve an otherwise fertile woman's chances of conceiving, the number of successes should simply serve as a rough indicator to the Storyteller how much more likely it is that the character conceives. The ritual works similarly for men; simply change references above from "conception" to "impregnation" and the general rules apply.
