Mystic Rites
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Mystic Rites |
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Mystic Rites bring the Garou into direct contact with the Umbra and/or spirit-beings. Unlike most other rites, these rites are most often performed by a lone Garou.
System: When performing a Mystic Rite, the ritemaster must make a Wits + Rituals roll (difficulty 7 unless otherwise stated).
General Rites
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Level 1
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Level 2
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Level 3
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Level 4
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Level 5
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Level One
Appease the Traffic Gods
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 115
Description: Glass Walkers and Bone Gnawers know that it's nearly impossible to get across town in a hurry, especially around the morning and evening rush hour - and in very large cities, those morning and evening rush hours edge closer together every week. Garou can do it in their lupine and near-lupine forms, but most of the time traveling across town as a gigiantic wolf isn't a reasonable thing to do.
This ritual allows a garou to get the attention of the pattern spiders that nurse the ebb and flow of traffic patterns across a city's streets and highways. the rite asks them to nudge things here and there to provide the clearest possible path for the Garou's vehicle. Lights turn green just as the character hits them, or stay green just long enough for the character to sneak through - or, failing that, nearby cops are distracted as the Garou runs the red. Note that Appease the Traffic Gods can't perform miracles: if there's an accident at one of the main intersections in town, the best this rite can do is free up an alternate side route.
The "traffic gods" may well simply manifest in the form of a convenient ambulance or fire engine for the characters' vehicle to slipstream through traffic, but Garou should be aware that this rite won't protect them if they violate the simple and obvious rules of the road. Appease the Traffic Gods will never, for instance, lure a character's vehicle to drive on the sidewalk.
System: The ritemaster must take a small toy car that looks roughly similar to her vehicle, and roll it across that vehicle's dashboard while murmuring a quiet invocation to the spirits. The player rolls Charisma + Rituals; hazards and traffic that might interfere with the car's ability to get across town as quickly as possible are reduced if she succeeds. If the Storyteller would prefer to just describe the trip, this can be a general reduction in difficulty (and increase in speed) proportional to the number of success earned. Barring that, the rite reduces difficutly to move around in traffic by 1 per success (to a minimum of 2). Note that this rite won't help the Garou perform wacky stunts like going up on two wheels or jumping the car into the air: it only helps to move quickly through city streets.
Baptism by Fire
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 160
Description: Most tribes attempt to track down all children born to their Kinfolk within one month of the children's birth to see if they "share the blood". (Most commonly, this search involves the Gift: Scent of the True Form.) Those who are Garou are "baptized" in the light of their auspice moon, beside a rite fire. Such a baptism most commonly involves mingling ashes with a few drops of Garou blood. The mixture is then touched to the child's ears, nose, eyelids, and tongue.
In the presence of one the lesser tribal spirits, known as a Kin-Fetch, the babe is then held up to the moonlight while the baptizing Garou howls Gaia's greeting to the newborn. The ritemaster then has the Kin-Fetch kiss the infant. The spirit's fiery kiss inscribes a spiritual brand upon the babe in the form of the newborn's tribal pictograph. This mark is not visible on the newborn's body; the only mark left is spiritual. It is impossible to remove this spiritual brand. Such a mark can be traced and recognised by all Garou (including Black Spiral Dancers, who all too often track down cubs of other tribes and capture them in order to create more of the foul number).
The participating Kin-Fetch spirit is assigned to watch over the young Garou as she grows to maturity, so that the tribe may always know the child's location and whether she is endangered. When the child is about to undergo the First Change and is ready for the Rite of Passage, the spirit alerts the tribe. Unfortunately, such minor spirits are notoriously weak-willed and easily distracted. All too often a Kin-Fetch loses track of its charge or becomes lost itself, leaving the young cub on her own. Such "lost cubs" often become Lunatics or recluses, terrified of themselves and unable to understand their powerful primal urges.
System: The ritemaster makes a Charisma + Rituals roll. Only one success is required, but additional successes improve the chance that the Kin-Fetch will keep track of the child. This rite must be performed at night under the moon in which the child was born. Although this rite is normally performed within a month of birth, the brand can be inscribed at any time before the cub reaches adolescence and undergoes her First Change. The brand fades out of existence after the cub's Rite of Passage.
Preserving the Fetish
Source: WW3806 - Players Guide to the Garou p. 199
Description: This rite is designed to honor and preserve a spirit within a fetish, or other spirit-imbued object. Each Garou who practices the rite introduces small variations, depending on the type of spirit and fetish involved. The rite generally includes cleaning the fetish, and perhaps even re-coating damaged layers of paint or making other such similar repairs, though many Garou (and spirits) prefer fetishes that appear to be veterans, not brand-new. This rite is often assigned to cubs, who are subsequently given the task of maintaining the fetishes of the sept. This is usually also the only time cubs are allowed near the arsenal of the sept.
System: The player rolls Wits + Rituals, difficulty 8. Good roleplaying and clever ideas for honoring the spirit (emphasis on honoring here) could warrant bonus decreases in difficulty level. This ritual should be performed at least once a month, but most Garou are encouraged to use it as often as possible, especially after having used the fetish.
Rite of Binding
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 160
Description: This rite binds a spirit to a Garou, making it his servant. The more powerful the spirit is, the more difficult the process is. Although any encountered spirit is subject to binding, the Garou generally feel that spirits should be bound only when needed. They do not feel good about binding spirits for great lengths of time. This point does not go uncontested, however, particularly by the mystics of the Uktena tribe.
Spirits trapped through this rite may be bound into temporary service or into objects to create talens (see Fetishes and Talens, pp. 240-241). No spirit allows itself to be bound unless it is friendly to the binding character's totem. Spirits can be bound into objects, places and people, although the Garou generally don't perform the last feat unless the need is great. Failing this rite can be dangerous, for the spirit is very likely to become hostile and attempt to harm the mystic.
System: A Garou can attempt this rite only in the presence of a spirit, and it is usually performed in the Umbra. When attempting to bind a spirit, a Garou must first spend a number of Gnosis points (minimum one). Each point of Gnosis spent reduces the spirit's Gnosis rating by one. The Garou's player must then roll Willpower (difficulty of the spirit's adjusted Gnosis). The number of successes indicates how long the spirit may be forced into service (one week per success). In the case of a talen, the spirit is bound until the object is used.
Rite of Feeding the Wolf
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 116
Description: The Glass Walkers may be masters of adapting to the urban environment, but it has come at some cost. The wolf blood in them has grown thin, and it has become perilously easy to lose the wolf or fall into Harano out of simple neglect for their wilder side. Some Glass Walkers use this rite as a means to reconnecting with their more primal self. Sadly enough, the rite is not of Glass Walker origin; it was pioneered by another tribe (some say the Red Talons) as a means of reinforcing their identity in the hostile urban environment. The rite was allegedly shared with the Glass Walkers as an act of friendship, which casts some doubt on the idea that it was a talon creation.
System: The Garou must go to a wild place, even if it's a vacant lot overgrown with mimosa or ailanthus trees, and act in a feral, animalistic fashion for long enough to become sweaty and filthy. He may be in any form while doing this. The player rolls Primal-Urge + Expression, difficulty 6 in a wild place with animals and plants, 8 in a wild place without animals larger than rats, and 9 in a tame place such as a nicely kept lawn. The player may add one to his Rage for each success on the roll, for the remainder of the scene. The Storyteller may wish to award a bonus success to players who get sufficiently into the spirit of the rite to roleplay it with great fervor.
Rite of Silence
Source: WW3108 - Werewolf Players Guide 2nd Ed p. 45
Description: Garou who need to be silent use this rite to make up for any lack in natural ability. For the duration of this rite, the Garou are incapable of making any noise even if they bang on a drum or shatter glass. With the assistance of Raven-spirits, the Garou can sneak through dry underbrush or over a gravel road without making a sound.
System: The Garou invoking this rite confines herself in a dark room or cave. She whispers her darkest secret and then utters an oath of silence. Raven-spirits, attracted by her secret, carry any sound she makes into the Umbra once she leaves her confinement. If the werewolf chooses to speak for any reason, the rite ends immediately. The Raven-spirits, disappointed that the Garou did not reveal any more secrets, return the sounds they carried. For several minutes, the Garou is surrounded by a cacophony she created earlier.
This rite silences only those sounds the Garou would have made directly. If she were to throw a rock at a window, for instance, the whistle of the rock through the air would be silent, but the shattering glass would not. If she punched the glass with her bare hand, the breaking window would not make a sound.
Rite of Talisman Dedication
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 160
Description: This rite allows a Garou to bind objects to her body, allowing these objects to fit the Garou's various forms (jeans will grow to accommodate the size increase of the Crinos form, for instance) and accompany the Garou into the Umbra. Such talismans are most commonly mundane items, for spiritual items such as fetishes and talens automatically remain with the Garou in all forms. A Garou most often performs this rite during the phase of the moon under which he was born. Each auspice has its own peculiar ritual.
System: 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". Similarly, the Storyteller may allow multiple objects to count as one object if they are sufficiently related (and not an abuse of the rite). The most common example is permitting a set of clothes to count as "one object" rather than one shirt, one pair of pants and os on. A generous Storyteller might allow a container's contents (at the time of dedication) to count as part of the countainer - if, again, the players aren't abusing the rite by doing so.
The Storyteller and the player should decide what happens to the object when the character assumes certain forms. For example, when the character assumes Crinos form, her backpack's straps may simply grow to fit around her shoulders (although the pack still cannot hold more items than normal). When the character is in Hispo form, her knife may meld with her body. In such cases, the object will appear as a tattoo; others must spend a Willpower point to remove the object from the character.
Rite of the Auspicious Season
Source: WW3110 - Rage Across the Heavens p. 110
Description: This rite not only honors the Incarna that rules a particular lunar month but also serves to petition that Incarna's patronage. Although the basic format of the rite doesn't change, the specific details such as the songs, dances, or incantations, uses of incense or special colors and costumes, and the inclusion of symbolic objects appropriate to the Incarna may vary. Garou may perform this rite at any time for any of the planetary Incarnae, though the effects are stronger if the rite coincides with the appropriate astrological month. For example, a rite to gain Nerigal's favor for a coming confrontation with a hive of Black Spiral Dancers may be more effective when conducted in the month rules by Nerigal or under the full moon, his favored auspice.
System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals (difficulty of 6 if month, auspice or character's tribe corresponds with the Incarna for whom the rite is performed; otherwise, the difficulty is 7). Three successes are necessary to gain the attention and favor of the Incarna unless the rite occurs in the Aetherial Realm. In that case, only one success is necessary. No successes (or fewer than three for rites conducted in the physical world) indicates a simple failure of the rite; a botch gains the Incarna's attention, but not in a favorable manner. If the rite succeeds, all participants may gain a slight bonus to some appropriate Attribute of Ability, or else receive some other sign of the Incarna's favor. The Storyteller can determine what benefits result from a successful performance.
Rite of the Questing Stone
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 160
Description: This rite allows the Garou to find someone or something. The Garou must know the name of the object or individual. The difficulty of the rite is reduced if the Garou has some piece of the object or person (for example, a clipping of hair or piece of cloth). The Garou must dangle a stone or needle from a thread while concentrating on the item or person sought. Glass Walkers often use maps and substitute a compass for the traditional stone and thread.
System: Standard roll. If the Garou has a piece of the item or individual, the difficulty is reduced by one. The rite only gives the Garou a sense of the object's general location, not its exact position.
Level Two
Read All About It
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 116
Description: When the Glass Walkers and their urrah brethren need to spread the word about something important to all Garou in the city, but don't want to draw direct attention to themselves as they might with a howl, they might use the rite Read All About It. This rite is most appropriate when the message that needs to be disseminated is important but not urgent - "Be aware that the Chief of Police is in league with a Wyrm-cult" might work, while "We're under attack by Black Spiral Dancers" is not a good choice for this rite.
The Garou picks out a message of 100 words or fewer and uses Read All About It to insert that message into a local newspaper, concealing it such that only Garou can read it. The message might be placed anywhere in the paper that a short blurb might appear - the sidebar along the front page, short local news items, or the classified ads. Anyone subject to the Delirium simply will not see the message, instead glossing over it as an uninteresting news item. Garou can easily identify such messages as being special, however, and their eyes are drawn to them, making it quite likely that any werewolf who reads the paper will realize that it contains a special message for garou only.
Unfortunately, the Glass Walker who developed this rite didn't consider that Black Spiral Dancers, being Garou, could also see the messages; however, other creatures in the thrall of the Wyrm cannot see it. It is rumored that the Glass Walkers have developed a similar ritual for use over the Internet, concealing important information in otherwise nonsensical spam email, Usenet, or message-board posts.
System: To perform the rite, the ritemaster must write the message out by hand, in block pringint, on newsprint. He uses a ball of toy putty to pull the message text off of the paper, and imprint in onto the most recent edition of the newspaper that he wishes to send the message through. He must spend one Willpower and achieve at least one success in a Willpower roll. Since the concealment of this message depends in part on the Delirium, Kinfolk who succeed at a Perception + Occult roll (difficulty 8) can also read it. (Creatures immune to the Delirium who are not Kinfolk, such as mages or vampires, cannot read the message; even undead who were Kin in life are unable to detect the hidden communication.)
The message will appear in the next edition of the paper; its placement depends on the number of successes rolled. One success places the message deep in the classified ads, two in an interior section, three on the front page of an interior section, four successes puts the message on the front page but under the fold, and five successes puts the message on the front page, above the fold. A botch on this roll puts the message in the paper in such a manner that it is visible to everyone who reads it, not just Garou.
Renewing the Talen
Source: WW3806 - Players Guide to the Garou p. 199
Description: As a form of lesser fetishes almost, talens are spirit-imbued items that have a limited number of uses: One. Some talens can be "refueled," however, with this rite. This rite charms and seduces the spirit involved to return to the talen, and it must be performed through singing and enticing and other forms of beguiling.
System: By performing this rite prior to the Rite of Binding, the character effectively lowers her difficulty to perform that rite by one.
Rite of Becoming
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 161
Description: Werewolves must perform this rite at an Anchorhead Domain. Once completed, it enables the Garou to travel into the Deep Umbra. The most common version of this rite requires that the Garou must make a braid from three of her hairs, three pieces of fine copper wire, and three tendrils of ivy or other vine. Lengths of silk thread are sometimes substituted for the hair or wire. When the braid has been constructed, the Garou ties it around his own wrist and howls three words of power. The Uktena often drink a bitter potion that loosens the Garou's spirit from the Tellurian, while the Black Furies always perform this ritual in threesomes, never traveling the Deep Umbra alone.
System: If the braid is destroyed while the Garou is in the Deep Umbra, the Garou takes one Health Level of aggravated damage and risks becoming lost forever if he does not return to the Near Umbra immediately.
Rite of Natale
Source: WW3110 - Rage Across the Heavens p. 110
Description: Created by the Stargazers as a means of determining the planetary spirits' influences on a particular individual's destiny, this rite enlists the aid of Star-spirits to recreate an image of the sky at the moment of a Garou's birth. This allows the ritemaster to cast a "horoscope" for the subject's birth, though such knowledge makes the rite easier to perform. The power of the rite enables the spirits to portray the correct configuration of planets and constellations — thus revealing the precise date and time to the participants.
Although originally used only by Stargazers, a few Garou from other tribes who have studied the concepts of Garou astrology have learned the rite from their teachers (in most cases, naturally, a Stargazer).
System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Enigmas, difficulty 7; knowledge of the exact date involved lowers the difficulty to 6. A single success allows the enactor of the rite to determine the ruling planet of a Garou's birth, as well as the subject's auspice. Additional successes provide more detailed knowledge of the positions of the other planets as well as revealing the precise moment of birth. The Storyteller determines the amount of information learned from the rite.
Rite of Spirit Awakening
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 161
Description: This rite is used to awaken a sleeping (inactive) spirit. To perform this rite, a Garou must play a rhythm on some form of instrument (drums being the most common). While the Garou plays, other participating Garou (if any) pace around the ritemaster, howling and growling in counterpoint to the beat.
When performed on a mundane item, this rite enlivens the object's spirit, causing it to awaken and appear in the Umbra. For example, if the rite is performed on a VW bus, any Garou stepping sideways could see the bus as a true part of the landscape. However, it would appear as a stationary object in the Penumbra unless someone on the physical plane began to drive it, in which case it would appear as a driverless vehicle to anyone on the Umbra.
When performed on plants, this rite is known as sanctification. Plant-spirits are benevolent, and an awakened Plant-spirit will lend its power as though it were a talen (one use). Different plants grant different abilities when sanctified. For example, sanctified foxglove protects against faerie magic (adding two to the difficulty of any faerie spell).
System: The ritemaster must play a musical instrument or sing a song (talent doesn't matter). The difficulty of the roll is the spirit's Rage. Failure means that the spirit remains dormant. The Storyteller must decide whether the spirit is hostile or friendly to its awakener. Awakening a spirit does not allow any control over it; that requires either a Rite of Binding or a Gift.
Rite of Summoning
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 161
Description: Garou mystics are adept at calling spirits, be they minor Gafflings, totem spirits, or even Incarna. Summoning spirits involves complex rituals, long periods of meditation and tribal mantra chanting. Within the Umbra, this process is far easier. This rite compels spirits to seek those who call them. Furthermore, the spirit cannot escape its caller once the summoning is completed successfully, and it must attend the mystic. Many spirits, particularly minor ones, are too weak to resist a powerful summoning. Powerful ones come out of curiosity. The chance of a successful summoning depends upon the skill of the mystic, the power of the spirit, and the strength of the area's Gauntlet.
System: The ritemaster must pierce the Gauntlet just as if he were entering the Umbra (Gnosis roll against the Gauntlet). A mystic already within the Umbra is not required to pierce the Gauntlet. The power level of the spirit determines the difficulty level of a successful summoning. The Storyteller can determine target numbers from the chart below:
| Spirit Type | Target Number |
|---|---|
| Gaffling | 4 |
| Jaggling | 5 |
| Totem Avatar | 7 |
| Incarna | 8-9 |
| Celestine Avatar | 10 |
For each hour the Garou spends invoking the spirit, his target number drops by one. No target number may fall below 3. The player must then make a Gnosis roll and achieve as many successes as possible, with the following results:
| Successes | Effect |
|---|---|
| 1 | Spirit comes eventually and is initially hostile |
| 2 | Spirit manifests quickly, but is initially hostile |
| 3 | Spirit comes immediately and is neutral |
| 4 | Spirit comes immediately and is passively benign |
| 5 | Spirit comes immediately and is friendly |
A botched roll is likely to have disastrous results. Often a botch summons the wrong type of spirit in great numbers or with great hostility. Botches can quite easily cause a swarm of Banes to appear.
The Storyteller should feel free to adjust the previous tables as she wishes, particularly as appropriate to totems. In certain cases, a Garou who attempts to summon a specific spirit will have no chance of success. At other times, he will have almost no chance of failure. The Storyteller is advised to treat each use of this rite individually and to use common sense in her decisions.
A Garou who summons an Incarna or Celestine avatar successfully gains two points of Wisdom Renown.
Rite of the Peacock
Source: WW3813 - Hammer and Klaive p. 59
Description: If the Rite of Contrition is a cure employed when a fetish becomes cursed, then the Rite of the Peacock is preventative medicine. The Rite of the Peacock is performed either once a year, once a season, once a month, once a week, or even once a day, and is designed to stroke the ego of the spirit and keep it happy.
The rite varies highly depending upon the breed performing it and the human culture (if any) surrounding the ritualist, but always possesses some common themes. The rite begins with a performance of some description, either singing, poetry, dancing, or howling. Once this is completed, the ritualist continues with a string of praises for the fetish and the spirit within the fetish. To complete the rite, the fetish is held above the ritualist's head and its name is chanted three times.
System: The Rite of the Peacock is a Levelt Two Rite. The ritual is handled with a Charisma + Rituals roll, difficulty of the fetish's level + 3. If the roll succeeds, the fetish won't become cursed for at least one month, regardless of anything else. In extreme circumstances, the Storyteller may say the level of abuse the fetish is subjected to overrides the power of this Rite.
Rite of the Spirit Brew
Source: WW3108 - Werewolf Players Guide 2nd Ed p. 45
Description: With this rite, a Garou imbues a small volume of water with Gnosis. The most time-consuming aspect of the rite involves actually creating the container. It must be sturdy enough to survive long journeys but ready mystically to hold the spiritual energies. This process allows the Garou to store a reserve of Gnosis for use during a particularly grueling conflict or extended journey.
System: After several hours of meditation and prayers to Gaia, the Garou buries the receptacle in purified earth for three days. At the end of that period, the Garou recovers her prize. The water now holds three Gnosis points that can be consumed by anyone. Should a creature incapable of using Gnosis drink the liquid, nothing happens and the Gnosis is lost.
The nature of the container depends purely on the Garou and the circumstances in which she finds herself. Many Get of Fenris use army canteens, whereas the Pure Ones remain fond of buffalo-hide waterskins.
Rite of the Ziggurat
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 116
Description: The Glass Walkers and Children of Gaia learned long ago that just a nature combines functions in a forest, Garou can "stack" rites atop one another for more powerful magic. Originally, urban septs performed rites atop ziggurats, in cathedral towers, or even on top of pyramids, but the skyscraper caerns of Glass Walkers make this much easier now than it was earlier. The City Farmers even take advantage of the principle to grow trees and vines up through lightwells, creating open, Gaian spaces within the huge buildings.
The Rite of the Ziggurat unites and strengthens other rites. It is useful when two or more rites (even minor rites) are being performed atop one another in a multilevel structure. The use of intercoms, cell phones, and even closed-circuit TV and webcams makes this much easier. For example, a group of Garou Greetingthe Moon could sychronize their actions with another pack consecrating a fetish two floors above and a Rite of Renown one floor up.
System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals as usual. The Storyteller counts the number of rites being performed and may allow the total number of rites as a number of extra dice for the dice pool of the topmost rite. In addition, the background count of spirits may rise in relation to all the rites, with potentially interesting effects.
Rite of Tying the Snare
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 117
Description: Snare-spirits are subtle and persistent entities of the City's Umbrascape, trapping humans, other spirits and Banes in the city. This rite invokes their power to bind a specific enemy to a particular location, even if only for a while. Calling on these Weaver-spirits is a potentially dangerous endeavor; if the rite is performed improperly, the snare-spirits will likely try to bind the ritemaster into the Pattern Web. But success can leave an enemy right where the ritemaster wants him; several vampires have gone up in four-alarm building fires thanks to this rite.
Using this rite, a ritemaster must first walk, run, or otherwise move round the area to be bound. She must name that which she wishes to bind, and the name must be sufficiently accurate - "the vampire who works in this building" is not precise enough, whereas "the campire who works in this building under the alias of Mr. Vincenzo" will suffice. She then invokes the trapping spirit, and "ties a knot" round the area. If the rite is successful, the target of the rite will find it difficult to leave the area - barricades are harder to shift, doors lock themselves, and so on.
System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals as usual. Each success on the rite locks one door, jams one elevator or otherwise seals on particular avenue of escape for the traget. In addition, the difficulty of any rolls or feats of strength made to leave the area (such as Athletics check to jump from roof to roof) is increased by 1 for each of the ritemaster's successes, to a maximum difficulty of 10. This rite is at its most potent when combined with more mundane means of blocking exits, such as barricading doors and cutting phone lines.
Note that this rite cannot restrict any other activities of the target that aren't directly related to leaving, nor can it prevent other people from assisting the trapped target; a phone call for help will not be affected, and neither will the firemen arriving to break down the doors.
Rite of Unsalting the Earth
Source: WW3113 - Book of the Wyld p. 118
Description: Perhaps the gentlest Wyld rite, this serves to reconsecrate barren ground to the service of life and growth. Originally used to restore cropland salted by the Romans, the rite is used more frequently these days to reclaim lands that have been tainted with pollution or paved over and subsequently abandoned.
The rite itself is rather lengthy, beginning with chanting as two Garou stride the perimete of the area to be affected. One carries a bowl of water, the other a bowl of blood (chicken blood is usually sufficient), and they sprinkle this ont he ground as they walk. Ideally, the water and blood will run out as the Garou meet back at their starting point. According to tradition, if they run out beforehand, the rite is doomed to failure.
Any other Garou then cross the boundary of clood and water and make a ritual furrow from one end of the field to the other. No tools can be used in this labor, or else the entire effect is spoiled.
System: If the rite is performed properly, the site becomes much more Wyld-friendly and fertile, and may well actually produce life come springtime. In addition, Wyrm- and Weaver-creatures find themselves at a +1 difficulty on all rolls while in the newly consecrated area, and this effect lasts for a year and a day.
Level Three
Calling the Spirit Guide
Source: WW3806 - Players Guide to the Garou p. 199
Description: This rite serves as a quicker way to summon spirits while in the Umbra, but only spirits that can guide the summoner to a location. The spirits summoned with this rite will not teach the character anything or assist in the usual ways, but can be asked to help find a place, person or item within the Umbra. The rite involves calling out through a specialized dance and chant taught to the Garou as she learned this rite.
System: Standard roll for performing this rite, but lower the difficulty by one if the character seeks a particular spirit whose name she knows. As usual, failed or botched rolls often involve angered or hostile spirits appearing (see charts under Rite of Summoning, p.161 or above). When the spirit appears, it can lead the character or her pack to a Near Realm without difficulty. There is no further roll required here, but as customary it will want something in return for its services.
It can also help search for a place or a person. The spirit is not omniscient, and can only help locate the target. The ritemaster gains five bonus dice to his Perception + Investigation rolls throughout the quest, as long as the spirit assists him.
The spirit can also attempt to lead the characters to the Deep Umbra. In this case, stakes are much higher, and the characters may need to haggle a great deal (but not so much as to offend the spirit) to get a reasonable price. Also, the characters must locate an anchorhead themselves, and they travel into the Deep Umbra at their own risk. If the characters manage to persuade the spirit to accompany them on their entire journey, they will be able to return safely to the anchorhead.
Descent into the Dark Umbra
Source: WW3111 Umbra - (Revised) p. 135
Description: This rare rite is largely a secret held by the Silent Striders and the Ivory Priesthood of the Silver Fangs. By incoking the spirits in the proper fashion, the ritemaster attunes himself to the Dark Umbra, allowing him to cross over into the lands of the dead. This rite demands the sacrifice of a living thing; for that reason, many of the Garou who know this rite refuse to use it regularly, for fear that too much bloodshed for selfish reasons will bring the eye of the Wyrm upon them.
System: The ritemaster must make an Intelligence + Rituals roll, difficulty 7; she must then roll as normal to step sideways across the Gauntlet. If both rolls succeed, she crosses into the Shadowlands of the Dark Umbra.
Rite of Blood Kin
Source: WW3108 - Werewolf Players Guide 2nd Ed p. 46
Description: Finding friends in an unfriendly world can be a challenging and even dangerous task. This rite discovers any Kinfolk unknown to the werewolf. Any Garou undergoing this rite enters a hypnotic state wherein he whispers the name of his ancient relatives. At the end of this lengthy rite, the identities of his existing Kinfolk are mystically added to the list. The rite, however, cannot tell the Garou anything about the disposition of the Kinfolk; nether does it reveal Wyrm-taint or other supernatural influence.
System: The ritemaster need only make sure that the questing Garou remains calm upon entering the trance. For the rite to be successful, nothing can disturb the ritualist's concentration. At the end of the rite, the questing Garou rolls his Wits + Empathy (difficulty 5). Each success makes clear the identity of one previously unknown Kinfolk within 100 miles of the Garou.
Rite of Dreaming
Source: WW3111 - Umbra (Revised) p. 135
Description: Enacting this rite enables any number of shapeshifters to travel together through the Dream Zone. The enactor of the rite must paint a series of symbols on each of the rite's participants, all the while intoning the mystic phrases to accompany them. After this is done, all participants imbibe a special pasty concoction of certain mystic herbs, then go to sleep.
System: The leader of the rite rolls Charisma + Rituals (difficulty 7). The greater the number of successes, the greater the dream's clarity and the more control the characters have over it.
Characters using this rite may enter Dream either from the material world or the Penumbra.
Rite of Homecoming
Source: WW3111 - Umbra (Revised) p. 135
Description: This rite enables a Garou to travel instantly to her tribal homeland from any point in the Umbra. Members of the rite leader's pack may also accompany her.
System: No roll or expenditure is needed; however, the ritemaster must be in good standing with her totem. Silent Striders may not access their homeland with this rite.
Rite of the Blackened Moon
Source: WW3812 - Book of Auspices p. 81
Description: This rarely used rite creates a spiritually dead zone, essentially closing off a small space to Umbral access. The space can be no larger than a small hut or large room. Garou feel distinctly uncomfortable in this dead zone, and spirits trapped there can wither away to nothingness.
System: The bounds of the space are inscribed with glyphs, and an herbal smudge or incense is burned to banish spirits and spiritual influences from the room. Each success (Wits + Rituals, difficulty 7) increases the Gauntlet by one, to a maximum of 10. In addition no Gnosis can be regained in an way within the warded space, and materialized spirits trapped within begin to unravel at the rate of 1 Essence/hour. The ritual's effect lasts a number of days equal to the ritemaster's successes, fading at sundown of the final day. This takes half an hour to perform, and can be continued as often as necessary.
Rite of the Fertile Season
Source: WW3113 - Book of the Wyld p. 118
Description: Performed on the day the last snow melts, the Rite of the Fertile Season exists to ensure fetility for all things - plants, animals and those humans and Garou indulging in hanky-panky. Kinfolk are welcomed, nay, demanded at the performance of this rite, which generally grows carnal before much time has passed. A bacchanal of wine, carnality and passion, the Rite of the Fertile Season has been described as a party with occasional bits of chanting, and that's fairly close to the truthe.
The Rite, however, is not outsider-friendly. Anyone accidentally intruding has an equal chance of being swept up in the madness or being torn limb from limb. Resisting the ambiance is a sure way to meet an untimely fate, while giving in to it can have unexpected consequences.
System: The Rite of the Fertile Season makes anything exposed to it more fertile - almost. (Metis remain as sterile as ever; a simple rite isn't good enough to undo one of Gaia's heaviest decrees - or curses. Most septs won't allow metis anywhere near the rite, anyway, feeling that their sterility might offend the Wyld-spirits that empower it.) Enterprising young Garou have begun experimenting with bringing everything from window boxes full of cannabis to crystal growth experiments to the rite, to see how far its power extends. The traditional use of the rite, however, is to ensure the next generation of the Garou Nation. With the Apocalypse straining at the seams, however, some septs have set this rite aside, concerned that there won't be time for the next generation to reach childhood before the war reaches its peak.
Rite of the Fetish
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 161
Description: This rite allows a Garou to create a fetish (an object with a spirit bound into it). To do this, the Garou must first cleanse the potential fetish by placing it under running water (sufficiently drinkable tap water counts), burying it in pure earth, exposing the object constant breezes or suspending it above flame for three consecutive nights. The Garou must then force or persuade a spirit to enter the prepared object. The Fianna claim that cajoling or flattering a spirit produces the best results, while the Bone Gnawers and Silent Striders claim that bribery (expending Gnosis) works best.
System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals (difficulty 10). Each point of permanent Gnosis the Garou spends during the rite reduces the difficulty by two; going to great lengths to prove one's sincerity to the spirit may also reduce the difficulty. A botch indicates the spirit is released suddenly. (If the spirit was coerced into participation, it will almost assuredly attack). If the Garou is attempting to force a spirit into the fetish, she must first attack the spirit and reduce it to zero Essence before attempting to bind it into the fetish. A newly created fetish will not work until the bound spirit has recharged its Essence.
Rite of the Spirit Pass
Source: WW3110 - Rage Across the Heavens p. 110
Description: The performance of this rite causes spirits in the Aetherial Realm to accept the Garou's presence in their midst without question. In essence, the Rite of Spirit Pass makes Garou almost invisible to local spirits. Those who do notice the Garou experience a positive alteration of their normal attitudes towards visitors. Friendly spirits become actively helpful while neutral ones regard the Garou with amicability. Normally hostile spirits restrain their instinctive dislike for the Garou but may become helpful if offered something of value to them. Note that spirits who act as guardians for Incarnae and their realms are not subject to this rite, and may become hostile if it is cast in their vicinity.
A Garou may perform this rite for herself, for another Garou or for a group. Each participant in the rite must undergo a ritual cleansing and a brief period of meditation in order to purge their material forms of anything that might offend the spirits of the Aetherial Realm.
System: The Garou spends a point of Gnosis and rolls Charisma + Rituals. One success allows the Garou performing the rite to pass among the spirits without arousing their ire. Each additional success enables the enactor of the rite to affect an additional individual.
Rite of the Totem
Source: WW3801 - Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 162
Description: This rite binds a totem to a group of Garou, joining them together as a pack. During this rite, all Garou who wish to bind their destinies to a particular totem spirit must coat their eyes with an infusion of saliva and mugwort, tobacco or a similar substance holy to Gaia and step sideways into the Umbra. In the spirit world, the ritemaster leads the Garou in a hunt for the spiritual spoor left by a totem spirit. Such evidence varies with the spirit, but is always found by Garou worthy of the totem's attention. Even tracking down the spirit does not guarantee success, for the totem must decide whether the Garou are worthy to become its fosterlings. An undecided totem may require a quest of the supplicants, though this is almost never required if the pack has just completed a Rite of Passage successfully.
System: Characters must purchase the Totem Background to benefit from this rite. Otherwise, the rite is simply not performed. The roll is standard.
Rite of Weeping for Vision
Source: WW3108 - Werewolf Players Guide 2nd Ed p. 46
Description: The native tribes adopted this rite from their Sioux brethren. After preparing a sacred pipe of tobacco and entering meditation on a hilltop, the Garou receives visions. Unlike the Sioux ritual, however, the Garou's spirit actually leaves her body and travels into the Umbra. Once there, spirits assail her with visions of her possible futures or memories of her past.
System: The ritualist prepares all the necessary implements prior to the vision seeker's journey. Once secluded, the Garou smokes the sacred pipe and meditates throughout the night. With a successful Gnosis roll (difficulty 7), her spirit leaves her body and enters the Umbra. If anyone disturbs her physical form, the visions end immediately. In the Umbra, the Garou experiences visions and delusions created by spirits who wish to frighten the stranger out of their realm. Among these images, fortunes of the future and reflections of the past can be discerned. Interpreting these visions should never be easy, and the Storyteller should do her best to conceal their true meanings.
Level Four
Rite of the 13th Floor
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 117
Description: The Garou keep many secrets, something that becomes tricky in the enclosed and overpopulated realm of the city. This rite draws upon the power of local supersition, allowing either the 13th floor of a tall build or room #1 in a hotel to go unnoticed. The performance of the rite involves placing unlucky symbols such as pictures of black cats or the number "13" by the entrance of a place to be hidden. Some ritemasters trying to conceal a hotel room perform a fake ritual murder in the bathroom; those with a captive loyal to the Wyrm may go the extra distance to make the ritual real.
System: The resulting successes from the performance of the rite represent the number of successes needed on a Willpower check (difficulty 6) for any observer to actually see the button or entrance to the hidden region. If an actual captive is sacrificed in a genuine murder, the difficulty for the Willpower check rises to 9. This rite affects the perceptions of anyone, supernatural or mortal, who isn't present at the ritual. The effects last for one day per success.
Rite of the Reefweaver
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 117
Description: The shark-lords are said to have taught this rite to some very brave or very foolish Garou long past, in return for a favor involving a sky-stone (a meteorite). It organizes all the spirits in a given region into ecological harmony: Weaver, Wyld, and even some Wyrm beings can enter into a state of coexistence like the numerous entities of a coral reef. The peace produced by this powerful rite is that of Gaia, not the Weaver. Conflict and death will not cease, but the overall functioning of the system will be balanced and harmonious; humans, Garou, animals and spirits will all know this on some level.
The ritemaster calls out, draws, paints, or otherwise creates a representation of the interconnectedness of all life, spiritual and physical, in the region where he works. He may roleplay this according to the Storyteller's will. Wyrm entities must be prevented from subverting the process and balanced with spirits of the Weaver and Wyld.
System: The ritemaster must sacrifice a permanent point of Gnosis and make the roll as usual. The result is a state of balance and a stable "food web" of humans, animals and spirits, enduring for as many full moons as the ritemaster has successes. For example, a battle-spirit which had been inspiring gang attacks might instead draw potential gang members to violent sports which build brotherhood and community, or a lust-spirit which had made men visit prostitutes might be induced to make their wives and partners more sexually attractive. The rite can be renewed as often as desired, although the price is dear.
Rite of the Sparrow
Source: WW3205 - Storyteller's Handbook 2nd Ed p. 122
Description: The Rite of the Sparrow is performed when the Garou of a sept or pack wish to provide aid or support to a Garou of their number who is currently on a quest of some sort. The Garou performing the rite can only see his target when the questing Garou is traveling within one of the Umbras or is within sight of water. In order to perform the rite, the ritemaster must dip a small bird's feet (usually a sparrow's) into a mixture of blood and ashes. The ritemaster then dabs some of the same mixture onto the Garou before she embarks on her quest. The ritemaster then settles into a trance from which he can watch the questor's progress. If the questing Garou is injured or is otherwise in need of aid, the ritemaster may draw on his own strength and the strength of any other Garou who have participated in the ritual to aid their companion. This aid can come in the form of healing, Gnosis or the transfer of an object to the questor. When such help is given, the ritemaster releases the marked sparrow into the air. More than one sparrow may be mused during a given rite.
System: The rite requires the expenditure of one Gnosis point to create the bond. An additional Gnosis point must be spent whenever any help is granted the questor. Only one act can be performed per sparrow freed. In addition, any healing done does damage to the ritemaster or other designated ritual participant. Thus, the damage is actually transferred, not healed. The same is true for Gnosis. Additionally, the Garou participating in the rite must have the object they wish to transfer with them. Placing the sparrow on the object initiates its transfer.
Rite of the Wyld Machines
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 118
Description: All urban Garou know that machines have spirits, and the potential to awaken. But buried deep, deep within the machine's Weaver-self is the Wyld seed from which it grew. Every bulldozer was factory-made from iron ore; each vibra-lounger comes from wood and fiber of Gaia. This more specialized version of the Rite of Spirit Awakening awakens the Wyld within any machine, sitrring it to behave in ways no ordinary machine-spirit would dream of.
System: The Garou must howl and dance wildly to awaken the spirit, rolling Expression + Rituals. In some cases, such as a crazy pagan's motorcycle or a lathe used by generations of blacksmith Kin, the machine is already a little bit wild, and the difficulty will be 6. For machines used by unthinking humans, it's 8, and for machines of the Wyrm (such as a Black Spiral's torture chair) it is 10.
With one success, the machine will work normally but will aid the Garou. This might include an enemy's car agreeing to stop (although it's hard to perform this rite for the requisite ten minutes during a car chase). Three successes cause the machine to act abnormally: radios might bring oracular messages of the voices of ancestors, and vending machines turn out to have surprising contents such as boiled skulls, useful business cards or taser refills. Five successes mean that the machine will acquire mobility and a touch of wit. The Garou who scores seven successes can ask the machine to follow her into any danger (ir can also speak), and further successes lead to machines shapeshifting, stepping sideways and so on. This rite can lead to stories so bizarre that elders refuse to award Glory for them.
Level Five
The Ending Game
Source: WW3811 - Book of the City p. 118
Description: All Garou worry about the Apocalypse, even the Glass Walkers. But the form that the Apocalypse will take isn't clear to anyone. This Gift allows the Garou to see the form and nearness of the Apocalypse, as well as how it will affect her and her pack.
System: The ritemaster and her pack must play a game together. It might be a party game on a Playstation, a board game such as Monopoly or Parcheesi, or an arcade machine. The Bone Gnawers set great store by the divinatory powers of Ms. Pac-Man, while Glass Walkers revere complicated flight simulators and multiplayer first-person shooters. The ritemaster then rolls Gnosis, difficulty 6 for a simple question, 8 for a complex question. The results of the game provide some hint as to the nature of the next battle the pack must face, and how their victorya might tie into the greater tapestry of the Apocalypse War. The more successes, the more detailed the information becomes, although the presentation will always remain somewhat cryptic. ("Okay, now all the ghost have turned into Blinky, and they're chasing down a bunch of grapes. That's got to mean something.")
Tribe Rites
Below are Mystic Rites for each tribe. Tribe Rites are only available to learn within your own tribe. Click to expand for details on the boxes. By clicking on the ame of the tribe, you can view all of their Tribe Rites.
Black Furies
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Level Three Birth the Fire Warrior (Mystic) Source: WW3851 - Black Furies Revised p. 76 Description: In ancient days, legend holds that the goddess Coatlicue faced an angry horde of her own children, who charged her with betraying their father, Mixcoatl, by the hand of a sky-spirit. When all seemed lost, Coatlicue crouched and gave birth to the child of her union with the sky-spirit, the god of fire and war Huitzilopochtli. Huitzilopochtli emerged from the womb full-grown and fully armed; he drove off or slaughtered the mass of his half-siblings in his mother's defense. With Birth the Fire Warrior, a Mother can mimic Coatlicue's desperate act of incarnation, and give birth to a warrior child spirit to fight on her behalf in times of peril. She must ingest a foul mixture of herbs, hot spices, and spring water, and then calmly and quietly invoke Gaia. The warrior emerges from the Mother's womb as bloodily and messily as one might imagine such a thing — however, the spirit "labor" takes place far faster than would otherwise be the case. The warrior emerges from the Mother's loins in a plume of fire, sword in hand, and proceeds to attack her enemies until it's destroyed or there are no enemies remaining. Birth the Fire Warrior can be used whether the Mother is pregnant with a real child or not, and its emergence generally doesn't affect a child in the womb.
Python's Trail (Mystic) Source: WW3851 - Black Furies Revised p. 76 Description: In the ancient days of Greece, any human who wished to consult the Oracle at Delphi was obliged to pay a tax, the "Telono," which gave him the right to approach the great altar of Apollo to offer sacrifices (boars, goats or bulls). Having purified herself in the water of the Kastalian Fountain, Pythia bent over the Navel of the Earth (a cave opening), ate a laurel leaf and, inhaling the vapors emitted from the chasm, entered a state of ecstasy, uttering incoherent words. These were then composed into verses by the Priest, while the interpreter endeavored to render some meaning out of the prophecy. The Greeks say that Python, a great snake-spirit and Gaia's son, defended the rent in the earth from which oracles could receive visions of the future; they tell of Apollo's great victory against Python and his prophetic works of later days. Python wasn't truly destroyed, of course; he and his servants walk the tunnels through Gaia's bowels that lead back and forward in history. Loyal and wise Garou can use Python's Trail to walk those same metaphorical tunnels and gain glimpses of the Future. Black Furies who use this Rite take on a distant demeanor, and their prophetic utterances obey only dream-logic, not Weaver-think. A second Fury must stand by the Mistress of the Rite while she performs the Rite of Python's Trail, to interpret the nearly mad utterances of her sister.
The Storyteller is encouraged to use dream-logic or nightmare-logic to fabricate the character's voyages through the past and future as a result of this Gift. It is intended to allow the Storyteller to grant glimpses and hints of things to come without forcing him to caper his storylines around madly to fit an overly literal interpretation of a character's vision.
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Bone Gnawers
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Level One Rite of the Cardboard Palace (Mystic) Source: WW3852 - Bone Gnawers Revised p. 74 Description: Through this rite, a Garou can transform any flimsy structure into a decent place to sleep. This often involves a lot of cardboard and newspaper, but the rite can be invoked just about anywhere you want to call home for the night. The new "walls" of your home become water-resistant and insulated, keeping everyone inside warm and dry. Not surprisingly, you can perform this rite in full view of the mundane populace without breaking the Veil. For some travelers, performing this ritual is just a matter of habit. It may simply involve making a few personal touches to make your space feel secure and safe. For powerful Theurges, the cardboard palace of healing as well. System: When performing this rite, roll Intelligence + Survival (difficulty 6); with at least one success, you can turn an ordinary shelter into a comfortable place to sleep. If you spend a point of Gnosis before the roll, the shelter is more than just comfortable. The Garou (or other shapeshifter) living in the cardboard palace can roll Stamina for every day of rest; three successes heals an additional aggravated wound. Whether the space is dedicated or not, it can be cast on anyone's structure — not just the ritualist's.
Rite of Crash Space (Mystic) Source: WW3852 - Bone Gnawers Revised p. 74 Description: Ratkin developed this rite initially, and then traded it to a handful of Bone Gnawer Theurges for a big pile of shiny Loot. This rite is much like that of the Cardboard Palace, but further "dedicates" the space for a peaceful reflection and meditation. System: This rite works differently than the one with the same name for the Ratkin. The ritemaster must spend one Gnosis and make a Wits + Rituals roll (difficulty 7). Recovering Gnosis becomes easier in the "crash space"; reduce the difficulty of any rolls tor ecover Gnosis while inside the structure by 2. if the ritualist scores three successes on the roll for casting this rite, any Garou meditating in the crash space can regain Gnosis by meditating for an hour; the amount of Gnosis regains equals the number of successes he scores on a Wits + Enigmas roll after an hour of meditation. Outside the crash space, the number of points regained depends on the number of hours spent meditating.
Source: WW3852 - Bone Gnawers Revised p. 75 Description: When the ritual is performed on any carrying space or cargo-carrying device, it can be expanded to hold more stuff, loot, or junk. In a sense, the inside becomes slightly larger than the outside. The container doesn't bulge or distort; even bulky items become easy to carry. System: Roll Wits + Rituals (difficulty 7) and spend one Gnosis. For each success, you can place another ten pounds in the container. The rite must be renewed each week or the contents will spill out of the container (and possibly into the street). On a botched roll, the container breaks or tears and is rendered useless.
Rite of the Cardboard Fortress (Mystic) Source: WW3852 - Bone Gnawers Revised p. 76 Description: This rite, an amalgam of Rite of the Shopping Cart and Rite of the Cardboard Box, requires thinking "outside the box." The results would look something like this: using duct tape and at least one cardboard box, the ritemaster dedicates the box so that it's much larger on the inside than it is on the outside. This involves creating a "pocket realm" of the Umbra accessible to anyone with the Gnosis Trait. The box must at least be large enough for the ritemaster to crawl inside, along with a flap that can open and close. Depending on the success of the ritual, once the proper rites have been finished, up to five Garou can fit inside with enough room to barely move around without bumping into each other. In theory, they could square dance or do calisthenics, but couldn't play tackle football. If the box is opened or destroyed, there's nothing inside it, at least in the physical world. Instead, the Garou may exit their secret cardboard fortress through the Umbra. Multiple cardboard boxes can be taped together to hold multiple shapechangers. System: Spend one Gnosis and roll Wits + Rituals (difficulty 7). Each success allows one shapechanger to move about freely inside, even if it's in the equivalent of Crinos form. The Gift doesn't work on Corax or Mokolé, perhaps for reasons involving Helios. The effects last for one full day or until the cardboard is destroyed. Fighting in the Cardboard Fortress inevitably destroys the cardboard box. |
Children of Gaia
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Level One Last Blessing (Mystic) Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 72 Description: The mere existence of metis threatens the Veil, as they're born and die in Crinos form. This blessing is given to a metis by the ritemaster after going to war and before the metis' face is cold in death. It simply ensures that the metis' corpse will be in that form which she most preferred (apart from her breed form, of course): Human or wolf, arousing no suspicion. Many metis have received this rite with joy, seeing it as a sign of Gaia's forgiveness. System: The ritemaster lays hands on the metis and chants the Song of the True Form; then spends one permanent Gnosis. The metis' body changes to Homid or Lupus form, and the change is permanent.
Rite of Asklepios (Mystic) Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 73 Description: The ancient Greek healer Asklepios was the greatest physician of the ancient world, and the Children and their Kin aided his cult for a thousand years. This rite allows the ritemaster and his patient(s) to see the correct cure for diseases and wounds untreatable normally. Only a few Children of Gaia still know it. System: The ritemaster prays over the patient who then sleeps all night in an underground shrine, either a small room (hence "incubation") or a burrow for lupus. The ritemaster then rolls Wits + Rituals, difficulty 7, or 8 for illnesses of unknown origin. In the night, a spirit such as Asklepios, Clara Maas, or Carlos Finley (the discoverer of the yellow fever vaccine) will appear to the patient and explain how to cure the disease. The patient will then awaken and perform the steps described. For each success of the ritemaster, one level of damage will be cured. The patient and the ritemaster will then perform a sacrifice to Gaia. This can be a gift of goods or treasures, but can also be a service or quest to aid the ritemaster.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 73 Explanation: This rite is duplicated in WW3108 - Werewolf Players Guide (2nd Edition) p. 46 and is available to anyone of any tribe. Due to that, this is not considered a Children Of Gaia exclusive Rite and can instead be found listed above.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 74 Description: This is similar to the Rite of Talisman Dedication but more powerful. Talismans under this rite actually shapeshift into forms which are usable by the Garou, instead of "disappearing." Each counts for triple the Gnosis of a dedicated item: A Garou with a 7 Gnosis can have only two items adapted to the new body shape; a Garou might have a vest for tools in her Homid form, which would change into a Crinos-sized vest, and then shapeshift to Lupus, when it would become fitted to the wolf-body. a backpack would become a dog-pack, and so on. Note that frivolous items, such as high heels, stereos, or coffee mugs won't work and will cause loss of 3 permanent Gnosis if adapted. System: The ritemaster recites the rite and places the item on the Garou's body. if extra items are attached, they'll be torn or crushed when the Garou shapeshifts.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 73 Description: This rite allows the ritemaster to end the suffering of others by taking their Wyrm-taint onto himself. It can cleanse both the living and the dead. The rite is reflected in a few rural communities in the Appalachians and elsewhere, where humans attempt to take the sins of others onto themselves to release a dead soul from Hell. System: The Garou lays out a meal on the body of the person (usually on their chest or in their hands) and eats it. As he does so, he makes a Wits + Rituals roll, with the difficulty being the sinner's Willpower. Success transfers the subject's Wyrm-taint into him; the Storyteller may require extra successes to transfer larger amounts of Wyrm-taint. This rite is said to be able to cleanse even Black Spirals (if huge numbers of successes could be achieved), but no such attempt has succeeded in living memory; Banes and fomori can't be cleansed in this method, as they are, at least in part, Wyrm-taint itself.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 73 Description: The Garou are warriors, even the Children of Gaia. But the Garou have warred not only on the enemies of Gaia but on the Fera, and even on their own kin among the Bunyip. This rite mourns the lost and brings understanding of the reasons and results connected to the long-ago battles. The Speakers for the Dead often perform it in Australia in Bunyip bora rings or in the Camazotz caves of Mexico. System: The ritemaster seeks a place associated with one of the long-lost Changers and enters into meditation on the vanished race. She must plead with the dead to hear her apologies or elegies for them (this should be RolePlayed). The greater her knowledge of the lost ones, the greater her chance of success. for the following year, the dead won't haunt any that take part in this rite. At the Storyteller's discretion, the dead may communicate with the ritemaster; one or two who have partaken in this rite claim to have gained new knowledge or insights thereby.
Rite of Resolution (Mystic) Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 74 Description: This rite is also called the Rite of Harena (or the Rite of the Sands). It prevents Garou who combat one another ritually from frenzying during the combat, whether it's wrestling, klaivaskar, Ishkakku, or kailindo. Other tribes often as the Children to perform this rite lest their warriors slay one another over a minor dispute. System: The combatants approach one another, shake hands or sniff one another, and howl out their respect for one another. The ritemaster stands as referee and rolls Charisma + Rituals against the highest Rage score of any combatant. For each success, one failed Rage roll for Frenzy may be ignored.
Alternation of Generations (Mystic) Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 74 Description: The ancient lupus among the Children of Gaia beheld the "eternal heat" of humankind and realized that this ability could vastly increase their breeding capability as well as enhancing the pleasures of mating. In the present, as the blood thins more and more, homid women have employed it to increase the measure of wolf blood in the tribe. It allows a homid to bear lupus offspring and vice versa. System: At the conclusion of the rite, the Garou spends a permanent Gnosis Point, shapeshifts to match the form of the beloved one, and approaches their intended. A homid mating in Lupus form must wait until the mating season, of course, but in all cases conception is guaranteed. The mother's breed form temporarily changes to that of her partner; the change lasts from conception to delivery, in order to prevent miscarriages. Metis, of course, can't use this rite — and none would teach it to them.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 74 Description: This ritual gives insight into the nature of the Apocalypse. As such, enacting it is frightening, and many septs either forbid ritemasters to perform it or forbid them to speak publicly on what the rite reveals. Ritemasters who are able to speak on the rite say many different things about their visions. The ritemaster must lead a group of Garou (and often Kin) in three days of chanting, dancing, and meditating. If they manage to last through the lengthy and tiring rite, the ritemaster and others will see visions of the Apocalypse and of their own actions which are related to it. They'll also see glimpses of how the actions of the Garou Nation have affected the Apocalypse. Some ritemasters have emerged hopeful, saying that the Children's peacemaking can change the world into a new and better form. Others predict extinction in a great battle, and still others some bizarre Weaver "singularity" involving giant computers. Other tribes are always invited to participate in this rite, and Stargazers always seemed eager to do so, speaking of a new transformed reality beyond the Apocalypse. System: This rite requires the invocation of spirits of prophecy and time, which are by nature a cryptic lot. The ritemaster then leads three days of dancing and chanting and rolls Wits + Rituals, difficulty 7. the Storyteller may use the enactment of this rite as a story device; how "true" the visions are will be up to her.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 75 Description: This rite is the Children of Gaia's ultimate gift to Gaia-cherishing humans and is available only to the Children. When it's performed, the Veil isn't pierced (as in the deadly Rite of Rending the Veil) but parts seamlessly to admit one or more humans (or wolves). The person on whom the rite is performed thus becomes Kinfolk. Two Children unrelated to the human must witness that he loves Gaia and would aid the Children's cause. Most often this rite is done for mates of the Garou or Kin. Some of the Patient Deed say that they hope to extend the rite to whole nations. The rite consists of the Garou dancing round the subject, while the ritemaster chants from the Songs of Welcome. As the rite progresses, the Garou slowly shapeshift, until finally they assume the Crinos form without frightening the human. System: The ritemaster makes an extended Wits + Rituals roll, difficulty of the human's Willpower. He must accumulate successes equal to the human's age before the rite succeeds; children are easier to "adopt" than adults.
Source: WW3853 - Children of Gaia Revised p. 74 Description: Only the most brazen would violate a sacred peace. The entire sept, including Kin and representatives of the community, must gather at the caern and each participant must declare himself dedicated to the peace of the land. The strength of the peace equals the number of Garou plus half the number of Kin who join in the rite. Anyone deciding to make war on such a community must make a Willpower roll, difficulty 8, with as many successes as the strength of the peace. If this peace is broken, the leader of the community may utter a destructive curse upon the violator, using as many dice to curse as the strength of the peace. Treat this as a Dark Fate Flaw with a strength equal to the strength of the broken peace.
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Fianna
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Level Two Feast for the Spirits (Mystic) Source: WW3854 - Fianna Revised p. 75 Description: Since the dawn of religion, worshipers have made offerings of food to gods and spirits. The Fianna do so to honor ancestors at feasts, reminding them of their former lives and strengthening their ties to kith and kin. Theurges also enact the rite as chiminage to spirits who want a taste (literally) of what the living enjoy. System: The ritemaster sings or plays a tune of welcome for the spirits while investing Gnosis into food and drink. With success on the rite, the food becomes tangible in the Penumbra. Once its essence has been consumed, the physical food and drink loses any appealing taste or texture as well as much of its nutritional value.
Rite of the Foeman's Vigil (Mystic) Source: WW3854 - Fianna Revised p. 75 Description: Severed heads can be more than a trophy, they can be a ward. In this modified version of the Rite of the Fetish, the ritemaster takes the head of a newly taken foe (within the last 24 hours) and rebinds the spirit within it in services to the Garou. When put in place (usually buried under a pile of stones or placed on a pike or wall), the head emits a shrill, undulating wail if any unwelcome visitor approaches within 20 yards of the head. It will cease to function if moved or broken, if it is activated too many times, or until the third Samhain after its creation; then the spirit flees. A rarely used variant of this rite (known as Hero's Vigil) uses the head of a recently killed Fianna hero (should the spirit be agreeable to the binding). System: At the end of the rite the head is placed in its permanent position. It will activate a number of times equal to the ritemasters rituals dots. Normal intruders will automatically be detected if they enter the alert radius; those with supernatural concealment (such as Obfuscate, human magic or a Gift) may evade notice if the being makes a Mental Challenge against the ritemaster. This does not detect intrusion across the Gauntlet, but a Black Spiral Dancer head (for example) could be placed in the Penumbra with similar effects. If Rite of Hero's Vigil is enacted on a willing Fianna's spirit, difficulty is 10 - Rank of the dead Garou, and the head may be good for up to 1 year. As the two rites are similar, Garou who know one only require three days of study to learn the other. |
Get of Fenris
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Level One Rite of Heritage Mystic Source: WW3855 - Get of Fenris Revised p. 79 Description: This genealogical rite is a favorite of Skalds and Forseti alike, albeit for slightly different reasons. Some Fenrir use it to verify the identity of a hero’s descendants before passing on an inheritance; others use it to identify the father of a metis cub if none is forthcoming. The ritemaster draws the blood of the subject with a silver knife and sings a long paean to the ancestor-spirits of his tribe and any others that might be watching over the subject. As he completes the song, the ancestor-spirits whisper the subject’s heritage into his ears. System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals, difficulty 7, as normal. Success reveals the subject’s true heritage for one generation back per success (for example, two successes would reveal the subject’s heritage as far back as his grandparents). In addition, the ritemaster receives the answer to one specific question about the subject’s heritage per success; e.g., “What was this cub’s paternal grandfather’s profession?” or “Does the blood of any other tribe run in this cub’s veins?” The answer will be accurate, as long as the answer can be found within the number of generations revealed; if the ritemaster gained four successes, for example, he could not ask “Is this child descended from Frode,” but he could accurately tell if the child’s great-great-grandfather claimed descent from Frode or not. The Rite of Heritage works just as well with humans or wolves (although wolves, lacking names, are harder to accurately identify), even non-Kin or mages. It does not, however, work on the undead or on fae.
Source: WW3855 - Get of Fenris Revised p. 79 Description: Get of Fenris Crescent Moons learn early on to respect and appreciate the power of the written rune, whether it takes the form of Garou glyphs or of runes of human origin. This rite is a prerequisite to the Rite of Rune Casting; it is with this rite that the rune-seer creates her talismans. The runes must be carved into the bones of enemies slain in battle, but may take whatever form is most may take whatever form is most spiritually relevant to the ritemaster. Most Fenrir choose Garou glyphs or the Futhark runes of the Norse, but a few Get have been able to make rune-bones carved with the Cherokee alphabet and even I Ching trigrams function. System: Standard roll; the rite lasts for eight hours of carving and ritual empowerment. At the rite's completion, the Garou must spend a Gnosis point to "charge" the runes. The runes are commonly stored in a bag, and drawn forth just one to three at a time. 
Rite of Rune Casting (Mystic) Source: WW3855 - Get of Fenris Revised p. 80 Description: This prophetic rite enables the rune-caster to see hints of the future in the patterns the runes form as they fall. At the climax of the rite, the ritemaster casts a few runes from her personal rune-bag onto a hide skin or other sacred cloth, studying the patterns there to see what the spirits mean to tell her. System: The rune-caster must use her personal set of runes, created by the Rite of Rune Carving; the roll is Wits + Rituals, difficulty 8. Success reveals an accurate, but vague prophecy; the ritemaster may roll Intelligence + Enigmas (difficulty 8) to make more sense of the casting, but prophecy is by nature never crystal-clear. The Storyteller is encouraged to use symbolic language to create the runes' warnings; "you will encounter an obstacle" is rather bland, but "warrior-rune reversed, against ice-rune - Ymir's prison walls may sap your strength" is considerably more interesting.
Source: WW3855 - Get of Fenris Revised p. 80 Description: The Fenrir are well aware of the dangers of letting their tempers get out of hand. Although a visitor or rival might deserve to be ripped limb from limb, it is neither honorable nor prudent to slay other Gaian werewolves in a fit of frenzy. Fenrir often bolster their self-control at formal moots with this rite, which soothes the Rage of participants so that they can avoid "diplomatic events." To enact this rite, the Get must be inside a house pleasing to the spirits in some respect; the lodge-houses, longhalls, or other structures within a Get caern are ideal, but any building that has been marked as open to the spirits of Gaia will suffice. The ritemaster opens each door and window in turn, inviting the spirits of wisdom and granting the spirits of Rage permission to leave if they see fit. If the rite is performed correctly those within the lodge are much less likely to lose control of their Rage until the meeting ends. System: Standard roll; if successful, the rite's effects last until the first person leaves the lodge. While the rite's effects are in place, any shapeshifters within the lodge are calmer than usual; the difficulty of any Rage roll made within the lodge as a difficulty of 9 (although Rage may be spent without restriction). |
Glass Walker
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Level One Camp City Farmers Rite Rite of Growth Mystic Source: WW3856 - Glass Walkers Revised p. 82 Description: This rite is a remarkable backup measure for traditional City Farmers, allowing them to cause plants to grow in strange locations. The plants do not grow unusually quickly, but can grow in plastic, concrete or other unusual places, drawing nutrients from the source. Three Garou are needed to make this rite work. The ritemaster makes and indentation in the surface using a claw, and plants the seed of the plant into it. The three then hold hands in a triangle around it, kneeling, and request the spirit of the material that it nurture and care for the plant. If the spirit agrees, a small green shoot will appear immediately. System: Success on this rite means the plant survives for a month, growing at a normal rate. Afterward, it requires water and care like any other plant. |
Red Talon
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Level Two Rite of Feeding the Land (Mystic) Source: WW3857 - Red Talons Revised p. 73 Description: The rite is the province of the Dying Cubs camp. It allows the Garou to use the pain of a dying human (or Garou in theory) to feed and heal the land. The Dying Cubs cannot say where they learned this rite; every sept that knows it seems to have learned it from a visiting Talon, but no one can trace the rite back to its origin. The ritemaster and any other Garou that participate bind and torture the victim for as long as they wish. The longer the victim remains alive and in pain, the more potent the rite. The Garou may use any means of inflicting pain they wish, and may even heal the victim to prolong his agony provided the victim always suffers from one health level of damage (if the victim is ever fully healed, the rite fails). When the victim can bear no more and finally expires, the rite master spills the victim's blood on the ground to replenish the land. Wyrm-taint is burned away and even the touch of the Weaver weakens somewhat. System: Any characters involved in this rite lose one point of temporary Honor for torturing a helpless victim (the DyingCubs usually don't care). Any player whose character pariticpates in the torture of the victim must roll Wits + Intimidation at a difficulty of the victim's Willpower in an extended, resisted test against the victim's Willpower (difficulty 8). Each turn, if the torturer has more successes than the victim does, the victim loses a temporary Willpower point. If the torturer and the victim are even or if the victim has more successes, the victim does not lose Willpower. The Storyteller must decide based on what kind of torture is being employed how often the victim takes damage. The torturers can keep building the rite until the victim runs out of Willpower and health levels. When the torturers have extracted all that they can from the victim (i.e., said victim runs out of Willpower and/or dies) the ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals (diff 7). For a 20-foot radius per point of Willpower and health levels taken from the victim, the area is cleansed of Wyrm-taint (as if the Rite of Cleansing had been performed). Also, the Gauntlet in that area drops by two (to no lower than three) for one full month.
Rite of Prophecy (Mystic) Source: WW3857 - Red Talons Revised p. 74 Description: Similar to the Rite of Weeping for a Vision, this rite allows the Red Talon to ask Gaia for a glimpse of things to come. Talons of all auspices learn this rite, but the Theurges are normally the only ones who use it more than once. The Red Talon must go somewhere that she will not be disturbed. She must then find something that holds her attention; the movement of clouds swirling in the sky, a parade of ants marching to their home, the swirling of running water -- any of these will do. the supplicant simply allows her mind to unfocus and waits for the vision from Gaia. The vision thus granted may be helpful and might well grant the Red Talon some insight into an immediate problem .However, Red Talon "history" is fraught with tales of Talons who have foreseen events such as nuclear blasts, the War of Rage, the War of Tears, and battles that might or might not be the Apocalypse itself -- and simply haven't been able to interpret the visions in time. While nearly every master of the Rite at a Red Talon caern knows the Rite of Prophecy, they rarely use it. To know the truth, but not what the truth means, is more painful than most Garou can bear. System: The player roll Willpower (diff 7) to focus the character's attention, and then rolls Wits + Rituals (diff 7) to begin the vision. The vision is left entirely in the Storyteller's hands, but it is recommended that the more Pure Breed the character possess, the more likely she will see a vision pertaining to the tribe (or the Garou Nation) as a whole rather than her or her pack.
Rite of False Justice (Mystic) Source: WW3857 - Red Talons Revised p. 75 Description: Red Talon lore holds that since the tribe never received a vote on the Litany's tenets, they are not bound by them. While the tribe follows the Litany for the most part, sometimes a Talon is forced to act against the Litany in order to follow her calling as a true predator. The Red Talons recognize that the other tribes may punish the Talon for her "transgression," but have devised a means to remove the stigma from her. This rite is only performed if the ritemaster and the sept leaders feel that another tribe has unjustly subjected a Talon to a Punishment Rite (such as Ostracism, Voice of the Jackal, or Stone of Scorn). The Rite of False Justice cannot disrupt a rite that also confers a death sentence, such as The Hunt or Gaia's Vengeful Teeth (though the tribe may physically protect a Talon whom they feel is being persecuted by such a sentence). The Rite of False Justice is always performed on the half moon. The ritemaster calls the punished Garou before her and asks her to describe in what capacity she was serving Gaia when she broke the Litany. If the Garou's answer satisfies the ritemaster, she howls to the Philodox moon to lift the stigma from the supplicant, as she was serving her true nature, not the false laws, when she transgressed. The Talon is then freed from any Punishment Rite that she currently suffers from and is usually granted a measure of Renown for her honesty and bravery. System: The ritemaster hears the supplicant's case as described above. If the ritemaster judges the Talon worthy of her suffering, no further penalty is incurred. If the ritemaster feels the Talon has been wrongly judged, the player rolls Wits + Rituals (difficulty of the level of the Punishment Rite under which the target currently suffers + 5). Success cancels the mystical effects (such as the altered voice granted by Voice of the Jackal) of any previously performed Punishment rite on the supplicant. Any Renown reimbursement or award is up to the Storyteller.
Rite of Gaia's Rebirth (Mystic) Source: WW3857 - Red Talons Revised p. 75 Description: This extremely powerful rite has only recently been rediscovered and is currently known to only one sept of Red Talons. Gaia's Rebirth allows the ritemaster to sacrifice her own Gnosis, and, if necessary, her own life to reclaim Gaia's pure form from human defilement. The form of such corruption does not matter -- the rite would work just as well destroying a path through a state park as it would leveling a building in a major city. The end result is the same: The land returns to the state it would be in had humans never seen it. Trees push their way through concrete, cars are covered and crushed by vines and overgrown with moss, although any organic matter (such as corpses) is consumed at the normal rate. Performing this rite is complex. It requires a precise sense of timing, and the ritemaster must be guided by nothing but instinct. If she begins the rite even one minute early or too late, the rite will fail, but the energies released may well destroy her. Gaia's Rebirth can only be performed on the last night of the waning crescent moon, the night before the start of the Ragabash cycle. The climax of the rite must occur between the setting of the moon and rising of the sun, and the rite must be performed at the site to be purified (meaning a Red Talon cannot perform the rite outside city limits and expect the city itself to be consumed). This rite requires a special moot, attended by no fewer than six Garou (the ritemaster plus one werewolf of each asupice). The moot begins with howls to any totem spirits in the area (a caern totem, if the rite is performed at a caern, the totems of any packs present, and the tribe totems of all Garou present) in addition to an elaborate howl to Gaia herself. The ritemaster must walk or run in a circle around the center of the area to be cleansed, howling to Gaia to awaken the spirits of the land to reclaim it. She gives of herself -- this can be physical, in which case she bleeds onto the ground, or spiritual, in which case she simply howls and gives up part of her own spirit. In either case, if the rite is performed correctly, the plant life in the area quickly overtakes any human "development" and restores Gaia's true order. System: The player must first roll Perception + Primal-Urge (diff 9) to be sure of the correct timing for the rite. The Storyteller may want to make this roll in secret, so that the player does not know the results. If the roll succeeds, the character knows when to start the rite so that the end coincides with the moon and sun properly. If the roll fails, the character is unsure, and must wait a full month before attempting the rite again. If the roll is a botch, the character is sure of the timing, but has actually miscalculated. She will automatically fail at performing the rite. The character must lead the moot as described above. At the moot's climax, the player rolls Wits + Rituals (diff 9, or 7 if the character has both the Pure Breed and Ancestors Backgrounds at 2 or higher). If the roll fails, the rite fails, and the character receives three health levels of aggravated damage. These appear as teardrop=shaped wounds on her body, similar to the "Tears of Gaia" commonly suffered by Garou who attempt the Rite of Caern Building. If the roll is a botch, the character loses Gnosis or Stamina as described below, but the rite still fails. If the roll succeeds, however, the player must decide how much land to reclaim from human corruption. For each dot of Stamina or two dots of Gnosis the character is willing to expend, roughly one square acre of land reverts to the state it would be in had humans never developed it all at. This rite does not destroy any materials - that is, buildings and vehicles do not simply disappear - but the plant growth will quickly crush and cover any human structures. Living things within the area of effect are not affected (except that they may find themselves trapped in buildings or carried to the tops of very large trees). The Gnosis or Stamina spent on this rite is considered permanently gone unless bought up again with experience. |
Shadow Lords
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Level Two Communion with the Storm (Mystic) Source: WW3858 - Shadow Lords Revised p. 75 Description: It is easy to lose oneself in the intricacies of Garou society, and to forget that the ultimate goal of all the politicking of the Shadow Lords is the defeat of the Wyrm and the restoration of Gaia to her normal state. Many Shadow Lords thus turn to this rite to remind themselves of why they're fighting, and of what it is that they're supposed to be fighting for. In the process, they focus their Rage and their ambition so that they may more effectively accomplish their tasks. This rite is always performed in the midst of a heavy thunderstorm, but that is its only constant. It may be performed singly or in groups, at any time of day or night, and in any part of the world. So long as Grandfather Thunder's touch is present, that is all that matters. System: Standard roll. While this rite is in effect, all Enigmas rolls have difficulties three lower than normal (minimum 4). In addition, the ritemaster may bring any single problem (usually nominated beforehand) to the attention of Grandfather Thunder in an attempt to seek his counsel. If he is invoked with a successful Wits + Enigmas roll (difficulty 8), Grandfather Thunder presents them with an appropriate course of action and girds their resolve with either a point of Rage or a point of Gnosis, depending on the nature of the problem.
Rite of the Hurricane (Mystic) Source: WW3858 - Shadow Lords Revised p. 75 Description: Used almost exclusively by the Shadow Lords of Mexico, this rite is a more potent version of the punishment rite Calling the Storm. Whereas that rite is used to rebel against a corrupt or unjust leader, this rite is designed to focus the fury of the Garou into a powerful storm, which may then be used to shatter the grip of the Wyrm upon the land. It is used to destroy nests of vampires, to sweep oil refineries out to sea, and to attack other artificial structures throughout the storm's area. Most Garou frown on using this rite in all but the direst emergencies, for it is quite destructive to the land it scours clean. The counter-argument is that Gaia is resilient, and it is better to let Her heal Her wounds than suffer in the coils of the Wyrm. Even so, the questions raised by the rite ensure that the Rite of the Hurricane remains a last resort, to be used only when the need is dire. System: This rite may only be performed in a tropical area, and even then only during the storm season. If these conditions are met, a single day is enough to call up a storm cell in the general region. Manifesting hurricane-force winds for a single scene is easily done, but maintaining the storm is another matter. Doing so requires the expenditure of three points of Gnosis per day, which may be paid by any number of willing participants. Once the cost is not paid, the storm dissipates normally. |
Silent Striders
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Level Two Rite of the Spoken Page (Mystic) Source: WW3859 - Silent Striders Revised p. 78 Description: The Garou seldom write things down, and the Silent Striders commit words to paper even less frequently. Humans write all the time, however -- and so do some other supernatural beings. This rite summons an ibis-spirit and sets it to reading the designated manuscript (or sarcophagus, or hand-written notebook) aloud. It has practical uses beyond simple hands-free reading: it has been used to "read" many books at once, listening for a key word or phrase; to learn to read a language the Garou can only speak; or to simply decipher criminally bad handwriting. Curiously, if the writing is less than one month old, enough of the author remains with the message that the ibis-spirit reads it in the author's voice. System: The player makes a Wits + Rituals roll (target 7). If successful, the ibis-spirit arrives and begins reading, and will continue for one hour per success or until dismissed. The spirit reads aloud in the language written - it does not translate the material. If the message is less than one month old, the hearers may attempt to identify the voice of the author (which may require an Intelligence roll), or even make guesses as to the meaning behind the author's words as if she were there in person (requiring a Perception + Empathy roll).
Descent into the Underworld (Mystic) Source: WW3859 - Silent Striders Revised p. 78 Description: Most Garou think of the Umbra, the Gaian spirit world, as the only spirit realm that sits close to the physical world. Most Garou are wrong. The Underworld -- the Land of the Dead, the Dark Umbra -- sits astride the physical realm just as the Umbra does. Within it lie the ghosts of thousands of humans who died unable to let go of some aspect of their mortal lives. These days the Underworld is a tremendously dangerous place. A few years ago a cataclysm set off a series of hellish storms that still threaten to rip the lands of the dead apart. The ghosts are more desperate these days, and the storms that rage outside the cities of the dead can harm even the doughtiest Silent Strider warrior. Owl accompanies the Garou into the Underworld, but few other traditional totems do the same. System: This rite takes five minutes to perform. The character must sacrifice a living mammal and touch every character to be affected by the rite with at least a fingerprint of its blood. He then draws sigils in the ground nearby with the remaining blood. The player should roll Intelligence + Occult (difficulty 7). Success on the rite takes the ritemaster to the Underworld. Each additional success takes one of the other characters marked (in the event that the character does not achieve as many successes as the rite has subjects, those with the highest Gnosis go through first). The Underworld is a dark and storm-tossed realm whose inhabitants feed on the strong emotions of the living.
Rite of Dormant Wisdom (Mystic) Camp: Eaters of the Dead Source: WW3859 - Silent Striders Revised p. 79 Description: This rite is forbidden. Its very existence is denied outside the tribe, for the Silent Striders believe that the other Garou would turn on all of them if it were discovered that even one camp among them practice this ritual. In truth, most Striders do not know that it exists, or believe that it is only a myth. The Rite of Dormant Wisdom is only taught to trusted and experienced members of the Eaters of the Dead camp. The ritemaster and his fellow cultists use the Rite of Dormant Wisdom to gain the secrets and memories of the dead by ritually devouring the dead person's brain. The ritual will function properly so long as the brain is intact, regardless of the length of time since the subject's death. Each participant is likely to get a different kind of memory from the subject -- for instance, one might get the subject's memories of love, another his memories of voices and sound, and a third the subject's darkest secrets. The Storyteller can vary this thematically based on the participants and the nature of the rite's subject. The Wyrm has its tentacles all over this rite; cannibalism of any sort is expressly forbidden by the Litany. Each use of the ritual brings the character a step closer to the service of Foebok, Urge Wyrm of Fear. System: All those participating in the ritual must engage in the test. Those who succeed gain some small portion of the dead one's memories and secret knowledge. No participant can gain game abilities (Knowledges, Disciplines, Gifts, Rites, etc) directly from the use of this ritual, but at the Storyteller's discretion the rite can be used to justify the expenditure of experience points on game abilities that the rite's subject knew. As described elsewhere, the Wyrm's touch is on this rite. By default, any Garou who takes part in the Rite of Dormant Wisdom a number of times greater than the Garou's permanent Gnosis traits will become a slave of Foebok. However, Storytellers are encouraged to change this mechanic to make the Garou's safety zone less predictable and stimulate roleplay. This ritual will work on the corpses of supernatural creatures (such as Garou and immortals) if the participants expend a permanent point of Gnosis. It will also work on vampires, already corpses, if the vampire is unconscious and immobilized. Using this rite on a vampire destroys it.
Ritual of Life (Mystic) Camp: Seekers Source: WW3859 - Silent Striders Revised p. 79 Description: The Seekers have rediscovered one of the greatest secrets of ancient Egypt -- the ritual that brings life back to the dead. Because of Sutekh's curse on the tribe, a Seeker wishing to bring one of his tribemates back from the dead must act quickly (the rite must begin before the body cools, as a guideline), before the spirit is irretrievably lost, This ritual has not yet been performed on a Garou form another tribe since its discovery, but Seekers theorize that any complete body will do. This ritual is not without cost to its dead subject: Nothing that has died may dwell in the land of the living. The re-vivified werewolf must enter the Umbra (or the Dark Umbra), never to return to the physical world. Eventually, the Garou will disconnect and become a spirit-like creature. The Seekers argue amongst themselves about the ritual's possible effects on normal humans, and even on vampires, but for now they are proceeding with further research, and extreme caution. System: In a lengthy ritual abundant with Egyptian symbology and ceremonial tools, the ritemaster and his assistants repair, clean the body inside and out and embalm it. The player rolls Intelligence + Rituals against a difficulty of 10 for Silent Striders (reflecting the hurry with which the ritual must be performed), or 8 for Garou; other beings may be harder or easier to call back from the dead. Success indicates that the spirit returns to the body, and the revived Garou must immediately step sideways into the Umbra. If the revived Garou enters the physical world again, he immediately loses three health levels per turn until he returns to the Umbra or dies; this damage is aggravated. Failure indicates either a mistake by the ritemaster, or that the spirit simply refuses to return. The results of a botch are left entirely to the Storyteller, who should feel free to wreak all kinds of havoc on those who mess with the powers of life and death. |
Silver Fangs
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Level One Rite of Breeding (Mystic) Source: WW3860 - Silver Fangs Revised p. 79 Description: The rite is one of the secrets behind the Silver Fang's unusually high levels of Pure Breed. When a Fang feels that it is time for her to start a family, she enacts this rite and asks her house's totem to guide her to her best-matched mate. The werewolf meditates on her ancestry, using pictures, stories, photos, or keepsakes and then calls to the totem for guidance. If the rite is successful, the totem grants her a vision of herself carried aloft in the talons of the totem to the home of the best prospect for a strong, worthy child. The rite does not guarantee that the prospective mate will welcome the werewolf's advances; just that he is a good genetic and spiritual match. System: Standard roll. This rite normally takes place within the boundaries of the home caern, and shows the Kinfolk most likely to prove a good mate within a few days' travel. The more successes achieved the more details the vision gives about the prospective mate and his location. This ritual does not help with seducing or winning the heart of the Kinfolk in any way.
Walking with the Dead (Mystic) Camp: Ivory Priesthood Source: WW3860 - Silver Fangs Revised p. 79 Description: Only the members of the secretive Ivory Priesthood learn this rite. To perform the rite, the priest must first spend a day ritually purifying herself of all sins, according to the Priesthood's creed, and any negative thoughts. She must also spend a few hours meditating on the idea of her own death and her attitude towards it. A priest who is not reconciled to her own mortality can find the Dark Umbra a disturbing and unsettling place, especially in recent years when a terrible spirit storm has rendered it even more dangerous than usual. Once the purification is complete, the Garou faces a Death's Breath spirit in the early twilight of that evening. She must let it breathe into her mouth, which sends a chill like a rod of solid ice through her body. She may then step sideways into the Dark Umbra. She may remain there until dawn the following morning. System: The player spends a point of Gnosis and rolls Willpower (difficulty 7). If the roll fails, the rite ends and the character is plunged into a terrible Harano-like depression that costs her two dice from every dice pool for the next 24 hours. If it succeeds, the character may make a normal stepping sideways roll to enter the Dark Umbra, as described above. Once in the Dark Umbra, the priest appears as a dark patch in the normal Penumbra. If she fails to return to the material wold by dawn the next morning, she is trapped in the Dark Umbra unless another Ivory Priest or a kindly Silent Strider helps her back across into the material world. |
Stargazers
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Level Two Rite of Knowing (Mystic) Source: WW3861 - Stargazers Revised p. 77 Description: The Stargazers, ever on a quest to answer the riddles of the cosmos, often turn to divination to puzzle out some of the more oblique conundrums of the universe -- sometimes to even solve those questions that haven't yet been asked. There are many forms of divination available to Stargazers (or to anybody, really). Sciomancy is divination by shadows or darkness. Divination by smoke is called Capnomancy. Onomancy is the divination by the letters in a person's name. Tephramancy is divination by ashes, catoptromancy is divination by mirrors, and austromancy is divination using the wind as a guide. There are other popular divination tools, as well. The chosen form of divination ultimately doesn't matter, only that the Stargazer uses it and believes in it. The Stargazer lays out her divination tools as proper (which may involve throwing bones, dice, or standing on a peak and examining the winds). The items before her then literally become infused with their spiritual counterparts. Dice may begin rolling of their own accord, the winds may begin blowing and whispering in the Stargazer's ear, and ashes may hang suspended in the air and reveal a shadowy face. Secret truths are imparted to the Stargazer, though they are not particularly clear at first. System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals (difficulty 7). She must perform the divination for at least the scope of an entire scene. Each success on the roll to perform the rite allows her to "collect" an additional Enigmas die that may be used at a later time. These added bonus dice do not need to be used all at once. (For instance, Matthias Heavens-Turning performs the rite and achieves four successes with translate into added dice for later Enigmas rolls. The next day he is trying to solve a particularly frustrating riddle given to him by his mentor, so he uses three of the four dice then. The following night he is stargazing, seeking truth about his own mission from the celestial bodies, and he adds his final bonus die to the Enigmas roll called for by the Storyteller.) The additional dice, if unused after 24 hours, go away. A Stargazer can only perform this rite once in a given week, and thus may not accumulate further bonuses by performing this rite several times in a row.
Rite of the Seed of Desire (Mystic) Source: WW3861 - Stargazers Revised p. 78 Description: Desire, in and of itself, is unavoidable. Everybody wants something, and few Stargazers deny this. However, many Stargazers also openly deny their own desires, giving in only to the beneficial desires of others (or the desires of the world). Lust, greed, gluttony -- these traditional "sins" are also the seeds of desire that afflict all. Stargazers would seem the model of desire denial, and many of them are. Unfortunately, however, this repression also lends itself to the theory that every action has an equal and opposite reaction, and sometimes tamping down one's own desires causes them to pop up later at twice the strength. The longer one denies, sometimes the harder it is to deny the sweet succor of want. This ritual helps curtail that, to a degree. When performed, it literally gives spiritual form to a Stargazer's desires, in the form of an Urge-Spirit. In the Umbra around the Stargazer the Urge-Spirit manifests and can thus be communicated with, defeated, or even bound into a fetish. If the spirit is thus diminished, so are the Stargazer's prevalent "bad" desires. This rite is only performed on those Stargazers found truly desirous of negative things, however. For instance, a Stargazer with a bad chocolate habit or unrequited love in his heart doesn't usually count as one who is besieged by negative urges. Only those Stargazers who are plagued by grievous desires (or who have already given into them) are the subject of this rite. A Stargazer who is addicted to pain medication (or, alternatively, pain) is a good choice, as is a Stargazer with a dangerous love of money, women, or alcohol. The ritemaster must spend at least eight hours in the company of the 'afflicted.' After the eight hours is complete, the ritemaster must speak the mantra of desire (Aum-Klim) over the subject before blowing bone dust in the subject's face. System: The rite must be performed as above. The player rolls Charisma + Rituals. The difficulty begins at 10, and is reduced by the number of Willpower points spent. Both the ritemaster and the subject of the rite can spend Willpower to reduce the difficulty of this roll. The successes achieved determine the temperament and demeanor of the Urge-spirit that manifests according to the following results:
If the Urge-Spirit is successfully summoned and dealt with, the subject is "clean" of the negative desire (although it may grow strong again if unchecked). If the spirit isn't successfully dealt with and is allowed to escape and return "home" to the Stargazer at the end of the scene, the subject loses on point of Wisdom renown, and the ritemaster loses tow. The Urge-Spirit has the following Traits: Willpower 7, Rage 9, Gnosis 5 Essence 20-30 |
Uktena
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Level One Prayer of the Seeking (Mystic) Source: WW3862 - Uktena Revised p. 73 Description: This is actually a modified (and much more complex) Prayer for the Prey, which is only taught to Uktena's children. Before a hunt for a specific item of lore or magic (such as a lost fetish or tome), the Garou prays while holding an attuned object (usually a water snake skin or, for the fortunate, an Uktena scale). If successful, the Uktena find the search much easier. If the attuned focus is lost, a new one must be found and attuned in order for the rite to work; attuned foci are personal and cannot be transferred. Smart Garou usually give some token of their gratitude for particularly successful uses of this rite. System: Initial attunement of an ordinary focus requires the expenditure of a gnosis; an Uktena scale is already considered attuned to the owner. Before the search begins, the Garou prays to Great Uktena while holding the focus; the player makes a Wits + Rituals roll (difficulty 7, or 6 if the focus is an Uktena scale). For every two successes, the player may add one die to any Enigmas, Investigation or Occult roll related to the search for the object in question. Alternately, in difficult cases, the Storyteller may drop hints in the form of omens, waking visions or intuitive leaps to get the ball rolling. The object must be of lore or magical value. The bonus ends when the Garou diverts from the quest for any reason (including sleep or eating, not including fighting guards who bar the Garou's path to the goal).
Source: WW3862 - Uktena Revised p. 72 Description: The Sacred fire is a focal point of spiritual life in many septs, for like the heart of the caern it connects the physical and spirit realms -- the flame burns in both. Sacred fires are tended with reverence in medicine lodges or caves, or more rarely outside -- spirits are attracted to them like the proverbial moths to a flame, so such a fire would make a site pretty crowded even for an Uktena caern. Building a sacred fire in turn increases the effectiveness of other mystic endeavors. A sacred fire is to be treated with respect. While an individual may remake sacred fires at need, it is considered more honorable to maintain one. Many septs maintain the fire for a year at a stretch, while others have kept theirs burning for years or even generations. System: The fire is built using sanctified materials (including a small pinch of spiritually active tobacco) and started with flint sparks or with wood friction -- never a lighter or match. The base of the fire consists of four logs that point in the cardinal directions. At the moment of lightning, the Garou expends a gnosis point and makes a Wits + Rituals roll (difficulty is the local Gauntlet rating). Each additional Gnosis point spent lowers the difficulty by one. If successful, the flame ignites in the penumbra and all Mystic Rites or other Rites dealing with spirits (such as Contrition) may be performed at -1 difficulty per two successes (after the first). At the Storyteller's option, other spirit dealings may go more smoothly, for the building of the fire indicates a respect for the old traditions and knowledge of the ancient pacts between spirit and Garou. The are covered by this rite is typically as far as the flame's heat can be felt (a medium-sized room or medicine lodge counts). The sacred first lasts for as long as it is tended with sanctified materials.
Rite of the Spirit Cage (Mystic) Source: WW3862 - Uktena Revised p. 73 Description: The Uktena believe that killing a spirit, even a Bane, is not always the best thing to do -- particularly when time is needed to question, bargain, or even bind said entity. This rite allows the Uktena to trap a spirit in a cage of energy. System: The Uktena creates a circle (usually less than 9 feet in diameter) in the physical realm. The circle is often made of flint or obsidian chips, but sometimes of candles or burning wood. Succeeding in the Wits + Rituals roll (difficulty 7) "primes" the cage; when the spirit has been lured to the circle, the ritemaster spends a Gnosis point to spring the trap. The Penumbral air around the spirit comes alive with the spiritual representations of the circle -- in the above example, that would be rapidly whirling slivers of obsidian or leaping tongues of flame. The barrier inhibits the use of most Charms. To push through the barrier, the captive has to score more successes on a Rage roll (difficulty is the ritemaster's Wits + Rituals) than the ritemaster had. Even if it manages to push through, it suffers Aggravated damage equal to the ritemaster's successes. This works both ways. Garou cannot breach the circle without damage, although the ritemaster can drop the cage at any time. This rite lasts an hour per success, and each additional Gnosis contributed extends the duration by an hour. However, if the circle is disturbed (a candle flickers out or the boundary is broken), the power collapses.
Rite of Invitation to the Ancestors (Mystic) Source: WW3862 - Uktena Revised p. 74 Description: Most often used in conjunction with the Spirit's Horse Gift, this rite readies a moot or council of Uktena to welcome an ancestor spirit into its midst. Usually, the werewolves sing and dance to honor the tribal ancestors. Special foods are eaten, and invocations of sacred words may be made to the sun, moon or other natural elements, depending on the cultural backgrounds of the Uktena. Some werewolves use this rite without the Gift of Spirit's Horse, to honor their ancestors and fallen heroes. System: While no rolls are needed, some werewolves expend Gnosis as an offering to their ancestors.
Mockery Curing Way (Mystic) Source: WW3862 - Uktena Revised p. 75 Description: From time out of mind, one of the worst nightmares for a Garou was for one of her Kinfolk to be possessed by a Bane. Taint could be cleansed, but the Wyrm-spirit joined body and soul too thoroughly to extricate without destroying the host; even with a powerful healer at the ready, an exorcism frequently left the host shattered in mind and spirit. Worse still, the Bane often escaped into the Umbra to possess again another day. More often than not, Garou saw killing the victim as an agonizing but necessary task. Recently an Uktena pack returned from a decade-long quest with a ritual that offers a (slightly) better chance to both destroy the spirit and preserve the patient. Rather than ripping the Bane from the body, the rite drains its energy until it shrivels and pulls away like a withered creeper vine. So far, the pack's sept has kept the Rite quiet as they perfect their practice of it. Several fomori have been cured, but many more have died; two Garou nearly died in the process. Soon though, they will present it to the Grand Council. It is hoped that the rite will disseminate throughout the tribe, and as word spread the Garou Nation will have a newfound respect for the dark questers of the Pure Lands. System: The fomor is usually bound and rendered generally powerless, but state of consciousness is irrelevant. The chants that open the rite ensure the Bane is locked within the body - for better or worse. Other werewolves may assist the ritemaster, but all must be consecrated to the purpose beforehand by undergoing a purification ritual. The ritemaster spends a Gnosis point; the player rolls Wits + Rituals (difficulty is the Bane's Willpower), adding one die for every additional Gnosis point spent (other participants may contribute). Successes count against the Bane's Essence; when Essence reaches zero, the Bane falls into Slumber. Seen from the Umbra the shriveled Bane is draped around the victim and may be pulled off and destroyed. A new roll can be attempted every hour with an additional expenditure of Gnosis, but the ritual is exhausting for all participants (See Endurance and Rituals, pg. 75). A very powerful Bane can take hours or even days to defeat. Unfortunately, the host may not be able to stand the strain. The Bane fights back if it can. If it is unable to do so, it tears the victim apart, doing three levels of aggravated damage, minus successes for that hour (in other words, if the ritemaster gets two successes, the victim takes one health level of damage). On a botch, the Bane can make a break for it, doing its Rage in unsoakable aggravated damage on its way out. Damage may be healed by a Gift, assuming the healer can touch the subject. Afterward, the ritual area and all participants are tainted by the corrupt Essence that hemorrhaged from the Bane during the rite, and all must be thoroughly cleansed through a purification ritual.
Source: WW3862 - Uktena Revised p. 74 Description: One of the Uktena's most important self-appointed tasks is the capture and binding of powerful Banes that, for whatever reason, cannot be destroyed. The Uktena performing this rite consider it one of the most sacred and dangerous of all their mystical duties; they know the chances are great that many will die in completing the ritual, so it is never undertaken without serious forethought. System: The ritemaster begins by leading participants through a ritual chant and dance intended to subdue the Bane. All the werewolves then sacrifice Gnosis (usually many points) so the ritemaster may weave a net of power to contain the Bane; if all Gnosis is expended, then Willpower and finally Stamina is spent to successfully complete the rite. The ritemaster's player then rolls Wits + Rituals, difficulty 9. For every 20 points of combined Gnosis, Willpower and Stamina spent, the difficulty drops by one, to a minimum of difficulty 7. One success is needed to create the cage that holds the Bane; additional successes add to the strength of the Bane's confinement. Should the ritemaster's player fail the roll, the character remains alive, but the Bane is not contained, and is extremely angry. A botch indicates the immediate and messy death of the ritemaster. All players must also make a roll on their characters' current Stamina. Even one success at the same difficulty indicates they survive, but are likely exhausted. A failure means the werewolf dies from the rigors of participating in the rite. Needless to say, living or dead, participants in this rite deserve a good measure of Renown for their bravery and honor. Note that while this Rite works for many powerful Banes, the greatest spiritual evils (such as the Storm Eater) require still more powerful rites, which are specific to the individual Bane. |
Wendigo
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Level Two Rite of the Sun Dance (Mystic) Source: WW3863 - Wendigo Revised p. 71 Description: A worthy Wendigo can make contact with the spirit-world without the use of drugs or smoke, driving herself into a state of Reaching simply by enduring the pain. At the center of the Caern or Glade, the participants must carve and erect a wooden totem pole, decorating it with long straps of rawhide or caribou skin. At the top of the pole, a caribou skull should be affixed, facing northwards. At the end of each strap hangs a sharpened hook, sometimes made of silver. At sunrise, the ritemaster, or the Garou who will undergo the rite, allows the hooks to be fastened into her flesh. Once the hooks are secured, the participants encourage the werewolf with a Howl of Introduction, announcing her intentions to Helios and the spirit world. Then they depart, leaving her alone, and the Sun Dance begins. Frequently, the Garou also cuts or otherwise mutilates herself repeatedly for a maximum amount of pain, offering up her blood in sacrifice to Gaia and Great Wendigo. The Dance usually lasts until the werewolf rips free of the hooks or otherwise collapses, although the longer she can continue through the pain and blood loss, the more power she can draw to herself. System: The ritemaster or the invoking Garou makes a Charisma + Rituals roll to announce the rite to the Umbra. She then makes a Gnosis roll, and any successes above the single one required add to the effectiveness of the rite, which endows the Garou with increased blessings of Helios. Whenever the sun shines upon her, for the remainder of the month, she is guarded by mystic spirits of Helios, the power level of the summoned spirit constrained by the difficulty level of the rite, as determined by the Storyteller (as in the Rite of Summoning):
Black Blood of Gaia Camp: Sacred Hoop Source: WW3863 - Wendigo Revised p. 73 Description: The Wyrmcomers' hunger for oil has destroyed and desecrated many of Wendigo's lands, driving his people from their homes, tearing apart the bones and blood of Mother Gaia. If a cunning Garou discovers where an oil well has been sunk, or if she sees surveying or drilling happening in her territory, she may use this Gift to alert Gaia, and ask elementals of the Earth to aid Her in redirecting the flow of the oil elsewhere, blocking it, or stopping it altogether. The ritemaster and participants hunt and kill a large animal, usually a caribou or deer, and the ritemaster tears the heart from the animal. She intones blessings upon Gaia and the sacred lands, while clenching the heart in her claws. She squeezes all the blood from the organ onto the ground, offering it to be absorbed by the Earth in sacrifice. Then the ritemaster and all other able participants of the ritual cut themselves and proffer their blood as well, giving their strength in exchange for the great forces that must be put to work beneath the surface of the Earth. Some Garou have bled themselves to death during this ritual, in an effort to offer the ultimate strength of their spirits, as well as their blood, to preserve the lands of Gaia from being despoiled. System: The ritemaster rolls Charisma + Rituals to determine the success of the ritual, at a difficulty of 7. If she succeeds, she and every participant spend at least one point of Gnosis, and one Health Level in blood. The sum of the pooled Gnosis, in addition to the Ritemaster's extra success dice, measures how thoroughly the oil has been held back.
Source: WW3863 - Wendigo Revised p. 71 Description: Like the Gift of Wormwood's Balance, this rite is performed so that Garou close to each other in a pack may depend upon each other to defeat the poison of the Wyrm. However, the spirit of Great Wendigo can bestow an even greater strength upon the bonds among his tribe. During this rite, the ritemaster may learn to combat Derangements that another Wendigo close to her may possess -- even the Derangements of a metis, although she must be of Wendigo blood. The two Wendigo must belong to the same pack, and both the characters must have fought together in a battle where the werewolf's Derangement has taken hold and caused a defeat to their pack or sept. A controlled situation is set up, preferably with the target Garou's knowledge, to cause her to become Deranged. At her side, offering complete trust, the ritemaster as deliverer guides them both through the ritual, fully sharing in and enduring the effects of this Derangement alongside her, forging a link between them through the Umbra. Through this bond, the deliverer forces her will upon the Derangement, subduing it herself, and then lends courage and support, aiding the Deranged character to do the same. When the effect of the Derangement has been mastered, the two linked Garou both complete the ritual by calling upon the spirits of Gaia and Great Wendigo and offering thanks. System: The rite itself begins with the triggering of the Derangement. The ritemaster then spends a point of Gnosis and makes a Wisdom + Empathy roll against her target's Willpower, to share the Derangement. Finally, the ritemaster must then make a successful Willpower roll of her own (difficulty 5) to gain enough control to complete the rite. For every failure, the difficulty rises by one point. If she succeeds, the target character may resist her Derangement for the next lunar month. If the rite should fail, then the ritemaster absorbs the target's Derangement, instead, for the same period of time.
Rite of Luna's Answer (Mystic) Source: WW3863 - Wendigo Revised p. 72 Description: This is one of the few ceremonies that Wendigo hide from their Kinfolk, and it is never undertaken lightly. Galliards say that the rite has been passed down through the generations, from Grandmother Luna, for Garou alone, so that they may speak to Luna in times of need. When great trials and questions plague the tribe, the Elders meet in council and choose a Theurge to lead a moon dance. A sacred vessel is crafted in a fashion befitting the nature of the question, and purified in preparation to contain a great spirit. The Theurge and a chosen pack of dancers begin the dance by passing into the Umbra and choosing a moon path to follow. As they run down the path, they howl and sing of the troubles of their people, letting their cries for help echo through the Umbra. If Luna favors their prayers and judges that her aid is needed, she sends a Lune to appear and test their strength. The Theurge chosen to lead the rite must then count coup on the spirit, using the ritually prepared vessel in place of the customary wand. The Theurge and the Lune test their wills against each other. The longer the battle, the more pleased Luna is, and the more auspicious the answer received. Should the Theurge overcome the Lune spirit, it submits utterly and passes into the vessel, where it remains until the next spring, when the fetish shatters with the first cracking of the ice. Should the Lune overcome the Theurge instead, the Lune escapes, and the Theurge's spirit is bound inside the vessel to dwell there so long as it remains whole. The vessel, upon first being lifted, speaks whatever answer Luna has seen fit to grant, directly into the heard of the holder. System: This rite is performed similarly to the Rite of Counting Coup and the Rite of the Moon Dance; the Theurge ritemaster must roll Charisma + Rituals at a difficulty determined by the Willpower (8) + Rage of the summoned Lune. A Theurge that completes this rite earns a point of Renown for every success she rolls past the Lune's Willpower + Rage. This rite may take place at any time during the lunar cycle, but the Elders must determine the time, depending on the talent of their Theurge and the seriousness of the trouble. If the rite is performed during the new moon, the Lune puts up less of a fight, and is most easily subdued, ensuring the success of the ceremony and a solution, although it is not Luna's most powerful or pleasant answer. Conversely, at the full moon, Luna herself can exert more of her energy and good will to aid the Wendigo with their problem, and the Lune will similarly be at its strongest and most difficult to defeat. |
