Fellowship of the Secret Word/Rites

Necromancy

Given the importance of the soul in Egyptian legend the study of magic devoted to the soul is a natural outgrowth of that culture. While other magic affects the material world, Necromancy reshapes the spirit world, gifting the wielder with command of the dead and mastery of her own soul. To recognize the importance of Necromancy, one need only look to the tremendous tombs and monuments of Egypt, where the Pharaohs expended the efforts -- and lives -- of thousands of slaves to ensure their own sanctity in the afterlife.

Neophyte necromancers first learn the divisions of the soul and the importance of metaphysical relics ion the underworld. With practice, the necromancer gains authority over the dead through special rites of purification and the practice of ascetic disciplines. In effect, the mage becomes a lord among the dead, capable of commanding with a word and transfixing with a gaze.

While many Western traditions and religions regard Necromancy as an unwholesome practice, Necromancy is the fundamental art and a purifying discipline to House Shaea. The necromancer's very soul refines itself to become a being of puissant light in Duat. Through this authority, the necromancer can defend or manipulate the soul's many parts, command the dead, and channel the blackened entropy that flows through the underworld while remaining untainted herself.

Among House Shaea, Necromancy is the specialty of the khaibit. The mage channels the powers of Duat through the shadow soul, which touches most closely on the Lands of the Dead. To master Necromancy, the mage must exert authority through purification but also strengthen its ties to the khaibit. A truly puissant necromancer becomes as a noble monster. She leashes the khaibit to her will, combining the terrible monster and the purified master in order to transform herself into a lord of the dead. The priestess walks a thin line as she balances Ma'at with the strength of the khabit, eventually learning to harness the khaibit for conviction and dedication as molded through the authority of Ma'at. The khaibit's strength becomes the mage's strength, with its lusts moderated through the mage's adherence to the universal balance

Alchemy

Named for Al Khem, or the Black Land, the art of Alchemy was one of the greatest gifts from Egypt to the mysticism of the West. The search for the elixir of life, the panacea of universal medicine, and the transmutation of base substances into gold led to the creation of an encyclopedia of potions, poisons, and cures for nearly every occasion. The Egyptian priesthood naturally expanded the care for the spiritual well-being of their charges to cover their charges' physical welfare, and they commanded the greatest libraries of mystical formulas. House Shaea have preserved and adapted this great art allowing it to continue to this day.

Alchemical Preparations

An alchemist creates a product that embodies the effect he seeks or one that induces the desired result. Alchemical spells and rituals are generally called formulas, and one usually achieves their effects with a particular preparation. Except for some of the simplest preparations, Alchemy usually requires long hours of work in a suitably equipped laboratory. Assume that an alchemist must work for an average of one hour per highest sphere rating. Alchemical preparations using Ars Vis have a long shelf life and may reatin its potency for a greater length of time. To ensure that she has a steady supply of her creation on hand when the need arises, an alchemist usually creates a batch of the formula rather than just one dose.

Alchemy aims to perfect the tangible, and it can affect the spiritual only through the rarified nature of a soul's physical form. Therefore, Alchemy may affect only the body (khat) or a physical substance. A non-corporeal entity or spirit may not partake of an alchemical preparation.

Goals Of Alchemy

An alchemical preparation's purpose usually relates directly to its physical form. As part of this mystical science, Alchemy allows the apparent violation of natural chemical properties. In game terms, all Alchemy is concerned with at least one of three results:

Identification: Knowledge is power. Understanding specifically what composes any object, creature, or substance gives the alchemist potential power over it. Alchemists become aware of substances' inherent properties that mere chemists never uncover.

Transmutation: Many alchemical processes seek simply to change one substance into another, such as the well-known quest to create gold from lesser materials. The result may be a purified form of the original substance, a new substance altogether, or a strange blend of the mixture's components.

Catalyst: Many alchemical preparations have as their primary goal the ability to cause change in other substances or forms. At the heights of mastery, the alchemist may even transform her own body into a catalyst that's capable of causing changes in the world around her.

Forms Of The Art

Before an alchemist creates a preparation, she must determine what form she'll give it. The form depends upon the alchemist's method of processing the particular formula involved.

Essence: A volatile substance that's either kept in gaseous form or kept standing as a liquid that evaporates quickly upon exposure to the air. The desired subject must inhale the essence or be caught in its caustic cloud for the spell to take effect. Essence preparations are often used as perfumes, although smoke or incense may also be considered a form of essence.

Potion: A specially formulated liquid that its beneficiary (or victim) must drink. If the alchemist mixes the potion with another substance -- such as wine, water, or coffee -- to mask it, the target may make a suitable Perception roll to notice that something is amiss. To be successful, the attempt requires a number of successes greater than the alchemist's Alchemy rating.

Powder: A mixture dehydrated for ease of transport. Such a preparation is usually mixed with a liquid for consumption or burned to create an essence. Rarely, the formula calls for the conglomeration of the powder into a solid piece, such as the legendary philosopher's stone.

Salve: Any soft paste or lotion that may be applied to skin or the surface of an object. A poisonous salve may be applied to a sharp blade, while a healing salve is typically applied to the wound. The individual applying the salve must be careful not to touch the salve directly in order to avoid experiencing the effect herself.

Ren (True Names)

What is a word, but a name that describes the very essence of a thing? When speaking a word, one speaks a concept and defines the purest form of the subject. Egyptian sorcerers understood the power behind this unfettered knowledge. The ren, or true name, provides not only comprehension of a subject, but power over it. Just as we answer to our own names and understand what someone says by their words, so too does the practitioner of Nomenclature -- often referred to as a scribe or magist -- command others through the true name or unlock the secrets of a subject with its ren.

The magic of true names doesn't come easily: A true name must be understood and pronounced with exacting care. An impatient scribe will find that her improperly spoken ren fails to have any effect whatsoever. Indeed, even learning true names can be arduous. The would-be magist generally must find someone patient and willing to pass on the knowledge of true names with perfect precision. Since thousands of true names exist -- some with very subtle vowel in difference from others, and each with a different degree of scope -- mastery comes only slowly and with much effort. But Seshati are experts in this art.

The classification of ren often varies with the subject's spiritual strength. A simple chunk of stone uses the same true name as nearly any other block of similar material. Every granite boulder can be described with one ren, for instance. Note that true names don't necessarily correspond directly to specific elements. Rather, they function in terms of the metaphysical importance of an item. Therefore, "granite" probably describes several types and grades of granite, but "iron" and "steel" would be separate true names. Similarly, different types of animals have ren for their species. Individual humans and thinking creatures have unique ren of varying complexity. A common person who has little ambition or spiritual strength possesses a short and simple ren, one that can be discerned by unlocking the person's whole given name and applying the complexities of ren to it through a few descriptive words of power. A unique, powerful being such as a brilliant and well-educated individual or a potent mystical or supernatural creature has a highly complex and unique ren that describes her explicitly. Learning such a true name requires the chore of gathering detailed information about the subject and translating that knowledge into the true words that can form the ren.

In the case of a unique personal name, the scribe may have no way to test the name except by simply using it. The Storyteller should adjudicate the usefulness of names that a character garners through book-learning and deduction. Research rolls (most often Intelligence + Occult, although Intelligence + Enigmas has its uses) can be helpful here.

Note also that various creatures have unique personal names just like individual humans, although such names are often modified by the supernatural context. Therefore, a vampire's true name reflects the fact that the individual is a bloodsucking fiend. Many supernatural names change overtime (as do some human names) as experience causes the individual to change. Keeping up with the changes requires constant study.

Learning True Names

Discovering a new ren is a demanding undertaking. Usually a scribe who has developed some skill with Nomenclature knows a few true names. Three useful names -- often one for a type of stone or metal, one animal, and the ren for the concept of "self" -- is a good start. Learning more names takes time and dedication (i.e., experience points).

To learn a true name, the mage needs only study with an appropriate instructor. The Storyteller might award knowledge of a ren as part of a story or simply charge three experience points for each additional name. Remember that learning a true name isn't a simple matter of hearing a name once. It's a matter of breaking down the name into component words, learning the meanirg of each, learning their correct enunciation and pacing, and then putting them back together into the whole ren. Often doing so means comprehending the innermost nature of an item or animal. For instance, a mage can't learn the ren for "armor" unless she also learns how to make armor. She can't learn the ren for "hawk" unless she studies the hawk and understands its true nature.

Discovering a true name from books or study proves considerably more difficult. A book's guides to pronunciation are often less exacting than a living instructor, so the mage must practice, experiment and compare the word to the materials that she already knows. The following chart provides a benchmark for various categories:

True Name Category	Requisite
(dung beetle, cobra) Animal Ken 2+
Simple element (sand, granite)	Occult or Science 2+
Complex animal (ape, cat)	Animal Ken 4+
Simple hand weapon (club, iron mace)	Melee 2+ and material requisites
Simple projectile weapon (bow, sling)	Athletics 2+ and material requisites
Complex hand weapon (steel khopesh, obsidian knife)	Melee 4+ and material requisites
Complex projectile weapon (pistol, crossbow)	Firearms 2+ and material requisites
Personal name	Subterfuge 2+
Simple supernatural name (a ghoul, a minor spirit)	Occult 2+
Complex supernatural name (a vampire, a werewolf)	Occult 4+ or Lore 2+ and personal name

A Seshati practicing Ren rites knows the various verbs that arc necessary to enact her spells. Those verbs are what the scribe learns when she unearths the spell to begin with. Learning the nouns to affect a creature, though, requires the aforementioned study. Therefore, a mage who learns Cloud the Name knows automatically how to use the words of transformation as described in the spell, but he would have to research and learn the actual name upon which to use the spell.

Example True Names

The names here represent but a small fraction of the Egyptian terms known to Nomenclature scribes.

Body Part	Name
Backbone	aat
Eyes	merti
Face	her
Head	tep
Heart	ab
Phallus	bah

Common animals answer to these true names.

Animal Type	Name	=	Ape	amhet
Cat	mau
Dog	uher
Eagle	a
Elephant	ab
Hare	un
Hawk	heru
Hippopotamus	apt
Horse	sesem
Ibis	tehuti
Lion	ma
Rat	pennu
Vulture	mut

Ushabti

The power of a symbol is tremendous. In ancient Egypt, the mastery of mythic symbols formed the basis for the power of the priesthood and the Pharaoh. From the pyramids that represented the primordial mound of creation to the statues of the gods that ensured their continuing presence on earth, mighty Hekau spells channeled tremendous power. The magicians of the Two Lands crafted magical relics to protect themselves and their charges in the afterlife, and they even provided those charges with ushabti (the "answerers" who performed work for them in the Fields of A'aru). The ushabti were so common in funerary settings that they became the symbol of the Hekau magic involved in their creation.

This Hekau based upon ideals of sympathetic magic and the manufacture of spiritual objects. Such objects may serve as relics for the soul in the afterlife or powerful artifacts in the material world. A picture or model may be empowered to cause its fate to affect the thin it depicts.

Crafting An Ushabti:

Properly speaking, an effigy is a statue representing a person. Within the Hekau arts, any object may serve as an effigy of an idea or thing. The main difference between effigies and amulets is that the user doesn't have to wear an effigy, and that an effigy may be immaterial in its final form. Some exceptions exist, such as the creation of armor or clothes that only exist within Duat.

Like an amulet, an effigy must first be crafted, which generally requires a Dexterity + Crafts or Wits + Crafts roll with a difficulty that depends on the complexity of the desired result. Such an effort needs at least one success, although the Storyteller may call for an extended action to sculpt or assemble an appropriate detailed effigy. The words of power for the ritual are then inscribed into the item. As noted for all rituals, doing so requires an extended action that uses a dice pool designated by the particular ritual in order to gather a number of successes equal to the sphere rating.

An Ushabti ritual takes one day per level of the ritual being performed unless otherwise noted. Since the work requires demanding focus, much of the time that the caster takes to perform the ritual includes breaks to recover physical and spiritual strength. While crafting an effigy, an artisan may do nothing but sleep, eat, and meditate to recover Sekhem. To speed the process along, the artisan may use Sekhem from other sources, such as the Tears of Isis potion or Vessels that are capable of storing magical power. Once an effigy has been created, its enchantment doesn't need to be renewed as an amulet's does. The effigy is infused with Sekhem only when the artisan channels energy into it, and it sits inert the rest of the time.

Using The Effigy:

Unless otherwise stated, one may use an effigy repeatedly, but someone with knowledge of Effigy Hekau must activate it. The user doesn't have to be of a level capable of actually creating the effigy, but her player must succeed with the appropriate Trait + Effigy roll against the difficulty of the effigy ritual in order to use the item in question. Botching this roll usually destroys the magic of the item and renders it spiritually inert. Some effigies have been created for a specific person, and they won't work for anyone else.

Unlike an amulet, an effigy usually requires an expenditure of Sekhem every time someone uses it. The mummy's player spends this Sekhem immediately upon activation and periodically thereafter in order to continue using it. If an effigy is denied its supply of required Sekhem at any point, the object returns to its Quiescent state immediately. The rituals listed here denote respective costs to create and maintain various effigies.

Some simple Effigy Hekau can be performed in a single turn. Such powers are referred to as spells. Casting these spells involves scratching a potent symbol or two onto an object's surface and investing it with Sekhem to activate it. Other simple sympathetic magic might require a very crude shaping of a representation of the target from whatever material is at hand. Invoking magic in a hurry with such weak links often devours a greater amount of Sekhem energy, and it's more likely to fail. Therefore, most Effigy practitioners prefer to have time to prepare.

Care And Feeding Of An Effigy:

The comparison between amulets and effigies has been made already, but notable distinctions exist between the two. Otherwise they wouldn't warrant separate Hekau paths. Among these differences is the fact that most effigies are more durable than amulets are.

An effigy crafted in the shape of a creatures looks like a small statue, but it grows to resemble an actual living animal when it's activated. It isn't truly alive, however. For the sake of simplicity, use the appropriate description as a basis for a creature effigy. The effigy may use its Stamina to soak lethal damage. However, it can't heal any damage it has sustained, and it suffers wound penalties like its living counterpart would. Unless otherwise indicated. The artisan must repair any damage to an effigy herself. Doing so requires her player to roll Crafts + Effigy (difficulty 6) for each separate wound and spend one Sekhem to mend each health level. An effigy that suffers damage past Incapacitated is destroyed.;

An inactive effigy registers as a magical item to awareness or appropriate mystical senses. Regardless of the means used to identify it, destruction of an effigy ends its enchantment. Its destruction can trigger a final magical effect in certain cases, however.

Astrology

The sun and moon, stars and planets -- indeed, all heavenly bodies and their movements hold great significance in Egyptian magic. Astrologers learned long ago to read the constellations for auspicious signs, to shape the weather and to call down the provenance of the gods.

Just as the sky encircles the globe, so too does Astrology encompass vast areas. A skilled mage can shape storms, raise plagues, and cast horoscopes that affect individuals, entire family lines, or even whole nation. Event the lowest level paths of Celestial Hekau have tremendous power. Astrological magic just might have a broader scope than any other form of magic. A talented astrologer can draw upon the powers of the heavens to summon and shape the environment to suit her needs. She can query the gods themselves to glean the trends of the future. Such powers rarely come easily. Most Astrology require elaborate rituals and take a great deal of time to materialize, as the mage pulls tremendous forces into alignment. Astrology often requires one hour per sphere level to be performed.

The Astrologer has no need for a laboratory or arcane devices to craft her magic. Although a quiet place and reference material may help, all that a mummy needs in order to complete a ritual in the end is her mystical understanding of the heavens themselves. The Astrologer must have a firm grasp of the constellations, the secret names and meanings of the planets, the places of the gods, and the titanic forces with which she wrestles. Calling to the heavens requires that the mage appeal to far greater entities than herself, entities who themselves respond only to the proper supplications. An Astrologer couldn't hope to move sun and earth herself. Rather, she requests the intercession of the gods, who then respond according to her requests. Even so, the gods remain hidden, enormous entities behind the machine of the stars.

Stormshield

Spheres: Forces 2 or 4, Matter 2

With a simple utterance, the Astrologer negates adverse weather conditions within an arm's length of herself. Wind shears aside, rain deflects or stops, and debris misses her. Even unnatural phenomenon like rains of frogs or sulfur bend around the mage's weather shield. At best, the mage feels nothing more than a fine mist from the most powerful thunderstorm. With more successes or skill, the intensity of weather over a larger area. It lessens driving rain into a drizzle, turns stinging hail to fluffy snowfall, calms raging waters, or changes raging winds to steady breezes. Ambient environmental conditions reassert themselves as the celestine passes, so waves will rage and storm-tossed winds will flare once the mummy has gone by.

Lesser Chant of the Nile's Flux

Spheres: Forces 2 or 4, Matter 2

Moving her hands in concentric circles over the surface of a body of water, the astrologer causes it to slowly rise or fall in response to her continued chanting. The water level moves, influenced by small tides that the astrologer creates. A pond or small river might rise or fall by a few feet, while the bank of a sea might change by an amount imperceptible to the naked eye. The change in water level doesn't necessarily part the waters or flood areas, but it can induce a pronounced change to the course of a river, overflow a damn, or ruin irrigation. Doing so can have a staggering impact on the surrounding ecology, disrupting the wildlife, flooding low terrain, ruining entire crops, and more.

Hanging The Stars

Spheres: Time 4

The mage performs the hour-long ritual, then performs the relevant ritual that she wishes to delay. If the subsequent ritual succeeds, its effects don't occur at that time. Instead, they remain contained within the stars. The web of the ether holds the energy until the mage calls for it. The mage may delay any effect that she's already learned, although she may do so for only one ritual at a time. Further, Hanging the Stars must be performed in full view of the sky (although it may be accomplished any time during the day or night).

Hiding The Stars

Spheres: Correspondence 2 or 3

Despite the name, this spell doesn't actually alter the heavens. Rather, it veils the mage from celestial forces. By muddying the etheric waters, so to speak, the astrologer defends herself against malign divinations. Her ties to the heavens become clouded, disrupting any attempts to locate her through any means of scrying. Alternatively, the mummy can cast this spell over someone else, who must be present for the whole ritual. Successes that the mage's player scores on this ritual subtract from divining or locating effects that are targeted against the ritual's recipient. One success erodes from the ritual until the last cobwebs of obscurity blow away. The celestine can't cast this ritual multiple times to hide completely. Only the results of the most recent casting take hold.

Naming the Conditions

Spheres: Forces 2+

Over time, a mage can alter the course of the weather itself. At first, the astrologer has only slight control. He can affect mild winds, create fog in a limited area, and adjust existing conditions slightly. With experience, the celestine learns to invoke or suppress entire storms, generate massive weather fronts, call up tornadoes, and perform other awesome feats of meteorological manipulation.

The Astrologer to conjure some small, sudden disturbance -- a cool breeze, a room temperature drop, a flare of aurora borealis -- or a slight change to the local environment -- humidifying a hothouse garden, thickening cloud cover slightly, generating obscuring fog. Neither option inflicts any damage, but either one can easily make the area more comfortable or greatly unpleasant.

Ra's Eye Upon The Winds

Spheres: Time 2, Forces 1 and/or Correspondence 2

This spell enables the astrologer to attune herself to the flow of weather. At its most basic, this spell lets the mage know with a great deal of accuracy what weather conditions will be like. More notably, the mage can draw from the surrounding wind currents detailed information about the terrain over which it has flowed. The breeze whispers its secrets to the astrologer, painting a comprehensive picture of the surroundings upwind from her.

Eye of Thoth

Spheres: Correspondence 1 or 2, Matter 1 (portals or secret doors), and/or Entropy 1 (hidden patterns), and/or Mind (to detect cloaked supernaturals)

Through the auspices of heaven all thins are revealed. The Book of Thoth (the god of wisdom) holds knowledge eternal. Lesser beings can only glimpse at a few of the secrets held therein, but such wisdom often provides great illumination. While a mage can use other astrological divinations to read the future, the Book of Thoth allows an astrologer to glimpse secrets held by a person or situation right now. Typically, the mage simply closes her eyes (or passes a hand in front of them) while she mutters a mystical phrase to open herself to the wisdom of Thoth. Thereafter, the mage gains a preternatural awareness of her surroundings. She may pick out hidden figures, concealed portals, and even supernaturally invisible entities. The mage exhibits a superb awareness of things happening around her. Indeed, this awareness isn't simply a heightening of senses, but a revelation of secrets and subtexts. The secret knowledge lets her determine hidden patterns with accuracy (although she may not know what they signify), and she can't be surprised by any natural stealth. The mage may also detect an object or person that's concealed supernaturally.

Divine Guidance

Spheres: Time 2, Entropy 2

The stars hold may secrets, among which is the key to weaknesses in an opponent or auspicious times for magic. Careful astrological readings allow a Seshati to unveil the heavens' secrets and use them to advantage in casting other Hekau. The astrologer discovers the motions behind the gods, and she tailors her Hekau to take advantage of prevailing forces. This rite reveals a specific time or places of import for the casting of a given spell. An astrologer who moves to a specified place or waits for the appropriate time may garner a lower difficulty on the casting of a subsequent spell. Each success above 1 lowers the difficulty to a max of -3.

Sahu-Ra

Spheres: Forces 3, Prime 2

A simple but impressive incantation, the Sahu-Ra takes but a moment to invoke. With this spell, the mage takes on the mantle of Ra, shining with the sun god's munificence. Each success scored on this simple Hekau causes the celestine to glow with sunlit radiance for one turn. The light extends only a few feet from the mage, but it has the qualities of soft, natural sunlight. It illuminates dark places, highlights the mage, and even injures creatures vulnerable to sunlight. In game terms, treat as if the vampire as if it has been caught in indirect, shrouded sunlight.

Invocation Of Heaven's Wrath

Spheres: Forces 2, Matter 3 and Prime 2, or Correspondence 4, Matter 1

A powerful astrologer can call upon astrological forces to draw out the stars -- or at least heavenly bodies under the mage's direction. The Seshati utters invocations to Nuit, praying for the intervention of the sky upon the earth. At the conclusion of the ritual, the heavens respond. Meteors rain down, spectacularly, destroying structures and blasting a designated site to rubble. Although they're small (golf ball sized), the meteorites strike with tremendous speed, shattering fragile objects, punching through car roofs or wooden roofing and killing unfortunates caught in the open, or lacking sufficient protection from heaven's wrath. Red-hot from their descent through the atmosphere, the meteorites ignite virtually any flammable substance that they hit. Damage caused by the meteor storm or its fires are handled via the Forces damage chart.

Divine Forms

Spheres: Life 3 or Mind 1+,

A connection to celestial forces implies a connection to the deities behind them. Not only can an astrologer manipulate the heavens, she can plead with the gods for inspiration. The Seshati calls to the gods to move within her spirit and rouse the divine to prominence.

The astrologer composes a short prayer to one divinity of the Egyptian pantheon -- although whether the god actually answers such a prayer remains a topic of some debate. Regardless of its source, the magic has a swift function: The mage evinces some divine characteristic that improves an Attribute appropriate to the deity upon which she called. Therefore, supplicating Geb (God of earth) might raise the mage's Stamina, while summoning the form of Ptah the Creator might improve Intelligence or Perception.

Awakening of Ra

Spheres: Life 3, Mind 2, Spirit 1

Each morning, Ra passes across the sky and brings light to the world once more. With experience, the astrologer can learn to reflect Ra's Awakening in a simple gesture. The astrologer waves one hand in a rising arc, singing an evocation to Ra and each subject feels warmth overcome him as if he's greeting the rising sun. In a living creature, this spell banishes fatigue as if the subject had undergone a full night's sleep. Ra's energy suffuses the target with alertness and readiness for a new day. The subject finds his concentration improved and his energy renewed. The difficulties of all mental tasks decrease by one and even a wounded subject feels a surge of life that halves all wound penalties (rounded down) for the next hour.

In addition to its refreshing benefits, Ra's Awakening seems to shine with the sun god's munificence, illuminating each subject's very soul. A target of the spell feels as if he's being watched and judged for his actions. A caring, generous, and honest person (or one who believes himself to be) feels a positive acknowledgment of his strength. One who feels that he's somehow lacking or is weighed down by guilt is wracked with remorse.

Read the Tree of Life

Spheres: Time 2, Entropy 1

Written among the heavens' secrets are the lives of all mortals. Recorded on the Tree of Life by Seshat (the wife of Thoth), a skilled astrologer can discern these symbols. The Seshati can unfurl the leaf of heaven that holds one life and decipher thereupon the future of the individual. Even the undead aren't immune. Any being with a beginning and ending has a recorded fate.

Once a mummy reads the fate of a being, she can predict the general course of the being's future with some accuracy. Such predictions are rather vague, of course. The writing of Seshat is complex and cryptic, and the figures become more blurred and distant the further one reads along the leaf of a life. Still, such divination affords many opportunities.

The mage can divine successor failure in some upcoming endeavor. By reading backward, the mummy can dig deeply into the subject's history. A forewarned subject may even meet his fate with greater clarity and purpose. In effect, he gains a free re-roll when the prophesied event comes to pass.

Plagues of Ma'at

Spheres: Varies

The great biblical plagues were inflicted upon Egypt, not in defense of it. Ma'at has accepted the justice of those ancient events and opened the way for the faithful to draw upon similar symbols of retribution. Aside from serving as a devastating weapon against those who oppose the balance, these rituals act as a reminder for Egypt's guardians never to grow too proud of their powers and stature, lest they be put in their place. Seshati must learn each plague separately, and they must engage in extensive of rituals to make them effectively terrible.

Beetles (Life 2, Prime 2): Flesh-eating beetles boil out of the ground and swarm over the area. The insects overwhelm any flesh they encounter (aside from one another), swarming over it and devouring it. Even corpses and the undead aren't safe. An unfortunate covered in beetles automatically suffers one lethal health level of damage each turn as they consume her flesh. Luckily, the beetles can be outrun, they aren't very good climbers, and they fear fire, so it's possible to evade them. Those who are unaware of the ravenous insects' approach may be buried in the bugs before they're aware of the danger, though.

Death (Entropy 4): One mortal in 10 dies. The Storyteller may roll a die for each group of 10 mortals, with a 1 indicating the fatality, or he may just pick out a reasonable percentage. Death comes from sudden hemorrhaging or heart attacks, so begins not susceptible to such injury are unaffected. This plague doesn't cause nearly as much material destruction as some of the others do, but the loss of life and corresponding horror is tremendous.

Frogs (Life 2, Prime 2): Streams of frogs rain down from the sky. Many hit the round with such force that they spatter to bits. Those that survive hop about with a tendency to et into machinery or people's clothing, much like the locusts. Again, most people will panic when exposed to this plague. The frogs excrete a mild toxin on their skin that causes rashes in any who touch them, reducing the victims to Appearance 1 for a full week.

Locusts (Life 2, Prime 2): Swarms of locusts overtake the area. These insects devour grain, vegetables, fruits, bread, and anything else that gets in their way. The locusts clog engines or fans almost as badly as a sandstorm, crawl on people, and generally cause tremendous havoc. The ravenous insects target any and all foodstuffs, even ones that are enclosed in cupboards. Such is the nature of the plague that the locusts find entry into seemingly the most secure rooms and devour or befoul any nourishment. Although living beings aren't subject to the locusts' appetite, many will understandably panic under such an attack and flee the area.

Scorpions (Life 2, Prime 2): Scorpions emerge from cracks and dark corners to spread across the area. Typically they can be avoided but a foolish or unlucky individual may be stung. The scorpion's poison causes one lethal level of damage per turn for three turns. Multiple stings can incapacitate or kill.

Sores (Correspondence 2, Life 3): Once the ritual goes into effect, people in the area suffer itches and slowly spreading red spots on their skin, or the buildup of pustules. After a few hours, these blemishes open or burst into wet, oozing sores. This outbreak inflicts one level of lethal damage to all victims and drops their Appearances to one dot. The sores remain until the damage is healed.

Water to Blood (Matter 2, Correspondence 2): All water within the designated area turns into cold, dead blood. Beverages are ruined, and people even weep and sweat blood. All water brought into the area suffers the same effects until the next sunrise. The blood has no nutritive value, so victims probably suffer from some dehydration as well. Even vampires gain no sustenance from it.

Rousing Aphophis

Spheres: Forces 4

All of the resurrected know of Apophis, the great corrupt serpent who seeks to devour Ra and plunge the world into darkness. Although this fearful beast is ostensibly only legend, its visage alone is enough to make the world tremble. The astrologer draws upon great forces to rouse Apophis momentarily -- and the earth shakes as a result. The Great Serpent's fury results in an earthquake of great magnitude. The epicenter of the earthquake is where the mage stands performing the ceremony.

Aid of the Star of the North

Spheres: Forces 1+

Many alchemists discovered the odd ability of certain substances to detect the northern direction. Practitioners of Celestial Hekau honor the star that dominates the northern sky as the ruler of this magnetic force. This useful spell aligns the magnetic forces in the area according to the magician's will. If the spell is used for simplistic purposes, even a single success can determine the northern or even southern polar direction.

Alternatively, the spell may be used to sense the nearest large collection of magnetic material in the area. With a focused roll, defeating any contested Stealth or concealment efforts, the magician may instead use the spell to detect the presence of any metallic items that are concealed from view nearby.

Once sensed, the Seshati may choose to cause some or all of these metallic items in the same scene to be drawn together or manipulated via a powerful magnetic attraction.

Festival of Ma'at

Spheres: Mind 3

Many cultures hold celebrations of holy events or holidays believed to be important to the well-being of the celebrants. Observances inevitably bear celestial connections to the stars, the seasons, or in ancient Egypt, to the inundation of the Nile. The Festival of Ma'at begins with the actual casting of the ritual and doesn't stop until the end of the party that follows it.

Unlike most rituals, the leader of a Festival of Ma'at doesn't have to provide three-quarters of the Lifeforce required, as even normal mortal celebrants expend one point of their own. Record the results of all of the rolls of the ritual casting, plus one Carousing die pool roll for each non-caster celebrant in the party that follows, and total up the number of successes. These successes will continue to affect the welfare of the celebrants until they're expended. Each time any single participant makes any roll that might influence Ma'at, she either receives a -1 bonus or +1 penalty -- whichever creates the greater Balance -- and this modifier reduces the remaining successes by one. Certain mummies attribute worldwide attempts to cast this ritual on New Year's Day with defusing the close of the millennium's sense of doom.

Geb's Strength

Spheres: Forces 2+

The Egyptian god Geb represents the earth upon which we walk, the father who welcomed Osiris to earth and whose bones contain the houses of the dead. To modern science, he's also the source of the incredible celestial force known as gravity. This spell targets any one subject within sight of the caster. All physical actions requiring movement become contested against a Strength rating equal to the successes obtained, and this rating should also be added to actions that already require a Strength test.

Incantation Of The Dry Nile

Spheres: Matter 2

The rise and fall of the Nile was of incredible importance to Egyptians as it provided the life-giving water and rich soil that they needed to survive. It was so important, in fact, that the calendar was built around the celestial signs that tracked its natural rise and fall. Potent priestesses often sought to alter the flow of the waters during times of great need. This powerful ritual is perhaps one of the magics they may have invoked. The ritual must be enacted within the flow of the water or upon the banks of the flowing body of water to be affected. The effect raises or lowers the depth of the body of water. With sufficient successes, the ritual may cause terrible floods or leave a dry riverbed with little more than standing puddles.

Arch of Nuit

Spheres: Spirit 2 and/or Matter 2

The sky-goddess Nuit, wife to Geb, seeks to protect her husband and children from the darkness that lies beyond the stars. Her body forms the arch of the heavens and stands steadfast against the influences of evil spirits upon the earth. This ritual empowers the protective influences of Nuit by hampering all negative spiritual energy. Ghosts, demons, and spirits of all sorts face a greater degree of difficulty entering the physical world within the area of effect and/or enacting their supernatural powers across the arch, into the area of effect. This protection works against any creature attempting to pierce or affect anyone on the other side of the Gauntlet. It also hampers the supernatural efforts of creatures such as Risen, inanimae, zombies, and other beings whose animation in the physical world depends upon spiritual empowerment.

Evocation of Ra's Progress

Spheres: Forces 3, Life 3

As Ra sails across the sky during the day and passes beneath the earth at night, so does he affect the entire world with the cycle of his passing. This spell causes the magician to glow with the blinding light or Ra and to pulse rapidly through his cycles of day and night. The world around the Seshati responds to the periods of day in remarkable ways, which are perhaps too numerous to list here. The rote causes the equivalent of one day's worth of time to pass for all of those who can see the Seshati. The energy of Ra is generally life-giving, however, so its effects are beneficial to most creatures. A mortal would suddenly feel as though she had rested and healing and the regaining of Willpower. She wouldn't, however, suddenly suffer intense hunger and thirst. Unnatural creatures such as vampires, however, are adversely affected.

Forces 3, Time 3, Prime 1

The passage of cycles burns away one Blood Point per success, just as if the vampire had spent them to awaken for an equal number of nights. Additionally the blast of light from the Seshati qualifies as direct sunlight, and it affects all vampires it strikes for a single turn as per normal sunlight rules.

Sign of the Damning Star

Spheres: Time 4, Entropy 3

The Seshati pride themselves on their ability to see the future and to gain power by preparing for it ahead of time. Many Seshati learn to defeat their enemies by tying them inexplicably to bad signs, negative influences, and "evil stars." Some of them feel that dark fates await much of the world, and that such fates should be redistributed to those more deserving of them. The Seshati ties the victim's fate to a specific, malefic sign and by evoking it, fouls up their next action. Successes for effect on this ritual negate successes made by the victim at the time of the mage's choosing. All the mage must do is evoke the malefic sign. The mage may employ Correspondence to evoke the sign at a distance.

Amulets

The Hekau path of Amulets -- also called Meket -- is the art of crafting charms that focus magical power, most often for protection against evil, sickness, or sorcery. Deceased Egyptians were usually buried with a number of amulets that were designed to ward them from various calamities that might befall them in the underworld. These items ranged from tiny carved trinkets hidden in the mummy's wrappings to a Pharaoh's full regalia. Tomb Watchers commonly learned to use at least a few warding spells while defending the khat. Each of the Kher-minu possesses at least one point in the Amulets Hekau path.

Crafting An Amulet

Creating an amulet first requires crafting an item to contain the power invested (roll Dexterity + Crafts or Wits+ Crafts). The time it takes to inscribe the proper magical symbols onto the item determines how long it takes to create an amulet. Painting a series of symbols onto the skin requires five minutes per level of the Amulets Hekau. Such designs are fragile, though, which makes them very short-lived. Considering the magical energy expended in creating an amulet, most Hekau artisans wish to invest in more permanent materials. The time one spends inscribing words of power into an amulet of more durable nature depends upon the complexity of the ritual. Unless otherwise noted, an Amulets ritual takes one day per level of the ritual being performed. Since the work requires demanding focus, much of the time includes taking breaks to recover physical and spiritual strength. While crafting an amulet, an artisan may do nothing but sleep, eat, and meditate to recover Sekhem. To speed the process along, the requisite Sekhem may come from other sources, such as the Tears of Isis potion or vessels capable of storing magical power.

The artisan himself needs not actually craft the base item to be enchanted (although it helps). The ancient priesthoods of Egypt employed a veritable army of skilled craftsmen to create jewelry and other baubles that reflected the magnificence of the gods. Likewise, scribes drafting tiny scrolls of warding didn't often make the papyrus that they wrote upon. Whether she makes the amulet herself or uses a pre-made object, the artisan must actually inscribe the magical symbols into the item personally. As noted for all rituals, doing so requires an extended action using a dice pool designated by the particular ritual to gather a number of successes equal to the Sekhem rating.

An active amulet's resonance causes a slight mystical interference around its bearer. A successful Perception + Awareness roll (difficulty 9) reveals something special about the amulet. Actually discovering the item's purpose or its approximate power level requires an Occult + Amulets roll against a difficulty equal to the amulet's Hekau path rating + 3. One can use supernatural means of perception against the same difficulty to discern the amulet's function. An amulet that's designed to protect against scrying reduces any such attempt against all items that the user has about her person.

Once an amulet is created, it retains its enchantment for a number of months equal to the character's Amulets + Balance total. To renew the enchantment before the time elapses, the artisan's player rolls the dice pool listed for the ritual. Doing so is a simple action that takes only five minutes per level of the ritual, and only one success is needed. She must invest the full Sekhem listed for the ritual, however. If the amulet's enchantment lapses the artisan must perform the entire ritual again.

Using An Amulet

Using an amulet generally requires nothing more than wearing it in some fashion. Doing so may be made more tricky if the artisan installed safeguards that require some sort of activation before the amulet functions, or if he has personalized it so that only a particular individual may use it.

Most amulets provide continuous effects, although some may operate only under specific circumstances. Unless otherwise stated in the descriptions, amulets work for any living creature who wears them. A number of amulets provide protection for a natural (i.e., inanimate) corpse, including a mummy's body while her spirit is in the underworld. Ancient mummies were usually buried with a number of protective wards concealed within their wrappings, while mighty priests and Pharaohs practically dripped with jeweled protection.

Amulets won't benefit vampires, shapeshifters, or non-corporeal beings such as ghosts and spirits. Storytellers are encouraged to devise appropriately catastrophic mishaps should a being other than a mortal or mummy attempt to use an amulet. It's rumored that some Bane mummies have special amulets that may aid other monsters, but only the foolish and insane would accept the corrupting aid of the Children of Apophis.

Some amulets even allow for quick and dirty one-shot spells. Such Hekau typically consists of simple symbols written hastily in makeup or paint on the skin or ink on a scrap of paper or papyrus. Even spittle and dirt on a nearby surface may serve in desperate situations. The Sefekhi occasionally carve such symbols directly into their flesh. As with all Amulet magic, the real power of the inscription is the Sekhem invested into it. Still, the emergency nature of hurried spells often carries with them greater cost in terms of magical energy.

Wards

The most common use of amulets throughout history has been to ward off danger or evil. As such, a Hekau amulet's safeguarding capability is typically called a ward. Each ward protects against one particular circumstance and operates at a specific ward rating equivalent to the amulet's Hekau path level.

Unless otherwise specified, the ward rating subtracts from any successes rolled against the user that fall into the realm of the ward's protection. Therefore, if the wearer has a level two ward that protects against hostile magic and he's struck with a magical attack that achieves three successes the amulet reduces the attacker's successes to one automatically. This effect applies immediately after the attacker's roll and prior to any other resolution, such as soak or dodging.

The user may wear multiple amulets, but only the highest rating applies if more than one ward has the same defensive focus. Should that amulet be removed or destroyed, the next highest rating kicks in.

Destroying An Amulet

Although invested with tremendous power, an amulet isn't impervious to harm. As a simple guideline, one level of bashing or lethal damage is sufficient to break an amulet made of glass or plastic. Two damage levels will wreck a talisman made of bone or wood, and three damage levels will ruin an amulet made of metal or stone. One level of aggravated damage is sufficient to destroy any amulet.

To cause destruction, the attack must specifically target the amulet. This means the attacker must know the talisman is worth attacking to begin with. This typically requires a Perception roll as described above, or some other method of detection -- even something as foolish as the mummy brandishing her amulet and crying out, "My Greater Ward protects me from all harm!" The amulet loses its mystical ability as soon as it's destroyed. This doesn't involve anything like a spectacular burst of preternatural force. Perhaps anticlimactically, the amulet's effect dissipates as if in the face of a strong wind, leaving the amulet ruined and the wearer no loner benefiting from its charms.