rgos

Basic Abilities

Orienteering: Distance and time have little meaning in the alien storm of the Tempest. Orienteering allows a wraith to determine his location in the Tempest and find the route to his destination. Those with Orienteering can travel to their destinations via the quickest and easiest path (usually a Byway), dodging most obstacles along the way.

Only the foolish attempt to navigate the Tempest with Orienteering alone, but it si an excellent way to find a safe path out in dire emergencies.

Wraiths moving through the Shadowlands without resorting to Tempest shortcuts move at normal walking or driving speed; the standard travel times referred to above are for this sort of normal ground tranportation.

System: The number of successes on a Perception + Argos roll (Difficulty 8) indicates the length of travel time to the wraith's destination. Clever wraiths can sometimes use the fluctuating dimentions of the Tempest to their own benefit.

1-3 successes: Standard travel time

4 successes: Half standard travel time

5 successes: One-quarter standard travel time

Note: Travel time depends upon how far the a wraith is traveling and whether she is moving between the levels of the Underworld. It usually takes two to seven days to travel between the Shadowlands and Stygia; two weeks to reach the Far Shores. Moving through the Teampest from point to point in the Shadowlands rarely takes more than a day, but there are no guarantees.

If the wraith fails an Orienteering roll, she has gone on the wrong direction and may become lost. This (as well as the perils that a botch brings on) could even turn into an adventure, at the Storyteller's discretion.

Tempestpeek: This art allows a wraith to look into the Tempest, observing any beings or things drifting nearby. He can be seen by any beings in the near Tempest, and can even communicate with them if need be.

System: With a successful Perception + Argos roll (difficulty 6), the wraith may observe the immediate area of the Tempest. The number of successes indicates how clear a "window" the wraith peers through.

Tempest Threshold: Most wraiths can only enter the Tempest through Nihils. Those with Argos can open thier own portals, however. The portals are usually small, and iris closed immediately after the wraith passas though.

System: Opening a threshold requires a Strength + Argos roll (difficulty 7).

Enshroud

To avoid the hazards of the Tempest, those with Argos learn first how to hide themselves from unfriendly eyes. This art allows the wraith to pull shadows around herself, making herself unseen in both the Tempest and the Shadowlands. When first activated, Enshroud causes the wraith to suddenly vanish. She is thereafter cloaked in shadows.

System: After spending a point of Pathos, the player rolls Dexterity + Argos (difficulty 7). Each success allows the wraith to remain Enshrouded for a turn. Enshrouded wraiths cannot act on others, even violently, without being revealed.

Phantom Wings

A wraith using this art may fly both in the Tempest and the Shadowlands. Flight is not terribly fast (resembling gliding more than anything else), but can be a convienient way of getting around. Wraiths may hover using this art, but can never accelerate to more than jogging speed.

System: The player rolls Stamina + Argos (difficulty 6). Each success grants one more turn of flight. The Storyteller may call for Dexterity + Argos rolls to maneuver though or stay aloft in particularly sticky situations (say, above a Nihil or in a cramped Stygian tower). A character must be Incorporeal to fly while in the Shadowlands.

Flicker

A character with Flicker can harness the natural distortions of the Tempest to quickly travel from one place to another. These mini-jumps are only good for short-distances, generally line-of-sight. Flicker is also a good way to blindside opponents in combat.

System: The player rolls Dexterity + Argos (difficulty 6). Each success reduces the travel time by one turn. For example, if Henri was trying to climb a fire-escape, and the Storyteller decided it would take four turns to get to the top, two successes with Flicker would mean he could make the climb in only two.

If the desired destination is out of sight, but still within a city block, Flicker is still possible. The difficulty of the roll is 8, however, and any failure maroons the character in the Tempest. Similarly, any Flicker botches usually strand the character in the Tempest, and this art will not permit the wraith to emerge. Flicker supersedes Tempest Threshold, and can be used without the lesser ability.

Each "leap" costs 1 Pathos.

Jump

The wraith with this art may rapidly travel to any of her Fetters, riding secret pathways to the familier destination. She may Jump any distance to a Fetter, but only to a Fetter. Rumor has it that the eldest Gaunts can instantly travel toto anywhere in the world without the aid of Fetters, but this as yet is only hearsay.

System: The player rolls Stamina + Argos (difficulty 8). Each level of the destination Fetter reduces the difficulty by -1. The more successes, the more the travel time is reduced, and five or more should allow practically instantaneous transit. As with Flicker, Tempest Threshold is not necessary to use of this art.

Jump costs 3 Pathos per use.

Oubliette

This art is the terrifying ability to cast other wraiths directly into the Tempest. By focusing his will, the wraith may either hurl others into the Tempest, or hold them in one spot, preventing them from escaping into the Tempest or Shadowlands.

System: The player makes a Strength + Argos roll (difficulty of the target's Willpower.) The target may choose to make an opposed Willpower roll.

Wraiths cast into the Tempest are free to use any Argos arts they possess, but they are in serious trouble if ignorant of such secrets. The sheer force of the banishment tears a Corpus Level from the target, in addition to the other effects.

If the wraith is trying to hold his target in place (in either the Tempest or the Shadowlands), the target is imprisoned for one turn per success. The imprisoning wraith must maintain some minimal concentration to keep his victim in place.

Either use of this art costs 3 Pathos and grants the user 1 point of temporary Angst.