Necromantic Rituals
Leer of Hades( Necromancy ••, Serpentis •)
In Ancient Greece, the Harbingers of Skulls knew the Followers of Set as Childer of Typhon, the Serpents recognizing the Harbingers as kin of Hades. The close relationship the bloodlines shared led to their coordination of powers, to ensure the souls of their kin who met Final Death would go on serving their respective Clans. This technique was used to reward loyal kin with honored places in the afterlife, as often as it was used to punish errant vampires with eternal servitude.
System: The necromancer must successfully fix another vampire with The Eyes of the Serpent( V20, p. 209) up to one week prior to that vampire’ s Final Death. The gaze of the necromancer is burned into the soul of the vampire, and if she dies within the week, the night following her death will see her reconstituted as a wraith in the necromancer’ s presence. The wraith is not bound to service, unless separate powers are used.
This power costs 9 experience points to learn.
Sutekh Fathers Anubis( Necromancy ••••, Serpentis ••••)
Developed by Lazarus, and the principal reason for his victory over Clanmates sent to kill him, the Cainite with this power can change form into a monstrous, rotting jackal over seven feet from foot to shoulder blade. This Anubis form grants the vampire greater damage from her bite, the ability to travel faster than a human, an enhanced sense of smell, and the physical fortitude of a corpse infused with necromancy.
System: The vampire spends one blood point and one Willpower, rolling Stamina + Occult( difficulty 7). The metamorphosis takes two turns. Clothing and small personal possessions transform with the vampire. The vampire remains in jackal form until the next dawn, unless she chooses to revert. Difficulty on all Perception rolls related to smell are reduced by two, and the jackal’ s bite inflicts an additional two points of damage, without need to grapple. The form can move twice as fast as a human, and benefits from the cadaver-like resilience bestowed by Gift of the Corpse( V20, p. 169.) Any of the vampire’ s Disciplines can still be used in this form.
This power costs 24 experience points to learn.
Necromantic Rituals
Generation of the Acheron Vortex( Level Two Ritual)
Harbingers of Skulls who taste the blood of Lasombra find their link to the Styx reawakened. Under the new moon, the necromancer must spill blood comprising Harbinger and Lasombra vitae into any body of water( from a puddle, to an ocean) and listen to voices from across the Shroud with a ritual such as Call of the Hungry Dead( V20, p. 177). A vortex forms, with each point of blood spilt making the whirlpool last an additional turn. Stepping into the vortex takes the vampire to the Shadowlands equivalent of the body of water, and a single person( mortal or vampire) can follow for each turn the vortex is still active. The ritual works in reverse, but requires the expenditure of two blood points from each individual following the necromancer from the Shadowlands to the Skinlands, and can only take place on a night under the full moon.
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