OUTSIDER: THE CALLING
“I know always that I am an outsider; a stranger in this century and among those who are still men.” -HPL, The Outsider
Notice: If you start a new thread come tell us on the IRC channel or leave a comment on the blog, I’ve noticed that several threads were started without us even knowing about it. Can’t contribute to what we don’t know is there. http://outsiderthecalling.blogspot.com/ #alientheoutsider on irc.thisisnotatrueending.com
Introduction GENERAL ABILITIES Experience Point Costs SECTS Starspawned Savants - CTHULHU Shepherds of the Silver Key – YOG-SOTHOTH Young of the Thousand – SHUB-NIGGURATH Scions of the Yellow Sign – HASTUR Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh - NYARLATHOTEP Custom Sects CREEDS QUIESCENCE AND MYTHOS REJECTIONS AND RITUALS SAMPLE REJECTIONS COMMUNION MINDSCAPE DREAMSCAPE HYPERGEOMETRY POLYMORPHISM SUPERPOSITION CORRUPTION VIOLATION SAMPLE RITUALS MUTATIONS (Assets) MUTATIONS (Liabilities) SUGGESTED MERITS ARTIFACTS THE WORLD THE CITIES OF MAN RUINS OF THE OLD WORLD THE DREAMLANDS ANTAGONISTS & ALLIES
Deep Ones Mi-Go COMPACT: MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY: “The College” COMPACT: DELTA GREEN: "The Group" COMPACT: Arkham Mental Health Services: “The Asylum”
Legal Stuff
The World of Darkness, The Storytelling System all related content is copyrighted to White Wolf publishing division of CCP, hf. Delta Green is copyrighted by Pagan Publishing. The authors of this document do not claim ownership of any such copyrighted material and any use of it is for non profit purposes only.
The works of Howard Philips Lovecraft are used with the understanding they fall into the public domain.
Original work is copyrighted to their respective authors and used with permission.
Introduction
There are things in this universe which are not meant for human eyes. There are monsters in the shadows of the world, humans just cattle, food, that sustains their cursed existence. But what of the shadows beyond reality, what beings might lurk there? Creatures of forms so sublime and terrible that would make men gouge out their own eyes as a sign of devotion. Intellects so vast that to absorb even a fraction of their knowledge would drive a man insane. Might that would extinguish stars and rearrange planets. Beings that are everything that is not. Now imagine that someone or something attracts their attention, causing the cosmos itself to recoil from the contact. Sometimes a crack forms, from which the outside seeps into the fabric of creation and when such a conduit has a will of it's own an Outsider is born.
Outsider: The Calling is a game about these aberrations, trying to reclaim or just survive in a universe that rejected them long ago. They search the hidden and forgotten corners of the world for hidden lore that might shed light on their condition. Form cults that they might help them remake the world in their dark masters’ image. Some just exploit their 'gifts' to achieve dominance over those they deem inferior. Or they try to reject their own heritage and hide away from curious eyes that just won't leave them alone. Regardless of whether they choose to heed their master's Calling their very nature alters the universe as we know it and nothing will be the same again.
Outsiders have come to their inhuman perspectives in a variety of ways. Some may have sought out this power, whether in forbidden tomes or occult experimentation. Some may have been born with it, whether as a result of a cosmic accident or through the machinations of some cult. Another may have been infected with a disease, or opened the wrong door or... Basically anything is an option.
mIRC: #alientheoutsider on irc.thisisnotatrueending.com Blog: http://outsiderthecalling.blogspot.com/ Places to look for inspiration: CTHULHU MYTHOS TIMELINE http://www.templeofdagon.com/cthulhu-mythos/timeline-of-the-cthulhu-mythos/ Leviathan: The Tempest, similar project, semi-finished http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/LeviathanTempest:CompilationProject Cthulhu wiki http://www.yog-sothoth.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page [Comics] Alan Moore, The Courtyard Mac Carter, The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft - What if Lovecraft was a Sheppard of the Silver Key Denier
Mike Mignola, Hellboy B.P.R.D. [Movies] The Village of the Damned Ghostbusters - Zuul & Vinz Clortho are Outsiders of Gozer Videodrome - LONG LIVE THE NEW FLESH! In the Mouth of Madness AM1200 Hellraiser Fallen
[Books] The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe - Werewolf vs Cultists
[Music] Nox Arcana, Necronomicon
GLOSSARY (Add to this as necessary)
Abandonments: As the Outsider grows in power it sheds aspects of humanity gaining certain abilities in return. Aklo: The alien language all Outsiders speak. All rituals and secret texts use it. Callings: Gatherings of Outsiders working towards a common goal. Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh - Outsiders linked to Nyarlathotep, the messenger and voice of the Outer Gods and soul of Azathoth. Their powers generally involve socialization and bargaining, but the also benefit from a closer relationship with their God.
Creed: While outsiders don’t have proper political factions they tend to align themselves along five schools of thought regarding their unnatural situation: The Servants, The Masters, The Rebels, The Deniers and The Dreamers. Cultist: A mortal who worships the Outsiders as a god in the hopes that it might grant him power or at the very least a quick death. Displacement: An Outsider is a cancer upon the fabric of reality. Displacement indicates just how much of an irritant it is. Eldritch Form: An Outsider that reaches zero Quiescence assumes a heavily mutated form and is effectively no longer human. It is possible for him to willingly decide to give in to his alien nature to assume it for a limited time. Jenkins: 1.Rat like creature with a human head and hands/paws and sharp fangs which are used to drink blood. Usually found as a witch's familiar. 2. Derogatory term for a vampire. Keepers of the Silver Key - Outsiders linked to Yog-Sothoth, the Outer God that exists beyond our reality. Their powers generally involve the manipulation of time and space. Labyrinth: A place of refuge for Outsiders and other creatures of the beyond. Keeper: Outsider whose power is attuned to a Labyrinth. Madness: The energy that Outsiders use to bend and break reality. It's not literal madness, but a way of indicating how successful an Outsider is perverting the laws of the universe. Mythos: An Outsider's connection to its alien side. The more he indulges it the more powerful he becomes, but it also becomes harder to hide its nature. Naacal: The ancient language of Mu. Penance: As a consequence of drawing directly on the energies of the outer realms Outsiders gain temporary points of Displacement. Quiescence: An Outsider's connection to the universe, its humanity. Anything that might break the laws of reality has a chance of lowering it. The lower it is, the likelier it is that the universe will notice and strike back. Quiescence is not morality, you might kill someone for a boost of power, but it’s the act of using that power to break reality that causes Quiescence to drop. Rejections: are the powers that Outsiders use. Fueled by Madness they make a mockery of the very concepts of things. Up is down, down is left, a cat will bark and the shadows will eat your face. Outsiders reject your reality and substitute their own. Rituals: Similar to Rejections they are much greater in scale and may require more than one Outsider to complete. Although the result might be similar to an atomic bomb, they are the equivalent of circumnavigating the universe's defenses as opposed to Rejections that just ram through. Scions of the Yellow Sign - Outsiders linked to Hastur, the memetic mind virus and force of entropy. Their powers revolve around madness and the alteration of reality. Sects: Outsiders can be divided according to what god gave rise to them. There are as many Sects as there are gods. This book focuses on five in particular. Senzar: The language of the ancient tribes of Atlantis. Starspawned Savants - Outsiders linked to Cthulhu, the dreaming High Priest of the Old Ones, now trapped until the stars are right. Their powers generally revolve around dreams and mental control. Young of the Thousand - Outsiders linked to Shub-Niggurath, the twisted fertility God. Their powers generally revolve around physical mutation and transformation.
Literary Examples of possible Outsiders: So I was just thinking back, and trying to make a list of all the Lovecraft characters and Call of Cthulhu characters in general who we might co-opt as Outsiders.
The Whateley brothers are obvious ones, though one has far lower Quiescence and higher Mythos than the other.
The protagonist in The Outsider, funnily enough.
Stephen Alzis, as has previously been mentioned.
The Masters of the Cult of Transcendence have clearly found a way to negate the effects of high Mythos, low Quiescence.
The Spawn of Nyarlathotep from from the Kenya chapter of Masks of Nyarlathotep, possibly using a Rejection that lets itself appear human.
Those high-up priests of Shub-Niggurath who appear half-goat-like could easily be Outsiders.
Randolph Carter, I think, was suggested as an Outsider linked to Yog-Sothoth.
The Midwich Cuckoos the book of the same name and the Village of the Damned movie.
GENERAL ABILITIES
Favored Attribute: Becoming an outsiders alters your body and mind, but the ‘how’ depends on the sect. You buy your Sect’s favored Attribute at lesser cost [Dots X4] instead of [Dots X5]. Also, the limit for your favored stat is +1 what your Mythos level would allow. Starspawned Savant: Presence Shepard of the Silver Key: Intelligence Young of the Thousand: Strength Scion of the Yellow Sign: Wits Courtier of the Black Pharaoh: Manipulation
Favored Skills: It doesn't matter whether you embrace your heritage or not, you'll still know far more than you'd want to. Being an Outsider you have an easier time acquiring certain skills. The relevant skills cost [Dots X2] instead of [Dots X3]. Starspawned Savant: Occult and Empathy Shepard of the Silver Key: Science and Academics
Young of the Thousand: Survival and Animal Ken Scion of the Yellow Sign: Crafts and Expression Courtier of the Black Pharaoh: Politics and Subterfuge
Favored Schools of Subversion: Starspawned Savant: Communion, Dreamscape, Corruption Sheppard of the Silver Key: Communion, Superposition, Hypergeometry Young of the Thousand: Polymorphism, Corruption, Violation Scion of the Yellow Sign: Mindscape, Violation, Dreamscape Courtier of the Black Pharaoh: Mindscape, Hypergeometry, Polymorphism
Abandonments Every 2 levels of Mythos the Outsider abandons an aspect of mortality of his choice selectable from the following:
-Digest anything: You can obtain sustenance from anything, though you can still be poisoned -Resist Pain: Feeling has started to loose meaning for you. You heal Bashing damage in half the time. -Hibernation: You can hibernate for long periods of time without need for any sustenance and impervious to the elements. You are completely unaware of the world around you until you are awakened unless you have Rejections that allow you to project your will (Mindscape or Dreamscape mostly). If anyone approaches you can roll Wits+Mythos to become aware if you wish, otherwise the time of awakening is predetermined when entering hibernation. -Resist poison: You aren't affected by substances in the same way anymore +2 bonus to resist being poisoned -Resist Fear: You have seen things people wouldn’t believe. Hell, you are something people wouldn’t believe. +2 bonus to resist fear effects
The last two can be taken multiple times.
The higher your Mythos the slower you age and at Mythos 10 you stop aging all together. (consult Mythos table for specifics)
Mutations
As Outsiders loose their grasp on reality their bodies begin to assume a form more adequate to their new place in the cosmos (or lack there of). Their bodies twist and change to the whim of their masters or even by the power of their own unnatural abilities. There are four categories of Mutations: Weapons: Mutations that turn you into a living engine of destruction Armor: Your body is your fortress. General: Mutations that give you enhanced capabilities. Liabilities: Negative effects that can be inflicted on others and even yourself
An Outsider gains a compulsory mutation on Quiescence 7, 5, 3, 1, at 0 the Outsider has succumbed completely to his alien nature. The first is (•), the second (••), etc. An outsider may also choose to gain a Liability instead of a derangement when loosing Quiescence. Additional mutations can be purchased with xp. When acquiring Mutations (except for [Size]) you don't need to buy dots in sequence but simply pay for the number of dots of the chosen mutation. In other words a (•••) Mutation costs 12xp, not 24 (4+8+12).
Each Mutation has a certain dot cost, an Outsider is limited in how many dots he can have in total in each category (if your limit is 4 you can have at most 4X(•) mutations or 2X(••) mutations 1X(•) + 1X(•••) mutation or one (••••) mutation in each category)
Max possible dots in Mutations per category: One dot per rank of Mythos plus one dot per rank of the [Master Flesh Carver] Rejection. +1 dot per point of strength, if the Outsider is a Young of the Thousand, distributed as wished among the various categories.
Suppression: By spending a will point the Outsider can suppress the mutations for a number of hours equal to to his Will + Quiescence. The suppression can be canceled at any time, though another will point must be spent to reactivate it. Whenever wounded while suppressing its mutations an Outsider must pass a Stamina + Composure test or the suppression drops.
Eldritch Form By spending a point of Quiescence the Outsider temporarily gains mutations as if he had a Mythos 10 (unless he has [Master Flesh Carver] he doesn't get the bonus from it). What those Mutations are is best specified at character creation (the list can, of course, change over time). An Outsider that specializes in Mutations can essentially recreate his Eldritch Form over time without incurring the direct loss of quiescence. When assuming the Eldritch Form due to dropping to Quiescence 0 the mutation limit is the current Mythos not 10. The transformation lasts [Favoured Attribute+Mythos+(10-Quiescence)] rounds.
Concerning Liabilities: An outsider can decide to take a relevant liability with certain mutations if so the main mutation costs a dot less. The liability counts as having the same number of dots as the main mutation for determining the maximum number of them that you can take.
Removing a mutation: Removing a mutation is a ritual that inflicts a number of resistant damage to you equal to the cost of the mutation being removed. In exchange you get back half the xp you spent on it. If removing a Liability you must actually pay for the extra dot of the corresponding regular mutation. This way can't be used to remove mutations that are caused by loss of Quiescence.
Healing Outsiders can heal pretty much any damage they take by letting their alien side take over and spending madness. Doing so is a sin against Quiescence 8, since basically the human flesh gets replaced by Something Else.You heal aggravated for 2M, lethal for 1M and bashing for 1/2M.
Sect specific Starspawned Savants: Impose their vision on the universe simply by existing. May choose to substitute Composure with their favored attribute to determine Willpower.
Keepers of the Silver Key: Have an easier time opening the gate to the outer realms. Gain an extra point of Madness when performing Penance every 3 points of favored attribute.
Young of the Thousand: Enhanced ability to mutate. For each dot in their favored ability they get a +1 bonus to the limit of the mutation category of their choice.
Scions of the Yellow Sign: Increased understanding of themselves. For every 3 dots in their favored attribute, they may obtain an additional Abandonment.
Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh: Easier time maintaining their human facade. For each dot in their favored ability they get an extra hour when suppressing their mutations.
Experience Point Costs
Attribute New dots x 5
Favored Attribute New dots x 4
Skill New dots x 3
Favored Skill New dots x 2
Skill Speciality 3
Merit New dots x 2
Favored Schools of Subversion New dots x 6
Other Schools of Subversion New dots x 7
New Rejection Current number of Rejections x 2
Mutations New dots x 4
Mythos New dots x 8
Quiescence New dots x 3
SECTS
APPEARANCE
Your character’s appearance is affected by interaction with unwholesome things. At low-levels, characters are 95% human. As they grow in power, they change physically. (Comment: They should slip into physical manifestation at varying rates- make it like a resistible roll, or like wyld mutation in Exalted. Some poor fool could dabble on the weekend and get tanged. An indomitable sorcerer could even choose the ‘gifts’ it receives. Maybe even a system akin to ‘taint’ from Aberrant.) Examples in the individual Sect sections.
Note: Appearance is just an example of how a stereotypical Outsider’s looks may evolve over time, you are not forced to go that route. Tho small physical changes that don’t qualify as full fledged mutations would be appropriate as Quiescence drops.
Starspawned Savants - CTHULHU
“That is not dead which can eternal lie And with strange aeons even death may die.”
-The Necronomicon
In his house in R’lyeh, dead Cthulhu lies dreaming. He is the high priest of Azathoth, of Yog-Sothoth and of Shub-Niggurath. Mother Hydra and Father Dagon are his apostles, and the Deep Ones and Starspawn are his servants. Though he is a lower order of being than the Elder Gods, his power and influence over the people of Earth rivals even their vast potency. His is a realm of peril, where even such basic concepts as gravity and the behavior of angles can no longer be relied upon. The Starspawned Savants have not only looked upon this realm and lived, but now they serve its master.
The chosen of Cthulhu are unified by an event which they know as the Calling. Dread Cthulhu whispers into the dreams of the Called, telling them stories of the time before the Earth was a plaything of humanity. He tells them of the finding of the Third Planet, of the war with the Old Ones, of the sinking of the great city of R’lyeh, and of the secrets of time and space. Above all, his chosen feel a pull, as of something tugging at their innards, telling them to take ship to the one spot in the sea which is furthest from any land. Those who make this pilgrimage come upon strange islands of worked stone, once the most commanding pinnacles of R’lyeh. At their center is a ziggurat surmounted by a single enormous door which seems simultaneously horizontal and vertical. None speak of what lies beyond that door, but those who open it come fully into their own as Starspawned Savants.
The Wakeners, as they are sometimes called, are a motley lot. Most often they hail from less “advanced” places, whose people are more connected to the primal roots of humanity than the decadent thing it is today. Still, any human is potentially susceptible, and a few corporate presidents and prominent politicians wear pendants in the shape of a squid-like head behind their ties. Those who hear the Call tend to be mentally sensitive in some way; artists, scholars and story tellers are common, as are minor psychics or even psychologists. Despite their disparity, they all share two unifying features; the Calling, and their compulsion to see Cthulhu awaken and R’lyeh rise from the depths.
In terms of personality, the Starspawned tend to be charismatic and vigorous. They are in more ways than one the priests of an ancient religion, and they comport themselves accordingly. Not for them a sandwich board and a soapbox, they seek positions of power and use them to turn hearts and minds to their advantage, whether that position be captaincy of a school football team or the respect paid to a wandering Voodoo houngan. They are also intelligent, and an intuitive grasp of geometry or physics is not uncommon among them.
The powers of the Starspawned are strange, and by the standards of Outsiders rather subtle. Having been to a place where the laws of three petty dimensions do not apply, they gain an understanding of how to alter the “shape” of things using certain formulae which describe imperceptible but quite real facets of existence. With a sketched symbol or a graven mark they can bend time and stretch or compress space. Though to onlookers they may seem to dodge a bullet, it is only because they are standing five feet left of where their image says they should be. Though they seem to throw fire in the faces of their enemies, they are only rubbing out the little smudge in space that keeps their opponent distant from a furnace.
The truly terrifying thing about them, however, is that the Calling never stops. In fact, as a Starspawned Savant becomes more potent, their dreams become more and more terrible, riddled with prophecy and dread secrets that even they can scarcely hope to comprehend. Some break under the pressure and commit suicide or are shunted out of reality, while others take the Oaths of Dagon and accept the loss of their powers in exchange for a repellent new immortal form. Those who hold up guide others who hear the Call, but are perhaps not strong enough to witness the glory of R’lyeh firsthand. With the aid of these beings they work their schemes, hoping to bring the stars into alignment so that their patron may render unto them their due reward.
Appearance: Quiescence 10: Completely normal Quiescence 05: Enlarged head, grayish green skin, tentacle like protrusions on the face, wing stumps on the back. Quiescence 00: Mini Cthulhu
Concepts: Obsessive Mathematician, Cunning Evangelist, Twisted Sculptor, Mad Sailor
Aliases: Drowned Priests, Krakens, Dreamers of the Depths, Stargazers
Stereotypes:
Courtiers of the Dark Pharaoh - “I don’t know if they truly understand the Power of the God they worship. Or the consequences.”
Scions of the Yellow Sign – “Madness for its own sake is all well and good, but they take it to an unnecessary level.”
Shepherds of the Silver Key – “Some of them would have us believe that our master is a facet of theirs. Perhaps they require a refresher in hypergeometry.”
Young of the Thousand – “While they do have their strengths, their master and ours are at cross purposes. Only one of us can rule this world.”
Vampires – “Charismatic and deadly, much like us. If they weren’t so wrapped up in pretending to be alive, they might make useful servants.”
Werewolves – “Though they’re bestial and annoying, they at least keep the incorporeals at bay. That anti-phasing sigil is a real pain to redraw every time a ghost gets in.”
Mages – “I wish I knew how they pulled off some of those tricks. Not that they’ll tell me without a bit of a nudge. Maybe putting one in two places at once will do it.
Shepherds of the Silver Key – YOG-SOTHOTH
“You would not flee like a child from a scene disliked to a dream beloved, but would plunge like a man into that last and inmost of secrets which lies behind all secrets and dreams.
What you wish, I have found good.”
-Yog-Sothoth to Randolph Carter, sixth human Shepherd of the Silver Key
There are worlds behind worlds behind worlds in the roiling chaos which we know as the universe. Some claim to have seen their truest depths; the peril and majesty of the Dreamlands, the twisting madness of Dread Carcosa. Yet these are not the truest depths of reality. Beyond and behind all things lie beings of such incomprehensible properties that their intersections with each other and with the dimensions of “reality” create everything we know or believe to exist. Chief among these beings is Yog-Sothoth, and on Earth the facets of his being are known as the Shepherds of the Silver Key.
Those who are part of the whole that is Yog-Sothoth tend to share certain traits in common. Most often they are avid pursuers of knowledge. Where another might balk at opening a haunted tomb, a Shepherd will pry it open two-handed and what’s more bring a video camera. Where another might stay awake all night attempting to work around a difficult equation, an Encompasser will find a novel way to devour it in an hour and sit down with a good book for dessert. Their minds are expansive, slippery, and more than anything else, hungry.
It is this mental hunger which leads them to unlocking the secrets of their being. Some of them make mathematical breakthroughs which lead them to surmise the existence of places beyond places, others visit places so very unlike Earth in dreams and wake clutching evidence of their travels, while still others paint or write of vistas so clear in their minds that they cannot but be real. Shortly after such experiences, they will come into possession of a Silver Key. No two have ever had exactly the same story; some were family heirlooms while others were simply found. Whatever the case, the visionary instinctively bears the key to a place of power where the planes of reality intersect, and unlock a Gate to the very presence and being of their patron, master and self, Yog-Sothoth.
When they arrive, the newly-minted Shepherds are granted pieces of wisdom that would blast lesser minds. They hear the tales of the gods of their world, of the physics sufficiently advanced to be magic, and most importantly, of their other selves. The greatest revelation granted by a greater whole which exists beyond it. Yog-Sothoth is one such being, and where the planes of Yog-Sothoth is the realization that all beings in the universe of three dimensions are fractions of time and space that intersect with him and his kin, they create lines and polygons which in our reality are beings and worlds. What’s more, as all parts of the super-being are equally real, so are all its facets equally real throughout time and space. And with the proper symbols, these beings can be seen, spoken to…even summoned.
The powers of the Shepherds allow them to pull themselves through time and space along the trajectories between themselves and the other facets of their being. They can hop forward and back short distances in time or any direction in space, and moving back and forth between familiar intersections is as natural to them as breathing. Arguably more potent, however, is their access to the minds of other beings. Yog-Sothoth is the chief of the super-beings, and his fragments are invariably creatures of great mental fortitude. Thus through communion with his other selves, an Encompasser has access to virtually any knowledge. Those who achieve sufficient levels of potency can project their minds into the bodies of their other selves from across the gulfs of time and space, or even call their soul-brothers bodily into being on Earth (This can be particularly devastating if the caller is a student of prehistory. The most learned and cunning tyrannosaurus is still a tyrannosaurus.). Mysteriously, though, the Silver Key which led them to their powers deserts them after they come into their own. Theories abound on this phenomenon; some say the Silver Key is a parallel super-being which serves Yog-Sothoth, others that each is unique and is consumed by the effort of sending a mortal bodily beyond the bounds of existence. In the end, it matters little.
Of all the Elder Gods, Yog-Sothoth is unique in that he holds what could almost be classified as a certain paternal pride in humanity. Of all the species which have sprung from his being, humans have furnished the most Shepherds. Consequently his agents attempt to bring greater knowledge to their fellow humans that they may one day fully join all of Earth with the whole of Yog-Sothoth. Of course, some take issue with the idea of joining a single massive oversoul, while others simply cannot hold under the mental strain of the knowledge required. Regardless, the Shepherds press on, for their flock must be led.
Appearance: Quiescence 10: Slightly odd gait Quiescence 05: Taller than an average human, legs are replaced by tentacles but can be disguised, extra mouths and faces begin to appear on some parts of the body Quiescence 00: A long massive horror, invisible unless exposed to silver, with many faces and legs, also have an incorporeal form of glowing bubbles of light similar to Yog Sothoth's, mind begins to partly overlap his.
Concepts: Archaeologist/Tomb Robber, Librarian, Occultist, Explorer
Aliases: Openers of the Gate, Argent Guides, Those Who Unbar the Way, Those Beyond
Stereotypes:
Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh - “They are foolish to put their faith in such a capricious and malevolent God. Yog-Sothoth knows no such weakness.”
Scions of the Yellow Sign – “Knowledge they may bring, but it is twisted and corrupted. Lend them not your ear.”
Starspawned Savants – “Some of them grasp the edges of the truth that is Yog-Sothoth. They have their uses, as will their master if he ever awakens.”
Young of the Thousand – “Enemies of knowledge and advancement who must be undone. Fortunately, many of us know a trick or two for them.”
Vampires – “What their existence implies for the super-beings as we know them is unknown, but it is known that they are a force of stagnation worthy of undoing.”
Werewolves – “Little better than the Young in their bestiality. Let them perish together.”
Mages – “That beings so potent should not be facets of Yog-Sothoth is puzzling. They merit much further investigation.”
Young of the Thousand – SHUB-NIGGURATH
"Ia! Shub-Niggurath! The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young!" -Necronomicon Shub-Niggurath.
Lives are transient, but Life is tenacious. Once the seed of life has sprouted it is nearly impossible to completely and permanently eradicate it. A catastrophe may serve as nothing but a pruning before the spreading wave of biological wonders and horrors that engulf a world. And every seed of a world spread from another world where life has blossomed. But the first seed was sown from the womb of the being known only as god. What precisely the nature of this ancient is may never be truly known, but in the past she has been idolized by mortal and immortal alike under the name of the Black Goat, the lord of the woods. A fertility god, her sons and daughters have risen from rituals involving sacrifice and rebirth, twisting fragile mortal beings into brutal and feral creatures not known on this earth. These beings, a cacophony of horns, tendrils, jaws, and hooves were the first born of the unholy union of man and being of the Outer Realms. From these first thousands, birthed at the dark beginnings of humanity, more have been born generation to generation; each slowly in turn coming aware his or her true nature and the terror or power that comes with it.
These beings are the Young of the Thousand, carrying the blood of an Outer God, sharing a heritage barely reconcilable with their mortal forms. Many never even learn their true nature, spreading on their bloodline to a new generation and swelling the number of carriers. Those that do come aware may not be able to come to terms with their inhuman nature and what it means for mankind, but a rare few embrace their ancient father and are showered in his blessings.
The Young of the Thousand are poised in a very interesting position in the cosmos, for they are numerous and their numbers are ever growing, but the will of their progenitor is as foreign to them as to any other observer. Shub-Niggurath does not make her presence well known in this realm, though the marks of her passage are numerous. The most common interpretation by her young is that she sees life as its own end, continuously seeking to spread and grow and develop, consuming worlds in raw biological evolution.
While none of the creatures associated with the Outer Gods can be said to have a stable corporeal form, few take to change as readily as one of the thousand. Their complex genetic sequence contains a billion billion adaptations from thousands of evolutionary paths from just as many alien worlds. Where as other Outsiders might be able to support one or two greater mutations without fear of losing their identity, a Young of the Thousand can do so indefinitely. In fact the most powerful representatives of this Sect will appear to be an alien, but 'oh, so frighteningly' natural mass of disparate body parts. But if you were to take a scalpel to one of them, you would find at its core a very human form, or whatever the Outsider's original form was.
While literally anyone has the potential to ascend to the ranks of the Young, the most likely aren't those who we consider to have deep connection to nature, but those who take an immense joy in being alive or from those who indulge their baser instincts.
Appearance: Quiescence 10: Prominent canines, arms somewhat longer in proportion to the body. Quiescence 05: Arms are now tentacles, additional mouths appear at random places on the body. Goat like legs. Quiescence 00: Dark Young
Concepts: Survivor, Adrenaline Junkie, Serial Rapist/Murderer, Mountain Man
Aliases: Dark Young, Goatspawn, The Blessed, Tree That Walks
Stereotypes:
Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh - “They play at politics and schemes, while the world turns regardless. Shub-Niggurath has no need of such games.”
Scions of the Yellow Sign – “Madness is but another challenge that leads to progress. And we shall always rise to the challenge.”
Starspawned Savants – “Their nature is foreign to this realm. Our distant cousins, they will learn to respect their forefather or perish.”
Shepherds of the Silver Key - "Let them quarrel over dreams and time. They do not concern matters of the flesh."
Vampires – “They are death and anathema to life. Their existence we can not abide.”
Werewolves – “A wondrous show of the might of nature and the chosen of the all-mother. To us, they are as brothers.”
Mages – “A few tricks cannot stall progress. They will be consumed and assimilated as any other mortals.”
Scions of the Yellow Sign – HASTUR
"There is a whole secret cult of evil men (a man of your mystical erudition will understand me when I link them with Hastur and the Yellow Sign) devoted to the purpose of tracking [the servants of the outer gods] down and injuring them on behalf of the monstrous powers from other dimensions." -The Whisperer in the Dark
Long ago there was an ancient kingdom of Carcosa. The people lived in a magnificent age of decadence and frivolity and wanted for nothing. But such ordered lives without torment and toil cannot last, and here the first avatar of The Unspeakable One walked among man. He is known as the king in yellow, and in his wake madness and insanity spread without end. In his masked but unmasked form he made known to the denizens of Carcosa a great truth that no mortal mind can comprehend. The entire city was consumed in the ensuing calamity, utterly destroyed by its own residents, and was never heard from again, stricken from all the history books but for a few dark tomes kept in forbidden collections in guarded libraries.
Such is the legacy of the entity known as Hastur. He is also called He Who Is Not To Be Named, for his presence arises seemingly at random, sparked often merely from recalling his existence. Tales abound of plays remembering forgotten Carcosa causing riots and murders, or of merely speaking his name with reckless abandon leading to minor outbreaks of delirium. His powers are not of the physical world, but of the mind, but are no less dangerous than any tangible threat. As such, he is whispered in hushed tones as being a god of madness and insanity, though this is not his true nature.
A very rare few, who are not utterly destroyed by the revelations of the Elder God realize that he is in fact a god of truths far beyond the comprehension of man. However, to know these truths is to lose your very ties to the human race, for they are short sighted and cannot understand the true workings of the universe at large. These rare learned Scions are often scholars of the occult who have sought such dark and terrible secrets for years, for only men such as these would not have their resolve shattered upon learning of His existence. They often adorn themselves in the traditional robes of yellow, reminiscent of the first avatar of their patron, and his works of spreading the great truths of the many realms.
Scions have the uncanny ability to twist and bend truth to their own ends. Who but those who know the whole story can use it to their own advantage? They are masters at just what needs to be said to calm an enraged temper or to fan the flames into a self destructive homicidal rage that could leave entire communities scarred for the remainder of written history. Not even the fabric of reality is safe from their touch and they delight in reshaping it to their whim. For after all truth is in the eye of the beholder.
While Scions are most often associated with actors, anyone who makes a living by expressing his own truth could just as easily be one. Journalists witnessing the depths of human depravity, politicians swindling the masses, the artists depicting infernal landscapes all could attract the attention of the King in Yellow.
Appearance:
Quiescence 10:Blind, able to sense surroundings out to 25 feet Quiescence 05: waxy, melted face, eyes are always closed and nose is sunken, slight aura of panic surrounds you Quiescence 00: No eyes, no nose, just a mouth under a hood that looks like a mask. Rest of body is barely corporeal, long cloak of tattered golden color flows behind you. Any spoken words are in an ancient tongue that is harmful to non-outsiders.
Concepts: Actor, Politician, Journalist
Aliases: Inheritors of Carcosa, Golden Thespians, Playwrights of Aeons, Phantoms of Truth
Stereotypes:
Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh- “They have no appreciation for the beautiful madness that is Hastur. They seek only power and domination. They’re dangerous.”
Young of the Thousand - "They are but pawns in a cosmological game of which they do not even know the rules. Sad, really."
Starspawned Savants – “They herald a message that mankind is not ready to receive. But we shall help to prepare them.”
Shepherds of the Silver Key - "The realm of the mind is where all true power lies. We must respect those who protect its sacred gates."
Vampires – “They carry a part of the great truth in themselves, making use of powers they do not understand. Impotent fools is what they are.”
Werewolves – “A verdant force, they are no concern to those who care not for matter of the physical world.”
Mages – “They disrespect the truth, twisting its nature and bending it. They know of it but forsake, choosing to abuse it.”
Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh - NYARLATHOTEP
"To Nyarlathotep, Mighty Messenger, must all things be told. And He shall put on the semblance of men, the waxen mask and the robe that hides, and come down from the world of Seven Suns to mock... (Nyarl)athotep, Great Messenger, bringer of strange joy to Yuggoth through the void, Father of the Million Favoured Ones, Stalker among... " Extracts from a Mi-Go/Human ritual
From the frozen surface of Yuggoth to the Pyramids of Ancient Khem, from the financial heart of the United States of America to the Mountain of Kadath in the Cold Wastes, there is nowhere that
Nyarlathotep has not walked. He is the Voice and Soul of Azathoth, the mindless Demon Sultan that bubbles and festers in nuclear ignorance. He is the only one of the Outer Gods who apparently takes a real interest in mankind, though it is not a benevolent one. Nyarlathotep finds great joy in toying with mankind, encouraging the degradation and decay of humanity and leading us in an endless and incomprehensible game.
Nyarlathotep has no one form, existing at any one time as any one of innumerable Masks. In China, an ancient cult follows the Bloated Woman, a horrendous mass of flesh disguised behind a fan. In Kenya, the Bloody Tongue, a titanic horror, rules over a group of outcast tribes and the Black Wind blows down yearly to devastate the landscape. In New York, an occult criminal syndicate is run by an apparently immortal sorcerer working towards some unknown aim. In Sweden, at the heart of an international conspiracy, a book of terrible lore provides exactly what its readers need, at terrible cost. And from ancient Khem to modern day Egypt, the Black Pharaoh looms like a shadow out of time.
Nyarlathotep's schemes and plans necessitate the use of innumerable actors and puppets; His servants are almost as numerous as his Masks. Foremost among his agents on Earth are Outsiders born into or fallen into his service. Human sorcerers, hungry for power, trade away their humanity for just a hint of Nyarlathotep's knowledge and wisdom. A child born at exactly the right time in exactly the right place grew up oddly, with eyes that speak of experience far beyond his years. An eccentric, though genius, mathematician unlocks a medieval riddle which reveals a formula; a formula which, when solved opens his mind to secrets greater than he could ever have possibly comprehended. These Outsiders are generally great leaders and politicians, best placed to carry out their manipulations.
The Favoured Ones' greatest strength is in their often close connection they have with their Father. They have the ability to call upon Him to ask for his wisdom and advice. Where the Outsiders of other Gods have to rely on the vague interpretations of cultists of prophecy and dreams, the Favoured Ones will often receive direct orders. Because of this connection, Outsiders of Nyarlathotep are less likely to turn against their master and Father. The fact that He is more likely to punish failure than the other, uncaring Gods. Nyarlathotep also grants his children powers to lie and persuade others, even outside of their cults.
Appearance: Quiescence 10: Have a single black mark hidden on the body somewhere symbolizing bond to the pharaoh Quiescence 05: Become gaunt in facial appearance, hair begins to resemble tentacles under scrutiny, skin color darkens to a shade of gray Quiescence 00: Become a large writhing mass of tentacles with a single mask floating within from which your senses emanate, anything you consume adds mass to your 'body'
Concepts: Councilor, Con-artist, Politician,
Aliases: The Million Favoured Ones, Mask Bearers, Prophets of Chaos, Hunters in the Dark, The Sworn
Stereotypes: Scions of the Yellow Sign - "They serve an idea they can barely comprehend, let alone understand the consequences of."
Starspawned Savants - "Their devotion to the hibernating priest of an alien race is quaint, though misguided. Led along the right paths, they could prove useful."
Shepherds of the Silver Key - "They certainly have knowledge and undeniable power, but for all their visions of the future, they have no appreciation of the depths of what it truly holds."
Young of the Thousand - "Primitives driven mostly by animalistic urges and lusts. Useful tools. Nothing more."
Vampires - "Pitiful wretches. So desperate for control and so afraid of what comes after that they spend eternity playing politics in a city or two while the world spins towards destruction."
Werewolves - "They have some knowledge of their spirits at least, but they can mostly be dismissed."
Mages - "Interesting. They think themselves the masters because even they cannot see their own strings. We all dance to Nyarlathotep's tune, they simply dance a little higher and faster."
Custom Sects
"I worship Tsathoggua, you've probably never heard of him, he's pretty underground" - Some random cultist
The stories of the mythos are full of different gods both minor and major. While this book deals with those who have the greatest presence on our world, that doesn't mean the rest can't appear in your game. To make a custom Sect all you have to do is: 1. Choose favored ability 2. Choose favored skills 3. Choose favored Schools of Subversion 4. Come up with an appropriate Sect specific advantage. 5. Explain the background of the god to the rest of the group if they are unfamiliar with it.
CREEDS
The Servants - You've been changed by forces greater than you could possibly conceive, now the only possible course of action is to do your best to serve It, or at least to do what you believe It wants. To do otherwise would be insane, if it were even possible.
He stood outside of the maternity ward and ran his fingers across the glass, leaving a faint smudge. Rows and rows of newborn babies, each snug in a perfectly color coded blanket. Blue for the boys, pink for the girls. Such little wonders. Each a thriving life, a veritable factory that would one day pump out more just like them. A gift that rivaled only the gift bestowed upon him.
Even now he could feel them, a honeycomb of soft blisters along his shoulder blades and down his spine. Every time he shifted his weight, his uniform rasped against the pustules in a pleasurable frisson, threatening gooseflesh on his arms. First they were small, mere pin-pricks, but in time they grew and ripened into fat mounds each the size of his thumb. The flesh covering them was taut and nearly transparent. He could still taste the joy he felt that first day he stared at them in the mirror and saw the small black dots squirming within. Certainly it was the taste of bile when he retched into the toilet, but that too was joy. The very processes of life itself!
Soon, too soon, it would be time and he'd have his own young to care for. He knew what would be next. The careful gathering and preparation of the birthed. Each would be placed within a single bottle of infant formula, and there in those glorious newborns, the cycle would begin again. A thousand young bearing a thousand, thousand young! Glorious!
He turned to go back to work, one more faceless orderly in the hospital. He scratched idly at his throat, feeling the tell-tale pin-prick bumps growing there. Simply glorious.
The Masters - They gave you great power, but asked nothing in return. Until you're told otherwise, the best plan is clearly to use your newfound power to your own benefit in this world, whether that's acquiring money or political position, or something simpler.
So this is how an empire falls? When the China Man first showed up the families were worried the Triads were showing a renewed interest in the area, but when a quick investigation showed he was a rogue element everyone drew a breath of relief. The fact that an independent managed to assemble a significant power base in so little time flew completely over their heads. That I was the only one to see this and prepare accordingly might be the reason how I managed to hold out for so long.
I had a few of of the boys pick up a follower of his, and follower is the only way I can describe the filthy creatures, their loyalty surpassed the fanatic, even after days of torture all we got out of him is how “The yellow men will make us see the truth!” Must be something in the product he is pushing. People who try it suddenly want nothing else and will do anything to get it. No attempts at replicating it were successful. Haven't seen anything like it since that time with those Muslims gangs in Philly.
As they started to lose clients the cartels tried to cut off his suppliers, but when none were found they were forced to engage directly. As for who won? Let's just say that a horde of devoted followers beats cheep hired muscle. This brings us to the here and now. Me sitting in the back of a cheap beat up van on the way to see the yellow man himself. I don't expect to return alive.
---
A warehouse, cute. At least I'll die dry, if it were the waterfront I'd...huh. This looks awfully nice for the inside of a warehouse; marble pillars, paper lanterns, fancy recliners, hell they turned this into an old time high class opium den and judging from the state the patrons are in it's just as decadent. This is not the place you take someone to kill them. I might get out of this yet.
---
They lead me into the basement. Seems like the structure above was built on top of some old mine or something. Whatever the original purpose was, the tunnels are now filled with vats of some greenish brown liquid, people in rudimentary protective gear steering the concoction, as foul fumes fill the air. Huh, he must be very confident to produce in house.
Standing in the middle of it all is the China Man, dressed in an expensive Italian suit and what appeared to be an ivory mask below his slanted eyes, presumably to protect him from the fumes.
“Why am I still alive?” I finally have the balls to ask.
“Why?' The curiously unmuffled voice asks. “Why Marcus. You are a resource, it would be a shame to just waste you. I want you to be part of this.” he says gesturing to our surroundings. “Come, let me show you.” As hope surges and I think of ways that I might cut my losses working for him, he leads me to the back of a tunnel.
Then I see them.
Giovanni, Hernandez, Romanov and all the other bosses, sitting there; rubber hoses leading out of roughly drilled holes in their hairless heads, that left raw bone and cerebral matter exposed to the elements. Clear gelatinous liquid dripping from them into a what looks like an ancient jar covered in a script I can’t recognize. The men themselves catatonic, their empty gazes lost in dark horizons, just sitting there with nothing to restrain them apparently sapped of all will and human emotion.
“NO!” I shout trying to run for the exit, but it's too late. As I'm being wrestled into an empty seat next to old friends and enemies, the China Man continues to speak:“I didn't lie Marcus. You, your very essence will be part of the final product. The humors produced by the human pineal gland are a potent substance that with the right preparation is capable of opening the mind to wonderful and terrifying new vistas of reality. But it's so hard to find healthy sources of it that won't be missed.”
As he speaks his servants shave my head with an old straight razor and bring in an antique pedal powered drill. The last thing I see before pain overtakes me is the China Man's ivory mask, fused to the very flesh of his face.
The Rebels - Their biggest mistake was changing you. You've seen the promise they hold for people like you, and you reject it outright. Whether out of concern for humanity, or rage at the Thing that destroyed who you were, you'll fight Them till the ends of the Earth.
"She had weaseled her way into a small mining companies board - none of the old farts paid notice to her, the newest secretary. It had been a test for her, she would have bankrupted the company in one month flat, channeling their funds into the accounts of her nature loving friends (with a meager 60% margin for her own pockets), but then she found the maps and blueprints. They fascinated her ... and were utterly alien.
But the theft had alerted the true "bosses" of the company. They were nasty things to behold, the Space Crabs she called them. They whispered to her in the night, wanting her mind - dragging her through their collected brain cylinders - like in those B-movies her fiance liked.
Instead came the pain, searing pain, turning her insides to ice, her brain inside out...
When the pain ended she could see the Space Crabs as what the were. Pathetic Slaves to their own eldritch gods. She fled into the night, flying on alien wings, scaling walls like the "Human Fly" movie guy, seeing in pitch blackness.
They tried to make her into something like themselves, now she was like these superheroes from her fiance's comics - powerful yet alien.
She would make them pay, Space crabs be damned.
The Deniers - You're still human. That's what's important. You've been infected with this disease, this curse, but it doesn't mean you have to embrace it. You deny it, and the power it would give you by seeking to remain as human as you can and trying your best to ignore that calling.
I've no idea why I'm writing this. A confession, maybe? A guide for others to follow in my footsteps? A suicide note? Lab notes?
Regardless of the purpose, I shall try to record the progress of the ritual as best as I can. If I should fail, then perhaps this will help identify my errors, so that I might try again to remove this curse.
The subjects, excluding myself, are 24 students of mine, aged between 7 and 8. I took them from school at gunpoint, also taking Peter Scott, another teacher, as the necessary catalyst. When there was protest, I showed them my true form, and they were silent. I drove the bus back to the Temple, which they could not see at first. I opened the way and they followed. I can only hope that by performing the ritual here, He will not be able to interfere.
The centre of the ritual is the Stone. It took many months of searching for it, though I eventually located it in the remains of a ruined church, apparently burnt as the result of an investigation into some sort of cult centuries ago. The Stone is a red-veined, oddly shaped Trapezohedron that, according to my research, acts as some sort of conduit for Him. I intend to utilise the Stone's conductive powers to transfer the taint. My research indicates that this has been done before, though not with the same Stone, or on this scale. The records I've read indicate that past efforts focused on the transfer from one to another. I believe that by dividing the infection between many, its effects on their lives will be minimised. There will, no doubt, be some trauma from this experience, but I will be free of this curse, and free of Him. That is a price worth paying. So I begin. --- The first stages of the experiment went smoothly. The Stone responded in the way I predicted it would, when the catalyst was activated. I consumed the drug, and the other subjects (after some persuasion) did the same. It is an incredibly curious feeling. I am somewhat light-headed, but perhaps that is just excitement about what is to follow. --- What have I done? The children are all screaming or crying and struggling at their restraints. They see what I saw. I should kill each of them now to spare them the sight of it, but I can't bring myself to. The ritual worked. I'm free. I can't hear Him any more.
I didn't want any of this. I called Him up on a whim, little suspecting that he would actually come. He promised me wealth and power, the sort that I could barely dream of. I agreed, barely comprehending what He asked me to do in return. He changed me, but when it came to it, I could not do what He told me to. It was too monstrous, too huge. So I ignored Him. But things got worse. The dreams continued. I saw glimpses of them even while waking. My body changed too, I stopped eating or drinking, and my skin grew grey and unhealthy. And the children, with whom I had gotten on so well, seemed distant.
Even other teachers stopped talking to me, except when necessary. My long-term girlfriend left too, with barely an explanation. None was needed.
So I devoted myself to undoing my mistake, finding some way to reverse His influence. And this led me to here. Alone in a room filled with screaming children and a corpse on the blood-stained floor. The Stone, still active and glowing, casts everything in a low, crimson light. I've got to get out. --- It won't work. The doors won't open. I can't leave. I'm human again, so I can't unlock the portal back to reality. Maybe one of the children could do it, if I taught them how.
The children have stopped screaming. They just stare at the Stone now, like they're listening. Listening to Him maybe. Good god, what if this was all He ever wanted from me? What if I was wrong, and each of those children will become like I was?
They're staring at me now. They don't say anything, but I can see what it is that they want. I should kill them now before they get free, before they get out. It's the only way that anyone could stop them.
But they're just children.
The Dreamers - You've glimpsed something far greater than anything you could have conceived before you changed. You've seen worlds beyond our own and caught sight of the beauty and wonder they hold. You seek out these wonders, guard them from those not worthy and keep the balance between what you once called the "real" world and your new home.
For as long as he could remember, Charles had lived in Carcosa and when he slept, he had dreamed of some other world filled with such pathetic, inane tortures. Or had he lived in this world and dreamed of beautiful, moonlit Carcosa? He could never work it out, so chose not to think about it.
Carcosa was Ythill. Or Ythill was to become Carcosa. Every moment of life was the moment before the Stranger spoke and revealed the truth. The tension as the twin suns fell before the towers across the lake never resolved, a note left discordant and desperate for a conclusion that would never come. And it was beautiful to live in that moment. The revelry and festivities outside, the last celebration of Ythill that is Carcosa, the masqued people everywhere, the music, the buildings, the art... It was wonderful.
And beneath all of this wonder was the Yellow Sign.
The dreams were troubling. He saw himself there, living a life almost devoid of beauty. Hated. Despised. Misunderstood except by a few. Disconnected from the ones that had loved him. The play made it all perfectly clear, at least from this side, and his other self understood, but was unable to make the changes required. He saw reflections of his dreams in Carcosa. Faces in paintings, statues, books that told the life-stories (past, present and future) of people his dream-self knew and the bottles labelled with their names filling the labyrinth.
The dreams had ceased for some time, as he perceived it. This was a relief. The dreams had been disturbing and for now, he felt at peace. Free to revel in wonder and awe at the world, and to sleep without the nightmares.
The dreams came anew with a potency they had not had before, and he saw more and more echoes of them in Carcosa. He began to perceive patterns he had not before, almost as though the companions of his dream-self were attempting to send a message. He understood when he stumbled across a history of himself, though he could scarcely believe. These dream-beings were in some danger. Danger that could threaten both Charles and his paradise here in Carcosa, if left unchecked. Of course, his initial reaction was to attempt to ignore it as just a dream. But the messages kept arriving, till he could ignore them no longer. Doubtful though he was that this dream had any truth in it, the only way to stop the messages would be to confront the source.
Some searching led him to the tools he would require. The key, the door, the lamp held in an almost skeletal hand and the map. Equally, he searched for a form that would more suit the dream than his current shape and settled on a painting of a bored aristocrat he had found. The trappings would need to be changed, but the face was ideal.
Thus prepared, for the first time he could remember, Charles stepped into the world of his nightmares.
Faction Bonus Servant: 1M Bonus on succesful gathering of Madness. Doesn’t count when performing Penance. Master: Extra point of Will Rebel: 9-again on resistance rolls associated with their Sect. If their Sect’s favored attribute is a physical one they this will affect Stamina rolls, Composure if social and Resolve if mental. Denier: Doubles the amount of time an Outsider may suppress his mutations. Dreamer: always counts as having two levels of Displacement less for the purpose of determining negative effects, tho they will still be banished from reality at Displacement 10.
QUIESCENCE AND MYTHOS
Quiescence is an Outsider's Morality. It reflects how human/real the Outsider is.
7 is the default starting value for morality stats. Any normal person (and other supernaturals) would have Quiescence 10. It'll be trying to convince reality that you're not an aberration.So Outsiders should start at 7, to start with they aren't normal at all. They have to work to undo the damage they've already done.
Quiescence Sin Dice
10 Using Rejections to accomplish a task that could be achieved just as well 5 without it.
09 Cause a minor derangement. Observable reality perversion.. 4
08 Minor Changes on reality, Use a rejection on a mundane character 4
07 Showing mortals the secret of the universe 4
06 Cause a Major Derangement(Just causing a derangement on someone that 3 is sane is worse than doing it on someone that is already broken)
05 Human Sacrifice (Sacrifice must be to some arcane end, not simple 3 murder)
04 Cause an area to gain Displacement 2
03 Major alteration of reality, (needs to be more specific) using a Major 2 Rejection (level 5), Major Human Sacrifice (10 or more lives)
02 Repeating indulgence of the previous sins 1
01 Willfully endanger the fabric of creation (Let the Old Ones back in), Massive 1 Human Sacrifice (more than 20 at one time. (Again, simply killing them doesn’t count.)
Additionally, you lose Quiescence by transforming into the Eldritch Form and botched rolls on Rejections
You regain Quiescence by Expending Experience at ST discretion if he feels you character has done something to reconnect him with reality.
Displacement WIP
Displacement represents how much of a dent the Outsider makes into the fabric of reality. It has a value of [Mythos - Quiescence] and as long as it is 0 or less it has no effect, but once it rises above that the following happens: -reduce length of suppression of mutations by an hour for each point of Displacement -an outsider with a displacement value displays an otherworldly quality that provokes a fight or flight reaction. It might be a strange smell, might be the ringing in your ears when he's nearby or that you can't distinguish left from right in his presence, might be the fact that his pupils seem to shift and move and speak of an unspeakably vast void. Mechanically it gives a malus to social interaction equal to the Displacement value. Furthermore a 'dominant' personality will react aggressively and attack immediately unless restrained, while a 'submissive' personality will cower in fear (essentially giving you a bonus to intimidate equal to the Displacement value). It works essentially the same on animals except for a few species. -once 5 points of Displacement are reached the Outsider begins to slip from reality and 1 Will must be spent to be able to interact with the world, one additional will must be paid for each point of Displacement beyond 5. Alternately he can be summoned back into reality by the proper ritual if there is someone prepared to perform it. At 10 the Outsider is thrown completely out of existence and becomes unplayable (tho a ST may rule a PC unplayable before that).
If the outsider happens to be in an area with increased Displacement (look at following section) reduce its Displacement by the same amount.
Displacement and the material world Places can be shifted and affected by Displacement in the same way Outsiders are. Whether it's a damned old Church that was the site of some horrendous ritual two centuries ago and that disappeared from the mortal world, or a place like Atlantis or the City of the Elder Things. Outsiders can still see these and enter them with the right rituals, since they're somewhat similarly out of step with reality. Other supernaturals and mortals can also enter them but it takes much more powerful rituals or the luck of a plot device to let them in. Some Outsiders take these places and make them their own, using them like safehouses to hide in.
An area’s Displacement increases by 1 when: -A Ritual conducted for this very purpose -A (•••••) Ritual is performed (unless stated otherwise) -A Ritual that has gone horribly wrong or been going on for too long. -A total of 20 dots worth of Rejections is used in the same scene. A battle between Outsiders is almost guaranteed to cause a gain of Displacement.
The affected area is 10 yards multiplied by the combined Mythos of everyone involved.
0 Normal
01 -2 on rolls related to finding or remembering the affected region
02 Must pass a [Resolve+Composure] roll at -2 every 2 hours or flee the place if possible.
03 The penalties for the previous effects increases to -3
04 The penalties for the previous effects increases to -4
05 The affected area slips from this plane of existence. Need a (•) Ritual to access. (*)
06 Need a (••) Ritual to access.
07 Need a (•••) Ritual to access.
08 Need a (••••) Ritual to access.
09 Need a (•••••) Ritual to access.
10 The affected area is lost to this universe.
This effects are not suffered by outsiders with high enough Displacement ratings. Everyone else is affected accordingly. (*)Tho the affected region has slipped from normal space the previous effects still apply to the place where this rituals are to be performed.
Mythos
Even tho the Outsider may still act and look human the more he indulges his nature the more alien he becomes. This is represented by the Mythos value, the higher it is, the more powerful the Outsider becomes.
LVL Max Stat Max Madness Madness Per Turn Max Age
1 5 10 1 +15
2 5 14 2 +75
3 5 18 3 +135
4 5 24 4 +405
5 5 30 5 +1215
6 6 40 7 +3645
7 7 50 9 +10935
8 8 60 11 +32805
9 9 85 13 +98415
10 10 100 15 That is not dead which can eternal lie
For a new character Mythos start at 1, but the player has the option of raising it up to level 3 using his merit points, at a rate of three per level of Mythos.
Madness is the fuel of the Outsiders' rituals and rejections. They can gain madness both by harvesting it from the insane and from breaking reality.
The mad and broken act as a conduit, their afflictions allowing them a subconscious understanding of the depths beyond the silver gate. The Outsider itself can be granted such moments of epiphany and draws even more power from them.
Being within sensory range of someone who loses a point of morality gives 1 madness, being within sensory range of someone who gains a mild derangement gives 2, when someone gains a severe one it is 3. When the Outsider loses Quiescence it is 4, when it gets a mild derangement it is 5, and when it gets a severe derangement it is 6.
Starting Madness for a new character is equal to starting Quiescence.
Ritual Worship One of the ways an Outsider may regain Madness, if he possesses the [Cult] merit is through ritual worship. The way the ritual it self is performed is of little importance, though an intelligent player will tailor it to the individuals that comprise the cult. What is important is that it contains an act of submission, this can take the form of destruction of valuables, scarification or whatever you can come up with. The participating cultists each loose a point of will which the Outsider uses to open a conduit to the outer realms from which it can siphon off energy without the repercussions of Penance.
The amount of Madness regained this way depends largely on when the rituals are performed. As such they are linked to metaphysical signs that indicate a thinning of the veil between worlds, the stronger and rarer the portent the greater the amount of Madness regained, tho any such occurrence that happens more than once per week indicates a simple natural fluctuation, not strong enough to provide any benefit.
For example, a weekly ritual performed each time the moon changes phase has a ratio of 2 will points to 1 Madness gain, a monthly one a 1:1, a ritual performed during a solstice has a 2:1 exchange. A lunar or solar eclipse will restore the Outsider to maximum capacity as long as at least 5 will points are used. Really powerful portents like the return of Halley's Comet or a multiple planetary alignment are left to the ST.
Penance The Outsiders pierces the outer gate to draw on the essence of the beyond, but the universe takes notice. Take a temporary point of Displacement in exchange for 3 Madness. After 24 hours you lose the point. You can push this up to 10 displacement, but with disastrous consequences.
Sacrificing Humans and other living beings By sacrificing a living being the Outsider gains an amount of Madness equal to to the sacrifices Willpower. An animal will have a lower willpower, a broken minded cultist somewhat more, and the ‘hero’ who faced you last night even more. A willing sacrifice gets a +1M bonus. Non sentient beings never count as willing. While not directly linked to Ritual Worship it is likely for this two functions to be performed at the same time.
Derangements Derangements are acquired by loss of Quiescence with an option of acquiring a Liability as an alternative. The strength of the Liability should depend on how severe the derangement would have been. Essentially the Outsider has the ability to externalize his inner struggles so that they don’t affect his mind but his body.
REJECTIONS AND RITUALS
"Reject Reality. Obtain Cookies."
Rejections can do many things. In fact, there's very little they can't do. You can know a rejection that will turn you into a giant, squamous behemoth able to readily devour your foes, or a rejection able to rip out a man's sanity and replace with the cacophonous wails of the damned. That's a good conversation starter at parties, I hear, but I don't go to those sorts of parties because no one invites me.
So let's go over what a Rejection can't do, hmm?
They can't follow the laws of reality. No melting ice, boiling water, or turning one thing into another of the same mass. They have to break some law. They have to REJECT reality. Hence the name.
Sure, you can turn a stone into a loaf of bread of the same size, o Moses of the Pharaoh. But the trick's in the mass--you study Einstein at all? Energy equals mass times the speed of light squared. But that's something we can Reject, eh? We turn the stone to bread, and it's done--bread's lighter than stone, has less mass, it's fine.
But say you want to turn a hunk of lead into... I dunno, a piece of gold with the same mass. No can do.
Now, if you wanted to turn that hunk of lead into a piece of gold infused with the power of the Dreamlands, or one that would bring about mutagenic wrath that would make Shub- Niggurath blush, that's fine, because you're imbuing it with powers that reject reality.
Now that the rant's out the way, how's about we try some out, youngster? Hold onto your butt, 'cause things are about to get Real.
See what I did there? Always had a soft spot for puns.
Oh, you want more information first? Eh, your type always does. Okay, there's a few different categories, at least that we can tell, of Rejections. I'll just go down this nice little list that once got written on my back. Long story. I'll tell it to you later.
First up's called Communion. We ain't alone, more or less ever, what with the whole 'connection to outsiders' thing we've got going on. It lets us do cool things with minds, mostly, and knowledge. You can learn things you've got no right knowing, you can talk to people with just your thoughts, stuff like that.
The power of Mindscape's what we use to fuck with people's minds directly. Make them see illusions, pull out memories, hypnotize them, even just drive them stark raving bonkers, that's what Mindscape's good at. It's also a great conversation starter at parties.
Dreamscape's a fun little fucker with play with. Power over people's Dreams, plus a little side in going through the Dreamlands when you want to? Possess sleeping bodies, stake out little corners of the Dreamlands for your own use? It's pretty damn fun.
Hypergeometry--my personal favoraite, by the way--is that category of Rejections that deals with the sort of things that would make Euclid go all pale and sweaty. Extradimensional spaces, teleporting, irregular angles, oh man, the stuff this thing can do... I like to write out problems that use it, then show it to college math professors. Gets them, every time.
Superposition's a strange one, at least to me--never could quite wrap my head fully around it--but it's pretty simple, or it's supposed to be in theory. Basically, there's a ton of realities out there, and with Superposition, you can tap into those other realities, the past, the future, whatever. It's messing with time and fate.
Next up we've got Polymorphism, which is really fucking fun at parties, by the way. It's the category of Rejections (ever think it's funny that we categorize these things? I mean, it just seems hypocritical to me. Eh, dosen't matter) that deals with your body. Yep, yours. Well, and others. It lets you twist, reshape, mutate, grant life, eat people, whatever. If it deals with matters of flesh, it's Polymorphism. Unless it ain't.
Corruption's a good one. See, reality ain't meant for us, right? We corrupt it just by existing. So we tap into that corruption, and bam, Corruption. It's remaking reality to be more like us. It's also one of the most versatile categories, with all sorts of crazyfun and funcrazy shit to do in it.
And last, but certainly not least, is Violation. You know those laws of physics I mentioned we don't care about earlier? This is, basically, breaking the piss out of them. Change how velocity and acceleration work, speed up or slow down time, twist and contort people by shifting what the definition of gravity is, change mass. Think of it as the physics to Polymorphism's biology.
And that's the sort of Rejections we can do. Cool, eh? Thought so. Now, for the hands-on lessons. Hope you brought your brown pants!
Rejections are powers that come from an Outsider's link with his God. These are supernatural abilities that just work for him. They are divided into Schools of Subversion with each Sect having three favoured ones. At Character creation you get three dots to be assigned to your favoured schools whit one school receiving a maximum of two.
Rituals are magical rites which invoke the power of the Old Gods indirectly. Suitably knowledgeable mortals can use these rituals, but Outsiders are better. They generally involve long and involved castings, often with groups of cultists aiding the Outsider. Rituals are ceremonies related to the Outsiders, but not exclusive to them. Anyone with enough Madness and the knowledge of the eldritch lore can perform a ritual. Rituals are extended actions, often requiring up to hundreds of successes to be performed. Succeeding in these rituals gives the participants permanent benefits, either changing them somehow, or providing them with pieces of the great beyond.
Schools of Subversion:
Communion: Access to knowledge from outside the mortal realm. Mindscape: Power over the conscious minds of others. Dreamscape: Influencing dreams and have them influence reality. Hypergeometry: The warping of space and time through symbols and spells. Superposition: The observer influences what a given system will collapse into (Luck powers) Polymorphism: Control over one's physical form and that of others. Corruption: Disease & decay oriented. Violation: Alters the basic laws of physics as understood by humanity.
Acquiring Rejections Rejections have a one time cost to learn them and have their power determined by dots in the School they belong to. You get 3 free at the start, (chosen from your favored schools) from then on new rejections cost is equal to the number of rejections you currently have times two. So a 4th will be 6XP, the 5th 8xp, etc. You also gain one when buying your first dot in a previously unknown school of subversion.
So lets say you buy a new Hypergeometry Rejection at 6xp. Since you have Hypergeometry at level 2 you have access to level 1 & 2 of that Rejection. Once you raise Hypergeomentry to 3 you unlock level 3 powers for all your known Rejections belonging to Hypergeomentry.
Fluff for the Schools
COMMUNION As an outsider, you are a rare being, but are never truly alone. The knowledge of all of those that came before you is held within the mind of your patron god and the ability to converse with them or an avatar of their will is always a powerful asset. Through the powers of communion an outsider may call upon the wisdom of their own kin and, in rare cases, perhaps even from their own progenitors, be they sleeping, machinating, or standing vigilant in the realms beyond.
Sample powers associated: >Speak to an individual telepathically >Gain insight into reading or speaking a long dead language >Channel the wisdom of another outsider >Receive a gift of power from your other worldly gods
MINDSCAPE The flesh is temporal and wounds may heal, but scars upon the mind are permanent and lasting. Working your unnatural powers over the fragile minds of mortals and immortals alike is a useful tool with many applications. Even the most hardened of psyches will crumble eventually before the unknowable horrors of the alien mind.
Sample powers associated: >Psychically assault an enemy's mind >Induce fear, rage, or even insanity in others >Hypnotize or command weak willed individuals >Extract information or memories from others
DREAMSCAPE The world of dreams and the unconscious is no more an illusion than the waking world itself is. The minds of every living thing wander its vast landscape all the time without even realizing it. By mastering this land and its untapped resources you can strike at the heart of those who have not and remake the malleable world for your own purposes.
Sample powers associated: >Travel through the Dreamlands >Banish or call an individual from the Dreamlands >See and manipulate the dreams of sleepers >Create a pocket dimension of Dreamland >Possess the body of a sleeper HYPERGEOMETRY Non-Euclidean geometries are a fascinating study, but especially so when applied to the fabric of the universe. The reality folds and curves back on itself and with a little nudge, the thin boundaries between other dimensions can be made to give way. Draw forth the power of the outer realms, or step into them yourself to seek new and greater power.
Sample powers associated: >Step through extra-dimensional space to avoid harm and travel >Channel energies from other dimensions into the mortal world >Redirect projectiles through other dimensions to new targets >Step beyond the mortal realms and travel outside >Travel through irregular angles, avoiding and confounding foes
SUPERPOSITION The truth of the universe is that we as individuals are merely fragments of greater pan dimensional wholes. Even within our own lives, we are complete collection of moments words on the pages of the annals of time and space, able to be read by an outsider's perspective as easily as any past event. Use you connection to the outside to peer through time and space.
Sample powers associated: >Gain a brief glimpse of the future >Look into the ancient past >Cause a brief time displacement of yourself or others >Channel the mind or form of one of your countless otherselves Look at Time and Fate Arcana
POLYMORPHISM The flesh is all knowing, and infinitely mutable. Able to adapt to even the harshest of conditions and situations, those who understand the origins and true nature of the flesh can craft the hardest shield or the greatest weapon from the endless pallet of flesh. You are the master of life and death. Try looking at Promethean. Pandoran transmutions in particular, but Metamorphosis and Corporeum also contain lots of good body horror.
Sample powers associated: >Grant life to that which once lived or even never did that they may serve you >Transform yourself into a twisted killing machine or imitate another >Mutate others into horrible husks of their former selves >Consume and absorb the flesh of others to restore your own
CORRUPTION The mortal world was not made for the presence of an outsider, so many outsiders bring their own taint to the world itself. Either through destroying the natural sanctity of the world itself or spreading the touch of decay to its residents, eventually all will be made suitable for your inhabiting. You bring your taint to a world which would turn you away, and remake it in your image.
Sample powers associated: >Protect a location by making it unfriendly to non-outsiders >Inflict debilitating and wasting supernatural diseases upon others >Slowly turn a mortal into an outsider, whether mindless or subservient >Purify wounds of outsiders by spreading them to the natural world or others
VIOLATION
The world exists by a concrete set of rules, but even these basic truths do not stand in the presence of outsiders. What one might understand of physical laws means nothing when an outsider can shatter them and refit them to their own purposes. As a partly higher dimensional being you can manipulate the world in inconceivable ways, bending and breaking conventional wisdom in your wake.
Sample powers associated: >Alter the velocity of people and objects and their directions >Increase or decrease your own mass drastically >Slow down or speed up time in a small region >Twist and contort an individual through physical forces
Rituals (preliminary rules)
Rituals, while needing a longer time to prepare and perform hold several advantages over simply using a Rejection. A Ritual can be taught and performed by human cultists, the successes of the rolls of all participants counting towards determining how powerful the final result will be. The maximum number of participants is equal to the Mythos rating of Ritual’s leader or in the case of mortals their Willpower rating (unless stated otherwise in the description).
When performed by mortals/nonoutsiders, the Ritual’s Madness cost is payed in WP and any roll requiring a Mythos rating is substituted by Willpower divided by two. Mortals do not get a School of Subversion rating. Performing a ritual is vile and unnatural thing and doubly so for a mortal. Each performance of a ritual counts as a sin against morality Lv.2 unless the individual possesses the [Heart of Stone] merit.
To learn how to perform a Ritual version of a Rejection you know, you must have the appropriate ranks in [Eldritch Knowledge] and accumulate 5 successes on a roll of [Intelligence+Occult] per dot rating of the particular power you wish to manifest. Rolls are normally made once per month, but that can be reduced to once per week if you are in possession of a tome describing the ritual you want to learn or being tought by someone else with the knowledge.
Preparing and performing a ritual takes takes time depending on it's strength:
(•) can be performed in a few hours (••) can be performed in a day (•••) 3 days to prepare 1 day to perform (••••) one week to prepare 3 days to perform (•••••) 1 month to prepare 1 week to perform *gathering proper materials may take longer at the ST's discretion, especially for the higher level ones. **certain special rituals (see Sample Rituals) function differently and can only be found in ancient texts and would take several human lifetimes to recreate on your own.
The above system can also be used to create rituals that grant mutations to mortals. In their case however the limit on the number dots of mutations they can have is equal to their Willpower. They however get only two categories of mutations; Assets (regardless if they are Weapon, Armor or General mutations) and Liabilities.
SAMPLE REJECTIONS
COMMUNION
[Alienist Alliance] Cost: 1M As a priest of your god or a leader of the rebellion, you have many allies on many worlds. Channel the wisdom of another outsider to assist you in your quests. Roll [Mythos+Communion+Presence], time of connection is s number of rounds equal to roll result. Ranks: (•) Speak to a random Mythos Creature within sensory range. (••) Speak to a specific Mythos Creature within sensory range. (•••) Speak to a specific Mythos Creature anywhere. (••••) Let a Mythos Creature take over your body as a tool to accomplish a prearranged task. (•••••) Make a request to speak to an avatar of your god or an opposing god if a rebel.
[Form of the Avatar] Cost: 1M+1W (Rank1-2), 2M+1W (Rank 3), 3M+1W (Rank 4-5) Receive a gift of power from your other worldly gods that you might serve their will. You gain a gift to better help you serve them. As you improve this Rejection you gain access to ever greater gifts. All effects last the duration of the scene. Roll [Mythos+Communion+Wits] divide the successes among the gifts you have available. The highest gift you assign a success determines the cost of the Rejection. (•) Your physical form causes distress if looked at. Gain +1 bonus on intimidation rolls (••) You gain a extra die on Quiescence rolls. (•••) Gain a +1 bonus to two stats of your choice (can increase beyond max) (••••) Treat your Mythos as one higher for the purposes of rejections (•••••) Rejections other than this one cost one less madness
[Ancient Knowledge] Cost: none In the minds of the gods, all languages are still very much alive and well. Borrow some of that forgotten knowledge that you might gain better insight into their nature or to seek greater power. Gain insight into reading or speaking a long dead language temporarily. Roll [Mythos+Communion+Intelligence]. Ranks: (•) Read all common languages you don't know. (••) Read all dead languages.
(•••) Speak and understand 1 common language per success. (••••) Extends the previous level to dead languages. (•••••) Extends the previous level to supernatural languages.
[Dark Whispers] Cost: none Speak to an individual telepathically at a distance. Distance between individuals and length of conversation, as well as whether or not the can respond vary with ranks. Ranks: (•) Send a brief message to a target within sensory range. (••) Send a brief message to a target anywhere on the same world as long as you know his name and face or can form an empathic link through something owned by him. (•••) Converse freely with target within sensory range they may respond (••••) Converse freely with a target anywhere on the same world and they may respond as long as you know his name or face. (•••••) Converse freely with a target on another world or dimension
[The Tapestry] Cost: 1-3:none 4: 1M 5: 2M Duration: Scene You see even with your eyesight impaired or blocked, by sensing the tapestry of reality. Five yard radius per point of Mythos. (•) You see as if your senses were not impaired and in greater detail. You may roll [Mythos+Communion+Wits or Composure(whichever is higher)] instead of the standard roll of [Wits + Composure] for perception rolls. (••)[Aura Perception] like a vampire (•••) Immune to mundane stealth. Whenever a person uses a dice pool that relies on Stealth and is non-magical, you automatically pass perception tests to see through it (••••)You know exactly what is real and what is not. Ranks in Communion count as bonus to resist any supernatural attempt to influence your perceptions, including illusions and stealth. (•••••) Your sense extends beyond any obstacles and you might perceive what is hidden behind walls or other objects.
[Mingling of Essence] Cost: 1M per dot of the Rejection + the cost of the Rejection itself +1W
If you are in physical contact with an other Outsider you may use one of the rejections it knows as if it were your own. You may only use a Rejection of a level equal or inferior to your level of Communion.
[Blood Bond] Cost: 1M/target
Duration: Scene
The Outsider inflicts a minor wound on itself an the target such that they begin to bleed. The blood then forms a tether between the target(s) and the Outsider. (needs appropriate resistance rolls for unwilling targets) (•)The outsider may ignore Bashing damage by spreading it to the individuals he is bonded to. He can do this a number of times equal to his Mythos per target. (••) The outsider sees and hears what the bonded do. (•••) As the one dot power, but the outsider can downgrade Lethal damage to Bashing or ignore it if he wishes the target to suffer the full effects (in this case he must pay 1M per point of Lethal damage transferred). (••••)You embody all the best qualities of those bonded to you. Each of your rolls uses the highest Abilities of those who are bonded to you, but render them unable to act.You may do this a number of times equal to your Mythos. (•••••) As the three dot power but you can downgrade aggravated damage to Lethal. And must pay 2M per wound transferred.
[Animism] Cost: 1-2:0M 3:1M 4:2M 5:2M+1W
Everything has a soul and everything has a story to tell. Ranks: (•) The Outside knows what something is, tho that does not mean it knows how it works. This allows him to identify a rotten corpse or or recognize a pool of molten metal as a screwdriver (••) The Outsider instinctively knows how the object came to be there. Ex.: It will know the details of the corpse's murder or how the screwdriver was used in an attempt at self defense against a mage. This knowledge is from the point of view of the victim/object. (•••) The Outsider may extract knowledge about an object's function from it. This eliminates any negative effects from attempting to perform an untrained action involving the object. If the Outsider already has knowledge of how use the object the bonus conferred by the tool doubles. (••••) The Outsider is able to use something even if broken as long as the general shape is still recognizably unaltered. A car might be missing all four tires and an engine, but it still looks like a car. (•••••) The Outsider may craft a “totem” of an object, no matter the material it will function as it were the object represented for the duration of a scene.The totem must contain at least one used component from the object represented (something like the bone of a saint in an altar). So if you want to turn a car into a tank you must have acquired a piece of used tank armor.
[Eucharist] Cost: 1-2:0M 3:1M 4-5:2M
Consuming at least a mouthful of the flesh of a creature grants the Outsider advantages when interacting with the rest of its kind. This lasts for a number of hours equal to the number of successes on a roll of [Mythos+Communion+Presence], but it will always last at least one. Outsiders who have trouble holding on to their humanity use this Rejection to help mitigate the adverse effects of a low
Quiescence. Eating Humans or other Outsiders has the same result as eating anything else, tho eating someone with the same cultural background as the user renders the first effect moot Ranks: (•) Disregard negative dice due to interacting with an unknown culture up to the Outsider’s ranks in Communion (••) Abilities that detect auras read the Outsider as belonging to the consumed’s kind (•••) The outsider gains a deeper understanding of the consumed species. Not only are negative dice dependant on lack cultural knowledge ignored, but the outsider also gains a bonus to social interactions equal to his successes on the first roll. (••••) The Outsider can move among the consumed’s kind accepted as one of their own. The creatures aren’t even consciously aware it doesn’t belong. A flock of sheep or pride of lions makes no difference. Those who behold the outsider can roll [Composure+Occult] vs the Rejections original roll to see through the effect (•••••) The Outsider no longer needs to consume the flesh, only stay in physical contact with the target when activating the Rejection, thus eliminating the possibility of a corpse or wounded individual being discovered.
[Lay on hands] Cost: 1: 1M 2:special 3:2M 4-5:special The Outsider learns how to channel the energies of the outer darkness to replace the flesh of creatures other than itself and learns how to better heal himself. Like for Outsiders this counts as a sin against Morality 8 for whomever is being healed. Target needs to be touched. Ranks: (•) The Outsider gains a bonus to resist poison & diseases equal to his successes on a roll of [Mythos+Communion+Presence] (••) The Outsider can heal Bashing (1/2M) and Lethal (1M) damage for other creatures. Must touch Target. (•••) As (•) but it can be used on other people. In addition, for every dot of damage thus resisted the outsider may imbue his next attack with them. The target must make the normal poison/disease resist rolls to avoid damage, tho it is not infected as a result of the attack. (••••) As (••) but it can be done at sensory range and Aggravated damage (2M) can be healed if target is touched (•••••) The Outsider can now heal for twice the amount it could before. 4 Bashing for 1M, 2 Lethal for 1M, 2 Aggravated for 2M.
MINDSCAPE
[Psychic Duress] Cost: 1-2: 1M 3:2M 4:2M+1W 5:3M
You psychically assault an enemy's mind, dealing damage even to the strong willed and crippling the weak willed. Deals damage to a foe within sight range. Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Intelligence] Ranks: (•) Target is overcome by pain and looses movement for his next turn. In case of an exceptional success he looses the whole turn. (••) The pain becomes unbearable, in addition to the previous effects the target suffers temporary bashing damage equal to successes. Damage fades after a scene. (•••)Deal Bashing damage. Target must make a [Stamina+Mythos-(Outsider’s successes)] if it fails target is stunned for a turn. (••••) As previous, but target is stunned automatically. On an Exceptional Sucess Target is stunned for 3 rounds. (•••••)Deal Lethal damage, Target must make a [Stamina+Mythos-(Outsider’s successes)] if it fails target is knocking unconscious
[Warped Psyche] Cost: 1:none 2-3:1M 4:2M 5:3M
You induce rage, or even insanity in others with only the slightest focus of your alien mind. Turn a foe into an impotent coward or into a blinded indiscriminate murderer. The effects last as long as you maintain focus on the target and for 2 minutes per success thereafter. Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Manipulation] vs.[Composure+Mythos] Ranks: (•) Target becomes severely irritated and gains a +3 bonus to resists Manipulation rolls not aimed at enraging him further. (••) Target experiences an adrenaline surge and gains a +1 bonus to physical abilities (•••) In addition to the previous effect, the target is enraged and attacks a single opponent for the remainder of a scene. If opponent is defeated the target remains catatonic for a number of rounds unless attacked. (••••) Target flies into a blind rage, attacking the nearest target each turn regardless of friendliness, but also deluded into believing you are an ally and will not attack you (•••••) In addition to the previous effect, target gains +X to physical abilities, where X = the number of successes you have beaten his roll by (capped by the Outsider’s Mythos).
[The Name of the Beast] Cost: 1:none 2-3:1M 4:2M 5:2M+1W
You speak your true name in an tongue alien to creation. Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Presence] vs [Composure+Mythos] Targets with a willpower rating of 4 or less automatically suffer the full effects. Ranks: (•) Target is shaken. -2 on Dexterity related rolls -1 for every two additional successes. (••) Target cannot act so long as you are within sight unless attacked.
(•••) The Outsider may issue a single command in Aklo (target will know the meaning instinctively). Target has the choice of either obeying or suffering a number of bashing damage equal to the number of successes his roll was beaten by. (••••) Like [Shatter the Mind] from V:TR p.134 but you gain 1M per drained point Willpower (•••••) Like [Mortal Fear] from V:TR p.134 but you gain 3M per Dot of Will power lost by the target.
[Spinal Tap] Cost: 3M for each memory extracted Extract information or memories from others by peering into their minds and taking them. If successful the target forgets the extracted info or memory and the extraction itself and you can view the memory at will. You must specifically declare what memory or information you are trying to extract before using the ability within the guidelines based on rank. Failure to find the desired memory because it does not exist causes the rejection to fail. Roll [Mythos + Mindscape + Manipulation] against your targets' [Resolve + Mythos] to determine success. Unconscious targets may only use Mythos for their roll. Ranks: (•) Remove the memory of the last 30 minutes (••) Remove the memory of any specific 30 minutes or information relating to mundane things (•••) Remove the memory of the last day or information relating to occult research (If their occult skill is higher than yours, yours becomes equal to theirs for the duration of the scene) (••••) Remove the memory of any specific day or information about a specific outsider (•••••) Remove all memory of a specific individual or information about a specific skill (your skill rank for that skill becomes that rank for the duration of the scene)
[Shifted Loyalties] Cost: 1-2: None 3-4:1M 5:2M
You have the power to hypnotize mortals or command weaker outsiders. Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Presence] against your target's [Resolve + Mythos] to determine success. Ranks: (•) People view you as friendly unless proven otherwise. (••) A single target will act on a simple suggestion. (•••) A single target will serve you in any way you command as long as the command doesn’t go against his personal convictions (••••) As the three dot power, but the number of targets is limited by your Mythos. (•••••) You become the object of a single target’s adoration. He will cater to your every whim and is prepared to die or kill for you.
[Words of Corruption] Cost: 1:none 2:1M 3-4:2M 5:2M+1W
The words of the Outsider carry a terrible power, able to bend the minds and bodies of their victims. Roll Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Manipulation] against your target's [Resolve+Mythos]. Ranks: (•) Confuse the target. -2 on perception related rolls -1 for every two additional successes. (••) Target confuses the concepts of right and wrong. Switch target's Vice & Virtue in regard to regaining willpower whenever he is in the Outsider's presence up to a week per success. (•••)With this the Outsider can speak a single sentence - 'You are blind.' 'Your head is full of bees' 'Your arms are now tentacles' - and the victim will believe it, with predictable results. Target may reroll his Composure if a third party informs him that what he sees is not real, he also gains a +1 on that roll for each other person that corroborates this. If the command goes against the target's Morality he gets the number of dice that would be used to save from degeneration as a bonus to resist any command below his current Morality level. Pain (at least 2 bashing or 1 lethal damage) brakes the mental hold outright. (••••) Alter the target's perception of reality to the point that where normal would seem abnormal and vice versa. If used on a mortal he will no longer cause paradox for a Mage or run in terror from a Werewolf, but if used on supernatural, a Mage will suffer paradox effects by using magic in front of supernaturals etc. (have to think of how this affects other supernaturals) (•••••) Reprogram an individual's personality. Like [Pygmalion’s Caress] (P:tC p.138)
[Glare of Carcosa] Cost: 1:0M 2-3:1M 4:2M 5: 2M+1W
The Outsider turns his full attention upon an enemy and fill their sight with the barest hint of the truth of Hastur. Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Presence] vs [Composure+Mythos]. (•) Everyone has a dark secret, the Outsider drags that memory up from the depths of the enemy's mind. The target is distracted suffering a -1 on his rolls for a number of rounds equal to the successes on the roll. (••) As previous, but the memory is so vivid the target can hardly think of anything else. Malus increases to -2. He suffers an additional -1 for every additional successes. (•••) Reduce opponent’s social and mental related dice pools by a number equal to your successes for the rest of the scene. On an exceptional success you may inflict a minor derangement. (••••) As previous, but it affects the opponent's successes directly. (•••••) The targeted mind crumbles to dust, unable to handle the true horror of reality. Inflict derangement of your choice or worsen a preexisting condition.
[Open Book] Cost: 1-2: none 3-4: 1M 5:2M
Roll Roll [Mythos+Mindscape+Wits] vs [Mythos+Resolve]
Ranks: (•) The Outsider can't quite read a mind, but can read the targets body language well enough to deduce it's intention. Gain a +1 bonus to resist any attempts at misdirection. (••) The Outsider knows the target's Vice, Virtue and any Derangements. (•••) Read target's surface thoughts. The Outsider gains a bonus equal to the number he has won the roll with if it relates to the target's intention (to defense if the Outsider is being attacked, to Manipulation if talking to the target, etc.) (••••) As (•••) but the Outsider can read anything in the target's mind (•••••) As (••••) but can effect a number of targets equal to the successes on the Outsider's roll.
[Eternal Darkness of a Shattered Mind] Cost: 1: none 2-3: 1M 4:2M 5:3M
While some may find madness to be an undesirable trait, the shattered thoughts may be arranged into a field of caltrops for anyone trying to invade a mind.
(•) Target receives a +1 bonus to resist fear effects per derangement possessed to a maximum of +5 (••) Target ignores any penalty he has due to low health per derangement possessed (•••) Target may better rationalize an action that would go against his morality. Turn a negative effect from a derangement into a bonus. (••••) The target's mind is a minefield. Next time he is subjected to mental manipulation he receives a +3 bonus to his resistance roll or he can raise his resistance trait by 2, as if he spent a point of will power. The Outsider may do so on reflex. (•••••) Anyone trying to invade the targets mind suffers the negative effects of the derangement therein. The attacker gets all the appropriate resistance rolls.
[Heart of the Beast] Cost: 1-2: none 3-4: 1M 5:2M
Tho most animals instinctively fear Outsiders, it is not hard to overcome such small minds.
(•) The Outsider may summon a single large animal of a particular species to come to it. The range is [Mythos+Mindscape] miles. It will arrive at it's own speed, so animals within sensory range are usually of more immediate use. (••) The Outsider may alter the disposition of an animal within visual range (rabid, aggressive, careful, calm, worried, terrified, etc). (•••) The animal obeys the Outsider's commands, tho complex commands are beyond it. (••••) The Outsider outright possess the animal/swarm. Its body is left behind where it stands, should it be injured the possession is broken. (•••••) All of the previous, but it can affect [Mythos+Mindscape] targets. If targets are vermin or insects the outsider can affect large swarms (size at the ST's discretion).
DREAMSCAPE
(need to be reworked, possibly need help from someone with experience with Changling)
[Astral Voyage] Cost: 1M per target You have travel through the Dreamlands and can return there in spirit, even bringing others with you on occasion. Only works on willing targets. Ranks: (•) You fall asleep and create an projection of yourself in the Dreamlands, able to see and speak but not interact pr be harmed, (••) You bodily enter the Dreamlands leaving the mortal world behind, but return after one hour, injuries remains even after waking, (•••) You can remain in the Dreamlands indefinitely, your Dreamland bodies heal upon leaving and returning (••••) When in the Dreamlands you are a mental projection of yourself having superior physical skills (become equal to corresponding mental skills), (•••••) You can mentally alter the terrain of the Dreamlands, If you would die you instead wake up
[Head Trip] Cost: 3M You can banish or call an individual to or from the Dreamlands even against their will. The effect may be permanent at higher ranks, leaving those unskilled in Dreamland manipulation stranded. Targets banished from the Dreamlands return the last place they were before entering them. To determine success roll your Wits + Resolve + Occult against the target's Wits + Resolve + Occult (with metanormal advantage). If the target is willing, the success is automatic. Ranks: (•) On success target falls asleep for a period of one hour, lost in the Dreamlands as a projection. Damage awakens them. (only works in the waking world), (••) On success banish target bodily into or out of the Dreamlands for a period of one hour, (•••) On success, call the target to your location (must be used on a target not in the same world as you that you know by name) , (••••) The target is banished or called permanently or for any duration, (•••••) Banish the target to a pocket Dreamland of your own devising for any duration
[Pierce the Veil] Cost: 1M per rank You have the ability to see and manipulate the dreams of sleepers. You can guide a dreamers mind in its most vulnerable state to learn many secrets. Ranks: (•) While in the dreamlands you can see the projections of sleepers and hear what they say, they will respond to simple yes or no questions, (••) You can speak with projections freely and they will always treat you as friendly, (•••) You can see the current dream of a projection or sleeping person and hear their internal thoughts, all abilities of this rejection can also be used on sleepers in the waking world, (••••) You can sculpt the dreams of a projection or sleeping person in any manner you want and hear their internal thoughts about them, (•••••) You can create a nightmare for a sleeping person, causing damage to their psyche. They become unable to dream without the intervention of an outsider and gradually lose sanity.
[Borrowed Shell] Cost: 1M per rank per hour sustained You can possess the body of a sleeper, retaining your own mind but having full control over the physical shell of another. By stepping into a projection in the Dreamlands or, at higher ranks, placing a hand on their forehead, you occupy their empty physical form. The sleeper remains unaware of the seizure of their body, remaining a projection in the Dreamland for the duration of their sleep. Death while occupying a different body results in the death of the outsider. Ranks: (•) You cannot use rejections and max duration is one hour, (••) You can use simple (Rank 1) rejections, but the possessed body loses Quiescence, (•••) You can remain in possession of the body until the host would normally wake up (usually 8 hours from time of sleep), (••••) you have slight access to the memories of the person possessed and are able to imitate their mannerisms well, (•••••) You can remain in the body even after the person wakes up. You cannot control them physically but can continue to make suggestions to them mentally and hear their thoughts. When the host returns to sleep, you are also forced back into the Dreamlands.
HYPERGEOMETRY
[4th Dimensional Shift] Cost: 1:none 2:1M/transit 3:2M 4-5:3M
The universe is made up of many more dimensions than the three that the human mind can perceive. (•) You see into the higher dimensions, allowing you to see into Twilight (••) You may pass through solid matter as though it were little thicker than water. (•••) The Outsider shifts his physical body into a higher dimension, becoming virtually invisible, but for a small Hyper-dimensional shadow floating in the air that is very hard to notice and wouldn't even register on the average mind. Interacting with objects in regular space can disrupt this (••••) The Outsider becomes ghostlike fully invisible and able to freely pass through conventional matter, but unable to interact with it. (•••••) By passing a [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Intelligence] roll the Outsider May interact with a regular object for a number of rounds equal to his successes.
[Noneuclidean Geometry] Cost:1-2:1M/target 3-4: 2M 5: 2M/Attack Duration: 1-4: Scene 5:reflexive
Angles no longer work the way they should. Ranks: (•)Weapons that deal bashing damage deal lethal and weapons that deal lethal damage deal bashing. You can target a number of weapons equal to your Mythos.
(••) You can make an enclosed space bigger or smaller than it appears on the outside. (ex.: make more space within your clothes for a particularly troublesome mutation) The space can be changed by a factor of 2^successes on a roll of [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Intelligence] (•••) Attacks that seemed to be on target flow around the Outsider. Roll [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Wits] subtract successes from attackers roll. (••••) Your ability to modify space is no longer restricted to enclosed areas, you can reach for an object across a room as if it were next to you. The Outsider counts as being "spread" over the area within 5 yards times successes on a [Mythos+Hypergeoemetry + Intelligence] roll from him, but cannot penetrate solid objects. Ex.:He could pick up a cup that was 10 yards away from him as if he was next to it or stab a guy from across the room. If someone shot at you, you can choose to count as being 10 yards further away for the purposes of range. (•••••) Make a contested roll Vs an attack and if successful turn the attack against the attacker [Mythos+Hypergeometry+(Resistance Ability)]. The appropriate Resistance Ability is chosen by the Story Teller depending on the type of attack being countered.
[Dimensional Splice] Cost: 1:0M 2:1M 3-4:2M 5:2M+1W
(•) The terrain changes lightly. Roll [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Manipulation] you gain a terrain bonus to movement rolls equal to your successes or your opponents receive a malus of the same amount. (••)Completely scramble the sense of direction of everyone in sensory range. Whenever someone chooses to go in a particular direction the ST chooses a random one instead. Once noticed a player can negate this effect with a [Mythos+Survival] roll. (•••)Change part of the environment to suit your needs. Where there was once a narrow opening in a cliff leading to your lair there is now nothing but smooth rock. A group of hunters pursuing you through an abandoned building is suddenly confronted by a brick wall that shouldn't be there. A charging apeman impales himself on a stone spike that just wasn't there a second ago. You can only affect a radius of 2 yards centered on you. (••••) As (•••), but radius of effect increases to 2 yards per point of Mythos. (•••••)By sheer force of will, the Outsider imposes the domain of it’s patron upon the physical world, creating a place of warped and twisted earth where normal rules do not apply. This haven for creatures of the Beyond provides boons to the Outsider and her minions, but shatters the minds of mortal interlopers in it’s domain. The aesthetic suits the Outsider in question; from the waterlogged replica of R’lyeh to the shifting forest of Shub'niggurath. Roll [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Manipulation]. If the roll succeeds, an area around the Outsider with a radius in yards equal to 10 times the character’s Mythos rating suffers a massive reality breakdown. Uncontrollable and dangerous events occur at random, horrific sights assail the eyes and minds of witnesses trapped within, and nothing works as it should. The Storyteller should flex her imagination to come up with strange and awful things with which to plague the area. The successes on the roll form a dice pool that can affect characters within the area in different ways. If a character encounters a dangerous hazard, such as a cloud of fanged mouths, the pool is the amount of damage she might suffer (bashing or lethal as appropriate). If a character attempts an action, the pool is rolled to resist that action (even if it’s not normally resisted), successes reducing the other roll’s successes as normal. Players and Storytellers might find other ways to apply the successes to represent the unpredictable dangers of the affected area. Mortals exposed to the horrors of the area gain a temporary derangement unless a successful Willpower roll generates more successes than the evocation roll. The Rejection lasts for the duration of the scene.
[Traversing the Angles] Cost: 1: none 2:1M/Turn 3:special 4:2M 5:3M
(•) The creature always sees the shortest path. The outsider gains a +2 to his basic speed factor. (••) Like Celerity (VtR p.123) (•••) The Outsider can impart all the effects of this Rejection on a number of targets equal to [Mythos+Hypergeometry] for the additional cost of 1W on the basic power. Unwilling targets can make a [Will] roll against the Outsider's [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Intelligence] to resist. (••••) Visual range teleport. (•••••) The Outsider teleports to specific confluences of power it is aware of. No matter distance, dimension or time. (Ask ST)
[The Key and the Gate] Cost: 1-2:none 3:1M 4:2M 5:3M
(•) Open/Close doors. Roll [Mythos+Hypergeometry+Manipulation], must beat the Durability of the door. (••) Find nearest portal to other dimensions or Displaced area. Roll [Intelligence+Occult] to ignore known locations. (•••) Scramble where the doors, windows and other accesses lead in the area. (••••) Create a pocket dimension that can store dead matter and be accessed again from anywhere for [Mythos+Hypergeometry] hours. (•••••) Anything that can be opened or closed can be used as a gateway to a predetermined place. Need a quick escape route? Enter the mouth of a bystander and emerge in your sanctum.
POLYMORPHISM
[Mother's Milk] Cost: 1-2:1M 3-4:2M 5:3M Duration: Scene
From somewhere on its person, the Outsider lactates a mutagenic substance. Imbibing it has no effect on it, but should anyone else drink it, they need to roll Stamina + Resolve(Mythos not needed), the Milk strengthens and warps their being, but reverts them to a more primal, animalistic state of mind.
If at any time the imbiber is reduced to minimum intelligence he looses all inhibitions and attacks anyone in sight except the Outsider. Alternative methods of control are needed if you wish to direct his wrath, stats are capped by the Maximum stats(Look mythos chart) of the Outsider.
(•) Dramatic Failure: The Drinker only get -2 to all Mental rolls Failure: Nothing happens (he may try again) Success: The drinker get both a penalty to mental rolls equal to -2 and a bonus to physical rolls equal to +2 exceptional success: Drinker gets only the benefits (••)Bonuses and penalties increase to by one. (•••) Dramatic Failure: The Drinker only get -3 to all Mental rolls and a mutation (Liability) Failure: Nothing happens (he may try again) Success: The drinker get both a penalty to mental rolls equal to -3, a bonus to physical rolls equal to +3 and Two mutations (Liability, Asset;maximum dots limited by Willpower) exceptional success: Drinker gets only the benefits (••••) Number of mutations double. (•••••) Bonuses increase by another point.
[Master Flesh Carver] Cost: None
With this Rejection the Outsider expands its mutation limit in all categories by one dot for each dot in Polymorphism.
[Gift of the Goat] Cost: 1-2:1M 3:2M 4:3M 5:3M+1W Duration: Scene (this should be tweaked, as to enable the construct to be a viable guardian or messenger) (Why is it not viable now? Well, except for it being unable to talk)(Duration. Wouldn’t really want players to build a small army of these, but a message could take time to deliver.)
"When they said that the woods were alive, I didn't think they meant literally!" The Outsider grants life to an inanimate object for the duration of a scene. It will follow its orders to the best of it's ability given it's form, so more humanoid object are usually preferred. At lower levels the object needs proper joints to move. (•) The Outsider grants life to a construct or corpse no bigger than size 3. Physical stats for it are 1 plus 2 dots distributed as it wishes among Strength, Dexterity and Stamina. (••) Max size is now 5 and the bonus dots for attributes increase to 3. (•••)Size 7, attributes 4. The Outsider may animate statues as long as they are constructed in a way that conceivably allows for movement. (No animating modern art at this level.) (••••) Size 9, attributes 5. The Outsider may animate any object. Sticks slither around like snakes, trees tear out their roots to walk and use their branches as manipulators.
(•••••) Size 12, attributes 6. The Outsider may grant its creation the use of a single Rejection no higher than 2 dots, if it requires to pay Madness the Outsider must transfer an appropriate pool of it to the creature from its own reserves (or through sacrifice).
[That Which Can Not Be Cut] Cost: 1-2:none 3-4:1M 5:2M
The outsider exerts his power over the bonds that hold matter together, strengthening or dissolving them as it see fit. Ranks: (•) The Outsider can walk on water (••) Can walk on air and 'climb' at an 45° angle. (•••) Strengthen or weaken the molecular bonds of touched objects. Reduces or raises the durability of an object by one per success. In the case of armor it raises or lowers damage absorption by the same amount. If used on a living being it inflicts one lethal damage per success as wounds seemingly just appear on the body. Roll [Mythos+Polymorphism+Manipulation] (••••) Change the state of matter of a touched object. To do that the Outsider must succeed in beating the objects structure on an extended roll, one roll per turn. The process doesn't create or take away heat, but the ice will still be slippery and the steam just as obscuring. At the end of the scene the object returns to normal. Roll [Mythos+Polymorphism+Manipulation] (•••••) As (•••) but deals aggravated damage and manipulates durability by two points.
[Unnatural Lore] Cost: 1:none 2-3:1M 4:2M 5:2M+1W
The Outsider is a master of otherworldly anatomy, knowing how to heal, strengthen or destroy it. Ranks: (•) Recognize the advantages or disadvantages of mutations (or other similar conditions when examining non Outsiders). This also grants a +2 bonus to treating the wounds of unnatural beings. (••)The Outsider may strengthen the power of an existing mutation for the duration of a scene. If a mutation has multiple ranks it will count as being one rank higher if not increase all effects by 1. This may be used only on mutations with a rank equal or lower to the Outsider's dots in Polymorphism. (•••) The Outsider may gain or grant a temporary mutation of its choice for the duration of the scene. The strength of the mutation is limited by the Outsider's dots in Polymorphism. (••••) The Outsider can remove any temporary supernatural effect that influences the body. As long as it beats the strength of said effect on a roll of [Mythos+Polymorphism+Strength]. (•••••) Suppress the mutations of an Outsider or forces him out of Eldritch Form [Mythos+Polymorphism+Strength] vs [Mythos+Willpower]. Whether this would affect other shape- changing creatures, such as Werewolves, is left to the ST.
[The Edge Shadows] Cost: 1:none 2-3:1M 4-5:2M
Ranks: (•) Alter the shape of ambient shadows. Can be used to gain a +1 to stealth and intimidation rolls or Defense. (••) Create a cloud of shadow that muffles sound and negates all sound within. Even supernaturally aided sound perception rolls suffer a -2 penalty. The cloud has a size of 5 yards per Mythos. Animals and Mortals inside the cloud must pass a Willpower roll or flee in terror. (•••) The shadows around the Outsider take physical form. Roll [Mythos+Polymorphism+Manipulation]. For each success a tentacle or maw appears. Their Strength and Dexterity are equal to the Outsider's dots in Polymorphism and they have a health equal to its Mythos. (••••) The Outsider's shadow detaches and can perform simple commands. Once it reconnects the outsider is made aware of anything it has seen. Physical stats are equal to the Outsider's. (•••••) The Outsider transforms into a shadow. It can move through cracks or slither up walls and see in the dark. While it can not attack directly in this form, it is immune to normal attacks, but fire and magic can still hurt it. Rejections are still available for use. Transformation takes three turns and lasts a scene.
[Mimetism] Cost: 1:none 2:1M 3-4:2M 5:3M
The Outsider can alter it's body to better meld with its environment. Ranks: (•) The Outsider's body doesn't produce scent or body heat. (••) Alter facial features enough to not be recognized. The Outsider can do it for other people too, but it must surpass the targets [Stamina+Presence] on a [Mythos+Polymorphism+Strength] roll. (•••) The Outsider's skin turns into the perfect camouflage, rendering it essentially invisible as long as it stays still. Even while moving it receives +3 to stealth attempts. (••••) Transform into an exact copy of the target. To do so takes 3 turns and the Outsider needs to be in contact with it. (•••••) Meld with any living being regardless of size and pass to any other it comes in contact with a number of times equal to the successes on a roll of [Mythos+Polymorphism+Strength]. The Outsider can just be a dark passenger or influence the target's actions if the previous roll surpasses the target's Willpower roll. Said influence is limited to simple commands like 'Turn Left' or 'Stop'. If no new target is available the Outsider is expelled automatically after an mount of hours equal to its Willpower have passed.
[Amoeboid] Cost: 1:none 2:1M 3-4:2M 5:3M
(•) The Outsider can alter his body just enough to slip any common manacles or ropes, or slip easily through spaces that would otherwise require a roll. (••) The Outsider creates any non mechanical tool out of its own body. For weapons damage depends on ranks in Polymorphism, starting at 1B/0L for 2 dots and ending at 4B/3L. Armor piercing reduces the damage calculation by 1 and it must be a
(•••) Shift around internal organs and veins, reducing any lethal damage received during the scene by 1. Things like fire and acid bypass this. (••••) The skin is just an envelope containing protoplasm. The Outsider can easily slip through the crack under a door and reshape his form in any way it likes. The objects mimicked can have a size difference in regards to his basic form equal to the dots in Polymorphism, tho the minimum is 1. This doesn't influence HP or mass.
SUPERPOSITION
[Paradox Glimpse] Cost: 1-2:1M 3-4:2M 5:3M You know the finite winding nature of time and how it folds back upon itself. You peer through these waves of time to look at what may be, gaining brief glimpses of the future of yourself and others. Ranks: (•) The Outsider may re-roll a single die at anytime within the scene, (••) The Outsider immediately recognize if a person is important to it’s current schemes or if an Outsider has a large pool of Madness (•••) The Outsider gain an insight bonus on a single roll in the scene adding two extra die, (••••) The Outsider foresees the actions of a single target giving it an extra die against any effects they target it with for the duration of the scene, (•••••) The Outsider has a supernatural awareness of a given location, giving you an extra die on all rolls made within the area for the duration of the scene
[Sift through Ages] Cost: 1-2:1M 3:2M 4: 5:4M You have a strong awareness of the flow of time and can pick up on things that you shouldn’t be able to remember, and yet you do. The ancient secrets of the lost ways are all around you, you need only look at them as they once were. Ranks: (•) The Outsider knows every person it has met in a given location by name, where they live, and their profession for the duration of the scene (••) The Outsider knows the exact location of any one object anywhere in the world as well as where it has been (•••) The Outsider knows the life history of a mortal or of an Outsider only before they became one. Must know the target's name, if used on an Outsider they are immediately made aware of the probing of their past (••••) The Outsider searches the histories of those it has has interacted with to know when it is being sought and by whom Sounds too much like something from Mindscape. Replace. (•••••) The Outsider can erase the history of a dead person at will. They will cease to have ever existed. The time stream will alter such that all of their accomplishments were made by others. The Outsider can also do this to it’s own past if it so desires. It is also able to know when others have done this when using the (••) or (•••) power, as it can see the tell-tale strings where the time stream has been altered.
[Time Skip] Cost: 1:1M 2-3:2M 4:3M 5:3M+1W Outsiders are adept at not only looking through time, but briefly traveling through it. When targeting another, roll Wits + Presence vs Resolve + Mythos. Ranks: (•) The Outsider steps forward in time to avoid harm but cannot act during the following round, (••) The Outsider sends a target forward in time by one round per Mythos level of caster, (•••) The Outsider and a single foe step out of time for a number of rounds equal to it’s Mythos, isolating the two of them from all others and leaving everything else frozen, the Outsider cannot harm anyone other than the target and the target, it, but during this time though both can use abilities normally on each other, (••••) The Outsider may travel back in time to assist itself, for one minute a second one appears before stepping back into its normal time, after the one minute duration it is pulled back in time by one minute (effectively you have two of your for one minute and then disappear for one minute), For the purpose of Rejections both share the same Madness pool. (•••••) the Outsider may have up to three of itself exist simultaneously for one minute, though there must follow a two minute period in which it is out of time.
[All Is One] Cost: 1:1M 2:2M 3:2M+1W 4:3M 5:3M+1W The truth of the universe is that All-is-One. We are each fragments of a higher dimensional meta-self, and those in turn, are fragments themselves. Ultimately, one being composes all, and all of us the one. This is the true form of Yog-Sothoth, the gate and key. By using it’s inherent ability to draw upon it’s other selves, the Outsider can tap into it’s other minds or temporarily juxtapose one of it’s other bodies. Roll [Mythos+Superposition+Wits] vs [Mythos+Resolve] of the target other self. Ranks: (•) The Outsider calls upon a facet of the mind of another human form of it’s meta self. It may choose to swap it’s ranks in two skills of it’s choice for the duration of the scene (••) The Outsider calls upon an alien mind, yet strangely like it’s own. It can choose a skill it has less than two ranks in and gain two ranks in it for the duration of the scene, (•••) The Outsider takes the form of one of it’s human other selves altering it’s appearance drastically. The Outsider’s quiescence is set to 7 (or higher if it’s current quiescence is higher) for the duration and it cannot use rejections other than this one. It may swap two of it’s attributes for the duration of the scene (••••) The Outsider mixes and melds the many human psyches of it’s meta self becoming the embodiment of them all and something more than human. It’s quiescence increases by 2 for the duration of the ability (this can result in loss of mutations) and it gains an additional die for all skill rolls, (•••••) The Outsider takes the form of one of it’s alien other selves, becoming completely inhuman. Choose a sentient eldritch creature of Mythos equal to or less than the Outsider’s, and it takes on that form for the duration of the ability. It may choose to add one rank to each mental attribute or one rank to each physical attribute, but it loses one from each social attribute. The ability expires at the end of the scene.
CORRUPTION
[Ravages of the Forbidden] Cost: 1-2:0M 3:1M 4:2M 5:3M An outsider is a blasphemy to the mortal world. But this can be of use to it, as the corruption it spreads in it’s wake can be used against those who might seek to contain it. It has the power to focus it’s tainted essence into those around it, causing wasting diseases upon the mortal mind and body. All inflictions are [Mythos+Corruption+Presence] opposed by [Mythos+Stamina]. Ravages of the Forbidden can only be used on non-eldritch beings. Select one: Mental or Physical, and all ability damage will be against attributes of that type. Ranks: (•) On a successful infliction, target becomes slower to act. They suffer one point of Dexterity or Composure loss for the duration of the scene. (••) On a successful infliction, the target’s physical or mental health visibly diminish. They suffer one point of Resolve or Stamina loss for the duration of the scene. (•••) The effects of the infliction begin to accumulate. Whenever the target loses health, they must make another opposed check as though they had been targeted by the Rejection again. Coose among the effects of the previous ranks. (••••) The target becomes contagious. Whenever they lose health, all adjacent must also make an opposed roll as though you had targeted them with the rejection, or suffer the same effects. (•••••) Whenever the target fails a roll, inflict both the Rank 1 and the Rank 2 effects on them.
[The Desert Walks] Cost: 1: None 2-3: 1M 4-5: 2M
Water = Life. The Outsider removes the first part of the equation and thus the second.
(•) The Outsider sucks the moisture out of a cubic foot of material he touches. Gain a bonus equal to your dots in Corruption to setting things on fire. If water is an integral part of the material, cause direct structural damage equal to dots in Corruption. (••) Cause [Mythos+Corruption+Intelligence/Strength] of bashing damage to living beings touched. (•••) The Outsider is capable of removing all the water in an opponents body. As previous, but damage is lethal. (••••) As (••) but the Outsider can do it within sensory range. (•••••) Cause the desertification of the entire area within 2 yards per dot of Mythos. Cause [Mythos+Corruption+Intelligence/Strength] of lethal damage to all living beings in the area.
[Útgarda's Nurse] Cost: 1:none 2:1M 3-4:2M 5:3M
Not even the gods of Earth are immune to old age.
(•) Single target suffers -2 to all perception rolls. [Mythos+Corruption+Presence] vs [Mythos+Reaolve]
(••) Target's bones bones become brittle. All bashing damage does +1 extra damage for the duration of the scene. [Mythos+Corruption+Presence] vs [Mythos+Stamina] (•••) Inflict either of the previous effects to all in a radius of 5 yards per Mythos. Additionally a third effect can be used: -2 to rolls to resist poisons and diseases. (••••) Reduce a single stat for the duration of the scene by the difference with which a roll of [Mythos+Corruption+Presence] vs [Mythos+Appropriate resistance stat] was won. This can reduce the stats to a minimum of 1. (•••••) The Outsider curses the target doubling natural healing times and the cost of supernatural healing for [Mythos+Corruption] Weeks.
[Rot] Cost: 1-2:none 3:1M 4:2M 5:3M
(•) Accelerate the decomposition of organic matter (••) Kill plant life. Supernatural abilities that crate or manipulate plants subtract the Outsider's [Corruption] from their relevant rolls (•••) Rust. Touched metal objects loose an amount of Structure equal to the Outsider's Corruption each round. Roll the object's Durability, ignore damage = to successes. (••••) As (•••) but it affects everything in a [Mythos+Corrution] x 5 yard radius. ST's note: Only bother to roll resistance for plot important items. (•••••) Accelerate the atomic decay of commonly stable elements, causing a short burst of radiation damage to touched targets. [Mythos+Corruption+Manipulation] Aggravated damage.
[Essence Infusion] Cost: 1-2:none 3:1M 4:2M 5:3M
The outsider extends its essence into the land itself The effects of this Rejection apply only in a radius of 5 yards per dot of [Mythos+Corruption] centered on the spot it was first activated (it doesn't move with the Outsider)
(•) The Outsider's awareness pervades the area. It can sense any sentient being in the area and can't be surprised within it. (••) Gain sensory feedback for the entire area. This does not penetrate enclosed spaces. (•••) Gain a bonus to Defense equal dots in [Corruption] (••••) All blood that falls upon the area (other than its own) nourishes the Outsider. When lethal damage is inflicted heal 1 bashing.
(•••••) The Outsider binds itself to the area much like an Elder Demon would(HtV p.287). Rendering it immune to all physical damage. However it can only interact with the environment by using other Rejections .
VIOLATION
[Eye of the Storm] Cost: 1-2:none 3-4:1M 5: 2M
Ranks: (•) The Outsider stills the winds around him. No matter if it is a gale by the sea or the red spot on Jupiter, the cloaked figure will remain disturbingly unaffected. (••) Condense moisture to create fog or water in the desert. (•••) Generate winds up to 12mph per dot in [Mythos+Violation] . (a weak tornado is around 110mph) (••••) Torrential rain, capable of causing flash floods or filling a decent size room with water in a matter of minutes. (•••••) Cause lightning to strike opponent. [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence] aggravated damage.
[Spring-Heeled Jack] Cost: 1-2:none 3:1M 4:2M 5:2M+1W
The laws of the universe are just guidelines for Outsiders. This includes Gravity. Ranks: (•) The Outsider decreases its own gravity for a moment allowing it to do incredibly long or high jumps. Add Mythos and Violation to your jump checks. (••) The Outsider changes the direction from which gravity affects it, essentially allowing it to walk on walls and ceilings. This does not allow it to fly off into the sky. (•••) The Outsider sends out a gravitational pulse that knocks down everything in a radius of one yard per Mythos. [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence] vs [Strength+Athletics] to resist. Fragile objects shatter. The Outsider my choose to concentrate the pulse on a single target. Roll [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence] to deal Bashing damage within sensory range. (••••) Roll [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence] Target is subjected to 1G of additional gravity per success. For each additional G the target's movement rate halves and they receive a -1 to str and dex related checks per success. If the number of Gs ever exceeds the target's stamina he falls unconscious. Vampires and other creatures who don't require oxygen are immune to this last effect. (•••••) Cancel gravity in a radius of 5 yards around you per point of Mythos for the duration of a scene.
[Unstoppable Force/Immovable Object] Cost: 1:none 2-3:1M 4:2M 5:3M
The Outsider alters the inertia of a target.
Ranks: (•) +2 to attempts to slip any bonds, to attempts to unstuck mechanisms and other similar situation at the discretion of the ST. (••) Roll [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence]. The Outsider throws an object 30 feet per success. The Outsider can only throw object it can lift with little effort, consult the table in the core WoD book (p.47). (•••) The Outsider can snatch a projectile from the air if he surpasses it's damage on a roll of [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence]. Doesn't work on objects too small to be seen. (••••) Add [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence] damage to a melee attack. This power must be activated before rolling to see if the attack hits. Type of damage depends on the weapon used. (•••••)Remove or add [Mythos+Violation] acceleration to an object per success on a [Mythos+Violation+Intelligence] roll. Affected object/individual can travel only in one direction and has no fine controll.
SAMPLE RITUALS
(•) [Initiation] Cost: 1+X Madness Requirements: An abandoned place of worship , 5 aspiring cultists (+2 per extra point of Madness used)
The Outsider enacts a corrupted version of a familiar religious ceremony, granting the celebrants a glimpse of it's true nature. The Celebrants must make a Composure+Resolve roll vs the Outsider’s Mythos+Presence. Failed rolls gain a Mild Derangement. Hence forth the Outsider gains a +3 bonus for any rolls made to influence/control them in the future. If any people not included in the ritual happen to witness it, they must make the same rolls, but the Outsider doesn’t gain the bonus.
[The Gathering] Cost: 5M Req.: Sacrificial victim,
You call forth the lesser servants of your patrons, that will perform a task for you in exchange for the right offering. The ritual site must be in close proximity to their natural habitat (Ex.: a beach for Deep Ones). The ritual leader needs 10 successes on an extended roll of Mythos+Occult, an hour passes per roll.
[The Calling] (•) to (••••••••••) Cost: L1:2M L3:8M L5:32M L7:128M L9:512M L2:4M L4:16M L6:64M L8:256M L10:1024M
Req.: Special
You summon an eldritch horror from beyond the reaches of time and space to do your dark bidding and spread chaos upon the lands of man. You can only summon something with a lesser Mythos rating than yours (unless you have a specific focus item). You need 10 successes on Mythos+Occult roll and 1 human sacrifice per Mythos rating (half if summoning something connected to your Sect). The stronger the creature the likelier it is to resist your commands (Mythos+Resolve vs Mythos+Presence). To effectively summon something really big, you would need the help of other Outsiders, artifacts that grant extra Madness or reduce the cost of summoning and find a place in the world where the barrier between dimensions is appropriately thin and such a place would draw the attention of basically every other major player in the WoD, so securing it would be an adventure on to itself [Elder Sign] (•) to (•••••) Special Cost: 1 permanent point of will per potency from ritual leader, the ritual leader receives a derangement for each point of will drained.
Repels Outsiders and anything with Tainted Blood. It works by draining an amount of willpower equal to it's potency each round. At 0W the Outsider is compelled to flee. When entering the affected area the outsider can instinctively choose to withdraw, if not make a Willpower roll. The Outsider may remain in the area for a number of rounds equal to the successes by which it has beaten the sign's potency. If simply placed in an open field it affects 5 yards per point of Willpower of the original caster (before the draining). If placed on a door on the other hand, it can be created to ward a specific room. I blocks interdenominational travel in the area, Changelings may be able to circumnavigate that a ST discretion There is no such thing as a charm version of the Elder Sign, one might inscribe the physical manifestation of it on a pendant, but at best it counts as a circumstance bonus to intimidating mythos critters. The Sign has a durability and structure equal to the substance it is engraved upon plus the sign's potency. While non-Outsiders are able to just walk in and destroy the sign (note that they can't be under the sway of any supernatural mental manipulation) an Outsider must again succeed in the same Willpower it had to make entering the area to even begin harming it.
(••) (•••) [Death Trap] Cost: 3M/participant
The cultist are arranged in a circle around an area they must be no more than two meters apart from each other. They roll Occult+Intelligence+Your Mythos. Once the first cultist manages to accumulate 10 successes a one way barrier forms that allows people to enter, but not leave. The barrier has a Durability equal to the number of cultist that manage to reach 10 successes and a Structure equal to the number of participants. 5 minutes pass between each roll. (••••)
[Mind Transfer] Cost: 4M Req: Specialist Yithian Equipment
Often taught by the Great Race to their human servants, this Ritual has entered wider usage amongst other cultists and Outsiders. The ritual leader designates a single target to be the recipient of the Mind Transfer, this target could be the ritual leader or another willing participant or a different target. Upon acquiring 10 successes on an extended Mythos + Science roll, the target's mind is swapped with an alien mind from any point in space and time, most likely one of the Great Race of Yith. The transfer lasts up to two times the contacted entity's Mythos in weeks.
With a successful Mythos + Occult roll prior to the ritual, the ritual leader can specify another race, failure means the ritual contacts one of the Yith, a dramatic failure means the ST decides on which kind of entity is contacted.
(•••••)
[Resurrection] Cost: 6M to create Essential Saltes, 4M to call up or put down an individual
This ritual is a highly prized secret that's slowly passed though the world's occult underground, since it, with some caveats, allows for life after death, the resurrection of dead tissue. Many powerful cult leaders have preserved themselves indefinitely with its usage, but it isn't perfect.
In order to carry out the ritual, the target's whole body must be acquired. If any part of the body cannot be used, then the ritual can be carried out but the result will be a malformed and mindless monster. Once the victim's body is located, a variety of magical and alchemical processes are carried out which distill the body into a pile of essential salts. In order to do so, an extended Mythos + Occult roll is required, with a difficulty of 10 if the aim is not to properly resurrect the target, or 15 if the caster wishes the target to be wholely resurrected.
Once the essential salts have been created and stored, it's a fairly simple process to call up the deceased individual from them, at least in terms of ritual magic. A Mythos + Occult roll is required, along with a turn of chanting to begin the process, which then takes 5 turns in order for the individual to be fully returned to life. If this ritual is known, then a Mythos + Occult roll versus the Resurrected target's Resolve + Composure can return them to dust, as the chant is repeated in reverse.
Several changes occur in a resurrected individual. Depending on how long is was before their body was transformed into essential salts, there may be some risk of degradation. If the body is transformed within a day, no degradation occurs. Within a week, the character loses one dot from each of their mental, physical and social attributes. Within a month, two dots are lost from each set. Within a year, three dots. are lost. And for every year on top of that, another dot is lost from each set of attributes.
The Resurrected body has advantages, it becomes tougher and more immune to pain, but the skin is covered in pockmarks and scars, that obviously show that something is not right. A Resurrected character gains an additional one dot of Stamina and one dot of Strength, but loses any dots in the Striking Looks merit they once had.
The final change is harder to quantify. Dying and coming back changes a person irrevocably, and they often seem to have lost something that was vital. Resurrected characters are unable to spend Willpower points for any reason, and suffer a -3 penalty on all rolls to resist gaining a Derangement.
If the Resurrection spell was carried out wrongly, or the aim was not to bring the individual back perfectly, then the result is Ye Liveliest Awfulness. The Resurrected are utterly mindless, losing any dots they might once have had in Intelligence and Manipulation, and any Mental Skills or Social skills aside from Intimidate. In exchange however, they gain two additional dots in Strength and Stamina, instead of just one.
SIDEBAR: SO YOU WERE DEAD, NOW YOU AREN'T
Players will no doubt be wondering what happens when their characters come back to life, and what, if anything, they remember.
The awful truth about Resurrection is, it doesn't actually work. Once a person dies, they die. They might linger on as a ghost, but that's the best hope for someone who wants to linger on. What the Resurrection ritual actually does would be more akin to cloning for the most part. A new person is born from the essential salts each time they're called up, though they retain the memories of the ones who came before them, as long as there's been no degradation. The really essential part of the person, the part that might become a ghost, is gone, hence the inability to spend willpower.
If a player's character is brought back to life, they aren't a player character any more, unfortunately. Their character died. What's been brought back is a hollow echo. A combination of body and memories that makes a mockery of what they once were.
[Echoes of the Calling] (proposed as a Rejection, but it feels like something more appropriate for a Ritual, adapt) WIP Cost: 3M per rank The Calling is a heavy burden to bear, and often leads to terrible misery. And misery loves company. You spread the calling onto other mortals, leading them into the same damnable path upon which you find yourself. At higher ranks, they may even turn to you for guidance in how to escape or embrace this new-found power. All targets may make a Resolve+Composure+Occult roll opposed by your Wits+Manipulation+Mythos. A willing target automatically fails the roll. Can only be used on mortals. Upon success, targets become Outsiders with Quiescence equal to their Morality and a Mythos of 1. On a Successful use of this rejection, the Outsider gains 1 Madness. Ranks: (•) You open your mind to that of another so that they may hear the same maddening call as you. This is a very risky method of spreading the madness of being an outsider, and you take one point of lethal damage for each success the target makes to resist your will. The target automatically gains a minor derangement. (••) Your target immediately becomes gripped by doubt and panic. If they were hostile, they are no longer hostile. However, they still will react unfriendly towards you and may lash out if you approach. (•••) The target becomes friendly towards you, but feels no particular attachment. The target does not have to gain a minor derangement if you choose. (••••) On an exceptional success the target becomes a mindless servant, untrained in any skills. Treat as a cohort. You may not have cohorts with total Mythos higher than half of your own, rounded down. (•••••) On an exceptional success the target becomes drawn to you, either desperate to be freed of the curse or desperate to learn how to gain more power. Treat as a cohort, but they are intelligent and retain their skills.
MUTATIONS (Assets)
Weapon Mutations (•) [Maws] (•) to (•••) Related Liability: [Featureless Face] Damage: 0(L)/1(L) Size: -
Your teeth become sharp allowing you to inflict lethal damage with a bite. You can spend an additional dot to transform them into monstrous fangs that inflict an extra 1(L) damage. If you decide to pay for an extra dot, this mutation appears as an extra mouth anywhere on your body. (••) [Claws] Damage: 1(L)/2(L) Size: -
Your fingernails harden to the point of steel and sharpen like razors, allowing you to slash at your enemy. If you buy an additional dot, they increase in size to proper lion like claws an deal 2(L) damage, but are also more noticeable.
[Tentacle] Damage 1(B) Size 2
The tentacle is a 8-10 feet long leathery prehensile appendage, that while dextrous enough to be used regularly as a normal hand without any penalties (tho it’s too thick to use a standard trigger on a gun) can be also used in combat (Strength+Brawl). If the tentacle doesn’t replace a preexisting limb it costs an extra dot. You also get a +2 bonus to grapple attempts and Climbing related checks.
[Hooves]* Damage 3(B) Size 1
Your feet are replaced by a pair of hooves. Other than making your kicks deadlier they concentrate the force of the kick into a single point allowing you to knockdown opponents unless they pass a Dexterity + Athletics roll.
(•••) [Horns]* Damage 2(L) Size 2
You gain an extra attack with your head. Armor Piercing 1.
[Forked Tail] Damage 2(L) Size 2
The Outsider possesses a tail appendage. Not very useful for manipulating things, this tail ends in bone weaponry of some kind. Some are forked like the classical representations of imps and devils, while others end in spikes and spines.
(••••) [Pincers] Damage 3(L) Size 2
Your hand is replaced by a crab like pincer. If you posses the tentacle mutation you can elect to have it grow out of the end of it. You lose the ability to perform any delicate operations with that appendage. Armor Piercing 2.
[Body Barbs] Sharp barbs of bone protrude from within the flesh of the Outsider with this Transmutation, endangering anything the Outsider touches or vice versa. An Outsider with Body Barbs automatically inflicts +1 lethal damage with unarmed strikes and grapples. Moreover, those who strike the creature with an unarmed attack take lethal damage equal to half the damage they inflict (rounded down), reduced by armor. Likewise, those seeking to foolishly grapple an Outsider with Body Barbs receive a number of points of lethal damage equal to their successes to grab hold of the Outsider, reduced by armor.
Armor Mutations
(•) [Scales]* Rating: 1/2 Strength: 1 Defense: 0 Speed: 0
You are covered in thick fish like scales. Become resistant to cold temperatures and ignore 2 damage if inflicted by a cold source.
[Vile Secretions]*(•) to (••) Rank 1: You swim at at a speed equal to your move speed. In addition, you get a +1 bonus to rolls to escape being pinned. Rank 2: Your body is covered in thick fire-retardant slime. Gain +1 armor and ignore 2 damage if inflicted by a heat source.
(••) [Bone Plates]* Rating: 2/3 Strength: 2 Defense: -1 Speed: 0
Boney outgrowths cover your body granting you protection. Prevents you from wearing normal armor unless specially tailored and you need very baggy clothes to conceal it.
(•••) [Interlocking Plates]* Rating: 3/4 Strength: 3 Defense: -2 Speed: -1
An enhanced version of [Bone Plates]. The plates are now molded around each other covering previous weaknesses in your defense.
[Aetheric Flesh]
All but the gravest of damage pass right through you without leaving a mark. You ignore 1 point of Lethal damage. You retain the benefits of this even when suppressing mutations.
(••••) [Acid Blood]* Related Liability:[Eldritch Blood] If you’re wounded in a melee deal 1 point of aggravated damage to your opponent per wound inflicted. You retain the benefits of this even when suppressing mutations.
[Virulent Plague]* Related Liability: [Plague Lesions] Whenever you make a successful physical attack or suffer a successful physical attack, adjacent targets have a 50% chance of becoming afflicted by the disease, losing two points in the stat chosen when selecting this Mutation (Strength, Dexterity, Stamina, or Intelligence). You retain the benefits of this even when suppressing mutations.
General Mutations
(•)
[Increase Size] (•) to (••••••••••)
You gain two additional size categories per dot. +2HP and weapon mutations statistics increase by 1 point. This mutation is capped by the Outsider’s Mythos past the first five dots even for the purpose of the Eldritch Form. It is also of course very noticeable, with one dot you might be able to convince somebody you are just very tall, after that you are well into monstrous territory. All ranks must be bought in order.
[Deep Lungs]*
You can breathe underwater. Additional, you gain a +1 bonus to rolls to avoid detection due to your shallow breaths. You retain the benefits of this even when suppressing mutations.
[Bestial Leap]* Related Liability: Quadruped After running your full speed in a single direction, you may jump a distance equal to the distance traveled. If you would collide with a foe, you may make a physical attack with a +1 bonus. A successful attack pins them to the ground.
[Hidden Reach]* Related Liability: Long Armed Your arms can extend up to double their length very rapidly and still maintain normal dexterity. Physical attacks made in this manner suffer a -1 penalty (in addition to the penalty from [Long Armed] ).
(••) [Wings]* (••) or (•••) Fly at (••) 50% or (•••) 100% of your movement speed. Spend Madness for additional acceleration
[Additional Sensory Organs] Related Liability:[Many Eyes] Ear: The Outsider gains a +1 bonus per extra ear to perception rolls having to do with sound. More ears can be purchased at a cost of +1 dot per additional ear (granting four additional ears as a five-dot purchase). Eye: The Outsider gains a +1 bonus per extra eye to Wits + Composure rolls to avoid being surprised. Additional eyes do not actually aid other perception rolls. Having one can allow visual-based perception rolls in situations where the character might not normally get a roll if the eye is located in a place situated to allow it to see what is going on. More eyes can be purchased at a cost of +1 dot per additional eye (granting four extra eyes as a five-dot purchase). Feelers: Eliminate the penalties from fighting blind. Nose: Your face extends into a snout to make room for additional olfactory receptors which allows you to track by scent. Your tracking ability can be enhanced by purchasing additional dots in this mutation at a cost of +1 dot per additional +1 bonus (granting a +3 bonus as a five-dot purchase)
(•••) [Additional Legs] Each additional leg possessed grants a +1 Strength when defending against attempts to overpower the character in a grapple attack. The Outsider also adds +1 to his Speed per leg, and a character with two extra legs (for a total of four) gains a +1 Defense.
[Additonal Arm] The Outsider gains two extra dice per extra arm for grappling attacks. The character may also perform reflexive functions with his extra arms (holding items, doors, etc.), but they do not allow him to perform additional instant actions per turn.
[2nd Brain] Some Outsiders have been encountered with grossly swollen skulls housing two brains, but a secondary brain is usually located somewhere else in the body of the Outsider. Gain a +2 bonus to all Mental Skill checks. You retain the benefits of this even when suppressing mutations.
[Extra Heart] The Outsider with this mutation gains +1 Health. Additionally, it cannot be felled by a killing blow (World of Darkness Rulebook, p. 168) to the torso. A character may purchase more than one heart, and each extra heart gives +1 Health. A character can have a total number of extra hearts equal to his Stamina or Size, whichever is lowest. You retain the benefits of this even when suppressing mutations.
[*]Can't be taken multiple times.
MUTATIONS (Liabilities)
Related to Weapon Mutations (••) [Featureless Face] Your face is nothing but a smooth, blank sheet of skin. None of your senses are impaired and function as though you still possessed eyes and a nose. You still need to consume food however, and will die of starvation normally unless sustained by other means or a mouth is gained by another mutation with which to eat.
Related to Armor Mutations (•) [Altered Anatomy] (•) to (•••••) Your internal organs are displaced to unnatural positions and some are missing all together. Any attempts to heal you suffer a [Dot X 5% ] chance of failure.
(••••) [Crumbling Skin] Your skin begins to crumble and fall from your flesh. Your exposed musculature leaves you extra vulnerable to wounds. Whenever you take lethal damage you take one extra point.
[Eldritch Blood]
Your blood is clearly unnatural, even in appearance. Your blood has an unnatural color and a test shows it to belong to no being of this earth. In addition, once spilled, animals (or werewolves) will always be able to track you by scent, regardless of distance.
[Plague Lesions] You are infected with a unique and virulent strain of a strange disease produced by your own body. You permanently lose one point of Strength, Dexterity, Stamina, or Intelligence. This effect can only be reversed by constant injections of specifically tailored medicines.
Related to General Mutations
(•) [Long Armed] Your arms have extended to become slightly longer than normal, with your arms dragging along the ground. You may make physical attacks against foes at a short distance, but suffer a -1 penalty on all physical attacks due to poor coordination.
[Quadruped] Your leg joints have shifted, and your gait becomes uncomfortable when walking upright. You move at 50% speed unless traveling on all fours, in which case no two handed weapon may be held.
(••) [Many Eyes] You have two extra eyes hidden somewhere on your body (Palms, Chest, Shoulders, Face, etc. Unfortunately, your main eyes have poorer vision than normal, able to only see half the normal distance and unable to read small print. Uncovering the extra eyes negates these penalties. NOTE: If you choose to place the extra pair of eyes on your face, this mutation is Blatant. Otherwise, it is Concealed.
SUGGESTED MERITS
[Cult] Ranks: (•) to (•••••)
Outsiders tend to form cults around them, either accidentally or purposefully. Cultists are fanatical and usually from the fringes of society, but can almost always be counted on to offer assistance to their patron.
One dot would net you a fervent believer, like a crazy homeless person, while five dots might get you a whole army of hobos and druggies or perhaps two or three choice members of high society, like a politician.
A cult must be maintained and appeased, though. If the ST feels you aren't paying attention to your cult, he can decrease the dots (after warning you) as your cultists get bored and move away.
[Cthonic Muse] Ranks: (•) to (•••••) Prerequisites: Two ranks of Mythos per dot purchased
You instill in a mortal a moment of divine inspiration pertinent to his trade/craft, whatever actions result from this feed you Madness at a rate of 2 per dot of the merit. Rank 1 could be a clockmaker constructing little mechanical golems that go around stealing women's underwear. Rank 3 you have a Reanimator. At rank 5 you have your very own madman writing blasphemous books of forbidden knowledge. The influenced mortal is granted the use of a single Rejection whose power level is equal to the ranks in this merit.
[Eldritch Knowledge] Ranks: (•) to (•••••)
You know you were changed by an unknowable horror from beyond the reaches of time and space, but how much do you REALLY know? 1: The simple folk talk of abominable rites performed around a standing stone deep in the bayous. 2: You've collected tales from other Outsiders or deciphered some fragmented stone hieroglyphs. 3: You have read the Necronomicon, or similar relatively modern work of the occult. 4: You have access to an extensive library of both old and new texts. 5: You have walked the halls of lost Atlantis and discussed Hypergeometry with your Elder Thing host. Each Ritual has an Eldritch Knowledge level associated with it that you must have as the minimum requirement to use it
[Heart of Stone] Ranks: (•) to (•••••) Req.:Non Outsider Performing a ritual stops forcing degeneration one morality level earlier for each dot in this Merit
[Labyrinth] (safe-house merit) (WIP) Ranks: (•) to (•••••), special
SIZE (•) to (•••••)
[•] An old garret room with a slanting wall and ceiling
[••] An apartment at 55 Central Park West
[•••] A desecrated church in Red Hook
[••••] Abandoned smuggling tunnels
[•••••] An old manor house whose architecture involves Gothic towers resting on a Saxon or Romanesque substructure, whose foundation in turn is of a still earlier order or blend of orders -- Roman, and even Druidic or native Cymric, if legends speak truly
DISPLACEMENT (•) to (•••••) Each point increases the Labyrinth’s Displacement by 1, moving it further out of phase with reality making unauthorised access harder. Please refer to the ‘Displacement table for places’.
TAINT (•) to (•••••) The presence of the horrors of other realms warps and corrupts the minds of mortals, but it also desecrates and perverts the natural world as well. The battle between an outsider and the natural world is constant, and sometimes the only sanctuary can be obtained by striking back at the world itself. You plant to seeds of madness into the very earth itself, slowly corrupting its presence and turning it against the rest of the mortal world. (•) Anyone that enters becomes touched by the taint. The Keeper can always trace the taint, no matter where they run. Mechanically this adds the Labyrinth's Taint rating to any attempts to track the intruder by any means. (••) Anyone who enters the Labyrinth with ill intent towards it’s Keeper suffers a loss of one point each of strength and stamina while within. (•••) (••••) Non-intelligent creatures of lower Mythos than the Keeper’s own start to take residence within, as it is a sanctuary to them. They are always friendly towards the Keeper and recognize it as the owner of the Labyrinth, though they may attack people that wander in uninvited. (•••••) An appropriate mythos entity (chosen by the ST) becomes the guardian of the Labyrinth, if there is a suitable place for it to reside.
[Tainted blood] (•) to (••••••••••) Req.: Non-Outsider, First level must be taken at character creation
This merit is usually associated with the mortal descendants of Outsiders and other higher mythos entities. Grants some of the benefits of the Mythos stat, but doesn't give access to Madness or Abandonments (tho the ST might allow their purchase as mutations). Should someone with this merit ever become a full Outsider, divide the number of ranks in this merit by two (rounded down) to determine the Outsider's Mythos. Additionally, gain 1 dot of Displacement for every two dots in the merit.
POSSIBLY COMPATIBLE MERITS FROM OTHER BOOKS
Lucid Dreaming (••) CtL p195
Shadow Cult Initiation (look into for posible improvements to [Cult] merit) (• to •••••) (mult) Mehket 121 Membership in a shadow cult, with resultant benefits
Artifact (•••+) (mult) M:tA p80 treasure, imbued, refills own Mana
Familiar (••• or ••••) M:tA p82 Fetch/Animal spirit
Additional Familiars (••) TotW p154 have multiple spirit companions
Ghost Familiar (•••) Summ p39 Ghost bound as Familiar
Feral Mien (•••) TotW p154 +3 on Intimidation/Seduction rolls
Friend of Beasts (• or ••) TotW p154 +3 on Animal Ken, -2/0 on Socialize
Occultation
(• to •••) M:tA p86 become lost to mortal society
Otherworldly Lore (••••) *pre: Gnosis ••• Summ p184 gain 9-Again when dealing with a particular breed of other-world creature
Slayer (•••) *pre: Occult 4, Brawl 4 or Weaponry 4 Summ p185 May make Int+Occult check to reduce summoned creature's Defense against attacks
Hideous Anyway •• SA p58 improves intimidation, but damages other social rolls
Fighting Style: Multi-Limbed Combat (• to ••••) Pandora’s Book p50
Check out Book of Spirits, Summoners, Second Sight
ARTIFACTS
Outsiders can't use Mage related supernatural artifacts. Their power is so ingrained in the nature of the universe that such items automatically increase an Outsider's displacement by an amount equal to their dot rating.
[The Revatio Sketch] (•)
Said to be the work of Giuliano Revatio of Ferrara, also known as Giuliano the Unbalanced. The sketch is supposedly the map of an ancient underground complex rumored to be located somewhere in the Alps. Tho at first glance it appears to be nothing but a jumble of lines that might be a child's attempt at a drawing, what keeps it from being dismissed as such is the obviously painstaking care with which they were put on paper. What the complex contains, if it indeed exists, is unknown for you would probably need to be as mad as Giuliano to understand what the map says.
[Journal of West’s Assistant] (••)
Though focused on those monsters that come from the farthest reaches of existance, Miskatonic University gathers other documents that aid in their duties. In particular, the diary of a now deceased post-graduate who recorded the perverted experiments of one “Herbert West”. Miskatonic records did mention such a post-graduate, though exhaustive research has proven that no Outsider influence was exerted on West. Though some find this troubling, others see the journal as a useful tool against the creatures who call themselves “Prometheans”.
Effect: When in possession of the journal, a hunter in possession gains a +2 to any roll in combat against reanimates, +1 to any rolls in studying them.
[West’s Serum] (•••••)
Far more dangerous than his assistant’s journal is the serum West created to bring the dead to life again, only as slavering, unintelligent monsters, a few cases aside. For some time, University administrators and alumni argued over the true worth of raising the dead against the monsters they routinely faced, until a still undisclosed incident forced their hand. Even then, strict regulations are in place so that A, only a limited amount of the serum is produced per year, and B, that each vial is tracked, to prevent accidents as best as possible. Even then, the fear is high that one day, an alumni or student will decide to use the serum to create their own army. Many pray this does not happen.
Effect: One syringe of the serum contains two doses. Using Science+Medicine+Intelligence, the hunter can inject one body with one dose, though hunters with enough Science or Medicine can stretch the syringe to four doses. Exceptional Failure: Not only does the body fail to reanimate, the remains erupt into a mess of organs and flesh. Failure: The body fails to fully animate. Success: The body animates, though is unintelligent and feral, possessing the same Physical stats they did in life. Exceptional Success: The body not only reanimates, the subject’s mind is intact, allowing for possible interaction between the corpse and hunter, in order to at least prevent them from killing each other and focusing on the threat ahead.
[Waxen Mask 2.0] (•••)
When mythos creatures need to interact with humans without violence they need to use an appropriate disguise, Mi-Go in particular are known for it. While their early attempts wouldn't fool an observant individual the need for more frequent encounters has prompted the production of improved models. As long as the creature is roughly human sized the mask acts as if mutations were being suppressed. Can be used by other supernatural creatures to hide their appearance. Of course it can also be used as a normal high quality disguise.
[Brain Canister] (• to •••••)
Brain Canisters are a Mi-Go technology designed to preserve members of species incapable of autonomous space travel while transporting them off planet. Dots in the merit represent the quality of the canister and how much the life of the individual therein is extended. Consult the Mythos table for maximum age with each dot equaling one Mythos. The brain contained acts as a mix of the Retainer and Mentor merits, tho it's interactions are limited by the fact that it can only communicate with through specialized equipment, it's hard to find a mortal who has interacted with mythos creatures for longer than one of these, thus providing many a valuable insight. If in the possession of an empty canister you can transfer a living brain by accumulating 5 successes on an [Intelligence+Medicine] (Modifiers: Operating Theater (+3), Surgeon's Tools (+1), Improvised Tools (-1), Under Pressure (-3)).
[The Tillinghast Mechanism] (• to •••••)
Crawford Tillinghast constructed a machine capable of peering into higher dimensions and allow it's denizens to interact with ours. While most examples of it are secreted way in the vaults of Miskatonic University or private collections, it is said that the American government got their hands on some of this designs and applied some of their principles on some specialized equipment for a clandestine task force. This machine is an alternative way to enter areas lost to reality due to high Displacement. A one dot version allows access to a Displacement 5 area, a two dot one to a Displacement 6 area, etc.
[Yithian Pattern Electro-Rifle] (•••••)
Constructed by the great race to fight incursions from the incorporeal Flying Polips, they work quite well on any other target. Few however have survived to our age. Most working examples were reconstructed from half remembered plans by people who were abducted or found adrift in sub-dimensional pockets of space. However they were meant to be used by creatures much larger than a human and are hard to transport without a vehicle and just as hard to conceal. Recharging it is even harder since since appropriate equipment is even rarer (you better start making friends in cults dedicated to helping the Yithians). Use the same stats as a rank five Mjolnir Cannon (HtV p.156)
[Mi-Go Lightning Symbiont] (•••)
A less powerful and smaller version than the the Yithian weapon. It is a bio-mechanical construct about the size of two man's fists that binds to the user capable of producing bursts of charged plasma. The symbiont must be kept feed on fresh organic matter at least each day by inflicting one point of lethal damage on a living being, treat additional feedings as a reloading action (4 shots per point of lethal damage). When not fed it it will inflict a point of lethal damage on the user. Use the same stats as a rank four Mjolnir Cannon (HtV p.156)
[Mi-Go Fog Projector] (•••)
The device it self looks like a cylinder roughly as long as an adult human's forearm. The device itself doesn't as much project fog as drastically lower the temperature in the affected area, the fog being a consequence. The device has a range of 100 yards and will create a rapidly cooling area in a radius of 20 yards around the target. Living beings in the area suffer 2 bashing damage and -1 to perception rolls. Every round that the device continues to target the area the effects double, to a maximum of 8 bashing damage and -4 to perception rolls. The effect fades in reverse. If the area was at max cooling it goes back to normal in three rounds, or rather it's still frozen for a few hours, but the cold itself is not strong enough to be damaging at that point.
THE WORLD
THE CITIES OF MAN
Baltimore "This is Baltimore gentlemen, the Gods will not save you" The horrors of the old world always tended to follow the great human migrations. Finding a foothold with the simple and disenfranchised folk they came to the new world. While many of the great cities of the east coast have managed to shake off much of the influence Outsiders had in them, either because they moved on or have been ousted by other supernaturals, Baltimore, especially the docks, is still in their hands.
Honolulu One of the few greater Outsider strongholds it's the best known and safest way to access the lost continent of Mu. It is ruled by a council of eight Outsiders, and anyone wishing to visit Mu must petition them for permission. Shipping lanes are controlled by cults of Deep Ones while airports are the province of more mundane servants.
Arkham Once mired in the dark legacy of Outsiders an their cults, modern Arkham is largely free of them due to the efforts of Miskatonic University. But still there are nights when strange sounds are heard and inhuman shapes seen in the streets. For the vast store of esoteric knowledge contained in the vaults of the University act as an irresistible lure for some, and not just Outsiders.
Kingsport Sister city to Arkham, Outsiders tend to avoid it due to historically frequent presence of the Elder Gods, Nodens in particular. High population of Changelings and thus Fetches.
Rue d’Auseil. Displacement 9 Area Nobody really knows where it is, other that it is somewhere in France. The street is almost a cliff, and so steep in some places that several spots consist of stairs. It's paving is irregular, sometimes stone slabs and sometimes bare earth. A few overhead bridges cross the street from house to house. It lays across a dark and shadowy river so odorous it steamed with evil stenches. It ends in a wall, but nearby there is a house from whose garret room window one might see over it. If one is to look out of it he sees the Outside, causing insanity in any mortal viewer. Once the street is quiet for the night the room is filled with haunting melodies. It is unknown if they originate from the mindless piping of the court of Azathoth or from some lost memory of the last moments of Carcosa.
New Orleans Vampires may control the city, but the bayous belong to the cults. The exact relationship changes from cult to cult, but to the leeches they all represent an element of chaos that they would rather see gone.
Boston Mages control Boston, but it's also the place of origin for many of the eldest Outsiders in New England not in small part due to the propensity of Mages to meddle with the borders of reality. Those who survived reprisals from the city’s magical masters went on to spread their influence in the region.
New York Outsiders still can find refuge in the old district of Red Hook and their influence and corruption can be felt on every corner. Especially when one realizes the area has lost up to a third of it's size due to certain places disappearing from reality and others well on their way to doing the same. Old smuggling tunnels intersect with modern sewers giving easy and unseen access to the whole area.
Philadelphia The city is full of Hunters, and the mortals do everything they can to root out the influence of the Outsiders, friendly or otherwise. That said, the Pine Barrens and coast of New Jersey play home to many servants of the gods.
Detroit
RUINS OF THE OLD WORLD
Atlantis Mu Hyperborea R'lyeh The Cities of the Elder Things K'n-yan, Yoth and N'kai The Nameless City
THE DREAMLANDS
Jung was almost right. There is a Collective Unconsciousness that binds all of humanity together. But it's not just humanity. Everything on Earth is bound in a collective dream-state, perhaps everything in the universe. The vast majority of people will never truly experience these Dreamlands for what they are. Their dreams are a combination of memory and imagination with no greater significance. Some people can Lucid Dream, taking a degree of control over their actions. And a very special few go even further. They are Dreamers.
Dreaming, proper Dreaming, is something that's either in the blood, or that can be trained. Certainly, some people are naturally better than others. Dreaming is the ability to take one's Lucid Dreaming and impose it on those dreaming around you. A Dreamer's imagination can dictate the rules of another's dream, and it is mostly subconcious.
For example, Randolph Carter was a powerful Dreamer, whose rather anachronistic dreams formed the basis of his Dream-Quest. The Dreamlands, for Carter, were a fantastical realm of talking cats and fabulous adventure. For a modern day Dreamer the swords and bows of Carter's Dreamlands would be replaced with knives and guns. The ghouls getting airlifted in by Night-Gaunt to assault the Moon-beasts would appear as less esoteric Air Cavalry, a squadron of helicopters perhaps, like something out of Apocalypse Now.
Certain entities of the Dreamlands, such as Gugs or Zoogs, are personifications of mankind's fear and curiosity. They appear as the most terrifying thing a dreamer could imagine. For Lovecraft, the Gug had a decidedly sexual element of horror, bringing up his woman issues. These are, in effect, psychic parasites. They feast on the fear in mankind's dreams and are a great danger for Dreamers.
Ghouls appear to have the ability to enter physically into the Dreamlands. How this works is not quite worked out.
Mankind's dream-conciousness is perhaps the source of Y'Golonac, a personification of all of Mankind's wickedness and perversion, trapped behind a wall, the wall of sleep.
Carcosa is a dream-within-a-dream almost. The only will that matters in Carcosa is the will of Hastur. Dreamers infected with Hastur gravitate to the Doomed City as they sleep. There, the normal rules of dreaming do not apply, and it is easy for even experienced Dreamers to become trapped within the terrible beauty of the place.
Great Ones, the Gods of Earth are a cosmic joke really. They're Dreamers gifted by Nyarlathotep with immortality and, compared with an ordinary Dreamer, great power.(Edit to fit rest of fluff)
The way Changeling handles dream manipulation is pretty feasible for our purposes with a few adaptations
While an individual's dreams my reveal the inner fears or desires, the Dreamlands reflect the underlying subconscious of a society as a whole. Like normal dreams various regions of the Dreamlands vary in intensity (Tho the minimum is always 5) and can be categorized in roughly the same types (Recurring, Memory, Wish Fulfillment, Prophetic & Nightmares)
An Outsider is not a creature of dreams so dream manipulation doesn't come naturally to it, but dreams often touch upon the borders of the real and sometimes slip between realities, thus giving Outsiders enough of an affinity to learn the art through Dreamscape Rejections.
A 'Recurring' region would count as a stable region within the Dreamlands, that won't change without warning unless an outside force does so.
A 'Memory' region will usually contain some grand historic event tho details may constantly shift representing the different points of view that constitute it.
A 'Wish Fulfillment' region could really be anything as long as it is an idealized depiction of something.
A 'Prophetic' region may actually play out a future event, but it may crumble to dust as soon as it forms as outside events may render the possible future null.
A 'Nightmare' region embodies the fears of a society. Of course there can be significant overlap between them.
Changelings can enter the Dreamlands too then?
It should be given as an option. Are the Dreamlands part of the Hedge? Part of Arcadia? Something between? Much like with the Mythos as a whole, everything should be "This might be true. Might not be. Take it or make shit up or whatever man"
It should be stressed that Changelings are better at manipulating dreams. While to them dream manipulation comes naturally an Outsider has to learn. The one advantage an Outsider has is the ability to enter dreams physically. Tho that also means that they can be killed in them.
Changelings are good at Dreams because of their time in Arcadia which (although it might not be the Dreamlands) is very dreamlike, like with everything Changelings do, they're tricksy and sly about it.
ANTAGONISTS & ALLIES
Other Outsiders as antagonists The Servants - What better sacrifice for your god than the Outsider of a rival deity The Masters - The PCs have disrupted a plan. The Outsider needs pawns. The Rebels - Wild self destructive animals that hate all Outsiders including themselves. The Deniers - A Denier might capture other Outsiders and Mythos creatures to experiment on them to try and cure his condition. The Dreamers - A Dreamer might decree a certain area off-limits to everyone else and will protect it against anyone he deems an intruder, whether intentional or not.
The True Fae are the Elder Gods. The Elder Sign is the ultimate symbol of their pact with reality that keeps the Old Gods out.
Mages and Outsiders don't get on. Neither side really understands the other. Mages are the keepers of reality. Outsiders break their shit.
Vampire: I imagine feeding off of one would be very unpleasant.
Werewolf: They certainly aren't natural.
Mage: They make Mages rage.
Prometheans are like "who gives a shit I'm sad". Alternatively they might seek to learn about what it means to be human by observing someone who is losing his Humanity.
Changelings are in the same boat. Unless you go with the suggestion that the Elder Gods are the True Fae, which opens up whole new non-Euclidean can of worms.
Hunters would terminate with extreme prejudice, even more so than others. A Vampire rapes and eats a few bitches, who cares? But a 0xp Outsider is breaking reality just by existing. On the other hand an outsider could empower a Hunter compact by giving them access to rituals.
Sin-Eaters give zero shits because all they do is overdose on cocaine equal to their Synergy.
Blood Drinkers
“They spend their time scheming in their little ivory towers, thinking their limited city states matter in the grand plan of the universe. Frankly, I think Pharaoh or the Goat took a Jenkin and combined it with a corpse just to see what would happen.” -The Mentor
Wolf Men
“They are cough up in some kind of religious civil war over some Elder God or other that created them. This is the problem with knowable gods, they are always around to make you do stupid shit.” -The Mentor
Wizards
“Who boy! This bunch is territorial and claim the whole of existence as their domain no mater which side of the Abyss you find yourself on. They are capable of any trick we are and do it easier since this is their turf. My advice? If you anger one of them just go to ground for a century or two. I guarantee they will have blown themselves up by then.” - The Mentor
The Reanimated
“I remember a young doctor working on this concept, but I stopped following his work after it seemed to be going nowhere. I guess this is the refined product?” -The Mentor
Elder Spawn
“Quite curious creatures. They are undoubtedly touched by the power of the Elder Gods, but they don't like them any more than we do. I suggest you study up on them if you ever wish to visit the Dreamlands.” - The Mentor
Investigators
“Mortals tend to lose importance for us as time passes, but be weary of them non the less. Circling vultures tend to attract larger predators.” -The Mentor
Possessed
“Beats me what they are, might be some attempt by the Charnel God to create a new kind of ghoul that may or may not have backfired.” -The Mentor
Deep Ones
. Society A race of anthropomorphic fish men descended from Father Dagon and Mother Hydra that worships them and Cthulhu They attack anyone whom they deem an intruder in their territory and as such they are not on good terms with any other sea dwelling sentient species. While highly aggressive they do have strong family ties and no Deep One will deny help to another of his kind. They are regarded as immortal and die only through illness or violence, but since life under the sea can be harsh and violent that is no guarantee of a long life. While they are certainly capable of reproducing among themselves, they can also mate with members of other species. Creating hybrids that slowly turn into full Deep Ones as they age.
Cities While many Deep Ones build their cities in the deep ocean, most likely on the former sites of Elder Thing cities conquered eons ago, newer communities tend to spring up within sight of land where the they can hunt for sacrifices and mates. Constructed above and within great columned cave systems, that likely connect to K'n-yan and other such great underground voids, the cities are places of phosphorescent palaces of many terraces, with gardens of strange leprous corals and grotesque brachiate efflorescence. The general architecture is probably inspired R'Lyeh, which is treated as a pilgrimage site by the amphibians.
Religion They worship the trinity of Father Dagon, Mother Hydra, their ancestral gods, and Cthulhu. Dagon and Hydra are Starspawns of Cthulhu more than likely the first Outsiders associated with him, which makes them powerful almost beyond measure. Main celebrations April 30 & October 31.
Outsiders While most Deep Ones wouldn't attack a reasonably strong Outsider unless provoked, 99% of Deep One Outsiders are Starspawned Savants and are revered as Chosen of Cthulhu. There are vanishingly rare Deep One Outsiders of other gods, but they're generally hunted down as a matter of great urgency
Stage 1 – Mostly Human Hybrid (0XP)
He was a thin, stoop-shouldered man not much under six feet tall, dressed in shabby blue civilian clothes and wearing a frayed golf cap. His age was perhaps thirty-five, but the odd, deep creases in the sides of his neck made him seem older when one did not study his dull, expressionless face. He had a narrow head, bulging, watery-blue eyes that seemed never to wink, a flat nose, a receding.forehead and chin, and singularly undeveloped ears. His long thick lip and coarse-pored, greyish cheeks seemed almost beardless except for some sparse yellow hairs that straggled and curled in irregular patches; and in places the surface seemed queerly irregular, as if peeling from some cutaneous disease. His hands were large and heavily veined, and had a very unusual greyish-blue tingeThe fingers were strikingly short in proportion to the rest of the structure, and seemed to have a tendency to curl closely into the huge palm. As he walked toward the bus I observed his peculiarly shambling gait and saw that his feet were inordinately immense. The more I studied them the more I wondered how he could buy any shoes to fit them. -HPL, The Shadow Over Innsmouth
Mental Attributes: Intelligence 1, Wits 2, Resolve 2 Physical Attributes: Strength 3, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3 Social Attributes: Presence 3, Manipulation 2, Composure 2 Mental Skills: Craft 2, Investigation 1, Occult 1 Physical Skills: Athletics 2, Brawl 3, Drive 1, Larceny 2, Stealth 1, Survival 2 Social Skills: Intimidation 3, Subterfuge 2, Streetwise 2 Merits: Allies (Family) 2, Brawling Dodge 1, Iron Stamina 1, Tainted Blood 1, Unseen Sense 3 Willpower: 4 Quiescence : 7 Virtue: Fortitude Vice: Gluttony Initiative: 4 Defense: 2 Speed: 10 Health: 8 Mutations: Deep Lungs 1 Armor: 1/0 (Thick clothes)
Stage 2 – Patriarch (93 xp)
One of the Marsh daughters was a repellent, reptilian-looking woman who wore an excess of weird jewellery clearly of the same exotic tradition as that to which the strange tiara belonged. My informant had noticed it many times, and had heard it spoken of as coming from some secret hoard, either of pirates or of demons. The clergymen - or priests, or whatever they were called nowadays – also wore this kind of ornament as a headdress; but one seldom caught glimpses of them. Other specimens the youth had not seen, though many were rumoured to exist around Innsmouth. - HPL, The Shadow Over Innsmouth
Mental Attributes: Intelligence 2, Wits 2, Resolve 3 Physical Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3 Social Attributes: Presence 3, Manipulation 3, Composure 2 Mental Skills: Craft 2, Investigation 1, Occult 3 Physical Skills: Athletics 2, Brawl 3, Drive 1, Larceny 2, Stealth 1, Survival 2 Social Skills: Empathy 3, Intimidation 3, Subterfuge 2, Streetwise 2 Merits: Allies (Family) 5, Brawling Dodge 1, Iron Stamina 2, Tainted Blood 2, Unseen Sense 3 Willpower: 5 Quiescence : 5 Virtue: Hope Vice: Greed Initiative: 4 Defense: 2 Speed: 11 Health: 8 Mutations: Deep Lungs 1, Claws 2 (1L), Maws 1 (0L), Vile Secretions 1 Armor: 1/0 (Thick clothes)
Stage 3 – Fullblood (199xp)
I think their predominant color was a greyish-green, though they had white bellies. They were mostly shiny and slippery, but the ridges of their backs were scaly. Their forms vaguely suggested the anthropoid, while their heads were the heads of fish, with prodigious bulging eyes that never closed. At the sides of their necks were palpitating gills, and their long paws were webbed. They hopped irregularly, sometimes on two legs and sometimes on four. I was somehow glad that they had no more than four limbs. Their croaking, baying voices, clearly used for articulate speech, held all the dark shades of expression which their staring faces lacked ... They were the blasphemous fish-frogs of the nameless design - living and horrible. - HPL, The Shadow Over Innsmouth
Mental Attributes: Intelligence 2, Wits 2, Resolve 3 Physical Attributes: Strength 5, Dexterity 2, Stamina 4 Social Attributes: Presence 3, Manipulation 3, Composure 2 Mental Skills: Craft 2, Investigation 1, Occult 3 Physical Skills: Athletics 3, Brawl 4, Drive 1, Larceny 2, Stealth 1, Survival 2 Social Skills: Empathy 3, Intimidation 4, Subterfuge 2, Streetwise 2 Merits: Allies (Family) 5, Brawling Dodge 1, Iron Stamina 3, Tainted Blood 3, Unseen Sense 3 Willpower: 5 Quiescence : 5 Virtue: Fortitude Vice: Lust Initiative: 4 Defense: 2 Speed: 12 Health: 11 Mutations: Deep Lungs 1, Claws 3 (2L+1L(Size)), Long Armed 1, Maws 1 (0L+1L(Size)), Scales 1, Size 1, Vile Secretions 1 Armor: 2/3 (Scales 1, Size 1)
Stage 4 – High Priest (Outsider) (371xp)
It was impossible not to look into his eyes, if only to distract yourself from looking at the rest of him, all scales and slime and oozing sores, claws and sharp, curved teeth, writhing masses of feelers and tentacles that seemed to act independently. The eyes though... They were almost black, with only the hint of a pupil at their centres. Staring into them was like looking down off the bow of a ship into fathomless depths, or gazing up at the sky, at the spaces between the stars. The rest of him was wrong. But as I looked into his eyes and he raised the knife upon high, chanting in his croaking voice, I could almost see emotions. Loathing, lust, contempt. But worst of all was pity. -NotHPL, Outsider: The Calling
Sect: Starspawned Savants Creed: Servant Mental Attributes: Intelligence 2, Wits 2, Resolve 3 Physical Attributes: Strength 5, Dexterity 2, Stamina 4 Social Attributes: Presence 4, Manipulation 3, Composure 2 Mental Skills: Craft 2, Investigation 1, Occult 5 Physical Skills: Athletics 3, Brawl 4, Drive 1, Larceny 2, Stealth 1, Survival 2 Social Skills: Empathy 3, Intimidation 4, Subterfuge 2, Streetwise 2 Merits: Allies (Family) 5, Brawling Dodge 1, Iron Stamina 3, Unseen Sense 3
Willpower: 7 Quiescence : 5 Virtue: Faith Vice: Lust Initiative: 4 Defense: 2 Speed: 12 Health: 11 Mythos: 3 Schools of Subversion: Communion 3, Dreamscape 2, Corruption 2 Rejections: Choose 3 from Communion and 2 each from Dreamscape and Corruption. Madness: 18/3 per turn Abandonments: Hibernation Mutations: Deep Lungs 1, Claws 3 (3L) , Long Armed 1, Maws 1 (0L), Scales 1, Size 1, Vile Secretions 2 Armor: 3/4 (Scales 1, Size 1, Vile Secretions 2)
Mi-Go
Society The Mi-Go are a crustacean fungoid race that originates beyond our solar system. While their main colony is on Pluto, which they call Yuggoth, they have long established mining operations in remote areas of earth. The Mi-Go made sure that such areas remained shunned by humans, killing or jarring the brains of the few that dared to enter.
However, the advent of satellite surveillance ha forced the Mi-Go to severely reduce their mining operations or to switch to a human fronted business model. Since then they have expanded their operations into other areas, predominantly bio-tech using humans as test subjects in attempts to create better workers and bodyguards.
They value intelligence above all, their leaders also being their greatest scientists. While there might be other casts besides the scientific one, all nonessential personnel was evacuated from Earth making such encounters rare.
Appearance The general composition of their body can vary due to their propensity to experiment on everything including themselves, but the general shape tends to stay the same. A prawn shaped body attached to a rugose egg shaped head, from which numerous antennae protrude. They have a number of paired limbs and altho the number can be greater they are no fewer than six. Any number of them can be manipulators (at least a pair) or used for locomotion. The manipulators end in pincer like hands, but are unsuited to be used as weapons unless further adapted. While they have wings that allow them to fly through space, they are unsuited for atmospheric flight and are generally quicker on the ground.
Outsiders Outsiders from this race tend to be members of the Courtiers of the Black Pharaoh or Thousand Young sects and while they are on good terms with the Sheppards and Savants, they despise Scions. Even a rebel from that sect would have to make a pretty good case for survival.
Scientific Caste (419xp) Mental Attributes: Intelligence 6, Wits 4 Resolve 3 Physical Attributes: Strength 1 Dexterity 2, Stamina 2 Social Attributes: Presence 2, Manipulation 3, Composure 3 Mental Skills: Academics 4, Computers 3, Medicine 4, Occult 3, Science 5 Physical Skills: Stealth 2, Firearms 1, Larceny 1 Social Skills: Expression 2, Persuasion 3, Subterfuge 3 Merits: Allies (Hive) 2, Resources 4, Tainted Blood 6, Artifact 10 Willpower: 6 Quiescence :7 Displacement 3 Virtue: Prudence Vice: Pride Initiative: 4 Defense: 3 Speed: 8 Health: 7 Mutations: 2x Additional Legs 3, Additional Sensory Organs 2 (Feelers), Hibernation, Wings 2 Armor: 0 (unless supplemented by an artifact)
*Note that this is a top tier Mi-Go, the Artifact merit is roughly treated as rank in the hierarchy, lesser members of the species can be made by scaling it down and reducing a few of the mental merits and skills
Warrior Caste (333xp) Mental Attributes: Intelligence 2, Wits 3 Resolve 3 Physical Attributes: Strength 5 Dexterity 4, Stamina 3 Social Attributes: Presence 1, Manipulation 2, Composure 2 Mental Skills: Computers 2, Occult 3, Science 3 Physical Skills: Brawl 3, Weaponry 4, Stealth 3, Firearms 5, Larceny 1 Social Skills: Expression 1, Persuasion 2, Subterfuge 3 Merits: Allies (Hive) 2, Resources 2, Tainted Blood 5, Artifact 5 Willpower: 5 Quiescence :7 Displacement 3 Virtue: Prudence Vice: Pride
Initiative: 4 Defense: 3 Speed: 15 Health: 7 Mutations: 2x Additional Legs 3, Additional Sensory Organs 2 (Feelers), Hibernation, Wings 2, 2X Pincers 4 (3L+1L Size, 2AP), Size 1 , Bone Plates 2, Armor: 3/4 (Bone Plates+Size)
COMPACT: MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY: “The College”
QUOTE: “Knowledge is the only real weapon against our foe.”
Arkham, Massachusets, has always been a magnet for weirdness and magic. The campus only really became connected with the Mythos in the 1920's through the actions of Doctor Henry Armitage, the University's head librarian. His investigations into the Outsiders of the Whateley family in Dunwich led him to investigate further, often in collaboration with Professors Peaslee, Wilmarth and Dyer.
Today, Miskatonic University has gone far beyond its humble first stumblings into the Mythos. Even as Arkham has lost much of its significance, the University has maintained a fairly respectable position amongst American Universities. This place of learning has, over the years, however, become the centre of a fairly hardened anti-Mythos compact.
Every year brings a new source of recruits for the compact who are, throughout their time at university, subtly tested as to their suitability for a front-line role in the struggle against the Mythos. Those who are found to have the right qualities are quietly given the final test. Those who survive with their sanity intact are properly inducted into the Alumni. Those who die, or go insane, are carefully dumped. The higher than usual rate of drop-outs and disappearances from Miskatonic has, until now at least, mostly gone unnoticed or ignored.
The University acts as a hub for the compact, which now controls much of Arkham itself. Substantial town regeneration projects have seen the town redesigned so that it acts as a protective seal, as well as a binding ritual to keep certain entities bound in the basements of the university. Beyond Arkham, Miskatonic's Alumni are everywhere. The university does its best to foster stronger than usual bonds between students, so that even those who do not get inducted fully will respond when called upon to help out some fellow former students.
The Inducted Alumni make for formidable anti-Outsider Hunters. The Restricted Collection in the University Library has continued to grow, first under the efforts of Armitage and then his successors. This would be a massively useful tool for any Hunter organization, since the University tends to buy up whatever books it can on the supernatural before ascertaining their usefulness. Although the Collection has barely been touched by digitalization (the worries of what would happen if certain books went online have stopped this), the University has set up a system by which trusted Alumni can contact certain staff from a distance in order to consult the books indirectly. The Alumni often utilise the magic in these books, though mostly only tried, tested and understood rituals.
Miskatonic University's Hunters do not exclusively focus on the Mythos, or on Outsiders, though they tend to leave more earthly supernatural threats to other Hunter groups. How important is a group of vampires running a city, occasionally draining a few people, when compared to the apocalyptic consequences of the Mythos?
HUNTERS: You’re an undergraduate who survived the trials needed to enter the University, and have been shown pictures and books you never want to see again. Sadly for you, you can’t leave until your four years are up. You have the worrying suspicion that you won’t be able to leave even then.
As an alumni, you brought the fight to the monsters, using your knowledge of occult lore to track down and eliminate their cults wherever they’re found. Before, you felt some trouble with ending a human life. As time wears on, you notice that you care less and less.
You just worked at the University as a campus cop the night you saw a monster with seven eyes on one head decided to try and grab a co-ed right in front of you. You emptied an entire clip into the thing, with no effect, as it seemed to devour the girl before your eyes, then set it’s sights on you. Collapsing, you watched as the monster exploded from the inside, the girl no worse for wear. Helping you up, she brought you to the dean. Now you’re always carrying a book of chants around next to your pistol.
You feel the whispers calling to you, but you ignore them. Some days are worse than others, but you always ignore them in order to destroy the monsters. Still, the whispering keeps getting worse, and you constantly force it back. You fear that if the others find out, they’ll take you away. So you keep fighting, praying you’ll eliminate the source one of these days.
STEREOTYPES Ashwood Abbey: “Over the course of several hunts against the creatures of the Old Ones, our alumni have encountered this social club using the creatures we were hunting for their own amusement before eliminating them. Though realizing they are part of the same conflict we are, their methods leave much to be desired, as do their morals.”
Loyalists of Thule: “Gathered together of various academics and occult researchers, we have found that this group is devoted to researching and destroying creatures in a similar manner to our own. Several times we have exchanged information and tomes, and discovered there are most amicable. Despite this, there are some secrets even they must not know.”
Null Mysteriis: “While we still attempt to use updated scientific techniques to study the creatures we encounter, we have made few concrete gains. These individuals, however, continue to press forward with standard scientific methods to explain them. While their determination is admirable, and while we have hope they will one day unlock the mysteries of their existence, for now, we cannot count them as reliable.”
Task Force: VALKYRIE: “Since we discovered this Federal group to be responsible for many incidents, including the destruction of Innsmouth, we have warily observed them when encountered. Despite their devotion and ability to combat the enemy, they are also paranoid in regards to their secrecy, and must be approached only when it appears they may fail in their assignment.”
FACTIONS: Despite existing as a conspiracy in the Vigil for some time, the various factions of the conspiracy are simply known as ORGANIZATIONS.
The Armitage Library is the repository for the University’s knowledge on it’s enemies and their weaknesses, as well as any relics or tomes that may come into their possession. Charged with the distribution of needed equipment to hunters in the field, care is always taken to ensure the wrong tool is not sent to the wrong hunter, or worse, that it is not sent to an unwitting civilian. Free Speciality: Academics (Research)
The Alumni Communications Network coordinates the movements of both alumni and students on the trail of the creatures spawned from the other realities that would tear theirs apart. Though somewhat lacking in terms of combat prowess, the Network makes up for it in it’s expertise in electronics and communication. Free Speciality: Computer (Internet)
Finally, there is the Miskatonic Activities Council, doublespeak for the larger group of hunters in the conspiracy. Under the cover of legitimate college activities and outings (baseball games, field trips, etc.) the University is able to send it’s hunters where they’re needed most, without fearing suspicion as to why seventy people from the same area are converging on the same town. Free Speciality: Athletics (Sport of your choice)
MISKATONIC UNIVERSITY MERITS
Miskatonic University Status (• to •••••)
In addition to acting as a measure of status and respect within the university, this also limits access to the Restricted Collection Access merit. Restricted Collection Access can never go above your Status (Miskatonic University) merit.
• You've only just been inducted into the conspiracy. You know who to contact at different universities in order to get access to other records or libraries. You gain a free dot of Allies (Academics). ••• As you've risen in status, you've been given lists of ex-Miskatonic Alumni who'll be able to help you in small ways, though rarely for anything too illegal. You gain Contacts (Politics, Law and Medicine). ••••• At this level of status, if you don't know the answer to a question, you know someone who does. You gain the Encyclopedic Knowledge Merit. If you already have this merit, you may reroll failed rolls on it once.
Restricted Collection Access (• to •••••)
For each dot in this merit, you gain a +1 bonus on Occult rolls, as long as you have some way of either consulting the library yourself, or contacting another person to do it for you. In addition, you acquire the knowledge of one Ritual which costs up to the number of dots you have in this merit. Other Rituals can be learned by succeeding an extended Intelligence + Occult roll with target number of successes equal to the dot-cost of the Ritual
COMPACT: DELTA GREEN: "The Group"
QUOTE: "We travel light, we probe deep, and we strike hard. We're Delta Green, and we may be outlaws and cowboys and fools, but we've kept this green ball of shit safe and sound for longer than most people have been alive."
While Task Force VALKYRIE do an admirable job of protecting the United States from the supernatural, they weren't everywhere. Unbeknowst to the burgeoning Task-Force, a Federal raid on a Massachusetts fishing town in 1927 exposed members of the US Treasury Department and the Navy to the fact that there were forces beyond human comprehension at work. The Innsmouth Raid, Project COVENANT, had been a small victory, but all the evidence acquired there, along with interrogations and examinations of the prisoners taken hinted at the true extent of the threat. P Division, a Navy unit charged with investigating paranormal phenomena, quietly assimilated COVENANT and begun hunting down rumours of the same race of Hybrids that infested Innsmouth with some success. It was in battles against the Kharotechia, the Nazi occult programme, that P Division came into its own however, working for the OSS and gaining a new name and security clearance: Delta Green.
After the war, Delta Green continued to win battles, rooting out survivors of the Kharotechia in South America and Antarctica in Operation SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY, destroying the Deep One city of Y'ha-nithlei in Operation RIPTIDE and wiping out the cult of the Spiralling Worm deep in the Belgian Congo. This could not last, however, and Delta Green was disbanded after an operation in Cambodia went horribly wrong. Delta Green was no longer official, but members of the group continued to co- operate illegally and secretly. These cowboy years lasted until Delta Green interference led to the disastrous raid on the Branch Davidan cult in Waco, Texas, and the murder of a prominent Delta Green member, Maj. Gen. Reggie Fairfield, by an unknown group.
Delta Green as it stands today has changed significantly from the rough-and-ready organisation of the cowboy years. Under the leadership of Professor Joseph Camp, the group has become far more tightly organised and controlled. Members are divided into three-agent Cells, all given a letter, co- ordinated by A-Cell. This is, of course, the model, and often reality deviates from this, depending on circumstances. Beyond the central leadership, Delta Green also has contacts with a larger number of Friendlies, people not properly inducted to the conspiracy who know only a limited amount. A- Cell is well aware that Delta Green exists on a knife-edge and that at any moment the truth could be unravelled and every member of it in danger of serious criminal prosecutions for the vast number of crimes they commit, if not worse, and so run a very tight ship, clamping down as much as they can on any potential leaks or threats.
Delta Green's focus, if it can be said to have one, is on Outsiders and their ilk, though their "burn- everything, ask-questions-later" approach tends to mean they rarely have notes to identify a particular entity or force. They've had decades of experience of noticing patterns where others wouldn't and identifying potential sources of supernatural threat. Generally, only one cell is dispatched on a Night at the Opera, though Friendlies may be involved and particularly important Ops may require a number of Cells. Because of Delta Green's status as an illegal conspiracy, money and support are often limited, and the best a Cell can hope for is access to one of the Green Boxes, a network of storage boxes nationwide that are used to store weapons, tools, and often artifacts until A-Cell can pick them up.
Though Delta Green and Task Force VALKYRIE have crossed paths multiple times and sometimes co-operated, there has been no arrangement made between the two groups, especially since Delta Green was officially disbanded. A-Cell believes that a group within the US Government is working with alien entities contacted after the Roswell Crash in 1947. From what little Delta Green knows, Task Force VALRYRIE fit the bill perfectly. Whether the MAJESTIC group are just TFV disinformation or something more remains to be seen. Delta Green hasn't survived up till today by being loose-lipped and refuse to really trust TF:V, no matter how earnestly they seem to be helping. From Task Force Valkyrie's point of view, Delta Green are dangerous, paranoid lunatics. Opinion within the Task Force is divided, however, since Delta Green do appear to have good intentions, no matter how brutal and low-tech their approach.
SIDEBAR: Some of you are probably reading this and saying, “Wait, the Hunter sourcebook said TFV was responsible for Innsmouth!” Well, that’s the great thing about the setup of nWoD, it’s a toolkit, not a playset, and can get along just find with a little creative storytelling. For our purposes, however, we are writing under the assumption that both forces exist in the same universe.
HUNTERS:
Serial killers can rarely be described as "ordinary", but this particular one was truly fucked up. Chasing him across the country, you saw scenes that made even you feel sick, and he always seemed a step ahead, with his impossible murders: people torn from their houses with unbelievable strength, their spines removed, their bodies deposited somewhere incredibly hard to reach. That's when these "specialists" turned up, taking you to one side and asking you to perhaps consider that the killer wasn't a he, but an it. You helped them crack the case, breaking a few rules here and there and then accompanied them when you thought you'd found where It was hiding. You'll never forget what you saw that night, but It hasn't killed since. The "specialists" kept in touch, inviting you to join them eventually. You thought you were joining some secret government department, but you've since found out otherwise. Still, you no longer have much of an option.
You were just following orders when you were dispatched out into the middle of the Afghan desert, chasing after some archaeological team who'd disappeared. The fact that a couple of CIA spooks accompanied you set alarm bells ringing, but hey, orders were orders. You don't like to speak about what happened out there, about what you saw your men turn into, about that... Thing you saw, blocking out the horizon with its vastness. You don't know how you survived, but you did, wandering out of the desert delirious with thirst. They interrogated you of course, tried to find out as much as they could, but you clammed up, kept quiet, what other option did you have? You were sent home on sick leave, but you couldn't shake the feeling of being followed, of something scratching at the back of your mind. Then that woman called, talking about the operation, saying you should meet her. You did, desperate for some answers. She didn't have any, but she did have a warning about Them, and the fact that they wanted him silenced permenantly. She offered you a way out, a new life in exchange for a favour. So you took it. And when they called up, saying they needed that favour fulfilled, you followed orders.
The Professor always was regarded as a bit of an eccentric. Brilliant, but eccentric. So you were equal parts thrilled and anxious about the offer he made you of working for him over the summer on a "project". Still, you didn't have any other offers, so you took it. He swore you to secrecy, then showed you his work in progress. It was lunatic, insane, but it worked. His machine actually worked. And the promise it held, the advancements it could make, that was enough to keep you quiet when the men in suits appeared, asking questions about the work. Almost too late, you found out exactly why the Professor needed another warm body for his experiment, but then they came out of nowhere, blew the Professor's brains out, destroyed the machine and burned the notes. They saved your life, and when, some time later, you found out through academic channels about someone else attempting the same research, you knew exactly who to call.
STEREOTYPES
Loyalists of Thule: A couple of Cells have reported interacting with individuals who they claimed were working for a group descended from the same madness that spawned the Kharotechia. Regardless of what they say, Agents are advised to treat these individuals with extreme caution. We don't want a repeat of Operation LUNACY.
Network Zero: Morons. Well-intentioned morons, we're sure, but morons nonetheless. Naive idealists who believe that by spreading knowledge of the supernatural, the world will become a better place. We've seen what people do when exposed to this shit. Deception is a right, Truth is a privelige, Innocence is a luxury. Do what you have to to stop these people spreading the truth.
The Cheiron Group: We've received word that there's some kind of corporation out there, a medical/ pharmaceutical company, that's killing things in order to take them apart and find out how they tick. Not only that, but then they somehow graft bits onto people. We don't need to tell you how fucking stupid that is. They're connected though, really connected. Tread carefully, but try to stop them doing what they're doing.
Task Force: VALKYRIE: It’s hard not to respect these bastards, and God knows I’d love to get my hands on some of their little toys. The problem is they like to think they’re the biggest and best game in town. The other problem is these morons don’t even know what they’re facing half the time, and our agents have had to beat a hasty retreat more than once because of their screw-ups.
FACTIONS: Interestingly, Delta Green is not organized along ideological lines, but instead in accordance with a members importance within the compact.
Agents: The core of the compact, Agents are fully aware of the nature of the group and are generally the backbone of any Delta Green opera. Drawn from any number of Federal agencies in order to provide mobility, they do their best to hunt the alien forces threatening humanity with just a gun and some quick-thinking.
Free Speciality: Investigation (Crime Scenes)
Passive Friendlies: Passive friendlies are people who rely on subtler methods to get things done: doctors, librarians, NSA desk-jockeys. Their knowledge of the true nature of Delta Green is often limited, but they respond when called upon, and sometimes find themselves attached to Cells. Free Speciality: Academics (Any field)
Active Friendlies: Active Friendlies are people Delta Green calls up when it needs fire support on an Opera: mercenaries, private security, ex-forces. Often considered expendable, they are deliberatly kept ignorant of the truth. Free Speciality: Firearms (Any speciality)
NEW MERIT: Status (Delta Green) (• to •••••)
This merit doesn't really represent a Hunter's fame within Delta Green, since an organisation so insular and fragmented doesn't really encourage that sort of thing. Instead, it represents knowledge of the conspiracy, as well as the likelihood of A-Cell to back the character, whether in dealings with other Cells, or in providing support.
• At this level, you know very little about the Group. However, you are able to call on Friendlies to assist you. Gain a dot of contacts (Government). ••• Most Agents are at this level of status. In addition to gaining a dot of contacts (law enforcement), you know the location of the nearest Green Box, which, at the GM's discretion can include up to 2 Resources worth of tools/weapons and potentially an Artifact. ••••• Few Agents last long enough to reach this level of status within the conspiracy. A-Cell is far more likely to support the Agent, at any point the Agent can either recieve up to 2 dots in Resources, a 3 dot retainer, or Allies (Government) 3 dots. Only one of these temporary merits can be active at a time.
COMPACT: Arkham Mental Health Services: “The Asylum”
QUOTE: “Just lie back and think of how much better you’ll be after this.”
Mental health is a mixed blessing in today’s society. Treatments are both caring and cruel, the doctors humane and conniving. In the past hundreds of years, despite the advances in both mental health and pharmacology, the stigma of insanity is a difficult one to be rid of, and those who need the services of such professionals are often only in their care because their family and friends will not care for them otherwise. The professionals who do work with those considered disturbed by society at large have a daunting task ahead of them to cure their patients. The doctors at Arkham have it even harder.
When a young man was transferred in after claiming a disastrous visit to the now-nonexistent town of Innsmouth, the doctors noticed the patient had strange qualities aside from his mental state, from a head turning from average to misshapen to limbs that started to contort and shift with no discernible reason. Daring to bring him out of his padded cell, the doctors came to a frightening conclusion; not only was this man’s condition irreversible, it was also caused by his insanity. From electroshock therapy to the most modern drugs and treatments, the doctors were stunted at every turn, the man constantly shouting that “Father Dagon” would best them all. The lead doctors and administrators, deciding there was no turning back and no way to cure the man, decided to revert to more arcane forms of treatment, in the vain hope that he could be brought back. Fashioning more arcane devices from scratch, the doctors set to the man’s treatment, from submerging him into freezing water (which apparently had no effect), to forcing him to stay for days at a time in the dark freezing basement without food, telling him that he would only be fed when he accepted reality. To the doctor’s amazement, the day he died, the came back long enough to whisper, “I am wrong...” before dying, the doctors taking it as a sign their harsh methods had worked.
That would have been the end of it all, had it not been for an article from a local newspaper about a team of professors who destroyed a creature featuring amazingly similar symptoms to their patient. Realizing the threat was greater than previously thought, the doctors organized, bringing in as much information on the threat as they could, including finding ways to transfer to their care the survivors of a police raid in the Louisiana swamps who claimed to worship a being known as “Cthulhu”, and one of the few survivors of a doomed Antarctic expedition. Using their testimony to build a picture of the threat arrayed against the world’s sanity (coupled with intense regimens of their now effective “treatments”), the doctors and staff of Arkham agreed that they had to root out this insanity wherever it was found, “cure” those affected in any way possible, and destroy the causes of the insanity, rationalizing that the crude treatments were more effective to the changed neurological state in the patients than more humane treatments.
The hunters who align themselves with the Asylum straddle the line that would divide Null Mysteriis’ Rationalists from it’s Open-Minds and Cataclysmists. When a modern treatment is proven effective, they will use it. Should such methods fail, they will revert in treatment methods, going as far as the simplest of trapanations; opening the skull with a sharp object until they reach the brain.
As far as the local population is concerned, however, the screams from the asylum as only the screams of raving madmen, whose tales of mad doctors torturing the inmates are just the products of an addled mind.
HUNTERS: Your doctorate was controversial, to say the least, and your lab work with patients in the field left much to be desired in the way of results. You feared you were going to lose your doctorate and even your freedom, until a friend from your undergrad days contacted you about a job posting in New England. You accepted, and you saw just how “effective” your methods were. Even so, you have a steady career, and you’re now a praised doctor with a successful reputation throughout the region. Sacrificing your soul is probably a small price to pay.
You saw your mother spiral downwards after your father left, and devoted yourself to understanding her pain and suffering. You started to study psychology on your own, but even with a college degree, you still found nothing medically or neurologically wrong with her. Then you found the altar she kept in the cellar, with the name of your dead father on the front. Sedating her, you called up the nearest asylum. Taking your mother away, the doctors saw what you had tried to do, and took you into to explain the situation. You use your skills for good now, and try to devote all your time to curing what took your late mother’s sanity, and life.
You heard the whispers too once, had the bad dreams. You did things, bad things. Things that no sane person does, and that’s what you are now. Sane, sane, sane.That’s why you use your old contacts to help the others who hear the whispers, to bring them into sanity, like the nice doctors did to you. Sure, sometimes you have to take the pills because you start shaking so bad you can barely move, and you still have large gaps in your memory from before, but you’re sane now. That’s what matters. Sane, sane, sane.
Your life as an orderly was never too fascinating, especially working for the state’s Department of Mental Health. You just looked after the lunatics and kept to the staff rooms, waiting for your shift to end so you could get back to drinking with your buddies. Then came the day you had to transfer to Arkham, and saw what looked like a man with tentacles in his throat and eyes try to eat another patient. As the other orderlies tied him back up in his straight jacket, they explained exactly what was wrong. Now you drink for an entirely different reason.
STEREOTYPES
Aegis Kai Doru: Several field studies of escaped patients revealed a group of individuals following the same patients, using what appeared to be antiquated weapons and articles of clothing. Deciding to let them take the lead, we observed they were able to manifest similar, if not greater effects of shared psychosis than the patient, who was lost in the struggle. How these individuals managed to create such effects remains to be seen.
Null Mysteriis: Several times we have traded information with this group, seeing them as like minded individuals in the struggle to keep mankind’s sanity intact against what appears to be an ever growing tide of advanced mental illness. Despite their willingness to share information, they are too trapped by restrictive dogma.
The Long Night: At times, a person’s belief can be just as dangerous as any psychosis, and this group seems to possess such mental issues in spades. Quite often they will charge headlong into those affected with mental conditions, not realizing they are simply sick people. When they are wrong, a man can die. When they are right, men will die.
VASCU: Several patients in the asylum were turned over from Federal custody to our hands, each one with no trace of more advanced psychoses, and all from this branch of the FBI. Through countless “favors” towards them, certain experts in parapsychology believe this group possesses actual psychics. Proof has yet to be seen of these claims.
FACTIONS: The divisions among the Arkham staff are simple; what is the best way to aid the patients driven to such insanity as Outsiders?
Innovators try to discern new cures from the ever expanding field of psychology and even parapsychology, trying to find a way to cure the patients under their care without resorting to the arcane methods they are forced to use. FREE SPECIALTY: Empathy (Experimental Psychology)
Mainliners feel that a drug induced stupor coupled with treatment is the only way. The patients are a danger not only to themselves and others, but all of existence. By keeping them sedated and unable to move, and using Arkam’s signature treatments, they feel the patients will be able to sort themselves out. FREE SPECIALTY: Science (Pharmacology)
Regressionists are in favor of even more radical treatments than already used, daring to move into outright torture. Few of the staff are even willing to think about such actions, but those that do are true believers that their treatments will save the patients quickly and easily. For the staff, at least. FREE SPECIALTY: Craft (Torture Devices)
Arkham Mental Services Merit: Arkham Status (• to •••••)
STATUS: To rise in the Asylum, a member publishes treatise and theories on the workings of their patients illnesses, as well as treatments. Surprisingly, they are rather averse to killing, since each life taken is a life that could have been saved.
• - You’ve only just recently been told the truth about the patients in Arkham, and have been given a brief explanation on how the minds of your quarry will work. (+1 dot Empathy towards outsiders)
••• - At this level, you’re allowed access to the amassed files of the Asylum, including former patients, staff, and even locations where more advanced psychoses are found. (Free Specialty: Investigation: Mental Illness)
••••• - By now, you’ve grown used to the screams, pleadings, and pain, and you’re unaffected by it. Whatever these people may have, you will cure them, dead or alive. (Gain the Indomitable merit (Night Stalkers p.134) at (••) even if you don’t meet the requirements. If the Hunter already has it gain two extra dots to the maximum of five.)