Animism

Nicknames: Genius Loci, Koldunism, Kraina, Ogham, Spiritus, Green Path, Path Of Neptune's Might, Elemental Mastery.

Animism is similar to Blood Sorcery in idea but very different in practice. Major differences include Animism requiring the service of the spirits of nature rather than memorized rites and rituals and requiring not so much an extension of will as being a master of the very material a Fiend wishes to manipulate. Despite being considered a form of Blood Magic it generally does no requires a careful manipulation of blood by the caster. The blood is offered as a payment to the elemental spirits. The ancient Tzimisce who cultivated this power knew the difficulties of hunting in their territories and thus instead invoke their powers through enslaving the spirits of the land.

Practitioners of Animism are usually known as koldun and are almost exclusively Old Clan Tzimisce, although there are Tremere that have reached an understanding of the spirits. Many "regular" Tzimisce are unable to practice Koldunism, having turned away from the spirituality and perfection this form of sorcery requires to master. However, Koldunic Sorcery is by no means "good"; constant use will cause the very land and earth to eventually warp around the user.

Characteristics

• Type: Sorcery
• Masquerade Threat: Low-High.

Powers of this Discipline go from the subtle if eccentric (the sorcerer might appear to be talking alone while in communion with invisible forces) to the blatant (plants coiling around intruders, walking on water)

• Blood Resonance: Powers from this Discipline are each associated with a given element: Air(Sanguine), Earth(Melancholy) or Water(Phlegmatic). Spiritual people or those with a strong tie to the land, survivalists, forest rangers, primitivists, pagans.

Level 1

Roots of Power (Earth)

The Sorcerer creates a conduit between her and the spirits of the land through blood, sharing in its strength or resilience.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: The Sorcerer cuts the plants of her feet, bleeding the equivalent of a Rouse Check worth of blood on natural soil while standing barefoot on it. For the rest of the Scene and as long as at least one foot is in direct contact with the earth, the sorcerer benefits from a Blood Surge to a pool involving the Attributes Strength or Stamina (their choice when activating the power). The user of the power can move at walking speed and perform other actions as per usual but if at any point both feet lose contact, the power ends immediately.
• Duration: Duration: One Scene or until contact is broken.

Whispers in the Wind (Air)

The sorcerer speaks the name of a person and a short message, and spirits carry it to its destination through the air.

• Cost: None or One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool: Charisma + Animism
• System: No roll is required if the target of the message is within one mile per Animism dot of the user. The sorcerer speaks the name of the target followed by a short message of no more than ten seconds. As long as both the sorcerer and the target are not inside an hermetically sealed space, the message travels in a turn to its destination, where it will be clearly heard by the target as if whispered in their ear, provided they are within reach.

Anything the target answers in response within the following minute (again, no more than ten seconds total) will be carried back to the sorcerer in the same fashion. The first use of this power in a given Scene is free, but the vampire can Rouse Check to enable Whispers in the Wind for the rest of the Scene with the same target. Provided that the message does not arrive, the caster can attempt to manipulate the wind to take the message further than the 'safe' distance with a Rouse Check and a Charisma + Animism roll, each success adding one mile to the distance. Forcing the message this way makes it softer and harder to hear the more distance it goes, perhaps losing a word here or there. This forced communication stirs the spirits, demanding a Rouse Check for each message.

• Duration: A single message back and forth or a Scene.

Liquid Memories (Water)

• Amalgam: Auspex 1

With a tithe of blood, the sorcerer can peer into the secrets of a body of water, calling the spirits inside it. The spirits, by means of images can communicate what transpired on, in, or around it from the water's perspective.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool: Manipulation + Animism
• System: The sorcerer bleeds One Rouse Check worth of blood on a body of water like a lake, pond, river or similar and makes a Manipulation + Animism check. Difficulty depends on how far in the past they want to peer: 2 for a day, 3 for a week, 4 for a month and 5 for a year, add 1 more for each additional year. On a Win the dripping blood creates images in the water in response to the sorcerer’s questions. The sorcerer can ask as one question plus the margin of successes. The answers are detailed and nitid, but are merely images of what was once reflected or happened inside it, so spying on a conversation that took place by a lake might need some skill with lip-reading, for example.
• Duration: One Scene or untill all questions are answered. Each question takes a turn or more.

Level 2

Cloak of Biting Winds (Air)

The sorcerer calls forth the spirits of the winds and surrounds themselves in a whirlwind of furious air that prevents proyectiles from reaching them.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: The sorcerer bleeds the required Rouse Check of blood that quickly sublimates into the air as a payment for the spirits, at which point a small whirlwind surrounds them. While this power is active all ranged attacks against the sorcerer suffer a -2 dice penalty. The wild winds might create any other sort of collateral effects at the Storyteller discretion.
• Duration: One Scene

Land’s Unyielding Grasp (Earth)

The sorcerer bleeds on the ground and the very land restrains their enemies.

• Cost: One or more Rouse Checks
• Dice Pool: Resolve + Animism vs Strength + Stamina
• System: The sorcerer bleeds a Rouse Check worth of blood in a patch of natural soil, creating a latent trap of diameter equal to the Animism dots of the sorcerer. When a intruder enters the patch of land, the earth opens up or plants coil around it trying to grapple and restrain in a contest of Resolve + Animism vs Strength + Stamina. On a win, the intruder gets grappled and can attempt to free itself the next turn as per the normal grapple rules.

The sorcerer can plant as many traps as her Animism dots allow. A single trap can grapple several several opponents splitting the dicepool. The elements cannot be used to directly harm the opponents, only to restrain them, but the sorcerer can otherwise act as they please.

• Duration: Until triggered or a night.

Dark Depths (Water)

The sorcerer rest inside a body of water protected from the sun by the blackness created by the spirits.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: After bleeding the required Rouse Check on a body of water big enough to completely hold their body and at least a yard/meter deep, it becomes pitch black, blocking the sun completely. This patch of darkened water cannot be disturbed by natural currents or other alterations and remains effective until the next sunset.
• Duration: Until next sunset.

Level 3

Fog Walk (Water)

The sorcerer can walk over water as if on land, sliding silent like roiling fog.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool: Dexterity + Animism
• System: After bleeding the required Rouse Check on the water, the sorcerer makes a Dexterity + Animism check, Difficulty set by the Storyteller based on how calm the water is. A placid lake might be Difficulty 2, while open sea during a storm might be 6 or more. On a Win, the sorcerer might walk and stand on the water as if it were solid, steady ground for the rest of the Scene and suffer no adverse effects from the movement of the tides or waves, remaining in perfect balance no matter what. The sorcerer can carry a human-sized mass, though their speed drops to walking speed. Grabbing and carrying aloft an unwilling subject, require a contest between the caster’s Strength + Animism and the other’s Strength + Athletics.
• Duration: One scene.

Invisible Hands (Air)

The sorcerer request the aid of spirits and ask them to become its arms, allowing to carry around objects at a distance.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: The sorcerer bleeds a Rouse Check worth of blood that immediately sublimates as a payment for the spirits, disappearing into the air. For the remaining of the Scene they can lift, move and interact with objects at a range equal to twice their Animism dots in yards/meters as if they were using their own hands, so they are still limited by their own Strength and Dexterity. Additionally, this allows the usage of the attack skills Brawl and Melee at a distance. Firearms could be used too at Storyteller’s discretion. While acting at range, the sorcerer must maintain concentration, doing nothing else.
• Duration: One scene.

Mother Earth’s Womb (Earth)

The earth opens up, swallowing the sorcerer. Inside its embrace the most grievous of wounds quickly fade aided by the maternal instincts of the spirits of earth.

• Cost: One or more Rouse Checks
• Dice Pool:
• System: The sorcerer lies on natural soil enough to contain their whole body and is swallowed by it. Once inside, they can make as many Rouse Checks as the value of their Damage Mending at which point they downgrade one Aggravated wound to Superficial per Rouse Check over the course of a Scene, after which they are expelled again. This power can only be used once per night and counts as the one Aggravated per night you can heal. This power requires concentration and because of that it cannot be used during a fight.
• Duration: One Scene

Level 4

Kupala's Fury (Earth)

The koldun smites one of its arms or legs into the ground, sinking it with force enough to allow its bleeding. The spirits of the earth feed on the fury and blood to quickly form simple structures made of earth and rock.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool: Strength + Animism
• System: No roll is required unless it is used to attack. The sorcerer bleeds One Rouse Check worth of vitae during the stomp. The spirits quickly create the desired structure in the targeted place in line of sight. The structures are usually columns, walls or other naturally occurring formations, but more complex and unnatural can be done at Storyteller’s discretion. The structures occupy an area with diameter equal to the Animism dots in yards/meters. While using this power to harm, the user rolls Strength + Animism as a ranged attack. Using the power on this manner creates lances or spikes and can be used to attack several foes with the normal splitting dicepool rules.
• Duration: One use

Flowing Wall (Water)

Tales of vampires' inability to cross running water may have derived in part from garbled accounts of this power in action. The sorcerer commands the spirits of water to rise up and form a barrier impassable to almost any being.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: After touching the surface of a body of water and spending the Blood as an offering to the spirits, they rise as a wall of water with a width equal to three times the Animism dots of the user. The wall may be placed anywhere within the character's line of sight, and must be formed in a straight line. The wall lasts until the next sunrise. It cannot be climbed, though it can be flown over. To pass through the barrier, any supernatural being (including beings trying to pass the wall on other levels of existence, such as ghosts) must pass a Willpower roll vs Difficulty 4.
• Duration: One Scene

Biting Gale (Air)

The sorcerer sublimates its blood as an offering to the spirits of the air, funelint their fury upon an area.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: The user makes a Rouse Check and spends a turn concentrating, calling the winds in the desire area. The effect covers a circular area with a radius equal to twice the user’s Animism dots in yards/meters. The area is centered on the sorcerer or a spot in their line of sight.

Anyone caught in the Biting Gale including the caster, receives a two-dice penalty to all rolls and move with difficulty. Anyone inside Biting Gale receives two levels of Superficial damage for every turn they remain within it due to the strong winds.

• Duration: One Scene

Level 5

Ride the Winds (Air)

The sorcerer call upon the aid of the air spirits, asking them to transport it to a destination.

• Cost: One Rouse Check
• Dice Pool:
• System: No roll is required to use this power. The sorcerer concentrates for a turn and sublimates its Blood into the air as an offering to the spirits. The spirits then carry the body of the user to the desired destination. The user does not disappear from sight and thus can be damaged as per normal but it is seen as a blur once the spirits have taken speed, adding three dice of penalty against attacks. This power cannot effectively function in caves, buildings, or other enclosed areas and does not allow instantaneous travels. An entire night using it might help you cross the Atlantic ocean, but the ultimate distance traveled depends entirely on the Storyteller.
• Duration: One Scene

Credits

Author: Sharei, Thorbes

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