Werewolf: The Forsaken - Blank It

152
Chapter II: Character
proving that he’s claimed the right to greater standing among
his people and the spirits. Traditionally, a werewolf must
perform this rite for another. It’s generally considered too
proud and crass to perform it for oneself, though some Ghost
Wolves have little alternative.
Performing the Rite: The ritualist intones a chant
honoring the subject’s strength and wisdom. The exact
wording of the chant may be poetic or modern, depending
on the ritemaster’s talents, but it must be respectful. As he
continues the chant, the ritemaster runs her nails (or claws,
if in Dalu form) in ritual patterns across the skin of the subject.
As the rite continues, the patterns begin to glow with
silver light and take on the form of spirit brands.
Dice Pool: Harmony
Action: Extended (15 successes; each roll represents
one minute of effort)
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: All successes are lost, and the
ritemaster must begin anew. This failure to properly honor
the rite’s subject is seen as shameful.
Failure: No successes are gained.
Success: The successes are added to the total. If the
total reaches 15+ successes, the brands blaze into being
and then fade to the proper state (to invisibility if the rite
took place in the physical world).
Exceptional Success: The successes are added to the
total. If the total reaches 20+ successes, the brands are
slower to fade. The subject gains a +1 to all Social rolls
made to influence spirits for the duration of the scene.
Banish Spirit (••)
This rite returns a wayward spirit from the physical
world to the spirit world. In the First Times, the children
of Father Wolf used this ritual to force spirits to travel
back past the Border Marches. After the Fall, things got
easier, in a way. No longer did a werewolf need to force a
spirit to the Border Marches and then banish it. Instead,
she could simply force the spirit through the Gauntlet
and into the Hisil. Unfortunately, this is something of a
brute-force ritual. Being shoved through the Gauntlet can
be damaging to spirits, who resent having this rite used
on them. Most spirits would prefer to leave of their own
volition, perhaps after being plied with chiminage or the
promise of favors. On the other hand, the pain this ritual
inflicts on a wayward spirit makes it a good stick to have
around if the carrot of chiminage proves insufficient.
Performing the Rite: The targeted spirit must be
bound with the Bind Spirit rite or by physically preventing
its host from moving more than a meter or two in
any direction. The ritualist approaches the bound spirit
and performs a brief snarl of exile and refusal, complete
with similar gestures. The ritualist then slowly circles the
bound spirit counterclockwise, and sprinkles it with salt
water from each of the four cardinal directions.
The key of the ritual is the five-time repetition of the
First Tongue phrase, “I banish you from this realm,” Galer
za da sar. The ritualist doesn’t have to repeat the phrase
five times in a row. He may sprinkle it throughout the
performance, but the ritual isn’t complete until the phrase
is said for a fifth time.
Dice Pool: Harmony versus the subject’s Resistance
Action: Contested and extended (10 successes; each
roll requires a minute’s time)
The first competitor to accumulate the required successes
wins, either to be banished to the spirit world or to
refuse to go. If the spirit wins, no attempt to banish it can
be made again by any werewolf for 24 hours.
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The rite or resistance fails outright
and all accumulated successes are lost. Either the werewolf
cannot attempt to use this rite against the given spirit for a lunar
month, or the spirit leaves for the spirit wilds immediately.
Failure: No successes are accumulated at this stage of
the contest.
Success: Successes are accumulated toward the total
required. If the total reaches 10+ successes, the spirit
is banished from the physical world and appears in the
Shadow Realm.
Exceptional Success: Tremendous progress is made or
resistance is shown.
Blessing of the Spirit Hunt (••)
This rite stands as evidence of the Uratha’s millennia
of conflict with the spirit world. The lore of the People
states that this rite was first taught by Father Wolf himself,
so that his half-flesh descendants could hunt spirit prey
alongside their Father and the Firstborn. The rite blesses
the teeth and fangs of a werewolf, so that he can catch
and rend an ephemeral spirit as if it were solid flesh. The
ritemaster invokes allied wolf-spirits or spirits closely allied
to the brood of his totem, for few other spirits could be
compelled to empower this rite.
Performing the Rite: The ritemaster cuts either herself
or her subject with a claw, and uses the blood to mark
a glyph on the forehead and on the back of each hand. As
she does so, she intones a blessing in the name of Father
Wolf and the Firstborn. The bloodstained glyphs remain
visible for the duration of the rite’s blessing, which may
strike fear into any spirits who recognize them.
Cost: 1 Essence
Dice Pool: Harmony
Action: Instant
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The rite fails, and the Essence
point is lost. The ritemaster cannot attempt to invoke this
rite again until the next night.
Failure: The rite fails, and the Essence point is lost.
Success: Either the ritemaster or the subject may pay
the Essence point to invoke the blessing. The recipient of
the rite’s blessing can physically touch or strike ephemeral