Werewolf: The Forsaken - Blank It

waits a certain amount of time (as much as an hour), and
then the pack takes off on the hunt.
The spirit quarry is rarely a willing volunteer — yet
the terms of the Sacred Hunt leave it with a measure of
protection. The werewolf pack will feed on its Essence, yet
it receives the promise that it will survive the experience
somehow .Thus, the spirit is compelled to abide by the
terms of the hunt. The spirit flees, uses guile and possibly
even fights back, but it doesn’t leave the werewolves’
territory (or its spirit reflection) before the sun comes up,
and it doesn’t use Numina that cost Essence to activate.
It doesn’t seek the help of other spirits in the vicinity, nor
do observing spirits aid either party. Tracking the spirit
through the Shadow is handled the same way tracking any
other spirit would be.
If the rite takes place in the physical world, the pack
must usually perform the Blessing of the Spirit Hunt (p.
152) before beginning the Sacred Hunt. Some spirits may
seek out a suitable vessel in the material world (possibly
an animal of its type, but just as likely a human being if
the pack’s territory is urban) and ride it, bringing with it a
measure of Essence from the Shadow Realm. However, the
spirit that does this is violating the terms of the Hunt, and
receives no guarantee of survival at hunt’s end.
Once the spirit has been caught, the werewolves are
able to devour its Essence much as another spirit would.
However, they are bound by tradition to leave the spirit a
small bit of Essence before it is torn apart, so that it may
re-form later as a reward for participating in the hunt.
The hunt is sacred, after all, and werewolves are bound to
respect their prey’s sacrifice.
Performing the Rite: The ritemaster either draws
a map or marks out a section of a map to represent the
boundary of the hunting ground to which the spirit is
bound. (This hunting ground can be no smaller than the
entirety of the pack’s territory, but it can be much larger if
the ritemaster wishes.) He then burns the map while offering
chiminage appropriate to the type of spirit summoned.
Meanwhile, packmates howl out a reminder of the ancient
pact that binds lesser spirits to take part.
Only one hunt can be performed by a pack or any of
its members per night.
Dice Pool: Harmony
Action: Extended (10 successes; each roll represents
one minute) for the performance of the rite itself. The
actual hunt can take a matter of a couple hours or it can
last all night. Consider it to last for one hour per roll made
to accumulate all the successes required. The hunt is considered
one scene for purposes of a Gift or rite’s duration.
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: All accumulated successes are lost.
The ritemaster may name the wrong spirit as quarry, or
even attract the attention of a more powerful and dangerous
spirit from the nearby Shadow. Even if the werewolves
defeat it and tear it apart, they gain no Essence from the
activity. No other attempts can be made in the same night.
Failure: No successes are gained at this time.
Success: Successes are gathered toward the total
required. If 10 are gained, the proper spirit is marked as
quarry, and can be harvested for Essence at the completion
of the hunt. The effects of the mark last from the culmination
of the rite until the sun rises. The spirit leaves a physical
trail, whether in Shadow or the physical world, that the
werewolves can follow. In either case, the spirit remains
within the boundary established by the ritemaster until
sunrise, at which point its obligation is fulfilled.
When the hunt is completed, participants may divide
the spirit’s Essence among themselves. This share is even
among all members, with any remainder going to the
ritemaster. If three werewolves perform the hunt and catch
a spirit with 10 Essence, two of them get three Essence
points back, while the ritemaster gets four. However, it is
only just and honorable to leave the spirit with one Essence
point of its own, so that it can re-form after discorporation
at the hunt’s climax. Permanently destroying a
spirit that has been marked as sacred quarry is cause for
a three-die check against degeneration for werewolves of
Harmony 5 or higher. (See Harmony, p. 180.)
See Chapter Four for tips on creating physical and
spirit antagonists who could serve as prey for this rite’s
purposes. See also Appendix One for tips on creating spirits
from whole cloth. This rite cannot be used to mark a
spirit of more power than a lesser Jaggling; more powerful
spirits are rivals and foes, not prey.
Exceptional Success: The ritemaster makes significant
progress toward a rewarding hunt. If 15+ successes
are gathered on the same roll that the ritemaster reaches
10 successes, the hunt is particularly rewarding. At the
successful culmination of the hunt, each character also
regains a single point of spent Willpower.
Wake the Spirit (•••)
When the Gauntlet rose and the two worlds were
separated, many spirits fell into slumber, their voices no longer
heard. In the years since, countless objects have come
into being without their spirits being stirred. To this day,
although many spirits roam the shadow world, many, many
more places and objects have yet to be “awakened.” This
rite allows a werewolf to rouse a dormant spirit from slumber,
effectively “summoning” a new spirit into existence.
Waking a spirit can be a dangerous gamble, as the
newly awakened spirit feels no obligation or gratitude to the
ritemaster. A spirit that’s been awakened by this rite acts according
to its nature — no more, no less. A werewolf might
be able to convince the newly awakened spirit of a car to
give its earthly analogue a measure of its power simply
for the ecstasy of racing at high speeds, but an awakened
flame-spirit might be as dangerous to the werewolf as to
her enemies. Yet awakening a spirit gives a werewolf a new
potential resource from which to draw. A werewolf can
Rites
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