Werewolf: The Forsaken - Blank It

epresentative of the energy and effort the pack puts forth in
attracting the totem, of its special spiritual destiny and of its
commitment to Harmony. The ban that their totem levies,
however, is a measure of the energy the totem uses in granting
his pack power. The two values have little in the way of a
cause-and-effect relationship, except that, as stated, the more
power a totem invests, the more strict the ban it sets is.
That said, however, if the pack is willing to go the
extra mile in service to the totem, the totem is willing to
grant an additional measure of power. If the players choose
to take a ban two steps more severe than their Totem points
would normally require, they receive a “price break” equal
to the level of severity. So, if a pack spends 10 Totem
points on their totem, but chooses a ban normally applicable
to a 21–25 point expenditure, their totem actually
costs five Totem points (10 points – severity 5 = 5). This
discount cannot more than halve the total cost. That is,
if the players had spent only eight points on their totem
and taken a level-five ban, they would still have to pay four
Totem points.
(Astute players will notice that it’s not possible to
take this option for totems of more than 15 points. That’s
true. At that level of power, the ban required would
cripple the pack. If the players and Storyteller wish to try
to make a go of this anyway, and figure out a “level six”
ban, they may certainly try.)
EXAMPLE OF TOTEM CREATION
The Storyteller assembles his players for a session of
character creation. People already have strong concepts
for their individual characters, so most of the work of the
evening is put toward building the pack, which includes
building the pack’s totem.
After all of the points are spent, the five players have
14 points spent on the Totem Merit, and therefore 14
points with which to build their totem. The first thing
they must do is figure out what sort of spirit best represents
the pack. Because the Storyteller wishes to begin the
chronicle in medias res, with the characters already embroiled
in a difficult situation involving a potent Beshilu
and its swarm, he doesn’t wish to spend a session detailing
the pack’s quest for the totem. As such, the players have
complete control over what their totem spirit is and how it
came to be associated with their pack (although the Storyteller
is on hand to make any necessary rulings).
The pack consists of three Blood Talons, a Hunter
in Darkness and a Bone Shadow. All of the characters
are warriors to an extent (even the Bone Shadow, who
Changed under the full moon), but they all also have
a deep and abiding interest in the darkest parts of the
spirit world. The Bone Shadow believes a terrible threat
to the People will soon rise from the spirit wilds, while
the Hunter in Darkness wishes to follow his tribal totem’s
imperative to root out corruption and evil. The players
note this similarity and decide that their totem needs to
acknowledge and approve of their martial tendencies,
but not necessarily enhance them. Instead, they decide
their totem wants to play to their interest in the dangerous
Shadow Realm, helping them delve into mysteries
that wise werewolves leave alone. A spirit associated with
death, curiosity and forbidden knowledge seems best.
After a quick consultation with some of the Storyteller’s
mythology books, they decide upon Panther. The black
leopard is a symbol of magic and death in many cultures,
with associations of strength and mystical power. The
players decide that after their pack came together, they
ventured into the spirit wilds and became lost along a
spirit path that led them into a nest of hideous spirits. As
they fought their way out, they noticed a dark pantherspirit
observing their ordeal without fear. Impressed by the
spirit’s resolve, they tracked it down before the moon had
changed, capturing it despite its great speed and stealth.
After an initial period of adjustment, the spirit has come
to embrace its role as the pack’s totem. The players further
describe this totem spirit as Panther-Who-Slinks-in-Shadowed-Paths,
or simply Shadowed Panther for short.
With that in mind, the players proceed to the second
step of totem creation: assigning Attributes. They have
nine dots to split between Power, Finesse and Resistance.
After some haggling, they decide to put two in Resistance,
four in Finesse and three into Power. Panther is feared and
respected as a symbol of strength, and is particularly wise
and nimble.
In step three, they assign their totem’s Influences.
As this incarnation of Panther is unlikely to be as tied
to actual physical animals, the players choose two dots
of Shadows as its Influence. Their totem spirit can now
use the Strengthen and Manipulate Influences on local
shadows.
Step four is the most involved step of the process in
terms of numbers. The players have 14 points with which
to customize their totem spirit. Like all pack totems,
Shadowed Panther begins with the Numen of Material
Vision and another of the players’ choice. The players
read over the list of Numina and decide that Wilds Sense
is the most appropriate, as it goes along well with the
concept of Shadowed Panther as wise in the mysteries of
the spirit world.
The players first decide to make their spirit a little
more resistant to damage, and spend six of their 14 Totem
points to raise its Resilience to 3.
They have already decided that they want Shadowed
Panther to mainly enhance their spiritual and
mental faculties. Although their totem is a spirit of great
strength, he doesn’t feel it necessary to bestow that
power on the already-impressive Forsaken. The players
quibble over what sorts of traits they are likely to
need, and finally decide that it never hurts to have more
Essence available. The characters place 3 points into a
story bonus of Essence, allowing Shadowed Panther to
grant them nine extra Essence per story. The players now
have five Totem points left.
Totems
193