Vitiations
Vitiations are purely channeled Odic power bestowed by Outsiders that can let theurges pervert the natural order for their own benefit. Each Vitiation has specific parameters of potency, which are laid out in great detail by ancient concord. All of this specificity leads to the understanding that Vitiations have various levels of power, depending upon the potency of the Outsider that granted the magic, and they are classed into broad categories that govern their realms of influence. Often, they also are unreliable, dangerous, extremely disturbing to common people, and have unforeseen consequences.
Using Vitiations
Step 1: Choose Vitiation & Power Level
The theurge chooses a Vitiation they have previously been granted access to by an Outsider. The Power Level is based upon the station of the Outsider granting it, so imps are allowed to empower Vitiations at the imp level, villeins at the villein level, and lords at the lord level.
Power Level also determines the AP cost necessary to enact the Vitiation if used in combat:
- Imp-level Vitiations cost 1 AP
- Villein-level Vitiations cost 2 AP
- Lord-level Vitiations cost 3 AP
Step 2: Determine the Difficulty Rating
The Fateweaver sets the Difficulty Rating for the Vitiation and tells the theurge’s player what that is in most cases.
The theurge appears to be mumbling during this time as they talk to the Outsider and communicate their request. Apply –10 to the Base Chance if the theurge is gagged or otherwise unable to vocalize properly.
Step 3: Focus the Vitiation (Optional)
The theurge may choose to open themself to the power of the Od, deciding how much of this raw, chaotic potential they want to expose themself and the world around them to.
The theurge’s player may choose a Focus Level of 1 to 3, but they must place that many dice into the Odic dice pool. The theurge adds +10 to their Base Chance for each level of focus. So, by adding 2D6 to the Odic dice pool, they get +20 to their Odweft test.
Focusing a Vitiation happens at the speed of thought and, therefore, costs 0 AP in combat.
If the Vitiation has specific targets that must be picked or requires the theurge to make decisions about the way it appears or what effects it has, those decisions must be made during this step and described out loud before the roll to enact the Vitiation is attempted.
Step 4: Accrue the Tithe
Tithe is increased depending upon the power level of the Vitiation enacted and the agreement that the theurge has with the pertinent Outsider. Vitiations enacted by pacted Outsiders generate no Tithe.
| Imp | Villein | Lord | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rapport | 2 Tithe | 4 Tithe | 6 Tithe |
| Communion | 1 Tithe | 2 Tithe | 3 Tithe |
| Pact | 0 Tithe | 0 Tithe | 0 Tithe |
Step 5: Make the Odweft Test
Spend AP and make an Odweft test for the theurge. This Odweft test is modified based upon the amount of Tithe the theurge has acquired. For each 10 Tithe accumulated, the roll is modified by –10. So a theurge with a Tithe of 9 would have no modification, but one with 10 Tithe would gain –10. Note that Tithe is accrued even if this test fails.
In addition, if the roll to enact a Vitiation is a Critical or Sublime Failure, the theurge loses the ability to use that Vitiation until the sun sets and rises again. This penalty is in addition to any other effects listed in the Vitiation description.
Step 6: Roll for Odic Manifestation
Take all the dice in the Odic dice pool, including those added by the theurge if they focused the Vitiation. In addition, add one die for each 10 points of Tithe the theurge has accumulated.
Roll the Odic dice. If any of the dice are a face ‘6,’ an Odic Manifestation immediately comes into effect. The more ‘6’s rolled, the more serious the nature of the Manifestation.
Ending a Vitiation
Unless the description of the particular Vitiation notes otherwise, a theurge may end any Vitiation they have enacted by willing it during the Blackbird’s Turn; this takes no AP. If the Vitiation has multiple targets, the theurge may end it for any one of them, all of them, or some of them. Recipients of a Vitiation may not choose to end the Vitiation themselves, however, unless it is mentioned in the Vitiation’s description.
If any Vitiation has a duration that is longer than instantaneous, that specific Vitiation may not be used again by that theurge until the previous one has run its course or been ended by them.
Odic Manifestation (Odulations)
Roll 1d10 + 1 for every 6 rolled on the Odic Pool. No manifestations occur if no 6s were rolled.
| Roll | Effect |
|---|---|
| 2 | Witch’s Breath: A sudden wind gusts through the Scene, unsettling animals and people alike. All tasks that require focus and acumen become harder to perform. Apply an extra –10 to Skill tests. |
| 3 | Skittering Frost: An unnatural film of ice envelops everything in the Scene, freezing undrawn blades in their scabbards and requiring 2 AP to draw them. Additionally, all forms of movement are exceedingly tricky. A Coordination test must be made every time someone moves; if failed, they become Prone. |
| 4 | Whispering Frogs: Misshapen amphibians, babbling and whispering the deepest secrets of those present, fall from the sky. Everyone suffers 1D10+1 Peril when this effect first manifests. Everyone is Deafened during the duration of this effect. |
| 5 | Barrow Fog: A thick fog spills over the immediate area, blanketing sounds and disrupting visibility to Fleeting Shadows; worse yet, something stalks within the mist. The children of Anhelios are near. The Blackbirds find that 1D6 ghouls have joined the Scene. |
| 6 | Raining Blood: Blood rains from the sky. All participants currently in combat fight to the death unless they can make an (Arduous –30%) Resolve test. If not currently in combat, everyone is filled with shapeless anger and grows more likely to come to blows. All Fellowship-based tests are –10. |
| 7 | Temporary Bloom of Od: When performing magic, all successful tests are Critical Successes, and all Failures are Critical Failures. |
| 8 | Blink Storm: Roll 1D6 for each participant at the beginning of their Turn in the current encounter. If the dice come up a ‘5’ or ‘6,’ they are shunted into the Od momentarily. A Resolve test must be made for them, and they are unseen and unavailable to anyone else or any of the effects in the real world until the beginning of their next Turn. This effect lasts for 1D6 Turns. |
| 9 | Plague of Cowardice: No participant may take any Action that would involve rolling Damage dice. |
| 10 | Unexpected Introduction: A random participant is suddenly made aware of the Outsider that caused the manifestation to happen. They have rapport with said Outsider from this day forward. |
| 11 | The Unseeable: Everyone suffers 2D10+2 Peril once when this manifestation occurs, as the veil is ripped asunder and they see the roiling, raw stuff of the Od unclothed. |
| 12 | Faces: A small face appears on every inanimate object in the near vicinity, and they all start talking; each is totally self-aware, including the reality that each is an object. For most of them, the revelation is terrifying. Apply an extra –20 to Skill tests as every item in the area struggles against you. |
| 13 | Permanence: Some aspect of the Vitiation that the theurge was empowering becomes permanent and, if possible, sentient, and now has its own motivations and goals. |
| 14 | Temporal Flux: For every second spent in the area, time moves forward by 1 day outside of it. |
| 15 | Land of Stone: Everything in the area (including living beings) turns permanently to stone, except the Blackbirds and their opponents. |
| 16 | Hell Frost: Everything liquid freezes, including saltwater. Living things are not frozen, but the chill might kill plants or small animals. The cold lasts until the sun sets and rises again. |
| 17 | Bottomless Chasm: A permanent chasm opens in the ground, splitting those present to either side. Roll 1D6 for each person present: odd results on one side, evens on the other. The fissure is 10 strides wide. |
| 18 | Od-Rift: A sliver-like rift, no bigger than a tree, is torn between this world and a realm of the Od. This rift allows passage in both directions and lasts indefinitely. The rift is only 1 stride in diameter. |
| 19+ | Infinite Journey: All present are drawn into the Od, and the rift seals behind them. They must find a way back to the world they knew before. |