Rituals of Thaumaturgy
This is a collection of some Thaumaturgy rituals that
I have developed for NPC's in my games, and a few that I just sort of came up with. They
include complete statistics, such as casting time, ritual materials, etc.
The Toys of Fools (Level One) -
For the vampire with a sense of humor, this ritual allows the
caster to affect the outcomes of fortune-telling devices used near him. The ritual itself
is used to prepare a coin, amulet or small token, which must have the runic name of Loki
inscribed on it somewhere - the preparations take about five to ten minutes. Once
prepared, the vampire need only keep the token in his hand and concentrate on the
fortune-telling that he wishes to manipulate (it must be within his natural sight). Most
manipulations will be automatic, or the Storyteller may require a Wits+Occult roll to
determine the effectiveness of the power. The token's enchantment lasts for the entire
evening, or until it is used. Note that these manipulations can easily be sensed by anyone
with the proper ability, so this power is most effective on the unknowing mortal populace.
Mimic the Kine's Hunger (Level Two) -
This ritual prepares a useful elixir that allows a
vampire to eat food, and even gain a modicum of sustenance from it. It takes a few hours
to concoct the formula, and the elixir will keep in a specially prepared vial for 23 days.
The vampire must draw a point of blood from himself, one drop at a time, into a bowl with
two grams of powdered hyena fur and several aromatic herbs. These must be mixed as the
blood is added, until the mixture begins to coagulate.
Once the mixture has become thickened, it must be
prepared alchemically with the drawn saliva of several mortals - the process taking about
an hour. During this time the vampire should prepare the vial, rinsing it with rainwater,
then red wine, then rainwater again. When the elixir has finished brewing, it should be
cooled, then poured into the prepared vial. The number of successes on an
Intelligence+Occult(8) roll determine the number of "doses"
created, to a maximum of 3. If a botch occurs, then the mixture is poisonous, inflicting 2
aggravated wounds on any who would consume it. The mixture is also highly flammable, so be
very careful.
Once prepared, the elixir can be used at any time -
simply mix it into the food and allow a moment for it to set in, and the vampire may eat
the food with no difficulty at all. However, within one hour after eating the meal, the
vampire's body begins the process of absorbing the food. During this time the vampire will
become sluggish (-2 dice on all actions) and irritable (+1 D# to resist Frenzy) as his
body adjusts to the unfamiliar substance. This process will take an hour or two (one
Scene). If the vampire who eats the prepared food is also the one who supplied the blood
for the ritual, then the meal will provide a single blood point once the food has been
absorbed into the body.
Aura of Fun (Level Two) -
Quite possibly one of the cruelest punishments one can inflict on
another, this ritual makes the victim absolutely irresistible to Malkavians. The caster
must prepare a strip of yellow paper, bathing it in the smoke of specific incenses for an
hour. Once cleansed, the strip must be inscribed with nonsense words in extremely tiny
print, using moon-tainted ink. This will require a Dexterity+Linguistics(7) roll. When the
paper strip is finished, it must be planted on the subject somehow and stay with him for a
full ten minutes. From that point on the target will automatically attract the attention
of any Malkavian that sees him (and possibly other mischievous beings as well!). The
effects last for a number of nights equal to the successes on the Dex+Linguistics roll,
though a new moon will always cancel this effect.
Summon Shadow Stalker (Level Three) -
This ritual requires an entire night to cast, as well
as a point of the caster's blood and a small prey animal (usually a rat or mouse). The
animal must be cleaned with rainwater, then allowed to fall asleep (most casters just drug
them) and kept in a ritually sealed area. While it is asleep, the caster must prepare a
cage for the animal, spraying it with a mixture of pure distilled water, the urine from a
female cat, and a single point of blood. The cage must also have protective sigils marked
on the perimeter of the cage's floor, both top and bottom. The sleeping animal is then
transferred into the cage, and the placed in a completely dark room for the remainder of
the evening. No light must touch the animal or the cage until the next night or the ritual
will be ruined.
Once these preparations have been met, the animal is
ready to be used to summon a Shadow Stalker. As long as the creature remains in the cage
it is safe from harm, though to keep the ritual's effects active the creature must be
allowed to drink only purified rainwater. If the creature is ever removed from the cage
its scent will draw the attentions of a Shadow Stalker. A few minutes after the Stalker
catches the scent it will manifest from a shadow somewhere near the creature, slashing and
attacking anything that moves. Anybody in the area who is not warded against spirits is
subject to attack for a short period (1-5 turns) from the Stalker's razor sharp claws.
Once the stalker kills and eats the prepared bait animal it disappears, returning to the
shadowy dimension from which it came.
The prepared cage can be used any number of times and
may be used to hold as many creatures as can comfortably fit in it - provided it is
sprayed with the ritual preparation before each use or once a month for continual use.
Stats for the Shadow Stalker-
Str- 4 Dex-5 Sta-2
Per- 1 Int- 1 Wit- 3
Athletics- 2 Alertness- 2 Tracking- 3 Brawl- 3 Stealth- 5 (shadows, of course) Dodge- 4
Willpower - 2 - Health Levels: OK, -1, -1, -5, Incap.
Attacks - Bite/2 dice Claw/6 dice
Shadowy Form - due to it's tenuous, semi-corporeal form, Shadow Stalkers are not
particularly harmed by projectile weapons, making the damage tests for firearms, bows and
the like roll at a D# of 8 (or they take half damage if you prefer).
Description: A fast-moving, dark and shadowy shape that keeps to walls and unlit areas,
approximately the size of a German shepherd dog. It has long curved claws and jagged teeth
in a wide mouth. The creature appears to have no eyes, and it responds mostly to sound and
smell.
Fire in the Blood (Level Five) -
This ritual creates a superb trap for a vampire's enemies. A mortal
must be kept for five days (this usually involves kidnapping, since mortals rarely
volunteer to be Thaumaturgical subjects) and must be free of vampiric vitae (i.e. no
ghouls or blood dolls). The subject is ritually prepared for two nights, then placed in a
deep trance for the remaining three nights of the ritual. A salve of cinnamon oil, bruised
aconite and saffron in a base of goat's fat ("butter" from goat's milk or
rendered goat fat) is rubbed on the body three times a night,and the caster (or an
attendant to the ritual) must chant ritual homages to the sun on the hour of midnight
(i.e. 1/2 hour before and after). (Incidentally, this salve must be prepared and ritually
sanctified on the night of the summer solstice, but it keeps just fine in any sealed
container.) On the final night of the ritual the subject is marked with sun and fire
symbols using bright yellow and orange ritual paints, then immersed in a tub of black
tinted water to seal the effect. This "baptism" causes the symbols to sink into
the skin, creating faint markings similar to stretch marks.
The subject, once prepared, carries the ritual's energy in him for
an entire cycle of the moon. If he is ever fed on by any vampire or given any vampire's
blood to drink the energy bursts forth in a huge spray of fire and light, as the subject's
blood transforms into liquid fire. This kills the mortal subject (of course), and inflicts
horrendous burning wounds on the unfortunate vampire. The first spray of blood causes 3
levels of aggravated damage, and the blood will stick, doing an additional 3 dice of
aggravated damage for 4 turns or until it is somehow wiped off. The body will continue to
spray blood in a fountain for another 4 turns, hitting anybody within about ten feet
unless they can dodge (Storyteller's discretion, though the difficulty should be
substantial) and causing the damage as listed above. Should the blood contact anything
flammable it will light up instantly, creating an inferno of terrifying proportions.
Should the subject's aura be sensed while the energy is active,
they will show a flickering, fiery halo around their aura - especially around the heart.
This has caused many vampires to mistake the subjects for possessors of True Faith or
perhaps as some sort of magical being. The actual meaning of the fiery aura is *not* a
well known fact, and would likely require an Intelligence+Occult(9) roll to know, though
possessors of this ritual would obviously be aware of it.
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