DOLOR CRÓNICO ONCOLÓGICO

Tier one Mysteries are the most basic of magic a witch can study, but, as any witch-hunter will tell you, “basic” shouldn’t be misconstrued to mean “weak.” All magic, with its ability to alter the fundamental rules of reality, is pow- erful when applied creatively to a problem. Witches don’t speak in terms of tiers when they discuss magic; instead they refer to this grouping of magic as initiate Mysteries. Tier one Mysteries include power over Disease, Foretelling, Fortune, Hearth and Passion.

CHAPTER THREE: MAGIC TRICKS

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Cost: None Action: Instant Duration: Lasting Range: Sensory

Dice Pool: Stamina + Survival + Gnosis

For each success gained on the casting roll the witch can affect a 30’ by 30’ area. Plants or animals inside the area af- fected begin to sicken and waste away; they develop disgust- ing weeping lesions or a fl esh-colored creeping mold, at a rate of two points of bashing damage (or Structure) each day. By spending a point of Willpower during the casting, the witch can draw power from the decay she has created. If this option is selected, the spell only infl icts one point of bashing damage each day, but the witch can claim Source from the blight.

For purposes of this spell, healthy crops are considered to possess three to six points of Structure.

Fever (••)

After mastering the ability to spread disease among the lower life forms, the next step for witches’ studying this Mys- tery is to successfully infect humans.

Cost: None

Action: Instant and Resisted Duration: Scene

Range: Touch

Dice Pool: Stamina + Medicine + Gnosis; subtract tar- get’s Stamina

Diseases infl icted by this spell are more inconvenient than life-threatening, with cold or fl u-like symptoms. The vic- tims suffer from a variety of normal symptoms such as pound- ing headaches and double vision to more bizarre maladies like phlegm the color of bread mold or spontaneous painful cysts that form on the tongue and genitals. All these symptoms fade when the spell expires.

With success on the casting roll, the target suffers a -2 penalty on all actions for the remainder of the scene. By ex- pending one Willpower during the casting, the witch may extend the duration of the spell to 24 hours. In this case, the penalty is reduced to -1 dice and the witch gains Source.

Corruption (•••)

Once a witch has developed a taste for infl icting suffering on other humans, most witches yearn for power over diseases that can kill. Witches must be cautious with such pestilences lest they become victim to their own power.

Cost: Source

Action: Instant and Resisted Duration: Lasting

Range: Touch

Dice Pool: Stamina + Medicine + Gnosis; subtract tar- get’s Stamina

Diseases caused by this spell are much more dangerous and can be contagious. The diseases caused are supernatural in origin and have no names, unless given a name by the af- fl icted. Lack of a proper medical descriptive certainly doesn’t diminish the virulence of the disease. The exact symptoms of the disease vary from witch to witch and directly relate to other Mysteries studied. The diseases of witches that have

only studied Disease and Lore will produce relatively mun- dane symptoms, such as a dangerously high fever or pneumo- nia-like infections in the lungs. The Mystery of Passion might infl uence the disease by wracking the victim with paroxysms of intense pleasure, Twilight could cause a calamitous drop in body temperature or Transmutation might transform a por- tion of the victim’s blood into a fl uid inimical to the body. For each success on the casting roll, the witch infl icts a set number of disease stages on their target (see below). With an exceptional success on the casting roll, the witch has infected her target with a communicable disease. Anyone (including the witch) who spends more than fi ve minutes in close proximity to the target (or comes in direct contact with body fl uids of the target), without protective equipment, must succeed on a Stamina + Resolve - disease stage roll, or con- tract the disease themselves at that stage.

Each stage of the disease causes either bashing or lethal damage and requires a certain number of successes on Stami- na + Resolve rolls to overcome. Checks to overcome disease are rolled once daily and any damage caused by the sickness is dealt after the check. Once the victim has overcome a stage, he moves down to the next stage of the disease until he over- comes the sickness completely. Proper medical attention can also assist in overcoming the disease in the form of bonus dice to the Resolve + Stamina roll. A victim tended by a nurse or physician (or a successful Intelligence + Medicine roll) adds +1 dice and hospital care adds +2 dice.

# of Successes # of Successes

Stage to Overcome Damage

Stage to Overcome Damage

1 1 2 bashing 2 1 3 bashing 3 2 1 lethal 4 2 1 lethal 5 3 2 lethal 1 1 2 bashing 3 2 1 lethal 5 3 2 lethal

Plague Rat (••••)

Some of the worst plagues in human history have been spread primarily by rats and fl eas. This spell uses animals as disease carriers when a witch values subtlety over direct con- frontation.

Cost: Source Action: Instant Duration: Lasting Range: Touch

Dice Pool: Stamina + Animal Ken + Gnosis

With success on the casting roll the witch prepares an animal for use as a disease carrier. Once the animal is prepared, the witch then embeds a casting of “Corrup- tion” (see above) into the animal. This particular casting of “Corruption” is contagious regardless of successes rolled and will spread as described in the “Corruption” listing. The “Corruption” spell becomes active within 24 hours at a time set by the witch during the casting. Until the spell becomes active, the animal seems completely healthy and shows no signs of illness.

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145 TIER ONE MYSTERIES|DISEASE

Ravage (•••••)

Although it can be rewarding to watch an enemy slowly waste away to disease, sometimes a witch requires expediency. This spell speeds up the ravages of a disease crafted by the witch, forcing the victim to suffer all the symptoms of the disease in the span of a few seconds, rather than days.

Cost: Source

Action: Instant and Contested Duration: Lasting

Range: Touch

Dice Pool: Stamina + Occult + Gnosis; target rolls Stamina + Resolve refl exively

The target of this spell must already suffer from the ef- fects of the “Corruption” spell. For each success gained on the casting roll the witch forces her target to roll per turn to overcome the “Corruption” disease. Each failed roll deals the damage listed for the disease Stage currently suffered by the target. It is possible for a victim to completely burn through the disease by succeeding on every check they are required to make as a result of this spell.

Foretelling

Composure

Source: Destruction of sympathetic items grant Source when using spells on others. Meditating over divination tools (Tarot, runes, bones, bird guts) grants Source.

Parting the mists of the future is a time honored tradition for witches. The image of a wizened crone staring into the depths of a glowing crystal ball is iconic. Witches don’t limit themselves to a hunk of mineral for their divinations, howev- er. Tarot cards, runes, bones, pendulums and a variety of mind altering substances all assist the witches in their work. These props aren’t strictly necessary for a witch with true power, but many use them regardless out of a respect for tradition or be- cause they know it’s what their customers expect.

Glimpse (•)

Looking into the future is a chancy thing. Events are always in motion, possibilities are always changing. Looking into the near future is more reliable and can be incredibly helpful in the right situations.

Cost: None Action: Instant Duration: Turn Range: Self

Dice Pool: Composure + Occult + Gnosis

With success on the casting roll the witch gains a split- second glimpse into the near future. During combat this gives the witch a +5 bonus to her Initiative for the rest of the com- bat. In non-combat situations this foreknowledge can provide a witch with a second’s warning in case of attack or point her attention at important details, granting her a +2 bonus on a Wits + Composure roll made in the next few seconds. Repeated castings of the spell do not stack.

Alternately, by spending a point of Willpower, the witch may cast the spell on an ally. The target gains +3 to

Initiative or a +1 bonus for a Wits + Composure roll and the witch gains Source.