Custom Blood Magic: Ritual

Description: When attempting to pierce the border into the Umbra without the need for human sacrifice, a group of Thaumaturge's discovered a new way to cross the barriers without the need for human sacrifice. For you see, it was not the human or the blood, but the violent act that would provide the key. In order to open a portal, the Thaumaturge must carve ritual symbols into their own flesh, taking a single level of unsoakable aggravated damage. For the duration of this ritual, the user cannot heal these wounds. Any attempts while still on their journey results in the early end of said journey. Upon completion of carving the symbols for Clan Tremere, House Tremere, the casters personal sigil, and Umbra in a particular script, the caster can cross over into the Umbra.  If they wish to bring others, the others must be carved in much the same way by the caster.  No more than three may pass, mystic numbers having special significance in the Umbra after all. 

System:
***Self Mutilation is on the CHARACTER, not the PLAYER.*** 
***If you want to costume this, use makeup, not sharp objects***
The ritual requires carving on oneself a number of symbols. This takes no less than 30 minutes to cast for each participant. It also requires one blood per participant. The caster must use a knife or blade dedicated to the purpose and forged just for this.  Any other knife will fail. Once the carving is complete, the ritual is cast and takes the caster (and up to three companions) across the gauntlet and physically into the Umbra. The symbols cannot be healed without ending the effect. Once in the Umbra travel is possible through whatever means the characters have at their disposal, or sheer willpower if need be. While the Umbra is listed as the main place or transportation, other 'planes' are possible, either from utilizing the Umbra, or with other symbols yet to be discovered.  Symbols for other planes may be researched with no less than three levels of appropriate lore over a period of no less than three months. Characters may work together on this, but it does not speed up the research time. As each caster's individual sigil is different, no caster may share the knowledge of any other planes except the base ritual for the Umbra. The understanding of other planes is personal. Please note: Vampires do not belong in the Umbra, or most other planes, having no way to feed except to bring food with them.

This ritual modifies a specific Gargoyle’s use of Obfuscate so that it functions on technological objects, much as the Nosferatu merit False Reflection. This ritual enchants for a period of one month a prepared necklace to modify a single level of Obfuscate (Cloak of Shadows, Unseen Presence, Mask 1K, or Vanish; but not Cloak the Gathering or anything more powerful) to function against technology. This ritual only works for a specific Gargoyle and may only be enchanted for a single level of Obfuscate that the Gargoyle possesses at the time of enchantment. A Stone Shield may only be attuned once per Gargoyle. A new attunement destroys any other Stone Shields attuned to that Gargoyle.

System: This ritual enchants a prism pendant for a single month, but the enchantment may be maintained by soaking the pendant in the same solution used to enchant it (the gargoyle’s blood and clear oil), exposed to the night air. The prism may only be enchanted for a specific Gargoyle, who must be present at the time of the casting. To enchant the pendant, the prism must be dipped in a mixture of the Gargoyle’s blood, and a clear oil, which is absorbed by the pendant by the time the ritual is done. As the ritual finishes, the Gargoyle names the level of Obfuscate (which he must possess at the time of the casting) that is to be attuned to the pendant. For the next month, when wearing that pendant, that specific named level of Obfuscate will function against technology, as per the Nosferatu merit False Reflection (Nosferatu Clanbook: Revised, p.71). The enchanted pendant will only affect the named level of Obfuscate as generated by the specifically named gargoyle. Both the named gargoyle and the named level of Obfuscate must be written on the item card.

Cost:

Each night when casting the ritual over the weapon for 15 minutes a blood trait is spent. When the ritual is used on a successful strike 1 willpower is spent.

Mechanics:

By soaking a weapon in three pints of blood of a terminally ill cancer patient for at least three nights a weapon can bypass Supernatural Powers that negate damage or nullify it. Whether this is the blood of one patient or several doesn't matter. Latin is used with verses to curse the weapon upon those it strike. Fifteen minutes per night of the soaking with the ritual starting at midnight while wearing dark robes with a specific patterns that are those of misfortune and destruction in several cultures. Whether that is a bladed or blunt one matter not. The target may not use Supernatural Powers to negate the damage of the power. .

After the ritual is completed on the blade it is good for one strike up to a month after the ritual. The strike causes the base damage of the weapon in lethal damage. No add on damage can be added for this strike. Furthermore, The caster can only have one active casting of this ritual at a time. They cannot "stack" castings, cast this on multiple weapons, etc.

SUMMARY
No one knows exactly how the Shadowlands is shaped, only that it is affected by the intense emotions of the mortal world. Talented necromancers harness this power to shape small pockets of the Shadowlands into Stygian Fortresses. These locations offer heightened privacy and security, even if they come with an added bit of danger.

OWBN MET MECHANICS
While in the Shadowlands, you must combine 1 point of your Blood with the ashes of white heather, gladiola, and churchyard dirt in a copper bowl, and then paint the exterior of a door with the mixture. As you do, the Shadowlands surrounding you ripple and shift, mutating and changing. This continues for 15 minutes at which time she can open a door directly into a Stygian Fortress; a structure that exists in the Shadowlands.

Although each Stygian Fortress differs aesthetically, they are nearly mechanically identical. Each Stygian Fortress Has the Following Backgrounds to it and is up to the Staff how potent each one is. (Lore of the Clans pg 221) Guardians, Library, Research, Sanctity and Stores. You may expand upon a Stygian Fortress through downtime actions for higher rating at ST discretion. It is also suggested that none of these background ratings may be higher than your current Background in Haven.

A necromancer may only have one Stygian Fortress in existence at any given time. The door to the Stygian Fortress can only be opened by the necromancer who cast this ritual, though others may attempt to gain access to the fortress through a difficult series of quests into the Shadowlands but it is advised that these should be regulated to normal Haven raid mechanics. Should anyone exit the fortress, rather than exiting to the Shadowlands, they will return to the last location this ritual was cast. The door and the fortress will retain its potency for 30 days, though the ritual may be refreshed once per month through a downtime action. If the ritual lapses, you may cast it again to gain access to the same fortress with all its previous belongings. Others may attempt to find a lapsed Stygian Fortress as described above.

Stygian Fortress The massive estate juts out of the twisting ephemera of the Shadowlands, offering a safe haven to those who dare enter the land of the dead. Though the aesthetics are always slightly different, the heart of the building is the same — a sprawling villa reminiscent of Ancient Rome. Ivy and turrets might be added by the necromancer, but the building is always recognizable.

Succubus’ Tendril (Basic - 1)

The Baharist found along time ago, that the ways they follow are a hard path and have caused them to have many enemies.  A lone Baharist developed this ritual to never be without her weapon, she sought answers, and used her Garden for guidance, seeking the wisdom of our Dark Mother.  She found a vine within the center of her Garden that seemed destined to grow.  This vine, she found, was to be a weapon forged by Lilith herself.  The Baharist grabbed ahold of the vine, and it came to life.  It quickly wrapped around her arm and seemed to have burned the marks of a thorny vine into her arm.  When she pulled away, she could feel the vine within her, pulsating with new found power. She extended her arm, and the weapon of the Bahari lashed out.  With this new weapon, she learned the way to teach other Bahari to never be without their weapon.

To gain the Succubus’ Tendril, one must enact this ritual and find a vine within the Garden of a Baharist.  Once found, this tendril will wrap around the dominant arm of the user.  If the user is a ambidextrous user, they will be able to have it placed upon both arms.  The result is a tattoo of a spiraled thorn tattoo along the arm(s) of the user.

Mechanics: The Baharist spends two blood traits and exudes a razor sharp tendril whip from her wrist. This weapon can not be disarmed. The whip can be from two feet to ten feet and shifts length at the command of the user. This power lasts until the end of the scene or hour.  Stats of the tendril are:

Succubus’ Tendril

Bonus Traits: 3

Negative Traits: Clumsy

Concealability: Jacket (wrapped around the forearm)

Damage: Two Lethal

Special Ability: Speed and/or Grappled:The whip has a hold of a limb. The next attack may be used to trip or pull the target three (3) steps towards the attacker. This requires an opposed Melee vs. Brawl test. Should the target win the test, she may escape the Grappled effect, or pull the attacker three(3) steps closer. The attacker may not relent the whip to the target to avoid the loss until her next action.