Path of Chthon
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The Chthonic Path
Many myths have arisen from the sojourns of the living into the world of the dead, and those myths become reality with proficiency in the Ash Path of necromancy. While the power to step between worlds is remarkable in and of itself, many vampires who practice the Ash path find that once on the other side, they are dreadfully ill equipped to traverse the strange dimension of the dead lands. When the necromancer remains closest to the physical world, it is a relatively simple task to travel about unhindered, but once the vampire begins to explore deeper into the underworld, things change very quickly. The relationship between space and time is no longer a constant in some deeper reaches of the underworld, and the cardinal directions of the compass are all but meaningless in the raging turmoil of the Tempest.
The Chthonic Path deals in part with entering and exiting the underworld, but its primary function is the navigation of the underworld’s less accessible regions. Whether the necromancer is traveling bodily through the dead lands via the Ash Path, or projecting spiritually through the Nocturnal Path, he may benefit greatly from the abilities granted by this avenue of necromantic insight.
Virgil’s Guidance -- Level 1
A necromancer who spends a great deal of time exploring the underworld through the Ash, Chthonic or Nocturnal Paths will eventually find his travels stymied by the Tempest—the roiling storm that surrounds the Void itself. The Tempest is chaos made manifest, and the erratic currents of the storm can make travel through the Tempest all but impossible. There exist a number of reliable paths through the Tempest, known to ghosts as Byways, but finding these travel routs can be difficult.
Most necromancers who find need of trans-Tempest travel consult wraiths with the know-how to navigate the storm (i.e. practitioners of the Argos Arcanos), either to inform them of the location of viable byways, or to act as guides on the vampire’s journey. Unfortunately, relying on a wraith to see the necromancer safely through the Tempest is an extremely risky proposition. Most spirits are wary of physical travelers in the underworld, especially those with the power to command them into subservience. Necromancers who rely too heavily on the "kindness of strangers," so to speak, will usually end up stranded in the Tempest… or worse.
A necromancer with even a rudimentary knowledge of the Chthonic Path understands the Tempest in an instinctual manner, allowing him to traverse the storm without fear of becoming lost or stranded. The necromancer gains an intuitive, directional sense for the safe travel routes that criss-cross the tempest, and hence can navigate in the senseless turmoil. He can sense the proximity and direction of byways, and can use this knowledge as a way of judging his direction in the Tempest.
While in the Skinlands, a necromancer cannot, of course, sense byways in the Tempest. He can, however, detect the presence of the Nihil portals between the Tempest and the Shadowlands.
System: The necromancer simply rolls Perception + Empathy, difficulty of the local shroud to discover a Nihil (if one is nearby). If the necromancer passes through the exact space in which the Nihil overlaps the Skinlands, he may make a reflexive roll as above to sense the Nihil by a distinctive chill that creeps through his body. The difficulty of any shroud-related Necromancy roll is considered 1 lower when performed at the site of a Nihil.
If the necromancer finds himself in the Tempest, either through Judgment of Minos, Ex Nihilo, or Crossing Styx, he will be able to locate the nearest stable pathway through the storm by rolling Wits + Survival, difficulty 7 (or difficulty 8 in particularly harsh or confusing conditions). 1 success gives a vague sense of "that-a-way," where as five successes gives the necromancer exact information concerning the distance, direction and destination points of the nearest byway.
Just because the vampire can sense the byway doesn’t necessarily mean that he can reach it, however. He can only drift on the current of the Tempest’s winds, although he can alter his vector by expending a point of Willpower. He may also double his speed along the current by expending a Willpower point.
Judgment of Minos -- Level 2
Like the fourth level of the Ash Path, Ex Nihilo, the necromancer who utilizes Judgment of Minos is able to travel directly and bodily to the Shadowlands. Unlike Ex Nihilo, however, this power can only be employed in a place where a Nihil overlaps with the Skinlands.
When employing the Judgment of Minos, the necromancer steps into the Nihil from the living world and traverses the Tempest to appear in the Shadowlands. This is quite risky, as the necromancer could find himself stuck in the Tempest if he is not careful—such is the gamble that necromancers accept when they try to enter the underworld through such "back door" methods. Luckily, by the time he has reached this level of the Chthonic Path, the vampire is able to more easily navigate the storm. The necromancer is also capable of returning to the physical world through Nihils.
Skillful necromancers may use Judgment of Minos to enter a Nihil from the Skinlands into the Shadowlands, and then reemerge in the Skinlands from another nearby Nihil.
System: To step into a Nihil from the Skinlands, a necromancer must expend a point of Willpower and roll Stamina + Occult, difficulty of the Shroud –1 (as the Shroud is thinner at the site of a Nihil, default to 6). 3 successes are required to fully transmigrate to the Shadowlands; fewer successes dump the necromancer into the Tempest.
A necromancer who does find himself in the Tempest is not helpless, however. He is now capable of moving at his normal speeds through the tempest without having to expend willpower to alter his vector (although he can still expend a Willpower point to double his movement speed), and he need not follow the wind-currents.
If the Nihil that the necromancer utilized to enter the Tempest is still open, he may re-initiate Judgment of Minos in order to make a second roll to appear in the Shadowlands at his desired destination. The difficulty remains the same (default to 6), and the necromancer may continue to attempt to exit the Tempest as long as he still has Willpower to spend (or until the Nihil closes).
The reverse is also possible: the necromancer can exit the Shadowlands through a Nihil that overlaps with a suitable area in the Skinlands by rolling in the same manner as above (this also costs a Willpower). Indeed, if the necromancer manages five successes on his initial roll, then he may step into the Nihil, enter the Tempest, and exit from the nearest Nihil. For each 20 yards between the Nihils, it takes 1 turn for the necromancer to re-emerge. If he scores fewer than 5 successes on his Stamina + Occult roll when entering the Nihil, then he may not re-emerge without expending another Willpower and making a second roll.
Nihils are notoriously unstable—here one minute, closing over you the next. Because of this the storyteller may roll 1 die each turn: if the roll is a 1, the Nihil moves its position or fades altogether at the beginning of the next turn.
Descent of Ishtar -- Level 3
The Babylonian goddess Ishtar was said in legend to have descended into the underworld by demanding admittance through the gates of death. At each gate, the goddess removed an article of clothing or a piece of jewelry, and when later escaping the land of the dead, the goddess is said to have reclaimed all of her garments and trinkets.
A necromancer who has progressed this far in the Chthonic path is capable of bringing objects from the Shadowlands into the Skinlands, or vice versa, mimicking the descent and return of Ishtar into the land of the living. Unlike the ritual, Grasp of the Ghostly, however, Descent of Ishtar utilizes the Tempest itself to form the raw materials of the objects to be removed from the Shadowlands. Thus, the necromancer need not actually find a relic to bring back, but may simply draw the emotional "memory" of an object from the roiling winds of the tempest. Such items do not last for very long outside of the underworld, but the necromancer may infuse the objects with a measure of his own emotional strength in order to keep them solidified.
The necromancer may also place objects from the living world into a Nihil, thus transporting the item into the corresponding area of the Tempest. The object will generally stay where it is placed, as the necromancer emotionally tethers the item to his soul, but if he leaves the area of the Nihil for more than a few hours, or if he leaves the item in the Tempest too long, it will begin to drift and may become lost.
System: To place an object in the Tempest requires a blood point and a roll of Dexterity + Empathy, difficulty of the Shroud –1. The item will immediately begin to drift through the tempest unless the necromancer utilizes the third level Nocturnal Path power, Tether the Soul to make the item into a Fetter. A tethered item may be retrieved at any time by making another Dexterity + Empathy roll (and spending another blood point) at the same Nihil. If the necromancer is away from the Nihil for more than 1 scene per success while the item remains in the Tempest, then a temporary tether is lost (a permanently tethered item will instead move through the Tempest, following the necromancer, who may then reach into any nearby Nihil to retrieve it).
To "manifest" an item from the Tempest requires a Willpower point and a roll of Manipulation + Crafts, at a difficulty determined by the size and complexity of the item. A knife or key would be difficulty 6, where as a working flashlight (powered by emotional energy) would be a difficulty of
Functional firearms and complex machines like kitchen appliances would require a roll at a difficulty of 9.
If the vampire wishes to remove these items from the spirit world and bring them into the physical world, he must make a Dexterity + Empathy roll as above (this requires a blood point to be spent as well). Such items will fade from existence after a number of sunrises equal to the successes rolled on the Dexterity + Empathy roll, although the necromancer may either expend a Willpower point to add another day to the object’s lifespan.
Objects that are fueled by Pathos in the underworld (such as the aforementioned flashlight) would require roughly a blood point for every Pathos Point it would normally need to operate.
Tears of Acheron -- Level 4
The Nagaraja bloodline unearthed a method of feasting on the Corpus of wraiths to gain power and replenish spent energy with their Vitreous Path, and the fourth level Nocturnal Path power Feast of the Dead allows the vampire to store ectoplasmic blood for later use. Neither path is very useful when a necromancer is lost, deep in the underworld’s labyrinthine landscape.
Tears of Acheron grants the necromancer the ability to sustain himself with the emotional energies that compose the roiling Tempest… for a short time at least. By spending time floating in the Tempest, the vampire may absorb some of the dark energies of the storm into himself. While far from "healthy," sometimes there really isn’t a choice, but too much reliance on Tears of Acheron may threaten the necromancer’s sanity.
System: To gain sustenance from the Tempest, a vampire must spend roughly an hour hovering relatively motionless and drifting in the tempest. He must then roll his Willpower at a difficulty of 8, although the difficulty can be lower in areas where the storm winds are strongest. Each success counts as one "Sustenance Point" that the vampire regains; these are not actual blood points, and no blood enters the vampire’s body. This is raw emotional energy that can be used to infuse the vampire’s undead flesh with vitality while in the underworld. Each of these "Sustenance Points" spent can count for the vampire’s nightly blood point expenditure to remain animate, or can heal one health level of normal damage, while 3 Sustenance Points can be spent each hour to heal an Aggravated health level of damage (this also requires a Stamina + Survival roll at difficulty 8, requiring one success). These points may not be used for any other function of normal blood points (increasing attributes, embracing or ghouling, etc.).
If the vampire possesses even one Tempest-siphoned Sustenance Point in his Blood Pool, then he suffers a +1 difficulty on all Virtue rolls as his emotions become heightened to almost an uncontrollable extent. The Beast becomes blood-starved and ravenous, feeding on only emotional turmoil. Additionally, the vampire must make a Willpower roll (at difficulty 7) each night that he retains any Sustenance points or he gains a Derangement that lasts until all such points are expended from his Blood Pool. A botched Willpower roll causes the Derangement to remain even after the points are gone form the vampire’s pool, although such a Derangement may be overcome normally. Only one Derangement can be suffered at a time in this way.
If the necromancer returns to the living world while he still has Sustenance Points in his Blood Pool, he suffers one health level of unsoakable Bashing damage for each point so retained, and the points vanish from his pool instantly. Note that this damage is still halved by vampires—it is simply unsoakable. Elder necromancers may well enter torpor, however, if they possess too much emotional sustenance in their undead frames when they exit the underworld.
Convergence -- Level 5
Shroud Mastery is a powerful ability for a vampire to employ, but it pales in comparison to this effect. Through Convergence the necromancer is capable of temporarily tearing a hole in the shroud that essentially merges the land of the dead with that of the living. Ghosts and physical beings may touch and interact physically while Convergence is in effect. Additionally, this power has the interesting side effect of permanently reducing the shroud rating nearby.
System: The most obvious drawback to Convergence is that the necromancer must evoke the power at the location of a Nihil. The necromancer expends 3 willpower points over the course of three turns and rolls his Willpower at a difficulty 8. If even one success is scored, then the Nihil implodes in a tumultuous whirlwind that temporarily merges the lands of the living and the lands of the dead in an area roughly equal to 10 yards per success surrounding the former Nihil’s event horizon. Convergence lasts for one minute per success scored.
In this area, ghosts find that they are visible, audible and tangible to those in the Skinlands… and vice versa. The vampire could touch a long dead lover as if she were flesh and blood, or trounce a hated enemy who was "fortunate" enough to linger on as a Spectre. Ghosts are still composed of plasm, however, and thus they cannot be affected by powers such as vicissitude, while Skinland residents in the area of Convergence are immune to the effects of Molliate.
Convergence does have its drawbacks, and they are extreme. First, no powers, ghostly, vampiric, magical, psychic or otherwise that use the Shroud as the difficulty for their rolls will function at all. This also includes powers with static difficulties that rely on reaching across the shroud: The Sepulcher Path, the Ash Path, and higher levels of the Bone Path are all useless in the area of Convergence. Additionally, the fifth level of the Nocturnal Path, the fifth level of the Void Path, and all levels of the Chthonic Path cannot be invoked in the area of Convergence. The exception is the Path of the Pyre, which will function at the default difficulty of 7: barrow flames will harm both ghosts and mortals when generated in a Convergence zone.
While necromancers suffer greatly from the Convergence, ghosts are also restricted in their applications of Arcanoi. Argos, Embody, Inhabit, Outrage, and Puppetry cannot be used at all… not even their basic abilities will function. Castigate cannot be used to create bulwarks, and all Pandemonium effects impose an additional point of Angst when utilized in an area of Convergence. Of the Dark Arcanoi, Tempestos, Tempest Weaving, and any other powers that are tailored specifically on the underworld or the Tempest do not function.
It is certainly possible to invoke this power through the Nihil opened by the fifth level Void Path power Night Cry, but doing so is not advisable, as the vampire acting as the Nihil suffers one level of non-soakable, Aggravated damage for each success on the necromancer’s Convergence roll (this might be a crafty way of disposing of a rival necromancer, but it’s hardly a bright idea to perform Convergence on one’s self).
Any ghost who loses all its Corpus in the area of Convergence is destroyed utterly, and any resident of the living lands who is killed or suffers Final Death in the radius of Convergence cannot become a wraith, even if they have been Marked for Death through the Harvester Path. Once the duration ends, the shroud "heals" over the gap created through Convergence, but the Nihil that spawned it is eradicated completely, and the local shroud of the area is permanently reduced by 1 point for every 2 successes scored on the roll, to a minimum rating of 4. Convergence can never again be used in that area unless the Shroud is strengthened through years of mortal disbelief, or through applications of Shroud Master (Ash Path 5).
