Fear
Description: Mortals fear the shadows that cross their paths. They tread softly through the night hoping not to wake the demons that surround them. The Tremere take full advantage of this superstition to send peasants scurrying to their churches whenever it suits the vampires' needs. Vampires can be as irrational as the human stock from which they hail, though. This power affects Cainites as well as mortals.
By the 18th century, this Path falls into ill-repute and is absorbed by the Dark Thaumaturgy of the Sabbat as the Path of Phobos.
System: The powers of this path take place immediately upon their use. The Thaumaturgist must actually see her subject to effect any of these powers.
- Startle the Superstitious Mind
By subtly manipulating her subject, the Tremere may create such fear that a mortal or vampire is rooted to the spot where she stands. The victim quakes in her boots, unable to act or flee.
System: The number of success indicates the number of dice removed from the victim's Dice Pool. If the victim's pool reaches zero, she cannot take any action whatsoever.
- Route the Charging Hordes
Tremere with this ability have caused units of cavalry to turn tail at the very sight of the vampire. This ability causes all those in the vicinity to instinctively flee from the vampire's dreadful gaze.
System: Successes indicate the number of people affected by this power. Individuals may resist by rolling their Courage (difficulty the vampire's permanent Willpower). Each target who overcomes the number of successes acquired by the Cainite may act normally. Successes on the individual resistance rolls do not detract from the Tremere's overall success. Those that fail the Courage roll, flee until the vampire is no longer visible.
Successes
- Once Person
- Two People
- Five People
- Seven People
- Ten People
- Wrath of God
The power of God is not questioned by humanity. Tremere draw upon this fear and squash the spirit of the peasants who work their lands. The irrational fear of damnation also affects Cainites. The victim of this blood magic witnesses her particular version of hell.
System: The number of successes indicates the impact that fear of eternal damnation has on the target; the number of successes equals the number of turns that the target is incapacitated with dread. In order to take any action during this time - besides supplicating oneself, praying for forgiveness or fleeing in terror - the victim must successfully roll Courage (difficulty 7). She must exceed the number of successes acquired by the Tremere in order to take any action.
- 1 success = 1 turn
- 2 successes = 5 minutes
- 3 successes = 1 scene
- 4 successes = several hours
- 5 successes = 1 night
- The Inner Demon
The vampire perceives the victim's deepest secrets and may confront the target with her deepest fears. The vampire has no idea what the victim sees, but the effect is obvious when the target loses touch with reality. The targets deepest dread consumes him, and is more tangible than reality.
System: The number of successes indicates how deep the vampire plumbs into her target's psyche. The more ingrained the fear, the more traumatic and lasting the effect. With one success the victim faces her most urbane fear, but is not incapacitated for more than a round or two. With five successes the victim might lose her grip on sanity as her worst nightmares overwhelm her. The object or circumstance is real for the victim, with detail and complexity determined by the number of successes.
- Demonic Horde
