Evil Eye, the path

• Thaumaturgy Paths

Middle Eastern people have feared the Evil Eye since time immemorial. To look upon a person or object with malice or envy may inflict a curse upon them. Surprise or admiration may may have the same effect, and so a person who delivers praise exorcises the potential evil with an exclamation of "God is great!" or "What God wills!" Some people possess a powerful Evil Eye whether they want it or not. Such persons can kill animals with a careless word or glance, shatter stone, or in extreme cases make a person's eyes explode out of their head.
Naturally, vampire sorcerers had to claim such a formidable power. The Path of the Evil Eye inflicts a variety of calamities upon its victims. Although the powers take little time to use, the effects may take hours or nights to manifest, and the sorcerer often does not know or control the exact nature of the curse.
The powers of this path do not cumulate. While affected by a curse, a victim becomes immune to further use of that specific power by that specific vampire. For instance, if a magician inflicted a Peril on a victim, he could not curse that person with another Peril until that first had run its course. He could, however, still attack that victim with a Loss or any other Evil Eye power. Likewise, another ashipu could impose his own Evil Eye curse (making a very unlucky victim.)
The victim also has ways to remove an Evil Eye curse before it runs its course. People with True Faith can remove the Evil Eye's effect through religious ritual and prayer. Occultists can work out rituals to weaken or void a curse with a Wits + Occult roll (difficulty 8). Each success rolled by the player cancels out one success of the Evil Eye attack. For some powers, however, the exorcism works only if performed very soon after the ashipu lays the curse. No exorcism can restore what the victim has already lost.

1) Humiliation
With a venomous glance, the vampire inflicts bad luck upon his victim. This bad luck attacks the victim's social standing. The victim suffers some terrible embarrassment within the next few nights. Neither victim nor attacker knows what form this embarrassment will take, so the victim has no way to defend against it. Will you say something incredibly stupid? Will a waiter trip and drench you with soup? Will a childe or ghoul commit some hideous blunder? You have no way to tell. The Humiliation inflicts no real harm, but can ruin a person's prestige or credibility for a while.
Humiliation works well against Camarilla vampires, especially if the local Kindred include a few really vicious harpies, but Sabbat vampires can suffer humiliation too. Besides the obvious physical embarrassments, a Sabbat might inadvertently help an enemy, or seem to act "too human."
System: The attacker's player makes the usual Willpower roll. If the roll succeeds, the victim suffers humiliation some time within the next week. If the Storyteller uses the optional Prestige Background, the victim might lose one dot of Prestige for every two successes rolled (round up), until she does something to restore her reputation.

2) Loss
This curse affects the victim's property. Within a few nights of the curse, the victim loses both real wealth and some possession of emotional value (assuming the victim has such a thing). Lost property does not magically vanish; some "natural explanation" (such as fire, accident, theft, confiscation or unexpected legal fees) causes the loss. Even the sorcerer who casts the curse has no idea what form the loss may take. Loss is permanent, barring special exertions by the victim. Lost money and possessions do not magically reappear, either.
System: If the Willpower roll succeeds, the victim loses one dot of Resources within the next week. The Storyteller decides what sentimental loss the victim suffers. If all else fails, the victim might lose a Retainer or a dot of Herd. Even if a victim completely lacks Resources, the curse still finds something to strip away. Perhaps the victim loses his wedding ring, the last memento of a happier life, or an abandoned building used as a Haven might burn down.

3) Peril
This power puts the victim directly in danger. Over the next few nights - neither victim nor attacker knows precisely when - the victim finds herself in dangerous situations. The victim might cleverly escape the danger, and Kindred can probably survive even the worst Perils. Then again, they might not.
System: The number of successes on the Willpower roll gives the number of severity of the perils.
1 success: One mild Peril (Example: a mugger)
2 successes: Two mild to moderate Perils (a car crash)
3 successes: Three mild to moderate Perils
4 successes: Three moderate to severe Perils (a collapsing building, locked out of haven near sunrise)
5+ successes: Three Perils, one catastrophic (meet a Lupine pack, haven catches fire during the day)
Each night is 50% likely to bring a Peril, and the curse continues until all Perils have occurred (or the victim finds a way to lift the curse).

4) Enemy
This level of Evil Eye has the most far-reaching effects on a victim. Friends turn away; enemies appear (and may be former friends). Perhaps the victim can recover lost allies and placate new enemies, but the Storyteller should not make it easy.
System: For each success on the attacker's Willpower roll, the victim either loses one dot of Allies, Contacts, Influence or Retainers, or gains an Enemy worth one point (as the Flaw; see Vampire, The Masquerade, p. 300). For instance, with four successes on the roll, the victim might lose two dots in Allies and gain a two-point Enemy (perhaps a former Ally). A victim never gains more than one Enemy from the curse; more points of Enemy indicate a more dangerous foe. No one ever lose more than two dots from any single Background.
Imposing an Enemy takes time. The attacker might spend several hours in places where the victim has interests and connections, for example, spreading insults and innuendos - just like a normal smear campaign, but the curse makes sure the smear campaign really works. The effects manifest within a week.

5) Chasm Zakhm
The "Eye that Wounds" represents the most immediately dangerous use of the Evil Eye. Unlike the other powers, this power acts immediately. The magician expresses fulsome praise, vicious insult or utter astonishment at the target person or object - and on the next turn, something really bad happens to the target.
System: If the player's Willpower roll succeeds, the target person or object suffers one health level of aggravated damage per two successes rolled (round up). The magician's speech shapes the form of the damage. For instance, saying nasty things about a person's car could make the engine explode, while praising a person's tennis backhand could make her arm instantly wither. Mortal victims generally suffer some pertinent maiming. Animals affected by the Chashm Zakhm usually drop dead on the spot.