Affinities


All Wraiths have access to senses that go far beyond the normal ones allotted to mortals. Wraiths call these low-level powers Affinities, and use them fairly often as they go through their unlives. It's said that all Numina are natural outgrowths of these Affinities, but no one can say for certain.

Most Affinities are rolled using only Attributes. Certain Affinity rolls can be modified by various factors, which are listed along with each. Most often these are Anchor Ratings, if the Affinity is being used on an Anchor.


Anchorsense:

Being emotionally tied to an Anchor creates a strong bond, indeed. And while this bond is sometimes chafing and uncomfortable to an "Awake" Ghost, it gives a Wraith a certain advantage: the ability to check up on that Anchor from anywhere by using the Anchorsense Affinity. By taking no other action, and thinking intently of an Anchor, the Wraith is able to sense the immediate surroundings of it - inside and out - as though she was the Anchor.

This Affinity is limited by the physical environs of that Anchor. Someone with a pen for an Anchor might see the entirety of the room if it's on a desk, but if it's in the desk, then all the Wraith will see is the drawer. On the other hand, it might be able to hear voices from around the desk, smell smoke from a fire, and so on.

All five "mortal" senses work with Anchorsense, as do other Affinities {such as Deathsense} but the Wraith cannot use any Numina from a distance. If she wants to put a scare on someone stalking towards her prized bowling trophy, she'll have to get to it, somehow.

While the Wraith is using Anchorsense, she is not aware of her body's own surroundings, and will have to end the effect to sense what's going on around her. If she's attacked, however, the effect ends and she's brought roughly back to her own body.

Cost: None

Dice Pool: Wits + Anchor Rating

Action: Instant.

Dramatic Failure: Not only is the Wraith unable to sense what's going on, but the connection to the Anchor is disrupted, as though the Wraith had an emotional door slammed in her face. This stuns her for one Turn, and prevents her from trying Anchorsense on that Anchor until she goes back and visits it, either by normal travel or spending a point of Willpower to teleport there.

Failure: The Wraith's senses extend towards the Anchor, but then fade out and return to the Wraith's own immediacy.

Success: The Wraith's senses reach the Anchor, and then emanate out from it as described above. The effect lasts until the Wraith chooses to turn it off.

Exceptional Success: Not only do the Wraith's senses emanate out from the Anchor, but the connection is so strong that when the Wraith ceases contact, she maintains a low-key connection for a number of Scenes equal to the total amount of successes. Any particularly strong stimulus that happens around the Anchor will be immediately sensed by the Wraith {strong odors, shouted voices, a noteworthy sight, etc.}


Deathsense:

Wraiths are creatures of loss and decay, and can sense the slow onset of entropy in objects. As such, they can see the flaws, cracks and fractures that have yet to appear, and know how long it may take for something to finally fall apart. This Affinity is usually applied to one's physical Anchors, but it can be useful in other circumstances as well.

In order to use this Affinity, the Wraith must either be in direct contact with the object, or using another Affinity to "see" it {such as Anchorsense}. She then spends one Essence, unless the object she's using it on is an Anchor, in which case it costs no Essence at all. She may do nothing but perceive the object, and if she's interrupted by so much as a loud noise or attempt at conversation, the Affinity automatically fails.

The Storyteller should ask the player for one crucial piece of information that the Wraith wants to learn by using this Affinity. A single success will deliver this piece of information, and further successes will provide even more. An exceptional success provides a flash of the object's ultimate fate, though whether this can be averted or not is debatable.

If this Affinity is used by a Wraith on her own Anchor, she may add one die per dot in that Anchor's rating. If she's using it on someone else's Anchor, however, one die is taken away for each dot in the rating. And if the Anchor of another Wraith is shared by several different Wraiths, use either the average rating of the Wraiths, or the Anchor rating of the closest Wraith - whichever is higher.

Cost: 1 Essence {Zero if the object is the Wraith's Anchor}

Dice Pool: Wits + Composure {+ or - Anchor rating, if applicable}

Action: Instant

Dramatic Failure: The Wraith sees the exact opposite of what's truly there. Items about to fall apart look unusually resilient, while sturdy buildings seem ready to fall down. This delusion will persist until another Wraith has a successful look at the same object, and convinces her of her wrong conclusions.

Failure: The Wraith cannot perceive anything about the item.

Success: The Wraith learns the general condition of the item {Excellent, Good, Bad, Poor, About to fall apart, etc.} and can learn one extra detail about the item per success. The Wraith learns the one thing she really wanted to know first, with all other information coming in as the Storyteller sees fit to give it. Things to be learned include its true age, stress limits, expected lifespan, and obvious {or hidden} weaknesses, etc.

Exceptional Success: The Wraith not only learns all the above information, but comes to know the item so intimately that she gains foresight into its ultimate fate. This comes as a glimpse of its future destruction, revealing what happens to it, and what - or who - is responsible. If this occurs when a Wraith is looking at her own Anchor, the preknowledge of that Anchor's destruction stuns her for an entire Scene.


Foreboding:

Foreboding is unique amongst the Affinities in that Wraiths cannot choose to use it. All that the dead know is that, every so often, they catch a glimpse of something's future or immediate importance, or else perceive an accident - or surprise attack - just before it happens.

The Haruspexes of The Order say that this Affinity is every Wraith's first glimpse of the Gods' will. Other, less religious sorts say that it's just another expression of the dead's sensing of cold, harsh inevitabilities. Either way, wise Wraiths learn to watch for these moments of cosmic awareness, and react to them as best as they can.

The Storyteller is the one who rolls for this Affinity, and need only make the roll if she feels the story warrants it. In the case of accidents, or future importance, the roll is generally unmodified, though a truly spectacular accident or future might call for a Modifier of one or two dice. In the case of surprise attacks, the Storyteller should make the attacker's roll ahead of time, and subtract half of its successes from the Wraith's Wits + Composure pool, rounding up.

This Affinity only activates once, whether at the start of a combat or to herald future importance of someone or something. If the Wraith doesn't pick up on the clue, for whatever reason, it's gone.

Cost: None

Dice Pool: Wits + Composure {- 1/2 Opposing Successes, rounding up}

Action: Reflexive

Dramatic Failure/Failure: The Wraith simply fails to "see" whatever's coming, or that the person, place or thing she just passed by had any greater purpose in things.

Success: A Wraith gets the feeling that something bad is about to happen, and can prepare herself in a small way, such as getting ready to duck or move backwards. All successes the Storyteller received on the Foreboding roll can be applied to the Wraith's Defense score to do this. In the case of future importance, the Wraith senses that there's something vital about a person, place or thing, but will not have an idea why unless she uses the Fate Numina on it.

Exceptional Success: The Wraith not only senses an oncoming accident or attack coming, but knows exactly what is about to happen. This gives her a free, full Turn to do something about it, as though she'd won Initiative in Combat. In the case of Future Importance, the Wraith doesn't just sense that something's important, but receives a glimpse of exactly why. The vision only gives the ultimate result, though: why, how or when must be discovered by other means, or else one day at a time.


Ghostsight:

The Order preaches that "The Dead shall know their own." This is especially true when it comes to seeing the dead within the living, or the inanimate objects they can take over. All Wraiths have the ability to see past the surface of people, places and things, and perceive a ghostly entity lurking within. Likewise, all Wraiths can passively block that sight when engaged in the act.

Wraiths using the Ghostsight Affinity must be within a few feet of the person or object to be looked at. A Wraith must spend one Essence to start looking, and may not be interrupted during this time. The roll is passively modified by the Resolve of the Wraith or Damned being searched for, with the onlooker's dice being taken away on a one for one basis.

Cost: 1 Essence

Dice Pool: Wits + Composure {- the Resolve of the possessing entity}

Action: Instant

Dramatic Failure: The Wraith receives wildly incorrect information, seeing a host of the Damned in the statue instead of a harmless Ghost, or believing the person has never been ridden at all when she's actually been a shared Consort for quite some time.

Failure: "Ghost? What Ghost?" The Wraith sees no trace of a possessing Wraith, and can't tell if the person or object has ever been ridden.

Success: The Wraith sees that a spectral presence is inside the person or thing. She can't see what the Wraith looks like, unless she knows her personally, but can tell if it's a Ghost, a Wraith or one of the Damned. She can also tell if a person or place has been ridden, but can't tell by whom - or what - or how long ago. She can also tell if the person's a Consort, though not for how long, or by how many entities.

Exceptional Success: The Wraith can see right through the person, place or thing being ridden as though it wasn't there, and see whatever's inside as clear as day. This won't help her identify the possessing entity if she doesn't know who it is, but she can at least see what the entity looks like. She can also tell how long ago something was ridden, and see what the possessing entity looked like. In addition, she can tell how long the person's been a Consort, and how many Wraiths or Damned have used her in this capacity.


Lifesense:

Much as Wraiths can sense the slow onset of entropy in objects, so too can they see the march of disease and decay in the living. People have their flaws, cracks and fractures, too, and Wraiths can use the Lifesense Affinity to see how they're "falling apart." And much like Deathsense, this Affinity is most often used on one's living Anchors, in order to make sure they're okay.

In order to use this Affinity, the Wraith must either be in direct contact with the person, or using another Affinity to "see" her. She then spends one Essence, unless the person she's using it on is an Anchor, in which case it costs no Essence at all. The Wraith may do nothing but perceive that person, and if she's interrupted by so much as a loud noise or attempt at conversation, the Affinity automatically fails.

The Storyteller should ask the player for one crucial piece of information that the Wraith wants to learn by using this Affinity. A single success will deliver this piece of information, and further successes will provide even more. An exceptional success provides a flash of the person's ultimate fate, but - as with Deathsense - it's debatable as to whether this can be changed, shaped or averted entirely.

If this Affinity is used by a Wraith on her own Anchor, she may add one die per dot in that Anchor's rating. If she's using it on someone else's Anchor, however, one die is taken away for each dot in the rating. And if the person being looked at is the Anchor of several different Wraiths, use either the average rating of the Wraiths, or the Anchor rating of the closest Wraith - whichever is higher.

Note that the Affinity won't give an exact, clinical diagnosis of what's wrong with the person, only a general indication of her health, along with a few insights. For example, a Wraith may learn that a person's kidneys are working harder than usual to process the abnormally high amount of sugar in her blood, but if she doesn't understand that this is a symptom of Diabetes, the insight may be wasted. Wraiths will have to either use the Bios Numina, or else combine their insights with a working knowledge of medicine, to fully comprehend what they see.

Cost: 1 Essence {Zero if the person is the Wraith's Anchor}

Dice Pool: Wits + Composure {+ or - Anchor rating, if applicable}

Action: Instant

Dramatic Failure: The Wraith sees the exact opposite of what's there. Cancer patients at death's door look "a little peaked," while people in the bloom of health seem ready to keel over any second. The Wraith will persist in this delusion until another Wraith informs her of her error, or common sense kicks in {such as when the "healthy" cancer patient vomits up half a lung}.

Failure: The Wraith cannot gauge the person's health.

Success: The Wraith learns the general condition of the person {Excellent, Good, Bad, Poor, Dying, etc.}, plus one extra detail about the person's condition per success rolled. The Wraith learns the one thing she really wanted to know first, with all other information coming in as the Storyteller sees fit to give it. Things to be learned include other maladies, pre-existing conditions, possible complications, developing ailments, how the disease was contracted and the like.

Exceptional Success: The Wraith not only learns all the above information, but comes to know the person so intimately that she gains foresight into her ultimate fate. This comes as a glimpse of that person's final moments, revealing what happens to her, what - or who - is responsible. If this occurs when a Wraith is looking at her own Anchor, the preknowledge of that Anchor's death stuns her for an entire Scene.


Manifestation:

Stories of ghosts appearing to the living are amongst the oldest told, and not without good reason. While not every Wraith has the talent to learn the intricacies of the Embody Numina, all Wraiths - and Ghosts - have the ability to make themselves seen by the living by Manifesting. And while it's not as potent - or as long-lasting - as the Arts of Embody, the Affinity can do wonders in a pinch.

The process is rather simple: a Wraith simply has to will herself to be seen, and it happens, regardless of any other actions being taken. Wraiths can choose how fully they want to make their presence known, and spend Essence accordingly before they begin. The successes scored on the roll determine how long the Manifestation lasts.

A zero-Essence Manifestation is more of a 'weird feeling' than anything else. The Wraith makes its presence known via cold drafts, brief emotional swings, fleeting smells and raised hackles on the back of the neck. She cannot use these 'weird feelings' to make noises, however.

With the expenditure of one dot of Essence, the Wraith appears fully, but has no substance, looking much like a humanoid, vaguely-recognizable cloud of ether. Her features look much as they did in life, regardless of how much she's been Shaped. She can point to things or people, but she cannot touch them, and while she can move her lips she cannot make a sound. She also cannot be harmed, except by magic, magical items, or things that have been Blessed.

With two dots, the Wraith has substance and speech, once more, but remains a weak shadow of her true self. She is now quite recognizable to any who knew her in life, though she looks pale and clammy. Her Physical Attributes are all reduced to one dot, and her semi-solid flesh treats any damage that gets past her Defense as though twice the number of successes were scored. Magic, magical items and Blessed objects cause Aggravated damage.

Manifestation is modified by three factors: Anchors, Belief and Faith.
A Wraith within ten yards of an Anchor can add its Rating to her Presence + Strength when rolling to Manifest. Also, the Essence cost to the Wraith is one less in these circumstances.

As for Belief and Faith, those modifiers follow the same progression as the Chart on Pg. 210 of World of Darkness.

Cost: Variable {0 - 2}

Dice Pool: Presence + Strength {+ nearby Anchor, if applicable}

Action: Instant

Dramatic Failure: Not only does the Wraith not Manifest, but the psychic shock ot being deflected from the land of the living bars her from attempting to Manifest, or use Embody, for a day and a night.

Failure: The attempt fails, but the Wraith can try again next turn.

Success: The attempt succeeds, and the Wraith appears for one turn per success.

Exceptional Success: The Wraith grabs hold of the land of the living so firmly that she is able to reside in it for longer than usual, Manifesting for an entire Scene.


Passion Sense:

Essence is everything to Wraiths: the spark that animates them, the energy that drives them, and the power that moves them, day after day, through this mockery of life. Without the passion to go on, they are adrift, and without the power that passion creates - or the power to feed it, at least - they risk losing their grip.

The constant need to keep Essence in their systems has led Wraiths to develop a "nose" for seeking it out, which has been called Passion Sense. The most common use of this Affinity is to find Essence when they're running low. This is possible because the power created by passion - Essence - creates eddies and vibrations in the air of the Deadlands, which can be tracked.

All a Wraith has to do to track down Essence is concentrate for a turn, and then extend her senses out into the air around her, seeking these minute disturbances out. A single success will give the Wraith a general direction, and a sense of how much Essence can be found there. An Exceptional Success would give a psychic impression of the place or person - caused by the eddies - and a near-exact understanding of what awaits.

This Affinity can also be used to gauge how much Essence another Wraith has on her, or how much passion a mortal can provide. The user of this Affinity must be at least within conversational distance, and spend a turn looking at the other person. A single success gives a general indication {low, middling, full} while an Exceptional success gives an exact accounting, right down to what sort of Essence she's full of and where she got it, or why the mortal is so keyed up.

Wraiths being scanned with Passion Sense can resist it, so long as they know it's being done. They must spend a dot of Essence and roll their Resolve + Composure to counter the onlooker. The living may also resist, provided they know the Wraith is present and scanning, but they must spend a dot of Willpower to do this.

In both cases, the Wraith doing the looking may do nothing else but send her perceptions out into the air, or watch the other Wraith. If she's interrupted by so much as a loud noise or attempt at conversation, the Affinity automatically fails.

Also note that this Affinity cannot be used to guage the level of someone's Tainted Essence - that belongs to Soulsight, below.

Cost: None

Dice Pool: Wits + Composure vs. Resolve + Composure {If Contested}

Action: Instant.

Dramatic Failure: N/A

Failure: The Wraith's senses extend out, but go nowhere, preventing her from seeing what she was looking for.

Success: If feeling the air for Essence, she gets a general direction and some idea of how much is there. If looking at another Wraith to gauge her capacity for Essence, she gets a general idea of how much Essence the target has. If looking at a mortal, she gets a general idea of how much passion that mortal can generate.

Exceptional Success: If tasting the air for Essence, the Wraith gains a perfect psychic impression of the place or person, and a near-exact understanding of how much Essence - and what kind - awaits. If looking at another Wraith, she gets an exact understanding of how much Essence she holds, what flavors and where she got it. If looking at a mortal, she sees how much passion the mortal has, and why she feels that way.


Soulsight:

Wraiths are very sensitive to emotion and desire, given that they are kept "alive" - or at least active - by strong emotions. And they are also very sensitive to negative and self-destructive impulses, given the presence of the Shadow within them. Through the Soulsight Affinity, they are able to use their enhanced senses to detect the feelings, wants, needs and inner darknesses of others.

In order to use Soulsight, the Wraith must be within a few feet of the Wraith or person. She then spends one Essence, unless the person she's using it on is an Anchor of hers, in which case it costs no Essence at all. The Wraith may do nothing but perceive the target, and if she's interrupted by so much as a loud noise or attempt at conversation, the Affinity automatically fails.

The Storyteller should ask the player to identify the aspect of the target's psyche the Wraith wants to look at {Emotions, Desires or the Shadow}, and for one crucial piece of information the Wraith wants to learn. A single success will deliver this piece of information, and further successes will provide even more information about that aspect. However, successes cannot be split amongst aspects: all information learned must be about one part of the target's soul.

Wraiths can resist this, so long as they know they're being scanned. They need only spend a dot of Essence, and may roll their Resolve + Composure to counter the onlooker's gaze. The living may also resist, provided they know the Wraith is present and scanning, but they must spend a dot of Willpower to do this. Some Shadows are also able to block the roll on "behalf" of their Wraith; See the section on Shadows for more information.

Cost: 1 Essence {Zero if the person is the Wraith's Anchor}

Dice Pool: Wits + Composure {+ the Anchor Rating} vs. Resolve + Composure {If Contested}

Action: Instant / Contested

Dramatic Failure: The Wraith receives wildly inaccurate information about the target.

Failure: The Wraith sees nothing, as though she were looking at a complete blank.

Success: The Wraith sees the foremost feeling or desire of the target, or the current activity of the Shadow. Each success past the first gives an additional piece of information about that aspect of the target's psyche. Desires are explained one piece at a time, emotions are broken down and elaborated upon, and the Shadow's abilities are revealed one by one.

Exceptional Success: The Wraith not only learns everything about the viewed aspect of the target, but comes to know the target so intimately that she gains foresight into that aspect's most defining moment. The second the target's defining emotion knows no equal, her fondest desire is made real, or her Shadow finally triumphs is shown in a brief vision. Why and how are shown, but the exact chain of events leading up to it are left tantalizingly blank.

If this occurs when a Wraith is looking at her own Anchor, the preknowledge of that Anchor's happiness gives the Wraith a chance to roll that Anchor's Rating, and gain a dot of Essence for each success. The preknowledge of bad times, on the other hand, gives her Shadow a chance to make the same roll for Tainted Essence. And should the Wraith see another Wraith fall to her Shadow, the experience scars her so badly that it gives her Shadow a dot of Tainted Essence.


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