Castigate

{Uncommon}

Every Wraith has a Shadow, and every Wraith's Shadow seeks to harm, hinder and end the Wraith it's attached to. This is one of the simplest - and most terrible - facts of "life" in the Deadlands, and is what makes the Castigate Numen so valuable. Those who know its secrets can defy the Shadow's ascension to power, control the actions of their own, and even use the dark energy of Storms to their advantage.

Such abilities make for a powerful Numen, which may be why the Pardoners go out of their way to make certain that only they have unfettered access to its secrets. On the other hand, they say that they're protecting their charges from the dangerous secrets that Castigate holds. And they may well be telling the truth... after a fashion.

 

Paths

Castigate has three recognized Paths:

Path of Absolution {Also known as Purification} provides the most obvious - or well-recognized - of Castigationary Arts: the humbling and weakening of Shadows. Wraiths who've been taken "under the wing" of a Pardoner come to know these Arts all to well, as their Purifiers use them against their dark halves on a regular basis.

Path of Partnership {Also known as Coercion} involve techniques for humbling one's own Shadow, either stopping its offensive actions, or making it give the Wraith certain "favors" on demand. Such actions have the potential to be dangerous, and actually feed the Shadow, but the Partners say they can handle it. Hopefully they're not deluding themselves...

Path of Warding {Also known as Stormweaving} relies on the connection between the Damned and the Storms they inhabit to give a measure of safety against both. The Warders are always good people to know, both for their ability to predict eruptions and protect against their effects.

 

Those Who Know

The Pardoners see themselves as the stewards of Castigate, and do their utmost to ensure that they alone are privy to its secrets. They will not teach their Arts to others, and will not tolerate outside amateurs passing themselves off as "Pardoners," either. Any of their number convicted of spreading the Numen to outsiders is severely punished for disloyalty.

That said, something as valuable as Castigate cannot be bottled up forever. The Order maintains a few specialists in the Path of Absolution, as do some groups amongst the Believers. Meanwhile, the Messengers seem to have gained access to the Path of Warding, though no one - not even them - is entirely certain how the knowledge was passed on.

Whispers

Given the Pardoners' stern demeanor - and the sinister whispers their overzealousness creates - rumors about Castigate are almost a dime a dozen.

They say that the secret masters of the Numen can create Storms if they get angry at a Necropolis' inhabitants. They also say that the Pardoners can yank their own Shadows out of their bodies and force them to fight on their behalf, or have beaten their own dark halves into such complete submission that they don't have to fear so much as a harsh word.

{They also say that the Concord can spy on people they've Castigated, too, and zap them from afar like a stray puppy if they don't like what they're up to.}

And there are deep-seated rumors of an entire, other Path of the Numen that allows for direct control the Damned. What the Pardoners would want with such Arts is unknown, though they say the reason the Path isn't disseminated is because its use brings a high amount of Tainted Essence, and almost guarantees being lost to the "other side."

Basic Art

* Dark Mirror

While the Soulsight Affinity allows a Wraith to gain some information about another's Shadow, it doesn't tell the whole story, nor does it allow a Wraith to check up on her own dark half. The Dark Mirror Art overcomes this handicap, giving a Wraith the chance to gain complete insight into another's Shadow, or her own.

System: The Wraith using this art must be within conversational distance of the Wraith she wants to use Dark Mirror upon. She then spends one Essence, and rolls her Wits + Presence + Castigate. Each dot of Angst of the other Wraith has removes one dice from the roll.

{If rolling to check up on herself, the roll is the same, only the Wraith does not have to spend the Essence to do it. Also, each dot she has in the Eidolon Merit counteracts one dot in Angst when removing dice from the roll. If she has more Eidolon than Angst, the excess is reflected in extra dice added to the roll.}

The first success reveals how much Angst the Shadow has, and the second reveals how much Tainted Essence. Successes past that point reveal such details as: what the Shadow's been up to, what it's planning, what Thorns it has active {but not what they're being used for}, etc.

Path of Absolution

Path of Partnership

Path of Warding

Crossover Arts

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