NECROMANCER: A GAME OF SADISTIC OCCULTISM Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Ghouls By: Klibbix Exsurgent mortui et ad me veniunt Table of Contents RPGs and Necromancer Combat – Initiative Dark Themes and Content – Combat Actions – Weapons Game Premise – Armor – Damage, Healing & Death Setting – Trauma Table Magick and the Occult Ye Liveliest Awfulness – Spells Game Progression, Winning and Losing – Investing Essence Choosing a Locus and Creating a Ghoul Cult – Generating Bonus Essence – The Locus – Examples of Spell Effects – Lairs – Examples of Spell Disasters – Ghoul Cults – Astral Travel – Ghoul Ceremony – Divination – Example of Loci & Lairs – Summoning – Resurrection Necromancer Creation – Overview of Character Creation Alchemy – Attributes – Laboratories – Facets – Alchemical Disasters – Relationships – The Malefic Stone – Agendas – Homonculi – Depravity – Additional Homonculi Features Examples – Knowledge – Potions – Influence – Rivals & Allies Occult Grimoires – Finishing Touches, Wealth & Equipment Thresholds – Liche Threshold Depravity – The Liche Knowledge – Meeting the Liche Threshold – Transcendence Threshold Increasing Essence – The Astral Entity – Meeting the Transcendence Thresholf Actions – The Ghoul Threshold – Action Table – Meeting the Ghoul Threshold – Success – The Law Threshold – Complication – Meeting the Law Threshold – Triumph – The Jailer Threshold – Disaster – Meeting the Jailer Threshold – Adjusting Threshold freely dropped or altered as desired to fit their idea Optional Rules & GM Resources of a good time. – Human Remains – Order of the Errant Star Threshold Anyone interested in running this game is – Meeting the Errant Star Threshold encouraged to have a talk with their potential – The Ascended Sovereigns players before play begins to discuss the themes – The Cruel and Most Illuminated Empire of involved and stress the ability of all participating to cease playing at any time they feel Kayash uncomfortable. – Example Bestiary Make no mistake, the protagonists of this game are portrayed as evil and encouraged by the rules to RPGS and Necromancer act in a manner at odds with the humane treatments of others. Though it is possible, albeit Role Playing Games are shared experiences in difficult, to play this game without resorting to which players create and explore fictional worlds fictional cruelty, the characters who do indulge in under the guidelines of rule systems that determine evil are not meant to be depicted as virtuous but the success or failure of character agency. rather as flawed cowards terrified of an unknown fate. This is one of them. This game remains a game, and not suggestions In this text those who “run” the game are referred nor methods for real world practice. to as GMs, Game Masters; all other participants are referred to either as players or by the characters they create and assume the role of, Game Premise Necromancers. You are a Necromancer. Necromancer is structured as a conversation between the GM and the players. The GM As a member of a Ghoul Cult you have been describes the world in which the game is set and taught the secrets of Magick by Those who Dwell the players narrate their various actions within it. Below and use them to further your own rise to When a Necromancer's proposed action has the power. potential to change the world the player rolls dice whose results determine if their action was For a grim fate awaits us all, the Spirits you successful, or if the Necromancer suffers the summon forth from death are desperate to escape consequence of failure. what lies Beyond the Veil but unable to describe it. Dark Themes and Content Worse still, the use of Magick attracts the Jailers, horrific aberrations intent on recapturing any Necromancer contains a host of dark content not escaped Spirits and dragging those who summon limited to cannibalism, human sacrifice and them kicking and screaming back to their dark murder. realm. In no way does this game, nor its author, endorse What lies beyond death is surely worse than any these actions in any other manner than fantasy or religion has prophesied and you are intent on within their proper cultural and historical contexts. escaping this fate through whatever means If any of the themes envisioned within this text necessary. cross the boundaries of the players, aspects may be And dark things are necessary, for to work your Almost nothing is known of this realm and what spells requires the bodies of the dead and little has been gleaned from summoned Spirits sometimes the only way to find one is to make it paints a dark picture. yourself… But be careful, the use of Magick accrues The dead are desperate to escape what lies Beyond Depravity, and if you aren’t careful you’ll join the the Veil, but unable to describe it. Ghouls in their lightless tunnels, growing more mindless and savage over the centuries until the One further disturbing thing is known about this only thing left is an unyielding hunger. realm; there are Jailers, horrific aberrations of ever changing form intent on reclaiming the Spirits of Setting the dead as well as their summoners. There are three worlds in Necromancer: the Magick and the Occult Mundane, the Astral Realm and whatever lies Beyond the Veil. The only Magick that works within the setting of this game is sinister Necromancy. There is no The Mundane resembles our own world, perhaps 'White' magic here, no 'Right Hand Path' or any a little darker and more gritty, and it is here that other power that does not bring with it the the majority of play takes place. corrupting influence of the Ghouls. Those who become Necromancers have been exposed, Though it may seem similar to our own, under this somehow, to the truth of the world: beyond death world’s thin veneer of normalcy lurk Occult truths. lies only a terrible, unknowable prison, governed Necromancers join Ghoul Cults and learn the by beings whose obscure purpose is surely at the cannibalistic teachings of Those Who Dwell expense of their captives. Presented with this Below. Harnessing their Essence, they bend reality looming terror, Necromancers must use the Occult to their will and raise Spirits eager to bargain teachings of Those Who Dwell Below if they want Knowledge for even a moment’s respite from their to escape it. To save themselves they must risk unknowable prison, raise up mindless servants losing that which makes them human. from human remains and seek, through Alchemy and other means, to conquer death itself. The Magick and Alchemy depicted in this game bear little resemblance to real-world Occult beliefs The Astral Realm is a hazy, ethereal reflection of or Magickal traditions. Since the word Occult the Mundane, glimpsed infrequently by dreamers, means to obscure, or conceal, the term is used seers and madmen. within these pages to designate knowledge hidden from the majority of mortal eyes. Those who have learned the proper secrets may enter into this realm, leaving their material body behind to move incorporeally through a world Game Progression, Winning and where distance and solid matter have no meaning. Losing Here, it is whispered, dwell terrible non-human Necromancer has an adjustable progression of play beings, Astral Entities, their unknowable purposes to accommodate shorter and longer games through surely inimical to Mundane interest. the implementation of Thresholds, the triggers for climactic game events. Hanging over the Astral Realm, visible as a vast, bone-white veil, lies the boundary beyond which There are five primary Thresholds in the Spirits of the dead pass. Necromancer: Liche, Transcendence, Ghoul, Law and Jailer. To use Magick, defeat adversaries and find Role playing games are about having a good time. suitable victims for sacrifice often require terrible In this sense the only time players are actually crimes to be committed. Each unconcealed crime winning is when they're having fun playing the will increase the level of interest other parties take game. in the Necromancers attached to a Ghoul Cult. In Necromancer, however, there are ways a When this level of crime meets the Law Threshold player's character achieves Victory or suffers these parties will have taken notice of the Cult's Defeat. activities and will take steps to investigate further, stop them from committing more dark deeds or Since the prime aim of Necromancers is to escape eliminate them entirely. death itself, they are considered to be victorious when they achieve Immortality through meeting The game's climactic event is triggered when the either the Liche or Transcendence Thresholds. Jailer Threshold is met. The Liche Threshold is the amount of Knowledge When Necromancers attached to a Ghoul Cult a Necromancer must invest in the creation of the Summon Spirits and Resurrect the dead, their Malefic Stone, the item needed to perform the horrific Jailers eventually take notice and Liche Ceremony which transmutes the materialize in the Mundane world in order to re- Necromancer into a deathless being of pure capture them. malevolence. Any Necromancer who has not met either the The Transcendence Threshold is the amount of Liche or Transcendence Threshold by the time the Essence, raw magical power, a Necromancer must Jailer event is triggered is dragged back by the accumulate before they achieve Immortality by Jailers to their dark realm and is considered to transcending the Mundane world to spend eternity have been defeated. in the Astral Realm as an Astral Entity, an incorporeal being of non-human intelligence. Though death is a threat every Necromancer faces, it is not necessarily the end. Lucky or prepared When a Necromancer has met either the Liche or Necromancers will be more than capable of Transcendence Threshold they are removed from returning from that state, more eager than ever to play and considered victorious. find their own path to everlasting life. To achieve these ends, Necromancers must partake Dead Necromancers may be Summoned as Spirits in dark acts to further their power. Often these acts by their Allies or Rivals, or Resurrected in bodily involve the murder or sacrifice of fellow human form. Though these states have their own beings. drawbacks and consequences, death does not necessarily remove a Necromancer from play. The use of Magick, the casting of Spells and working of Alchemy, accrue Depravity, the measure of a character's dwindling humanity. Choosing a Locus and Creating a Should the Necromancer's level of Depravity meet Ghoul Cult the Ghoul Threshold they will have completed their transformation into a Ghoul. At this point As a group, and generally at the same time that they are removed from play and considered Necromancers are being created (a process which defeated as they retreat from sunlit society, passing is outlined below), a Locus and Lair should be into the vast subterranean realms below to be with chosen or created and a date set for the beginning their new kin. of play. sacrifices are made and lessons are attended. This The Locus Lair must be well-guarded and secret and have some sort of underground portion, like a basement, A Locus is where the game is set, ranging from crypt or something similar. secluded communities to small towns and vast metropolises. Though Necromancers are not Good options for Lairs will be ones that have bound within these Loci, they are where the frequent access to corpses, like morgues, funeral majority of play is assumed to take place. Games homes or churches and players are encouraged to of Necromancer are thought to work best in be creative. Lairs can be locations within larger present day cities, specifically those which the structures, like a medical unit in a hospital, and in players have a working knowledge of. that case additional NPCs must be detailed if not fully created. There is no reason, however, that the game cannot be set anywhere and at any time. The only While creating a Lair, use the following questions requirements are that the Locus have an to aid creative collaboration: underground portion and a large enough population that death is a somewhat regular What about the Lair's location gives the Cultists occurrence. For large cities, subway tunnels, easy access to human remains? catacombs, sewers or dungeons are optimal places that Ghouls may live, while in smaller places they What about the Lair makes it hidden or easily may prefer earthen tunnels, graveyards or the defensible? basements of abandoned farms. If the Lair is situated in a larger complex, what are If no such thing exists within the chosen Locus, the opportunities and drawbacks that might feel free to create them as needed. arise? While choosing a Locus, use the following Who else, other than the player Necromancers, are questions to aid creative collaboration: involved, or know about the Lair's existence? Where is the game set, and what about the setting What are the inherent dangers of having a Lair in provides ample opportunity for Necromancers to such a location? ply their trade? Ghoul Cults When is the game set to start and what about Necromancers are usually members of a Ghoul current or historical events in the Locus make it Cult, a small group dedicated to the teachings of easier or more difficult for Necromancers to be Those Who Dwell Below. These members learn at successful in their aims? the feet of the Ghouls and provide them with sacrifices of both dead and live flesh. What subterranean aspects does the Locus have, and what about them make it attractive to Ghoul Cults are assumed to be composed of the Ghoulish occupation? players' Necromancers, with additional members created as a group as the players see fit. Other non- What about the Locus might make it dangerous Necromancer members can be added, like zealot for Necromancers to operate in? Who would they guards, servants, aspirant Necromancers, wealthy frequently find themselves in opposition to? backers or other hangers on. NPC Necromancers are created in the same way that player ones are Lairs and other NPCs are created in a manner described later on in this text. All Ghoul Cults have a Lair, a sanctuary where One Necromancer at the start of play will be Ghoul Ceremony chosen as the Cult Pontiff. This status comes with both benefits and a looming threat. Cult Pontiffs Should the Ghouls attached to a Ghoul Cult be are chosen by a vote, discussion at the table or by killed, driven away or otherwise vanish, new ones GM fiat. must be contacted for a Cult to continue to learn from them. In addition, one member of the Cult can win the status of Favoured Childe, the Necromancer A Ghoul Ceremony requires that all members of whom the Ghoul Monarch likes the most. The the Cult be present. A living human sacrifice must process by which this may be attained is explained be presented in an underground location and five later. points of Essence invested by each Necromancer involved. Cults have a number of Ghouls equal to the number of Necromancers involved plus 1d6. Within 1d6 hours, a Monarch and one Ghoul for each Necromancer involved plus 1d6 others will One of these Ghouls will be a Monarch, a Ghoul make contact with the group and devour the stable enough to be able to converse with humans sacrifice alive. and have enough knowledge of Necromancy to teach. 1D3 other Ghouls may also be stable From then on the Ghouls will be attached to the enough to hold the semblance of a conversation. Cult. Examples of Loci and Lairs The remaining Ghouls will be almost entirely animalistic, only kept in line by their Monarch and Toronto, Canada, 1995: The Necromancers are the promise of fresh meat and it is important that, members of the Ordo Taenarius, a secret society at least initially, the Ghouls outnumber the within the academic community of the University Necromancers. of Toronto. Characters are Faculty members, scheming against eachother to pilfer rare Occult Since one of the dangers of the game is not books from the library, commit midnight providing Ghouls with their weekly sacrifice, graverobbery in St. James Cemetary and attain Necromancers should be extremely cognizant of tenure. Their Lair is deep below Hart House, a that power imbalance. series of grim stone chambers connected to the labyrinthine network of Ghoul tunnels that run Though Ghouls eat dead flesh, it is the living that underneath the universtiy campus. they crave. The Monarch will only be willing to teach their disciples if they are provided with Paris, France, 1349: There are not enough living living sacrifices. In game terms this means that the to bury to dead. Paris lies in the grip of the Black Ghouls must be provided with at least one living Death and the Necomancers, who make their Lair sacrifice per week or the Cult Pontiff will be within the city's extensive catacombs, have no marked for devourment instead. The Ghouls will need to worry about their supply of corpses. Still, refused to teach any further until the Pontiff is the looming threat of the Bubonic Plague itself apprehended. After this is sorted, one way or the hangs over everything; can the Necromancers other, a new Pontiff will be chosen by the players achieve their goals while they try to avoid the and teaching will resume. temporary and irritating inconvenience of dying from the great pestilence? Since the sacrifice of living human beings gives the Necromancers Knowledge ensuring the Canterbury, England, 1756: One PC plays a teaching goes on smoothly should be one of their member of the Clergy who has ressurected the primary aims. other players from the crypt below the Church where they make their Lair. The Necromancers strive towards Immortality, avoiding the suspicions of the other members of the Clergy and A Necromancer is made up of two primary the townsfolk while saiting their thirst for characteristics, Attributes and Facets. two Knowledge as well as blood. secondary characteristics, a Relationship and an Agenda and four tertiary characteristics, Cairo, Egypt, 1951: The Necromancers play Knowledge, Depravity, Rivals & Allies and curators of The Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, Influence. intent on the Summoning of ancient Spirits and the Attributes Resurrection of Mummies in order to plunder their vast hordes of Knowledge. Faced with rivals, the There are two Attributes, Endurance, a measure Necromancers animate the bones of prehistoric of physical stamina and prowess, and Essence, a creatures to decimate their foes and search the measure of both mental strength and magical archives for rare material with which to enhance ability. ther Spells. Their Lair is in a series of flooded tunnels that abut the Nile, protected by undead Both Attributes begin the game rated at ten. croccodile guardians. Endurance is reduced when a Necromancer suffers Necromancer Creation physical damage and Essence is temporarily invested in the casting of Spells. Necromancers are the primary antagonists of this The accumulation of Essence is required to meet game. The assumed setting for play is our own the Transcendence Threshold, one of the paths to world and thus Necromancers will be much like Immortality. the players, hailing from diverse background and Facets experience. However, unlike the players, Necromancers have access to Occult teachings Facets are player-defined aspects of the character which allow them to cast Spells and work and present as a descriptive sentence. Alchemy. There are three Facets: Past, Present and Necromancers tend towards being solitary as the Motivation. pursuit of forbidden knowledge often makes one rather odd and unpersonable, but this does not To determine a Necromancer's Facets, answer the preclude creating more outgoing or charismatic questions below. characters. Indeed, the ability to manipulate people may come in very handy in a game where you What skills and experiences of the Necromancer's need regular access to fresh corpses... Past can they draw on to overcome the challenges they face? Regardless of their demeanor, all Necromancers are members of a Ghoul Cult, a secret society How can the Necromancer's Present dedicated to a small group of Those Who Dwell circumstances or profession help them in Below, at whose feet they learn the secret achieving their goals? teachings of Magick. What about the Necromancer's Motivation makes Necromancers will have diverse Motivations and them willing to commit terrible deeds in Agendas which may often put them at odds with exchange for power? their fellow cult members and this style of play is encouraged as long as the players enjoy it. With the expenditure of Influence, characters can add bonuses to rolls related to their Facets. Overview of Character Creation Relationships Depravity may be lowered by several means detailed later. Membership in a Ghoul Cult precludes a lot of Knowledge personal relationships but every Necromancer has at least one important person in their life. Knowledge is a measure of a Necromancers accumulated insight and Occult learning. Their Relationship must be a living person in Knowledge is gained through human sacrifice to whom they are emotional invested and see the Ghouls, finding and reading Occult Grimoires, regularly. It could be a family member, a lover, a achieving Agendas and bartering with Spirits and co-worker or religious figure, even a member of a the Resurrected. book club. Knowledge can be spent to increase a A Relationship is integral to a Necromancer's Necromancer's maximum Essence and its humanity as spending time with their Relationship accumulation is also required to meet the Liche lowers their Depravity. Threshold, one of the paths to Immortality. Relationships can change during play and new Influence ones gained, especially so since the sacrifice of a Relationship to the Ghouls gives a Necromancer Influence is a measure of how much impact a more knowledge than one they are less emotional Necromancer's Facets have on their actions. attached to. Necromancers may spend a point of Influence to Relationships may be with other members of the add a +2 bonus to an Action roll related to one of Ghoul Cult. their Facets. Agendas A Necromancer's Influence is replenished at the An Agenda is a statement of things a Necromancer beginning of every session and whenever a wants to achieve (like, “Daniel wants to find his Necromancer narrates the consequence of a estranged father and kill him”, or more nebulously, Complication result on an Action roll. “Tybalt wants to destroy the Luther Family, no matter how low he has to sink to do it”). Rivals and Allies An Agenda must be realistic and achievable but It should come as no surprise that Ghoul Cults not something so simple that it could be completed have as much inner politics as any institution. with a single action. Though this aspect may be removed from games Achieving an Agenda is one way Necromancers in which the GM or players prefer a less gain Knowledge and by pursuing them often may competitive experience, or in which too few be in direct opposition to their fellow Cult players are involved for it to make sense, each members. Necromancer may choose from among the other Depravity players a Rival and an Ally. Depravity is a measure of a Necromancers If they so choose, a Necromancer may spend a dwindling humanity and begins at zero. point of Influence to Aid their Ally and give a +2 bonus to their next roll or to Sabotage their Rival When a character casts a Spell or works Alchemy and give them a -2 penalty. Though a they accrue an amount of Depravity. Should their Necromancer's Ally can be shared openly, it is score reach the Ghoul Threshold, they are better that their choice of Rival is kept secret until transformed into a Ghoul and removed from play. they move against them. A brief explanation of why the Necromancer has removed regardless of whether their Depravity chosen their specific Rival and Ally should be points subsequently go down. jotted down in point form. These changes are encouraged to be described by Finishing Touches, Wealth and Equipment the player of the Necromancer and can include things like red eyes, an inability for animals to be By now, a good picture of the Necromancer should near the Necromancer, a fetid, charnel stink, long, be emerging. ragged fingernails and similar telltale signs. Their age, their name and a few bits of information There are several ways of removing Depravity not covered by their Facets should be added to the points. character sheet. For every full eight hours of “quality” time spent A Necromancer's level of wealth should be able to with a character’s Relationship, a single point of be inferred from their Facets, but if not it should Depravity is removed as the Necromancer be noted in this section. The Necromancer’s remembers what it is to be human, if only for a dwelling place, if they have one, and a few notes short time. of available equipment should also be jotted down. Only one point of Depravity per day may be Don’t be concerned about a Necromancer starting removed in this manner. off rich, or possessing many mundane objects, after all, money can’t save them from accruing If a Necromancer's Relationship is another PC Depravity. member of the Ghoul Cult, they must spend “quality” time together; merely being together However, an item that would have an impact on a during play will not lower Depravity. situation, like a crowbar to pry open a locked door, must be on the Necromancer's character sheet in Perhaps Alice and Gerrard are both members of order for them to use it. the same gardening club and it is here where they blow off “steam”. Purchasing new items during play may require successful rolls unless it is obvious the In addition to this method, Knowledge may be Necromancer would be able to afford it without used to lower Depravity as the Necromancer issue. applies what they have learned to their own body. Depravity Two points of Knowledge may be spent to remove one point of Depravity. Each time a Spell or Alchemical work is successful a Necromancer gains an amount of Depravity relative to their success. Knowledge Depravity is a measure of the Necromancer’s loss Knowledge is the developmental currency of humanity and when a Necromancer’s Depravity Necromancer and is gained by making a sacrifice reaches the Ghoul Threshold their transformation to the Ghouls, finding and reading rare Occult into a Ghoul is completed and they are removed Grimoires, achieving Agendas and bartering with from play. Spirits and the Resurrected. If a Necromancer ever has seven points of Knowledge is integral to meeting the Liche Depravity accrued at the same time they will gain Threshold, one of the Necromancer's paths to permanent physiological changes that cannot be Immortality. The completion of Agendas, an expression of their Knowledge, the accumulated Occult learning of personal goals, give the Necromancer a measure of the Necromancer, can also be directly converted to insight into their inner self. Essence. When a Necromancer achieves an Agenda, they Five points of Knowledge can be spent to increase gain five points of Knowledge. a Necromancer’s maximum Essence by one. The Summoning of Spirits is one of the Ghouls live on corpses but it is the flesh of the Necromancers primary routes to Knowledge. Even living that they crave. They depend mainly on the Spirits of those ignorant to Occult knowledge Necromancers to furnish them this sacrament and in life have accrued some in death through it is only then are they willing to impart their osmosis with whatever lies Beyond the Veil. teachings. As soon as a Spirit is Summoned, they begin to Sacrificing a living human being to the Ghoul Cult lose their connection to the Mundane world as gives two points of Knowledge to each their Essence drops one point per day. Necromancer involved and the Ghoul require at least one per week. Spirits are desperate to stay in the Mundane and will thus barter Knowledge to Necromancers. Sacrificing a Relationship to the Ghoul Cult gives the Necromancer five points of Knowledge as the In exchange for each day the Necromancer close emotional connection can be savored by the maintains the Spirit's Essence, they will be granted Ghouls. Any other Necromancers involved in this one point of Knowledge from the Spirit's source of sacrifice only gain the regular two points. Occult information. One point of Depravity, however, it accrued for each day the Necromancer In a Ghoul Cult there are two special statuses maintains a Spirit's Summoning. members may attain: The Cult Pontiff and the Favoured Childe. The discovery and reading of Occult Grimoires provides insight into the development of a At the beginning of play one Necromancer is character's Necromancy. chosen as the Cult Pontiff by a table vote or GM fiat. Finding a new Occult Grimoire will grant five points of Knowledge to its reader. They gain one additional point of Knowledge per sacrifice, but should the Cult fail to provide at Knowledge is intrinsic to both victory Thresholds: least one Human Sacrifice per week, the Ghouls will refuse to Teach unless the Cult Pontiff is Since it can be spent to increase a Necromancer's devoured instead. maximum Essence, Knowledge is integral to meeting the Transcendence Threshold. To become the Favoured Childe of the Ghoul Monarch, a Relationship, either the Necromancer's Since it can be expended into Alchemy, own or a fellow Cult member's, must be sacrificed. specifically the creation of an Alchemical After the Necromancer gains the five points of Laboratory and the Malefic Stone required for a Knowledge from this sacrifice all their subsequent Liche Ceremony, Knowledge is integral to meeting Knowledge gain from the Ghouls is doubled. the Liche Threshold. They lose this status should they be slain, or to the next Necromancer to sacrifice a Relationship. Increasing Essence Results are split into Success, Complication, Triumph and Disaster. As mentioned above, increasing a Necromancer's maximum Essence is important both for the Dice results can be altered through the expenditure expansion of their Magickal power and meeting of Influence points. When an Action is related to the Transcendence Threshold. Essence is increased one of the character's Facets they may spend a by the expenditure of Knowledge. point of Influence to get a +2 bonus to their roll. They may spend Influence before or after they see Five points of Knowledge may be spent to the results of the roll. increase a Necromancer's maximum Essence by one. Particularly difficult actions may be set penalties Actions by the GM, especially if they are attempted under stressful, or time dependent circumstances. There are three main types of Actions in Action Table Necromancer: Mundane, Combat and Magick. 2 or Devil's Eyes: Disaster Mundane Actions are those that belong to the everyday world, no matter their difficulty or rarity. 3-6: Complication While we might not think breaking into a morgue, or searching through a library for an Occult Tome 7-11: Success is particularly Mundane, it would be to a Necromancer. 12+: Triumph Simply put, a Mundane Action is any action that Success does not involve Combat or Magick. Beneath its umbrella are social, as well as task-related, The Necromancer successfully completes their actions. Picking a lock is a Mundane Action and so Action without issue. is convincing a suspicious Funeral Director that you're a relative of the deceased. In Mundane Actions this means that the Necromancer has accomplished what they set out A Combat action is similarly simply defined as to do, provided the GM agrees this was possible in any Action a Necromancer takes during a fight. the first place. A Magickal Action is when a Necromancer either During Combat, this result means that the creates an Alchemical item or casts a Spell. Necromancer has successfully struck an opponent with whatever weapon they happened to be using. When a Necromancer attempts one of these Actions that are not easily completed, have a During the use of Magick this result means that the chance of failure and were determined to have Necromancer has been successful in either their been possible in the first place, roll 2d6 and Alchemy or the casting of a Spell. consult the Action table. Complication Necromancers do not need to roll to complete Actions that they would easily be able to A Complication is when some aspect of a accomplish, rather the dice should only be rolled performed Action results in something that makes when an Action would have a meaningful impact the Necromancer's life more difficult. on the game’s progression. In some cases this may be interpreted as simple resources available to them, they must failure, but in others it could be that though the choose another result. Necromancer succeeds in their Action something else happens that either sets them back or makes 2) Depraved: The Spell or Alchemy is another attempt at the same Action more difficult. successful but gains the Necromancer an extra point of Depravity. Choose one result from the following: 3) Failure: The Necromancer's attempt at Mundane Actions: casting a Spell or working Alchemy is unsuccessful. 1) Failure: The Necromancer simply fails in their action. Triumph 2) Setback: The Necromancer succeeds but The Necromancer successfully completes their suffers a -2 to their next Action. Action and something else beneficial occurs. 3) Twist of Fate: The Necromancer succeeds Choose from the following options: but something occurs that changes the direction of the game. If the Necromancer Mundane: is stealing a book, someone sees, if they are picking a lock, someone hears, if they 1) Insight: The Necromancer succeeds and are breaking into a house, a police car rolls gains a +2 bonus to their next Mundane down the previously empty street. If the Action roll. player of the Necromancer narrates this Twist they regain one of their spent 2) Twist of Fate: The Necromancer succeeds Influence points at the end of their turn (up and something occurs that changes the to their maximum of five). direction of the game. If the Necromancer is stealing a book, they do it without being Combat Actions: seen, if they are picking a lock, they do it silently, if they are breaking into a house, 1) Miss: The Necromancer misses with their the occupants remain asleep. attack. Combat: 2) Ammo Depletion: If the Necromancer's weapon uses ammunition, the attack still 1) Well Struck: The Necromancer deals +2 hits but the weapon moves down one Endurance damage with their attack. ammunition level from Full to Half-Full, or from Half-Full to Empty. 2) Insight: The Necromancer successfully hits and receives a +2 to their next Combat 3) Misstep: An opponent,as determined by Action. the GM, gains +2 to their next attack. Magickal: Magickal Actions: 1) Pure Magick: The Necromancer accrues 1) Miscast: The Necromancer's Spell or no Depravity when their Magick is Alchemy requires a further point of successful. Essence or Knowledge to be invested or expended for its success. If the 2) Whim of the Astral Currents: The Necromancer does not have any of these Necromancer gains a bonus +2 Essence or Knowledge invested in their Magick. During their Turn, each participant in a combat Disaster may move and perform a Major Action and a Minor Action. Movement is abstracted with On a result of a modified two or Devil's Eyes whatever seems reasonable and appropriate to the (Double Ones) a Disaster occurs. In addition to story being permitted but generally a participant their Action's failure, the Necromancer suffers the can move about 40 feet and act. results below: A Major Action can be attacking, casting a Spell, Mundane: reloading a weapon, using an Enchanted Item or Potion. The Necromancer suffers from both a Setback as well as a Twist of Fate. A Minor Action is the manipulation of an environmental object, like opening a door, picking Combat: up an item or the like. Movement, Major and Minor Actions may be taken in any order. The Necromancer suffers from both an Ammo Depletion and a Misstep. If the Necromancer's Attacking is treated like any other Action. The weapon does not use ammunition they instead player rolls 2d6 (adding any relevant bonuses) and miss their next Action. consults the action table. Magick: Weapons The Necromancer gains 1d6 points of Depravity A successful unarmed attack deals one Endurance but can negate one of these points from choosing a damage. Spell or Alchemy Disaster (see Magick Section). Improvised Weaponry (like sticks, chairs or rocks) Combat deal +1 Endurance damage. Light Weaponry (like a dagger, a handgun or a hand crossbow) deal +2 Endurance damage. Necromancer is not meant to be a combat simulator, but rather aims to provide a light Heavy Weaponry (like a shotgun, assault rifle, two framework around which the events that occur in handed sword or morning star) deal +3 Endurance combat may be described. damage. Initiative Ranged weapons with ammunition come in three categories: Full-Ammo, Half-Ammo and Empty. Unless it is obvious who goes first in a combat, Their ammunition is reduced by Complication Initiative must be rolled. results. When a ranged weapon reaches empty it cannot be used until it is reloaded, which requires Initiative is rolled on 2d6, with the highest results a Major Action and can only be performed if the going first in a series of Turns, which are character has ammunition on their character sheet. comprised of six seconds. Influence may be spent here to give the initiative roll a +2 bonus if it is Armor associated with a Facet (such as, “Andrea is an Iraqi War Veteran”). Light Armor (like Kevlar Vests or Leather) will block the first successful attack in combat. Combat Actions Heavy Armor (like SWAT body armor or plate have seen what lies after death have? There is no mail) will block the first two successful attacks in gleaming Heaven to ascend to, no joy, nor love, combat. nor endless light, but only an unknowable place that the dead themselves are desperate to flee; and Armor does not block direct damage from Spells. then there are the Jailers, what kind of afterlife can it be that requires keepers such as these? Damage, Healing and Death Yet to use the Ghoulish powers is to benefit from Generally Necromancers heal at a rate of one the deaths of others, who often pass in Endurance per full night of rest. unspeakable ways. What kind of person could do these things, even in the pursuit of eternal life? NPCs have their own varying amount of Endurance and will die when that Endurance is Magick is separated into Effects, the results of reduced to zero. Spells, into which points of Essence and Knowledge are Invested. Necromancers with Facets that include the ability to Heal, such as those with training as Doctors or Using Magick is a conversation between the GM Army Medics, can heal an additional point of and the player of the Necromancer. Endurance per day of rest with a Successful roll. The player of the Necromancer envisions a Spell When a Necromancer is reduced to zero they want to cast. Then they choose the result from Endurance, they roll on the Trauma Table. the list of Effects below, or even create their own unique result. Trauma Table Then the GM decides the amount of Invested 1: Unconscious: will heal as normal. Essence required and, should the player agree, the dice are cast to see whether or not Success is 2: Wounded: Unconscious, temporary -2 to achieved. Maximum Endurance for a week. Each time a Spell is used successfully an amount 3: Unconscious and permanent wound: -2 to of Depravity is accrued, the consequence of maximum Endurance permanently. dwindling humanity for wielding Occult power. When a Necromancer's Ghoul Threshold is 4: Unconscious and permanent wound: -4 to reached they have completed their transformation maximum Endurance permanently. into a Ghoul and are removed from play. 5: Dead in 1d6 minutes unless Healed. If a Triumph is rolled while casting a Spell, the Necromancer gains no Depravity through its use. 6: Dead Immediately. If a Disaster is rolled while attempting to cast a Ye Liveliest Awfulness Spell the Necromancer gains 1d6 points of Depravity. They can negate one of these points if they choose to suffer from a Magickal or Spells Alchemical Disaster (detailed later). Magick is the primary weapon of Necromancers, Investing Essence and also their undoing. To learn at the feet of Those Who Dwell Below is to risk one's very When Essence is invested into a successful Spell, humanity, but what other choice do those who it is temporarily reduced from the Necromancer's Essence Attribute for the duration of the Spell and possession of their physical bodies. Astral Entities returns once it has ended. Spells are either desire sensual experience above all else and will Instantaneous, meaning they end as soon as they give the Necromancers they possess an amount of are cast, returning the Essence immediately, or Essence relative to the amount of time they are Ongoing, which means the Necromancer must allowed to remain in the Mundane world. continue to Invest their Essence in the Spell until it Contacting the Astral Entity requires the ends either by their will or an external reason. As a investment of a single point of Essence for the general rule, Spells may not be Invested with more duration of the conversation and the Entity, should than ten Essence. the Necromancer agree, will give the Necromancer a point of bonus Essence for every hour that the Generating Bonus Essence Entity is allowed to remain in possession of the summoner's body. While the Entity is in Necromancers are often limited in their repertoire possession of their body, the Necromancer is of available power but by certain means they may transposed to the Astral Realm, helplessly accumulate bonus points of Essence to Invest in watching events unfold in the Mundane world. their Spells. This additional Essence often comes Upon leaving the Necromancer's body, the Entity with dangerous drawbacks that may make a will bestow the Necromancer with the promised Necromancer think twice about resorting to it. A bonus Essence. Astral Entities are eager to list of methods follows but players and GMs are experience physical embodiment and will often encouraged to invent new ways to generate uphold their end of the bargain in hope they will Essence, each with similar drawbacks. Should the be invoked again. Occasionally, however, this Spell permit it, bonus Essence will remain in an invocation will have dire consequences for the Ongoing Spell after the Necromancer has Necromancer. Unless specific terms are not met withdrawn their Invested Essence (such as when during the initial conversation, Astral Entities may Spirits are Summoned and the dead Resurrected). engage in increasingly transgressive acts while in By adding bonus Essence to Spells, by taking the possession of the Necromancer's body, often time and proper preparations, Necromancers may leaving their summoners in appalling extend the power of their Magick beyond their circumstances after the entity has departed. Even Essence. It is recommended that only a single more rarely, Astral Entities may simply refuse to method of bonus Essence generation be used at leave the Necromancer's body altogether and any one time and with the caveat that only ten attempt to flee any restrictions placed upon them, points of Essence, bonus or otherwise, may be indulging in any and every act they desire until the spent in the casting of a single Spell. Necromancer's body is either destroyed or imprisoned. Though the GM may choose for this Astral Invocation to happen, it is suggested that this event be the result of a Spell Disaster rolled on the Spell cast Beyond space and time, deep within the Astral with the bonus Essence. Realm, dwell terrible beings of pure, inhuman thought. These Astral Entities, often the remnants Auspicious Times and Places of Necromancers who have themselves transcended the Mundane world, are bereft of Specific times and dates, and the environment in almost all human emotion and feeling. The meager which a Spell is cast, can heighten the power of a amount which has survived the broiling away of Necromancer's Magick. Graveyards, mausoleums, their humanity is merely a terrible and frustrated catacombs and similar places where the dead rest longing for sensation. Though difficult to obtain, often possess ambient Essence of their own. these beings' names may be used during the Likewise, dates like Walpurgis Night or casting of Spells to invoke them. Brave, or perhaps Halloween, and times like the Witching Hour, can reckless Necromancers may bargain Essence from similarly cause the ambient background of these beings in exchange for the temporary Essence to rise to a usable level. If deemed appropriate by the GM, Necromancers casting aids. To use such an item in a ritual requires the Spells during these times, or in these places, can Necromancer to have previously Enchanted it generate a bonus point of Essence. through another, unrelated Spell (see the Enchantment Spell Effect). Utilizing an Enchanted Cannibalism item in the casting of a Spell will give a bonus point of Essence to the Necromancer, though only The consumption of human remains is a powerful one item may be used in this manner. aspect of Necromancy. Consuming a portion of a body that the Necromancer plans to either Esoteric Narcotics and Hallucinogens Resurrect or Summon the Spirit of can give the caster 1d6 points of bonus Essence while Rare and dangerous substances may be consumed performing the Spell. Since cannibalism is the by Necromancers to boost their Essence during the under the purview of Ghoulish behaviour however, casting of Spells. These drugs are administered by Necromancers who use this method to charge their the Ghoul Monarch, manufactured by their Occult Magick risk slipping further into inhuman teachings from human remains, obscure toxins and condition and gain an extra point of Depravity in esoteric materials. These drugs almost always have addition to any Depravity they would already gain debilitating side effects; nightmarish visions, from a successful Spell. terrifying bodily sensations and seemingly endless ego deaths are common and expected. The use of Ceremony these drugs, whose duration can range from 1d6 to 1d20 hours, will give the Necromancer bonus Casting Spells often involves intense and lengthy Essence equal to the amount of hours spent under rituals that the Necromancer must enact from their effects. Apart from the often mind-altering memory. These may include ecstatic dancing, effects of these drugs, they can also leave the chanting, the drawing of complex Magickal circles Necromancer suffering from intense dependency. and barriers or various trance-like meditative If a Spell Disaster is rolled on a Spell cast with the practices. If a Necromancer spends 1d6 hours in bonus Essence generated from the use of these the preparation and enactment of a Magickal drugs, even a single point, the Necromancer ritual, they will gain a point of bonus Essence. develops an addiction. Each day that goes by without the consumption of the drug will cause the Elaborate Preparation Necromancer to lose a point of Endurance. Since the only way to get these drugs is through the Many Spells may require the Necromancer to Cult's Ghoul Monarch, the Monarch may require abstain from, or over-indulge in, specific actions increasingly severe acts in exchange for the and commit to limiting and humiliating behaviors. substance not limited to the sacrifice of the They may have to give up alcohol or sexual Necromancer's Relationship, fellow Necromancers intercourse or gorge themselves on spoiled or or any other person the Monarch has taken a fancy overly rich foodstuffs. They may have to swear to. themselves to silence, to sleep within a grave or crypt or commit to the wearing of ostentatious Evocative Description clothing that can hardly escape notice. Should the Necromancer commit to an Elaborate Preparation Spells that are not spontaneous outpourings of for at least a few days before the casting of a Spell, Essence are often gleaned through the laborious they will gain a bonus point of Essence. study of rare and expensive Occult Grimoires frequently penned in antiquity. They are rarely Enchanted Items written in languages that translate easily or smoothly into modern tongues and as such have Wands, Amulets, Talismans and other objects have archaic titles and descriptions. If the player of the long been used by Necromancers as Magickal Necromancer narrates in a creative and powerful manner where they learned the intended Spell and Example Spell: A Necromancer raises up a number its title, they will gain a bonus point of Essence. of animated servants from corpses they have For example, a player might say “Gerrard wants to available. The Endurance of these servants is equal cast, “Ye Beckoning Of Thee Restless Vespillo”. to amount of Essence invested in them. He learned it in his youth during his travels abroad, reading carefully in midnight hours from Astral Travel*: Whereby the Necromancer enters The Book of the Yellow Skull.” into the Astral Realm. Human Sacrifice Example Spell: The Necromancer enters the Astral Realm (see below) and travels to spy on a rival. The ritual sacrifice of a living human being can add a great deal of Magickal power to a Deathwork: The ability through which Necromancer's Spell. Through such an act, and the Necromancers cause Occult harm from afar. investment of 1d6 hours, the Necromancer may add 1d6 points of bonus Essence to the casting of a Example Spell: A Necromancer deals an amount of Spell. This heightened power does not come Endurance damage to an opponent in line of sight without a cost, however, as the Necromancer gains equal to the amount of Essence Invested. Flesh an additional point of Depravity from engaging in tears, bones break and organs dissolve. ritualistic sacrifice in addition to the regular amount they receive. Divination*: The process by which Necromancers foretell the future and divine hidden secrets. Rare Requirements Example Spell: See below From skulls and corpsewax to the hangman's noose, Spells may often demand accoutrements Enchantment: The process by which difficult to obtain. Necromancers who find such Necromancer imbue items with Magickal objects, which must be illegal, expensive or properties. dangerous to acquire, may utilize them in the casting of their Spells to gain a point of bonus Example Spell: A Necromancer creates a Wand Essence. For particularly unique items, the GM that gives them a bonus point of Essence when may award further bonus Essence equal to the casting future spells, or a Unholy Blade that grants items relative rarity. extra points of Knowledge during sacrifices. A GM may require points of Knowledge, rather than Examples of Spell Effects Essence, to be permanently spent during the creation of items. The following Effects are suggested as Magick which fits the author's vision of Necromancy. Incarnation: The temporary appropriation of Players are only limited in their Spells by their skills and abilities from the dead. imagination, available Essence and level of Depravity, though they must take into account the Example Spell: The Necromancer, using the GM's input or outright vetoes. corpse of a Crow, Incarnates the ability to fly for a number of minutes equal to the amount of Essence Spells that invoke Effects marked with an asterisk Invested. have special requirements or consideration. These processes will be described in their own section. Resurrection*: The means by which the dead are brought back to physical life. Animation: Whereby the Necromancer creates and controls mindless undead servants. Example Spell: See below Summoning*: The conjuring and control of permanently gains some inhuman trait, Spirits. such as glowing green eyes, grotesquely elongated limbs or a craving for human Example Spell: See below flesh – While Divining, the Necromancer Warding: The creation of various arcane barriers discovers false information they believe to and protection. be true. – The Necromancer lapses into a temporary Example Spell: The Necromancer creates a or permanent coma protection ward that will block an amount of – The Necromancer creates a Cursed Item, Endurance damage equal to the amount of Essence one that they believe will work as desired Invested and lasts for an equal amount of hours. but instead does the opposite. – The Necromancer physically Summons an Examples of Spell Disasters Astral Entity by mistake. The Entity will now “haunt” the location of its Summoning When Devil's Eyes are rolled during casting a until its Essence is depleted. Spell, Disaster strikes. A Necromancer who has – The Necromancer is possessed by the rolled a Disaster on their casting roll will gain 1d6 Astral Entity they invoked in the Spell's points of Depravity but can negate one of these casting. points by choosing a Spell Disaster to replace it. – The Necromancer becomes dependent on The GM and players are encouraged to devise the esoteric drugs they have used to power their own. their Spell. – A Necromancer's animated minions break Astral Travel from their control and run amok, attempting to consume the caster, their The Astral Realm is a hazy, immaterial reflection allies or innocent bystanders of the Mundane. In the Astral distance has no – While Astral Traveling a Necromancer meaning and those who have the skill to enter it encounters an Astral Entity and is forced to can travel instantly to any place they have either flee the Astral Realm or fight been to before or seen through images. Those in – The Necromancer is trapped in the Astral the Astral Realm can see into the Mundane, though Realm for 1d6 hours or days they cannot manipulate physical objects. While – While Resurrecting what they believe to be Astral Traveling a Necromancer's physical body is a corpse found in an ancient cairn, a left behind in the Mundane world and is Necromancer instead calls up a defenseless to all attacks. A Necromancer may bloodthirsty prehuman beast intent on their return to their physical body at any time. destruction. – The Necromancer suffers a backlash of Combat in the Astral Realm is handled exactly as eldritch energy, receiving an amount of regular combat with the exception that damage is Endurance damage. taken off an opponent's Essence rather than – The Necromancer is temporarily or even Endurance. permanently possessed by the Spirit they sought to Summon The Astral Realm is not an empty place, however. – The Necromancer 's Essence is Within its ethereal boundaries dwell Astral temporarily, or permanently, decreased Entities, incorporeal beings of non-human – The Necromancer's Knowledge is intelligence. Many of these entities are the permanently decreased remnants of Necromancers who have transcended – The Necromancer temporarily or the Mundane world to spend eternity in the Astral Realm, having discarded the last shreds of their next day, a “dark haired man, perfect for our humanity to do so. weekly sacrifice” is an appropriate use of the Spell, but stating that, “tomorrow, my boss Jerry These entities, who surely have interests inimical will give me a promotion” is not. If successful, the to mortal creatures, can be encountered by GM is bound to ensure the Necromancer's travelers in this realm. Prophecy comes true by either creating a new NPC or changing game events to fulfill it. Like Augury, Divination Essence Invested in Prophecy returns a full day after casting. Divination, the discovery of hidden truths and prediction of future events is a very difficult Similar to other Spells, performing Prophecy gains ability to satisfyingly portray in games. Below is a a point of Depravity if successful. On a Disaster suggestion for GMs regarding its use. the Necromancer gains 1d6 points of Depravity as normal and the GM is encouraged to fulfill the With Divination, Necromancers may either Necromancer's Prophecy to their detriment. They perform Augury to reveal unknown or concealed may indeed meet the, “dark haired man”, but it information, or catch a glimpse of the future will be when they least expect it and instead of an through Prophecy. appropriate sacrifice the man will be a thug intent on their valuables. To performing Augury, Necromancers ask a question of the GM regarding the information they GMs are encouraged to introduce new threats want to uncover and Invest an amount of Essence through the use of failed Prophecies. to successfully reveal it. Unlike other Spells, discovering information through Augury requires a Resurrection minimum of 12 to be achieved on the casting action roll but each Essence invested into the Spell Resurrection is when a Spirit is reunited with their gives a +1 bonus. Thus, to receive exact corpse. Unless the GM decides differently, a full information, the Necromancer must Invest an corpse must be present for Resurrection to work. amount of Essence they believe will be enough to The Endurance of the Resurrected will be equal to achieve the required result. Performing Augury is the Essence Invested in their Resurrection. Thus, if a tiring and draining experience and Essence seven points of Essence are invested in the Invested into performing it only returns a full day Resurrection of Bishop Carlyle, the good Bishop after casting. Necromancers must be careful not to will have seven points of Endurance. Invest Essence in Augury that they might need sooner for other Magick. Resurrected Necromancers retain the Essence they had in life, and NPCs will have the same abilities Like other Spells, performing Augury gains a point as before but may return in severally damaged of Depravity if successful. On a Disaster, the bodies. Like Spirits, the Resurrected also have a Necromancer gains 1d6 points of Depravity as connection to the Occult and can grant points of normal but also receives false information from Knowledge to those who have Resurrected them. the GM and must behave as if they believe it to be In game terms this means that a single point of true. Knowledge may be gained from a Resurrected per day, should they be willing. PC Necromancers who To perform a Prophecy, the Necromancer makes a return from death already have a connection to the statement about the future to the GM and Invests Occult and cannot impart Knowledge on enough Essence as they want, hoping to achieve a themselves or others, though NPC Necromancers 12+ on their casting roll. Their statements cannot can once Resurrected. be exact or use specific names of people or places. Prophesying that the Necromancer will meet, the Once Resurrected, however, the Resurrected are never the same. They can only subside on the blood and flesh of human beings and must Their connection to the Mundane world is equal to consume at least one portion of Human Remains the amount of Essence Invested in their per day. Without this gristly repast, the Summoning and they lose a point of Essence for Resurrected lose a point of Endurance a day until each day they remain in the Mundane. They they die again at zero. If they lose Endurance, and cannot be perceived by non-Necromancers and the Necromancer is still Investing Essence in cannot affect material objects without spending a them, the Necromancer will regain a point back of point of their Essence. In this case they become Invested Essence for every Endurance the visible to even uninitiated humans. Spirits as a Resurrected loses. general rule attack as Light Weaponry and cannot take damage from material attacks. Dealing with the Resurrected is unsafe. They are under no compulsion to work with the All those who have passed Beyond the Veil have Necromancer and, unless kept under lock and key, absorbed Occult knowledge. Spirits are eager to will attempt to escape or do harm to their stay Summoned and will bargain portions of this Resurrector. Indeed, it is perhaps from the knowledge to Necromancers in exchange for Resurrected's thirst for blood and flesh that the further Essence. legends of Vampires arose. In game terms, this means that Spirits will grant The only way they are held in check is by the one point of Knowledge per day they remain in the threat of the removal of the Essence invested in Mundane world. Necromancers that Summoned their Resurrection, which a Necromancer may do the Spirit may banish them at any point but gain at any time. Bonus points of Essence, however, one point of Depravity for each day they maintain remain in the Resurrected and give them a life a Summoned Spirit. beyond the control of their Resurrector. Necromancers should think twice about putting Alchemy bonus Essence into the Resurrected as it eliminates the edge they possess over them. Alchemy, as portrayed in this game, is a blend of chemical and Magickal science with its primary Woe be to the Necromancer who carelessly aim the creation of the Necromancer's Magnum Resurrects one who already possesses the Opus, a Malefic Stone. This item is the key to Necromantic arts as they may find themselves the Immortality as it is used to transmute a target of hostile Magicks. Necromancer into a Liche, a deathless being of pure malevolence, during the performance of the “I say to you againe, doe not call up Any that you Liche Ceremony. cannot put downe; by the Which I mean, Any that can in Turne call up somewhat against you, In addition to the Malefic Stone, Alchemy can also whereby your Powerfullest Devices may not be of be used to create Homonculi, twisted, diminutive use. Ask of the Lesser, lest the Greater shall not servants grown from the bodily fluids of the wish to answer, and shall commande more than Necromancer, and Potions. you.” Summoning Each of these processes, or any new ones devised by the GM and players, are known as Works. The Summoning of Spirits is among a Necromancer's chief arsenal. Spirits are Laboratories incorporeal beings, remnants of dead people brought back from Beyond the Veil. Necromancers In order to pursue any Alchemy, a Necromancer must consume a portion of their corpse in order to must set up a Laboratory which costs five points Summon them. of Knowledge to build. Alchemists jealously guard the secret location of their Laboratories since rival Necromancers may steal points of Knowledge As a prerequisite for meeting the Liche Threshold, from their Works, siphoning 1d6 points of one of the paths to character victory, the Malefic Knowledge per visit. Stone should be a goal of all Necromancers. When this has been accomplished, the The Malefic Stone has also been called The Stone- Necromancer must spend points of Knowledge in that-is-not-a-Stone since its true form is only order to pursue either the Malefic Stone, the understood once the Alchemist begins the process. creation of Homonculi or Potions. No mere words can describe a Malefic Stone, for whatever it is thought to be, it is not. The GM and Alchemical Disasters players are encouraged to decide themselves what exactly the Stone looks like, if it even can be Like Spells, a Disaster may be rolled during the perceived as we understand it. creation of Alchemical items. While the GM may decree that the process underway simply fails, and In their Laboratory, Necromancers spend points of the Knowledge spent wasted, they may also Knowledge in their work, moving their creation of choose or create a different Disaster. Following is the stone through four alchemical stages: Black, a list of potential Alchemical Disasters. White, Yellow and Red. For each stage that the Stone passes through the Necromancer gains one – Laboratory Explosion: The Necromancer's point of Depravity. Laboratory is destroyed and must be built again. The amount of Knowledge needed for each stage – A Homonculus is created successfully but depends on what the game's Liche Ceremony goes rogue and must be hunted down by Threshold is set as. In some games the creation of the Necromancer. a Malefic Stone will be a long, arduous process, – An entirely different Alchemical creature is and in others much easier to accomplish. created and must be puzzled out or defeated. Homonculi – A potion explodes, dealing a certain amount of Endurance damage to the Homonculi are diminutive, twisted versions of the Necromancer. Necromancers themselves, brought into being by – A potion is brewed successfully but has the the reduction of bodily fluids in an alchemical flask. Homonculi may be described as the player opposite effect than desired. wishes, adding grotesque or even sublime touches – A cloud of poison gas is created and the as they see fit. Necromancer must evacuated their Laboratory. The gas may potentially spread To creation of a Homonculus requires the farther than just the Laboratory and may expenditure of six points of Knowledge and a draw attention to it. day's work in the laboratory. In addition, the – The Necromancer may be temporarily, or Necromancer gains a point of Depravity for each permanently, weakened by the fumes. Homonculus created. – The Necromancer may be driven mad, temporarily or otherwise, by the fumes. Newborn Homonculi will have half the Endurance – The fumes may act as a hallucinogenic and Essence of their creators. They do not have Astral drug and transport the Necromancer Facets, Relationships, Knowledge or Depravity. into the Astral Realm, trapping them there They cannot raise their Essence Attribute but are for a period of time. able to cast Spells like their sires. Homonculi can wield weapons, but due to the diminutive statures The Malefic Stone deal damage as if it were a weapon class lower. In a player so wishes, additional features may be added to Homonculi with the further expenditure Occult Grimoires of Knowledge. Some examples follow but the GM and players are encouraged to make up their own. Grimoires are tomes of Magick, some penned by solitary Necromancers and others created by Additional Homonculus Feature Examples groups or by a succession of Necromancers adding to the work of others. True Grimoires, tomes that – Wings: The Homonculus possesses bat or actually contain Knowledge, are rare and priceless bird-like wings and many a Necromancer would do just about – Claws: The Homonculus has terrible claws anything to get their hands on one. and strikes as Light Weaponry – Stealthy: The Homonculus adds +2 In game terms, a legitimate Occult Grimoire will grant five points of Knowledge to the bonuses on Stealth related rolls. Necromancer who reads it. Reading lengthy and – Two-headed: The Honomculus adds +2 on ponderous Tomes may take days or even weeks any observation related rolls. and can have negative effects on the Necromancer, – Spell Trained: The Homonculus adds +2 to such as the accrual of Depravity or temporary loss any Casting related rolls. of Endurance. – Laboratory Servant: Having the Homonculus around while working Historically, Magickal texts have often been Alchemy adds +2 to the Necromancer's invested with their own personalities, or even rolls. alleged to possess powers of their own. The GM Potions may give Grimoires Essence of their own, able to move around or even cast Spells. Alternately they Potions are one use Magickal tinctures and elixirs could be haunted by Spirits or Astral Entities tied that grant the imbiber wondrous effects. Like all to the tome itself, guardians of forbidden Alchemy, they are created through the expenditure Knowledge. of time and Knowledge. Like Spells, Potions have Effects which may be created creatively by the players, or defined by the GM. Generally an hour Thresholds or two is required to brew a potion and the expenditure of at least one point of Knowledge. As mentioned above, Thresholds are The more powerful the Effect desired, the more Necromancer's mechanics for triggering important Knowledge and time necessary. Below are some events. Each has a Requirement. example effects that Potions may bestow. Liche Threshold – Temporary invisibility – Speaking with Animals The Liche – Access to the Astral Realm – The ability to read minds Attaining the status of Liche is one of the – Temporarily enhanced Endurance or Necromancer's paths to Immortality and avoiding Essence the dreadful interest of the Jailers. Becoming a – Water Breathing Liche results in the complete destruction of the Necromancer's Spirit, or Soul, and since the Jailers – Healing are only interested in this quintessence of life – Poison energy they ignore them entirely save for – Induced madness periodically materializing to recapture any escaped – Intense euphoria Spirits they Summon. This transformation has extreme drawbacks. The Since five points are needed each to create a Liche, whose powers are increased tenfold by their Laboratory and perform the final Liche Ceremony, transformation, cannot regain Essence as a mortal the total amount of Knowledge needed to meet the does. Only by absorbing the Essence of others, by Threshold is twenty five. the cannibalistic consumption of living human beings, can the Liche gain enough power to cast Transcendence Threshold spells. The Astral Entity Thus this un-life of a Liche is fraught with the danger of being discovered and fear of the Final If becoming a Liche is the attainment of the Death. No one knows what happens to a Liche everlasting body, then the transformation into an after they are killed and since, without a Spirit, Astral Entity is the everlasting mind. Upon the they cannot be Resurrected or Summoned, no moment of transcendence the Necromancer's Necromancer may ask. Perhaps there is a special physical body is consumed by the raw Astral Hell for those who commit the murder of their energy coursing through their body. All that own soul. Regardless, the allure of eternal life and remains is a pile of pale ash. the terror that the Jailers invoke is often more than enough to drive Necromancers in pursuit of Free from their material prison the Necromancer's Lichedom. psyche travels to the Astral Realm, there to brood among the ethereal reflections of the world they Meeting the Liche Threshold once knew for all eternity as a being of pure consciousness. Like becoming a Liche, the The Liche Threshold's prime Requirement is the Transcendence Threshold has its limitations. creation of the Malefic Stone, which itself requires Without a physical body the Entity can no longer an Alchemical Laboratory to be built before work feel things as they once did, leaving them in a kind can begin. After that object of evil has been of existential limbo, a half-life in which there can constructed the Liche Ceremony must be be no joy or satisfaction but only endless performed before the Necromancer is finally contemplation. This state of mind erodes over time transformed. until a point where the Entity no longer possess an Ego, but is stuck as a purposeless, roaming field of The Liche Ceremony is a dreadful process. First pure thought. the prospective Liche must find or create a Sepulcher, a safe enough place where the Astral Entities are normally bound to the Astral Ceremony can be performed and the Liche rest Realm but on rare occasions can find themselves without without interruption. Then the Liche must trapped on the Mundane once more. Sometimes sacrifice a living human being through a long and Summoning Spells beckon Astral Entities instead, complex ritual that continues, relentlessly, for a transporting them back into the physical world full day. After the completion of the Ceremony the where they can feel only rage and dim Liche falls into a deep tupor, a Magickal unfulfillment at the loss of their human form. hibernation that lasts for a year and a day. When this vulnerable sleep has elapsed the Necromancer Those phenomena usually applied to ghosts and rises as a true Liche, evil incarnate. poltergeists are in fact Astral Entities physically present in the material world and performing the In a standard game of Necromancer, the Liche motions they once knew in life. Rarer still, Astral Threshold is set at fifteen, which is the number of Entities sometimes possess the living, retaining Knowledge needed to create the Malefic Stone. their bodily memories and sensations if only for a Three points of Knowledge are required for the short time. Black Stage and four for each of the others. Regardless, like the Liche Threshold, many existed, and those that claim it was created by the Necromancers purposely seek this transformation Ghouls themselves. Regardless, it corrupts its out in a desperate fear and hope that the eternal users, raising their level of Depravity until they are life provided by their transition to the Astral rendered into Ghoulish form. Realm is a better option that whatever waits Beyond the Veil. Meeting the Ghoul Threshold Meeting the Transcendence Threshold The one Requirement for meeting the Ghoul Threshold is the accumulation of Depravity. Since Attaining the Transcendence Threshold has only Depravity is gained from casting Spells or making one Requirement: the development of the Alchemical Items, the threat of becoming a Ghoul Necromancer's maximum Essence. is ever present. Like it or not, when a Necromancer's Essence In a standard game of Necromancer the Ghoul reaches the number set by the Transcendence Threshold is set at ten. If players are careful they Threshold they are transformed and their physical will easily avoid this danger, but the Threshold is body is consumed, forever destroyed. set in place to curb the power level of Necromancers and to give them pause in using Though this Threshold may seem easier to attain their Magick too frequently. than Lichedom, it comes with the price of neglecting Alchemical studies in a mad dash for Should a Necromancer meet the Ghoul Threshold, power. With more Essence comes an increase in they are removed from play. Spell casting and the ever present fear of accumulation of Depravity. The Law Threshold In a standard game of Necromancer, the Occult threats are not the only dangers a Transcendence Threshold is set at fifteen. The Necromancer faces. Mundane agents, too, take Necromancer will need to accrue twenty five notice of a Ghoul Cult's activities and may provide points of Knowledge total in order to advance their capable opponents equal to any other; modern Essence to meet the Threshold. weaponry, in particular, has the potential to quickly incapacitate a Necromancer. The Ghoul Threshold The Law Threshold is nebulous and when met and Magick in Necromancer is a dark and terrible implemented can refer to Law Enforcement power. There are no Right Hand Path adepts or Agencies, of any kinds, pitchfork-wielding mobs White Magicians in the setting provided. Although or even a single concerned civilian. In essence the the reason for this is unclear, it is obvious why Law represents the forces of the Mundane world Necromancy corrupts its users; it often requires the from whom Necromancers are forever set apart. remains of the dead, or the death of the living. To be a Necromancer is to be a predator. If they are After the Law Threshold is met, the GM will take not raising the dead to plunder their secrets they steps to bring into play Agents of the Law are making corpses themselves to power their specifically related to the crimes committed by the works. Even though Spirits are desperate to escape Necromancers. Often these Agents will come into the grim afterlife, Necromancers are not doing it direct play through Complications on Action rolls. for any other's benefit but their own. The GM is encouraged to make already present Because of this, Magick carries a taint. It is not NPCs into Law Agents or to create new, known how Magick came into being though there interesting NPCs as a result of the Threshold being are schools of thought that suggest it has always met. The Law Threshold provides not only threats, but opportunities too and opponents may quickly the Cult's accumulated crimes have generated become useful to the Necromancers in a different enough points to meet this, then the Law has taken way... an interest in the Ghoul Cult and the GM will prepare their intervention for the next session (or Meeting the Law Threshold in the case of a one-shot game, immediately). The Necromancers can take action to cover-up these Different illegal and degenerate acts will accrue a crimes. If they do so in a believable way before the variable amount of Law points relative to the level end of a session (or, again in the cast of a one-shot, of their immorality. The Ghoul Cult as a whole immediately) then they will not suffer from the accrues these points as a direct result of its consequences of meeting the Law Threshold and individual members' actions. The following the points accrued by that specific crime will be guidelines are suggested for various crimes. erased. Non-Occult Violence or Minor Crime: 1d3 points However, if they do so in a slipshod or mediocre manner, or one that could be easily uncovered by This category includes theft, breaking and minimal investigation or even chance, then the entering, minor robbery and non-Occult violence GM will make a note of it and maintain those that does not result in the death of the victim. points over multiple sessions until the Cult has While the midnight robbery of a shipment of accrued enough total points to meet the Threshold. books from an Occult bookstore may fall under the umbrella of this category, the brazen, daylight Examples of Agents of Law and Related Crimes robbery of a bank would fall instead under Major Crime. Suspicious Academic: Theft of Occult literature, evidence of ritual Magick, Minor Occult Crime Murder,Sacrifice or Disappearance of an average disappearance of citizens on Auspicious dates. citizen and Occult Crime: 1d6 points Concerned Neighbour: Breaking and Entering, This category includes the use of minor Magick in minor theft, non-Occult Crime. front of non-Necromancer witnesses and the death or disappearance of a citizen without ties to law Law Enforcement Officer: Murder, enforcement or political office. disappearances, gun-related violence, kidnapping, robbery and theft. Murder, Sacrifice or Disappearance of a Connected citizen/Establishment figure/Major Errant Star Knight (See GM's Resources): Crime and Occult Crime: 1d6+6 points Evidence of sacrifice, Ghoul activity, Minor and Major Occult Crime, blatant use of Magick or Connected citizens include those with friends in Alchemy. high places or prominent positions while Establishment figures include Law Enforcement The Jailer Threshold agents, political individuals, celebrities and other well known personages. Major Crimes include Perhaps the most important Threshold in the game, those both blatantly obvious and well-publicized, the Jailer threshold marks the climactic point of a such the aforementioned bank robbery or other campaign and perhaps the end of the game itself. such conspicuous acts. Occult Crime designates the obvious use of powerful Magick in a public Drawn by the Necromancer's Summoning of place, or before multiple witnesses. Spirits and Resurrection of the dead, a Jailer will materialize in the Mundane world and recapture In standard games of Necromancer, the Law the Spirits lucky enough to have escape their Threshold is set to 10. If, at the end of a session, unknowable prison. While there, enraged by the theft of their prisoners, the Jailer will drag the Perhaps they are not interested in the idea of Necromancers responsible for these escapes back Jailers so they remove that Threshold entirely and Beyond the Veil. As written, this is unavoidable opt for a longer game without a looming, for any Necromancer who has not yet met the supernatural menace. Liche or Transcendence Thresholds as the Jailer cannot be defeated by any means, Magicak or This game is yours, to do with what you wish and otherwise. to tell the stories you want to tell. What a Jailer actually looks like in the Material world is up to the GM. They as described as Optional Rules and GM Resources aberrations of reality, rapidly, ever-changing beings of monstrous form but their individual Human Remains descriptions are left up to the GM. The Jailers are designed to bring games to satisfying conclusions, If a group prefers that human remains have a more and to drive the Necromancers into desperate realistic period of usability, the follow guidelines Action. can be brought into play. Meeting the Jailer Threshold A corpse can be roughly broken down into eight Units: Blood, Bones, Entrails, Brains, Eyes, Skin, For every Spirit Summoned or dead Resurrected, a Flesh and Organs. The GM may decide that some point is added to the GM's sheet and when this spells require specific units, while others need a meets the Jailer Threshold, a Jailer materializes full corpse. Older Corpses may only have several and systematically hunts down any escaped Spirit of these units remaining useful and fully skeletal or active Necromancer attached to the Ghoul Cult remains will only have the bones. responsible. There is no way to delay or avoid this fate without being a Liche or an Astral Entity. There are five stages of decay that humans remains go through: In a standard game of Necromancer the Jailer Threshold is set to fifteen. Fresh: Roughly 0-12 hours after death. The full eight Units are available. Adjusting Thresholds Bloat: 2-4 days after death. The full eight Units are Though all the Thresholds presented here are available. intended to be included in a game of Necromancer, GMs and players should feel free to tailor them to Active Decay: 10-20 days after death. Bones, Skin the game they desire. and Flesh available. Perhaps the players prefer that the only path to Advanced Decay: 20-50 days after death. Bones Immortality is Alchemy. Thus the game would be and Skin available. focused on Necro-Alchemists, all desperately guarding their Laboratories from their rivals and Dry/Skeletonized Remains: 50-365 days after racing to see who can make the Malefic Stone death. Only the Bones and perhaps portions of first. desiccated Skin remain. Perhaps the players dislike the idea of turning into Soft remains may also be preserved in Ghouls and decide to remove the Ghoul formaldehyde and used later at the discretion of Threshold, allowing their eldritch power to run the GM. unhindered by Depravity. may be brought in as powerful opponents that the Order of the Errant Star Necromancers may either disturb by accident, or find by Divination while searching for Occult Founded in secret and in horror during the Grimoires. investigation and trial of Gilles de Rais in 1440, the Order of the Errant Star is a small yet well- funded society dedicated to the investigation and eradication of those who practice the Necromantic Arts. Directed by the Elder Council, Errant Knights tirelessly scour through news clippings The Ascended Sovereigns Ancient texts hint at Astral Entities of vast power, beings long since transcended who have kept their mental properties from degrading after millennia of existence in the Astral Realm. Whether or not they were indeed once among the living is lost in the mists of time, but travelers in the Astral Realm have reported encounters with these beings both beneficial and malign. Kayashi Liche Endurance: 20 The Cruel and Most Illuminated Empire of Essence: 20 Kayash Abilities: Trained Necromancer, Savage Opponent, Keen Observer, Contact Network, Weapons In the dim years before recorded history an Empire Training, Enchanted Items etc arose in the iron grip of a cabal of Necromancers. Damage as Weapon or even Claws: +4 damage Harvesting Essence on a scale never seen before, The Liche will have various Potions and or since, they conquered vast swathes of land with Enchanted Items available, as well as already their legions of mindless, unyielding soldiers of Animated servants and guards. dead flesh and bone. Perhaps the Jailers had not yet been alerted to the Example Bestiary escape of their charges, perhaps they had not yet the power to move between worlds, but whatever Creating opponents on the fly should be painless. the cause, this Empire lasted for a thousand years.Like Necromancers, they are composed of Endurance Scores and, more rarely, Essence. It ended, like all Necromantic endeavors, when the Important NPCs will have Facets and Agendas, but Jailers finally became aware of the mass escape of your run of the mill NPC will have Abilities, Spirits and traveled to earth to correct this aspects of biology or experience that allow them to grievous error. The Empire of Kayash collapsed in add +2 to related rolls. a single night and yet some survived. Some of the Cruel Lords of Kayash had already made the The abilities should be self-explanatory and its is transformation into Liches.These remnants have simple to make news ones when needed. survived to the modern age, slumbering in their Sepulchers or crypts, eager to take up once more Ghouls the mantle of power. The Cruel Lords of Kayash Guard Dog Ghouls are cannibalistic subterranean dwellers, Endurance: 5 emaciated humanoids with an unwholesome Abilities: Savage Opponent, Keen Observer countenance, filthy, ragged claws and glowing, Bite:+2 damage yellow eyes. Their history is shrouded in myth; Paracelsus hinted at them in the 16th century when Police Officer he called them Gnomes, but thought better of Endurance: 10 revealing their true nature, and the Chthonic Abilities: Contact Network, Weapons Training Sacrifices of ancient Greece almost certainly Damage as Weapon included Ghouls among those the rituals sought to Possible Equipment: appease. Light Armor (Kevlar Vest) Handgun Necromancy, the Magickal Arts taught by the Ghouls is ancient, mentioned even in Homer's Detective Odyssey. Only whispers of veritable Necromantic Endurance: 10 Grimoires can be found through research and Abilities: Contact Network, Weapons Training, much of what Necromancy was put to paper has Investigation been subsequently destroyed by zealous Damage as Weapon prosecutors. Possible Equipment: Light Armor (Kevlar Vest) Ghouls are thought by some Necromancers to be Handgun the twisted descendants of those who resorted to cannibalism in times of famine, but even this is Errant Star Knight disputed. Ghoul Monarchs, those rare Ghouls Endurance: 10 whose intellect is not destroyed by Depravity, are Abilities: Weapons Training, Keen Observer, the subject of much debate. Are they, like some Enchanted Items. claim, the end result of Necromancers who failed Damage as weapon the heed to consequences of Magick, or are they Possible Items: merely Ghouls who have learned Necromancy Personal Warding Stone (as Essence 5) through their own practice? Astral Amulet (as Essence 5) Heavy Armor Regardless of their origins, Ghouls are adverse to Heavy Weapon the sunlight, can only subside on human flesh and seem to have indefinite lifespans. Though what Astral Entity Examples kind of life they possess must be grotesque indeed. Though the GM may delight in creating their own, Feral Ghoul following are examples of Astral Entities Endurance: 10 Necromancers can encounter while Astral Abilities: Savage opponent, Keen Observer Traveling or through Spell Disasters. Claws: +3 damage Ghoul Monarch Endurance: 15 Essence: 15 Abilities: Savage opponent, Keen Observer, Necromancer, Thick Hide Claws: +4 damage Possible Items: Various Enchanted items
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