Book of Bone and Ebony

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CHAPTER TWO THE ARTS OF THE DEAD As spirit beings composed largely of Essence, ghosts had great potential to develop mastery of their own magical natures. As former mortal men, they were compelled by their nature to explore the possibilities of their bleak new world. Among their number were savants, princes and former Exalts, all of whom were familiar with the science of metaphysics, and many of whom had handled and shaped Essence themselves when they were alive. Though the principles were different and the static nature of ghostly existence made progress slow, there were compelling reasons to explore this matter — to procure prayers and sacrifices from the living, to reshape and ward against the hazards of the Underworld and, of course, to gain dominion over one’s fellow ghosts. All of these were the impetus, and within a few generations, the scattered denizens of the Underworld had developed spiritual technologies that allowed them to fulfill many of their needs. As Essence effects springing from spirit beings, many of these were highly idiosyncratic, unique to the individuals who created them and the situations they found themselves in. Others were created by students of Essence or sprang from some generally shared elements of ghostly existence and could be taught and refined. These more general spirit powers were the first Arcanoi. In the First Age and the millenium and a half thereafter, a fairly large number of Arcanoi were developed. Many, especially those dealing purely with ghostly existence in 35 CHAPTER TWO • THE ARTS OF THE DEAD the Underworld, were discovered early, refined early and taught widely among ghosts. Other, more exotic arts, especially those involving questionable activities or interaction with the often-difficult land of the living, were more specialized. While these arts were often practiced by multiple ghosts, they were also often confined to specific cultural regions or family groups and frequently perished or were partially forgotten. The various upheavals that the Underworld has suffered — particularly the rise of the Deathlords and the often-chaotic times since — have provided the impulse for these broken traditions. Yet, such “lost” arts are not genuinely forgotten in many cases, for the dead do not perish of age, and they often remember their arts after those arts have become impolitic or unfashionable to use or when they no longer have any use for them. Many of these “lost” arts linger on in the corners of the Underworld, the organized propagation of the knowledge disrupted but the knowledge itself still alive and, in many cases, actively practiced by the ghosts who mastered these tricks when they were actively taught. The Arcanoi seen in Chapter Six of Exalted: The Abyssals are by no means the only arts known to the dead. Many of the other Arcanoi seen below can be found only in the hands of certain ghostly communities (and are described as such), but other Arcanoi are common among the undead and can be learned by any ghost.
EXALTED • BOOK OF BONE AND EBONY COMMON ARCANOI The Arcanoi listed below are not part of long Charm trees. Most are individual arts that can be learned piecemeal, though there may be dependencies between some of them. These are Charms of ordinary utility to nearly any ghost (heroic or not). DARK STEED MASTERY Cost: 1 mote per die Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Minimum Conviction: 1 Minimum Essence: 1 Prerequisite Charms: None This Charm is frequently taught to ghostly cavalry in the service of a Deathlord or another tyrant of the Underworld. Dark Steed Mastery allows a ghost to better control a ghostly mount. This Arcanos adds one die to the ghost’s Ride dice pools for every mote of Essence spent, to a maximum number of dice equal to his Essence. This Charm can only be used within the Underworld or a shadowland, unless the ghost uses Manifest the Dark Steed (see p. 41). POLE THE BLACK DEPTHS Cost: 1 mote per die Duration: Instant Type: Supplemental Minimum Conviction: 1 Minimum Essence: 1 Prerequisite Charms: None This Charm allows a ghost sailor to better fulfill his duties. The ghost who uses Pole the Black Depths gains one die to his Sail dice pools for every mote of Essence spent, to a maximum number of dice equal to his Essence. This Charm can only be used within the Underworld or a shadowland, unless the ghost is on the crew of a boat manifested through the use of Conjure the Defeated Vessel or Sunken Admiral Technique (see p. 41-42). SCENT OF SWEET BLOOD Cost: 1 mote Duration: One scene Type: Simple Minimum Compassion: 1 Minimum Essence: 1 Prerequisite Charms: None This simple Charm allows a ghost to smell spilled blood or bleeding wounds at a range of one mile per dot of Essence. The blood does not have to be particularly fresh, but it should be from a mortal or Exalt — animal blood is only sensed at half the range that mortal or Exalt blood can be smelled. The ghost learns the direction of and distance to the blood. Unusually large amounts — say, more than 36 a human body’s worth — may be detected at as far away as five miles per dot of Essence, and strong wind currents or other intense weather may interfere with this ability. MOON’S COLD GLOW Cost: 2 motes Duration: One night per success Type: Simple Minimum Conviction: 1 Minimum Essence: 1 Prerequisite Charms: None The Underworld is gloomy and dark even on its brightest mornings. This simple art allows a ghost to pierce the natural darkness of the Underworld. If there is no precipitation or fog, double the distance for both Clear Vision and Murky Vision for the ghost, to a maximum of 100 yards (see Exalted, p. 237). Roll Perception + Conviction. Success means that the ghost can see normally until the following dawn, and each additional success adds 24 hours to the duration from that point. TWO WORLD VISION Cost: 2 motes Duration: One turn per success Type: Simple Minimum Conviction: 1 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisite Charms: None Every spot in the Underworld has an analog within Creation proper — the lands of the dead are simply a dark mirror to the lands above. With this Charm, a ghost can glance from his location in the Underworld at the corresponding space in Creation. A Perception + Occult roll suffices to activate the Charm and provides one turn of vision per success. Two World Vision only works at night. This Arcanos doesn’t work both ways. Even if the ghost finds himself in the living world one night, he cannot look into the Underworld. WHISPERS OF THE LIVING Cost: 3 motes Duration: One minute per success Type: Simple Minimum Conviction: 2 Minimum Essence: 2 Prerequisite Charms: None The Underworld is itself a dark reflection of Creation, and every point in the Underworld corresponds to a particular space in Creation. This Arcanos allows the ghost to hear the living world as though she was standing in the equivalent spot to her current location in the Underworld. A Perception + Occult roll activates the Charm, and the ghost can listen for one minute per success. A botch on this roll allows any living being in that same location to hear unearthly whispers and winds,
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