W20 - Changing Breeds.pdf

• Song of Winter (Level Four) — As the WendigoGift: Chill of Early Frost.• Magistrate’s Icy Judgment (Level Five) — Asthe Wendigo Gift: Heart of Ice.• Mahanaga (Level Five) — In order to eliminate themost powerful of targets, the Wani teach the greatest Kaliassassins to assume the Mahanaga form, a battle-shapeeven more terrible than Azhi Dahaka. The Mahanaga’shood becomes wider, its natural armor harder and itsscales take on the appearance of highly burnished copper,gold, and obsidian.System: The character must be in war form. Theplayer spends one point of Gnosis and Rage and rollsStamina + Primal-Urge (difficulty 7). Rage or Willpowermay be spent on a one-for-one basis to raise the Mahanaga’sStrength, Stamina, and Dexterity by up to fourpoints each for the rest of the scene.Samskara: Nagah RitesExisting as they do outside of the Pact, Nagah arelimited to rites which call upon spirits that directly servethe Wani. Being less social creatures than Garou, Nagahmake use of few social rites; their intimacy with theirnestmates is generally already so intense that rites coulddo nothing to cement it further.Forked TongueLevel One, MysticThe ritemaster enacts the rite while licking an itemrepresentative of the target — a photograph, or a sampleof hair, skin, or blood. If successful the victim cannothelp but lie about even the most trivial things. Nagahuse this rite to help distance their intended victims fromtheir social supporters.System: If this rite is successful, the victim must succeedon a Willpower roll (difficulty equal to the Gnosisof the ritemaster) in order to tell a single truth. Everyother word out of her mouth is a falsehood, no matterhow innocuous or simple the truth. The rite’s effects lasta day per success rolled when enacting the rite.Rite of BearingLevel One, MysticWhen a Nagah becomes pregnant, she instinctivelyknows whether or not her child will be a wereserpent.If the father is also Nagah and her child is not ahi, thenshe must use the Rite of Bearing to determine whichform she will take for the pregnancy, and thus whethershe will birth a human child or a clutch of snake eggs.Nagah egg clutches tend to be smaller than is the normfor cobras, and for Nagah human births often producetwins. If this rite isn’t performed within a week of conception,her inchoate pregnancy is reabsorbed back intoher body and terminated.The Nagah’s nestmates are the ones that actuallyperform this ritual, invoking Lunes and river-spirits tobless the new life growing within her while she chants amantra that lists all the strengths of the breed form shehas chosen. Once the words no longer make sense, theNagah slips into a river while taking the form in whichshe intends to remain for the duration of her pregnancy.System: Those enacting the rite must roll Charisma+ Rituals, difficulty 6 (7 if only one nestmate performsthe ritual, 8 if the mother must perform it alone).Nagah who take human or cobra mates bear childrenaccording to their breed form as usual, but may also usethis rite within a week of conception to change theirKinfolk children’s nature as if the father were also Nagah.The difficulty, however, rises by one in addition to anyother modifiers.Naming the TargetLevel Three, MysticA nest performs this rite when it is ready to conductan assassination. When their last mission has beenconcluded with the Votive for the Dead (see below),they gather in a dark room or near a river, join handsor coils, and chant a mantra to invoke the Wani. If therite succeeds, the Wani grant flashes of insight about thenest’s next target, as well as some clues to the nature ofthe target’s offenses against Gaia, his current location,and other facts relevant to the hunt.System: The ritemaster rolls Perception + Rituals(difficulty 7). The more successes rolled, the more informationis gained about the target and the nature ofhis transgressions.Votive for the DeadLevel Four, DeathAfter completing an assassination, the nest mustritually review why the victim’s death was justified, reaffirmingtheir actions. The ritualist chants the victim’scrimes against Gaia, gradually repeating them until theybecome a simple mantra. This rite must be performedbefore the nest can begin another hunt or enact theNaming the Target rite.System: The ritemaster must score at least one success;failure necessitates that the nest spend at least aweek in meditative insight, reviewing their mission ingreater detail, which is likely to slow the nest’s advancementin rank.164CHANGING BREEDS