OGHAM

The Ogham Discipline is only found among the Lhiannan
bloodline; they do not (some say cannot) share
its secrets with those who do not suffer from their line’s
curse. All Lhiannan share a splinter of a dark, oncevast,
and powerful forest spirit. Ogham allows them to
tap into that spirit’s power, and into its communion
with free spirits of its ilk.
Ogham is a limited form of blood magic; it is neither
as flexible nor as powerful as Tremere Thaumaturgy,
nor other Clans’ blood sorcery, but within the bounds
set by the Lhiannan’s territorial nature it is quite powerful.
Ogham is strongest within a Lhiannan’s home
territory. More than 50 miles (80 km) from her home
territory, the difficulty of using Ogham increases by one
across the board, as the Lhiannan’s own spirit-shard
comes into conflict with unfamiliar local spirit life.

• Consecrate the Grove
The Lhiannan with this ability can use the power
of her blood to awaken the spirits of plant life in her
territory; they will act in her defense against any unwelcome
intruder. Roots tangle feet, grass grasps at
boots, trees sway unnaturally in foes’ way, and so on.
Typically the Lhiannan slits a wrist and whirls in place,
or stabs a palm and walks a spiral pattern through the
foliage that she wishes to awaken.
System: The player spends from one to three blood
points, and the character must undertake the process
described above. One blood point rouses the plant life
in a 10-foot (3-meter) diameter; two blood points doubles
that to 20 feet (6 meters); three makes it 40 feet
(12 meters). Tracing the desired area takes one turn
per blood point spent.
When the blood has been sown, the player rolls Charisma
+ Survival (difficulty 6). If the roll garners even
one success, the plant life animates as the local spirit
world is roused to action. Enemies in the area suffer a -2
to all dice pools from distraction and physical interference.
Additionally, interlopers must make a Stamina
+ Athletics roll to avoid three dice of bashing damage
from the local flora (provided the local plant life is capable
of such damage; trees and brambles probably are,
but a grassy meadow doesn’t contain the kind of flora
necessary for such an assault). Botching this roll causes
the plants to turn on the Lhiannan instead.
This power lasts for one scene.

•• Crimson Woad
The Lhiannan traces mystical runes or script on her
own body in vitae, inviting spirits of war to infuse her
and gird her for battle. While so imbued, she ignores
many wounds and retains greater control of her mind
as the spirits direct her Beast. The Lhiannan can also
lash out at her enemies with a fierce, blood-borne attack.
System: The character spends one scene tracing
the woad on her body; this costs one blood point. The
player then rolls Intelligence + Occult (difficulty 7).
Each success enables the character to ignore one die of
wound penalties from injury. It also subtracts one from
the difficulty to avoid frenzy or Rötschreck. This ability
lasts through one scene. Additionally, if the character
receives more than four health levels of damage,
the mystic inscriptions are ruined, and the spirits flee
her body.
The Lhiannan may also lash out at her enemies, adding
the fury of the woad to her attack. The player may
add the number of successes achieved on the above roll
to the number of dice rolled for damage for a single
close-combat attack (this ability can only be used once
per application of Crimson Woad).

••• Inscribe the Curse
The Lhiannan inscribes the name of an enemy on
her body in vitae, in whatever language or set of symbols
she likes. When the name is so inscribed and the
Lhiannan’s enemy can see it, baleful spirits become
bound to the name and enact a curse upon that enemy.
The curse takes effect the moment the victim sees his
name scrawled in blood.
System: The player spends three blood points. The
Lhiannan must write the foe’s name in blood, and it
must be displayed on a part of her body visible to intended
target in order for Inscribe the Curse to take
effect. The player chooses which curse to enact on the
target from the list below; the curse takes effect as soon
as the target sees his name. He does not need to understand
the language used, but if he can comprehend
it, he may resist the curse with a Wits + Occult roll
(difficulty 8).
The curses described below expire when the glyph is
erased, worn off, or defaced by the Lhiannan’s taking
four or more health levels of damage. The curse works
differently depending on where the Lhiannan inscribes
the target’s name.
Body: Inscribe the name on arms, legs, or belly. The
victim’s body becomes ill and weak (+2 to all difficulties
on Physical rolls, and all wound penalties are
increased by one die) or, in the case of Cainites, the
victim cannot use blood other than the one point per
day necessary to remain active.
Mind: Inscribe the name across the forehead. The
foe becomes confused as parts of his mind become disconnected
from one another; he must spend one Willpower
point in order to attempt any Knowledge roll or
use any magical ability or Discipline (other than Celerity,
Fortitude, or Potence). This Willpower doesn’t
buy him a success on that roll; it simply allows him to
make it.
Voice: Inscribe the name on the throat. The victim
loses the power of speech; he can grunt or moan, but
cannot say any words.
Soul: Inscribe the name down the sternum and over
the heart. The subject loses his will to resist the Beast:
difficulties to avoid frenzy are increased by two. Nonvampires
are overcome by fear. The target must flee the
Lhiannan’s territory unless he succeeds in a Courage
roll (difficulty 8).

•••• Moon and Sun
The life of a Cainite is dominated by two celestial
bodies: the sun, which she must fear and hate; and the
moon, her only safe source of light. A Lhiannan can
trace ancient sigils of those two orbs on her body to
gain gifts – the spirit of the moon, ever the vampire’s
friend, blesses her by its current phase, while the sun’s
spirit wards off some of that orb’s fiery curse.
System: The player spends three blood points. The
Lhiannan inscribes the desired sigil on her body over
the course of 15 minutes. The sigil can be inscribed
anywhere, but must be exposed. The character may
choose to inscribe both the moon and the sun, but
each symbol requires the blood expenditure and 15
minutes to trace it. She can also inscribe these sigils on
any voluntary subject.
The sun emblem protects a vampire from the worst
effects of fire and sunlight. So long as the symbol remains
on the character’s body, the player makes a
Stamina roll (difficulty 8) when afflicted by fire or sunlight.
If the roll is successful, the damage is considered
lethal and the player may roll to soak it normally. This
roll must be made every time the character faces such
damage.
The moon emblem adds one to the difficulties of Self-
Control/Instinct rolls to avoid frenzy (but not Courage
rolls to avoid Rötschreck). Other effects of the moon
emblem depend on the current phase of the moon:
New Moon: Add one die to Dexterity and Stealth
dice pools.
Crescent Moon: Add one die to Wits and Occult dice
pools.
Half Moon: Add one die to Perception and Subterfuge
dice pools.
Gibbous Moon: Add one die to Charisma and Expression
dice pools.
Full Moon: Add one die to Strength and Brawl dice
pools.

••••• Drink Dry the Earth
The spirit within every Lhiannan is drawn to sites
of mystical energy, whether ancient stone circles, faerie
rings, or dragon tracks. That spirit-shard can wrest
spiritual energy out of those places of power and use
it to aid the Lhiannan. A word of caution, however:
stealing too much power from any mystical site renders
it barren and lifeless, much as if the Cainite had consumed
the very blood of the Earth. Also, wizards and
werewolves frequent these same sites, and destroying
these places can rouse their ire.
System: The player rolls Perception + Occult (difficulty
8). One success determines if a given location
is a suitable site (a decision generally left in the Storyteller’s
hands, though a Lhiannan with a high Domain
Background may have such a site within her holdings).
Two or more successes on this roll grants a rough idea
of the site’s power on a scale of 1 to 5. If the character
wishes to tap the power of that location, she must spend
a scene and one blood point marking various parts of
the site with sigils of power, keys for her spirit-shard to
unlock the location’s energies.
Once the site is prepared, the player makes a second,
reflexive Perception + Occult roll (difficulty 7). Any
successes beyond the site’s power rating are ignored.
For each success, the player gains two dice, which she
may add to any dice pools (except those to avoid frenzy
or Rötschreck) for the remainder of the scene. These
dice are gone when used, but the character may tap the
same location again from turn to turn. The player must
make the Perception + Occult roll each time. Each
“drink” of the site’s energies depletes it, however, as
described below.
The Lhiannan’s spirit-shard is a greedy thing, wearing
as it does the garb of a Cainite’s Beast, and drinks
the site’s energies recklessly. A Lhiannan can only garner
a number of successes equal to 10 times the site’s
power rating, after which point the area turns into a
barren wasteland, incapable of sustaining life. This sort
of activity in particular is certain to attract the attention
of Lupines or wizards. A site may replenish itself
over a period of years. However, a site that is tapped
with Drink Dry the Earth at any point during the year
is unable to replenish lost dice at all that year, and if
the site is completely drained, it is irrevocably dead.

••••• • Inscribe the Forgotten Names
When the Lhiannan reaches this level of Ogham,
she reverses the relationship between herself and her
spirit-shard and can dominate and extract information
from it. The Lhiannan’s ancient spirit knows the
names of many mythical beings, and it can be bludgeoned
into giving the Lhiannan one of those names
so that she may invoke such a creature. These beings
are dangerous, and not to be trifled with. Many are on
a par with Methuselahs.
Inscribe the Forgotten Names allows its wielder to
communicate with the being she summons, but it does
not give her domination or control over that creature.
She must appease it in whatever manner she can, and
hope that it does not take offense at being called up.
System: The player spends three blood points. The
Lhiannan must spend one half hour undisturbed as
blood oozes from her skin to sate the spirit-shard’s
hunger. At the end of this time, the player rolls Intelligence
+ Occult (difficulty 9, or 8 if the character
has summoned this particular being before). If the roll
succeeds, a powerful creature arrives in the immediate
vicinity before the end of the current scene.
The Storyteller is free to assign game statistics to any
creature summoned. Such creatures have their own
desires and demands, and many do not take kindly to
being called.