SPIRITUS

The Discipline of Spiritus opens the vampire up to
worlds and vistas — and methods of feeding — that
most Kindred can never touch. Vampires are spiritually
dead, unable to create life. The shamanic ritual
that created the Ahrimanes, though, allowed a spiritual
connection between the undead and the vast, living
world all around them. While the vampire can barely
scratch the surface of what living shamans can accomplish,
the Discipline of Spiritus is still formidable.

• Aid from Spirits
Spirits are everywhere, but invisible to most living
(and unliving) beings. This power allows the vampire
to briefly rouse the spirit of an object, making that object
perform its intended function better and more efficiently.
It in no way makes the spirit well-disposed
toward the vampire — not that this usually matters to
the Ahrimane.
System: The character touches the object, and the
player spends a blood point and rolls Manipulation + Occult
(difficulty 6). If the roll succeeds, the player receives a
bonus to her dice pool using that item, equal to the number
of successes rolled. For example, if the character uses
this power on a gun and the player rolls three successes,
she then receives a +3 to her next Firearms roll made with
that gun. Unused bonuses fade at the end of the scene,
and multiple uses of this power do not combine (the most
recent use trumps any previous uses). The character can,
however, use the power on multiple objects she uses in
the same scene, so long as she has the blood for it.

•• Summon Spirit Beasts
The vampire might not fully understand the link between
“animal” and “animal-spirit,” but spirits of aggressive
animals are usually more than willing to take
on a physical body and fight for the vampire. Spirits of
curious animals, meanwhile, seem to enjoy unlocking
doors or following people. With this power, the Ahrimane
can summon up the spirit of an animal indigenous
to the area and send it to do what comes naturally.
The spirit assumes the corporeal form of the appropriate
animal, and is capable of whatever the animal
would normally be able to do. The animal can follow
simple telepathic commands, and is slightly more intelligent
than a normal animal would be (but still not
as intelligent as a person).
System: The animal summoned must be native to
the area — just because the local zoo hosts a tiger
doesn’t mean there are tiger-spirits running about. The
player must spend one blood point and roll Charisma
+ Animal Ken (difficulty 7). The number of successes
indicates how long the spirit remains material. The
spirits have the same number of health levels their
physical counterparts would normally have (see p. 388
for some sample animals traits). If they are reduced to
Incapacitated, they discorporate.
Successes - Duration
1 Success - One Turn
2 Successes - Five Turns
3 Successes - One Hour
4 Successes - One Night
5 Successes - One Week

••• Aspect of the Beast
Instead of calling up animal spirits, the vampire
learns to emulate aspects of those spirits herself. In this
way, she can become faster, stronger, tougher, or gain
the special powers of nearly any animal, provided that
the spirit is local to the area.
System: The player spends a blood point and rolls
Manipulation + Occult (difficulty 7). The power lasts
for one turn per success, unless otherwise noted. Some
examples of aspects are given below, though the player
and Storyteller are welcome to make up others:
Beaver’s Bite — This makes the Ahrimane’s bite
strong and sharp enough to cut through almost any
substance (though it does no additional damage to living
or unliving targets).
Chameleon’s Colors — The Ahrimane becomes capable
of changing color to suit the environment (-2
difficulties to all Stealth rolls involving hiding).
Ears of the Hare — The Ahrimane can hear as well
as a rabbit, reducing the difficulty of Perception rolls
involving hearing by two.
Falcon’s Eye — The Ahrimane can see great distances
as if she had the eyes of a falcon (-3 to all Perception
rolls involving vision).
Ferocity of the Cougar — All Courage rolls are made
at -2 difficulty.
Leapfrog — This grants the Ahrimane the ability to
leap three times the normal height and distance. (See
p. 260 for jumping rules.)
Nose of the Hound — The Ahrimane’s sense of smell
is far greater than that of a mortal. She can even track
by scent with on a Perception + Survival roll (difficulty
set by Storyteller).
Serpent’s Venom — The Ahrimane’s bite transmits
a venomous toxin that causes two health levels of
damage in living victims per turn (see “Poisons and
Drugs,” p. 301). The damage continues until the toxin
is removed or nullified, or until the Ahrimane’s spirit
power ends.
Sound of the Cricket — This grants the power to produce
an annoying, grating sound loud enough to deafen
those nearby. The target suffers a +4 to all Perception
rolls related to hearing for the next scene unless he succeeds
on a Willpower roll (difficulty 7).
Squirrel’s Balance — The Ahrimane can move about
in the branches and limbs of trees or across tightropes
with little fear of falling. All such Athletics rolls have
their difficulties decreased by two.
Strength of the Bear — This gives the Ahrimane two
extra dots of Strength.
Swiftness of the Stag — The Ahrimane can move at
twice her normal running speed.

•••• Engling Fury
Spirits abound — supposedly everything, from one’s
shirt to the very air, has one. The Ahrimane can take
those spirits into herself, break them down, and refresh
her own mental reserves. This destroys the spirit, but
no repercussions have been reported.
System: The player rolls Manipulation + Intimidation
(difficulty 8). Every success allows her to regain a
point of Willpower, but each use of this power destroys
another spirit.

••••• The Wild Beast
The Ahrimane grows leaner, lithe, and strong. She
hunches over slightly, her eyes become slitted and catlike,
and she grows vicious claws on her hands. Her
features become slightly feline, and in this form she is
an even more formidable predator than usual. Animals
react with fear to the Wild Beast, and mortals see her
as a monster — if they see her at all.
System: The change does not require a roll, but
the player must spend two blood points. The change
raises the vampire’s Strength by three, and Dexterity
and Stamina each by two. Appearance falls to 0 and
Manipulation is reduced by three. The vampire’s fangs
inflict an extra die of damage, and she grows claws that
inflict aggravated damage. The character can see in the
dark, and all difficulties involving scent, hearing, and
vision fall by two. The character can retain the Wild
Beast form for a number of hours every night equal to
her Willpower rating.

••••• • The Spirit Beast
The Ahrimane merges with an indigenous spirit animal,
and their bodies and minds become one.
System: No roll is required, but the player must
spend one blood point and one Willpower point. The
vampire fully merges with a spirit animal of her choice,
effectively creating a new being. The vampire’s Intelligence
drops by two and her Wits by one, but she is
no longer affected by sunlight and may remain awake
without a roll at the cost of two Willpower points daily.
Since the vampire is co-inhabiting with a spirit, she can
choose whether to be corporeal or incorporeal and she
may travel the spirit realms. She can use Animalism,
Celerity, Fortitude, Potence, and Spiritus while in Spirit
Beast form. The duration of Spirit Beast is indefinite,
though the vampire must pay another blood point and
Willpower point to change back; a vampire who cannot
pay this cost and has no means of re-acquiring either
might find herself stuck.