Table of Contents

in the days when it was a band of mortal wizards, Spirit Manipulation is the art of forcing spirits into actions and situations that would normally be contrary to their nature. These spirits are not the wraiths controlled by Necromancy, but a manifestation of the great powers of the universe that the limited humanoid brain perceives as spirits. Some believe that spirits are tulpas — constructs of human will created by faith to explain how the universe manages to function. Spirit Manipulation forces these spirits into a grotesque mockery of their normal behaviors to achieve magical results in the material world.

Spirits are constructs born from the spirit realms and are known to those with Hermetic training as the Umbrood. These spiritual constructs are not sentient as traditionally understood by those that live in the physical world, but are reflections of the spirit world and perceived aspects of the universe interpreted in a way that limited mortal perception can understand it. As such, spirits come in a wide berth of different types and potencies. The following rules are a limited guide for creating spirits for V20.

First, define the concept of the spirit. Traditionally it is limited by a single category that you can describe with a phrase. Some examples might include: nature spirit (land, sea, wood, or desert), conceptual spirit (mathematics, war, or mechanics), or an inanimate object (a computer, a knife, or a piece of jewelry).

Next, determine the potency of the spirit by defining its rank (from 1 to 5). The rank of the spirit determines its Willpower score. If the spirit must engage in any test, her dice pool is twice its rank.

For each level of rank of the spirit, assign one Discipline power based on the concept. For example, a rank 3 Fire Spirit might possess three dots of Thaumaturgy: The Lure of Flames (V20, p. 218). Willpower fuels any special ability of a discipline that a spirit might possess.

Finally, assign one Ability per rank of the spirit. A spirit of war might have Brawl, Melee, Firearms, Survival, or any number of abilities related to war or fighting. Each Ability adds two dice to its base dice pool of Willpower x 2.

The vampire can perceive the spirit world, either by gazing deeply into it or by seeing the presence of nearby spirits as a hazy overlay on the material world. Hermetic Sight allows the thaumaturge to perceive the spirit realm interlaid over the material world for one hour. Each additional level of success on the activation roll increases the duration of this power by an additional thirty minutes. The languages of the spirit world are infinitely varied and mainly incomprehensible to mortal (and immortal) minds. Astral Cant does not teach the thaumaturge the tongues of the spirits, but it does allow him to understand them as they speak to him and to reply in their own languages. The use of this power is not always necessary; many spirits speak human tongues, but choose to feign ignorance when dealing with vampires. Spirits are not affected by Dominate, but may be manipulated by Presence. Some thaumaturges theorize that this is because spirits are not actually sentient as a vampire would understand the concept, but are manifestations based on the perception of those that are self-aware. Astral Cant allows the thaumaturge to speak to any spirit visible via Hermetic Sight for fifteen minutes. Each additional level of success on the activation roll increases the duration of this power by an additional fifteen minutes to the duration. This is perhaps the most dangerous power in the Spirit Manipulation arsenal, for the consequences of failure can be particularly unpleasant. Voice of Command allows the thaumaturge to issue orders to a spirit, compelling it to heed her bidding whether or not it desires to do so.

Spirits compelled by this power are fully aware that they are being forced into these actions, and may well seek revenge on their erstwhile masters at a later time. Thaumaturges who issue commands above and beyond what their spirit servants are compelled to perform may find themselves ignored or mocked. A trickster spirit may agree to a situation to follow orders only to betray its master, leaving the thaumaturge in a situation of potentially fatal embarrassment.

The thaumaturge makes the normal opposed Willpower roll against the spirit. The target spirit resists with Willpower (difficulty of the thaumaturge’s Manipulation + Occult). The degree of success the thaumaturge attains determines the complexity and severity of the command that she can issue. Number of Successes Effect Botch The spirit is immune to the character’s commands for the rest of the night. It reacts however the Storyteller deems appropriate. Typically, the spirit is angry enough to seek revenge at the first opportunity. It may ignore, taunt or even attack the character, at the Storyteller’s discretion. Failure The spirit is unaffected, and further attempts to command it are made at +1 difficulty (cumulative).

1 success — The spirit obeys a very simple command that is of no great inconvenience to it.
2 successes — The spirit heeds a relatively straightforward command that it is not innately opposed to performing.
3 successes — The spirit agrees to perform a moderately complex task that does not violate its ethics.
4 successes — The spirit consents to an extended or intricate task that does not place it in immediate danger.
5 successes — The spirit accepts a lengthy or nighimpossible task, or one that means its destruction.

This power allows a thaumaturge to bind a spirit into a physical object. This can be done to imprison the target, but is more often performed to create a fetish — an artifact that grants mystical benefits powered by the spirit. Fetishes created by this power are often unreliable and fail at inopportune moments, as the spirits within are understandably displeased with their situation and will take any opportunity to escape or thwart their captors. Lupines find it offensive for vampires to possess a fetish, and often they will frenzy simply at the sight of a vampire wielding one. The thaumaturge must first locate a vessel symbolically aligned with the targeted spirit that will eventually become the fetish. Then she must command the targeted spirit to enter the vessel via an opposed Willpower roll. The target spirit resists with Willpower (difficulty equals the thaumaturge’s Manipulation + Occult).

Should the thaumaturge succeed, she can create a fetish of a power level based on the number of successes achieved over the spirit, up to a level five fetish. For example, if the thaumaturge wins the opposed Willpower roll against the spirit by three successes, she creates a level three fetish.

Creating and maintaining a fetish is difficult; because of this, the number of fetishes a thaumaturge may create is limited by her Willpower. If the thaumaturge gives away said fetish, it still counts against her total available slots. She may only create an additional fetish when one of her previous fetishes has been destroyed.

A fetish grants a number of bonus dice to a specific skill comparable to the level of the fetish. For example, a healing spirit trapped inside a scalpel would grant extra dice (the level of the fetish) for any Medicine roll. The Storyteller always has final authority on what sort of fetish can be made.

A fetish is activated by rolling the user’s Willpower (difficulty equals the fetish’s power level + 3). A botch on this roll destroys the physical component of the fetish and frees the spirit that was trapped within.

The thaumaturge can now fully interact with the spirit world — a strange place that only sometimes resembles the real world. While using this power, she exists on both planes of existence at once. She is able to pick up objects in the physical world and place them in the spirit world and vice versa. Beings and landscape features in both realms are solid to her, and she can engage in any manner of interaction. She can even use Thaumaturgy and other Disciplines in either world. This is not without its dangers. With a single misstep, the vampire can find himself trapped in the spirit realm with no way to return home. Several incautious thaumaturges have starved into torpor while trapped on the other side of the barrier that separates the physical and spirit realms. The thaumaturge may interact with the spirit world for fifteen minutes. Each additional level of success on the activation roll increases the duration of this power by an additional fifteen minutes. Duality can only be enacted while the character begins the process in the physical world. While in this state, the thaumaturge becomes susceptible to attacks from both realms and suffers from a +1 difficulty to all Perception rolls. The character is still considered to be in the physical world for purposes of basic physics (and common sense).

Spirits who have been previously angered will seek physical revenge on unwary thaumaturges using this power.

A botch on the roll to activate this power tears the vampire out of the physical world and traps him in the spirit realm. The way back the physical realm, if there is one, is left to the Storyteller’s discretion, and may spark an entirely new story.