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KEENING

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Keening is an Arcanos of emotion transmitted by sound. The ancient legends of banshees and ghostly mourners have at least some basis in Keening’s arts. Those who have mastered this Arcanos can sing emotion into their listeners, living or dead. It is not absolutely necessary for a wraith to sing to use this Arcanos. Ultimately, the emotions Keening instils are artificial, and cannot compare to the heady rush of true feeling. You will be truly hard pressed to find a wielder of Keening without some form of musical instrument on their person. 

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Keening is a broadly focused Arcanos, able to affect or create nearly any emotion in the right circumstances. While Chanteurs have an easier time dealing with negative emotions, their songs can bring joy, inspire courage, or plant the seeds of love in a wraith’s heart. Most Keening involves singing and playing instruments, but Chanteurs don’t have to make music to use Keening’s arts. Some Chanteurs work through dance, acting, humour, mime, or other forms of performance in which music isn’t a part. This is not commonly known, and Chanteurs who can use other forms of expression to channel their powers often find themselves with a significant tactical advantage. 

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Keening is among the most impactful of the Arcanoi when it comes to other Awakened. It has a particularly interesting effect on Garou, with ◉◉ MOOD MUSIC (COMMON) Able to Induce Rage with Negative Thoughts or Reduce Rage with positive effects. Amount of Rage lost or gained is equal to the Mood Music Successes.

An Embodied wraith can spend an extra point of PATHOS while using ◉◉◉◉◉ REQUIEM (COMMON) and force a vampire either into or out of frenzy.

Changelings are also susceptible to Keening. If the wraith is visible to the changeling, then Embody is not necessary for an Art to have an effect. Songs of particular beauty can infuse a changeling with a point of Dross per success. 

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ALTERNATIVE TRAITS.

A character can use "PERFORMANCE" in lieu of KEENING RANK  for rolls involving Keening if they so desire, this only affects  KEENING  ROLLS

It does NOT mean performance can be used to purchase higher levels of the Keening Arcanoi, Keening Arcanoi must be purchased with XP just like all other Arcanoi.

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GAINING PATHOS THROUGH KEENING

• You can not artificially incite your own passion or that of another wraith. A wraith can therefore gain no pathos through DIRECT INDULGENCE as a result of  KEENING

• You can incite your own passion into others and gain pathos through VICARIOUS INDULGENCE however  the difficulty is  increased

VICARIOUS INDULGENCE VIA KEENING INCITED EMOTIONS

FREE ACTION 

ROLL:         RELEVANT  PASSION STRENGTH

DIFFICULTY: 16+  (14+ if you have KEENING ◉◉◉)

SUCCESS:   Every two successes grants the wraith 1 point of pathos. This wraith may not gain more than 10 pathos.

LIMITATIONS: A wraith may only do this  ONCE PER SCENE

 

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It is said that Pathos garnered from this source feels somehow blander and more artificial than that gathered naturally, though younger Chanteurs dismiss this as the grumbling of old fuddy-duddies who are too hidebound to seek emotion of their own. 

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FAILURE:

Failed Keening rolls can create emotional “feedback,” meaning the Chanteur’s Shadow may gain 1 Angst from the discord. 

 

SHROUD: Keening rolls made across the shroud are made at 4 levels (Minimum 1) lower than actual.

Minimum Difficulty  across the shroud is therefore 8+ and maximum difficulty is 14+
SHROUD THICKNESS RATING

RATING                       AREA                                         

    1                             Cearn                                                

    2                             Node/Graveyard                               

    3                             Deep Wilderness                                 

    4                             Rural Countryside                               

    5                             No mans land                                     

    6                             Most Urban Areas                             

    7                             Downtown alley

    8                             Downtown interior locations

    9                             Downtown Mainstreet.          

    10                           Technocratic Lab*   

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KEENING COMMON

 

◉ HEARING VOICES (COMMON)
The Chanteur can make it seem as if his voice comes from a nearby person or object rather than himself.

SYSTEM:

FREE ACTION:

SPEND 1 PATHOS

ROLL: MANIPULATION + KEENING RANK 

DIFFICULTY: 14+ OR if object on other side of shroud 7 + ( - 4 shroud rating to a minimum of shroud rating 1) 

SUCCESS:

The wraith may make his voice seem to come from an object up to 4 meters away + 1 meter per success.

Determining the true source of the voice requires a Perception + Occult  roll that achieves more successes than the Hearing Voices roll.

FAILURE: Gain 1 ANGST

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◉◉ MOOD MUSIC  (COMMON)

One of the basic arts of the Chanteur is to evoke emotions through music. “Dark” emotions are easier to appeal to than lighter ones, but a skilled Chanteur can create joy almost as easily as sorrow. The range is everyone within -earshot- of the wraith in question.

SYSTEM I: NEGATIVE  EMOTIONS

To create a “negative” emotion — for example, despair, fear, self-loathing, hatred, envy, bitterness, jealousy, or anger 

NORMAL ACTION:

SPEND: 1 PATHOS

ROLL:  CHARISMA + KEENING RANK

DIFFICULTY: 14+ OR if object on other side of shroud 7 + ( - 4 shroud rating to a minimum of shroud rating 1) 

SUCCESSES: 

With the number of successes indicating the depth and duration of the feeling evoked: 1 day per success for one of the non wraith, one hour per success for a wraith 

RESISTANCE: COMPOSURE + RESOLVE :DIFFICULTY 14+

 

SYSTEM II: POSITIVE EMOTIONS

To create a “positive” emotion — such as hope, love, courage, happiness, or tranquillity

NORMAL ACTION:

SPEND: 2 PATHOS

ROLL:  MANIPULATION + KEENING RANK

DIFFICULTY: 14+ OR if targets on other side of shroud 7 + ( - 4 shroud rating to a minimum of shroud rating 1) 

SUCCESSES:

With the number of successes indicating the depth and duration of the feeling evoked: 1 day per success for one of the non wraith, one hour per success for a wraith 

RESISTANCE: COMPOSURE + RESOLVE :DIFFICULTY 14+

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WRAITH (OR SHADOWS) May indulge in these Negative or Positive passions if they match their own passion (Or Dark Passion) but are subject to the rules featured at the top of this page.

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◉◉◉ SATIRE (COMMON)

In the often politically charged Underworld, a wraith’s influence and good reputation are among the most important assets she has — and this art can strip them from her in the time it takes to sing a song. The Chanteur composes a song or story that casts a particular wraith in a negative light (either for some specific sin, or in general), plays it to an audience, and then sits back to watch the subject’s social standing evaporate as fast as gossip can spread.

Generally this ability is only useable on Wraith or NPC figures of the Underworld. It never can cross the shroud. Generally this ability was designed for use in the underworld and stories involving Hierarchy figures.

SYSTEM:

NORMAL ACTION (roll at the end of your song)

SPEND: 2 PATHOS

GAIN:   1 ANGST if it is discovered after the fact , that the character really did not deserve the satire.

ROLL:    CHARISMA + KEENING RANK

DIFFICULTY:

• Hierarchy Bureaucrat (Stygian) 10+

• Governor's Bureaucrats (Bataria Bay)  12+

• Average Wraith Citizen 14+

• Heroic  Centurion 18+

• Governor of Bataria Bay 20+ (Lafitte is beloved by his citizens, though he is never represented his reputation is still subject to this power. )

SUCCESS:

Every 2 successes adds +1 difficulty to the satirized target's social rolls within wraith company , this social difficulty lasts for 1 week per success rolled.

(or until something happens that would negate the Satire’s effects, such as if a Legionnaire accused of cowardice demonstrates great bravery in public). But the Chanteur may suffer difficulties of her own as a result, since few powerful people take being Satirized lying down.

BOTCH:

Satirizing beloved figures does not come without risk, while failure indicates a rather unimpressed crowd, a botch outrages the crowd and is treated as a 5 success breach witness roll, with the wraith crowd hostile to the satirizer . This of course is in ADDITION to the 1 ANGST gained for botching a KEENING roll.

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◉◉◉◉ CRESCENDO (COMMON)

Music is usually a gentle, subtle weapon, but not so this art, which uses the power of sound to damage plasm. The target has to be fairly close to the Chanteur to suffer the full effect, but the Chanteur screams a blast of music so loud that wraiths a mile away can hear it.

The range of the DAMAGING effect is 5 meters per KEENING RANK

SYSTEM:

NORMAL ACTION:

SPEND 3 PATHOS

GAIN:  1 ANGST

ROLL:          CHARISMA + KEENING RANK

DIFFICULTY: 16+ OR if targeting other side of shroud 7 + ( - 4 shroud rating to a minimum of shroud rating 1) 

SUCCESS:   Each success inflicts one point of  lethal damage to every wraith within normal hearing distance (other than the Chanteur herself) Unless the wraith makes a successful STAMINA + ATHLETICS +ARMOR roll DIFFICULTY 16+

SUCCESS WHILE EMBODIED:

If the CRESCENDO comes from an Embodied wraith, singing a Crescendo causes listeners to experience such intense fear that they take 1 point  of lethal damage per two successes unless the character can master their fear by rolling COMPOSURE + RESOLVE: DIFFICULTY 16+

A Chanteur cannot use Crescendo with Sotto Voce.

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◉◉◉◉◉ REQUIEM (COMMON)

The Chanteur plays a song so profound that intense emotions afflict the victim, preventing him from doing anything but suffer the psychological storm.

SYSTEM

NORMAL ACTION

SPEND: 3 PATHOS + 1 PATHOS PER SUCCESSS AFTER

GAIN:   1 ANGST

ROLL:     CHARISMA + KEENING RANK vs COMPOSURE + RESOLVE (+ minus 4 shroud rating if on other side of shroud)

SUCCEES:

• Chose what emotion(s) to afflict the target with.

• Each success paralyzes the target for one turn; he’s so overcome with emotion that he cannot speak, move, use Arcanoi/Disciplines/Gifts etc

• Especially strong Requiems inflict long-term harm on the target. If the Chanteur scores five or more successes using a “dark” emotion, the target loses one dot in a Mental Attribute chosen randomly by the victim. If the emotions are “bright” or positive, the target becomes addicted to the rush and does whatever it takes to experience it once more.

• Lost Mental attributes are regained the next day.

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KEENING INITIATE

RESTRICTED TO

◉ CHANTEURS  ◉ PROCTORS ◉ SANDMEN ◉

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◉ SOTTO VOCE (INITIATE)

The cleverest Chanteurs can hide their powers in ordinary song or conversation.

SYSTEM: 

FREE ACTION:

SPEND 1 PATHOS

ROLL: MANIPULATION + KEENING RANK

DIFFICULTY 12+

SUCCESS:

• If he succeeds, his use of Keening seems like ordinary music or speech and nobody will -link- the performance with the effects of the Keening.

• Any wraith that has even one dot in any Keening power can perceive the truth if he achieves more successes with a  Perception + Keening  Difficulty 12+ roll than the Chanteur achieved on her Sotto Voce roll.

• The effect lasts the duration of the scene.

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◉◉ CACOPHONY (INITIATE)

The Chanteur’s discordant playing and singing deafens and disorients everyone near her and disrupts other Keening arts.

SYSTEM:

NORMAL ACTION:

SPEND: 2 PATHOS

GAIN: 1 ANGST If she uses Cacophony to disrupt another wraith’s Keening.

ROLL:   MANIPULATION + KEENING RANK 

DIFFICULTY 14+ OR if on other side of shroud 7 + ( - 4 shroud rating to a minimum of shroud rating 1) 

SUCCESSES:

• The number of successes indicates two things.

• The first is the number of turns anyone within hearing range is deafened and disoriented. This inflicts a +1 difficulty penalty on most rolls, and may make some actions (such as communicating by speech) impossible.

• Second, if another Chanteur is using some other Keening art within hearing distance, if the successes with Cacophony equal or exceed his successes with the art he’s using, that art immediately ceases to have any effect. If the other Chanteur wants to re-establish it he has to pay any cost again, use another action, and restart his attempt. 

• A Chanteur cannot use Cacophony with Sotto Voce.

RESISTANCE: COMPOSURE + RESOLVE :DIFFICULTY 14+

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◉◉◉ SIREN SONG (INITIATE )

Some Chanteurs know a way to sing that attracts another wraith’s attention to them in an almost obsessive way. 

SYSTEM:

NORMAL ACTION: must also have the opportunity to sing to the target, talk to him at length, or interact with him in some similar way. 

SPEND: 2 PATHOS

ROLL:    MANIPULATION + KEENING vs COMPOSURE + RESOLVE (+ minus 4 shroud rating if on other side of shroud)

SUCCCESS:

Each success is a +1 bonus to Social rolls vs the target. 

Each success is a -1 penalty for anyone else attempting to use social rolls on the target.

Siren Song’s effects last for one hour per dot the Chanteur has in Charisma.

Siren Song only affects a single target even if the Chanteur performs to a large audience.

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◉◉◉◉ BANSHEE (INITIATE)

Ancient legends from the British Isles say that if you hear a banshee wail, you will soon die. Such stories may have arisen from Chanteurs’ use of this art, which inflicts painful injuries that don’t take effect until a specified condition occurs.

SYSTEM:

NORMAL ACTION

SPEND: 3 PATHOS

GAIN:   1 ANGST

ROLL:    CHARISMA + KEENING vs COMPOSURE + RESOLVE (+ minus 4 shroud rating if on other side of shroud)

SUCCESS:

Each success inflicts one point of  aggravated damage to a victim who hears the Chanteur’s song, but the victim doesn’t actually take the damage until a condition specified by the Chanteur in that song occurs.

The most common conditions are

• after the passage of a certain amount of time

• after the victim takes a certain number of steps 

• If the victim ever enters (or leaves) a defined location.

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The Storyteller should veto any condition the Chanteur tries to impose that’s unbalancing or inappropriate . For example, “if you ever do anything I don’t like” often isn’t a legitimate condition, but “if you ever attack [my loved one]” might be.

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• A Chanteur who imposes a Banshee on someone can remove it at any time; this requires one turn in the victim’s presence and a point of Pathos. Many wraiths have tried other ways to get rid of a Banshee, but so far none of them has succeeded.

• Banshee only affects a single target even if the Chanteur performs to a large audience.

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◉◉◉◉◉ OUT OF TUNE (INITIATE)

Like a Quick opera singer breaking a glass with a high note, this art allows a Chanteur to temporarily disrupt a wraith’s Attunement's.

SYSTEM:

NORMAL ACTION: Must be in the presence of either the target wraith or the person/object the target’s attuned to.

SPEND:   3 PATHOS

ROLL:     MANIPULATION + KEENING vs COMPOSURE + RESOLVE (+ minus 4 shroud rating if on other side of shroud)

SUCCESS:

Each success achieved weakens an attunement as follows:

• Embody, each success reduces the +3 bonus  by 1 or reduces the reduction in Pathos or Corpus cost by 1 (Chanteur player’s choice).

• Inhabit, each success reduces the +2 bonus by 1.

• Puppetry, the Puppeteer is temporarily evicted from his current flesh suit.

The effects of Out Of Tune typically last for one day per success. The victim may cut this period short by spending 1 pathos per success to reattune the person or object.

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