Minerva clears her mind and then she asserts her will over the world. And the world changes, the universe misled into believing her lies were real.
Minerva's powers begin to manifest fully with this. Almost subconsciously, the young girl can change the world around her. Occasionally small things change without her thinking about it. But when she focuses... she convinces the universe her playthings are real, and it accepts this, with reservations.
If they are treated roughly, however - damaged or stressed at all, by anyone - the universe remembers, and such illusions evaporate into smoke.
Minerva deals poorly with pain or stress, having lived a pampered life and having little experience to see her though them. Physical pain at all keeps bringing her mind back to that, and she's unable to assert her will properly. Stress does the same - as soon as she's distracted, she's unable to focus, unable to make her will come forth as easily as it normally does.
Finally...under the surface, in the depths of her mind, lurk darker thoughts. Her practice with altering the world comes into full manifestation when she panics and loses her composure, her fears seeping in.
Exert your Mind (unless you have no body damage and your mind damage is agitated or better) and spend an Action. Select a target within 45 feet. Choose an illusion to generate, which can be no larger than a person.
The chosen illusion is generated at your target, and it will remain in place until it is dispelled or you choose to end it. It can be perceived by people through all of their senses. The illusion cannot be used as an attack. You may create a replica of a specific being or Object, though it is still limited by what you do or do not know about the subject.
Anyone who struggles against the illusion hard enough to break a window or who would be damaged by the illusion realizes it is an illusion, and the entire effect will be ended for all targets.
The illusion will remain fixed to its initial target, and can only change locations if the initial target is mobile in some way. It may have moving parts and engage in simple, predetermined movements but cannot perform anything complex or interactive unless you maintain Concentration and “puppeteer” it.
Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Latent Nightmares: When your mind damage becomes Alarmed or worse make a self-control roll. You automatically fail this roll if your mind damage is Delirious or worse. On a failure, your fears and panic begin to manifest as illusions around you, typically taking the form of shadow creatures. All actions and movement must be focused on dealing with the illusions, which persist until you make a 4-success Mind roll at the end of a turn. The illusions focus on you, but are visible to all and will attempt to prevent anyone from helping you.
The user opens the leather journal and points at the creature as their species and location becomes written on the journal along with the current time and a ??? indicating when the possession will end, when it's finished being written the shadow of the user and the creature will merge to create a patch of darkness that slowly becomes material and begins restraining the creature with fully physical tendrils. These tendrils bind the creature to the ground as the user is pushed into a fit of vomiting out blackish slime and blood. As more of the substance leaves the body the more the user becomes lethargic until the point of unconsciousness. The substance then merges into one full blob and enters the creature's body through their mouth at which point they're fully taken over by the user.
Spend an Action to activate. Select a Creature target within 20 feet. You must actively and obviously use A leather journal to activate this Effect.
You possess your target and have control over their actions for the next hour. Your original body will be left behind, unconscious, in its same location. You may spend a Committed Action to end the possession early.
Stats: Any actions you take will use the possessed creature’s Brawn, Dexterity, and Perception, but use your own Charisma, Intellect, and Abilities.
Gifts: You do not have access to any Gifts while you are possessing your target.
Death: If the host becomes incapacitated or is destroyed, you are forcibly evicted back into your own body. If the possession ends and your original body was killed or destroyed in some way, you will die.
Eviction: You cannot force your host to take actions which would violate their instinct for self-preservation (which includes engaging in Combat for any purpose other than self-defense or natural hunting); any attempt to do so will sever the connection and send you back into your own body. If you are forced out of the target's body prematurely, you must make a Trauma roll.
Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see you forcefully restraining a creature with inky black tendrils, vomiting out your own slimy spirit out and inserting it into the creature.
This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.
When Jacob decides to use this power, he must be within arm’s reach of his target. If the target is unwilling, Jacob’s natural charisma comes into play as he attempts to sway them—using a blend of persuasive charm and subtle manipulation to lower their defenses. A successful use of his power results in an almost invisible exchange, like a whisper of energy transferring between him and his target.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Sapient target within arm's reach. If a target does not consent to the transfer, you must roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6 to use the effect on them. They can resist by rolling either Body or Mind at Difficulty 6, depending on what you are attempting to transfer to them.
You may choose a single instance of one of the following to transfer from your target to yourself, or from yourself to them:
Whenever you transfer an Injury, it's Severity increases by 1. Whenever you transfer Mind damage or Traumas, the recipient takes an additional Mind damage.
Benjamin holds an aged, leather-bound Bible, its pages worn and edges frayed. The book hums with the protection of Salem’s faith, glowing faintly, a beacon of divine power and the town’s unwavering belief.
Spend an Action. Select a Living or Animate target within 45 feet. You must actively and obviously use Bible to activate this Effect. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. The target may roll Body, -2 dice at Difficulty 7, as a Free Action to resist.
If you succeed, the target receives a new Battle Scar of your choosing, limited by the contested Outcome:
You may affect up to 3 targets within range.
You may cure any Battle Scars you have created with this Effect with a Free Action on your initiative. They are healed over the course of the next hour.
This Gift cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 2.
Possession of this Power grants the following Battle Scar: Disfigured.
Your alteration "heals" over the course of the next month, after which it is fully cured.
You place a hand on the object, gloved or not, and glare into its figurative or literal soul. You may even sniff or lick it depending on how confident you are that it won't kill you right away. Observers to this act may feel a mild to intense discomfort depending on what item it is (pray that it's not someone's clothing, cough cough) but you can insist that this is all for the sake of science.
On testing:
Delphyrion has always wanted to know everything. However, no matter how strong one's background is in chemistry, you'd usually need equipment and time to study an object's composition. Not to mention the amount of harm it could do to the item.
On alien origins:
Whatever it is that they encounter on their contracts, Delphyrion would very much like to know when something is out of this world so they don't have to waste time trying to apply human logic to it. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, but sometimes a cigar is very much not a cigar.
On chemistry:
This gift could be groundbreaking, but only if you know what you're looking at. Initially Delphyrion wanted to use it for finding the chemical makeup of an item, though they realize they should already know as long as it's recognizable. Chemistry is all about using what you have, and what's the use of a weapon that you know nothing about?
On questionable acts:
Look, living creatures are born with five senses for a reason. Delphyrion will use all five senses if it means new knowledge can be found. Sure, they've gotten sick from licking stuff for no reason, and they've licked a frozen pole (you can imagine how that went down), but at least now there is a reason to do so. This will do wonders for their immune system.
Spend a minute. Select a target Object within arm's reach. At the end of your investigation, roll Intellect + Science at Difficulty 6.
You learn a single specific piece of information, chosen from the following list, about your target:
This Gift cannot have more than 3 Drawbacks, and its Gift Cost is capped at 2.
You cannot investigate the same target more than once per day.
Jeremy's residual aura of authority may be commanded to give orders - those under command will follow Grace's EXACT commands, in an obvious & unusual manner.
Exert your Mind and spend at least one Action. Select a Sapient target within 20 feet. Your target may be actively engaged in Combat. Communicate a command to your target. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. The target may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 7.
If the contested Outcome is positive, your target will be compelled to follow your command to the letter-- but not necessarily the spirit-- of the command until they have completed it or for your Contested Outcome in hours. You cannot issue another suggestion to the target until 10 minutes after they have completed the first command or 10 minutes after a failure.
They will be unaware that they are under any sort of compulsion until the effect wears off, but they will appear obviously mind-controlled the entire time to anyone observing them. If you fail, they realize that you were attempting to influence them supernaturally with your command.
Your command can be an order to take an immediate Action, a conditional request, and an abstract goal. You cannot order a target to "do nothing," and they are free to take other Actions as they fulfill your request. Your command cannot be obviously self-destructive. Commands may force a target to violate one of their Limits, and they will need to make a Trauma roll once the suggestion wears off.
The detective can flash their badge and bark out orders to a person or a crowd, and the target will have trouble ignoring their command.
Exert your Mind and spend at least one Action. All Sapient targets within 20 feet of you are affected. You must actively and obviously use a police badge to activate this Effect. Your target cannot be engaged in Combat. Communicate a command to your targets. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. Any affected targets may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 7.
If the contested Outcome is positive, your targets will be compelled to follow your command to the letter-- but not necessarily the spirit-- of the command until they have completed it or for your Contested Outcome in minutes. You cannot issue another suggestion to the target until 10 minutes after they have completed the first command or 10 minutes after a failure.
The target is unaware that they are under supernatural influence and feel they are acting of their own free will. If you fail, they realize that you were attempting to influence them supernaturally with your command.
Your command can be an order to take an immediate Action. You cannot order a target to "do nothing," and they are free to take other Actions as they fulfill your request. Your command cannot be obviously self-destructive. Commands may force a target to violate one of their Limits, and they will need to make a Trauma roll once the suggestion wears off.
The psychic can reach into another's' mind and pilfer their deepest memories. Doing so causes the psychic's nose to bleed and is exceptionally draining.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Living, Animate target within 25 feet. You must maintain Concentration while the effect is active. Roll Intellect + Investigation at Difficulty 6. The target may resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, you are able to view your target's memories. If you fail, the target knows you're attempting to read their memories.
You may ask a number of specific questions about their memory equal to your Contested Outcome. For example, “what is their computer password,” “What were they doing at 4:00PM yesterday,” etc. You cannot get answers to broad, analytical questions like “are they a good person?” or “what are their plans for the future?”
Each memory takes as long to read as it takes to answer the question. When replaying a full memory, it is replayed in double time.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is your nose bleeding. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
After this Effect ends, you cannot move quicker than a walk (15 feet per Round) for one minute and suffer a -1 dice penalty for an hour.
By slowing the hands of one of their watches, the time-traveler may interrupt and slow a target's movement through time. The target appears to be moving in slow motion for the duration.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Animate target within 20 feet. You must actively and obviously use a watch or clock to activate this Effect. Roll Intellect + Science at Difficulty 7.
If you succeed, the target will suffer a dice penalty equal to the Outcome for the next 2 Rounds. Dice pools may be reduced all the way down to 0 by this penalty. This breaks Concentration.
You may activate this Effect as a Reaction to contest any Action a valid target is taking, reducing their Outcome by your own. Your command has no impact beyond disrupting their Action.
By focusing and whispering a prayer under their breath, the priest may invoke their god to protect those who have good works left to do.
Exert your Mind and spend an Action or Reaction. Select a Animate target within 20 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the target is a living human. Roll a single d10, Difficulty 4. If you fail or botch, the Effect fails and you cannot activate it again for an hour. Roll Charisma + Occult at Difficulty 6.
If you succeed, you create a barrier around your target, which absorbs the next Outcome +2 Damage. The Damage reduction from the barrier is applied before Armor. You may only have 1 active barrier at a time.
You must maintain Concentration while using this Effect. The barrier will fall if you are interrupted, or if it absorbs the full amount of Damage. When a barrier falls, you cannot use this Effect again for a minimum of 2 Rounds.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is you whispering a prayer under your breath. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.
The witch knows bad things happen to bad people. By bringing attention to a karmic imbalance, she can hurry it along, causing her target's bad luck to catch up with them. The target finds themselves suffering injuries due to freakishly bad luck until they cleanse themselves or perish.
Exert your Mind and spend one minute. Select a Living target within 25 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless the target deserves it. Roll Charisma + Occult at Difficulty 6. Your target may resist by rolling Body at Difficulty 7.
If you succeed, the target is afflicted with a Condition that causes one of the following symptoms:
The affliction is not treatable by modern medicine. It may be diagnosed by rolling Intellect + Occult at Difficulty 6, and can be cured by bathing fully in clear running water.
This Effect is not obvious, and the only sign you are using an Effect is you staring at the target, speaking calmly. If someone suspects that an Effect was used, they must roll Perception + Alertness, Difficulty 8 to pick up on your Tell.