The Hollow Choir "You think this is bad? The land beyond would sear your flesh in the black sunned morning before you could get a yawn out, and freeze off your pecker in the evening seconds after you free it for a piss. Raging black icy winds that would rip 100 foot trees from the dirt, roots and all. Caustic rain that will melt your bones and serve you up as soup for the man-eating worms beneath ashy dunes that extend for thousands of miles. And that's not even the half of it... You think this is bad? You think it hurts? You don't know bad. You don't know pain."

1
Requires Seasoned
The power to create an environmental hazard.
Used by Luci Alessi, Created by Riley.
(Anyone who witnesses you activate this Effect is very likely to be disturbed to see Umbra's pure and sinister adversarial intent. It's almost as if a heavy pressure of immeasurable magnitude slowly dawns onto those around. All of her uncontainable intent to burn the world to the ground, backed by the insatiable hunger of the Well at her fingertips. And there is nothing to exemplify that more than with this ability. You must actively and obviously be using up 4,000 Liters of Ink.)

This is a power that Luci could not hope to wield, even with Umbra's help. No, it is Umbra herself who is solely capable of something so cataclysmic in scale and even then, she can only do so on the backing of specific conditions. There is only a small window in which Umbra can amass the power to rip open a one-way portal from the Well:
- The residual energy from Luci's amorphous form must still be lingering.
- Luci's alternate form, Umbra, must be triggered and active.

Whereafter, Umbra clasps their hands together and chants with a wide smile upon her face. Ink surges out from beneath her feet in vast quantities, using it as a medium to jump start the portal that leads to the Well. And once it takes, the flow becomes a cascade that surges forth in large quantities, working rather quickly to rapidly fill out a large space. Along with the hazy darkness comes a dizzying feeling of being upside down and inside out. The air is thick and suffocating, and slows the mind. An uncountable number of creatures from oblivion reach out of the refuse, touching, grabbing, pulling, biting, scratching, clawing, crawling, and gnashing like mindless beasts.

Those that are unfortunate enough to be close enough to see Umbra activate this effect will meet eyes with one of The Well's Eidolons. And take it from Luci herself, that is no fun experience.


Exert your Mind and spend an Action. This Effect cannot be used unless when Luci is within her Alternate Form. You must use up 4,000 Liters of Ink in order to activate this Effect. You must make a Trauma roll when you use this Effect. Its Difficulty cannot be reduced by any means.

You create a hemispherical dome of inky viscious refuse originating at your Location, with a radius of 200 feet. and lasting for 5 minutes. You are fully immune to the effects of your zone. The area inside your zone is affected in the following ways:

  • Danger Zone: The zone contains various amalgamate creatures that will crawl out of the inky refuse and begin to bite and claw and slash at any within this zone. At the end of each Round, everyone in the zone must roll Body at Difficulty 8. Anyone who fails or botches receives a Severity-1 Injury.
  • Suppressed Vision: The zone is fully blocked from view. Nothing within the zone may see anything or be seen from the outside. Any rolls that rely on sight fail automatically, and any rolls that benefit from sight are made at -3 dice.
  • Overwhelming: Anyone inside the zone cannot Exert their Mind, and Mind rolls made within the zone are at -2 dice.
  • Slippery: All movement distances are halved within the zone. Anyone who wishes to move further than their Free Movement within a Round must roll Dexterity + Athletics. If they fail, their movement is limited to their Free Movement and they fall down.
The zone expands immediately to its full size from the chosen Location, but will be stopped from spreading in a particular direction by any barriers or cover, and can only fit through openings large enough to fit a grown adult. If a new opening appears while the Effect is still active, it will finish spreading in that direction.

Anyone who witnesses you during this Effect's activation will almost certainly be disturbed to see Umbra's pure and sinister adversarial intent. It's almost as if a heavy pressure of immeasurable magnitude slowly dawns onto those around. All of her uncontainable intent to burn the world to the ground, backed by the insatiable hunger of the Well at her fingertips. And there is nothing to exemplify that more than with this ability.

You may only use this Effect once per day.

  • Affected targets may still spend Source.
  • When narrating disturbing content, be cognizant of your group's tone and accommodating to those who would like to "fast forward" through the description.
  • The Effect does not follow you after you activate it.
  • If you select a location at the edge of your range, you will be just outside the zone once the Effect is activated
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Community Targeted Gifts

Exert your Mind and spend an Action to activate. This Effect cannot be used unless Her magic hat on aka her astrologist hat minion. You must actively and obviously use Hat to activate this Effect.

You may perceive things within 50 feet of you as though there were no walls or obstacles blocking your view. The effect lasts indefinitely but you must maintain Concentration to keep it up.

Others near you may choose to observe what you are perceiving by touching her hat.

Any Perception rolls made through obstacles are rolled at +1 Difficulty.

You create a visible manifestation at the Location where your senses are projected which looks like Water around her spirit.

  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.

Exert your Mind and spend 30 minutes. You may only target yourself. The target can easily Resist.

You may add one augmentation to your target. Each augmentation counts as a Battle Scar and can have exactly one of the following Effects:

  • Specialized: You receive +2 dice to a particular non-combat Action.
  • Environmental Adaptation: You do not suffer harm from heat, cold, pressure, or lack of oxygen in a particular environment, provided that challenge normally exists in that environment.
  • Implanted Tool: You have access to the functionality of some common Device at all times. The selected Device can be no larger than a motorcycle helmet.
  • Armor: You have 2 Armor at all times. As always, Armor from multiple sources does not stack.
  • Pouch: Part of your body functions as a hidden pocket. It can hold no more than a briefcase (15 liters).
  • Zippy: Your Free Movement is increased by 10 feet.
  • Maws and Claws: Your unarmed attacks do +2 Weapon Damage instead of -1.

You may end this Effect prematurely as a Free Action.

Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Born This Way: Must roll self control to hide any bodily alterations.

  • Remember: A Contractor’s Body rating is reduced by 1 for each Battle Scar after their fourth.
  • You may not augment targets with pouches or implanted devices that are larger than they are.
  • Targets without Body ratings may have a maximum of 4 augmentations.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Spend an Action. Select a target any distance away from you. You must have a specific target in mind, but you require only an intuitive understanding of them, such as their name, face, or Location. This Effect cannot be used unless you can see your target.

You open up a line of communication to your target, and may converse with them as long as one of you maintains Concentration

The conversation will only be perceived by the intended recipient. You must share a common language for your target to understand the message.

This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.

  • Receiving a message does not force a target to pay attention to you, and they can feel free to ignore your message if they choose. Depending on the flavor of your Gift, they may or may not be able to return to it and read it later on.
  • Generally you cannot communicate with Contractors who are not in a Contract with you.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a Living target within 20 feet. This Effect cannot be used unless James becomes especially worried. Roll Perception + Alertness at Difficulty 6. Your target may resist by rolling Body at Difficulty 8.

If you succeed, the target is afflicted with a Condition that causes any number of the following symptoms:

  • Disabled: The target suffers from an affliction that leaves them unable to act at full strength, such as physical pain, severe fever, intense fatigue, etc. They take a -2 penalty to all physical actions, which grows by -1 every hour until it reaches your Outcome.
  • Gross: The target exhibits significant and obvious signs of illness, making them into a social pariah. They will be shunned in public places, and take a -2 penalty to all social actions, which grows by -1 every hour until it reaches your Outcome.
  • Poisoned: The target gains a Severity-1 Injury which ignores Armor and doesn’t heal naturally. For every hour that passes, they receive a new identical Injury. If this new Injury would kill them, they roll 1d10 at Difficulty 6. Success cures the condition; otherwise, they will die.
Symptoms begin to appear immediately, and will remain and continue to worsen until the affliction is cured. The affliction is contagious and will spread to new targets. Anyone who comes within 20 feet of afflicted individual of the same species must roll Body, Difficulty 8. If they fail, they become afflicted. Otherwise, they are immune to the spread.

The affliction can be diagnosed with a Medicine roll, and may be cured by modern medicine through treatment at a fully equipped facility. Treatment outside of a facility may stop the affliction from worsening for a day, but will not cure the underlying Condition.

Any Scars, Traumas, or Injuries caused by your symptoms cannot be healed until the underlying Condition is cured.

This Effect ends if you are stunned, fall asleep, go unconscious, are incapacitated, die, or if your total Stress ever exceeds 5.

  • Successfully diagnosing an affliction also includes information about the treatment method.
  • Curing an affliction removes the Condition, but does not automatically heal any Injuries, Battle Scars, or Traumas which may have been caused by that condition.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a target within 45 feet. Choose an illusion to generate, which can be no larger than an SUV.

The chosen illusion is generated at your target, and it will remain in place for the next minute or you choose to end it. It can be perceived by people through their hearing, smell, and sight. The illusion cannot be used as an attack. You cannot make an exact replica of an existing Animate being or Object.

Anyone who touches the illusion (or who would be able to perceive it significantly through a sense it cannot fool) realizes it is an illusion and can choose to perceive it or not at will.

The illusion is not fixed to the initial target, and may move about at a maximum speed 30 feet per Round. 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.

Any illusion made to disguise an Object as a different Object with a similar size and shape last a minimum of one day and can only be broken by a scientific analysis, investigative Effects, or witnessing the object being used in an inconsistent way.

  • while you can use an illusion to obscure something smaller, you cannot make anything directly invisible (you can’t make a tank look like a regular baseball, but you can hide it in an illusion of a giant baseball).
  • You may only puppeteer a single illusion at once.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Stock Targeted Gifts

Exert your Mind and spend an Action. Select a object that uses electricity within 20 feet no larger than a duffel bag (35 liters). You must actively and obviously use a smart watch to activate this Effect. Roll Intellect + Technology Difficulty 6.

If your Outcome is 4 or higher, the target will be completely destroyed and can no longer function, though it may still be repaired. If your Outcome is less than 4, the target will be partially damaged, and any attempts to use it will suffer a dice penalty equal to your Outcome.

When a target is destroyed, it sends shards flying. Anyone within 5 feet of the object rolls 4d10 at Difficulty 6 and takes damage equal to the Outcome. Can be reacted to.

  • The penalty from an object being damaged will stack with itself if a target is hit multiple times, but the object is destroyed when it reaches a total penalty of -4.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Spend one minute. Select a Sapient target within 20 feet. You must actively converse with the individual in question for one minute in order to gather any information. At the end of your investigation, roll Perception + Influence at Difficulty 6.

You learn all the following information about your target:

  • You learn a hidden desire of the target. Roll Outcome determines the relevancy / secret-ness of the desire.
  • You learn their relationship to a specific individual (chosen prior to the effect activation).

The quality and specificity of information gained depends on your Outcome.

Any information you gather is spoken aloud in conversation and made publicly available.

This Gift's Cost is capped at 2 and cannot be increased further.

  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend at least one Action. Select a Sapient target within 20 feet. Your target cannot be 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 their best understanding of the letter and spirit of the command until they have completed it or for your 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. The Effect ends if following your command would cause a target to cross one of their Limits in a way that would necessitate a Trauma roll.

  • The target must be able to understand you and must receive your communication for the suggestion to work.
  • Allowed Commands
    • Direct Order: The target must take an immediate action (e.g. “Sit down,” "run away," or "tell me your password.")
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

This Effect activates whenever you receive a Severity 2 or higher Injury from an attack. It does not require an Action or Exertion. Select a Living target within 45 feet. Roll Charisma + Influence at Difficulty 6. Affected targets can resist by rolling Mind at Difficulty 6.

If you succeed, for the next minute, your target will do things they otherwise wouldn’t have done, inspired by remorse for hurting such a pure soul. They will not necessarily display their emotions in an obvious way.

Actions they take will be in keeping with their character and the way they tend to deal with strong emotions. They will be unlikely to change their mind about any actions taken or decisions made until after the Effect ends.

  • When triggered, the Effect activation resolves immediately after the triggering Action. It is not Reaction speed.
  • Common emotions and the actions they inspire
    • Anger (shouting, cruelty, denying requests, attacking)
    • Pity (stopping an attack, executing an injured target)
    • Happiness (generosity, dancing, joking, socializing)
    • Sadness (finding solitude, openly crying, demotivation)
    • Fear (running, attacking)
  • If you succeed, the target MUST take at least one Action they otherwise would not have. Hey, GM who is reading this, I'm talking to you. You have to enforce this. Remember: Gifts must feel powerful.
  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.

Exert your Mind and spend 1 minute. Select a Living, Animate target within 20 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 7.

You are able to view your target's memories. The target is aware that their thoughts are being probed but not of the source of the probe. The Effect ends if the target moves out of range or your Concentration is interrupted.

You may ask specific questions about their memory - “what is their computer password,” “What were they doing at 4:00PM yesterday,” etc - but you cannot get answers to broad, analytical questions like “are they a good person?” or “what are their plans for the future?”

Each question takes as long as it takes to answer to read. 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.

  • You can target yourself if you qualify as a valid target by the other requirements.
  • Your target must be within line of sight, or within range of another sense if more fitting for the Gift's flavor.