Jiba Molei Anderson, Dale Andrade, Bruce Baugh, Jacob Burgess, Mark Carroll, Lillian Cohen-Moore,

Matthew Dawkins, Cassandra Khaw, Clayton Oliver, Matthew Rossi, Elsa Sjunneson-Henry
Credits Special Thanks:
Written by: Jiba Molei Anderson, Dale Andrade, Bruce I’m a lifelong reader of comic books, so I’m very familiar
Baugh, Jacob Burgess, Mark Carroll, Lillian Cohen-Moore, with cover blurbs proclaiming, “Because you demanded it!”
Matthew Dawkins, Cassandra Khaw, Clayton Oliver, Matthew Sometimes it was true, with the issue inside holding dramatic
Rossi, and Elsa Sjunneson-Henry developments for heroes and villains that fans had been speculat-
Developed by: Bruce Baugh and Matthew Dawkins ing about. Sometimes it wasn’t, with boring minor characters
World of Darkness Line Developer: Matthew Dawkins and under-baked newcomers getting spotlight time in the futile
Editor: Wade Wallace hope it would do their popularity some good. Until now, I’ve
never had the chance to write “Because you demanded it!”
Art Director: Mike Chaney
about a roleplaying-game book with which I was involved. So…
Book Design: Josh Kubat
Because you demanded it!
Interior Art: Drew Tucker, Ken Meyer Jr., Melissa Uran, Paul
Lee, Phil Simpson, John Cobb You did, after all. Most of the contents here are present
Cover Art: Drew Tucker because they were stretch goals in the Kickstarter for Wraith:
The Oblivion, and nothing expresses enthusiastic demand quite
Dedication like oboli. The rest is present because it answers longstanding
If you’re waiting for me on the other side Nigel, keep shuffling questions and concerns from our loyal readers, Storytellers, and
your VtES library and I’ll meet you someday. We’ll need another players — that’s you — and wishes on the part of authors and
couple of players though, so teach a couple of interesting wraiths developers to give substance and detail to elements of the setting.
how to play while you wait. — Matthew From start to finish, this is the Book of Answered Questions.
Roleplaying-game creation is, at its best, a joyfully social process,
and the Book of Oblivion was that. Its creators renewed old
associations and made new ones, with periods of discussion that
left me gasping with delight, awe, and outright laughter at the
cascade of invention. There were hard times, the Wraith curse
bringing us all a lot more misery than any of us needed, but
we did keep at it, and here it is for you. I’d like nothing quite
so much as discovering that you folks get to have anything like
the pleasure we had making it.
Thank you for making this book a reality. — Bruce

© 2019 White Wolf Entertainment. All rights reserved. Reproduction

without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except
for the purposes of reviews, and for blank character sheets, which may be
reproduced for personal use only. White Wolf, Vampire, World of Darkness,
Vampire the Masquerade, and Mage the Ascension are registered trademarks
of White Wolf Entertainment AB. All rights reserved. Vampire the Requiem,
Werewolf the Apocalypse, Werewolf the Forsaken, Mage the Awakening,
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are trademarks of White Wolf Entertainment AB
All rights reserved. All characters, names, places and text herein are copyrighted by White Wolf Entertainment AB.
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intended for entertainment purposes only. This book contains mature content. Reader discretion is advised.
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2 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION
Introduction 6 Styles 18 And Now, The Weather 26
Alloys 18 Seasons 27
Oblivion in the Soul: Shadows 9 Time 27
Cracks 19
Shadow Archetypes 9 Artifacts 19 Castes 27
The Alien 9
The Conqueror 9
E&E Button (Level 1 Artifact) 20 Chosen 27
Disarticulation Armature (Level 4 Artifact) 20 Appearance 28
The Destroyer 10
Pulse Rifle (Level 5 Artifact) 21 Indwelling 28
The Disincarnate 10
The Fearless 10 In the Belly of the Beast: Spectres 23 Appearance 28
The Future Reincarnation 11 The Army of Shadow 23 Dark Spirits 28
The Narcissist 11 Terrain 23 Appearance 28
The Obsessed 11 Proximity to the Void 23 Dark Arcanoi 29
The Reincarnation 11 Temperament 23 False Life 29
The Revolutionary 11 Units 24 • Scent of Life 29
Thorns 12 Collogue 25 •• Sounds of Life 29
Collective Thorns 12 Oblivion Loves a Good Officer 25 ••• Dangerous Distraction 29
Teamwork 12 Ambush 25 •••• Love’s Caress 29
Oblivion’s Dirty Tricks 13 Booby Trap 25 ••••• Homecoming 30
Conflict Among Friends 13 Blackout 25 Blighted Insight 30
Psychological Warfare 25 • Ill-Omen 30
Machines in the Ghosts:Soulforging 15 Shock and Awe 25 •• Small Hours 31
The Underworld under the Hammer 15 Fifth Column 25 ••• Cimmerian Shade 31
Learning the Chains 16 Tunnel Warfare 26 •••• Hypnos Reclining 31
Styles and Trademarks 17 If These Walls Could Scream 26 ••••• Gates of Horn 31
Systems 17 The Danger in the Walls 26 Redemption 31

TABLE OF CONTENTS 3
 Redemption 31 The Storms to Come 49 Business and Mercantilism 71
The Stuff of Nightmares 32 (Relatively) Easy Tempest Travel 50 War Without End 72
The Path to Redemption 32 The Ferrymen 50 The Doomslayer Orders of Battle 72
Phase One 32 Osseum 73
Crossroads Ghosts 50
Phase Two 32 Peril, Incorporated! 75
Phase Three 33
Hitchhiker Ghosts 50
Rainbow 03: the Eagle Two 76
Phase Four 33 Sea Channel Ghosts 50
The HellBeetle 77
Phase Five 33 Kingdoms Built on Rubble 51
Unfortunate Events, In Sequence 52 The Dark Kingdom of Ivory 79
The Light of Salvation 33
Darksiders 33 Gust Front 52 Origins, both Humble and Grand 79
Helldivers 33 Moment of Truth 53 The Bridge 79
Illuminate 33 Save What You Can 53 The Marketplace 80
Spectre Cults 34 Built it Back, Better 54 The Crossroads 81
The Only Way Out Is Through 55 The Shade 81
The Sacrifices 35
The Sacrifices Past and Present 36 Those Who Light Torches 55 The Bush 81
The Maelstrom Bureau 55
Alex Salazar 36 The Mirrorlands 81
The Harbingers’ Guild 57
Est Machina 36 The Emerald Legion 58
The Power of Myth: The Era of Heroes 82
Lost American Religion 37 Necropolitan Offices The Order of Ya’Qub 83
The New Mary 37 of Emergency Management 58 The Dark Kingdom Falls 83
The True Spear 39 Reaping (After) the Whirlwind 59 The Shade Becomes “Komboni” 84
The True Spear 40 Ghosts in Disasters and Disasters in Ghosts 59 The Plantation of the Mirrorlands 86
Les Voyeurs du Mal 40 Echoes 59 The Desert 86
Valery Montaigne 41 A Memory of Broken Iron 60 Sankofa: Return of the Ijele 87
Valery Montaigne 42 Perpetual Screams 60 The Railroad 87
The Sailors of the Sunless Sea 43 Storytelling Disasters 61 Can it be Saved? 87
The Granddaughter 43 The Labyrinth 65 The Dark Kingdoms of the Americas 89
The Forever Wind: The Tempest 45 What is it Anyway? 65 Smoking Mirror —
The Storms Before 46 The Theory of the Labyrinth 66 The Dark Kingdom of Obsidian 89
The Storms Now 46 The Structure of the Labyrinth 66 History 89
The Everyday Tempest 46 Abscesses 67 Mictlan 90
Dwelling in the Storm 47 A Maze of Flesh: Fifth Sun Rising — The Four Houses Today 90
Valuable Objects 47 Body Horror and the Labyrinth 67
The House of the Werejaguar 91
Zones of Alienation 68
The Storms Themselves 48 The House of Ix Chel 91
The Dali Storm 48 Entrances and Exits 69 The House of Xipi Totec 92
The Veinous Stair 70 The House of Itzamna 93
The Arcane Storm 48 The Well of the Void 70
The Tempus Hurricane 48 Oblivion in the Flayed Lands 94
Babylon Favela 71
The Shadow Tornado 49 Nahui-Ollin — “Earthquake Sun” 94
4 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION
 Xibalba — “Place of Fright” 94 Coronation Park near Delhi 106 Background: Status (Serviteur) 119
Mitnal 94 The Taj Mahal 106 Serviteurs 119
Balance 95 Sanchi Stupa 106 Marks 120
Jatayu Earth’s Center 106
Eyes in the Forest — The Islands of Flint 95 Society 120
Garuda 106
History 95 Dow Hill of Kurseong 107
Factions 120
The Five Nations 95 Vijayanagara 107 Connaissance 120
The Haudenosaunee Nation - The Iroquois 95 Connaissance Systems 120
The Storm That Dreams 107
Anishinaabe — The People of Peace 96 • Les Yeux du Chasseur (Common) 121
The Abenaki — The Council of Tribes 96
The Thorns of Empire 108
• Reler Baka (Initiate) 121
The Cherokee Haudenosaunee 97 The Naga 109 •• La Langue (Common) 121
Inuktitut — The Inuit 98 “The Host-Chef” Persaud 110
•• Renvoyer Baka (Initiate) 121
Other Nations 99 The Night Markets 111 ••• Renforcer Les Chevaux (Common) 121
Mississippian Cultures 99 Life in Death 111 ••• Engagement (Initiate) 122
The Southwest 99 A Form of Commerce 112 •••• Retirer d’en bas de l’eau (Common) 122
The West 99 The Monsoon Markets 112 •••• Reler Mystere (Initiate) 122
The Pacific Northwest 99 The Cult of Salt 112 ••••• Bonté Abyssale: (Common) 122
Svarga’s View 112
Setting Sun — The Lands of Gold 99 ••••• Marrer Baka (Initiate) 123
Oblivion 101 The Mirrorlands 115 Appendix: Necropoli 124
The Lands of Emerald 101 Haiti 115 Seattle 124
Greater South America 101 Necropolis Port-au-Prince 117 The Modern Necropolis 124
Swar, the Dark Kingdom of India 103 External Relations 117 Mount Rainier 125
An Old Rage 104 Dominican Republic 117 The Underground 125
Children of Kali 104 Cuba 118 The Afterlife of the City 126
Storm Child 104 Puerto Rico 118 Harrowing 127
Water Children 105 Those That Came Before — Taino and Caribs 118 Halifax, Nova Scotia 127
Notable Locations 106 Oblivion 118 Zone Rouge 128

TABLE OF CONTENTS 5
 Introduction

hat do the dead have to fear though, really? Labyrinth lies, waiting. Its horrifying denizens wait to escape or
How can life get any worse than when it ends? entice lost wraiths within.
The Book of Oblivion answers that The dead have a great deal to fear. Life can get worse after
question many times over. it ends.
Many Restless make the mistake of seeing This book shows you how.
their form of life as a second chance, where • Introduction — That’s what you’re reading right now.
hope springs eternal, and a form of immortality remains at hand. • Oblivion in the Soul: Shadows — There’s always something
They are soon disabused of this naïve notion. more to say about the Shadow. Here you’ll find some new
A wraith’s Shadow is the start of it. That voice in your head, Archetypes, new individual Thorns, and a new system for
compelling you to selfish, evil, abusive, and sometimes murder- collective Thorns, where multiple Shadows pool their power
ous ends. The Shadow wants to torment and control you, to to shape the Underworld around them.
push you over the edge into a state where you truly belong to it. • Machines in the Ghosts: Soulforging — The business of
Spectres — those wraiths who fell to Oblivion, succumbed turning souls into objects is one of the most distinctive
to the Shadow, or willingly embraced their darker natures — add and controversial features of the Underworld. This chapter
to the terror of being one of the Restless Dead. They will make brings clarity, advice, and mechanics to each step from the
your existences a perpetual nightmare, hound you, brutalize process of gathering raw materials to delivering finished
you, and drag you down with them. products, and shows you the cultures of those who do
A wraith might seek sanctuary in Stygia, but the threat the forging, their various special techniques, and some
of the Hierarchy identifying you as useless and ordering you examples of it all in use.
soulforged into furniture, building block, object of art, piece • In the Belly of the Beast: Spectres — What’s an Underworld
of machinery, or weapon is ever-present. without servants of Oblivion? We have new castes that
Venturing beyond the Necropoli is no guarantee of safety bring aspects of ghostly folklore and horror fiction into
either, as the Tempest guarantees the horrors of environmental play, some new Dark Arcanoi to make their wielders that
extremes. You will need the skills of an able Ferryman to survive much nastier, advice on using all of that, and a long look
a voyage on the former Sea of Shadows. at the cults Spectres form to pursue their various goals.
Beyond Stygia’s Dark Kingdom of Iron there exist the Dark You find detailed antagonists — their histories, methods,
Kingdoms of Ivory, the Mirrorlands, and more. Below it all, the and goals — all ready to use in your chronicle. You also get

6 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 the first detailed look at the difficult and risky work of • Dark Kingdoms of the Americas — Before European
redeeming Spectres. invaders arrived either in the Skinlands or the Shadowlands,
• The Forever Wind: The Tempest — The Underworld puts a the American continents were home to hundreds of living
lot of challenges in the way of wraiths just trying to survive, societies and several major empires of the Restless Dead.
and it takes a lot of individual and shared effort to keep Plague and genocide unleashed unparalleled horrors, but
going. This chapter has new information about storms up didn’t destroy everything in their path. The people of the
to and including the Great Maelstroms, how they act now First Nations live on, and some of them enter the afterlife
and what legacies past storms have left, the work of dwelling with unfinished business. In this chapter, you learn what
in the midst of the Tempest, and the kinds of trouble that the Dark Kingdoms of Gold, Flint, and Obsidian were like
can overwhelm wraiths in the Shadowlands along with what when they collided with Stygian forces, and what remains
those wraiths can do to prepare and respond. Wraith is of them now. There’s more going on across the dark shores
a game of drama and high adventure along with tragedy, of this world than most Stygian wraiths suspect.
horror, and introspection, and this chapter helps bring the • The Dark Kingdom of Swar — Apart from the city of
whole emotional spectrum more vividly into your chronicle. Svarga, South Asian lands beyond the grasp of the Dark
• The Labyrinth — The deepest reaches of the Underworld Kingdom of Jade have been barely described until now.
are fascinating, but sometimes seem too formidable for This chapter covers the complex history of the region before
characters to explore. This chapter addresses that challenge contact with European empire builders and afterward, the
by adding detail and variety to the lore of how the Labyrinth unique landscapes, and the layers of Shadowlands that
works, including previously unsuspected opportunities and neither Swar nor Stygia suspect. There are ways for all of
complications, information about the wraiths who engage this to come into play for European and American wraiths
most frequently with the Labyrinth and its threats, and a as well as South Asian ones because more is within reach
ready-to-go group of dedicated Oblivion fighters who may than you might have guessed.
just need your characters’ help. • The Mirrorlands — On both sides of the Shroud, cultures,
• The Dark Kingdom of Ivory — It’s always been difficult nations, worldviews, and countless individuals have come
for ghosts of Europe and America to see what’s going on together in complicated, always evolving, ways in the
with the African Underworld, its people, and its other Caribbean. The Mirrorlands, the Caribbean Underworld,
inhabitants. In this chapter, you learn about the African are marked by a tangled and often tragic history, and
Underworld through the stories of the African wraiths, wraiths and Spectres have come up with fresh solutions
including creation stories (and their legacy in the modern to the distinctive problems they face.
day); the networks that bring the continent together; • Appendix: Necropoli — Detailed writeups of interest-
crucial times, historical terms, and the choices that shape ing places and the people you find there are a boon to
the modern Underworld; and how African ghosts interact Storytellers and players. In this appendix, you’ll find a
with ghosts of the African Diaspora. thorough examination of the Seattle Necropolis and its
unique circumstances, and briefer looks at places where
myriad challenges come to the forefront.

INTRODUCTION 7
 Oblivion in
the Soul:
Shadows
he Shadow is the wraith’s dark mirror,
a reflection of the worst depths of their
The Alien
personality in life. Although a wraith is The Alien was never human. It does not remember what
concerned with self-preservation, his Shadow it was, but if the Psyche is convinced she was once a human,
is ultimately concerned with Oblivion. and The Alien is her Shadow, it will cast doubt on every human
Heading straight for annihilation isn’t fun, emotion to exert its own narrative. The Alien believes it never
though. What’s fun is to draw the process out for as long and belonged to a human Corpus. The Shadow might not even
sadistically as possible — to offer the world and take it back know what it believes it once was — cryptid, alien, or spirit — but
piece by piece until nothing remains. The Shadow must let the it knows definitively what it was not.
wraith believe they can win, and even let them win sometimes. Of course, this Shadow is lying. It was a human Corpus,
It offers just enough to string the wraith along, but not enough but for whatever reason, it decided it was not. Maybe it’s just one
that the eventual end isn’t inevitable. giant lie to cast self-doubt on the Psyche, or perhaps it just likes
making the Psyche question her own memory of what she once

Shadow Archetypes ach Shadow has its own perspective and goals
was. The Alien lies by making the Psyche feel as though she was
not once human and distancing herself from those who were.
When dominant, this Shadow makes a Psyche doubt what
she remembers. It can convince the Psyche what she remembers
that ultimately lead to Oblivion, whether it is wrong and she was not what she thinks her Corpus was.
thinks it’s the path to a new existence, craves Extreme gaslighting is the name of the game with this Shadow.
nonexistence, or does it to forge its Psyche
into something new. Regardless, these goals The Conqueror
never lead anywhere desirable. The Conqueror wants to dominate and compel others to
If none of the Archetypes here or in Wraith: The Oblivion follow it and lead them to their collective doom. It wants to
suit the needs of your wraith, you can write your own with your conquer. Having a fraction of control is unacceptable to the
Storyteller’s permission. Give it a general set of priorities and Conqueror. After the Conqueror has total control of the Psyche,
goals, tactics to use when the Psyche is in control, and actions it’s not going to stop there. What the Conqueror wants isn’t just
it favors when the wraith is in Catharsis. dominion over one Psyche. No, that would be too small for it.
 The Conqueror wants to own more Psyches — it wants followers and
its own place to call its domain. It wants the whole Underworld.
This Shadow does not negotiate or even consider negotiation
as a practical means to its goal. It prefers to use brute force to gain
whatever it seeks.
When dominant, the Shadow takes command of any situation
if possible, and does so with an iron fist. Everything this Shadow
does is in service of total control. The Shadow makes it so the
Psyche does everything that the Conqueror commands, whether
or not it is good for the wraith in question. It takes control of
everything around it.

The Destroyer
The Destroyer wants to wreck things, most especially things
important to its Psyche. Does the Psyche feel particularly attached
to a tether? That tether ends up in the sights of the Destroyer. If
the Psyche has a specific relationship she wants to strengthen, the
Destroyer guns for it with gusto.
This Shadow isn’t seeking control or power; it wants a com-
bustible end to everything its Psyche desires, including existence
itself. It wants to see the world burn and has little self-preservation
instinct. The Psyche will be fighting the Destroyer tooth and nail
not to set things on fire, not to break things to pieces, and not to
destroy relationships and precious Artifacts.
When dominant, The Destroyer does anything it wants.
It compels the Psyche to act on destructive impulses are often
detrimental to the Psyche.

The Disincarnate
This Shadow believes it’s never lived, and it has bubbled up
from the Labyrinth to attach itself to the newly dead Psyche. It
believes existence is a torment and a moment-to-moment hell from
which there’s only one true escape. If it could leave the Psyche
forever, it would instantly do so. However, because leaving isn’t
an option, it must drag the Psyche along with it into Oblivion,
and it will use any means to accomplish its goal.
The Disincarnate Shadow does its best to share its torment
with its Psyche by showing her that existence is a nightmarish hell
and a bombardment of unwelcome sensations and experiences.
When dominant, the Shadow lashes out at or escapes anything
that overstimulates it. It abandons any situation too bright, too
loud, too painful, or too much. If there’s an obvious source, it
puts an end to the source if possible. Although this reaction is
irrational, it’s not impulsive. It abandons companions and hurts
them if necessary at the worst possible moment. It leaves things
worse than it found them every time.

The Fearless
Courageous beyond measure, the Fearless Shadow is heroism
without compassion and a champion without mercy. It believes in
righteous action and pushes its Psyche to intervene in even the most
ambiguous situations because it believes there is a single decisively
correct course to take. The Shadow believes doing something, even

10 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

if it’s wrong, is better than doing nothing at all. It always insists the behaves as such. If there’s something the Psyche really wants, the
Psyche act even if she doesn’t take the action the Shadow prefers. Narcissist ensures it never happens unless it severs its needs.
However, the Shadow does not have a typical moral compass.
After all, it is a Shadow, and it believes any action that brings The Obsessed
anyone or anything closer to Oblivion is the best possible action. The Obsessed wants to achieve one difficult goal over all things
If it can’t compel the Psyche to act that way, convincing the Psyche except for Oblivion. Whether that goal is to assassinate someone
to act without thinking too carefully about the consequences is important or steal a powerful Artifact, it constantly drives the
the next best thing. Shadow. Much like the ultimate goal of dragging its Psyche into
When dominant, the Fearless always knows what to do and Oblivion, it doesn’t seek to achieve it by way of the most direct
does it without hesitation regardless of the cost to itself or its route; she wants the Psyche to achieve it, if possible.
Psyche. It knows that it’s righteous and does not question itself. The Shadow negotiates for its goal whenever possible by offer-
ing assistance in exchange for a few more steps toward achieving
The Future Reincarnation its goal. If it achieves its goal, it finds another one. The Obsessed
This Shadow believes in its future it will incarnate as a living isn’t about achieving only one goal but rather a series of impossible
human. It believes that to achieve this incarnation, it must drive goals where each one is more difficult than the last one.
its Psyche into Oblivion. Unlike most Shadows, this one craves When dominant, the Shadow arranges matters to make it
its future life. It acts with a desperation unusual to Shadows and easier to encourage the Psyche to achieve the Shadow’s goal, and
believes this is its one way out of the Shadowlands. it manipulates others to encourage its Psyche toward that goal.
To achieve its end, the Shadow tempts its Psyche with memories
of what it was like to be alive and the possibilities of living again, The Reincarnation
and its Harrowings reflect that. It plays up the torments of death, The Shadow is or believes it is the reincarnation of a Psyche
representing them as worse than they are. It constantly pushes the that already fell to Oblivion. It believes it was reborn in this form
Psyche toward Oblivion by dangling the possibility of reincarnating when its wraith succumbed to Oblivion. This Shadow might
into a future life in the Skinlands. It can use its Arcanoi to help devote itself to gaslighting the Psyche by convincing it that things
reinforce its projected life by showing the Psyche apparent evidence. it remembers didn’t happen or things that didn’t happen at all
The Shadow’s plans are always about what the future brings did. The Shadow doesn’t want something as simple as forcing the
and how the present isn’t good enough and can never be. Pure Psyche to relive the Shadow’s past life but something more subtle:
craving drives it forward; if it convinces the Psyche to share that It wants to mix the two lives so the Psyche no longer knows what’s
craving, so much the better. real for her and what happened to someone else.
When dominant, the Shadow seeks to experience a taste of The Shadow wants to impose a past existence where it fell to
life no matter the cost to itself or its Psyche; in fact, the greater the Oblivion onto the Psyche, so the Shadow seeks to parallel that fall
cost is, the better. The Shadow doesn’t necessarily use Embody or as closely as possible while robbing the wraith of certainty about
Puppetry to interact directly with the Skinlands; it’s more likely it its own experiences. If the Psyche can be encouraged to retrace
tries to get into intense situations that “feel” alive to it regardless those steps to Oblivion of her own volition, so much the better.
of the danger for itself or others. When dominant, the Reincarnation seeks out or creates
situations like those of its “past life” by choosing to “relive” them
The Narcissist in such a way to harm the Psyche’s reputation or worse. The
The Narcissist believes it is the superior being in its relationship Shadow isn’t always overtly abusive or malicious but makes bad
with the Psyche, and it does anything to preserve its superiority. It choices that lead to worse outcomes if possible.
makes the Psyche feel like she is heard just long enough to give the
Shadow a fraction of what it wants. The Narcissist takes constant The Revolutionary
advantage of the Psyche and leaves a seed of doubt by telling the The Revolutionary seeks to disrupt the existing social order
Psyche it’s what the Psyche really wanted all along. and not in a good way. It inflames the Psyche’s relationships and
It isn’t that the Narcissist has no goals; it’s that the goals of upends her expected structure where possible. If there’s authority,
the Narcissist are about its survival. It doesn’t want to blink out it undermines it. If there’s love, it tries to twist it to hate. The
of existence, so it does whatever it can to preserve itself. It keeps Revolutionary envisions a brave new world in which strife is the rule.
the Psyche from attaining any sort of Transcendence or even The Shadow doesn’t limit itself to the Psyche’s immediate
coming close to it. social circle because the more strife and conflict there is, the better
When dominant, the Narcissist does whatever and however it it is for the Shadow’s goals. The Revolutionary looks to disrupt
wants and continues to push the needs of the Psyche even further the paradigms it sees; it does anything to change a system for the
down to try to cut away its self-control and willpower until the worse. It finds a society living in perfect harmony? It finds the chink
Shadow can take control. The Narcissist is pure self-interest and in the social fabric to tear the seam apart. It finds a Legion on a
mission? It gives someone a reason to fight the leader, question
authority, and break ranks.
OBLIVION IN THE SOUL: SHADOWS 11
 When the Shadow is dominant, it becomes a disruptive force one or more points of temporary Angst to activate its effects. The
and sows distrust as much as it can. It prefers not to undermine its Angst costs listed below are the total number of points required for
own authority in the process and hopes to manipulate others to each Thorn. The cost may be divided up among the participating
look to it before they look to each other. In truth, the Revolutionary Shadows in any way they want.
is a narcissist whose attempts to divide and conquer serve only Generation of Vipers: 6 points — A group of Shadows can
his own ego. influence the behavior and emotions of a group of wraiths by
using this Thorn. At the cost of eight temporary Angst, Shadows

Thorns horns are one of the features of a Shadow that

can insert a negative thought into the minds of targeted wraiths,
and each wraith can make a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) to resist.
Additional Angst points can be spent to increase the number of
wraiths that can be targeted by this Thorn. This Thorn cannot be
make it unique from the Psyche. These abilities
used on a target more than once per session.
are distinct from the arts wraiths wield.
Dining in Hell: 7 points — A group of Shadows can feed
A Moment Gone: 1-3 points — A Shadow
on the Angst of groups of three or more wraiths or Spectres and
can retrieve one specific memory from an
disperse the Angst among the Shadows using the Thorn. The
Oblivion-eaten wraith. At one point, the
Shadows must make physical contact with their targets and make
memory is true but something that may be learned through diligent
a contested Willpower roll. The number of successes determine
research. At two points, the memory provides an insight into a
how much Angst the Shadows can extract. This Thorn cannot be
specific event at which the Spectre was present either as one of
used on a target more than once per session.
the Quick or as a wraith. At three points, the memory is deeply
personal. After this memory is retrieved, a Shadow or Psyche Earthquake Weather: 7 points — A group of Shadows can
with access to memory-related arts can use them on the Spectre’s change the local environment by using this Thorn. At the cost
related memories. If the Shadow is cooperative, it may share this of 10 Angst, the group of Shadows can raise or lower any of the
intelligence with its Psyche to aid in a Spectral Redemption, either following difficulties by one:
in the lead up to the process or during the Redemption. • The local Shroud rating
Absent Heart: 7 points — Shadows with this Thorn can conceal • The number of successes needed on Argos rolls to move in
a Psyche’s awareness of the emotions or source of its Passions, if or out of the area
the wraith fails a Willpowe roll (difficulty 8). The Thorn’s effect • The local Maelstrom level
remains for the session’s duration. For example, a Passion of “Look The change lasts for three turns and applies to the immediate
out for my family” (Love) can have the love emotion suppressed, vicinity; that is, within line of sight of the participating Shadows.
which leaves the Psyche with a knowledge of the subject of its Additional Angst can be spent on increasing the duration of the
Passion but unable to access the emotion associated with it. This effect (an additional three turns, scene, day, or week) and reach
Thorn can also be used to conceal the subject of the Passion from (a square mile, district, or Necropolis), at a rate of 10 Angst per
the Psyche, which leaves it with the emotion linked to its Passion level of increase.
but unable to access fully the subject of its Passion. A group of wraiths who want to act against Shadows using
These suppressions impair the wraith’s ability to derive the full this Thorn must make a Willpower roll (difficulty 6) to offset this
benefits of its Passion, but it does not make impossible for them to Thorn before they can spend Pathos (10 points) to decrease the
gain some benefits. In cases where the Shadow wants to cooperate duration of the initial effect, with each expenditure eliminating
or aid the Psyche, the Shadow can use this Thorn to aid the Psyche one turn from the duration. The wraiths can spend a combination
if it is close to losing the subject of its Passion. With repeated uses, of Pathos and Willpower to decrease the duration or the area of
the Shadow might be able to delay a Harrowing long enough that affect at a rate of 10 Pathos per level of reduction.
the Psyche has a chance to develop a new subject of their Passion. Wraiths whose Shadows are not involved in using this Thorn,
but who are in the immediate area, can act against it. These wraiths

Collective Thorns he threat posed by Shadows working in concert

do not make a Willpower roll to act against the Thorn, but the
Pathos and Willpower they spend to decrease the duration and
reach of the effect are the same as those wraiths whose Shadows
are involved.
is unique and alarming. Although the Thorns
possessed by any one Shadow can cause no Teamwork
end of pain, what they can do together is like
Shadows using collective Thorns or otherwise working in
a little slice of the Labyrinth for everyone to
concert can use teamwork actions (see Wraith: The Oblivion p.
enjoy. Each Shadow who acquires one of these
101) to pool their efforts. Wraiths can likewise pool their attempt
Thorns can take part in using it by contributing
to resist, following the same rules.

12 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Oblivion’s Dirty Tricks Conflict Among Friends
Wraith has a myriad of sources for conflict in play, which
Any Shadow worth its Thorns has a few burning goals to
cross off its list before it descends into Oblivion, which makes makes discussions of how to honor the limits of everyone in the
the Corpus they share with their Psyche something that must troupe relevant to keeping the game and its story enjoyable. If a
be preserved no matter how much Oblivion nips at their heels. troupe is doing character creation together or using preludes, it’s
It takes time for Shadowguides to reveal the motivations and a natural fit to talk about conflict styles. To start on the right note,
horrific plans fueling the Shadow, just as it takes players time to Shadowguides can talk to the Psyche players about their boundaries
unfurl the story of the Psyche. Convincing a Psyche the Shadow surrounding conflict. If someone is unsure about how they want to
doesn’t mean to dive headfirst into the nearest Nihil is an uphill deal with conflict, erring on the side of less conflict is an excellent
(downhill?) battle, which is rife with potential for drama and starting point. If they decide they want more conflict with their
reflection. No matter how inexperienced a Psyche is, it senses Shadowguide and their Shadowguide has a similar enthusiasm
its Shadow’s intent to harm its goals and all the Psyche loves. for increased conflict, Psyche and Shadowguide players can build
Restraint is one of the most difficult things a Shadow must greater heights of conflict over time.
master to bring the full potential of their darkest desires to bear If a player knows they prefer lower levels of conflict,
down on the wraith and their circle. Oblivion does not imbue Shadowguides can tailor their Shadow portrayals to that limit, which
its children with the capacity for playing nice, which opens a can be used to shape the way the Shadows are played and what
door for Shadowguides walking the tightrope of restraint and their Thorns, Abilities, and other traits are. When Shadowguiding
damage: targeting other Shadows. for players with a strong preference for less conflict, duplicitous
A Shadow that ingratiates itself with its Psyche and its Circle and charming Shadows can provide that touch of Oblivion’s
must have compelling reasons for them to trust the Shadow. antagonism without violating boundaries between players.
Revealing the damaging plans of a Shadow in the Circle just in When it comes to the rest of the Circle, players can explain
time to avert disaster can win a measure of trust and respect, but their own boundaries to the rest of the group. They can comple-
it comes at the price of making the Shadow a target of the Shadow ment that information during the prelude with the Storyteller’s
they betray. It’s unlikely the betrayed Shadow is going to take kindly help by showing in roleplay how those preferences shape their
to the setback, but a charismatic Shadow might be able to convince character choices, which gives players a chance to tell and show
another Shadow to create a fake unmasked plan and subsequent their limits and preferences. Wraith can be emotionally taxing,
“rivalry” to sow seeds of discontent. With enough time to learn so players should know they’re supported and empowered to
the Circle’s collective hot buttons, the “exposed” Shadow can advocate for their preferences regarding conflict. Players should
begin an isolation campaign against their Psyche, while the heroic feel empowered to look out for each other. A quiet, “Hey, you
Shadow continues to curry favor with the Circle. good?” during scenes with conflict gives people an opportunity to
If Shadowguides need inspiration, both real-life double agents say, “I’m feeling really overwhelmed, can we dial things back just
and agent provocateurs provide many examples and inspiration a bit,” or request a five-minute break to grab a beverage or walk
for Shadow espionage within the Circle and the Shadowlands. outside to bring that stress back down. Then, they can come back
Accounts of both World Wars and the Cold War offer a lot of to the table and return to the fray to find out how this conflict
documentation of these intelligence activities, but older time ends and where it might lead the Circle.
periods still work for inspiring the dark activities conducted on Some troupes might find it useful to open a session with
the behalf of Oblivion. Fiction, both books and movies, are rife everyone taking a minute or two to check in. Even the most
with spies. Shadows might not be the heroes of their own story, conflict-loving player might not be up for pushing that intensity
but they are powerful antagonistic forces. Stories like those of if they had a rough week between sessions. Experimenting with
novelist John le Carré can provide an array of dangerous ideas communication as a troupe minimizes the chances of accidentally
and back-stabbing examples. pushing people too far emotionally without their buy-in, which
means everyone can do what they came to the session to do: Tell
a strange dark story together in a world far beyond our own.

OBLIVION IN THE SOUL: SHADOWS 13

 Machines
in the Ghosts:
Soulforging
or modern Restless, the Underworld’s nature In Stygia, soulforging gave rise to the Artificers, who would
as a place of history and memory might be dearly love to claim both the mantle of “first among guilds” and
most obvious in its level of technology or a monopoly on their ancient practice. In truth, other guilds hotly
its lack. The natural laws enabling modern dispute the former claim, and the latter claim shattered when
technology, chemistry, and mass production the first disaffected apprentice fled their master’s forge. Today’s
hold little sway among the dead. Tradition Artificers maintain considerable economic, political, and intel-
maintains an iron grip on the Stygian economy under the lectual property power, but wraiths who’d rather not deal with
Artificers Guild’s market dominance. These factors force ghostly (or learn from) them have several alternatives.
technologists to operate in an anachronistic mélange of common Officially, the Artificers, like all guilds, are outlawed.
pre-industrial simple machines that used to be souls, scarce modern Centuries ago, the Hierarchy foresaw a potential economic crash
relics constantly on the verge of breakdown, and rare and unique in rigid enforcement and sidestepped this issue by granting no-
Artifacts powered by their mad inventors’ intentions as much as questions-asked amnesty to any smith who signed on with a Legion.
any consistent energy source. This section peeks under this Rube Although the strictures have loosened, every Legion maintains
Goldberg confabulation’s hood to examine the Underworld’s its own soulforging capabilities to ensure a reliable supply of
crafting scene. coin, military equipment, and office supplies. The Legions have
mostly eradicated Artificer tradition from their own practices

The Underworld under the Hammer

oulforging may be the Underworld’s oldest
by replacing it with military rank and discipline appropriate to
their respective quartermaster corps. Not coincidentally, making
soulforging part of a military establishment also places Hierarchy
smiths under military law, enabling each Legion to protect its
trade. Across the Dark Kingdoms, lore and
research and to punish severely deserters and leakers.
ritual vary, but all smiths suffer under the
practical limitations of scant raw materials and The Alchemists arose as an Artificer splinter group, and
metaphysics that support only the most limited this forbidden guild still maintains its own soulforging tradition.
industrial bases. Whether through parallel Although the trade is neither the Alchemists’ raison d’être nor a
development or theft of guild secrets, soulforging is ubiquitous path to prestige among the guild, it still helps pay the bills and
and instantly recognizable. provides a solid foundation for research in more favored fields.
Under the threat of both Hierarchy and Artificer suppression
Alchemist smiths hide their affiliation, but they still maintain a by observation. Eventually, the wraith becomes a journeyman and
solid knowledge base, albeit one suffused with rituals as weird and is trusted to make increasingly complex items under the master’s
convoluted as the ones of their parent guild. supervision and sell them through the master’s business. Becoming
Independent smiths have always existed, though not openly a master and being free to take on one’s own apprentices and sell
until the Breaking of the Guilds also broke the Artificers’ ability to products independently involves two rites of passage, both of which
destroy all competition. The subsequent four centuries have seen require the master’s approval. The first is the forging of a masterwork:
a gradual rise in the number and competence of independents. a unique creation by which a panel of masters judges the smith’s skill.
This state of affairs infuriates the Artificers, quietly amuses Legion The second involves striking a master’s medallion, which is a coin
smiths, and synergizes nicely with the Alchemists. The modern forged from a portion of the journeyman’s own Corpus by using a
hacker and maker movements have invigorated the independent process that stands as one of the Artificers’ few true trade secrets.
scene, leading to greater organization and collaboration. Young This process can take years or even decades, and many independent
Restless who don’t fully understand (or care about) the guilds’ smiths historically broke from the guild before attaining master’s rank.
history are adopting the label of “Hackers Guild.” This stokes Imperial instruction seeks to develop and deploy smiths with
the Artificers’ fury to incandescence, even as the Alchemists and a basic level of competence much quicker and then promotes and
Usurers offer covert support. further trains those who show both technical skill and leadership
potential. Each Legion operates a handful of training forges, usually
Learning the Chains in conjunction with other military instructional sites to provide a
uniform baseline of knowledge over the course of one to two years.
Superficially, soulforging resembles the blacksmithing that
informed its earliest practices. However, due to the nature of the Upon graduation, each smith receives an assignment to a production
material, it’s as much an exercise in strength of will as in strength facility or a Legion field force where increasingly more complex
of arm. Instruction in soulforging imparts equal parts physical assignments build proficiency.
technique, a lack of empathy for the soul being worked, and a keen Alchemists and independents both rely on peer-to-peer tutelage
eye for the qualities that might make the subject more suited to one and informal teaching relationships. Independent smiths might study
final product or another. with a dozen colleagues (who might be overt or covert Alchemists) and
In Artificer tradition, every aspiring smith starts as an ap- learn different aspects of the trade from each one. The Alchemists
prentice to a particular master, fetching and carrying while learning Guild is Stygia’s only constant source of soulforging textbooks,

16 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

and Hackers Guild leaders have begun organizing conferences and
symposia to bring together practitioners of disparate techniques.
The Lack of Industry
Styles and Trademarks The Industrial Revolution passed the Underworld
by for two reasons. The lesser reason is the Artificers
One aspect of soulforging that remains constant across virtu-
ally all practitioners is using a trademark in its original sense: It is Guild’s death grip on thousands of years of history
a unique mark on every soulforged item that identifies its creator. untouched by progress. The greater reason is the
Artificers, Alchemists, and independents all use some variation Underworld itself. Modern mining, refining, and
of a personalized trademark. Imperial creators use facility or unit production are deterministic systems where consistent
emblems but add an individual identification number. In all cases inputs yield consistent outputs. Conversely, raw
but the independents, trademarks conform to centuries-old heraldic materials among (or made of) the dead lack this pre-
standards that often provide clues to the smith’s organizational dictability. Assembly lines don’t work well when every
affiliation and instructional heritage. part requires individual treatment to accommodate
Additionally, many different soulforging styles have arisen properties tenuously connected to physical qualities.
over the years. Today, three major styles dominate the trade. The Additionally, one of soulforging’s immutable laws
original Nhudric style is the most common among Artificers and is that one soul yields one part. Most machines the
Legionnaires and emphasizes physical strength (to beat souls into Empire would like to mass-produce contain dozens
submission), and it produces items of unsurpassed durability. The or even thousands of parts. For example, a Colt
Zürcher style originated with the Alchemists after their split from the Model 1911A1, which is the archetypal example of
Artificers. It requires painstaking attention to detail but is renowned a mass-produced firearm that still required extensive
for its aesthetic qualities and precision. The Rose Island style is a hand-fitting in its heyday, is composed of 44 parts,
synthesis of various independent schools of thought with Usurer including the barrel, frame, and slide to springs, screws,
and Pardoner influences, and it leverages an understanding of the and pins. That’s a minimum of 44 souls required to
soul under the hammer to forge objects more resistant to Oblivion’s produce one weapon, not counting the magazine parts,
various influences. ammunition, and spares for components that sustain
damage or wear. Underworld economics simply don’t
Systems support such an endeavor. This is why the Legions
Soulforging is an application of the Crafts Ability, so any wraith still rely on bladed weapons to arm the line troops
with at least one dot in Crafts can attempt the techniques described while sifting the random relic supply chain for modern
here. However, characters without a Crafts specialty in soulforging equipment to equip their elite units.
aren’t fully versed in the forge’s ways and use the lowest of their
Awareness, Crafts, or Empathy Abilities for all of the following rolls.
Each soulforging job has three stages: appraising the soul to Size
be forged, working the material, and finishing the product. The 1 success Medium object; Conceal T tool or weapon; armor
first stage can take place anywhere; the second and third require jacket
appropriate tools and, respectively, a forge with a good soulfire supply 2 successes Non-concealable tool or weapon; breastplate
and a workshop. 3 successes Small object; Conceal J tool or weapon; shield or
Appraising helmet
First, the smith assesses the soul they intends to forge to 4 successes Wraith-sized; almost all the original Corpus remains;
determine how best to work it. The player rolls Manipulation + full-body armor
Crafts (difficulty is equal to the soul’s Willpower). If they succeed, 5 successes Tiny object; Conceal P tool or weapon
the smith gains insight into the soul’s nature and the best way to Complexity
render it down, and they can proceed to the next step. If they fail,
1 success Basic functional shape; blunt implement
the smith can’t determine the Corpus’ optimum melting point or
find any spiritual stress lines; they can proceed, but all further rolls 2 successes Crude mechanical part
are at +1 difficulty. The appraisal process takes an hour, reduced by 3 successes Balanced, symmetrical functional shape; edged weapon
10 minutes per success. 4 successes Wearable attire; aerodynamic shape; projectile
Working 5 successes Precision mechanical part; flexible or jointed weapon
In this stage, the smith converts a soul into raw plasm, paralyzes For example, a scimitar (Conceal T; edged weapon) requires 4
all vestiges of consciousness, and then shapes it into the desired successes. A structural girder (wraith-sized; crude mechanical part)
configuration. This is an extended Strength + Crafts action (difficulty requires 6 successes. An obol (tiny object; symmetrical, functional
is equal to the soul’s Stamina + 2) requiring a total number of successes shape) requires 8 successes. A replacement mainspring for a relic pocket
determined by the desired product’s size and complexity: watch (tiny object; precision mechanical part) requires 10 successes.

MACHINES IN THE GHOSTS: SOULFORGING: 17

 4 successes Increase an object Corpus by 25%.
Tools of the Trade 4 successes Increase an edged weapon’s damage dice pool by 1
against all targets.
Unless the smith deliberately develops a new 5 successes Reduce the armor’s Dexterity penalty by 1 for all
metaphysical system, soulforging looks like blacksmith- wearers.
ing with iron that screams. The mortal art supplied 5 successes Give a tool a specialty for one specific task.
many of the metaphors that make it possible for 5 successes Give a weapon a specialty for one combat maneuver.
wraiths to wrap their plasmic heads around the process.
5 successes Give the armor a specialty for one narrowly defined
Accordingly, a workshop (“forge” in the vernacular)
damage source (for example, blades, barrow-flame,
requires the expected tools, even though they don’t
Maelstroms, or Spectres).
necessarily have the same smithing functions as their
Skinlands counterparts: the forge, a bellows, an anvil, 1-5 successes Add decorative features, depending on the complexity.
a quenching trough, tongs, chisels, and hammers. The The smith can’t apply any one effect more than once. A specialty
finishing workbench includes punches, drills, files, functions exactly as a Trait specialty for the circumstance in question,
jigs, wire brushes, grinding stones, and other tools. allowing the wraith using the item to re-roll 10s when applicable.
Multiple specialties don’t stack.
Ownership of a permanent workshop requires Each roll takes one hour. The smith may pause during this
Haunt •• for the workspace and Relic ••• for the process, setting the object aside indefinitely before returning to work
tools. A portable forge, such as those used by Legion on it. Each botch introduces a crack into the item, while accumulating
smiths on a campaign, is a Relic •••• possession that three botches destroys it.
packs into several cases that take up half a wagonload
in space.
Styles
A character with the appropriate history or connections can
take a Crafts specialty in one of the major soulforging styles described
Each roll takes one hour. Any interruption during this process
above rather than just specializing in “generic” soulforging. Working
ruins the job, requiring the smith to set the soul aside to cool before
in this style is optional for any job, but the smith can’t use or abandon
starting anew. Each botch introduces a crack (p. 19) into the soul, and
a style in the middle of a job. Once the style is declared, it’s in use for
accumulating three botches while working a soul means the smith
the entire process. Each style has an associated benefit and drawback.
has hammered themselves into a corner and must let it cool before
restarting. Either way, a flawed workpiece takes a week to cool and Nhudric: During each stage of a soulforging job, the player
attempting premature rework destroys it. may roll Strength in place of the specified Attribute. During the
working stage, accumulating three botches destroys the soul and
At the end of this stage, the result is rough and ready but any
gives the smith’s Shadow 3 temporary Angst. During the finishing
subtleties or precision in the design are not fully realized. If the item
stage, increasing the object’s Corpus requires only 2 successes.
has a mechanical rating, such as a weapon’s damage pool or armor’s
Breaking a Nhudric item requires a Strength rating 1 level higher
soak bonus, it is 1 lower than normal. If not, the item has some imbal-
than normal, which is cumulative with other modifiers (see Wraith:
ance or impurity that adds +2 difficulty to all rolls involving its use.
The Oblivion, p. 320).
Finishing
Zürcher: During each stage of a soulforging job, the player may
This stage turns the soulforged object from a basic shape into roll Perception in place of the specified Attribute, but each roll takes
a fully functional implement. The smith uses tools, soulfire, barrow- 4 hours. During finishing, adding a specialty or decoration costs 1
flame, or alchemical treatments to file off burrs and rough edges, less success. When visible, a Zürcher product applies -1 difficulty to
shape and polish surfaces, increase hardness or flexibility, and add any attempt its owner makes to impress or stand out visually.
utilitarian or decorative patterns, coloration, or inlay. Finishing is an
Rose Island: During each stage of a soulforging job, the player
extended Perception + Crafts action (difficulty 8) requiring a total
may roll Manipulation in place of the specified Attribute. During
number of successes determined by the desired effects:
the working and finishing stages, the first botch doesn’t add a crack,
1 success Eliminate “rough and ready” (above), bringing the but each botch gives the smith’s Shadow 3 temporary Angst. When
item to full effectiveness. targeted by any power or manifestation of Oblivion, a product of
2 successes Increase the blunt weapon’s damage dice pool by 1. the Rose Island cancels 2 successes and any creature of Oblivion,
3 successes Reduce the armor’s Dexterity penalty by 1 for one which includes a Shadow-ridden wraith, suffers +1 difficulty on all
wearer. rolls involving the item.
3 successes Add a hidden compartment.
3 successes Increase the weapon’s damage dice pool by 1 against Alloys
one specific target type (for example, Spectres, doors Plasm is soulforging’s ubiquitous raw material. Worked on its
and walls, or werewolves). own, it yields soulsteel. A skilled smith can make a soulsteel product

18 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

look and feel like a much wider range of substances than mere Lonely: If left unattended, the item gravitates toward other
transubstantiated metal. However, smiths have learned to amalgamate soulforged objects.
plasm with any of the Underworld’s other substances to produce a Magnetic: The bearer’s Shadow obsesses over the item.
variety of implausible alloys, the best-known of which is Stygian steel Nihilistic: Whenever dropped, the object unerringly rolls or
(see Wraith: The Oblivion, pp. 45 and 296). bounces 5 feet toward the nearest Nihil large enough to swallow it.
Stygian steel: As established in Wraith: The Oblivion, a Stygian Somnambulistic: Sometimes, when its owner Slumbers, the
steel object is harder to break (p. 320) and has more Corpus (p. 329). item travels to the closest other Slumbering wraith.
Additionally, a Stygian steel weapon does aggravated damage. Forging Transient: Supernatural creatures on the other side of the
a Stygian steel object requires Crafts •••• or better and each roll Shroud sometimes react to the object’s presence.
in the creation process takes three times the usual time.
Vocal: The item emits faint anguished whimpers at socially
Necropolis steel: A lesser form of Stygian steel that foregoes the awkward times.
most Oblivion-tainted materials, Necropolis steel is rare not because
Vulnerable: The item seeks destruction. Whenever it suffers
of its difficulty but because of its lesser prestige. A Necropolis steel
damage, the attacker rolls 1 extra die.
item gains extra Corpus as through it were Stygian steel but receives
none of the other benefits. Forging a Necropolis steel item requires Weeping: The object occasionally seeps plasm that leaves faint
Crafts ••• or better and each roll takes twice the usual time. salt-stains on Corpus and relic garments.
Ash-iron: Produced by burning one of the priceless trees that
struggle to grow alongside the Great River, ash-iron is prized for Artifacts
its color and flexibility. It is a dusty white so pure as to be faintly Although every soulforged item is unique, every Artifact is a
luminescent. During finishing, reducing ash-iron armor’s Dexterity law unto itself. Even “common” Artifacts such as those presented in
penalty costs only 1 success. An ash-iron whip or other flexible Wraith: The Oblivion (pp. 425-431) are individual variations on a
weapon reduces attack difficulties by 1. Forging an ash-iron item theme. Imbuing a relic or soulforged item with powers that transcend
requires Crafts ••• or better and each roll takes twice the usual time. its physical form is the apex of the smith’s art.
Labyrinthine adamas: In Stygia, this Oblivion-touched alloy is The process begins by selecting the base object, which must
vanishingly rare because of its reliance on a dove-gray coal-like substance already exist. The player and Storyteller collaborate to design the effects
mined deep in the Labyrinth. Among Spectres, it’s still rare, though that a desired Artifact will possess. By comparing these capabilities to
more common than Stygian steel, and its creation is credited to True published Artifacts, the Storyteller determines the Artifact’s rating
Spear. Labyrinthine adamas is a water-patterned alloy whose light and the Arcanos and rating most applicable to producing each effect.
and dark grains move in slow, hypnotic whorls that most definitely If the smith has the relevant Arcanoi at the appropriate ratings,
do not resolve into blasphemous forms or screaming faces when the they can proceed. If not, they must introduce each art’s essence in
viewer glances away. The owner of a Labyrinthine adamas may feed other ways. For each Arcanos that they lack at the required rating, they
it 2 points of Pathos (or 1 point of Angst) to render it invisible for a must collect Pathos or Corpus from another wraith who possesses
scene, and it has 50% more Corpus than normal. A Labyrinthine the required art for a combined 3 points per dot of the relevant
adamas weapon does aggravated damage except to Spectres, who Arcanos. For example, if the creator wants to build an Artifact lockpick
take normal damage. Its forging requires Crafts ••••• (••• for that assists its owner by deconstructing locks with Non-Euclidean
a Spectre) and each roll takes three times the usual time. Mechanics and they don’t know Flux ••, they must collect a
Other alloys are possible; the extent of necrometallurgy combined 6 points of Pathos and Corpus from a skilled Alchemist.
is limited only by the Storyteller’s desire to venture into high The collection method is up to them, though collecting Corpus
fantasy tropes. from a Spectre with the appropriate skill set is generally regarded as
perilous at best (in this case, Angst replaces Pathos in this process).
Cracks The smith also must gather raw materials above and beyond the
base object. For each dot of Artifact rating, one strange Underworld
A crack in a soulforged item is not a physical defect but a spiri-
tual one. It is a flaw induced by the smith’s failure to render down substance is required; the higher the rating, the weirder or more
completely the soul into raw plasm. Cracks should not be crippling. dangerous these materials become. The Storyteller should make
They’re minor inconveniences intended to provide additional creepy the acquisition process serve the story, and not be just an annoying
flavor for things ultimately made of people and memories. The scavenger hunt.
following list only skims the surface of possibilities; troupes should Once the smith has assembled their materials, they may begin.
feel free to generate their own cracks based on what makes everyone Imbuing an Artifact requires a forge. The smith heats the host item
at the table giggle nervously. over a soulfire flame and gradually welds and hammers power into
Compelling: The object is very interesting to one particular class it by using their collected materials. This process is an extended
of entities (for example, Mourners, Ferrymen, Spectres, or werewolves). Intelligence + Crafts roll (difficulty 8) requiring 5 successes per dot
of Artifact rating. Each roll takes one day. Any interruption or botch
Fleeting: Whenever dropped, the object unerringly rolls or
ruins the job and all raw materials, but the smith can salvage the
bounces into the most inconvenient place within 5 feet.

MACHINES IN THE GHOSTS: SOULFORGING: 19

 weapons and tools. As SOE and OSS personnel made their way to
the Underworld, the Legions and other parties attempted to adapt
Spectral Soulforging these gadgets to local use. Among these tools were coat buttons that
The craft of souldforging feeds the unwary smith’s were concealed miniature compasses for use in escape and evasion
Shadow with the suffering of the souls under the behind enemy lines. Today, E&E buttons imbued with slivers of
hammer, and its Shadow-eaten practitioners have lost Argos’ navigational awareness are common among Restless whose
none of their skill even though their creations bear duties take them into the Tempest or Labyrinth.
Oblivion’s irrevocable stain. Worse, some Spectral Systems: In the Tempest, an E&E button always shows the
smiths practice the Cachtice style, which maximizes direction of the nearest Byway. In the Labyrinth, its bearer may spend
the agony a soul endures during the forging process. 1 Pathos to determine the direction of the nearest ascending route.
Cachtice (pronounced CHOCK-it-eh, after the When it is not being used, the button appears to be an ordinary part
Slovakian home of Elizabeth Báthory) items are of the wraith’s attire unless someone performs a pat-down search and
unparalleled in responsiveness and precision, but the has a successful Perception + Larceny roll (difficulty 9).
few Stygian smiths who’ve studied them fear them The button’s base object is either a relic button compass or a
because the souls retain some fragment of awareness. soulforged replica. The former is a Relic •• item due to rarity. The
Spectres, being wraiths, can be soulforged latter is a tiny basic object (a 6-success working) with clean-up and a
themselves. No one recommends the practice, though. hidden compartment (a 4-success finishing). In either case, its innate
A Spectre in the forge is the most treacherous of covert quality comes from craftsmanship, not Arcanoi.
materials, and even the best-crafted result is threaded The E&E button’s navigational ability relies on Wayfarer’s
with Oblivion. Resolve (Argos ••). Because its functions draw on a low-level art and
don’t directly affect anyone else, it’s only a Level 1 Artifact.
Systems: Spectres use the soulforging rules pre- If the smith lacks the requisite arts to create the Artifact, they
sented here. Whenever a non-Spectre botches while must collect 6 Pathos or Corpus from an Argos practitioner. Imbuing
using a Spectre-forged item, that wraith’s Shadow the button then requires 5 successes on the extended Intelligence
gains 1 temporary Angst. + Crafts roll.
A smith working in the Cachtice style may roll
Manipulation in place of the specified Attribute Disarticulation Armature (Level 4 Artifact)
during each stage of soulforging. Any botch during It’s not vivisection if the subject isn’t truly alive, as the Spectres
the process destroys the soul, but during finishing, of Est Machina are happy to demonstrate. Although only True
the smith may add a specialty for only 1 success. For Spear has successfully rendered her entire form into soulsteel, each
a non-Spectre, learning this style grants the smith’s of her followers features at least one soulforged prosthesis, courtesy
Shadow 1 permanent Angst and each job that uses of a disarticulation armature. Over an hours-long procedure, this
it provides 2 temporary Angst. clockwork cage removes selected components of a subject’s Corpus in
a form suitable for soulforging and eventual reattachment. Recently,
Forging a Spectre increases the difficulty of every Lynn’s Spectres have begun experiments with processing captured
roll in the process by 1. On a botch, the partially-forged wraiths in the device as a means of cult initiation.
creature breaks free and is profoundly displeased
Systems: A disarticulation armature permanently reduces a
with the smith. A weapon made from a Spectre does
subject’s Corpus. Removing a limb reduces Corpus by 2, while
aggravated damage, armor adds 1 soak die against ag-
removing a sense organ reduces it by 1. The process requires 3 hours
gravated damage, and other items have minor uncanny
per point of Corpus removed. Corpus parts lost in this fashion are
properties at the Storyteller’s discretion. However,
soulforgeable (an exception to the usual requirement of one complete
once per session when the item’s bearer makes a
wraith per soulforged item). Restoring Corpus lost to the armature is
roll involving the item, that character’s Shadow may
possible only by reattaching the removed part through a procedure
convert one die result of 10 into a 1. This takes effect
combining soulforging and reconstructive surgery, which Est Machina
before re-rolling that die for any specialty.
developed in its quest for enlightenment through necromechanization.
Worse, as a wraith undergoes disarticulation, bubbling tubes
and frigid large-gauge needles inject distilled Angst into his Shadow,
host item with a Wits + Crafts roll (difficulty 8). With the requisite
which draws the subject closer to Oblivion and increases the Shadow’s
successes, the smith seals the item with their trademark and brandishes
maximum Angst by 1 per 2 points of Corpus removed. It also doubles
the newly-forged Artifact.
the processing time.
E&E Button (Level 1 Artifact) A disarticulation armature’s base object is a soulforged dodeca-
hedral framework containing four clockwork arms bearing surgical
In World War II, the Special Operations Executive and Office of
implements, surrounding a padded couch (don’t ask about the
Strategic Services equipped their agents with a panoply of concealed

20 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

upholstery) with restraints. Five Restless are required for its creation. Systems: A pulse rifle has the basic traits of an assault rifle or
The cage is a wraith-sized balanced shape (a 7-success working) submachine gun (Wraith: The Oblivion, p. 338) with a few extra
with clean-up (a 1-success finishing). Each arm is a non-concealable capabilities. First, the player can spend 3 Pathos and roll Willpower
precision item (also a 7-success working) with clean-up and a Crafts (difficulty 7); with success, the pulse rifle completely refills its
specialty of Surgery (a 6-success finishing). magazine with ammunition drawn from the Tempest. For an extra
The armature’s imbued powers are permanent disassembly of 2 Pathos, that ammunition burns with green barrow-flame, which
the wraith clamped within its grasp (Savage, Moliate •••••) and inflicts aggravated damage, reduces the difficulty penalty of the
permanent Angst implantation (Conversion, Maleficence •••••). automatic fire maneuver (Wraith: The Oblivion, p. 335) to +1, and
With two five-dot arts that permanently alter characters this would makes the shooter’s position painfully obvious. Finally, the rifle’s
normally be a Level 5 Artifact, but the Storyteller may decide that grip constantly throbs with a faint heartbeat whenever it’s pointed
its immobility and the time and effort involved in its use downgrade at a wraith who isn’t Shadow-ridden or a strong heartbeat when
it to Level 4. pointed at a living being.
If the smith doesn’t have the requisite arts, they must collect 15 A pulse rifle is always built on a relic assault rifle or submachine
Pathos or Corpus from a master Masquer and 15 Angst or Corpus gun (a Relic •••• weapon). Its ability to summon ammunition
from an advanced Maleficence practitioner. Imbuing these arts into from lost rounds dropped in the grass or under the couch uses Relic
the armature then requires 20 successes on the extended Intelligence Dowsing (Flux •••). Barrow-flame-limned ammunition invokes
+ Crafts roll. Wyldfire (Outrage ••••). The throbbing grip relies on Soulsight
(Castigate •). These powers’ combined utility and tactical impact
Pulse Rifle (Level 5 Artifact) make this a Level 5 Artifact.
Doomslayers hunt the Underworld’s most dangerous prey, and A smith who lacks the requisite arts must respectively collect
their arsenals reflect this task. When ordinary relic firearms won’t 9 Pathos or Corpus from a skilled Alchemist, 12 Pathos or Corpus
get the job done, it’s time to unlock the Black Armory and bring from a highly-proficient Spook, and 3 Pathos or Corpus from an
out the heavy iron. Pulse rifles are the latest iteration of gunsmithing apprentice Pardoner. They then must garner 25 successes on the
artifice, taking the firepower of relic automatic weapons to a logical extended Intelligence + Crafts roll.
(if cinematically-inspired) extreme.

MACHINES IN THE GHOSTS: SOULFORGING: 21

 In the Belly
of the Beast:
Spectres
ar is eternal. For those who die and fail to they have advantages against the Helldivers and other Restless
pass to whatever reward or punishment might who thought they could fight the beast in its den and survive.
exist beyond the Skinlands, the memories
and skill of battle come with the dead when Terrain
their souls cross into the Shadowlands. For The Labyrinth resists rational attempts to understand it.
a Necropolis, a gifted military officer turned Spectres are not burdened by this hindrance. Choosing to go
wraith could be the inspiration to hold the line against Spectres. down a corridor full of plasmics of which the Restless are unaware
Among Spectres, a Shadow-eaten commander could provide the is far from pleasant for the Spectres, but dragging a group of
final piece to break the collective will of a Necropolis, applying Helldivers into an increasingly unstable and dangerous terrain
their life’s work of strategy and the knowledge found within the makes any suffering utterly worthwhile. Plasm-painted walls,
Labyrinth to fostering the incalculable terror of countless Psyches. writhing corridor ceilings, and blinding light that distorts all one
If a Spectre is strong enough to resist the call of Oblivion for can see are but a few of the things waiting for the wraiths who
a long period, their gift with strategy is adapted to the command follow the Shadow-eaten.
and control of Spectres. There is no good place to face a Spectre,
but to make war against them in the Labyrinth is to descend into Proximity to the Void
Hell itself. Spectres enjoy these doomed visits from the Restless. The further wraiths head down into the Labyrinth, the closer
they get to the ultimate Void and the more likely the Labyrinth

The Army of Shadow ven in the Labyrinth, there are constants among
and its many inhabitants will help take care of the problem of
the Restless being somewhere they shouldn’t be. Spectres lead
the way for lost Doomslayers, perishing along with them as the
corridor walls slam shut around them. Oblivion does not take
Spectres when they turn to violence. They have lightly to intruders.
ready access to Stygian steel, but rarely artillery.
The bombs that were dropped on the Western Temperament
Front are not common trinkets in the depths Spectres are often described as suicidal, and some are,
of the Underworld. Spectres find it almost but many are merely single-minded, driven, and unyielding.
impossible to back down from the fight, and complex maneuvers Destruction now or later is just a matter of timing to many of
are difficult at best for them. When the fight is brought to them,
them. The end of all things, including themselves, is a certain fact. Invading forces (either Restless or other Spectres) must be denied
They have no capacity for the denial of death, unless they aspire to time in which to think so that they do not gain the opportunity to
become one of the nightmarish gods slumbering around them in confuse, intimidate, or lead astray the mind of a spectral commander.
the Labyrinth. The brevity of the average Spectre’s existence and the In that moment of confusion, they have a hope of winning. Using
ceaseless gnawing hunger of Oblivion have taken reasoning with the elements of surprise, ignorance of the Labyrinth, and monopoly
the rank and file off the table. of low-visibility conditions, Spectres can make short work of many
Hunger underscores every moment of a Spectre’s existence, wraiths who thought they could invade the Labyrinth unscathed.
and it makes many of them who inhabit the Labyrinth quite Most groups of Spectres are little better than vicious dogs, but if a
volatile. In any engagement with the Restless, there is no avoiding war band has a commander, a wise wraith proceeds with caution.
the consequence of the relentless hunger and hate of the Spectres Fifty Shades commanded by a Nephwrack can be a horror show
under an officer’s command: casualties. unlike anything Stygia can offer. The low visibility in the Labyrinth
gives Shades an advantage to take wraiths unawares, with the units of
Units Restless realizing too late how many of the enemy have circled them.
When the Restless see even a platoon of Spectres, their morale The wars that the rank and file of the Hive fight inside the
suffers deeply. Shaking their Psyches is one of the reasons swarms Labyrinth are not the years-long wars that were fought by many
of Spectres work so well when it comes to fighting intruding forces. Spectral officers before their deaths. They also are not the wars of
Unlike a unit of Restless, Spectres don’t have the unpredictability plush Stygian bureaucrats, who send out wraiths to die on behalf
of each individual soldier having their own ideas, experience, or of their ambitions. These wars are brutal, and they usually don’t
breaking point. Among Spectres, matters of free will can be shoved last long.
aside when a spectral commander directs them. Subordinates are not Still, there are exceptions. Even in the Labyrinth, elite units rise
a command chain; they are merely a chain of minds to relay orders. and are typically led by a Nephwrack. These units recruit Renegades
Spectres appear to fight as one because they do. This lashed-together and runaways into their number, where the Restless serve with the
apparatus lumbers through each thought of the commander, whose Shadow-eaten. The Legions would go cold if they knew that for
strategy breaks into pieces as it passes along the chain as though it every military genius within the Hierarchy, another exists in the
were a warlike version of the children’s game Telephone. Without Labyrinth and serves Oblivion.
the mind commanding them, a spectral force falls apart.

24 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 For all would-be Commander Coldhearts, some knowledge
and a bit of Dark Arcanos goes a long way to keeping the rank and
file fighting on behalf of Oblivion for a little while longer.
Chronicles for the Restless
• O Captain! My Captain! — Restless are on the
Collogue hunt for a Spectre by using command tactics that
More than luck or brilliant strategy, a Spectre officer’s rise to they recognize are taught to them by their unit
power hinges upon its ability to efficiently control other Spectres commander (from their days among the Quick
during violent conflict because a loss of control makes victory or within a Legion).
unattainable, and because the Spectres in their command may be
so deeply in the throes of hunger that they devour their command-
• Heirs of Theseus — Young Redeemers brave the
ing officer at the first opportunity. To control is to survive. With
Labyrinth stealing Spectres for experimentation
survival, the road to power can be opened to them.
to gain greater insights into how to achieve
Redemption for Spectres.
Oblivion Loves a Good Officer • Shadow Stealers — Doomslayers have discovered
In addition to a masterful grasp of Collogue, a Spectral of- someone or something kidnapping Spectres
ficer must be cunning, manipulative, charismatic, intimidating, while down in the Labyrinth, but it’s not them.
and exceptionally hard to destroy. If one aspires to become one of Who is it?
Oblivion’s great generals, absolute command of the soldiers and
mastery of multiple Dark Arcanoi are not negotiable.
Within the Labyrinth, the tactics of the Quick can still be used sources, wraiths are exposed and vulnerable to the Shadow-eaten
by Spectres against invading forces. that swiftly surround them.
Ambush Psychological Warfare
The most tried and true approach to surprising violence, If there’s a single arena in war where Spectres should never
an ambush can be achieved by a single Spectre, or even groups be underestimated, it is their ability to terrorize wraiths during
of them. An ambush of a wraith unit by a Spectral one takes a a military engagement. Everything a Spectre does to one of the
deft touch, and is often guided by an officer possessed of great Restless when given an opportunity to terrorize them aims to scar
self-control. Seeding the Restless with opportunities to pick up the Psyche, empower the Shadow, and bring about a Harrowing.
a “resting” Indwelling (see p. 28) earlier in the Labyrinth puts It can take officer-material Spectres to pull off this form of warfare
a Spectre in their midst to attack when told. Providing several with finesse, but even the average Doppelganger adds ample drama
such opportunities is an inside-out Trojan horse that leaves the to these torturous encounters. Using Spectre Chanteurs is also quite
wraiths inside-out. For Spectres the Labyrinth has brought into popular as a weapon against the Restless.
its stranger corridors, adjustments are continually being made to
make spectral jack-in-the-boxes that enclose their wraith targets in Shock and Awe
miles of intermittent spectral jacks springing from walls, clad in Although this tactic is most effective when used in Stygia and
barbs and blades to hook a wraith and tear them apart. throughout the Shadowlands, shock and awe is still usable within
the Labyrinth. Requiring overwhelming force and multiple adept
Booby Trap officers, ruthless waves of Shadow-eaten soldiers can be pushed down
The use of booby traps among the Quick extends into antiquity, the gullet of any Doomslayer detachment that could otherwise be
and the practice has flourished among the Spectres. Stakes smeared too difficult to defeat without exceptional losses. Any survivors make
with poisonous plasm, plasmics trapped inside hidden pits, ingenious for easy prisoners, ripe targets for conversion into Spectrehood, or
near-oubliettes filled with water from some aquatic section of the sacrifices to feed one of the terrible Onceborn.
Labyrinth…there are no sadistic limits to Spectre imaginations.
While few are automatically deadly (lest the Spectres be deprived Fifth Column
their entertainment), they do tend to maim the wraiths unlucky Doppelgangers love to infiltrate a group descending into the
enough to chance upon one and are always engineered to make Labyrinth and coordinate with both the wraiths’ Shadows and
extraction exceptionally difficult. A small unit attempting to rescue nearby Spectres to turn slowly the group against itself. Mortwrights
a fallen Doomslayer can quickly be overrun by Spectres. and Shades make poor partners for this tactic, but careful use of
Striplings, Indwelling, Dark Spirits, and Nephwracks can evoke the
Blackout sort of intense reactions that can result in mass Harrowings. This
Although not used in the original defense tactic spirit as during strategy is particularly interesting when guile is needed to capture
the Blitz in London, a blackout in the Labyrinth can quell what little a high-priority target.
visibility is present in the sections of the Labyrinth. Without light

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 25

 from the Labyrinth, one that’s paid enough attention to its home
is aware of some basics.
Spectral Kernels of Wisdom Although a Spectre or a wraith does not need to breathe and is
There is a saying, “Oblivion loves a good officer,” not as sensitive to temperature as they were while among the Quick,
disturbing in its bald truth. The Quick have often there are sensations in the Labyrinth that make one think of having
been cruel or simply callous to their officers, which the breath stolen from them, experiencing cold spots, or feeling
plants seeds of resentment in many of them that are sudden burning temperatures. When one of these environmental
easy to fan when they cross into the Shadowlands. changes occurs, the follow-up actions on the part of the Labyrinth
Oblivion has some of the most charismatic and are rarely pleasant. Because the walls of the Labyrinth can rearrange
brilliant officers in its fold and is rarely anything as suits it, the smallest tremors or not-noises, which is a sensation like
but gracious to them. It’s easy for the young to laugh an elevator lurching up or down, typically foretell a shift in scenery.
at the ancient generals, such as Belisarius with his As seismic activity is an issue in the depths of the Underworld, the
temper or al-Hajjaj and his thousand Shadow-eaten small initial signs might escape those wraiths that are under-exposed
cavalry, but the nightmares of their youths walk in to the vagaries of Labyrinth geographic and geologic whims.
Oblivion’s approving shadows as well. Men like Nolan Spectres know these signs and the joy of hounding a group of
and Rommel did not go quietly after their deaths. wraiths into the arms of what’s in a new corridor well, even when
the chase changes to include them too. The Labyrinth is just as likely
to allow something out of its depths that would eat the Restless and
Tunnel Warfare the Spectres. A Spectre bound swiftly for Oblivion may err in judg-
ment and trust that the Labyrinth’s whims always work to its favor,
What the Quick label tunnel warfare is a cornerstone of war but the Labyrinth walls are frequently painted in Spectral plasm.
within the Labyrinth. Whether the foe are fellow Spectres or invad- Spectres with ambition exercise their willpower and vacate an area
ing forces of Restless, the environment of the Labyrinth remains they do not recognize or one that may soon be bathed with plasm
well suited to the tactics of tunnel warfare. Waves of soldiers who of some kind, no matter how many wraiths they might be able to
became Spectres upon death brought memories of tunnel warfare take down if they just keep fighting. In another few minutes, when
with them, and Spectres who served in the Great War, World War the walls close in, and everyone is slowed to an inching crawl, or
II, and Vietnam injected fresh life into the Spectral imagination. trapped, it’s better for the Restless to perish than the Spectre that
Although these ambitious avenues of attack are quick to dissolve into aspires to become Onceborn.
deadly friendly fire, the Spectres who can hold together the control
to dig tunnels within the Labyrinth to surprise invaders from below The Danger in the Walls
are a rare and precious breed. They remember their deaths at the The walls of the Labyrinth can be anything, but none of them
hands of the enemy deep below the earth and relish the chance to are pleasant. Miles of lung tissue, beating hearts, obsidian that
destroy the wraith in a similar fashion. whispers indistinct horrors, writhing snakes, nightmarish sea creature
It’s not just the suicidal, the overly curious, or the unwise who appendages straight out of the Tempest, screaming mouths, or
are lost to the Labyrinth upon entry. Those Restless who guard the cocoons — if it is terrible, it is possible. The walls might also absorb
Veinous Star from the depredations of the Labyrinth and those Spectres and wraiths alike and spit them out at infrequent periods.
who back up specific Doomslayer operations have gone missing The Labyrinth is always terrifying, and its motivations are utterly
over time. It’s expected and tragic. But, not all patrols are destroyed incomprehensible. It’s less a place of conscious evil than simply
down there. Whatever the Labyrinth has done with them, there are hungry, primordial, and irrational. This isn’t a place that was once
stories that some units have not entirely abandoned their posts. tranquil and turned evil; it just is.
The glow in the eye of a figure in the darkness. The shape of the In addition to the hostile architectural conditions the Labyrinth
blade. The half-moment of hesitation in which a wraith can escape. itself provides and the hostile intentions of the Spectres, there’s still
Whatever happened, it is possible that some of the Shadow-eaten more about which to worry. Plasmics, the Onceborn, the Neverborn,
down where the light cannot reach are still on the side of those they the Pasiphae, and creatures unheard of in Stygian myth all call the
left behind. If only for a second. Labyrinth home, and some of those beings wield great and terrible

If These Walls Could Scream power.

The Labyrinth itself has its own internal process for dealing with
what goes on within it and not even the Spectres fully understand
And Now, The Weather
The weather that victimizes Stygia and ruins the Corpus and
it, let alone the Restless. It moves, builds, collapses, conceals, and lives of all it touches gets much of its start in the Labyrinth. The
reveals at its own pace, sometimes killing the inhabitants of miles-long fierce flux of energy that pulses in a revolting parody of life induces
sections as a new corridor opens as the prior corridor closes. Although shuddering contractions that expel a disgusting mix of Angst, Corpus,
it is unwise for a Spectre to depend on a predictable amount of aid and other sundry parts out of the recesses of the Labyrinth’s many

26 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

chambers and corridors. Although these substances alone can burn
and infect Helldivers and other Doomslayers, the wind that carries
this muck out of the darkness is vicious even for some Spectres and
It Appears as It Wishes
doubly so against Restless. Some of what the Labyrinth vomits forth The Labyrinth contains endless nightmares new
is even dangerously aware. Spectres and the odd wraith who is driven and old, and it adorns itself with them. These night-
mad or who were swallowed by the Labyrinth’s confines might be mares might be an upper hallway of a condemned
spit out decades or even centuries later on those cold, black winds. hospital, the bowels of a temple so old as to be lost
to time and memory, skull-filled catacombs that were
Seasons never rediscovered, or the deepest darkest floor of a
Although the Labyrinth might lack the traditional seasons as subterranean parking garage. Every soul it consumes
the Restless know them, the seasons of Oblivion greatly influence adds new images to the ones it knows, so it is ready for
Spectres, and war during most active seasons is waged by sleep- anyone who will know terror from them. Underneath
deprived warriors whose fitful Kindling-sleep is hellish. Instead all its images, the Labyrinth is eternal.
of respite, this period of slumber is filled with images within the
Hive-Mind and the grasping touch of Oblivion. Sleeping Spectres
are dangerous no matter where they are in the Labyrinth. A canny officer knows that a particular set of corridors have led to repeated
Shadow-eaten officer takes advantage of a Kindling-fueled Spectre’s disappearances of wraiths foolhardy enough to cross through them,
energy and maddened verve, but even Oblivion’s officers avoid the then leading the wraiths into a convenient temporal dead zone can
slow, soporific edges of the Labyrinth which contain Barrow-blighted be what gets the job done on a bad day instead of letting the wraiths
places where Spectres slumber for centuries. The Kindling season slip through their fingers and escape. Few Spectral officers have
can be used as a tool of motivation and ferocity, and funneling the capacity for curiosity to question whether this is a good idea
Restless into the Barrow regions where slumbering Spectres might because not all of what you give to time stays gone. Twists of time
draw in the unwary into a sleep all their own is a dangerous tactic in the Labyrinth typically involve exits and entrances that appear
of last resort. like a normal doorway or portal. Travelers learn quickly that they

Time are suddenly far off course, miles beneath the top of the Labyrinth,
or even in another section entirely. Although these strange gates
The Labyrinth can do more than play with time during its are frequently stable and slow-moving, some move with terrifying
swift or slow seasons by choosing to twist time by days or even years velocity and travel far across the Labyrinth.
within its confines. It’s an unreliable bit of terrain, but if a Spectral

Castes he army of Oblivion comes in infinite and

Hated Figures constantly evolving diversity. The default
The dwellers of the Labyrinth know many shades assumption for new Spectral castes and abilities
of hate, but those with curiosity or have spent time is that they’ve been there all along just like the
in the Hive-Mind know hatred for Edouard-Alfred ones in Wraith: The Oblivion. However, this
Martel (1859-1938) and Jody Clemson. Martel was assumption doesn’t have to be the case in your
a lawyer in life and the father of European caving. chronicle. Every caste and each thing each one
Coming late to Helldiving in the 1970s, Martel can do started somewhere at some particular moment.
caused an increase in Helldiver survival rates, much You could build a chronicle, particularly one focusing on
to the irritation of the Labyrinth. Senior Legate and Helldivers and Doomslayers, around the emergence of a genuinely
Overlord Jody Clemson is a legend whose memory new force with the player characters part of the discovery and first
is tinged with hate within the Hive-Mind. Crossing effort to respond and perhaps contain or even eliminate the new
into the Grim Legion upon death at Belleau Woods threat before it has a chance to spread. Alternatively, these forces
during the Great War, he went from a charismatic might have emerged in the recent past (a matter of days or years
officer who knew how to survive to a legend by the ago), perhaps in the wake a particularly powerful local Maelstrom
end of World War II. His worries about the next or a Great Maelstrom (see p. 46) and form part of the crisis of the
Great Maelstrom have put him deep in the thick of moment confronting the characters.
it at the Office of Maelstrom Preparedness, where
he works on a continent-wide inter-Legion security
plan for the sky-shaking destruction that lives on in
Chosen
Former Relics and Fetters that came into their own after the
his memories and nightmares. wraith who empowered and tended them fell to Oblivion, the Chosen
have a drive reflecting that of their former master is colored by the

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 27

departed wraith’s final feelings. Far from unintelligent, the Chosen
demonstrate a single-minded mission to exploit and spread their
Appearance
own specific and favored form of misery. Truly the “what you see Capable of inhabiting all manner of objects, the Indwelling
is what you get” Caste of Spectres, they are an easy ally on a single typically restrict themselves or are restricted by Oblivion to a single
topic and are disinterested in the extreme with politics and society, object. Antique record players, daggers that produced truly violent
unless it can be clearly and simply explained how another Spectre’s upheaval in their wake, children’s toys, books, pens, and guns are
ends and theirs are aligned. all some of the possible forms an Indwelling may have.
Many Doppelgangers prefer them to Indwelling for their simple Once they transition from their resting state to an active one,
drive and absence of other motives, but the Chosen have little use they transform: Daggers with carved, ugly faces open their eyes,
for other castes. Those Chosen that feel the draw of the living pos- musical instruments and record players start to play, and so on.
sess Shroud-crossing arts, and those that dwell in the depths of the They tend to gravitate to two poles, either appearing as cherished
Underworld exhibit various arts at their disposal. Those Chosen objects but not of shattering import (a pen, a doll, books, or a tool)
that last the longest find a surrogate of sorts similar to their masters to more attractive visages (an antique record player, a weapon, or a
and aligned in Shadow-eaten appetites. strange ritual implement).
Arcanoi:An Indwelling has access to all Dark Arcanoi, and limited
Appearance access to Arcanoi:The Arcanoi must be feasible in application to the item
Chosen have a veritable parade of possible appearances. type. For example, a record player can take Keening, but not Fatalism.
Chosen were once Relics and Fetters, so anything that could have Leeches:The Indwelling primary method of absorbing the fuel
once been either is a possible candidate. Almost all Chosen look for their existence is from their environment. It pulls Corpus from
like the inanimate objects they once were, but it’s not unknown for Relics and Artifacts, gaining one point per scene if it has had physical
some to have anthropomorphized forms and some kind of mobility. contact with the Relic or Artifact in that scene. It continues this drain
Arcanoi: Chosen start with one dot in Inhabit, and 5 additional for every scene the Relic or Artifact remains present, the Corpus
dots to distribute as you choose. They cannot learn any other standard adding to the Indwelling’s rating. It gains Pathos and Willpower
Arcanoi. Of the Dark Arcanoi, they cannot learn Tempestos. from wraiths, again requiring physical contact. The wraith makes
Disadvantaged:Unlike other Shadow-eaten, Chosen didn’t start a Willpower roll (difficulty 6) to avoid losing a point of Pathos or
out as an adult wraith. You are restricted to 4 primary, 3 secondary, Willpower (whichever the Indwelling chooses to drain). If the drain
and 1 tertiary points to distribute among your Attributes. You, like takes the Indwelling to its maximum rating in the chosen stat, it
Mortwrights, can also be quite suicidal. These Attributes can grow with continues draining but gains no benefit, it When the time is right,
time as the Chosen learns to live beyond its grief for its departed mistress. they flip from a passive resting state to active.

Indwelling Dark Spirits

The Indwelling were in life people of patience and introverted Dark Spirits are as ugly and horrific as any Nephwrack, but the
purpose. It is perhaps Oblivion that has helped shape the form they take specificity of their appearance and their unique Dark Arcanos isolate
upon crossing the Shroud to use their patience to meet Oblivion’s rapa- them in Spectral society and prevent them from casual mingling
cious hunger. Easily mistaken for the very objects they lie within, these among wraiths. Dark Spirits practice Blighted Divination, a parade
Spectres are the bane of unwary wraith treasure hunters, Doomslayers, of increasingly strange oracular arts subject to incredible rumors, such
or the overly curious. Although they do not ignore Caste society, the as being a gift of the Pasiphae to a caste-wide direct line to a Malfean.
nature of their existence leaves them largely beyond participation. Their It is widely assumed that all Dark Spirits are former Doppelgangers,
long absences from the Labyrinth make them excellent collaborators but this is far from proven. Of those whose former compatriots can
with Doppelgangers if the Doppelganger can wrap their head around vouch for their prior state and identity, their last whereabouts were
working with an inanimate object that sometimes ceases to rest in favor frequently somewhere within the Labyrinth. Whatever Oblivion does
of actively causing exceptional amounts of havoc. with the curious who become Dark Spirits, those allowed to return
to society are changed beyond their acquisition of an oracular gift
Most Nephwracks and Shades ignore the Indwelling. Striplings
and their new faces. They flit in and out of Spectral cities, always on
have learned one does not play with the Indwelling unless they wish to
the move and busy, but they’ll trade rumors and insights and help
be devoured by an object typically smaller than they are. Mortwrights
connect Spectres to things or other Spectres they need.
have difficulty hearing them in the Hive-Mind, but the Dark Spirits
have an unusually productive if silent relationship with them and go Dark Spirits are prone to never letting someone else’s pithy
so far as to recommend the Indwelling to Doppelgangers and their denigrating comments go, and the most terrible things happen to
operations, presumably from insights garnered by using Blighted you if you’re unkind and impolite to them.
Insight. Due to their chosen shapes, it’s difficult to state whether they
have always existed or to whose falls they contributed. Many of them
Appearance
are mistaken as simply Spectral Relics, and the Indwelling are not While their appearance isolates them to Spectral society, even
terribly concerned about being owed proper credit for their havoc. among the Shadow-eaten they are a strange parade of faces by sporting
the visages of nightmares wraiths and Quick alike know well. In paintings,

28 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

the illustrations of penny dreadfuls, horror movies, and internet legends,
humanity has given countless descriptions of a (frequently flying) skull-
faced spirit. If it once was an angel, it has come to manifest only as its
How is False Life different from a Harrowing?
most terrifying form. If it was once a person, it has become twisted by its False Life is the austerity measure of Psyche ter-
death. If it were neither angel nor human, it is the essence of something rorizing. It requires only a single Spectre, no changing
evil capable only of reflecting that which the Quick fear: death. Among locations is required, and there’s no thorny puzzles
wraiths, the Dark Spirits are without doubt still something to fear. to solve. It also has a degree of utility not possible
Arcanoi:A Dark Spirit character has access to all Arcanoi and with a Harrowing. If a Psyche is unaware of the truth
Dark Arcanoi. You have one dot of Blighted Insight automatically, behind their visions, they might lead to a slow-burn
and another 7 dots to spend as you choose. fall to Oblivion that might take their whole circle
Fearsome:Dark Spirits cannot casually walk among Restless with them or at least destroy the circle’s trust and lead
as Doppelgangers can or use Moliate to disguise their true nature. to great discord. Depending on the target of False
Life, it’s possible for a clever Spectre to wreak havoc

Dark Arcanoi
These Dark Arcanoi, like others available to Spectres, come
that might impact an entire necropolis. A Spectre
wielding False Life can conceivably go undetected
in the way a Harrowing cannot. No one says there
can’t be a Harrowing in the offing once a Psyche is
from their connection to Oblivion. A wraith can learn these arts suitably traumatized.
only with Storyteller approval and in unique circumstances.

False Life System:Spend 1 Angst, and then roll Charisma + False Life
This Dark Arcanos lures wraiths by using the scents, sounds, (difficulty 6). On a success, the target’s Perception rolls are at +1
presence, and sensations of life as it appears to the Quick. It then difficulty for the turn, plus an additional turn for every 2 additional
builds Angst within the wraith and distracts them from their mission successes.
and safety. When applied in the right circumstances, False Life can On a botch, Sounds of Life backlash on you and irritates you.
be part of a long operation to eliminate an entire Circle of Restless Each time that you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point.
through fear and distrust, or it can be a fatal distraction to delay a
response to a hideous surprise attack. ••• Dangerous Distraction
This Arcanos is not popular because it empowers the Psyche The Spectre lures a target with a difficult-to-resist illusion of
of a Spectre and makes the Spectre vulnerable to those who seek significant meaning from their life by using scent, sight, or touch.
to turn Spectres back from Oblivion. It remains a potent tool, but System:Spend 2 Angst, and then roll Manipulation + False Life
the Hive is loath to use it. Perhaps its pleasures outweigh its risks, or (difficulty 7). The successes rolled indicate an additional sense that you
enough Spectral Psyches exert quiet pressure to keep the knowledge can engage beyond scent or an added note of complexity to a scent, such
in memory. Either way can lead the Spectre away from Oblivion. as the favorite scents of two deceased relatives of the target, or a glimpse
• Scent of Life of their daughter’s hair outside the Necropolis walls coupled with the
scent of their dead wife’s perfume. The target’s Perception rolls are at
The Spectre can conjure the scents of life for a target. Some +2 difficulty for the turn, plus an additional turn for every 2 additional
examples are fresh-turned earth, baking bread, their mother’s successes. Willpower rolls for the target are at +1 difficulty for the scene.
cookies…or congealing blood. Any scent from the other side of the
On a botch, you are inundated with fractured flashes of sights
Shroud is fair game.
and smells from your life before you were a Spectre. (If you have
System:Spend 1 Angst, and then roll Manipulation + False Life no memory of this life, you are instead inundated with visions and
(difficulty 6). On a success, the scent manifests for the target as a slow smells from the Quick that you glimpsed through the Shroud from
bloom or an abrupt slash. Whether it is revolting or heartbreaking, earlier uses of False Life). Your perception rolls are at +1 difficulty,
the target’s Perception rolls are +1 difficulty for the turn, plus an and your Willpower rolls are at +2 difficulty. This effect lasts for
additional turn for every 2 additional successes. the remainder of the scene.
On a botch, Scent of Life backlashes on you, which increases the Each time that you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point.
difficulty of all your Perception rolls by 1 for the remainder of the scene.
Each time that you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point. •••• Love’s Caress
The Spectre’s illusion convinces the target that they’re within
•• Sounds of Life arm’s reach of their loved one or an object of great value to them.
The Spectre evokes the sounds of life for the target. Some System:Spend 2 Angst and 1 Willpower, and then roll Charisma
examples are children laughing, a woman crying, happy humming, + False Life in a resisted action against the target’s Perception +
or even screams begging for help. Alertness or Willpower (whichever is greater). On a success, the target

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 29

is convinced that they are speaking to or even holding the object not oracles in the sense that the Oracles of the Fatalism Arcanos
of their loving regard. Their Perception rolls are at +2 difficulty for are, but they have been changed by what they know.
the turn, plus an additional turn for every 2 additional successes. The source of the visions brought on by Blighted Insight is
Their Willpower rolls are at +1 difficulty for the scene. They also unknown, but its adherents privately theorize that it might be a
gain 1 Angst. direct line to a Malfean or perhaps an oblique gift from Oblivion
On a botch, the target is instantly aware of both your presence itself. Spectral society does not favor planners and thinkers in the
and failed attempt. ranks below the Nephwracks, so these arts should not be flaunted
Each time that you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point. unless the Spectre wants to become sword-steel in short order. If
anyone knew that the students of these mysterious insights theorize
••••• Homecoming that their source is the minds and memories of Redeemed Spectres,
The Spectre taps deep into the target’s desire to return to then all these practitioners would be utterly destroyed. Although
somewhere precious in the Skinlands and experience the rich detail these visionaries belong to many camps among the Spectres, none
and colors for which they desperately yearn. Everything else pales can be found among the followers of Lamachis, and none of them
in comparison to this precious illusion. are saying why.
System:Spend 2 Angst and 2 Willpower, and then roll Charisma If this mystery comes up in your chronicle, the Storyteller can
+ False Life (difficulty 7). On a successful roll, the target’s Perception get great ideas for answers by listening to the players’ increasingly
rolls are set at 9 difficulty except when dealing with Perception elaborate speculations and using some or all of them.
rolls linked to their Passions. The target’s Willpower rolls are at +2
difficulty for the scene. The target gains 2 Angst. This power effects • Ill-Omen
a target until they endure a new Harrowing. The Spectre can meditate on the connections of Fate they or
On a botch, you can never use Homecoming on the target again. others have unknowingly observed by using simple divination imple-
Each time you use this art, your Psyche gains 2 Pathos points. ments to determine the overall place in the fate of a person, place,
or thing. The Spectre can also read basic omens and manipulate
Blighted Insight simple decisions left most often to chance. This art can be particularly
potent in “games” of chance with other Spectres or even the Restless.
Blighted Insight enables Spectre visionaries to sense the con- System:Spend 1 Angst, and then roll Perception + Blighted
nections of Fate, induce good or bad omens, and glean information Insight (difficulty 6). On a success, you divine clues about the fate
that they should not possibly know. Practitioners of these arts are of a person, location, or object.

30 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 On a botch, the omens seem perfectly in your favor or absolutely
against you. The fate of others is similarly all or nothing, whether is
••••• Gates of Horn
as unimportant as dirt or of a great destiny. The Spectre who has learned this art can make their will manifest
upon the future and can entwine the fates of one or more targets
Each time that you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point.
with each other. By giving their targets an expanded or new mandate
•• Small Hours of destiny, they curse or damn them. In the memories of Oracles
whom the Spectre has accessed with Blighted Insight, they reweave
The Spectre can induce visions or a voice from the depths of
averted prophecies with new and hideous meaning.
their mind and have limited interaction with what they’ve summoned
about events of the past. System:Spend 4 Angst and 2 Willpower at the start of the
session. Roll Wits + Blighted Insight against the target’s Willpower,
System:Spend 1 Angst, and then roll Perception + Blighted
whether the target is resisting or not. If the roll is successful, your will
Insight (difficulty 6). On a success, the difficulties of interpreting your
for their fate is sealed and their destiny is changed. Their potential
visions for the session are at -1 difficulty. For every two additional
fate can be explored in a dreamlike vision, and you can play out
successes, all Blighted Insight rolls for the session are lowered by
what this new destiny might look like if it is not averted.
an additional +1.
On a botch, you change your own fate or that of one of your
On a botch, you forget how to use Ill-Omen or Small Hours
Fetters instead.
for the remainder of the session, and your Perception rolls are at
+1 difficulty. Each time that you use this art, your Psyche gains 2 Pathos and
1 Pathos per two additional successes.
Each time you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point.

••• Cimmerian Shade Redemption

The Spectre invites a voice into itself from the dark well of For those Storytellers who want to use Redemption in their
their Blighted Insight, and it guides them in the cursing or favoring chronicle, this is a system for the Redemption of Spectres. It describes
of one or more targets. The voice is not a true mentor. When the the conspiracies and secret operations that seek out the study of
Spectre asks it for help, the answers come from the memories of Spectres and returning Spectres to their state as one of the Restless.
people’s journals and what they uttered to pupils; the Spectre is This process is as rare, if not rarer, than Transcendence.
merely accessing the knowledge of these long-gone people.
System:Spend 2 Angst, and then roll Intelligence + Blighted
Redemption
Insight (difficulty 7). Success provides accurate information about Redemption is not Transcendence, and it could turn the
secrets from a target’s past, with each success above the first providing Shadowlands on its collective head if there was widespread knowledge
an additional secret, minor or major. Storytellers and players are of just how many wraiths felt Redemption was possible in an organized
encouraged to collaborate on what these secrets are. manner. That is, one could, given training and enough recruits,
On a botch, the voice that you’ve summoned into you will not make Redemption a wide-scale activity across the Shadowlands.
leave you alone for the rest of the session, which raises the difficulty People would chase after Shadow-eaten friends and loved ones, and
of all your Perception and Wits rolls by +1. You cannot use any of cults around Redemption could spring up. The situation could be
the Blighted Insight arts for the rest of the session. as bad as the Fishers or worse. Anything can always be worse when
Oblivion is on the table.
Each time you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point.

•••• Hypnos Reclining

The Spectre taps deep into the memories of dreams and
prophecies, whether they are human, animal, or something else. To lie How is this different from Fatalism?
vulnerable like the God of Night, the Spectre reaches deep into dreams Fatalism shows Oracles how Fate’s touch shapes
as though they too pull upon the communion of divine children. the people, places, and objects around them, giving
System:Spend 1 Angst and 1 Willpower at the start of the the Oracle guidance when in need of immediate
session, and then roll Intelligence + Blighted Insight (difficulty 7). decisions (Friendly Card), a small-scale awareness
On a successful roll, you can access a piece of information relevant to of when Fate turns its eye upon the Oracle, tainting
a current predicament or question for the remainder of the session, the fate of another, avoiding attacks, comingling the
and you gain one additional piece of information for every two extra fates of multiple wraiths, gaining knowledge of events
successes beyond the original success. to come, and the absolute change of someone else’s
On a botch, you are consumed with visions for the session. All destiny. Although Blighted Insight gives a Spectre a
your rolls are at +2 difficulty, and you cannot use Blighted Insight hidden view of Fate, it goes beyond Fatalism by sum-
for the remainder at the session. All your Willpower rolls are at a moning voices, visions, and the memory of dreams.
+1 difficulty. Nothing is safe from the view of its practitioners.
Each time you use this art, your Psyche gains 1 Pathos point.

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 31

 and Usury (•, ••, •••, or ••••); each example referring to
Initiate dots, and they do not fall under the difficulty modifier rule.
Disasters in Redemption Research Use of torture in any phase increases the difficulty of rolls in
Of all the dangerous research in which the every phase thereafter by +1. Each phase lasts at least one chapter
Restless take part, Redemption research is some of the of game time.
most dangerous and goes terribly and regularly wrong.
The Martyr Knights, the Obliviographic Institute, Phase One
some of the Darksiders, certain agents among the By first using Soulsight, the Pardoner gets their own grasp on their
Helldivers, and some of the Legion of Fate have subject because the testimony of a Psyche willing to be Redeemed can’t
been the authors of several disasters that killed entire be taken on faith. Then, the Pardoner uses Catechize to reconfirm
research teams in the early days of Doomslaying. information about the Spectre by questioning the Psyche at length.
These destructive and hellish events led to empowered Make a Stamina roll at difficulty 6 during this phase because
Shadows, post-traumatic stress, and even the freeing both parties have begun a process that will have considerable strain
of other Spectres as the research subject made their upon them before they’re done. If the Pardoner botches, their
escape. The Doomslayers who engage in active difficulty for Castigation rolls increases by +1 for the remainder of
research have learned to be a bit more careful with the scene or for the remainder of the phase, whichever is longer. If
their studies over many decades. the Psyche botches any of its rolls, for the remainder of the scene or
phase, whichever is longer, increase the difficulty of all the Psyche’s
rolls by +1 for the remainder of the scene or phase.
Those who carry the candle of Redemptive light know it’s pos-
sible. They don’t have the numbers, the recruits, or the permission Phase Two
of any bureaucrat, but they know what they do could spread across The Pardoner uses Soulsight to assess their progress. The
the Shadowlands and through Stygia itself if they had a chance to Pardoner and the Psyche each make another Stamina roll at difficulty
prove it. 6 at the start of the phase. If the Pardoner botches, the difficulty
for Castigation rolls increases by +1 for the remainder of the scene
The Stuff of Nightmares or the phase, whichever is longer. If the Psyche botches any of its
For a Spectre to stand a chance of being Redeemed, it takes rolls for the remainder of the scene or phase, whichever is longer,
a willing Psyche, and not all Psyches are keen to participate in this increase the difficulty of the Psyche’s roll by +2 for the rest of the
process. The Psyches need convincing or maybe just “convincing.” The
Psyche must have 7 (or higher) permanent Pathos for Redemption to
be possible; the process fails otherwise, and often disastrously so. The Exceptional Aid
Spectral caste that provides the most candidates is Mortwrights, who
often seem to instinctively seek out Redemption and engage those A few exceptions to the aid rules are possible. Each of
undertaking Redemption research in combat, and the Spectres are these exceptions gives the user a greater ability to change
frequently destroyed for their trouble. Doppelgangers are the second the outcome of the Redemption, but the Storyteller must
most frequent source of Redemption candidates. The fates of many of be careful to keep these exceptions from being used as
those that seek to Redeem Dark Spirits remain unknown. Striplings, a deus ex machina or crushing the emotional investment
Indwelling, and Chosen have not yet been successfully Redeemed. of the Pardoner and Spectre players by obliterating their
No one has claimed credit for the Redemption of a Nephwrack; contributions or running roughshod over their wishes
whether such a thing is even possible is still the stuff of theory. concerning possible outcomes.
Fatalism ••••• (Breathing the Mists or
The Path to Redemption Ensnare)
The process of Redeeming a Spectre is arduous and done in a
rising and falling series of escalations of contested will. Even with a Intimation •••• (Must be applied carefully
willing Psyche, Redemption is neither sure nor easy. so that the Solicitor does not get everyone involved
killed.)
Once a Spectre has been secured for the process, a Pardoner
breaks them down bit by bit. Wraiths from other guilds can use their Keening ••••• (Can lead to disastrous long-
own Arcanos to ferret out information that might be of assistance, term consequences.)
but they cannot provide more than a -1 difficulty to one roll within a
Mnemosynis •••••
single phase of the Redemption. Applicable Arcanoi that can be used
during the Redemption process to help the Pardoner are Fatalism Pandemonium •••••
(•, ••, or •••); Intimation (• or •••); Keening (••); Lifeweb
Usury •••••
(•, ••, or •••); Mnemosynis ( •• or •••); Pandemonium (••);

32 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

scene or phase. The Pardoner then uses Purify, andg if they know rest in the hands of members of the Pardoners guild Doomslayer
it, Trimming the Black Rose. order, who are known as the Darksiders.

Phase Three Darksiders

The Pardoner and the Psyche each make another Stamina roll Brave or foolhardy, these medics of the soul often go the
at difficulty 7 at the start of the phase. If the Pardoner botches, their longest, bleakest mile for their compatriots by keeping the Shadows
difficulty for Castigation rolls increases by +1 for the remainder of of Doomslayers at bay even near the mouth of the Void itself.
the scene or the phase, whichever is longer. If the Psyche botches
any of its rolls for the remainder of the scene or phase, whichever is Helldivers
longer, increase the difficulty of the Psyche’s roll by +2 for the rest Helldivers are the Doomslayers who prove that the Masquers
of the scene or phase. The Pardoner then uses Purify, and at the have their fair share of crazy. Alone or in pairs, they perform
Storyteller’s discretion, Trimming the Black Rose. operations within the Labyrinth. To survive, they go in under deep
cover. They are an entire organization that spends night after night
Phase Four pretending to be Spectres.
The Pardoner and the Psyche each make another Stamina roll Solos
at difficulty 7 at the start of the phase. If the Pardoner botches, their Solos are any Restless who do work as Doomslayers without
difficulty for Castigation rolls increases by +1 for the remainder of belonging to an organization. Some of them have training, but many
the scene or the phase, whichever is longer. If the Psyche botches don’t. Although many of them are in it for the money, others are in
any of its rolls for the remainder of the scene or phase, whichever it for more mysterious (and sometimes tragic) reasons.
is longer, increase the difficulty of the Psyche’s roll by +2 for the
rest of the scene or phase. The Pardoner then uses Purify, and at Illuminate
the Storyteller’s discretion, Trimming the Black Rose. Cooling A secret society operating within the Shadowlands, Illuminate is
The Blood may also be used at this point if the Pardoner knows it. a cross-guild effort even bridging into Renegade and Heretic ranks to
bring Spectres back from the clutches of Oblivion by using any means
Phase Five and knowledge necessary without regard for sectarian borders. Their
The Pardoner and the Psyche each make another Stamina roll symbol is a candle. Although the lantern is the symbol of Pardoners,
at difficulty 8 at the start of the phase. If the Pardoner botches, their light is still essential to what Illuminate do, metaphorical or otherwise.
difficulty for Castigation rolls increases by +1 for the remainder of Whoever chose it for whatever their reason picked something fragile
the scene or the phase, whichever is longer. If the Psyche botches that can be snuffed by a stiff wind or resilient fingers. However, a
any of its rolls for the remainder of the scene or phase, whichever candle can be held by anyone to push back darkness. Its warmth
is longer, increase the difficulty of the Psyche’s roll by +2 for the and glow can be a beacon, and its golden light in a hidden room
rest of the scene or phase. The Pardoner then uses Purify, and at is the comfort of all those who huddle around it. Illuminate does
the Storyteller’s discretion, Trimming the Black Rose. Defiance and not require its members to be capable of Castigation, only that they
Purge may also be used during this phase. If the Pardoner botches work in harmony to achieve the Redemption of Spectres.
any roll at Castigation ••• or above during this phase, they cannot Organization
use Defiance or Purge again on the Spectre for a number of months
As far as the lower-level members of Illuminate know, they use
equal to their number of botched dice. All rolls for the Spectre will
a cell structure to protect Illuminate members and their work. For
be at +2 difficulty.
those on the ground, they’ve theorized that there isn’t a command
At any point in each phase, the Pardoner may use Playing With structure and that any orders are in fact requests funneled through
Fire. During phases 1-3, the Spectre may roll Angst at difficulty 6 to intermediaries of their peers. Thus, the candle bearers are ignorant
resist the process, forcing a difficulty 6 Willpower roll against the of the fact that they might have no leaders, but only other cells in
Pardoner if their Angst roll succeeds. Success on either Angst or need of aid. 
Willpower increases the difficulty of the Pardoner to Castigate them
Circles of Light
by +1 for the remainder of the phase. In phases 4-5, the difficulty of
the Angst rolls to resist Redemption are difficulty 7, and Willpower When a group is required for an operation, each wraith must
rolls are at difficulty 8. run layer upon layer of obfuscation to keep their guilds, regular
Circles, and everyone they know ignorant of their activities. If
The Light of Salvation even one Redeemer is exposed, their entire Circle of Light could
fall with them. This danger increases the depth of loyalty between
There are many groups in the Shadowlands engaging in the Circle’s members.
Redemption research, from dedicated organizations to solitary To Redeem a Spectre, the ideal breakdown of a Circle of Light is:
Restless who simply want to help. Most, but not all, Redeemers
• Two Pardoners (Frequently, one is the apprentice to the other.)
join an organization, giving them training, backup, and resources
for the trials ahead. The instruments of Redemption don’t solely • Two Candle Guardians (to handle any outbreaks of attitude
from the Spectre or interference from the Spectres or anyone else)

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 33

• One Little Bird (Someone with the clout or other resources to walls of Stygia take extraordinary care to conceal their activities.
keep the operation safe from discovery or to spin doctor things The Order of the Thorn is in a fight against Oblivion and take the
if the operation is discovered.) fight to the enemy in the Labyrinth. They’re organized, militarized,
• One Observer (They record everything for the research and and take a lot of prisoners. Running afoul of their notice is a good
records of the organization.) way for a Circle of Light to go somewhere very dark for a long time.
These ideal conditions are rarely achievable. Things can be The Martyr Knights watch the shakers and movers of Stygia
so dire that a single Pardoner will act alone instead of waiting for for any indication of having been replaced by Doppelgangers. It’s
any combination of the ideal number of candle holders. The only unenviable and thankless work, but likely less dangerous for them
constant is that without a Pardoner present, Redemption simply than the rumor about them Redeeming Spectres. The Knights and
cannot be achieved. Illuminate have common ground to share.
Aiding and Abetting
Select members of the Order of the Thorn, the Martyr Knights,
and the Helldivers have been involved in Redemption efforts, assisting
Illuminate quietly to protect friends or in turn for some form of aid.
Spectre Cults hat is a Spectre cult? Perhaps a better question is
Due to the proximity of Doomslayers to the Shadow-eaten and the who is a Spectre because the Spectre cults depend
Doomslayers’ knowledge of Dark Arcanoi, Illuminate require their on them to exist. Aside from a few generalities,
knowledge of the inner workings of Spectres, which is no easy ask. there is little in common between Spectres, and
Fewer than a dozen allies have been found in the Emerald the organizations they create are often exceedingly
Keep, and Illuminate’s members avoid the Legion of Fate whenever personal. Yes, Spectres lurk in the Labyrinth,
possible to prevent a curious Oracle from revealing them and their haunt the shores of the Tempest, seek to do harm to the Restless
work. Despite this aversion, a handful of Illuminate members have Dead, and caper in ways that might please or be utterly ignored by
come from the Legion of Fate in its history. They simply showed the Neverborn. But, if those activities were all that they did, they’d
up unannounced on the doorstep of an operative or at the site of a be easily dealt with.
secret Redemption and offer their help. Although Obliviographers Being able to create a cult implies something unusual about a
would be a great help to the candle holders, the chance of discovery Spectre. Most are too fraught with self-loathing and seek Oblivion
by pursuing their writing has ruled out reaching out to the librarians too strongly to do anything like bring a group of like-minded Spectres
in the course of their work. together or join such a group. Most of them last a decade or two
Stygian Operations before their Shadow-ridden minds force them to seek Oblivion.
These candle-clutching light-bringers may come from any Here is one of the great secrets of any lasting Spectre cult: It’s
Necropolis in the Shadowlands, but those operating within the not composed of just Spectres. Rare and exceptional Spectres can
put together groups that attract wraiths to join them, either through
misdirection, deception, manipulation, or ruthless exploitation of
their wants and needs.
Whispered Myth A Spectre is a dangerous thing. A Spectre with the strength
The Smiling Lord is said to have fought his way of will to deny Oblivion’s call long enough to form a cult is even
back from being a Spectre and is rumored to have worse. Most of all, a Spectre who can convince others to support a
been a recipient of a Pardoner’s tender ministrations. cult to their own detriment is a very successful monster. But, they
There is no set era of this story when it is told outside don’t always appear as such. It’s hard to generalize and say what
the Legion. Within it, precious few have put a pin most Spectres are like, but when dealing with Spectre cults you must
into history and declare that this chapter of darkness forget the idea that Spectres are incapable of subtlety or are nothing
occurred sometime after the Smiling Lord fell after but capering and degenerate monsters.
fighting Hekatonkhire alongside Charon and the Wraiths often see Spectres as nightmares, and this image serves
other Deathlords. Charon saved the mask of the Stygia and the Legions. But that simplistic view of the Hounds of
fallen Deathlord, intending to return it to him when Oblivion allows rot to creep into the heart of the empire. You can
he returned from his Harrowing. It is only among never know for sure when you’re talking to a Spectre because the
the Executioners that the final details are known. thing that makes and drives them is the Shadow, and every wraith
Charon did not wait, but instead sent a group of carries a Shadow waiting to slip free and make them a Spectre too.
Restless to recover the Smiling Lord. The Pardoner Spectre cults exist to serve the narrative. They are instruments
that returned with the Smiling Lord was one of the of its needs. If you’re looking to tell a story about loss, they cause
few to survive the mission. Their parting words for losses. If you want to show the cost of heroism, they are that cost.
the Deathlord were simple: “Do not make me regret They exist to serve the story and its progression and help to emphasize
all that I have done for you.” its themes. Spectre cults are here to make the subtext the text, and
drag to light the unpleasant and nasty portions of the soul and show

34 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

them to everyone. Everyone has a breaking point, and a Spectre it grew steadily worse, which ate into her study time and cost her
cult is all about finding and pressing them. a series of part time jobs. Several trips to various doctors and ERs
Here are some of the covens that seek to bring wraiths to that cost her money that she didn’t have and told her nothing; at least
breaking point. two doctors told her she was likely just overreacting.
So she stopped going to doctors. Instead, she took up the

The Sacrifices lex Salazar died at age 27 in 1991. She died from
rosary left behind by her mother, and she prayed. Please, she prayed
every night. Hasn’t it been enough? Both parents dead, massive loads
of debt, years spent working to help the sick just to get a chance to
get a job doing the same; hadn’t she given enough? Please. All she
a respiratory infection that she couldn’t afford to wanted was to realize the dream she’d settled for, the “good enough”
have treated. Her death happened after watching option. She just wanted that small thing.
both of her parents die: her mother from cancer
Prayer didn’t save Alex either. She died. The night it happened,
and her father from the crushing debt incurred
feeling her lungs fill up, she drank the last of her dwindling savings
from her mother’s illness. Her father was driving
in cheap vodka and coughed until her throat was raw and her sink
home from his second job when he crossed the median strip and
full of fluid. She knew she was dying. She also knew that if she called
collided with another car, killing himself and the family of that car.
an ambulance, the debt would destroy her. College would be over,
That was in 1982, when Alex was eighteen. There was no money
and she’d have to work two jobs just to pay for the doctors. Just like
left for Alex to go to school, so she started working as an orderly in
her father had. In the end, she wondered if he’d deliberately let his
the hopes of making the jump to nursing, which would at least be
car drift over that line.
adjacent to her lifelong dream of being a doctor.
She chose to drift. She died wholly in the grip of her doubts,
She worked extremely long hours at less than stellar pay, but
and so came to the Shadowlands already a Spectre. But it would
managed to get into a program at the University of Illinois at Chicago
be understandable if you didn’t suspect it on meeting her in the
that would allow her to get a degree and qualifications for a position
Underworld. To all outward appearances, Alex Salazar is quite possibly
as a registered nurse. The night she resigned from her job to prepare
the nicest wraith imaginable. She is what most Doppelgangers only
for starting college, she came down with a fever. Over the course
wish they could be: a Spectre who seems to be absolutely a wraith.
of a year, that fever and the coughing and wheezing that came with

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 35

Technically, she’s a Mortwright, but her facility for deception and herself, and it shows in her work; sometimes she loses control and
her genuine wish to help Restless keep her undiscovered. cackles at wildly inappropriate times or forgets to pretend to be sad
To those she befriends, Alex is a font of information on what or concerned when she’s told something truly painful by her current
it means to be Restless. She knows the basic structure of what it mark because instead of it being a deeply painful confession, Alex
means to be a wraith and the political necessities of existence under sees it as one step closer to her ultimate freedom from suffering. All
the shadow of Stygia. She’s more than happy to explain Fetters to Sacrifices want to be eaten away by nothingness, so every moment
newcomers and help them make sense of what their purpose is and they spend deceiving others is both a sacrament and a cursed burden.
what keeps them tethered and from either transcending or falling Another weakness of many of the Sacrifices is that they ride the
prey to Oblivion. She’ll happily explain what a Shadow is and how line on Pathos. Their occupation offers them many chances to feel guilt,
to avoid Spectres. She will, if a wraith isn’t careful (and none have shame, and disquiet about their deception. Even worse, they can come
been careful enough so far), become one of your best friends until to identify with the wraiths they are trying to shepherd to Oblivion.
she knows practically everything about you. A few Sacrifices are even rumored to have found Redemption (see
Then, without a scrap of regret, Alex destroys everything you p. 31), although it’s not something spoken of by most in the group.
have left. She’ll ensure that your Fetter is wiped out. She’ll guide you Remember, the Hierarchy is nothing if not vigilant, and every Spectre
through the worst Harrowing imaginable and ensure that you suffer is a ticking time bomb. The Sacrifices can delay the inevitable, but that
until you break and allow your Shadow to devour you. If possible, act of will puts them under intense strain because they are Spectres that
she’ll deliver you straight to Oblivion and nonexistence. Because long for self-destruction even more than most of their kind. It’s more a
Alex is one of the Sacrifices, she truly and wholly believes that she question of how many they can take with them before they fail.
is doing you a favor. The Shadowlands are just a cruel punchline
at the end of the joke that is life: You suffer, struggle, and die, and Alex Salazar
even then there is no rest and no way out of toil, pain, and loss. Even Physical: Strength 1, Dexterity 2, Stamina 2
death is no release. Alex found her Shadow even before death took Social: Charisma 3, Manipulation 4, Appearance 2
her; she could have let herself go to Oblivion and be content. But Mental: Perception 3, Intelligence 3, Wits 5
how many would she be dooming to continued pain and strife? Talents: Awareness 2, Empathy 2, Subterfuge 4
How many would suffer as she suffered?
Skills: Etiquette 2, Performance 4, Stealth 3
Alex Salazar wants to help you, so she teaches, guides, helps,
Knowledges: Academics 2, Medicine 3, Politics 1
advises, and listens, and when you need her the most, she ushers
you into Oblivion. She gives you the gift she has denied herself to Arcanoi: Argos 1, Collogue 2, Corruptor 5, Larceny 1, Moliate 2
make sure others never have to endure what she did. Passions: Save wraiths from the pain of existence (Love) 5, Guide
others (Pride) 2
The Sacrifices Past and Present Fetters: The University of Illinois at Chicago dorm room where
she died.
Alex is just one of the Sacrifices. Linked through the hive-mind
of Spectres as the voice of Oblivion itself that also touches the Willpower: 8
Shadows of other Restless, the Sacrifices have endured for centuries Pathos: 5
despite their individual members having a fairly short tenure before Angst: 8
they can’t repress the urge for true peace any longer. Alex has been Permanent Corpus: 5
active for years, and she knows her time is soon, which gives her
a kind of manic and delighted energy when dealing with Restless.
She is currently seeking a student whom she can help usher into a
Harrowing and wake to the truth that she’s known all her death.
Est Machina here’s a saying in the Shadowlands: “If you’re
Some Spectres fill this role by inserting themselves in the day-
dead, don’t go to Lynn.”
to-day existence of vulnerable wraiths. Others become part of an
organization. The helpful Restless from the Penitent Legion who is Lynn, Massachusetts is a perfectly normal
known as a Pardoner or the gruff but avuncular wraith who helps town in the Boston Metropolitan area and is the
newly deceased souls make sense of the Hierarchy could be useful largest city in Essex County. It is a mere three
roles for a Sacrifice. A Sacrifice might be anyone who comes into miles from Boston proper. But, Lynn is a fairly
contact with wraiths who are vulnerable. convivial place to be for the living, Lynn is something else entirely
in the Shadowlands.
But, just because anyone could be a member doesn’t mean they’re
everywhere. The Sacrifices are hardly innumerable or omnipresent. The Naumkeag peoples who lived in the area where Lynn is
They work best when they’re both subtle and rare. They’re a cult today were destroyed by two plagues at the start of the colonial era
of Spectres that want to be dissolved forever in Oblivion and see and to this day some of their spirits dwell in Lynn’s Shadowland.
themselves as martyrs enduring yet more pain and suffering for Only a few, for it’s difficult to retain a Fetter when a place changes
the sake of others. Eventually, they burn out. Alex is on the verge so radically around you, and the Lynn that stands in the Skinlands
is almost unrecognizable to them. They keep to the edges of the city

36 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

and are led by a woman who had her name stolen from her by the But Spear had vision. A great many visions, in fact. He and
English who colonized their lands after smallpox finished killing his followers were fervent Spiritualists, consulting with the spirits
them. As a wraith, she calls herself the Great Sachem. Many would of the “Association of Electrizers”, men and women whom Spear
like to blame the troubles of Lynn’s Shadowland on her, but she is believed had galvanized the nation with the passion for progress
blameless; her Shadow has never dominated her, but she keeps the that had birthed it. Spear came to rely on the counsel of these
truth of her Fetter well hidden. ghosts: Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams,
Restless in Lynn like to blame the Naumkeag for their troubles Benjamin Rush and others, and his idol John Murray. To Spear,
in part because that’s the history of the area. Towers and forts were electricity was almost a metaphor for the divine spark that he believed
built during the colonial era to defend against tribes that were had struck the flame that had birthed America, which would now
generally peaceful despite the erosion of their sovereignty and the help complete the work and birth a true bastion of freedom and
loss of their land. There were occasional conflicts, but in the end liberation for all men and women.
the lands that Lynn and other cities and towns were built on were They just needed to build it. In Lynn, the “City of Sin” that
mostly taken piecemeal from tribes that offered no violence to the helped drive the industrial heart of the growing revolution, they set
colonists. By the 19th century, the “City of Sin” was a major hub out to make a messiah for the mechanical age.
for the sea trade and industry in the area, and crime and vice were The Electrizers guided Spear and his followers as they toiled in
large parts of Lynn’s economic engine. A group led by a former a shack on High Rock Road for months. Objectively, the object of
abolitionist and Universalist minister came to Lynn to try and build their efforts was a confusing contraption of copper and zinc, magnets,
a new messiah. and an old table, but they had faith and Spear’s visits from the great
The story of the New Motive Power is a strange one. The mind spirts of some of the greatest architects of the American experiment
of the man behind it, John Murray Spear, was not a simple one. He to sustain them. With geniuses such as Franklin, Jefferson, and Rush
was born in Boston in 1804, and he grew up in a city coming to guiding them, how could they fail?
terms with what it had done and become a mere twenty or so years Finally, Spear was satisfied that they were ready. Along with a
earlier when it had gone from a colonial city to the birthplace of woman known to history only as the “New Mary,” he engaged in a
revolutionary ideals that birthed a new nation. That nation was far ritual taught to him by the Association of Electrizers and symboli-
from perfect, and it had difficulty living up to those ideals. Spear cally sought to birth the new Messiah into the world just as the first
grew up into a clergyman who was determined that it should do so. Mary had borne Christ. He and his followers awaited the arrival of
He idolized his namesake, John Murray, who’d come to America the New Motive Power; a divinely ordained automaton that would
from England and founded the Universalist denomination there reveal the will of God through the spirit of progress and liberation.
after being excommunicated from the English sect. It did not happen. The New Motive Power did not stir. It did

Lost American Religion not speak prophetic truths or reveal to Spear and his followers how
to heal the sick or mend the growing divide in his beloved country.
It’s difficult for people today to realize that there was a time In short, it did nothing at all.
in American history where people preached from the pulpit that Spear left Lynn and died some thirty years later, in 1887. He
women should be treated as equals, that pre-marital sex wasn’t a never foreswore the Association of Electrizers and continued to follow
sin, and that slavery was an abomination because all men were their advice and teachings. He even retired from his self-declared
brothers. Spear was just one of many preachers in the era of “Bible ministry in 1872 at the demand of the Electrizers. He lived to see
Communism” who saw the rise of American industrialization as the end of slavery, although not from preaching and prayer but
a dehumanizing force. Unlike many of them, Spear didn’t view the through a bloody war. He never saw women gain equal rights or
mechanical era as an aberration to be feared. By the 1850s, Spear’s the end of the death penalty, but if his failure to create a Messiah
ideals had cost him his status within the Universalist Church, and haunted him in any way, he never seemed to show it.
he felt that the burgeoning tide of Spiritualism held more answers
than reading from an old book. He and his followers moved to High
Rock Road in Lynn, and there they began their work.
The New Mary
But not all of Spear’s followers were so sanguine about the failure
Spear was deeply troubled at the state of affairs in the world of the New Motive Power. One in particular was just as important
around him. Slavery seemed to be enduring despite decades of to the machine God’s birth as Spear: its mother. Although history
work opposing it, women still did not have the franchise, and the deliberately did not remember the name Elizabeth Bennetton-Cobb,
ideals of sexual and spiritual liberation that he held dear were hardly without her as the “New Mary” the New Motive Power would never
prospering as Massachusetts moved further into the Industrial era. have been built. Born in 1825, Elizabeth lived a life constantly grap-
Spear, like many of his profession, believed in the awesome power of pling with the constraints of a society that would not recognize her
God’s boundless love and forgiveness, and as he attempted to reach gifts. An accomplished linguist, chemist, and tinkerer, no one would
out to slaves and prisoners he came to view the death penalty as a take her on as an apprentice or allow her to secure a career in any
great injustice. His faith told him that human life was sacred, the of these fields. She had no desire for a husband or to keep a home,
souls of men were God’s to take, and God alone was to reap them. and she only barely managed to attend the new Oberlin Collegiate

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 37

 How would modern Restless discover this story?
They might interview the Naumkeag Restless
who still inhabit the area. Although the Naumkeag
hold little love for Stygia or much respect for its ways,
they have been in the area before Lynn existed in the
Skinlands. The Great Sachem is wise and observant,
and has watched the doings of the western wraiths
ever since she died.
Another possibility is to find pieces of the
original New Motive Power, that is, Relics of its gears
and parts that were created when it was dismantled.
Furthermore, the table that served as its base went to
the Spear home in Philadelphia. When Spear died
in 1887, it went into storage there. A wraith using
Inhabit or Lifeweb could interact with it and learn
of Spears’ folly.
Finally, wraiths could be asked by the wraiths
of Lynn to look into the situation. The people who
live around the Nihil know scraps of the truth, and
there are rumors that some of the Benneton family
still linger in the Shadowlands of Lynn who might
know of Elizabeth’s story and how she became the
True Spear.

Institute in 1842 when she was 17 years old. After her graduation
in 1844, she met Spear when she returned to Massachusetts.
Spear was the first person Elizabeth met who looked past her
gender and saw the genius she was. For her part, although Elizabeth felt
much of what Spear believed was questionable, she was mesmerized
by his calm, forceful belief in the equality of all and God’s universal
love. Their relationship was never sexual, but Spear’s preaching about
sexual liberation and universal emancipation affected how Elizabeth
came to view the world. As he shared his idea for the New Motive
Power with her, she grew to support its creation. With the few pen-
nies she could obtain and the scraps that Spear supplied, Elizabeth
designed the New Motive Power. She was the first to admit that it
was a ludicrous contraption, but she was working with schematics
seemingly dictated to an untrained clergyman by long dead men
who often had minimal actual training. Her rational mind told her
it would never work, but her need for an escape from a stifling role
imposed on her by others drove her ever onward.
She took part in the ritual as the “New Mary” out of desperation.
Spear believed; he wanted it to work, but when it didn’t his faith
assured him all would be well. Elizabeth needed it to work; when it
didn’t, she was crushed. By 1852, she was 27 years old, and unmarried
and perfectly happy that way. However, her family viewed her as an
expensive failure who’d educated herself out of any meaningful role.
Her father disowned her, and her mother and two sisters avoided
her out of fear of his anger. She had no work prospects except as a
tutor in languages to other young girls who would grow up to be just

38 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

as straitjacketed by their lives as she was, and her great benefactor Around the Nihil, the True Spear rules. She is an entity spoken
had used her up and was now blithely moving away to spread the of in whispers. It is a Spectre who has taken Tempest-Weaving and
message of the healing power of magnets. soulforging and combined them to reshape and reforge her own
In 1857, Elizabeth Benneton-Cobb died from tuberculosis. As she Corpus into a clockwork soulsteel creation. She is immune to many
died slowly from it, she made detailed observations on the symptoms Arcanoi and to the ravages of being a Spectre. Although most of her
and came to the conclusion that it was caused by a microscopic organ- kind fade away in a few years, the True Spear has survived through the
ism. She was years ahead of Pasteur in this discovery, but the irony that Great War and the Fourth Great Maelstrom, the horrors of the Fifth
she’d found her own killer was just one final blow to her sense of order Great Maelstrom, and to the present day. Her clockwork soulsteel
and fairness. Spear had preached universal love, but Elizabeth saw little form displays no emotion, and her relatively few pronouncements
reason to believe it; she’d been born with gifts no one had ever allowed are terse and emotionless.
her to use and now she was dying because of the biological equivalent Eventually, Stygia will send enough force to destroy the True
of grit in her gears. She was a machine that was breaking down. Spear and her followers. Her pronouncements about ending the
Some Restless struggle with their Shadows. Elizabeth Benneton- empire and creating a true equality from its ruins ring hollow because
Cobb found hers most agreeable. Her death left her alone in the she’s done little over the years to pursue those goals; instead, she’s
Underworld and surrounded by the Restless who are generally just worked on her True Motive Power. The colossal soulsteel automaton
as blinkered as the living she’d spent a lifetime reacting against and rises from the edges of the Nihil. To build it, she harvests Corpus
tolerating. The wraiths are trapped, and they are chained to Fetters from Labyrinth horrors and hammers them into the soulsteel
that kept them acting out old patterns of lives that didn’t work. cogs and struts that she needs to construct her “God.” The True
Elizabeth had wanted to make a better world. Why did it matter if Motive Power has been in production since the 1870s, but because
she was dead? Why should she accept it? the Nihil once was the main source of soulsteel for its creation the
She returned to Lynn and the High Rock shack, and she set production has been slow.
to work. She was not yet a Spectre despite listening to her Shadow Both the Fourth and Fifth Great Maelstroms were positive
and agreeing to most of what it said. She found that she was still boons to the True Spear. As a port city, the Skinlands Lynn saw much
Fettered to the contraption that she’d helped Spear make, and she activity, and both legitimate and criminal enterprises flourished as
tried to work within the society of the wraiths. She tried to make allies goods and people flowed. These people brought with them their
and bring the light of progress and invention to the Shadowlands. dreams, hopes, and in many cases their deaths. At least once, a
Eventually, she annoyed enough of the powerful in the empire that group of Restless have set the True Spear and her True Motive Power
a decision was made. back by collapsing the construction, but she simply picked up her
In the land of the living, Spear was contacted by the “Association hammer and started over.
of Electrizers” and convinced to dismantle the New Motive Power. However, since the Fourth Great Maelstrom the True Spear
After that last and unwitting betrayal, any hope for Elizabeth has found herself with a small flock of followers. Some Spectres
Benneton-Cobb to retain a hold on sanity was torn away from her. see her as a means to an end, and others truly believe her goals will
Without the New Motive Power to serve as an anchor, she fell into end with a remade Underworld of true equality and the reward of
a Harrowing, and once there she embraced her Shadow. Stygia was merit. This flock has been bolstered from time to time by wraiths
in her eyes a force of stagnation that repeated the same patterns, and who find themselves in agreement with her basic argument: Stygia
her hate burned especially for the Lady of Fate and the Legion that is corrupt and the Legions are instruments of oppression, especially
served her; she dared them to say that there was a Fate and this was the Legion of Fate, which would have you live, die, and exist after
all part of it. Elizabeth descended into the Void and saw Oblivion, death according to an unknowable plan. So, the True Spear has
and when she did she saw the means to unmake a cruel and pointless lately taken more drastic measures. Those wraiths who do not
world that had punished her for trying to use her natural-born gifts. join her must protect themselves because the members of her Est
The Restless that descended into that Harrowing was Elizabeth. Machina (To The Machine) are willing and able to drag wraiths to
What eventually returned to Lynn’s Shadowland was something her Nihil-Forge so that she can hammer them into teeth and bones
else entirely. for her colossal God. Anyone who goes into a Harrowing in Lynn
risks becoming part of the True Motive Power.
The True Spear However, Est Machina are not the rulers of Lynn and are not
unstoppable. Most of the wraiths in the area know what to avoid,
Visitors to Lynn now find themselves faced with a warped
and the cult controls only a small area (less than the area of the park
reflection of the city in the Skinlands. Modern-day Lynn has a
in the Skinlands) around a Nihil. Furthermore, as a Spectre cult,
park called the High Rock Tower Reservation, which is a place that
they still suffer from many if not all of the drawbacks of one, that
celebrates a somewhat sanitized version of the city’s history. That
is, an organization of beings who seek Oblivion is hardly stable.
spot in the Shadowlands is a blasted Nihil that leads straight to the
In addition to losing progress to raids from the Legion of Fate or
Tempest, and its influence radiates out. At least three times forces
unaffiliated wraiths, the True Spear has had to deal with challenges
from Stygia have attempted to pacify the area, and each time they’ve
to her position that have undone much of her work. Still, she has
been dragged to an unknown fate.
not been seen as more than an annoyance by the empire or the

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 39

 Les Voyeurs du Mal
Legions; simply put, they have had other things to do. As she grows
more brazen and more Restless fall to her sect, eventually the full
force of the empire will fall on her and her followers, especially since
control of the Nihil would follow their destruction. very wraith wants to avoid a Harrowing because
In fact, it’s the True Spear herself who both preserves and will the Shadow that dwells within them is unleashed
doom her cult. Elizabeth’s original self, her Psyche, is unusually and calls on Spectres to subject the wraith’s Psyche
strong especially for a Spectre of her age, and it has driven the True to as many horrors as it takes to break them.
Spear to extreme lengths to keep it caged. She has fashioned in her Whether it comes from the destruction of the
own Corpus a special soulsteel prison that binds her Psyche, and Corpus of the wraith, from the loss of a Fetter,
that prison requires maintenance; specifically, the complete Corpus or losing touch with one of their Passions, no wraith ever wants to
of a thinking wraith must be sacrificed to repair and maintain the feel that Nihil open and drag them into the Labyrinth.
soulsteel cage. Originally, this task had to be performed only every But when the Shadow of a wraith starts the passion play, many
few decades, but as time has progressed and Oblivion eats away Spectres are all too willing to participate. After all, there’s an art to a
at her, she must perform this task once every year. If she does not perfect Harrowing that takes the inner world of a wraith and twists
perform this task, she feels debilitating pain and has visions similar it just enough to bring about pain, fear, and eventually a loss of the
to a Harrowing in reverse; that is, she ruminates on her life and self so strong that Oblivion seems the only answer. The Harrowing
how far she’s fallen. can peel a wraith away from its connection to the Skinlands, strip
Although the True Spear is powerful, especially in terms of her it of its Fetter, and utterly swamp them in Oblivion.
brute strength and resistance to Arcanoi, she can’t be everywhere, Of course, some Restless pass through their Harrowings intact.
and much of her time is spent working on the True Motive Power. Sometimes they manage to prevent damage to their Fetters and retain
Without her direct leadership, the Spectres and wraiths of Est their Passions. Also, the Spectres who participate in Harrowings must
Machina are far less effective. As the cult’s mania grows, it continues follow the rules. Spectres can’t just show up in the surreal world of
to outstrip its members’ ability. Because Est Machina has absolutely the Harrowing and start trying to torture a wraith or hack its Corpus
no friends in the Shadowland version of Lynn, everyone hates them, away; they have to give them a way out and abide by the conditions
fears them, and wants to see them gone. of the scenario. Oblivion might have creeped into the Harrowing,
but it retains some of its original purpose, which is helping the
The True Spear wraiths come to grips with their deaths and prepare them to be free.
Physical: Strength 4, Dexterity 2, Stamina 6 Many Spectres chafe at these restrictions, but a few welcome the
Social: Charisma 1, Manipulation 4, Appearance 1 challenge. If driving a wraith to Oblivion is an art form, then Les
Mental: Perception 5, Intelligence 5, Wits 5 Voyeurs du Mal are nothing if not artists. Unique among Spectres,
Talents: Alertness 1, Athletics 3, Brawl 4, Intimidation 3 the Voyeurs are the closest thing the Hive-Mind has to experts
Skills: Crafts (Soulforging) 5, Melee 2, Survival 3 in the underpinnings of Harrowings. They know exactly what
Knowledges: Academics 4, Medicine 4, Occult 3, Science 3, they can and can’t do, and they never cheat or otherwise demean
Technology 3 themselves. There’s always a solution for the wraith who is trapped
in the fevered dream of their own Passions turned against them. A
Arcanoi: Embody 4, Flux 2, Inhabit 4, Maleficence 3, Moliate 4,
wraith who longs for someone in the Skinlands to remember her
Shroud-Rending 2, Usury 3,
will find that desire used against her, but it will never be anything
Powers: The True Spear is composed of soulsteel, and she is a basic. The Voyeurs would rather see a wraith resolve their issues
master of soulforging. Her chest contains a soulforged cage and stride forth confidently with renewed Passions than feel like
that holds her Psyche, and the Pathos of sacrificed wraiths and they’d done less than their absolute best, and playing by the rules
even Doppelganger Spectres, which she uses to keep herself is all part of the game.
from falling to Oblivion before her work is done. Her warped
Of course, that counts only inside the Harrowing. The Voyeurs
soulsteel body takes half damage from Aggravated Damage.
are absolutely thrilled to contract out their services to put a wraith
She cannot undergo Catharsis.
into a Harrowing by any means. They’ll stalk a wraith down a crowded
Passions: Destroy Stygia (Hate) 3, Awaken the True Motive Power street with soulsteel knives, force them to dive into the ground,
(Vanity) 5 use Embody or Puppetry to enter the Skinlands to destroy a Fetter
Fetters: A small portrait of Elizabeth with her family, buried with or send minions by using their mastery of Corruption, and many
her body. more such tactics. Even for Spectres, the Voyeurs are relentless once
Willpower: 8 they’ve picked out or been solicited to run a wraith down and force
Pathos: 5 it into a Harrowing. In a way, they’re the closest thing Spectres have
Angst: 6 to assassins whom are willing to enter Stygia and the Shadowlands
Permanent Corpus: 9 to ensure that their targets have no respite until they’ve faced their
Harrowing.

40 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 Why would the Voyeurs target player characters? Well, they
personally might simply do so because it struck their fancy, but
that’s hardly the only reason. An enemy of the characters could
settle upon the Voyeurs as a painless way to see them removed
or destroyed without leading back to them. Another possibility is
that another Spectre cult, such as the Sacrifices, decides to use the
Voyeurs to help probe their chosen targets, softening them up for
their eventual plummet to Oblivion.
Any wraiths who are somehow annoying or discomfiting a
powerful member of the Hierarchy might find themselves visited
by the Voyeurs. In fact, there are persistent rumors of Oracle and
Voyeur relations dating back to the Fourth Great Maelstrom. Some
Restless argue that the Oracles see those who will become a threat
and use the Voyeurs to prevent that threat from coming to pass.
Another possibility is that the Voyeurs aren’t interested in the
characters themselves, but attack them as a means to an end. Perhaps
the characters have a powerful patron that the Voyeurs can’t attack
directly but who needs a warning to keep out of the way of another
powerful patron, who hires the Voyeurs to deliver that warning. The
games of politics among the dead might drag the characters into a
conflict that has nothing directly to do with them.
The Voyeurs are consummate actors, and many of these
Shadow-Eaten are masters of Phantasm and Intimation. The use
of these Arcanoi is limited within the Harrowing, but the Voyeurs
are absolute masters of coming right up to the very dotted line
without going over it. Outside the Harrowing, they use these abilities
with ruthless precision to make a wraith lose their Passions, drive
them away from allies and support groups, and even mislead them
into revealing weaknesses that can be used to drive them into their
Harrowings.
There are many rumors about Le Roi des Voyeurs; that is, the
head of the cult. Some say that it’s a Pasiphae, which is one of the
rumored Ferrymen of Oblivion. Others argue that it is an ancient
Nephwrack servant of the Malfeans. Still others believe it is a
wraith pretending somehow to be part of the Hive-Mind for some
unknown or unknowable ends. Some even believe it is a secret part
of the Hierarchy who serve one of the Deathlords and who uses
their services to remove those most troublesome members of wraith
society. Any or all of these rumors might have some element of truth.

Valery Montaigne
One representative member of the Voyeurs is Valery Montaigne.
He claims he died in 1919 after having just barely survived years on
the Western Front of WWI. He says his death was from influenza,
and he entered the Shadowlands alongside a flood of human misery
that caused a Great Maelstrom. If you ask Valery, he’ll happily tell you
that he and the Voyeurs aren’t crazed monsters because Oblivion is
neither something to be feared nor does it need them for anything.
“It would require more arrogance than I possess to believe that
there is even a contest to be had between paltry scraps that clutch at a
long-lost life by our fingernails and the Void. Life ends in death, and
death must ultimately end dragged past the Labyrinth. I remember
my Sunday lessons; I was raised with the sure knowledge that God

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 41

 name and identity of Valery Montaigne. The pretense helps give
the Voyeurs a legend and continuity that makes them seem stable.
Who is Le Roi? That stability helps those in the Hierarchy who deal with them feel
Many who believe the Voyeurs are secretly led better about betraying their own to Spectres who will torment them
by a highly placed Hierarch want to know how they until they break and fall to the Void. It’s unknown if there ever was
manage to control a pack of theatrical Spectres. It a Valery Montaigne or if it’s all been a lie from the start. Dwelling
would take more than just craft and guile to use in the Shadowland of the Zone Rouge (see p. 128) with the remains
them. She’d need a way to control them, and that’s of the Great War still poisoning the land in the Skinlands, it’s easy
something many ambitious wraiths could use. to hide what is real behind legends.
Valery and his troupe of Spectres mirror a theatre company,
Others simply want them destroyed. The Smiling
with each one possessing Arcanoi that allow them to play a part both
Lord and his Grim Legion hate the very concept of
in stalking prey and taking part in their Harrowings once they’re
Spectre assassins because many of them were assas-
run down. Over the years, Valery has become a kind of ringmaster
sinated in life. If anyone is going to be the assassins
or master of ceremonies for his troupe. He looks much as he did
of the dead, it’s them and not a pack of actors. The
in his first days of death: lean and sandy haired with an echo of the
Ashen Lady suspects the Smiling Lord has used the
hangdog exhaustion he felt dying by inches carved into his appearance.
Voyeurs and wants confirmation, and dealing with
Le Roi once they are found and the information is He and his troupe operate in the Zone Rouge, a region of France
gained would suit her just fine. that was rendered uninhabitable during the First World War. In the
Skinlands, the town Valery was born in is still so toxic with arsenic
The Emerald Lord might also sponsor a hunt and other pollutants from all the shells fired that humans cannot
for Le Roi because inventive and innovative actors live there, and there are no buildings left to this day of the former
could teach them many new tricks, and the Monitors Fleury-devant-Douaumont. But in the Shadowlands, Valery and
don’t like the competition. the others can still find places to hold court.
As for who Le Roi is, there are many rumors. Of course, a region as soaked in blood and death as the Zone
Perhaps the Smiling Lord is behind the group; it’s not Rouge has many Nihils and borders the Labyrinth, so it’s an easy
like consorting with Spectres would be a treason too jaunt for a pack of Spectres who love driving Restless to madness
far for him. Those who know that there have been and despair. Valery talks a good game, but whether or not he thinks
many wraiths wearing the name Valery Montaigne Oblivion needs him, he certainly needs it. The horrors that he inflicts
over the years suspect the original holder of that and the wounds that he leaves on the Psyche of those wraiths he
sobriquet to still exist and to be pulling the strings torments are sweet to him, and although he plays scrupulously fair
behind the scenes. Yet others suspect an intruder while in the Harrowing it is only because he has no choice. The fact
from outside the Dark Kingdom of Iron because of that he can’t simply flay the wraiths he “performs” for apart with
the Voyeurs’ roots in World War I and the Fourth their own fears, needs, and lusts is like a knife being driven under his
Great Maelstrom. fingernails, and his sadism grows worse with every passing year. The
elaborate hunts his troupe engages in across France’s Shadowland
The truth in your chronicle should be something have drawn the attention of those within the Kingdom of Iron
that stirs up interesting new complications. who find them less useful than disruptive. Across the Necropoli
of Europe, Valery has made many enemies, and his own mania for
dressing up his love for rubbing people’s noses in their own flaws
needed nothing from me. All sufficient to His own defense, I believe. goads him to ever more elaborate Harrowings. Even many Shadows
Oblivion is the true face of God, and the cosmos itself the stone that will no longer work with him and his followers.
grinds all. The Harrowing is all part of the order of things. It exists Valery is not daunted by his situation. When Oblivion wants
to show us our folly and prepare us for the truth. Oblivion does him, he claims he’ll gladly go. Until then, he and his followers have a
not hunger, and it is not malevolent; these are concepts rooted in role to play, which is one that he sees as pre-ordained and necessary.
existence. In life. Oblivion is not alive. It is very much not anything If he is ghastly, what can one say? He is after all a ghast, is he not?
at all, and it does not need us because it cannot need us. But we
need it or there would never be an end to any of this suffering we Valery Montaigne
wrap ourselves in. We poor dead things are trapped in webs of our Physical: Strength 2, Dexterity 1, Stamina 2
own making. The Harrowing is how we cut ourselves free.” Social: Charisma 4, Manipulation 3, Appearance 3
Valery is a gifted actor, a Doppelganger, and a member of the Mental: Perception 3, Intelligence 2, Wits 4
Actors faction. Valery is also a consummate liar, and everything he
Talents: Alertness 2, Empathy 3, Expression 2, Subterfuge 2
says about himself and every claim he makes is a lie. Valery died
Skills: Performance 5
recently and became a Spectre even more recently; his name isn’t
even really Valery. There have been many who have claimed the Knowledges: Investigation 2

42 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Arcanoi: Fatalism 2, Keening 3, Phantasm 3 are led by a terrible figure, a hooded and cloaked creature with
Passions: Put on the best Harrowing possible (Pride) 3, Show others an enormous scythe locked behind tainted armor and a robe
what they can’t face in themselves (Love) 3 that covers much of its torso. It has no visible face that can be
Fetters: The former basement of the theatre in Fleury-devant- seen behind the featureless helm it wears and it never speaks,
Douaumont, which is the only part of it left intact. but the Nephwracks who labor in twisted service to it obey its
Willpower: 6 every whim. One survivor of their attack who managed to drop
into a Harrowing and overcome it to escape them called it the
Pathos: 2
Granddaughter.
Angst: 6
The Granddaughter sails the Tempest in a ship made of
Permanent Corpus: 4 soulsteel and debris dredged from the death-ocean. These debris

The Sailors of the Sunless Sea

are the flotsam and jetsam from souls that have forgotten their
Passions or been stripped of them, such as a dream of a lost toy, a
memory of the day a loved one died, or the fragments of a warm
he Tempest is a place where the concept of day that serve only to torment the one who holds them, all lashed
oceans lingers, and it is expressed in nightmares together into a nightmare ship. The Granddaughter roams the
and portents. You could sail into a firestorm Tempest and preys on anyone its crew can catch. Its prisoners
or crash on shoals deposited by the dying are held in terrible cages that prevent them from escaping into
exhalations of plague-stricken children. Dotted Harrowing. While waiting until the craft is full, these prisoners
by the Far Shores and surrounding Stygia, it listen to the gibbering of the broken Nephwracks, whom have
is as much a part of the Underworld as the Shadowlands or the been twisted by the Granddaughter’s terrible facility with Moliate.
Labyrinth. Words like “under” and “surrounding” are used to Some argue that the ship and the Granddaughter are one and
describe the relationship between these places, but the truth is that the armored figure striding the decks is a manifestation of
they are all and none of them. But one thing is certain: Wherever the craft’s unnatural hunger for captive souls to drag to the void.
you find Restless, you find Spectres working to bring Oblivion Of all the Cults listed, the Sailors are both the most
in ways subtle and gross. straightforward and yet the hardest with which to deal. They do
Spectres can be many things. They can be subtle manipulators not stay in one place and can travel freely between parts of the
taking advantage of the inexperienced. They can be outraged at Tempest and the Labyrinth. Although the various Nephwracks
a corrupt Hierarchy and a Dark Kingdom that continues the that make up the crew can be dealt with through raw force, a
same injustices they faced in life. They can be aesthetes who view one-on-one fight with the Granddaughter is almost certainly a
their role as players in a cosmic drama. But that’s not all there losing proposition for anything short of a Deathlord. A group
is to them. Sometimes Spectres are just Shadow-eaten monsters, of characters who run afoul of the Sailors could end up in their
such as Nephwracks, Pasiphae, or servants of Malfeans dancing cages, where they find themselves kept prisoner along with other
to Oblivion’s tune. Sometimes a Spectre cult is just a gang of Restless and even Spectres whom the Granddaughter finds useful.
monsters who lash out at anyone who crosses their path. The mystery of the Sailors’ ultimate patron and purpose helps
The Sailors of the Sunless Sea are these monsters. They make them more of a threat because even if they are somehow
didn’t name themselves; the name came from Stygia because they dealt with, they might well return and take up where they left off.
haunt the Tempest. If they were alive, they’d be something akin
to pirates that attack travelers and steal whatever of value they The Granddaughter
can. Because they’re Spectres (and most of them Nephwracks at The Granddaughter is a being on par with a Onceborn.
that), they often simply swarm their quarry and force them to flee Stats for it are pointless because fighting it would be futile for
into a Harrowing or lose all their Corpus. They’re not coherent most troupes of wraiths or even Spectres. In addition to a crew
enough to forge soulsteel because so little of their humanity is full of Nephwracks at its beck and call and her terrifying scythe,
left that they could never deceive anyone about their motivations, its armored and shrouded form seems nearly indestructible, and
and they don’t care about artistry. They just haunt the nightmare she can traverse the Tempest and the Labyrinth with an ease that
ocean and look for victims. Sometimes they capture wraiths and even Ferrymen would envy.
drag them deeper into the Labyrinth itself. Do they drag them to To fight the Sailors of the Sunless Sea, a group of wraiths
the Malfeans? Throw them into the Well of the Void itself? There must discover what the Granddaughter is after and remove it
are rumors of a great maw other than the Well of Oblivion that from her reach. Perhaps they could deliver it to the Ashen Lady,
hungers for all things that sleeps underneath the Labyrinth, but take it to the top of the Onyx Tower, or otherwise prevent the
if the Sailors bring it tribute in an attempt to awaken it, none Granddaughter from taking it. Another possibility might be to
have returned to spread the news. have the characters awaken in the cages inside the Granddaughter’s
The Sailors are the horrific crew of a ghost ship that haunts ship. They could work together to escape rather than actually
the Tempest. Sailing through the hazards of the storm-sea, they confront the monstrosity itself.

IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST: SPECTRES 43

 The Forever Wind:
The Tempest
t used to be a sedate ocean called the Sea The only true knowledge-keepers of the Tempest are the
of Shadows. It used to be a rolling sea that Ferrymen and those Restless who have braved the siren song
churned with all the colors of the soul. It of their Shadow and gained knowledge by testing the limits of
was once almost peaceful, and did not ever the ocean.
disturb the Shadowlands that lay above it or It’s important to understand that the Tempest connects
the Labyrinth below. But after the Maelstroms places, and anybody who needs to get from Point A to Point
came and disturbed the waters of the dead, it became much B must cross it. It’s a violent and dangerous place that takes
more than an ocean and the Sea of Shadows. Where once it significant skill to traverse, whether by Ferryman, on your own,
was safe to sail along without a Ferryman, now hurricanes of or in a group.
glass; maelstroms of vengeful, confused souls; and tsunamis of The Tempest sometimes looks like a calm portion of the
magma swell through the waters and destroy those who do not Pacific or Atlantic Oceans. At other times it looks as though
know how to cross the waters of the sea safely. Without a guide, shards of glass have crashed together and make a sharp wave
a soul will be lost or destroyed. that crests over those it catches and slices their souls to shreds.
The Tempest was once the Sea of Shadows, but now it is a Other parts are made up of soulstuff. Faces pulse and scream,
place few are brave enough to set their sail. Crossing the Tempest and hands grasp and clench up through the water at whatever
isn’t easy even with the assistance of a Ferryman. Even with the those poor unfortunate souls can harvest for themselves.
correct coin, the right words spoken, and the correct directions Storytellers can use the Tempest in many ways: as an obstacle,
given, it is still dangerous to go without one who would guide as a place that characters must traverse in order to successfully
you safely across, above, or below. find their way into a new location, or as the setting itself with
There are many parts to The Tempest: lakes of cold fire, various dangers and obstacles that the characters must overcome.
islands set far out from the shore that are home to only the In a time of climate change and fears of the oceans rising
hungriest of shades, and Shadows of Sirens holding one rocky and the polar ice caps melting, it’s easy to tap into fear around
shoal who calling to any who listens. Even further afield are the ocean. Sinking cities, rising tides, and dying creatures that
eddies of hot magma that brighten the sky of a sunless sea as rise from the deep to take their revenge can be adapted to the
wide and vast as the imagination. No one knows quite how large setting of the Tempest. It’s a place that should conjure fear and
the Tempest is because the legends of its size and its abilities far horror, but also loneliness in the face of abject terror. Much of
surpass whatever might be true. the fiction written about the ocean is about the things that live
in the ocean that we cannot control, such as Moby Dick, or about as mustard gas, and the scent of antiseptic lingered for days
long-lost ships like the Flying Dutchman and the Titanic. after it ended.
This is a place where a wraith’s Shadow can sing the song of • The Fifth Great Maelstrom began as a small storm during the
a siren and lure their wraith into a whirlpool that tears them to initial T4 project by the Nazi Party. It strengthened over time
shreds. This is a place that can unmoor one from the Fetters that and into a tornado-like storm. Finally, it became a full-blown
might be most important to a wraith. A wraith might move from Maelstrom as the Holocaust escalated and the atomic bombs
place to place in the Tempest with ease, but find themselves facing were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A silent flash
a much greater danger within a Maelstrom. burst the Shroud loose for a few moments after the atomic
Maelstroms are events that are catastrophic. They usually are bombs dropped, which allowed more Restless to enter than
the result of a massive event that either happened in the Skinlands ever before. No sound could be heard until the Malfean
or within the Underworld. They are always vicious and wrenching Gorool awoke within the Labyrinth and attacked Stygia. The
things that destroy all in their path. destruction that Gorool left in its wake is still being repaired,
with the damage being both psychic and corporeal in nature.
The Storms Before Each of these instances made its own mark upon the Tempest,
Stygia, and the Shadowlands. There’s always the opportunity for
There have been many major and Great Maelstroms.
Maelstroms are swelling and uncontrollable storms that change a character to find remnants of each of these Maelstroms, such
the landscape and the tenor and swell of the Tempest. Each Great as the scent of mustard gas on the wind, a toppled building, or a
Maelstrom was linked to an event in the world, which usually was shoal carved out and never taken back by the sea.
a great death that devastated the living.
Before these Great Maelstroms, the Sea of Shadows was a The Storms Now
place of relative harmony. Souls who chose not to interact with The Tempest now is a complicated place. Another Great
society became part of the Sea of Shadows and be at peace, and Maelstrom might be brewing. Stygian wraiths are shoring up the
those who wanted to participate in life after death were given the Dark Kingdom of Iron as best as they can by building new sea
option to join society in Stygia. walls and trying to repair the tear in the shroud from 1999, but
• The First Great Maelstrom was prompted by the Fall of Rome. not everything is fixable or safe. The Tempest remains unpredict-
It nearly destroyed Stygia when the storm slammed against able and there are few ways or resources to attempt to predict
Stygia’s shores with a previously unknown rage. Charon’s anything about it.
solution was to build a sea wall out of souls who had been In each era, humanity did something that changed the Tempest
destroyed to protect the Isle of Sorrows from future flooding. and usually for the worse. Even without the influence of the living,
• The Second Great Maelstrom was prompted by the Black the Tempest is a vast hollow abyss, and when it shifts you can never
Death, which was the plague that ravaged Europe and killed predict the way that the wind might blow.
millions. The Shroud nearly tore from the sheer weight of
the many souls coming through it. Although Stygia did not
fall, Charon began to extract tithes, which resulted in outrage
from many of the dead.
The Everyday Tempestrriving at the shore itself is interesting. Whether
• The Third Great Maelstrom was prompted by the conquest it’s a wraith’s experience of coming out of a
of the Americas, which was a devastating blow to indigenous Ferryman’s haze and spotting the shores of
peoples across an entire continent (for more information Stygia or the Shadowlands for the first time or a
about the past and present of the American Shadowlands, fading ocean spray haze, sometimes the seas are
see p. 89). The conquest did not simply affect the Tempest just there and then they are not; the transitions
due to incidents which happened then, but also due to the can be perfectly normal for an ocean view or completely abrupt.
reckless impact these actions had on the world for the future. The sea wall is one of the few exceptions to this sudden shift.
The events of the Third Great Maelstrom shifted Stygian It can be seen for miles. Through the Ferryman’s haze, a storm
society into what it is today: this is when the factions were shelf, or a tornado, there will be a black line on the horizon that
codified (Hierarchy, Heretic, and Renegade), and the first foretells the sea wall in the distance.
Necropolis was founded in London.
There are plenty of obstacles. Whirlpools often appear out of
• The Fourth Great Maelstrom came about during The Great nowhere and suck boats and wraiths swimming alone down into
War (World War I) and the Spanish influenza pandemic. The the deep. Sometimes they are traditional whirlpools, but others
Battle of the Somme was the initial cause when three million are made of flame or glass. Whirlpools made of St. Elmo’s fire
combatants died. Then, 500 million died from the Spanish have been seen at a distance. They’ve probably been seen closer
flu. This devastating influx of souls let Spectres take the at hand too but the experience isn’t one that observers survive
Citadel at Florence, and the storm shut down all the byways except perhaps as Spectres.
to traverse toward Stygia and beyond. The storm manifested

46 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 With the rise of climate change, tsunamis and hurricanes Ferrymen don’t have much respect for property lines. Their
are another concern. Some of the more unusual effects of climate boats will go wherever is safest and fastest and wherever obstacles
change include sinkholes. In the Skinlands, a sinkhole sucks aren’t. If there’s something in the ocean ahead, a Ferryman’s boat
everything downward, and what is caught in it appears in the might make its way across an island and float swiftly through
Shadowlands. When a sinkhole opens on one of the islands in whatever lies in its path, which includes any structures that were
the Shadowlands or inside of the Tempest, it spits out cars, trees, built on an island, any sea walls that might have been erected to
people, animals, and corpses. These areas should be avoided. As prevent rising tides during storms, and any inhabitants who live
more glaciers melt (and find their way down the Styx into the there.
Tempest) and more sinkholes appear in the world of the living, There are a few permanent settlements in the Tempest, but
these of dangers appear more frequently. At some point, the perhaps one of the most prominent one is Caliban’s Isle. The
temperatures in the Tempest will begin to cool, suck all the ice wraith Sycorax left it here for her son, and he dwells there far from
from the living world, and push heat back in its place. The living the world that rejected him. Caliban is the kind of neighbor that
will burn and the dead will freeze. a wraith may not want because his Shadow is strong and tries to
Although Stygia and most other parts of the Shadowlands manipulate other wraiths’ Shadows.
are protected from these particular natural disasters, they still Sycorax was a witch who lived in the 16th century. She gave
wreak havoc on the seas and those who live on them. When the birth to a half human and half monster child whom she named
sky goes green, expert sailors batten down the hatches because Caliban. When Sycorax died, she left her son the island. A mage
they know that a storm is coming and nothing can be done but stole it from him and Caliban’s rage was palpable. If your neighbor-
to ride it out. During the storm, tornados rip through the water ing isle is Caliban’s Isle, your wraith might experience heightened
and wailing shades attack anything in their path. rage, feel destabilized, or even be in stronger communication with
Of course, sometimes what’s on the ocean isn’t as unpredict- their Shadow than on other islands.
able as the shores themselves. With unpredictable sea levels affecting Caliban’s Isle is only one example of the kinds of potentially
the living world, beaches that have been drowned by the rising troublesome neighbors that Tempest dwellers can face. If your new
oceans have found their way here as a landscape born from the habitat or outpost is one of the places where the Flying Dutchman
death of the world. Therefore, not even experienced sailors know docks, you’ll experience more storms than anywhere else.
the landscape as well as they did. There are concerns beyond neighbors and natural inhabitants

Dwelling in the Storm of the islands. The Great War brought U-boats into the Tempest
that stalk targets, and World War II brought minefields that might
For some Restless, the Tempest is not a transitional space still lie underneath the sands of some otherwise inviting beaches.
where passages are made and storms are dodged. Instead, it is their Any land or sea mines that mirror locations in the Skinlands and
home. There are many small archipelagos, islands, peninsulas, and took the lives of Restless find their way to the Shadowlands where
channel islands for would-be residents to claim, but the process they wait to explode. Relic mines can come from as far back as
is difficult. the Crimean War. Go even further back in time and you’ll find
There are many things already living on those islands, such as other dangers, such as Viking longboats and Grecian warships that
selkie wraiths, sirens, and even a cyclops or two, and all of them cross the Tempest. Sometimes Spectres crew them, and sometimes
eat wraiths. Some use their essence for power, others simply want they seem to operate themselves (For more information about the
to be left alone, and the sirens are always looking for a toy. Chosen and the Indwelling, see pp. 27-28).
Some of these islands are home to wild packs of ghostly dodos, There’s always the constant threat of Spectre armies coming
flocks of skeletal passenger pigeons, and other communities of down on a new settlement, destroying it, and taking the wraiths
extinct creatures, all of which make a wraith’s afterlife harder, there and using them as slaves. Dwelling in the Tempest always
more complicated, and significantly less pleasant. This is a unique means balancing the risks and reward of proximity to danger,
feature outside the Bush of Ghosts, as deceased animals are rarely distance and ease of access to Stygian strongholds, openness to
present in the Underworld. The Stygian Legions can be found the surrounding sea, and potentially valuable resources such as
roaming these islands on missions, and they’ll sometimes harvest dodo souls to Relics and Artifacts.
these creatures’ souls for their own purposes. In addition, if a
wraith is using one of these islands as a hideout and one of the Valuable Objects
Legions shows up, it might go poorly. But, the Legions aren’t the Ferryman’s Oar (Artifact Level 1) It’s pretty easy to get one
only ones trying to use dodos, pigeons, and turtles; Alchemists and of these oars. Ferrymen lose them in the Tempest all the time, for
Artificers also use the feathers and bones of long-dead creatures example, when a current snatches it away, a shark surprises them,
to fuel their creations. or one of their boats goes below the waves and never returns. A
Protecting these creatures falls primarily to Restless allied with wraith knows that they’re looking at a Ferryman’s oar and not
the Heretics and other organizations within the world of Stygia that a piece of driftwood because of the soft purple glow around
accept Transcendence and move on from this part of the afterlife. the rounded base of the oar. By using these oars, you can steer

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 47

through waters both calm and fraught. These are easily lost, and Civil War raged. Wraiths still talk about the Guernica Storm, and
if a wraith is caught “borrowing” one by a Ferryman, there might sometimes encounter it.
be consequences. Storytellers who want to make an emotional impact on their
St. Elmo’s Fire Lantern (Artifact Level 1) These lanterns players might consider ways to use current events (or past ones) to
rarely escape the Underworld, but they’ve been known to appear create storms that react to what has happened to characters or events
in the Skinlands from time to time. Similar to Redeyes, they can in the world relevant to that character’s thoughts and memories.
light the way in the Tempest, but unlike a Redeye, which stays in Many different storms come and go, and this section gives
place, these lanterns often find that they want to go somewhere Storytellers the tools to create storms and a list of several storms
else and show the wraith to a new route to a new place. They are to throw at players.
best used when a wraith carries it in their hand. Building a storm is about three things: visual cues, sensory
Vasa Diving Bell (Relic Level 2) A wraith looking to do experience, and damage. When a Storyteller wants to create an
underwater exploring might find this handy. Found in the Tempest entirely new storm for their players to experience, they must decide
after the Viking-era warship Vasa was discovered still underneath these three things.
the water in Stockholm’s Harbor, it renders the user invisible to
anything that might be looking for them. It is a black bell with visible
studs along the seams large enough to hold a single wraith. It has
The Dali Storm
• Visual Cue: The Dali Storm appears on the horizon at first,
an indefinitely long oxygen hose that rises up into the indefinite
and it begins to drip slowly. The colors of the world begin to
distance of the Shadowlands and frequently passes through weak
resemble the colors of a well-mixed acrylic paint.
spots in the Shroud to drift in calm waters of the Skinlands.
• Sensory Experience: Wraiths know they are in the Dali Storm
Waste Land Compass (Relic Level 4) It doesn’t look like
when they feel as though their extremities are beginning to
a compass. It looks like a copy of T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land. A
melt; if they look down at their hands, they see them elongat-
wraith who holds it in their hands develops an accurate conviction
ing, stretching out, and dripping.
of how to get to (or through) the Far Shore known as the Waste
• Damage: The Dali Storm can melt entire buildings over the
Land. This is highly valuable object, and the danger level of having
course of an hour. It can leave a wraith in a puddle where
it is the same level as the benefit the owner receives in carrying it.
they cannot make sense of the world and reform as their
Other Artifacts and Relics might help a wraith survive in the
original shape.
Tempest, such as diving helmets, pieces of the Titanic, or even
U-boat spare parts. The trick is in being resourceful enough to
find them and use them to their best advantage.
The Arcane Storm
One of the most dangerous storms that appears with some
The Storms Themselves regularity is the Arcane Storm. When a mage dies and becomes a
wraith, their avatar rips away, inverts, and creates a small tornado,
There are storms that appear for no good reason and storms
which causes magical changes to the Tempest.
that appear because they have a tether to the world. Some storms
• Visual Cues: A tornado crackling with energy drops down
look like the ones that you’d expect to see on the horizon during
and tears up the Tempest in its wake.
a hurricane, but other storms might look like something out of a
painting, such the Dali Storm, which melts the horizon and every- • Sensory Experience: The scent of ozone can be smelled
thing it touches within a hundred mile radius. It saps everything wherever the tornado is seen.
around it of its sentience and matter and drips everything down • Damage: A wraith caught in the tornado takes damage from
the median line like oil paint dropped on a canvas. the magick whirling in its wake. The Storyteller is encouraged
Weather patterns of the Tempest are fueled by emotion. These to combine elemental effects, such as fire and earth or acid
patterns are not random, but are reflections and impressions of and ice, or to hasten the flow of time or drain Corpus from
events that happen in the world of the living. Some of them are a victim of this attack.
related to Maelstroms, but others happen because something
important happened to the living that usually coincides with a The Tempus Hurricane
death or tragedy. Two examples are the death of a great artist and Another storm less common is known as a Tempus Hurricane.
the other from an artist making a piece of art that affected the The initial storm is a relatively normal one, but what happens once
world due to grief. the storm has ended? That’s more of a mystery. It affects how the
The Dali Storm appeared when the painter Salvador Dali died, individuals who experienced the storm feel time.
and the impression of his talent made a mark on the Tempest. • Visual Cues: A regular storm where the clouds roll in, the
The Guernica Storm appeared when Pablo Picasso created the lightning crackles, and the winds whip the sails.
painting of the same name. Whispers of the black and white • Sensory Experience: Once the storm has ended, the air feels
storm with abstracted arms and heads reaching up from the deep as though it’s in stasis. There’s no wind or breeze, and after
foreshadowed the Great Maelstrom that was brewing as the Spanish a while it begins to feel musty and dry.

48 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

• Damage: A wraith caught in a Tempus Hurricane loses their players, so it should connect to the mood that the Storyteller is
sense of time. They might take damage from “aging” (an odd trying to evoke.
concept for a wraith, but it can happen in these circumstances) Storms are not always violent. Storms are not always sharp
or they might take damage because they have no access to the glass whipping through the wind at velocity. Sometimes, a storm
things wraiths need to survive. is faces staring up from the deep with hands that silently grasp for
a wraith’s hand to pull them under.
The Shadow Tornado
The last and rarest kind of storm is a Shadow Tornado. When The Storms to Come
a wraith narrowly escapes a Harrowing that they triggered, the When the last of the ice caps is gone, the world will descend
Harrowing doesn’t go away but becomes a small tornado. These into chaos. The Shroud might not survive the widening gyre of souls
storms are rare, and when they hit the Tempest, everyone scatters that will rush through as cities like New York and entire countries
because getting trapped inside of one is deadly. like Saipan and Indonesia are devoured by the sea. Harbingers
• Visual Cues: A black and green crackling tornado with faces wonder if, due to the emotional resonance of such an act, the
staring out from the inside of it, with most of them screaming. Underworld might see ice caps and glaciers entering through the
From the inside, the wraith and anybody else in their party Shroud, with all the living creatures destroyed by climate change.
can see each other as though they are in a black box theater. The storms to come are caused by humanity’s inability to
Once inside, everyone flicks between different forms, such as change. The inhabitants of the Underworld have known for 100
a family member from their living life or a memory of a statue. years that they are coming, and Stygia has been preparing for them.
• Sensory Experience: Everything is either too cold or too Wraiths care about climate change because the end result of the
hot. The wraith feel unbearable discomfort and the scent changes to Earth might be that Stygia slides underwater. Atlantis
of rotting meat. lies far beneath the Tempest already, and none of the guilds wish
• Damage: The damage is similar to the consequences for to be reacquainted with its drowned Spectres.
Harrowings. New sea walls are slowly being built in advance of the next
Storytellers should adapt storms to their specific story needs. Great Maelstrom, pumps to remove water powered by souls are
A storm is only useful when it evokes fear from the characters and being installed, and drains are being installed that hopefully will
reduce the impact of the storms coming into each Necropolis.

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 49

However, the body responsible for this construction is underfunded
and unsupported, leaving many gaps in incomplete walls.
Inspiration for Travel Rules
(Relatively) Easy Tempest Travel
ne of the more interesting sections of myth
The work of Seanan McGuire in her books
Sparrow Hill Road and The Girl in the Green Silk Gown
both offer great insight into how a hitchhiker ghost
might make their way through the underworld.
and story when it comes to the Underworld is
Other places to look for inspiration are the Epic
how souls get to where they’re going and who
of Gilgamesh, Deep Secret by Diana Wynne Jones
controls their passage. Different kinds of ghosts,
(which covers how to get to Babylon) and the myth
Restless, and all manner of beings that live and
of Orpheus and Eurydice. All provide excellent
travel on in the Tempest have various rules to
examples for how to address moving through the
travel by. Hitchhiker ghosts, ferry ghosts, ghosts that were hit by
Underworld at great cost to the traveler.
cars, and many others have different rules by which they travel.
Here’s some ways in which Storytellers might use the All ghosts function through a set of rules. The
Underworld Department of Highways and Byways in ways that rules of a crossroads ghost are different than the
aren’t necessarily connected to playing inside the Tempest. rules for a hitchhiking ghost or drowned ship ghost,
but they all fall under a very important restriction,
The Ferrymen which is that they haunt ferry routes, train lines,
and other routes of transit.
The Ferrymen are wraiths, but they’re wraiths with a very
specific task: They get visitors through the Tempest to where they
need to go, and they know the area better than anyone else (except
maybe crossroads ghosts, but we’ll get to that). The price is always steep because otherwise no one would come
They’re organized and ferry wraiths between set destinations. to the crossroads ghost for anything worth having.
Pick-up and drop-off times are scheduled and the routes are clear. Do you want to see your child one last time? Go to the
However, no one except the Ferrymen knows these routes, and to crossroads, but you might be giving your child’s soul up as part
guard the secrets of these routes, the Ferrymen often use a green of the bargain.
fog to obscure their travels, and a soft lantern at the front of their Want a Ferryman’s coin without having to pay for it? Maybe a
boats is the only light that a wraith can see. Without a Ferryman smaller price than what you’d pay the Ferryman, but you’ll owe the
at the oar and the magic that a Ferryman uses to light the lantern, crossroads a debt and it’ll be collected at the worst possible time.
the craft is ordinary. Want to ditch your Shadow forever? You’ll have to join the
The price of a ride outside the known Byways is high. Wraiths crossroads ghosts to do it.
might have to sell a part of themselves, such as a cherished memory
of the world or a secret. No matter what they give the Ferryman, Hitchhiker Ghosts
it always takes the appearance of a Roman coin, and the face of Ghosts in cars are a fairly standard ghost story trope. They
it represents the information or price that has been paid. No one might appear as La Llorana or as Resurrection Mary, or any of the
wraith is likely to pay the price often because there are ways to thousands of other urban legend ghost stories from the road. The
travel without the assistance of a Ferryman, but there’s certainly key is that a hitchhiker ghost can’t go anywhere without help. They
enough ghosts to make up regular traffic across the Tempest. can’t reach their final destination (their destiny) without someone
The Midnight Express train is a cheaper, but in many ways more living to assist them. Maybe they need a token from their guide, or
dangerous method of transportation many wraiths favor. perhaps they need something more sinister like the very breath of
Shadows interact strangely with Ferrymen. Their lanterns are life given to them by the owner of the car. Hitchhiker ghosts can
designed to keep Shadows at bay and stop them from interfering be used to enhance wraith characters’ stories as well.
with passage across the Tempest. A wraith might find shelter and Perhaps a player character was in a car accident at the time
relative peace on board, but their Shadow might try to interfere of their death. If they want to go anywhere, how are they meant
with making the deal for passage. to get there? A wraith who died in a car accident might need to

Crossroads Ghosts be carried in a vehicle to get out of sight of the spot where they
died. How does that wraith manage to get from place to place?
A crossroads ghost is something between a demon and a
spirit. Depending on why their soul is tethered to this particular Sea Channel Ghosts
crossroad, they may or may not be angry about their circumstances. A shipwreck is a terrible thing. It can drown thousands at
A crossroads ghost is there to make a deal. They are there to see once. Channel ghosts are the kind of ghosts who don’t have a final
whether or not whatever they serve wants whatever a wraith has. resting place because their final resting place is the whole ocean. A

50 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 The living don’t know what’s coming because the forecast says the first
bodies won’t hit the ground for another six hours, but here the Maelstrom
The Mechanics of Restraint is already building.
The standard character creation rules don’t “Got a tasking,” McGuire murmurs from the left seat where she’s
make provision for the unseen forces that constrain a running comms in a shared waking dream. “Augur says three on a rooftop
wraith to the limitations laid down by urban legend, by the university.”
mythology, folklore, or unconscious whim. However, Blackwell double-clicks the intercom in acknowledgement and breaks
they’re not complicated to add. Create custom Flaws off to point us in that direction. It’s a short flight, even with bone hail
as needed and compare the degree of constraint clattering off the windshield, and Castaneda and I double-check our safety
that you want a character to suffer to existing ones. lines and lean out the doors to search.
Minor but frequent and persistent inconveniences “Fast-mover inbound,” McGuire reports. “On our six, going for the
are generally worth a point, significantly impairing tail.”
ones are worth 2-3 points, and really severe ones I crane my neck and see a streak of green teeth and black robes coming
are worth 4+ points. at us. True to form, it’s relying on a living memory of aerodynamics, and
Buying off these constraints should be accom- it vomits out a tongue like a barbed anchor chain to ensnare our tail rotor
panied by dramatic and interesting events in play. and spin us out of the sky. Blackwell just grunts and holds us steady, giving
It’s a major victory over internal and external op- the Spectre an easy target.
position to escape the story of how a ghost removed A noise like a handful of rocks dropped in a blender overpowers a
themselves with or without help from someone else’s brief squawk of dismay as Stygian steel replacement blades don’t even slow
story. Wraithly and Spectral forces alike interested down. The chain wraps and pulls its owner in, then the Spectre hits the
in the ways of Fate are likely to notice and want to fan and rips apart. We barely feel a shudder. Laminate rotors were the
know more. It’s the end of an era of constraint for first thing we replaced, dumbass.
the character, but the beginning of a new one of “Mark, mark, mark. Torch at eight o’clock.” While I’ve been watching
not-always-wanted attention. the show, Castaneda’s been on mission. Blackwell brings us around as
I start checking my gear. We don’t want to put the bird within reach of
what’s in the water, so I’ll rope down and we’ll winch those wraiths in
ship ghost might appear on a ferryboat or a cruise ship that follows one at a time.
the same channels. Of course, there’s also the case of the Flying That’s the plan for the next thirty seconds, anyway. I’m about to
Dutchman, where a ship itself sailed the waves in search of prey. go on the line when the screaming from below – can’t hear you over the
The Flying Dutchman primarily makes its home on the waters Pathos turbine, guys – intensifies. Then the wind gives us a shove toward
of the Tempest, where it hunts Ferrymen carrying their passengers a bell tower as a stroke of lightning splits the air where we were. I grab for
to Stygia. Those who see its black sails and faintly glowing green a handhold and twist toward the door in time to see the first caul bob to
lights rarely reach their destination. It’s crewed by Spectres that sail the water’s surface, and I realize I’m hearing the screams from across the
the Tempest to seek out Restless on the path to Transcendence. Shroud. That means the forecast was wrong and people are dying now,
The Tempest is a dangerous place and it’s not somewhere to and this storm is about to eat us and everyone else in it.
tread lightly, but within it there is much adventure to be had and The smart thing to do would be to firewall it and RTB, but if I
an equal amount of peril. were smart, I wouldn’t be in the back of a relic Huey in a Maelstrom.
So instead, I lock eyes with Castaneda. “Plan B?” I ask even as she’s

Kingdoms Built on Rubblearly morning over the wounded city and our pilot
reaching for my harness.
“We gotta go out. We don’t have to come back,” she confirms, and
then we’re out the door at a totally unsurvivable altitude. Her wings come
out at the same time as my hatchets and as she turns I can see a Nihil
is flying blind. chewing away the corner of the building. Our survivors aren’t screaming
Five crews are on this op, ferried in on the last any more. They’re too busy fending off the cousin of the thing our tail
Midnight Express run, our birds tarped down on rotor shredded. It’s a race to see whether the Spectre or the Labyrinth gets
flatcars. We were briefed before dawn in the railyard them first.
as the train pulled out, taking everyone who can’t The Spectre, the Labyrinth, or us.
or won’t fight or work. Siege conditions: Evacuate the noncombatants.
The Underworld wouldn’t exist without disasters. Death
Oblivion is hungry today.
and destruction feed the Stygian Empire’s insatiable engines
Blackwell is in the right seat, his visor down to hide what’s left of with wraiths, Relics, and Pathos. Stygia’s splendor is built on
his face after it lost a fight with a Vietnamese 57mm shell. Thankfully, memory and salvage drawn from every corner of the world that its
his wound doesn’t affect his aviating. We’re in a slow clockwise orbit, Shadowlands holdings touch, and the other Dark Kingdoms follow
scanning for survivors through two-bell winds and everything they carry. suit. Each Skinlands catastrophe infuses the Restless with wealth

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 51

even as Oblivion feeds on the pain and loss. In the Underworld, all too prominent in the real world, and in the World of Darkness
every disaster embodies the famous mistranslation of weiji, the they’re tragically ubiquitous.
Mandarin word for crisis: danger and opportunity. In an often painful twist of metaphysics, Restless frequently
receive more advance notice of disasters than mortals do. The
Unfortunate Events, In Sequence Underworld’s relationship with causality is inconstant thanks to its
An airliner crash, a typhoon, and a hemorrhagic fever outbreak equally strong links to Fate. Skinlands disasters reverberate across
have radically different causes and effects. However, all disasters the Shroud, usually (but not always; Oblivion is unpredictable) in
have common elements, including a general timeline. Each phase proportion to the fear, death, and suffering they bring to mortals
resonates in the Underworld and draws attention from both the rather than the physical destruction that they wreak. Even without
Restless and Oblivion. a full-blown Maelstrom erupting as a catastrophe’s precursory
consequence, omens and reflections emerge in the Shadowlands
Gust Front well before events occur among the Quick. The trick is discerning
The time before a disaster, that is, “left of bang” in the military these omens from the Underworld’s everyday weirdness. Fatalism
parlance that the Legions have co-opted, might bring warning of and Lifeweb are the most reliable Arcanoi for this purpose, although
the catastrophe to come. Some natural hazards are predictable with any art that reaches across the Shroud might manifest unexpected
varying accuracy and timeliness. Modern meteorology, volcanology, side-effects that are symptoms to the experienced diagnostician.
and epidemiology can provide hours, days, and months of notice Reading the environment with Enigmas or Occult might also
before events occur in their respective fields, but seismology struggles yield some forewarning.
to issue warnings a minute in advance. Some technological hazards If any advance notice reaches the Underworld, the race is on.
also are predictable if faults in the affected systems are visible before Dictum Mortuum violations skyrocket as wraiths rush to warn loved
they fail. More often, both technological and man-made hazards ones and preserve Fetters or to ensure the destruction of the things
go unheralded until the crisis breaks. In all cases, if keen-eyed that matter to their rivals. In response, the Hierarchy mobilizes its
observers do raise red flags, peers and nominal superiors might enforcement arms to prevent or interrupt such offenses. Meanwhile,
dismiss those warnings out of a lack of understanding or a desire in grim mimicry of mortal authorities pre-positioning resources
to suppress inconvenient truths. Examples of such behavior are for immediate response, Reapers and relic hunters prepare for
the coming harvest.

52 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 Entropy has a keen precognitive eye for suffering, so Oblivion a young field still evolving in the face of real or perceived threats,
also takes note of impending disasters. Spectres and stranger things public demand for government intervention, and lessons learned in
gather for the anticipated bounty of misery. Increased Spectral previous disasters. All too often, those lessons are written in blood.
activity without an apparent Underworld motivation is a reliable
indicator of impending catastrophe in the mortal realm. Moment of Truth
Apocalypse Lexicon Whether warnings sounded or surprise was total and plans
Even among practitioners and academics who make careers and preparations were in place or utterly lacking, the time when a
of catastrophes, “disaster” has many definitions. Law and bu- hypothetical hazard becomes a real incident is a turning point for
reaucracy add their own parameters because politics is the art of everyone it touches. It is a line of demarcation between “before”
apportioning limited resources, which includes recovery funds and “after.” Each disaster announces its arrival differently. A
and other forms of government aid. For this book’s purposes, a bombing is a thump-flash more felt than heard or seen, and
good working definition is a damaging or lethal event whose effects accompanied by a spray of shrapnel both metal and still-living in
outstrip the affected community’s capacity to respond and recover. In a single moment of stunned incomprehension. In a tsunami, the
Wraith, a disaster is any event that garners attention and generates sea pulls back only to return with inexorable force and speed that
significant emotional trauma for the affected mortals and ghosts. leaves time to comprehend but not escape. An ice storm creeps in
For example, the Underworld doesn’t care about wildfires that beyond the edge of attention, and is invisible until its conspiracy
burn dozens of homes and thousands of acres but don’t kill anyone with gravity takes hold.
unless Fetters are involved. In the event’s immediate aftermath or while it’s still unfold-
Disaster professionals broadly classify hazards; that is, the ing, there’s rarely an official response unless predictions enabled
things that create disasters, as natural, technological, or man-made. authorities to pre-position personnel and equipment. Even the
Respectively, these are things the planet does (hurricanes, earth- swiftest professional rescuers rely on a communication chain that
quakes, or volcanoes), things humanity’s own creations do (chemical takes precious minutes unless Fate (or some other influence) hap-
spills and airplane crashes), and things humans do to one another pens to put them on the scene at the correct moment. Survivors
(bioterrorism and mass shootings). Across these categories, modern and bystanders who are compelled to do something are their own
practitioners look for common vulnerabilities and effects and seek first responders. Their effectiveness varies widely. Some, unpre-
broadly applicable solutions rather than deal with each hazard pared for a lethal environment become additional victims. (Three
piecemeal. This is the all-hazards approach, which originated with Volunteers Drown Trying to Save Child from Flooded River.) Others are
the Cold War concept that preparations for nuclear war can also wildly effective; in the Boston Marathon bombing, 27 improvised
apply to lesser catastrophes. tourniquets saved limbs or lives.
In disaster parlance, preparedness activities are the things indi- If an impending Maelstrom has not yet arrived, this is the
viduals or groups do to increase their readiness before disasters, moment it breaks. In a Maelstrom’s absence, the disaster’s effects
and mitigation involves work to reduce an expected hazard’s impact echo across a suddenly compromised Shroud. Wraiths’ sensory
(perhaps even keeping it from generating a disaster). Response is impressions of the event are stronger than usual even as mortal
the immediate action to save lives, prevent further damage, and survivors’ emotions batter their Passions. Restless who’ve suffered
protect property and the environment during or after an incident. the destruction of a Fetter plunge into Harrowings.
Recovery encompasses the post-disaster activities to return an Wraiths who want to intervene find it easiest to do so in
affected community to normal, which might include redefining these moments. The unfolding chaos is an excellent smokescreen
“normal.” Response, being photogenically heroic, gets most of the for all manner of ghostly manifestations, which the Shroud’s
news coverage. Recovery, which is less glamorous, receives only weakness aids. The Fog usually affects mortals more strongly in
retrospective reporting during major anniversaries. Preparedness such circumstances, though “usually” doesn’t mean “universally.”
and mitigation are somewhere between invisible and cause for
uncomfortable laughter, depending on whether governments or Save What You Can
individuals are doing them. By definition, a disaster’s effects outstrip the resources available
Until the mid-20th century, response and recovery occurred to deal with them. Initial response efforts are always inadequate.
on an ad hoc basis through charities, religious orders, and the Responders, both those for whom it’s their job and the bystanders
affected communities themselves. Governments stayed out of who couldn’t just watch, must make hard decisions about where
the blood and mud save for occasionally tasking military forces to apply those limited resources (people, equipment, supplies, and
to deliver supplies or to provide manpower for cleanup. It took time) to have the greatest effect. Lifesaving comes first, followed by
World War II’s devastation and World War III’s looming shadow scene stabilization (extinguishing fires, plugging leaks, and keep-
to drive the creation of civil defense agencies designed to preserve ing things from getting any worse). Preserving property and the
national governments and populations from atomic apocalypse. environment is lower on the priority list. Throughout the disaster,
Today, professional coordination of disaster-related policy, doctrine, the professionals also are mindful of their own safety because they
and work goes by emergency management in the public sector and are aware that they can’t help anyone else if they become victims
business continuity or crisis management in the corporate world. It’s themselves. Risk a little to save a little, risk a lot to save a lot, and risk

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 53

 can read Deathmarks. At any mass casualty incident, the triage
station is a magnet for Reapers and a buffet for Spectres, as is the
Burning Down the Shroud inevitable disaster mortuary.
The Storyteller should apply temporary reduc- News media and popular culture exaggerate the disorder and
tions in local Shroud ratings according to the story’s predation that occur in this phase. Research shows the opposite:
needs. As a general guideline, any disaster significant Although there are always opportunistic criminals, most disaster
enough to have precursory effects should reduce the survivors band together in groups that might bear no resemblance
local Shroud by 1 (thus facilitating the warnings to their pre-disaster social circles. Neighbors help neighbors and
from departed relatives that have populated ghost re-establish order on their own. Conflict comes when politicians
stories for centuries). As chaos erupts, the Shroud who believe the narrative over the reality send in police or troops
should drop by 1-3 depending on the severity of to “restore order” in areas getting back on their feet without
death, suffering, destruction, and fear. As response government “help.”
and recovery unfold, the Shroud gradually returns While response in the Skinlands progresses, wraithly interven-
to normal, but it should remain at least 1 lower tions decline. The Shroud may remain weak but fewer opportunities
than normal until the next dawn. exist for a wraith’s limited leverage to affect a situation’s outcome.
As always, the Shroud can’t be lower than 4 un- Also, increased numbers of responders mean increased numbers
less the disaster itself is supernatural and specifically of witnesses and a media presence. Still, a ghostly voice on a radio
damages the normal barriers between the World of can direct rescuers to trapped survivors or send other survivors
Darkness’ various realities. Then, all bets are off, to safety, and a well-crafted dream can ease a victim’s passing. A
up to and including a complete colocation of the quiet hint from a wraith who lived in pre-industrial times can
Skinlands and Shadowlands at a zero Shroud rating bestow lifesaving knowledge upon someone who’s never lacked
(Wraith: The Oblivion, pp. 282-284). Storytellers for ubiquitous internet searches. More often though, wraiths now
should reserve such an event for a chronicle’s turn their attention to the disaster’s Shadowlands effects. Vultures
apocalyptic climax. For example, the dead walking and magpies move in to glean wealth from the rubble while the
in Port-au-Prince’s rubble-choked streets set a high Legions deploy forces against Oblivion’s interest in the disaster.
bar for subsequent events and change the world Built it Back, Better
irrevocably.
As response tapers off (because responders have run out of
A disaster also amplifies the Fog with typical people to save and secondary hazards to stabilize), recovery gets
mortals reacting as though their Willpower is 1 lower under way. Damage assessment and debris removal operations spin
than usual. Atypical mortals might react as though up. Survivors move from emergency shelters to less-impermanent
their Willpower is 1 or 2 higher, particularly if they’re housing. Politicians, lawyers, and engineers begin arguing about
among the spontaneous volunteers or professional how to rebuild. Depending on the disaster’s severity, returning
responders who are busy saving lives. to “the way things were before” might be impossible, so recovery
might focus on making the community more resistant to future
disasters and positioning it for economic revitalization. The latter
a life to save a life, as the fire service says. Volunteers don’t always approach and the tax base that it brings is government’s ultimate
take this idea into consideration. objective in recovery. A major disaster is a once-in-a-career blank
This work happens without much of the infrastructure that slate for urban planners.
mortals take for granted. Telecommunication systems are first Total recovery or improvement are rarely achieved ideals.
overloaded with emergency calls and then collapse entirely as Politics is a process for apportioning limited government resources,
wires and towers fall and generators run dry. The inability to so communities with little political power receive little outside as-
reach for outside help mirrors the lack of incoming information. sistance after the news crews pack up. Displaced populations often
Transportation arteries become impassable, collapsed, or choked lack the will or means to return home. The World of Darkness
with debris, floodwaters, or traffic. Electricity, water, fuel, and is even worse and is strewn with wounded communities unable
other modern services might fail in a cascade of secondary effects. to bootstrap themselves back to prosperity after corrupt “leaders”
Until help arrives, the sense of isolation can be overwhelming. have enriched themselves with relief funds and donations that
The hardest decisions come during triage; that is, the process arrived without the usual fiscal accountability.
of classifying victims by their injuries’ severity. Those victims with For a wraith who wants to shape the world of the living and can
the worst but still-treatable injuries receive the highest priority for pull strings across the Shroud, recovery brings a wealth of opportuni-
medical care, and victims with less-severe wounds get delayed or ties. Guiding a memorial design committee bolsters Memoriam.
minimal treatment. Victims whose survival is unlikely receive no Influencing damage assessments tilts the balance between a rebuilt
further care to preserve resources better spent elsewhere. Triage Fetter and debris to be mined for Stygian construction projects.
is difficult for medical practitioners but trivial for anyone who Tugging government purse-strings cultivates the abandonment of

54 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Haunt-ready ruins or directs a lucrative reconstruction contract
to mortal descendants.
On the Fringes
The Only Way Out Is Through Real-world disaster practitioners talk about
Disaster survivors cleave together. In an incident’s initial vulnerable populations: demographic groups with
phase, the only help they have is each other. Afterward, the characteristics that make them more susceptible
shared experience creates a particular sort of camaraderie and a to disasters. People who live paycheck-to-paycheck
self-initiated support network. These groups are the driving forces can’t abandon jobs to evacuate (they might not
behind successful personal and community recovery as they push to even have a car in which to leave town) or stockpile
rebuild better and smarter and organize memorial ceremonies and supplies. Immigrants lack language skills or cultural
monuments. Sometimes, survivors of rare and unusual incident frameworks to understand or trust official messages.
types seek out those who’ve endured similar catastrophes to offer Children, the elderly, and adults with chronic
their help. American school shooting survivors refer to this as “the medical conditions become separated from their
most exclusive club that no one wants to join.” caregivers on whom they rely for daily comfort, and
So too do the deceased victims form their own associations. are unlikely to survive in austere conditions on their
Although the Legions argue over the proper disposition of souls own. The list goes on.
(Does the Grim Legion or the Penitent Legion claim the casualties
In the real world, politics often marginalizes
of a psychotic trucker’s sidewalk rampage? Are deaths in Hurricane
vulnerable populations before the disaster, and then
Katrina’s nursing home evacuations a matter for the Emerald
it neglects or blames them for their own misfortune
Legion or the Iron Legion?), the Restless in question know who
afterward. In the World of Darkness, factions
died alongside them. These common deaths give them common
among wraiths and other supernatural beings take
cause in the literal sense, and they provide one another the same
up for “their people.” These groups do some good;
mutual support that survivors do. Beyond this, many share Fetters
inexorable majority tribalism resists but doesn’t
or Passions related to their deaths or the mortal communities
always negate their efforts.
they left behind.
Not all disaster victims form regular Circles. Even in the greatest
catastrophes, the number of fallen who become wraiths is a scant
before their collective descent into Spectrehood, the French para-
fraction of the full death toll: perhaps 1 in 10 or 20 for common
troopers and American Marines killed in Beirut covertly provided
incident types, ranging as high as 1 in 3 for deliberate catastrophes
intelligence support to the agencies hunting the bombings’ backers.
that elicit global horror. Many disasters yield only a handful of
Restless who drift apart once they get their ephemeral feet under
them. Those who do stay in contact rarely seek to formalize their Those Who Light Torches
common identity with names or symbols. For recognition (whether Because of the Hierarchy’s bureaucratic ossification, disaster
desired or not), their shared Deathmarks suffice. policy in the Dark Kingdom of Iron lags behind that of Skinlands
Some Circles actively engage with their former communities’ governments. Very few Restless are experts in the concepts in the
recoveries. Memorial services, annual commemorations, monu- Apocalypse Lexicon (p. 53) and none of them are positioned to
ments, and reconstruction efforts all encourage this behavior and influence the Deathlords. Imperial thinking resembles that of
reliable (if infrequent) Pathos infusions. Wraiths drawn to these the Skinlands a century ago with a hodgepodge of uncoordinated
practices feel compelled to reach out to the responsible mortals organizations flinging themselves at pieces of problems.
to provide comfort, assist reconstruction, or ensure that their own Here are some notable Stygian institutions involved with
Memoriam endures. These interventions are a source of endless disasters on either side of the Shroud.
Dictum Mortuum violations.
Many post-disaster hauntings result from wraiths displeased at
The Maelstrom Bureau
the turns their mortal hometowns have taken. Not all reconstruction Storm Warning
is to the dead folks’ liking. Fetters might be created in a disaster 16 May 1980 – For Immediate Release
only to be threatened as mortal authorities pursue cleanup and The Iron Legion Maelstrom Prediction and Preparation Unit’s
revitalization. Recovery projects that seem cursed often are, and Vancouver office has issued a storm warning for the Pacific Northwest,
it’s a rare historical preservation society that lacks an incorporeal including the Necropoli of Astoria... Olympia... Portland... Salem... Seattle...
and unelected board member. and Tacoma. On or about 19 May, a Skinlands volcanic event at Mount
Victims of incidents caused by human action or inaction might St. Helens will generate a local Force Two Maelstrom.
band together for postmortem justice or vengeance. Usually, such Forecast Confidence: High.
Circles operate independently, such as the ghosts of Bhopal who Hazards: Skinlands effects will include minimal loss of life but
haunted several responsible industrialists to madness or suicide. significant physical destruction and widespread panic. This will result in
A few wraiths reach across the Shroud to aid mortal authorities;
THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 55
Nihil eruptions... Tempestquakes... plasmic ashfall... barrow-lava hail and name and structure. Despite it all, it is one of the Underworld’s
rain... localized disruption of Fetter connections... and strong damaging foremost clearinghouses of Maelstrom knowledge, although it
winds in excess of 75 knots. Byways may be impassable due to debris must be convinced to share.
accumulation. Moderate Spectre activity is likely. This Maelstrom will The Bureau’s self-assigned charge is the prediction, mitigation,
last approximately 36 hours. and study of Maelstroms. Its Stygian headquarters staff numbers
Protection: All Citadels are urged to issue local storm warnings and just over 100 wraiths, half of whom come from its sponsoring
ensure storm bell towers are manned and ready. Citizens should minimize body, the Iron Legion. The rest hail from other Legions by being
travel and remain near shelter. Pass this warning to neighbors and travelers. seconded through a complex arrangement of reimbursement
Bring loose objects indoors or otherwise secure them to prevent them from agreements. Most headquarters wraiths are clerks and academics
becoming windborne projectiles. Upon hearing storm bells, seek shelter who spend their shifts poring over reports and research propos-
immediately and remain there until the storm has passed. Do not attempt als. Far larger are the ranks of the Bureau’s field staff, who range
to intervene in Skinlands events. This is a non-preventable occurrence. from lone weather-obsessed volunteers to the anemologists and
Indicators: Living volcanologists have issued warnings for a possible pluviometrists (scholars of the Underworld’s “natural” forces and
eruption. Spectral activity and Skinlands geologic perturbations in the the substances they carry or reveal) who operate the field offices
vicinity of Mount St. Helens have increased steadily over the last two in the largest and most Maelstrom-prone Necropoli.
observation periods. Weather observers report a mirage cloud aloft, moving Each aspect of the Bureau’s mission falls to a different branch.
toward actualization at three percent per hour. Precursor plasmic ashfall Maelstrom prediction is the duty of the Forecasting Service, which
has occurred in the vicinity of the Yakima Citadel and the Packwood and monitors both Skinlands events and the Tempest’s protean weather
Cowlitz Bywaystations. for signs of impending Maelstroms. The Forecasting Service uses
On the top floor of a Brutalist office block down the street science alongside Argos, Fatalism, and other divinatory methods to
from the Seat of Shadows, the one Hierarchy agency with an official separate “ordinary” Tempest patterns from those heralding a more
disaster mission struggles to coordinate its far-flung network of destructive event. As with Skinlands meteorology, Underworld
observers and researchers. Founded as the Office of Maelstrom forecasting is neither exact nor consistently accurate, and citizens
Preparedness in the 19th century’s twilight years, the Maelstrom remember the failures more than the successes.
Bureau has endured every bureaucratic indignity known to wraith- The Fortification Center creates defensive architecture.
kind over its decades of existence, including numerous changes of This office turns its eye toward reinforcing structures, which

56 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

includes anything from the tiny storm shelters scattered along reach out to other sources of support in the absence of timely
major Byways to the greatest Citadels, against Maelstrom effects. guidance from headquarters.
It also grudgingly handles the Bureau’s public education work by
disseminating Maelstrom preparedness pamphlets to all Hierarchy The Harbingers’ Guild
citizens through its Citizen Outreach Office. Finally, its Storm The masters of Argos have long been the Underworld’s
Systems Laboratory is an engineering think-tank focused on lifesavers (so to speak). The guild ascribes to a maritime code of
personal protective equipment for Maelstroms. This group supplies ethics that requires any Harbinger to come to the aid of a traveler
much of the Bureau’s supplemental funding through the sale of in distress. A Harbinger who ignores such a call is swiftly cast
its creations. Storm Systems chain-coats, fog masks, wind-staves, out unless he has a damned good reason for neglecting his duty.
and storm gauges command a premium among wraiths who must Although the Harbingers are a Working Guild and not a High
brave the Underworld’s elements. Guild, their dedication earns significant prestige with the general
The Bureau’s research arm is the Beaufort-Granogrec population and leeway with imperial authorities. Even the strictest
Anemological Institute. Prone to academic infighting and Anacreons recognize that safe travel to their Necropoli relies on
knowledge hoarding, the Institute generates great success despite the Harbingers and look the other way in the absence of political
itself. Its library and laboratory staff might be perusing damage activism.
reports from a storm-struck Citadel, analyzing the composition of Collectively, most Harbingers are opportunistic saviors and
a plasmic eyeball hail sample, or statistically surveying a century of have agendas other than looking for ghosts who took a wrong turn
Forecasting Service predictions against seismic records from the in the Tempest. Some inscrutable quality of Argos leads them to
Cascadia Subduction Zone. Of course, someone must gather this be in the right place at the right time at a statistically-improbable
data, and the Institute’s more adventurous (or foolhardy) members frequency. Privately, Harbingers grumble about journeys inter-
lead research expeditions across the Shadowlands and Tempest. rupted by the need to save ghosts who don’t have the sense to
The Institute has several research campuses in Maelstrom-prone come in out of the blood rain, but they still do it.
areas, with the most prominent in London, San Francisco, and One Harbinger faction devotes itself full-time to search and
Istanbul. In rare cooperation with other Empires’ authorities, its rescue work: the centuries-old Cormorant Order, which reputedly
No.3 Storm Penetration Squadron (“3SPS,” which is officially an began as a pre-guild institution that patrolled and maintained
Iron Legion military unit) flies and sails from Hong Kong to make Scandinavian Byways. The original Cormorants also established
observations from within Maelstroms throughout the Western the first Bywaystations, which are emergency shelters for travelers
Pacific Shadowlands and coterminous Tempest regions. who found themselves away from Citadels during Maelstroms.
Only the largest Necropoli field offices host all three branches. Although the Legions co-opted the Bywaystation concept and every
More commonly, a single Bureau representative struggles to other Dark Kingdom has its own equivalent, the most ancient and
discharge the full spectrum of their assignment. Such field reps reliable ones are marked with the Cormorants’ symbol.
recruit volunteers for daily weather observations, post-Maelstrom Modern Cormorants still embark on Byway navigation
damage assessments, and cryptocartographic Tempest surveys. patrols and maintain their Bywaystations, particularly in areas
Even as the Bureau’s scientific and operational capabilities bereft of Legion attention. They also maintain rescue stations
have waxed with the deaths and recruitments of experts in a wide near areas particularly hazardous for travelers and outside the most
range of disciplines, its leadership and influence have waned. Its Maelstrom-prone Necropoli. A typical station is haunted by 3-6
founder and first superintendent, Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort, was well-equipped Cormorants with some form of Tempest-capable
lost in 1969 when Hurricane Camille’s echo claimed the research and Maelstrom-resistant transportation. This transport is usually
ghost ship Muskeget. Co-founder and successor Jean Granogrec a seagoing vessel that is either a relic or an Underworld-built one.
was an able meteorologist but a ham-fisted administrator, and they The largest stations are the home ports for patrol ships with crews
drove away many long-serving veterans. Granogrec’s mismanage- of 10 or more wraiths. Operational tempos are grueling; crews
ment came to a head in 2010, when the agency (then titled the launch on at least one mission a week. Through a combination of
Maelstrom Prediction and Preparation Unit) failed to predict or Arcanoi and over-engineered construction, stations almost always
prepare for the Haitian earthquake and subsequent Pan-Caribbean survive major Shadowlands disasters, which makes them one of
Maelstrom. In response, the Ashen Lady reassigned Granogrec the first places wraiths seek assistance afterward. As a result, the
and renamed the MPPU. The office of superintendent gave way Order became adept at organizing crowds of shocked bystanders
to a committee of bureau chiefs drawn from the Iron Legion’s for basic disaster tasks.
most influential Necropoli. Sadly, although some of these chiefs Beyond the obligatory Argos, Cormorants place a premium
are able politicians, few are scientists or leaders, which result in on Fatalism and Usury, which are valuable in their duty’s “search”
a lack of direction and coordination. Even the Journal of Applied and “rescue” (SAR) components. They train incessantly in
Anemology, once a cutting-edge monthly publication that was laden seamanship (or airmanship for the elite who crew the Order’s
with advice accessible to the average wraith on the street, has been few relic helicopters), technical rescue, and self-defense. The ideal
reduced to an unreliable quarterly reprinting of monographs that Cormorant can plot and lead a wide-area Tempest search for an
were dredged from the archives. Increasingly, local field offices overdue ghost ship, rappel into a Nihil to pluck a wraith from

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 57

the edge of a Harrowing, or cut through Spectres and structural Refining a premonition of doom requires the wraith to scru-
components alike to locate and extricate entrapped victims within tinize the Skinlands for clues of what’s to come. The player makes
a collapsed Citadel. a daily extended roll of Intelligence + Investigation (difficulty 8).
Although the Order takes its SAR work very seriously, it Every 3 accumulated successes provide one piece of information
remains a guild organ and less regimented than mortal emergency about the disaster in the following order:
services, which drives modern professional rescuers insane when • Type of disaster
they try to resume their work postmortem. Above individual • Starting date
stations, it relies on its parent guild to coordinate major efforts, • Starting location
though recently-reaped members are driving for greater standard- • Starting time within a four-hour window
ization in command and control. Cormorants organize their kit
• General duration (hours, days, weeks, months, years, or
and appearance as best they see fit, though almost all display
even longer)
their affiliation with a black-on-teal badge of a cormorant in its
wing-drying pose. When on missions, many affix a Redeye (see • Size and impact
Wraith: The Oblivion p. 425-6) to the back of their headgear to As with all divinatory methods, these systems are inexact and
mark their position for their cohorts. story should always take precedence over mechanics.
Anemological Forecasting The Emerald Legion
Professional Maelstrom forecasting requires the character to
The Emerald Legion collects disaster victims. To be sure, this
observe, record, and analyze Tempest phenomena for two hours
isn’t universal (pandemic patients go to the Skeletal Legion, and
a day. Once per week, the player rolls Intelligence + Science
the Smiling Lord takes those who fall to terrorism), but imperial
(difficulty 8, and they lose 1 die for each day of observations they
standards classify most disasters as happenstance. Therefore, the
missed within the past month). With success, they determine if a
Legion’s ranks fill with wraiths who share personal experience with
Maelstrom will occur within the next week.
mass fatality incidents and the destruction that often accompanies
Once the forecaster predicts a Maelstrom, they refine their them. Consequently, it’s the Legion most involved with the Stygian
forecast with a daily extended Intelligence + Science roll (difficulty side of disaster relief.
7). Every 3 accumulated successes provide one piece of information
The Legion’s most visible efforts are its Green Teams: units
about the Maelstrom in the following order:
formed for large-scale Reaping when enfants cross over en masse.
• Date of onset Although they fit the colloquial definition of wakes, Green Team
• Force policy dictates a kinder and gentler approach to handling the
• Duration in days newly-dead. To manage their charges, team members train in crisis
• General path and size counseling, Castigate, and Lifeweb.
• Specific hazard manifestations The Emerald Legion is also the Legion most likely to turn a
Anemological forecasting may predict Underworld disasters blind eye to cross-Shroud excursions in the name of aiding disaster
other than Maelstroms if the weekly forecasting roll yields 5 suc- victims or fellow wraiths. Overt aid to such endeavors is rare, but
cesses. Subsequent refinement occurs at difficulty 8. sympathetic Legionnaires are past masters of covert assistance and
Predicting Skinlands disasters remains more art than science sometimes collude with the Legion of Fate to provide support so
and relies on factors elusive to the scientific method. For each of subtle that its recipient thinks that it is a mere coincidence.
the following factors, the Storyteller may allow one roll a week in The Emerald Legion’s most significant contribution is also its
advance so that the character knows that something bad is coming: least recognized one. Thanks to Sandra Quattlebaum’s pioneering
• If the character died in a similar disaster, roll Stamina + work with the Iron Delivery Express System and the Harbingers’
Eidolon (difficulty 7). A success manifests as phantom pain Guild, the Legion enjoys Stygia’s foremost logistics system. With
in the wraith’s fatal wounds. this system, the Legion can deliver wraithpower and supplies to
• If the character survived a similar disaster in life, roll Wits Maelstrom-struck Citadels before other Hierarchy arms can even
+ Occult (difficulty 8). Success yields a queasy sensation of mobilize. Given the Emerald Legion’s subsequent dominance
deja vu. in the Necropoli that it’s aided, politics outweighs altruism in
determining when and where to send IDES shipments. Regardless,
• If the character studied similar disasters in life, roll Perception
the wraiths on the ground still benefit.
+ Enigmas (difficulty 9). Success provides a handful of familiar
pre-incident indicators. Necropolitan Offices of Emergency Management
Three days in advance, the Shroud becomes volatile. Any Mortal agencies’ doctrine holds that all disasters are local.
Arcanos art whose difficulty depends on the Shroud manifests Everything happens somewhere; the people who live there are
oddly. Recognizing the synesthetic ripples or faint burning sensa- the first ones to respond and will be the ones still there when all
tion as more than imperfections of control requires a Perception the outside help goes home. To manage limited resources with
+ Occult roll (difficulty 8, or 6 if using Fatalism or Lifeweb). some degree of efficiency, that outside help comes only after local

58 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 they know exactly what’s happened to them and take a dim view
of other ghosts profiting on their deaths. Lastly, the most fertile
Backchannels Skinlands disasters are the most likely to spawn Maelstroms.
Some missions are more important than politics. Wraiths who specialize in swiftly negotiating mass fatality
The Harbingers have strong ties to the Maelstrom incidents to harvest newly made Restless are known as vultures
Bureau through their Anemographer faction. The in Stygian parlance. Like their namesakes, Circles of vultures are
guild is careful to not claim Sir Francis as one of its called wakes. Any successful wake has a member who can predict a
own, but the Institute’s name openly acknowledges disaster before it occurs (usually by reading pre-Maelstrom portents
the long-standing relationship between the Bureau or by analyzing political, meteorological, or geographic indicators)
and the Harbingers’ own Tempest explorers. Almost so that the group can stage itself nearby. Their willingness to go
every Institute expedition includes a Harbinger, and where the bodies will fall requires wakes to be more mobile than
guildwraiths compose many of 3SPS’ pilots. More typical Circles, so each wake has multiple means of facilitating
broadly, Harbormasters underpin the Bureau’s transportation. Wakes must manage workplace hazards ranging
observer network, and every field rep can tell of from soulforged blades to supernatural weather, so self-protection
a jet-eyed wraith bringing a timely warning of an skills are a job requirement.
impending Maelstrom. Less prestigious but sharing many of the same traits are tidings
On a lesser note, the IDES’ founder has strong of magpies, who are Circles who salvage disaster-created Relics rather
if unadvertised Harbinger ties. The IDES’ reliance than Enfants. Profitable magpies are well-attuned to current market
on Argos gives the guild a fair amount of soft power forces and are adept at promoting their gleanings for auction or
within the Emerald Legion’s civilian bureaucracy. barter. Tidings tend to be busier than wakes and face slightly less
Harbingers are careful not to abuse this leverage, peril in their trade because many events of massive destruction (and
but guildwraiths can draw on some Legion resources thus large-scale relic creation) occur without significant casualties.
for work that complements the organizations’ Some Circles bridge both trades, but the different logistical needs
respective missions. and marketplaces lead most to specialize.
Some vultures are more altruistic than others. The best style
themselves as SAR teams and often adopt the Cormorant Order’s
heraldic creature in place of their usual appellation. The worst are
resources are exhausted, first in the form of aid from neighbor-
simply slavers with an unusually strong work ethic and tolerance
ing locales, then state or provincial assets, and finally federal or
for (or addiction to) risk. Magpies, operating in a less morally
international assistance.
perilous marketplace, tend to be more businesslike, although
In Stygia, this doctrine is truer. Travel’s hazards and sheer
it’s not unknown for predatory tidings (or ordinary bandits) to
difficulty isolate Necropoli in the best of times. Until the IDES
lurk outside disaster areas and rob fellow magpies at the end of
proved otherwise, the Hierarchy assumed large-scale movements of
a night’s labor.
wraiths and supplies to be impossible outside of military operations.
This isolation created a self-reliant Underworld disaster culture:
No one is coming, so it’s up to us. Anacreons do request aid from
Ghosts in Disasters and Disasters in Ghosts
neighboring Citadels but never assume it’ll actually arrive. Only Maelstroms are the most common Underworld manifestation
recently have some cities, after experiencing multiple Maelstroms of Skinlands disasters but they’re not the only way the Shadowlands
or other calamities, begun to organize permanent agencies to plan can react to destruction in the material world. Also, not all disasters
for local disasters. A few of these NOEMs have forged mutual aid begin on the breathing side of the Shroud. The Underworld’s
compacts in which they pledge to support one another’s disaster oft-bizarre nature, random acts of Oblivion, and wraithly malice
responses. or incompetence can spawn occurrences that rival any Skinlands
event’s destructiveness. Some such incidents are broadly similar
Reaping (After) the Whirlwind to their counterparts in the mortal realm, and others are unique
to the metaphysics that reign in the lands of the dead.
The fear, grief, and other emotions that stem from disasters are
concentrated and shared, so it’s no surprise that disaster fatalities Echoes
create more wraiths than do the same number of individual deaths
Sometimes, Oblivion’s answer to a Skinlands cataclysm is a
across the mortal population. Any disaster is a fertile ground for
dark mirror rather than a Maelstrom. This typically occurs in natural
Reapers. Reaping in a catastrophe’s aftermath (and doing so
disasters that Underworld meteorological or geological analogs
amidst the storm) can be perilous. Competitors, Spectres, and
can mimic. Stygian disaster scholars call such phenomena echoes,
the odd plasmic or Ferryman all contest hunting privileges, and
even if they manifest before their Skinlands generating events.
the freshest wraiths can erupt from their Cauls with surprising
Underworld weather can blow out of the Tempest or drop
vigor and still fighting against whatever killed them. Casualties
from the leaden sky without warning. A ghost tornado’s winds are
who escape their own Cauls are another sort of danger because

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 59

stronger than the material world’s atmosphere can support, and
they suck unprotected wraiths into the storm’s maw with malicious
A Memory of Broken Iron
precision. Wraiths ensnared endure a nauseating carousel ride as The Dark Kingdoms’ dominant technologies don’t accom-
windblown debris slowly flays their Corpus. Tempest hailstones modate many direct analogues to the technological and man-
come in strange materials and change direction in flight, even made hazards that plague the Quick in the modern era. Stygian
flying against the wind to bludgeon victims and batter Citadel infrastructure functions at a pre-industrial level: no electricity
walls. Windstorms can sweep up wraiths and debris and hurl generation and distribution, water treatment, fossil fuel refining,
them into the Tempest or even other Dark Kingdoms. Chilly data storage and transmission, mass transportation, or industrial
and dark floodwaters drain Pathos from those caught in them chemicals exist to cause disasters by failing. What examples of
and sap their strength and will until the victims are easy prey for modern technology do exist in the Shadowlands are unique and
the half-glimpsed shapes swimming beneath the surface. In Swar, precious, and are not products of a global trade, production, and
monsoon season is the feeding time. standardization system. This makes wraiths relatively immune to
many such failures, but not all of them.
Drought brings the rare sensations of heat and thirst to the
Shadowlands. With it comes a strange apathetic lassitude: wraiths Underworld architecture is a touchy thing. Construction
caught within this slow-motion disaster rarely notice it until an material is either the ghost of a dead structure or made from
outside visitor remarks on it. In the Bush of Ghosts’ interior someone’s soul, neither of which makes a reliable foundation.
Shadowlands, animal abombo flee a drought-stricken region before Few Dark Kingdoms have adopted modern building codes, and
the ground itself cracks and ignites with a phenomenon that mimics some buildings seemingly want to implode. Frequent structural
barrow-flame but burns searingly hot. collapses bury wraiths under tons of rubble until their pressed
Corpus dribbles out and their consciousness spirals down into
When Skinlands earth moves, Shadowlands terrain yields
a Harrowing.
to the Labyrinth. Sinkholes spawn Nihils that open silently and
grow whenever no eye is upon them; left unchecked, they can The Underworld industry doesn’t use much hazardous
swallow whole Citadels. Earthquakes bring down vast swaths material. Soulfire crystals and rarer forms of stored Pathos would
of Necropolitan architecture. Quake fissures contain Nihils in dominate the Stygian hazmat response guidebook if a firefighter’s
their depths, and many snap shut like vast mouths and mangle ghost ever wrote one. When a Pathos vessel loses containment
entrapped wraiths. Landslides can bury entire Necropoli beneath suddenly, it explodes on more than the physical level. Nearby
boulders of Stygian ore or thick and tarry plasmic mud. What these wraiths who survive the blast suffer incapacitating surges of whatever
landslides reveal is sometimes worse than what they enshroud, emotion was dominant in the contained Pathos. This spiritual
though: long-buried cities of the dead predating any known Dark explosion has secondary effects that can be more destructive than
Kingdom or mortal civilization, or the vast non-Euclidean forms the initial detonation.
of slumbering nameless monstrosities. Some crafts, particularly soulforging and the outlawed
Volcanic eruptions equal Maelstroms as the Shadowlands’ Alchemists’ arts, use barrow-flame to shape, refine, and temper
most destructive events. The primary vent’s Underworld reflec- raw materials. Despite being unspeakably cold to the touch,
tion spews forth caustic plasmic ash, acidic vapors, and semi-solid barrow-flame softens and consumes substances as though it
barrow-flame lava. Larger projectiles can burn through the world’s were true fire. However, there is no known reliable method for
skin to bore lesser Nihils where they fall. Metaphysical atmospheric extinguishing it. Uncontrolled barrow-flame can spread swiftly
effects manifest with the ashfall, which creates a supernatural through a Necropolis as it seeks out paths where it can quickly
miasma that impairs wraiths’ connections to their Fetters and spread. The 2014 barrow-conflagration that gutted the Athens
use of some Arcanoi. With a catastrophic volcanic explosion, Citadel is Stygia’s most recent major industrial disaster.
the pyroclastic flow scorches everything in its path save for the With relatively little infrastructure or industry, the Underworld
Spectres who ride within it. In the Hawaiian Underworld and also sees few wraith-made disasters. Industrial sabotage is the most
other regions whose native cultures venerate volcanoes, massive common as Renegades, rival Legions, or guilds strike at soulforging
barrow-flame-limned figures of unknown origin can be glimpsed or Labyrinth mining operations. Arson is a rare but feared threat
reveling in or orchestrating eruptions. when the Spooks Guild mobilizes for war. Transportation and
Not all echoes are of natural disasters. In 1917, a Skeletal architectural sabotage also occur as extremist groups attempt to
Legion ghost train in Romania derailed simultaneously with continue their causes in the Underworld or adapt to new offenses.
the Ciurea rail disaster. Nearly 200 wraiths plunged into a mass Of greater concern to authorities in every Dark Kingdom is the
Harrowing. Later that year, a titanic explosion devastated the Halifax recent proliferation of improvised explosive devices fueled by
Necropolis seconds before its Skinlands precursor detonated in soulfire, or worse, bloodfire.
the harbor. The resulting Spectre-laden pyrocumulus cloud raked
Nova Scotia’s Shadowlands with barrow-flame lightning for hours.
Perpetual Screams
Around modern mass shootings, bullet rains have fallen. The Underworld is a place of memory, and the world
remembers its wounds. Some wounds leave scars that never heal in

60 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

the Shadowlands and are exacerbated by historical remembrance.
Parts of Chicago, Dresden, and the British Columbian forests Storytelling Disasters
flicker with barrow-flame that eternally consume the ghosts of Disasters can serve several roles in your chronicle depending
buildings and trees. On the Honshu coast, the Tempest rears on the type of story that you and your players want to tell. Much
back to reveal the bones of the Yellow Springs as its returning of this advice applies not just to Wraith but to any World of
wave builds offshore. Constant rain drowns the ghosts of Darkness game.
Mozambique’s villages. The howl of turbofans and the stench A disaster is backdrop and catalyst for all manner of conflict.
of jet fuel fill Tenerife’s air. Many regime changes in twilight courts have transpired under
Worse, some of these events periodically recur in the cover of hurricanes or riots. Emergency services and other agen-
Shadowlands. The Mississippi River perpetually flows backward cies are overwhelmed, giving mortal and supernatural factions
into Reelfoot Lake, but every eight years Necropoli around the New the opportunity to resolve grudges with less fear of discovery or
Madrid Seismic Zone shake to an encore of the 1811 earthquake. interference. Mortals seeking to reclaim the night also hide their
The Indonesian Underworld now knows Krakatoa’s reflection hunts amid greater devastation.
re-erupts on a 44-year cycle, which disrupts the Tempest throughout The same disruption places characters’ mortal connections
the region. These aren’t ghostly reruns: Each new instance brings and material assets at risk from both the incident itself and those
fresh devastation to the Restless who experience it. who would strike at the characters indirectly. Wraiths in particular
Even worse, a handful of sustained disaster effects correspond must concern themselves with the people and things represented
to no known historical occurrence. The best-known qualify as as Backgrounds on their character sheets and with the Fetters that
landmarks and have names despite scholars’ concern that giving support their continued existence.
them an identity might feed or awaken them. The Ten Thousand The disaster itself can serve as antagonist. An actively hostile
Crying Needles of Taipei’s littoral Tempest, Savannah’s Tree of environment engages characters with physical threats beyond
Flame and Glass, and Swar’s Storm That Dreams all manifest combat. Personal survival, saving lives or precious objects, or just
in specific locales although not always on predictable schedules. trying to navigate a devastated area all can provide fresh challenges.
Official explanations pass them off as random Underworld weird- If characters have acquired an overpowered or implausible resource,
ness. Less-accepted theories hold that they’re echoes of events so a disaster is an excellent means of reducing or eliminating it
powerful that they reverberate back in time.

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 61

(although the Storyteller should handle this carefully
to avoid appearing capricious).
Timing matters. Beginning a chronicle in or im-
mediately after a disaster unveils a setting in disarray.
Casualties have created power vacuums into which
characters can step. Recovery involves intensive plan-
ning and immense budgets, and both are exploitable.
Conflict is ongoing as existing or emerging authorities
struggle to re-establish order. The characters might
already have been in the area (in which case the group
should establish what each one did during the crisis);
they might have come voluntarily to seek opportunities,
or someone else might have exiled or assigned them to
the stricken region.
A mid-chronicle disaster can refresh a stale setting,
simplify issues that players had given up on solving, or
complicate a too-easy problem set. In short, it’s a course
correction opportunity. Because a disaster isn’t supposed
to be the chronicle’s end, careful planning is necessary to
ensure that the crisis doesn’t overpower everything that

When the Storm

happens after it (or wipe out the characters).

Comes Looking for You

Of course, a disaster can be the scene or focus of the
chronicle’s climax. This conclusion gives the Storyteller
an unlimited special effects budget and license to threaten
everything that matters to the characters. The catastrophe A CITIZEN’S GUIDE TO
shouldn’t reduce the players’ characters to popcorn- MAELSTROM PREPAREDNESS
munching bystanders in what’s supposed to be their own
story, but it should make them work for every success. Every
scene should retain an opportunity for meaningful action. WHAT IS A MAELSTROM?
t destructive
It’s possible to design an entire chronicle around the A Maelstrom is the Underworld’s mos
rfici ally resembles a
disaster. Begin with the mitigation and preparedness phase, weather-like phenomenon. It supe
ifestations, most of
such as when scientific predictions or occult prophecies hurricane but with various unnatural man
ks are likely during
which are tied to Oblivion. Spectre attac
point to impending doom. Players should be clear that their
characters won’t be able to forestall it entirely, although me more active in
Maelstroms. Your Shadow might beco
they might reduce its impact if they’re smart and lucky. Play sure to Maelstrom effects
response to these stimuli, and expo
through the response phase as the disaster unfolds and then
move into the opportunity-laden recovery phase. can injure or harrow you.

,
WHAT CAUSES MAELSTROMS
Y HAPPEN?
AND WHEN DO THE
lstroms occur
There is no “Maelstrom season.” Mae
ts among the living.
at any time of year in response to even
triggering events by
Some Maelstroms might precede their
up to several days.

The Iron Legion Maelstrom Bureau

62 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 HOW CAN I KNOW
WHEN A MAELSTROM
IS COMING? WHAT IS A GOOD SH
ELTER?
The Maelstrom Bureau’s For
ecasting Service predicts ma Your local Citadel offers the
stroms with a wide array of el- best storm protection. Profes
techniques. If conditions are engineers from the Maelstrom sional
Maelstrom to form, imperia right for a Bureau’s Fortification Cen
l officials in your Necropolis reinforced it against the maxim ter have
Maelstrom bulletin. When you will issue a um credible Maelstrom manife
receive a bulletin, make pre stations.
and remain near shelter. parations On some routes through the
Tempest, Imperial forces ma
Bywaystations. These are sm intain
When a Maelstrom is immine all purpose-built storm shelter
nt, officials will issue a Maelst with repair supplies and def s stocked
warning and ring the local Cit rom ensive arms. Bywaystations
adel’s storm bells. When you with the symbol of a diving are marked
bells, spread the word and hea r the bird with its wings outstretch
seek shelter immediately. traveling, consult local officia ed. Before
ls to learn the locations of Bywa
on your planned route. ystations
Officials test their bells at noo
n on the first Wednesday of
month except when a Maelst each
rom bulletin is in effect. If a Citadel or Bywaystation
is inaccessible, the best shelter
single-story structure with stro is a
ng walls, a sturdy roof, and
HOW CAN I PREPAR and entrances that you can win dow s
E? barricade easily.
Know how officials in you
r necropolis will warn you As a last resort, a structure
Maelstrom. of a with a weakened Shroud ma
some protection from manife y offer
stations of Oblivion. Avoid ina
contact with the living while dvertent
Visit your local Maelstrom using such improvised shelter
Bureau office to learn more .
the signs of a Maelstrom or about
to volunteer for storm spotter
training. WHAT IF I CAN’T REAC
Be aware of storm shelters H SHELTER?
in the areas you frequent. A
developing Maelstrom might swiftly Find a hiding place that offers
find you away from your loc protection from wind and pre
al Citadel. tion. Get as low to the ground cipita-
as possible to avoid windblow
Develop the habit of mainta n debris.
ining a reserve of Pathos in
of corporeal injury. Remem case Remain inconspicuous. Co
ber that mortal medical tec ver any brightly colored or
longer benefit you. hni que s no nescent corpus. Do not make lumi-
noise even if you become inju
not call for help. red. Do

WHAT DO I DO WHEN Do not make eye contact wit

h anything that you see in the
A MAELSTROM ARRIV If you hear something speaki storm.
ES? ng in the storm, do not believ
e or obey it.
Warn others and seek shelter
immediately.
Remain in the shelter until
the storm passes.
Do not place yourself in dan
ger to rescue others if you
not trained and equipped to are
do so. Unprepared rescuers
additional victims. Notify i become

imperial officials of any em

ergency

Revised 18th edition, Octob

er 2013. Published by the
Office of Public Educatio Iron Legion Maelstrom Bu
n, Necropolis Helsinki. reau, Fortification Center,
* If you serve the empire in
a military role, your Legion
kit is in good order. Report ’s general orders for Maelst
to your designated muster poi rom duty supersede this gui
nt. Be prepared to perform dance. Ensure that your issu
other missions as conditions refortification, search and ed
dictate. rescue, Oblivion defense, or

THE FOREVER WIND: THE TEMPEST 63

 The Labyrinth

ook. Better yet, listen. You need to know what you’re and nobody quits. You like that? I heard it in a movie once. Everybody
getting into. You’ve picked up a ticket to Hell and fights, nobody quits, and if you don’t do your part, I’ll feed you into the
if you’ve gotten this far you at least get to know all breech of a Slag Cannon myself.
about what that gets you. It’s a man’s life...afterlife…whatever…in the Doomslayers. You up
You’ve heard stories, you’ve seen the Shadow- for it, rook? Good. I hate wasting my time. Grab your ruck and come
eaten, and you think after the recruitment speech on. I’m going to tell you about the Labyrinth.
that you know what’s going on around here. You’re sitting there believing
you’re 10-feet tall and covered with hair and ready to take on every
Spectre in the Labyrinth. Maybe you’ve stomped a few Spectres or you
What is it Anyway?
Ask a dozen Restless what the Labyrinth is and you’ll get
want revenge, but it doesn’t matter. two dozen answers. It’s a shell around the Mouth of the Void.
You don’t know squat, rook. You ain’t seen a drop of the Hell around It’s an endless maze full of monsters. It’s always been here. There
here, not a touch of strange. You think you’ve got any idea at all what are so many other answers. The guilds think they’ve got the
it’s like here? You don’t. That’s why I’m here to give you the grand tour answers. Heretical cults lie about it to lure souls into their cult.
of the crap you’re in. If you’re smart, you’ll turn right around and leave. The independent scholars among the dead, who are inheritors
If you’re crazy, you’ll stick around. If you’re smart, you’ll pay attention. of the collegia, catch glimpses of the truth before the Legions
We’ve got a motto here on the edge, so learn it if you think you’re a shut them down for good. Nobody has all the answers, so it’s
Doomslayer. “If you come back from the Labyrinth with something useful, all best guesses made by looking at something through a shat-
it’s a miracle. If you come back at all, it’s a success. If the Spectres and tered lens. After all, how can you understand something that’s
freaks miss you, it’s luck. As for anything else, that’s fate.” fundamentally not there?
The next two things to remember are this: If you want to understand the Labyrinth, you must under-
You’re screwed. Damned. Spectre bait. We all are. We accept that, stand Oblivion. Forget the history you’ve heard and the party
we throw ourselves at it like a line of enemies not because we’re charged line. The basics are true: Oblivion is the emptiness, horror, and
with some holy task by Charon his own damn self. We do it because the outright evil eating away at the foundations of every soul in the
alternative is worse. Inevitably, some of us don’t come back. Shadowlands. Characterizing Oblivion as a mindless nothingness
The war never ends. Not if Oblivion’s there, and it’s not going doesn’t prepare you for what it is: a force without thought, will,
anywhere. You join up, you don’t get to walk away. Here, everyone fights and intent. It warps and twists everything it touches to the break-
ing point and beyond until that thing dissolves into the Void.
 If that were Oblivion’s sole function, matters would be much Other hypotheses, mainly bandied about by Heretics, range
simpler. You could build a wall around it, keep it contained, and from a change in the personality of God to the disruption of the
rest easier in the afterlife. Oblivion has plans and it hungers. It’s a original planetary order in the fashion suggested by Immanuel
predator with a million eyes, always hunting for its next meal. Every Velikovsky’s heirs to the suggestion that the original Malfeans are
wraith carries its touch inside as their Shadow, which is the key to nightmares in the dreams of Creation.
understanding the Labyrinth. There seems to be prevailing wisdom about Oblivion’s
The Labyrinth did not appear without precedent. Its seeds eventual triumph. Some observers who are unable or unwilling to
lay in the thwarted ambitions, petty cruelties, lost nightmares, and think about it promulgate theories even less realistic than the ones
ill-defined fears that rain down on the Shadowlands from the living discussed here. Like the origins of the Labyrinth, the details are
world every day. Not all those bleak fragments issue from human open to dispute. There is something like agreement that the Sixth
minds or even minds that were once human. Venture deep enough Great Maelstrom will someday overwhelm the Shadowlands in the
into the endless passages and you’ll find fragments of worlds that absence of something sufficiently dramatic, such as the return of
existed long before the Earth or mortal man, or that came into Charon in his full strength and glory. A minority claims the danger
being long after they perished. is a tool of the Hierarchy’s control, with the triumph of Oblivion
Like Spectres and Restless, it is a dark reflection of the not due for long eons. Optimists who think that Oblivion is just
Shadowlands and a warped mirror pieced together by the vast and going to go away or reach stasis are subjected to ruthless mockery.
unknowable force of Oblivion. However, reflection is not all that Philosophically minded wraiths believe many underestimate the
the Labyrinth is. It is a temple for Specters and the Neverborn. It is a place of Oblivion and feel that it underlies not just the Shadowlands
fortress, and within its center Oblivion watches through the eyes of but the whole of the universe if you probe deeply enough. Doomslayer
its spawn and listens to the whispers of the Hive-Mind while slowly experience has yet to find boundaries on the Labyrinth, so these
and surely drawing its plans against all that is not itself. scholars take this fact as confirmation.
Beyond this, the Labyrinth is an engine. Powered by the endless
nightmare of the Void, it draws in hope and spoils it to bitterness. The Structure of the Labyrinth
It grinds the structure of the Shadowlands like grist in a mill and The Labyrinth runs wider and deeper than the human mind
returns it as a furtherance of its own ever-expanding structure. It can readily comprehend, and within infinite space there is infinite
smothers reason in its sleep to produce monsters. Its corrosive and diversity. There are also a few norms that those who spend time in
corrupting effluvium chokes the Shadowlands and the souls that the Labyrinth can come to rely upon in terms of what the place is
exist within it, and it leaves nothing and no one untouched. like and how the Restless function within it.
It is also vital to the existence of the Shadowlands. Although Structurally, the parts of the Labyrinth furthest from the Void
it is a potent source of Oblivion and a magnet for Specters, the lose their chaotic fluidity over time and hardened into a blackened
Neverborn, and horrors spontaneously created from nightmare, the and stone-like resin shot through with marble-like veins of white
Labyrinth is also where wraiths go to negotiate with their Shadows, material. Barring outside influences, this substance, pétra, remains
a repository of forgotten or destroyed resources, such as pure veins stable. But as any experienced dweller near or explorer of the
of Corpus, Angst, soulfire, and the rare hidden pockets of Pathos. Labyrinth can tell you that “stable” is at best an untrustworthy term.

The Theory of the Labyrinth When trod upon, the veins in pétra emit short moans and
sometimes discharge flashes of memory from those who have
The true nature of the Labyrinth is as mazy and confused as the already passed on down. Their intensity varies from featherweight
passages that permeate it. There are two points of general agreement: touches up to the hammer-lie blows of Mnemotechnics. Most are
• The Neverborn created the Labyrinth by tearing its substance the memories of the very recently departed, no more than months
from the raw essence of Creation at the beginning of time. old, but snippets of lives lost longer ago sometimes linger.
• Oblivion was not always as powerful and malevolent as it is today. The memory veins serve as a last test of the supplicant’s readi-
Despite overwhelming proof to the contrary, some wraiths ness: those who flinch or are startled still cling to their existence
refuse to believe in the Labyrinth’s existence. Deniers hold to the enough to be useful as tools. Oblivion leads them away from the
psychological interpretation of the Shadowlands and believe that brink to discharge some task. Only when the intrusion fails to
the Labyrinth has no objective existence at all. At best, these Restless disrupt the supplicant’s march into the Void is it truly time. Those
are deluded fools on the order of Flat Earthers and at worst are little who remain unshaken are ready to contribute their fragments to
better than the Shadow-eaten because such denial feeds Oblivion the Void to hasten the end of all things.
(deniers are the first ones tossed over the walls when a Maelstrom The best-known entrance and exit to the Labyrinth is the
hits). Wraiths who accept the Labyrinth’s existence (also known as Veinous Stair (see p. 70). It is comprised almost entirely of pétra.
“sane”) have a limited consensus about the origins of the Labyrinth. Its name comes from the threads and ribbons of frozen memory
Most Restless accept the thought that the Neverborn created the that constantly shift within what otherwise appears as black stone.
Labyrinth; it’s the specifics of the matter about which people argue. Once the Restless descend the Stair to the very upper and
outmost edges of the Labyrinth, the surety of pétra slowly gives

66 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

way to cancerous chaos. You cannot expect any but the very old- Odium, which is anti-Corpus; the stuff of the Void accreted and
est points within the Labyrinth to have any consistency to their made solid. Its form springs from the rage and madness of the
structure. Whim, fantasy, and nightmare all collide within to create Spectre or Hive shaping it, and reflects an existing location in the
claustrophobically tight or mind-bending and immense corridors, Skinlands. Connecting the two is a passage, which is a permanent
lacunae, Necropoli, and stranger landscapes. Such fixed points, even scar in the Shroud called a fistula.
those within sight of an entrance, become viciously fought for and Fistulas serve as the only means of mobility that the creators of
held dearly because they provide islands and markers by which to the Abscess have beyond its defined borders. The fistula connects
navigate. Some scholars think there is a pattern to these areas, but the pocket realm to a powerful Nihil. By using them, Spectres
to date none have discovered if such a pattern truly exists. move freely between the Labyrinth and the Skinlands free of the
The Labyrinth, despite the proximity of the Void, is rarely usual restrictions, which enables them to spread Oblivion to the
entirely dark. Rather, it is dark enough with its substance glowing world of the living.
with muted colors that tug at the corners of the eye and cast the Few Spectres can accomplish the creation of an Abscess
simplest shadow into monstrousness. Generally, the more active alone, and the Hive-Mind resists every effort at it. But should the
and fluid any given area of the Labyrinth is, the more half-light it Shadow-eaten succeed in their task, they possess a personal Hell
creates to better reveal shapes and shadows to lure the credulous or that operates at their whim. Abscesses go beyond even the stages
unwary deeper into the eventual embrace of the Void. and sets used in Harrowings and are inevitably filled with Moliated
Spectral squads range across the exterior and outermost regions souls twisted to suit the Spectres’ desires. To stabilize these pockets,
of the Labyrinth. They use hoarded relic strobe lights to blind or at at least one Moliated Spectre must serve as a “skeleton,” providing
least disorient Restless moving on the Stair. Since there are never the nightmare logic and general structure of the Abscess.
enough of these lights, less fortunate Spectres assigned to the effort Once carved from the plasm of the Tempest and Labyrinth,
use spotlights, movie studio klieg lights, signal flares, lighthouse Oubliette (•••••), Harrow the Mortal Flesh (•••••), and
lamps, and whatever else comes to hand. Kindled Spectral torches Anger Enough for Two Worlds (•••••) refine the Abscess further.
inflict some emotional damage on wraiths and are replenished As expected, the cost for enacting these Arcanoi together is
from below if any of the torches manages to escape. staggering, and the result is monstrous: Linking a Nihil in the
Deeper within the Labyrinth, reason and even causality surren- Skinlands to the Abscess permanently lowers the Shroud there by
der to the ever-changing flux of the Void. What was stone becomes 4. The Abscess is a gross violation of even the loose order of the
warm and nearly biological. The air either becomes fetid and humid Labyrinth, and it is a place of horror and torment that even other
like a swamp or cold due to frozen wastelands of black ice. Accepted Spectres fear. As such, the minimum Shroud rating for the linked
principles of physics (such as they are in the Shadowlands) distort Nihil is 3 instead of the usual 4. Travel between the Abscess and
and become Corpus-annihilating menaces to travel. By the time you Nihil through its fistula has its difficulty lowered by 2.
reach the Well of the Void, sanity has fled entirely to phenomena The sole grace of an Abscess is that the Spectres are bound
such as proto-Maelstroms in the form of Oblivion-tainted blizzards, to its borders even in the Skinlands. As such, the Abscess must
Corpus-flaying sandstorms, or pockets of vacuum. consume enormous amounts of Pathos and generates Angst in
Those who follow the supposed footsteps of Charon to the measures that can permanently contaminate the Skinlands. In
center of the Labyrinth claim to see visions of long-dead tomb these cases, the Fog burns away and those among the Quick that
worlds spinning in nothingness. These worlds have been stripped would become Spectres after death find themselves attracted to
of everything, including name and meaning. There, the armies of the purulent atmosphere of the contaminated area. This situation
Oblivion gather their strength, and from within the tomb-worlds’ plays well into the plans of the Spectres by providing the sole means
blasted shells Malfeans howl into the Void and call their children of leaving the Odium-tainted locale. A living person chosen as
home. the vehicle for the Abscess’ mobility has Odium forced into their
body, and their living mind is corrupted by using Contamination
Abscesses to become something beyond a Consort: an Odium-tainted horror
Abscesses are limited spaces within the infinite passages of the called a Nomad. Such freakish abominations exist solely to torment
Labyrinth created by powerful Spectres who retain their sense of the Quick by dragging their victims back to the Nihil at the center
identity despite their link to the Hive-Mind. These malevolent souls of an Abscess, where they endure torments that shatter their sanity
use the Dark Arcanoi of Shroud Rending and Tempest Weaving to and produce the Angst for which the Spectres hunger.
carve out places of their own within the Labyrinth, and establish For the purposes of a chronicle, Nomads function like the
limited domains where the understood laws of the Shadowlands Risen (see Wraith: The Oblivion, p. 385).
become mutable. Abscesses broadly resemble Zones of Alienation
(see p. 68), and are utterly dominated by the Spectre or Hive that A Maze of Flesh: Body Horror and the Labyrinth
created them. Within the Abscess, the Shadow-eaten wield enormous Critic Ronald Allan Lopez Cruz describes body horror or biological
power; in a twisted way, they are the Abscess. horror as “a subgenre of horror which intentionally showcases graphic
They are spaces filled with the madness and rage of their or psychologically disturbing violations of the human body. These
creators. When the domain takes shape, the material within becomes
THE LABYRINTH 67
violations may manifest through aberrant sex, mutations, mutilation, or their surroundings. The Labyrinth is where wraiths go to deal
zombification, gratuitous violence, disease, or unnatural movements with Spectres in a literal and figurative sense, and it provides fertile
of the body. Body horror was a description originally applied to ground for roleplaying in the Underworld.
an emerging subgenre of American horror films but has roots in Although these themes fit and help define the aesthetic of
early Gothic literature and has expanded to include other media.” Wraith: The Oblivion generally and the Labyrinth specifically,
There are practical alternatives to using body horror in Wraith: they can be problematic for some Storytellers and their players.
The Oblivion. Enumerating them all would require a book in of Wraith is a high-trust game that deals with disturbing themes,
itself. Here is some practical (though limited) advice on approaching and the players and Storyteller involved must keep that aspect in
the horror without directly utilizing body horror. mind. Approach exploring the limits of your fellow players and
The first tool is implication. Never directly show what you hint. stretching the boundaries of roleplaying with care and consideration.
Ghost stories, even ones where the characters are the dead, rely Creating a memorable and fun experience is a good thing; locking
heavily on misdirection and implication to achieve the necessary a claustrophobe in a closet is inexcusable.
atmosphere. Strange, luminous mists and fogs; far-off voices; and
shadows only briefly glimpsed set up scenes of horror and exploit Zones of Alienation
the human tendency to fill in the blanks. Although implication In the chaotic and ever-shifting environs of the Labyrinth,
is true for almost all genres of horror, it’s particularly suited to there are many mysteries. Among these mysteries, the Zones of
Wraith chronicles. Alienation (or just Zones) stand out for their strangeness. Even the
The second tool is abjection, which is when someone experi- oldest scholars of the obscure and bizarre aspects of the Underworld
ences or confronts (both mentally and as a body) a breakdown in admit their bafflement at the existence of these places and hesitate
the distinction between what is self and what is Other. Abjection to even theorize on their origin. The Zones, they say, are. What hand
prevents the absolute realization of existence and completes the or mind, if any, wrought them, who can say?
course of biological, social, physical, and spiritual cycles. Wraith There are few certainties in the Underworld, and the Zones are
uses many different systems and themes to approach abjection, with the least certain areas of knowledge, although certain phenomena
Spectres and Oblivion as the strongest representation, but Storytellers remain more or less consistent. Wraiths and Spectres define or
can take it further by extending the concept to the wraith’s Corpus create some consistencies with their combined presence or absence,
and many others exist entirely without explanation. Historically,

68 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Doomslayer interrogation of prisoners of war has revealed little to One thing is certain: The Between, anomalies, and the strange
nothing about the Zones, except that even the Hive-Mind fears them. relics found within a Zone are all part of the same phenomenon.
As a result, the Zones are some of the few places where an The precise nature of their relationship remains a mystery.
uneasy détente exists between wraiths and Spectres, although both
covertly violate that peace. So long as some form of deniability Entrances and Exits
holds fast, it’s acceptable, if not palatable, to adopt an attitude of The outside of the Labyrinth warps and cracks from both
containment akin to that of Cold War-era Berlin in the Skinlands. internal and external stresses. The tides of stasis and change force
The Zones are fixed points within the Labyrinth immune to the everything into new configurations and cast up mountainous ridges
tides of time and Oblivion. This frozen state makes them invaluable or collapse them into valleys choked with debris. Ruined sections
for navigational purposes. of the Shadowlands sometimes plummet through the Tempest to
Within the Zones, the malleable physics of the Underworld crash onto the Labyrinth, which set off Labyrinth-quakes that make
go haywire and defy “known” laws and causality, mocking all given existing passages collapse and break open new ones around their
axioms of the dead and making them hazardous at best to all but impact craters. Tempest storms and Maelstroms on their way up
the foolhardy. This danger does not discourage Renegades, thieves, out of the Labyrinth erode, rot, and destroy protruding features.
and other outlaws within wraith society from daring to breach Slower currents push or pull sections of the Labyrinth miles from
the blockades that surround the Zones. Older wraiths call these the baseline elevation.
thieves jackals, but the term has fallen by the wayside in favor of a Within the chaos there are countless openings that range from
new name: stalkers. pinhole cracks through which plasm oozes to pits and canyons so
Stalkers defy the cordons established around the Zones, wide that their outer borders vanish in Tempest mist and fog. Most of
which consist of vast barriers and warnings regularly patrolled by the smaller openings are 1-15 feet across. Any opening smaller than
wraiths and Spectres to seek the bizarre Artifacts and powerful that range closes immediately because of the natural resistance of the
Relics that appear there. Given that careful planning and cautious Labyrinth. Larger openings require tremendous force along enough
exploration, evasion, and escape are the hallmarks of successful distance to connect deep-lying weaknesses within the Labyrinth.
stalkers’ existences, entire chronicles can spin around these activities. Other openings linger for years, decades, or even centuries, but in
Likewise, the items stalkers bring back exist nowhere else but the time they close as unpredictably as they opened. Once the process
Zones, so they command a high price on the black markets on the begins, most openings shut in the space of days or weeks.
edges of the Labyrinth. There are also the holes that were blown open by Spectres
Slipping past the heavily-guarded cordons around the Zones for use in Harrowings, and the channels at the bottom ends of
is the first step in a successful stalk. Beyond the animated barriers Nihils. Only the most profoundly and foolhardy Doomslayers use
of Corpus-slicing wire, balefire mines, heavily armed patrols, and these holes without extensive preparation and most of those who
shrieking alarms forged from souls is the Zone itself. Although its try meet ghastly ends. These are the routes of desperate flight for
barriers are well-defined, the interior of a Zone is rarely so. The when all other alternatives fail. Such passages tend to be smooth,
interior is comprised of a patchwork architecture that is long-lost, straight, and quick, but they also tend to be full of Spectres in the
abandoned, and forgotten, and is filled with anomalies that threaten full flush of activity.
the Corpus and mind alike. Some of it even originates from human Doomslayer expeditions usually leave by an opening other than
history. the one through which they entered. One of the basic principles of
Plasms are the most common Zone denizens. Their malleable survival in the Labyrinth is constant movement. Retracing one’s steps
forms are warped and twisted by exposure to the Zone itself, and almost guarantees an encounter with Spectres who have detected
they often mimic the original inhabitants of the tangle of structures. one’s presence and are gathering for attack. Spectral patrols rise from
Stalkers and other Doomslayers that have returned successfully the depths after major bouts of Labyrinthotectonic activity to keep
can likewise have their Corpus temporarily or permanently altered a watch out for intruders (and refugees seeking to escape Spectral
beyond even the most powerful Arcanoi’s capability to repair. authority). Doomslayers with the resources to do so contract with
Those entities who are fortunate and skilled enough to make friendly Harbingers to fly over a chosen section of Labyrinth to scout
the return journey intact claim that there is something in the Zones, the current topology. Veteran Doomslayers can estimate the probable
which they claim is a vast and utterly alien consciousness that is patterns of passages beneath various surface formations and work
directing events for its own inscrutable ends. Whatever it might be, out contingency plans. Less lucky groups trust to the observations
the Mezhdu (“the Between”) is both rarely sensed and inimical to they can make themselves while descending through the Tempest.
those tainted by Oblivion. Stalkers caution that the Between is no Leaving the Labyrinth is not strictly a matter of geography.
ally to the dead and that even a faint contamination or obstreperous There is an element of will or some other spiritual factor as well. If a
Shadow can provoke violent eruptions in the anomalies that rival Doomslayer enters with the overriding determination to accomplish
the worst Tempests; unlike those storms, the anomalies act with a goal, the Labyrinth might not release them until it is satisfied.
volition. Few who catch the attention of the Between return, and All routes to the outside curve back, all level paths lead down, and
their tales are known only to those who remain unseen.

THE LABYRINTH 69
all straight lines curve. If the goal is unreachable, the wraith is in search of opportunities to feed and destroy. Any effort to extend a
for an extended stay. mine shaft or open a new one requires the support of the Legions.
There are Doomslayers who have been there for centuries. Little is impossible in the Labyrinth, and there are tales of epic
Periodically, younger wraiths encounter these wanderers, who reject mining disasters in which entire crews are crushed or lost, and their
all offers of aid. The ancient Doomslayers trudge on in pursuit of fates are painstakingly etched into the walls of the Stair.
their lost goals. Some of them somehow avoid succumbing to their Unreinforced passages open and close as frequently along the
Shadows and Spectral assaults, and linger on, and on; a minor Stair as anywhere else in the Labyrinth. The most stable ones are
school of Stygian philosophy says that they will survive even after subject to exploratory mining, and those passages that show instabili-
Stygia is smoking ruins. ties are shunned by the ranks of regular wraiths. For Doomslayers,
Sometimes exits close for other reasons. Tempest-Weaving the instability is a promising sign because it offer hopes of access
Spectres can draw the Labyrinth in upon itself (and often seize to new stretches of the Labyrinth. Those who are in the Labyrinth
the opportunity to follow Fetter links back to their owners). The because it’s their duty rather than their choice try to take no more
normal processes of Labyrinth realignment create risks of closure chances than are necessary, and the vistas of passage, chamber,
that grow greater the longer intruders spend below: avalanches and plasm offer little temptation to them. The occasional raids
cover valley chambers, tremors slam together the opposing sides of by foraging Shadowed plasmics do nothing to make exploring any
a rift, and storms fill open passages with caustic plasm. Sometimes, more attractive.
changes happen quickly as whole landscapes transform themselves To Spectres, the Stair is both a wonderful opportunity and a
in response to the dreams of the Labyrinth’s masters or perhaps galling and gaping wound. There are always plenty of desirable targets
their own impulses. creeping along it: miners, soldiers, and explorers, and they all are
far more appetizing than fellow Spectres as sources of nourishment.
The Veinous Stair Conversely, the Stair and its occupants are a reminder of how much
The Veinous Stair is the spine of the Labyrinth and the Axis of the universe has not succumbed to Oblivion. There are infinite
Mundi of the world under Oblivion’s sway. It is the counterpart of depths within the Labyrinth, but there’s an extensive, diverse, and
the River of Death in the Shadowlands, the place to which traffic vital span of existence above.
naturally flows, and the fixed point in the eons-long circulation of Spectres with arts of concealment sneak on to the Stair to write
the Labyrinth. It runs from a fixed point in Stygia to a fixed point slogans, paint diagrams, and carve frescoes that have propagandistic
in the surface of the Labyrinth and then on down. It is the only intent. These etchings mock Stygian history and accomplishments,
feature of the Labyrinth that remains stationary relative to the cast aspersions at the motives of those commanding the miners
universe above. Even the exterior mouth of the Well of the Void and soldiers assigned to the Labyrinth, and proclaim the inevitable
drifts along with its surrounding, but no changes of Labyrinthine triumph of Oblivion. The Spectres lay out little tableaus that show
terrain dislodge the Veinous Stair. the extent of Oblivion’s influence in the Shadowlands, and often
Its single almost-consistent feature is its steps: 18 inches wide gather details for these tableaus from available Shadows. They
and 12 inches deep with enough minor variations to cause the provide testimonials about the pleasures of the Shadow-eaten’s
unwary problems. Waves of distortion sometimes ripple upward existence, and often emphasize the new opportunities to fulfill
from the Well when the flow of souls is particularly heavy. Entire Passions and goals that Stygia denies. When all else fails, they settle
sections are altered by pulses that travel up faster than the fastest for straightforwardly shocking and disturbing images calculated to
Harbinger can bring warning. exploit the fears of viewers.
On the Stair, the main mode of commerce is mining and Some Doppelgangers have given up on the prospect of joint
recovering the materials and relics that have fallen from the Skinlands. action and prefer to operate solo. A lone Doppelganger stakes out
These items embed themselves in the pétra and await discovery. a vantage point and nabs the last straggling member of a group of
The upper reaches of the Stair are long-depleted, and those seeking wraiths. He quickly adopts the victim’s appearance and returns to
the wealth hidden within its substance risk much by descending Stygia with the others. Over time, a large contingent of Doppelgangers
ever-closer to the Labyrinth by inches because raids by Spectres are develops in miners’ and soldiers’ communities poised to disperse
common enough to be a serious threat. for action elsewhere in the Shadowlands.
The side shafts sunk into rich veins of Angst, soulfire, and
other valuable raw materials help give definition and stability to The Well of the Void
the Stair. Reinforcing rings of Stygian steel make it much harder The Void is the center and the bottom of the Labyrinth. In a
for passages to shift shape or position. This corporeal effort gains sense, it’s the Labyrinth’s core. Those who are sufficiently tired of
support from the sustained willpower of those who toil within the existence find it not far away, either around the next corner, down
Labyrinth for Stygian ends. Their beliefs unconsciously drive back a flight of steps, behind the last doorway, or at the foot of the bed.
the worst of the Labyrinth’s inconstancy. In compensation, the When it serves the purposes of the Neverborn to intervene, they
unmined passages just beyond the limits of regular Stygian passages can lead those seeking the Void along a lengthier route to a place
are more variable than usual, and some shift more rapidly than the where the doomed soul can perform one final service. Otherwise,
eye can follow. Nightmares of chaos sweep around the miners in the Void unfolds its final threshold for the convenience of the ready.

70 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

The Void can appear anywhere in the Labyrinth, in the parts ruled
by other kingdoms, and in the wastes where no great powers prevail.
In addition to the Void’s ubiquitous manifestations, there is
a fixed entrance at the bottom of the Veinous Stair. Here, a well
miles across descends indefinitely down into darkness. Above the
mouth of the Stair it narrows, and its size can vary from half a mile
to a few yards as it passes through layers of Labyrinthine matter.
Below the Stair, its shaft is pockmarked with sanctuaries that have
been carved out of it by Oblivion-worshipping Spectres at this final
place within existence.
There is no fixed point beyond which return is impossible
down in the depths of the Well. Sometimes, those who try climbing
or flying down vanish forever just a few seconds after leaving the
lowest ledges. Other seekers of obliteration remain visible for hours
or even days. Oblivion has its own rhythms that remain obscure
even to those who have been observing it for decades or centuries.

Babylon Favela
Communities of those souls not quite ready to meet Oblivion
eke out pathetic existences in chambers opening on to the Well.
Babylon Favela is named after the tiered Hanging Gardens, and it
is a typical example of many such settlements.
The settlers include a range of types, such as the deluded who
hope to summon the next Great Maelstrom by force of will, the
confused who seek a sign about how to proceed, and the despairing
who still retain some tie to the rest of the universe. All of them
scavenge what nourishment they can from those about to plunge
into the Well. While waiting for fresh supplicants, they turn to
carving their stories, hopes, and fears into the walls around them.
In some places, particularly along the two great stairways that spiral
down into the depths of the Well, the carvings reach back dozens
of feet from the original surface and reflect untold generations of
sculptors trying to efface or transform their predecessors’ work.
These lost souls shape their caves into echoes or parodies of their
Skinlands homes, places in the Shadowlands that they conquered
or destroyed, and other dwellings that made an impression in the
days before their drive to seek Oblivion became dominant.
Death emphatically does not make all people equal.

Business and Mercantilism

Ask anyone in Stygia and they’ll tell you that nobody has any
dealings with the Spectres under any circumstances except to grant
them Nhudri’s Embrace and then the mercy of the forges. Lies
come as easily to the dead as to the living.
There is a great deal more commerce between Stygia and
the Labyrinth than anyone admits. Everyone does it and assumes
they’re alone in their sins. Spectres provide some of the most prized
goods in the Underworld like soulfire crystals at far better prices
than the Hierarchy offers with its monopoly on legitimate sales.
Although items manufactured under contract from the Hierarchy
must use (or at least seem to use) legitimate suppliers, Renegades
and Heretics are likely to go for the best price when fueling souled
firearms, which is an example of what drives the strange commerce
with the denizens of the Labyrinth.
THE LABYRINTH 71
 Spectres travel widely in the Underworld, and goods from other either handed over to the Darksiders for Redemption, the Office
Dark Kingdoms wash up naturally in the Labyrinth as the detritus of the Primary Secretary for interrogation, or sent to the Order’s
of Helldiving expeditions and Harrowings. Anyone with Spectral soulforges and reshaped into weapons in the war against Oblivion.
connections can get even the most exotic goods at “affordable Many wraiths maintain the latter option is hardly a superior fate
prices.” The Tempest gives up its gifts to the Shadow-eaten more to destruction.
easily than to the Restless. Things that were thought lost forever in The Office of the Primary Secretary, A. K. A. “The Division”
the Tempest are retrievable if the wraith is willing to pay the price. observes important Stygian political figures for signs of replacement
Especially unusual items and plasmics dredged from the Tempest by Doppelgangers and rout the impostors that they discover. This
have a market value to a Spectre who is seeking Shadowlands lucre group is the “secret service” of the Doomslaying Orders and is
for their inscrutable reasons. much smaller than the Thorns (only about a thousand Restless
Spectres sell themselves as well. There isn’t a huge market are members). The Division’s members are some of the most
in the Shadowlands for practitioners of Hive-Mind, but even the gifted practitioners of the Arcanoi and ministers to the Shadow of
fates meted out by the Arrangers of the Masquers Guild aren’t as the Underworld. They combine the skills they learned while alive
painful as Shades dragging a wraith down into a Nihil. Only the with the powers of the Restless. Unlike the Helldivers, who deal
mad strike such a deal with the Shadow-eaten, but the mad are with Spectres who have become too dangerous for covert direct
never in short supply. action before they act outside the Labyrinth, the Division engages
Spectres have their reasons to indulge in this odd capitalism. in counter-espionage against the Shadow-eaten.
Some still go numbly through the empty motions of buying, selling, A Division operation against the Shadow-eaten takes the long-
and amassing wealth. Others do it to sow discord in the Shadowlands term view of matters. Their agents hail from the ranks of thieves,
or to build up funds to support networks of Doppelganger agents confidence artists, and spies among the Quick. They claim that such
operating in the Hierarchy. Some seek an edge in the Oblivion War by varied professions are merely aspects of the whole of the Office of
selling intelligence about their rivals to Helldivers and Doomslayers. the Primary Secretary. Many develop elaborate “legends” and false
Philosophical Spectres (who are rare because Oblivion does not identities over time that allow them to carry out vital work against
encourage forward thinking) see the establishment of commerce Doppelgangers and other infiltrators without interference from the
between the Labyrinth and the Underworld to be essential in the fraught politics of the Legions.
erosion of the differences between wraith and Spectre, and Shadow Helldivers are Masquers who perform special missions inside
and Psyche. the Labyrinth. They work alone or in team of 2-5 members. These
missions can be assassinations, extractions, covert operations, or
War Without End even scientific field observation. They go under deep cover for their
assignments. Their mandate is deceptively simple: When there’s a
For wraiths, particularly Doomslayers, the reality of the
Labyrinth is eternal battle. All things bend toward this end. The problem that the other Doomslayer Orders cannot address, they
Doomslayers live between states of conflict from without and within ask for a Helldiver team. The Helldivers are masters of Moliate who
(as they wrestle with their Shadows’ empowerment from the Void) enter the Labyrinth disguised as Spectres. Clothed in the semblance
or prepare for the next mission. The heroes, fools, and mad that of the enemy, they descend into the Labyrinth to infiltrate the ranks
battle against Oblivion are the most restless of the Restless. of the Shadow-eaten.
Some Helldivers are anthropologists or trained agents of
The Doomslayer Orders of Battle espionage. These Helldivers, the Agents of Insight, strive to learn
The Order of the Thorn takes the fight to the enemy in an the nuances of Spectral society and culture and map the complex
organized and military fashion. Its members take a fair number flows of power and influence that form the political topology of the
of prisoners, although no one outside the Order knows why. The Labyrinth. They are the eyes and ears of Stygia in the Labyrinth. The
Thorns dedicate themselves to fighting Oblivion on a tactical and Agents of Insight scientifically investigate Spectres and their bizarre
strategic level, and they provide the most open applications of force cultures, and map the Labyrinth. Any sort of device, instrument,
among the Doomslayer Orders. These brave wraiths carry on their sample, or specimen must leave or enter the Labyrinth somehow,
organization’s crusade against the Shadow-eaten for the usual reasons and the Agents of Insight are uniquely suited to accomplish this
that an individual dedicates their life to a cause: trauma, vision, or task as field agents and couriers.
duty. Whatever motivates them individually, the Thorns are united Other Helldivers are the Kindly Ones, who are assassins without
in their hatred of Spectres. parallel who stalk the Shadow-eaten deemed to be most dangerous.
What makes the Thorns exceptional is their reluctance to Unseen and unsuspected, they work their way close to important
kill. Some are former Shadow-eaten (see p. 31 for the process of Spectres and arrange for them to leave the scene quietly. The Kindly
Redemption), have lost loved ones to Oblivion, or follow the dictates Ones are the commandoes of the Helldivers and silent warriors
of their faith. Whatever the case, when a Thorn destroys a Spectre among the Doomslayers who carry out the most dangerous of
they have lost the fight by their own moral standards. Whenever it missions while surrounded by their enemies. As such, they have
is possible, Thorns capture the Shadow-eaten. Their prisoners are the highest casualty counts of any of the Orders.

72 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 Darksiders are Pardoners who cater to the needs of other
Doomslayers. Some serve as combat medics for the soul by keeping
Osseum
Doomslayers’ Shadows in line even in the heart of the Labyrinth. Osseum is an Arcanos rarely seen outside of the Labyrinth and
They are rumored to also work on rehabilitating the Shadow-eaten. its borders. It is concerned with creating things out of the dust of
The Thorns risk much to capture Spectres intact to subject them ages (Common) and becoming the dust of ages (Initiate). Nothing
to the ministrations of the Darksiders. Their mission is to find a created with Osseum lasts, but the ability to summon forth tools
cure for the Shadow-eaten disease and find a method to Redeem and material is invaluable in a place where nothing else is certain.
all Spectres. Osseum System
The Pardoners are the primary contributors to the Darksiders, Access to the freely available detritus of the Tempest greatly aids
and part of the Order’s membership comes directly from that users of Osseum. The difficulty of all Osseum rolls is reduced by
guild. These Darksiders are Master-class Pardoners who believe (as 1 while in the Tempest. Furthermore, the difficulty of all Osseum
do the other members of the Order) in the eventual Redemption rolls is reduced by 2 while in the Labyrinth or during a Maelstrom. 
of the Shadow-eaten. The rest of the membership is of mixed but • Bloodhound (Common)
impressive pedigree: Pardoners with methods too progressive for the At this level, the wraith senses the ebb and flow of the particles
guild to accept, Obliviographers, cosmetic Masquers, and Monitors of Corpus and tomb dust around them to identify barely seen tracks
concerned with the repair of Fetters. in the earth and disturbances in the air.
Darksiders are students of the Shadow and Oblivion. They System: The player spends 1 point of Pathos and rolls Perception
labor for years to find ways to Redeem the Shadow-eaten, repair + Osseum (difficulty 8). The difficulty of all Perception-based and
Oblivion-damaged Corpus and Fetters, and reverse the growth of tracking related rolls is reduced by 1 for each success for the next scene.
the Shadow. This Order keeps in contact with Darksiders who • Blind (Initiate)
pursue independent or unrelated research, and speak with the The wraith gathers a small cloud of dust and Corpus into their
various Dybbuk Circles researching Redemption. hand that they hurl at a foe to distract them. This can be as simple
The commerce between the Darksiders and some of the Dybbuk as gathering dust into the wraith’s off hand during combat or as
groups extends to joint research and personnel exchange. These unusual as vomiting a sticky spray of dust into their face.
Doomslayers also help fund the Institute of Obliviographic Studies System: The player spends 1 point of Pathos and rolls Stamina
and contribute a great deal of material to the library, which puts + Osseum (difficulty 8). On the characters action, they can hurl or
them in close contact with any number of groups studying Oblivion spray a hail of dust into the eyes of their opponent and blind their
and the Labyrinth and making their theories very influential. foe. Goggles, masks, and other facial protection do not help until
Solos is a catch-all term for any wraith who Doomslays without the target removes the dust. The difficulties of all attacks by the
belonging to an official organization. Some go through training foe against the character are increased by +1 for each success the
and some don’t. Some do it for the money and others for personal character obtains (maximum 9) for a number of turns equal to the
reasons. Within the wide range of wraiths that choose to Doomslay number of successes obtained on the activation roll.
without official sanction, two broad groups emerge. This isn’t to •• Coriolis Shadow (Common)
say that other types don’t exist, but successful Solos still find safety The wraith summons a cloud of dark particles around them
in numbers and common cause within a shared culture. to conceal their presence or blind their foes.
Skellhunters undertake hunting Spectres on an individual level. System: The player spends a Corpus and rolls Wits + Osseum
They are broadly hunters who stalk the Shadow-eaten for the bounty (difficulty 7). Successes work in one of two ways:
placed on their heads issued by the Office of the Primary Secretary.
• Conceal: The wraith pulls a cloud of non-reflecting particles
Some of them are simply fools, and others are slavers who use this
around them to conceal themselves from view. Each success
profession to make their efforts seem legitimate. A tiny fraction are
grants the wraith one additional die to their stealth pool for
true professionals. These last few tend to be ideologically motivated,
the rest of the scene.
and often are either retirees from the Doomslayer Orders or running
lucrative for-profit operations. • Blur: Success on the roll means that the wraith creates a
storm of opaque particles. The storm has a diameter around
The second group of Solos is widely despised and more
them is equal to the wraith’s Willpower score in yards. The
controversial. Stalkers are Doomslayers who independently scout
wraith is unaffected by this cloud, and the miniature dust
new locations within the Labyrinth, retrieve unusual relics, and
storm increases the difficulty of any hand-to-hand or firearm
most often deal directly with Spectres as a commercial venture.
attack that targets the character by +1. All thrown or archaic
They are the only group that dares to penetrate the Zones of
missile weapon attacks suffer a +2 difficulty. The storm lasts
Alienation (see p. 68) with any regularity. They risk their existence
one turn per success.
to snatch exquisitely rare and powerful Artifacts from the baleful
chaos. Although the Orders denounce and punish such actions •• Bone Shroud (Initiate)
and the Hierarchy declares them illegal (and send recidivists to The wraith wraps themselves in a powdery white shroud of
the soulforges), stalkers provide valuable services in exchange for bone-like particles that form a thick, hooded cassock around them.
favors and Oboli alike.
THE LABYRINTH 73
This shroud is strong enough to protect them from the ravages of •••• Ossean Citadel (Common)
Maelstrom winds. The wraith summons the particles of Corpus in from the
System: The player spends 2 points of Pathos and rolls Stamina air and earth around them to build a redoubt of interlaced bony
+ Osseum (difficulty 8). Each success reduces the per-scene damage spines. The structure can range in size from a small tent to a small
of a Maelstrom by one die. The Bone Shroud normally lasts one house, but the interlaced web of bones serves to provide temporary
scene, but the player may spend an additional two Pathos to extend protection from the ravages of Maelstroms. The storm winds that
its duration for an additional scene. whistle through gaps in the citadel may still harm Restless within,
••• Osseous Arsenal (Common) but at a decreased level.  
Ossean Doomslayers transform their Corpus into weapons and System: The player spends 4 points of Pathos and 2 points
armor of bone to prosecute their unending war against Oblivion. of Corpus and rolls Stamina + Osseum (difficulty 8). Each success
Like its counterpart in Moliate, weapons and armor forged through decreases the strength of a Maelstrom within the confines of the
Osseous Arsenal is customizable by the user to resemble everything structure by one for a number of scenes equal to the number of
from elaborately scrimshawed armor of polished bone to primitive successes acquired. The size of the structure ranges from a small
clubs and shivs. Unlike their Moliated counterparts, items created tent (1 success) to a house (5 successes) or even larger depending
through Osseous Arsenal are temporary at best. on the roll. Powerful Osseans create stockades formidable enough
System: Osseous Arsenal can create one weapon or type of to surround a small Necropolis.
armor. Each weapon or armor requires a separate roll. The player •••• Ashes to Ashes (Initiate)
spends 2 points of Pathos and 1 point of Corpus and rolls Stamina The wraith summons a storm of sandy particles from the air
+ Osseum (difficulty 6) to create each item. Tomb dust summoned around them to abrade their foe. Concentrated blasts include tiny
from the air mixes with the Ossean’s Corpus to create the items of particles of Stygian Steel, True Jade, or similar material sufficient
the Osseous Arsenal. They last one full scene and can be fortified to render even the most potent foe unto dust.  
to last an additional scene by the expenditure of an additional point System: The player targets a single foe within Willpower x
of Pathos to maintain their frail vitality.   10 yards and unleashes a furious storm of abrasive particles that
Weapons: Osseous Arsenal only creates melee and thrown engulf the target. The player spends 2 points of Pathos and 1 point
weapons. Each weapon created requires successes equal to the of Corpus. The wraith’s Shadow gains 1 point of Angst. The player
damage the weapon causes (a spear or polearm requires three rolls Stamina + Osseum (difficulty 6) to unleash the storm. The
successes, a sabre requires two successes, brass knuckles require player may choose to inflict lethal or aggravated damage. If lethal,
one success, and so on). each success inflicts a single point of lethal damage. If aggravated,
Armor: Osseous Arsenal only creates normal armor (no Stygian every 2 successes (rounded down) convert into a single point of
Steel, True Jade, and so on). Each suit or type of armor requires aggravated damage. Both forms of damage ignore armor.     
successes equal to its level of protection to create it (Class 1 requires ••••• Pauper King (Common)
1 success and Class 5 requires 5 successes). The armor functions as Users of this art summon the dust of ages and broken things
detailed in the armor section of Wraith: The Oblivion on p. 328. of the Tempest to form a battered yet formidable panoply. The user
••• Sinkhole (Initiate) shrouds themselves in a suit of armor composed of rusted mail, a
The wraith vanishes into the earth of the Underworld as a dented breastplate, moldering robes, sculpted plates of bone, and
cloud of ashen soot. This power can work on any earthen surface a crown of jagged bone. The armor can look like almost anything
from the Shadowlands, such as the banks of the River of Death or the wraith desires, but it is weary, dented, and withered with the
the corridors of the Labyrinth. It is also the chief means Osseans weight of ages.
use to hide from Spectres and sudden Maelstroms.   System: Pauper King costs 3 points of Pathos, 2 points of
System: The player spends 1 point of Pathos and the Corpus, and 1 point of Willpower to create. The player roles Stamina
character vanishes into the earth. The transformation requires + Osseum (difficulty 8). Upon success, the armor allows the user
a turn to complete, during which the wraith is vulnerable. Once to soak aggravated damage as though it were lethal damage until it
transformed, the wraith is in a slumber-like state until they make dissipates. In addition, the user’s cloak billows in the un-winds of
a Willpower roll (difficulty 6) to awaken and return to the world the Underworld as they shroud themselves in a blinding storm of
above. All attempts to locate the Wraith by any means increase fine dust. The number of successes used to create the cloak adds to
by +2 difficulty. Should someone locate the submerged Ossean, the difficulty of all attacks against the user (difficulty 9 maximum).
they find a mass of dust packed as densely as concrete. Attempts The dust is so pervasive that only creatures that function without
to harm the wraith immediately expel them from the earth in sight are unaffected. Pauper King lasts for a number of scenes equal
a cloud of blinding dust (+2 difficulty to all Perception-based to the number of successes rolled.
rolls made by the attacker for one turn). The Ossean subtracts 2 ••••• Dust to Dust (Initiate)
from their initiative the first turn after their exhumation due to The wraith has forged such an intimate bond with the dust of
disorientation but acts normally from their second turn onward. ages that they transform into dust itself. In moments, the Ossean

74 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

and their belongings transform and take flight as a cloud of dust.
In dust form, the character can fly at a jog and penetrate almost
any space not air tight by pouring themselves through keyholes,
Really?
slipping under doors, or travelling down narrow pipes. Yes, really. Survival in the Labyrinth and fighting
System: The player spends 2 points of Pathos and rolls Wits Spectres depends on a willingness to go all in on
+ Osseum (difficulty 6). Success instantly transforms the character risks that would normally not make any sense. The
into a mobile cloud of dust that can travel at a jog for a number of sensible and prudently cautious get destroyed just
turns equal to the number of successes that they scored on their like everyone else. Smart and lucky risk-takers are
roll. The duration of this art can be extended to a number of scenes as likely to survive as anyone else too.
equal to the player’s number of successes with the expenditure of
Storytellers and players can draw on Peril,
3 points of Corpus and 1 point of Willpower.
Incorporated! as is. You can also use it as both
The dust cloud is not dispersible by even the strongest winds, inspiration and justification to throw together influ-
but it can move about or blown off course (at the Storyteller’s ences you like and put them to work in your own
discretion). Wraiths in dust form perceive the world normally but chronicle. The point is to let yourself get bold and
cannot use Arcanoi requiring eye contact. The wraith is immune extreme because that’s what this sort of Underworld
to mundane physical attacks, but still takes full damage from work needs.
barrowfire and supernatural attacks. The supernatural nature of
Maelstroms means they do damage to wraiths in dust form, but
only at half damage (rounded down). The wraith may not attack
others physically while in dust form but may use Arcanoi that do do not match the accepted history of the Quick as it’s known.
not require a physical body.     What is inarguable is Dr. Corbin’s mastery of the Arcanoi of
Argos, Flux, and Inhabit, which make him indispensable to
Peril, Incorporated! •
his team and the squadron.
Violet Szabo: A French/British Special Operations Executive
Doomslayers are an odd bunch at the best of times. They agent during the Second World War and a posthumous recipi-
are wraiths who are charged with prosecuting an endless war and ent of the George Cross. Szabo found herself captured on her
espionage against an enemy deemed unstoppable. Such tasks attract second mission into occupied France. She was interrogated
the strangest among the dead, such as wraiths that don’t fit within and tortured. Eventually, she was deported to Ravensbrück
the rigid structures imposed by the Hierarchy. Fringe philosophers, concentration camp in Germany and executed. Death has
thrillseekers, lone wolves, special operatives from all eras, and other done little to repress the Cockney spy. Since joining Peril,
strange wraiths fill the ranks of the Doomslayers with each one Incorporated!, she is feared among Spectres due to her mastery
applying their unique capabilities to the eternal struggle against of Moliate, utter fearlessness, and seeming lack of influence
Oblivion. Even among the bizarre brigades that comprise the from her Shadow.
Doomslayers, the group calling itself Peril, Incorporated! stands out.
• Bran Mac Conn of the Hundred Battles, Late of the XIth
On record as an attachment to Pursuit Squadron 15 of the Legion, Licensed Private Investigator by His Own Hand:
Legion of Fate, the operatives of Peril, Incorporated! act indepen- A man of many titles, the improbably time-tossed Bran Mac
dently of the Legions and answer only to the commanding officer Conn is Peril, Incorporated’s! most fearsome hand to hand
of the Helldivers and the spymaster of the Division. They carry out combatant. A veteran of Claudius’ 11th Legion, Mac Conn
missions against Spectres and other threats deemed too dangerous is easily the eldest of the wraiths serving in the Squadron and
or bizarre to entrust to more conventional forces. They are an one of their most-trusted advisors. He commands the forces
eclectic mix of spies, Artificers, soldiers, scientists, philosophers, of Outrage in battle for the team, and it is rumored that it was
and specialists who under other circumstances would be security he who discovered the Arcanos of Osseum. His taste in post-
risks according to the Hierarchy and the Doomslayers. Their success mortem clothing is atrocious by the reckoning of his comrades.
record in operations against the Shadow-eaten is a bulwark against
• Art Kane: A more recent recruit in to the Peril, Incorporated!
such accusations, which gives them the latitude to operate as they
ranks, Kane served in the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops
see fit. One does not argue with results.
(dubbed the Ghost Army) during the Second World War.
Among the more famous (or notorious) members of Peril, Kane works with the rest of his new unit as a master of illusion
Incorporated! are the following Restless: and deception, and his skills as a provocative photographer in
• Dr. Alexander Corbin: Pilot of the Eagle Two, which is the life feed his Mnemosynis and Puppetry Arcanoi. He has yet
team’s primary means of transport. Dr. Corbin presents himself to integrate fully into the ranks of the boisterous and bizarre
as a bona-fide, larger-than-life character straight from the afterlife army in which he’s found himself, and he is often a
hero pulps of the 1920s and 1930s who claims to have visited source of friction among the Doomslayers.
impossible locales in life and battled against bizarre foes. It’s • Lorraine Copeland: Another SOE recruit, Copeland serves
a matter of debate whether his claims are true because they as the Peril, Incorporated! archaeologist and expert on the

THE LABYRINTH 75
 Labyrinth. She assists the team and the Squadron in planning one such project. The XF-12 Rainbow was Republic Aviation’s
daring drops into Shadow-eaten strongholds. Although the high-performance reconnaissance aircraft that could overfly Japan
records remain sealed by order of the Division, she led a dar- from American Pacific island bases. Its onboard technology, which
ing raid into the heart of a massive Tempest. Whatever they was revolutionary for the 1940s, enabled the crew to develop and
discovered there, it whispers Oblivion’s song to Copeland analyze reconnaissance photos in flight and analyze them for
every waking moment. intelligence, which vastly hastened the intelligence cycle for United
• “Haze”: A well-known musician in life, Haze refuses to go by States Army Air Corp commanders. Unfortunately for Republic
his Skinlands name. A rough fit for Peril at the time of his Aviation, the war’s end yielded a surplus of other airframes that
recruitment, he is nonetheless a skilled paratrooper, and his could be adapted for the same mission. The newly independent
unparalleled command of the Keening and Castigate Arcanoi United States Air Force canceled the program in 1948 only a few
have saved the team’s souls on multiple occasions. Shortly after weeks before 44-91003 crashed off Florida in Choctawhatchee Bay.
his death, Haze arranged for a Masquer to conceal his features At least, that’s what the history books of the time claim.
so that his face is perpetually cast in psychedelic shadows. His The truth of the Eagle Two is more colorful and bizarre than few
Relic Fender Stratocaster is one of the most powerful Chanteur wraiths dare suspect: It did not originate from the Skinlands they
instruments in the Shadowlands. know but from another continuum entirely. Unknown to Skinlands
They almost always work with others for specific missions. historians, the XF-12’s design originated decades earlier with the
As part of their general ethos of heroic adventure in the gravest work of aviation engineer and designer Dr. Alexander Corbin.
extreme, they welcome allies of good will and wiliness to cooperate As part of a group sponsored by Howard Hughes, Dr. Corbin’s
in the work of constant innovation. They can serve in a chronicle experimental aircraft had a long and strange history before the
as good guides to places, people, and phenomena that characters Second World War as it crisscrossed the globe to carry out covert
might not survive by discovering on their own. missions. It served as the primary transport for the International
Security team dubbed Peril, Incorporated! by the press of the time
Rainbow 03: the Eagle Two due to their colorful personalities and exploits.
Military history bulges with projects that might have changed Its final mission ended in destruction. The aircraft was pushed
the course of history if not for poor scheduling. Rainbow Zero out of its version of the Skinlands and into a shared Shroud and
Three (from its US Army Air Corps serial number, 44-91003) was came out in to the Shadowlands that the characters know. Pursuit

76 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Squadron 15, a Legion of Fate unit composed of former test pilots The Beetle, which was produced for the US Air Force’s Special
from Eglin Air Force Base and Naval Air Station Pensacola, salvaged Weapons Center, was 85 tons of hydraulics, servomotors, and
44-91003 from the Tempest within weeks of its destruction. With its radiation shielding. On the rare days when all systems worked as
photoreconnaissance equipment restored, it served the Necropolis designed, its tracked chassis (built from an M42 anti-aircraft gun
Miami garrison for several decades by keeping an unblinking eye carrier) crawled into action at a blistering 13 miles per hour. Its cab,
on events until relic jets became common enough to replace it. which was equipped with two massive arms capable of powdering
Obsolete and difficult to maintain, it went to a Hierarchy reinforced concrete or picking up an egg without cracking it, rested
military surplus auction where its designer, the newly deceased on four hydraulic rams capable of lifting it to a height of 26 feet.
Alexander Corbin, acquired it for a handful of oboli. Refitting The single operator worked from behind 2-feet- thick leaded glass
the venerable aircraft required the work of decades by Corbin, but inside an air-conditioned cockpit with an 8-hour air supply.
once it was completed the Eagle Two became the crown jewel in the The Air Force has never admitted what it did with the one
Doomslayers’ air forces. Beetle that GE constructed in 1961, and Peril, Incorporated! is
Today, late Cold War cameras and other electronic sensors equally cagey about how they obtained it sometime after 1991.
replace the Eagle Two’s 1940s-vintage gear. The smaller equipment Observers hoping to see the Underworld’s premiere giant fighting
opens mass and volume so that it can serve as an airborne com- robot are disappointed, though. The Helldivers have recognized
mand post and special operations aircraft in addition to its original the rechristened HellBeetle’s limitations as a combatant; that is,
reconnaissance role. Its flight crew remains at four (pilot, copilot, its large silhouette and lack of tactical maneuverability, so they
navigator, and flight engineer), but Corbin has added three gunner have avoided deploying it in such a role. Instead, the HellBeetle
positions: dorsal and ventral turrets and a tail barbette, each with fulfills its designers’ original vision of operating in the most hostile
dual relic .50 caliber machine guns. Its fuselage seats up to nine environments possible. It’s the Underworld’s premiere giant salvage,
mission crew, whether they are sensor operators and intelligence recovery, and search and rescue robot.
analysts for reconnaissance, senior Helldivers and their radio techs System: The HellBeetle is a unique Relic vehicle with a safe
for airborne command and control, or commandos for low-level speed of 8 mph, a maximum speed of 15 mph, Maneuver 3, and
parachute insertions. Continuous tinkering by Dr. Corbin and an 100 points of Corpus. A full fuel tank of 16 Pathos keeps it going
unlikely alliance of Artificer and Alchemist aviation enthusiasts for eight hours. While powered, the HellBeetle is completely
whose passion transcends guild rivalries has kept it airworthy and immune to all Maelstrom effects, soulfire, barrow-flame, and all
improved its already record-setting performance. non-supernatural environmental hazards (including radiation).
System: The Eagle Two is a unique Relic. It has a safe speed of It also ignores all damage from such petty sources as fists, swords,
400 mph (644 km/h), a maximum speed of 500 mph (800 kph), and firearms. Only anti-tank warheads or the equivalent unnatural
Maneuver 6, and 40 points of Corpus. Fueling its quartet of Pratt & weapons of the most powerful Spectres can damage it.
Whitney Wasp radial piston engines requires 80 points Pathos, but Peril, Incorporated’s! technical staff is continually finding places
that gives it better than 4,000 miles of range. Its payload’s capabilities to attach more equipment to the HellBeetle. Its usual tool comple-
are malleable depending on the mission; its usual ground crew can ment includes a cutting torch, a rotary saw, a chainsaw, winches,
reconfigure its gear in two hours. hydraulic spreaders, a plow blade, an earthmoving bucket, and just
Designed for reconnaissance, the Eagle Two is happiest when about any other large tool that a giant robot might need to extricate
it’s looking for something, which resonates with its crews. All a wraith, resource, or relic from the Tempest or Labyrinth. Each
Perception-based rolls receive a -1 difficulty aboard it, as do all of these tools is mounted on its own articulated arm or is adapted
Fatalism and Lifeweb arts. It also rewards a capable aviator: If a for the pincers on the two main arms. When the operator uses the
pilot uses Maître après Dieu (Argos •••••), then its Maneuver HellBeetle’s arms, they replace their own Strength and Dexterity
limit increases to 8. Finally, at a cost of 8 points of Pathos for the with the robot’s Strength ••••• ••••• ••••• (yes, 15 dots)
scene (paid by any combination of the flight crew), its engines and Dexterity •• by using Technology in place of whichever Ability
become completely silent and its skin changes color to match the would normally apply. The arms are too slow to make effective
local Tempest’s sky, which adds +2 difficulty to any attempts to attacks against anything smaller or faster than Gorool or the Kraken.
detect or attack it at range. In truly extreme circumstances, Peril, Incorporated! may equip
the HellBeetle with an M10-8 flamethrower or an M261 19-tube
The HellBeetle rocket launcher, both of which were obtained from Vietnam War-era
The early Atomic Age was a time of engineering writ large. US equipment. The flamethrower carries enough alchemical fuel
The atom promised limitless power if only humanity could build for 10 shots, each of which ignites a 5-yard radius balefire inferno
the tools to command it. Among various proposals to revolutionize (soak difficulty 9 and 3 levels of aggravated damage/turn) at a
transportation were nuclear-powered aircraft. One of the problems medium range of 100 yards. Each Hydra-70 rocket detonates for
that ultimately grounded these schemes was the complexity of safely 9 dice of damage in a 10-yard radius (increased by 1 yard per extra
servicing these reactors, but in trying to solve this problem, General success from the attack) with a medium range of 5,000 yards, and
Electric’s Nuclear Materials and Propulsion Division created what the pilot can salvo the rockets in three-round bursts.
remains the world’s largest self-propelled robot.

THE LABYRINTH 77
 The Dark
Kingdom
of Ivory
he people of the African continent have always World and named the Shore Ife. In turn, She communed with
had a unique relationship with the spirit world. the Maji, spirits of the animal kingdom, who gifted the bones of
Despite cultural differences, customs, and their discarded carcasses, and created the Dark Kingdom of Ivory.
stories chronicling their various mythologies, The Dark Kingdom of Ivory was the sum of ancestral memory,
Africans believed the physical world and the reflecting the diverse cultures of the continent. Ala took the wild
spirit world were two sides of the same coin, energy of imagination and shaped it into a realm of vast kingdoms
with each world influencing the other. They would honor those of gold and iron, which stood in harmony with the expanse of the
who passed on and ask for their guidance in times of joy and veldt. Eventually, Ala would come to divide the Dark Kingdom of
sorrow, and war and peace. They would speak to departed family Ivory into four realms that were connected and separated by 256
members as though they were still present through ritual, dance, paths. Each realm was vital to the Dark Kingdom’s existence. If
and song. The spirits, in turn, would respond in kind through one should fall, chaos would reign.
memory and metaphor. Sometimes, they would return to the Ala called upon four of the Ijele to aid Her in governing this
physical plane through the bodies of their descendants to right vast new land. These four, Ellegua the Traveler, Kokou the Drum,
wrongs or remind a people of lessons long thought forgotten. Abuk the Garden, and Ghede the Crass, represented the primal
forces of creation. Their respective domains reflected the conflicting

Origins, both Humble and Grand

his is truth.
psychic energies that brought the Dark Kingdom into existence.

The Bridge
In the beginning, there was only the Shanga, the Bridge Between Worlds, was the largest city in
Ocean, which is the sum of all creation and the Dark Kingdom of Ivory. Home to the most revered of souls,
the wellspring of the soul. It has been said the Shanga was the cultural and political center of the Dark Kingdom.
Ancestors, also known as the Ijele, emerged With pomegranate skies and opulent spires of jewels, mud, and
from the Ocean and created the Shore, and bone, supposedly molded and shaped from souls willing to stand
upon the Shore, the Dark Kingdom of Ivory was built. as permanent edifices to the Dark Kingdom’s glory, the Dark
This is also truth. Kingdom of Ivory was the shining light of the Underworld. Its
Her name was Ala. She was the first. Rising from the collective temple was called Beit al-Ajaib, the House of Wonders, and it was
memory of the Ocean, She created the Shore from the Egg of the the tallest spire in the center of the Shanga. Beit al-Ajaib housed
the Library of Oral Tradition, which held wisdom from which the made from thinly sliced souls, while others believe each fabric was a
Griots would craft their tales for mankind. It was home to the Elders Relic from the Skinlands. Mortal necromancers and beings known as
of Zanzibar, Ancestors who moved on from the physical world after the Mla Watu would come to the Marketplace by way of the River of
a life of great service and extreme sacrifice. The Elders guarded the Dreams. They came to commune with the Ancestors, hold children
Library and its secrets from those who would use the knowledge who died in childbirth, and find names for future generations. The
for nefarious means, which would disrupt the balance between the Merchants of Atunwa, which were the ruling body of the Marketplace,
spiritual and physical and rob the Dark Kingdom of Ivory of its power. were shrewd hagglers, but they were always fair in business.
Now, the Bridge crumbles. Spanning the void of Oblivion, great The busiest section of the Marketplace was the center square
tears and holes between buildings and once-safe cobblestone tracks where Ellegua the Judge of the Marketplace would hold court. Driving
make Shanga an inhospitable Necropolis of transition, an island in a nail into a large effigy that stood at the Gates of Shanga signified
the Tempest. Few remain here for long out of fear of being dragged disputes that had been settled. The effigy was called the Nkisi, also
below. Steadily, the Bridge becomes a series of floating islands linked known as the Good Man. Each nail contained a portion of the
only by tenuous strands. Dark Kingdom’s wisdom. Nails also functioned as keys. One could
be a key that would allow its wielder to open the Gates of Shanga.
The Marketplace Another would allow access to Beit al-Ajaib and the Library of Oral
Tradition. The Nkisi itself was a symbol signifying the strength of
The Atunwa, also known as the Marketplace, connected the
Dark Kingdom of Ivory to the realm of man. Situated at the center unity in the Dark Kingdom.
of the Crossroads, the Atunwa was the bazaar of memory and the New arrivals would stand before the Traveler and the Merchants
first place that Restless and sleeping mortals would encounter in of Atunwa to learn their fate. How one lived their life would determine
the Dark Kingdom. which region of the Dark Kingdom they would make their home.
The Marketplace was a bustling and joyful land. It smelled of If one were honored for their guidance and wisdom in life, they
the most fragrant incense and was filled with the sounds of music would become a scholar in Shanga. If one were wicked and selfish
and commerce. The colors and patterns of fabrics that were made by as a mortal, they would toil in the Forge of the Shade. If they worked
looms of fate were the most intricate and vibrant in all of the Dark the soil or were great hunters, they would find comfort in the Bush.
Kingdom, and perhaps the entire Underworld. Some believe they were The wraiths who still wanted a taste of mortal pleasures became the
ambassadors of the Mirrorlands.

80 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 Knowledge was shared freely among the dead and the living, The Shade was the Crucible that would test men who entered
and all became stronger for it, the wraiths’ festering Shadows too the Underworld in search of adventure or to honor a debt that was
growing in strength due to their enlightenment. Its borders were owed to otherworldly forces. Those who passed the trials of the Shade
protected by the Soga, which was a militia comprised of the bravest came to be known as the Orishas, heroes and heroines of two worlds.
fallen warriors, who made Shanga the jewel of the Dark Kingdom. These trials persist even now. Champions occasionally emerge
Because of this prestige, the souls of the Dark Kingdom called Ala to take the fight to Oblivion and its servants, although the Shade has
Queen of the Dead and deferred to her wisdom. grown darker in tone as human atrocities grow more systemic and
The Marketplace is in disrepair these days. Although it still callous. No longer do heroes and heroines appear with sword in hand
bustles with activity and anything can be purchased or sold, the to take on a tangible foe. It is more likely for the Shade’s champions
fates foretold by the Traveler are often grim, the wares on show are to appear with strategies for eliminating poverty, mortal starvation,
more likely morbid than grandiose, and quiet threats take the place or genocidal regimes, or for those champions to be so numbed to
of happy barter. suffering that they immediately become Spectres.

The Crossroads The Bush

Ellegua the Traveler governance extended to the 256 Paths of Abuk the Garden became Mistress of the Bush, which was the
the Crossroads, which is the nexus that connected the regions of natural land with its weird creatures like spiders who wove stories in
the Dark Kingdom. The Crossroads was a labyrinth of danger and their webs, scorpions who would sting frogs they traveled upon, and
delight; that is, a realm where the path one takes determines their hyenas that walked upright like men. The Bush was lush and green.
destiny. There is no map that could effectively help one navigate this It was bursting with delicious fruit, and its skies burned in perpetual
chaotic land. The 256 Paths were fickle. Destinations were unsure sunset. It was home to the fables of man and the birthplace of myth.
and ever changing. A path that once led to fortune could lead to The Bush was also home to the Aziza, who were benevolent spirits
destruction in one step. Only Ellegua knew where all of the Paths who gave the gift of fire to humanity. It has been said that without
led. If one did not seek Ellegua’s direction, one could become lost the gifts that Abuk gave to the mortals that humankind itself would
forever in the labyrinth. have perished. Its borders were defended by the Sotunde, who were
The 256 Paths were also protection. Not every road led to the warrior souls fortified by their connection to their descendants
regions of the Dark Kingdom. Some paths were false roads leading through the Atunwa.
to the parts of the Kingdom dominated by dark and untamable Following the trend of corruption and degradation, even the
beasts. Some false roads were dead ends in the truest sense of the Bush suffers in these days. Less vibrant and nourishing, wraiths treat
term because they led to Oblivion. the Bush more as a place of retreat and contemplation than relaxation
Ellegua was crafty, and although none could question their and indulgence. Some are exiled to the Bush and forced to wander
knowledge, few knew how to appease the Traveler. in search of meaning in existence or atonement for crimes. This
The Crossroads of tonight is little-changed, although the guides scorched Underworld possesses a motley of scholars and criminals,
are fewer and possessed of an affection for trickery. No wraiths can exit with each one trying to carve purpose from a ruined paradise.
or enter the Dark Kingdom of Ivory without using the Crossroads,
which places a premium price on knowledge about its safe routes. Some The Mirrorlands
claim it exists as an extension of the dreaded Labyrinth, or perhaps Ghede the Crass ruled the Mirrorlands, whose borders were
something deeper, such as a Malfean. Certainly, taking one wrong closest to the Marketplace. The Shroud is weakest in this region
turn on the Crossroads can lead to what appears to be a great and of the Dark Kingdom because death and fertility move in step to
impossibly sized prison of raging and screaming creatures, and another the rhythm of a yankadi. The Mirrorlands had soft soil with thick
turn might lead one into the maw of a maddened spectral dragon. trees with winding branches canopying the realm. The denizens of
the Mirrorlands were called the Loa. The Loa were the spirits that
The Shade interacted most with mortals, and they often spoke directly to the
Kokou the Drum was the Lord of the Shade, which was the living through the chevals, who were humans possessed by the Loa
land of the wicked dead whose punishment was to work the forges and ridden as though they were horses for the Loa to jockey. The
as penance for their misdeeds in the physical world. Factories in the Mirrorlands were a place of constant celebration. Music filled the air
Shade built the machines and weapons for the Kingdom’s defenses. as the Loa danced freely with the living. The Mirrorlands smelled of
Kokou was a relentless taskmaster because protecting the Kingdom the finest rum, the most pungent sweetness of fine cigars, and the
was all that mattered. The forges constantly burned and filled the afterglow of wild passion. Ghede was always ready for a party and
skies with plumes of smoke, which gave the Shade of Africa its the Mirrorlands were home to the greatest parties of all.
name. A powerful and ruthless warrior, Kokou would protect the More than any part of the Dark Kingdom of Ivory, the ancient
Kingdom at all costs, even if it meant taking the throne should Ala Mirrorlands is a twisted and hollowed version of what it was. Some parts
ever faced Oblivion itself. His devotion and fanaticism would often are still vibrant, and other parts are scoured down. The Marketplace
give the Ijele pause. stands as a Necropolis attempting to look bold while it suffers severe

THE DARK KINGDOM OF IVORY 81

 for the betterment of man. However, some wanted to gain power from
the Dark Kingdom to influence the physical world with impunity.
Two Mirrorlands? Ala the Queen of the Dead would not let this knowledge be
All mirrors cast a reflection. Sometimes, a shard abused because it would break the unspoken treaty between the physi-
breaks off and slips free to become its own perfect cal and spiritual worlds. Other mortals were called upon to protect
mirror. The Mirrorlands of the Dark Kingdom of the physical world from the corrupted power of the Dark Kingdom.
Ivory and the Mirrorlands that persist beneath Haiti The Crucible that was the Shade would test these mortals. Those
are two pieces of the same broken surface. Many of the who survived Kokou’s gauntlet would become the Orishas, heroes
wraiths who established the present day Mirrorlands touched by the Ijele and in service to the kingdoms of humankind.
were former inhabitants of that section of the Dark The stories of these beings spread throughout the physical world and
Kingdom of Ivory’s tapestry, but they and their mortal became the stuff of legend.
descendants were forcibly migrated across the Tempest One such legend was the Spirit of the Vai.
to new lands. The Loma were a vigorous and warlike people who came from the
The modern Mirrorlands still practice many of northeast. They engaged in feuds with their neighbors, barely gaining any ground
the ancient traditions, but as time marches on and until a Mandingo raiding party came down from the north that was led by the
the loom of fate twists its threads into knots, few Warlord Luogon. The Loma and the Mandingo formed an alliance, created
remember its origins. a mighty army, and wreaked havoc against the other tribes of the Five Rivers.
Luogon was a wicked man. Ruthless and arrogant, he possessed powerful
magic. Luogon wore a Nail that he stole from the Bridge of Shanga, which gave
attempts at undermining. A rarity for its possession of spiritual plants him the strength to force his will upon others. It could open doors to the land
and animals, the Mirrorlands now stand as a ravaged memorial where of the dead where he would find endless bodies for his campaign. He would
the Restless come to occasionally loot for relics and search for ancient use this power to take control of the Five Rivers region and make it his own.
Restless that possess great knowledge. Sometimes, a crusading wraith Individually, the tribes of the Five Rivers were no match for the forces
comes here looking to rebuild the Dark Kingdom of Ivory. of the united armies. They were quickly overrun by the hordes of outlaws and
The number of Spectres here is immense and are led by one Renegades. These hordes are now called the Gizima Nation. Many brave
named Iku the Plague. Few who claim the Mirrorlands as their warriors rose and attempted to drive the Gizima Nation out of the region,
Necropolis keep it for long. They often find their Corpus wracked but the Gizima were too powerful. Soon, the entire region was crushed under
with a plasm-eating contagion. the weight of the Gizima Nation. The remaining tribes were used as labor or
sold as slaves to other kingdoms as prisoners of war. The Five Rivers began to
The practice of Atunwa by the African people once made the
dry up and famine took hold of the land. But, none of these things mattered
Kingdom of Ivory strong and perhaps the mightiest land in the entire
to Luogon. His appetite for power was insatiable.
Underworld. These days are past.
Teta was the daughter of Dwe Chikede, who was chieftain of the Vai

The Power of Myth: The Era of Heroes

tories are powerful things.
people. Chikede was a good chief: strong, kind, and fair to his people. He
bravely defied the Kpelle Nation and called upon the remaining tribes of the
Five Rivers to unite against their common foe. Teta watched in horror as her
father was slaughtered by the Gizima horde. His sword was shattered, and
In the physical world, the people of Africa the Vai people were led into bondage. She fled to the Forest of Bassa with
spread across the continent and created great the pieces of her father’s sword. She hid in the great forest and prayed to the
and powerful kingdoms. This expansion brought gods for the Five Rivers’ deliverance from the plague brought upon them.
them in contact with other cultures. They would It was the rainy season and this rain was particularly powerful. Teta was
incorporate these cultures into their spirituality, hungry and desperately searched to find shelter from the storm. She stumbled
which changed the topography of the Dark Kingdom. These changes upon a cave and found a pot of stew still cooking on the fire. Instinct told
were most evident in Shanga as new esoteric denizens made their her to run. She could not trust anyone. Everyone she met could be an enemy.
home in the Marketplace, such as the formless Djinn and Fravashi, But, Teta was wet, hungry, and tired, and the stew smelled so good. Teta ate
who are guardian spirits known as the “midwives of Good Creation.” her fill and soon fell into a deep slumber.
Spires made from the bones of the Maji would transmogrify and Teta woke to an old woman glaring at her.
become bulbous domes of gold with minarets touching the violet sky. “You ate my stew!” the old woman shrieked. “Thief! You will pay, oh!
These changes occurred party due to the power of stories. The I’m coming to find the Kpelle jus’ now! They will give me good money for
Griots, fortified with knowledge from the Library of Oral Tradition, the daughter of Chikede!”
traveled among the people and wove tales of the Dark Kingdom. Teta begged the old woman to spare her life. “Please, auntie! Do not
Inspired, many sought out the Crossroads and followed the labyrinth send for the Kpelle! They killed my father! They destroy all of the Five Rivers!
of the 256 paths hoping to reach the Marketplace to learn the secrets Luogon is a monster, auntie! Hide me and I will do whatever you ask! I will
of Shanga. Some wanted to use the knowledge of the Dark Kingdom be your humble servant for life!”

82 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 The old woman grabbed Teta by the face and looked directly into her or worshipped. In order for his plan to succeed, The Warlord would
eyes. “You speak true. You will be my servant for all time,” the old woman need to raise an army. The Dark Kingdom would need to be corrupted
said. Then, the wrinkles on the old woman’s face melted away revealing so much that the link to the physical plane would be severed to save
an almost otherworldly beautiful woman. As she stood upright, no longer the Dark Kingdom from destruction.
crouching due to the ravages of age, her tattered rags were replaced with This was no small feat. The Warlord would have to shed his skin
the robes of knowledge. She held in her hands the sword of Dwe Chikede, like a serpent and reveal a new identity for his armies to deify. He
re-forged and made whole. would find his followers in the Shade among wraiths who worked
“My name is Sia. I am a Griot,” the woman said. “Luogon stole from the forges of Kokou. In this fresh skin, the Warlord would come to
us. We would like our property returned. Only a weapon touched by the spirit the wicked and downtrodden as a revolutionary and savior. He would
world can overcome his magic. Use your father’s sword and reclaim what call himself Ijele and fan the smoldering flames of discord that his
was taken from you.” followers carried in their hearts with promises of a new kingdom
Teta Dwe Chikede emerged from the Bassa forest changed and made where they too would be worshipped for their great deeds. They
different. She was touched by the spirit world. She was no longer living, but would be powerful enough to break the shackles of Kokou that they
she could no longer die either. With her father’s sword, she brought justice had worn for too long. Their rebellion would be the root of a new
to the Five Rivers and became the symbol of liberation that her people so story and a new model for the physical world to follow.
desperately needed. She defeated Luogon by running him through with the With that, the Warlord was no more, and became a mere wisp of
Sword of Chikede. Its magic destroyed Luogon’s dominion over his armies of smoke that faded into the abyss of forgotten memory. Emerging from
the living and dead. It is said that she never her took her father’s throne, but the caves of Khoisan stood Ya’Qub the Rebel, who would raise the Veil
returned to the Bassa forest to honor the agreement that she had made with and deny the physical world access to protect the Dark Kingdom of Ivory.
the Griot. It is said that Teta Chikede still watches over the Bassa forest as Ya’Qub found many followers in the Shade. Inspired by their false
the Spirit of the Vai, the Warden who stands on the Bridge and the first of lord, they called themselves the Order of Ya’Qub. They performed
the Latigi. acts of terror to destabilize the natural order of the Dark Kingdom.
These stories would inspire other mortals to pierce the veil They infiltrated the various regions of the Dark Kingdom to spread
between the living and the dead in the pursuit of meaning and the myth of Ya’Qub. Ya’Qub used what little power he had to pierce
glory. Most in the Dark Kingdom embraced mortals and vampires the Veil, and he planted seeds of misremembered tales and outright
seeking the Marketplace to learn the wonders of the worlds beyond. fallacies in the minds of the petty and weak in the physical world.
However, some looked upon these visitors with disdain and believed These mortal glory seekers grew troublesome for the defenders of
their presence sullied the Dark Kingdom of Ivory. They felt the Dark the Dark Kingdom. These would-be conquerors disrespected the
Kingdom needed to be purged of the interloper taint. They would see unspoken treaty and sullied the Marketplace. The Dark Kingdom
the Bridge Between Worlds burned and Beit al-Ajaib razed, separate had become weary of these interlopers and began to restrict access to
the mortals from the Ancestors, and make the mysteries of the realm Shanga. Ya’Qub brought disorder to harmony and fanned the flames
beyond unknowable. of growing animosity toward the mortals in the Dark Kingdom.
They would bring darkness to the Dark Kingdom. Perhaps Still, during this time, Ya’Qub and his cult were no match for
the one Dark Kingdom clinging most closely to the concept of an the Orishas. What the Order of Ya’Qub had in numbers the Orishas
idealized afterlife. more than compensated with the strength derived from faith. Despite
the Rebel’s machinations, most of the mortals on the continent still
The Order of Ya’Qub believed in their heroes. They still honored the Ancestors. They still
practiced the ancient rituals of dance, song, and masquerade. The
At the edge of the Bush sits the dark plains of Khoisan. Khoisan
is a barren expanse of dust and a tenement of shantytowns in a belief from the physical world made the Orishas nearly invincible.
desert of anguish and despair. In times past, it routinely devastated For a time, the Order of Ya’Qub was considered more of a nuisance
the Bush. It is a wilderness where tenebrous souls plot and scheme than a threat to the Dark Kingdom.
and use avatars to control the nightmare beast. These souls tempt However, all of that changed once Europeans stepped foot on
the weak with promises of power, but make them pawns to carry out the African continent.
the whims of the nefarious.
Luogon, laid low by the Spirit of the Vai, found himself a wraith The Dark Kingdom Falls
in this unforgiving land. It was in Khoisan where he seethed for an The mortal year was 1441 CE when they Europeans first arrived
eternity. A true pariah of two worlds, Luogon was utterly powerless in great number.
and this truth did not sit well with the Serpent. He decided if he The Ocean, once the wellspring that nourished the Dark
could not rule the physical world, he would overthrow the Dark Kingdom, flooded onto the Shore. It was poisoned by the suffering
Kingdom of Ivory, hoard its secrets, and remake the Underworld in of those who did not survive the journey to the New World. The
his image. However, the Dark Kingdom was too vast and powerful for metaphysical blood they spilled into the Ocean became the ichor
one wraith to overthrow and rule. In addition, the name of Luogon attracting the carnivorous Selachii who came in search of hapless
was mocked and ridiculed in the Dark Kingdom and not respected wraiths to devour.

THE DARK KINGDOM OF IVORY 83

 These new wraiths arrived on the Shore of the Dark Kingdom With the Atunwa’s fall, the Dark Kingdom was almost separated
frightened, angry, and bitter. They were torn from the lives they from the physical world. The Soga were crushed and Shanga became
knew, packed onto ships like cheap and disposable cargo, and sent utterly defenseless. If the Bridge was crossed and Ya’Qub entered
to foreign lands to work the fields by harvesting sugar, coffee, and the halls of Beit al-Ajaib, the entire Dark Kingdom would be lost.
cotton for their captors until death. Separated from their people and The Queen of the Dead would not allow that possibility to become
their culture, they had no strength to draw upon and no knowledge a reality. She cast out the Elders of Zanzibar and force them to return
to share. They wanted nothing to do with the physical world. If they to the physical world as Risen. Her hope was that they would pass the
could, they would return to the physical world and take revenge upon knowledge held within the Library of Oral Tradition on to future Griots
their captors and the people who abandoned them. to keep the memory of the Dark Kingdom alive. After all, stories are
Their rage would be the fuel for the Order of Ya’Qub’s ascension. powerful things. She knew that Ya’Qub would find a way to hunt the
The Dark Kingdom became a home to a people who had forgot- Griots, so her last act as Queen of the Dead was to gather the Orishas
ten who they were. They entered an afterlife that was nothing like who survived the raid in the Shade. These survivors were given a new
the tales they had been told. They were stolen from their homeland, charge and a new title. The Orishas were now the Latigi, Defenders of
separated from their countrymen, and forbidden to practice their the Voice. The Latigi, also called the Fists of Truth or Judges, protected
native languages and cultures. With their faith and ceremonies of the Griots against those who would prefer the truth to be silenced.
worship replaced with a perverted version of the lessons brought forth The Queen of the Dead now sits on her throne in Shanga in
by a carpenter turned prophet, these new wraiths entered a reality absolute seclusion. No one has seen her in over a century.
that they did not understand and were sorely unprepared to face.
With their knowledge stunted, these wraiths would not find a The Shade Becomes “Komboni”
home in Shanga. Their connection to the Motherland was severed, They thought the rebellion would turn the “hell” of the Shade
and they could not find solace in the Bush. They refused to dance into the “heaven” they were denied while they were alive.
in the Mirrorlands because they had no reason to celebrate. The They were wrong. It took them 500 years of civil conflict and
Restless of the enslaved were spiritual refugees in what seemed to feeding the stuff of Restless into the machinery of war to secure and
be a foreign land. They wore the psychic trauma of the slave trade lose territories time and again to realize their constant churn of land
like a shroud heavier than any chains they wore when alive. These and souls was destroying the past.
Lost Wraiths found a home in the Shade by working the Forge as
Ya’Qub was the greatest of false prophets. Feeding off the misery
though they were as low as the prisoners paying their eternal penance.
of the Lost Wraiths, Ya’Qub became Master of the Shade. The Order
The Lost Wraiths resented their perceived place in the Dark of Ya’Qub became the Rebel’s personal guard, his spy network, and
Kingdom because they felt they were no better off than when they overseers of his new kingdom. Wearing black shrouds with pale
wore flesh. They thought of the Dark Kingdom as a purgatory rather masks, the Order of Ya’Qub resembled the people who enslaved
than the paradise they were promised by their oppressors’ book of the Lost Wraiths in life. The Order enforced the rule of the Rebel’s
faith. They demanded a heaven as reward for their life in hell on law with savage fervor and cruel glee. They looked upon the Lost
Earth. They looked for a savior to release them from their imagined Wraiths with disdain and used their ignorance of their history to
bondage. keep them subservient. The inmates ran the asylum, and the Lost
The Rebel would be their liberator. Ya’Qub found his army. Wraiths truly suffered a fate worse than death. They were a people in
The Lost Wraiths stormed the Citadel of the Drum where eternal servitude and beholden to the one that betrayed their trust.
Kokou sat upon his throne. The Orishas were weakened. Stories However, the Rebel was not satisfied with ruling only the Shade.
of their exploits were systematically destroyed by the displacement, Its borders were too small for his ambition. He wanted to open the
subjugation, and attempted erasure of the African people. They roads to the other regions that were closed due to Ala’s mandate and
were no match for the Order of Ya’Qub. The mighty Kokou fought Ellegua’s actions. Though Abuk languished in the Crucible, which
bravely, but the forces of Ya’Qub soon overwhelmed him. With the was now the prison of the Forge, and there was a tenuous treaty of
destruction of Kokou, the Order of Ya’Qub claimed victory, and the non-aggression existed between Ya’Qub’s realm and Iku’s in the
Rebel ascended to the throne of the Drum. Mirrorlands, the Rebel was still denied access to Shanga. Although it
Ya’Qub looked upon his new kingdom and smiled. The Shade was empty, the Library of Oral Tradition still stood. The Crossroads
was now his. The Forge was under his control and his followers were much more perilous to traverse but still linked the physical world
were legion. to the Dark Kingdom. And the Nails; among those cursed Nails was
The Atunwa was next. one that would give Ya’Qub safe passage through the Crossroads and
Ya’Qub’s army descended upon the Marketplace like a swarm of open the Gates of Shanga.
locusts consuming everything beyond their fill. In an act of despera- The Lost Wraiths who worked the Forge find Ya’Qub an
tion, Ellegua fractured into 256 aspects. The paths of the Crossroads even harder taskmaster than Kokou. The Rebel created an
leading to Shanga were lost. Ellegua burned the Marketplace in an armory and stockpiled ammunition for use against the remaining
attempt to protect the remaining lands of the Dark Kingdom from regions of the Dark Kingdom. The Lost Wraiths were tasked to
the Order of Ya’Qub. create weapons and tear down the walls separating the regions

84 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

and bring the entire Dark Kingdom under Ya’Qub’s control. At the center of Komboni stands the Forge, which vomits
An industrialized armament process that started in the 16th the clouds of war into the atmosphere. Only the Forge, which still
century has never concluded. Although the Dark Kingdom of churns out weapons of war, acts as a memorial to the Shade as it was.
Ivory attempted a bold stand against the rebellion, the weapons Burned-out and abandoned homes dot the spaces between the Forge’s
continue to be produced. This great Underworld held fast to towers. Komboni smells of piss, shit, and tears; and disillusionment,
heritage and former glories but eventually it fell to Ya’Qub’s disgust, and despair. Its wraiths feel the urge to fight for more territory
rebels, with massive losses on both sides. because they believe that just over the horizon is hope, but wherever
Those same rebels no longer believed in Ya’Qub as savior, but they go they spread Ya’Qub’s endless violence and misery.
the war had raged for so long they could find no alternative. Some of the Lost Wraiths embrace the chaos. The wraiths of
The Shade changed to reflect the world that the Lost Wraiths tyrants, gangsters, dealers, and thieves prey upon their own hoping
left behind in their transition to the Underworld. What was once to gain the Rebel’s favor and join the Order of Ya’Qub. Others
known as the Shade is now called “Komboni” by its residents, who become so-called leaders impotently screaming for a revolution
feel deep shame for fighting against their heritage, and name their that would make the oppressed the slave master instead of bring-
realm after the slums of Zambia. Out of a mix of respect and fear, ing true change to the system. Then, there are the street corner
they will not call the Shade by its old name, though some of the “prophets” telling half-remembered tales of the One Who Sleeps,
newest wraiths in the Dark Kingdom call it “the Hood.” a hero from the old days that still gives Ya’Qub pause. Some of
At first, Komboni looked like thousands of small war camps the older wraiths speak of the Railroad, which delivers the Lost
and forts scattered around the Dark Kingdom. Slowly, as the Shade Wraiths out of the Shade into the fabled city of Shanga. Most of
weakened and crumbled, those small outposts linked up and built the Lost Wraiths shuffle the streets, work the Forge, and keep their
on top of the Shade’s rubble. What was once a reflection of the heads down to avoid the Order’s wrath. Their efforts are futile
African aesthetic became a nightmare of subsidized public design. because their safety depends on the whims of a system that keeps
In the 1970s, Komboni became a psychic ghetto of broken dreams them crushed under its boot.
and little hope. It evolved into back-to-back cities of towering and But, some of those stories are true, and if one pays attention, they
dilapidated housing projects that blotted out the remaining light of might find that the key to liberation rests in these supposed fictions.
the Dark Kingdom’s violaceous skies.

THE DARK KINGDOM OF IVORY 85

The Plantation of the Mirrorlands follow that same tactic and hide in plain sight. This bought time to
plan, time to gain strength, and time to find the Spirit of the Vai.
Ghede saw the writing on the wall. The party was over. Trust is now the most valued commodity in the Mirrorlands,
The Crass saw the change in new arrivals coming to the and it is expensive to earn. Everyone has at least two names and
Mirrorlands. They were wraiths of the people who in life were four eyes to see from all corners. The spies of Ya’Qub are everywhere.
affected by the Great Abduction into slavery. They too were angry. Communication with the physical world happens in secret through
But, they were not as directionless as the Lost Wraiths of Komboni. the chevals, Houngans, Mambos, Santeras, and Santeros. One careless
These wraiths still held onto the old ways. The Loa still spoke to word could expose the Saints for who they are or pierce the veil of
these members of the tribe and granted them comfort and strength the Plantation. Then, everything would be for naught. It would take
in their struggle against tyranny. This connection gave those people a sacrificed chicken, copious amounts of rum, and a fine cigar to
the strength to rebel against their enslavers. The flames of revolution loosen the lips of a wraith on the Plantation. Even if one could get
in the physical world also fortified the borders of the Mirrorlands. The a member of Les Invisibles to talk, the information that one receives
Mirrorlands took on attributes from other cultures that fell during might not reveal what has been hidden.
the European expansion into the New World and the culture of the This elaborate illusion has spared the Mirrorlands so far, but the
new wraiths’ oppressors. embers of revolution still smolder. The young Restless are growing
It was this “gumbo” of differing cultures that gave Ghede an temperamental. They see their brothers and sisters toil in Komboni
idea. Although the Mirrorlands were better protected from Ya’Qub and wonder why the Mirrorlands stay their hand while others suffer.
than Shanga, they would still fall under the Rebel’s rule unless certain They think their leaders, the Rada, are too soft.
measures were taken. There is one among them who they have rallied around whose
As the Army of Ya’Qub turned their attention to the Mirrorlands, voice is louder than most. Some say that she is the daughter of Kokou,
Papa Legba, the Council of Ellegua’s Mirrorlands aspect, journeyed to who means to retrieve her father’s drum. Some say she knows where
the Dark Kingdom of Obsidian. There, he met with Atabey the Fresh the One Who Sleeps is buried and has the means to awaken him and
Water, Pariacaca the Falcon, and Olemec the Jaguar. He established free the Dark Kingdom of Ivory. Other legends say it is this daughter
an alliance with these gods and hid three Nails: one in the Flayed and her quest that will achieve this freedom without the need for any
Lands, one on the Islands of Flint, and one in the Lands of Gold. apocryphal wraith to be summoned from Oblivion.
The symbols of Obsidian were etched onto these Nails for protection
against Ya’Qub. Only a wraith from the Mirrorlands could hold such
a Nail or use it to traverse the Crossroads. These Restless are called
Zemi, or the Medicine. No one knows who has the Medicine. Only
The Desert
Abuk the Garden is in chains. She is imprisoned in the bowels
Papa Legba knows who protects these Nails. Their identities are
of the Forge at the center of the Crucible. The Sotunde had been
hidden from everyone, including the other Zemi. Also, finding the
exterminated; the animals that speak to men are all but gone. The
Medicine is only part of the puzzle because only Yaperikuli, another
Bush has been exploited and strip-mined of its spiritual resources.
member of the Council of Ellegua, knows where the Nails are hidden.
It has been left barren and consumed by the chaos of Khoisan. The
While Legba was absent, parts of the African Mirrorlands fell to a
wraiths of child soldiers run rampant across the desolated landscape
Spectral incursion. Iku ravaged the land with a plague and ended the
like packs of wild dogs. Called the Boultingin, these poor and
long party for the laissez-faire wraiths that existed in this Underworld
directionless souls are the shock troops of would-be Djinn warlords
utopia. Despite all he has done, Ya’Qub isn’t a servant of Oblivion.
vying for control of this apocalypse. The Bush has become the Desert,
Therefore, Ghede struck a bargain with the Army of Ya’Qub. He agreed
a land of sorrow and regret.
that the Mirrorlands would acknowledge Ya’Qub as their supreme
The Desert is also where the Old Ways still endure.
ruler. As a show of good faith, the wraiths of the Mirrorlands cleared
the winding forests and swamps of the Mirrorlands. They took the The people of the African Diaspora are resilient, and the wraiths
names of gods that were not theirs and made them their own. The of the Motherland are no different. The Elders of Zanzibar fled to
wraiths worked the fields in supposed supplication for Ghede who the Bush when Ya’Qub came to Shanga. They claimed the parts of
would rule over them from vast mansions that sat on the hills of the the Bush not consumed by the Desert. They found a people weary
cleared fields, somehow able to move between each without difficulty. but unbroken by hardship. These Restless fought off the Boultingin
The Mirrorlands had become the Plantation, and the Loa became hordes and made a land of their own. They used the knowledge of Beit
known as the Saints dedicated to spreading the word of Ya’Qub. The al-Ajaib to create a land where trees still grew and rivers still flowed. It
Mirrorlands were spared the Rebel’s wrath. is here where the wraiths of the Motherland and the honored dead
make their home. This area is called The Oasis of Bantu, which is a
The fiction worked.
series of villages protected by the warrior angels known as Malakia,
Ghede learned from his people. He saw the wraiths of the
also called the Sunbirds. The environment around Bantu also
Mirrorlands learned to hide their traditions from their slave masters
protects the Oasis. Surrounded by the harsh environment of high
who wanted supplant their faith. Instead, they took the religion that
mountains, withering sandstorms and rude beasts, the Desert makes
was forced upon them and merged it with their own. Ghede would
it too dangerous for even the Army of Ya’Qub to cross.

86 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 The citizens of Bantu are called to service. There is no rest as telling the truth in a language that Komboni understands, and the
they begin a sacred duty to offer up their deeds as inspiration to the Hood is listening.
living and the dead. All who find themselves in Bantu are drafted Some of the Lost Wraiths are now starting to question their fate.
into this militia. The drum, the mask, and the dance are their tools of The younger ones are getting bolder in their critique of the Ya’Qub
communication. The Nails of the Nkisi are their weapons of choice. regime. They fear the Order of Ya’Qub less with each passing day.
Bantu is the land where seeds of hope have been planted. The Forge now represents a corrupt system rather than a beacon of
They make plans at the Oasis. The scholars have become generals salvation. Protests are now a common occurrence and the march to
for the liberation of the Dark Kingdom. They have knowledge, and war slows to a crawl.
knowledge is power. They have established a network among the other These Lost Wraiths are tired of being slaves. Abuk the Garden
regions of the Dark Kingdom. This network spreads the history of has become a symbol of their freedom while she languishes in the
the Dark Kingdom and dispels the lies of the Rebel who sits on a Crucible. These restless souls have joined a network representing the
stolen throne. It helps Lost Wraiths that have been awakened by the remaining regions of the Dark Kingdom. They are ideological kin to
truth escape from the hell of the Shade. They support the Restless the Followers of Petro and long to walk in the Oasis of Bantu. They
trying to lift the veil of complacency in the Mirrorlands. They call are the resistance that means to cause great mischief. These dissidents
this network the Railroad. challenge the rule of Ya’Qub. They fight for the day that the Gates of
Abuk will be freed and the Bush will flourish once more. Shanga open again so that they can walk its streets, and look upon
The Gates of Shanga will open and the Queen of the Dead will be the Queen of the Dead and bask at her majesty.
reunited with her people. The Library will be rebuilt and Ya’Qub will Now, it is the Rebel who feels the sickness of dissention as it
fall. They are confident that they will succeed because one among grows in his kingdom’s belly.
them knows where the Nail holding the key to the Dark Kingdom This illness calls itself the Railroad.
of Ivory’s freedom exists.
It is in the caves of the Bassa forest, where the Spirit of the Vai
sleeps.
Can it be Saved?
There are times when chaos brings clarity.

Sankofa: Return of the Ijele

Ellegua learned this truth after fracturing his essence. 256 dif-
ferent voices with 256 points of view brought the plight of the Dark
Kingdom into sharp focus. The Dark Kingdom of Ivory needed to
he Dark Kingdom of Ivory is a fallen empire. The fall. It had grown soft and weighed down by its own majesty. In order
Army of Ya’Qub is a virus that has grown into for the Dark Kingdom of Ivory to stay relevant, it needed to become
an epidemic and threatens to plunge the Dark the stuff of legend. The truth was painful to admit, but the honesty
Kingdom into the Abyss. Ellegua and Ala had of this truth revealed what must be done.
no choice. The body had to die in the hope of When Ellegua destroyed the Nkisi, he destroyed the thing that
preserving the soul. united the lands of the Dark Kingdom. From the Railroad to the
The citizens of the Dark Kingdom are now a divided people Followers of Petro to the Oasis of Bantu, there are now too many
with a common history. Each region is under siege but too weak to factors at play. Although they share the same root goal, their methods
combat Ya’Qub’s regime alone. They must combine their efforts. are disjointed and often come into conflict with each other. Their
The Dark Kingdom of Ivory must not be forgotten. growing petty squabbles distract them from the true enemy. The
Order of Ya’Qub is infiltrating the differing factions and causing
The Railroad further distrust and confusion. The liberation of Abuk will not solve
this problem. The Dark Kingdom of Ivory has been forever changed
All is not good in the Hood.
and old solutions have become obsolete.
They’ve been spotted next to the false prophets shouting
The Council of Ellegua agree. The Dark Kingdom of Ivory
distorted scripture on the street corners. They’re not like the others,
needs a new story. It needs an ancient symbol wearing new robes for
though. There’s something different about these wraiths; they have
the factions of the Dark Kingdom to respect. It needs a new legend
a confidence and pride that has not been seen for a long time in
with a familiar tune to shake the resolve of the Rebel and his forces.
Komboni. These wraiths insist on naming their realm “the Hood.”
These performers use music as the message. They tell stories about When the Nkisi was destroyed and the Nails were scattered across
the Dark Kingdom of Ivory, the City of Shanga, and the Marketplace, the Dark Kingdom, Ellegua the First Aspect kept one Nail for himself.
and how glorious they were. They weave tales of unity among the This was the first Nail thrust into the Nkisi; the first settled dispute that
regions and spread the legend of the One Who Sleeps. They speak unified the people of the Dark Kingdom. This will be the Nail given
with rhyming couplets in time with makeshift drums of tables, steam to one who has been touched by the Dark Kingdom. They will enter
pipes in the Forge, or tenement walls. The Lost Wraiths call these the Crossroads and survive the Crucible. They will pierce the veil of
performers the Books. The Order of Ya’Qub’s attempts to discredit the Plantation and travel the Desert to drink at the Oasis. They will
and denigrate the Books have yielded little success. The Books are die and rise wielding the Sword of Chikede as their sign of office. They
will bring order to the Dark Kingdom and open the Gates of Shanga.

THE DARK KINGDOM OF IVORY 87

 The Dark
Kingdoms of the
Americas
he Americas. The Flayed Lands. Mighty known as Mixcoatl, who was the first of the Mesoamerican
lands of Obsidian, Flint, and Gold. All dead. He was a king in life who became a king in death
of them were reduced to ash in an orgy of by founding the House of the Werejaguar to care for the
avarice. Deathlords whisper cautionary tales Olmecah. Mixcoatl and his house protected the living from
to their Legions, Heretics weep under the the vagaries of weather, war, and the early manifestations of
weight of their sins, and renegades mutter Oblivion. His reign was long and his word unquestioned,
accusations and denials in the same breath. The story of but Oblivion would have its due. The Olmecah fell, and
Oblivion is the story of the Flayed Lands because few Restless Mixcoatl retreated to the darkness from whence he came.
have felt its fury with greater intimacy. Without their master, the House of the Werejaguar fell
into disarray. The Maya, Teotihuacan, Toltecah, and others

Smoking Mirror — The Dark came and went, but not without depositing their culture and
their dead in to the Underworld. The newly dead would not

Kingdom of Obsidian
“Broken spears lie in the roads;
bow to the Werejaguar’s authority, and the Underworld knew
war. Ancient as they were, not even the Werejaguar could
defeat all of the newcomers, so they forged an uneasy truce
and created the Obsidian Council. Together, they carved
We have torn our hair in grief.
new realms out of the Tempest, the greatest of which was
The houses are roofless now, and their walls
Nahui-Ollin (“Earthquake Sun”), which was named after the
are red with blood.”
fifth and final age of the Mexihcah cosmic cycle.
— Elegy for Tenochtitlan
Unknown to the Obsidian Council, covetous eyes
History watched them from across the Tempest. Exiled from Stygia,
the Fishers fled to the Far Shore realm of Paradise. Paradise’s
he civilizations of Mesoamerica rise and fall golden streets and alabaster towers were thronged with refugees
in an endless cycle of birth and destruction. and drowning under the endless deluge of souls. Seeking a
In the beginning, there were the Olmecah. solution, the Fishers’ Archbishop turned his attention to
They fanned the embers of civilization and rumors of a distant land that was untouched by Stygia. He
gave writing, artistry, and faith to those was inspired by these rumors, and decided that the Fishers
that followed them. Then came the wraith
would forge a new land known as Nova Paradisum that would Heretics vie for power with the Hierarchy and its agents, while
surpass Stygia. deep beneath them the Fifth Sun rises anew.
The Obsidian Council received word from the coast. A
handful of wooden ships thronged with strange wraiths and Mictlan
skin-ridden mortals were approaching by sea, and they were Mictlan is the last refuge of the Dark Kingdom of Obsidian.
followed by many more in the Shadowlands. A thousand Located deep beneath the remains of Nahui-Ollin, Mictlan was
golden ships disgorged an endless horde of Fisher soldiers and carved out of the bedrock of the Tempest by the mighty Restless
crusader-knights and their Renegade allies. Mictlantecuhtli and Mictlancihuatl. Both wraiths are extremely
The war raged for almost a century with no quarter. The proficient in the arts of Argos and managed to cloak all of Mictlan
invaders’ early advances were stalled when Ix Chel organized with a potent variant of Enshroud. Mictlan consists of a vast
a massive counterattack with fresh armies that were culled central cavern housing the Obsidian Palace of Mictlantecuhtli
from the endless tide of native plague victims pouring across and Mictlancihuatl and the chambers of the Obsidian Council.
the Shroud. Relentless ferocity and seemingly limitless rein- Four caverns branch from the central chamber in alignment
forcements heartened the Obsidian forces as they pushed the with the cardinal directions of the Mexihcah universe, each of
invaders back to their fortified capital at Vera Cruz. Heretic them glittering darkly in the light of flickering soulfire crystals.
and Renegade alike were stretched to the breaking point before Mictlantecuhtli and Mictlancihuatl rule the central cavern
their unique advantages began to turn the tide in their favor: of Mictlan from their ebon palace, and their fearsome skeletal
Crusader-knights armed with Stygian steel, barghests, night-black forms invite no defiance. They monitor the comings and goings
warhorses, Artifact blades wreathed in golden flame, and the of new wraiths, provide asylum to those fleeing the other houses,
odd relic firearm or cannon blunted Ix Chel’s assault. The death supervise Mictlan’s defense, and mediate disputes between the
of their mortal priests and followers denied valuable Pathos to houses. Mictlancihuatl spent centuries perpetuating reverence
the Obsidian wraiths, and the flow of reinforcements from the to the dead of Mexico through her subtle manipulation of
living world slowed to a trickle as the great plagues ran their mortals by allowing her agents to scour the Shadowlands
course. The Heretics and their allies conquered the Necropoli during the Day of the Dead to harvest its bounty. Her palace
of Mesoamerica one by one and forced the Obsidian Restless overflows with fragrant marigolds, sugar skulls, and offerendas
back to Nahui-Ollin. The Fishers’ golden-hulled treasure gal- of all shapes and sizes. This bounty is the showcase of the royal
leons carried mountains of captured souls and plunder back couple’s frequent galas. The central cavern is home to a vast
to Paradise. ballcourt of polished obsidian where great wagers are placed
The siege of Nahui-Ollin dragged on for ages. Its shores on the outcome of the games. Few know of the ball courts
were bombarded by golden men-of-war while its skies filled with lesser-known ability to provide the royal couple’s servants safe
angelics of fearsome power. The last remnants of resistance were passage between Mictlan, the Skinlands, and the Tempest.
about to collapse when Ix Chel’s death triggered the Third Great Mictlantecuhtli spends his days maintaining the defense of the
Maelstrom. Nahui-Ollin shook with incredible violence, and its city and regulates access to it through the only passage (beyond
streets shattered and its great temples crumbled to the ground. the ball court) that leads to the Tempest above. Travel to Mictlan
Great waves swallowed the Heretic fleet as the stars themselves involves a fearsome journey through nine levels of deadly traps
seemed to fall from the sky in the form of the tzitzimimeh, modeled after the Mexihcah Underworld for those who do not
which are horrifying skull-faced Doomshades with iron claws have Mictlantecuhtli’s permission to enter the city. Mictlan’s
and insatiable hunger. The tzitzimemeh tore through invader royal couple seem content to rule from their palace and are
and native alike. They fanned out on pyroclastic winds that disinterested in the politics of the four houses, but there is gos-
choked the Lands of Obsidian and consumed all before them. sip that they have a more sinister nature or are one individual
In that moment, the Flayed Lands were born. whose Shadow and Psyche have split in to two separate beings.
The Maelstrom scoured the invaders from the face of the Whatever the answer, everyone in Mictlan requires their services
Flayed Lands, which broke the power of Paradise for centuries at some point and actively court their favor.
and left only desperate survivors that were protected by the
mightiest Artifacts in places like Veracruz, Tlaxcala, and St.
Augustine. The Obsidian dead retreated to the darkness of
Fifth Sun Rising — The Four Houses Today
The four houses have not been idle since the Flaying. The
Mictlan and wept as their former kingdoms burned. Centuries vast web of interconnected Necropoli and Tempest-cities they
passed, and Mictlan slowly became a dark reflection of Nahui- once ruled have been reduced to Spectre-haunted ruins whose
Ollin’s former glory. In time, a new set of invaders came to temples are wreathed in barrow-flame. So, they have spent the
the Flayed Lands and found a shattered land that was tainted past five centuries expanding the caverns and darkened vaults
by Oblivion and filled with horrors. Inch by painful inch, the of Mictlan to accommodate new temples, palaces, ball courts,
invaders claimed the land for their own, taking every Byway and and storehouses. Their members have learned new Arcanoi
Necropolis while the four houses watched from the darkness. and mastered techniques of harvesting Pathos from the living
Today, the land above is a chaotic realm where Renegades and

90 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

in addition to establishing outposts throughout Mesoamerica. House of the Werejaguar’s position as the first house among
Though they seldom agree on much, the houses are unanimous the Obsidian dead.
in their desire to recapture their former glory.
The houses’ greatest challenge is recruitment. Most mortals The House of Ix Chel
have long forgotten the faith of their ancestors, but the cultural Similar to the House of the Werejaguar, the House
influence of the Flayed Lands is remembered fondly throughout of Ix Chel is an ancient and storied house predominantly
Mesoamerica. The Hierarchy, Renegades, and Heretics absorb composed of gaunts drawn from the sweep of Mayan history.
the lion’s share of Enfant wraiths, but the wraiths of the Flayed Unfortunately, the comparison to the Werejaguar ends there.
Lands are extremely patient and more than capable of finding Although there are enough ancient Mayans to check the power
those rare few who are susceptible to their call. of the Werejaguar, they are disorganized at the best of times.
Something of a rogues gallery, the Ix Chel is a magnificent
The House of the Werejaguar collection of lords and paupers who compete for the scraps of
Ancient and powerful, the House of the Werejaguar their once great people.
was always the voice of unity on the Obsidian Council until Heirs to some of the greatest accomplishments in the
Mixcoatl’s loss reduced them to listless Shadows of their former Mayan Underworld, House Ix Chel has a history stretching
grandeur. The Werejaguar seat on the Council remained vacant back for millennia. It carved a network of roads and Byways
for centuries until Eight Deer claimed leadership. His impas- through the Tempest that connected innumerable city-states,
sioned speeches breathed new life into the Werejaguar as he which provided safe travel throughout the Flayed Lands and
set his plan into motion. His first act was to proclaim himself beyond. The city-states of the Ix Chel stood proudly in the
the voice of Mixcoatl, who is the patron god of the Otomi darkness of the Tempest, with each one constructed around
and Chichimecah. Meeting representatives of both peoples in an onyx pyramid with nine levels that represented the layers of
secret, his arguments proved convincing. In an unprecedented the Mayan Underworld. Each pyramid was surmounted by a
step, the Otomi and Chichimecah abandoned their former temple and surrounded by lavishly painted palaces, sub-temples,
allegiance to Itzamna for formal induction into the House of marketplaces, a ball court, and thoroughfares of polished obsid-
the Werejaguar. Many thought of reprisal, but Eight Deer is ian. Masters of Argos, Ix Chel pushed deep into the Tempest,
well over two millennia old, accompanied by an entourage of where it mapped the caves and cenotes they found along the
Otomi and Chichimecah guards Moliated into the form of rivers of death and used them to explore the upper levels of
werejaguars, and armed with an ax of True Jade. the Labyrinth. They also wove powerful Arcanoi into their ball
Eight Deer’s second act was to lead scouting parties to courts as symbolic gateways between worlds, which allowed them
recover the ancient heritage of the Werejaguar. A master of to travel between the Shadowlands, Tempest, and Skinlands
Argos, he helped the Chichimecah recover death steeds that with ease. Endless trains of porters traversed the Tempest, and
were abandoned by the Heretics so that the Werejaguar could the marketplaces of Ix Chel overflowed with relics and Artifacts
range far into the Tempest and recover potent Olmecah Artifacts, from the other houses and lands to the south.
such as True Jade soulfire masks or enigmatic jade cylinders Ix Chel’s success was marred by the petty wars, intrigues,
etched with the secrets of lost Arcanoi. One such cylinder and squabbles of the great kings and councils that ruled each
granted Eight Deer the ability to summon forth the ancient state. Ix Chel politics became an almost incomprehensible web
Werejaguar gaunts who chose to slumber in the colossal basalt of intrigue and ever-shifting alliances as their kings loyalties
heads that were seeded throughout Olmecah territory after the changed with the wind. This chaos ended when the gaunt
fall of their people. Three were called forth from Tres Zapotes known as Ix Chel took her seat on the Obsidian Council.
and La Cobata, and they dramatically strengthened the house. Through sheer force of will, she managed to weld her people
Eight Deer then took his boldest action to date: the into a unified force and cast aside all opposition. It was this
reclamation of the ancient Olmecah capital of La Venta. Long same determination that led her to defend the Flayed Lands
designated by the Hierarchy as too costly to claim, La Venta with unmitigated fury until she perished in the Lands of Gold.
Necropolis was a Spectre-overrun nightmare. Eight Deer lead The House of Ix Chel led the defense of the Flayed Lands
a force composed almost entirely of Werejaguar gaunts into and took astonishing casualties as a result. The survivors largely
the city. They annihilated its Spectral population, reclaimed consisted of the broken or those lords who abandoned Ix
its Artifacts, and woke 10 additional Werejaguar gaunts from Chel upon her departure for the Lands of Gold. It has taken
the colossal heads located there. centuries to replenish their ranks by drawing recruits mostly
Emboldened by his success, Eight Deer has extended from Maya who died after the Maelstrom or the indigenous
offers of friendship and unity to the other houses, but they Maya communities that survived the conquest. The Ix Chel
remain skeptical. Xipi Totec and Ix Chel suspect that Eight have coalesced around 12 lords and their courts. Each court
Deer seeks to claim the throne of a reborn Nahui-Ollin, and is ruled by a mighty gaunt, who is attended by a host of
Itzamna remains resentful over the loss of the Otomi and courtiers, warriors, priests, and merchants. Relations between
Chichimecah. Regardless, Eight Deer seeks to reclaim the the 12 are unstable at best, and no single lord has managed to

THE DARK KINGDOMS OF THE AMERICAS 91

permanently assume the title of Ix Chel; instead, the holder Totec re-dons the rotting Corpora and inflicts horrifying plagues
of the Ix Chel seat on the Obsidian Council changes yearly. on those who defy him. He also stages gladiatorial sacrifices
Most of the 12 lords spend their time intriguing, beautifying that pit outsiders and traitors against the finest warriors of his
their corner of Mictlan, or wagering on ball games. Others have house in return for their freedom. Balancing the interests of
taken a more active interest in external affairs, and the foremost his fragmented house against the weight of his failure during
among them is the wraith Ek Chuah (“black scorpion”), who the Flaying has forced Xipi Totec into a daily battle against his
is named after the Maya god of merchants and travelers. Ek Shadow, which makes it hard to maintain his position without
Chuah has an uncanny ability to navigate the Tempest (and making a mistake that will cost him his turquoise crown.
possibly the Labyrinth) and is seldom seen without a spear of Huitzilopochtli assumes the aspect of the Mexihcah god of
True Obsidian and a pack filled with lost relics. Ek Chuah’s war and claims dominion over professional warriors and women
entire body is black from his use of Argos, and his followers who die in childbirth. His faction is small but diverse, and it in-
assume the same unique tint. Ek Chuah and his followers use cludes Mexihcah knights, cartel enforcers, and Mexican Federal
their unique talents to map the shattered roads, Byways, and Police. Huitzilopochtli aggressively advocates the ouster of the
city-states of the Flayed Lands in hope of restoring their former Hierarchy from the Flayed Lands and the House of Xipi Totec’s
dominance. These efforts recently bore fruit with the revelation right to rule the Obsidian dead. While Xipi Totec controls the
that Xibalba, a massive Mayan city in the Tempest, still exists greater mass of warriors available to the house, Huitzilopochtli
and is ruled by the Spectre of Itzamna. retains control over the cuauhtli (“Eagle Warriors”). Equipped
with weapons of True Obsidian and a panoply of relic eagle
The House of Xipi Totec feathers and helms, the cuauhtli strike out into the Tempest,
The House of Xipi Totec consists of the Mexihcah and guard important members of the house, destroy those who
those subject peoples who have not joined the Itzamna. The Xipi tarry too close to Mictlan, and capture Spectres for sacrifice.
Totec was among the foremost defenders of the Dark Kingdom The last of those duties has made the cuauhtli some of the
of Obsidian and inflicted dizzying casualties on the invaders foremost Doomslayers in Mictlan.
before it fell. Unified in purpose but not in leadership, it will Huitzilopochtli’s ventures outside Mictlan put him into
either rise to take its place as leader of the Obsidian Council contact with Tlaloc, who is an ancient and powerful gaunt
or destroy itself in the process. who created a paradisiacal Far Shore realm of lush vegetation
Xipi Totec is a populous house with numerous advantages. and eternal spring called Tlalocan. Claiming dominion over
Many of their original members were held in reserve for Ix those who die of lightning strikes, drowning, and waterborne
Chel’s planned counterattack and managed to retreat to Mictlan afflictions, Tlaloc’s mastery over storms and formidable army
before the Maelstrom destroyed them. It has also been highly protected Tlalocan from the Flaying. Huitzilopochtli intends to
successful in recruiting new Restless by taking advantage of the conclude a treaty with Tlaloc so that they can claim leadership
large amount of its cultural heritage that still exists in Mexico. over his house, an offer Tlaloc is contemplating very seriously.
The house has been very industrious in adapting to the Quetzalcoatl represents wind, light, education, justice,
new metaphysical landscape by learning to harvest Pathos from and the priesthood. He is the high priest and archivist of the
the living and using Usury to capture Pathos from sacrificed House of Xipi Totec and seeks to maintain civilization and
drones and Spectres in objects of quartz, jade, and stone. Its knowledge in the face of Oblivion. He is the patron of the great
artisans are some of the foremost creators of Pathos jewelry calmecac (“religious school”) in Mictlan, where he trains new
behind the Itzamna, which allows the house to reap great profits generations of priests for his house and captures the knowledge
from the Pathos trade. of his people in painted codices. Quetzalcoatl is very active in
The house is organized along the lines of the Mexihcah the living world and sends dreams to the Quick to inspire them
Triple Alliance, with Xipi Totec himself assuming the title of to embrace their Mexihcah heritage. He is also the wraith who
Huey Tlatoani (“Great Speaker”). He is the emperor of the is least offended by the idea of forging an alliance with the
Mexihcah dead. A trio of powerful gaunts who form Xipi Hierarchy against the Renegades and Heretics in an effort to
Totec’s cabinet assume the guise of “the four Tezcatlipocas” or return the House of Xipi Totec to its rightful place of honor.
creators of the universe, which are Xipi Totec, Huitzilopochtli, Quetzalcoatl has taken the controversial step of slowly reaching
Quetzalcoatl, and Tezcatlipoca. out to low-ranking members of the Hierarchy and free wraiths
Xipi Totec has the honor of being the only member of the to prosecute tasks beyond his purview, such as salvaging Fisher
original Obsidian Council to survive the Flaying. Representing galleons filled with Mexihcah Relics and Artifacts that sank
the god of rebirth, Xipi Totec survived his destruction Harrowing during the Maelstrom or were captured by Renegade pirate.
and discarded his normal attire of rotting Spectre Corpora for He also wants to reclaim relic codices that were burned by the
the appearance of a golden-skinned youth. Xipi Totec commands Spaniards. He keeps a close eye on Xipi Totec out of fear that
the loyalty of most of his house, including most of the common- he might soon reach the point of Catharsis. To this end, he
ers, through a combination of shrewd politics, carefully allotted seeks to gain Xipi Totec’s trust so that Xipi Totec will submit
rewards, and naked force. In his aspect as a deity of war, Xipi to proper Castigation.

92 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 Tezcatlipoca (“Smoking Mirror”) represents the god of
night, sorcery, and warfare. He is a master of Fatalism and little
is hidden from his Artifact obsidian mirror. He is the patron of
the Telpochcalli (“school for commoners”) and is a firm believer
in advancement through conflict. Tezcaplipoca has little interest
in ruling his house but seeks to guarantee that the holder of
the seat is worthy of the position. He observes Xipi Totec with
great interest and will enthusiastically support him if he can
master his Shadow without assistance. To that end, Tezcatlipoca
intends to reveal to Xipi Totec that Quetzalcoatl has contact
with outsiders if Quetzalcoatl gets close to Castigating him. He
is greatly interested in Huitzilopochtli’s dealings with Tloloc,
but is content to observe from afar for now.
Tezcatlipoca’s mastery over Arcanoi extends to a number of
the Dark Arcanoi used by Spectres. He employs them to train
his elite ocelotl (“Jaguar Warriors”) in the arts of helldiving. He
tasks them with eliminating high-profile Spectres, wringing the
Labyrinth of its secrets, and clandestinely observing members
of the other houses.

The House of Itzamna

Founded by a Mayan gaunt of the same name, House
Itzamna serves to balance the power of Xipi Totec and is home to
wraiths who do not easily fit into the ranks of the other houses.
Itzamnan membership includes a multitude of
Mesoamerican cultures, such as Maya, Mixtec, and Tepanec
Restless who are not affiliated with Ix Chel or Xipi Totec;
Tarascans; Zapotecs; Toltecs; wraiths from Teotihuacan; and a
host of smaller factions old and new. Like their fellow houses,
the leaders of the Itzamna had a difficult time coming to any
sort of consensus after the loss of their founder, so they formed
a governing council composed of a single representative from
each faction. Disorder reigned until the recent election of Siyaj
K’ak’ of Teotihuacan.
Siyaj K’ak’ is a powerfully built gaunt that affects a pure
obsidian mask that crackles with barely contained power. Siyaj
K’ak’ saw the rise of Eight Deer and the ease with which he
stole away the Otomi and Chichimecah as a wakeup call for
his house. To that end, Siyaj K’ak’ assumed the reins of power
and set himself to the formidable task of organizing the diverse
and disorganized wraiths that make up his people.
As the largest house with the most diverse membership, the
Itzamna embraces new people and ideas with greater ease than
their fellows. Siyaj K’ak’ established outposts throughout the
Shadowlands to locate new wraiths and personally introduces
newly Reaped Enfants to the brilliant burgundy temples and
other wonders of the Itzamna-ruled caverns in Mictlan. Most
Enfants are carefully selected prior to extending them an offer
of membership, so they often accept with enthusiasm. Those
that do not accept the offer are introduced to the darker side
of the Itzamna: They become fodder for its forges.
The Itzamna hosts some of the finest metalworkers, lapidar-
ies, and stonemasons. Itzamna forges produce items of exquisite
quality and brilliance, such as masks of copper, gold, and jade;
THE DARK KINGDOMS OF THE AMERICAS 93
feather cloaks; and a riotous panoply of decorative weapons, glow and hiss with the light of Oblivion. The canals bubble
armor, and jewelry. These items include weapons and soulfire with tar-like Angst that reflects the unholy light of the balefire
masks forged of True Obsidian, True Jade, and True Turquoise, that ravages the city’s great temples. The Hierarchy declared
although their manufacture is arduous and time-consuming. Nahui-Ollin beyond salvation and placed it off limits as a sad
The Itzamna profits greatly from trade in these items. reminder of a once great people. However, this restriction does
Siyaj K’ak’s immediate objective is to weld his people into a not dissuade treasure hunters from entering the city, but few
cohesive whole and recruit new members to compensate for the return with more than tales of horror.
loss of the Otomi and Chichimecah. He guards against future
loss of the house’s membership by lavishly rewarding his loyal Xibalba — “Place of Fright”
followers while slowly transforming the Itzamna caverns into Xibalba is the greatest Tempest realm that was created by
a fantastical place of colorful temples, majestic palaces, and the House of Ix Chel, and it was rivaled only by the likes of
monuments to former and future glory. Like the Werejaguar, Nahui-Ollin and Hanan Pacha in the Lands of Gold. Xibalba
new life and purpose are seeping into the Itzamna, but only endured a long siege by the Heretics but had not yet fallen when
time will tell if Siyaj K’ak’ can weld the vast constellation of the Third Great Maelstrom struck due to the valiant efforts of
Itzamna wraiths into a single rising star. Itzamna, who was left in charge by Ix Chel when she travelled

Oblivion in the Flayed Lands south. The Maelstrom hit Xibalba with such intensity that it
shattered the very physics of the Underworld there and drove
Oblivion holds great sway in the Flayed Lands. The Itzamna mad with grief; it destroyed his Psyche and transformed
Hierarchy patrols them in large numbers and seldom leaves him into Hun-Came (“One Death”), Spectre Lord of Xibalba.
its fortified Necropoli without good reason or significant Itzamna remade Xibalba in the image of Oblivion by transform-
force. The sky still crackles with the faded afterimage of the ing its former grandeur into a monument to darkness.
Third Great Maelstrom, and regional storms are frequent. The Itzamna quickly learned that Xibalba was trapped some-
Tempest is jumbled mass of broken roads and Byways that lead where between the layers of the Tempest in a semi-permanent
to half-submerged Necropoli filled with burning temples. Deeper state of Harrowing. He could harm only those wraiths who
still is the Labyrinth, which has taken on the unhealthy cast directly attacked his person or the Spectres under his care, but
of the four prior worlds of the Mexihcah dead. Doomshades he was not prevented from subjecting visitors to various deadly
in the form of obsidian jaguars, feral monkeys, and terrifying challenges. Itzamna surrounded his kingdom with numerous
tzitzimemeh prowl the depths, and hurricane-force winds, fiery perils to dissuade casual intrusion and filled the city with
rain, great floods, and terrifying earthquakes occasionally bubble various traps, including stone houses that instantly plunge all
to the surface. Below are a handful of the largest locations lost who enter into the deadliest of Harrowings. The truly bold can
to Oblivion in the Flayed Lands. challenge Itzamna’s court to a match in the great ball court of
Xibalba, which is the greatest Artifact of the Mayan dead. It
Nahui-Ollin — “Earthquake Sun” can transport the winning team deep into Mitnal (the Mayan
Labyrinth), offer them unique protection against Mitnal’s perils
The former capital of the Obsidian Restless and seat of
the Obsidian Council, Nahui-Ollin was once the greatest ac- and its Spectres. Once they are transported, there is no guarantee
complishment of the Obsidian dead. Divided into four great of escape, but the rewards are easily as great as the risk.
quarters, Nahui-Ollin was a sprawling metropolis that was filled
with soaring temples that were stuccoed white with the plasm Mitnal
of captive drones and painted a dozen vibrant hues. Its broad Ruled by a nameless Onceborn often referred to as Yum
thoroughfares and canals offered access to a thousand diversions, Cimil, Kisin, Ah-Puch, or a multitude of other names, Mitnal is
and its marketplaces were thronged with trade from across the the Labyrinth of the Mayan dead. Located deep beneath Xibalba,
Americas. Temples filled with painted codices captured the Mitnal is a place of pestilential fumes so potent that they can
wisdom of the Obsidian dead, and the city even boasted a vast abrade a wraith’s Corpus with the strength of a Maelstrom.
zoo and botanical garden with strange specimens from across Only those wraiths protected by powerful Artifacts, Arcanoi,
the Underworld. Surrounded by the Sunless Sea on all sides, or winning a victory in a ball game in Xibalba can enter Mitnal
Nahui-Ollin was accessible only by canoe or by the three great with even the remotest chance of survival. Yum Cimil or his
causeways carved out of the Tempest, which lead to Xibalba, ubiquitous owl-like Doomshades often confront the Restless as
the Lands of Flint, and the Lands of Gold. they wander Mitnal. His Doomshades prowl aimlessly through
The Heretic siege and the Great Maelstrom that followed the darkness seeking wraiths to Moliate into new and horrifying
reduced Nahui-Ollin to a nightmare realm of shattered temples shapes. Yum Cimil rages against the upper world and caused
and empty streets that echo with cries of the tzitzimimeh as they earthquakes so powerful that entire Mayan cities were dragged
stalk their prey. Much of the city is flooded or covered with deep into Mitnal, and their treasures are there for intrepid
oily ash, and its streets and causeways are rent by Nihils that wraiths to take. Many have tried to take this wealth, but the

94 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

last thing most intruders hear is the tinkling of the bells tied Some forged alliances, others traded, and others made war. New
in Yum Cimil’s hair and brief flash of his skeletal form. alliances were forged between the Islands of Flint in response
to the interlopers, which were strained to the breaking when
Balance the Third Great Maelstrom struck.
The events of the Third Great Maelstrom were terrifying Screaming up from the south, the Maelstrom scoured three-
to behold, especially to Mixcoatl. After his failure with the quarters of the Flint Restless from the face of North America
Olmecah, he shepherded his people for centuries so that they during its initial eruption and many more afterward. The
could grow, thrive, and meet their challenges on their own survivors resolved to protect themselves against similar storms
terms. This state existed for millennia until the arrival of the and the European wraiths who would surely return. When the
Third Great Maelstrom. Mixcoatl emerged from captivity and Maelstrom abated, the Lands of Flint rebuilt and fortified their
used all his accumulated might to calm the storm and tempered islands in the Tempest against the day they would need them
it enough to save a fraction of his people. Although he was again. New waves of wraiths arrived from the east, inaugurating
successful, his Shadow was torn from his being and flung deep a dizzying series of alliances, trade compacts, and brushfire wars
into the Labyrinth where it went mad. as both sides prosecuted their interests against each other and
Mixcoatl’s Shadow dubbed itself “Tezcatlipoca,” and the Spectres that lingered in the Maelstrom’s wake. A state of
assumed his position among the most powerful of the Shadow- rough equilibrium lasted for over a century until the Hierarchy’s
eaten in the Flayed Lands. Tezcatlipoca quickly set himself to legendary Fifth Legion landed in New Amsterdam.
undoing the efforts of his Psyche because he believed Mixcoatl The Fifth Legion and its auxiliaries conquered Necropolis
was the ancient Feathered Serpent of his people, who is often after Necropolis and forced the surviving Renegades and
referred to as “Quetzalcoatl” by young wraiths. Tezcatlipoca Heretics west until they went to ground or were pushed into
become the destruction to Mixcoatl’s creation and the chaos the sea. Many Flint wraiths fought and died valiantly with their
to Mixcoatl’s order. He focused his efforts on places that were Renegade and Heretic allies, but most sensed a change in the
sacred to the Feathered Serpent by rendering Tula, San Lorenzo Tempest and retreated to the Islands of Flint. The Hierarchy
Tenochtitlan, and La Venta so fell that not even the Hierarchy has never been comfortable with their inability to account for
would assail them. The recent awakening of Mixcoatl from his the seeming lack of indigenous wraiths in North America,
long slumber after the Flaying has initiated an elaborate game but the staggering cost of their conquest of the Americas has
of chess between Mixcoatl and Tezcatlipoca with The Flayed convinced them to table the question for now.
Lands as their prize. Mixcoatl’s first move was to give Eight
Deer the jade cylinder that he used to liberate San Lorenzo. The Five Nations
Mixcoatl awaits Tezcatlipoca’s response. The predominant Islands of Flint are a loose confederation
of five power blocs called the Five Nations that were forced to

Eyes in the Forest — work together against the arriving European wraiths and the
Maelstroms to follow. These blocs consist of the Haudenosaunee

The Islands of Flint

ecords of the so called “Dark Kingdom of
Nation, the Council of Tribes, the Cherokee Nation, the People
of Peace, and the Inuktitut. These blocs bore the brunt of
Stygian intrusion into North America.
Flint” are culled from the fragmentary reports
of Renegades and Heretics that disagree
The Haudenosaunee Nation - The Iroquois
The Haudenosaunee (“people of the longhouse”) are often
on the fine details of almost any subject.
referred to as the “Iroquois,” and they consist of a league of
What is known is that the native wraiths of
five (and later six) powerful nations that haunted the New
North America are not or have ever been a
York and Pennsylvania area when the Heretics arrived. The
monolithic force. Instead, they are a dizzying collection of bands,
Haudenosaunee forced the new arrivals to become allies or
tribes, nations, kingdoms, and confederations, each with their
vanish into the night until they received astonishing casualties
own unique culture, government, and objectives.
at the hand of the Third Great Maelstrom, which provided the
History European Restless an opportunity to claim substantial territory
before the Haudenosaunee recovered.
The Heretics and Renegades that first arrived in North The Haudenosaunee believe untended grief caused by the
America were much more diverse and disorganized than their loss of a family member leads to madness and spiritual weakness.
Fisher cousins to the South. They expected to find an untamed The Maelstrom deaths deeply grieved the Haudenosaunee, so
land where they could carve out petty kingdoms of their own they struck out in every direction and initiated “mourning wars”
far from the Hierarchy’s cloying grasp. What they found was a for over a century to replenish their ranks. These captives and
continent filled with unique peoples and their dead. The first a flood of dead whom died from smallpox balanced the scales
wave of new arrivals made contact in a dozen different ways.

THE DARK KINGDOMS OF THE AMERICAS 95

against the European wraiths. The Haudenosaunee became They were instructed by seven Miigis, who are humanlike beings
the northeastern gatekeepers of the Flint dead, and they forged of stunning radiance. In time, the Miigis returned to the sea,
alliances and made war as they pleased. but prophesized that the Anishinaabe must migrate west or lose
This situation lasted until their first battle with the Fifth their culture to the peoples to come. The Anishinaabe traveled
Legion. The Haudenosaunee went to the aid of their beleaguered west to settle on “Turtle Islands” in the Great Lakes region,
allies in New Amsterdam. Although they fought bravely, they which were marked by mystical cowrie shells left by the Miigis.
sustained heavy losses. Horrified by an army whose sole purpose In death, the Anishinaabe journeyed into the Tempest and
was utter destruction, the Haudenosaunee withdrew to the found six radiant beings inhabiting six separate islands. These
Tempest and joined the Five Nations. beings shield the islands from Maelstroms and expand them as
The Haudenosaunee occupy a heavily forested region of needed to prevent overcrowding. These islands became the core
the Tempest whose tortuous Byways are nearly impossible for of the “Islands of Flint,” which are safe refuges in the Tempest
outsiders to navigate. Concealed within these Byways are the six that endured the Flaying and the Stygians that followed.
islands of the Haudenosaunee, with each one hosting a single Three nations comprise the Anishinaabe: the Ojibwe,
nation. The nations are self-governing but form a league known Odawa, and Potawatomi. Together, they form the Niswi-
as the “Haudenosaunee Confederacy,” which is composed of the mishkodewin (“Council of Three Fires”) that decides policy
Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Tuscarora for the Anishinaabe and negotiates with the Five Nations. The
peoples. Each nation is further broken down into a series of Ojibwe are keepers of faith, and they maintain their people’s
matriarchal clans with Clan Mothers who appoint the chief knowledge and culture on relic birch-bark scrolls. The Odawa
of each clan. Each clan chief in turn travels to Onondaga, are traders, and they navigate the Shadowlands and Tempest as
their capital island, where they convene a Grand Council to merchants, messengers, and spies. The Potawatomi are warriors
resolve intra-nation disputes and decide matters that affect the and keepers of the council fire who keep Oblivion at bay. The
confederacy as a whole. Anishinaabe also maintain the Midewiwin (“Grand Medicine
Clans live in villages composed of longhouses surrounded Society”), whose Midew (“medicine men”) form an enigmatic
by a formidable palisade of stakes forged from Moliated Spectres. society of medicine lodges that maintain a vast knowledge of
Warriors who are equipped with bows, war clubs, and wampum- Arcanoi and provide Castigation. The Anishinaabe are also
decorated weapons worked with powerful Arcanoi guard these master diplomats who forged the “Peace and Friendship” treaties
palisades at all times as they watch for Maelstroms. Each village that established the Five Nations.
has a “False Face Society,” which is a group of medicine men The Tempest around the Anishinaabe is an endless series
who can ward away Spectres and bind them into the wood of of snarled Byways almost impossible to navigate without the aid
a tree growing along the River of Death. These medicine men of skilled Anishinaabe pilots and their Argos-infused birch-bark
carve their faces into wooden masks of great power. They also canoes. Even with their aid, Spectral river serpents or “water
tend to the spiritual needs of their people by healing Corpus panthers,” some of which grow to immense size, with deer-
and spirit with great effect. like antlers with tails of solid copper, plague the Byways. The
The Haudenosaunee are not prone to internal conflict Anishinaabe islands sit safely in the middle of this morass with
and never cease to expand. In addition to the slow trickle of three directly controlled by the Anishinaabe, and other islands
Haudenosaunee souls that cross the Shroud, the Haudenosaunee are shared with allied nations like the Wyandot and Sioux.
have reignited their mourning wars. They Reap wraiths from The primary goal of the Anishinaabe is to maintain the
the surrounding nations and the Shadowlands in daring raids peace between the Five Nations, which is an increasingly dif-
where they strike quickly and then vanish into the Tempest. ficult task as antipathy grows between the Haudenosaunee and
This situation has not gone unnoticed by the Hierarchy. Cherokee. The Haudenosaunee are debating the possibility of
The Haudenosaunee protect their land with great vigilance, forging alliances with other nations and even the Hierarchy to
but raids by the forces of Oblivion are not uncommon. Warriors ensure a lasting peace.
who die in battle often return as Spectres to haunt their former
clans. The Byways of the region are plagued with Spectral river The Abenaki — The Council of Tribes
serpents, and local Maelstroms vent unusual Spectres in the The Abenaki are the second member to join the Five
form of flying heads that spew raw Angst or fearsome “stone Nations. They also originated from the Wabanahkik of
coats” that stand 12 feet tall and have skin harder than iron. eastern New England and Canada. Intimately related to the
The stone coats are nearly impossible to defeat without mystical Anishinaabe, they remained behind as honored “fathers,” when
weapons, and only the most formidable heroes or False Faces the Anishinaabe migrated west. According to legend, there was a
can confront them with any hope of success. seventh Miigis who appeared to the Anishinaabe who retreated
into the sea because humans could not survive in its presence.
Anishinaabe — The People of Peace In death, the Abenaki found this Miigis waiting for them. It
In ancient times, the Anishinaabe inhabited Wabanahkik had prepared an island refuge for them that was covered in
(“Land of the Dawn”) along the northeastern Atlantic coast. thick forest and dazzling waterfalls. The Third Great Maelstrom

96 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

nearly destroyed the Abenaki, which forced them into alliances native Hekantontire that stand 20 stories tall with hearts of
with a great council of nations roughly mirroring the Wabanaki frozen Angst and unquenchable hunger. The Giwakwa are one
Confederacy. This council includes the Mi’Kmaq, Maliseet, of the main reasons the Abenaki travel quietly in small groups
Passamaquoddy, and Penobscot. These nations formed the and never stay in one place until they return to their island.
core of the Council of Tribes, a loose confederation designed The harsh nature of their land has molded the Abenaki into
to provide a single front to the Five Nations. some of the most formidable Doomslayers in North America.
The Abenaki use consensus to make decisions at every
level of society. If consensus is not reached, the status quo is The Cherokee Haudenosaunee
maintained. This system is fairly easy to sustain because most Traditionally occupying parts of North and South Carolina,
bands rarely exceed 100 souls. These bands meet only to trade Georgia, and Tennessee, the Cherokee are formidable warriors
at the sacred falls of their home island or to defend against an whose mastery of hit-and-run tactics is legendary. They have
external threat. They are masters of Psyche and Corpus because been in an almost continuous state of warfare for centuries
the weight of Oblivion hangs heavily over their land and its by battling the Haudenosaunee, Fishers, Renegades, and
temptations are difficult to resist. Many who succumb to their even the Hierarchy. They suffered greatly during the Third
Shadows find their hearts hardening into solid lumps of Angst Great Maelstrom, which forced them to forge a peace with
and become Doppelgangers that drain the Pathos of all around the Haudenosaunee and join the Five Nations in their retreat
them. Only the most formidable medicine can Castigate the into the Tempest.
Angst-hearted and force them to vomit up the reddish lump The Cherokee Nation is built around seven mountainous
so that their Psyche can regain control. islands in the Tempest in addition to the islands of their allies.
The Abenaki and their allies cling to their island’s protec- Each island is composed of villages ruled by a pair of chiefs;
tion and only venture out in small bands to harvest Pathos. one is white in times of peace, and the other is red in time of
Their region of the Underworld never truly recovered from war. The White Chief’s ruling council include his right hand,
the Flaying and is fraught with peril. Bloodfire-scaled river a speaker, and six advisors, and the Red Chief has plenary
serpents compete with Doomshades wreathed in barrowflame authority in times of war. Medicine men moderate disputes
and Byway witches whose mournful cries lure unsuspecting between them. Each island is further divided into seven clans:
rescuers into Nihils. The worst are the Giwakwa, which are the Aniwahya (Wolf), Ani Tsiskwa (Bird), Anikawi (Deer),

THE DARK KINGDOMS OF THE AMERICAS 97

Anigilohi (Long Hair), Anisahoni (Blue), Anigatogewi (Wild snow occupying millions of kilometers of desolate wasteland
Potato), and Aniwodi (Red Paint). The clans are matrilineal stretching from Canada to the Arctic Circle. The Tempest is
and live in villages surrounded by well-guarded palisades that a seemingly limitless expanse of inky water filled with Shades,
surround a formidable council house that accommodates the frozen islands, and dark icebergs hungry to swallow unsuspecting
entire population during council meetings and Maelstroms. The ships. Its sky is an unholy aurora borealis of sickly violet light
national government follows the same structure and is further and black lightning.
strengthened by its enduring alliance with its fellow “Civilized The Inuktitut call their Underworld Adlivan, where souls
Tribes,” (the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole nations, are purified in preparation for travel to Qudlivun (“Land of
who have islands of their own). the Moon”). The Inuktitut are masters of this realm, and they
The plagues that struck after the Third Great Maelstrom live much as they did in life: always moving, always fighting,
make the Cherokee Underworld, a. k. a. the “Darkening Land,” and always keeping just one step ahead of Oblivion’s embrace.
the most populous Island of Flint. The Cherokee receive Many Inuktitut are nomadic and harvest Pathos where they
numerous modern Enfants. Medicine men take great pains to can, but there are numerous well-concealed villages that form
integrate new arrivals and Castigate the old. the northernmost outposts of the Islands of Flint.
Cherokee warriors defend the Darkening Land, but it is Never a unified people, the Inuktitut form confederations
still replete with deadly adversaries. Nun’Yunu’Wi (“dressed in when necessary but seldom venture south. An elder leads
stone”) are elderly Nephwracks with skin harder than diamond each village, and nomadic groups wander the north, where
who point to their victims with stone canes and never relent they hunt Spectres; trade with established villages; and raid
until they consume them. Kalona Ayeliski (“Raven Mockers”) remote Hierarchy outposts, other Islands of Flint, and each
are terrifying Shades who infiltrate villages with Enshroud and other to survive. All Inuktitut are skilled in Argos and merciless
then disguise themselves with Moliate. They are nearly impos- in battle. They use soulforged kayaks, umiak longboats, and
sible to detect and masterfully drive Restless into Catharsis barghast-drawn dog sleds to range far and wide. They wield
with their taunts, or if that approach fails, the Shades tear their relic weapons with great skill.
out their hearts. The Darkening Land is also home to the The most important member of each village is the Angakkuq
Uktena, who are massive, horned serpents whose scales glow (“medicine man”). Angakkuqs are potent gaunts who wield
like fire and have a head surmounted by an Ulun’suti, which powers that rival a Ferryman. They offer spiritual succor to
is a transparent crystal with a red streak that grants their user wraiths with strong Shadows and mediate between Inuktitut
mastery over Fatalism. The only way to claim the crystal is to when village taboos are broken. Angakkuq leap into action
slay the Uktena, which you can do only by piercing the seventh when Maelstroms strike by plunging deep into the Labyrinth
brilliant spot on the back of its head because its other scales to ease the Maelstroms’ force.
are nearly impenetrable. This task is made more difficult by The Inuktitut are not alone in the north. There are the
the constant vigilance of Uktena werewolves who unrelent- enigmatic Taqriaqsuit, who are wraiths whose Enshroud became
ingly defend their charge. Onacona, who is a medicine man permanent during the great Maelstrom. They inhabit unseen
of Aniwahya, is the sole possessor of an Ulun’suti among the kingdoms. There are also the grotesquely muscular Tuniit, who
Cherokee and uses it sparingly due to its malevolent nature embrace a slow mind for the Outrage necessary to survive.
and insatiable hunger to destroy its bearer. The Spectres of Adlivan are formidable. Dark, hairless,
Recent raids by the Haudenosaunee have set White Chief and dog-like Keelut vulpines and giants who are known as
Wohali against Red Chief Waya. Wohali believes war is inher- the Inupasugjuk stalk the Byways looking for prey. Nihils and
ently polluting and will taint the peace of the Five Nations, but waters’ edges are no better because long-haired, green-skinned
Waya invokes the ancient Blood Revenge to avenge the fallen. Spectres called Qalupalik lure unsuspecting victims into the
Neither one knows that the raids were ordered by the Ani- Tempest with their siren-like hum, and serpentine Tizheruk
Kutani, who are the ancient gaunts of debased and draconian snatch wraiths from the shore. Even the skies are filled with
Cherokee religious leaders that were overthrown centuries winged Shades that swoop down to decapitate the unsuspecting.
ago. The Ani-Kutani were powerful in life and are even more Adlivan’s Labyrinth is particularly perilous and is filled with
powerful in death. They have established a Far Shore where skeletal Shades who are called Ahkiyyini, whose unholy drum
they plot to destabilize the Cherokee and the Five Nations in beats whip the Tempest into a furor. Despite the Labyrinth’s
an effort to reestablish their former dominion. peril, treasure hunters and explorers continue to pursue rumors
Inuktitut — The Inuit of the fabulously wealthy kingdom of Saquenay, which is
located deep in the Labyrinth. Saquenay is real, but it is ruled
Nowhere in North America is the presence of a Maelstrom by milky-white Nephwracks who rule mines rich in True Gold
felt with such intensity as the lands of the Inuktitut (“the and bloodfire crystals. “Visitors” are marched through the
people”), also known as the Inuit. The Shadowlands of the ruby light of the Nephwracks gilded palace, where they learn
north are a foreboding wasteland of black ice and ashen the true meaning of Oblivion.

98 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Other Nations The Pueblo dead quietly inhabit abandoned pueblos and
islands in the Tempest and are led by various religious societ-
Beyond the Five Nations are a dizzying collection of nations, ies, each of which has a seat on the Necropolis ruling council.
tribes, independent confederations, freeholds, and kingdoms. The most potent group within each pueblo are the Kachina,
The below are the best known, but many more are secreted which is a religious society representing the six directions of
away in remote corners of the Tempest. the Pueblo cosmos. The Kachina don painted leather masks
adorned with feathers. These masks contain immense power.
Mississippian Cultures These masks are burned upon the Kachina’s death and appear
The mound builders of the Mississippi were the most in the Underworld. The Kachina takes on the aspect of the
powerful Restless of the Islands of Flint prior to the Third god or spirit that the mask represents. The Pueblo also have a
Great Maelstrom and are largely responsible for the Maelstrom’s long-standing alliance with the Navajo and reasonably frequent
ultimate defeat in North America. These kingdoms formed a contact (or conflict) with Spectral bands of Apache.
mighty bulwark against the storm in well-defended cities that The Tempest of the region is arid and punctuated by
were protected by ancient wraiths with formidable Arcanoi. small Byways that wind through an ashen landscape replete
This strength also made them the primary target of the storm, with Renegades and Heretics attempting to hide from the
so they were subjected to the ravages of Spectres for nearly a Hierarchy. The region is also home to some uniquely alien
decade. The Caddoan and Plaquemine Necropoli were utterly breeds of Spectre born of the Labyrinth’s twisted imitation of
destroyed and the remainder were left in tatters. Only the great creatures from Pueblo and Navajo mythology, such as “Alien
Necropoli of Cahokia and a scattering of others survived intact. Gods,” corpse spirits, and Feathered Serpents that zigzag across
They kidnap Hierarchy patrols and Artifact hunters that tarry the sky like lightning.
too near them and vanish without a trace when reinforcements
arrive. They are few in number but great in power. They bitterly The West
lament their fate but are eager observe the world around them The nations of the Great Plains, Western Range, and
as they plan their future. California were largely lost to the Third Great Maelstrom. Small
The Natchez are an anomaly among the mound builders. bands of riders and isolated Haunts are scattered across the
Ruled by a theocrat-king known as “the Great Sun,” the Natchez Shadowlands and battle for survival against lingering Spectres
survived the Maelstrom relatively intact. The sacrifice of the and Hierarchy patrols. Remnants of the larger nations cling to
Great Sun’s best warriors upon his death and their large cache small islands of safety in the Tempest or have accepted refuge
of grave goods saw them through the Maelstrom and allowed status on the islands of the Anishinaabe.
them to fend off the Renegades and Heretics that followed.
The Natchez’s destruction in the 1740s saw a dramatic increase The Pacific Northwest
in their population just ahead of formal contact with the The northwest nations survived the Third Great Maelstrom
Hierarchy. Jealous of his power, the Great Sun turned down the and thrived afterward. They built a prosperous realm within
Hierarchy’s offer membership and stunned them by becoming a realm inside the Dark Kingdom of Iron. Inured to the hard-
a formal protectorate of the Dark Kingdom of Ivory after secret ships of the north, they survived the Maelstrom in their sturdy
negotiations with their representative in New Orleans. The villages and defeated the Hierarchy’s Bleak Legion advances
Hierarchy continues to pressure the Great Sun into joining in Alaska, which forced the Hierarchy to the bargaining table.
the empire, but refrain from taking direct action to prevent These Flint wraiths negotiated a peace on favorable terms with
outright war with the Dark Kingdom of Ivory. the Hierarchy and elected the famous Katlian of the Tlingit to
represent their interests.
The Southwest
The Shadowlands of Arizona and New Mexico are a
collection faded deserts, foreboding mountains, sickly cacti,
and rocky canyons. Ix Chel travelled down the causeway from
Setting Sun — The Lands of Gold
he Lands of Gold gave rise to some of the most
Nahui-Ollin to warn the Flint wraiths of the danger to come.
formidable kingdoms in the Underworld. The
The Flint wraiths in that area sent the Fishers’ initial advance
greatest of these kingdoms was Tawantinsuyu,
reeling back to Saint Augustine until the Maelstrom struck.
the Inka Empire. The Inka under the
Sturdy pueblos and potent Arcanoi ensured survival for a time,
leadership of Sapa Inka Manqu Chapaq
but the causeway leading from Nahui-Ollin into the Hohokam
(“Son of the Sun”) with the aid of his fellow
culture’s territory delivered an army of ravening Spectres deep
Sapa Inka carved a vast empire of four provinces out of the
into the heart of Arizona. The Necropoli of the Hohokam and
Shadowlands and the surrounding Tempest with the Necropolis
their Mogollon cultures were obliterated, but the Restless we
Cuzco at its heart. Rapidly outgrowing Cuzco, they created a
know as the Pueblo survived.
new capital high in the Tempest. Dubbing it “Hanan Pacha”

THE DARK KINGDOMS OF THE AMERICAS 99

after the mythological Inka upper world, the city became a European wraith to witness Tawantinsuyu’s haunting jungles,
wonderland of gilded temples, courtyards, and places where imposing peaks, and ashen beaches. He expected to meet
golden fountains burbling liquid Pathos competed for attention spirited but disorganized resistance. Instead, he faced endless
with artificial gardens wrought of True Gold and Silver. Nobles ranks of Inka warriors and risen mallki who were commanded
adorned with golden ear spools and elaborately embroidered by deceased Sapa Inkas whose golden masks were wreathed in
cloaks paid obeisance to Manqu Chapaq under the watchful Aurelian fury. Fully half the Renegades in the New World met
eye of his elite bodyguard. Administrators cataloged an endless Oblivion that day.
stream of tribute on quipu strings as workers and artisans The war ground into one of attrition. Unlike their allies in
continued to expand the city. Hanan Pacha was eternally abuzz the north, the Inka had vast stockpiles of Pathos and a singular
with priests, traders, soldiers, and the Keening-laced sound ruler that let them fight on long after the suppression of their
of conch shells signaling the arrival and departure of elite mortal worshipers. Theudhar gathered a new Renegade army
chasquis messengers. that was stiffened with native allies that were resentful of Inka
An intricate system of roads, waystations, and storage dominion and launched a fresh invasion of Tawantinsuyu in
depots connected Hanan Pacha to its realm and bridged peril- conjunction with Heretic reinforcements from Paradise. The
ous Byways and chasms to connect even the remotest corners Inka were forced back to Necropolis Cuzco but held firm
of the empire. The Inka smelted True Gold into magnificent until Spanish conquistadors seized the mallki and many other
works of art and Artifacts, captured Pathos in soulfire emeralds, Fetters of the Inka nobility in the world of the Quick. Most
and constructed impregnable Citadels of perfectly-fitted stone were burned or melted down, which left the Inka leaderless as
that were filled with grave goods. They retained power over Kay most of their leaders plunged into Harrowings.
Pacha (the Skinlands) through their mallki, who were potent Ix Chel rushed south with her best warriors to even the
mummies and the attendant mediums who voiced their will. odds. She sent dozens of Renegade captains into Oblivion
Manqu Chapaq absolutely ruled Tawantinsuyu from his golden with long sweeps of her True Obsidian blade. She seemed as
stool in Hanan Pacha for centuries until the outsiders came. though she would single-handedly turn the tide of battle until
The conquest of Tawantinsuyu was the work of the Renegade Theudhar singled her out on the battlefield and buried the Spear
general Theudhar, who was a participant in the sack of the of Longinus into her heart. Soon afterward, the Shadowlands
Onyx Tower and an ally of Paradise. Theudhar was the first

100 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

shook with astonishing violence as the Labyrinth unleashed death. Known as Nina Chumpi (“fire belt”) and Hawa Chumpi
its rage on the Lands of Gold. (“outer belt”), they became a new Cuzco and haven for Inka
Clouds of fiery destruction swallowed Hanan Pacha and the wraiths who are not aligned with Cusi. Amply provisioned with
provinces of Tawantinsuyu along with their invaders. Necropolis Citadels, gilded temples, mines of True Gold, and the aid of
Cuzco was the only Necropolis to survive because it was protected the undying Oracle of Pachacamac, Tupaq plots Cusi’s downfall
from the storm by tapac-yauri, the mighty golden staff that and the return of Tawantinsuyu to its rightful place of glory.
Manqu Chapaq planted under Cuzco’s Temple of the Sun upon
its founding. The tapac-yauri protected Cuzco from the storm Oblivion
while Cusi Yupanki, who was the general and High Priest of South America is home to many Relics of the Flaying.
the Sun under Sapa Inka Atawallpa, led the Necropolis defense. Doppelgangers infiltrate its Necropoli yearly and Doomshades
Rallying the remainder of the army around the city’s Citadel, stalk its jungles. Oblivion’s most potent servant is the Onceborn
Cusi Yupanki summoned forth the fearsome pururaucas, who known as “Supay,” who is the lord of Uku Pacha, which is the
were stone warriors that were animated by Flux. The fighting Inka Underworld. Supay’s power is fearsome to behold and his
was intense, but the pururaucas ultimately prevailed and Cusi Doomshades are the bane of the Hierarchy. Supay’s primary
Yupanki was declared Sapa Inka of a much-diminished empire. goal is to maintain his hold over Uku Pacha and locate the
Cusi Yupanki saw Cuzco through the storm and welcomed knowledge needed to counteract the protection of the tapac-
the Hierarchy upon their arrival. Always a creature of fluid loyalty, yauri. Supay believes he can accomplish the second goal if he
Cusi negotiated a treaty with the Hierarchy to retain dominion can locate Manqu Qhapaq, whom he believes survived the
over his realm in exchange for transforming Tawantinsuyu into Maelstrom. Not knowing where to look, Supay has infiltrated
a client of the empire. The Viceroyalty of Cuzco was born. a Doppelganger into the ranks of Cusi’s inner circle to watch
Cusi Yupanki slowly expanded his power base by recaptur- for news of Manqu’s whereabouts.
ing much of Tawantinsuyu with the aid of the Hierarchy. He
suppressed Renegades, and administered Necropolis Potosi,
which is a mine nearly as rich as the Veinous Stair. Only a few
The Lands of Emerald
The Colombian Kingdoms of Emerald were legendary for
know that Cusi was behind the capture or destruction of the their ability to forge spectacular Artifacts out of True Gold and
mallki. Always hungry for power, Cusi worked through his soulfire Emeralds. Many Renegades and Heretics vanished
mortal agents to seize the mallki and either destroy or conceal under waves of viridian fire as the Emerald wraiths defended
them in a special chamber. The trapped souls of most of the their homeland, but the Lands of Emerald were simply too
Sapa Inka are now bound to their Fetters, and Cusi extracts disorganized to resist the Flaying. Rumors abound of strange
their secrets by using Phantasm. Cusi’s efforts were exhaustive wraiths who wander the Byways on rafts of purest gold.
but not complete. Not all of the Sapa Inka are accounted for,
including Manqu Chapac, which is a situation he attempts to
remedy with great vigor.
Greater South America
The Fishers and their allies battled confederations of
Viceroy Cusi’s reign is not without opposition. In life, the
natives for almost a century from their Citadel in Necropolis
famed Sapa Inka Tupaq Inka Yupanki, who was guided by the
Salvador. They advanced across Brazil methodically until the
Oracle of Pachacamac, travelled to a pair of mythical islands
Maelstrom swept across the continent and discorporated tribes
located deep in the Tempest. During the Inka Civil War in
by the hundreds. The Fifth Legion ousted the few remaining
the world of the Quick, Cusi Yupanki burned Tupaq’s mallki,
Fishers in Salvador, and most of the native population simply
which sent him into a Harrowing. Upon his return, Tupaq fled
ceased to exist, were Reaped by the Hierarchy as they crossed
to the islands he found in life and had spent years fortifying in
the shroud, or lived in remote areas beyond Hierarchy control.

THE DARK KINGDOMS OF THE AMERICAS 101

 Swar, the
Dark Kingdom
of India
ven before British rule, Swar had more Bhuvar are grey and crumbling things with the relics of the
trouble with encroaching Adharma (the old and new stacked on top of each other or pieced together.
Swar concept of Oblivion) than any other Most of these stacks are the result of one object appearing
land of the dead. Its holdings stretched inside another one, which lead to many contorted and odd
throughout the Shadowlands of India, angles. It is as though the old and the new are not reconciled
known as Bhuvar, but still Adharma filled in this land. The weight of its history refuses to be pushed
in the blank spaces Swar could not cover. After the time of the out by modernity.
British occupation, Adharma grew in strength in this ancient Unlike Stygia, most of the wraith population resides
place and kept a terrible hold on great swaths of the area. in either the Loka of Svarga, which is one of the “upper
Swar is a strange Dark Kingdom because it is dominated realms” and the settlements that surround it or the Tala,
by the glorious Svarga, the City of Delights. It has its factions: which is the seven lower worlds that rest in the Sea of Shiva
the Ashura, the Naga, and the citizens and settlements in that surrounds Svarga. Those lower worlds are accessible
and around Svarga. Strange phenomena such as bizarre through grand flowing rivers and infinite staircases, both of
environmental conditions and anomalies that seem to twist which possess their own hazards.
the laws of physics dot the landscapes in the Sea of Shiva. The Bhuvar does not contain as many Necropoli as
The way that Swar operates under the constant pressure of a Stygian wraith might expect. The Necropoli dotting the
Adharma is near miraculous. massive landscape are mixed in with forgotten mountains;
Adharma’s servants know Restless are drawn to cities to tributaries and offshoots of the Ganges that have no equivalent
find shelter, gather Pathos, or simply wander and remember. in the Bhur; and scoured plains. These broken Necropoli are
It doesn’t matter if these cities are found in the Bhuvar or the memories of civilizations so old that they defy conventional
the Bhur (the Skinlands); they are the key to its strategy archaeology. There are very few wraiths who remember them
for Swar. Knowing this, Adharma concentrates much of its and those that do have either fallen to Adharma, moved
strength on the modern cities in the Bhuvar. Adharma sends on to the next cycle of their existence, or reside in Svarga.
Bhuta, who are mimics who pose as Svarga’s holy judges, to To walk the Bhuvar is to explore nearly forgotten history.
corrupt the newly dead, and it unleashes the terrible and Untold truths are waiting for an enterprising wraith in the
twisted Pisachas, who are violent demonic Shades, to wreak hodge-podge layers and alleys of gathered history.
indiscriminate havoc. Many of the modern cities of the
 are of all the Guilds the most desperate to taste life again. They
claw their way to the Bhur to partake in the bitter wars. Others
Storms of Souls do their best to frighten colonial influence from their lands
India has always been prone to natural disas- by transforming houses into haunted dens of fear. The rest are
ter. The Indian Ocean earthquake and resulting paralyzed by their own helplessness and do nothing but seethe.
tsunami on December 26th, 2004 caused a death Unsurprisingly, this fury shapes the collective subconscious
toll in excess of 10,000. Other examples include of Bhuvar. If there are any Enfants who arrive besotted with the
the Odisha Super Cyclone in 1999, the Gujurat idea of colonialism, they are quickly disabused of the notion.
earthquake in 2001, and the floods that occur Those who insist the British empire was a positive influence
regularly during every monsoon season. These are either indoctrinated or disposed. After everything that has
events have such an impact on the Bhur that they happened, the Restless of Bhuvar cannot do anything else.
manifest as dangers in the Bhuvar. Some suspect Hundreds of ideologies exist in Bhuvar and are in constant
that Adharma might be driving such disasters in conflict. If there are any wraiths who believe that colonial
the Bhur to Reap a harvest of newly dead that it rule is superior to independence, they keep their thoughts to
can drive off the wheel and maintain its power themselves. Little draws the Indian dead together more quickly
over the Bhuvar. than the hatred of ancestral and ongoing oppression.

Those who die in the more rural areas of India and cross the
Children of Kali
It is difficult to say what precisely the Children of Kali
veil in the wilds of Bhuvar must contend with dangers beyond are, or how you can identify their arrival. Often, there is no
the agents of Adharma. Massive plasmic megafauna known as the warning. There might be a breath of rain, the smell of ozone,
Children of Kali roam the landscape with the appearances of the and the sensation of eyes pressed against one’s skin, but by
demons of old. The land is unstable with natural disasters occurring then it is already too late.
regularly. Add in monsoon season, which is known to all of Swar as The denizens of Bhuvar work ceaselessly to identify the
the Feeding Time because Adharma and its agents are most active patterns of these megafauna, their migration habits, and how
during it, and it’s an existence stacked against the newly dead. The best to navigate both. Fortunately the Children of Kali have a
Swar is a schizoid realm of devastating conditions and sublime beauty. certain sense of internal logic. For example, they enter a state
Adharma is ever-present in Bhuvar, but it is not all-powerful. of quasi-hibernation when the Storm that Dreams ventures
Pockets of resistance and rescue exist. Each faction has its own too close. The Children of Kali can breed or at least produce
ways of traversing and surviving Bhuvar and its own outposts and chimerical blends among themselves. Adventurous wraiths
places of safety. Crafty judges from Svarga roam the land to collect have reported witnessing the birth of new megafauna, which
Enfants to integrate into the afterlife, somehow able to remain for is a horrific affair with far too many tentacles.
extended hunts despite their lack of Fetters. The Naga have claimed There appears to be a schism between the Children that
the memory of the British Headquarters that fell during the Indian resemble creatures of air and those that belong to the water.
Rebellion on May of 1857, and they welcomed and recruited many Reports abound of giant wasp-like creatures entering combat
of the British and Indian loyalists who died there. with sinuous dragons and fish-tailed monstrosities devouring

An Old Rage
hideous crow-things. So intense are these conflicts that many
believe that the best way to save oneself from the Children of
Kali is to find another specimen belonging to the opposite
t is one thing to see your people suffer. It is genus to pit against the monster.
one thing to watch as generations are warped As of the moment, no one has been able to report if this
by their colonial overlords. They are pushed is true.
down, and they are stripped of their language
and customs. They are made to believe there Storm Child
is nothing more profoundly disgusting than Physical: Strength 6, Dexterity 3 (6 when flying), Stamina 5
the hue of their own skin. Social: Charisma 0, Manipulation 0, Appearance 0
It is another thing to spend an eternity watching history Mental: Perception 4, Intelligence 1, Wits 3
repeat itself. Talents: Alertness 3, Athletics 5, Brawl 3
The dead of Bhuvar, regardless of their allegiances, are Skills: Brawl 3
often furious and filled with hatred for the atrocities that were Knowledges: N/A
visited upon their descendants. For centuries, they’ve watched Arcanoi: Argos 4, Keening 2, Pandemonium 3
helplessly as Western empires swallowed the countries that
Powers: Absorption, Flight
they’d once inhabited. Some fight, such as the Proctors, who

104 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Passions: N/A descends to attack a wraith, that wraith must make a Willpower
Fetters: N/A roll (difficulty 7) or attempt to flee.
Willpower: 5 When a Storm Child successfully grapples a target with
Permanent Corpus: 8 its Strength + Brawl and lifts them into the air, it can attempt
Angst: 6 to use its Absorption power. The victim must roll Strength +
Brawl (difficulty 7) to free themselves from the Storm Child’s
Description: A Storm Child appears as a chimerical beast
spindly legs or suffer 2 points of Aggravated Damage as chunks
of insect wings and legs mixed with beaks, talons, and twitching
of their Corpus disappear into the Child of Kali. The threat of
bird eyes. Somehow they remain in flight through the non-stop
this maneuver grows as the Storm Child lifts the wraith higher
buzzing of their paper-thin wings. When a Storm Child descends,
and higher because an escape means a long fall.
its bristling underbelly alive with spindly legs, it attempts to
grab at wraiths and devour them with its humongous body. A Storm Child is a gifted flyer, but it can crawl across
land surfaces like millipedes, the segments of its body shifting
Background: A Storm Child’s body consists of at least a
and twitching.
dozen Moliated wraiths who are twisted into the shapes of bugs
and birds and combined into a weird and terrible creature. The
Storm Children’s origins are linked to the first Underworld
Water Children
Physical: Strength 7, Dexterity 5, Stamina 6
monsoon when Adharma’s rains battered and melted wraiths
into bizarre gestalt entities. Now, wraiths know to remain indoors Social: Charisma 0, Manipulation 0, Appearance 0
when the monsoon comes to Swar. When they do not, more Mental: Perception 3, Intelligence 3, Wits 4
Storm Children appear in the sky. Talents: Alertness 2, Athletics 4, Brawl 4
Roleplaying Hints: Seek out those wraiths foolish enough Skills: Crafts 2
to remain outdoors in the rain and pluck them up to join the Knowledges: Occult 1
flying nest of Storm Children. Arcanoi: Argos 3, Moliate 4, Outrage 2, Pandemonium 3
Storyteller Notes: A Storm Child is driven mostly by Powers: Absorption, Summon the Tempest
instinct. It targets wraiths outside when the rain falls. They Passions: N/A
are particularly drawn to Harbingers. When a Storm Child Fetters: N/A
SWAR, THE DARK KINGDOM OF INDIA 105
Willpower: 6 Bhur. In Bhuvar, it’s a Nihil populated by strange, theatrical,
Permanent Corpus: 9 and very well-dressed Shades. Wraiths who get too close are in
Angst: 7 danger of getting drawn in to a literal passion play and possibly
Description: A Water Child appears as a writhing mass the Nihil at its center. It’s said that a wraith could learn great
of tendrils, spines, and scales. Fish eyes open and shut along secrets from this Nihil if they can find an audience to watch
the length of its twisting, wet body while sucking appendages their pain on display.
slap against the ground around it.
Background: This shifting kraken roils up from the
The Taj Mahal
Despite the Adharma-fueled madness surrounding it, the Taj
shoreline of the Tempest. It torments only Restless of the
Mahal is a place of relative safety in the wilderness of Bhuvar. The
Swar, although there are rumors that they occasionally harass
ghost of the woman for which it was built, Mumtaz Mahal, still
Ferrymen off the coast of Stygia. The Water Children’s origin
calls this palace her own and resides within beside her daughter
is hotly debated among Swar’s wraiths; most of them believe
Gauhara Begum, despite both of them forgetting most of their
that it consists of wraiths who were lost to the Tempest and
mortal existences. They feel compelled to provide sanctuary to
sucked into whirlpools of Adharma before being spat out as
Restless in need. Revered as it is as a monument of undying love,
an aquatic dead monstrosity.
wraiths of all of Swar’s factions and explorers from other Dark
Roleplaying Hints: Slither and march inexorably toward Kingdoms are welcomed to this neutral ground. It serves as a Fetter
your foes and drag them into the sea to meet true darkness. for many wraiths due to its symbolic significance, bypassing the
Storyteller Notes: A Water Child is more intelligent and normal need for a Fetter’s personal attachment. Those who are
reasoning than its appearance implies. It serves the Children of lost in the lands of Swar are drawn here as though by fate. Those
Kali by creating a fear of the Tempest by specifically abducting who upset the peace are immediately ejected and are forced to
and absorbing those wraiths who take the Tempest lightly. Any confront the tall, dark shadows wreathing the Taj Mahal.
wraith with two or more dots of Argos smells appealing to the
Water Child, which lurks within the depths waiting for the Sanchi Stupa
right moment to climb ashore. When a wraith sees a Water A temple located in Madhya Pradesh in central India.
Child, they must make a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) or flee. Although British explorers ravaged this location in the Bhur,
When a Water Child successfully grapples a target and it is an old representation of acceptance for several religions,
immerses the victim in liquid, it can attempt its Absorption including Buddhism, Hindu worship, and the Ancient Greek
power. The victim must roll Strength + Brawl (difficulty 8) to faith. The land and temple is a bulwark against Adharma because
pull free from the Water Child’s grasp or suffer 2 points of of the concentrated belief that was brought here by several
aggravated damage as segments of their Corpus disappear into religions. Some wraiths consider it a Far Shore in the heart of
the Child of Kali. Swar. Many who died in the tragedy of Bhopal took refuge here,
A Water Child can use the Summon the Tempest ability. and they are watched over by some of the Ashura and hidden
If five of them arrive on the same shoreline, they take 10 turns from the Host of Svarga. There are tales that there is a Nihil
dancing and babbling to coax a Tempest tsunami. This tsunami on the grounds of Sanchi Stupa that leads directly to Stygia.
smashes into their targeted Necropolis, which drags wraiths into
the churning waters and obliterates any structures in its path. Jatayu Earth’s Center
Famous for being host to the Bhur’s biggest bird sculpture,
Notable Locations Jatayu Earth’s Center is a gorgeous nature park located in Koralla.
In the Bhuvar, it is even grander. There are no statues or tour
The Underworld of Swar is a grand panoply of historic
buildings, sculptures, and natural spaces, each of which are guides; just rock, wind, and the garuda, which is a species of
reflected and distorted versions of their Bhur versions. In Swar, bird-like creatures unique to the Bhuvar. With their 100-meter
shadow versions of structures do not erode after their Bhur wingspans and voracious appetites, they are regarded by the
version’s decay, which results in a bizarre assembly of old and locals with terror. Some revere the monsters, but most choose
new stacked on top of and inside each other. To observe Swar the wiser option of simply ignoring the place.
from a distance is to look at a maze the likes of which M.C.
Escher would be proud.
Garuda
Physical: Strength 6, Dexterity 2 (6 when flying), Stamina 5
Coronation Park near Delhi Social: Charisma 0, Manipulation 0, Appearance 0
Located in the northern part of India, this park was used Mental: Perception 4, Intelligence 1, Wits 3
by Lord George Nathanial Curzon for huge displays of power Talents: Alertness 4, Athletics 5, Brawl 3
during his time as Viceroy in 1899-1905. As one resident of Skills: Brawl 3
India at the time described Curzon’s displays, they were “terror Knowledges: N/A
in fancy dress.” Now, it’s a large and mostly empty park in the

106 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Arcanoi: Argos 3 Bahmani Sultanate for control of South India. Although it
Powers: Flight succeeded in fragmenting its enemy, Vijayanagara found itself
Passions: N/A beset by the Deccan sultanates, which had united against what
Fetters: N/A they regarded as a common foe. After an epic battle, Vijayanagara
collapsed and the victors sacked the city.
Willpower: 5
The ruins still stand in the Bhuvar, and are haunted by its
Permanent Corpus: 10
Bhur legacy and the city’s attempts to wrestle dominion from
Angst: 6 Svarga. There are no records of what exactly transpired or how
Description: Garuda are colossal, black plasmic birds with Svarga triumphed in the ensuing struggle. The Restless of the
wingspans over 100 meters long and never-ending voracious Swar only know that a city once stood against Svarga, and now
appetites. Their beaks end in a vicious curve for carving out it is nothing but ashes and emptiness. Odd rumors abound of
chunks of ectoplasm, and their talons are strong enough to a Spectral society within its borders with inhabitants who are
grip any land-based foe and smash them against the stones. cold and deadly but less frenzied than most of the Spectres in
Each garuda has a thick, bulbous paunch between its legs. It Swar. Perhaps something within the ruins calms them. In Swar,
is said the wraiths that a garuda devours end up stuck inside many fear what these lucid Spectres have planned.
its inflating stomach sac, where the wraiths are conscious
but unable to escape. Garuda make nests in tall, abandoned
structures. When eaten, a garuda egg supposedly restores all
The Storm That Dreams
the lost memories of a wraith’s life for a full year. In the wilderness of Swar, far enough away from Svarga to
discourage the curious but close enough to have tales told about
Background: The flock of garuda in the Swar were once
it, is a sporadic phenomenon known as the Storm that Dreams.
the pets of a wraith now remembered only as “the Raj,” who
was the powerful wraith of a British colonial. When he was Whenever the storm manifests, strangely solid borders cut off
destroyed in a popular uprising, his 100 or so garuda took to those outside it from those within it. It flickers, howls, and screams,
the skies to prey on wraiths who stay out in the open for too but never passes the random borders that define it. Even with a
long. The only way to evade their nasty attacks is to flee to monsoon raging, the water vanishes at the threshold, which creates a
the territory of another garuda they are hostile to each other. strange effect akin to rain hitting glass without the rivulets. The storm
usually appears in the Bhur, sometimes in the Tempest, and possibly
Roleplaying Hints: When a wraith separates from their
in the Labyrinth itself (although no one has gone there to check).
group and stands out in the open, turn your wings back and
descend to hook the ghost with your talons. The Storm that Dreams derives its name from the wild
nightmares and visions that it brings whenever it appears.
Storyteller Notes: Garuda are predatory flying animals.
These nightmares affect both the dead and the Quick by
They do not reason or have any capability for conversation. If
reaching through the Veil and into the Bhur. It disturbs the
a Garuda traps a wraith in its stomach sac after successfully
rest of those who dwell in Svarga and its environs. The storm
grappling with a Strength + Brawl roll, the wraith must inflict
randomly affects those caught in it, and many in the Tala do
eight or more Lethal Damage from within the sac to make an
not speak of what they dream. Those that do report brilliant
incision and escape. For as long as they’re trapped within, an
fire streaking from the sky, malformed apparitions as horrid
acidic plasm inflicts 1 Aggravated Damage per turn.
as any Pisachas, and a single scream cut short only on waking.
Dow Hill of Kurseong There are brave and foolhardy wraiths from Svarga, the Ashura,
The Bhur abounds with rumors of hauntings on Dow Hill. and the Naga who wish to understand the storm better, so they
Here, headless children prowl the forests while accompanied have formed a loose network of informants within their factions
by women in grey. The trees abound with limpid red eyes. to track its movement or discern a pattern of when it appears.
There are stories of a century-old school filled to the brim They have had no success so far, and more than a few have been
with apparitions. torn apart by its howling winds or vanished with the storm when
it disappears. When the storm envelops an area, everything within
The true story of Dow Hill is less menacing. Here, wraiths
it is subject to a howling hurricane of Adharma and nightmare.
who are brave enough to venture this deep into the Bhuvar
Until recently, the storm came to only rural or isolated regions
find a place where wraiths gather to practice their Arcanoi and
of the Bhuvar, but in the last decade it has struck Necropoli New
develop new techniques for Embody and Pandemonium. Guilds
Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai and annihilated entire portions
from other Dark Kingdoms assemble here to teach and learn,
of these Bhuvar cities. There is no known way to stop it.
but all of them retire when the day ends. At night, Striplings
(see Wraith: The Oblivion p. 361) infest the area. Scholars and thinkers ponder its origins and nature. Many
believe that because of its random, sudden, and stuttering nature,
Vijayanagara perhaps the storm is trying to decide whether or not to exist.
Once, Vijayanagara stood proudly at the heart of its empire Some Monitors posit it is an echo of a future: A potential event
and was a thriving civilization that fought bitterly with the so catastrophic that it reverberates back through time. Perhaps

SWAR, THE DARK KINGDOM OF INDIA 107

 roamed the Bhuvar. Storms that spoke and dreamed blinked in
and out of existence. Buildings that were old beyond measure
The Rich History of India jutted out of a ground that was grey and barren. Few native wraiths
Storytellers are encouraged to look to the wished to consort with these visitors, even in the ruins of cities.
rich history of India for inspiration and populate Those small enclaves of wraiths spoke of awaiting their
the Bhuvar and the land of Swar as they see fit. reward in the paradise of Svarga, sang longingly of its riches, or
India has a grand history spindled in tragedy, warned the Stygians of the great lie of Svarga. But, the natives
and that history is as beautiful as it was bloody. of the Bhuvar all spoke of Svarga with awe. Greed blossomed in
Remember that both the caste system and classism the Corpus of the Stygian wraiths, and their Shadows whispered
are recognized problems within the country, and and coaxed them to invade. The Stygian Restless asked the
Storytellers that hope to provide an authentic native wraith where Svarga was. “The Sea of Shiva,” was their
and unproblematic experience should be do reply. The excited visitors had to find this place.
their research. Storytellers might want to consult The Stygian party opted to make an arduous exodus across
Discovery of India by Jawaharlal Nehru; India: A the Tempest and back to Necropolis London. Enough of them
History by John Keay; and the works of Devdutt made it back, and they gathered criminal Harbingers to help
Patta, Ramnarayan Rawat, and Romila Thapar, them travel the broken land and find a Byway to the Sea of Shiva.
which are all fantastic sources on India and the Traveling back to the Bhuvar, they explored. They lost many of
subcontinent. their number to Shade and storm, but finally they came upon
a useful Byway. A great river not unlike the Styx that was sacred
to the locals, the Ganges, carried them to the Sea of Shiva. They
it was caused by the remnants of the horrors of Bhopal, which made it to the shore of a land much like back home, barren and
was the site of a chemical disaster that killed 16,000 mortals. rocky, with one notable exception: In the distance, they saw a
Others believe that it might be the chaotic thoughts of an agent city more resplendent than any they had ever seen. Even Stygia
of Adharma as it slumbers, and that it wanders the Bhuvar and could not compare to its grand architecture. The sheer uniformity
the Tala longing for a time when it can be free. All agree that of the place spoke of craft and planning. From the distance it
the Storm that Dreams feels like it’s waiting to be. shone with light, laughter, and music that was carried on the
wind, and the smell of incense drifted with it. Senses awoke that
The Thorns of Empire the Stygians had long forgotten. It was intoxicating.
The Stygians, in their arrogance, crossed the barren plain
As old as India is, its lands of the dead largely remain
culturally static because they are bound by Svarga’s promise through hundreds of cluttered settlements full of what they
of paradise and centuries of tradition. Indeed, some wraiths viewed as passive and cowed souls. They intended to saunter to
considered Swar a vast Far Shore due to its strong ideals even the gates and demand entrance and audience. They didn’t quite
as they warped and contorted the land and structures of this make it. As they left a village by its main road, they were greeted
Dark Kingdom. However, this ideal was threatened beginning by the soldiers of the Host, who were dressed in resplendent
with the indirect rule of the East India Trading Company and robes and festooned with weapons as exotic as they were keen.
the later British Raj. They exchanged no words. The Host, driven by what was
The British-run East India Trading Company indirectly taking place in the Bhur at this time, attacked the Stygians. They
ruled India from the late 1700s until the Indian Rebellion of ran for their very existence back through the settlements and
1857. The British government then abolished the company and toward the byway. Some of their number fell behind and were
assumed direct control in 1858. This rule lasted until July 18th, captured. The rest used the distraction to escape. The journey
1947. The British were vastly outnumbered by the native Indians, back to London cost even more of their number, until only
but used their technological superiority, arrogant bravado, and three of the initial group of near 40 made it back.
a sense of near divine entitlement to occupy India. They told tales of the strange land and the horrors that
During this time, Stygia took its cues from Skinlands and they witnessed. They talked about sparsely populated ruins.
tried the same approach with Swar. It did not go well. Relics must be there for the taking, they said. They told tales of
Many in Stygia who were riding the high of expanding into the resplendent city that they had seen with its settlements of
and across the United States set out from the London Necropolis laborers. They thought, what wonders does it hold? They recalled
in search of new lands. They Skinrode explorers and members the Host’s soldiers and their weapons, none of which were
of the East Indian Trading Company and traveled with these ranged. They do not have our advancements, they conjectured.
“pioneers.” What they found in the Shadowlands of India alarmed The more they spoke, the more wraiths that listened, and the
and disappointed them and confirmed their already rooted more the susurrus of their Shadows grew. Soon, tales of this land,
prejudices about the state of other Dark Kingdoms. Adharma which the whole of was mistakenly called Svarga, swept through
had a strange and unfamiliar hold on this land. Giant demons the London Necropolis. This other Dark Kingdom was ripe for the

108 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

picking and too much of a temptation to forego. A force gathered
that was made up of subjects that were ready for a change, such as
members of a Legion looking for a new post and guild members
The Survivor
looking for somewhere to ply their craft away from watchful eyes. Percival Tetch is the only survivor of the initial
The Harbingers took a huge contract and received payment from group that went on the ill-fated trip to Svarga.
every hopeful explorer. This large host set out carrying the secret Before the trip, he was a bright and enthusiastic
hopes of the whole of the London Necropolis. new citizen of the London Necropolis, and he
Svarga had been watching what was happening to their was excited to explore the wider world in which
descendants in the Bhur: The British had corrupted or cajoled he found himself. In modern times, he is a stoic
the Indian Rajas (princes) into being puppets for British and taciturn adherent of isolationism and a
rule and eventually giving up all sovereignty in exchange for high-ranking Chanteur. He loudly proclaims
luxury. It had seen how these actions were increasing the hold “London for Londoners” while telling his stories
of Adharma in the Bhuvar. Svarga’s judges had watched the of the wonders and horrors of Svarga to anyone
Stygian contingent cross the Bhuvar and were surprised when who listens.
the newcomers were able to travel the Ganges and land on their
Most of his audiences consider him a twisted
Loka. They were even more surprised when some escaped. They
old racist.
knew that an encounter with these foreign wraiths from Stygia
was an inevitability. Svarga prepared.
The Holy Regent, the ruler of Svarga, pronounced an edict
that remains in effect today: Those who will not follow tradition further action. The Anacreons listened and attempted to cover
or subvert others from following the path of Samsara are to be up London’s failure.
captured by the Host and held until such a time that they may Svarga’s system of organized Relic and Enfant collection fell
be educated in the temples of most holy Svarga. “For,” as the apart after the fall of the British Raj. The conflict and horror
Regent said, “we are beneficent and just.” of the Bhur gave Adharma the power and sovereignty it enjoys
In an uncharacteristic flurry of activity, Svarga used its over the Bhuvar today.
agents to create a system of collection from the colonizers Modern Svarga maintains its policy of capturing and
and those that profited from them. They sent the Host to the “educating” foreign ghosts. Most modern visitors to the
Bhuvar in force for the first time in centuries to collect and Shadowlands of India deal with the Ashura or the Naga in
protect scores of Sudra (laborers) from Svarga’s settlements their hidden enclaves, with the exception of the neutral ground
and outposts. The Host was tasked with guarding the Sudra of the Taj Mahal.
from the depredations of Adharma’s pull while they gathered
Enfants and Relics alike for the judges of Yama. As the British
Quick brought technology with them, constructed buildings,
and used weapons to help colonize this land, they invested each
The Naga n the underground stronghold of Bhogavati,
of their creations with the Passions to conquer, subjugate, or an unnamed Artisan (Tvashtriya) in Swar
“liberate” from “savagery.” Those Indian wraiths able to do so represents the faction known as the Naga and
crossed the Shroud and dragged these items through to their opposes Svarga dominance over the Swar.
Bhuvar as Relics, and others found their shadow reflections This Tvashtriya goes without a title and is
and commandeered them. single-handedly attempting to recreate the
While the Legion was traveling from the London splendors of Svarga for the Naga in a secret city that was bored
Necropolis, Svarga had taken the results of the occupation of from the earth of the Bhuvar. Her three chieftains keep her
the Bhuvar and turned them to their advantage. Svarga now hidden, safe, and protected. In return, she provides them with
had their resplendent Host and access to the souls and resources some of the comforts of Svarga. These comforts help inspire
of the British. Because the Ganges was the only known route the rest of the Naga and fuel them with the desire to raid their
to Svarga, it became an ambush site. The group from London neighbors and take what Svarga has.
didn’t stand a chance as the Host soundly defeated them and The Naga are bandits, raiders, spies, and mercenaries.
clapped them all in chains. They are also the free wraiths of Swar, and they are dedicated
The defeated Stygian Legion, now known as the Forgotten to a secret rebellion against the Holy Regent.
Legion in the halls of the London Necropolis, were marched The Host of Svarga has kept the renegade Tvashtriya a secret
through to the Loka. The Holy Regent declared their spiritual from the Holy Regent. As far as the Holy Regent is concerned,
re-education was to begin immediately. Many of the Sudra the Naga are troublesome but loyal, and they are certainly not
who aided in the preparation were admitted too because their constructing a Far Shore within Swar. Only the Host and its
karmic debt had been paid. Svarga sent one survivor back to advisors know of the Naga defection and are unsure how to
London to instruct and urge others like him to discourage any
SWAR, THE DARK KINGDOM OF INDIA 109
handle it or how deep it goes within this faction of the dead. Background: Once upon a time, the Host-Chef was the
What might have started as a Circle of wraiths is now larger wraith of woman named Persaud. In life, she was the matriarch
than a Stygian guild. of a large Indo-Guyanese family. She had an unremarkable
The Tvashtriya are rumored to create experiences more vivid heritage, but she was well-known in her community for her
and textured than anything in the mortal world. Certainly, this prowess in the kitchen. She had a repertoire that spanned the
is true for the unnamed Tvashtriya in Bhogavati who creates breadth of the Caribbean diaspora. In the grand tradition of
wonders to delight and motivate. grandmothers everywhere, she forced weeks’ worth of food
There is one other Naga who operates with greater open- into her descendants. She died serving a meal to her family
ness than her nameless ally. Some believe they are lovers, and and should have passed on.
others claim one is the wraith and the other is their Shadow. Something prevented her from finding peace.
She is known commonly as the Host-Chef. When the Tvashtriya came for Persaud’s spirit, who was
The Host-Chef, known to her confidantes as Persaud, is locked in a darkened purgatory, they found a woman who
famous for her gift at invention. No longer restricted by physics was convinced that she’d soon receive divine judgement. This
or even the concept of limitations, she concocts meals like was not the case. Persaud was brought into a room where a
nothing else and could not exist anywhere else. The Host-Chef tired man stood and was surrounded by strange trinkets and
uses Usury and Moliate and snatches ingredients, somehow kept glimmering silks. Before her eyes, he melted into smoke, and
fresh and vibrant in the Host-Chef’s palatial kitchen, from the rills of grey fog crawled into her nose, ears, and mouth. He
Bhur to create the culinary wonders that fascinate the other intended to break her down and forge her soul for the good
Naga. Wraiths sign away their eternities for a place on the wait of Swar’s defenses against the British.
list to enter kitchen because of her inspired culinary skills. Under different circumstances, the Tvashtriya would have
Despite their talk of liberty, the Naga enslave others. After easily subsumed her will and transformed Persaud into whatever
a single one of the Host-Chef’s meals, Restless become agents he desired, but he was exhausted. In the days of the British
of the Night Markets and use the arts of their Arcanoi to serve occupation, war criminals, colonizers, and sympathizers were
the whims of the cannibalistic Cult of Salt. It takes a formidable brought before him by the Host in droves. The Tvashtriya who
will to break free from the Host-Chef’s enchantments, and those had been designated to subsume her had been worked down
who don’t happily settle into Naga society and feverishly attempt to the ragged bone.
to break free from Svarga in service to a controlling master. Persaud lunged and swallowed the other wraith as the
former permeated the entirety of her Corpus and self. Her
“The Host-Chef” Persaud triumph became an assimilation of a kind that left both of
Physical: Strength 2, Dexterity 5, Stamina 4 them merged into a strange, new chimera.
Social: Charisma 4, Manipulation 5, Appearance 3 Persaud was neither a single wraith nor a Spectre. She was a
Mental: Perception 4, Intelligence 4, Wits 3 gestalt who uses her cookpot to produce abominations like her.
Talents: Alertness 2, Awareness 3, Empathy (Resistance) 5, Roleplaying Hints: You are the overbearing grandmother,
Subterfuge 3 promising treats and enough food to fill a dead belly. Insist on
Skills: Crafts (Cooking) 5, Etiquette (Dining) 5, Leadership 4, it, even. Nobody leaves here hungry. Nobody.
Meditation 3, Melee 1 Storyteller Notes: The Host-Chef is not a normal wraith,
Knowledges: Academics (Nutrition) 3, Enigmas 2, Medicine but a Bhuvar entity commanding a cult of cannibals. The Naga
3, Occult 2, Science 2 appreciate her service to their ranks because the Cult of Salt
Arcanoi: Moliate 4, Inhabit 3, Usury 4 also believes in the overthrow of Svarga and the implementa-
tion of something new, but the Naga aren’t aware of the level
Powers: Cannibalistic Appetite
of her depravity.
Passions: Let no-one go hungry (Charity) 5, Serve those who
When a wraith consumes one of the Host-Chef’s gorgeous
helped me (Gratitude) 3
meals, they recover any lost health and their Corpus is the
Fetters: An old recipe book (Paranoia) 3, Her ingredient stash strongest it’s ever been. They must make a Willpower roll
(Fear) 4 (difficulty 7) to prevent themselves from developing the can-
Willpower: 7 nibalistic hungers of the Cult of Salt. The Cult see non-Naga
Permanent Corpus: 9 as food and, rare for the dead, have unstoppable appetites.
Angst: 7 Whenever a cultist spies a wraith outside the Naga, they must
Description: An over-large bulk of a woman who is over make a Willpower roll (difficulty 6) to resist attempting to lure
10 feet high and almost as wide. She is clad in an apron and them back to the Host-Chef’s kitchen or immediately butcher-
armed with kitchen utensils. The Host-Chef often stands by a ing them. A Stamina + Occult roll is required (difficulty 9) to
large pot or cauldron creating some new sweet-smelling wonder avoid eating the spilled ectoplasm of a victim, but doing so
for her guests. restores all lost health.

110 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

The Night Markets Life in Death
No one knows who first established the Night Markets.
Colloquially and collectively known as the Night Markets,
this area of Swar is a phantasmagoric sight. There are planks It is rumored that the indigenous dead that first found their
and jetties stretching over an endlessness of ink with individual way to this Tala are responsible, but it is possible that credit
shanties lit up by constellations of pale, shivering light. There belongs to an entirely different genus of government now long
are enormous skyscrapers that seem to be only two-dimensional forgotten. Whatever the case, no one in the Night Markets cares,
that wink out at a wayward glance. There are colonial houses and and only the odd outsider takes an interest in the genesis of the
banyan and mangrove trees crisscrossing over one another with place. To its residents, this is home and nothing else matters.
vines like fingers reaching into every hut, house, and hearth. The Night Markets are an impressive feat of city planning.
This is where the diaspora of Southeast Asia settled. Unwilling The mangroves that run rampant through the area function
to pledge themselves to the vagaries of Svarga or the hungers as a kind of tether that simultaneously ensure that the Night
of the Dark Kingdom of Jade, the dead of Southeast Asia came Markets remain connected and keep the Sea of Shiva in check.
here in a desperate attempt to retain the multicultural nature Alone in Bhuvar, the waters here are calm, except for when the
of their old communities. Storm that Dreams comes around.
Although they initially were uncertain about the Naga, The ecosystem of vegetal life in the Night Markets receives
the inhabitants of the Night Markets soon found reasons to be little attention from the locals. When visiting wraiths from other
accommodating. Food has always been a fulcrum of Southeast Dark Kingdoms behold the natural flora, they often attempt
Asia culture because of its rituals, its place in the world, and to take vegetation back home with them. It always rots outside
the way it bound families and communities. However, in the the Night Markets. To the residents, the plants simply exist and
Bhuvar, none of that exists and there is no way to hang on to take sustenance from the water. Perhaps they’re a manifestation
that which had defined so much of the region culturally. of the Storm that Dreams or an old and forgotten Relic.
Thus, the Host-Chef’s arrival was received warmly. Now, The truth is far stranger. The mangroves are not natural
the wraiths of the Night Markets wonder at the beast they’ve phenomena but either soulforged wraiths or wraiths who will-
unleashed in their midst and the growing Cult of Salt in their ingly altered themselves by using Moliate. Unlike in Svarga,
ranks. where the practice is commonly visited on the unwilling, many

SWAR, THE DARK KINGDOM OF INDIA 111

of the denizens of the Night Markets exhausted by existence Others wanted to be Persaud, and it was these unfortunates
and hope for more than this gray existence, so they volunteer that formed what would later be known as the Cult of Salt.
for these transformations aware of the value of their sacrifices. The progenitors of the Night Markets might have raised
The mangroves provide cohesion to the landscape and bulwarks complaints if the cultists had not proven themselves so inexpli-
against the Sea of Shiva, and they knot the Night Markets and cably useful. Desperate to prove themselves worthy, the Cult of
the environment together. Salt toil endlessly at whatever labor they’re assigned. The Night
Markets once were a modest settlement, but now they throng
A Form of Commerce with new energy and buildings. More importantly, the Cult of
The Southeast Asian Restless gather by country and form Salt has proven immodestly talented at luring Stygian wraiths
settlements within the Night Markets, but there is no isolation- into the locale, which provides Persaud material for feasts of
ism. Wraiths move between settlements without prejudice or escalating grandeur and saves the rest of the Night Markets
concern for maintaining borders, and art and ideas are borrowed from the need to risk their own moral standing.
with abandon. Though hardly utopian, the Night Markets are The cult has no particular hierarchy or structure besides
a surprisingly halcyon locale. the most basic ones. At the top sits the Host-Chef, who has
With the arrival of Persaud, things have changed slightly. Under-Chefs to serve her. No additional titles exist within the
Commerce is now the pivot of the Night Markets, and the entirety organization. The Cult of Salt see themselves as fellow acolytes
of the diasporic region has restructured to accommodate this and worshipers who are pursued by the hunger to study with
change. Shops now throng the endless jetties and promise new the Host-Chef. Occasionally, the Under-Chefs call one or two
varieties of food, new tastes, and new experiences. Some wraiths wraiths to their lavish offices and promise untold knowledge
attempt to coax Persaud into reproducing a half-remembered in exchange for a period of significant service. Those who are
flavor, although few would dare if they knew what her stews elevated are wildly celebrated for days.
can compel her diners to do. Unfortunately, the celebrations are a short-lived joy.
The Monsoon Markets Those who are conscripted by the Under-Chefs inevitably
find themselves journeying into Stygia or the Bhur in pursuit
There are in a sense two versions of the Night Markets: The of quarry, such as gullible wraiths who might be tempted to
one that existed before Persaud’s arrival and the one that came visit the Night Markets or gossips who spread news of the
after. In form, the Night Markets remain virtually unchanged. Host-Chef’s prowess to attract wraiths to them. Although these
The Monsoon Markets are their traveling counterpart, and they tasks are ostensibly harmless, they can entail significant risk.
are led by wraiths that call themselves the Ashura, who have Movement between the Dark Kingdoms is ruthlessly policed,
a surprising attraction to dreams, nightmares, and paradox. and the evangelistic activities of the wraith-eating Cult of Salt
The Monsoon Markets are unusual in that they gravitate to stand in defiance of these edicts. As such, the cultists frequently
the border of the Storm that Dreams whenever it appears. Even find themselves destroyed.
when it is present over the Sea of Shiva, the Monsoon Markets Those who succeed in returning to the Night Markets do
launch boats and sell their wares beside the storm. Most other not fare any better. The Under-Chefs are eager to preserve the
wraiths consider the decision mad. Had the Monsoon Markets mythos they’ve created, so they hand the victorious wraiths over
not heard of what stalks within the storm’s glass-bodied depths? to Persaud to convert into lavish spreads, which prevents the
Was this suicide by consensus? discovery of their deception. So successful are their machinations
The truth is that the Monsoon Markets are populated by that they’ve gained a ritualistic quality, and it is not unknown
those wraiths accustomed to hostile and ravenous environments. for the Under-Chefs to go into long expositions about the future
Those wraiths who die violently and find their way to the Night and the journeys that must be taken before one may learn to
Markets quickly gravitate to the Monsoon Markets because they replicate the miracles perpetrated by the Host-Chef.
crave the thrill of coming close to a second death. Wraiths whose There are those in the Night Markets who have grown
lives ended due to natural disasters, such as volcanoes; forest suspicious of the situation but have not voiced their concerns.
fires; or typhoons; flock to the Monsoon Markets and build an The Cult of Salt allows Persaud to continue concocting wonders.
army of dervishes that seeks to replicate the moment of death. Why would they do anything to risk that?
The Cult of Salt Svarga’s View
The Cult of Salt started as a Circle of wraiths that was Svarga is perfectly informed of the situation in the Night
convinced that Persaud is a divine creature who might be Markets. The Holy Regent might not know of the underground
coerced into revealing her secrets. This myth is perpetrated by island in the Tempest being built, but he does know all about
the Naga, who have their own uses for the Host-Chef and turn the Cult of Salt.
a blind eye to the cost.
Coincidentally, emissaries from Svarga arrived in the Night
Early on, the Naga discovered wraiths would do anything for Markets at the same time as ambassadors from the Dark Kingdom
hope no matter how anemic. Some wanted Persaud’s services.

112 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

of Jade. Initially, each Kingdom sought to declare ownership In exchange, the Under-Chefs asked for access to the
over the Night Markets only to realize it was far more trouble Chinatowns and the Little Indias scattered across Underworld
than either side desired. So, the Cult of Salt’s Under-Chefs so that they could use those tiny strongholds to lure more
spoke to the delegates of both parties and offered a solution Stygians to the Night Markets. This way, they might be able to
that neither of them had been expecting. The Night Markets destabilize Stygia and expand their own ranks, and everyone
would offer tithes to both while nominally declaring themselves would benefit. After all, who would complain if a few Stygians
a part of Swar but with open routes to the Kingdom of Jade. were added to the menu?
Care would be taken to ensure that each kingdom received vastly The delegates looked between themselves. The Night
different inventories. Persaud is certainly capable of enormous Markets were so small. Surely, there was no danger in allowing
diversity in her cooking, and both Svarga and the Jade Kingdom them to persist. After some deliberation, they offered grudging
are fascinated by her ability even if they know better than to assent. The Night Markets are allowed to stand, and the Cult of
sample her wares. The other wares, Relics, and treasures buried Salt remains one of the most fearsome groups in the Underworld.
in the Night Markets make for an appealing deal.

SWAR, THE DARK KINGDOM OF INDIA 113

 The Mirrorlands

he history of the Mirrorlands begins with and many appeared in the Shadowlands soon afterward.
the Flaying. Countless of these Restless were destroyed by Spectres or
Fisher armadas swept through the succumbed to their Shadows, but others organized, fought,
Caribbean, subjugated its native peoples, and survived to become hunters themselves. One intrepid
and consigned their souls to the distant band made contact with Les Mysteres and returned to the
forges of Paradise. Golden citadels rose Shadowlands with newfound abilities and even greater resolve.
overnight to cast long shadows over an enslaved populace The Mirrorlands were born.
that was forced to build the Tempest ports that sustained
the conquests to come. The Fishers ruled the Caribbean
for over a century and grew rich on the endless tide of souls
and tribute that arrived from the Kingdoms of Obsidian,
Haiti aiti is the heart and soul of the Mirrorlands
Flint, and Gold.
because it is where Mama Petro, the first
Then, the Maelstrom struck. Loa, made her triumphant return from
The Third Great Maelstrom tore through the Caribbean the Island Below the Sea. She spread the
with astonishing force, and it whipped the seas to a froth teachings of Les Mysteres and shared their
as it scoured half the Fisher population from the face of power in return for pledges of service.
the Shadowlands. The battered survivors fought with grim Reborn “Les Invisibles,” the Mirrorlands embraced their
determination against an unyielding tide of ravenous Spectres. heritage and forged a new society from the ashes of the old one.
Galleons sank, citadels crumbled to ash, and Fishers screamed Mama Petro formed Nanchons that quickly cemented her
into the darkness for a salvation that never came. “Petro” faction as the strongest power in the Mirrorlands. The
Decades passed before the Maelstrom relented, and it Petro encompassed almost three-quarters of Les Invisibles.
left the Caribbean transformed in its wake. The islands were She established steady two-way traffic between the Island
now shrouded in an impenetrable Maelstrom for half the year Below the Sea and the Mirrorlands during the season between
and violent storms for the rest. Spectres were common if not storms, spread Connaissance to keep the Baka at bay, and
constant, and the great powers abandoned the islands to their established a fleet of pirates and privateers to defend her
fate. Although the dead had forgotten the Caribbean, the realm from external foes.
living had not. An endless flood of slaves crossed the Atlantic,
 The Petro could not abandon the living, so Mama Petro and
her Loa reached through the Shroud and rode Les Cheveux,
inspiring them to shed their masters’ chains. The Haitian
Erzulie Danto — The Petro Queen
Revolution began with a ceremony to Mama Petro, who became Erzulie Danto, known simply as “Erzulie”
known as “Erzulie,” after the potent vodou Loa of the same or “Mama Petro,” is the founder of the Petro
name. Free from servitude, Erzulie and the Petro ensured that faction and the singular most powerful Loa in
no person living or dead would be enslaved within their domain the Mirrorlands. She was one of the first slaves
by banishing slavery and soulforging from the Mirrorlands. It’s who was brought to the New World and one of
a fine ambition, though the illicit soulforging of Spectres and the first to escape. She fought her masters in the
Plasmics is still practiced. Visible, Fisher Reapers in the Mirrorlands, and
The connection between Lex Cheveaux and Les Invisibles Baka in the Abyss until finding The Island Below
that was established during the revolution never abated. Vodou the Sea and Les Mysteres. Erzulie accepted all the
houngans and mambos routinely commune with Les Invisibles, power Les Mysteres had to offer and never looked
establish Fetters, sacrifice Relics and Pathos, and petition them back, and went on to found the Mirrorlands and
for aid in times of need. Nowhere in the underworld is the use ignite the Haitian Revolution. She will not rest
of Puppetry so prolific or so welcome. until the last vestiges of Fisher dominion are swept
The Petro established their seat of power in Port-au-Prince, from the Mirrorlands, and then she will turn her
and their Nanchons dominate southern Haiti. Each Nanchon attention to the Dark Kingdoms that engage in
governs its own territory and assemble in times of need behind soulforging and slavery. For all her fury, Erzulie
Erzulie or another potent Loa. Every territory and chosen often mediates disputes between competing
hounfor is easily identified by the presence of a clearly-marked Nanchons. Few dare oppose her judgement, and
and brilliantly-rendered “vevé,” or symbol of the Nanchon’s she offers pragmatic and uncanny insight to those
patron Mystere. brave enough to seek it.
One unique Nanchon is La Pologne, which is based in Erzulie’s diplomacy is far from limited to
Necropolis Cazale. Composed of Polish soldiers and their the Invisible. After a brief period of conflict,
descendants who fought for Haiti during the revolution, La she forged a mutually beneficial alliance between
Pologne are firm supporters of Les Invisibles and stalwart Les Invisibles and a small but potent faction of
defenders of the Mirrorlands. They specialize in fighting Baka.      rotting vampires. The exact details of this alliance
Not every Les Invisible is a believer in the Petro cause. Papa are unknown, but allegedly involve a vampire
Rada, who is a member of Erzulie’s original Nanchon, was there known as “Mambo Asogwe.” Erzulie is silent on
when she witnessed the fearsome majesty of Les Mysteres and the subject, but those that pry too deeply quickly
the power they offered. Distrustful of Les Mysteres promises, find themselves imprisoned in the rotting shells
Rada returned to the Mirrorlands to continue his unending fight of the not-so-recently deceased.
against the Baka. Upon Erzulie’s return, he formed the Rada
faction of Les Invisibles who offer firm (and often unheeded)
Erzulie radiates the force of her implacable
warnings about the Petro and their masters, choosing freedom
will, and her eyes conceal an unsettling admix-
over servitude.
ture of barely contained rage, vengeance, and
ancient wisdom. Her Nanchon is predominantly
Representing a quarter of Les Invisibles, the Rada control
composed of Loa, and her blue and red clad form
northern Haiti and are firmly entrenched around Citadelle
is usually found near her new hounfor, which is
Laferrière, one of the largest fortresses in the Americas. The
the recently destroyed Cathédrale Notre-Dame
unique mixture of cow and goat blood in the Citadelle’s mortar
de L’Assomption in Port-au-Prince. The cathedral
renders it solid in the Mirrorlands and almost impervious to
was a coveted prize after the Haiti earthquake, but
Baka attack. This imposing fortress is the heart of the Rada
no Nanchon disputed Erzulie’s claim after her
cause and Papa Rada’s personal seat of power. Rada Nanchons
vevé appeared over the Cathédrale’s rose window.
are largely situated around the former possessions of Haitian
King Henry Christophe (rumored to be a Rada himself) and
comprise a variety of chateaus, palaces, fortresses, and outposts.
The Rada represent the older members of Les Invisibles, and island in the Caribbean including large segments of the
while on good terms with their Petro cousins, they seldom let Dominican Republic, parts of Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Lesser
their guard down. They are centrally organized with a hierarchy Antilles, Cayman Islands, and Jamaica. They have outposts
radiating downward from Papa Rada.    throughout the Dark Kingdoms and contacts among the
Les Invisibles established their power throughout the seemingly inexhaustible rogues gallery of pirates, privateers,
Mirrorlands and beyond. They hold some sway over every and treasure hunters that plague the Mirrorlands. Tortuga in
particular hosts a fleet of privateers loyal to Les Invisibles, and

116 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

they trade valuable Relics, Artifacts, and Pathos for safe harbor if sharing a joke at the visitor’s expense. The city is a complex
and access to wonders from the Island Below the Sea. mélange of Pathos born of grinding misery and ecstatic emo-
The Island Below the Sea is a majestic realm populated by tion. A riotous panoply of garish colors, frenetic drum beats,
Les Invisibles who are sworn to Les Mysteres. Attracted by the brilliant vevé, and the competing odors of rum and gunpowder
allure of lost secrets and potent Artifacts, the Island’s populace assault new arrivals. Les Invisibles sing and dance in the streets
engages in a great circle of servitude with their enigmatic masters, as skin-ridden Le Cheveux caper about in red and black painted
for as Loa ride Les Cheveaux, Les Mysteres ride the Loa. Two-way hounfors. Through all this, the Loa stand tall, crackling with
traffic brings new Restless to the Island, and Loa and traders power and affecting the eccentric dress and mannerisms of
return with the bounty of Les Mysteres’ bottomless vaults. Les their patron Mystere.
Mysteres’ temples tremble with power and take many forms, The destruction and loss of life that was caused by the 2010
but are easily identified by their vibrant hues and mountainous earthquake flooded Port-au-Prince with an embarrassment of
offerings of Champaign, rum, and tobacco. riches that the fire-blooded Petro were quick to exploit as they
bickered over who had rightful claim to the ocean of Relics
Necropolis Port-au-Prince and Haunts that crossed the Shroud. The direct intervention
of Erzulie kept the situation from exploding into violence, but
Port-au-Prince is the jewel in the Mirrorlands’ Carnival
crown. Easily the Mirrorlands’ most powerful Necropolis, resentment still lingers.   
Port-au-Prince is home to half the Les Invisibles in Haiti. Its
bustling Tempest port brings great wealth to the city in trade
goods from the Island Below the Sea and Les Invisibles’ pirate
allies, many of whom plied the Caribbean during the Age of
External Relations
Les Invisibles claim the Caribbean in its entirety, but this
Sail, and who raid the Kingdoms of Iron, Ivory, and Jade with claim is far from uncontested.
great enthusiasm. The color red is king in Port-au-Prince because
it is the color of the Petro, with scant bastions of Rada white
offering contrast in more sedate parts of the city.    
Dominican Republic
Les Invisibles rule much of the Dominican Republic.
Port-au-Prince is vibrant to the point of madness, a place
The portion that remains is governed by “La Trinitaria,”
where half the population appears to be under the control of
a three-member council composed of wraiths dedicated to
their Shadows, while the other half trade knowing glances as

THE MIRRORLANDS 117

keeping the Dominican Shadowlands free of Les Invisibles every Maelstrom, every Spectre attack, and every assault by Les
influence. Distrustful of Les Mysteres and their “Loa puppets,” Invisibles due to the implacable will of Death Bishop Eusabius
La Trinitaria fought a costly war against Les Invisibles shortly Siculus. Millennia of experience allowed Siculus to transform
after the Haitian Revolution when the Petro Loa attempted to Necropolis San Juan into a fortress of golden citadels and walls
conquer the easternmost portions of Hispaniola. built from those who defied him. Siculus is tasked with recovering
Ruled from Necropolis Santo Domingo, the Republic is the Fisher and native Relics that were lost during the Flaying
battered by the Mirrorlands’ yearly storms and beset by Petro and destabilizing the region for future conquest. He also seeks
Loa from the west and Fishers to the east. Only the soulsteel the destruction of his former prodigy, Anthony de las Casas.
known as True Gold extracted from its great mines in the Siculus is the chief patron of soul pirates, unscrupulous
Tempest allows the Republic to sustain its independence by explorers, spies, and assassins in the region, and his death
maintaining a free company composed of French, British, knights range far and wide. He has survived innumerable as-
Spanish, and Dominican soldiers who died on Dominican soil. sassination attempts by Les Invisibles and thwarted their every
The company maintains one of the few cavalry formations in attempt to foment revolution. Recent rumors of a Ferryman
the Mirrorlands and their lancers have repulsed more than one at Port-au-Prince give Siculus pause because he is one of the
would-be invader. Whatever their advantages, many Dominicans few wraiths to kill a Ferryman in single combat. Wielding the
fear it is only a matter of time before Les Invisibles overwhelm Ferryman’s scythe as a morbid crozier, he stares into the Tempest
them and quietly contemplate an alliance with Stygia. with great anticipation.

Cuba Those That Came Before — Taino and Caribs

The Fishers abandoned their Renegade allies on Cuba The natives of the Caribbean suffered brutally at the hands
after the onset of Third Great Maelstrom. Those who survived of their conquerors. Those not Reaped by Fishers became the
attracted other Renegades to the island as they retreated from majority of the Baka that plague the Mirrorlands today.
the storm and the Hierarchy conquest to follow. Cuba is a haven Unknown to the Fishers, the native Taino wraiths were
for pirates, smugglers, and revolutionaries of all stripes who masters of Moliate. Many hid in plain sight until they slipped
spend half the year trying to survive the seasonal Maelstroms and away to Coaybay, their Far Shore Realm deep in the Tempest
the rest trying to survive each other. Santiago is a freeport and where they were protected by Maquetaurie Guayaba, the mighty
nominal “capital” of the Cuban Renegades ruled by the leader lord of the Taino dead. Some few Taino openly exist among Les
of the hour, and the rest of the island is a mass of ever-shifting Invisibles, but most live in Coaybay or masquerade as Les Invisibles.
Renegade bands where anarchists, communists, generalissimos, The Taino’s most immediate objective is the destruction of
juntas, and capitalists compete for supremacy. the Fishers in Puerto Rico. Their hatred for the Fishers knows
Necropolis Havana is Cuba’s sole point of stability. Ruled no bounds, and they have begun to infiltrate carefully the
by Anthony de las Casas, who is a powerful Artificer and former island by using their intimate knowledge of the cave networks
Fisher, Havana became a haven for free wraiths in the aftermath throughout the Tempest and Labyrinth to arrive and depart
of the Flaying. Casas organized his people and reforged Havana undetected. Once there, they transform into giant bats and
into an impregnable fortress that sports three citadels, a curtain ambush Fishers patrols or pick off lone stragglers replaced by
wall, and a fleet composed of the USS Maine and a half dozen Moliated Taino infiltrators.
Spanish vessels that were sunk during the Spanish-American The Taino share a strange relationship with the Baka
War. Situated on the edge of the Mirrorlands, Havana is just because many are fellow Taino and seem content to let them
stable enough to host the only Midnight Express stop in the pass unmolested through the Labyrinth.
region and is a refuge for explorers, adventurers, and free Restless Unlike the Taino, the Caribs fought the Fishers with
of all stripes. Each of the Dark Kingdoms maintains an embassy unmitigated ferocity, ranging far and wide in Relic canoes and
in Havana with their attendant diplomacy and intrigue. Casas feathering any Fisher who approached them with Relic arrows.
preserves the precarious balance between the factions, but he The Caribs are allied with Les Invisibles and plague Fisher and
knows Les Invisibles and the Ivory Queen marked Havana for Baka alike to this day.   
conquest a century ago. Recent sightings of members of the
Immortal Guard at the Jade Kingdom embassy have done little
to ease Casa’s tension.
Oblivion
Puerto Rico blivion holds great sway in the Mirrorlands,
wrapping them in its loving embrace.
Puerto Rico is the last Fisher stronghold in the Mirrorlands.
The Fishers raid the populace nightly to feed their hungry forges Impenetrable Maelstroms plague the land for
and “process” them for shipment back to Paradise through their half the year while the seas of the Tempest
treasure fleet during the calm season. Puerto Rico has survived and Shadowlands froth and sizzle with black
lightning, hungry waves, and deadly winds,

118 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

which deny entry to all but the most experienced practitioners which is present-day Haiti. Wreathed in barrowflame, she and
of Argos. her followers burn or capture every Nanchon and Loa in sight
Many unique and deadly Spectres plague the Mirrorlands until they are beaten back, and then vanish into the Abyss as
with the Doomshades known as Baka being most common. quickly as they arrived.       
Baka are often the Shadow-eaten of native Taino who were
broken by the horrors of conquest. The Baka take the form of Background: Status (Serviteur)
great black bats that glide on Maelstrom winds. Other Taino Serviteur status grants Les Invisibles access to the network
use their mastery of Moliate to become deadly Doppelgangers, of mentors, Loa, or Mysteres necessary to advance the arts of
infiltrating Nanchons and assassinating Loa at every opportunity. Connaissance. Rada faction members gain access to Common
Soulsight is relatively useless among Les Invisibles, but the Taino Arts, and Petro members can learn both Common and Initiate
dead lack belly buttons, which makes them easier to detect.   arts. Beyond this qualifier, Serviteur status functions exactly
Joining the Taino are the conquering dead. Black-eyed like Status in Wraith: The Oblivion p. 146.
conquistadors who are clad in Stygian steel and wreathed in Special Arrangements:
Oblivion range the byways of the Mirrorlands on ebon horses
and black-hulled men-of-war. Victims of the 1804 Haitian Primary Society Allied Societies
Massacre haunt the more remote outposts of Les Invisibles, Serviteurs (Connaissance) Puppeteers (Puppetry), Harbingers
infiltrating their ranks and leaving destruction in their wake. (Argos)
The Ton-Ton Macoute, the Haitian bogeyman, lurks near Nihils
to whisk unsuspecting wraiths away in his gunnysack.
Perhaps the most dangerous Spectre in the Mirrorlands
is Queen Anacaona, the “Burning Queen.” Anacaona rules a
Serviteurs he Mirrorlands are a daunting place to survive
wealthy realm deep in the Labyrinth from a court composed
of Baka and Taino nobles who were burned by Spaniards and in for even the most formidable wraith, yet
have yet to degenerate into Doomshades. Hung unjustly in life, Les Invisibles survive and thrive in their
she vents her rage on the Mirrorlands by leading her followers Oblivion-touched realm largely because of
out of the Labyrinth to ravage her former Kingdom of Jaragua, their greatest gift, the Connaissance Arcanos. 

THE MIRRORLANDS 119

 Connaissance reflects the intimate relationship between No structure (formal or otherwise) binds practitioners of this
Les Invisibles and their Shadows. Shadows are not the feared Arcanos together.
harbingers of doom of their Stygian counterparts, but a natural Like most things in the Mirrorlands, Connaissance has a
extension of the Serviteur who can be employed to achieve a reflection. Any Les Invisible can learn the “Cool” or Common
common objective. The Shadow might have goals of its own arts of Connaissance through a mentor or natural affinity, but
that can be at odds with the gros-bon-ange, but Les Invisibles the “Hot” or Initiate arts are only available to Loa and others
discovered long ago that the Shadow can be a formidable ally who are pledged to Les Mysteres’ service. This system reflects
if properly appeased. Because it is the source of many of the the differing philosophies of the Rada and Petro factions.
Connaissance arts, the Serviteur must ensure that their Shadow The Rada are suspicious of Les Mysteres’ gifts and eschew
remains content. In an effort to placate it, Les Invisibles fre- forming the pacts necessary to obtain Initiate arts. Rada are
quently seek its opinion and value the advice that it provides. calm, collected, measured, and caring. Their favored symbols
So sated, the Shadow allows the Serviteur access to a wide are water and the color white. Rada Serviteurs use their abili-
array of arts that serve to protect both themselves, their fellow ties to locate dangerous Baka, explore the Abyss, strengthen
Les Invisibles, and their living descendants from the ravages mortal descendants, protect their community, and resolve issues
of the Mirrorlands. through diplomacy. They are far from unskilled in combat, but

Marks are patient and measured fighters, not berserkers.   

The Petro are “Hot” to the Rada’s “Cool.” Their fiery
In order to unlock the arts of Connaissance, a Serviteur temperament and warlike nature makes them formidable war-
must bond with their Shadow. As a result of this intimate riors, artists, musicians, and impassioned leaders. The Petro
relationship, Serviteurs always bear a physical trademark of pledge eternal service to Les Mysteres and mingle the essence of
their Shadow on their corpus, which is typically related to the their Shadows with the terrible power of Les Mysteres to form
Shadow’s Archetype or strongest Dark Passion. The strength of a hybrid of the two and take on the dress and mannerisms of
this connection also causes a Serviteur to appear as a Spectre their patron. Petro make love and war with equal abandon,
to those using Soulsight. Because the dark desires of the gros- and they protect the Mirrorlands and prosecute their chosen
bon-ange are personified through the Shadow, this relationship causes with near manic conviction.  
makes other Les Invisibles extremely uncomfortable. Regardless, Non-Les Invisibles occasionally acquire Connaissance
the Shadow is a Serviteur’s greatest ally.   (with its attendant marks) by using the Pact of Doom Thorn
or through a pledge of service to Les Mysteres, although this
Society is very rare. They quickly discover that Stygian culture isn’t as
Becoming a Serviteur is a razor balance between service and accepting of Connaissance marks as Les Invisibles, and will
servitude. Serviteurs play two major roles in Mirrorlands society: likely be greeted with suspicion or outright violence when
They control and influence Baka and temper and communicate traveling abroad.
with their Shadows. These abilities are in such great demand that
at least one member of every Nanchon is a Serviteur.
Serviteurs must bond with their Shadows and walk a
metaphysical tightrope between creation and Oblivion. Many
Connaissance
Serviteurs believe that they have mastered this balancing act
only to find out too late just how dangerous their Shadow
Connaissance Systems
nly Loa and Petro who swear fealty to Les
can be. This deadly balance allows access to the powerful arts
Mystere’s can purchase Initiate Arts. Common
of Connaissance, which are used for the greater good of the
Arts are open to all Les Invisibles.
community.
Connaissance strengthens the bond
On the other hand, a Serviteur may take their servitude
between the gros-bon-ange and the Shadow,
to the next level and bond with a Mystere, and then use their
which fosters a greater understanding between
newfound arts and potent Artifacts to be reborn as a Loa, which
the two that allows the gros-bon-ange to let the Shadow take
is the perfect fusion of gros-bon-ange, Shadow, and Mystere. The
control for short periods to satisfy its urges. This dramatically
price of these newfound powers is eternal servitude to Les
decreases the Shadow’s desire to forcibly take over in the fu-
Mysteres, but most Loa pay it gladly for mastery over the Baka
ture.  The player rolls Wits + Connaissance against a difficulty
and the protection that they can provide to their loved ones
equal to the permanent Angst rating of the Shadow. The number
in the Mirrorlands and beyond.    
of successes determines the length of time the Shadow is in
Factions control. Once this roll is made, the Serviteur is committed
to hosting the Shadow. One success is an invitation for an
Serviteurs are not a guild in the Stygian sense of the word. indefinite period, and five successes allow the host to safely
“Serviteur” is simply a name for those who wield Connaissance. eject the Shadow any time after the first round without contest.

120 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

 If the Serviteur wants to eject the Shadow before the with Marrer Baka, and decoy Baka when traveling to or from
invitation expires, there is a contest for control. On a contested the Island Below the Sea.
roll, the Shadow rolls its temporary Angst score against the System: The player rolls Manipulation + Connaissance
Serviteur’s permanent Willpower. If the Serviteur scores more (difficulty 6). For each success rolled, one Spectre heeds the
successes than the Shadow, the Shadow is ejected immediately. summons. This art cannot be used to summon a particular
However, if the Shadow scores as many or more successes than Spectre, and it costs a point of Pathos to use.
the host, the mounting continues. A new attempt to eject the
Shadow may be made the following turn. •• La Langue (Common)
Successful use of this art causes the Shadow to lose an A Serviteur may use their Shadow as a translator to
Angst point. However, each attempt (even a successful one) to communicate in the secret language of the Baka, Loa, and Les
eject the Shadow prior the end of its allocated time costs the Mysteres. When utilizing La Langue, a wraith speaks in the
Serviteur a point of Willpower. foul language of the Spectral Hive-Mind. Although his cries
are vocalized, they are gibberish to anyone who is not in the
• Les Yeux du Chasseur (Common) service of Oblivion. Other Serviteurs can eavesdrop, but the
Serviteurs may “borrow the eyes” of their Shadow to detect only people likely to understand a wraith using La Langue are
the presence and concentration of Oblivion around them. Spectres and wraiths controlled by their Shadows.
Although this art is commonly used to locate Baka, Founts, System: The player roll Wits + Connaissance (difficulty 8).
and other Serviteurs, it was originally used to aid navigation On a success, the Serviteur may communicate with any spirit
through the Abyss. If a user of Connaissance can navigate the of Oblivion, which includes Spectres, Shadowguided wraiths,
Abyss on their own, this art increases the chance of reaching and even wraiths’ quiescent Shadows. The number of successes
their destination safely. rolled determines the length of time the Shadow will deign to
System: The player rolls Wits + Connaissance (difficulty 8). act as interpreter. One success provides translation services
A successful roll locates the presence of Spectres, Shades, Nihils, for a single turn, two for a scene, three for a chapter, four and
other Serviteurs, and Restless whose Shadows are dominant. above allow the Serviteur to communicate for the duration of
The number of successes scored determines the size of the area the chronicle. In the case of a botch or the expiration of the
the wraith can “scout” in this manner. allotted period for this art, the Shadow may deliberately garble
its translation. The results of this sort of deception are rarely
Les Yeux de Chasseur
uncovered before it’s too late.
1 Success 10 square yards
2 Successes 50 square yards
•• Renvoyer Baka (Initiate)
This art is used to frighten Baka away by making the user
3 Successes 100 square yards appear more powerful than they really are. Just like when an
4 Successes 500 square yards animal raises its hackles to intimidate an attacker, a Serviteur
that uses this art expends energy to appear larger and more
5+ Successes 1 square mile potent and dangerous. Renvoyer Baka does not last forever, but
it usually holds long enough for the user to escape or ready the
Note: A successful use of this art does not automatically
appropriate defenses. Renvoyer Baka also temporarily inhibits
allow a Serviteur to navigate the Abyss. Argos must also be
communication between Spectres and the Serviteur’s Shadow,
used. If Les Yeux du Chasseur is used to steer in the Tempest,
thus preventing the Shadow from calling the wraith’s bluff.
a Connaissance roll must be made first. The player may then
subtract the number of successes they score on the first roll System: The player rolls Manipulation + Connaissance
from the difficulty of their subsequent Weather Eye or Storm (difficulty 8) to repel a Spectre from the immediate area.
Reader rolls (but never below a 2). The number of successes determines the number of Spectres
affected and forces them to immediately flee the Serviteur’s
• Reler Baka (Initiate) presence. This effect wears off after a single scene, at which
A Serviteur may use this art to summon Baka. The Baka point the vengeful objects of this art are likely to return with
uses the quickest means available to travel to the summoner. reinforcements.
However, just because a Baka has been called does not mean it Using Renvoyer Baka gives a wraith two points of Angst.
will be friendly. Summoned Baka are just as likely to attack the
Serviteur as to talk to him. Despite the obvious dangers of using
••• Renforcer Les Chevaux (Common)
this art, Serviteurs have put it to a variety of uses. Among the Les Invisibles are legendary for their close bond with Les
more common uses are to summon Baka who have possessed Chevaux. These bonds are often formed in elaborate ceremonies
a Chevaux (the art causes them to leave the possessed body filled with song, dance, and offerings where the wraith infuses a
immediately), lure Baka into traps so they can be captured living relative or faithful houngan with a measure of its power in
return for offerings of Pathos and Relics. Renforcer Les Chevaux
THE MIRRORLANDS 121
is the source of many vodou legends about supernatural gifts involves the wraith’s living relatives who offer great quantities
acquired after possession by a Loa. A ceremony is not strictly of food, drink, and even Relics in return for assistance in the
required, but Les Invisibles seldom turn down a good party. future.
System: The wraith makes contact with its mortal target The wraith must remain in contact with the govi throughout
and the player spends 5 points of Pathos and 5 points of the ritual. The player spends 5 Pathos and 3 Willpower and
temporary Willpower. The player then rolls Manipulation + rolls Wits + Connaissance (difficulty 7). The number of suc-
Connaissance (difficulty 8 minus one if the wraith is Skinriding cesses determines the new Fetter’s strength with each success
the mortal or using Renforcer Les Chevaux during a ceremony equaling one level. Restless with pre-existing Fetters are limited
as described above). Success means the mortal gains the first to a single 5 point govi. However, many Les Invisibles rely on
level in any Arcanos the wraith possesses that can affect the a govi as their sole Fetter, in which case the govi’s rating may
living world or 1 point in Potence, Celerity, or Fortitude (see be as high as 10. Govi are permanent Fetters, and no wraith
Wraith: The Oblivion p. 395). The mortal so infused can have may have more than one govi.
a number of Arcanoi equal to their permanent Willpower (any As long as the wraith has a govi as a Fetter, the houngan
greater infusion would shatter their sanity) and use temporary or living relatives to which the govi is entrusted can spend 1
Willpower to fuel their newfound abilities. Serviteurs who Willpower at any time to communicate with the Serviteur for
impart Arcanoi to mortals in this fashion also imbue them with the rest of that scene regardless of the location or distance.
a touch of the personality of the Les Mystere to which they are Each party must speak aloud to be heard, and any supernatural
bound. Renforcer Les Chevaux does not work on supernatural power relying exclusively on speech may pass over this link (in
creatures. This power has a duration of one chapter. either direction).
••• Engagement (Initiate) •••• Reler Mystere (Initiate)
Serviteurs with this art manipulate Baka by forming a Les Mysteres are ancient and powerful beings who have
connection between their mind and the Hive-Mind of Oblivion. existed from time immemorial and are jealous of the many
Essentially a form of telepathy, Engagement enables a practitio- secrets they have hoarded over the centuries. Even now the
ner of Connaissance to transmit thoughts and commands to the trade route from the Mirrorlands to the Island Below the Sea
mind of a Baka (or group of Baka) within sight. The genius of continues to bring them new lore, which they share only with
this art is that the Serviteurs orders are implanted in the target’s their servants. With luck, a Loa may tap into this vast library
mind so subtly that the target believes that the thoughts are of lore through their connection with their Mystere to gain
their own. Many Serviteurs receive harsh criticism for use of this temporary access to the information that the Mysteres guard.
art. The Rada in particular claim that the mental connection System: The player rolls Wits + Connaissance (difficulty
operates in both directions and believe users of Engagement 8). The number of successes may be used in two different ways.
run the risk of becoming Oblivion’s puppets. Serviteurs simply The first option is to distribute the successes as points
reply that no one complains about their effectiveness. among any Talents, Skills, or Knowledges the wraith possesses
System: A Serviteur may attempt to control a group of for the duration of the scene. The only limitation is that the
Spectres by rolling Manipulation + Connaissance against rating of a modified Ability cannot exceed five. All successes
difficulty 5 + the number of targets (the maximum number of must be assigned immediately upon making the roll, and extra
targets is five). The number of successes determines the amount levels cannot be switched from Ability to Ability.
of control the user has over the targets. One success means the For the second option, the Serviteur may use Reler Mystere
manipulated Baka responds to suggestions along the lines of to attempt to find the answer to a single, deeply troubling
what they would have done anyway (Attack the target on the left question. The player may trade in all of the successes that
first, not me), and five successes is enough to convince a Baka were scored to ask the Storyteller one question. The Storyteller
to rend his own Corpus and laugh. The user of this art spends must answer truthfully and in as much detail as the number
1 Pathos and earns 1 Angst point for each target they control. of successes suggest. Reler Mystere may only be used once per
•••• Retirer d’en bas de l’eau (Common) scene. This art costs 2 Willpower and earns its user 1 Angst
for each success scored.
The living and the dead share a close relationship in the
Mirrorlands. Les Invisibles use Retirer d’en bas de l’eau or ••••• Bonté Abyssale: (Common)
“Reclaiming the soul from the waters of the Abyss” to maintain The Island Below the Sea is home to a vast trove of Relics,
contact with their living relatives and descendants in addition Artifacts, and other wonders that have been collected by Les
to creating new Fetters for older Les Invisibles whose Fetters Mysteres throughout the centuries. When the storm season
have eroded over time.   abates and the Abyss becomes placid, numerous Les Invisibles
System: The wraith must participate in an elaborate ritual travel to and from the Island to trade with Les Mysteres and the
with a mortal houngan who performs a night-long ceremony to Loa who serve them. Deals are struck, contracts are sealed, and
bind the wraith to an earthenware pot or “govi.” The ritual often items are exchanged for the betterment of Les Invisibles and

122 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

the Mirrorlands as a whole. Some truly rare (or desperate) Les the Serviteur wherever they lead if the Serviteur remains near.
Invisibles forge potent pacts with Les Mysteres that allow them Baka who are abandoned by the Serviteur who tamed them
to summon the bounty of the Island Below the Sea from afar. gradually come out of their Arcanos-induced fog and return to
System: The player rolls Wits + Connaissance (difficulty their old selves and usually hell-bent on vengeance.
8) and spends 1 Pathos and 1 temporary Willpower per rank System: The player rolls Manipulation + Connaissance
of the desired Relic or Artifact. An oval mirror with a surface vs. the target’s Pathos in a resisted roll. If the Serviteur rolls a
like mercury forms, allowing the wraith to plunge through the number of successes equal to or greater than the target’s Pathos
portal and emerge with the object of their desire. This object rating, the target becomes incapable of taking any action or
can be almost anything (with Storyteller approval), but using defending itself for a number of rounds equal to the Serviteur’s
this art grants the wraith 1 point of temporary Angst and binds current Willpower and follows the wraith as detailed above.
the wraith to perform a service for Les Mysteres commensurate Restrained Baka are paralyzed but aware of their surroundings.
with the “gift” summoned by the Serviteur. This service must They lose all of their actions but may try to escape once per
be performed within a year and a day of using Bonte Abyssale turn. Any attempt to escape is made by spending 1 point of
lest the Serviteur face the unalloyed wrath of Les Mysteres. Angst and rerolling as above. At Storyteller discretion, Marrer
Baka can be used to subdue Shadow-ridden Restless.
••••• Marrer Baka (Initiate) This art costs 2 Willpower and 2 Pathos and gives the user
A Serviteur uses this art to restrain angry Baka through 2 points of Angst.
a contest of wills. Once defeated, the Baka mindlessly follows

THE MIRRORLANDS 123

 Appendix:
Necropoli

Seattle uwamps, Queen City, the Gateway to continent. The PNW was one of the few places the Legion
Alaska, New York Alki, Jet City, Jewel of had trouble taking or holding. To this day, the Islands of Flint
the Northwest, the Emerald City: Seattle send emissaries from their hidden Tempest strongholds to
has been known by many names over its walk silently the streets of the Seattle Necropolis, engaging
relatively short history. Originally known as with no one, to remind those that dwell in the Shadowlands
New York Alki (a term meaning “by and by” of Puget Sound that there is a civilization both old and strong
or “soon”), Seattle was formally established in 1853. Before waiting for them on the other side of a Byway. In a very real
the arrival of the Denny Party in 1851, the land now known way, the Restless of Seattle are being haunted by the ghosts
as Puget Sound had been settled and ruled by the Duwamish of the native tribes.
and Suquamish tribes for nearly 4000 years. “Doc” Henry Swinson Maynard was one of the few
Stygia recognized the founding of the Necropolis at early settlers firmly on the side of the native people. It was
roughly the time that Chief Seattle ceded the lands to what his idea to change the name of the city from Duwamps to
he called “the White Father” in 1855. At the moment that Seattle to honor the influential chief, whom he called his
Chief Seattle and others ceded the land by giving a speech friend. Maynard was the first lawyer, first postmaster, and
to all present in his native language, the Duwamish and representative of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. In death,
Suquamish dead vanished from the Shadowlands. They he continues his work in the Seattle Necropolis. Using his
walked as one to what they called Ji-Ji-La-Etch, the Little friendship with Chief Seattle and the Bureau of Indian Affairs
Crossing Place now known as Pioneer Square, and vanished. as a template, he continues his work as an ambassador to
Their ancestral lands of the dead, their Islands of Flint, rest the peoples of the Islands of Flint, assisted by a few chosen
in the Tempest with Byways known only to them. wraiths who share his outlook and diplomatic ability.
In the Pacific Northwest (PNW), the hidden Islands of
Flint hold sway. Stygia, caught up in the fervor of Manifest The Modern Necropolis
Destiny and its echoes of earlier imperial ambitions, enjoyed The group, officially known as the Speakers to the Islands,
the success of conquest over most of the North American unofficially as Doc’s Own, works tirelessly to keep the peace

124 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

between the Seattle Necropolis and the local Islands of Flint. being so unreliable, the Cormorant Order finds itself very
The Speakers act as go-betweens for the Hierarchy and the busy indeed. They fly the route between Spokane and Seattle
Islands, and they take care of any friction or differences to perform wilderness Search and Rescue (SAR) for travelers
during the rare occasions a wraithly visitor to Seattle makes and hunt for materials in the wake of forest fires and other
the mistake of accosting one of the people of the Islands. disasters, including the eruptions of the Shadowlands version
Doc’s Own are an integral part of the governing of of Mount Rainer. They rely on the Alchemists for supplies
Seattle, widely (and correctly) considered to be the ones and help the guild with their efforts to create a relic fuel.
keeping the Islands of Flint from crushing Seattle into Stygia often sends its relic aircraft to Seattle for repair and
Oblivion. Citizens are quick to warn visitors not to speak enhancement. It’s a costly measure to send parts over land,
to the People of Flint and leave them to the Speakers. All but air superiority is worth it according to the Hierarchy.
diplomatic relations go through Maynard. Maynard himself The Alchemists, who recruit heavily from the ghosts
is the only one ever guided to the Islands through the Little of the aerospace industry, are one of Stygia’s few reliable
Crossing Over Place in Pioneer Square, and he never speaks sources for such items. It’s a cottage industry with emphasis
about the other side. The Islands demanded that slavery be on “cottage” over “industry,” but is a notable strategic asset.
made illegal within Puget Sound. Strangely, soulforging was They work with the Cormorant Order to hunt down relics
not included in the edict. of plane crashes in the Cascade mountain range and beyond.
Since Seattle’s founding, the Northwest Islands of Flint
have crushed every attempt to create smaller Necropoli any- Mount Rainier
where else in the Puget Sound. The Speakers to the Islands “The mountain is out today,” is a phrase used in the
say it is because no one has been able to navigate the complex Skinlands on days so clear that you can see Mount Rainer
rituals and relationships demanded by Chief Seattle save for from Seattle proper. It’s spoken with a measure of wonder
Doc Maynard. Characters who wish to help Stygia expand and whimsy, for such a sight is rare in a city that was built
its influence in the area could seek the Speakers out, or join in a temperate rainforest. In the Shadowlands, the phrase is
them to learn how to navigate the diplomatic complications. spoken with anxiety and fear.
The Islands of Flint under the rule and protection of The Mount Rainier of the Shadowlands does not exist
Chief Seattle hold mysterious power over their lands and except to erupt. It is a manifestation of the fear the Quick
the connected Tempest. The only ways in to and out of feel at the constant possibility. When the mountain appears
the Puget Sound area are by land, the rare air trip by the in the Shadowlands, the top of the mountain explodes,
Cormorant Order, and through the mysterious Undergound rocking the buildings of Seattle with tremors and quakes.
of the Necropolis of Seattle. Any attempt to use Argos in or After each eruption, strange and alien material pulled from
around the Shadowlands or the Tempest of Puget Sound the Labyrinth rains down on the land all around and a
has a difficulty +1 higher than usual. On a successful roll, regional Maelstrom rages. The rocks and falling flotsam rarely
the traveler arrives safely at someplace connected to Seattle reach the Necropolis proper, but Spectres and other terrible
through the Underground, which is usually the Portland creatures roam the lands for days, weeks, or even months and
Necropolis. An unsuccessful check tosses the traveler anywhere occasionally attack the city.
the Storyteller deems fit. Every time the mountain erupts, the brave and the
The Speakers have recently had their hands full due to foolish rush out to claim some of this material before it
the simmering animosity of the Alchemist’s Guild toward fades away along with Rainier itself. The Alchemists are
the People of Flint. This feud stems from the Alchemists best suited for this work because Flux lets them preserve the
inability to manipulate Flint relics with Flux. A longboat materials. Many Alchemists have been sent into a Harrowing
remains a longboat, a net stays a net, and so on. The local after heading out into the storm in search of this ephemeral
guild, which is a collection of bored aerospace engineers bounty and falling prey to falling stone, howling wind, or a
dating back to Boeing’s founding in 1919 and bolstered by ravening Spectre. Then, the mountain fades only to appear
former tech employees crossing the Veil over the years, see randomly once again whole and ready to inaugurate another
this as a personal affront. How could such a low-tech people round of what the citizens of the Seattle Necropolis call the
have such powerful and unchanging relics? The Alchemists Fool’s Gold Rush.
are doing whatever they can to get their hands on more
examples from the Islands of Flint and would happily pay
or trade services for enterprising PCs willing to sneak past
The Underground
The original ground floors of modern-day Seattle build-
Doc’s Own to obtain more.
ings are buried under the sidewalks from Belltown to Pioneer
The Cormorant Order has outposts in both Seattle and
Square, all the way up Capitol Hill, forming the famous
Spokane and has gotten its hands on a working relic helicopter.
Seattle Underground. Every sidewalk in that area is hollow,
The Islands of Flint having effectively shut down entry to
covering a drop from twelve to 36 feet. This Underground
the Puget Sound area by Argos, and with the Underground
first appeared in the Shadowlands during the late 1910s,

APPENDIX: NECROPOLI 125

 when a short bout of bubonic plague led the city to condemn
and seal the Undergound wholesale.
The Shadowlands Underground is broader and wider than
the Skinlands version ever could be. Harbinger explorers of
this part of Seattle have found that it connects in some way
to the Undergrounds of other North American cities, such as
New Orleans, Portland, and Chicago. The Harbingers’ prevail-
ing theory is that all of these cities used their Undergrounds
extensively during Prohibition and they resonate with similar
emotions.
The only entirely reliable route forged by the Harbingers
runs between the winding tunnels of Seattle and Portland. The
rest of the Seattle Necropolis Undergound remains treacherous
and largely unexplored. Only those with Argos have a chance of
successfully navigating the tunnels to another city’s Undergound.
Explorers without Argos are taking the chance of ending up in
a different city, the Labyrinth, or into the arms of something
they’d rather have never met.

The Afterlife of the City

Aside from the Alchemists Guild Boeing plants, another reason
so many wraiths pay the Harbinger Guild exorbitant fees to make
the overland trek or take them on a crawl through the Portland
Undergound to Seattle is the music. The Seattle Necropolis is filled
with venues, festivals, and musicians. Seattle has produced so many
famous bands, started the grunge movement, and been the forefront
of music throughout its history, and many of them remain. Music is
one of the few pleasure the Restless can enjoy, and Seattle is packed
with it. The festivals are a Pathos feast, and wraiths from all over Stygia
come calling. The Cormorant Order pays very close attention to
Skinlands music trends. Played wraith musicians would fit in perfectly
in the Seattle Necropolis, and there are several famous jazz, rock, and
punk artists they could meet here that might need them to hunt an
old relic or find a piece of a lost song.
The PNW is also home to an unexpected abundance
of Independent Professional Wrestling promotions, such as
3-2-1 Battle Without a Cause, Project 42, Defy, and ECCW.
Older wraiths enjoy the spectacle and the emotion of a show,
which remind them of old carnival shows. Younger wraiths
eat up the Pathos released by a crowd reacting to a favored
performer winning or losing a match. Some wraiths even travel
with a favored performer as they make the circuit. Many living
performers have reported the feeling of someone else in the
car with them as they made the drive from Portland, Seattle,
and then Vancouver.
The local Hierarchy has been paying more attention to these
shows since an incident in 2014 where a newly dead wraith decided
to Skinride a performer at a major local event being broadcast on the
internet. His Shadow took control and attacked his opponent for real.
Covering up the truth was straightforward enough, but the Hierarchy
tries very hard to stamp out precedents for future trouble of that sort.

126 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION

Harrowing The Richmond district of Halifax was destroyed. This explosion
was the most powerful blast ever created by human hands from
Oblivion has chosen to wear a decidedly Native American that moment until the testing of the atomic bomb in the desert
face in the Seattle area. Any wraith who falls into a Harrowing on July 16, 1945.
finds it twisted by the local environment and its tragedies. The In the Shadowlands, the region of Halifax and Dartmouth
Speakers of Flint are aware of this and do their best to educate across the harbor have never recovered from this moment. The
newcomers on the local cultures and legends in order for Great War was raging and Stygia was facing the Fourth Great
visitors to make sense of them should the worst happen. (For Maelstrom raging across Europe. In the face of that, even 2000
more information about the Dark Kingdom of Flint and its dead in an instant didn’t immediately draw their attention.
ways, see p. 95.) Stygian Restless who have fallen into too many By the time Stygia could send anyone, the Mont-Blanc had
Harrowings sense a shift in their Shadows and have even said become a Nihil that was frozen forever in the moment of its
that they have heard their Shadow’s speaking Looshootseed, explosive death. The crew of the ship that didn’t immediately
which is the local Flint language…but not to them. ascend or fall are trapped on the ship’s eternally burning hull,
where they are forever trying to extinguish a fire that went out

Halifax, Nova Scotia

he bare facts are insufficient. So, let’s begin
over a century ago and outrace an explosion that will always
be about to occur.
Turtle Grove and other settlements on both sides of the
water still exist as Necropoli, but quieter, sadder ones than the
with the last thing the Mi’kmaq of Turtle
kind that were born in Europe at that same time. Go to Tuft’s
Grove in Tufts Cove, Nova Scotia saw on the
Cove in the Shadowlands and you might meet the ghosts of
6th of December, 1917. It was just after 9 am.
twin girls, who were slain by the tidal wave and forced to watch
Turtle Grove wasn’t a large community, but it
their father, who was maimed by the explosion, endure the
had endured despite centuries of exploitation
next years without them. You might see wraiths still heading
of their lands, woods, lakes, rivers, coves, bays, and the ocean
out to fish the waters that killed them, dragging up memories
itself by the Europeans and their descendants. Fished, hunted,
from the Tempest.
settled, and taken piece by piece, but some places remained
Mi’kmaq. Although laws that were passed by the white settlers The Emerald Legion claimed the Necropoli of Halifax and
had changed their way of life inexorably, they still lived where Dartmouth because the explosion was seen as an act of utter
their people always had. Even with Halifax and Dartmouth happenstance. It was, in the prevailing view, a series of accidents
growing rapidly around them, it seemed that they would manage that no one could have foreseen and yet everyone who was paying
to preserve their way of life. Turtle Grove would remain as it attention to the world could have anticipated if they were not
had since the 1700’s. An oil painting from the 1790s showed distracted by other matters. Even now the Legion watches the
Mi’kmaq on that very same spot, after all. Nihil, battling whatever griefs crawl up from the Labyrinth to
haunt the Restless who have made Halifax their home.
Then the flash of light and the roaring sound, the loudest
sound that any of them had ever heard, happened at just past The area of Halifax is more than just the scene of a hor-
9 am. It was a Thursday morning; some had already gone out rendous moment. It had centuries of life before and a 100 years
to fish, tend to their land, or hunt. Others had jobs across the have passed since that day, and much of the Shadowlands’ version
narrows in Dartmouth or Halifax. of the city has little to nothing to do with that moment. Yet the
city is inextricably linked to it because the explosion only hap-
None expected a wall of water to come and crush the entire
pened because Halifax was being itself: a port town and a staging
area. No one foresaw the explosion and the near-kilometer
ground for transatlantic trade, where whalers and fishermen
radius of the blast as the SS Mont-Blanc exploded. The ship
and sea trade all made a home and a community, and where a
was carrying high explosives from New York City to France for
port city grew bustling as the industrial age crawled across the
use in the war that was raging in Europe at the time. It collided
Skinlands. All that history has carved grooves into the site, but
with the SS Imo, a Norwegian vessel in Halifax harbor around
the most potent hammer stroke used the Mont-Blanc and the
8:45. It was a small collision. Both boats had been moving fairly
Imo as the tools to carve the Shadowland forever in its image.
slowly. It hadn’t immediately appeared serious.
Because of the Nihil, many Spectres find Halifax a good
Yet in 20 minutes the Mont-Blanc would explode with the
place to lie low from the Iron Legion or the Legion of Fate.
force of 2.9 kilotons of TNT, and in so doing utterly destroy
The Emerald Legion isn’t any friendlier to them, but it is also
over 2,000 lives and injure 9,000 more. One of the casualties
more concerned with the legacy of the area than a few straggling
was the community of Turtle Grove, which was swamped by a
Shadow’s Mares. Even in death, Halifax is a port, and much is
wave that was created by the blast. People lost entire families.
brought in to or out of Stygia through this town’s waterways.

APPENDIX: NECROPOLI 127

Zone Rouge
slaughter that both sides inflicted on the other that to this day
farmers attempting to till the soil in these regions reap what’s
called the Iron Harvest: unexploded ordinance, barbed wire,
etween 1914 and 1918, the world tried to kill deserted weapons, and fragments of war materiel left behind
itself. Wraiths remember this time as the in the earth.
prelude and opening act of the Fourth Great One example is the town of Beaumont-en-Verdunois. In
Maelstrom, when countless Nihil opened the Skinlands, it has been gone since 1916 when the Battle
across the world, especially in Europe where of Verdun left most of the area blasted, dead, and poisoned.
the horrors of trench warfare tore into the It’s hardly unique in France today: a signpost and a few living
very soil. The Great War was certainly great in both scope and descendants of those who escaped to resettle elsewhere is all
carnage, and in many parts of modern France the land still bears that remains. But in the Shadowlands, the old town endures
the scars. When the war finally ended, the nation of France had with its spires and houses, and it is a warped reflection of the
little choice but to declare the worst regions the Zone Rouge town that was inhabited by Restless who have been unable to
or “Red Zone” due to their being almost totally unlivable. The let the memory of their own deaths and the death of everything
constant back and forth shelling left the land almost a seared they’d known and loved pass. Both the Penitent and Grim
moonscape, and the arsenic, lead, various chemical agents such Legions have heavy presences in this town, and they engage
as chlorine gas, and unexploded shells left an area of over 1,200 in their own version of the Iron Harvest by finding the most
kilometers essentially uninhabitable. Some of the worst spots demented and insane Spectres who endure from the time of
will not fully recover for over 700 years. the war and forging them into Soulsteel to construct weapons
Whole towns vanished and were never resettled, and they and armor to use against their own kind trying to range free
are marked by signs in the Skinlands telling the living of places from the many Nihils in the area.
where no one has lived since their great-grandparents fought. The Shadowlands version of Beaumont-en-Verdunois looks
These literal ghost towns are especially strange Necropoli, with much as it did in life, but it has taken on the characteristics of a
nothing but a few hills blasted out of the earth by bombs and military fort in a deserted badland. It is armed to the teeth and
shells to mark the graves of whole communities. Nihils form waging endless war against the Spectres and other monstrosities
easily here, and whole communities of Restless congregate in flooding the Zone Rouge from all the gateways to the Labyrinth
the ruins of towns that didn’t even leave a single tower behind left behind even a century after the Great War ended.
to mark their passing. So thorough and unrelenting was the

128 THE BOOK OF OBLIVION