Setite Rituals

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Setite Rituals
by James Stein As the war over the minds and souls of the people of the world continues, the Followers of Set continue to pull unsuspecting mortals into their webs of drugs, sex, and violence. It's too easy. Mortals have stopped looking at the big picture, and only want /what they want/. Like children, they throw tantrums. Like a bad parent, the Followers of Set always provide. With Osiris' awakening, however, the armies of the Undying have come to reclaim the souls of the people of the world. The Followers, not so quick to relinquish the hold they've formed over millennia of effort, have developed specialized rituals to battle the Amenti. The Amenti, in kind, have created their own magicks specializing only in stopping the kindred plague. Setite Spells & Tactics: - The Path Of The Dry Nile (Blood Magic: Secrets of Thaumaturgy), Level 4, Hope Dissolves. While resisted with Balance, this spell is definitely a good one if the hope destroyed is, oh, something to the effect of beating back Apophis. An Amenti with no hope in defeating Apophis, is one without a reason to exist. It isn't strong enough to destroy the Amenti, but it /is/ strong enough to keep him out of your hair for a while.

Oil-Slicked Pond (Level 3 Ritual)

The Follower of Set casts out a web of darkness over a city, bringing down a light 'mist' of taint over the city. Thieves get a little nastier, thugs a bit more violent. A drunk husband is inclined a bit more to hit his wife. While the results stack, no single outcome is particularly amazing. However, the most important part of this, is the taint that strikes the Amenti. Amenti require places of power with a pure, clean, emphasis upon them. Once this curse is laid over the city, these places are defiled. While not so defiled as to bar the Amenti from using them, they were filthy enough to make the act of drawing energy from them more difficult. To enact this ritual, four canopic jars are set within the city. Each jar must hold the heart of someone pure - a child, a priest that actually cared for his flock, etc. Each jar is set at a cardinal direction, and they form the four points of the circle which acts as the boundary for this spell. Once the spell is enacted, the jars can be moved without ruining the spell. However, if they are destroyed, the taint lifts from the affected area within hours. System: Once the four hearts are collected, and the jars placed in the appropriate places, the Follower of Set begins ritual prayers. This can be enacted anywhere within the bounds of the ritual, usually in the Followers own temple to Set, because the prayers take one hour for each square mile in the area of affect. The prayers can not be interrupted, save for daylight sleep. The moment a vampire reawakens, they must be resumed. The Setite rolls Willpower vs. a difficulty of 8. Each success allows the ritual to affect one square mile within the boundaries. Enough successes to cover the entire city must be collected, in order for the ritual to carry out the 'Negative Emotions' aspect. Once this is complete, for each Node/Caern/etc. level with positive resonance in the city, more successes must be scored. (i..e. there are two 'positive' nodes in the city, one level three, and one level five. The Setite must score an additional 8 successes, one for each level of node). If this succeeds, all quintessence in the city is tainted with entropic resonance. Any attempts made by the Amenti to draw on Sekhem are made at +1 difficulty.

Scarab of Apophis (Level 4 Ritual)

The Scarab is carved out of some fine substance, by a follower, and then imbued with his own power. As the Scarab focuses the taint of Apophis, the small beetle-like figurine begins to pulse with dark energy. It does not harm the follower that created it, nor anyone else that simply casually touches it. However, once placed upon a body, it becomes part of that body, melting into it. Once within that body, any healing attempted upon the body is negated by the Scarab, and some of its energy

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abated. With time, the Scarab loses its potency, and the body can resume being healed. While part of a body, this scarab will follow whatever state that body is in. (If the body is burnt to ash, so is the scarab, but it still functions). System: The Follower rolls Dexterity + Crafts, vs. a difficulty determined by the value of the material from which the stone is crafted. A diamond is diff. 5, jade diff. 6, sapphire diff. 7, and so on. Typical limestone is diff. 9, threshold 1. For each success scored on this roll, the Follower may imbue the Scarab with a blood point. When a body imbued with the scarab attempts to heal, the healing attempt is negated, and the scarab loses a blood point. This continues until the scarab runs out of blood. The scarab may not be recharged. In the case of a creature such as Garou, these scarabs are almost useless. As a Garou regenerates one HL per round, this scarab can rarely last for more than a few rounds before becoming useless. This is slightly more useful against other kindred. As few kindred can spend more than one blood point in a round, working through the scarab is usually done on a bloodpoint-for-blood-point basis. However, some elder kindred that can spend, say, three blood points in a round, may expend extra blood before learning better. The kindred may very well expend three blood points at once to heal three health levels this is one attempt, and drains only one blood point from the scarab. Obviously, the most potent use of this scarab is when striking an Amenti with it. As an Amenti can not be Raised until he heals himself fully, this Scarab can buy precious time for the Followers of Set, as the Undying is kept in his Death Cycle for an extended period of time. It is rumored that Set himself forged one such scarab, and that that was the power that kept Osiris out of the action for so very long. No more than one scarab can be used on a being at any one time.

Patching The Fence (level 4 -6?)

The Followers of Set biggest problem when dealing with the Amenti is the fact that the Amenti like making two-pronged attacks; from the material world, and the spirit. There have always been rituals abound with which one can thicken the wall between worlds. However, the Followers of Set have followed the path of blood and pain into a new level of power - though with it comes the necessary price. This ritual requires the sacrifice of a being with a free soul. Mortals and Mages are favourites here - but Garou, Infernalists, and their ilk are useless, as their souls have already been claimed by higher powers. As the being is sacrificed, their soul is kept from returning to the great cycle, and is instead converted into pure energy. This energy is then thrown up in a sort of 'static field', which blocks and burns all those that would dare cross it. System: The Follower spends two blood points on each person being sacrificed, with which to anoint them. The Follower and the person being sacrificed each roll temporary Willpower vs. 8, once per hour, until one has 10 successes more than the other. If there is more than one person being sacrificed, then the one with the highest willpower among them rolls for the group. If the person being sacrificed comes out ahead, their soul escapes, free. If the Follower has 10 more first, however, then the ritual succeeds. Once the ritual succeeds, the Follower gains a number of 'Ritual Points' equal to the sacrificed creature's Willpower x 2, + 'Power Points' x3. 'Power Points' signify anything like Mana, Quintessence, Sekhem, Blood Points, etc. Therefore, if one sacrifices a Mage with 5 willpower and 4 quintessence, the Follower gains 22 'Ritual Points'. The Ritual Points are then spent on various aspects of the ritual: -Raise Gauntlet by 1: 1 Ritual Point -Each die of damage caused to being crossing the gauntlet; 3 Ritual Points -Make that damage Aggravated; 5 Ritual Points -Each day that the Rituals effects are meant to last; 1 Ritual Point -Making the effects permanent for the area; 10 Ritual Points -Each 'Room' covered by the ritual (roughly a 12x12x12 room); 3 Ritual Points. It is not uncommon for the Followers to capture several potent beings, and sacrifice them within their Temples, so as to create a safe zone within their temples.

Defence of The Sacred Temple (Level 3 or 4?)

Magic and Technology - they're really the same thing. Where Technocrats use 'metal detectors', the Followers have been using Defense of The Sacred Temple for ages, to essentially do the same thing; let people /in/, and keep weapons /out/. Every doorway, window, and chimney that is to be warded must be painted with the spell caster's own blood. Normal doorways cost 1 bp, normal windows are 1 bp for two windows, and a chimney opening is a quarter of a BP. Larger openings cost BP roughly according to the above theme - a doorway double the size of a normal one would cost 2 bp, and so on. Some spell casters have been paranoid enough to oversee the building of their own temples, and have mixed their blood into every batch

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of mortar, concrete, and white-rubbery-molding-shit-that-goes-in-between-bathroom-tiles. Though...that's /really/ paranoid. Once completed, the spell caster proceeds to the center of the temple. There, a basin is filled with wine and the caster's blood. Everyone that is to benefit from this spell (usually the heads of the temple), adds their blood to the concoction. They, then, commence with their prayers. When completed, all drink from this. This substance is no longer the blood of the vampires, but the sacrament of Set himself (it does not affect Blood Bonds, Vaulderie, etc.. ). From then on, whenever someone passes through one of the warded areas, anyone that participated in the Drinking will see any weapons that person carries. Right through clothing, lead sheilding, etc... that persons weapons will be perfectly clear to the Follower. At any time, the Follower may choose to destroy the weapon with the expenditure of 2 BP. An enchanted weapon requires 5 BP and 1 WP. Few setites are worried about knives or guns - they /are/ Kindred, after all. Still, it's so useful for intimidation when some bad-ass sheep points a gun at you, and with a blink, that gun becomes a mass of twisted steel and blood. System: The caster outlines the areas with blood as mentioned above. If one wishes to cover the entire temple with blood, from the building stages up, it will require roughly 30 BP for a small suburban home, to 400 BP if the place is akin to a NYC Apt. Building in size. Everyone that is to be able to See and Destroy weapons must add their blood to the drink. Thereafter, they may participate in the casting if they know this ritual. If not, they /can/ lend Willpower points. The caster(s) then roll Willpower vs. diff 7. This is an extended roll - rolled once per hour. This can be continued until sun-up, when the successes garnered are final. It is for this reason that this spell is best cast with several participants; 6 successes might be fine for detecting, until some Tremere decides to cast some obfuscation-type-thing on one of his weapons.

Cleanse The Soul (level 2)

A Setite's soul is a bubbling morass of pitch and the faces of broken children. Anyone that takes even a brief glance at their hearts, know that they worship the darkness that threatens to choke the world. But since when have they been /stupid/? This ritual is used to make a Follower appear normal to all supernatural spells. Not too light, not too dark - a typical denizen of the world of darkness. This fools everything from Detect Wyrm, to a Mind effects, to Auspex, to Judge The Soul. System: Manipulation + Subterfuge vs. 6. Lasts for 48 hours.

Lesser Spirit Jar ( level 2 ritual )

This enchants a canopic jar to become a receptacle for spirits. Any Gaffling or Jaggling spirit summoned into the vicinity of the jar, must immediately make a Willpower roll vs. 8. If less than three successes are scored, the spirit is immediately captured in the jar, only to be released at an owner's will. System: Created by the expenditure of 3 BP, and a Dexterity + Crafts vs. 7 roll. Six or more successes may warrant the jar having a higher difficulty for the spirit resisting it.

Greater Spirit Jar (level 4)

Same as the Lesser Spirit Jar, except that it effects everything below Incarna. This includes Wraiths, and Amenti in Duat. The roll to resist is made vs. diff 9

Greatest Spirit Jar (level 8)

Same as the lesser spirit Jar, though the roll is made vs. diff 9, threshold 3. This effects Incarna, but not Celestines.

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Loss of Emotion (Level 3 ritual)

Ghosts linger on after death for a simple reason - they still need to /do/ something. They desire, hunger, /need/ . The Setite necromancers were quick to realize that their need was what gave them strength, and kept them real. The Followers, already masters of the Path of The Snake Inside, which revolved around desires, went on to create this ritual. This ritual drains a summoned ghost of its passionate energy, leaving it a weak husk open to manipulation. System: The Necromancer rolls a contested Willpower against the Wraith, each against diff. 6 (the Wraith may have to roll against a higher difficulty, if the local Gauntlet rating is higher). For every round that the Wraith scores more successes than the Necromancer, nothing happens. For every success the Necromancer scores higher than the Wraith, however, the Wraith loses a point of Pathos. The wraith can not be reduced to less than one pathos. Once he's at 1, he begins losing Angst. If the Wraith wins a number of rounds equal to or greater than the Necromancer's willpower, the Wraith goes free, and drains a certain amount of energy from the Necromancer (the Wraith's pathos is refilled, and the Necromancer loses all his Willpower).

Big Stick (level 4 ritual)

Guns haven't always been around, but conflict has been. Contrary to what AD&D games may have lead some people to belief, it's impolite to walk around with a sword hanging on your hip. So what do the setites do? They carry staves instead. Not everyone's a melee master, however. More importantly, not everyone's a demi-god. Since the first Followers began carrying staves as weapons, Amenti have been wiping the floor with them. Since the first Follower got his ass whooped, the second one said "Idiot. That's what he gets for playing /clean/..." While this ritual isn't quite as powerful as it could be, it contains a variety of small effects which stack up quite well. The Ritual begins with the carving of the staff itself. The staff must be made of wood, and the difficulty of each step of the ritual is lowered by 1 if actually carved from wood gathered by hand from the Nile River. This Ritual continues with a Summoning. The summoning requires the use of Necromancy, or another branch of Setite thaumaturgy - it is not part of this Ritual itself. The being summoned must have been knowledgeable in staff-fighting. Once the being is summoned, this ritual begins. The spirit and the Necromancer each roll temporary willpower vs. 6. The spirit may spend Pathos for automatic successes, and the Necromancy may spend Blood in the same fashion. If the Spirit wins, it goes free. If the Necromancer wins, the spirit is bound into the staff. The next portion of this ritual is the creation of a long /jade/ stake, smaller in diameter than the stave itself. This may take several hours, or nights, depending on the skill of the Follower. At its completion, this stake is set at the foot of the stave, and left there for the remainder of the ritual. The staff must then be bathed in the blood of a hare, and upon it must be impaled the heart of a vampire with Celerity. Last, the final prayers are spoken. The stake sinks into the bottom of the Stave, and all of the blood (and heart) is absorbed into it. The stave is left looking like any old piece of wood. Results: The staff-bearer gains a free die in Melee while using the staff. For one WP, the user may activate the Celerity inherent in the staff, at the level possessed by the person who's heart was stolen. This does not affect running speeds, dodges, etc. - it is only good for attacks with the stave. Lastly, whenever the bottom portion of the stave is pointed at someone, it can eject a wooden stake at the will of the bearer. The stave deals bashing damage when used in combat, though the Stake deals lethal. Staff: Dexterity + Melee, diff. 6, Damage Str+2 Stake-Shot: Dexterity + Melee, diff. 5, Damage 6 [[ Opinions and suggestions on this one are very welcome... I just like the image of Setites and Amenti battling it out with staves and blades in the middle of the desert...heh]]

Snake Guardian (Level 4-6? Ritual)

Much like the Necromancer's zombies, Setites have their own guardians patrolling their Temples and their Havens. These creatures are not easily forged, but when done, are quick and fierce warriors. A fresh corpse must be used for the enacting of this ritual. The Corpse's head is severed, and replaced with that of a large anaconda. The skin and muscle on the fingers are then removed, and the tips of the bones filed to a sharp point. The creature is then bathed in blood and venom, before the final supplications of Set are recited, and the creature is raised. Once raised, the skin takes on a green-red tint, and the flesh

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slowly parts, becoming a series of small, soft, scales. System: The raising is made with an Int + Occult roll, vs. 8. Once completed, the snake guardian is raised. It requires two BP during creation, and must be fed a BP per week to keep ...uh...'alive'. The creature has 7 Health Levels, Strength 1, Stamina 2, Dexterity 5, Intelligence 1, Wits 1, Perception 1(4, when on a scent-based perception test), Charisma 0, Manipulation 0, Appearance 0, Willpower 2. It's scales give it a bonus soak of two dice, and its bone-fingers rake for Str+2 damage. It can spit a venom (Dexterity + Melee, diff. 6, adjusted for range, range : 2 yards) three dice of aggravated damage on a strike, Dodge 5, Brawl 2.

Ra's Hiccup (Level 7 or 8 Ritual)

Followers of Set don't like the sun. So, sometimes, it doesn't rise. Well, not exactly. The Sun still rises, it crosses the sky. There's warmth, light, dawn, noon, evening. There's a sun-rise, and a sun-set. However, the mystical portion of the Sunlight kind of... hiccups. As long as the Ritual continues, it's considered to be mystic 'night' out. Vampires have no urge to sleep during these 'daylight' hours. They're as awake and fresh as ever. Further, they take less damage from sunlight. The damage rolls are made once every hour, instead of once every turn. Most importantly (during times of War, at least) are the repercussions against the Amenti. The Amenti do not regain Sekhem at dawn, as they're used to. There is no real 'dawn'. Further, the Mesektet are constantly asleep. To them, its a constant night. This Ritual is frighteningly simple, once all the preparations have been made. The followers of Set must have four canopic jars prepared, to each of which must be bound a powerful Sun spirit. What's that? How's a Kindred supposed to catch a spirit that can immediately send him into Rotschrek and deal several health levels of aggravated damage a round simply by its presence? Well... no-one said that stopping the sun from rising is a /easy/. Then, the next four canopic jars are prepared. Each one must contain the heart of a Lasombra with at least 5 dots in Obtenebration. In the center of the Setite's temple, an engraving is made upon the floor, in the design of a jagged sun. The sun has eight jagged rays, one in each direction (N, S, NE, SE, etc.). On each cardinal direction is placed a sun-spirit jar, and on each intermediate direction is placed a Lasombra heart jar. In the very center of the circle stands the ritualist. The Ritualist slices each wrist, as he calls out to Set to bless this land. His blood trickles down, filling the circle. It then continues to fill, until the blood traces down the sun-rays. When the blood reaches each of the canopic jars, the jars erupt. The sun spirits attempt to escape, but the darkness of the void (born from the Lasombra jars) overtakes them, and destroys them. The darkness then erupts outwards, spilling in a tangible cloud from the temple, and overtaking a massive area ( for every four points of Essence among the sun spirits, the area covered is one mile in diameter. If between the four spirits there was 40 essence, an area of 10 miles in diameter is covered). The follower that enacted the ritual sinks to his knees, and turns completely to blood (as per Viccisitude 5). He remains the puddle in the sun etching. The effects last until the vampirepuddle is disturbed. System: How the vampires go about collecting the sun-spirits is their own business. They would likely need the aid of a very powerful Tremere. Then again, the Followers capable of casting this rite, are very potent themselves. The etching of the sun design requires a Dexterity + Crafts roll vs. diff 9. A collective 100 successes must be scored, to create the design /perfectly/. Otherwise, the receptacle for the mystic forces is imperfect and ... shudder Feel free to be Lovecraftian in the results. Once the vampire begins to bleed himself, he must fill the puddle with at least 15 BP, to reach all the canopic jars. These must be his /own/ BP - other vampires can not contribute their own vitae. Therefore, this ritual could not possibly be cast by someone of a generation weaker than the Sixth - /if this is being used as an ST tool/. If the ritual is meant to actually be used by PC's, then other PC's ought to be able to contribute blood, or even use a sacrifice instead of the caster himself. If this ritual is being used as an ST tool, then at this point, everything is complete, and the ritual is success. If being used by players, the Caster rolls his [highest] rating in Thaumaturgy vs. a diff. of 9. One success means that everything goes off without a hitch. Failure means that when the vampire becomes a puddle of blood, he can not reform himself. A botch...heheehhe. Once the Vampire becomes a puddle of blood, he can not reform without ruining the ritual. This means he remains a puddle for as long as the ritual is meant to last. He will continue to lose 1 BP a night - and if the pool should ever fall beneath 15 BP, the ritual falters. The ritualist must depend on his followers to deposit blood in the pool every night, for him to ingest.

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