By Duncan J. Wilson (djwilson@tcp.co.uk)
In order to attempt to counter this inbalance in power at the time, the Weaver attempted many strategies; one of these was Leviathan. It was created as a spiritual entity which could create minor realms under its control and extend it's influence from there to help its servants on Earth. Its purpose was to help the humans break free of the vampires. It failed.
Shortly after it's creation, it was attacked by the forces of the Wyrm and then the Wyld. It was believed to have been destroyed and the Weaver eventually broke the power of the Second City by creating internal discord among the kindred.
Leviathan did, in fact, survive the attacks, but only just. It took many centuries to reform itself and many more to gain any sought of power. However, it had been permanently tainted by the Wyrm and Wyld, and its goals had altered significantly. It now believed that the major source of chaos in the world was the flesh, and those pleasures associated with it. It believed that humans should be able to ascend to a higher state, where they could bring order to their flesh, and replace pleasure with pain, a more clinical and ordered sensation.
During its years of rebuilding, Leviathan developed a method of allowing its followers to achieve the required state of being. This method involved carving a pattern into the flesh and/or soul of the being so that Leviathan could empower them. This pattern was different everytime and was named a Lament Configuration.
During the time of the Roman Empire, Leviathan re-emerged from its slumber. It had created several realms (Malkuths) from which it could extend its influence and a group of beings to help it called the Cenobites. It utilized a series of keys (Kethers) to allow the Cenobites to summon more humans. These either become servants on Earth or 'worshippers', turned into Pillars of Nephesch or consigned to their own personal Hells.
Leviathan quietly grew in strength due to the power absorbed from its 'worshippers' and slowly extended its influence. However, it quickly realized that all the other powers had taken over the Earth and, afraid that it would suffer the same fate as before, decided that it should try to limit its expansion so that it could remain relatively unnoticed by everything else. This has remained the same up until the current time.
All the servants have their own set of rules. Leviathan was created by the Weaver and hence is bound by a sense of order. The influence of the Wyld has meant that this manifests as a series of rules laid down to its servants. The amount of laws given to the highest ranks of cenobites, the Magister and Geburah, are so conflicting and numerous that it needs a warped intellect to be able to survive day to day without breaking Hell's rules.
Malkuths are powered by the suffering of those inside. It will house many Pillars of Nephesch (see later) that fuel Leviathan. There will also be a number of personal hells. Those who have annoyed the Magister will have a part of the Malkuth dedicated to making their existences as sweet as possible for the attendant Cenobites.
Every Malkuth appears very different. They are formed by the ruling Magister in whatever image she wishes and she can change it at any time. They all, though, have a highly oppressive atmosphere, giving the impression of suffering to all those who visit it. However, due to the type of being chosen to be a Magister, they also tend to be arranged in a logical manner.
At the centre is Leviathan. The particular appearance of Leviathan will normally bear a resemblance to the style of Kether employed by the ruling Magister. To make sure that all the attendant Cenobites are fulfilling their duties, Leviathan absorbs all their memories whenever they are near its presence. It returns those which it approves of the most to act as guidance for the future. Although this is extremely distressing for any visitors, Cenobites actually enjoy the procedure because they get to relive their greatest triumphs purified of any extraneous background.
The Malkuth not only powers Leviathan, but also the very realm. The power is represented by two factors. First, all Ruachs within the Malkuth will have a reduced power cost, from -1 to -10 depending on the power of the Malkuth. Also, half the power cost reduction is also a bonus modifier to the skill roll for the Ruach. It is very dangerous to take on the Cenobites on their own turf.
The only standard way in to these realms is either by locating it within the Deep Umbra, or by activating a Kether. Kethers are held by the Berashith who serve the particular Magister. Each Kether can take on any form, though they usually stay in one particular fashion for some time. They can only be solved by a desire to open them. They take the form of a puzzle designed to bring out the attribute less used out of the two Leviathan desires, Pain and Order. For those seeking new sensations, in could be a complex mental puzzle such as a puzzle box; for a crossword buff it could be a simple puzzle with clues designed to make him commit acts of suffering eg 1 down: the taste of flesh. No matter the design, it is only when the desire is strong enough that the Kether opens.
It may take a long time to open a Kether, but once open there is a path from the being to the Malkuth until the puzzle is unsolved. While this path is open, any Cenobite may open a gate from the Malkuth to enjoy the being. It is possible that more than one person is in the area while the gate is open. Leviathan has many complex and conflicting rules about which of these may be taken as well. Many a hunter has believed she knew how to get around the Cenobites only to find she was mistaken, and paid the ultimate price, fueling Leviathan.
There is only one way to escape from a Malkuth. A physical representation of suffering must make contact with something of value to the captured being, which is usually the place where she made the leap to the Malkuth. The most strong willed have been known to send visions to those close to them in order for this to happen, but that is only if they are in a hell rather than consigned to a Pillar.
Even once escaped, there are problems. There is always a taint on the being due to her capture and torture, though this changes with the escape so it is more difficult to track down. Also, if they have been consigned to a Pillar, then there is no body for them to escape in, and one must be created by repeating what happened to allow the initial escape.
There are five patterns that form the Ruach gained from a Lament Configuration, and five powers contained within each pattern except for Magisters and Geburah, who have the Core Pattern at a higher level and can use the higher Ruach's.
All the Ruach's should be personalised for the specific follower. The Cenobites have a great presence and style about them, and their powers should refect this. To take Pinhead as an example everyone should be familiar with; his Rending the Flesh is the fish hooks on chains; his flesh has been sculpted in the classic gridded head; he insists that all his Cenobites adopt a blue skin; whenever an equivalent of Leaving the Realm is done in the films, you see the lights penetrating the slats in the walls. These all add to the personality of Pinhead, and any Followers created should have an equally personal style.
| Table 1 | |
|---|---|
| Successes | Duration |
| 1 | 5 minutes |
| 2 | 1 hour |
| 3 | 1 day |
| 4 | 3 days |
| 5 | 1 week |
| 6 | 1 month |
| 7 | 3 months |
| 8 | 1 year |
| 9 | 10 years |
| 10 | Permanent |
| Table 2 | |
|---|---|
| Successes | Duration |
| 1 | 1 round |
| 2 | 5 rounds |
| 3 | 1 scene |
| 4 | 1 hour |
| 5 | 3 hours |
| 6 | 1 day |
| 7 | 1 week |
| 8 | 1 month |
| 9 | 3 months |
| 10 | 1 year |
| Aura of Local Area | -2 to +2 |
| Distraction | +1 |
| Extra Time | -1 to -2 |
This allows the power to be gained. The follower absorbs the suffering from those around him; for example 'helping out' at a car wreck. A skill roll is made every hour, at a difficulty given by the Storyteller depending on the extent of suffering surrounding the Follower at the time. Every success refuels the Shivadarshana by one a point of power.
This removes the wound penalties from the Follower (See later). The penalties are only there due to the flesh being unable to perform its functions. This places a configuration over the flesh so that if the flesh is weak, the configuration will perform instead. This will appear very strange for some wounds, even filling in a portion of arm to connect a hand to the rest of the body.
Every thing that is the Follower is contained within the Configuration carved into her. This Ruach lets power flow into the configuration to boost the attributes of the Follower. The skill roll is diff. 6, every succ. providing a +1 to an attribute of the Follower's choice.
The Follower can now refuel her Shivadarshana directly by torturing a being, and absorbing its suffering directly. The skill roll is 8 for no permanent harm to the being, 6 for a permanent derangement, and 4 for death to the being; this can be modified for extra time spent, or if the Follower has to hurry. Every succ. refuels three points.
Power can be given to an area to give it the property of a Malkuth in reducing the cost of Ruach by giving it an aura of suffering. For every 5 spent, the area has 10m radius and a reduction in cost of 1. For every 10 spent, the area also has a -1 modifier to all Ruach skill rolls. The skill roll is dif. 6 to enable the suffering to stay in the area rather than dispursing.
This Ruach allows the Follower to scan the mind and body of a being. It can allow study of an aura, emotional patterns and anything unusual about the body. It finds Awakened beings, spells on bodies, taints of Wyrm, Weaver or Wyld and most other effects. Its main use is for assessing potential 'worshippers,' to see if they are fit for the task, though also very useful for general spying. The detail of infomation is dependent on the number of succ., and the difficulty is 6 normally, though the Storyteller may modify it. It takes the form of an enhancement of the Followers vision.
The Follower can now start to affect other minds. She can implant suggestions, or charm someone. The duration and strength of the effect are variable. The Follower states the effect she is trying for, then the Storyteller assigns a difficulty for the skill roll; 3 succ. are required for the effect given. For example, a minor charm on a doorkeeper in order to gain admittance is dif. 4, whereas the same effect on a bank manager would need to last a scene, so is diff.6. This is resisted by willpower diff. 8.
The Follower can now affect her own mind to such an extent that she can concentrate on multiple items at the same time. Every succ. on a skill roll dif. 6 grants the Follower an extra item of thought. This can allow multiple Ruach's to be utilised in the same round, though every action is simultaneous, and so they cannot be dependent on each other.
The Follower is able to invade another beings thoughts. The diff. is 6 for the skill roll, resisted by the opponents willpower diff. 8. The number of successes scored over the opponent determines the depth of invasion from surface thoughts (1 succ.) to complete knowledge of the opponents entire memory,(5 succ.) and even knowledge of the subconsciosness and past lives (10 succ.).
The Follower can alter people's thoughts. This can vary from placing illusions in people's perceptions, altering their dreams, destroying their memories and even altering their natures. The difficulty is completely up to the discretion of the Storyteller, and is resisted by the person's willpower dif. 8.
The Follower can begin to sculpt her own flesh into something more satisfying for her. This can include slight tattoos on the shoulders or removing a scar on the hip, up to replacing the eye with a video camera, or severing the vocal cords with barbed wire. This only ever has a cosmetic effect in game terms, so that the voice is no different and the Follower could not see in infra-red with the camera. The skill roll is at a dificulty set by the Storyteller, though good, original ideas should be rewarded by lower dificulties. A few succ. will mean that something is slightly wrong with the sculpture, whereas a failure means the attempt was aborted and a botch is left to the Storyteller.
This allows the Follower to reform any wounds that she has taken. The skill roll is diff. 6 for normal, diff. 8 for aggravated. Multiple attempts may be made to heal the same wound, though each successive one is at a +1. Each success heals 1 wound level. Botches cause the aggravated damage equal to the no. of ones.
The Follower can create another image which she can change into, swapping between forms as long as the Ruach lasts. The skill roll is dif. 6 for a standard form, diff. 7-9 for unusual forms (werewolf, bird) and diff. 10 for a copying someone else's image, though rough approximation are easier. The difficulty of all Ruach's while in the altered form is increased by 2 due to a warped Lament Configuration.
The Follower can warp her configuration so quickly that it can ignore damage eg. when Pinhead spits out the bullets in Hell on Earth. The skill roll is dif.6 for normal and dif. 8 for aggravated or mental, each success preventing one point of damage.
The Follower can slowly warp flesh so that she can create a Qlipoth. The rules are left completely up to the player and Storyteller involved, although rules are given later for standard Qlipoth. The Follower can also perform the above Transformation of the Flesh on another being now.
The Follower can taint a being or object with a Weaver taint. The taint is subtly different from standard so other followers will recognize individual taints. All Kethers are tainted, as are potential 'worshippers'.
The Follower can allow herself and others to experience the joy of pain better. The skill roll is dif. 4-8 depending on range (touch: close range:Line of sight:nearby:within a few miles) and resisted by willpower diff.8 if the subject is unwilling. For each succ. scored over the opponent, she has one extra wound penalty.
The Follower has the ability to damage opponents at range. The skill roll is diff equal to Enhance the Sensation, each success causing one wound level of damage which can be soaked.
The Follower has the ability to alter the flesh of an opponent according to Leviathan's designs. In an instant, the Follower can corrupt the flesh of an opponent. On a skill roll diff. as Scarring the Flesh, resisted by Stamina dif. 6, each succ. lowers one Physical attribute of opponent by one, chosen by Follower. If given time, the Follower can mould the Flesh as per Flesh Sculpture except on the opponent. The Follower can also perform a specific Flesh Scupture to create a Reformation of Flesh on someone else
This is a higher level equivalent of Scarring the Flesh. It works the same except damage is either aggravated or times 3.
The Follower can see remote places or items in the world she is currently occupying. The number of succ. gives the amount of detail seen. The diff. for seeing beings is 6, modified by arcane and obfuscate, for items set by the Storyteller and for places dependent on the distance 4-10(as per Scarring the Flesh:within 100 miles:this realm). A modifier of bonus of 1 to 3 can be applied for familiarity with that being visualised. To see a taint known to the Follower, it diff 5.
The Follower has gained the ability to travel across the world. A skill roll is made dif 4-8 depending on the familiarity of the place the caster is travelling to or 5 for a specific place in relation to a known taint. This opens up a passage to the location. Only Phrixus, Berashith and Cenobite Geburah may use this Ruach.
Now the Follower can control the part of the Realm near her. This includes creating illusions, moving objects, closing and locking doors etc. For moving objects Str is taken to be Int, and Wits is Dex. All other effects should be based on appropriate Attributes and Abilities. The skill roll is dif. 6 for around her, dif 8 for an area she is visualising, succ. times 10m is the radius of area that can be affected.
This works the same as Transversing the Realm except this opens bridges between worlds. It only opens bridges between adjacent worlds e.g. Earth and Near Umbra, Near Umbra and Horizon Realm or Deep Umbra. The Malkuth of her Magister is always considered adjacent. Only Phrixus, Berashith and Cenobite Geburah may use this Ruach.
This is a very powerful effect which co-locates an area 10mx10m around the Follower with the Malkuth of the Follower's Magister. Within this area, all benefits of being within the Malkuth apply, and the inhabitants of the Malkuth may use this gate to explore and help the Follower though they are dragged back as soon as the effect ends. Only Phrixus, Berashith and Cenobite Geburah may use this Ruach.
This enables the Magister to capture the destroyed soul of a worshipper inside a prison, usually a pillar adorned with personal items of the worshipper such as the flesh of his face. It is these, along with the suffering of the special few in their personal hells, that fuels the Malkuths, and in turn Leviathan itself.
This marks the time when a Magister gains final control over the Malkuth. This Ruach enables the Magister to carve the Lament Configuration herself, instead of Leviathan performing the task. It is an extremely difficult task, and only the most trusted Magisters are allowed to use this Ruach.
This creates a miniature Malkuth in which a being is imprisonned. The suffering of the being itself is what fuels the Malkuth. These have some form of outward physical presence and can only be escaped in the same way as escaping a Malkuth. They have a Kether attached to the outside which sends the being to an appropriate Malkuth in case she escapes.
This is the ultimate gift to a Geburah. They not only fight Leviathan's battles, but also enforce its rules. This Ruach has the capability of destroying or removing the Lament Configuration carved into a being. If destruction is the attempt, the skill roll at diff. 6 is resisted by willpower diff. 8 as an extended roll. If the Geburah attains 10 succ. without botching or failing, the Configuration is destroyed and the being returns to what it originally was. If the Configuration is removed, only 5 succ. are required. The being and his Cenobite form are separated, resulting in the most pure Cenobites known. The being is normally killed, though they have been known to return as wraiths.
If it is listed that the character has immunity, this is due to Leviathan intervening and gifting the character type this ability. Almost nothing can damage the character. The two exceptions are Weaver creations and Supernatural effects. Anything which is considered by the Weaver a supernatural effect will be allowed to effect the character, though it will not do aggravated damage. The interpretation of this is left up to the Storyteller, as the characters may well not be aware what can effect them. It is suggested that only vulgar magick can hurt them, as Leviathan would not be aware that it is supernatural and that a werewolf's punch would not hurt them, but a rake with her claws would.
The other exception is that nothing purely of the Weaver is protected against, though the character could still soak. The Weaver placed this ruling in Leviathan when constructed, and it has not been over-ruled yet. This does not include those with the Weaver taint, but those that escaped from the Pillars of Nephesch have completely reconstructed their bodies and so are completely Weaver constructs. There is a tale of an escapee who re-entered Hell armed with a pistol containing bullets made out of his own little finger bones, as these could hurt the Cenobites.
The other immunity granted is that nothing can affect the mind except to hurt it. Leviathan does not want his Followers dissuaded from their tasks.
The Followers of Leviathan are unnatural creatures. They do not require food or drink, though they can partake. Their bodies need no external sustenance at all, including oxygen. Their bodies do not function as human beings, though they do take damage from extreme pressure, heat and cold. As there are no chemical reactions normally happening in a Followers body, they appear slightly cool to the touch.
| Ruach | 6 per dot |
| Ruach Skill | 1 per dot |
| Shivadarshana | 1 per 3 dots |
| Attributes | 5 per dot |
| Abilities | 2 per dot |
| Willpower | 1 per dot |
| Background | 1 per dot |
| Attributes | 7/5/3 |
| Abilities | 13/9/5 |
| Backgrounds | 5 |
| Ruach | 4 |
| Ruach Skills | 15 |
| Shivadarshana | 10 |
| Freebie points | 20 |
Manifestation Form
| Attibutes | 10/8/6 | Abilities | 15 in total |
The rest the same as for the standard form.
Wound Levels 0/0/0/-1/-1/-2/-5 | 0/0/0/0/-1/destroyed
Maximum Attribute and Ability scores when unenhanced is 5 dots, and the maximum Ruach Skill is 10 dots.
The Phrixus and Berashith live on Earth. They remember their former lives and continue to live some form of lives on Earth while serving their Magister, though the goals set for each individual follower vary widely. They are told whatever is necessary by their Magister, who can open a mind link with them at anytime.
If they take enough damage to be taking below the -5 wound penalty, they become their manisfestation form, eg at the end of the first film the Berashith who guarded Kirsty's Kether retrieved it from the fire and become a skeletal winged demon. This form is under the direct control of Leviathan. It has immunity, and may not attack anything. It should fulfill as much of its task as possible and return to the Malkuth. It has the ability to cross realm boundaries and go straight to the Malkuth. Only a Magister can resemble the original form once a Follower has reverted to manifestation form, and unless they can return using their own powers, they must wait for a gate to be created either by a Kether, or by someone summoning the Malkuth.
If the Follower is still in the original form and takes enough damage that this would wrap around and destroy the manifestation form as well, then they never become the manifestation form, and are utterly destroyed.
| Attributes | 10/8/6 |
| Abilities | 10/7/4 |
| Backgrounds | 0 |
| Ruach | 0 |
| Ruach Skills | 0 |
| Shivadarshana | 0 |
| Freebie points | 20 |
Wound Levels 0/0/0/-1/-1/-2/destroyed
Maximum Attribute and Ability scores when unenhanced is 5 dots.
A Qlipoth is a created guard. They are enslaved to their creator and have no function in life except to serve. They do not have immunity. They can have any form, limited only to the imagination of the creator which, since this is a Cenobite, normally results in warped creations at best.
| Attributes | 10/8/6 |
| Abilities | 13/9/5 |
| Backgrounds | 0 |
| Ruach | 6 |
| Ruach Skills | 25 |
| Shivadarshana | 20 |
| Freebie points | 25 |
Maximum Attribute and Ability scores when unenhanced are 7, with a maximum Ruach Skill of 15 dots.
Wound Levels 0/0/0/-1/-1/-2/-2/5/destroyed
Cenobite Cheza are created by the Cenobite Magister to aid in running the Malkuth. They have immunity, and can contact the Magister via a mental link whenever they wish. They have their memories wiped of everything when they become Cenobites, though some have been known to remember their previous lives. It is very rare for a Cenobite Cheza to leave the Malkuth except through the Kether gates to welcome a new worshipper.
| Attributes | 15/12/8 |
| Abilities | 20/15/10 |
| Backgrounds | 0 |
| Ruach | 12 |
| Ruach Skills | 50 |
| Shivadarshana | 50 |
| Freebie points | 50 |
| Attributes | 13/10/8 |
| Abilities | 22/17/12 |
| Backgrounds | 0 |
| Ruach | 15 |
| Ruach Skills | 60 |
| Shivadarshana | 50 |
| Freebie points | 25 |
Maximum Attribute and Ability scores when unenhanced are 10, with a maximum Ruach Skill of 20 dots.
Wound Levels 0/0/0/0/-1/-1/-2/-2/-3/-5/destroyed
These Cenobites are created by Leviathan. It will interfere in the running of a Malkuth temporarily in order to create a Geburah. No Magister has any say in who becomes a Geburah. No particular Malkuth is the home of a Geburah, though they often inhabit particular realms temporarily. These are the soldiers and enforcers of Leviathan. They are granted immunity and may mentally converse with the whole of Leviathan as they require. They answer to no-one except Leviathan.
If anyone has any comments and suggestions on how to improve this system, or even simply how the Cenobites worked in their game, please let me know. My email is djwilson@tcp.co.uk
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FOLLOWER OF LEVIATHAN
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Name: Nature: Magister:
Player: Demeanor: Malkuth:
Chronicle: Concept: Type:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PHYSICAL SOCIAL MENTAL
Strength________|___ Charisma_________|___ Perception_______|___
Dexterity_______|___ Manipulation_____|___ Intelligence_____|___
Stamina_________|___ Appearance_______|___ Wits_____________|___
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TALENTS SKILLS KNOWLEDGES
Alertness_______|___ Drive____________|___ Computer_________|___
Athletics_______|___ Etiquette________|___ Cosmology________|___
Brawl___________|___ Firearms_________|___ Culture__________|___
Dodge___________|___ Meditation_______|___ Enigmas__________|___
Empathy_________|___ Melee____________|___ Investigation____|___
Inimidation_____|___ Music____________|___ Law______________|___
Intuition_______|___ Repair___________|___ Linguistics______|___
Leadership______|___ Security_________|___ Medicine_________|___
Streetwise______|___ Stealth__________|___ Occult___________|___
Subterfuge______|___ Torture__________|___ Science__________|___
Secondary Abilities:
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
________________|___ _________________|___ _________________|___
RUACH SKILLS
__________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___
__________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___
__________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___
__________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___
__________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___ __________|___
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RUACHS BACKGROUNDS COMBAT
Core____________|___ _________________|___ Weapon |Diff.|Dam.
Mind____________|___ _________________|___ __________|_____|___
Flesh___________|___ _________________|___ __________|_____|___
Remote__________|___ _________________|___ __________|_____|___
Realms__________|___ _________________|___ HEALTH
_________________|___ Healthy
SHIVADARSHANA (___) _________________|___ Bruised O
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO _________________|___ Hurt O
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO _________________|___ Injured O
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO _________________|___ Wounded -1 O
MERITS/FLAWS___________________________________ Mauled -1 O
_______________________________________________ Crippled -2 O
_______________________________________________ Incapacitated -5 O
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________ WILLPOWER (___)
_______________________________________________ OOOOOOOOOO