Lux Arcana
By Corwyn Alambar (cja8174@runt.ca.boeing.com)
Description
Created by the delvings of Melchior and Nalchik into the nature of Vampirism, this Discipline is about the knowledge and control of light in all its forms. Only one other vampire has ever known this discipline, though nothing prevents it from being taught.
* Eyes of Milk
For one blood point, this ability allows the character to adjust immediately to any change in light, thereby rendering her immune to any effects that blind by sudden brilliance. The duration is for one scene
** Luna's Torch
For one blood point, the character may cause his hand to glow in a soft, silvery light, like that of the moon. The glow is relatively indistinct, barely sufficient to read by, and it can be turned off at will. The effect lasts ten minutes per level in Lux Arcana.
*** Flash of Inspiration
The character can create a sudden flash of brilliance that will blind the unprotected. Spend one blood point, and make a resisted roll, Lux Arcana + Wits (Diff 6) vs. Perception + Dodge (Diff 6). The number of net successes by the character is the number of turns the target is blinded.
**** Cloak of Darkness
By spending one blood point, the character may create a sphere of total darkness around herself, to a maximum range of 10' per level in Lux Arcana. The effect lasts for 10 minutes per success rolled on Perception + Lux Arcana, Diff 7. Sunlight from any source will burn through this protection in one turn.
***** Shield of Light
By spending two blood points, the character creates a shield of light, equivalent to the light of the moon. The shield has a number of health levels equal to twice the number of successes on Lux Arcana + Stamina (Diff 7), and two health levels of damage may be regenerated for each blood point the character spends. Characters facing the Shield of Light suffer +1 Difficult on all melee attacks, and the defending character may use the shield to Parry or Block an attack (Dexterity + Brawl, Diff 7). The attack does its full damage, but to the shield. If the shield takes damage in excess of its capacity, it immediately vanishes, but no damage gets through to the character. Note that the shield does not affect area of effect attacks (such as explosions), nor does it offer any kind of protection from sunlight or fire. The effect lasts for one scene, until consciously dispelled, or damaged in excess of its capacity.
****** Touch of Shadow
By spending 3 blood points, the character becomes a wispy, shadowy thing. He can only be hurt by aggravated damage, fire, sunlight, or any light brighter than the moon (Stamina + Lux Arcana, Diff 8, 3 or more successes, or take one health level in damage, rolled each turn). The character's hands do normal damage against living things, and all such damage is aggravated.Additionally, the character may use this ability to melt into shadows. This takes a full turn during which the character can do nothing else. To emerge from the shadows requires two turns of uninterrupted concentration.
If the character elects to end the effect while in shadows, or if a bright enough source is brought in that there are no continuous shadows left that equal the character's silhouette in size, the character immediately takes one aggravated wound, is expelled in normal form, and cannot act for (5-Stamina + Lux Arcana, Diff 8) turns without expending a point of willpower per action.
******* Celestial Light
Using this ability, and spending two blood points, allows the character to cross the Gauntlet into the Umbra. Here the character has a body made totally of light (very similar to the shadow form for Touch of Shadow, above). Return from the Umbra requires only a single success on Lux Arcana + Wits, Diff 9.
******** Sword of Light
This ability allows the character to create a force of light, shaped like a single hand to hand weapon. The ability costs two blood points, and lasts for one strike per success on Lux Arcana + Stamina, Diff 7.When this blade damages a foe, the character may spend one blood point to make the damage inflicted aggravated. This causes a small flash of intense light to burst from the point where the sword meets the flesh of the victim, potentially blinding others in the area.
********* Light of the Sun
This is one of the fabled abilities of ancient vampires to walk in broad daylight. Any vampire with this level of Lux Arcana can walk in open daylight, and is immune to Rotschreck.This ability also allows the vampire to use light created under earlier effects to be the equivalent of sunlight, at a cost of one blood point per level of the effect, minimum cost of four blood. The effect will spontaneously go away after five minutes, and cannot be used again until the next sunrise. Thus, Luna's Torch becomes Helios's Torch, at a cost of five blood points, while a Sword of Sunlight would cost seven blood for five minutes.
********** Night Stalker
This ability allows the character to become a shadowy form, a spectre. Similar to the ability under Touch of Shadow, the character is no longer damaged by sunlight, nor by regular, high-intensity light. The character still does damage as normal, but has all Disciplines available, and may bite a victim as normal.The character may merge with shadows while in this form, and is not forcibly expelled if the shadows go away; the character may squeeze under boxes, and even move up to 100' to get into another shadow.
It costs five blood points to go into this form, and it will last until the next sunrise, or until the character elects to end the effect, whichever is shorter. It costs five blood to activate.