Maple Shade Tactics

New Tactics: When first performing a newly purchased Tactic, the cell receives a -3 penalty. If successful, this penalty goes away. If unsuccessful, the penalty reduces by 1 each time thereafter it is unsuccessfully performed, until the cell gains a success or reduces the penalty to 0.

Exorcism

Exorcism is a type of group abjuration, involving the use of one of any number of cultural techniques. It is atropopaic in nature, invoking the power of a supernatural entity's banes to effectively drive the entity out of a given place (including bodies it may have possessed). In order to perform an Exorcism, a cell must know at least one bane of the entity in question. It is possible for a single hunter to perform an Exorcism, but many often employ assistants to focus concentration and faith to solidify the Exorcism as it is performed.

Prerequisites

• Bane: The cell must use a sample of an appropriate type of bane for the entity involved. Discovering this is usually a set of Research rolls.
• All: Composure 2, Resolve 2; Occult 2
• Primary Actor: Integrity 7+, Occult 3 or Occult 2 (Possession or Religion)

Requires

• At least one actor.
• May include up to four secondary actors.
• More than four secondary actors inflict a -3 penalty to primary actor.

Dice Pool & Action Type

• Secondary Actors: Instant Action • Resolve + Occult • Must spend 1 Willpower.
• Primary Actor: Opposed Action • Resolve + Composure vs entity's Power + Resistance

Modifiers

• Low Integrity (All): Integrity 1 (-5), Integrity 2 (-4), Integrity 3 (-3), Integrity 4 (-2), Integrity 5 (-1)
• High Integrity (All): Integrity 10 (+3), Integrity 9 (+2), Integrity 8 (+1)
• Ritual Used: If the ritual ties into the abjurer's Virtue (+2); if it ties into the abjurer's Vice (-2)
• Esoteric Gear: Exorcism supplies (•• - •••, +1 - +2, primary actor)

Results (Secondary Actors)

• Dramatic Failure: Lose another Willpower point, and gain the Disquieted Condition.
• Failure: Add no successes to the primary actor's dice pool.
• Success: Add a number of dice equal to successes rolled to the primary actor's dice pool.
• Exceptional Success: Add a number of dice equal to successes rolled, and gain the Steadfast Condition.

Results (Primary Actor)

• Dramatic Failure: You not only fail to exorcise the entity, but its evil rips through your spirit. All participants gain the Cowed Condition. Additionally, this spiritual corruption manifests in the exorcists' bodies as well: every participant takes one point of damage, and then a pool of damage equal to the entity's net successes is divided up among participants, one at a time, starting with lowest Integrity characters. This damage is bashing for Rank 1-2 entities, lethal for Rank 3-5 entities, and aggravated for Rank 6+ entities.
• Failure: You fail to abjure the entity. You gain the Frustrated Condition for the purpose of trying again, as well as taking a single point of damage (per above).
• Success: The entity is successfully abjured. Its Manifestation Conditions are excised and it cannot attempt to re-establish them for one day per success.
• Exceptional Success: Regain Willpower as though you'd fulfilled the conditions for your Virtue. In addition, the banishment lasts for one week per success, and the primary actor is considered to be a bane for the entity for one day per success.

Moral Support

A monster might be able to tear a man’s arm off or bite through his throat, but the truly terrifying ones are those that can control his thoughts and feelings. Hunters have long been aware that many creatures of the World of Darkness can do this sort of thing — some even cause memory loss by their very presence. The Moral Support Tactic, hopefully enacted before it becomes an issue, gives a cell some protection against this kind of attack.

The secondary actors exchange words of encouragement and support, psyching each other up, as it were. The primary actor then says a few words to the cell: last-minute advice, reminders about Tactics, or just an admonition to “kill the bastards.” The cell can then enter a dangerous situation knowing that the members have each other’s backs. While this isn’t a foolproof method of preventing infiltration or mind manipu- lation, it’s certainly better than nothing.

Prerequisites

• All: Resolve 2, Empathy 1.
• Primary Actor: Presence or Manipulation 3, Empathy 2.

Requires

• At least two actors.
• As many actors as are in the cell may participate.

Dice Pool & Action Type

• Secondary Actors: Instant Action • Wits + Expression or Intimidation
• Primary Actor: Instant Action • Manipulation or Presence + Empathy

Modifiers

Modifiers apply to both primary and secondary checks unless noted otherwise.

• Length of Association: more than 3 months (+1), more than six months (+3), more than a year (+5)
• Victories: last hunt was a victory (+1), last hunt was a defeat (-1)
• Leadership: Primary actor is the acknowledged leader of group (+1 to primary), primary actor is not the acknowledged leader (-1)
• Membership: Member of the cell has died within the last month (-3 per member), member of the cell has become a monster or otherwise betrayed the cell within the last month (-5 per member)

Results (Secondary Actors)

• Dramatic Failure: Your efforts betray your fears and get the best of you. You take the Demoralized Condition.
• Failure: You gain no benefit from the tactic, even if the primary actor is successful.
• Success: You bolster everyone around you and benefit from the camaraderie. The primary actor gains one bonus die from you, and you benefit from the primary actor's successes.
• Exceptional Success: You hyper yourself and those around you; in addition to adding two bonus dice to the primary actor's roll and gaining benefit from their successes, you also gain the Steadfast Condition.

Results (Primary Actor)

• Dramatic Failure: The cell is demoralized. Everyone gains the Demoralized Condition. If a character already has that condition, they instead gain the Shaken Condition.
• Failure: The cell simply isn't in sync, and gains no benefits.
• Success: During the upcoming hunt, each member of the cell has a pool of points equal to the successes generated on the check. These points can be spent to increase Resolve and Composure by 1 dot per point spent for the purpose of resistance rolls against supernatural or otherwise demoralizing social effects.
• Exceptional Success: In addition to the effects from a success, points may also be spent to increase Defense. Each member of the cell also recovers a point of Willpower.

Territorial Recon

Cost: 3 Practical Experiences

Whether or not the cell wants to try to take a territory for its own, it’s important to know the details of a given area that goes beyond what a travel guide might say. This Tactic assumes that the hunters want to do a little recon to learn the “facts on the ground” regarding a given domain.

The secondary actors work the area from a Social approach. It’s a lot about asking questions but keeping those questions from raising suspicions. Ultimately, they’re not interrogating the people, just poking around, seeing if any hooks and seeds are exposed. Anything weird going on? Where go the local teens hang out? Any problems recently? Maybe they pretend to be local reporters, or just start up some small talk at a bus stop.

Whatever they learn, they feed back to the primary actor, who is in a central location (usually in front of a computer, maybe even at the local library), doing research. He’s specifically going beyond the normal avenues of information and trying to dig deep through archives, newspapers, diaries and the like, trying to hone in on certain things that the second- ary actors were told out in the domain itself.

Prerequisites

• All: Wits 2
  • Research Lead: Academics 3 or Academics 2 (Research) or Investigation 3
  • Research Assistants: Academics 2 or Investigation 2
  • Information Gatherers: Socialize 2 or Streetwise 2

Requires

• At least two actors: one to gather information as a Secondary actor, and another to collate and research information as the Primary actor. There is no limit to the number of Secondary actors who may contribute.

Dice Pool & Action Type

• All: Extended Action (one roll per day) • Intelligence + Academics
• Secondary Actors: Extended Action (one roll per day) • Manipulation + Socialize or Manipulation + Streetwise

Modifiers

• Library: An Academics-focused Library Merit adds its rating to this Tactic, and is required. Typical municipality records access is usually simply a 0 or even up to a -3 penalty.
• Locality: Secondary actors are locals or fit in with population (+1 – +3); Secondary actors obviously stick out or are unwelcome (-1 – -3)

Results (Information Gatherers)

• Dramatic Failure: You unfortunately tip your hand with a significant gaffe. If there are monsters in the area, they learn about you snooping around, and you gain the Hunted Condition
• Failure: Nothing turns up. If this is the second Failure you've achieved during this extended test, take the Frustrated Condition.
• Success: Some useful information is uncovered. Add one die per success to the Primary actor's check.
• Exceptional Success: You find some very sympathetic locals who take a strong liking to you. In addition to adding your successes to the Primary actor's roll as normal, gain the Connected Condition for the local population.

Results (Research Assistants)

• Dramatic Failure: You are at an impasse! You cannot seem to make heads or tails of the information. You can no longer assist in this use of the Tactic.
• Failure: You don't manage to piece together the information in a useful or meaningful way. Accrue no successes in your investigation.
• Success: Add your successes as dice to the Research Lead's next check.
• Exceptional Success: A breakthrough! Not only do you add your successes as dice to the Research Lead's next check, but you also take the Informed Condition relating to the neighborhood being investigated.

Results (Research Lead)

• Dramatic Failure: You are at an impasse! You cannot seem to make heads or tails of the information. You must end the investigation here, unless you take the Fixated Condition
• Failure: You don't manage to piece together the information in a useful or meaningful way. Accrue no successes in your investigation.
• Success: You accrue successes toward your investigation into the local area. For each success, chose one detail in one of the following categories:
  • First Success: This pinpoints the General Modifiers and Important Locations for that neighborhood.
  • Control: Who controls the neighborhood?
  • Influential People: Who are the important people in the neighborhood?
  • Control Conditions: What must be done for the cell to take control of the neighborhood?
  • Assets: What does the cell get out of controlling the neighborhood?
  • Liabilities: What are the downsides to running the neighborhood?
• Exceptional Success: A breakthrough! Not only do you add your successes to the current investigation, but you also take the Informed Condition relating to the neighborhood being investigated.

Warding

Warding involves the use of one of any number of cultural techniques. It is atropopaic in nature, invoking the power of a supernatural entity's banes to effectively turn the location in question into a ban for the spirit: in essence, the place becomes forbidden to that type of spirit, by virtue of its nature. In order to perform a Warding, a cell must know at least one bane of the entity in question. It is possible for a single hunter to perform a Warding, but many often employ assistants to focus concentration and faith to solidify the Warding as it is laid.

Prerequisites

• Bane: The cell must use a sample of an appropriate type of bane for the entity involved. Discovering this is usually a set of Research rolls.
• All: Composure 2, Resolve 2.
• Primary Actor: Occult 2

Requires

• At least one actor.
• May include up to four secondary actors.
• More than four secondary actors inflict a -3 penalty to primary actor.

Dice Pool & Action Type

• Secondary Actors: Instant Action (Time based on size of area) • Resolve + Composure • Must spend 1 Willpower.
• Primary Actor: Instant Action (Time based on size of area) • Presence + Occult

Modifiers

• Low Integrity (All): Integrity 1 (-5), Integrity 2 (-4), Integrity 3 (-3), Integrity 4 (-2), Integrity 5 (-1)
• High Integrity (All): Integrity 10 (+3), Integrity 9 (+2), Integrity 8 (+1)
• Supernatural Resistance (All): Penalty equal to Rank or Supernatural Potency of entity
• Area Warded (Primary Actor): Small area, max 6' across (+1, 1 Turn) • Small apartment or a few rooms (+0, 10 minutes) • Two story building or many rooms (-1, 1 hour)
• Esoteric Gear: Protective amulets & charms (••, +1, All), Warding supplies (•• - •••, +1 - +2, primary actor)

Results (Secondary Actors)

• Dramatic Failure: Lose another Willpower point, and gain the Disquieted Condition.
• Failure: Add no successes to the primary actor's dice pool.
• Success: Add a number of dice equal to successes rolled to the primary actor's dice pool.
• Exceptional Success: Add a number of dice equal to successes rolled, and gain the Steadfast Condition.

Results (Primary Actor)

• Dramatic Failure: You not only fail to lay the warding, but your attempts come to the awareness of the entity you are attempting to ward against, infuriating it. If it is a general warding, it informs and infuriates the nearest such entity. Gain the Hunted Condition. If there are secondary actors, they also gain this condition.
• Failure: You fail to erect the warding. You gain the Frustrated Condition for the purpose of trying again.
• Success: The ward is successfully cast after the allotted time. It lasts for a number of days equal to the successes rolled.
• Exceptional Success: Regain Willpower as though you'd fulfilled the conditions for your Virtue. In addition, the ward lasts for a number of weeks equal to the successes rolled.