Abscissic Mechanics

• Each template is aligned with a Virtue or other Trait. Demons summoned under this template have that Trait at a minimum of 3 dots.
• Each template outlines a situation in which a demon gains Limit. When those situations arise, roll the relevant Virtue or other trait.
• Characters may attempt to reduce Limit through creative endeavors. Judge each such endeavor as a stunt, reducing Limit by the number of dice the stunt would have garnered.
• Each template outlines kinds of behavior that occur at different scales of Limit: Low (1-3), Mid-range (4-6) and High (7-9).
• Each template also details two Limit Breaks that a demon summoned under that template might gain. The sorcerer has no way of knowing which Limit Break a demon gets when summoned.
  • These Limit Breaks come into play when the demon's Limit reaches 10.
  • After the Limit Break duration, the demon regains Willpower equal to the Virtue associated with its Limit, and its Limit rating drops back to zero.
• A demon summoned by Abscissic binding has its own nature turned against it; thus, they never spend Willpower or channel Virtues to resist Abscissic binding.

The Courtesan

• Virtue: Temperance
• Goals: To be of invaluable use.
• Gains Limit: When presented with evidence that it is unneeded or helpless.
  • Low Limit: Lives to please masters, who are surely helpless without it.
  • Midrange Limit: Starts to look for ways to make itself irreplaceable.
  • High Limit: Its masters clearly do not need it, and will go to extreme measures to prove her usefulness.
• Reduce Limit: Involving demon in decision-making, presenting it with gifts, offering sincere flattery or otherwise demonstrating it is valued and appreciated.
• Limit Breaks
  • Fury of the Scorned: Seeks to cause master suffering without hurting her, for (Temperance) days. May instead choose to inflict a permanent inconvenience.
  • Lash of Self-Hatred: For (Temperance) months, remains distraught and nihilistic. Cannot spend Willpower, save when pursuing orders that may result in its destruction.

The Ecstatic

• Virtue: Compassion
• Goals: To pursue its passion.
• Gains Limit: When it sees others fulfilling their great passions.
  • Low Limit: Serves eagerly, certain service will provide a means to express its passions.
  • Midrange Limit: Strives to find an answer to its passions, causing ill-luck in bystanders.
  • High Limit: Desperation suffuses everything it does, turning all failures into botches in its presence.
• Reduce Limit: Forcing it to spend time in isolation.
• Limit Breaks
  • Love: The demon finds love or the thing it desires, and devotes itself utterly to it for (Compassion) days. May not harm sorcerer bodily during this time.
  • Shattered Heart: Realizes that it will never find its passion, and its heart breaks. Suffers +1 difficulty on all rolls and -1 to its DVs for (Compassion) months.

The Functionary

• Virtue: Compassion
• Goals: To obsess over a single goal or service in order to shut out the pain in its heart.
• Gains Limit: When duties or circumstances interfere with its obsession.
  • Low Limit: Existence is defined by its purpose
  • Midrange Limit: Has difficulty focusing on anything but its purpose, suffering a +1 difficulty to rolls unassociated with its purpose.
  • High Limit: Penalty increases to +2, and it often pleads with its master to allow it to pursue its obsession.
• Reduce Limit: Give the demon time to relax and pursue its obsession.
• Limit Breaks
  • Absolute Obsession: Totally obsessed with its function; sorcerer must remind it hourly to not pursue its obsession. Lasts for (Compassion) days, with a +4 difficulty to rolls not associated with its function, regains no Willpower or motes of Essence, cannot communicate intelligibly and suffers one HL of lethal damage per day from self-neglect.
  • Compassionate Gift: Demon conceives of a great gift to give to its master, and it works on that non-stop for (Compassion) months. This gift is often useful, but also as much a curse as a blessing.

The Horror

• Virtue: Conviction (demon also has a 1 in either Intelligence, Perception or Manipulation)
• Goals: To serve its sorcerer master, who tricks it into believing he is a Yozi.
• Gains Limit: When it encounters the things that are inimical to Malfeas: silence without death, power without ambition and love without pain.
  • Low Limit: Content, and misperceives the world around it as Malfeas.
  • Midrange Limit: Grows fearful and disturbed as the world it is in begins to clash with its knowledge of Malfeas.
  • High Limit: Becomes erratic and disturbed, fearful of its surroundings. Will not venture into sunlight save to kill.
• Reduce Limit: Assigning it time in a kennel or other housing built to resemble hell.
• Limit Breaks
  • Autistic Paralysis: For (Conviction) days, when encountering something clearly counter to Malfeas' existence (expressions of innocence, beauty, virtue and compassion, usually), roll Conviction. Success allows it to curl up in a useless ball for a scene. Failure triggers a fight or flight reflex, and it will attack anyone that is not its sorcerer in an attempt to flee.
  • Madness of Creation: For (Conviction) days, the demon attempts to save his beloved sorcerer from the corrupting influence of Creation. It will hunt down anything that corrupts him away from darkness. ==The Hunter==
• Virtue: Conviction
• Goals: To fervently pursue and accomplish a series of mindless but similar tasks.
• Gains Limit: When forced into a state of idleness (one per day).
  • Low Limit: It is satisfied with its focus.
  • Midrange Limit: Begins to embark on small, self-directed "hunts" during its free time.
  • High Limit: Its obsession with its hunts becomes counterproductive to the sorcerer's goals.
• Reduce Limit: Providing the Hunter exciting tasks that it can succeed at.
• Limit Breaks
  • Fair Play: For (Conviction) months, insists that the sorcerer assign it tasks at the limits of its ability. Handicaps itself on any tasks that are deemed too easy.
  • Madness of Shadows: For (Conviction) days, it confuses targets or tasks, engaging in seemingly random tasks regardless of orders. Still may not harm sorcerer, though it might betray her.

The Killer

• Virtue: Valor
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X

The Courtesan

• Virtue: X
• Goals: X
• Gains Limit: X
  • Low Limit: X
  • Midrange Limit: X
  • High Limit: X
• Reduce Limit: X
• Limit Breaks
  • X: X
  • X: X