Page 193 - Hunter - The Vigil

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C CHAPTER THREE: HUNTER ORGANIZATIONS
Practical Experience, while a four-dot Thaumatechnologi- Damage (+1/+3/+5; +2 Special)
cal implant would necessitate 20 Practical Experience). When activated, the Endowment deals damage to a
Benediction and Castigation rituals, however, are not
broken out by levels of Merit, as they function differently for target. If the Endowment is based on a particular weap-
on, such as special ammunition for a pistol, the attack
purposes of purchasing them. In this case, though, you still use should be rolled as a normal attack with that weapon.
the equation above (Features cost minus Frailty and other dis- (Example: Dexterity + Firearms.) If the Endowment is
counts) to determine the end Practical Experience cost, even less tangible, like Castigating a demon, the attack pool
if the rituals themselves do not feature “dots” per se. should be the most relevant Attribute + Trait pool (ex-
The Storyteller may want to set limits as to how powerful
or debilitating an Endowment’s Features and Frailties can be. ample: Presence + Occult).
Examples: A whip cut from the tail of the Nemean Lion
A standard watermark is that Features should never go above (Relics), the ground beneath a victim turns to hellish, scald-
10, and Frailties should not go above 5. ing pitch (Castigation), a Frankenstein hand that loves to
All created Endowments cost at least two Willpower
to activate (as opposed to many pre-existing Endowments, crush heads and break bones (Thaumatechnology)
Cost: +1 for Bashing Damage, +3 for Lethal Damage,
which often cost less), though this can be reduced to one us- +5 for Aggravated Damage; note that this doesn’t help apply
ing the “Buy Down” Feature, below. damage to non-corporeal entities lurking in Twilight. Doing
All Endowments are assumed to work for a single turn: ad-
ditional time of use can be bought with the Duration Feature. damage to them necessitates adding +2 to the Features cost
on top of other damage costs.
Note that the creation of an Endowment doesn’t come
out of thin air. Even intangible Benediction and Castigation Duration (+1 to +5)
rituals may require deep meditation, the abrasion of the flesh, The Endowment’s effects repeat over a certain number of

or learning from pre-existing masters. The creation of an En- turns or last for the entire scene.
dowment necessitates story, conflict and suspense — and, of- Cost: +1 per additional turn, up to 5 turns total (+4).

ten enough, some good old-fashioned dice rolling, too. More This feature may be added to Endowments that deal damage.
information on this can be found after Features and Frailties.
Alternatively, the Endowment may cost +3 to last the entire
scene or +5 to last an entire day, but this Feature may not be
Features added to Endowments that deal damage.
The following Features can apply to a researched and de-
veloped Endowment, whether one made during the course of Enhance Attribute (+2 to +6)

the game or one designed between sessions (during “down- The Endowment modifies a single Attribute, providing

time”). Each feature has its appropriate benefit, and each a bonus to that Attribute’s use. The Attribute must be cho-

benefit is ascribed a numerical cost. That cost is figured into sen at the time of the Endowment’s development and cannot

the above equation to determine the end cost in Merit dots change once determined.
necessary to purchase these items using Practical Experience. Examples: A potent stimulant forged from the ash of a
dead mage’s bones stirs one’s Wits (Elixir), gore-soaked Lorica
Armor (+1 to +10; +2 Special) Segmentata grants its hunter Strength (Relic), a rebreather
The Endowment, when activated, grants armor of a mask that pumps a clarifying drug into the lungs helps the
physical or mystical nature to the character. This armor does hunter keep his Composure (Advanced Armory)
not stack with any other physical or mystical armor possessed Cost: +2 per Attribute bonus, to a maximum of three bonus
by the hunter. Attribute dice (+6 cost); if the Endowment grants the bonus to a
Examples: St. Agatha whispers to the character and gives character other than its user, that costs an additional +2
him secret strength (Benediction), serpent scales of some
mythic beast stitched beneath the skin (Thaumatechnology), Enhance Skill (+1 to +5)
a halo of pungent incense that wreaths the character (Elixirs) The Endowment modifies a single Skill, providing
Cost: +1 per point of armor that protects against bashing, a bonus to that Skill’s use. The Skill must be chosen at
+2 per point that protects against lethal damage. This only pro- the time of the Endowment’s development and cannot
tects against mundane sources of damage (knife, bullet, crushing change once determined.
boulder), however. If the character wishes for this Endowment Examples: A succubus tongue grafted into the mouth
to protect against mystical or magical sources of damage, then gives a bonus to Persuasion (Thaumatechnology), a targeting
an additional cost of +2 must be added into the equation. digital reticule that is projected onto the eye from a pair of
horn-rimmed glasses enhances Firearms (Advanced Armory),
Buy Down (+3) the Angel of the Seventh Hour grants the hunter patience
The character can reduce the Willpower cost neces- when performing Academics (Benediction)
sary to activate this new Endowment from 2 Willpower to Cost: +1 per Skill bonus, to a maximum of +3; if the En-
1 Willpower. dowment grants the bonus to a character other than its user,
Cost: +3 that costs an additional +2
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