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Administrator
- Posts:
- 28
- Group:
- Administrators
- Member
- #1
- Joined:
- Jun 11, 2016
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Originization
The Fire-Touched are the spiritual leaders of the Pure Tribes. Far more so than the other Pure, the Izidakh hold forth that the Forsaken are damned by default. Their fevered sermons claim the Forsaken should be killed — in their sleep if necessary, on the battlefield if the werewolves’ defeat will bring more defectors to the Fire-Touched side. They label the Forsaken heretics who venerate Luna when they should have honored Father Wolf. As long as a single descendant of Father Wolf’s murderers remains alive, they say, the bloodstain on their race will never be forgiven. Only through fire can the taint be burned away, and the ugly brands on the pelts of some Fire-Touched hint at cruel rituals of penance.
The Fire-Touched follow Rabid Wolf, and their Gifts draw on the power of disease and religious conviction. The Fire-Touched are happy to accept converts from among the Uratha, and so is Rabid Wolf. Many of the Fire-Touched are charismatic speakers, and when they choose to address their prey as a preface to a feud, their words are carefully twisted appeals that can strike doubt into the hearts of the Forsaken. When a werewolf turns his back on the Tribes of the Moon to side with the Pure, he most often reappears, branded and fervent, among the ranks of the Fire-Touched. If he reappears at all.
Rabid Wolf’s ban is that he may not let a false statement lie. The Izidakh must challenge lies the moment they are uttered, even if doing so forces them to lose face in front of other werewolves.
Failure to abide by the Oath results in either Death or Expulsion from the Clan.
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Renown
The Clans primary renown is Faith, The Fire-Touched are not like the Clans of the Moon, and follow a different standing, the following behavioral codes are taught to all members of the tribe, though not always in the same words. Violating these is much like violating a tribal vow, but doing so also carries social censure among the Izidakh.
- Keep to the code: The Oath to Urfarah is inviolate, though it’s interesting to note that Fire-Touched dogma states (if subtly) that the Oath must be followed because Gurim-Ur endorsed it, not because it came from Father Wolf.
- The wisdom of Rabid Wolf guides us: The Fire-Touched believe that Gurim-Ur makes his presence known through visions, but also through madness and disease. The mad and the sick therefore enjoy a degree of mercy from the Fire-Touched, though the Fire-Touched, of course, still defend themselves as necessary.
- All born of the same pack: The Izidakh regard all Uratha as siblings, Forsaken and Pure alike. (Most Fire-Touched are willing, in principle, to extend the same courtesy to Bale Hounds, but in reality the Fire-Touched feel much the same revulsion toward the Asah Gadar that the Forsaken do). Killing another werewolf is a terrible thing, because all werewolves are capable and worthy of redemption. Killing a Pure werewolf, even in self-defense, is one of the greatest sins imaginable.
- The truth cannot be hidden, and liars must burn: On the other hand, if a werewolf is afforded the opportunity to convert and refuses, the Fire-Touched have no recourse but to kill him. They feel remorse at this act and perform penance to atone for it, but that it is wrong does not change the necessity. The only time the Fire-Touched are given leave to lie is when infiltrating the Forsaken, and such brave souls are afforded the opportunity to perform as much penance as necessary to redeem their souls when they can finally return to their people.
- Service is rewarded, sin is punished: The Fire-Touched have perfect faith that the world works in a particular way, and the greatest source of virtue is found in being true to that way. (Gurim-Ur, of course, is the ultimate authority on the true nature of the world, having received his wisdom from Father Wolf.) The Fire-Touched have specific beliefs about the afterlife, and those beliefs guide their actions in this one.
Of course, different packs observe these beliefs in different ways. A particularly militant pack might believe that Forsaken are all touched by Luna’s madness and therefore irrevocably damaged (or, at least, that they require protracted purgation before redemption is possible). Some packs feel that pretending to be Forsaken or otherwise hiding their allegiance is permissible as long as they are actively working toward the tribe’s greater glory. As with human religions, there are as many permutations as practitioners.
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Appearance
| Fire-Touched cubs still maintain some vestige of their pre-Change heritage, sometimes even wearing clothes that remind them of the jobs they once held before the Change. Most have already acquired a selection of scars (both ritually applied ones and irregular battle scars), as well as tattoos and other ritual markings that proclaim their devotion. Many bear the hard musculature of someone who fights every day. |
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Background
Young Fire-Touched are taught to hunt and fight by their elders, while simultaneously learning about the crimes of the Tribes of Luna and the gruesome ritual punishments they reserve for them. Not all survive such a harsh introduction to the werewolf life, but those who do survive grow strong quickly, eschewing Hishu and Urhan for Dalu and Urshul much of the time. They also gain a rabid zeal that grows to fanatical intensity rapidly. While a Forsaken pack is an even match for a pack of young Fire-Touched, the inevitable conflict will be a bloody one. |
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Initiation
The Fire-Touched are willing, in theory, to accept any werewolf who wishes to join. In practice, though, that werewolf not only has to pass the Rite of Initiation but survive it. These rites are a brutal combination of confession, baptism and oath-swearing. The exact form of the rite varies by the ritemaster in question, but follows three general stages:
- The Burning:
All dishonesty and impurity must be scoured from the supplicant. Any bonds of pack or tribe must be shattered, and marks of Lunar Renown are burned away, leaving the livid red marks of the Pure. This part of the rite usually involves red-hot branding irons, though some packs simply immolate their recruits, and a few use specially prepared silver implements to scar away the werewolf’s old life (this latter practice isn’t looked upon favorably by the other Pure Tribes, but even they have to admit that any werewolf willing to endure hours of scouring with a silver blade is surely dedicated).
During this stage, all of the supplicant’s sins are burned away, and he can begin his new life as one of the Pure with a clean conscience. This stage also makes the supplicant “fire-touched” in a literal sense, and the tribe views this as a sort of baptism, infusing the werewolf with the spark of the Fire-Touched faith that will (hopefully) catch into a raging and infectious inferno as he completes his initiation.
Of course, a Forsaken werewolf who belongs to a pack has to renounce that pack, which almost always leads to a drop in Harmony. The Fire-Touched are well aware of this unfortunate circumstance, and in no way begrudge a new recruit the opportunity to tell his pack farewell or in other ways come to closure with his old life (after all, the Izidakh expect that he will treat his new pack with the appropriate care). Elder Fire-Touched have been known, however, to inform other Pure packs as to the locations of the recruits’ former compatriots, if the elders feel that these Forsaken are going to be a problem. Occasionally, a Fire-Touched speaks to his former packmates with such fervor that they wind up joining him. This is, of course, a source of celebration and much Renown for both the recruit and the ritemaster.
Werewolves who are being initiated directly into the tribe, rather than defecting, enjoy a bit more leniency during this stage of the rite. After all, since they haven’t been beguiled by the Tribes of the Moon, these werewolves don’t have as much to atone for. Still, they know fire before the rite ends, as the ritemaster attempts to burn away the lingering traces of their humanity.
- The Oath:
Once the ritemaster is satisfied that the supplicant is satisfactorily cleansed, he administers the Oath. The Fire-Touched Oath usually takes the supplicant weeks to learn, and depending on the practices of the packs in the area, they might have to learn it by listening to other Fire-Touched repeat it. Some Izidakh feel that the Oath is too sacred to write down; others feel committing it to physical memory is acceptable long as the Oath is not written on paper or some other human medium — for instance, the Oath can be scribed in blood on the treated skin of a fallen foe. The Oath, spoken entirely in the Uremehir, of course, includes an affirmation of the choice to become Fire-Touched, multiple pledges of faith to the tribe and Gurim-Ur, a promise to protect and fight alongside “the elder brothers” (that is, the other Pure Tribes) and specific touches added in remembrance to local Fire-Touched heroes. The supplicant is encouraged to add her own poetic flourishes to the Oath, especially if they are a convert from a Forsaken tribe (since such recruits usually know the First Tongue better than newly Changed recruits).
If the werewolf fails this recitation, they are allowed to try again, but is first put through the Burning once more. Obviously, their faith is in some way wanting. The Fire-Touched are normally quite patient about this, and are well aware that some recruits need multiple attempts to complete the Oath. Some of the greatest heroes of the tribe, in fact, could not complete the Oath until they were spiritually ready, and the Izidakh are normally quite willing to wait.
- The Hunt:
After the supplicant’s sin is burned away and they have successfully taken her Oath, they are finally allowed to hunt as one of the Fire-Touched. The newly accepted Izidakh names the target of their first hunt. If they have already joined a pack, their pack accompanies them. If not, the ritemaster who performed their Burning usually brings the pack along for the Hunt.
The Hunt begins at the first moonrise after the Oath is completed, meaning that the werewolf might have anywhere from a few minutes to 24 hours to name the target. The target of a Fire-Touched Hunt varies depending on the Uratha in question and the practices of the Fire-Touched in the area. A Fire-Touched who has never met a werewolf other than another Izidakh might choose as her target “a Forsaken werewolf,” while a convert from the Tribes of the Moon might choose “Jason Shearing, Rahu of the Storm Lords,” either because he has a particular grudge against Jason or knows that he will be an easy kill. The target might also be human — sometimes Fire-Touched name their parents, spouses, spiritual leaders or other authority figures, or even “the first human I see” as the targets of their hunts. Other Fire-Touched choose spirits, though are careful to avoid violating any of the spiritual pacts under which they live when doing so.
The Hunt takes as long as necessary. If it isn’t concluded by first light, the Fire-Touched suffers no stigma. Gurim-Ur, it is said, might take years to complete a hunt, because he would be distracted by other matters along the way. The Fire-Touched don’t shy away from following impulses, but they don’t forget their targets, either.
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Disease
The Fire-Touched relationship with disease bears many obscene fruits, among them a tribal affinity for learning from disease-spirits. These spirits can bestow Gifts upon the Uratha (though “infect” might be a better word). The Fire-Touched, for their part, feel that they are the only werewolves who can truly benefit from these Gifts, blessed as the Fire-Touched are with the fortitude of Gurim-Ur. Any other werewolves, the Fire-Touched believe, would sicken and die if they were to receive one of these Gifts.
Official Abilities
- Fever Dreams (•)
The character passes along a temporary spiritual infection to a target. Although this disease runs its course quickly, and rarely does any serious damage to the target, while he is infected he suffers cold sweats, headaches, fever and even mild hallucinations. Needless to say, fighting or even focusing his mind is extremely difficult while the disease holds him.
The character must touch the target’s flesh to use this Gift.
- Virulent Rage (••)
The Fire-Touched infects another being with a portion of their Rage. When used on a werewolf, this Gift usually triggers Kuruth. When used a human being, the Gift causes a terrible fit of violent anger. Worse, this anger is contagious, meaning that if the Fire-Touched uses this Gift in a crowd, it will quickly spiral into a brutal, rioting mob. For the Roleplay, this ability can only be caught via contagion by an extra three people.
The werewolf must touch the target’s flesh to use this Gift.
- Glorious Agony (•••)
By activating this Gift, the werewolf taints his own Essence with a spiritual malady. This illness actually makes the werewolf stronger and deadlier, lending the pain of disease and contagion to his claws and fangs. The Fire-Touched must sacrifice his own regenerative powers to allow the disease to run its course, however, and many an Izidakh has perished under the effects.
- Lingering Bite (••••)
The werewolf’s bite leaves festering, odious wounds in his target’s flesh. These wounds heal extremely slowly, even for werewolves.
Lingering Bite can be used in any form. A successful bite attack inflicts damage as usual, but the damage cannot be healed by supernatural means. The wound heals at the normal human rate over the course of multiple days, and extreme damage (should the Fire-Touched manage to inflict it with this Gift) heals at a slowed rate of multiple weeks. The Rite of Healing cures this damage as usual, however.
- Wast ing Sickness (•••••)
This horrific Gift allows the Fire-Touched to infect a target with a slow disease. The target sickens over a period of days, and, unless treated quickly and expertly, dies in less than week. Wasting Sickness can even be fatal to Uratha, though with their regenerative powers they are usually able to shake it off before death occurs. Though the disease is not normally transmittable, an exceptionally skillful or malicious Fire-Touched can make it so.
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Fervor
An Izidakh is only as strong as his faith. Most Fire-Touched, then, are strong indeed. Fervor Gifts harness that faith, granting the werewolf who wields them knowledge, strength and perseverance.
Fervor Gifts are taught by those that represent faith, sacrifice and loyalty. Dog-spirits, ideology-spirits, and even some disease-spirits can impart them.
Official Abilities
- Eyes of Gurim (•)
The Fire-Touched can judge the state of another werewolf’s soul. Izidakh use this Gift to judge whether an Uratha would be a good candidate for conversion. When used successfully, the Eyes of Gurim can give the Fire-Touched some information about the target’s weaknesses, which he can then exploit when attempting to convert them.
This Gift works on any werewolf that the character can see directly (i.e., it does not work through video cameras or on photographs). The character can recognize members of his own tribe on sight.
- Gurim’s Comfort (••)
Gurim-Ur supports his children, even when times are dark and the enemies of truth are all about. The Fire-Touched with this Gift can call upon the succoring faith of Rabid Wolf to refresh their mental fortitude.
- Trust in Gurim (•••)
The Fire-Touched with this Gift fights as though he is immortal, secure in the knowledge that even if he should fall, Rabid Wolf will take the Fire-Touched to Taga Dan personally. He therefore fights with an unholy fury, tearing his enemies limb from limb, and never acknowledges pain or injury. If he survives the battle, he is grateful to his patron, but cannot help feeling a bit disappointed that he will not see paradise that day.
- Gurim’s Migh t (••••)
Gurim-Ur was, according to most stories, the smallest of the Firstborn, but he was fast and deadly when he hunted in earnest. This, the Fire-Touched say, is because he knew when he was in the right, and that righteousness made him mighty. The Izidakh can channel the might of their crazed totem, but can do so for any forceful endeavor — combat, indoctrination or even reasoning.
- Gurim’s Bite (•••••)
According to the Fire-Touched, Rabid Wolf’s madness wasn’t caused by an earthly disease or a malady of the mind but by his flawless honor trying to make sense of a dishonest world. Faith in the purity of honesty is what binds the Fire-Touched, and to his most faithful followers, Gurim-Ur grants the ability to spread that faith with a single bite. The victims of this Gift see, for a few brief moments before lies cloud their minds again, the freedom and the purity that the Fire-Touched truly possess. While the power of Gurim’s Bite isn’t normally sufficient to turn packmate against packmate, it does prevent the target from attacking the Fire-Touched, even in self-defense for a short time.
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Insight
The supernatural is a reality that exists beyond ordinary human experience. To truly understand the realm of the occult, one must have senses that can delve further than the mortal. Gifts of Insight are ways of unlocking truly preternatural perception, teaching ways of “seeing with the third eye” or “perceiving the scents of the invisible world.” The Bone Shadows, bound as they are to learn the wisdom of other realms, have a particular affinity for Insight Gifts, although Ithaeur and Elodoth of all tribes find these Gifts useful.
Insight Gifts are taught by spirits associated with wisdom, and many have ties to the realm of Death as well. The dead perceive things that the living cannot. Spirits of owls and serpents are particularly appropriate teachers for these Gifts.
Official Abilities
- Sense Malice (•)
Hatred has its own scent. The werewolf using this Gift is particularly sensitive to the malice that lurks in other people’s hearts, and they can smell a soul tainted with hatred, anger or envy as easily as a predator can catch the smell of prey. This Gift is frequently used on the hunt as a means of locating a potential threat to a werewolf’s family or territory, but it also has uses as a warning against potential danger.
This Gift does not detect the presence of all negative emotions, only those that are powerful enough to have a grip on the mind of a subject. A man who is irritated that he’s been turned down by a girl doesn’t register. A man angry that his girlfriend left him might be barely notice- able, while a man who caught his wife cheating on him with his best friend certainly qualifies. A mass murderer or serial killer might not register to this Gift unless he actively experiences a flood of negative emotion. This Gift works only on targets that a werewolf is close enough to scent normally (usually within the same room). This Gift doesn’t require physical scent, and powerful odors do not obscure the ability to detect malice. This power does not usually tell the user what has actually happened to a subject or why he is incensed, simply that he is.
- Scent of Taint (••)
The smell of supernatural influence emanates from beings that are beyond human and mundane. A werewolf who knows this Gift can detect the presence of supernatural beings. Specifically, the user can detect powers in his vicinity that defy the natural order of the physical and spirit worlds, so that vampires, ghouls, mages, acolytes and beings bestowed or imbued with unnatural capabilities are evident. Scent of Taint does not indicate or set apart — and cannot be used to recognize — any of the Uratha or the wolf-blooded. Nor can it be used to detect supernatural objects or places.
- Echo Dream (•••)
Werewolves quickly learn that events in the physical world echo in the spirit world, leaving strange psychic impressions. A werewolf who has earned this Gift has gained the ability to sense these echoes, even ones long past. By holding or handling an object, or resting their hand against a wall or tree, the Forsaken can sense spirit echoes of the object or area’s recent past. These echoes are couched in the symbolic language of the spirit world but often convey sharper truth than any forensics report might.
This Gift doesn’t work on sentient creatures, who generate their own spirit echoes. An attempt to use Echo Dream to read the recent past of a person results in contradictory, nonsensical images.
- Soul Read (••••)
At increasing levels of perception, a Gift of Insight can lay bare the darkest secrets of a person’s soul. The character can look directly into the heart of a subject, reading the worst fears, secrets and sins hidden there.
They gain knowledge of one of the subject’s secrets, fears or weaknesses. These are details that the subject doesn’t want to become public knowledge. A memory of committing an act of sexual abuse, an abiding fear of rejection or the location of something dear (such as a vampire’s haven) are all fair game. This Gift doesn’t provide information that the user already knows. If they're already aware that their target is a warlock, the Gift doesn’t count that fact as a “secret” to be revealed. The Gift may, however, confirm a piece of information that the character had only guessed at before.
- Omen Gazing (•••••)
With this Gift, the werewolf has developed an inner sight so powerful that it can actually catch glimpses of the future. The character enters a meditative trance, clearing their mind of everything but darkness in order to welcome the visions. They might receive warning of an impending attack, foretell the arrival of a potential ally or even watch a betrayal unfold before it happens. Viewing the future accurately is impossible, though. No vision is guaranteed to come true. Worse, visions gained are more often signs of ominous events than they are promises of good fortune. Whether this is because the Gift’s “eyesight” is through a dark lens, or simply a cold reflection of the hard truths of a werewolf’s existence, none can say.
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Inspiration
Inspiration is the meat and drink of great heroes. It provides sustenance for flagging warriors, a fire in the heart fanned from mere embers. Werewolves who use these Gifts gain courage even in the face of extreme danger, and the spirit of Inspiration can entwine an entire pack in the unity of heroism. The Blood Talons possess particular affinity with Inspiration; it’s likewise a favorite of many Cahalith and Rahu. Teachers of these Gifts include various Lunes and ancestor-spirits.
Official Abilities
- The Right Words (•)
Sometimes keeping a pack in line or a soldier’s morale up hinges on knowing just what to say. A stirring speech, a well-placed compliment or even just remembering the new guy’s name can bring confidence and a will to strive against adversity.
- Camaraderie (••)
There is strength in unity. Unfortunately, suspicion and personal agendas beget division. Easing tensions is a key step in binding comrades to a common purpose, even if that common purpose is simply not killing each other.
To activate the Gift, the user speaks to their fellows about the need to set aside differences to work for a greater goal. Depending on the situation, this may be a few quiet words or a grand oratory.
- True Leader (•••)
Few things inspire a pack like an alpha who leads from the front. In a crisis situation, the true leader shouts, “Follow me!” and their heartened allies do just that.
To activate this Gift, the werewolf must lead their followers and allies into an obviously dangerous situation, putting themselves at least as much at risk as those they lead. Battle is the most common scenario, but in any case the enemy or threat must appear at least as strong (or stronger) in order for the Gift to work at all.
- Spirit Skin (••••)
Werewolves are creatures of spirit and flesh, but using this Gift manifests that spirit side in the physical world for all to see. The werewolf exudes a perceptible cloak of authority and spiritual power. The appearance of this mantle varies by the werewolf’s nature. A wrathful warrior might glow with an inner fire and be shrouded with wisps of vapor, while a harmonious, introspective leader may exude an aura of dignity and calm. However it manifests, the werewolf can inspire awe or terror in those around them.
- Victor’s Song (•••••)
All is lost when heart is lost. Yet even when hope has vanished, new-found courage can claim victory where there was only defeat. In the face of hopeless odds, whether surviving a suicide charge or bracing a crumbling levee, Victor’s Song doesn’t push allies beyond their limits, it pushes their limits beyond what they thought possible.
The user must howl, chant or sing a song extolling thier comrades to valor and courage. This Gift works only in the face of overwhelming odds (say, the imminent death of the pack or the loss of all territory). Against typical threats or evenly matched opponents, the Gift automatically fails; the spirits look askance at misuse of their power.
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