From time immemorial, Cainites and mortals alike have known that the soul of a being possesses great powers. To exploit the power of the soul requires the precise manipulation of these forces, and the Path of Transliteration enables the Thaumaturge to bend another's soul to his or her will, to alter its very flow and make it serve her whims. Warlocks knowledgeable in this path can search a being's soul for truth or lie, can render them immobile, shackled by the power of their own living soul, or can trap them in a virtually inescapable prison powered by the very thing captured. The Cainite who wields the power of this path has an entire arsenal at his disposal stemming entirely from her opponent. As a result, any Willpower roll the target makes in opposition to a power of this path is at a -3 difficulty, maximum difficulty of 9, minimum of four successes, making it very hard to resist.
Silent Whispers
By casting this power, the Thaumaturge peers into the soul of a target, able to discern truth or lie with a fair amount of certainty. The Warlock may uncover a maximum of three facts with this power, but they must be of a true or false nature, at the Storyteller's discretion. Similar in concept to the Auspex power of Soul Scan, this power takes a blood point/trait to activate.
Mirrors of the Soul
By catching the gaze of the target, the Warlock can mesmerize the target for a maximum of two rounds, getting an insight into the soul of the target and discerning their intentions. Using this power requires the expenditure of a blood point/trait and a willpower point/trait. To be successful, eye contact must be maintained for at least ten seconds, during which the Cainite surveys the soul of the target.
Fractured Image
Using a blood point/trait, the Cainite who casts this power is able to cause their target to suffer a "stuttering" of their abilities, caused by their soul being temporarily fragmented for a sufficient time to disrupt the casting of a single discipline, or performance of a single act. During the disturbance, the target suffers a level of aggravated damage and a single casting of a discipline or performance of an act is completely disturbed, making it either nullified, or rendered totally ineffective.
Splintering of the Soul
By spending two blood point/traits, the Thaumaturge employs this step up from Fractured Image, disrupting one action or discipline casting per temporary Willpower point spent, for a maximum of three total disruptions. The target's soul, as with Fractured Image, is disrupted, but for a much greater interval, rendering three actions or castings ineffective, or useless. The target also suffers two levels of aggravated damage as a result of this power being used against them.
Bastion of Empathy
At the expense of two blood point/traits, the Warlock casting this power causes the target to suffer the same damage she causes to the caster, via a linking of the souls through the use of this power in a parasitic relationship, favoring the caster. As a result, any healing performed by the target during the duration of this power, maximum of three rounds, is also performed upon the caster, at the expense of blood point/traits of the target, further draining them. This power is very potent against skilled targets, rendering their abilities nearly useless offensively for the duration of the power, as any benefit they gain is transformed into a loss for the target.
Leech of the Soul
By spending two blood point/traits, the caster absorbs the target's soul temporarily for one round per three temporary Willpower points spent, maximum of two rounds, effectively draining their ability to concentrate upon actions, discipline casting, or combat actions. With the temporary loss of their soul energy, the target also suffers two levels of aggravated damage and half of their blood pool values (not literal loss of the blood pool, only value of the blood point/traits held as pertaining to casting disciplines) per round this power is in effect.
Square the Circle
This awesome ability of the Thaumaturge uses the very fibers of the target's soul to forge invisible, unbreakable bonds that render them immobile. The harder the target attempts to fight or escape the bonds, the stronger and tighter the bonds become. Under the influence of this power, the target must spend the maximum number of temporary Willpower points, half of which are expended permanently, rounded down, in order to stand the chance of breaking this power. For Cainites, torpor would render this power, as many of the others of this path, null, but would leave the target completely vulnerable to attack. This power requires the Cainite to spend two blood point/traits.
Shift the Coil
Using this power allows the Thaumaturge to temporarily switch souls with the target, for a maximum of five rounds, at the expenditure of three blood point/traits. While the Warlock's soul is in the target's body, it retains all usage of all abilities and disciplines endemic to it, and does not suffer any damage sustained by its normal body. In the case of the caster alone, any damage done to the body of the caster is automatically healed at normal rates using the power of the target's soul, which further drains the target. This power is particularly potent when used in opposition against a strong opponent, but both caster and target must make a successful Willpower roll to avoid shock when the transference is commenced, at a difficulty of 6.
Convalescence
Wielding this power allows a Cainite to merge her soul with that of the target, assuming control of the target's body. While under this power's control, the target loses all abilities to control their own movements, any damage done to the caster is felt by the target, and healing is impossible until this power is reversed, or expires. This power lasts a maximum of one round for every two permanent Willpower points spent by the caster, maximum of three rounds. It also requires spending three blood point/traits. Reversal of this power costs no extra expenditure, and Willpower can be regained normally, as is the case with all other powers of this path.
Jar the Soul
This fearsome power allows the caster to expend four blood point/traits, and capture the target within a "jar" formed of the very essence of its own soul. The more the target attempts to resist or escape the jar, the stronger the jar becomes. Attempts to reverse the jar by a target who also knows this power only results in the jar being made that much stronger, and costing the target four blood point/traits as well. Only the caster, or another Warlock knowledgeable of this power who is not the target may reverse the jar successfully. Torpor would once again render the jar useless, but also once again leave the target completely vulnerable to attack or harm. The jar, once activated, is active without limit, unless reversed, or subjected to a minimum of five hours intense sunlight, during which a Cainite target would suffer sunlight damage at ten times normal intensity, due to the drain on her power.
Path of The Blood's Curse
Elder vampires have forever flaunted their powers over their lessers. With the approaching threat of Gehenna young kindred actively pursue ways to circumvent the stranglehold these powerful elders possess in the Jyhad. With this desire driving their ambitions, a few rogue pander and caitiff thaumaturges gathered together and developed this thaumaturgical path as a means of
ousting those above them. These rebels resorted to a very basic concept for this path of thaumaturgy by exposing the inherant disadvantages that accompany the vampiric embrace. The elders paranoia has only increased due to this movement toward a new method of usurping their power and vitae. These new thaumaturges give rise to the whisperings of the day of reckoning soon at hand in the courts of Elysium.
Ravages of the Beast
From the moment a kindred is embraced, he suffers the rage and instinct of a primal beast: it is the first bane to accompany the change. If provoked the beast within sends a vampire into a mindless, berserk, frenzy. Some kindred struggle to keep their beasts in check, while others enjoy riding the waves of this violent rage. A thaumaturge invoking this power coaxes the beast to surface within his target, unleashing a rampant killer. A thaumaturge may affect a subject within his line of sight. If a victim is unable to resist the beast he immediatly enters a frenzy.
Weight of the Sun
A concommittent curst of the embrace is an inability to remain awake during the daytime. Forced to maintain a surreptitious existance at night, a kindred loses the opportunity to ever again see the sun. As that fiery white globe rises in the east, the kindred feels its pressing weight as it drives them down into slumber. This power allows the thaumaturge to invoke the same type of lethargy that the sun imposes during the long hours of the day.
Abated Tooth
All vampires require blood to survive: they depend on mortal vessals for sustanence and the kiss to maintain their unlives. When kindred do feed they usually extend their fangs to more easily pierce their victims flesh. By invoking this power a thaumaturge mysticallly dulls a subjects fangs, robbing him of the ability to use them effectively. His fangs become so severly blunted that it becomes nearly impossible to effectively pierce flesh, causing affected kindred to search for alternate methods of feeding. While affected by this power the kindred may not use the bite in close combat maneuvers and her kiss ceases to cause ecstacy, instead becoming a normal bite.
Treacherous Bonds
One of the most potent properties of kindred vitae is the ability to create a blood bond. A regent offering his blood to a victim on three seperate nights floods a thrall with a powerful attraction and devotion to him. Under a blood bond, the thrall becomes a most loyal and subservient tool of the regent and will do anything to appease him. Traditionally when the connection of a bond becomes unstable or weak, emotions of hate may cloud the mind of the thrall, though it may possibly span lifetimes before those feelings would become evident. The thaumaturge invoking this power incites and instantaneous hate induced emotional state within a regents thralls where once there was love, now only loathing drives his emotions. This power creates a backlash in the targets blood, temporarily twisting any bonds he is under, from the newest to ones built over years time. The vampire must touch his intended victim for this power to take effect. For the duration of one night a blood bond becomes corrupt and unstable.
The Withering of Ages
This devastating power warps the blood within vampires, temporarily suspending the properties sustaining their immortality. A thaumaturge making physical contact with a victim may strip her of her agelessness and render her briefly decrepit. Within moments the body of the target will reveal the truth of her true age, shriveling and shrinking to reflect the weight of her years. Additionally the fangs of the victim become elongated and other facial features accentuate his vampiric nature. Ancient vampires become crippled as their bodys become their own worst enemies. After the thaumaturge make physical contact with her victim, the victim begins to grow physicallly older until he fully resembles his true age. This effect lasts for one night after which the victim rapidly sheds his physical years and is restored to the full potency of his vampiric blood.
Oneiromancy
Portents
From the ephemeral fragments of his own dreams, the magus may attempt a personal reading of the near future. While asleep, the oneiromancer draws upon the dream imagery flittering in the unconciousness. Upon waking from the divination the cainite may scrutinize the meaning of the visions. Although these visions of the present and future are invarioubly hazy, they often provide important glimpses into significant events. This power must be used immediatly after wakening and takes the thaumaturge 10 minutes to read the signs.
Forsee
Lets the warlock look into the mind of a sleeping individual, interpreting her dreams as clues to future events involving that individual. Used by thaumaturges in soothsaying--this allows you to gain the trust of people while gleaming unconcious secrets from targets. The sleeping individual must be within the presence of the caster to work although one can use psychic projection to make it work if not physically present.
Dreamspeak
The oneiromancer can now send messages to others in dream form. Although these messages appear while the target is asleep, the subject remembers them clearly after waking. Since these messages are dreams, those unfamiliar with this power may discount them as such. More nefarious uses have included sending nightmares and threats to victims. Dreamspeak sends a static dream message determined at the time of sending, to anyone the oneiromancer has previously met. If the subject is not asleep at the time this power is used the dreamspeak has no effect. While using this power the magi drops into a trance as with the other divinations of oneiromancy.
Augury
Refining the power of somnolent divination, the oneiromancer is able to seek answers to questions and problems.While specific information can be sought by the oneiromancer, the dream images providing that knowledge have the same disjoined and confusing quality. Augury is helpful in seeking answers to problems, possibly providing the required breakthrough with a dilemma. Where broken and unguided imagery is the hallmark of portents, augury provides more direction and continuity. The augury comes to the warlock in the same dreamlike imageries but the events are better understood. Thaumaturges who achieve this level of skill in the path of oneiromancy often have little use for lesser powers. Note--the subject must have the information the thaumaturge seeks or the power is useless.
Reveal the Hearts Dreams
This power of divination works on a much more immediate means, the thaumaturge gaining an immediate insight into the dreams and desires of a person just by observing them directly. The innermost desire of the target becomes instantly apparent to the magus.With this information a magus is able to approach a person with offers that are next to impossible to deny. It is hard to say no to the thing you desire most.This revelation of the soul occasionally reveals even more information about the target--that of his greatest fears. It is this aspect of revelation that some say is the power of the followers of set used to destroy souls and virtue of their victims. To cast this the thaumaturge must be within sight of the victim.
The Hearth Path
Guests Herald
This power when used on a door or other portal creates an audible or visual effect that notifies the Tremere that someone has crossed it. In this way the vampire knows when someone has entered her haven and can deal with the interloper as she sees fit. This power lasts for 24 hours and the signal can be anything of the thaumaturges choosing--a particularly noisy creak, a tendency to stay ajar, or even something wholly unconnected like the rotation of a decanter in another room. In all cases the effect is static--it looks or sounds the same every time it happens...any time in which someone other than the thaumaturge crosses a warded area the effect takes place--whethor or not the vampire is there to observe.
Masters Order
In his own haven the thaumaturge knows where every last article lies. He knows where he placed an important book, he knows the drawer the keys to his safe occupy, and he knows where his ensorcelled wooden stake rests. He even knows these things when he doesnt...as long as this spell is in effect the thaumaturge will know exactly where everything in his haven is but this knowledge applies only to inanimate objects and only those objects belonging to the Tremere himself.....but something the tremere has stolen will turn up without difficulty however! This power works only in the Tremeres haven where he has spent at least one days rest prior to invoking this power.
Rhyme of Discord
The vampire may create a miasma of confusion in her haven. This power plays upon intruders minds causing them to become lost in the vampires haven, to lose their direction and misremember specific details such as objects and in rooms and their locations. Characters other than the thaumaturge finds themselves hopelessly lost in her haven, no matter how small it is. Additionally they are unable to remember any but the smallest details regarding the place once inside. Even if the intruder attempts to follow or chase the kindred thru the haven she will lose track of the direction, make wrong turns etc. This effect lasts for one full 24 hour period but the confused memories an intruder takes with her last until she visits the haven when it is not under this protective ensorcellment.
Temportal
As master of her haven a vampire may briefly reshape it so that doorways lead to other rooms other than those to which they are connected. For example the door to the bedroom may suddenly open into the study while the deepest catacomb of transylvania dungeon might lead to a tower elsewhere in the castle. Thaumaturges find this useful both as convenience--how better to retrieve a book from the basement when one is on the third floor? and as an escape route. This power works until sunrise. At the thaumaturges whim he may walk thru any doorway in his haven and be immediatly transported to any room of his choice that is also in his haven....anyone who follows him thru the door will find himself in the room the doorway naturally connects to.
The Cauldrons Rede
This power bestows a primitive awareness upon the mages haven. While her haven is under this sending the thaumaturge may ask any of the items in her haven about specific events taking place therein. A bedroom mirror may whisper of guests conspiring in the foyer, a divan may disclose bedchamber indiscretions, and the lowliest kitchen rug may reveal high treachery taking place in a salon. Anything occuring within the haven or within eyeshot of the outside as the window can "see" as well can be relayed to an inquisitive magus by the common items inside. This power lasts until sunrise after the vampire invokes it. The vampire must verbally ask the questions of her havens accoutments should she desire information from them. Only in cases of extreme danger such as a pending attack or a haven set ablaze will the voice of the haven call out to the kindred.
Mastery of the Mortal Shell
Vertigo
The thaumaturge induces minor disorientation and dizziness thru subtle manipulations in the subjects body. Although the physical discomfort is temporary and minor, tremere have been known to use it on social rivals at the most inopportune times-- causing them to lose their aplomb. A touch from the thaumaturge invokes disorientation in her victims.
Contortion
With but a touch the thaumaturge causes her opponents muscles to contract involuntarily reducing her to twitching fits. This effect is extremely disconcerting to the subject, rendering the affected limbs unusable. The thaumaturge touches the limb which is affected..a leg may make it impossible to stand...an affected arm hangs useless at the victims side...an affected head renders the victim to lose the ability to speak etc.. The thaumaturge can affect himself causing his muscles to tighten like a vise. This is very useful during bite or choke attack making futile any attempts to flee, and may also be used on others in this beneficial manner.
Seizure
Like a nervous disorder, this power causes the body to lock up in fits of convulsions. All the muscles throughout the body tighten uncontrollably, the victim foams at the mouth and spasms rack him with agony. A mortal may even choke to death as her tongue cuts off her air supply. A light touch visits upon any target the very unpleasant effects of this power. For the duration of the seizure a targets body writhes, tormenting him to the point of incapacitation.
Body Failure
Thaumaturges wielding this frightful power gain devastating insights into the workings of the body, allowing a complete shutdown of its systems. This sudden biological overload often proves fatal to mortals and damaging to other supernatural beings. Body failure has been used throughout the ages to afflict its victims in natural and inconspicuous ways....many cases of fatal palsy and natural death may indeed be the result of skilled thaumaturge. This power can affect any target the thaumaturge can see. A successful activation of this power grants effects similar to a seizure except that damage is lethal (and thus not soakable by mortals) due to complete organ failure. Kindred are likewise affected by body failure as their muscles spasm and brain activity becomes erratic. As kindred they may soak the damage this power afflicts on them.
Marrionette
The thaumaturge invoking this gains such mastery over the body that he can magically seize control over another being and manipulate his actions to suit his own whims. Although this control is not as fine as the direct personal command of the dominate power of possession, the thaumaturges true body is not as vulnerable during the manipulation. Once established, the victim is under the complete sway of the thaumaturge forced to perform as the thaumaturges macrabe pawn. The thaumaturge may affect any target within his line of sight and he must keep visual contact with the victim at all times to maintain this effect. This does not rob the victim of his cognizance only his physical control over his body. During this time of the thaumaturges mastery, the victim remains aware that some outside force is manipulating his actions, concious that they are not his own.
