unknown armies

Necromancy
 
perhaps the most feared and maligned school of magick is that of necromancy, an ancient form of death worship that pre-dates recorded history by thousands of years. to early man, the spectre of death was an ever-looming shadow on the horizon. be it from war, starvation, disease or from the elements, death was man's greatest mystery, and thus his greatest fear. even today, in our time of intelligent computers, light-speed communications and medical miracles, there are still those who know and adhere to a simple truth: power over death is power over life.
 
most modern sorcerers see necromancy as a useful tool to commune with demons and ghosts. in reality, the true necromancer rarely concerns herself with the spirit-world, preferring instead to focus on more corporeal matters. the awareness of death's power and its after-effects are power sources to these mages, who hoard everything from musty tomes of ancient burial rituals to boxes of human remains. possessing (even consuming) such objects grants the necromancer magickal charges, as does intimating themselves in the rites of the mourning.
 
because of their obsession with death and dying, necromancers are called ghouls (amongst other even less flattering names). the death mages often employ a certain type of revenant (also known as a ghoul) to assist in their pursuits. when a necromancer eventually meets her demise, it is almost certain they she will join the ranks of these obsessed souls.
 
there is also a special type of death-mage, one that has gone beyond and attained immortality. they are known as "liches," and are dealt with here.
 
necromancy blast style: using principles of sympathetic magick, necromancers utilize small representations of their intended victim to which they inflict damage. this effigy can be anything from a photograph to a rag-doll. the important ingredient of this ritual is that the effigy must be marked with part of the target's body -- anything from a hair to a drop of blood. once the effigy has been properly constructed and marked, any damage done to the effigy will also be inflicted upon the victim.
 
generate a minor charge: spend an hour or more participating in a funerary rite. this can be anything from acting as a pallbearer to reading a euology at a wake. tombstone cutting, embalming and grave-digging are also acceptable means of drawing a minor charge. the key is the physical and emotional investment in the act of bereavement, of reflecting on the deceased and those he or she left behind. because of this, many necromancers find employment in the bereavement industry (funeral directors, priests, morticians)...
 
generate a significant charge: to generate minor charges, the ghoul may maintain a modicum of detachment from the deceased. for significant spells however, the necromancer must become intimately familar with the aspects of death and dying. there are three ways to do this, though none are easy and all carry with them legal, physical and emotional risks:
 
the first method is necrophagy -- the act of consuming dead human flesh. after committing this act, the mage will be left with the knowledge that he is a cannibal, with all appropriate stress checks (not to mention the health risks involved in such an act).
 
the second method is necrophilia -- sexual congress with a dead body (although the gender of the corpse is irrelevant). again, mental and physical repurcussions are a constant threat to the mage.
 
the third and most difficult (although certainly the least traumatic) is to acquire a piece (literally) of a famous dead person. this relic may either be a physical remnant of the deceased (the fingerbone of napoleon) or an artifact intimately connected with the deceased's death (the headdress of tutankhamen, a piece of the one true cross). necromancers who opt to gain charges though this method are commonly known as graverobbers or bodysnatchers.
 
generate a major charge: to generate a major charge, the necromancer must be prepared to end his own life in the pursuit of his obsession. the method must be lethal and the necromancer must be emotionally commited to the act (ie: no drugs or alcohol, magick or outside assistance). the threat of death must be brutally apparent to the mage or else he will gain no charge. common methods include hanging (especially auto-erotic asphyxiation), russian roulette, drowning and wrist-slitting. in order to gain the charge, the necromancer must be prepared to die and have at least a 50% chance of doing so. life and death resting on the flip of a coin...
 
because of the sacred aspects of this ritual, the mage cannot have any hardened marks in self in order to successfully gain a major charge this way.
 
taboo: the necromancer may observe human life but is barred from ever taking part of society. necromancers may not closely associate or identify with the living -- doing so would violate the detachment they must attain in order to channel magickal energies. they cannot have any close friends, roommates, lovers, pets...not even a potted plant. Helping someone (whether it's medically or helping them with a heavy bag of groceries) is also forbidden.
 
random magick domain: necromancers utilize sympathetic magick to affect both the living and the dead. their power lies within the realms of grief, decay and transition. to a lesser extent, they can also use magick to communicate and control incorporeal entities.
 
starting charges: necromancers start with three minor charges.
 
Necromancy minor formula spells
 
torment
cost: 1 minor charge
effect: this spell is the minor blast spell of necromancers. torment typically manifests as a sharp, stabbing pain -- usually in the chest (though the source of the pain will coincide with the area that is damaged on the ffigy...usually with a sharp pin).
 
bone music
cost: 1 minor charge
effect: the physical component of this spell is a small flute carved from a human bone. when the spell is cast and the flute is played, any spirit with a soul rating less than the mage's magick skill will be driven from the area.
 
the cleansing
cost: 2 minor charges
effect: the cleansing originated in ancient tibet, when the dead were brought to tall peaks where they were hacked up for the birds to eat. they believed that the birds would carry the deceased's soul to heaven. when cast upon a dead body, aevery bird within a mile of the caster will descend upon the body and tear away its flesh. the birds will disperse once the body has been stripped clean (about a minute). if cast on a living being, this spell will cause the victim to be attacked by a horde of birds, causing three points of damage per round and a shift of -20% to all rolls due to the pain and confusion caused by the frenzy. the attack will continue until the victim is dead or has escaped to an area that is inaccessible to the birds. some ghouls nowadays refer this spell as "hitchcocking."
 
veil of tears
cost: 2 minor charges
effect: this spell will cause the target to feel loss, sorrow and helplessnes. these feelings are intense emotions that are dredged from the victim's subconscious (the death of a loved one, a bad break-up or any other upsetting memories). depending on the target's personality, these feelings may manifest as anything from grim silence (aries, leo) to sobbing hysteria (cancer, pisces). either way, for the duration of combat the target will be at a -10% shift to all die rolls (including initiative) for each failed stress mark.
 
skin memory
cost: 3 minor charges
effect: after casting this spell on a fresh corpse, the necromancer can re-live (via sight, taste, smell, hearing or touch ) the last moments of that person's life. skin memory cannot be used on a skeletonized or headless corpse. the mage needs to physically touch the specific corpse's skin, ears, nose, tongue or eyes (depending on the type of perception being experienced) in order to re-live it's final moments. the mage may perceive anything from the last few seconds up to the entire day of the deceased's life but must remain in contact with the corpse for the same amount of time.
 
Necrormancy significant formula spells
 
charon's whisper
cost: 1 significant charge
effect: this spell is used to summon revenants (most commonly ghouls and snowfallen). the necromancer simply whispers the name by which he knows the revenant and the being will appear. this spell may only be used to summon specific revenants.
 
mortification
cost: 1 significant charge
effect: mortification is the necromantic signficant blast spell. it works the same as torment except that any damage done to the effigy is also done (graphically) to the victim. fire burns, blades cut, needles puncture...all with obvious physical trauma to the damaged area.
 
love of the damned
cost: 1 significant charge
effect: through necrophilia, the mage is able to temporarily ressurect a dead body (the body cannot be raised once it begins to show physical signs such as rigor mortis...about 3 hours after death). the corpse will remain "alive" for up to an hour after the act takes place. during this time, it will be able to move, speak, see and hear as though it were alive (unless trauma to the body has damaged it too badly). practical applications of this spell range from keeping alive a slain lover to learning a secret that would have otherwise died with the victim. some necromancers make pacts with other ghouls to raise them in the event that they are murdered (if only to exact vengeance on their killer). unlike the zombi, the undead corpse does feel the pain of its wounds (though the pain is slightly muted by its passing) and retains intelligence, free will and sometimes a murderous desire for self-destruction.
 
with enough expenditure of charges at regular intervals, the risen corpse may remain in an undead state indefinitely*. for obvious reasons, this is rarely done (in fact, this spell is rarely cast at all). the risen will eventually seek destruction, if only to get away from the pain and horror of its unliving existence, often taking the life of its "benefactor" so that it may finally rest in peace. one necromancer back in the forties became so obsessed with the ressurection of his dead bride that he kept her alive for nearly two weeks, keeping a taped record of the ordeal. his partially eaten body was found in flagrante with his dead wife, discovered by his apprentice (who is rumored to still possess the recording in his private collection).
 
* although the requirements of this spell generate the charge needed to cast the spell (effectively a perpetual charge generator), the emotional and physical stress of its casting is costly beyond belief. spellcasters who frequently use this formula are doomed to insanity...for some things should remain buried.
 
wendigo
cost: 2 significant charges
effect: to cast this grisly spell, the ghoul must first consume a human brain or heart. each organ grants a different ability and each must be paid for as a separate casting (eating both organs requires a total of 4 charges to gain both benefits). a self-2 stress check must be made after the organ is eaten. this spell's effects, whether it was successful or failed, last for twenty-four hours.
 
if the brain is eaten, the mage absorbs the victim's memories and skills. failing the stress check causes the victim's personality to take over, resulting in the victim's skills replacing the mage's (this includes magick but does not cause the mage to go insane).
 
if the heart is eaten, the mage absorbs the victim's courage. this allows him to gain the victim's passions and obsession in addition to his own. failiure causes the obsession and passions to replace the mage's own (if the "organ-donor" wasn't an adept, the mage loses his charges and his ability to gain more). any passions or obsession that duplicates the mage's own is ignored.
 
create zombi
cost: 3 significant charges
effect: this spell enables the mage to re-animate a corpse. the newly-created zombi is obediant and able to follow simple instructions but is slow and will be unable to speak or perform activities that require fine motor skills.
 
zombi (minor)
the soulless dead
body as original body -10 per week of decay
speed 20
mind 20
soul 0
 
the zombi cannot feel pain and doesn't require food, water, air or sleep. the only thing that can destroy a zombi (besides decay) is immolation or destruction of the creature's brain. if the zombi tastes salt it will realize that is is dead and return to its grave (or wherever it was killed).
 
the corpse will slowly decompose over time with the following very noticable results:
 
2-3 days: green staining begins on the right side of the abdomen. body begins smelling of decay.
3-4 days: staining spreads. skin acquires veiny, blotched appearance.
5-6 days: the abdomen swells with case from decomposition. skin blisters. body drops by 10.
2 weeks: abdomen bloats, becoming tight and distended. body drops by 10.
3 weeks: internal organs burst. finger and toenails fall off. body drops by 10.
4 weeks: soft tissues begin to liquefy, making visual identification of the body progressively difficult. at this stage the zombi will return to its pre-animated state (ie: dead as a doornail).
 
note: corpses decay about eight time faster in air than underground and decay may be retarded by chemicals (including poisons that could have caused the death), cold and dry heat (a hot, dry environment causes mummification). overweight people and those that have died from bacterial causes tend to decay rapidly.
 
by spending additional charges per week, the necromancer can grant the zombi certain temporary abilities:
- restore intelligence and speech
- halt decomposition
- restore speed rating
 
restoring a zombi's soul (and subsequently, its magick skill) is impossible without a major charge.
 
Necromancy major effects
 
necromantic major spells can be used to permanently ressurect the dead, banish or imprison incorporeal entities or to duplicate any minor or significant necromantic spell (with permanent effects).
 

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