Feet of Clay
For those Forsworn who are strong in the pneuma, reaching out to the spirit of another becomes no more complicated or obscure than the act of blowing a kiss. By means of this power, a vampire can draw on the eminent power of his own Beast to humble and suppress the Man in another soul, sapping the other of its will to defy, even as it flees for its very existence.
Effect
Dramatic Failure: The spent Willpower is wasted, and the Forsworn is rooted to his present spot until the end of the following turn.
Failure: The Forsworn fails to accumulate more successes than his target in the contested roll. The spent Willpower is wasted with no effect.
Success: The vampire accumulates the most successes in the contested roll, and the target is gripped by a debilitating terror for one turn per success gained. During this time, the target suffers a penalty to Initiative equal to the number of successes (potentially altering the target’s place in the Initiative roster). In addition, the faster the target tries to move, the more it slows down. Taking normal moves (moving up to one’s Speed) reduces the target’s Speed by an amount equal to the number of successes rolled. Trying to run, however (i.e., taking a full action to move), fails and reduces the target’s base Speed by twice the number of successes on the Forsworn’s roll. In the event of a foot chase (see the World of Darkness Rulebook, p. 65), the target’s Stamina + Athletics dice pools are likewise reduced by one for each success on the roll. The effects of this Speed reduction can easily shift from turn to turn, based on the actions of the target.
Example: A Forsworn bests his target with three successes on the contested roll, meaning the target will suffer the power’s effects for three turns. First, the target’s Initiative immediately drops by 3. In the first turn, the target tries to move calmly away at a jog, but finds his Speed reduced by 3 for his efforts. In a panic, he makes a run for it and tries to double his Speed, but finds his base Speed reduced by 6, instead. In the third and final turn, he manages to calm down and drop back to a walk, and his Speed once again suffers only a penalty of 3. But by then, of course, the Forsworn has already caught up to him . . .
Exceptional Success: The effects of the power persist for two turns per success on the contested roll, rather than one.
Failure: The Forsworn fails to accumulate more successes than his target in the contested roll. The spent Willpower is wasted with no effect.
Success: The vampire accumulates the most successes in the contested roll, and the target is gripped by a debilitating terror for one turn per success gained. During this time, the target suffers a penalty to Initiative equal to the number of successes (potentially altering the target’s place in the Initiative roster). In addition, the faster the target tries to move, the more it slows down. Taking normal moves (moving up to one’s Speed) reduces the target’s Speed by an amount equal to the number of successes rolled. Trying to run, however (i.e., taking a full action to move), fails and reduces the target’s base Speed by twice the number of successes on the Forsworn’s roll. In the event of a foot chase (see the World of Darkness Rulebook, p. 65), the target’s Stamina + Athletics dice pools are likewise reduced by one for each success on the roll. The effects of this Speed reduction can easily shift from turn to turn, based on the actions of the target.
Example: A Forsworn bests his target with three successes on the contested roll, meaning the target will suffer the power’s effects for three turns. First, the target’s Initiative immediately drops by 3. In the first turn, the target tries to move calmly away at a jog, but finds his Speed reduced by 3 for his efforts. In a panic, he makes a run for it and tries to double his Speed, but finds his base Speed reduced by 6, instead. In the third and final turn, he manages to calm down and drop back to a walk, and his Speed once again suffers only a penalty of 3. But by then, of course, the Forsworn has already caught up to him . . .
Exceptional Success: The effects of the power persist for two turns per success on the contested roll, rather than one.
Related Organizations
Material Components
Cost: 1 Willpower
Gestures & Ritual
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Intimidation + Blood Potency contested by the target’s Composure + Blood Potency
Related Discipline
Effect Duration
One turn per success
Effect Casting Time
Contested, resistance is reflexive
Applied Restriction
One may only successfully affect a given target with this power once per scene, but the target is not immune from subsequent uses of the power by other sources. Overlapping applications of this power do not stack with one another.