Fetishes and Talens | houndsofhelluniverse

Fetishes & Talens

The pacts between werewolves and the spirits of Gaia take many forms -- sometimes, a physical item of power. Fetishes are the treasures and heirlooms of the Garou, each one a spiritual being giving service to Gaia by becoming a weapon, talisman or tool. Talens are lesser such charms: spirits bound into physical tokens for a short time, willing to lend their power once. Please note however that the Storytellers reserve the right to remove or even deny ANY fetish or Talen at any time.

Fetishes

A knife fashioned from a dragon's fang; a drum inlaid with ancient sigils of healing; a necklace of silver shaped beneath a full moon; a spear as light as a bird's wing and as sharp as its talons -- there exist as many different kinds of Fetish as there are spirits to bless them, but no Fetish looks ordinary. A spirit will not agree to empower a mundane item; it expects a quality home, well-maintained and decorated to bring honor to the service it performs.

Most tribes fashion fetishes out of natural materials according to traditions of ancestral craftsmanship, although modern-minded sorts like Glass Walkers have been known to create technological talismans. Garou commonly create Fetishes out of fine weapons, inviting warlike spirits to come join the werewolves' fight directly, but wise Theurges know that more subtle tools truly turn the tide when spiritually empowered.

In game terms, many Fetishes are custom-designed by players and Storytellers. They come into a character's keeping when one Garou bequeaths a Fetish to another, or when a ritualist performs the Rite of the Fetish, or when a new character begins with the Fetish Background.

Attuning a Fetish

When a Fetish first comes into a Garou's possession, they must attune it by making a Gnosis Challenge of the Garou's Gnosis against the Fetish's Gnosis rating. Success means the spirit finds the bearer to be an acceptable master: the Fetish becomes linked to the Garou, similar to the Rite of Talisman Dedication. A Garou may have a maximum number of Fetishes attuned equal to their permanent Gnosis rating. Fetishes attune to one Garou at a time.

Failure to attune the Fetish means that the spirit isn't convinced the Garou is worthy. The Fetish will not work for that Garou and does not heed any further attempts to attune it until the Garou makes some other effort to reach an accord with the spirit. The Storytellers determine what will make the spirit happy.

Using a Fetish

Activating a fetish requires a successful Gnosis Challenge (retest with Primal Urge) against the Fetish's Gnosis rating; if the challenge fails, you can spend a Gnosis to force it active. In combat, activating a Fetish is a normal action. It remains active for the rest of the scene.

Example List of Fetishes

Apeskin

Background Points: 1
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Homid Ancestor
Appearance: A strip of ape or human skin, tattooed with glyphs.
Effect: Usually, the Homid shape of a Lupus or Metis Garou is vulnerable to silver. An active Apeskin removes that vulnerability, at the cost of rendering their homid shape unable to regenerate as well. Both effects can be useful for Lupus and Metis Garou to maintain a human disguise.

Bell of Ice

Background Points: 1
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Ice
Appearance: A pure silver bell about four inches tall and engraved with glyphs warding against magic.
Effect: When activated, the ice-spirit seeks out and embraces the victims of lingering enchantment, causing them to shiver violently. This is very useful for seeking out victims of magical mind control or otherwise attempting to explain unusual behavior. It works on Garou rites or Gifts, Vampiric powers of blood magic, and the magical spells and incantations of sorcerers and mages. If for some reason the victim wants to resist being discovered of their own free will, they they may try not to shiver by succeeding in a Static Willpower Challenge (difficulty 6).
Additional Information: It will not detect the presence of evil spirits in people (such as fomori or a ghost possessing a human) nor will it detect the condition of being a blood-bound to vampires. Such conditions are not magical, despite being supernatural.

Dueling Claws

Background Points: 1
Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Any infant animal spirit
Appearance: The glyphs of Story, Honor, and Claw marked into the Garou’s own claws
Weapon Traits: One health level of unsoakable damage (may not be increased through use of any gifts, other fetishes, or even rank benefits)
Effect: When a successful strike is made the fetish leaves bright red wounds that remain, visible for hours afterwards, remaining even if the wounds are healed. These fetishes are popular both with Philodox and Ahrouns as a way of settling disputes honorably.

Eternal Waterskin

Background Points: 1
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Water
Appearance: A water skin decorated with various glyphs
Effect: When activated the water-spirit fills the water skin once more. This is often useful for Garou who are crossing great water distances where a water source may be scarce.

Harmony Flute

Background Points: 1
Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Peace, Calm, Water or Bird
Appearance: A hickory flute, adorned with the feathers of songbirds.
Effect: Once the Harmony Flute is active, you may play it with a Social Challenge (retested with Performance). If successful, you play a soothing melody that invokes ancestral memories of a time when Gaia was in balance. Creatures without Rage will cease fighting immediately. Creatures with Rage attempt a Rage Challenge, and they cease fighting if they fail. (An affected creature may still defend itself if attacked.) This effect continues only as long as you continue to perform.

Truth Earring

Background Points: 1
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: A servant of Falcon
Appearance: A small gold earring
Effect: Once active the Garou gains a +3 trait bonus for determine when someone is lying to them (whether this is through a Subterfuge Challenge, or when using the Gift Truth of Gaia).

Blanket of Peaceful Rest

Background Points: 2
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: A Lune or Owl-Spirit
Appearance: A blanket with Garou Glyphs stitched into the fabric
Effect: While sleeping beneath a Blanket of Peaceful Rest the user suffers no nightmares.
Additional Information: Any spirit attempting to supernaturally cause nightmares must first defeat the fetish in a challenge of it’s Gnosis vs the Blanket’s Gnosis.

Dark Mask

Background Points: 2
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Owl Spirit
Appearance: A strip of black cloth, made so that it is completely opaque
Effect: When activated and worn the wearer effectively goes into frenzy, receiving all benefits and detriments thereof. The user doesn’t appear to be in frenzy, however, but instead looks as if he’s fighting normally other than being unable to distinguish friend from foe. In addition, even though their eyes of covered, the wearer suffers no penalties to Perception-based challenges while this fetish is activated. The main benefit of this fetish is that its mimicked frenzy is somewhat controllable -- the wearer maintains the ability to pull the mask off at any point and end the frenzy by spending a Willpower point.
Additional Information: It is still possible to actually frenzy while wearing the fetish. Should this happen the wearer cannot think enough to remove the mask, which wouldn’t stop a true frenzy anyways.

Eye of the Night

Background Points: 2
Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Sun spirit (bound at dusk) or a Lune spirit (bound just before dawn)
Appearance: A small circular glass disk, 5 inches in diameter
Effect: When activated, the disk is hurled into the air and at its apex will suddenly stop and remain centered over the user’s head. If activated at night, the disk will suddenly burst into a glow as powerful as the full moon. This can be useful for searching dark areas, and will also stun any opponents who can’t succeed at a Mental Challenge (difficulty 9). (Stunned opponents lose their next action; this fetish can’t stun entities that don’t rely on sight.) During the day, however, the disk goes black as a starless night and filters the sunlight through the night-infused glass, creating a shadow around the user disproportionate to the Eye’s size. This is most particularly useful during very long, hot, sunny travels. Garou with this fetish receive +2 traits to Stamina challenges for fighting off exhaustion under appropriate circumstances. An Eye of Night can be activated once per scene.

Lagomorph’s Boon

Background Points: 2
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: Luck Spirit
Appearance: A Lucky Rabbit’s Foot
Effect: Once activated (which may be done at any time, so long as the user has not spent Rage in the same turn) the fetish provides a single Luck-like retest. However this retest may only be used if the user does not possess the necessary number of traits to win on a tie. If you do not know the traits of your opponent, you must declare your current number of traits that you would bid in the case of a tie; if they are lower than your opponent’s, you receive the retest. This may only be done once per scene.

Spirit Tracer

Background Points: 2
Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Hunting, predator, or any spirit with the Tracking Charm
Appearance: An iron ingot suspended by a human hair.
Effect: When you concentrate on a specific spirit, the ingot will pull in the direction of that spirit.

Air Foot Anklets

Background Points: 3
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Insect, Bird, or Air
Appearance: Bronze Anklets
Effect: These bronze anklets make every footstep hit the group with almost no impact whatsoever. This provides +2 traits on stealth challenges, and any attempts to track the wearer via mundane means that does not involve scent suffers a -2 trait penalty (this does not protect against tracking gifts such as Sense of the Prey). In addition they aid the Garou while running, reducing the wear and tear on both the feet and lower legs. This gives a +2 trait bonus to Stamina Challenges involving long distance running.
Additional Information: The magic in the fetish is not strong enough to make the user float, while it may make jumps land without disturbing the earth, if you jump off a skyscraper these won’t help you in the slightest.

Baneskin

Background Points: 3
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: Bane
Appearance: A fragment of a Bane, preserved in a cloth wrapping, worn like an amulet.
Effect: Wyrm-spirits in the area perceive you as one of their own. If you make a hostile action against a Bane, this illusion collapses. A Baneskin won't fool an Incarna or similarly powerful spirits.

Fang Dagger

Background Points: 3
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: War, Pain, Death, or Snake
Appearance: An ivory knife, shaped from a great beast's tooth or tusk
Weapon Traits: +2 Traits, Short, 1 Lethal Damage (unactivated) / 2 or more Aggravated Damage (Activated)
Effect: Once activated, the dagger deals aggravated damage, and all damage it deals is doubled. (So it will typically deal two aggravated damage per strike, without further enhancement.)

Phoebe's Veil

Background Points: 3
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: Illusion, shadow, lune or chameleon
Appearance: A small crescent moon of gold, worn as a pendant.
Effect: If you activate this fetish at night, you vanish completely for one minute. You may spend Mental Traits to extend this duration by one minute apiece. While invisible, you cannot be detected by any senses, be they natural or supernatural, except for touch.

Sanctuary Chimes

Background Points: 3
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Protection, guardian, or turtle
Appearance: A small tubular bell.
Effect: No spirit may materialize in the physical world within 100 feet of active Sanctuary Chimes. Garou often use this effect to protect areas of their Caerns, the homes of pregnant Kinfolk, and rituals that would be targeted by Wyrm-spirits.

Sun Whips

Background Points: 3
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: Sunlight or Fire
Appearance: Bullwhips with a small gold nugget at the tip
Weapon Traits: Provides no bonus traits, deals 1 level of lethal damage. However against vampires the whips deal 1 level of Lethal and 2 levels of Aggravated Damage when activated.
Effect: When activated the weapon glows slightly, and upon making contact with a vampire bursts into either sunlight or flame (provoking a fox-frenzy challenge from the vampire).

Monkey Puzzle

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Ghost, illusion, or trickster
Appearance: A human hair preserved in a piece of amber.
Effect: No matter what your form, humans looking at you will only see your homid shape. While this effect allows you to stroll down Main Street in Crinos without sending the crowd fleeing in terror, your actions -- like biting the head off some hapless fomor -- are not disguised, and may give you away nonetheless.

Spirit Whistle

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 8
Spirit: Madness, discord, or screech owl
Appearance: An ivory whistle
Effect: You must blow into this whistle as you activate it. The piercing shriek of the whistle inflicts immense pain on all spirits within the cone of your forward vision. These spirits must each win a Gnosis Challenge against you or flee.

Klaive

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: War
Appearance: This is the signature weapon of the Garou, a huge silver dagger made for use in any form from Homid to Crinos.
Weapon Traits: +3 Traits, 2 Lethal Damage (unactivated) / 2 Aggravated Damage (activated), Silver (+1 Aggravated Damage vs. werewolves)
Effect: Activated, a Klaive does Aggravated Damage against all opponents, rather than merely Lethal.
Additional Information: The word Klaivemeans "burden" in the High Tongue; weapons with this name are recognized as an honor and responsibility to carry. Because the blade of a Klaive is mystically-forged silver, carrying one puts you down one Gnosis. Drawing a Klaive on a fellow werewolf generally means that you want a duel to the death. Not every Klaive has a spirit bound into it. A Klaive without a spirit functions like an ordinary blade made of silver, dealing two lethal damage, plus one aggravated damage to silver-vulnerable creatures. A Klaive with a spirit bound and active deals two aggravated damage to all targets, plus the additional to vulnerable ones.
Similar Fetish Weapons: Many tribes have traditional weapons other than the Klaive, from the Labrys of the Black Furies to the shivs of the Bone Gnawers. Such weapons can function identically to Klaives while maintaining their tribal distinctions, but the Nation as a whole reserves its view of honor for the traditional silver blade.

Umbra Claws

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Any Wyld Spirit
Appearance: The Glyphs of “Umbra”, “Wisdom”, and “Claw” and etched into the Garou’s own claws.
Effect: When activated the Garou’s claws become capable of tearing the Gauntlet. While the Gauntlet quickly repairs itself in a flurry of Pattern Spiders mending and weaving, this creates a short time in which the Garou can step sideways considerably easier. Anyone in the same area as the Garou when she successfully activates the Umbra Claws gains a +3 trait bonus for stepping sideways. The effect is instantaneous; anyone wanting to enter the Umbra must do so in the same turn that the Gauntlet is torn.
Additional Information: This fetish does not remain active for more than the instant it takes to rend the Gauntlet. In order to use the effect again, the Garou must activate the fetish again.

Time Piece

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 8
Spirit: Water
Appearance: Any device used to tell time (sundials, hourglasses, and wristwatches are all appropriate objects for this fetish)
Effect: Once activated the Time Piece slows down time temporarily for everyone but the Garou holding the fetish. In game terms, in the first turn after the Time Piece is activated, the Garou gains a +1 trait bonus to physical challenges made for the purpose of attacking or dodging against anyone within forty yards of him that isn’t holding the Time Piece. The second turn he gains +2, and the third turn he gains +3. After the third turn time suddenly speeds up again, and all bonuses are removed.
Additional Information: This fetish may only be activated once per day.

Tangling Whip

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 8
Spirit: A Lizard Spirit that has the ability to shed its own tail
Appearance: A while made from braiding together several green leather strips, attached to a steel handle
Weapon Traits: +1 Trait, 1 Lethal damage
Effect: With every successful strike with the Tangling Whip the whip sheds from the handle and begins to wrap itself around the victim. While entangled in such a fashion the victim takes a -1 penalty to all Dex-related actions (such as dodging, or bidding a Dex-based trait for an attack). A victim may be struck multiple times with the Tangling Whip, and the penalties are cumulative. Once the victim reaches a -4 penalty he becomes completely immobilized (and thus may not engage in any challenges except those for the purpose of soaking). The shedded whips may be torn or rended from the victim, however they possess 3 health levels and 7 traits for resisting such attempts.
Additional Information: Once a whip has been shed a new one sprouts from the handle. The whip may thus only be used once per round, but otherwise suffers no ill effects from this shedding.

Unbroken Cord

Background Points: 4
Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: A Unity-spirit (such as a flock of birds)
Appearance: A hemp cord knotted and braided into elaborate patterns. Usually of a great enough length to make necklaces or belts.
Effect: Once activated the pack leader may spend 1 Gnosis and share one of her Abilities, Rage or Gnosis Traits, or Gifts with any pack member. She may only share with as many pack members as she possesses Current Gnosis (and should her Gnosis total drop below the number of Gifts or abilities that she is sharing, she will have to end until the new total matches). No pack member can receive a Gift that is higher than her ability to perform (thus the pack leader may not share an Intermediate Gift with a Cliath or Fostern in her pack).
Additional Information: While shared, the pack leader does not have access to the Abilities, Traits, or Gifts that she has shared until she ends the effect. Once ended another Gnosis trait must be spent if she wishes to share it again.

Grand Klaive

Background Points: 5
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: War, plus a second spirit unique to each grand klaive
Appearance: A silver sword, usable in any form from Homid to Crinos
Weapon Traits: +5 Traits, 3 Lethal Damage (unactivated) / 3 Aggravated Damage (activated),Silver (+1 Aggravated Damage vs. werewolves)
Effect: Activated, a Grand Klaive's damage becomes Aggravated against all opponents. Many Grand Klaives have a second spirit bound inside, giving the weapon additional, unique powers. A fire-spirit, for example, may render the bearer immune to flame, or ancestor-spirit might grant additional levels ofSurvival or Leadership.
Additional Information: Grand Klaives are rare, often in the keeping of heroic Garou lineages. The Silver Fangs, Fianna and Shadow Lords are particularly famous for keeping them in the family. No Sept will give one up to outsiders lightly, and young Garou never bear them for long without being challenged over it. The blade is forged from so much silver that you lose two Gnosis simply by carrying one.

Body of Scars

Background Points: 5
Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: A plant or rabbit spirit
Appearance: This fetish is bound into a Scar that the Garou has received that reduced her below Incapacitation (thus resulting from a Rage Heal).
Effect: When activated the scar begins to slowly grow, spreading out over the user’s body. If a blow strikes the bearer, the scar will immediately surface there. The hard scar tissue protects the body, granting +2 traits for the purposes of soaking. In addition the fetish provides 3 additional health level that may be healed. This fetish may not be stacked with gifts or fetishes that provide similar effects (such as Troll Skin).

Talens

Talens are simpler versions of fetishes, created by the Rite of Binding. Werewolves consider binding spirits into talens as less morally complicated or offensive than creating fetishes, because a spirit's residence within a talen ends when the item is used. Success on the Rite of Binding creates a talen with Gnosis equal to that of the spirit bound inside. Some powerful spirits who choose to cooperate with talen creation can divide their essence among several talens, so that just the basic success produces more than one talen.

An Item Card explaining a talen represents it in play. This card is the responsibility of the player to keep.

Using a Talen

Talens don't require attunement, but have a limited number of uses (just once, unless otherwise specified). A successful Gnosis Challenge (retest Primal Urge) activates the spirit within a talen. You may spend a point of Gnosis to force a talen active if the challenge fails.

A Garou may only carry a number of talens equal to twice their permanent Gnosis Traits.

Example List of Talens

Storytellers should use the following list as a starting point and guideline for overall power level. Talens shouldn’t be as powerful as similar fetishes.

Armor Talen

Gnosis Rating: 4
Spirit: Wind (Barrier Armor), Earth (Skin or Apparel), Metal (Skin or Apparel), or other spirits possessing the Armor Charm
Appearance: Varies based on the chosen spirit, and what type of Armor it is going to provide
Effect: When activated the user gains 2 Armor Levels of the chosen type (Skin, Apparel, or Barrier). If activated where another effect is active (such as Troll Skin or Luna's Armor) the Talen will replace the currently active effect. As per our house rules, you may not stack multiple Talens of a single category, but may use Talens from different categories (such as a Wind Talen for a Barrier Armor, an Earth Talen for an Apparel Armor, and a Metal Talen for a Skin Armor).

Bane Arrow

Gnosis Rating: 4
Spirit: War, air, or pain
Appearance: obsidian-headed arrows
Effect: Activated and released, a Bane Arrow seeks out and strikes a Bane target. They can even find Banes that are hidden from your senses. Spirits struck by these arrows take one aggravated damage and cry out in pain, revealing themselves. Banes, however, can also sense when a Garou is carrying these arrows -- leading many Banes to attempt a preemptive strike.

Bloody Bandages

Gnosis Rating: 7
Spirit: Leech
Appearance: Bandages soaked (probably dried) in the blood of the wearer
Effect: When activated the Talen heals 4 health levels of damage. If this takes the user above full health, the user may choose to have the unused levels roll over into Skin Armor levels (as per our house rules, these may not stack with other Skin Armor effects).

Death Dust

Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Death, communication, or divination
Appearance: A small jar containing a handful of dust
Effect: Sprinkle this dust on a target's corpse as you activate the talen. If the target died within the last twenty-four hours, the dust summons up an echo of its spirit, with whom you may then speak. This talen is a common gift among Silent Striders.

Healing Talen

Gnosis Rating: 4
Spirit: Water, Healing Herb, or another spirit possessing the Healing Charm
Appearance: Varies based on spirit, could be an herb poltice, a small vial of water, or a pill
Effect: When activated this Talen heals 2 level of damages (including Aggravated Damage).
Note: This is a basic Healing Talen. More complex versions that heal for more damage, or have additional effects, may be made with proper roleplay during the Rite of Binding, and ST permission.

Moon Glow

Gnosis Rating: 8
Spirit: Lune
Appearance: A crystal that holds a moonbeam
Effect: Activate this talen when you enter the Umbra. As long as you carry it, your journey will be protected from incidental dangers. The Moon Glow cannot protect you from truly powerful and hostile spirits that hunt you, however. When you reach your destination, the talen shatters.

Moon Sign

Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Lune, change, wolf, or Wyld
Appearance: A wax seal, impressed with the glyph of a full moon
Effect: Activate this talen and throw it down in front of a Garou or Fera target. Your target must make a Willpower Challenge versus seven Traits, or be changed involuntarily into Lupus form (or other animal form, for Fera).

Nightshade

Gnosis Rating: 5
Spirit: Night or darkness
Appearance: An ounce of fluid, magically distilled from the night itself
Effect: Drink this talen when you activate it. Your body becomes shadow, all but invisible in the darkness. Only an opponent who is actively searching for you stands any chance of finding you, and even then, you get a two-Trait bonus on all your Stealth challenges. This effect lasts one hour.

Solidify Reality Talen

Gnosis Rating: 6
Spirit: Pattern Spider
Appearance: A piece of metal that can be attached to an existing armor
Effect: This Talen can only be used to enhance an Apparel that already exists (this can be used on non-armor clothing as well as mundane armor such as Chainmail, Riot Gear, etc). Once activated the Talen adds 3 Armor Levels to the existing Apparel Armor. If this Talen is used on an active Armor Fetish, or another Talen, it will cause the spirit to Slumber, rendering that fetish or talen useless for the remainder of the scene.

Wyrm Scale

Gnosis Rating: 8
Spirit: Bane
Appearance: A mystic sigil carved into a hard substance -- preferably an actual Wyrm-beast's scale
Effect: This talen forces all servants of the Wyrm within a twenty-foot radius to reveal their true forms. Green fire then erupts from the sigil, consuming the talen.

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