Ghost: Final Repose

4B? 5H>?LQILF>

Death, what's beyond? These questions haunt nearly every living person in existence. Ghosts exist as a reminder
that something lies beyond, but these creatures of despair are often the embodiment of questioning whether a final solace
is attainable or not. Within the realms of the Underworld many ghosts try to cling to a life that is no longer their own. A
society of eternal unrest and damnation from ever entering the gates of the Afterlife or Rebirth.

'BIMNM

First lets examine what a Ghost is and what it is not.

Ghosts are a manifestation of the will and determination of a soul to deny Transcendence, Ghosts hold onto
something from their mortal life and are unwilling to let go of them. Despite this, many Ghosts remain in the Underworld
long after they have let go, due to the fact they aren't aware there is any existence other than the one it has learned.
Beyond the world we know and beyond the Underworld, lies the Supernal Realms. Within these realms, lie various
heavens and hells which the soul gravitates toward, due to their actions and beliefs. Others yet, may reiterate with a newly
formed body and reincarnate into the mortal realm. Ghosts however, are unwilling or unable to move on as something
holds them onto the life they once held dear.
Occasionally, a ghost may find itself trapped in the Underworld, unable to move on due to the fact something
holds it to the realm of the living despite their willingness to move on. Such ghosts are often deeper corrupted by their
Daimon's and its often swayed to the ranks of Spectres. Becoming one which attempts to break down the connection other
ghosts hold onto, transforming into a powerful agent of the Abyss.
Few mages and werewolves believe that a Ghost is a ectoplasmic form of will, which is soulless and exists as an
abomination to the truth of life. The truth is that Ghosts do have a soul, save for the few Drones that remain which have
lost them, mere echoes of their prior existence.
Sometimes mages enter the Underworld with intact knowledge of their arts of magic, these Fey are ominous and
often hunted by the Deathlords as demons and are unwelcome in any doings with the Hierarchy. Few believe that the
Deathlords are actually frightened by them and view them as a threat to their rule. A heretic group known as the Order of
Kismet once held knowledge regarding the Fey, but have since been abolished by the Hierarchy.

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Before one fully enters the Underworld, one enters a never-ending, transforming, maze. This appears as a hallway
to most, a hellish dungeon to others, and few find it to appear as a nightmarish warrens. Dreadful spirits, and the ravenous
walking dead wander this damned landscape. Either of which, have become lost between worlds, or those who have
completely lost their intellectual capacity. None, however, are truly native to this horrendous realm, save for those who
rule over its hapless tenants. One can either negotiate with the mad or attempt his way through this abstract maze on his
own, subject to terrors of both the Shadow and the Underworld. Either the completely mad, or the most clever will attempt
to negotiate travel with its rulers, the Deathlords.
Few ghosts from the Underworld traverse the Labyrinth, attempting to locate those who have passed into its dark
halls, and bring them to the depths of the realm of the dead. Some of which, however, do not do such out of kindness; but,
rather as an attempt at forced slavery of the newly departed. These “Reapers“, often possess numina which enable them to
locate, and traverse the portals between the underworld, and the never ending maze of the Labyrinth, despite the will of its
dark lords.

4B? 3NSAC;H 2?;FGM

Throughout the Labyrinth lies pockets known as the Stygian realms, home to the rulers of the hellish maze and
Gatekeepers to the realms of the Underworld the Deathlords. While points of access lie to the Underworld throughout the
Labyrinth, those who reach these islands within the maze rarely leave the same.
Anubis, Hades, and Charon are only a few of the names associated with the Deathlords. Powerful Magath spirits
comprised of both Ephemera and Ectoplasm, legends are told of their existence. Whether the legends are about them or
they are borne from those same legends is not known. What is known is these powerful spirits are capable of opening or
closing the portals to the Underworld but forever barred from entering them. They may however, interact with the
denizens of the Shadow, and confront Ghosts which have produced a presence there.
It is said that their power was once that of Gods over the departed, but a great maelstrom tore through the
underworld and trapped them in the labyrinth and took with it the tower they once drew their power from.
It is whispered in the Underworld that their existence is akin to a position of power; of which must be fulfilled by
other ghosts, stripped of their connection to previous lives and adopting the title through pacts to darker powerful spirits
of the Great Abyss. Rumor holds the true Deathlords disappeared thousands of years ago with the Tower of the Lead Coin
in a fantastic and terrible Maelstrom.

5H>?LQILF>
Once a character passes through the Labyrinth and into the true Underworld, they find themselves apparently back
at where they began. However, the world is appears post-apocalyptic, crumbling, unkempt, and fading with the entropic
energies of the Abyss. Trash lines the streets, and normally healthy green parks appear as a pale green, fields of diseased
grass and charred twisted black trees, windows are shattered and buildings appear as though they should be condemned
completely. Nearly everything in the mortal realm has a counter part here, even buildings seem crowded as new are build
nearly overlapping the old. Each city or town that exists in the living world has a counterpart here, such Necropoli are
generally ruled by a group of the eldest ghosts or Gaunts. Other constructs of the native inhabitants are also present; as in
life, ghosts continue to mold and shape their new world into their, sometimes horrific, own designs.
It is here that one may interact with the departed, either those who cannot re-enter the world in twilight, or those
who are there to rest between their interactions with the realm of the living. Interacting with the undead in their realm is
similar to interaction with the living on the physical plane. (Spirits have a physical counterpart here, as such their
attributes are as they were in life at the point of death, though they may continue to learn out of survival, as most must to
avoid the wrath of its ruthless rulers.)
Upon a persons death, marks are left on the body regarding the how the death occurred, their virtues and vices,
and which of those more strongly ruled a persons life prior to their current state. These Deathmarks are usually only
visible upon a ghosts plasm only when another ghost uses a Kenning Sinew. If a ghost is still in its caul in the Labyrinth,
however, its Reaper may visibly be able to determine a bit about his potential thrall prior to its freedom. Through this
many ghosts determine what to do with a Enfant prior to its reaping. An individuals Caste and Guild may also be
determined though their Deathmarks.
There are those who consider the powerful spirits of the Labyrinth as gods and leaders, and enforce their rule on
the Underworld. Barred from ever completing passage fully into the realm of the dead, the Deathlords rules the dead with
an iron fist through the Iron Legion of the Hierarchy. Those who oppose it are, either crushed it’s wake, or “re-sculpted”
in the forges to fit a more non-threatening role in the Legion. Often ghosts are crafted as their dark Reliquiae steel arms
and armor, while others become broke down into coins and bits of currency known as “Skins“. Some consider this worst
than suffering a final death, as few are truly sure if the smelting process completely breaks down a ghosts awareness.
Meeting with the final death, in the afterlife is never a pleasant thing, as those who suffer it are spiritually thrown into the
Great Abyss screaming torn apart and consumed by its ravenous demonic inhabitants for essence. The Hierarchy controls
the majority of the Underworld and its influence is felt throughout.
Other groups exist, whom believe that those who do not become ghosts have transcended beyond the realm of the
underworld. Known by the Hierarchy as "Heretics", these ghosts continue to hold onto the faith they possessed in life and
assume a life eternal beyond the dark and tragic lives they have been granted. They believe the Hierarchy’s Anathema is a
lie, the Transcendence is still possible, through devotion.
Yet another group known as "Renegades" are an unaligned group of ghosts which defy the rule of the Hierarchy
at nearly every turn. They believe in the right to rule themselves through democratic rule.

$;CGIH
Each Ghost struggles with their own inner demons. Sometimes known as Goetia, a Daimon represents a Ghost's
repressed feelings, their Vice and everything that a Ghost has come to hate about themselves. Daimons possess an ability
to overtake a Ghosts actions with an inner determination known as Angst. A Daimon's Angst represents all the anger
frustration and resentment that the Ghost itself feels. Occasionally a Ghost is overtaken by its own Daimon completely
and such an abomination is often called a Wraith, monsters of the Abyss itself released into the Underworld. As Ghosts
have their Anchors, so do their Daimons. Each of a Ghosts Anchors come with some form of frustration or complication,
these dark emotions are part of the Daimons existence as much as the Ghosts. These Animosities, are what fuels the
Daimon's existence, and continues to make it a part of the Ghosts existence.

4B? !<SMM

The Great Nothing, Oblivion, Hell, this realm of entropy has gone by many names. But what its best known for is
the great demonic, spectral denizens which seem to exist simply to terrorize and devour the ghostly inhabitants of the
nether realm of the Underworld. Cracks, known to the ghosts as Nihils, lead down to the great nothing exist in both the
Underworld and the Labyrinth. Through these cracks seep festering energies which seem to corrode and wither all that
exist around them, or whisper enticing secrets of hope. From these great scars come the forces of entropy, Spectres,
powerful ghosts which have been corrupt and exist only for the pursuit of destruction of that around them.
Though most cracks are only minute, few exist which seem like entrances to large caverns, sometimes reaching
into the Shadow and slowly drain it of essence and life. These "Shoals" are merely a small trickle of the power that exists
in the Abyss. However, sometimes the energies bleed over so heavily into the Shadow that entities may, in fact, reach
directly into the Shadow, and corrupt the energies that lie there. Places such as this are known among the Uratha as
"Wounds". Wounds usually only manifest if the conditions are right, where the material realm has bled over its own
corruption and taint and allowed a Shoal to grow to this magnitude.
Occasionally, significant events of tragedy occur in the living realms that cause so much suffering and despair it
actually feeds the Abyss. Moments like this allow for the Abyss to swell up and issue forth great winds of entropy. To the
ghosts in the surrounding area it is similar to vampires weakness to sunlight. The searing winds literally rip a ghosts
corpus to shreds if he or she is caught in it, sometimes it will even cause buildings to crumble exposing those taking
shelter within to its full wrath. Such storms can last anywhere from a few moments to a few days.

)H NB? 3B;>IQ

As the Shadow is separated by the veil from the world of the living, so is the land of the dead from the Shadow.
Few paths lead deeper into the Shadow into the Stygian realms. Most of what appears in the Shadow is representative of
something else. As such paths that lead deeper into the realm of the dead often appear symbolically as sinister staircases,
crumbling wells, or foreboding caverns all of which seem to go on forever. Separating the land of the dead from the
shadow is another barrier known as the "Shroud". The Shroud is what keeps most spirits from entering, and ghosts from
leaving. Crossing the Shroud can seem like a number of different things, a sudden feeling of dread passes over you, a
feeling of passing through a thick layer of cobwebs, or even feeling your own death rattle escape your lips.
Certain ghosts known as "Wayfarers" travel into the Shadow to seek out items of importance and use within the
Underworld. Journeys such as these are very dangerous however, as there are spirits within the Shadow that see ghosts
merely as other spirits to consume for their Pathos.

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Not always must one enter the Shadow before being able to enter the Underworld, rarely in "haunted" places is
the Shroud nearer to the physical realms. The Shroud taking a tremendously closer step to this world, may even affect it
in subtle ways. Some may feel a sense of foreboding, others may even catch the scent of death as it hangs heavy in the air.
(This is often disturbing to mortals and they must make a successful Resolve + Composure roll to remain in such an area
every ten minutes. If a extraordinary success is gleaned they are free from further rolls, unless something happens that
may set them at unease once again.)
Some mystical beings, however, such as Bone Shadow werewolves, Moros and Scelesti magi, and group of
vampires known as the Ordo Dracul, may actually seek out such places, known as Sepultures, for their own agendas.
Tapping them of their entropic energies and sometimes stripping the ghosts themselves of freewill, Pathos, or ectoplasm,
the very stuff of their being.
It is within the land of the living that a ghosts anchors lie. Each anchor is representative of something the ghost
either held dear in life, both physically and with great emotion. In the Underworld, a ghost may see the area surrounding
her anchors as a ripple, or sense a strange feeling of peace when nearby. But only the ghost who possesses that anchor
may enter the realm of the living through it in a state of Twilight. The area influenced by the anchor is variable upon the
power and strength of the ghost bound to it. Each anchor is rated from 1 to 5 depending on the amount of emotion in
instilled into it by the ghost. The ghost may exist in twilight 10 yards per point of Conviction they possess. This area
within the Quick Realms is known to ghosts as a "Circav". Within a ghost’s Circav, they may manifest and influence the
living world through the use of their Sinews. To a ghost tearing through the shroud to manifest is often akin to the feeling
of passing through a dense layer of spider webs.

4B? &IA
Ghosts are not supposed to exist, mankind has always wondered the true existence of the Underworld. What lies
beyond death. The Fog ensures that normal mortals recall only vague accounts of interaction with the departed. Most
mortals can only recall an oblique of the appearance of an apparition, as well as hazy accounts of conversation and
reunion with those they have lost. (Changeling the Dreaming mists?)

'OCF> Determines the type of life a person had lived. Determines Skill Specialties and starting Epoch Sinews.
Wayfarers - Explorers Having never found a true calling, wayfarers dedicated their life to exploration, through the arts,
athletics, or distant places. Fool
Patrons - Healers Spent their life healing and guiding others. Cups
Artificers - Laborers Spent their lives creating lasting works for others. Staves
Zealots - Idealists Devoted their lives for a particular spiritual, political, or ethical belief. Swords
Wardens- Caretakers - Lived their lives physically taking care of objects or places. Also traders. Coins

#;MN? Determines the way that a ghost met its fate. Determines a Ghost's Shade, their Daimon's Angst, and beginning
Morte Sinews.

Tempests - Storm - Violence or Sudden Death - Angst 2 Swords

Atropians - Destiny - Fate or Old Age - Angst 4 Staves
Laments - Grief - Despair or Suicide - Angst 5 Coins
Scourges - Filth - Pestilence or Disease - Angst 3 Cups
Cryptics - Paradox - Mystery or Freak Accident - Angst 1 Fool
7?;PCHA 3CH?QM
Ghosts are intuitively attuned to the realms the Underworld. As their awareness of self and their surroundings
grow they gain an ability to manipulate the essence of the realm itself. This however, remains in the realm of the
underworld and everything it touches, but may never directly alter the reality of the realm of the living, it may however
coerce the still living spirits of the inhabitants that exist there. Sinews are gifts similar to a (Werewolf's gifts?) as they may
be learned by other ghosts, or bargained for by other denizens of the Underworld.

Possible Sinews?

Malleable Form - Sinews of Form allows for a Ghost to manipulate the ectoplasm of their existences. At higher levels of
mastery a ghost may manipulate another ghosts ectoplasm, and the building blocks of the realm itself.

Nemian Authority - A ghost with access to the Sinew of Dreams may be able to enter and manipulate the dreams of the
living within the realm of Tenemos. Such Ghosts often have doings with Thyrsus mages. This is often associated with
Sandmen.

Sovereignty - Ghosts with access to the Sinew of Authority may command attention of other ghosts, and manipulate their
emotions. At higher levels this power may be used to possess a mortal host.

Sentry - Ghosts with access to a Sinew of Sentry have heightened senses and control of their surroundings to the point of
foresight at high levels.

Shackle - Ghosts with access to this may temporarily affect the bonds which hold them to the living. At high levels these
effects may be strengthened (or weakened) permanently through sacrifice of their very Corpus.

Conveyance - This sinew affects a ghosts movement through the physical realms and the underworld.

Chimera - The Sinew of Chimera allows a ghost to manipulate ephemeral creatures and objects. Often this is associated
with Wayfarers.

Shadows - The Sinew of Shadows allows ghosts to manipulate light and the lack there of.

Forging - Artificers as they are often called often use the Sinew of Forging to craft objects of ectoplasm and imbue it with
fantastic (or sometimes horrific) properties.

Tenure - The ability for a ghost to have sway over an object of non-living matter. At high levels a ghost may actually
possess a corpse for a short time.

Beasts - Animals of all kinds are the target of the Sinew of Beasts. Enable simple communication with animals, and the
ability to bring dying animals to the Underworld.

Cite - The ability to move or manipulate objects with sheer determination.

Life - This rare Sinew allows for a ghost to manipulate the force of life within a subject, healing it or harming as they will.

Nihilism - This Sinew is generally found within Spectres, as it calls upon the entropic forces of the abyss to break down
objects and infect subjects with disease.

Kenning - Determine information regarding a certain Ghosts soul though powers of perception.
Lachesis' Weavings - Ghosts which possess this Sinew are able to read portents of fate, and may be able to manipulate
them subtly.

Anathema - the curse of the Underworld for a damned soul to never enter the Afterlife (Supernal Realms).
Angst - The power of the Daimons frustration, and willingness to give up or destroy meaning to their previous life.
Caul - A plasmic “birth” covering of a newly formed ghost. The caul distorts the ghosts perception of its current state in a
foggy, hazy film. A ghost cannot leave the Labyrinth until its caul is removed.
Circav - The area of influence a ghost possesses in the land of the living around its anchor. Also known as a circle.
Conviction - The strength of will a ghost possesses. A measure of belief and determination.
Daimon - See Goetia.
Deathlords - Powerful spirits ruling over the Labyrinth of Purgatory and extending their influence into the Underworld.
Defiance - A ghosts resistance to domination or being forced against something. The resiliency of their soul.
Drone - A ghost who has lost the entire connection to his past life through a reduction of their Psyche. Such mindless
ghosts exist only in the Labyrinth or the Underworld having no connection with the Quick Realms save for brief moments
of unintentional manifestation near their anchors. Also known as the Soulless.
Enfant - A newly formed ghost which still possesses it’s plasmic caul.
Gaunts - The eldest ghosts in a given area or Necropoli.
Goetia - The inner goetic demon a Ghost must struggle with, their vice and all of their failures manifested in one inner
demon that haunts the ghost. Also known as a Daimon.
Grace - A ghosts ability to express their will or desire. Also the ability to discern right from wrong. Moral Integrity.
Hierarchy - Minions of the Deathlords and the ruling class of ghosts within the Underworld.
Heretics - Faithful among ghosts who continue to pay homage to a deity in hopes of a brighter afterlife. Considered
dangerously obsessive among the Hierarchy these ghosts are proclaimed enemies of the Hierarchy.
Maelstrom - A storm of Abyssal energies, that sweep the underworld during momentous negative events in the
corresponding material realm.
Mnenosyne - A measure of the amount of memory and connection a ghost retains of their past life.
Momento Mori - The act of being remembered. To be remembered by a living person as if to receive flowers on one’s
grave, or to be spoken of or recognized. A brief moment of solace for a ghost.
Necropolis - A ghostly counterpart of a city. The Underworld impersonation of an existing city on the other side of the
Shroud.
Nihils - Cracks and pits of entropy leading directly to the Abyss. Foul demonic spirits whisper corruption through these.
Quick, the - A generally used to term to refer to the still living. Also known as Skins.
Pathos - Emotional essence ghosts glean from the living to fuel their Sinew and to exist in the Underworld.
Phageon - Simply eaters, zombie like undead which roam the labyrinth in an attempt for find ghosts and other creatures
there to consume them for their essence to exist. Such creatures are sometimes subdued and molded by the Deathlords to
act as servants.
Psyche - The strength of will within a ghost to both continue their existence and to maintain a presence and influence over
the living realms. Also known to ghosts as their soul strength. A Ghost which has lost a connection with its Psyche is
called a Drone.
Reapers - Ghosts which help other ghosts escape the labyrinth for humane or personal agendas.
Relics - Items which rarely enter a ghosts Circav, which have been destroyed in the living world but continue to exist in
the Underworld. Also item brought to the Underworld from the Shadow.
Reliquiae steel - Steel-like substance which has been crafted from the calcified, and smelting process of ghosts plasm. A
practice of the Hierarchy. Not to be confused with Relics.
Repose - A measure of the peace that a ghost has with themselves, their morality, and ability to cope with the state of
death.
Sepulture - A place where the Shroud between the living realm and the Underworld have grown thin. Such places are
easily accessible to ghost even if they don't possess an Anchor nearby.
Shade - The form a ghost takes within the living world. i.e. they are a shade of the living. Existing in Twilight.
Shoals - Areas of apathy that lie within the Shadow, places where the Abyss links to the Shadow and drains it of essence
and life.
Shroud - The veil of realities between the Shadow and the realms of the Underworld.
Sinew - A supernatural ability associated with Pathos. Gifts which the afterlife has granted individual ghosts. Sinews are
rated from 1 to 5 and are associated with aspects of a ghosts individuality based on their death, life, and anchors. Called as
such from a lack of true fleshy muscle but it comprises of much of their strength. (Often said weaving a Sinew of ...)
Skin - a standard coin within the Underworld for trade, also broke into bits which are 1/10th of a single skin. All are said
to be minted by the hierarchy from the plasm of discorporate renegade ghosts. A rumor which the Hierarchy does not
disclaim. Also a slang term referring to the still living as in “I saw this Skin in my Circle...”
Solace - the act of receiving pathos from the still living. A temporary easing of grief, loneliness, discomfort, etc from the
state of being separated from the living.
Spectres - Ghosts corrupted by the enticing pacts with demonic spirits of the Abyss. Ghosts corrupted from within by
their own Daimons. Powerful, spiritual manifestations of the power of the Abyss.
Tenemos - A realm of collective dreaming where a ghost may physically confront their own Daimon, or interact with the
living during their dreams.
Volitional Attribute - A Ghost’s soul determination and resilience.
Wounds - Areas of corruption within the Shadow that have been shaped by both the material world and the Abyss.
Territory of powerful corrupt spirits known as Maeljin.
Wraith - A ghost which has lost a connection with its fetters but still remains in the Underworld through sheer
determination.

Morality - Morality cannot be regained through any means, the touch of the Abyss has created an inability to regain the
loss of connection to the Supernal realms the person may have had. Certain Sinews may allow for a chance for redemption
through spiritual cleansing, but not without great risks. Otherwise, morality effects are identical to those outlined in World
of Darkness.

Power stat - Psyche

Rating Max shade stat Maximum Pathos Pool Ennui / Temperance Penalty
1 5 10
2 5 11 -1
3 5 12 -1
4 5 13 -2
5 5 14 -2
6 6 15 -3
7 7 20 -3
8 8 30 -4
9 9 50 -4
10 10 100 -5

Anchors - Everyone has something that has meaning to them. For a Ghost it is this very thing that keeps them tied to the
living world. Each Ghost possesses anchors with an attached emotion or passion. These are rated from 1 to 5 the higher
the score the more meaning it holds for the Ghost. But like everything the Abyss begins to strip away meaning and
emotion for the Ghost. This slow process is known as ennui or feelings of weariness and fatigue with a connection to the
living world.

Shade of Life
Having no true form in the world of the living a Ghost must rely upon will alone. A ghost has no physical
statistics in the realm of the Quick, instead they rely upon their incorporeal or ectoplasmic form attributes called their
volitional stats as follows: Power - Conviction, Finesse - Grace, Resistance - Defiance, Corpus - Health Levels To
configure the attributes, each stat begins with the lowest in each of the Power, Finesse and Resistance attributes
categories. Additional points may be gained by the Ghosts Guild.
For example: Dorian the police officer is killed in a fight against a group of gang members. His attributes are as
follows: Intelligence 2, Wits 3, Resolve 3, Strength 2, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3, Presence 3, Manipulation 2, Composure 3.
Therefore as he applies his dots as follows: Conviction 3, Grace 3, and Defiance 4. When interacting with the mortal
realm he possesses the following attributes: Corpus 9, Speed 16, Initiative 7.
To increase a ghosts Shade attributes they must spend a number of experience points equal to their new rating
times ten, and then attempt a Temperance. If the Ghost wins against his Daimon then he or she may raise the Volitional
Stat to its next rating, if he or she fails they lose the experience and nothing happens. As a Ghost may attempt this so can
its Daimon, when a ghost Slumbers to heal damage to its corpus, it opens them up to their Daimon. If a Daimon so wishes
they may attempt a corruption of the Soul and make them forget or renounce connections to their previous life. If
successful the Daimon weakens an Anchors strength by one dot, if it fails nothing happens.
A ghosts Psyche and Caste determines their appearance when they attempt to manifest in the living realms. For
each success the character attains in a conviction + grace roll vs. the local Shroud, the character may affect one sense of
one person present. Certain Sinews may alter this effect however. The effect lasts for the entire time the ghost remains
manifested. Please note that a ghost may only attempt this once as an instant action, it is not considered an extended nor
contested action. A Ghost may only physically manifest for a number of turns equal to their Defiance + Psyche in turns.
While in shade form a ghost uses their Grace as a perception alternative, however dim light, obscuring smoke,
wind, background noise has no effect whatsoever on their powers of perception.
Moros mages, Bone Shadow werewolves and several other groups of supernatural creatures seek to entrap Ghosts
to do their bidding. Others seek to find ways to summon the undead to perform a task. To resist domination or entrapment
against their will a ghost must roll their Defiance (+ Psyche if the threat is coming from another supernatural creatures
power).