Apparitionem (WoD)

Discipline Description

Apparitionem is the Clan Senya discipline. The name being the accusative singular of the latin word appāritiō meaning appearance and, as the name implies, revolves around the Senya's ability to alter their appearance and form. Up until the dark ages, it was known as Εμφάνιση (Εmfánisi) and the different powers likewise had Greek titles. When Senya Lorekeepers began actually studying the power in detail during the Dark Ages after the first Grand Conclave, Latin was the more common scholarly language. Over time, as the class expanded during the late Byzantine Empire and Middle Ages, into the Renaissance era, the original Greek name for the Discipline and its powers fell out of favour as Parents preferred using the more common Latin language for traditional usage, and the Greek ones for formal usage, at best. In the modern nights when referring to non-speakers of Latin, including Adoptees who may not have learnt the classical languages, English language versions of the name are commonly used instead. In some respects, the approximate age of a Senya can be determined simply by noting whether they use the original Greek or Latin name for the Discipline and its powers.

At lower levels, this grants the Senya the ability to alter aspects of their appearance and form such as hair and skin colouration, voice, and at proficient levels even change the form completely into any style or gender the Senya desires. At the higher levels of mastery, it allows more supernatural changes, boosting the natural kindred ability to use vitae for healing and physical empowerment to make even more dramatic changes to enhance the form or regenerate damage.

Elder Senya, with true mastery of the discipline, are said to be able to transform themselves for even more powerful supernatural effects such as taking bestial and non-human forms; or affect others through their appearance such as the famed Gorgons of Greek mythology, whose appearance could turn onlookers to stone.

Tremere attempt to raise alarm by suggesting a theoretical link between Apparitionem and the Clan Tzimisce discipline of Vicissitude; and although Senya Lorekeepers admit there is some similarity in the fact that both allow alteration of the form at a metaphysical level, Apparitionem is about modifying the overall form within natural or prodigious transmutations, whilst Vicissitude is about unnatural physical transmutations. Senya scholars instead claim there more similarity between Apparitionem and the Gangrel discipline of Protean, except whilst Protean focuses on animal transmutations, Apparitionem focuses on human form transmutations. This argument is given weight by the fact that there is notable overlap between elder generation mastery of Protean and Apparitionem, with similar or relatable powers - Protean allowing supernatural modifications to the form that would typically be more thematically appropriate in Apparitionem; whilst Apparitionem masters are able to take animal and mythical beast forms that thematically are more appropriate for Protean. Noddist scholars also point out that according to the Book of Nod, the antediluvian founders of both Clan Gangrel and Senya were embraced by Zillah, Caine's wife and one of the second generation - and therefore it is feasible that both disciplines are distilled versions of an original discipline Zillah may have had (and presumably died with her) much as it is claimed by the True Brujah that Celerity is a distilled version of their Temporis clan discipline.

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Permanency

When a Kindred uses Apparitionem to alter herself, mortals, ghouls, and vampires of higher Generation, the effects of the power are permanent; vampires of equal or lower Generation can choose to heal the effects of Apparitionem as though they were aggravated wounds. A wielder of Apparitionem can always reshape her own form. Nosferatu always “heal” Apparitionem alterations, at least the ones that make them better-looking. The ancient curse of the Clan may not be circumvented through Apparitionem. The same applies to permanent physical deformities from the Gangrel Clan weakness.

Body Crafts

Apparitionem requires expansive knowledge of the human body, the kind usually only available through Medicine. Vampires who wish to use Apparitionem well often specialize their knowledge of medicine in an art known as Body Crafts. This specialization enables its possessor to make all manner of alterations as though a gifted plastic surgeon. It also gives insight into more mundane techniques; many Senya are skilled at bone-carving, embalming, taxidermy, tattooing and piercing.

The Children of the Dark, not particularly given to the art of healing, have developed an alternative: Body Crafts. Body Crafts is a unique Skill (not to be confused with the more generalized Crafts Skill) that combines knowledge of vivisection, anatomy, taxidermy, scarification, tanning, and sculpting into a new kind of artisan Ability. Its primary purpose is to augment the application of Apparitionem.

• Causae Mutationum (Malleable Alterations)

Dark Ages Name: ελαστικές αλλοιώσεις (elastikés alloióseis)

At this stage, the character learns the essentials of understanding forms, and how to alter them. She is capable of making minor alterations such as height, build, voice, facial features, and skin tone, among other things colouration and pigmentation, and slightly stretch or contract skin and hair, but not alter her structure in a drastic enough way to be completely unrecognisable to those that know her, or be able to mimic others.

Within these limitations, the control can be very detailed. A character could grant herself different colour eyes, imitate a “bikini tan”, turn her hair a different colour (even natural colour with different colour highlights); darken or lighten skin tone to imitate tan complexion or a different ethnicity or make herself look up to a foot (30 cm) taller or shorter. She can even stretch or contract skin wrinkles to appear a older or younger (e.g. a Senya embraced as a teen could look like an older version of themselves).

System: The character must spend a blood point for each body part to be changed, then roll Intelligence+Medicine/Body Crafts (difficulty 6) whilst taking a symbolic physical action to make the change, such as pulling her hair to make it longer. Increasing one’s Appearance Trait has a difficulty of 9, and the vampire must spend an additional blood point for each dot of Appearance increased beyond their natural total. A botch permanently reduces the Attribute by one. As using this power requires sensing and modifying forms, it also grants the vampire the ability to make a Perception+Awareness roll (difficulty 8) to sense another person’s form – allowing Senya to recognise others they know by recognising a person’s “base form” even if they are in disguise or rendered unidentifiable by conventional means. This power must be used once to sense a form, before they can be recognised in the future by the use of this power. This power also allows characters on Paths of Enlightenment to use the Blush of Life as though they had Humanity equal to their Path rating.

•• Regeneratio (Regeneration)

Dark Ages Name: Αναγέννηση (Anagénnisi)

Senya warriors are renown for their durability, and Regeneration is a reason for that. Regeneration allows a character to enhance her ability to repair damage to herself by reshaping damaged areas to facilitate their use of vitae to heal. The character can both heal faster and regenerate lost limbs – although they cannot regenerate damage that causes Final Death or cure supernatural infections or diseases (although it can repair the physical damage caused by these sources).

System: The character can heal herself during combat without requiring the usual turn of concentration, and so healing does not consume the character’s combat turn. Any blood points spent healing counts against the normal per-turn blood expenditure limit. Out of combat, the character can instead spend a blood point and make a Wits + Medicine/Body Crafts (difficulty 8) roll. Each success heals one level of lethal or bashing damage, although each wound level healed requires one minute of uninterrupted work.

Finally, the character is able to heal a number of aggravated damage levels per day equal to her Apparitionem level without requiring the expenditure of Willpower points. This alone enables Senya kindred to recover from aggravated wounds far faster than other kindred whilst still preserving their Willpower.

••• Mutare Forma (Alter Form)

Dark Ages Name: Αλλάξτε τη φόρμα (Alláxte ti fórma)

The character’s ability to alter his own form is complete and can now alter the structure and makeup of his body; altering and compressing or expanding flesh and bone, size, shape and structure and even changing their physical sex. This allows the character to change his form or voice into that of any other form he can envision, as long as it falls within the range of human possibility.

System: Spend a blood point for each body part to be changed, then roll Intelligence+Medicine /Body Crafts to change form (difficulty 6). This action requires one turn per body part to be changed as well as concentration and symbolic actions to your form to change (such as pulling on earlobes to change shape) as though “repainting” their form. This action is more of a focus tool than actual physical manipulation. A failed roll results in a failed attempt and the blood spent is lost. A botch on this check, however, causes the Senya to take one level of lethal damage from the pain, as well as the failure to make the change, and loss of any blood spent. A Senya who wishes to increase another’s Appearance Trait does so as described under Malleable Alterations; reducing the Attribute is considerably easier (difficulty 5), though truly inspired disfigurement may dictate a higher difficulty. In either case, each success increases or reduces the Attribute by one.

If using this power to mimic another, a Perception+Medicine /Body Crafts roll (difficulty 8) is required and five successes for a flawless copy; fewer successes leave minute (or not-so-minute) flaws.

Additionally, the vampire's fine control over her form now allows her to use the Blush of Life (even those on Paths of Enlightenment) as though she had humanity 10 for the purpose of appearing mortal. That is, Blush of life makes her appear as a mortal in good health, allows her to heal superficial damage as though mortal, in addition to vampiric mending, have and enjoy sexual intercourse as if mortal, have tears and sweat that appear normal for mortals, and allows her to taste, eat, and enjoy food and drink as if mortal for the scene before she must heave it back out. The usual penalties and restrictions for acting during the daytime or sunlight damage remain unchanged, as does the blood point cost of using Blush of Life.

•••• Corpus Detritus (Sculpt Body)

Dark Ages Name: Mορφή Γλυπτικής (Morfé Glyptikís)

The Senya is no longer limited to simply modifying forms within the boundaries of normal human range, and is now able to make cosmetic changes beyond the mortal norm, and remould flesh and muscle with the use of vitae to change or enhance physical capabilities (or that of others).

System: The vampire gains three improvements to their use of the Alter Form and Regeneration powers:

• When using Alter Form the vampire can now make detailed alterations to colouration such as skin, eyes or hair, beyond the normal human scope. This can be used to grant violet eyes, detailed tattoos or green hair with purple highlights. At the Storyteller’s discretion, this can be used to gain circumstance bonuses, such as chameleon-like camouflage (-1 difficulty to stealth checks in an appropriate environment) or making the whole body appear like menacing tattoos or lizard-like (-1 difficulty to intimidate checks). This application of this power has no cost beyond the normal for use of Alter Form.
• When using Alter Form the vampire is now able to reassign physical attributes. For example, a vampire that has Strength 3, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3, could reshuffle the attributes to Strength 1, Dexterity 5, Stamina 2 to be more efficient in a firefight. This costs one blood if affecting two attributes, or two blood points if all three are affected but only takes one turn to activate regardless. Attributes cannot be improved using this power beyond their combined total, nor above their normal trait maximum or reduced below 1. If used as an attack, the vampire makes a Dexterity + Medicine attack roll (difficulty 6) which can be dodges as normal. Each success allows reassigning of 1 attribute point.
• Just as Regeneration allows the vampire to be able to use their vitae and form changing ability to heal more speedily and efficiently, the vampire is now able to make body alterations whilst using vitae to enhance her own physicals, making the effort more efficient. When spending blood points on increasing Physical Attributes, each blood point spent now increases two attributes by one (or one attribute by two points) instead of one attribute point per blood point spent. The duration and limits for spending blood to increase her Physical Attributes still apply as normal.

••••• Reicio Perniciosa (Defy Bane)

Dark Ages Name: Προκαλώ Συμφορά (Prokaló Symforá)

By preparing themselves with an expenditure of blood, the Senya can empower themselves to be temporarily resistant to fire and sunlight as well as other grievous wounds that would threaten them with Final Death. With this power, Senya may briefly walk in brightest sunlight without fear, the sunlight searing his Blood and not his flesh, or using their blood to resist grievous wounds as they are inflicted.

System: The vampire may reflexively spend one blood point whenever the vampire is exposed to sunlight. Until the vampire exhausts his blood pool, he need not make Rötschreck rolls. Such damage is treated as damage dice pool and rolled, rather than applied as automatic damage, and can be soaked normally if the vampire also has Fortitude. Each level of damage taken burns one point of the vampire’s blood pool rather than inflicting actual wounds; once the vampire runs out of blood, he suffers damage normally and must fear Rötschreck as normal.

The vampire may also reflexively spend one blood point whenever struck by an attack dealing aggravated damage, and roll Wits+Medicine (Difficulty 6). For the remainder of the scene, each success gained converts a level of aggravated damage taken into bashing damage. This damage, although bashing, cannot be healed for the rest of the scene, and this power can only be employed for this purpose once per scene.