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westwhere2022-06-22 09:07 pm
groundrules) wrote in westwhere2022-06-22 09:07 pm
the priests
THE PRIESTS
Quicksilver Sam’s numerous hired priests aboard the Pariah are asked to earn their keep by appeasing some of the spirits that overtake the vessel. Hauntings intensify, from invisible presences that rattle hammocks and shake furniture, to ghostly attempts to push sailors overboard or under collapsing wooden barrels, sinister lullabies and inexplicable miniature explosions on deck, after someone unseen toys with gunpowder.
Those sensitive to ghosts will feel occasionally overwhelmed by the strength and volume of the spirits that surround the Queen Zanyra and the Pariah. Spells or items to keep the dead at bay will continue to work, but they will have a significantly reduced effect and only for limited periods of time. The Pariah appears especially vulnerable to deathly visits, and Quicksilver Sam can be often found in a state of incoherent anxiety on deck.
One of the priests signals the endlessly slate skies, pointing out ‘clouds’ that have covered the sun and comprise dark, roiling agglomerations of spiritual apparitions. The sun has been ‘eclipsed’ by ghosts, and the hauntings will stop when it reappears — whether naturally, within 36 hours, or with some help.
✘ OBJECTIVE: appease the spirits on deck. Make the sun pretty much rise.
■ The priests entrust characters with amulets that allow them to perceive the shadowy presence of the dead when worn, and to more easily understand their murmurs. (The amulets will amplify the gifts of those who already have similar death perception abilities, whether naturally or gained through the recent volcano event).
■ Wearing the amulets in turn allows the ghosts to see you. They will frequently rush towards the bearers, drawn to someone they believe can understand them. Most ghosts are only aggressively clingy and want to liaise. A handful of spirits are outright hostile, seeking to claw or possess amulet wearers for a few hours, before their powers run out.
■ Priests encourage characters to appease ghosts by speaking with them: many wish only to share their tales of death in the Crossing: typically lured out by the promise of an ‘unthinkable power’ lost at sea, or by the reward to recover this resource. Some perished when their vessels were suddenly, inexplicably stranded and fell prey to starvation. Some found their captains compelled to sabotage their ships and crash them into cliffs or other vessels. A few sailors were pulled in and drowned by mermaids, or killed by spirits. Far too many speak of reaching the heart of the Crossing, where ‘woken dead’ boarded their ships and culled them.
■ Ask a few specific questions of the dead here (no more than two-three/character, please.)
■ Carry out a spirit’s last wish – anything from having a strong drink on their behalf, enjoying a last kiss or sunrise, or punching a pirate who’s wronged them.
■ Publicly share (near-)death experiences, as a way to bond with the suffering of ghosts.
■ Physical rites can also appease spirits: evacuate sailors off decks at night, other than a skeleton crew required to keep the ship on course. Patrol the area with braziers burning a strong, stringent incense, or draw the elaborate protection wards priests teach on deck wood or doorways. Teasing ghosts will often try to ruin your work before you complete the ward circles.
■ Set down lines of pure wood ash before every door, and replenish them when they have thinned. Failure to do so will see the doors rattling and nightmare spirits shaped like black cats attempt to enter to torment sleepers. If a nightmare-spirit has already gone in, draw it out with shrill bells and throw ashes on it. Do not look a nightmare-cat in its dark eyes when you encounter it on deck, or find yourself paralysed in place until she passes.
■ Those who want to hasten the end of the ‘eclipse’ can help priests dip arrows in a mix of ashes, salt, incense and diluted blood, then set them on fire and shoot them repeatedly at the sun. The prowess of your archery skills is irrelevant: the sky’s big enough of a target that you’re unlikely to miss. Caution: shooting these arrows taxes your spirit, and you may find that you are helping clear the clouds at the expense of a temporary but growing feeling that leaves even the most stalwart character physically fragile, emotionally vulnerable and rattled for a handful of hours.
■ Those whose energies have been depleted can 'borrow' strength from another willing character by clasping their amulet. Those whose energy is fully exhausted fall in a two-day sleep and dream of dark, cold, impossibly silent water — and a yearning to be born with a shape.
PLOTTING
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