Path of Curses

* Stigma

The most basic of curses, the victim is stricken with an invisible stigma that manifests only in the eyes of those around them. Few can describe its actual form. People shy away from interacting with the marked victim, and will have a hard time taking him seriously. Social interaction becomes difficult, and frustration quickly follows for the accursed.
System: The stigma lasts until the next sunset, during which time the victim is doomed to frustration when performing any social actions. All of the victim’s Manipulation, Charisma and Appearance rolls are at +1 difficulty (Max 10) during this curse. Unlike the Ritual Devil’s Touch, this power also works on Kindred.

** Malady

The Thaumaturge causes the victim to suffer intense illness and discomfort, not unlike the plagues and pestilences of history. During the dark ages, this power was used to strike down rivals and force them into subservience to the Thaumaturge. Cainites likewise feel the pain and suffering from the sickness instilled by this curse. For elder Kindred, this is one of the worse curses – to be stricken down with illness as if a common mortal!

System: If this power is successfully invoked, the accursed suffers the effects of severe illness for a number of nights equal to the Thaumaturge’s Willpower. The intensity of this sickness equals the successes the Thaumaturge scores on the activation roll. Each success reduces the victim’s Strength, Dexterity and Stamina dice pools by one (with a maximum reduction of three dice). The afflicted character may also attempt to see if she breaks the curse nightly – as soon as she succeeds in resisting, the malady will not afflict her unless invoked again.

***Pariah

This curse touches upon one of the most feared elements of society, that of becoming an outcast. This power goes beyond cursing the victim with simple social ostracism – while under the effects of Pariah, the accused appears to be the most hated of enemies to everyone they encounter. This alteration of perception is only in body form; the victim still acts and speaks as normal. But then again, few are willing to listen to the ranting and ravings of a despised foe.

System: This nasty curse sustains its baneful effects upon the subject for a period of one night per success. Similar to the power of Mask of a Thousand Faces, this power influences the perceptions of those around the accursed, leading observers to believe that the subject is a dire rival. This will not necessarily result in attack – indeed, in most cases, it shouldn’t – but will cause antagonism in whatever way is most appropriate to the onlooker. Most people will just leave the vampire’s presence with a look of disdain, but some will snub her, insult her or even throw the first punch. Unlike the Obfuscate power, Auspex cannot see through this involuntary disguise for the duration.

****Corrupt Body

This powerful curse is invoked by the Thaumaturge, who approaches the victim and denounces his physical form. Over the course of seconds, the victim’s body distorts and perverts into a parody of itself. During this transformation, the victim suffers extreme pain that wracks his body. The defilement leaves behind a victim scarred both physically and mentally. Recently, Camarilla princes have had this power used upon violators of the Traditions to enforce their will; a graceful Kindred dancer reduced to an uncoordinated oaf is not likely to forget his mistakes.
System: During the three turns that the physical change occurs, the target suffers a three-dice penalty to dice pools. For the duration of the Corrupt Body, the accursed suffers a one-dice penalty to all dice pools, as if she were wounded. This is cumulative with other wounds. The Thaumaturge chooses Strength, Dexterity, Stamina or appearance to warp. This drops the appropriate Attribute to 1 for the duration. The Storyteller should add any additional effects to aid in how nasty this power is. Only one Corrupt Body can affect a victim at any one time. The number of successes determines the duration of Corrupt Body.