Thaumaturgy Rituals Level 2

[Phsycodelic]

Thaumaturgy Rituals Level 2

Tremere

Rituals are Thaumaturgical formulas, meticulously researched and prepared, that create powerful magical effects. Rituals are less versatile than paths, as their effects are singular and straightforward, but they are better suited to specific ends.

All thaumaturges have the ability to use rituals, though each individual ritual must be learned separately. By acquainting herself with the arcane practice of blood magic, the caster gains the capacity to manipulate these focused effects.

Thaumaturgical rituals are rated from 1 to 5, each level corresponding to both the level of mastery of Thaumaturgy the would-be caster must possess and the relative power of the ritual itself. Unless stated otherwise, a ritual requires five minutes per level to cast.

Casting rituals requires a successful Intelligence + Occult roll, for which the difficulty equals 3 + the level of the ritual (maximum 9). Only one success is required for a ritual to work, though certain spells may require more successes or have variable effects based on how well the caster's roll goes. Should a roll to activate a ritual fail, the Storyteller is encouraged to create strange occurrences or side effects, or even make it appear that the ritual was successful, only to reveal its failure at a later time. A botched ritual roll may even indicate a catastrophic failure or summon an ill-tempered demon.

Rituals sometimes require special ingredients or reagents to work - these are noted in each ritual's description. Common components include herbs, animal bones, ceremonial items, feathers, eye of newt, tongue of toad, etc. Acquiring magical components for a powerful ritual may form the basis for an entire story.

At the first level of Thaumaturgy, the vampire automatically gains a single Level One ritual. To learn further rituals, the thaumaturge must find someone to teach him, or learn the ritual from a scroll, tome, or other archive. Learning a new ritual can take anywhere from a few nights (Level One ritual) to months or years (Level Five ritual). Some mystics have studied individual rituals for decades, or even centuries.

[ 2 ] Ascension Of The Blood ( Lore Of The Clans - Page 221 )

Prerequisite: Tremere

As the Tremere have plenty of blood rituals that require ingestion, it has become useful to be able to remove some of its inherent qualities. This ritual "purifies" the blood used in it, so it does not count as drinking from an individual for the purposes of blood bond.

System: The ritualist prepares a special chalice into which she puts as much of her blood as she requires. With at least one success, the blood in the chalice can no longer create a blood bond and is safe for anyone else to drink. Of course, the blood still looks the same whether the ritual is a success or the Tremere is simply lying.

[ 2 ] Black Water ( XXX - Page X )

The Thaumaturgist can pour a special pitch-black oil into a pool of water, thus turning the water solid black. The black water cannot be seen through from the surface, but it has no other effect. The surface of the water will remain black until the effect is dispelled, the water evaporates or the black water is diluted with a large enough amount of normal water. Ancient Thaumaturgists used this ritual to blacken the water of their moats or pools so their underwater guardians could not be seen. One pint of oil covers a small swimming pool-size area. The oil will last for a week, but a large amount can be prepared at one time.

[ 2 ] Blood Mead ( XXX - Page X )

It was thought by the cults of Dionysus that supernatural powers could procured while under the effects of oinos, or any intoxication for that matter. During the Dionysian rites, a special drink combining vitae and mead (a fermented honey drink) might be prepared for favored supplicants. The drink was thought to pass on a powerful resilience, though only under intoxication. Similarly, a thaumaturge casting this ritual will be able to withstand a greater amount of damage than he would normally tolerate.

System: The thaumaturge must ingest this concoction to trigger its effect. By mingling two points of his own vitae with a honey brew, the magus creates a potent anesthetic and intoxicant. While under this effect, the caster gains an extra Bruised health level. However, he suffers the effects of intoxication and, as such, loses one die to all Dexterity and Intelligence dice pools. The effects from Blood Mead last a number of hours equal to the successes scored after the blood mead is imbibed. At night's end, the vitae within the Blood Mead dilutes and loses its mystical properties and, as a result, cannot refill a vampire's blood pool. The mead may, however, continue to act as an intoxicant, depending on how much the vampire consumed.

[ 2 ] Blood Walk ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 232 )

A thaumaturge casts this ritual on a blood sample from another vampire. Blood Walk is used to trace the subject's Kindred lineage and the blood bonds in which the subject is involved.

System: This ritual requires three hours to cast, reduced by 15 minutes for each success on the roll. It requires one blood point from the subject. Each success allows the caster to "see back" one Generation (to a limit of the Fourth Generation - the Third Generation do not give up their secrets so easily), giving the caster both the true name of the ancestor and an image of his face. The caster also learns the Generation and Clan or bloodline from which the subject is descended. With three successes, the caster also learns the identities of all parties with whom the subject shares a blood bond, either as regnant or thrall.

[ 2 ] Bureaucratic Condemnation ( XXX - Page X )

Developed as the antithesis of Expedient Paperwork, this ritual causes forms, letters or other paperwork tendered by the target to become lost in red tape. Use of this ritual has created many apocryphal tales among the Tremere, who boast of rivals' havens foreclosed upon, cars repossessed and building permits revoked. The earliest recorded use of this rituals seems to have been during the Renaissance, when a Tremere had a Lasombra rival excommunicated for failing to submit a writ to the Inquisition. A thaumaturge must sketch an effigy (however crude) of her subject in squid ink when casting this ritual.

System: The time any single bureaucratic action takes to complete is tripled, including mailing documents, applying for licenses, etc. Characters with sufficient Influence or the like should still be able to "push things through," however, though they are likely to experience additional difficulty.

[ 2 ] Burning Blade ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 232 )

Developed during Clan Tremere's troubled inception, Burning Blade allows a caster to temporarily enchant a melee weapon to inflict unhealable wounds on supernatural creatures. While this ritual is in effect, the weapon flickers with an unholy greenish flame.

System: This ritual can only be cast on melee weapons. The caster must cut the palm of her weapon hand during the ritual - with the weapon if it is edged, otherwise with a sharp stone. This inflicts a single health level of lethal damage, which cannot be soaked but may be healed normally. The player spends three blood points, which are absorbed by the weapon. Once the ritual is cast, the weapon inflicts aggravated damage on all supernatural creatures for the next few successful attacks, one per success rolled. Multiple castings of Burning Blade cannot be "stacked" for longer durations. Furthermore, the wielder of the weapon cannot choose to do normal damage and "save up" aggravated strikes - each successful attack uses one aggravated strike until there are none left, at which point the weapon reverts to inflicting normal damage.

[ 2 ] Calling The Restless Spirit ( XXX - Page X )

This ritual allows the caster to speak with someone who has died. Successful casting requires an Intelligence + Occult roll (difficulty the target's Willpower); the caster needs two successes. This ritual must be cast within 10 feet of the corpse. If the caster attempts to communicate with a ghost, she does not have to be near the body but must be in the area the ghost haunts. This spell does not affect vampires unless they have been destroyed.

[ 2 ] Communicate With Kindred Bond Mate ( Dread Names: Red List - Page 101 )

This variation on the Communicate with Kindred Sire Ritual is rare, even among the Alastors who have studied Thaumaturgy. It requires that both vampires have shared at least one point of vitae, thus putting them at least one step towards a Blood Bond, within the last year. Most Kindred are reluctant to share their blood with a Thaumaturgist, so their must be a very strong sense of trust between the two vampires, not something easy to come by, even in the Camarilla.

Similar to Communicate with Kindred Sire, the caster is able to join minds with a vampire they have shared blood with, mentally speaking over great distances. This communication continues until the ritual expires or one side forces and end to the connection.

System: The caster must meditate for 30 minutes to create the connection. Conversation may be maintained for 10 minutes per success on the activation roll.

[ 2 ] Craft Bloodstone ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 147 )

A Bloodstone is a small pebble that has a sympathetic link with the thaumaturge that created it, allowing her to always know the direction and general distance of the object. This ritual was widely used by the Tremere during the many wars of the Dark Ages, when knowing the position of troops, messengers, and property could give your side an incredible tactical advantage. As technology advanced with the invention of satellite communication and GPS systems, Bloodstones fell out of favor. However, more conservative thaumaturges have returned to this older method for tracking their allies, mumbling fears about "hackers" and "technomancers."

To create a Bloodstone, the thaumaturge must place a small pebble into a vial filled with three points of blood from any source. (This blood does not need to be human.) Once a night, over the course of three nights, she must recite an invocation over the vial. The bloodstone slowly absorbs a single point of blood each night, and the liquid becomes slightly clearer, until on the third night it becomes as transparent as water. The thaumaturge then has a mystical connection to the stone, and knows its relative position at all times.

System: A thaumaturge may create a number of Bloodstones up to her permanent Willpower rating. She instinctively knows the precise direction and general distance from the caster. If a Bloodstone is obfuscated or mystically hidden, the caster may follow the trail until she reaches the general location. Once there, the connection becomes blurred and she can no longer quite feel the Bloodstone. A Bloodstone that is destroyed severs its connection to the thaumaturge immediately, often with some form of painful backlash (which is distracting, but not damaging).

[ 2 ] Deny The Intruder ( XXX - Page X )

To protect chantries from unwanted observation, Tremere rely not only upon mystic wards but also upon mortal bureaucracy. An enemy can hardly drop in if the chantry isn't listed in any directories or real estate paperwork, after all. Better still, a little judicious paper-shuffling can "lose" records for electrical payments, telephone calls and other incriminating evidence.

To set up a chantry's bureaucratic defense, the Tremere simply scrawls a series of mystic characters on a piece of paper. This page goes out by main (some modern Tremere even scan the page and use e-main) and promptly becomes lost in the system. For the next year, the chantry becomes difficult to track via the usual paperwork routes.

System: There's no special cost for the paperwork involved in this ritual, though the Tremere must scrawl out the characters with charcoal. Once the paper makes it into "the system" - by the hands of the mailman, by e-mail to some server, or what have you - it vanishes without a trace. So, too, do the records of the chantry. Attempts to investigate the chantry or unearth records of its existence increase in difficulty by one for each success scored on the ritual roll. This doesn't hinder the chantry's normal functions; the telephones still work and the electricity still runs. It's just that nobody ever sends the bills directly to the chantry or writes anything in the credit memos that reveals the building's location.

[ 2 ] Detect Authority ( XXX - Page X )

This is a testing ritual, usually performed on new neonate members to make sure they are not working for the prince. The caster cuts his palm, and does the same to the young neonate. They then clasp hands, mixing their blood while the caster stares into the eyes of the neonate, searching for any mystical signs of the prince's blood or power. He rolls Perception + Intimidation (difficulty of the neonate's Willpower). Any successes reveal if the neonate is Blood Bound or under the control of a vampire's Discipline. The anarchs will usually to refuse anyone who tests positive to this ritual, unless she has a damn good explanation.

[ 2 ] Donning The Mask Of Shadows ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 233 )

This ritual renders its subject translucent; her form appears dark and smoky, and the sounds of her footsteps are muffled. While it does not create true invisibility, the Mask of Shadows makes the subject much less likely to be detected by sight or hearing.

System: This ritual may be simultaneously cast on a number of subjects equal to the caster's Occult rating; each individual past the first adds five minutes to the base casting time. Individuals under the Mask of Shadows can only be detected if the observer possesses a power (such as Auspex) sufficient to penetrate Obfuscate 3. The Mask of Shadows lasts a number of hours equal to the number of successes rolled when it is cast or until the caster voluntarily lowers it.

[ 2 ] Dust Of Remembrance ( XXX - Page X )

Curaferrum devised this ritual to alert him to signs of disorder in his chantry. To perform it, the thaumaturge severs one of her fingers, allowing it to crumble to corpse-dust as he grows a new one. She combines the dust with myrrh, wine dregs, silver powder and salt extracted from the tears of a child, allows the mixture to dry and then performs a series of incantations. The result is several drams of a whitish powder. The thaumaturge sprinkles the powder on an object of interest to her. If the object is moved while she is not in its presence, the thaumaturge feels a sharp pain in her regrown finger.

The castellan uses this strategically by placing dust on certain doors to know when unwanted intrusions occur. He also sometimes makes petty use of it. He might place the dust in linen closets to catch out the mortal servants, or on a tapestry depicting Etrius, to see who has been splattering it with paint.

System: The ritualist may sprinkle the dust on up to twenty objects during the ritual. She can tell which of them is being interfered if the player passes an Intelligence + Occult roll. The connection with prepared objects lasts one lunar month per success on the ritual roll.

[ 2 ] Enhancing The Curse ( XXX - Page X )

Ghouls can survive almost indefinitely, with the stipulation that they have vampiric blood within their bodies. A thaumaturge casting this ritual on a ghoul enhances the strength of the vampiric vitae in his body but causes him to suffer similar adverse effects to sunlight exposure as vampires would suffer. Every moment the subject spends exposed to daylight will generate third-degree burns over the ghoul's body. This proves fatal if the ghoul is unable to find shelter from the sun's rays. The vampire must scratch the subject and draw blood, though some variants of this ritual require the thaumaturge to strike the ghoul. Obviously, this is not a pleasant ritual, and is used by thaumaturges to discipline or test their ghouls.

System: This ritual requires physical contact between thaumaturge and ghoul for it to take effect. So long as the victim retains vampiric blood in his body, he will suffer one health level of aggravated damage per two turns while in direct exposure to sunlight. Once the vampiric blood is spent from his system, the victim will cease to suffer damage from sunlight. For the next month, anytime the ghoul ingests and retains vampiric blood in his body, he will suffer damage in direct sunlight.

[ 2 ] Extinguish ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 148 )

Fire is a primal fear for Kindred. It triggers the Beast and expels reason. Some elders still shiver when they recall the dark nights of the torch-wielding Inquisition. This ritual eliminates some of the threat fire poses. The caster is able to douse dangerous flames, leaving vampire hunters quite surprised when their torches and brands are no longer effective tools.

System: Casting the ritual requires that the thaumaturge recite an incantation and then pinch out a candle's flame while spitting on the floor. Once completed, for the rest of the night, the thaumaturge may speak a single magical syllable to automatically extinguish a single fire up to the size of a bonfire. This power may be used a number of times equal to the number of successes on the activation roll for the ritual. The casting of this ritual may trigger a Rötschreck check.

[ 2 ] Extinguish Flame ( Dread Names: Red List - Page 101 )

Two versions of this ritual exist, though they both have the same effect. Practitioners of the Lure of Flames Path long ago created a version where they snuff out flames through force of Will, forcing the open flames to consume themselves. Practitioners of Weather Control use the elements, including wind and rain, to put out flames they have targeted.

System: The caster must target a specific fire they want to extinguish within their line of sight. Each success reduces the size of the fire by one level (using the standard fire chart). This ritual requires 10 minutes to cast, reduced by 1 minute for each success on the roll.

[ 2 ] Eyes Of Babel ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 24 )

It is said that after the Great Flood, all of humanity spoke a single language in the shadow of the Tower of Babel, but that the Lord struck down the tower, scattered the people of the world, and divided them with different languages. This ritual leverages the symbolism of that story to grant a thaumaturge the ability to read and speak a language she does not know. She must find someone (Kindred or kine) that knows the language and bind them in chains. During the casting of the ritual, the thaumaturge must pluck out the tongue and an eye of the victim (it must be both) and then consume them. While the ritual lasts, the caster may now speak, read, and write the language in question. Once the ritual is finished, the thaumaturge purges the foreign materials from her system by vomiting the flesh.

System: The duration of the ritual is one week per success on the activation roll. This is a horrific ritual that will permanently maim a mortal (and isn't too pleasant for Kindred, either), and all but the most inhumane Kindred are likely to have to make a Degeneration roll for attempting this ritual.

[ 2 ] Eyes Of The Night Hawk ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 233 )

This ritual allows the vampire to see through the eyes of a bird, and to hear through its ears. The bird chosen must be a predatory bird, and the vampire must touch it when initiating this ritual. At the end of this ritual, the caster must put out the bird's eyes, or suffer blindness herself.

System: The vampire is able to mentally control where the bird travels for the duration of the ritual. The bird will not necessarily perform any other action than flight - the caster cannot command it to fight, pick up and return an object, or scratch a target. The bird returns to the vampire after finishing its flight. If the vampire does not put out the bird's eyes, she suffers a three-night period of blindness. This ritual ceases effect at sunrise.

[ 2 ] Hidden Haven ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 101 )

Prerequisite: Inconnu

This ritual is said to have been developed by the Council of Twelve to hide their massive library within the Cathian Mountains. The ritual is difficult to cast, and must target a building no bigger than a large house. Once enacted, the building becomes generally unnoticeable; even individuals who know it exists do not notice it, nor do they remember it when asked. During the ritual, the caster must specify a physical "key" (such as spinning twice in a circle, tapping one heel on the ground three times, and then saying "Vitae Incora"). Any individual within 100 yards/meters of the building who performs this physical key correctly will penetrate the ritual and be able to see and locate the building without difficulty.

System: The caster must surround the building, and mark all corners, doorways, and windowsills with chalk made of owl-feather ash. The ritual takes a full night to cast, and requires the caster to sacrifice a permanent point of Willpower. Those who wish to find the building without knowing the proper physical key must approach within 100 yards/meters of the structure's location and make a successful Intelligence + Occult roll (difficulty 9) each time they wish to see through this ritual's protection. Hidden Haven's effects last for one year.

[ 2 ] Illusion Of Peaceful Death ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 148 )

The Masquerade can be difficult to maintain with factions of warring vampire coteries fighting for dominance and resources. A bloody murder at the wrong time can draw undue attention from the police to an already complex situation. A Tremere from Chicago created this ritual to distract local police from looking too closely at the victims of vampire attacks. This ritual heals obvious wounds on a corpse, causing a body to appear as though it died a natural death.

System: The caster must have a pristine feather soaked in the blood of a good man that died peacefully. She must carefully dust the corpse with it while chanting the phrase "It must have been Frank's time to go. At least he went out in his sleep." This ritual does not add blood to a corpse, but it does reduce the chance that anyone will notice how much is gone. The body must still have at least half its original blood for this ritual to succeed. This increases the difficulty of any investigation powers or abilities used on the corpse by one per success on the ritual.

[ 2 ] Impassible Trail ( XXX - Page X )

The vampire can travel through even the densest woods without leaving any sign of his passing. He will still leave a trail for creatures with powerful olfactory senses, but that will be all. The thaumaturge must carry an owl's feather steeped in Kindred vitae or bum the legs of a dead toad and carry the ashes with him while this ritual is in effect.

System: The vampire will leave no evidence behind, save for a faint odor that takes three successes on a Perception + Alertness roll (difficulty 8) to detect. The ritual lasts for one night.

[ 2 ] Inscription ( XXX - Page X )

Not everyone can be proficient with Thaumaturgy. Some Tremere build mystic items specifically to aid their subordinates or allies. A neonate with only the rudiments of skill may have need of a specific ritual, or another Kindred might desire to purchase the special services of Thaumaturgy but need them for his own later use. Instead of taking the time and risk to instruct someone else in the fine points of the working in question, a proficient thaumaturge can build an annotated version of a ritual, fueled with his blood, to make the formula accessible to someone else.

The Inscription ritual allows the thaumaturge to place any other first- or second-level ritual in written form. This generally requires the equivalent of a full page of paper. A reader can then unlock the power of that ritual by reading the inscription and following its instructions. The scribe uses his blood as a base for the ink, and his vitae's power remains in the mixture to help fuel the ritual. An inscribed ritual is an imperfect form – it cannot be used to learn Thaumaturgy. It's a simplified set of instructions, with the scribe's vitae empowering the rite so that it overcomes any omissions or sloppiness on the part of the practitioner.

System: A thaumaturge who knows the techniques of Inscription can write an abbreviated form for any first- or second-level ritual that he knows, at a cost of two blood points. Anyone who can read the language may then use the ritual notes later. Actually casting the ritual from the notes requires the use of the usual components and time, as well as the standard Intelligence + Occult roll, but the caster need not have any knowledge of Thaumaturgy. Once an inscription is complete, the power of the writer's vitae is trapped in the object; his maximum blood pool is effectively reduced by one until the inscription is used. After use, the inscription dries into a fine, illegible ash, with all the power expelled from the vitae-based ink. The scribe can use the scroll himself (which is rather pointless) or give it to someone else. To prevent an inscription from reaching the wrong subject, many scribes also use Encrypt Missive with this ritual.

Rumor holds that more powerful forms of inscription can create annotations for higher-level rituals, but only elders would know for certain. It is known that the blood powering Inscription can be used for links of Sympathy and Identity – any incautious Tremere could find his blood in the hands of an enemy who can use it against him.

[ 2 ] It Steals Your Whispers ( XXX - Page X )

The ritualist creates a device with which he can hear sounds over a great distance. Also designed by Paul Cordwood, it is similar to the ritual Now Its Sight is Ours, with the following exceptions: The body part taken from the human victim is an ear, the ritualist must saw it off with a small, silver saw, on the handle of which appears an image of Hades, Greek god of the underworld. The ear is dipped in the vampire, vitae, which is then drawn off into an elixir. The ritualist coats the surface of a copper hom with the vapor.

System: Assuming a successful ritual, the vampire has created an item which can then be3 secretly placed in a location of interest. It captures any sound within human earshot of it, sending it to the copper horn. Anyone drinking a portion of the elixir hears the captured sounds. The ritualist player must spend at least three blood points, but may spend more. For every point spent, the ritual creates one dose of elixir.

The duration of the remote hearing depends on the amount of elixir the user takes: the effect spans 10 minutes fore every dose consumed. During this time, he is unable to hear sounds emanating from the area round him. The elixir is not nourishing; the drinker's blood pool does not increase. The magic disregards distance or obstacles between ear and horn. The device does not clarify muffled sounds or translate languages unknown to the listener.

Like an eye in Cordwood's other ritual, the ear remains potent until destroyed, but is useless without the correct potion of blood. The original thaumaturge, and only the original thaumaturge, can perform a new ritual using an existing ear (and no new victims) to gain further doses of blood. Each time this is done with a single ear raises the ritual difficulty by 2.

[ 2 ] Machine Blitz ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 233 )

Machines go haywire when this ritual is cast. It takes effect instantly and lasts as long as the vampire concentrates on it. This ritual may be used to kill car engines, erase flash drives, drain the battery of a cellphone, stop life-support machines, et cetera. Essentially, Machine Blitz stops any machine more complex than a rope-and-pulley. The thaumaturge must have a scrap of rusted metal in her possession for this ritual to work, though some vampires use a variant that requires a knot steeped in human saliva to be untied.

System: This ritual only stops machines; it does not grant any control over them. The effects of this ritual are invisible and appear to be coincidental.

[ 2 ] Membranous Appropriation ( XXX - Page X )

The raw material for this ritual is the reconstituted skin that appears in the ritual's alchemical apparatus after a Cainite is attacked by skin eaters. Unlike other rituals using this material, the thaumaturge must take care that the skin derives only from a single individual. The ritualist kneeds the skin like bread dough, then cooks it in an oven heated not by flame, but by distillate of vis. She removes it from the alchemical oven partway through the cooking process and then sculpts it into either a right hand or a mask-like visage. She returns it to the oven, periodically basting it with alum, pine resin and powdered serpent scales.

System: When the ritual is complete, the thaumaturge possesses an object with a link to the individual whose skin she used. It may be a disembodied hand or a mask. If the victim is conscious, either item will begin to pulse and twitch and within moments begin to reproduce the subject's movements as he makes them. Distance between victim and item proves no impediment.

The item must be properly displayed to allow the movements of the hand or face to be clearly seen. A hand is placed on the end of a series of copper rods, constructed to provide an arm's range of movement, a mask in a rounded metal frame. The viewer may then deduce the current activities of the victim from the articulations of the hand or the expressions on the face. If the victim writes something, a pen may be placed in the hand to provide an indistinguishable facsimile of the document. The mask boasts a well-formed mouth, lips and tongue, and reproduces all sounds made by the victim. (A touch of an agate-tipped wand induces it to silence, if the user so desires. Two quick touches gets it talking again.) Once created, the ritualist may give it to someone else with instructions for care.

The ritualist may at any time sever the connection between victim and item. In the case of the mask it is sometimes useful to do this. The mask retains its articulation, and can be work on the face to disguise oneself as the victim. When used in this way, the mask moves to conform to the wearer's facial manipulations. Although the false face seems real and is difficult to distinguish from that of the victim, it confers to the user no additional ability to mimic his characteristic expressions. The ritualist cannot reestablish a severed connection.

The skin that makes up the item is in some sense alive and must be kept that way. The user nourishes the hand by bathing it in a blood and water solution once a week. The solution requires 3 blood points to make.

[ 2 ] Mourning Life Curse ( XXX - Page X )

Although this ritual causes no physical damage to its subject, it can be psychologically traumatizing. It allows the caster to coax blood from a mortal without injuring her. The Tremere must drink a dram of thrice-distilled crocodile blood and make a paste from copal oil, ground eyebright and dates. He carries this paste until he finds a suitable victim. He then dabs the paste onto her eyes and whispers a two-line invocation into the mortal's ear. The mortal then begins weeping uncontrollably, and bloody tears slowly ooze down her cheeks. The effect continues until the caster stops staring at the victim. The only after-effect is a slight swelling of the capillaries around the subject's eyes, along with the normal effects of blood loss.

System: The victim will bleed slowly. It takes about five minutes to collect a single blood point. There is no active defense against this ritual, but the mortal must be able to hear the invocation that the caster whispers. Some thaumaturges use this power on sleeping victims, to spare them the unpleasantness of seeing the act.

[ 2 ] Oinos Of Dionysus ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 148 )

This ritual allows the thaumaturge to ritually brew a special cask of spiced oinos, an ancient Greek wine believed to have been created by the god Dionysus. Mortals that consume this wine feel a pleasant drowsiness, vague ethereal happiness, and arousal, until they eventually lose consciousness and sleep for the remainder of the evening. They awake to vague pleasant memories, completely forgetting the details of everything that happened the night before.

A draught of the Oinos of Dionysus serves to protect the Masquerade at special parties where vampire guests wish to feed in the open. Vampires that drink from mortals tainted with the mystical oinos feel a slight buzz - not strong enough to be considered intoxicated, but just enough to get a taste of nights when they still breathed and hungered for appetites other than blood.

System: The caster must mix at least one point of his blood with the wine and spices. Once completed, the oinos must be ingested to take effect. After imbibing the oinos, a mortal must make a successful Willpower roll (difficulty 8) to take any action, as she is overcome by an artificially induced lethargy. This effect lasts a number of hours equal to the number of successes achieved on the activation roll. Subjects may resist this effect by scoring at least three successes on a Stamina roll (difficulty 8). Vampires and other supernatural creatures are unaffected by the Oinos of Dionysus, as their blood is too potent to be overpowered by this concoction.

Vampires that feed from a mortal under the effects of the Oinos of Dionysus feel a similar effect, but not one that overpowers them or impairs them. They feel an artificially inflated sense of happiness and remember nights when they were a mortal. In an emergency, the vampire under these effects can expend a blood point to flush the toxin from her system.

[ 2 ] Power Of The Invisible Flame ( XXX - Page X )

This simple ritual allows a vampire skilled in the Thaumaturgic path known as Lure of the Flames to create invisible fires. The flames are just as real, however, and while they cannot be seen, they can be felt. The ritual lasts one full night. There are no material components required for this ritual, but the vampire must cast the ritual around a fire of at least torch size.

[ 2 ] Preserve ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 24 )

Clan Tremere has collected wisdom and lore from the dawn of antiquity that had been previously protected and preserved by their mortal magic. However, that magic started to fail. A thousand years of collected occult knowledge was in danger of being lost within a few decades if a solution was not discovered. A devoted Tremere apprentice leveraged preservation techniques learned from monks along with knowledge stolen from the Assamites to create a ritual that chantries could use to preserve their research.

Once their precious libraries were protected, the Tremere realized that this ritual could be turned to political advantage. Ventrue were willing to pay boons to ensure that their own secret documents and treaties were preserved for the future. When it became clear that this ritual could be used for other purposes, Toreador clamored for the opportunity to protect their precious paintings, sculpture, and rare first drafts of a perfect poem or symphony.

Rumors abound that the famous Shroud of Turin and a number of other hidden church relics were preserved via this ritual. A number of the faithful amongst the Followers of Set claim that the Tutankhamen sarcophagus has been preserved via the will of Set, but many suspect that an older (and potentially more potent) form of this ritual has been cast over it.

System: Preserve allows the thaumaturge to mystically shield an item from the effects of time and usage. The thaumaturge must lightly coat the item with a point of her blood over the course of a night while chanting the proper incantations. Each success of the activation roll mystically preserves the item for an additional decade. The preserved item remains protected until the ritual expires. This ritual does not create a sympathetic link to the thaumaturge, as the blood used to power the ritual is absorbed completely by the object.

This ritual was designed primarily to preserve documents and texts, but a clever thaumaturge can utilize it for almost any item that can be held in the hand. The targeted item must be made of worked minerals and other natural materials, as artificial compounds (such as plastic) disrupt the ritual. Items that can be preserved include, but are not limited to, artwork, ancient weapons, jewelry, or clothing. This ritual does not make the targeted item invulnerable or even resistant to someone purposely harming it. For example, an ancient roman gladius will remain sharp and in good condition, but will still shatter if used improperly or if someone of sufficient strength attempts to snap the blade.

[ 2 ] Principal Focus Of Vitae Infusion ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 234 )

This ritual imbues a quantity of blood within an object small enough for the vampire to carry in both hands. (The object may not be any larger than this, though it may be as small as a dime.) After the ritual is conducted, the object takes on a reddish hue and becomes slick to the touch. At a mental command, the caster may release the object from its enchantment, causing it to break down into a pool of blood. This blood may serve whatever purpose the vampire desires; many thaumaturges wear enchanted baubles to ensure they have emergency supplies of vitae.

System: An object may store only one blood point of vitae. If a Kindred wishes to make an infused focus for an ally, she may do so, but the blood contained within must be her own. (If the ally then drinks the blood, he is one step closer to the blood bond). The ally must be present at the creation of the focus.

[ 2 ] Recure Of The Homeland ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 234 )

The vampire calls on the power of the earth to heal grave wounds she may have received. The thaumaturge must use at least a handful of dirt from the city or town of her mortal birth and recite a litany of her mortal family tree as she casts this ritual.

System: The Cainite must mix the earth with two points of her own blood to make a healing paste. One handful will heal one aggravated wound, and only one handful can be used per night. This ritual can only be used on the vampire who knows it.

[ 2 ] Ritual's Recognition ( XXX - Page X )

Some thaumaturgical rituals don't have an immediately visible effect. A ritual's success or failure may not be immediately apparent; cautious thaumaturges need a way to tell if their rituals work. Even a competent thaumaturge's rituals fail from time to time. Most would consider a few extra minutes of work worth the trouble to make sure of that, say, a Deflection of Wooden Doom ritual functions properly, instead of finding out the hard way.

To set up Ritual's Recognition, the caster must sever the last eighth of an inch of his nose or an earlobe and crush the fleshy bit in an ivory mortar and pestle. He then dusts his face with the resulting paste. Immediately afterward, the thaumaturge casts another ritual; upon completion, the thaumaturge can tell whether the ritual succeeded or failed.

System: Casting Ritual's Recognition causes one level of unsoakable bashing damage as the caster removes a gobbet of skin. Once complete, the thaumaturge must immediately begin his next ritual. When that ritual is finished, the caster automatically knows whether or not it succeeded, even if it would normally have no visible effect. By design, the caster can automatically tell if Ritual's Recognition succeeded, and can regrow the lost bit and recast if it failed. In either case, the caster feels a warm flush upon completion of a successful rite.

[ 2 ] Seal Egress ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 25 )

Thaumaturges jealously guard their research. Sometimes preserving a secret is as simple as keeping trespassers out of their libraries and workshops. Legend has it that the Followers of Set created the original version of this ritual to safeguard their hidden tombs and the sacred depths of their pyramids where their eldest sleep. Some secret excursions in Cairo gave the Tremere key components to develop their own version.

Seal Egress allows the thaumaturge to mystically seal a room closed to prevent unwanted trespassers from entering or leaving it until the proper passcode chosen by the caster is spoken aloud near the entrance. Some Tremere trap an enemy in a small room and allow him to go mad from hunger.

System: To cast Seal Egress, the thaumaturge must spread a point of her blood upon the four walls of the room she wishes to seal and then chant the proper incantation (which can be done outside the room). This ritual is a lengthy process requiring an hour to cast. Each success achieved on the activation roll extends the duration of the ritual by a decade. Seal Egress mystically seals every entrance to the room. Materials from the surrounding walls physically close over any openings into or out of the room, creating a perfect air-tight seal. Trespassers with mystical rituals such as Incorporeal Passage or Disciplines such as Spectral Body find that this room is mystically protected against their abilities. However, this ritual does not strengthen or protect the walls of said room, and thus it is possible for someone of sufficient strength to simply break through the walls of the room. Ghosts, spirits, and other creatures naturally immaterial may enter the room at will. (To bar such creatures, warding circles are required.)

[ 2 ] Skin Of The Chameleon ( XXX - Page X )

The Tremere caster first creates an alchemical mixture distilled from a variety of color-changing lizards and flowers. This compound is then mixed with the vitae of the Gargoyle. When this mixture is rubbed into the Gargoyle's skin, the Gargoyle gains the ability to blend in with its surroundings.

System: This ritual can be used on a Gargoyle of 11th generation or lower, and requires a point of the Tremere's blood to be added to the mixture. After rubbing the elixir into the skin of the Gargoyle for one hour, the Gargoyle gains the power to change color to match its surroundings. This give the Gargoyle five extra Stealth dice, so long as it moves slowly (at half speed). The effects of this ritual last until the next full moon, at which time it can be repeated.

[ 2 ] Spite Of The Harridan ( XXX - Page X )

Wives' tales of less enlightened times spoke of the ability of witchcraft to strike them barren, to steal children's breath and to leave them without issue. this ritual may be the origin of some of those stories. Invoking this power allows the thaumaturge to terminate any pregnancy, regardless of its stage, so long as the child is not yet being born. The caster must crush a snake's egg in her hand for this ritual to take effect.

System: This ritual must be performed in the presence of the subject, though she need not know that the thaumaturge is there. The pregnancy's termination is messy, obvious and often painful to the erstwhile mother.

[ 2 ] Steps Of The Terrified ( XXX - Page X )

This power lets the caster put the brake on a fleeing enemy. The harder the subject tries to run, the slower he becomes. Eventually, he slows to the point that he can barely move at all. The vampire is often able to take her time and still catch up with her target. The vampire must cast a handful of poplar buds at the target and then douse her hands in oil while repeating a short incantation seven times. She then wrings the oil from her hands before following the target.

System: The first turn after the ritual is completed, the subject moves at half his normal speed. If he tries to speed up, he slows to one-quarter his normal speed. Each time he tries to go faster, his speed is halved. The ritual lasts until the following sunrise.

[ 2 ] Summon Guardian Spirit ( XXX - Page X )

This power allows the vampire to summon a spirit for the express purpose of guarding him. The spirit aids the vampire in no way except to alert him to danger. Vampires often summon spirits to fill this duty while they sleep. The vampire is able to see the spirit summoned, but the spirit may not speak. In addition, the spirit will only be visible to the vampire during times of danger. Though the spirit cannot speak, it may communicate by ringing a bell, knocking on the bed, etc. The spirit serves the vampire for 24 hours.

[ 2 ] The Jinx ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 148 )

Some historical records suggest that the Jinx could be one of the oldest rituals of blood magic in existence. This ritual is used to punish the enemies of the thaumaturge without directly attacking them or leaving behind evidence. The Jinx requires a point of blood, and either a part of the victim such as a lock of hair or an item of significance to her in order to properly connect the victim with the power behind the ritual.

The thaumaturge must meditate for ten minutes upon her hatred and anger toward the victim and then burn the spell's components. Once completed, the victim is vexed with bad luck, causing her to fail in a mundane task. This can cause anything from minor typographical errors to automobile accidents, depending upon how the thaumaturge jinxes his mark.

System: The thaumaturge must concentrate his anger toward the victim while burning an object that has a psychic resonance with the intended target as per the Principle of Identity (Rites of the Blood, page 132-133). Each success gained on the activation roll for the casting of this ritual causes an automatic failure for the next roll the jinxed character makes, regardless of the outcome. If the caster achieves four successes on the activation roll, then the next four rolls for the jinxed character fail regardless of the outcome. The Jinx does not cause a botch, just a simple failure. If the Jinx is applied to a contested or extended action, the roll simply yields no successes for the current turn until the number of pending failures is expended.

[ 2 ] The Open Passage ( XXX - Page X )

Walls, locked doors and even sealed vaults cannot stop a thaumaturge with the Open Passage ritual. The caster smears snake or vermin excrement over the surface in an intricate pattern, which takes an hour to complete. Once finished, the caster becomes insubstantial with respect to that surface - she can walk through a wall or door, yet can still touch and interact with anything attached to it (like a mirror or wooden shelf).

System: Open passage lasts for one turn, so the caster must be quick in stepping through the barrier.

[ 2 ] The Veils Of Kirophet ( XXX - Page X )

This ritual causes a dark, roiling mist to obscure a given area, while at the same time allowing the caster to see through it as if it were not there – in effect, everyone within the area except the caster is physically blinded (anyone with Auspex, however, can attempt a Perception + Alertness roll [difficulty 7]). The ritual requires an Intelligence + Intimidation roll (difficulty 7). On a botch, the caster is both blinded and disoriented with the same effect that is listed next to four successes, below.

Successes	Effect
1	Shapes appear dark and fuzzy to the target's vision, and the target can only see figures that are standing two feet away.
2	The target literally can only see what is under his nose.
3	The target cannot see at all.
4	The target cannot see and suffers from minor disorientation (-1 to all Wits and Orienteering rolls).
5	The target cannot see and suffers from major disorientation (-3 to all Wits and Orienteering rolls).

[ 2 ] Trima ( XXX - Page X )

This type of oinos is made with spices and herbs, serving to heat up the blood in a body and, therefore, cause drowsiness in a victim. A magus will sometimes serve this drink to many mortals, possibly at a party or other social gathering. This serves to better protect the Masquerade before Kindred guests drink their share from drowsy mortals. Kindred taking vitae from mortals under the effects of trima feel a slight buzz of the aftereffects, though not strong enough to be considered intoxicated.

System: The caster mixes at least one point of his vitae with the desired wine and spices. Once completed, the trima must be ingested to take effect. After imbibing trima, a victim must make a successful Willpower roll (difficulty 8) to take any action, as he is overcome by an artificially induced lethargy. This effect lasts a number of hours equal to the number of blood points the caster uses to create the ritual. Subjects may resist this effect by scoring at least three successes on a Stamina roll (difficulty 8). Cainites and other supernatural creatures are unaffected by trima as their blood is too potent to be overpowered by this concoction.

[ 2 ] Vitality Hack ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Companion - Page 60 )

This ritual was reportedly developed by a mentally-diseased Tremere who made her haven in the morgue of a county hospital, where she also preyed upon the downtrodden patients. The Tremere in question used this ritual to hide in plain sight among the doctors, nurses, and patients, who thought her nothing more than a homeless vagabond whose rough life sent her frequently to the emergency room. Vitality Hack allows the Kindred to briefly display all of the vital "signs of life: Breathing, blood movement, temperature, brain activity, etc. However, these vital signs appear only medical equipment such as EKG meters, CAT scans, stethoscopes, and thermometers. The ritual does not create any physical effects such as a pulse or bleeding, but simply causes a standard result to be displayed by the medical device in question. The signs displayed are uniform, showing no variance or excited activity (which may cause some suspicion in and of itself).

System: This ritual requires one hour to cast. The ritual remains in effect for the duration of the scene, fooling any and all medical devices in that time. As a separate invocation of the ritual, the effect may be cast upon a talisman - any physical object - that confers this ritual's effect on any single Kindred carrying or in contact with the talisman. Casting the ritual on an item in this manner requires an additional hour. In either case, the ritual requires an ounce of blood from a living relative of the Kindred performing the ritual.

[ 2 ] Ward Versus Ghouls ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 234 )

Wary Tremere created this ritual to protect themselves from the minions of vengeful rivals. By invoking this ritual, the caster creates a glyph that causes great pain to any ghouls who come in contact with it. The Kindred pours a point's worth of blood over the object he wishes to ward (a piece of parchment, a coin, a doorknob, etc.), and recites the incantation, which takes 10 minutes. In 10 hours, the magical ward is complete, and will inflict excruciating pain on any ghoul unfortunate enough to touch the warded object.

System: Ghouls who touch warded objects suffer three dice of lethal damage. This damage occurs again if the ghoul touches the object further; indeed, a ghoul who consciously wishes to touch a warded object must spend a point of Willpower to do so. This ritual wards only one object - if inscribed on the side of a car, the ward affects only that door or fender, not the whole car. Wards may be placed on weapons, even bullets, though this usually works best on small-caliber weapons. Bullets often warp upon firing, however, and for a ward to remain intact on a fired round, the player needs five successes on the Firearms roll.

[ 2 ] Warding Circle Versus Ghouls ( Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition - Page 234 )

This ritual is enacted in a manner similar to that of Ward versus Ghouls, but creates a circle centered on the caster into which a ghoul cannot pass without being burned. The circle can be made as large and as permanent as the caster desires, as long as she is willing to pay the necessary price. Many Tremere chantries and havens are protected by this and other Warding Circle rituals.

System: The ritual requires three blood points of mortal blood. The caster determines the size of the warding circle when it is cast; the default radius is 10 feet/3 meters, and every 10-foot/3-meter increase raises the difficulty by one, to a maximum of 9 (one additional success is required for every increase past the number necessary to raise the difficulty to 9). The player spends one blood point for every 10 feet/3 meters of radius and rolls. The ritual takes the normal casting time if it is to be short-term (lasting for the rest of the night) or one night if it is to be long-term (lasting a year and a day). Once the warding circle is established, any ghoul who attempts to cross its boundary feels a tingle on his skin and a slight breeze on his face - a successful Intelligence + Occult roll (difficulty 8) identifies this as a warding circle. If the ghoul attempts to press on, he must roll more successes on a Willpower roll (difficulty of the caster's Thaumaturgy rating + 3) than the caster rolled when establishing the ward. Failure indicates that the ward blocks his passage and inflicts three dice of bashing damage, and his next roll to attempt to enter the circle is at +1 difficulty. If the ghoul leaves the circle and attempts to enter it again, he must repeat the roll. Attempts to leave the circle are not blocked. The Tremere have access to several other Warding Circle rituals: Warding Circle versus Lupines (Level Three), Warding Circle versus Kindred (Level Four), and Warding Circles versus Spirits, Ghosts, and Demons (Level Five). Each Warding Circle ritual must be learned separately. The material components required for each warding circle are the same as those needed for the corresponding ward, but in larger amounts. The effects against the targeted beings are the same as for Warding Circle versus Ghouls.

[ 2 ] Whispers Of The Ghost ( Rites Of The Blood - Page 149 )

Communication with the physical world is difficult while astrally projecting. Astral travelers typically must spend a point of Willpower to manifest visually as a ghostlike shape in order to communicate, and this can strain the strength of even the hardiest of Kindred. The Tremere spent decades attempting to overcome this taxing cost of one of their primary Disciplines, and eventually created Whispers of the Ghost as a way to sidestep the costly requirements of astral communication. Upon completing this ritual, the thaumaturge may communicate from her Psychic Projection form into the material world. The caster can speak with anyone she encounters, but her words come as faint whisperings. People who hear these susurrations often mistake them for the words of ghosts or spirits. While astrally traveling, the thaumaturge must grip the ear of a still-living creature in the left hand of her physical body.

System: The caster must meditate for fifteen minutes in complete silence. Then she must sever the ear of a still-living creature and hold said ear in her left hand before using the Auspex power of Astral Projection - the thaumaturge must possess Astral Projection in order to use this ritual). The thaumaturge may speak to the physical world in a ghostly whisper. If she wishes to be seen, she must spend a point of Willpower to manifest as normal, but that cancels the ritual. Should the "donor" of the ear die, the ritual immediately ends. Loss of morality may apply if the donation was not voluntary.

[ 2 ] Your Fate Shall Be Known ( XXX - Page X )

The thaumaturge exchanges blood with a willing participant who may be either a Cainite or a ghoul. The thaumaturge then uses a small golden needle to penetrate one of the subject's eyes and withdraw a small amount of vitreous humor, the jelly-like substance that fills the eyeball. She takes an agate or other semi-precious stone and rubs the humor onto it. Over the course of a week, the gem is passed through a series of alchemical vapors. A human-like skin forms around the gem during this process. When it is complete, the skin splits in two, revealing that the gem has become an eye.

Paul Cordwood designed the ritual to keep track of his spy network. He keeps the eyes on a pendant which he wears beneath his tunic. Virstania also uses the ritual to know the fates of favored Gargoyles. She's attached the eyes to a silver crown, which she sometimes wears in her laboratories.

System: Performing the ritual (whether successful or not) causes one level of lethal damage to the concerned vampire or ghoul. A botch may result in additional levels of damage or blindness at the Storyteller's discretion, although the regenerative abilities of vampires means such an affliction is often temporary.

Assuming a successful ritual, the eye stays open so long as the subject avoids Final Death. If the subject goes into torpor, the lids of the eyes close shut. The open again when he awakens. If the subject meets Final Death, the eye crumbles into dust. The eye therefore serves as an indicator of the user's general fate.