Spirits

In the World of Darkness, animism — the belief that things of the physical world have living spirit counterparts — is one of the secret truths of the universe. Though not everything has an active spirit reflection, many things cast echoes in the spirit world: some animals and plants, machines, even powerful sensations like fear and pain. The spirit world is a reflection of the world itself, and it reflects the world’s dark nature. The spirits of animals and plants prey on one another in a sharpened reflection of the cruelest side of Nature. Many spirits are hostile to the denizens of the physical world, and almost all care about humanity only as a source of strength and energy. Other spirits covet the experiences of the flesh, so they slip through the Gauntlet to sate their alien urges.

The legend of Father Wolf describes him running the Border Marches, hunting the worst of the would-be intruders and either casting them back into the spirit wilds or destroying them utterly. Now Father Wolf is dead, and the only ones left to do this work are the Uratha. And the spirits abhor them for it. Not for the actual death of Father Wolf — the spirits had no love for the great hunter that kept them in check — but for being horrible hybrids of material form and ephemera that dare act as judges over the spirit world. The werewolves are what stand between spirits and the expression of their desires. They will have to go.

Every spirit has a ban — an absolute prohibition against certain actions by the spirit, or an unquestionable requirement that the spirit perform certain actions. Related spirits tend to have similar bans, though not necessarily identical ones. A particular fire-spirit might not be able to use its powers during a rainstorm, while another might be only at half strength during the winter unless invited indoors where it can draw on the power of the hearth. Ithaeur do their best to gather information on various spirits’ bans, for the possibility of exploiting a spirit’s ban is the surest way to keep it in check.

Spirits’ activities are tightly limited. For instance, many are tied to their physical-world form, and they can leave it only while their physical form is asleep or enchanted (if at all). Most spirits are bound up in complex covenants that govern their activities. Ancient bargains make sure that any warlock or werewolf who knows the proper rituals, abasement and sacrifices can acquire a spirit’s services. The trick, of course, is learning the proper set of rituals to force a spirit’s cooperation.

Spirits have complex, feudal hierarchies. Nearly every spirit pays fealty to a local lord, who pledges support and protection to his vassal spirits. Local lords might owe their allegiance to greater lords, eventually following a chain of allegiance back to one of the Incarnae in the spirit wilds or elsewhere. The cat-spirits of a city might all bow to the cunning and cruel Tom Bloodyhooks, who pays homage to the Pride Mother, a monstrous feline Incarna who hunts the darker paths of the spirit wilds by night. Some spirits act as loose allies to the Uratha, for they owe their allegiance to the Firstborn. Others are independently bound as pack totems. The great majority of spirits have no love for the fleshy children of Mother Luna and Father Wolf, though.

The more powerful the spirit is, the more likely it is that it owes allegiance to multiple lords, that it plans to supplant its own master or that it vies with its brethren for a place of superiority. These rivalries and ambitions are often the greatest weakness that a powerful spirit can possess apart from a ban — which the Uratha know well.

Spirits within Great Britain

(taken from Shadows of the UK, page 169)

The spirits here are as prevalent as they are anywhere else. Their proximity to humans, however, has made them a shade different from what the Forsaken may encounter elsewhere. Below are a number of the elements possessed by many spirits of the UK, as well as several spirits and templates to use in your story.

Aspects

Spirits in the UK are like spirits everywhere. They distrust the Forsaken, act in accordance with inhuman laws and are a part of an ephemeral ecology both logical and insane. That said, the Shadow allows for infinite variation when it comes to all things spiritual; the United Kingdom is its own realm with people, places and ideas that do not exist anywhere else. These things are not without an effect on the Hisil, which means they are not without effect on spirits. This means that while the spirits do not deviate from the hard-and-fast rules that all spirits must subscribe to, it does mean that spirits here come with their own — flavor. The following are some of the differentiating characteristics that belong to many of the spirits of this part of the world:

Complex Bans:

Spirits here often suffer from byzantine bans. The bans themselves may be simple on the surface, but are often stipulated and qualified with a number of additional “sub-laws.” While the primary ban may say something like, “The badger-spirit may not use Numina if within 500 yards of a fox-spirit,” additional qualifications might apply. For instance, “The badger-spirit may use his Numina, however, if attacked by the fox-spirit. He may use Influences within the range, but these Influences must not be used to beguile or mislead the fox-spirit, for badger-spirits have long been required to be direct and honest when dealing with their old enemies.”

Spirit Honour:

Spirits here still regard the Forsaken as enemies. They are corrupted half-breeds, responsible for much of the oppression spirits feel they suffer. Here, however, spirits are more often polite when dealing with the Forsaken. The malice may still be detectable beneath the surface of a mannerly greeting or a faux-friendly gesture, but the spirits are more likely to listen to a werewolf and at least give the Uratha his due. This rule isn’t universal; a riot-spirit is simply too chaotic to be courteous. It’s only that spirits are more likely to be gracious when dealing with the Forsaken, and may in fact offend other spirits if they themselves do not behave with a modicum of honour.

Masquerade:

Here, spirits are more likely to masquerade as something they are not. Why this is remains somewhat unclear — is this the result of so much history crammed into such a relatively small part of the world? Is this emblematic of years of repression and oppression and various peoples acting under false pretenses? Whatever the case, the Forsaken find that many spirits cloak themselves in deceptive guises: they may try to appear as other spirits, ghosts or even as human beings.

Feudality:

The predator-prey dynamic of the spirit world still functions here. Cat-spirits still chase mouse-spirits, for example. Or they may devour one another. Sometimes, however, the spirits break this mold, at least slightly. The cat-spirit may one day recognize how hard she is working to consume the Essence of her prey — all that chasing and catching. Mightn’t it be better to instead dominate weaker catspirits and have them do the chasing for her? If a lesser cat catches two mice, then it must give one of those mice to the dominating spirit. Much as a king commands his knights who command his serfs, here spirits often establish rather labyrinthine hierarchies. They command territory and treat Essence as a commodity. In the grand pyramid scheme, Essence filters upward to the powerful spirits so that they needn’t exert so much energy on that constant cycle of hunting and tracking prey. Again, this isn’t universal. Some spirits, particularly conceptual ones, do not easily become trapped in this socio-spiritual mold.

the Spirit Courts; major political groupings in the Other

Court of Cogs

Court of the Elements

Court of Malice

Court of Smog

Court of Sparks

Court of Teeth

Court of Urges

Spirits without a Court






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