LeviathanTempest:WakeXample

New Advantage: The Wake

The Wake is the term used by Leviathans for what is, in effect, the sensation that their subdued nature produces on normal humans. It is a psychic pressure front that humans feel on an instinctual level - it is the dread majesty of a Leviathan's birthright. Tribe scholars claim that it is the "shadow" cast by the Leviathan's true form, and it affects a region around him, which grows as the Leviathan's Sheol increases.

Mortals affected by a Leviathan's Wake are infused with a mixture of awe, terror, and deference. For all that this seems attractive, it is a deeply isolating effect. A Leviathan can't enter a room without people lowering their voices, or go to the grocery store without people self-consciously apologizing for getting in your way (even if they weren't) - the Wake functions as a psychological battering ram, preventing the Tribe from blending in with a crowd. A Leviathan is always, willingly or not, intimidating every mortal in his presence. The Wake is a beacon, a message from the days of the Primordial that impresses itself on human minds - "You're less important than me; everything here is mine if I want it."

The allure of the Wake, especially for Tribe members who might have been socially awkward or bullied before they awoke to their true natures, is obvious. However, the Wake is also extremely dangerous - taking advantage of it means taking advantage of humans, further alienating the Leviathan from the world he has to live in. Many Leviathans have fallen down the path to degeneration by permitting themselves to revel in the wake, allowing themselves to say "Yes, I am better than these people. It's fine for me to do what I want with them."

Mechanics of the Wake

• Region of Control: The Wake fills an area around the Leviathan, with its diameter determined by his Sheol. Within this area, beings can feel subtle psychic pressure. Beings both inside this area and in the Leviathan's physical presence are subject to the Wake's full effect.

• The Fringes: Outside of the Leviathan's presence, beings are not mechanically affected but do feel a pronounced sense of weight and danger.

• Fully Affected: Normal beings - both sentient and animal - are subject to the full effects of the Wake.

• Potentially Affected: Supernatural beings whose power attribute is two or more lower than the Sheol of the Leviathan are vulnerable to that Leviathan's Wake. They are otherwise immune.

• Not Affected: Leviathans and Atolls are always immune to the Wake's effects.

• Ease of Control: The Leviathan does not suffer the unskilled penalty for using Social skills against beings subject to the Wake.

• Psychic Pressure: When using Intimidation against beings subject to the full effect of the Wake, the Leviathan benefits from 8-again.

• Focusing the Wake: Leviathans can deliberately focus the wake on one vulnerable target, expending one Ichor. For the rest of the scene, the victim is subject to the following effects:
  • If their Willpower is lower than the Leviathan's (Presence + Sheol), they subtract the Leviathan's Sheol from all Persuasion rolls against him.
  • If their Willpower is lower than the Leviathan's (Manipulation + Sheol), they subtract the Leviathan's Sheol from all Subterfuge rolls against him.
  • If their Willpower is lower than the Leviathan's (Composure + Sheol), they subtract the Leviathan's Sheol from all Empathy rolls against him.

Detecting the Wake

• A being aware of the nature of the Wake, such as a Marduk agent or cryptid, may attempt to distinguish it from normal social pressure. This requires an instant roll of (Wits + Occult - Leviathan's Composure). The Leviathan's Ripple Penalty applies as a bonus to the seeker's attempt.

• Leviathans are always aware of the presence of another's Wake.

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