Editing LeviathanTempest:ChapterFour (section)

==== Chimera Ritual (OO) ====

This particularly hideous ritual allows a Leviathan to turn a willing, or unwilling, mortal into a Lemashu. In the past this has been used to create armies of slathering Hybrids, to create more subjects for breeding programs (A venture doomed to failure. Hybrids created by this ritual birth children with horrible genetic defects but Tiamat's blood runs no thicker in their veins than it would had their parent not undergone this ritual.) Most horribly this ritual has been used to break the body and minds of those who displeased the Leviathan. 

Forcing an unwilling mortal through this Ritual is a Tranquility 4 Disruption. Cultists will unflinchingly agree at Zeal 4 but remember that Beloved are considered unable to give proper consent no matter how willing they claim to be. 

Sacrifice: The mortal who will become a Lemashu is the Sacrifice. They must take Ichor equal to their Stamina. The victim requires Zeal 4, other participants require Zeal 3. 

Effigy: None, the sacrifice is the entire point. 

Auspicious Portents: Ebb Tide and Pluto

Ominous Portents: Flood Tide and Neptune

Sample acts: The mortal destroys or gives away something representing their old life. The mortal adorns body paint or costumes so they resemble a Hybrid. Lemashu take the mortal from a group of mortals and walk him to the alter. The mortal shares a meal or some other domestic scene with Lemashu. 

Roll: Sheol+Zeal+Occult extended. Mortals may resist with Stamina alone. 

Suggested Modifiers: The Leviathan possesses Everflowing Fetid Growth (+2). The victim comes from a family closely marked by the Tribe (+1). The victim has little or no Tribe ancestry (-1). The Victim has Iron Stamina (-1 per dot). The Victim has Natural Immunity (-2). 

Dramatic Failure: The mortal perishes, their corpse shows hideous mutations and may have to be discreetly disposed. 

Failure or the Mortal wins the roll: The mortal takes lethal damage equal to the Leviathan's Sheol as their body violently rejects the ritual. 

Success: The mortal gains the Lemaushu template appropriate to the Leviathan's Strain with it's appropriate Mutation and two additional dots of Mutations per Success assigned by the Storyteller. If the mortal was not Beloved they immediately become so, although the mental strain causes a severe Derangement that lasts until they lose their Beloved status. On rare occasions this rituals has been known to result in an Ahab, even if performed on a Beloved (actual Ahabs always remain an Ahab). 

If the Lemashu's final Depth is low enough that their maximum Intelligence is lower than their current Intelligence then the Hybrid gains a permanent sever Derangement and looses two dots of Morality for every dot of Intelligence lost to represent catastrophic mental damage.

Some Leviathans have tried to use this Ritual on Atolls, perhaps thinking that a since a Hybrid Atoll would be separate from mortal society they would be forced to seek the company of the Tribe. This never works: Firstly Atolls have a much easier time resisting the ritual: They roll Stamina + Resolve + Morality. Secondly if the Ritual does succeed the Atoll immediately falls into a permanent vegetative state. Neither medical science or the Tribe's powers can hope to revive him. At the Storyteller's discretion other supernatural abilities might work, this requires moving the Atoll's mind to another body or removing the Hybrid template. For all intents and purposes assume the Leviathan has just killed an Atoll and must suffer all the repercussions that entails. 

Exceptional Success: The Leviathan may choose where to apply half the new Aspect dots, the other half are chosen by the Storyteller.

'''Creating the Eternal Spring (OOO)'''

This ritual, quite simply, creates a tiny gate into the Rift, through which the waters of that strange realm eternally flow. The water from this spring behaves just like normal water except that if a Leviathan uses it to regain Ichor via Resonance it occurs at twice the rate, one Ichor per hour. The water pours out at about the rate of that from a garden hose.

Sacrifice: A mortal (willing or unwilling) is made to hold his wrist over a bowl and one of the arteries in his wrist is cut. Enough blood is drained into the bowl to fill it to the brim. Without immediate medical attention it is quite possible that the sacrifice will bleed to death.

Effigy: an animal of at least Size 4 is used in place of a human. Auspicious Portents: High Tide and Jupiter

Ominous Portents: Low Tide and Saturn

Sample acts: The blood in the bowl is mingled with a Leviathan’s. The Leviathan exalts the power of the Progenitors to come into the world while the Cult dances in circles around him. The Leviathan pours the blood onto the spot where the spring is meant to be. The blood is poured into an ornate fountain carved with ancient glyphs.

Roll: Sheol+Zeal+Occult

Suggested Modifiers: The location of the ritual is near a large water source such as the sea or a large lake (+2), the location of the ritual is near a moderately large water source such as a river (+1), the Leviathan performs the ritual in the Rift while the cultists perform it simultaneously in the normal world (+1), the location of the ritual is not near any significant natural source of water (-2), the Leviathan posesses the channel Being of Primordial Waters (+1).

Dramatic Failure: Instead of water pouring out, a supernatural venom erupts from the spring. Any who touch it suffer 1 point of Lethal damage for each turn they are in contact with it as well as extreme pain and disorientation. The spring flows for minutes equal to the Leviathan’s (Sheol x 2) and when the spring dries up all extant poison vanishes as well. Any plants that touch the venom lose their leaves and die while twisting into shapes which almost make it seem that they are contorted in pain. Surfaces that the venom flows over gain decay; iron rusts, copper goes green with verdigris and wood rots.

Failure: The ritual has no effect.

Success: The ritual succeeds in creating an eternal spring of water imbued with the power of the Rift. The spring can only be destroyed by supernatural means or complete restructuring of the area.

Exceptional Success: The spring is noticeably larger, instead of a garden hose it is more like a low- powered fire hose.