Passions
Passions are the 'reason to live' that each Wraith has. They are vital to a Wraith's continued exsistance, for without Passions, it is difficult to regain Pathos, and without Pathos, it is impossible for Wraiths to use any Arcanos. While it is tricky to work out just the right Passions for a given character, they can help you to define who the character is better than any other Trait. You must justify why your character continues to defy death. The three parts of any Passion are the purpose ("Protect Vanessa"), the focusing emotion ("Love") and the rating (3). By combining these parts, you define what is important to that character. For example, the passion above would be listed as "Protect Vanessa (Love) 3". The difficulty depends on how specifically the character is following that Passion. For example, if Joey, a wraith with the Passion "Protect Vanessa (Love) 3", used his Embody Arcanos to warn Vanessa that a fire had started in the basement of her apartment building, the Storyteller might rule that, because a purpose has been specifically addressed, the difficulty would be 6. On the other hand, if Joey used the Castigate Arcanos to drive a Spectre who was skinriding someone on a street near Vanessa's house, the difficulty would be 7, as Vanessa was not in any immediant danger.
The Storyteller may allow a Pathos roll if the situation in the scene is similar to the Passion. The difficulty is still 7. For instance, Joey might be allowed a Pathos roll if he was protecting someone else's girlfriend or just helping Vanessa (as long as the scene was suitabley dramatic). Storytellers whom feel uncomfortable with this option or who are petitioned too often for this type of Pathos roll may, of course, disreguard it. The Storyteller calls for the Pathos roll, not the Player.
A Wraith can also regain Pathos by drawing upon the emotion underlaying a Passion.The Wraith must either evoke that emotion from someone in the real world, or witness a real manifestation of that feeling. The difficulty for this roll is 8. For instance, the Passion "Protect Vanessa (Love) 3" is motivated by love. If Joey had a scene in which he was able to help Vanessa remember the love she felt for him, the player could then roll for Pathos. If he later witnessed a love scene between two mortals, he would be able to gain Pathos from that scene as well. The Storyteller must judge whether or not the scene is sincere (going to a screening for Romeo & Juliet just won't cut it).
Finally, the Arcanos: Keening can evoke certain emotions from mortals. The difficulty for gaining Pathos via this method is 9. Feigned or insincere emotions will not give Pathos. If another character in Joey's circle pretends to really, really love the pizza he's eatting, it still won't give Joey Pathos.
Type of Scene Difficulty
Scene specifically addressing a purpose 6
Scene generally addressing a purpose 7
Evoking or witnessing an underlying Passion 8
Evoking emotion with Arcanos: Keening 9The Storyteller can reject Passions that are trivial or ridiculous. Above all, use this mechanism as a way to award roleplayers for ingenious and impassioned roleplay.
Acceptable Passions
"Protect my Daughter (Love) 3"
"Get revenge for my Death (Hate) 4"
"Collect every rare Jyhad Card ever made (Greed) 1"Unacceptable Passions
"Hates being dead (Resentment) 5"
"Likes the color blue (Love) 4"
"Find Hatred (Hate) 4"
"Avoid Oblivion (Fear) 4"Some emotions make for very bad Passions. A character driven by "boredom" or "apathy" will be in for a rather dull time. When designing Passions, remember that the game is as serious as the player wants to make it.
Shadow Passions
Like Psyche Passions, the Shadow's Passions are made up of a Purpose, a focusing emotion and a leve. These do not have to be mirror images of the Psyche;s passions, although that's usually a agood place to start. The motivations of the Shadow usually run contrary to the goals of the Psyche and are usually self-destructive.
The Shadow must inflict the Shadow Passion on someone else. The Shadow has to work arder to achieve Shadow Passions; this is easiest when the Shadow is dominant over the character one point of Angst. Use these rolls to add bittersweet feeling of loss and self-destruction when a character fails.
Type of Scene Difficulty
The Shadow achieves a purpose of a Shadow Passion 7
(the Storyteller judges wether the Shadow succeeds)
The Shadow inflicts the passion of a Shadow Passion 9
Example Shadow Passions:"Hurt my family (Pain)"
"Ruin my former business partner (Envy)"
"Corrupt the innocent (Lust)"
"Keep me loved ones away from my old home(Fear)"
"Kill my parents (regret)"
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