Haunted Boulevards
Endless Death
The Dead remember. The Dead linger on, beyond the ken of mortal consciousness. Past the Shroud dwell the Restless Dead, wraiths and ghosts of fearsome disposition and unquenchable passions. They are the spirits of the deceased, locked into this world still for personal reasons and needs that must be fulfilled.
The real supernatural power thriving in New Orleans is not the vampires or conjure men. It’s the dead. Restless Dead abound in greater numbers here than any other necropolis in the region, and many of them are not native. Many are drawn here for its world-famous Haunts. Their ineffable presence colors every aspect of the city’s supernatural resonance. Because of how uncontrollable the migrations can be, the Hierarchy has long been unable to maintain a hold on this necropolis, and finally lost it decades ago to a motley assortment of Guild-backed Renegades and Heretics.
However, when Hurricane Katrina struck a couple years ago, a Maelstrom tore through with it. In its destructive wake lay rumored whispers of a Stygian plot to attack while the necropolis recovers. Territorialism deepened into suspicion and even paranoia. Many wraiths are close to killing each other (metaphorically speaking) over even the most minor disputes.
Of course, there are thousands of wraiths in the New Orleans necropolis, and many are faltering, dimly emoting folks -- people who lingered as wraiths, but their passions and fetters are only barely impressive. Many of these wraiths unfortunately end up as Thralls. But there are several hundred wraiths who have a natural talent for the afterlife, who have passions and goals great enough to survive the pull of Oblivion. They are the leaders among this chaotic crowd of wraiths.
Skinlands
The local Restless Dead have a profound relationship with the Quick in New Orleans. Many of the older natives have long-term, voodoo-related superstitions regarding the dead, and honor their ancestors. Some are into voodoo, and some really do control magical powers. Most of these conjure folk are allies to the dead, not enemies. This holds true with other mediums, such as Sluagh and Samedi vampires. The Giovanni are a thorn in the Dead’s side, but the ghosts that have the most truck with the Giovanni keep the mobster-necromancers in line and out of the rest of the ghosts’ hair (usually).
Shadowlands
The Shadowlands of New Orleans can be a frightening and welcoming place at the same time. The solitary Byway that leads into the city is relatively secure. And once in town, really all a ghost has to worry about are the whispers of his own Shadow and the scheming of other wraiths. But the Shadowlands’ reflection of the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, and indeed all the bodies of water around and within the city, are not friendly places. Here the Tempest bubbles up to the surface and carries with it a strange, lulling, narcotic-like effect to whoever is foolish enough to take a dip. Wraiths fall asleep, topple into the river or lake, and are washed away. They are rarely ever seen again in any world. To make matters worse, the bayou swamps around the city are dangerous indeed. Terrible monsters of pure entropic and nightmarish birth linger here: reptilian monstrosities and Corpus-tearing crows and vultures. They are not ghosts, but something spawned by Oblivion sent to torment the Restless. Few venture out of the comforting Haunts and sprawling cemetery neighborhoods of the necropolis.
Special Events
Special events are annual (or more frequent) holidays or special ritual days that the main group or groups observe as a whole community. Attendance and participation is often expected of all members, and sometimes required.
Fet Gede
The Restless of New Orleans are a fractured lot and only one small Heresy considers itself followers of Voodoo in any substantial sense. And yet, the dead of this necropolis acknowledge the city’s long and frightful connection to the occult powers of Voodoo. It stands to reason such beliefs, and their corresponding holy days, would matter to most Restless regardless of faction. The event they honor the most is a celebration from November 1st to the 2nd called Fet Gede: the Festival of the Dead. (It does relate to Dios de los Muertos in a similar way, honoring both loa and saints as well as the ancestral dead.) The Restless honor this event by agreeing to use their Dictum Mortuus-breaking Arcanoi to improve the ancient and often crumbling cemeteries of New Orleans – which often serve as Haunts and sites of Fetters. Consequently, Flux has become a very popular Arcanos in this necropolis. (Puppetry also does the trick by getting the Quick to do the work. Even careful application of Outrage’s psychokinetics can help.) A few even encourage the Quick to bring them sacrifices (which may become Relics), whether the sacrifices are carried out with Voodoo ritual or not.
“Well, yeeeeeehaw, yer a real hero, ain’tcha? We’ve got ways to make you remember you ain’t in Kansas no moe.”
-- Gerard Gosse, Bayou Bushman
