Rites: The Great Dance


The Nuwisha practice a number of ceremonies. Their Rites are geared towards three major elements: protection of the few caerns in their care, personal development through faces of Coyote, and Umbral travel. Nonetheless, they share many Rites with the Garou.

Respect

Respect Rites call for a Charisma+Rituals roll (difficulty 7). They involve elements of Garou Rites of Accord, Renown, and Punishment.

  • Baptism of Fire (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of Cleansing (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of Contrition (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of the First Face (Level Two) -- This ritual is essentially the Rite of Passage for Nuwisha cubs. But in addition to a test of the werecoyote's knowledge of the Nuwisha Litany and general skills, the Nuwisha is bound to her first Totem (as chosen at character creation). This involves a test administered in the Umbra by a special avatar of the Totem. Through this Rite, the Nuwisha elder summons part of the Great Trickster himself into the avatar of the Totem that the cub chooses. So imbued, the Totem marks the cub with acceptance should the cub pass the challenge.

  • Voice of the Jackal (Level Two) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Satire Rite (Level Three) -- As the Garou Rite.

    Caern

    Enacting Caern Rites works the same for Nuwisha as it does for Garou. That includes the dicepool limit equaling the werecoyote's Gnosis score.

  • Rite of the Opened Caern (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of the Unveiled Glen (Level One) -- As the Freebooters Rite. This isn't stolen knowledge; the Nuwisha simply command this sort of intimate understanding of caerns.

  • Caern Concealment (Level Four) -- A more powerful version of the Rite of the Shrouded Glen, this ceremony demands at least ten Nuwisha to gather. A great deal of Gnosis must be expended, but when the ritual is complete, the caern will be utterly hidden on both sides of the Gauntlet from all but Nuwisha. This Rite has not been used in decades, but the elders still teach it to the wisest. A total of 30 points of Gnosis must be spent and 15 net successes from the Ritemaster's (Wits+Rituals) rolls; she gets 3 rolls to score this many. Should she fail, the Gnosis is wasted and the Rite must be performed from the beginning.

  • Rite of Caern Building (Level Five) -- As the Garou Rite. Though a few Nuwisha elders retain knowledge of this solemn Rite, they have not performed it in ages. It's too dangerous for a Changing Breed with so few numbers to undertake. Perhaps the future will allow Coyote's Children to work with the Garou to build new centers of power again.

    Personal

    Personal Rites are everyday elements of a Nuwisha's life and development among his folk. Every werecoyote should learn these ceremonies. The roll is usually Charisma+Rituals (difficulty 7).

  • Rite of the New Face (Level One) -- This Rite is central to every Nuwisha's existence. Through this ceremony, a werecoyote can change Totems and follow a different face of the Trickster. This gives him access to a new array of Gifts and a new path to follow. Most Nuwisha change Totems out of necessity. Some event in their life demands a change in strategy and tactics, so the Nuwisha turns to a different face of the Trickster. The Totems of the Trickster are not offended by this behavior provided the Nuwisha follow custom; after all, they're all the same guy: Coyote! To perform this Rite, a Nuwisha must spend a day in seclusion. Quiet contemplation of the changes the Nuwisha seeks is observed. When night falls, the werecoyote sings her paeon to Luna in the form of all-night howling.

    As dawn approaches, the Nuwisha steps sideways to bask still in the radiance of the moon. If Coyote accepts his child's change, he will send spirit servants of the new Totem to address the Nuwisha. The Nuwisha loses access to all previous Totem Gifts; the next few hours are usually spent with these spirits replacing her Gift repertoire with Gifts of that Totem. Even if the Nuwisha followed this Totem in the past, she must effectively relearn the Gifts. From that point on also, the Nuwisha gains the Traits of her new Totem...and must also follow the new Ban.

    If the Nuwisha wants to continue to keep the favor of her previous Totem, she makes this appeal heard in her evening howl. When morning comes, if Coyote approves, spirit servants of both Totems appear to certify the change. From thereon, the Nuwisha can only learn the Gifts of her new Totem and gain the Traits of the new Totem. She must follow the Bans of both Totems. The main benefit of this approach is that spirit allies of the secondary/previous Totem will still be helpful to the Nuwisha. Most Umbral Dansers follow Ptah as a secondary Totem, taking on other aspects of the Trickster to pursue their caretaking of the Umbra from a variety of angles. An Umbral Danser who follows Loki is likely to take the War to the very gates of Malfeas, while one who follows Kishijoten probably leads rescue raids into the Atrocity Realm on a regular basis. Regardless of motive, no Nuwisha can ever follow more than two faces of Nuwisha at once. (More than a couple Bans would make life too complicated anyway.)

    Every success that the Nuwisha scores on this Rite reduces the experience point cost of changing Totems by one (to a minimum of 1). So if a Nuwisha wanted to change to Oghma, she would have to pay 8 experience points. If she scores 5 successes on this Rite, taking the Oghma Totem now costs only 3. When changing Gifts, the Nuwisha trades all of her current Totem Gifts for Totem Gifts of the new aspect. If she knows more Gifts in a level than available in the new Totem, she can trade the old Totem Gift in for a General Nuwisha Gift of the same Rank instead. If this Rite is ever botched, the Nuwisha is abandoned by all Totems. She loses all her Totem Gifts until the matter is rectified. This usually demands a Rite of Contrition and a quest on behalf of the Trickster. Successfully completing such a quest can garner additional Renown. Once the Nuwisha has properly atoned, she regains the favor of her original Totem. She may then try the Rite of the New Face again.

  • Rite of Recognition (Level Two) -- This is the Nuwisha's answer to the Rite of Accomplishment. But since werecoyotes are loners, they employ this self-acknowledgement ritual in a way similar to what Bastet do. The Nuwisha steps sideways on the night of the new moon and lists off his deeds worthy of praise. Coyote himself witnesses the Nuwisha's claims and the Trickster's many agents spread word of the werecoyote's rising Renown. If the Nuwisha fails the roll, he cannot transfer 10 temporary Renown points into one permanent Renown for one lunar month. If he botches the Rituals roll, he draws down Coyote's anger. A spirit or even a servant of Oghma is usually dispatched to punish the brash werecoyote.

  • Rite of the Trickster (Level Three) -- This version of the Rite of the Totem binds a Nuwisha completely to one aspect of Coyote. This Rite is rarely performed due to the Nuwisha's tendency and need to follow different faces of the Trickster over the course of their life. The Rite is recommended only for the oldest and wisest of the Nuwisha who have found their niche and followed their Totem for twenty years or more. By performing a special quest for the Totem, this gesture demonstrates the werecoyote's devotion to that face of the Trickster. Thereafter, she cannot change Totems ever again. She cannot follow more than that one face of the Trickster either. However, that Totem will favor her especially. The Nuwisha will find more allies among that Totem's spirit-servants, learn more Gifts related to that Totem, and often be regarded among younger Nuwisha as a guru of that Totem's teachings and methods. Performing this Rite (when appropriate) gives the Nuwisha one additional and permanent point of Renown in any one category (usually based on the nature of the Totem; a Loki would gain Ferocity while a Chung Kuel would garner Cunning).

  • Rite of the Last Laugh (Level Four) -- The closest thing that the Nuwisha have to a Death Rite, this mystic ceremony permanently imbues the werecoyote with a powerful level of spiritual protection. Should the werecoyote ever be slain, this Rite comes into effect. It utterly wards the Nuwisha's soul from various powers of necromancy, soul-stealing, and even the vampiric Embrace. In fact, it inflicts a dire punishment upon the sorcerer, devil, or vampire who tries to take the Nuwisha for himself. Finally, the Rite transforms the Nuwisha into an Ancestor-spirit who resides with the Trickster Himself in the Stars. He will never again reincarnate as a Nuwisha. Because the Breed is a dying one, Coyote only lets this Rite be taught to the wisest and eldest of the Nuwisha. The werecoyotes need more of their kind, not less! To perform this Rite, the Nuwisha must seclude himself from all contact for one year, during which time he learns to laugh at himself (or with himself at least). At the end of the year, the Nuwisha sacrifices one point of permanent Gnosis. The Rite's effects are then permanent. When the Nuwisha dies, any attempt to steal his soul or Embrace his body and change him into a Abomination automatically fail -- and the offender suffers 8 dice of aggravated damage as the Nuwisha's body explodes in a blinding fireball! Even if others are in the radius, only the offender is harmed. This Rite even protects the Nuwisha against soul-erasing magics like the Rite of Shattered Soul or a mummy's Ren-Hekau. Such powerful spells would still slay the Nuwisha, but the Nuwisha's soul would not be destroyed, and the ritemaster would get incinerated, too.

    Mystic

    Mystic Rites call for a roll of Wits+Rituals (difficulty 7) unless otherwise indicated.

  • Rite of Binding (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of the Questing Stone (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of Talisman Dedication (Level One) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of Spirit Awakening (Level Two) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of Summoning (Level Two) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of the Fetish (Level Three) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Sing Back the Dead (Level Five) -- This Rite is ever only known by one Nuwisha at any given time. Currently, Old Man Manyskins is the only werecoyote in possession of this knowledge, stolen so long ago from the Gurahl. The lore is secreted by the Trickster Himself, passed on to a new Nuwisha when appropriate. The Rite permits a werecoyote to call back to life one or more recently killed werelings. Learning this Rite is the greatest honor a Nuwisha can earn, and the Rite is performed only when the Trickster demands it: it is divine magic given to the Nuwisha to break the rules of Life and Death. To exact this Rite, the werecoyote must meet a high cost indeed. He must pay one permanent point of Gnosis per shapeshifter to be raised. But he must also pay one permanent point of Gnosis for every Health Level of damage suffered beyond the killing blow. For example: Manyskins must raise two werecreatures because Coyote demands it. Two permanent Gnosis are spent automatically. However, one of the skinchangers took three levels of injury beyond what was needed to kill her. In order to resurrect both shapeshifters, Manyskins must spend 5 permanent Gnosis. This Rite only works to raise Changing Breeds.

    Dream

    Dream Rites are the ceremonies of the Umbral Dansers. They connect the Nuwisha to the Umbra. However, the only Rite that is restricted to Umbral Dansers is the Rite of the Dream Danse. Any Nuwisha can learn the others. Dream Rites usually call for Wits+Rituals rolls (difficulty 7).

  • Rite of the New Moon's Shadow (Level One) -- Though Umbral Dansers have access to the Umbral Shadows Gift, this more generalized Rite is available to all Nuwisha. The werecoyote paints his face with the markings of the Ghost Danse. She sings an improvised song of mystery and shadows and the moon while applying the paint. When finished, she immediately steps sideways. For the duration of the Rite's power, she becomes like a shadow in the Umbra. Though not truly invisible, this Rite makes it easier for the werecoyote to sneak through the Umbral paths. Unlike the Umbral Shadows Gift, this added stealth can hide the Nuwisha from everyone, not just spirits. For every success on the roll, the Nuwisha remains partially obfuscated for one hour. This manifests as +5 dice to all Stealth rolls while in the Umbra. And if the Nuwisha remains still at any time while the Rite is still active, most spirits will pass right by the werecoyote (Gafflings will ignore her, but Jagglings are not fooled). Should the Nuwisha return to the Gaia Realm before the Rite's power ends, she must recast the spell.

  • Rite of Becoming (Level Two) -- As the Garou Rite.

  • Rite of Dansing (Level Two) -- This Rite is the first step on the path of the Umbral Danser. It requires the Nuwisha to devour peyote and fast for three full days. During this time, the Nuwisha must recite all past experiences in battling the Wyrm, traveling the Umbra, and teaching the other creatures of Gaia the error of their ways. Successful performance of this Rite compels the Nuwisha to enact the Rite of the New Face to change Totems to Ptah. She can change to another Totem later, but must follow Ptah as an Umbral Danser for a full year first. To complete this Rite, the Nuwisha must spend 1 Gnosis each day she fasts. At the end of the third day, she must make a Manipulation+Enigmas roll (difficulty 7). Success indicates her plea has been heard and honored by all other Umbral Dansers within the spirit world.

  • Rite of the Dream Danse (Level Four) -- This powerful Rite permits the Nuwisha to know where all her fellow Umbral Dansers are in the Umbra and to ask questions of them. The other Dansers will weigh the questions asked and decide if answers are deserved. Even if the supplicant is worthy of answers, the answers given will usually be given in the form of riddles. The riddles, when solved, often given portents of the future. For this reason, most Nuwisha believe that the knowledge granted comes from the Trickster Himself, speaking through the Umbral Dansers as vessels. Performing this Rite demands that the Nuwisha be in the Umbra. She must focus her will through quiet contemplation and consumption of peyote. The Storyteller will provide the riddles, but the player can bargain for clues with a good Wits+Enigmas roll (difficulty 8).

    Nuwisha also know all the Minor Rites that Garou practice.