Ghosts of the Islands
Factions
Vaekai & the Maoli Dead
This is not a faction, but the formal initiation ceremony of a recently Reaped wraith. It is available only to those ghosts who have powerful families beyond the Shroud, whose ancestors are waiting for them on the Other Side. Wraiths who receive the vaekai are granted quite a social boon. Those who do not, as most Western ghosts discover, are considered almost a lower class.
Most wraiths in the Hawai’ian islands find themselves facing an almost primitive system of government. Few Mangaia chiefs tolerate the presence of internal groups or gangs, and as such Western-based associations like Guilds, Gangs, and Heretics are virtually unknown. Even the ha’ole wraiths who find some security among their own kind, often near whaling port Haunts, are subject to the rule – and enforcement – of the island’s chief. Fortunately, while constant scheming against a Mangaia chiefs is common, the oldest and largest islands have ancient and well-established chiefs. They promise much more security, even for those who lack the benefit of the vaekai. Smaller islands are not nearly so secure.
It is a tradition that when an island is full with too many ghosts, the most recent dead must find a new island to inhabit in the afterlife. They row out in relic outrigger canoes, seeking another island, which seem to spawn, as they are needed…eventually. Much danger faces these journeys, from Typhoons to Makus and more. Thus, some wraiths prefer to try and fight and force older ghosts to leave. Only the most secure islands can keep such fights from becoming a perpetual danger, and only by show of force.
Ha’ole Factions
Small and quiet in activity, there are only a handful of circles in the isles that bind together and stay together. In the necropolis of Honolulu, for example, a Renegade gang of non-vaekai Hawai’ian freedom-fighting youths came together, calling themselves the Kani’ipo. A loose association of sybarites called the Sunseekers pursue endless pleasure here in the Afterlife. The Dark Kingdom of Jade has a few operatives in the islands, keeping an eye on these unconquered territories. A Heresy emerged in Hilo calling itself the Luakunikeahi, which involved the ritual dipping of wraiths into the lava flows and volcanic vents found in the Shadowlands. Some of the sacrifices were voluntary, but most were not…
For more on the wraiths of the Sea Which Knows No Sun, see the supplement, Wraith Players Guide.
