Transubstantiation (Talismans)

“So, you want to make your relic last a bit longer, eh? Of course I can change what it’s made of, but I can’t guarentee it’ll ever be the same.”

Although wraiths have little or no need for material possession, that does not decrease the want for those things. While soulsteel, Artificers, and Masquers fill some of those desires, the fact remains that they can only change the shape of the object, not the material it is made of. They cannot turn obli into gold to deal with the Quick, they cannot easily add Stygian steel to a beloved weapon without damaging or re-forging it, and they cannot bridge the forbidden gap between the materials of the living and the dead.

Transubstantiation is an Arconoi fueled by the desire to turn existing objects into something of more value. Alchemists among the Quick have existed for centuries, trying to turn common elements into substances of significant value. But where the Quick fail, the wraiths succeed beyond their wildest dreams. However, this does not come without its costs; the loss of a valued possession, a close friend, or the soul of the wraith itself.

The Guild: Those who call themselves Talismans are incredibly rare. The Talisman Guild is extremely disorganized due to the low numbers of those who are able to practice the art of Transubstantiation. There has only been one occasion where a substantial number of Talismans have gotten together; it was after the disappearance of Charon, to decide whether to reveal themselves to the other wraiths. In the end, they kept their secrecy. Due to the small numbers of the Guild, they never even considered participating in the Guilds’ Revolt. Many wraiths are unaware of the arts of Transubstantiation or the Talismans. Those who are can have an extremely hard time finding one, since a desire for their powers pushes those few who do have the art into hiding to prevent enslavement or abuse.

Talismans have hands that have taken on a sheen of whatever they work with the most; if a Talisman works with gold a lot, their hands take on a golden shine, if they work with granite, their hands will be gray, hard and rough, and so on. Wraiths who work with Stygian steel have hands that shine like a mirror. The oldest Talismans’ faces are also marked in this manor due to their constant exposure to transformation.

Component: The wraith can use this art to find out what an object is made of. This can be used in investigations or to figure out if the weapon an enemy is holding in their hands is really as dangerous as it appears.
System: Roll Perception + Transubstantiation (difficulty 5). Only one success is needed to figure out a complete breakdown of the object’s material.

Sense Relic: This ability allows a wraith to figure out if any relics are nearby. The largest this area can be is a city block; the more successful the Talisman is, the more they narrow in on the location of the object. Wraiths may also focus on one relic out of a group of relics.
System: Roll Perception + Transubstantiation (difficulty 6). For each success, the wraith can narrow down the location of any nearby relic.

Level One: Elixir
A wraith may take an object from the Skinlands and transform it from one material to another. This is useful for getting weapons through metal detectors, or coercing the Quick by giving them money or presents. The object must be fairly small for a basic transformation; pistols and revolvers, daggers, coins, jewelry, etc. are acceptable as small items. Larger objects can be transformed by spending more Pathos.
System: The player rolls Manipulation + Transubstantiation (difficulty 7 for small objects, 9 for larger objects). The more successes, the faster the object is transformed.
Each use of Elixir costs 1 Pathos for small objects, and more (Storyteller’s discretion) for larger objects.

Level Two: Trickle
This art allows the user to become incorporeal themselves, turn others incorporeal, or make objects of their choice, such as a wall or a weapon, have this effect. Unlike regular incorpality, this effect also works in the Shadowlands. If a wraith is incorporeal, nothing can affect them, not even another incorporeal wraith. However, the incorporeal wraith cannot interact with anything in the Shadowlands or Skinlands, and may not talk with other wraiths, save for Mindspeak. This art does not grant invisibility, but can make a wraith harder to see in the shadows. Botches of this art can open up a Nihil straight into the center of the Tempest.
System: Roll Dexterity + Manipulation (difficulty 6). The target wraith or object remains incorporeal for a number of turns equal to the Talisman’s Stamina. You may only use Trickle on one object or wraith at a time (eg. An attacker will be affected by Trickle, but the sword they’re holding won’t.)
This art costs 1 Pathos for each use. If the Talisman decides to undo Trickle before time is up, it also adds one Angst point.

Level Three: Sphere
A wraith with this art may transform soulgoods into a Skinlands material; from there, the object can return to being a soulgood, and so on, back and forth. This art is useful for Embodied wraiths who want objects that will work in both the Shadow and Skinlands. An object must be a soulgood to start out with; this art will not work on objects that are created in the Skinlands or relics.
System: Roll Dexterity + Transubstantiation (difficulty 8). This effect is permanent unless the object is altered in some other way, such as it is re-forged or affected by arts such as the Artificer’s Empower. If that is the case, the object must be cast with Sphere again. The user of the artifact must spend one Pathos to make the object Embody or dis-Embody with them.
This art costs 3 Pathos for each item.

Level Four: Ore Evolution
Wraiths with this art may transform a soulgoods object of their choice into pure Stygian steel; this art will not work on relics or Skinlands items. Once transformed, these items cannot be changed back.
System: Roll Intelligence + Transubstantiation (difficulty 8). If for each success, that object comes one turn closer to becoming totally Stygian steel. The number of turns needed for an item to turn into Stygian steel depends on the size; daggers usually take three turns, guns take five turns, swords take seven turns, and large weapons take nine turns. Other non-weapon items may be judged on their size by the items above. Botches will cause damage to the item; more than the numbers listed above, and the item will fall into Oblivion.
Each roll costs 2 Pathos. A botched roll costs 1 Angst.

Level Five: Midas’ Touch
The wraiths who practice this art may turn another wraith into any substance they choose, except living flesh, and back again. A wraith totally affected by this art is effectively turned into a statue; however, the Alchemist may simply turn certain parts of the body into the material. In the Skinlands, any simple material (gold, stone, cheese, etc.) can be used to this effect; in the Shadowlands, the material of choice is usually Stygian steel. Other materials can be chosen in the Shadowlands, but the wraith affected will fall into Oblivion if Midas’s Touch is not revoked quickly enough, even if the transformation is only partial. This ability may not be used on the Quick.
System: The wraith using this art must be in bodily contact with the target and name the material of transformation. Roll Wits + Transubstantiation (difficulty 9) to use. For a roll that is less than 50% successful, a limb is transformed. If over 50% of the rolls are successful, the target is completely turned into the desired material. To revoke Midas’ Touch, only one success is needed.
Each roll costs 4 Pathos and gains the user 3 Angst.