Sphere: Smog
TN: 5
Strain: 1
Duration: Special
Range: Self
"One toke over the line, sweet Jesus, one toke over the line
Sittin' downtown in a railway station, one toke over the line
Waitin' for the train that goes home, sweet Mary
Hoping that the train is on time
Sittin' downtown in a railway station, one toke over the line"
- Brewer and Shipley
Your shaman must have a lit cigar, cigarette or pipe to use this favor. When invoked, the shaman draws deeply from the lit instrument and holds the resultant smoke in his lungs, making a Foolproof (TN 3) Vigor check. While holding the smoke, the shaman may not speak above a clenched whisper, and all other actions will be at -2 due to concentration on the favor. The shaman must make an additional Vigor check at one step higher for each round (five second period of time) after the first that he chooses to continue to hold the smoke. If the shaman fails a Vigor check, he loses all actions as he collapses in a coughing, wheezing fit, suffering 1d6 wind for each round he attempted to hold the smoke. When he decides to exhale, the shaman receives a cumulative +2 bonus for each round he successfully held the smoke (after the first) on all his Faith rolls. This effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to the total number of rounds he successfully held in the smoke.
Example: Winston the Smog Shaman invokes the favor by taking a nice long draw on his cigarette, successfully making the Foolproof (TN 3) Vigor roll. He then holds the smoke for three more rounds (successfully making the consecutive TN 5, 7 and 9 Vigor rolls) before finally choosing to let it out. Winston now has a +6 bonus (+2 for each round after the first) on all his Faith rolls for the next 4 rounds (total number of rounds he successfully held the smoke).
Tar Baby
Sphere: Smog
TN: 7
Strain: 4
Speed: 3
Duration: 1 minute/+2 per additional minute
Range: Self
"At last Brer Rabbit drew back and blip! He hit the Tar Baby smack on the lip.
And there Brer Rabbit got stuck too. This creature he found was as sticky as glue."
- Brer Rabbit and His Tricks by Ennis Rees
Invoking this favor causes the shaman's body to exude molten thick, black tar from its pores and various orifices until it quickly and completely covers his body in a sticky, bubbling coat. This makes the spook appear as if he has transformed into a shambling man-shaped tar creature, straight out of La Brea. While covered, the shaman is subject to the following benefits and penalties:
Profile: Tar Baby
Corporeal: As Shaman, except Deftness and Nimbleness drop by a die type, and Quickness drops by two die types.
Mental: As Shaman.
Pace: As Shaman (subject to Quickness penalty)
Size: As Shaman, +1
Wind: As Shaman
Terror: 7
Special Abilities:
Heat Immunity: The shaman takes no damage from the fire, heat or the hot tar covering his body and breathes, sees and hears as normal while covered. This immunity is not extended to anything the shaman might be wearing or carrying when invoking the favor.
Heat Wave: The heat and fumes issuing from the molten tar covering the shaman's body requires anyone within five feet of him to make an Onerous (TN 7) Vigor roll each round or suffer 1d6 Wind.
Tar Coating: All damage from slashing weapons (sword, axe, etc.) used against the shaman is halved. All damage from piercing attacks (sword thrust, bullets, etc.) used against the shaman are quartered. Blunt and explosive attacks continue to do full damage. Objects striking the shaman (such as swords, clubs and fists) become stuck to the spook's sticky tar coating, requiring a Hard (TN 9) strength check to pull free. The shaman gains an additional 2d6 heat damage to his brawling attacks, and any opponent he hits (or hits him for that matter) has a chance of contracting some of the hot, sticky tar dripping off his body. For each successful hit the shaman makes in brawling and each successful melee attack against the shaman, roll 1d6. A result of 5 or 6 indicates that an amount of molten tar has become stuck to the opponent. Anyone who simply punches or kicks the shaman is considered instantly affected without having to roll (and don't forget that Strength check). This tar does 4d6 of heat damage on contact, and then inflicts additional damage at the beginning of each subsequent round. The die type for this damage drops by a step each round due to the rapidly cooling tar once it's away from the shaman's body. The stiffening tar can impede an opponent's movement and actions depending on where it struck, and all wound penalties caused by the tar are doubled until it is removed.
Flammable: Although the shaman takes no damage from fire, this doesn't mean that the tar he's wearing while using Tar Baby is unaffected. While not quick to ignite, the tar coating the shaman's body is flammable given enough contact with direct flame. If the shaman takes enough damage from a single flame based attack in any location to generate a damage value that would equal that of three wounds, the tar coating combusts. For example, if while in Tar Baby form the shaman was size 7, ignition cost would be a minimum of 21 points of damage from a single flame based attack (remember that the shaman will not take this damage - this is just to represent a flame intense enough to ignite the tar). Igniting the tar covering has a few different effects. Firstly, the radius of the "Heat Wave" effect becomes 10 feet with the same Vigor roll requirement for the heat and roiling black smoke pouring off the tar. Anyone in the five foot radius takes 1d10 of heat damage from the flames at the beginning of each round, must make an incredible (TN 11) Vigor roll per round or suffer an additional 1d6 of wind loss and suffers a -2 penalty to all actions involving sight due to the intense toxic smoke around the spook. Secondly, the shaman's brawling bonus raises to 2d10, and an opponent can contract flaming tar on a roll of 4, 5 or 6. This flaming tar when stuck to unlucky opponent does 4d10 on contact (again, inflicting one die type less at the beginning of each round as it cools and burns itself out - it may however meanwhile ignite other flammable things on the target ). While ablaze however, strain costs to maintain the favor increase drastically to a hefty +2/additional round. Don't forget that the spook's flame immunity does not extend to things he may be carrying either...some things that are heat resistant can stand up to prolonged direct contact with fire unscathed.
The shaman may choose to end the favor at any time. When the favor's effects terminate, the tar covering the shaman sloughs off his body and onto the ground around him, rapidly cooling (also quickly extinguishing if lit) and becoming harmless in the process. However, the tar will continue to adhere and harden upon anything the shaman was wearing or carrying at time the favor was invoked, probably thoroughly ruining it (it's better to strip down and drop everything - especially things like ammo - before trying this favor unless you don't mind high dry cleaning bills).
Hole in the Sky
Sphere: Smog
TN: special
Strain: 3
Speed: 1
Range: 10 yards/faith level
"The creature in the sky got sucked in a hole
Now there's a hole in the sky and the ground's not cold
And if the ground's not cold everything is gonna burn
We'll all take turns - I'll get mine too
This monkey's gone to heaven"
- The Pixies
Remember all that talk about CFC's in the atmosphere, the hole in the ozone layer and global warming? Well this little favor is how a smog spook can help folks around him work on their tan lines. It has some limitations, however. First off, it can only be utilized during full daylight, the closer to noon and the less cloud cover the better. Ideal conditions are high noon on a cloudless day - this gives the favor's base TN of 3. For every hour increment on either side of noon, this TN increases by a step (8 A.M. and 4 P.M. for example both have a TN of 13). Furthermore, partly cloudy, overcast and storm front conditions can further raise the TN by 1, 2 and 3 steps respectively as well (trying to use this favor at 4 P.M. during a thunderstorm for example would give the spook a TN of 19). It's not unheard of for a spook to use Call Weather to conjure up winds to blow cloud cover away to make this favor easier to use.
Hole in the Sky (or HitS) uses the spook's faith roll to activate the favor and put it on target. If the spook nails the TN for the favor but his accuracy is off, the focus of the favor deviates by 2d20 yards (use a d12 like a clock face to determine direction). Wherever the focus of the favor lands, HitS calls up an intense, wide beam of toxic spirit boosted heat and solar radiation from the sky. Damage at the power's focus is 3d10, plus an additional d10 for each raise over the miracle's TN (not the targeting number). The width of this beam is determined as if it were an "explosion" with a blast radius of 10 yards and is treated as massive damage.
After damage is determined, every target damaged by HitS must make a base Fair (TN 5) Vigor roll, modified up a step for each wound taken from the beam. Failing the roll causes the loss of all actions and an additional 1d6 wind due to visual disorientation from the brilliant flash, instantaneous sunburn and dehydration. Going bust on this roll gives the poor brainer a dose of good old fashioned skin cancer (treat as the ailin': chronic hindrance).
In looking at the range, you might notice that it's possible (if not probable) for the spook to occasionally catch himself with this favor. Such is the risk of dabbling with toxic spirits. Sun screen and shades might not be a bad thing to have. Probably won't help, but hey - you never know.