Sample Sanctum: Residents of the Engels House

Now to look at the residents (prior and current) of the Engels House. Hopefully they approve of their new housemates.

Residents of the Engels House

Moving In

Many clues remain as to the history of the sanctum from the graves out back to the lingering enchantments. A fallen chandelier in the dining room is etched with the phrase 'Rota Taro Orat Tora Ator' (The wheel of Taro speaks the Law of Love). Other etchings, Atlantean runes, hide behind the few pieces of furniture or inside the walls themselves. Careful study reveals they once helped bind the warding spells of the house. Now only a few threadbare enchantments remain.

Another magical sign can barely be made out in one of the second floor bedroom. The summoning circle lies almost worn to nothing. A careful rubbing (or use of magic) reveals it to be focused on summoning angels.

More clearly visible is a large blood stain near the fallen chandelier. Old and black, it marks the spot where the former owner perished. A potent resonance of Death, Mind, and Spirit magic lingers here.

Thick vine encrust the gravestones, oozing a strange gel at midnight. This ectoplasm evaporates if removed from the graves unless stabilized with Death magic.

Lastly those who dwell within the house are haunted by dreams of an endless stairway.

Lingering Enchantments

There are 3 existing enchantments in and on the house:

• Ward (potency 1, cast by an Adept of the Arcana of Space): threadbare and decayed, this covers the house protecting it and those within from scrying and sympathetic attacks.
• The Dream Quest (potency 5, cast by an adept of Fate and Mind) this strange spell draws those who possess the potential to follow the former owner's Legacy to the house and then brings them dreams.
• Stygian Demense (potency 5, cast by a Master of Death with Gnosis 8): this lies in the basement but is currently inoperative. Fixing it requires repairing the runes down there (damaged by ground water). The soulstone is hidden by other magics. It is invisible (potency 2) and covered by a Mind spell (potency 4) that distracts people from seeing it.

The Others

The "ghosts"of the house are wise to the way of mages and keep their distance. However they leave many clues to their presence:

• Dripping water from a leaky roof forms a pool in one room. The owners discover wet foot prints leading away from it.
• Low voices are heard upstairs but the speakers flee before the owners reach them.
• Whispering and a soft crying emanates from the graveyard.
• Doors slam in random parts of the house.
• Heavy foot falls are heard elsewhere in the house.
• The cutlery is rearranged into Atlantean symbols overnight.
• Ticking sounds emerge from the cellar.

Spirits of the House

The secret of the residents of the Engels House is that they are neither ghosts nor spirits but a strange hybrid (called Geists) created by the former owner, a heretical mage known as Rota. Of his many experiments only a handful linger here:

The House (Ezra)

This creature actually began as the spirit of the house. Decades of experimentation left it bound to dozens of weak ghosts. The old woman Ezra has come to dominate it, causing it to manifest into two ways. In one, it resembles a decaying house with windows that shine like eyes and a square toothless mouth. The other resembles a bent old woman with a flat plaster face. Its voice, rarely used, quavers and creaks. It mostly slumbers.

Attributes: Power: 6, Finesse: 2, Resistance: 4
Traits: Size 20
Numina: Phantasmal Boneyard 4 (8)

The Bogeyman (Adam)

The youngest and darkest of the Geists, the Bogeyman appears as a looming figure cloaked in darkness. The light that penetrates the shadows reveals an eggshell white head, cracked open at the top and hollow. The creature smiles with a toothless idiot grin. Though capable of violence, it hides in the face of multiple intruders. It can often be seen looking around corners or through doorways at any women or girls who come to live here.

Attributes: Power: 6, Finesse: 2, Resistance: 6
Notable Traits: Size: 7
Numina: Terrify 8

The Whisperer (Doris)

The most social of the Geists, this spirit was once Rota's sister. Now twisted and mad, she babbles in a cacophony of voices. Two mouths open where her eyes would be along with a further pair upon her palms. She whispers of secrets and times long past, carrying several threads of discourse concurrently. Sometimes the voices even whisper to each other. Beyond her inhuman features, she resembles a younger woman with long silvery hair dressed in the flamboyant style of a flapper.

Attributes: Power: 4, Finesse: 4, Resistance: 4
Numina: Ghost Speech 8

The Watchman (Mobius)

Obsessed with time, this ghost stands bound in chains from which hang hundreds of pocket watches. Heralded by an endless ticking, this ghost mage possess influences over Time and Fate. Though he never seeks to harm others, he reflexively tampers with the Fate of those around him, bending them toward's Rota's plan. He lurks most of the time within the cellar.

Attributes: Power: 4, Finesse: 6, Resistance: 3
Influence: Fate 4, Prime 2, Space 2, Time 4
Numina: Telekinesis 10