Zagovny is a kind of sanguine witchery, with a wide array of strange powers. The odd disparity of its effects often confuses other Kindred; many who have never heard of the Vedma mistake each power of Zagovny as evidence of a different parent Discipline. The Vedma thus have a reputation for knowing scores of bizarre Disciplines, when in fact their line has only one unique tradition of power. Like all good witches, of course, the Vedma are loathe to reveal such a secret to others; let their enemies — and allies — make their mistakes. The supernatural powers of the Vedma have no single origin story. Some among the Old Witches claim that Zagovny is a kind of proto-Discipline, from which other, more common Disciplines have descended. Such Vedma believe other Kindred powers are derived from those of Zagovny. More modern Ordo Dracul scholars have supposed that Zagovny’s disparate powers are the result of the feeding habits of the original Vedma progenitress, rumored to have feasted upon mortal witches and mages of all kinds. The blood of the Vedma is, theoretically, now a blend of bizarre, magical ingredients. One folk tale, passed down from sire to childe and Avus to supplicant, claims that the Vedma’s unique powers were drawn from the land itself — that the sacred mountains of Dacia bled magical powers, and the first Vedma drank them up. Thus, Zagovny represents a raw mixture of the magic inherent in the lands that lay in the shadow of the Carpathians, from the rough peaks to the Danube.
It is commonly claimed in the folklore of the Slavic peasantry that witches were able to spy on people from miles away. Evil sorcerers could learn a person’s secrets in this way, and use them to force good folk to do evil deeds. But first, the witch had to touch you or your belongings. This power lets a Vedma do just that. By applying a spot of her own blood to the body or clothing of the subject, the Vedma is able to mystically watch him from afar. The Vedma must be able to touch the subject to cast her “bloody eye” on him, but just a fingerprint’s worth of blood is necessary to activate this power. Once done, the Vedma’s ability to perceive her subject is limited only by her own perceptiveness and mystic power.
The Vedma does not see through the subject’s eyes or from the point of view of the blood she applies to him. Rather, she experiences “third-person” visions consisting of images, sounds, emotions and smells, like a kind of arcane telemetry. The sensations come to her in a surreal, almost hallucinatory experience, not unlike a vision gained through the use of Auspex, but in real-time.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Wits + Empathy + Zagovny – subject’s Resolve
Action: Instant or reflexive. To apply her “bloody eye” to a subject requires an instant action. To remotely sense the activities of the subject requires either an instant or a reflexive action, as described below. The dice pool is the same for both rolls.
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The mystic link to the subject is somehow corrupted. The character receives disturbing and terrifying images, possibly drawn from her own soul, rather than any vision of the subject. The character loses one Willpower point in addition to the Vitae wasted on the failed activation roll and cannot attempt to apply this power to any other subject for the rest of the night.
Failure: The character is unable to make the mystic link manifest and is unable to spy on the subject, though she may try again. The Vitae spent to activate this power is wasted.
Success: The character is able to perceive visions of the subject’s whereabouts and actions until the next sunset. She may actively “look in on” the subject with an instant action as many times as she likes during this power’s duration. Whenever the subject experiences a substantial sensory change (such as going from a warm cottage into a chilly night or being physically or emotionally hurt), the character may attempt a reflexive Wits + Empathy + Zagovny roll to receive a brief vision of the experience.
The number of successes achieved on the activation roll determines the number of miles the subject may travel from the character without breaking the mystic connection. Each success extends the power’s range by five miles.
While the character slumbers, visions of the subject come to her in dreams.
Exceptional Success: Similar to a normal success, except the range of the connection is unlimited.
The visions received by the character may be a confusing mix of images, sounds, smells and emotional sensations. The character gains no special ability to perceive beyond her normal means with this power; the vision cannot be steered. While a sense of the subject’s environment certainly comes across through the vision, the subject himself is always the primary focal point of the vision.
The character may take actions to discern details and spot hidden objects in a vision just as though she were there. If the character were looking in on a subject with a concealed weapon, for example, she may attempt a Wits + Firearms roll to notice it. The Storyteller may apply as much as a –3 penalty to dice pools when the character attempts to scrutinize objects or people other than the subject.
If the character has Auspex, she can even bring Heightened Senses and Aura Sight to bear on the subjects in the vision.
Suggested Modifiers
Modifier Situation
+2 Power is turned on a subject with whom the user has a blood tie.
+1 The subject is a mortal, ghoul or vampire the user has met before.
— The subject is a mortal, ghoul or vampire the user has never met.
–2 The subject is a supernatural creature other than a ghoul or vampire.
The Vedma are known for their sometimes bizarre appearance and use of trickery to protect themselves. With this power, an Old Witch can disguise herself amid the weeds of an abandoned lot, vanish into a row of roadside trees or appear to change her shape. The Vedma has only a slight ability to control this power, however. Rather, it is a mystic effect that radiates from her own corpse to affect the eyes of others.
Note that this power does not actually change the Vedma’s shape in any way. Instead, it plays with the senses of an onlooker. A Vedma may appear to transform from a tree into her normal form, when in fact she was simply standing near other trees. A Vedma may appear to have a wooden post in place of legs, when in fact she is simply wearing a brown skirt. The images perceived by the subject become more dramatic as the Vedma’s proficiency with Zagovny increases.
Cost: 1 Vitae per scene
Dice Pool: No roll is necessary to activate this power. Rather, the Witch-Cloak allows the character to add her dots in Zagovny to Stealth and Subterfuge dice pools to hide or disguise herself. Whereas a mundane disguise allows a character to pass herself off as someone else, this power allows the Vedma to pass herself off as something else with an extraordinary success. Note that this power cannot compensate for the character’s Blood weaknesses or Humanity; a bestial Vedma may go so far as to disguise herself as a wolf, but cannot pass for a normal human. Likewise, the character’s disguise cannot dramatically change her apparent Size.
As a rule of thumb, a disguised Vedma does not seem more trustworthy or less monstrous unless she also uses a Skill like Persuasion to change the subject’s mind. This power only alters the subject’s literal perceptions.
A Vedma augmenting her Stealth Skill with the Witch-Cloak never appears to vanish using this power. Rather, she appears to be something else. A Vedma hiding in a ruined house might be mistaken for a man-sized patch of water damage to the wallpaper, while a Vedma sneaking across a playground might appear as a mass of blowing leaves.
The Vedma’s control over this power is influenced by her Specialties. The Vedma may combine her mystic prowess with other equipment bonuses, as well. The mad witches of Slavic folklore seemed to wear their “alternate forms” as capes on their backs or leaves in their hair. No doubt some of those witches were simply fooling the eyes of their subjects with this power.
Action: N/A
Suggested Modifiers
Modifier Situation
+2 The character is standing still (for Stealth actions).
+1 The character has successfully hidden in the same spot before (for Stealth actions).
+1 The character has successfully fooled the subject before (for disguise attempts).
–1 Each witness after the first present when the character invokes this power.
–3 The character attempts to disguise herself as a person or creature one Size larger or smaller.
–1 to –3 The character attempts to hide in an open or empty area (for Stealth actions).
This power is the Vedma’s sanguine manifestation of the archetypal curse of a mad witch — the Vaskania or “evil eye.” With just a look, the Vedma can curse a subject, dooming him to suffer a terrible setback, grievous injury or awful malady. The Vedma may inflict a particular curse upon the subject by proclaiming her intent for the subject to hear, or she may simply lay a bane upon him to attract bad luck.
Cost: 1 Willpower
Dice Pool: Presence + Intimidation + Zagovny versus subject’s Resolve + Blood Potency
Action: Contested; resistance is reflexive.
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The subject is not cursed and cannot be cursed by the character again for the rest of the night. The Willpower point spent to invoke the curse is wasted.
Failure: The curse fails to take hold, but the character may try again in another turn. The Willpower point spent to invoke the curse is wasted.
Success: The character wins the contested roll against the subject, and may choose to curse one of the subject’s Skills or the subject in general. To curse a specific Skill, the Vedma must suggest the Skill to be cursed with a proclamation (for example, “You rely too much on your guns, fool!” indicates the Firearms Skill, while “Damn your cherished tongue,” might indicate Socialize or Persuasion), and the player must specify the Skill exactly to the Storyteller (possibly in secret). The subject has no means of determining which Skill has been cursed other than the character’s proclamation. The next time the character fails at a serious attempt to use the cursed Skill, he suffers a dramatic failure instead. The Storyteller is encouraged to discount actions specifically designed to “absorb” the curse; the subject may attempt such actions, but they should not trigger the curse’s effect.
The duration of a Skill-specific curse depends on the Vedma’s dice pool. The default duration for a Skill-specific curse lasts until the next sunset. Each –1 penalty the character voluntarily applies to her dice pool extends the curse by one more day, assuming she wins the contested action to invoke the curse.
If the character curses the subject in general, he no longer benefits from the 10-again rule for the rest of the scene.
Exceptional Success: Similar to a normal success, but the effects of a general curse persist for the rest of the night. An exceptional success affords no additional benefit to a Skill-specific curse.
The character may affect the subject with only one curse at a time.
This power requires the character to make eye contact with the subject. If the subject is not standing still or otherwise immobilized, the roll to invoke this power suffers a –1 penalty. If this power is turned on a vampire with whom the character has a blood tie, a +2 bonus applies to the user’s roll.
The penultimate power of the Vedma is perhaps the strangest. A Vedma with this power can transform her blood into supernatural animal servants that do her bidding. To onlookers, it appears as though birds, rats or bugs crawl out from gashes in the vampire’s flesh.
The animals created with this power are clearly unnatural, with empty sockets in place of eyes, blood-colored beaks or claws or some other horrific sign of their strange origin. These minions can travel any distance from the Vedma, who instinctively knows their location at all times. Though these creatures do not eat, sleep or think, they follow the will of the Vedma exactly. They attack her enemies, fetch objects for her and assist her in the use of other powers of Zagovny.
Blood Minions appear to be made of flesh and bone, but are actually made up something more akin to the ashy remains of burnt paper. If damaged, they crumble into ash. Unlike a vampire, these supernatural creatures can move about during the day.
Cost: 1 or more Vitae
Dice Pool: Strength + Animal Ken + Zagovny
Action: Instant
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The character opens a wound in herself, but is unable to bring forth Blood Minions. She suffers a lethal wound, and the Vitae spent to activate this power is wasted, but no Vitae is spent on the unformed minions. The character cannot attempt to use this power for the rest of the scene.
Failure: The character is unable to transform her blood. The Vitae spent to activate this power is wasted, but no Vitae is spent on the unformed minions.
Success: The character is able to transform her Vitae into lifeless, animate Minion creatures. By spending an amount of Vitae equal to the Size of the desired creature, the Vedma can create small birds, bats, ravens, rats, cats or even dogs to do her bidding. The character can create any number of Minions, provided she has enough Vitae to account for the Size of all the animals created (in addition to the Vitae spent to activate this power). The character can only create animals using the amount of Vitae she can spend in one turn, based on her Blood Potency. These creatures must be let out from the character’s body, through a gash in the stomach, arm or leg, for example, though this wound causes no harm to the character.
Minions created with this power can fly, bite, carry and perform any other actions an animal of the same type could. In addition, the Vedma can use the Eye of Blood power to perceive a Minion’s surroundings over any distance and the Flight of the Warlock power to mystically transport herself to a Minion’s location. A Blood Minion that successfully attacks a target can destroy itself to subject that target to the Eye of Blood power.
Blood Minions may take their own actions during a turn, but always act on the same Initiative as the character.
The creatures created with this power turn to ash at the next sunset or immediately upon taking any damage, whichever comes first.
Example: Natya has successfully invoked the power of Blood Minions. Her Blood Potency is 6, so she can spend three Vitae per turn. Although she could spend two Vitae to create a cat minion, she decides to transform her blood into three small blackbirds (Size 1 each). She slices her arm, and the tiny birds struggle out through the gash and take flight. She sends two off to track the mortals who just attacked her, and dispatches the third to scout for prey — Natya needs blood.
Exceptional Success: Similar to a normal success,
except the creatures crumble to ash on the second sun-
set, rather than the next.
Game statistics for sample animals can be found in the World of Darkness Rulebook (p. 202 – 203). Storytellers are encouraged to use those statistics for other, similar animals as well. The traits of a bat can substitute for those of a Size 1 bird, for example.
Witches in Slavic folklore are often attributed with an ability to fly. The Vedma do not have that ability, but they do have a mystic means of traversing the land. A Vedma with this power can instantly transport herself to the location of a Blood Minion created with her own Vitae. The vampire seems to vanish in a blink of the eye, leaving behind nothing but a chill patch of air and the scent of blood. At her destination, the Vedma’s Minion explodes in ash as the vampire appears, perhaps misleading onlookers into thinking the Vedma was the animal Minion.
Cost: 1 Willpower
Dice Pool: Wits + Occult + Zagovny
Action: Instant
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The character fails to travel anywhere. The Blood Minion used as the subject of the power is destroyed, and the Willpower used to activate this power is wasted. The character cannot use this power again for the rest of the scene.
Failure: The character does not achieve any successes on the activation roll and fails to transport herself, but the Blood Minion remains intact. The Willpower used to activate this power is wasted.
Success: The character achieves at least one success on the activation roll and instantly arrives at the spot previously inhabited by her Blood Minion.
Exceptional Success: The same as a normal success, with no additional benefit.
If the character attempts to transport herself to a space in which she cannot fit, this power automatically fails. The dice pool to activate this power suffers a –1 penalty for every mile between the character and her target.