Oblivion V5

Oblivion

Known to Clans

Hecata and Lasombra

Nicknames

Obtenebration, Necromancy, Shadow boxing, Abyssal Mastery, Tenebrae Imperiosae, Mortis, The Dark Arts, Black Magic, Entropy

Type

Mental

Blood Resonance

Blood Empty of Resonance

Oblivion

Masquerade Threat

Medium-High. The abyssal shadows rarely show up well on cameras but are obviously unnatural if witnessed in person.

About Oblivion

Few Kindred outside Clan Lasombra and the Hecata know the Discipline of Oblivion, and as far as the Camarilla is concerned, this is a good thing. While the Lasombra favor the Discipline’s raw power, the more necromantically-inclined Hecata explore its ritual uses. With this power, vampires wield the very stuff of shadows and unlife as weapons. Some call the power’s source the Abyss, while other practitioners refer to it as the Labyrinth. The one certainty is Oblivion channels the darkest arts, from where the dead go to die. The masters of Oblivion call upon it to wreathe themselves in night, enslave spectres, or throttle victims with their own shadow. Each time they use it, wielders run the risk of losing their soul and Humanity to something darker than death and twice as hungry.

Characteristics

The powers of Oblivion allow for the control of forces or spirits of an extradimensional element, originating from a plane of death and nothingness. When manifest, this element projects into our reality as two-dimensional shadows on the surface of three-dimensional objects, either by themselves or as extensions of the wielder’s own shadow, snaking along the ground, walls, objects, or people. This makes them impossible to attack with most physical means as any blow will only hit the surface on which they’re projected, rather than the entities themselves. Oblivion projections and spirits sustain damage from fire and sunlight, counting as vampires with Blood Potency 1 in this regard.
They also take one level of Aggravated damage per round from bright, direct lights, and may also be damaged (Superficially or Aggravated) from blessed weapons and artifacts, depending on the strength of the blessing and any True Faith of the wielder. Oblivion’s powers are ineffective in brightly lit areas. Daylight and rooms without shadows are particularly prohibitive, preventing the Discipline’s successful function, though ultraviolet light and infrared light places no restriction on the Discipline’s use. Moderately lit rooms apply a one die penalty to the Discipline roll involved. The use of these powers takes a heavy toll on the psyche of the user, and many powers cause Stains as the numbing emptiness of Oblivion seeps into the spirit of the wielder.

Powers

NOTE: When making a Rouse check for an Oblivion power, a result of “1” or “10” results in a Stain, in addition to any Hunger gained. If the user’s Blood Potency allows for a re-roll on the Rouse check, they can pick either of the two results.

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  • Shadow Cloak: The vampire shapes ambient shadows to conceal their presence and make themselves more frightening. They add dice to Stealth tests, and the same amount to Intimidation tests against mortals.
  • Oblivion's Sight: The vampire's irises become black against the white of their sclera. They ignore all darkness penalties, even those brought on by supernatural darkness, and can see ghosts.

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  • Shadow Cast: The vampire summons a supernatural shadow from Oblivion, one which they control and can only be destroyed by sunlight. It allows them to use other Oblivion powers through it despite the presence of light, and casting it on somebody during social conflict intensifies the Willpower damage that victim suffers.
  • Arms of Ahriman: Amalgam of Potence 2. The vampire summons two-dimensional shadow tendrils which glide across surfaces and victims, alternatively engaging in mystical grapples with the victim's shadow. They attack using the vampire's Wits and Oblivion, benefiting from their Potence when inflicting damage. Multiple tendrils can be created by splitting the vampire's dice pool.

• 
  • Shadow Perspective: The vampire casts their senses to a shadow they can see, maintaining both their mundane senses and their shadow perspective. This eavesdropping cannot be detected without supernatural means, such as Sense the Unseen from Auspex.
  • Touch of Oblivion: The vampire touches their victim and channels the raw entropic power of Oblivion through them. The victim suffers aggravated damage, and a crippling injury (blindness, muteness, a ruined limb, or the like).

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  • Stygian Shroud: The vampire spreads a suffocating darkness across a large area, muting sound and suppressing all other senses. Those within the shroud (except the user) suffer a total blindness penalty on all actions requiring sight, and mortals suffocate.

• 
  • Shadow Step: The vampire disappears into shadow, skating across the Labyrinth to reemerge after travelling across something fouler than death and twice as hungry. They step into a shadow large enough to cover them, and reemerge from one they can see. This includes shadows viewed through mystical means, such as Shadow Perspective.
  • Tenebrous Avatar: The vampire becomes a sentient patch of two-dimensional darkness, immune to damage except fire and sunlight. While in this shadow state they can pass through anything not hermetically sealed, are immune to most harms as described above, and can envelop others to feed without breaking the skin. Those enveloped by a vampire using Tenebrous Avatar suffer the effects of Stygian Shroud.

Ceremonies

Note: Ceremonies will be Released for Oblivion in the upcoming Cult of the Blood Gods V5 Supplement Book. These will work similar to Blood Sorcery Rituals.