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The Ritual of Severance is a process undergone by Ferrymen in which their Shadow and Psyche are permanently separated creating a Pasiphae. The Ritual was taught to the Ferrymen by Anubis in exchange for protection of the Egyptian Dead, the Amenti.

The ritual is the final step in becoming a Ferrymen and the drawing out of the Shadow causes the enlongated visage of the Ferrymen. All Ferrymen save one, Charon, have undergone the ritual.

The Pasiphae and the Ferryman are still connected such that if one is to be destroyed the other is as well. This bond exists at a less extreme level as activities that generate Angst are still funneled to the Pasiphae and likewise Pathos can be funneled from the Pasiphae to the Ferryman.

Benefits[]

  • No Shadow - While still metaphysically connected, the Pasiphae do not have anything like the control over the Ferrymen that the Shadow does over the average wraith. The Pasiphae does not possess Thorns, or gain temporary or permanent control of the Ferryman's body through Catharsis. The struggle for control of a single Corpus is forever over.
  • No Angst - While the Pasiphae still gains Angst whenever the Ferryman fulfills one of her Pasiphae's Dark Passions, rolls a 1 on a Shadow die or uses Arcanoi chat would cause a normal wraith to gain Angst, this does not negatively impact the Ferryman's ability to carry out business as usual.
  • Unlimited Shadow Dice - The Ferryman may grant her self up to five Shadow dice on any roll.
  • Strengthened Corpus - The Ferryman's Corpus is strengthened by the Ritual of Severance, and by the fact that it is free from the forces of Oblivion-induced decay that plague most of the Restless. When the Ferryman completes the Ritual of Severance, she adds five co her Permanent Corpus total (which generally means the Ferryman has 15, rather than 10, Corpus levels).
  • Greater Pathos Reserves - Without the Shadow and its associated scores of Angst, the Ferryman has more metaphysical "room" within herself co score Pathos. Ferrymen may score a maximum of 20 Pathos points, rather than 10.
  • Access to Dark Arcanoi - Ferrymen can learn and use Dark Arcanoi. Over the years, members of the Boatmen's Society have forced most of the secrets of the Dark Arcanoi out of the Shadow-Eaten. Some Ferrymen learn these arcs by capturing and interrogating Spectres, while others learn chem from their fellow members of the Oath-circle. Whichever is the case, Dark Arcanoi are alien to the Ferrymen's condition and cost current rating x 5 to advance, rather than current rating x 3.
  • Access to Alloyed Arcanoi - These are the special combined Arcanoi of the Ferrymen, taught only to those who've undergone the Ritual of Severance.
  • The Bridge of Thoughts - Ferryman who makes eye contact with another being who has undergone the Ritual of Severance may speak wordlessly with him with as much understanding as if they were having a spoken conversation, but with no chance of misstatement or misunderstanding.
  • Immunity from Mind Control - Only half of the Ferryman's soul is present. The rest is elsewhere pursuing its own goals. While the Ferryman is vulnerable to emotional manipulation through Arcanoi like Keening, powers that rely on spiritual compulsion or rewriting the Ferryman's being, like Intimation, Mnemosynis and Way of the Scholar, automatically fail unless they are used on both the Pasiphae and the Ferryman simultaneously.
  • No Harrowings - Ferrymen do not undergo Harrowings. Unless they are reduced to zero temporary Corpus entirely by aggravated damage and/or by damage inflicted by their Pasiphae, the Ferrymen are effectively immortal. When reduced to zero temporary Corpus through some other method, Ferrymen dissipate like smoke in a stiff breeze, only to reappear on the steps of the acropolitan Temple of Dis a few tides of the Sea of Shadows later. Pasiphae similarly dissipated appear on che porticos of the Neverborns' temple in the Well of the Void. When a Pasiphae or Ferryman is reduced to zero temporary Corpus from entirely aggravated sources, or by damage inflicted by his other half, both are immediately destroyed. The Ferryman Transcends, and the Pasiphae likewise instantly falls into Oblivion.
  • Spontaneous Pathos - Whenever the Pasiphae performs an act that would cause its Psyche to gain Composure if it were a normal Spectre, the Ferryman instead gains points of Pathos equal to the amount of Composure the Pasiphae would have gained. The ways a Pasiphae can cause its Ferryman to temporarily gain Pathos include, but are not limited to, fulfilling one of the Ferryman's Passions, rolling a I on a Psyche die, or using an Arcanos like Larceny that would normally cause the Pasiphae to gain Composure.
    A Ferryman cannot go over her normal maximum Pathos by this method - the additional points are lost - but the Ferryman suffers no harm if she cannot accept the Pathos. This is normally represented abstractly by the Activity Background, however, if the Pasiphae is present and active in the story, its activities and rolls may directly benefit its Ferryman.

Drawbacks[]

  • Unpleasant appearance - For unknown reasons, the Ritual of Severance forever alters the Ferryman's "natural" appearance, leaving him looking drawn and leathery. Most Ferrymen believe this is a side effect of the drawing out of the Shadow, but there is no way to say for certain. The ultimate effect is that when wearing his natural appearance ( which almost every Ferryman does), the Ferryman's Appearance Attribute is reduced by one dot.
  • Feeding the Pasiphae - Just as the actions of Pasiphae benefit the Ferryman, so do the actions of the Ferryman benefit the Pasiphae. Any time the Ferryman would gain Angst, her Pasiphae gains an equal amount of Angst instead, exactly as if the roles had been reversed and the Pasiphae had done some thing to cause it co gain Composure. Exactly how much Angst a Pasiphae can store is a matter of much conjecture among the Ferrymen. The only certain answer is "at least as much as the Ferryman once was able to."
  • The Black Mirror - The Pasiphae starts with the same sec of Attributes, Abilities and Arcanoi as the Ferryman. It is her dark mirror. While they will obviously now walk separate paths, the Pasiphae and its Ferryman lead disturbingly parallel lives. As a Ferryman grows in power, so, inevitably, does his Pasiphae follow suit. And, yes, the Pasiphae has at his beck and call an unlimited number of Psyche dice.
  • The Nemesis Effect - Ferrymen and their Pasiphae are inextricably linked. They share Passions and Dark Passions, and their Faces are as if they were one being. Similarly, Ferrymen seem pretemacurally prone co conflict with their Pasiphae. Ferrymen, especially younger Ferrymen, often find themselves at loggerheads with their dark counrerparcs. No matter how powerful the Ferryman may be, there is one opponent he must confront with a better strategy than yelling, "I waste him with my scythe!"
  • Cannot Cross the Shroud - The Ferrymen's incomplete condition and the effects of the Ritual of Severance make it far more difficult for them to interact with the world of the Quick. While they can use the Arcanoi Keening, Outrage and Pandemonium across the Shroud with only + l difficulty, Ferrymen are unable to cross the Shroud enough use the Puppetry, Embody or Corruption Arcanoi. Also, the incomplete condition of their souls makes Rising impossible for the Ferrymen.

References[]

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