Wraith: The Oblivion - System

System

Wraith: The Oblivion uses White Wolf's Storyteller System, a d10-based system in which player characters are rated in various categories (general Attributes, particular Skills, and special Advantages); these ratings are used to calculate a dice pool which the player uses to roll for success or failure against a difficulty rating for the task at hand. The difficulty, and the number of dice that must be rolled above that difficulty, are set by the Storyteller according to certain broad criteria.

As in all Storyteller System games, there are several special rules and systems that support the theme of the game. The most notable are:

Pathos and Corpus

Characters have variable scales to represent their Pathos, the wraith's emotional energy and ability to resist his Shadow, and their Corpus, the wraith's physical integrity or "health". When Corpus falls to zero, a wraith may undergo a Harrowing; Pathos can be spent to restore Corpus or to power various Arcanoi.

The Shadowguide

The game includes several systems for roleplaying a wraith's Shadow. The default arrangement is for each player in the troupe to play another player's Shadow; this creates a very confrontational style of play, as each player pursues a Shadow's goals to the detriment of another character.

Character death

As wraiths, player characters obviously cannot die; thus there is no system to handle character death (ie., a conventional hit points system). Wraiths, however, can be destroyed in several ways: by permanent loss of Pathos, Corpus, or by removing/resolving a wraith's Passions. Most wraiths who face destructive trauma have a last chance to escape Oblivion via a nightmarish psychodrama known as a Harrowing, which takes place in the Tempest and directly pits the wraith against his/her Shadow. Shadows can also initiate lesser Harrowings to damage wraiths' Passions or Fetters, bringing them closer to Oblivion. A few weapons and hazards of the Underworld, notably Stygian steel, inflict "aggravated" damage that can destroy wraiths directly without the possibility of a Harrowing.