Open yourself to the warmth. Forget the Shadowlands, forget your Corpus, forget even me. Just concentrate on the warmth -- it should bake you like sunlight used to. Remember? Remember sunny days in the park and loose cotton clothes? That's it.... Embody is the art of physicaly manifesting in the mortal world. Like many Arcanoi, it defies Charon's Code by its very existence; only the Deathlords have authority to reach across the Shroud with impunity. Still, the lure of the flesh is strong. The change in a wraith's very senses when she manifests is powerful, and heady enough to tempt the most stoic Centurion. The best way to learn Embody is to open one's senses, focusing on the most intense sensory input available. Loud music, the heat from a radiator, the shimmering reflection in a lake -- all can be the anchor with which a wraith can pull herself across the Shroud. If a wraith Embodies physically, he opens himself up to mortal injury. Immaterial wraiths lose only one Corpus Level from a blow or gunshot, but those physically materialized take as many Corpus Levels of damage as they would have lost in Health Levels in life. If "slain," an Embodied wraith is thrust into a Targeted Harrowing as the Quarry. &nsbp; Attuning oneself to a Consort is particularly useful with Embody. Once attuned, all difficulties for Embodying to that person (and that person alone) are reduced by -3. It also costs no Pathos to manifest to the subject. However, only the Consort can see or hear the wraith. This is a double-edged sword. Other mortals might consider the Consort crazy. Conversely, the subject may convince others of the wraith's existence, making it easier for the wraith to attune herself to them. Unless otherwise noted, the difficulty of any Embody roll equals the local Shroud rating. Embody is virtually useless in the Tempest.
The Guild
For obvious reasons, the Proctors' Guild had extremely tenuous relations with Stygian authorities for centuries. Although they did find Stygian employment, Charon's Code prohibited Proctors from practicing their arts on their own. Most chafed at the restrictions, interacting with mortals whenver they could anyway. Among the revolt's most enthusiastic supporters, the Proctors received a lion's share of the blame when it failed. For centuries, Legionnaires were encouraged to hunt down Prctors and force them into Thralldom -- or worse. Since Charon's disappearance, this has eased somewhat, but demonstrating a talent for Embody in Hierarchy territory it still a poor tactical decision. A proctor's voyages through the Shroud gradually mark her body with peculiar patches of light and dark. Experienced Proctors often wear patterns on their skin akin to light dappling through trees.
Botches
Strange things happen to those who misuse Embody. A character may lose her voice in the Shadowlands by botching Whisper, or fall into the Tempest while attempting other arts. Proctors also run the risk of gaining Angst; when the sensation of the material world is offered and then snatched violently away, the despair is often overwhemling.
Basic Abilities
Ghostly Touch: The wraith can exert a tiny whisper of a tough to the material world, weaker even than Ping. The character may not even move anything larger than dust -- about the most she can do is gently write on a fogged window, and this takes all her concentration. Maintain the Material Form: This is not so much an ability in itself as the capacity to maintain an Embodied form for a longer duration. This ability costs 2 Pathos. A failure immediately disperses the Embodied form.
1 - Whispers The wraith may whisper across the Shroud, letting her voice be heard faintly in the Skinlands. This art is not necessary to speak with supernatural beings who can ignore the Shroud, such as sluagh changelings.
2 - Phantom The wraith may manifest as a hazy, translucent figure, only vaguely reminiscent of his mortal body. Mortals noticing this intangible form will eract with intense fear, and are fully affected by the Fog. Phantom costs 1 Pathos.
3 - Statue This art permits the wraith to take a solid, if immobile, form. The Embodied wraith seems to be an idealized version of himself, but with cold hard flesh. While using Statue, the wraith cannot move, speak or even breathe. Still, this art can be usedul when avoiding Spectre or wraith pursuers. In a crowded subway, for exmplae, hunters may overlook the "sleeping mortal vagrant" in their haste to find their wraithly prey. This art costs 2 Pathos.
4 - Life-in-Death This art allows the wraith to manifest as her mortal body, more or less. Her appearance reflects her mildly spotty memory of her living self; most wraiths tend to idealize their appearance, becoming more beautiful when Embodied than they were when alive. This form has darker hair and paler skin than before, but otherwise generally won't appear odd. The wraith using Life-in-Death has flesh colder than it should be, and will seem constantly distracted (a side efect of the concentration necessary to maintain this form). Although most onlookers won't notice anything wrong with a wraith using this art, those close to her in life may pick up on the differences. The wraith takes damage as mortals do while in this form. This art costs 2 Pathos.
5 - Materialize The wraith can assume an almost fully human form, briefly duplication his mortal life. While Materialized, he breathes, bleeds, sweats and enjoys his former warmth. The wraith can do anything he could do while he was alive. The only restriction is time -- this form's cost in Pathos and concentration is staggering. The sensation of this form is almost overpowering, especially to wraiths who have been dead a long time. If the characters is attuned to the person viewing him, he may manifest for one hour per success. While Materialized, the wraith suffers any damage as if he were still mortal. Each use of this art costs 3 Pathos and 1 Willpower.
