Surprised? You shouldn't be. Are not all things possible in dream? Here, sit back under the Clockwork Tree. Have a sip from the flask of liquid daylight beside you. The Pageant of the Oneiric Ossuary is about to begin! Phantasm is the Arcanos of dreams. Those with mastery of its arts can slide a sleeping mortal's soul out of its flesh and bring it along a Shadowlands journey. The sleep will remember the events he engages in as a vague dream, if at all, but on a dreaming level they are real indeed. This Arcanos is a good way to involve mortals directly in a wraith's doings. A vivid dream can inspire or frighten a person into changing his behavior. The wraith can even alter elements of the dream to her tastes, instructing or horrifying her audience. Dreamers brought into the Shadowlands are treated as wraiths with particularly solid forms. They may only be damaged by special Artifacts or attacks that inflict aggravated damage on wraiths. Attacked dreamers slip instantly back to their bodies, almost always waking up unharmed. Only the mightest Sandmen can permanently damage or kill mortals in their dreams. Note: The arts of Phantasm can be used to beneficial or malefic effects, and this has a direct effect on the price of using the Arcanos. With the exception of Agon, any Phatasm art tht is used to harm another's soul also grants the user a point of Angst. The same art can be used for healing and entertainment without giving the Sandman in question Angst; what determines the cost is the Sandman's intent.
The Guild
The Sandmen's Guild was once a glorious place to work. Charged with artistic fervor and a love for the dramatic, the Sandmen sculpted stages of dreamstuff and performed great works in the theatres of sleep. Deathlords and Anacreons bartered for their services, and the arts of Phantasm granted considerable prestige. 7nbsp; When the Guilds were broken, the Sandmen did their level best to carry on the show. Phatasm was more than a job to them, it was a labor of love. Even today, wandering troupes of Sandmen bring their shows of Necropoli across the world, recounting tales and rumors because they love nothing better. Sandmen clothe themselves in gossamer, a faintly incandescent material borrowed from dreams. They are also distinguishable by their often over-dramatic mannerisms and bearing.
Botches
Botching Phantasm usually has a horrible effect on the dreamer (unless, of course, that was the wraith's aim). Woven illusions can spin rapidly out of control, sometimes inflicting recurring nightmares on the subject. The wraith's Shadow may also take control, tormenting the dreamer with its twisted imagination. Creating such ravaging visions typically adds to the offending wraith's Angst.
Basic Abilities
Sleepsense: The wraith may watch a mortal's dreams, or tell where he is along his sleep cycle (of REM sleep, deep sleep and transition).
1 - Elysia The wraith may gently take hold of a sleeper's soul, pullign it free without harming it. When the soul is loose, the wraith may carry it with her as she likes. Elysia may be used on subject watching television or in a similar hypnotic state, though it is more difficult. This art costs 1 Pathos.
2 - Lucidity The wraith may alter details of a mortal's dream. Say she entered a dream where the dreamer is surrounded by crocodiles in his grandfather's swimming pool. The wraith could remove the crocodiles or change them to sharks, change day to night, or transform the pool into a swamp. If she changes enough details, she can twist a pleasant dream into a nightmare or vice versa. This art costs 2 Pathos.
3 - Dreams of Sleep The wraith may make other wraiths fall asleep and dream, just as if they were alive again. This art costs 1 Pathos.
4 - Phantasmagoria The wraith may weave Pathos into illusions. Phantasmagoria affects all five senses, but the duration is limited. These illusions are only solid to other wraiths if she invests Corpus into them. If she Embodies, she can craft these illusions in the material world. Phantasmagoria costs 3 Pathos to activate, plus 1 Pathos per turn.
5 - Agon The wraith may directly rip a mortal's soul from her sleeping body. This is excrutiatingly painful and often debilitating to the dreamer. Agon costs 3 Pathos, and the wraith's Shadow gains 2 Angst per use. Botching usually bestows more Angst.
