Priestess

V. The Priestess

“I’d rather be dead than ignorant.”

Among the Arcana, the Priestess serves as the incarnation of calm wisdom. Serenity, patience and acceptance are central tenets to this Arcana, which leaves many Persona-users wondering how on earth human beings can awaken to the power of the Priestess.

In truth, those dealt under the hand of the Priestess have much in common with members of the Strength Arcana. They are mostly victims, targets of the intolerance and bigotry of others. While Strength users often return to life because of a desire to be more than what killed them, Priestesses experience a compulsion that wishes to inform. “If only they knew” is the desire that awakens most Priestesses to the power of their Personas.

Not all Priestesses are female, though a good deal are. Religious and spiritual members are plentiful. The typical Priestess tends to have a reservoir of faith to pull strength from when times get difficult. Perhaps it should be noted that the Priestess is calm in her knowledge and secure in her certainties, even the intangible ones. It’s under this paradigm that a large number of Priestesses are often religious martyrs.

In the past forty years however a division has erupted from within the ranks of the Priestess Arcana. Conventionally Priestesses came from the highly religious sector of society assigned to do the riskiest kind of missionary work. However, as the empowerment of certain sectors of society happened, intolerance grew, and in response to this heightened tension the Priestess Arcana suddenly found itself awash with the victims of hate crimes directed to minorities of race and sexuality.

Today black men, homosexuals and the religious right find themselves empowered by the same force that gives them power over various supernatural phenomena. It is a jarring tension that forces them to accept a certain truth: release one’s bigotry or die. It chafes at all sides but for the sake of survival all make an effort at mutual cooperation.

Still, there are those among the ranks of the Priestess who believe that if only homosexuals knew that their lifestyle was a sin, they would be saved. Conversely, there are the minorities who believe in time the tables will be turned and racial superiority will win out. The dichotomy only proves to show the two sides of the Priestess Arcana: at best, Priestesses are the symbol of a joint acceptance of facts and faith; at worst, they are the fervid zealots of the Arcana.

The current Dealer of the Priestess Arcana is drag sensation Lady Bunny. No one knows what she looks like without the drag and she’d rather keep it that way. She understands and respects the cultures and theology behind the tension between the members of her Arcana and does her best to accommodate the various sides, but there are times she wishes she could just wash her hands of the whole bloody mess. She realizes that she probably highlights the worst of the tensions in ALL groups and for this reason she was made Dealer. Still, it is a task she finds unpleasant and would rather give to someone else. But like any true Priestess, she has accepted this as her lot and perseveres.

The Powers of the Priestess

Lady Bunny prefers Servitors who are even-tempered. She has grown weary of all the in-fighting, and nothing is sadder than a tired out drag queen. She has had to step on a few heads in her role as Dealer, and while she might not have everyone’s alliance, she does command at least grudging respect.


Priestess 1: Shield the Flock
Roll: Willpower + Numina; 1 Numen per rank
Priestesses use this power to protect themselves from those who refuse to hear the truth the Priestess knows.

Exceptional Failure: The Numen backfires, injuring the Priestess with 1 bashing damage per Numen spent.

Failure: The power fails to function.
Success: The Priestess creates a field of spiritual force for every Numen she spends into Shielding the Flock. The field nullifies1 bashing damage per Numen, 1 lethal damage for 2 Numina and 1 aggravated damage for 3. The power has a range of 5 feet per rank in the Priestess Arcana and lasts for the duration of the scene or until worn out through damage.

Exceptional Success: The shield is particularly strong, being completely immune to bashing damage, and nullifies 1 lethal damage for 1 Numen and 1 aggravated damage for 2 Numina.

Priestess 2: Weigh Spirit
Roll: Willpower + Presence + Numina vs. Willpower + Numina. Contested. 1 Numen per contested turn.
Priestesses with this ability use it to look into the souls of believers and non-believers alike.

Exceptional Failure: The Priestess is blinded by the soul and cannot use the ability for the rest of the day.

Failure: The power fails to function.

Success: The Priestess is able to penetrate the thoughts of her target. She can scan surface thoughts and determine if her target is lying to her or not. She cannot probe any deeper than what her target is currently thinking or dreaming.

Exceptional Success: Her probe is very accurate and can delve into the memories of her target for a number of days equal to her Priestess Arcana rank.

Priestess 3: Protect Spirit
Roll: Willpower + Presence + Numina vs Willpower + Numina. Contested. 2 Numina per contested turn.
The power allows a Priestess to preserve the spiritual state of her flock.

Exceptional Failure: The Numina cannot preserve the spirit and injures the Priestess for 1 bashing damage per contested turn.

Failure: The power fails to function.

Success: The power prevents its target from the effects of vampirism, lycanthropy or the forced changing of the faerie. As long as the Priestess can continue using this power, her target need not fear from becoming Awakened or Sired. Protected beings cannot become ghouls, even if the exchange was consensual, nor can one enter a Vinculum while the power is in effect.

Exceptional Success: The Priestess has garnered enough spiritual power to “lock” her target’s spirit in stasis for the rest of the scene. She no longer needs to enter a contested roll to keep her target’s spirit intact.

Priestess 4: Sanctify Location
Roll: Willpower + Wits + Numina. 3 Numina per rank spent.
Priestesses use this ability to secure a location of outside interference.
Exceptional Failure: The Numina backfires, dealing 3 lethal damage to the Priestess.

Failure: The power fails to function.

Success: The Priestess is able to create a secure zone where she is safer from supernatural entities. Any being with supernatural powers (including Persona wielders) who enters without permission from the Priestess receives 1 level of damage per turn spent in the Sanctified Location. At 3 Numina, the damage is bashing; at 6, lethal and at 9, aggravated. The power can secure a location as big as a small studio apartment.

Exceptional Success: As Success.

Priestess 5: Hallowed Mind
Roll: None. Passive.
Priestesses with this ability benefit from the 9-Again rule on all Willpower related rolls.