UNSEEN - Bone Gnawers

APEX KINFOLK: THE UNSEEN

Apex Unseen Kinfolk are the stealthiest of spies, able to blend in with their urban surroundings so well, they are easily overlooked by others as if they were merely part of the scenery. It is not that people cannot see them, it is that they find the kinfolk somehow unimportant, of no interest, or perhaps even distasteful in some way and so they “choose” not to see them. 

An Unseen does not become invisible. They are merely forgettable or simply taken for granted as if they were of no importance nor interest. Just another meaningless face in the crowd. Many Unseen, especially those who were raised by those who are not direct family, can suffer from depression in sensing that others would rather ignore them. It is not until they realize that this is a special talent and not a curse that they begin to appreciate this aspect of themselves.

When employing the skills of an Unseen, the Unseen takes on the persona of someone that others might actively avoid, or simply subconsciously ignore. Such as the beggar on the street looking for spare change, the homeless person sitting in an alley smoking, a woman picking through garbage looking for bottles and cans, the man pushing a grocery cart filled with various junk down a side street, the waitress who refills your coffee at a deli, or the bus driver on your crosstown commute. People know they are there but tend to forget them, what they specifically look like, what they were wearing, or what they were doing. If reminded, they may recall there was such a person, but can give little else in the way of details or information.

While all Bone Gnawers have this in common, the Unseen takes this skill in an entirely different direction. In whatever scenario they find themselves, from the dregs of urban life begging for food, to a well-to-do party on a yacht as one of the ship's chefs or a dock worker, the Unseen has an uncanny ability to blend in with whatever surroundings they find themselves. They are merely a natural part of the scenery and generally are quite easily forgotten. This skill can become very advantageous in many scenarios where being forgotten or remembered in a different way can come in handy.

While this ability makes them excellent information gatherers, infiltrators, thieves and spies, the Unseen are a particularly vulnerable profession as they have no real enhanced fighting skills beyond what any other human may have. This puts the Unseen at a disadvantage when using their skills around more deadlier foes. Spending time learning how to use a gun, melee weapons or hand to hand combat (brawl) would most certainly be in an Unseen’s best interest to stay alive should running away not be an option.

At higher levels of skill, the Unseen is truly a master of disguise in a way that no mere mortal can emulate. By tapping into the Universal Knowledge Stream, a talented Unseen can easily fool others with their knowledge that they are a visiting royal, a professional football player, a neurosurgeon, or a migrant worker harvesting pineapples in Texas. No occupation, language or culture is an issue when putting their chameleon-like skills to the test.

ABOUT THE GAROU TRIBE OF BONE GNAWERS

The Gnawers are mangy dog-like Garou who typically inhabit the poorest, burnt out parts of the cities. They live literally paw to mouth. However, the Gnawers are supremely informed about anything and everything that goes on within their cities. The other Garou consider them mange-ridden dogs however and have no respect for their urban skills. They are known for taking excellent care of their families, both human and Garou and in times past were considered to be the most loyal friend one could have.

In regards to their Apex Kinfolk, the Bone Gnawers hold them in high regard, becoming downright possessive of them due to their ingenuity and abilities to blend in with just about any aspect of society. Plus, keeping an Apex Unseen around usually ensures that the Bone Gnawers won't need to be eating out of the trash cans anytime soon. An even bigger incentive is the acquisition of an Unseen as a mate, since there is a higher than average chance of breeding a Garou cub. It is not uncommon for brutal fights to ensue for the rights to take an Unseen as a mate, or attempt to steal one should the opportunity arise.

UNSEEN SKILLS

Can you tell which girl is the Unseen? Not sure? Take a closer look. They all look similar. But did you notice the girl wearing the red apron in the background?

◉◎◎◎◎◎◎◎ Level 1: BLEND IN

• DIF: +80
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 5
• RESIST: Alertness or Auspex
• DURATION: Scene

Description:
The Unseen averts his/her/their eyes and avoids direct contact with those around them. Depending on their surroundings, they may engage in a benign activity, such as eating on a park bench, reading a newspaper at a table in a restaurant, leaning against a wall smoking a cigarette in an alley, standing in line for a movie or to get into a club, etc. Everyone around will assume all is normal and pretty much ignore the Unseen to the point that they will continue a conversation or activity as if you do not exist. 

System:
The Player spends 5 points of Energy/Mana and make a successful roll. They will then avoid detection and have others act as though you do not exist. Anyone trying to notice you will have to make a resist roll or must go about their business as if you are not there.

If those around you fail to notice you or choose not to see you in the area, you may easily put yourself within earshot of hearing a conversation or seeing what is happening in a scene. You may even glance over their shoulders but if you touch them or speak to them, the ruse is broken and they will notice you and react. 

If they make their roll and notice you, it will depend on what you are doing as to whether or not they find you out of place or suspicious in some way. They may still choose to simply go about their own business and ignore you.

A botch while attempting to use this skill (rolling a natural 1-10) will have the Unseen noticed due to tripping over their own feet, unexpectedly sneezing, farting, belching, or loudly dropping something, etc. Use your imagination. A botch can be a fun roleplay opportunity.

◉◉◎◎◎◎◎◎ Level 2: IMPOSTOR – BLUE COLLAR

• DIF: 80 
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 5
• RESIST: Alertness or Auspex, -10
• DURATION: This will last for an entire scene (or until the Unseen wishes to drop the charade), after which the Character is no longer tapped into the Knowledge Stream.

Description:
The Unseen Kinfolk has the ability to observe their surroundings and blend in so well that they can temporarily take on any common role or occupation and play it convincingly. Beyond this, they are also able to use their knowledge of the Occult to tap into a specific Universal Knowledge Stream for the part they are attempting to portray.

For example: The Unseen wants to eavesdrop on a customer eating at a local diner. The Unseen grabs a uniform from the back and starts waiting tables. Tapping into the Universal Knowledge Stream, she can spontaneously impersonate a waitress who is able to recite the daily special and every dessert on the menu. 

Or perhaps an Unseen is tailing a suspect in a murder. He takes on the role of a city bus driver who can competently drive and operate a bus (whether or not the Unseen has ever done so) can tell you which bus will take you to Main Street or which has a stop at the docks. 

Other examples of roles where the Universal Knowledge Stream comes in handy is as a sanitation worker who can operate the equipment of his truck and dump garbage like a pro, the DMV employee who can tell you which form you need to fill out and where the ticket counter is, a front desk clerk who can point you to where the bathrooms are or which floor takes you to the break room, or typically any knowledge in a profession that a formal education is not required. You don’t know how you know these things, you just do. But once the ruse is over, your link is broken and you no longer have access to the knowledge nor the abilities. However, you can remember everything you said or did.

System:
While it is not necessary to tap into the Universal Knowledge Stream to use this skill, it certainly makes selling the legitimacy of your impersonation so much easier. The Player makes a successful roll and the Storyteller will give you all the information you might need regarding which details you can pick up from the stream to make your performance credible.

A failed roll will force the Unseen to “wing it” and just hope no one notices them, pretty much like anyone else trying to bullshit their way through a scenario. Unfortunately, the Unseen has not been able to tap into any special knowledge. A botched roll will have the Unseen tripping over their own feet, dropping a stack of file folders, or somehow drawing unwanted attention to themselves.

NOTE: Others around you may choose to roll vs. Alertness to see if they notice you. And they will NEED to pick out some detail in the roleplay that specifically tipped them off before they are permitted to make a roll. If others in the scene make their roll, it will depend on what you are doing as to whether or not they find you out of place or suspicious in some way.

◉◉◉◎◎◎◎◎ Level 3 - IMPOSTOR – WHITE COLLAR

• DIF: 80 
• MOD: Occult + Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 10
• RESIST: Alertness or Auspex, -10
  • Those who are of the profession the Unseen is impersonating do not suffer the -10 mod penalty.
• DURATION: Scene

Description:
The Unseen Kinfolk takes his deception to a whole new level. By donning the appropriate clothing and general appearance, the Unseen can portray themselves convincingly to anyone by tapping into the specific “text book” Universal Knowledge Stream of the profession via their mastery of the Occult. This comes in especially handy if the Kinfolk needs to impersonate a Doctor, a CEO of a company, a Teacher, Lawyer, Computer Programmer, or Government Official, just to name a few. 

System:
The Player makes a successful roll. The Unseen will be able to keep up the ruse for the entire scene when among others NOT of that profession, so long as no one beats his/her roll to question your identity.

The Unseen will have a more difficult time convincing others of the same profession they are impersonating that they are indeed who they say they are. For example, walking into a hospital with a stethoscope around your neck and a lab coat, a successful roll will have the receptionist and nurses convinced you are a doctor. But your difficulty level goes up when trying to convince another doctor you are who you say you are.

NOTE: The only exception to this rule is if the Unseen is impersonating a politician among other politicians. Since all politicians are liars and bullshit artists, they will naturally see the Unseen as one of their own since half the stuff they say are lies anyway. 

To convince Politicians that the Unseen is also a Politician:

• DIFF: +30+ 
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• Energy/Gnosis: 10
• For example: An Unseen pretending to be a Senator is attending a fundraiser that is being held for another Politician, Mayor, Congressman or Governor, etc. A successful roll will give the Unseen a believable story and reason for being at the fundraiser.

◉◉◉◉◎◎◎◎ Level 4: - REMEMBER ME / FORGET ME

• DIF: 35+
• MOD: Occult and Subterfuge
• ENERGY/ MANA: 5
• RESIST: Willpower

Description:
Remember Me: An Unseen Kinfolk has the ability to convince someone they have never met before that they have indeed already been acquainted with them or recently introduced. The Unseen simply makes up a believable story of the instance when the previous meeting happened to instill a vague false memory in the mind of the individual target. 

For example, crashing a wedding and convincing the bride’s mother that you are the groom’s third cousin and you met her at the rehearsal dinner only the night before. Or, you're the brother of her cousin's wife visiting for the weekend and they invited you along. This can be used on one person or on a crowd. (Want a fun example? Check out this link to the Impractical Jokers using a similar skill.)

Forget Me: On the opposite side of this coin, the Unseen can make someone forget having met or known them. The duration depends on how high the Unseen rolls. This comes in handy if the cop who arrested you doesn’t remember it was you he caught looting a store last month. Or if you punched a guy in the nose during a bar fight, then made him forget it was you who did it. The deed itself is not forgotten, just the memory that it was the Unseen Kinfolk who was responsible or involved. In their mind, there is a fuzzy image of indistinct features where your face should be.

System:
If your roll is successful and the other person (or people) fails to resist, they will have a vague memory of meeting you and agree you are who you say you are. Or, agree that they have indeed never met you and you couldn't be the person they are looking for.

If you miss your roll, or the other person makes theirs, they will simply not remember the circumstances of the meeting, OR they will definitely remember who you really are. Use the chart below to determine how long your rouse will last.

Roll Chart:

• 1-10: Botch, just walk away if you can. Nobody is buying it and it's going to get unpleasant.
• 11-34: This isn't working. Time to try again and take a different approach.
• 35-60: Memory is altered for Three turns, you may want to get out of there.
• 61-80: Memory is altered for the entire scene, so take your time, but not too much.
• 81-90: Memory is altered for an entire RL day, so go back later. No problem.
• 91-98: Memory is altered for an entire RL Week. Piece of cake.•
• 99+: Booyah! Damn you’re good! Memory is Permanently retained or forgotten. This could be good or bad. Only someone with mental abilities dealing with memory can erase the block or discover the truth. Make sure to take note of this roll. Anyone attempting to erase or detect your implanted memory/block will need to beat this.
  
  After the amount of time indicated by the Unseen’s roll, the person’s memory eventually comes back. Unless the Unseen rolled 100+, in which case the memory (or loss of memory) is pretty much permanent. This can only be used on the same person once per scene.

◉◉◉◉◉◎◎◎ Level 5:  CORPORIS MUTATIO 

• DIF: 70
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 10
• RESIST: Subterfuge
• DURATION: Scene

Description:
For every level of the Player Character's Occult ability, the Unseen Apex kinfolk can alter a minor aspect of their physical appearance for an entire scene, such as their height, age, hair color, eye color, hide or create a scar/wart/blemish, natural skin color (only natural skin colors), length of hair or nails, size of their nose, appear somewhat heavier or thinner. The Character cannot change gender, but they can appear androgynous.

For example: At Level 1 Occult, the Unseen may change any one aspect of their appearance, such as their eye color. At Level 2 Occult, they may also change eye color and the length of their hair (color, length, style are treated as one). 

This progresses up to Level 5 when the Unseen may choose to alter up to five different physical features. For example a small blond teenage white girl may now appear to be a tall, black, heavy-set Androgynous person with a pink mohawk.

Successful Resist:
Those around you may roll vs Subterfuge to notice something isn’t quite right but even then they can’t put their finger on exactly what it is. However, this may trigger those with special abilities such as Auspex to use their skills to attempt to look past the illusion you have created.

◉◉◉◉◉◉◎◎: Level 6 - CHAMELEON  

• DIF: 80
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 10
• RESIST: None
• DURATION: Scene

Description:
The Unseen can temporarily alter their clothing, turning a t-shirt and blue jeans into a satin tuxedo, or even a Hooter's Girl uniform. The limitation on this skill is that the Apex Kinfolk must actually be wearing clothing in order to alter its appearance. A naked Unseen is still just a naked Unseen.

◉◉◉◉◉◉◉◎: Level 7 - LANGUAGES AND DIALECT

• DIF: 70
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 5
• RESIST: None
• DURATION: Scene

Description:

An Unseen of this level is clearly the master of disguises and has a deep and intuitive connection to the Universal Knowledge Stream. This allows the Unseen to flawlessly speak any language and understand it as if it were their own native tongue. They can also speak with distinct regional dialects and accents and read any current language. Unfortunately, dead languages have dropped out of the Universal Knowledge Stream and therefore the Unseen can neither speak nor read such languages.

System:
This powerful linguistic talent is only active when using this skill. While they will remember what was said and understand the information they received, their minds will have translated the information into their own native language and they will be unable to speak or specifically recite a conversation in the foreign language after the end of the scene.

◉◉◉◉◉◉◉◉: Level 8 - UNIVERSAL CULTURE

• DIF: 90
• MOD: Occult, Subterfuge
• ENERGY/MANA: 10
• RESIST: Subterfuge (-15)
• DURATION: Scene

Description:
The Unseen blends in with any and all current cultures as if native to the region. Tapping into the Universal Knowledge Stream, they can be dropped into any cultural surrounding and immediately know how to speak (slang and specific terminology), how to dress, and how to act as if born there. Whether fitting in with the English aristocracy, intimately knowing the nuances of the Mint Tea Ritual of Morocco, or thriving in the ghettos of New York, the Unseen simply becomes one of them and as indistinguishable from that segment of the population as you can get.

System:
The Player makes a successful roll. Those around him may choose to resist vs Subterfuge, but must do so at a -15 Modifier. This skill even goes so far as to have knowledge of current events in the area, as well as more specific knowledge regarding the people the Unseen encounters. 

For Example: an Unseen who infiltrates the staff of servants of the English Royal Family not only fits in perfectly as if he has worked there for years, he knows the current gossip, who is involved in an affair, the dos and don'ts of the household, and that the King enjoys his morning tea in a particular cup. He might also know if artwork has been recently changed and what was in its place before, or if there are secret passages in the castle and where they lead. All that information is out there just floating around in the Universal Knowledge Stream for the Unseen to pluck like low hanging fruit from a tree. While not all secrets are laid bare before the Unseen, enough can be accessed to assure few would suspect the Unseen does not belong.