Occult

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 Occult (05%) 

The user recognizes occult paraphernalia, words, and concepts, as well as folk traditions, and can identify grimoires of magic and occult codes. The occultist is familiar with the families of secret knowledge passed down from Egypt and Sumer, from from the Medieval and Renaissance West, and perhaps from Asia and Africa as well.

Comprehending certain books may provide skill points of Occult. This skill does not apply to spells, books, and the magic of the Cthulhu_Mythos, although occult ideas are often adopted by worshipers of the Great Old Ones.

Whether non-Mythos magic is real or fraudulent in your game is for the Keeper to determine.

Opposing skill/Difficulty level:


 * Regular difficulty: recall information from folklore or occult theories; understand the meaning of tarot cards or other divination techniques.
 * Hard difficulty: identify rare or unique occult tomes; recall the finer details of secret occult practices and rituals

Pushing examples: taking more time to study the site or time; conducting further research; consulting another expert; purging oneself and undertaking extreme personal preparation in advance of a ritual performance.

Sample Consequences of a Pushed roll: information is misremembered, and the ritual is performed incorrectly with disastrous consequences (perhaps the house is burned to the ground); in preparing the circle of protection, you use the wrong ingredients, and rather than ward off the spirits you genuinely summon something malevolent; your research has uncovered a hitherto unknown Mythos link and your realization shatters your mind (SAN loss)


 * If an insane investigator fails a pushed roll, this is likely to manifest in some form of obsession: perhaps the investigator tattoos occult symbols upon their cheeks and palms, or cannot act without first using a scrying crystal to divine their future.