Witnesses 1.5

[FallenEco]

For Reborn, minimalist is is giving them skill discounts and/or skill tricks (like Promethean's Good Brain).

For a bigger expansion, I could see giving them their own Age Power-Stat (reflecting the number of past lives they have access to) and a bunch of temporary Skill and Merit simulation/access. Sure, current-life-you is just an accountant, but you can tap into those memories/skills of when you were a viking warrior if needed. Or remember the secret protocols to get information from the Unseeing Scions of Ulst for an emergency.

I'd shy aware from giving them a power stat. Cuts off to much potential. Instead I'd make each Past Life a merit, tiered so you can access certain benifits.

[Vent0]

I support making them as "Reborn +" template, considering that reincarnation is a part of their features. I also think that making them "stigmatized by Sekhem" would be a good path, in a similar way I did my Blood Dolls version (you can look at my sig to better understand what I mean). As I have the "stigmatics by every line" project in my to-do list, such an update would save me some time and effort :P

For Reborn, minimalist is giving them skill discounts and/or skill tricks (like Promethean's Good Brain).

For a bigger expansion, I could see giving them their own Age Power-Stat (reflecting the number of past lives they have access to) and a bunch of temporary Skill and Merit simulation/access. Sure, current-life-you is just an accountant, but you can tap into those memories/skills of when you were a viking warrior if needed. Or remember the secret protocols to get information from the Unseeing Scions of Ulst for an emergency.

[Vent0]

I've always had this pet idea that Witnesses could be more closely tied to reincarnation, possibly mortal souls from as far back as Irem who find themselves drawn to the Arisen because they remember them from past lives. The Mummy core has the barest shades of this idea floating around (there's the occasional allusion to spotting mortals that look exactly like figures from centuries past), though it leaves it in the hands of the GM as to whether this is the Arisen's failing memory playing tricks on them or something that actually happens.

In that vein it would probably be easiest to have Witness and its Sybaris immunity be a simple merit used as the prerequisite for a handful of other supernatural merits that largely reflect past life experience, their purchase presumably reflecting the Witness unlocking past memories and abilities. Some level of interaction with ghosts as well might be appropriate (possibly even the ghosts of their past selves, though that would get a bit trippy).

Heh. In that line of thought, a Witness nears death and is offered The Bargain by a Geist... who happens to have come from the Ghost of one of their past lives. Hilarity Ensues.

[LostLight]

I support making them as "Reborn +" template, considering that reincarnation is a part of their features. I also think that making them "stigmatized by Sekhem" would be a good path, in a similar way I did my Blood Dolls version (you can look at my sig to better understand what I mean). As I have the "stigmatics by every line" project in my to-do list, such an update would save me some time and effort :P

[reseru]

I considered suggesting the Reborn as this in the Cleopatra Dark Era, but left it up to the writers' imaination. I think there's a lot of interesting room for this in the game.

[Azahul]

I've always had this pet idea that Witnesses could be more closely tied to reincarnation, possibly mortal souls from as far back as Irem who find themselves drawn to the Arisen because they remember them from past lives. The Mummy core has the barest shades of this idea floating around (there's the occasional allusion to spotting mortals that look exactly like figures from centuries past), though it leaves it in the hands of the GM as to whether this is the Arisen's failing memory playing tricks on them or something that actually happens.

In that vein it would probably be easiest to have Witness and its Sybaris immunity be a simple merit used as the prerequisite for a handful of other supernatural merits that largely reflect past life experience, their purchase presumably reflecting the Witness unlocking past memories and abilities. Some level of interaction with ghosts as well might be appropriate (possibly even the ghosts of their past selves, though that would get a bit trippy).

[21C Hermit]

Sadly, no idea to contribute yet - I’ll need to reread Mummy stuff if I want to.

[Vent0]

Stigmatics sound simplest, but they branch off to Demon-Blooded, so they might not be so simple to follow.

Well, there probably wouldn't be that degree of symmetry. More just Immune to X, Senses, Bonus Supernatural Merit.

In that sense Sleepwalker-style may be the easiest, since all we need to do is cook up some Merits that interact with Sybaris, Vessels, Tombs, Guild structures etc.

So... Ideas? Holding (or generating) Pillar Points? Kepher senses? Ability to make The Call themselves?

Wolf-Blooded model sounds most enticing, but also hardest! Or... maybe make Witnesses literal pseudo-Relics? (Not sure how this would make sense; been a while since last read of Mummy core)

I know! I could see all kinds of fun Curses with incidental Boons, some of which blurring the lines with Bane Relics/Affinities...

I assume the Ghoul/Herald template of subservience/worship in return for power is being saved for Sadikhs?

Yeah. I figured Witnesses were Mortal+, while Sadikh were the "half" template. Though there might be an edge case with the High Priest of the Cult (but that can be handled with Mystery Cult Initiation).

[21C Hermit]

Stigmatics sound simplest, but they branch off to Demon-Blooded, so they might not be so simple to follow.

In that sense Sleepwalker-style may be the easiest, since all we need to do is cook up some Merits that interact with Sybaris, Vessels, Tombs, Guild structures etc.

Wolf-Blooded model sounds most enticing, but also hardest! Or... maybe make Witnesses literal pseudo-Relics? (Not sure how this would make sense; been a while since last read of Mummy core)

I assume the Ghoul/Herald template of subservience/worship in return for power is being saved for Sadikhs?