Creation of the Shabti
Ritual · Vampire · Level 5 · “Creation of the Shabti (Level Five Setite Sorcery Ritual)”
The practitioner of Ahku casts this ritual upon a perfectly carved statue made of gold, lacquered or petrified wood, marble, or some other expensive material. The thaumaturge recites in ancient Egyptian, “Oh, shabti, if I be called by Set to sleep, or if the sun shine upon my labors, I ask you to bring the sands of the east to the west, and judge me with His eye.”
The shabti then awakens, responding, “I will do it, verily, I am here when thou callest.”
From there forward, the statue is inhabited by a sentient funerary spirit. It can fight (but cannot fly, even if the statue is carved with wings), but is not capable of further speech or creative behavior. Effectively, the shabti is a golem. A shabti moves extremely slowly, and is not fit for offensive battles, but makes an exceptional defender. This creature is unfailingly loyal to its creator, and will stand guard over the vampire’s sleeping form during the day (or through periods of long torpor).
System
The statue must be of at least human size (though it may be up to three times as large, and it may be shaped like a biped or like an Egyptian animal), and must be made with at least Crafts 4 (and be commensurably expensive). The thaumaturge’s player rolls Charisma + Occult (difficulty 8). Once a shabti is created, the spirit remains until the next time its caster wakes up (whether that is the next sunset, or after a hundred years of torpor). At that time, the statue crumbles to dust and the funerary spirit is freed.
Regardless of its size or shape, a shabti has four health levels, four Willpower, six dots in each Physical Attribute, and two dots in all other attributes. These constructs may spend a point of Willpower to move at a walking pace for one turn; otherwise, they are stationary. They cannot be targeted by mental and social powers, with the exception of powers that remove the spirit (such as soul stealing), which immediately destroy a shabti.
Of all the foul things in the world, all the evil and reprehensible denizens and terrible deeds, the worst are those monstrosities that date back to the beginning of time. These creatures were the fomenters of original evil: they dared to make war on God.
Some theologians assert that demons are mere spirits, some sort of ephemeral entity, or perhaps powerful specters of the Shadowlands. Supernatural societies have their own explanations, based on a host of legends and superstition. Sometimes, they discover an entity is nothing more than that: a story. But other times, they deal with a creature that is exactly what it purports to be: a fallen creation of the divine.
True demons are treasonous, treacherous, ravaging monstrosities with no empathy or humane understanding. These arrogant spirits were condemned and locked away at the beginning of time. The mere existence of a demon is an abomination, and Hell’s inhalation tugs constantly at their foul spirits, trying to pull them away from the mortal world.
Demons need worship in order to survive. To gain it, these creatures will corrupt and destroy anything in their path — even one another. They seek power, and a