I had a wonderful night, thank you everyone for attending and participating in our celebration.
A little lore on why Samhain is one of the most celebrated events among the Fae.
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From Arch Duke Ian Xanthe ap Fiona of the Freehold of Roses:
The Pagan New year is traditionally celebrated on Samhain (pronounced "Sah' wen" in the old tongue). In the World of Darkness it is a mystical day in which several things occur effecting characters and game mechanics.
For changelings the Dreaming itself works in conjunction with the Mists. The moment the sun sets (the second the last bit of the orb of a sun disappears behind the horizon) a sort of Mist timer goes into effect...all that occurs for a changeling from that moment to the moment the sun rises (the second the suns edge crests again) is forgotten (about 10 hours in any time zone).
This of course has led to the largest revelries of Unseelie in history. Even the staunchest of Seelie tend to fall into thier Unseelie Legacy on this night. No changeling power of Soothsay or scrying will be able to breach the mists afterward. None are really sure what happens on these nights...some of those in thier Grump seeming actually lock themselves away on these nights, having grown tired of the possible side effects of the memory loss.
Childlings are generally put to bed early *grins* though whether they stay there or not is up to the individuals. This is a night in which the Wilder of all Kith, and both Courts reign. A night who's essence in nearly every way is devoted to the Unseelie and Wilder freedom the Mists provide. It is said this is Glamours way of wiping the slate clean in celebration of the New Year. Literally the essence of "Change is good, Glamour ifs free" (it should be noted this night is usually prime candidate for the scheduling of assassination in the Nobles Courts for this very reason)
"But Ian, what if I have a character not a Changeling?"
Good question. Its accepted anyone staying/partying/frolicking in a Freehold that night will be effected. Changelings, regardless of location will be effected however.
Heres the other effects for other world of Darkness character types:
For you Garou and shifters, rejoice,...entering the umbra for the next 10 or so hours has never been easier. Rolls for difficulty to pierce the gauntlet are halved when traveling to the umbral sides of the world and the effects of the Delerium you produce in Crinos (the biggest form you have, like a towering bipedal wolf) form are essentially doubled on any creature encountering you in your largest warform.
For Wraith characters, since the Gauntlet between the worlds are thin this night, your difficulty on rolls to manifest to the eyes of those without deathsight merits (Sluagh, Euthanatos mages, and Giovanni Vampires can usually see you folks regardless because of thier deathsight) are essentially halved as well, making it very easy for most any wraith character to hop out and say "boo".
For Vampires, if you have the necromancy DISCIPLINE, it makes all of those discipline rolls to effect wraiths or use the powers of Blood Necro reduced in difficulty by 3 (essentially it halves difficulty for using those powers.) Vamps get a little screwed, thats about it...everynight is sort of Halloween for them *smirks* so no badass "worlds throws you a bone" type effects.
Gauntlet/Banality ratings (the force in an area that makes it harder for a Changeling to endure being in it or harder to cast cantrips while in the area.) Are nearly non existant for the duration of time between sunset and sunrise.
"Ian what the hell did you just say? I need a better translation because I dont speak World-of-Darkness-iptian."
For places like Az's house Where the Banality rating is high , due to the high banality of the creatures permenantly staying there, the effect is almost gone. You wont experience the same effects of wanting to throw up if you are a Changeling while there, or Feel intense foreboding while visiting as a Garou.
"Does this mean the party is at Az's house?!"
**** no. *grins* He will still gladly kill any tresspassers, but it was the most convenient example of an area with High Banality and Gauntlet ratings. So use it as a rule of thumb or comparison to other places in Sosaria.
"But Ive never used this as part of my rp, what do I do about never having rp'ed it before?"
*smiles* Maybe this is the first time you've felt it? Maybe you just never noticed in previous years since the Mists obscure the night for your mind anyway? Maybe you thought it was the damn rum...and explained it away in the past?
In the end, just have fun with your rp if you want to stick with the WoD effects....if not, dont,...thats all that matters.
