by Shannon W. Hennessy (Changeling: The Dreaming | Autumn’s End | Columns)
Hagalaz is, at its essence, both the antithesis of the Fae art Primal as well as an extension of it. As changelings use their soul link with nature to control elemental forces… the Thallain use their soul link with winter to control the atrophic and debilitating forces of the banal season of ice and cold and its properties with frightening efficiency. The Art of Winter, unlike its Primal cousin however, is not slowed by objects of pure iron and effects them just as it would any other metal.
Attributes: Stamina
l Silence of the Drift
This cantrip allows the Thallain to cause, in effect, a complete silence to befall herself, her target or an object. Anything that makes a noise, has a voice or a distinctive sound that can be audibly interpreted by the ears of anything, be they real or imagined, can be affected by this cantrip. I.e., the voice of a chanting Magi, a firearm, a footstep of an otherwise stealthless companion, or the dog whistle of a police officer… just as examples… can be silenced COMPLETELY within the vacuum of this cantrip's influence.
System: Any Realm may be used in conjunction with this Art, describing the object which is to be silenced. The successes indicate the amount of time in turns that the designated object will be silenced. Multiple castings on a target are cumulative, but each successive casting is at a +1 difficulty.
1 Success - Object is silent for one turn.
2 Successes - Object is silent for three turns
3 Successes - Object is silent for five turns
4 Successes - Object is silent for seven turns
5 Successes - Object is silent for nine turns
Type: Chimerical
ll Flitterflake
The user of this cantrip can, with the availability of even the smallest amount of standing or contained water, cause precipitation ranging from frosty smog to dense, swirling devils of frozen rain to engulf a target or obscure oneself in order to obtain a partial cover modifier during combat situations. This precipitation can appear in an unnatural setting (such as indoors), but may not appear in an unnatural or manufactured form. A Thallain could not blast frozen sleet from her fingertips… buy she COULD call down the water of a sprinkler system or up from a storm drain, refrigerator or fireplug at a target or to herself.
System: The Nature Realm is used if the Thallain is calling forth the element of water for the purpose of protection or cover. If actually affecting an individual, both the Nature and the appropriate Realm (for whatever is being affected) must be used. The number of successes determines the density and severity of the precipitation. For every two successes gained (round up), the Thallain can create a one-die effect (as is the case when conjuring fire or wind), or provide one Health Level of protection.
For example, a caster achieving three successes can cause a snowstorm around herself that could protect her from two Health Levels worth of damage. A caster who rolls one success could summon a swirling barrage of hailstones that would inflict one Health Level of damage, or cause an icy mist to separate her from one Health Level of damage. Multiple castings are cumulative.
The Thallain, in order to control WHAT the precipitation does once it is summoned must cast the cantrip a SECOND time. If she causes the hailstorm mentioned above to appear, she cannot direct or aim the hailstorm unless she recasts the cantrip and achieves AT LEAST as many successes as the current intensity of the precipitation.
The consistency of the precipitation is at the discretion of the caster, but she cannot conjure any sort of precipitation that wouldn't normally exist in nature.
The effects of this cantrip last for two minutes for each success earned.
Type: Chimerical
lll Glacierskin
This cantrip offers an object or person with the solid, preserving essence of solid glacier ice. Targets of Glacierskin are able to withstand massive amounts of potential chimerical damage.
System: The Fae and Actor Realms are the most commonly associated Realms of this cantrip, although treasure, objects and even nature can be protected from damage when necessary.
Each success provides two Health Levels over and above the Health Levels already possessed by the target of the cantrip. These extra Health Levels last until they are destroyed by damage or deliberately shed by the wearer. Multiple castings of this cantrip are NOT cumulative, and any successive castings of Glacierskin NEGATE the successes of the previous casting. Fire damage IS NOT ABSORBED by Glacierskin, which is to say that if the target of Glacierskin is attacked with a normal fire weapon or by normal fire itself, the target DISREGARDS the additional Health Levels provided by Glacierskin. MAGICKAL FIRE, or fire produced by supernatural means, Fae Magick, Sphere Magick, Vampiric Discipline, Ghostly Arcanoi, or Garou Gift DOES NOT APPLY to this rule.
Type: Chimerical
llll Windscream
This cantrip calls upon the blistering chill of the winter winds to shatter and destroy, at a nearly molecular level, any object or target. No object or substance is safe from Windscream, although Storytellers may decide that certain objects require a higher expenditure of Glamour and/or Willpower.
System: The Realm used in conjunction with this cantrip is determined by the person, object or substance to be destroyed. If the caster uses the Scene Realm to spread the damage over a large area (or a party of characters), the total damage is distributed equally among them or it. One Health Level of damage is caused for each success earned by the caster. When this cantrip is used on people, cracked and blackened patches of frostbite appear on random parts of the body. When cast on an object or substance, the Storyteller must decide how many Health Levels are needed to destroy it.
Type: Chimerical
lllll Blizzard Breathe
This Cantrip allows the caster to exhale a powerful, compressed sub-zero cone of carbon dioxide from their mouth at a target, inflicting two Health Levels of damage per success. Any Realm may be used in conjunction with this effect, however in order to control the DURATION of the effect, the caster must RECAST the cantrip and achieve AT LEAST as many successes as the current power of the blast.
System: For example, if the Thallain casts Blizzard Breathe at a doorknob assembly or an iron door in an attempt to make it brittle for breaking, then the successes gained by her roll determine how much physical damage the doorknob/door takes (the intensity of the cone). If the caster is attempting to slay an opponent, she would cast the cantrip to determine first its strength… then she would cast the cantrip AGAIN in order to cause and elongated damaging effect over a longer period of time by obtaining at least as many successes as the cone has strength. For every success OVER the strength of the cone exhaled by the caster, the effect lasts an additional minute. For every additional minute that the cone is directed at the target, the target sustains an ADDITIONAL Health Level of damage.
Type: Wyrd
lllll Icicle Forge (alternate level five)
With this cantrip the caster can, from thin air, materialize and create intricate yet sinisterly beautiful, one component weapons and/or armor of magickal and solid ice from the pure essence of Winter. Once summoned, the weapons or armor last until destroyed or dispelled by the caster. Weapons created by this cantrip count as enchanted treasures for the duration of their existence and do aggravated damage in combat to any supernatural creature. Armor created by this cantrip also counts as an enchanted treasure for the duration of its existence, and adds one additional Soak Dice to the caster per success. Multiple castings of this cantrip are NOT cumulative, however additional Glamour can be spent to repair the weapons and armor at the Storyteller's discretion in the event that they take damage and the caster wishes to preserve them.
System: If the caster is forging a weapon from Winter's essence, then the Nature Realm is used. The number of successes determines the base difficulty of the weapon without modifiers. Any damage done by the weapon is aggravated, although the Storyteller has the final say in EXACTLY how much damage the weapon inflicts when used in combat. If the caster is forging armor, then the Nature and the appropriate Realm for whatever is being armored is used. The number of successes determines the strength of the armor, providing the caster or target with an additional Soak Dice per success of the caster.
Type: Wyrd
