The Free Council

"You'll see that, since our fate is ruled by chance, Each man, unknowing, great, Should frame life so that at some future hour Fact and his dreamings meet." - Victor Hugo

Steal Body (Death ••••• + Life •••)
The mage rips the soul from the body and possesses the target's now vacant form, leaving the victim and the mage's former body dead. The spell is a means of prolonging life and also of obtaining a newer, younger, fitter body. Some mages also see it as an opportunity to experiment: obtaining a body of a different sex, race, or the like in order to see how "the other half" lives (and dies, for that matter).

Practice: Unmaking

Action: Extend and Contested; target rolls Resolve reflexively

Duration: Lasting

Aspect: Vulgar

Cost: 2 Mana

The mage can cast this spell on a given target only once. If the spell fails, the target is forever immune to any further castings by that mage (although not by others). The mage obtains the subject's Strength, Dexterity, and Stamina, along with any Physical Merits and Flaws, otherwise retaining all other traits. The subject's spirit is destroyed although, at the Storyteller's discretion, the spirit may survive as a ghost (and likely a vengeful one at that).

Free Council Rote: Life-Transfer

Dice Pool: Wits + Science + Death vs. Resolve

The body is just a vehicle for the mind and spirit, and techne allow the unseating of an existing "occupant" so a new life-force can inhabit a body. For the Nameless rebels, this techne held the added benefit of erasing their former lives: appearance, flesh and bone, and allowing them to start anew away from the pursuit of their enemies.

Forgo Rest (Life •)
An initiate of Life can overcome some of the weaknesses of the body, at least for a time. A mage using this spell can go without sleep for an extended period, with no impairment of faculties, at least until fatigue becomes too great. Mages find it most useful to forgo rest when they must focus their attention on a task for a long period of time.

Practice: Compelling

Action: Instant

Duration: Lasting

Aspect: Covert

Cost: None

Each spellcasting success allows the mage to go an additional six-hour period without sleep with no need for a Stamina + Resolve roll (see the World of Darkness Rulebook, p. 180). The mage suffers none of the penalties for missed sleep during this time. The maximum this spell can put off the need for sleep is a number of days equal to the lower of the mage’s Stamina or Resolve, after which the spell no longer works.

Once the spell ends, the mage suffers all the effects of any missed sleep and must make it up (an additional hour’s sleep per six-hour period forgone using this spell).

Free Council Rote: All-Nighter

Dice Pool: Resolve + Crafts + Life

Free Councilors often find it necessary to stay up all night (or for a few days, for that matter) to complete a particular project, and they don’t necessarily want the jitters of caffeine or other stimulants interfering with their faculties. Some say this rote dates back to the Nameless War, when many Libertines were afraid to sleep at all, preferring to remain on their guard.