SCALBRANER MANC:

Forull Kampa Krin:

This is a summoning of an animal spirit, dead or alive. It must be clear as to which or what type of animal spirit is to be summoned before beginning the ritual or dance. Other items of this Manc must be dedicated to one family or specific animal. A family of animals are animals of the same type and closely related, but may be different members of a species. For example snakes, a tree tarlan, water tarlan or pit tarlan are all family members, whereas a brown springer is something different. Only good knowledge in animal lore or some related knowledge to the animal's habitat will allow knowledge of family members in any given animal group. Birds are not included as an animal in this instance as are not fish.

When the animal spirit has arrived it will either possess the summoner or else appear as a ghost-like apparition or vision. Some are fleeting shadows or wisps of smoke-like mist, while others are apparently solid and real. What ever the form, the animal spirit can then be communicated with. In some of the forms the summoner also leaves their body and enters the spirit world along with the animal spirit summoned. The summoner must have some knowledge as to the nature of the animal and from its actions, feelings and sounds may be able to determine its reactions and responses to questions asked of it. The animal spirit may also give the summoner some of its memory of a given event or situation. This is in the form of a projection of the summoner, a memory appearing in the summoner's mind or else a purely empathic feeling. the more basic the animal type, the more basic the information and relationship gained from the animal spirit. Larger animals tend towards obvious and detailed information, while insects are almost always empathic only, although the summoner's power does influence this to some degree.

Communication can begin as soon as the summoner has thanked and respected the animal spirit for coming and a small offering either directly to the spirit or to others of its kind may be made. The time of communication is often unlimited but the spirit is free to leave when it wishes after the minimum duration, as so may the summoner thank and end the meeting. Should the summoner be rude or end the meeting improperly the spirit may take offence and either never be summoned again or else cause some negative influence over the summoner or someone associated with the summoner. Occasionally this can affect the whole tribe, for example, should a spirit of a particular animal feel insulted and the tribe use this animal for a particular purpose, there may seem a reduction or even complete absence in the numbers of these animals after the event.

A spirit should never be summoned twice in two days. Animals that live far outside of the summoner's home cause the summoner to suffer a -5% penalty to the success of summoning them and doubles the time to summon. Animal spirits summoned outside of their normal activity periods cause the summoner to suffer a -15% success chance of summoning and double the time to summon. Evil or vicious animal spirits may need placating with extra gifts in the summoning or else can not be summoned, as they may refuse. Also animal spirits can affect directly the summoner or the locale in which they are summoned to, therefore it is important to know the animal and its character when summoning.

Critical success (01) in summoning the animal spirit results in a time of summoning being halved and the spirit being more inclined to communicate and less afraid. Critical failures in summoning (100 or chance of success + 50) results in either no summoning for that day, an evil version of an animal spirit appearing or else the possession of the summoner by the spirit or multiples of spirits. Only by removing these possessing spirits will the summoner recover. Should the success chance after spending time on the summoning rise above that of the maximum chance, then assume a failure has occurred and the animal spirit will not come that day, or as the individual form may dictate.

Ritual

The ritual consists of the summoner standing before an effigy of the animal spirit to be summoned, made as crudely or as intricately and from whatever medium wished by the creator; it need not be made by the creator, but for them by another or even a natural occurring piece of material that resembles the animal greatly. To summon a particular animal spirit that is known to be dead, the body, or at least a large part of the body must be used as the effigy.

The summoner then proceeds to chant and raise their arms and bows to the effigy before turning their back on it and beginning a different summoning chant. The summoner then turns and sits before the effigy again and traces a line around themselves with a bone, preferably from a similar animal, but this is not essential. Once the circle has been made, they take a sharp object, knife or sharpened stone etc, then make a small cut across their inner arms, if the animal has two legs, their inner arms and legs, if the animal has four legs, or their forehead if the animal has no legs. They then chant once again the same two chants they performed previously and then meditate on the animal spirit making its way to them before raising their arms and bowing low to the ground towards the effigy, and again meditating on the animal spirits journey. This continues until the animal spirit appears and communication may begin. The base success chance for the ritual is 10%; see the Manc Table for modifiers.

Once communication has begun the summoner is in a trance-like state and can only be awoken by having the circle around them destroyed and their wounds cleansed, but even then powerful animal spirits may refuse to allow them to awaken and they may be in the trance state until the animal spirit is happy to let them awaken. should the summoner be killed in this trance-like state, the summoner is left on the spirit world and will be suddenly open to any other spirits in the spirit world. The only way for them to find peace is to be accepted by a deity, captured by a devil, reincarnated in a new body, possess a willing body or else be laid to rest by a priest, or other spiritually able person who can do such a task. Once communication has ended and the summoner awoken from their trance, they must clear the circle around them in reverse and then destroy the effigy by fire, water, burial or else placing it somewhere it can not be used for the same purpose again. Using the same effigy twice results in an evil version of the animal spirit coming, another form of evil spirit coming to the summoner or else some great misfortune to the summoner or their people.

Dance

The dance is an individually created set of dance movements that the creator feels typifies the particular animal they wish to imitate. It does not have to mimic the animal in its movements but this may be part of the dance. Usually performed in a particular prepared area and performed during the typical cycle that the animal will be active in, around a fire or some offering that the animal may accept. It may be accompanied by music from others, the dancer themselves or even singing or chanting by the dancer. One dancer can perform the dance, but multiple dancers can also perform it, appointing one as the focus, although they need do no different from the others, they alone will communicate with the animal spirit. For each extra dancer performing along with the focus, the dance gains +1% to the chance success per Round. Using animal costumes adds a one time bonus of +5% to the chance success.

The dancer when the dance has been successful will feel their spirit lift from their body and the animal spirit will meld with each other and continue the dance. While dancing the spirit and dancer are in communication and as long as the dancer can dance, they may continue to communicate. Should the dancer fail to keep dancing or is stopped, the spirit communication vanishes and the dancer will feel completely fatigued. If the communication ends courteously and amicably, then the dancer will feel tired but not overly so. The maximum time a dancer can dance is dependent upon their END÷2 in Rounds, modified by their class and Manc level combined as noted on the table below.

Potion

For the potion many ingredients must be gathered to create the potion that then places the drinker into a state of deep meditation and opens them to the spirits world and the receiving of spirits. Ingredients are varied but have some essential constituents that any potion of this Manc must include: body fluid of an animal; ground crystals of local stone; any trance inducing plant extract; any coma inducing poison or venom; water from the leaves of a fruiting plant; a spiritual  or spiritually connected ingredient (holy essence, hair from an avatar, particles from a corpse of a known spirit etc.); and an ounce of one of the following: mistletoe, mandrake, tarse leaves or quamoclit. Other ingredients may include honey, part of the animal wishing to be summoned, hair or blood from the creator of the potion and other ingredients considered useful by the creator.

Herbalism, Cooking and Folklore are all necessary to create the potion as well as the applicable lore of the locality the ingredients are gathered from (i.e. forest lore, mountain lore, plains lore, river lore etc.). Once brewed the potion may be kept for as long as the ingredient allow. Blood tend to ruin after a day or so, but the Manc imbued keeps it fresher longer and typically it can last for up to 1D12 Pentawaeks before ruining. Once ruined it is merely semi-poisonous and disgusting if not solid and putrid.

Once drank the drinker will feel hot and yet cold at the same time, they will feel very light but their body will feel awkward and heavy and usually they sit down and assume some form of meditation position. Within a few moments they will seem to outsiders to enter a trance and become very shallow in breathing and heart rate, almost a coma. The drinker meanwhile, realizes they are leaving the physical world behind and beginning to see strange lights and shadows around everything, before being in a different world. The world is a strange, calm version of their own, where the people around them still move but are blurred and slow; sound seems muffled and it is as if they have swapped places with an onlooker. They can move in this new world and even see their own body. The spirit they wished to communicate with will be near by already, but they must convince it to communicate with them.

This is the only form where the duration may not be ended before the minimum noted in the Manc Table. Once the spirit has been communicated with the drinker of the potion may sit back in their body and await the duration to end. Alternatively the duration will end and the drinker will find themselves awaking with a start in their body, assuming nothing has happened to it in the meantime. Should the drinker's body be destroyed or damaged in such a way that the spirit would be forced to leave, the drinker is left on the spirit world and will be suddenly open to any other spirits in the spirit world. The only way for them to find peace is to be accepted by a deity, captured by a devil, reincarnated in a new body, possess a willing body or else be laid to rest by a priest, or other spiritually able person who can do such a task.

Headdress

The headdress is usually constructed of parts of the animal to resemble the animal or else a whole skull and skin if appropriate. It may be as fanciful, large or even a caricature of the animal, but must be enough to cover at least half of the head of the wearer. Upon donning the headdress, the summoner must first move about in a circuitous path, about the area in which the summoning is to take place, being careful to leave obvious tracks and returning to their starting position. All the while they make this circuit back to their starting point they must mimic the animal spirit they are to summon. Chanting is optional here, but often helps to focus their attention and reduces the time for the spirit to arrive by 5%.

Once they have made obvious tracks, they sit and bowing to the floor begin a different chant, raising their hands to the sky and back down to the ground, several times until the chant has finished. They then stand, either on all fours or on two legs, dependent upon the legs of the animal spirit being summoned. Should the animal have no legs, they the summoner must stand with their arms outstretched and again mimic the movement of the animal. Taking some offerings of food that is liked by the animal, they are scattered about, around the summoner, while they sway their head from side to side and then raise a bowl of blood, wine, juice, or fresh rain water to the sky before pouring it on the floor and in the liquid draw the animal shape they wish to summon. After this they sit, head bowed and meditate on the animal spirit making its way to the summoner and appearing nearby to take the food and maybe lick at the liquid offering also.

The headdress must be worn throughout the summoning and throughout the communication with the spirit. when the communication is to be ended, they may simply thank the spirit and standing reverse their path that they made and once returned to the starting point, remove the headdress and clear away the disturbance. The offerings may be left for nature to take its course. Should the headdress break or else be removed during the communication, the spirit may take offence or else be harder to summon next time, resulting in double the time of summoning. The necklace gains a bonus of +10% to summon the same individual animal spirit after first successfully summoning it and ending in an appropriate way.

Necklace

The necklace must be made from the bones, skin or other, durable, parts of the animal. Only of organic material, it must be hand crafted by the summoner or given as a gift, and once given may never be used by the original owner again. Beginning the summoning, the summoner must hold the necklace up to the sky, or towards the location where the animal normally resides and a small, quiet chant completed. Then the necklace must be worn and the wearer must sit, back straight and arms crossed but held high, legs crossed also. Again chanting in a low and deep voice the chant speeds and rises in tone but not in volume. Then the summoner may invite the spirit to come by preparing the area in which the communication is to occur. This may take the form of cleaning the area of loose debris, removing objects that may cause the animal disharmony or else laying out pieces of food that they would normally consume, perhaps even water if in dry lands or seasons, perhaps making a shady shelter from the wet or poor weather. When the summoner has finished the preparing they must sit still and focused, but not unaware of their surroundings, until the spirit arrives.

Once the meeting has ended the summoner may thank the spirit by throwing out pieces of its typical or favourite food or else by standing slowly, bowing to the spirit and then retreating away for some distance before removing the necklace. Should the necklace break or else be removed during the communication, the spirit may take offence or else be harder to summon next time, resulting in double the time of summoning. The necklace gains a bonus of +10% to summon the same individual animal spirit after first successfully summoning it and ending in an appropriate way.

Skin / Fur

The skin or fur must be from the animal being called, or a very close family member at the very least. The skin may be as plain or decorative as wished, but must be obviously related to the animal family. At least enough skin to cover the shoulders is needed or the power in the skin will be too reduced to have any effect. Other skins from the same animal may be made into one skin and used however. Check the area covered by the skin on the skin table and this gives the modifier to successful summoning and the time it takes the spirit to arrive.

Once donned the wearer must sit quietly and focus on the animal spirit being summoned. They must concentrate on the creature and how it moved, how it lived and envision it making its way to the summoner and being at once friendly and unafraid when it arrives. Often this process must be repeated until the summoner feels the presence of the spirit coming and the summoner instantly knows when it is near, but may not immediately know in what form it may take.

The table below shows the form the Manc takes. The Level, if applicable, needed to create the form before the Manc can be attempted; this may be either a Manc level (Mancers etc.) or a class level (Ranger etc.). The time the form needs to be fully completed. Components required to attempt the Manc. The base success chance of the Manc working as wished. The maximum chance this Manc has of working assuming typical and average conditions, modifiers to this will be mentioned in the applicable text for that form. Minimum duration is the shortest length of the Manc working once successfully attempted, of course it may be ended by the summoner at any time observing any principles set out for that form.

1 Round = 30 seconds