Gleans Secrets from Flesh

Description

You are an omophagist, a consumer of raw flesh – not for bodily sustenance (though you may gain this from your feasts) but for the secrets held in corporeal forms. By treating the brains of the dead with certain philtres, you can gain access to the secrets they held. As you become more powerful, you become capable of retaining more of these secrets – and even of adopting the skills and personalities of those dead you consume. Omophagists or ‘resurrectionists’ are widely held in fear or disgust, and seldom meet with a positive reception, despite the utility of their abilities.

Details

Connection:

Following the Character Options format, choose from one of four connections for your character:

1. Pick a PC. This character caught you sneaking into a graveyard to pursue your repasts. They didn’t turn you into the authorities, but have employed this hold on you to blackmail you into joining the group.
2. Pick a PC. You are fairly sure you have consumed the flesh of someone who once knew them – a friend, relative, or lover – as you keep getting odd flashes of insight and strange waves of emotions when you look at them.
3. Pick a PC. This person appears to despise the omophagists – they once discovered a group of them desecrating the grave of a loved one. They appear to suspect your talents – it is up to them how they attempt to deal with your presence in the group.
4. Pick a PC. This person has lost someone close to them. They suspect your abilities, and wish you to train them so that they can achieve some kind of connection with the deceased once more.

Additional Equipment:

You carry a series of philtres that are used to prepare the corpses you consume. You also carry a spade and a crowbar, useful for opening mausoleums and graves.

Minor Effect Suggestions:

Your consumption brings with it a measure of vitality, replenishing +1 point to your Might or Speed pool.

Major Effect Suggestions:

The rush of insight leaves you feeling rejuvenated - you can prepare and use another philtre immediately.

Tier 1:

Consume Essence (2 Intellect points): By treating the brain of the dead with certain substances and consuming it, you are able to access the memories of the deceased. You learn one specific fact or detail known to the dead person or creature, which remains with you for one hour (unless you take the time to note it down). This ability works on any creature with an organic brain, though it may be difficult to decipher the experiences of more alien organisms. Action.

Insight into the Past: You are trained in the numenera. Enabler.

Tier 2:

Discordant Voices: Each time you consume a brain, a small portion of the individual takes up residence in your brain. To a psychic entity, this creates a bewildering cacophony of voices in your head (though you are scarcely aware of them); you are trained in Intellect defense tasks. Enabler.

Grave-robber: You are trained in stealth tasks. Enabler.

Tier 3:

Forbidden Knowledge (4+ Intellect points): Once per day, you may treat and consume the brain of dead person (or other intelligent being). This process gives you access to the knowledge they once knew; you retain enough of this knowledge to become trained in a knowledge area relevant to the deceased: for example, the brain of a Ghanic sailor might allow training in maritime navigation, identifying aquatic creatures, or weather-reading. By spending additional units of 4 Intellect points, you may attempt to assimilate more than one sphere of knowledge (to be discussed with the GM). Knowledge of this kind only ever refers to general knowledge (rather than specific details), and does not impart physical skills. It can only be retained from one creature at a time. Action to initiate.

Tier 4:

Feast on the Dead (4 Intellect points): Once per day, you may treat and consume flesh from a single dead creature or person. This meal replenishes 1D6+3 points to your pools, and additionally grants you +1 edge (to a pool of your choosing) for 1 hour.

Tier 5:

Absorb Personality (5 Intellect points): Once per day, you may treat and consume the brain of creature or person, allowing you to fully absorb their knowledge, traits, and personality. Unlike the ‘consume essence’ power, this allows you full access to the specific details and information the creature possessed (for 28 hours, unless you take steps to note it down). If the creature consumed was sufficiently similar to you (i.e. approximately the same size and form), you gain an asset (for 28 hours) in attempts to impersonate or otherwise disguise yourself as this person. Action to initiate.

Tier 6:

Uncanny Prowess (6 Intellect points): Once per day, you may treat and consume the brain of a dead person or creature. This process gives you access to some of their traits and abilities; this should be agreed with the GM, but as a general rule of thumb, might take the form of two major and two minor skills, and a +1 edge to a relevant pool. A character who consumes the brain of a proficient thief, for example, might gain training in speed defense and medium ranged weapons as major skills, and lock-picking and pick-pocketing as minor skills, with a +1 edge in Speed.

Only one version of this ability may be in place at any given time – consuming a new creature over-writes the previous abilities. Action to initiate.