SHANG

Commonly referred to as the Shang by outsiders, the Skoll are an ancient species of large wolf-
like creatures. Their bodies are tall and lean, with long ape-like arms, allowing them to run on all-fours
across open country. Their snouts are long and broad, like an alligator, with rows of sharp, jagged teeth.
Their fingers are nimble, allowing them to build and utilize tools and basic machinery.

Skoll society is heavily influenced by oral traditions passed down for hundreds of generations,
utilizing a language which is sung, rather than spoken. In a rhythmic pattern of howls, yelps, barks, and
growls, the Shang are able to communicate in an elaborately complex language which is
indistinguishable from animal noises by the untrained ear.

These shaggy beings have very powerful lungs, their scream being a natural defense to scare away
predators. Indeed, a simplistic version of their language was developed to allow them to communicate by
long-distance howls, in the same fashion that ancient Osarians utilized smoke signals. When employed by
a trained shangish monk, known as a Skarfar, this long distance howl can travel for nearly ten miles.

The Shang also have an acute sense of hearing, which helps explains their adept vocal
coordination. Mimicry is a classical form of art for the Skoll, being a popular recreational activity and the
foundation of the Skarfar; who utilize ancient mantras in order to create mystical effects. These effects are
amplified when chanted in unison by groups of Skarfar.

The Shang’s vocal mimicry allows them to easily duplicate exotic sounds, permitting them to
easily speak human and feyish languages. Wayward Shangs rarely maintain their mantric abilities, as
they are most likely outsiders or outlaws. Indeed the Shang are an endangered species, their numbers
dwindling with each new generation, as human empires scour the globe, looting and killing. Those Shang
who remain in the homelands are heavily influenced by the rich history of their people, most likely
learning the basics of mantric magic.

Shang Body (3): Shang are large in comparison to humans and feys, rarely standing under eight
feet in height. Their arms are long and powerful, with a sizable reach and resilient grip. They are bipedal,
but often run on all-fours, making them much faster than feys and humans. Not only do they have an
intuition for the supernatural, but also enormous ears with the ability to perceive much wider frequencies
than dogs or wolves. Finally, they have an excellent memory for scents and keen night-vision eyesight.
Shang characters receive a (+5) bonus to their Perception attribute, with an additional (+3) bonus to their
Strength, Speed, and Spirit instincts.

Shang Life (1): The Shang have persevered through generations of warfare, prejudice, and
genocide, maintaining their culture and customs with respectful devotion. Though their population is in
decline, their people are highly educated and well informed. A highly musical people, the Skoll language
is one of the most complicated and intricate of all the spoken dialects. Shang raised amongst their own
people receive a (+3) bonus to Acoustics, Knowledge, and Linguistics.

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 Mantric Magic (1)*: Speaking in a language of snarls, barks, and howls, the Skoll are very adept
singers. Their singing is so powerful that when amplified it has emotional, psychological, and physical
effects on their allies and enemies. This confidence allows you to sing along with mantras performed by
other Shang, but does not allow you to perform your own. The Shang performing the mantra gains a (+1)
bonus to his Acoustics roll for every five Shangs who join the chant.

Mantras were designed to be a beneficial form of magic. It is difficult to absolutely botch the
performance, rather the effects simply fluctuate in their usefulness. However, if the Game Leader would
prefer an element of “hit or miss”, he may require the Shang to roll his Acoustics skill for each
performance, with a standard difficulty between (10-20) required for success.
*This confidence requires Shang Life as a prerequisite.

Mantra of Purity (3)*: This confidence allows you to sing a mantra which has the potential to
dissolve any poison and cure any disease. It starts off quiet, slowly building over a twelve hour period until
reaching an epic climax. All effected individuals receive a Toughness roll against their specific disease or
toxin, this time gaining a bonus equal to the performer’s Acoustics skill. At the end of this period, the
performer drops to the ground exhausted and must roll his own Toughness skill or fall unconscious from
fatigue.
*This confidence requires Mantric Magic as a prerequisite.

Mantra of Renewal (3)*: This confidence allows you to sing a mantra which has the potential to
mend any wound. Before this mantra can begin, all wounds must be cleaned, bones set, and bleeding
stopped. This mantra will prolong the dying from death, but will heal patients incorrectly if their wounds
have not been attended first. For example, if you did not set a broken bone in a broken leg, you will not be
able to walk properly after it heals.

The mantra of Renewal starts off slow, building over a twelve hour period until reaching an epic
climax, in a similar fashion to the Mantra of Purity. All effected individuals regain a number of Health
equal to the performer’s Acoustics skill. This amount is in addition to the amount they would regularly
receive for resting during that twelve hour period. At the end of his mantra, the performer drops to the
ground exhausted and must roll his Toughness skill or fall unconscious from fatigue.
*This confidence requires Mantric Magic as a prerequisite.

Mantra of Peace (3)*: This confidence allows you to sing a mantra which causes people to relax. I
know what you are thinking, “Useful at parties, but not helpful out in the bush.” But this mantra allows
you to turn a bloodthirsty aggressor into a mildly irritated passerby. Often times adverting the trouble is
more advantageous to the party than running headlong into it.
*This confidence requires Mantric Magic as a prerequisite.

Mantra of Silence (3)*: This confidence allows you to scream a mantra which not only surprises
your opponent but also leaves him deafened. The performer rolls his Acoustics skill against his opponent’s
Toughness skill. This mantra can be performed at close range normally, however if at point blank range,

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 the performer receives a (+5) to his roll. This mantra cannot be performed farther away without larger
groups of Skolls.

If the opponent’s Toughness roll fails, they are officially deafened. This stuns the opponent for one
full round and penalizes them (-5) to all Awareness skill rolls and (-25%) to all Defense rolls for the rest of
the combat sequence. The opponent’s hearing will eventually return, not being fully better until the next
day. Repeat victims of the Mantra of Silence receive permanent hearing damage and should receive a
penalty to either their Perception attribute or their Awareness skill.
*This confidence requires Mantric Magic as a prerequisite.

Mantra of Defense (3)*: This confidence allows you to scream a mantra which has the potential to
kill. This mantra is by far the loudest and least song-like of all the mantras. It is comprised of high-pitched
shrieks like nails on a chalk board, mixed with the most violent barks, and with a never ending wall of
sound which would make your heart drop into the pit of your stomach. The effect on the victim is almost
instant and anyone in the area who wishes to stick around must roll a Toughness of standard difficulty (20).
Long exposure to the sound will cause intense migraines, eventually leading to internal hemorrhaging
and then bleeding from the eyes and ears. As long as the Mantra of Defense lasts, anyone in the area must
continually roll their Toughness per round. All failed rolls result in the loss of one Health. The mantra is
very labor intensive for the performer and drains one Fatigue for every five rounds he performs it. The
performer always takes a minimum of one Fatigue damage even if he is forced to end the mantra before
five rounds concludes.

When this ability is combined with the Amplification confidence, it can be focused to deal (1d6)
damage to a single target. This more intense burst however drains two Fatigue in a single turn. Once the
Skarfar Shout confidence has been acquired, the performer can focus his attack to deal (1d12) damage to a
single target. This requires that the opponent is at point blank range.
*This confidence requires Mantric Magic as a prerequisite.

Amplification (1)*: Mantra magic typically hinges on the ability for a tribe to join together in
chant, each new person harmonizing adding to the power of the spell in effect. This means that an isolated
Skoll, without any of his fellow peoples may try to use his mantra and find it ineffective. However legend
tells of a Skoll named Rsssh’kar, who having perched at the top of a mountain, howled his mantra of wrath
so loudly that it echoed through the entire valley and killed all of the invading Goath army. Many
skeptics today believe that Rsssh’kar simply caused an avalanche, however the story has inspired
thousands of young Skoll to have the most powerful lungs of all.

Today, a group of Skoll bodyguards called the Skarfar, specialize in tactics which promote
tackling or pinning an opponent and yelling directly into their face in order to create deadly close combat
mantras. Specializing in amplification, the Skarfar have been known to single handedly hold back a crowd
of rioters with his single voice alone. The purchasing of this confidence grants the performer a (+3) to
Acoustics and Melee skill rolls when applied in similar fashion to the Skarfar tactics. This will allow you to
perform mantras by yourself in close quarters or confined spaces without any penalties. In open spaces or

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 other numerous circumstances, the Game Leader should require other Skolls to participate in the mantric
chanting in order for the spell to be utilized at its full potential.
*This confidence requires Mantric Magic as a prerequisite.

Skarfar Shout (3)*: Being a current or former member of the Skarfar, you have learned the
techniques described above and can now perform them at their full potential, increasing your Acoustics
and Melee bonus to (+5). If you don’t understand anything I am talking about, you obviously didn’t read
the “Amplification” confidence above.
*This confidence requires Amplification as a prerequisite.

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