INTRODUCTION
Welcome to CJ Carella’s WitchCraft roleplaying game from Eden Studios. Here you will find everything you need to begin playing the acclaimed game of modern magic and dark secrets. Just read through this material, gather some friends together, scrounge up some gaming dice (a four-sided (D4), a six-sided (D6), an eight-sided (D8), and a ten-sided (D10) die), and you are ready to play.

SETIING

WitchCraft is a game of modern horror. The setting is the world where we live—Times Square, traffic jams, karaoke bars, Nokia cell phones and 24-hour news channels. Unknown to most, however, this world is infused with the supernatural. In ancient times, shamans would travel the Otherworlds and converse with spirits, tribes were guided by visions, and invocations assisted the hunt. In time, the shamans became high priests. The metaphysical became more secretive until only a select few had any knowledge of
its existence. This has continued to modern times. Secret societies grew and evolved, hiding from the mundane world as they guided their members in the metaphysical arts.
Things have changed in the last few years. Since the 1960s, the number of humans able to use metaphysical powers— the Gifted—has increased dramatically. Legendary spirits and creatures have manifested again, and even become plentiful. The Reckoning is approaching. Whether these changes signal the dawn of a new golden age or the arrival of an apocalypse is unknown. The supernatural becomes more manifest each day. The Covenants, secret societies of trained Gifted, become more powerful. Supernatural predators become bolder. Things are getting stranger and more dangerous.

It is an interesting time to be alive.

CAST MEMBERS

The Gifted are the most powerful supernaturally, but also the first targets of mystic forces. Lesser Gifted have a touch of supernatural ability, and a fair number of skills and abilities in other areas. Mundanes have no supernatural power, but are at or near the top of human capacity in other ways. Each Cast Member is affiliated with an Association. Many Associations exist in the world of WitchCraft; only a few are touched on here.

The Wicce are a loose grouping of “witches,” and their ranks include Magicians (who use Invocations or magical spells), Seers (who possess psychic Sight), and Mediums (who interact with the dead through Necromancy).

The Rosicrucians are much more structured, and the majority of them are Magicians.

Sentinels are holy warriors who use Divine Inspiration (the power of miracles) and prayer to fight supernatural predators.

The Twilight Order includes primarily Mediums who use Necromancy to protect the Living from the Dead.

The Cabal of the Psyche protects Seers from the ignorance of mundane masses.

A Solitaire belongs to a smaller group, or operates as a sole practitioner.

All characters have Attributes—basic physical and mental abilities.

The Primary Attributes in WitchCraft are Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Perception, and Willpower. Human Attributes range from 1 to 6, with 2 being average.
Secondary Attributes are determined by Primary Attributes.

Life Points (LPs) represent the amount of damage a character can absorb. When a character’s Life Points are exhausted they are at or near death.

Endurance Points (EPs) show the amount of fatigue a character can withstand.

Speed (Spd) is how fast a person can run (in miles per hour; halve that amount for yards per second).

The Essence Pool is the amount of spiritual energy that a Cast Member possesses; it is the strength of the character’s soul.

Qualities and Drawbacks are positive and negative traits that help round out a character.

Skills are the abilities of the Cast Member. Skill level 1 represents an amateur. A 2 or 3 represents general competency. Extreme competence comes with levels 4 or 5. Higher levels are possible but uncommon.