She used to live the life she used To live life with a vengeance And the chosen would dance the Chosen would dance in attendance She crossed a lot of people Some she called friends She thought she'd live forever But forever always ends -Richard & Linda Thompson, "Did She Jump Or Was She Pushed?" |
The Risen is a book about obsession. Just as wraiths are fueled by Passions stronger than most living souls can comprehend, The Risen are compelled by Passions that are too intense for even most wraiths to grapple with. To resolve those matters that haunt them, The Risen take risks that the most suicidal Renegade would regard as insane. But there are always more wraiths looking to Rise, and their Shadows are always willing to help them reach the other side.
The Risen are, simply put, the Walking Dead. Wraiths whose need to act, to do, cannot be satisfied on the far side of the Shroud, they are the souls who dare make a deal with their personal devils and leap back into their bodies. Some relish the chance to touch and feel the solid world again, but all too soon realize how thoroughly detached they have become from it. If being Risen is a rebirth, then the child is stillborn.
Risen are not zombies in the shambling-mound-of-rotting-flesh mode. Rather, they are revenants in the classic sense, seeking vengeance, love or one of a myriad of other emotions strong enough to break the grave's grip. Risen do not drip moldering flesh; many pass quite well for humans (or at least vampires). Most can speak quite well instead of in a graveyard moan, and the only ones to wear chains do so as a deliberate fashion statement. The Risen can come from all walks of life, and they are bound not by stereotype or legend, but by obsession and the knowledge that they walk very close to the edge of Oblivion indeed.
What's In This Book?
The Risen is all about those wraiths who dare to cross the Shroud, against both their better judgment and Hierarchy edict, and re-inhabit the bodies that were theirs in their living days. It details what precisely a Risen is, how a wraith becomes Risen, and the perils involved. Conduits, those Fetters which house the Shadow (or the Psyche) in the Skinlands, are discussed, as are the ways in which Skinlands existence strengthens a wraith's Shadow.
Also included are the rules for Risen character generation, and ways in which an existing wraith character can become Risen. Merits, Flaws and Arcanoi unique to Risen are detailed, as are the methods by which a Risen can learn certain vampiric Disciplines. Five Risen templates are featured as well as four of the most potent-and feared-Risen.
Suggested Source Materials
The legend of the revenant is centuries old, if not millennia. The following stories and books are recommended for helping Risen players and Storytellers fit their Walking Dead into the World of Darkness.
Clive Barker-The Damnation Game. The character of the Razor-Eater is as vile a Risen as one could wish for, complete with a Dark Passion stronger than death itself.
Ambrose Bierce-"The Night Doings at Deadmans." Perhaps a bit dated, but eerily effective.
Ray Bradbury-"Pillar of Fire." Included in the S is for Space collection, it's the story of the last dead man in the world and how his hate fuels him to take on the living.
H. P. Lovecraft-The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, "Herbert West-Reanimator," "The Thing on the Doorstep" and "Cool Air"-Lovecraft had a unique flair for walking corpses, with or without heads.
Robin McKinley-Deerskin. More of a pure fantasy, but excellent for mood.
Toni Morrison-Beloved. A brilliant retelling of the revenant legend in historical context.
James O'Barr-The Crow. Less coherent but more compelling than the film (which is also highly recommended).
Mary Shelley-Frankenstein. The first modern tale of a dead man walking, the creature's obsession is Risen-like in its intensity.
Dan Simmons-"The River Styx Flows Upstream." From Prayers to Broken Stones, it details what having the dead out of their graves does to the living.
© Copyright 1996 by White Wolf
White Wolf, Vampire the Masquerade and Mage the Ascension are registered trademarks of White Wolf, Inc. All rights reserved. Vampire the Dark Ages, Werewolf the Apocalypse, Werewolf the Wild West, Wraith the Oblivion, The Risen, and Changeling The Dreaming are trademarks of White Wolf, Inc. All rights reserved. All characters, names, places and text herein are copyrighted by White Wolf, Inc. Reproduction without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except for the purposes of reviews. The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark or copyright concerned. Because of the mature themes involved, reader discretion is advised. Check out White Wolf on the World Wide Web at http://www.white-wolf.com
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