Llygad Gwurth Anghenfil: a spirit of envy for the new World of Darkness
Forgotten Lore - Issue 1
Becky watched as Gail sailed effortlessly across the dance floor. Gail moved with such grace and elegance no wonder she was the obvious choice for Prima Ballerina. Becky wondered if she would even get a part in the performance at all. As she watched Gail glide around the room Becky felt so jealous of Gail she had everything she was thin, popular and she danced so well. Becky wished she could dance as well as her.
"You could, if I helped you..." Anghenfil whispered in Becky's mind
"You can?"
***
Alien and inhuman, mercurial and horrifying Spirits can be used to create memorable NPCs for your chronicle, some can be used as allies for your players others however are far more malevolent.
In this month’s issue of Forgotten Lore we take look at an example of a spirit that can be used as an antagonist for any of the World of Darkness game lines. Created using the rules in The Book of Spirits this ‘Plug and Play’ NPC is fully stated and ready to go.
Background
Drawn like a moth to a flame Anghenfil is drawn to jealousy, it feeds on it, it craves it. Anghenfil is an ancient and spiteful spirit born in the Shadow the first time a human looked at the talents another and wished they could do the same. It soon crossed the Gauntlet into our world and has plagued mankind ever since.
Quietly moving among us claiming victim after victim untold thousands have been consumed by this alien, hungry spirit.
Anghenfil Ridden are possessed by this abstract spirit of jealousy of others talents.
First it pushes the host gently to work harder to learn their desired talents. All the while growing stronger as the victim’s jealousy is fanned like a flame by Anghenfil.
As it gains greater control over the host Anghenfil pushing them harder and harder often at the expense of their physical and mental health, not to mention their family and friends. It delights in pointing out how flawed its hosts are and how amazing everyone else is. It revels in the isolation and obsession it creates.
Anghenfil is also a glutton it feeds and feeds pushes and pushes until the victim snaps under the pressure and savagely destroys the object of their desires. The spirit then seeks out its next host and the same awful process starts again.
Description
Anghenfil is looks like a sooty cloud of dense black smoke. As it passes it leaves ash and glowing embers in its wake. At its heart two orbs of green fire spin around themselves hypnotically.
Rank: 3
Attributes: Power 6, Finesse 9, Resistance 5
Willpower: 11
Essence: 15
Initiative: 14
Defence: 9
Speed: 15
Size: 2
Corpus: 7
Influences: Jealousy 3 Obsession 3
Numina: Claim, Greater Influence (Obsession) x 3, Hallucinations
Spirit Ban: Anghenfil cannot control those who wear its name written in green ink. Anyone who surrounds Anghenfil or its victims in a circle of coal dust can hold it in place for one day.
Rebecca Cartwright
Background
Rebecca was born the only child into a wealthy family from Surrey in the UK. Her parents while loving were career driven and packed her off to boarding school at a very early age. Rebecca was devastated she became quiet and reclusive. She found it hard to make friends and spent much of her time at school alone and often overlooked. While she was only an average student she showed real promise as a dancer. Joining the school dance troupe Rebecca only felt alive when she danced; it was the only time people ever seemed to notice her. Her teachers recommended she join a specialist performing arts school in London. Thrilled she could not wait to start, but she still had one term left in her old school including a trip to Wales.
While there she and her classmates visited an old slate mine. Down there in the cold wet mine something old and dark woke and returned with Rebecca. All summer it whispered to her promised her she would be popular and have friends if only she would let it in. Anghenfil told her how it had helped others to get what they wanted and how its last 'friend'
Dai became the best miner in North Wales.
Rebecca willingly gave into Anghenfil's persuasions. Packed off to a new school Rebecca reinvented herself as Becky becoming more driven and charismatic. She soon made friends becoming the life and soul of the party and caught the eye of the famed ballet instructor Madame Sobanovski. Impressing the tutor with her grace and obsessive training and determination. She soon became the one of the best dancers in the school second only to Gail Anderson, who Becky now obsesses about.
Description
Becky is a short, attractive girl in her late teens. She has a willowy figure that recently people have noticed is almost skeletal. She has long dark hair often done up into a tight bun. She now follows the latest fashions and rarely wears the same cloths twice.
Storyteller Hints
Becky is now a Ridden. Possessed by the spirit Anghenfil this malevolent entity is pushing her more and more with each passing week and the first signs of the downward slide are becoming apparent.
Plot Hooks
Anyone close to one of your players with connections to the mortal world such as Ghouls, Allies or even their family could be possessed by Anghenfil. The gradual shift in personality of the host could catch the players notice giving them little to worry about at first but soon escalates alarmingly. The race is on to find the cause and ‘cure’ and has an added level of horror as the players discover Anghenfil’s malignant presence.
Rebecca could be used in an Innocents game as a slightly older friend or sibling for one of the players. Rebecca’s return home from her new school for vacation highlights the massive change in her personality. This is explained away as Rebecca maturing by her distant parents, leaving the players wondering why does Rebecca now insist she be called Becky and why does she talk to herself in that funny voice?
