Whispers of the Dead (Tsathoggua)

Tsathoggua (Artist Proof) by Liv Rainey-Smith

The Ritual 

The operator must first descend underground. In a subterranean chamber, they light candles, oil lamps, and bundles of incense until the air is thick with fumes. As the operator murmurs prayers to Saint Toad, they present their sacrifice and slit its throat. Then the gasses congeal into a hideous form. In a croaking voice, she introduces herself.

I am Tsathoggua, the god-bat of the Pnakotic Manuscripts and sleeping lord of black lightless N’kai. I brokered the secrets of the universe to wizard Eibon and have watched this world since before its veins of rock and fire were born.
My appetite is almost as boundless as my power, why have you awoken me from my slumber?

If the operator offers up a large animal like a cow, they get a +20% bonus to the Ritual Activation roll. Tsathoggua likes variety. Sacrificing an animal that they've already offered him imposes a -20% penalty. A human sacrifice grants a +40% bonus. The operator must bow before the chthonic god and praise him before asking for a boon. The texts that teach this ritual usually include choice pieces of flattery. A successful test of a relevant skill with a bonus equal to the character's Unnatural score cuts through occultists' musings on what sacrifices Tsathoggua likes best; it abhors repetition, and the bigger, the better, though nothing is quite as sweet as the taste of killing one's own kind.

The shadows flicker unnaturally (0/1 SAN from unnatural) and beads of oil form on the ground like sweat or condensation. Unnatural recognizes them as Tsathoggua's servitors, the formless spawn she continually births. Anthropology makes a connection with the pitch black protean spirits various North American indigenous cultures claimed came to earth from a distant land called Kythamil. The vibrations of this living slime produce the 'voice' of Tsathoggua.

Alternate Names: Croaking from N'Kai, Revelations in Chthonic Gasses, The Sorcerer's Pact

SAN Loss Flavor (from activating the ritual)

1-2 points: You feel sick and bloated, the 'air' makes you cough and wheeze.

3-4 points: The earth shifts, you feel a tingling numbness in your extremities.

5+ points: Unending hunger that almost causes a blackout, those who go temporarily insane will attempt to feast on the sacrifice, though if that is already 'taken,' they will gnaw and slurp at their own flesh or anyone too close.

Depending on how much SAN loss the operator rolls, witnesses can lose 0/1, 0/1D4, or 0/1D6 SAN. Failing the SAN test means they can understand Tsathoggua's booming whispers or make out his sloth-shaped form that hovers in the air like a mirage. Those who go temporarily insane are filled up with the same hunger as the operator.

Boon

Whenever the operator attempts a Ritual Activation roll, they roll at a +20% bonus. At the Handler's discretion, they can make the SAN tests to learn new rituals at a -20% penalty. The operator also does not suffer temporary insanity from activating, witnessing, or learning rituals. Tsathoggua has opened their mind to the underlying principles of hypergeometry. If the Handler still wants that possibility, they can require the operator to spend 1D4–1 WP or succeed on an INT test to not go insane. Or maybe they still suffer temporary insanity if the SAN loss reduces them to (or past) their Breaking Point.

Blessing

With every activation roll, the operator feels Tsathoggua's breath as she pants advice into their ear. All hypergeometric costs are halved for the operator, including SAN. Any permanent POW spent to force a ritual to succeed is included in the overall cost. Willpower and hit points are rounded up. Half of 1 POW is 5 WP, half of 2 POW is just 1 POW, and 3 POW divides into 1 POW and 5 WP. This pattern repeats for all odd and even-numbered POW costs. Rituals like Song of Power are unaffected. At the Handler's discretion, any critically successful activation rolls may still cost the full amount of SAN.

Curse

Tsathoggua reaches out with her tongue and brands the operator. The brand is a never-healing welt of raw flesh shaped like a cardioid flanked by a pair of horns or ears. His slothfulness infects the operator, making them always go last in the initiative order, regardless of their DEX. This costs 1/1D4 SAN from helplessness instead of 1D4 SAN from unnatural. If the Handler is feeling nasty, a Slime of Tsathoggua might seep out of the cracks to pursue the operator and their allies.

Side Effects

• The operator is always hungry and can consume impressive amounts of food without getting sick.
  
• Their body hair grows darker and thicker, or more like fur if they were already hairy.
  
• If the operator crosses a Breaking Point, they may develop Addiction (Hypergeometry) even if hypergeometry wasn't involved. They're also prone to Depression, though it manifests as lethargy and apathy (in imitation of their lazy master) rather than despair or crushing guilt.
  
• Their sweat and bodily secretions grow greasy and oilier. In the later stages, their blood may even resemble black tar.
  
• If the operator is viewed through the Voorish Sign or similar, their forehead or heart shines with the mark of Tsathoggua and their shadow grows large and bloated, more like an oil slick than a silhouette.

If you're confused as to what this is about, check out this post.