Author | Harry Turtledove |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre | Alternate history |
Publisher | New American Library |
November 4, 2003 | |
Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
Pages | 464 pages |
ISBN | 0-451-52902-2 |
OCLC | 52030530 |
813/.54 21 | |
LC Class | PS3570.U76 I54 2003 |
In the Presence of Mine Enemies is a 2003 alternate history novel by American author Harry Turtledove, expanded from the eponymous short story.[1] The title comes from the fifth verse of the 23rd Psalm. The novel depicts a world where the United States remained isolationist and did not participate in the Second World War, thus allowing victory to the Axis Powers, who divided the world among themselves. Still, some years after the war, the Third World War occurred, featuring the Axis Powers defeating the US and Canada.
Set in 2010, the novel focuses on Heinrich Gimpel and a small group of Jews who survived the Holocaust by passing as Gentiles. The events occur against a backdrop that parallels the Soviet Union's last days, with characters based upon Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, and others.
- 3Setting
- 3.1World politics and geography
- 3.3Society
- 3.4Locales
Plot summary[edit]
In Deadlands:Reloaded, it's possible for characters to become Harrowed. In short, this means the character has died and been re-animated by an evil spirit. It's up to the GM to decide when this. Several times he almost falls to it, and once he actually does, however how it happens depends on the version. In the original after completely dominating Lexaeus in their fight, the latter blows himself up in an attempt to drag the latter down into the Darkness, however in the nick of time he is able to resist.
Wehrmacht officer Heinrich Gimpel astonishes his 10-year-old daughter, Alicia, with a secret that has been hidden from her all her life: the family is Jewish. He explains that the Gimpels, friends Walther and Esther Stutzman, and their extended families all belong to those remnants of Jews who now survive by hiding in plain sight within the very society that wants them dead. Now old enough, by family tradition, to be trusted with this life-or-death deception, Alicia is obliged to hide the truth from her friends, her classmates, and even her younger sisters even as she is forced to regard her school's racist curriculum from a new perspective that leaves her sick and angry over all the anti-Semiticpropaganda that she always learned and parroted without question.
Meanwhile, Heinrich finds himself caught in the marital strife between his co-worker, Willi Dorsch, and Willi's wife, Erika. Willi, doubting Erika's fidelity due to her constant flirtation with Heinrich, begins an extra-marital affair with his secretary. Embittered by her husband's infidelity, Erika wants a retaliatory affair with Heinrich. He resists, which leads to Erika accusing him of being a Jew and Heinrich being arrested by the Sicherheitspolizei. Only after Erika realizes that her accusation caused Heinrich's children to be taken also, she confesses that she lied and attempts to commit suicide, unaware the entire time that Heinrich and his family really are Jewish.
Esther Stutzman, who works as a receptionist in a doctor's office, also experiences a close call with Nazi policies when her friends Richard and Maria Klein, closeted Jews like herself, bring their ailing eight-month-old baby, Paul, in for a checkup. The diagnosis, Tay–Sachs disease, is a disease known to be prevalent among Jews. A subsequent investigation into his family background would spell doom for his parents and any names they might be forced to reveal under torture. Although Esther's husband, Walther, is able to hack into the Reich's computer network and change the Klein's family history, it is the revelation that Reichsführer-SS Lothar Prützmann has a nephew with Tay-Sachs that brings the investigation to a halt.
All of this happens against the background of the events happening after the death of the current Führer, Kurt Haldweim (modelled on the real-life Austrian president Kurt Waldheim). He is replaced by the reform-minded Heinz Buckliger, who relaxes the oppressive laws of the Reich. In a secret speech, with word-of-mouth spreading it to the populace, the new Führer denounces his predecessors, saying that the Reich committed crimes in the past. Reactionary opposition rallies around the SS, while the populist Gauleiter of Berlin, Rolf Stolle, champions accelerated reform.
Things come to a head with the announcement of (relatively) free elections: candidates need not be Nazi Party members, but they must be Aryan. Led by Reichsführer-SS Lothar Prützmann, the SS effect a conservative coup d'état, imprisoning the Führer, and installing former High Commissioner of Ostland Affairs, Odilo Globocnik, as the new Führer. However, Stolle instigates a people power movement, which the Wehrmacht supports. The coup d'état is defeated after Walther Stutzman salts the country's computer network with the information about Reichsführer-SS Prützmann's Tay-Sachs afflicted nephew. Soon, Berlin comes to the conclusion that Prützmann is a Jew, which definitively turns the tide against the coup. In the aftermath, Prützmann kills himself, Globocnik is lynched and Buckliger is re-enstated as Führer (albeit harrowed by his detainment and eclipsed by the popular Stolle).
At the novel's end, the elections deliver a pro-reform majority to the Reichstag with Stolle as its speaker and produces a mandate for the independence of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia in a concurrent referendum. Also, the Gimpels and the Stutzmans gather to tell the ten-year-old Francesca that she is a Jew.
Viewpoint characters[edit]
- Heinrich Gimpel, a hidden Jew serving as an officer at the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht in Berlin. Heinrich is careful and meticulous about maintaining his masquerade: originally even from the reader, who goes through nearly a whole chapter before finding that Gimpel is a hidden Jew and a leader of a secret Jewish community. Heinrich's specific job is to monitor the American payment of tribute to Germany and detect the frequent attempts to avoid payment. Gimpel is arrested because a friend's wife denounces him as a Jew, without knowing he really is one, because he resisted her sexual advances. Gimpel is eventually released from custody, an SS major who escorts him out the door casually remarking to him: 'You find us in the oddest places.'
- Lise Gimpel, Heinrich's wife, also a Jew.
- Alicia Gimpel, Heinrich and Lise's ten-year-old daughter and oldest of three sisters. At the beginning of the book, she is initiated into the secret that she, and other family and friends, are Jewish. She is stunned but gradually comes to accept it.
- Susanna Weiss, a Medieval Englishscholar at the Friedrich Wilhelm University. She is also one of the few surviving Jews left in the Reich.
- Esther Stutzman, a receptionist at a Berlin area pediatrician's office. She and her husband, Walther, are also hidden Jews. She is a tuckerization of the well-known science-fiction/fantasy author Esther Friesner.[2]
- Walther Stutzman, a computer programmer at Zeiss. He has unauthorized access into many of the Reich's databases using codes created by his father, who was involved with transferral of paper records to computer records. He can assign false Aryan pedigrees to Jewish people, allowing them to avoid detection by the Reich.
Setting[edit]
World politics and geography[edit]
Political alignment[edit]
The Führer of the Greater German Reich is the world's most powerful political leader. Besides the Reich itself, the 'Greater Germanic Empire' includes occupied, but not annexed, countries and allied countries. The occupied countries have their own governments but limited sovereignty; the Nazis interfere in their internal affairs, especially about applying racist ideology. The allies, though technically independent, are subject to the Nazi rule; most represent the local varieties of racist, fascist, and radical nationalist forces.
Italy's empire is around the Mediterranean Sea, including the parts of Africa granted by the Reich. The Nazis compel the Italians to carry out large-scale massacres of Arabs in their territories in the Middle East. The nation is controlled by the House of Savoy (headed by King Umberto) and the Duce of the Italian Empire. While much of Africa is divided up among Germany, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, an 'Aryan-dominated' Union of South Africa remains as an independent ally of the German Reich. Spain is mentioned as being governed by a Caudillo but no mention in made regarding the status of the Spanish monarchy.
Although less powerful than Germany, Imperial Japan is a nuclear power keeping the Reich at bay with the implicit threat of mutually assured destruction. Moreover, Japan has its own subordinate rulers (only the Emperor of Manchukuo is mentioned) by the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Despite having 'an ocean of slave labor' at its disposal, Japan now concentrates upon developing high technologies. Despite the Germano–Nipponese alliance, the Nazis consider the Japanese racially inferior and lacking in creativity, with propaganda pointing to a perceived decrease in Japan's technological advances as proof of this. Even so, Japanese tourists, students, and restaurants are a common sight within the Reich.
The fate of the United States and Canada[edit]
Between the 1960s and 70s, Germany and the Axis powers have defeated the United States and Canada in the Third World War with the nuclear bombs they developed first. The key American cities of Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia were destroyed by the bombs and their environments are rendered uninhabitable for years to come. Other cities such as New York City, St. Louis, and Chicago are damaged by bombing raids. The capital of the US was moved to Omaha, Nebraska, where a pro-Nazi puppet government was set up, and the Reich maintains Wehrmacht occupation forces in New York City, Chicago, St. Louis, and Omaha itself. Upon conquering the US, the Einsatzkommandos and the American white supremacists systematically kill the country's Jewish and most of the Black populations with any remaining Black people being used for slave labor by the Reich.
The US pays annual tribute, an important income for Germany's economy, despite the US economy's hyperinflation and the US dollar's disappearance as a world currency; whenever possible, the US evades paying the tribute.
Fate of other occupied nations[edit]
Henry IX is the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom (although his lineage is never explained), which has been annexed by the Reich. The British Union of Fascists is the governing party of the United Kingdom, with Charlie Lynton[3] as Prime Minister; however it is internally divided over the extent of the Reich's influence in the governance of the United Kingdom (reminiscent of British Eurosceptics) and the selection process for a new Fuhrer.
The Poles, Russians, Ukrainians, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, and Serbs are killed because they are Untermenschen; likewise, the Arabs for being as 'Semitic as Jews'. Moreover, the Reich, Italian Empire, Portugal, and Spain effect the genocide of the African populations, and enslave the survivors. South Africa, however, still continues Apartheid, which ironically keep the Black South Africans from being killed off or used for slave labor.
Any Jews found are immediately killed on sight, and while 'the surviving Russians were pushed far east of the Urals;' there is much guerrilla fighting, requiring forts to protect the German settlers.
The Nazis treat the Czechs, Croats, and Bulgarians relatively well, despite being Slavs, because the Croats lend themselves to savagely persecuting the Serbs via severe racial discrimination, suppressed rebellions, and the enslavement or killing of dissidents. Iranians and Indians, classified as 'Aryan', are not persecuted; some are invited to study at German universities.
Technology[edit]
The level of technology in the novel is much the same as in the actual 21st century. The Wehrmacht makes use of jet aircraft, panzers, U-boats, armoured personnel carriers, assault rifles and a variety of naval warships. The 'Ministry of Air and Space' is mentioned as having planted a permanent outpost on the Moon, carrying out a manned landing on Mars, and it may be planning a manned mission to the Jovian moons. Orbital weather platforms are also mentioned in the book.
Civilian technology has also advanced in a similar way to its military counterpart in the 21st century. Jet airliners, televisions (called televisors), computers (although the Internet has not been invented in fear of it being a 'security nightmare'), modern cars, microwaves and dishwashers are used throughout the Reich. The German population enjoys very high living standards, at the expense of non-Germans throughout the Reich and occupied nations.
Society[edit]
The society of the German Reich is a culturally dominant people because of their victories in the Second and the Third World Wars, and German companies and organizations dominate the economies of allied and occupied nations. Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen are thriving under fascism, and Zeiss produces the Reich's computers and software. Agfa-Gevaert TV commercials for film encourage Germans to migrate to the Ostland territories, and Lufthansa covers the air.
The British Broadcasting Corporation is mentioned throughout the novel, with the Reich's counterpart being the RRG. A RRG newscaster named Horst Witzleben appears several times in the novel, his 'Seven O'clock News' being highly influential.
The Reich Genealogical Office has online genealogical records, which can define life and death to persons suspected of being Jewish. Historically, the Nazis of our history already made use of the punchcards developed by IBM in order to mark out the Jews and eventually arrest them and send them to extermination camps.[4]
Economy[edit]
The Reichsmark is the dominant world currency, and it is legal tender in the Greater German Reich, though most of the Reich's member states, territories, and allies (including the Empire of Japan, Latin America, Britain, and America) have national currencies. The Reich dictates favorable exchange rates, so the Reichsmark is readily accepted (and, apparently, welcome) even where it is not legal tender. Britain remains using its pre-decimal pound sterling currency, though the five-shilling Crown coin is struck in cheap aluminum, not silver, as 'silver' coins were at least partly made of before World War II and briefly after.
Education[edit]
School is the way with which the German Reich indoctrinates and controls the citizenry, starting in their youth. Corporal punishment is practiced in schools; it punishes actions such as disrespecting a superior, not doing one's school work, and for not knowing the correct answers to teachers' questions in the classroom. The school year occupies most of the calendar year, with the only major holidays being the end-of-the-year, two-week holiday between Christmas and the New Year, and the week-long break after Easter. The remainder of the year is school work, though one-day holidays occur infrequently.
The Hitler Jugend and Bund Deutscher Mädel are compulsory for children in the German Reich; the Nazi gender roles having changed little since their foundation. At the story's end, the Hitler Jugend implements changes towards preparing boys into becoming responsible, adult citizens rather than army conscripts.
The Reich education system is only for Germany; allied states and occupied territories control their own education systems. In the U.S., American children have long summer holidays from school, a fact German teachers emphasize as one of the reasons the German Reich defeated America.
German academics have key roles in the processes of racial discrimination and genocide. The German Institute for Racial Studies, part of Friedrich Wilhelm University, is charged with defining which peoples and ethnic groups of the 'Germanic Empire' are subhuman and so marked for genocide or slavery. At its side, as the smiling face of the Reich, is the German Institute for Foreigners (founded 1922), charged with instructing those foreigners who fortunately were classed as 'Aryans', such as Iranians and Indians, in the German language and culture.
Academic life is male-dominated. Although it is possible for a woman to have an academic career, only a few do, and they face great difficulties and must engage in daily, petty struggles to gain privileges that are granted to men. Under Reich sexism, an assertive woman might be accused that she is 'not a proper National Socialist woman'; however, such attitudes are regarded as old-fashioned and are challenged by the younger people.
Sports[edit]
In the Reich, sports are the sole province of the Aryans and are controlled by the German Federation of Sport — which favors German sportsmen over sportsmen from other states. It has the power to reserve the right to withdraw from competition with foreign teams; and to withhold the rights of foreign teams to tour the Reich when political relations sour. An example is boycotting Italian sports teams after a riot at a football match in Milan between home team fans and the visiting Leipzig team fans. Deprivation of the right to tour the Reich, and of having Reich teams visit, is financially hurtful. Germany won a recent World Cup but now is challenged by a powerful, multi-racial Brazil comprising Negroes and Native Americans, among others.
Surviving Jews[edit]
Although the Jews are considered exterminated as of the year 2010, the anti-Semiticstereotypes remain strong in popular culture and official propaganda, and they are an important part of the education imparted at school. The books of anti-Semitic author Julius Streicher (Trust No Fox in the Green Meadow, No Jew on His Oath, and The Poison Mushroom) are universal reading for German children. The hidden Jews feel obliged to buy them for their children; doing otherwise might arouse suspicion.
Jews are and are not of the society surrounding them. They must constantly play a role, parroting the prevailing anti-Semitic clichés. They keep as much of their Jewish identity as can be imparted in secret meetings among themselves, with purely oral lore, though some written Hebrew is taught. With the exception of the Bible, which can be kept openly, as Christianity, while not encouraged by the Reich, is allowed, they dare not possess books on Judaism, though such books do still exist.
All of the viewpoint characters were born under the Nazis, and maintaining the masquerade is second nature. The greatest danger is when a child is told of his or her true identity, usually at age of ten: considered old enough to keep the secret. Children often are shocked, since, like all German children, they grew up exposed to constant anti-Semitism from teachers and children's books. The adults soften the shock by teaching the children to feel privileged to belong to such a secret society.
It is mentioned that the hidden Jews regard it as too dangerous to gather on the Major Holidays and fasts of Judaism, such as Passover and Yom Kippur, and hold their secret gatherings on Minor Holidays such as Purim.
Other minorities[edit]
German industry uses Slavic, Black, and Arab slave laborers for 'dirty' or dangerous work. In one passage, an industrial accident in the Ruhr is reported on TV as having caused the deaths of 'Twelve Aryans and an unknown number of Untermenschen'.
Homosexuals are actively persecuted. Unlike Jews, Gypsies, and other 'inferior races' (which are thought to have been wiped out), homosexuals continue to arise, and are hunted by the security police unless they have political connections that protect them.
Locales[edit]
Berlin[edit]
Much of the story occurs in Berlin, the Reich capital replete with the monumental architecture of Albert Speer. An important example is the Great Hall that can house more than 100,000 people; in it was held the funeral of deceased Führer Kurt Haldweim. The Hall has a dome 200 metres high and 250 metres in diameter, it is crowned with a massive, gilded German eagle holding a swastika.
Nearby is the Führer's Palace (the official residence for the Führer) that is guarded by soldiers from the Infantry Regiment Großdeutschland, who are barracked near the Palace. Aside from security, they are a ceremonial, dress corps armed with (antique) Gewehr 98 rifles; their arsenal includes assault rifles and tanks; next is the Adolf Hitler Platz, a grand public square for rallies and such.
The Soldier's Hall commemorates the German Reich's military might, exhibiting the radioactive remains of the Liberty Bell (displayed behind lead glass), gliders used to invade Britain, the first Panzer IV to enter the Kremlin, and the railroad carriage in which Imperial Germany surrendered to the Allies in 1918, at Compiègne, France, and in which France surrendered to Nazi Germany in 1940.
The Arch of Triumph is 170 m wide and 1700 m deep, despite being modelled from the smallerArc de Triomphe in Paris; much of that city district's automobile traffic transits through this arch. Because Berlin is populous, public transport (rapid transit trains [U-bahn] and commuter railroads) is well developed; such a rail station is the 'South Station', near government offices. Per Speer's plans, this was to anchor the south end of the main boulevard with the most monumental structures. Captured enemy weapons and battle wreckage (British fighter plane; Soviet tank; US submarine conning tower), are displayed outside the station.
Berlin also is headquarters to the key government ministries for Air and Space, Justice, Interior, Transport, Food, Economics, Colonial, the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, and the Führer's Office.
The Kurfürstendamm commercial district glitters with neon signs and reflected sun light, yet these citizens of Berlin use the street's full name in their daily lives, not the abbreviated slang of the native. Nazi Berlin is a culturally-vibrant city offering resident and visitor a wildly successful musical about Churchill and Stalin and cosmopolitan cuisines, but under the Reinheitsgebot, the nation's medieval beer-purity law, Japanese beer is illegal for importation to the Reich; American fast food is a rarity, because of the American economic collapse on its World War II defeat, however eateries such as The Greasy Spoon do exist.
Culturally, the toy store Ulbright offers the children of the Reich pretty 'Vicki' dolls and the 'Landser Sepp' action figures (a boy's doll). Vicki dolls are made in the US with slave labour, and come in varieties, yet all dolls look perfectly Aryan, in abiding Reich policy.
London[edit]
Parts of the story also take place in London, the capital of Britain. In this timeline, the British people are impoverished due to the German occupation; William Shakespeare and his works are more widely known and published in Germany than in Shakespeare's homeland, partly due to Britain's economic collapse. During the Second World War, much of London was destroyed by dive bombers and panzers as well as during the last-ditch resistance by Churchill and his supporters. Key British buildings including the Parliament building, Big Ben and St Paul's Cathedral have been completely destroyed, with photographs and paintings being their only remaining legacy. Some areas of the city have been in ruins for over seventy years, due to harsh reparations imposed on the British by the Germans and partisan uprisings that would only be completely crushed by the mid 1970s. German city planners often visit Britain to see how their colleagues deal with building from the clean slate that they themselves can never have.
The Crown is a hotel that serves as the meeting place of the British Union of Fascists; as its name implies, the hotel is dominated by an enormous crown. The BUF members have a reputation of being violent thugs; a fight involving members of the party takes place outside and within the hotel. A second hotel, the Silver Eagle, is the location of the Medieval English Association conference; it bears a glass and steel eagle on its top. Both hotels are modern, glass-fronted structures.
Literary criticism and significance[edit]
Gavriel David Rosenfeld, in his work The World Hitler Never Made, notes that unlike other alternate histories that deal with a Nazi victory, In the Presence of Mine Enemies humanizes the Nazis. Rosenfeld stated this would have been impossible in earlier years where the trend was to show the Nazis in alternate histories as the 'incarnation of evil.'[5] Rosenfeld, however, noted that despite Turtledove's reputation as an acclaimed and skilled writer in alternate history, he received a lot of criticism for the novel making Rosenfeld assume that most American audiences do not wish to humanize the Nazis.[6]
Adam-Troy Castro, however, gave a good review of the novel. Though he found that the hidden Jewish characters of the novel weathered their secret life too well and compared others who live secret lives in our society (for examples homosexuals) who sometimes have to deal with incidents of self-loathing, alcoholism, drug abuse and even suicide. In the end Castro was thrilled to see at the end of the novel the main characters standing tall against an oppressive government.[2]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^'Turtledove, Harry. In the Presence of Mine Enemies'. Uchronia. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
- ^ abAdam-Troy Castro (2006). 'Off the Shelf: In the Presence of Mine Enemies'. Book review. Sci Fi Weekly. Archived from the original on 3 June 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2008.
- ^Tony Blair's full name is Anthony Charles Lynton Blair.
- ^Review of IBM and the Holocaust
- ^Rosenfeld, Gavriel (2005). The World Hitler Never Made. Cambridge University Press. p. 148. ISBN0-521-84706-0.
- ^Id. 158.
External links[edit]
- In the Presence of Mine Enemies title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
Weird Relics By Horace Black
Throughout time man has told of legends of items of great power, many have become associated with their owners or great and sometimes tragic events. From King Arthur’s Excalibur sword to the Derringer that shot President Lincoln, these items or relics have taken on a life of their own. This article is to help Marshal’s and their posse to design their own relics.
Relics Step One First and foremost come up with a concept for the relic, then a history of the item. Once the Marshal’s approval has been granted then go to step two.
Step Two The relic can be gained through the Belongin’s Edge as a 1 to 5 point edge, this determines the number of points the character has to spend on their relic or through the new Relic Edge. The Marshal might also want to use the new Cursed Relic Hindrance detailed later on.
Step Three Choose the powers for the relic by spending the relic points gained from the Belongin, or Relic Edge. If the Cursed Relic Hindrance is used then spend the points on Taints.
Once you’re done then get your Marshal’s permission to use the relic. Below is a list of powers that a relic can possess, followed by a list of taints. Note that the only way to a relic may have more than 5 points is if the relic possess Taints or Drawbacks to lower the relics cost.
New EdgeRelic Variable The hero has acquired an item of power, whether this be a family heirloom or found during one of his travels is for the player and Marshal to decide. The cost is variable based upon the powers and taints (if any) that the relic possesses.
New HindranceCursed Relic Variable The character possesses an item that carries great evil with it. This relic can have useful powers but the character only gets points for it if the points are in the negative. He gets a number of points equal to the negative value of the relic. Also, the hero must use the relic, if he tries to get rid of it or destroy it, it will reform and mysteriously appear on his person.
Powers
Aptitude Bonus 1-5 A relic with this power adds a bonus equal to the relic power on any none weapon aptitude. Also, it will not add to an aptitude used for arcane purposes, thus it wouldn’t add anything to a Blessed Faith roll for Miracles but would work for other Faith rolls.
Arcane Magnet 5 A relic with Arcane Magnet can tap into the special powers of the Hunting Ground, augmenting an Arcane Background the character possesses. This only helps one Arcane Background, which must be chosen when the power is selected. If the relic owner is successful in his roll to use an arcane power then it’s as if he rolled +5 higher or one hand better, whichever is more applicable.
Armor Piercing 1-5 A weapon relic with the Armor Piercing power can ignore 1 level of armor for each point spent on this power.
Athletic Coordination 3/5 A relic with the Athletic Coordination power increases the owners overall coordination increasing his Nimbleness die step by +1 for 3 points and +2 steps for 5 points; this enhanced Nimbleness can increase beyond d12.
Bane 1-3 When this item is used against a particular group or creature, it does an extra 2 dice of damage, this power only works on weapon relics. The value of this power depends on the frequency the target creature or group is encountered in your campaign. Your Marshal has the call on the value of this particular effect.
Bleeder 3 This weapon causes the flesh to rip in such a way that opponents lose blood faster than the normal rate and requires a Hard (9) medicine roll to stop the bleeding. Thus those suffering serious wound lose 2 Wind a round instead of the standard 1 Wind. When dealing with miscreants or abominations that use Hits instead of wound levels, the sword deals +2 damage on each hit instead.
Ch’i Channeler 1-5 The martial artist can store his Strain into the item which must be generated thru meditation, just as normal Strain. The item will hold 1 point of Strain for every point put into this power.
Decapitator 4 A weapon with the Decapitator power seeks to take an opponent’s head off. With this power each raise has a +/- 2 modifier to hit location to hit the Noggin (instead of +/- 1 modifier). The Decapitator power may not be taken with the Heart Seeker power.
Enhanced Strength 3/5 The relic gives the hero enhanced strength, while worn or used. For 2 points in Enhanced Strength the warrior's Strength Trait is increased by +1 and for 4 points her Strength is increased by +2. This only used to calculate damage, not for other purposes such as lifting, etc…
Epic 5 This relic has been around so long or used in such a way, that it now the ability to alter destiny itself. The relic has special powers that require a Fate Chip to activate, using a White, Red, Blue or Legend Chip. Upon choosing this power the player picks a White, Red, Blue and Legend Power, some examples are listed below.
White Chips
• The relic allows the hombre to heal a light wound on him or another, when a White Chip is spent. • The weapon does an additional +2 points of damage for every White Chip spent. Multiple chips can be spent after a successful hit has been scored.
• When a White Chip is spent the relic glows with a holy light for 3 rounds. While the relic is glowing evil creatures must make an Onerous (7) Spirit roll in order to attack the owner.
• For every White Chip spent the hero gains a +2 to his Guts roll. This power can be invoked after the total for the roll has been determined.
• Spending a White Chip allows the hero to re-roll a hit location with a weapon attack. He can take his choice of the rolls.
• With a White Chip the hero may re-roll a Vigor check, as long as the first roll wasn’t a botch.
• The hombre gains a +5 to his next Quickness roll for the rolling of initiative only, when a White Chip is spent.
• The hero gains a +2 to a Dodge roll for every White Chip spent, the chips may be spent after the roll is calculated.
• For every White Chip spent the hero’s opponents suffer a +1 target number penalty to effect him in a supernatural way, such as with black magic, miracles, or even huckster powers. The effect lasts for 10-rounds.
Red Chips
• The hero may re-roll a dodge, taking the higher of the two rolls by spending a Red Chip. This power doesn’t work if the first roll is a botch.
• When a Red Chip is spent the hero gets to roll an Onerous (7) Spirit roll. If successful she can tell where a creature he is fighting is most physically vulnerable. The exact effects of this are up to your Marshal. It doesn’t reveal supernatural weaknesses, like those of a Servitor, however.
• When a Red Chip is spent the relic becomes invisible to all except the hero. This last up to 24 hours or until the relic is used whichever comes first.
• The relic bestows the ability to move very quickly, giving a +8 to the hero’s Pace and +5 to all Quickness rolls whenever a Red Chip is spent. This effect only lasts for one round.
• This weapon does magical as well as physical damage, when a Red Chip is spent. This ability lasts for 5-rounds.
• This relic renews the hero’s health, allowing him to restore all his lost wind whenever a Red Chip is spent.
• When a Red Chip is spent the relic glows with a holy light for 3 4 rounds. This light has a radius equal to the hero’s faith in yards and creatures of evil must make an Onerous (7) Spirit roll in order to enter the circle of light.
• The relic allows the hombre to heal a heavy wound on him or another, when a Red Chip is spent.
Blue Chips
• When a Blue Chip is spent the hero can choose where a weapon attack hits. This of course can be done after a successful hit.
• When a Blue Chip is spent the relic glows with a holy light for 3 rounds. This light has a radius equal to the hero’s Faith in yards and creatures of evil must make a Hard (9) Spirit roll in order to enter the circle of light. Evil creatures that succeed and enter into the area covered by the light suffer 1d6 Wind per round.
• The relic allows the hombre to heal a serious wound on him or another, when a Blue Chip is spent.
• Whenever a Blue Chip is spent the hero gains an additional attack with a weapon, each action. This effect lasts for one round.
• The hero may spend a Blue Chip to counter a White or Red Chip spent by another posse member or the Marshal.
• When a Blue Chip is spent the relic emits a sonic boom, causing all those within hearing to make a Hard (9) Vigor check or be stunned. The relic user is immune to the sonic booms effect.
• Upon a successful hit, the hero can spend a Blue Chip doing an additional 2d8 points in electrical damage.
• A swirling mist of darkness is created around the hero, causing anyone who attacks him to suffer a -10 penalty to his or her rolls. This effect only occurs when a Blue Chip is spent and lasts for 5 rounds.
• The relic disburses a blast of light when a Blue Chip is spent. All those looking at the hombre must make a Hard (9) Vigor roll or be blinded for 1d6 rounds.
• When a Blue Chip is spent up to 3 levels of armor can be ignored on the target of the relic’s attack. This effect lasts for a 5-rounds.
Legend Chips
• On his next action, the hero gets 1 extra attack for each level of his Fightin’ or Shootin’ Aptitude, depending on which one he is using for his attack, when a Legend Chip is spent.
• The hero can break the relic (destroying it in the process) and spends a Legend Chip to cause the 2d6 in d20’s to himself and all within a 50 yards radius. This damage is magical in nature and is considered massive.
• By spending a Legend Chip the hombre calls down a rain of fire upon the target, doing 5d10 points of massive damage. The range is line of sight and the hero must make an Onerous (7) Spirit roll for this power to be successful.
• When a Legend Chip is spent the relic glows with a holy light for 3 5 rounds. This light has a radius equal to the hero’s faith in yards and creatures of evil must make an Incredible (11) Spirit roll in order to enter the circle of light. Evil creatures that make it into the light suffer the hero’s faith in damage for each round that they are within the light.
• The relic allows the hero to heal a critical wound on her or another, when a Legend Chip is spent.
• The hero can re-roll any relic related roll without fear of losing the Legend Chip.
• By spending a Legend Chip a successful attack against the hero becomes a miss or a failure.
• When a Legend Chip is spent the relic causes weapon damage to double. Roll damage twice as if the target had been hit two times and add the damage together.
• The relic causes an attack to automatically hits when a Legend Chip is spent and the target is within range. This ability is only good for one attack each time a Legend Chip is spent.
• When a Legend Chip is spent the hero can completely ignore an opponent’s armor, for one attack only.
Extended Range 1/3 Like the famous last words of that Union officer “They couldn’t hit an elephant from this ran….(BLAM). This power increases the range of a missile weapon relic, +5 yards for 1 point and +10 yards for 3 points.
Flaming Weapon 4 The melee weapon relic becomes engulfed in flames at the hero’s command. The flame causes an additional damage of 2d8 (which is calculated separately from the weapon damage) and most armors do not protect from fire damage. Also the flame provides some light and ignites flammable material.
Greater Blessing 3/5 This relic is blessed so that it adds to the Blessed Faith roll for all Miracles, +1 for 3 points and +2 for 5 points.
Greater Mojo 3/5 This item grants the Huckster, Metal Mage or Shootist a +1 (for 3 points) or a +2 (for 5 points) to all his hexslingin’ rolls.
Heart Seeker 2 This weapon relic seeks out the victim’s vital areas and weak spots. A relic with the Heart Seeker power gains a +/- 2 for every raise (instead of just +/-
on the attack roll. Heart Seeker power may not be taken with the Decapitator power.
Heightened Reflexes 2 The relic allows its user to quickly glimpse snippets of the future, allowing her a +2 bonus to vamoose rolls for dodge and fightin’ for active defenses.
Illumination 1 The relic puts off a soft yellow light when displayed and the owner wishes. This light is adjustable at the hero’s will with a maximum radius of 3 yards.
Indestructible 2 This item cannot be destroyed short of some unusual circumstance, which is determined by the Marshal. Examples might be a sword that has to be reworked from the original forge or a book that has to be torn apart by an Angel. Note that this power cannot be taken for an item that by its very nature is destroyed in its use.
Lesser Blessing 1-5 This item adds a +2 modifier/ point to the Blessed Faith roll on one Miracle (which must be determined when the power is chosen).
Lesser Mojo 1-5 This item grants the Huckster, Metal Mage or Shootist a +2 modifier/point to one hex (that must be chosen when Lesser Mojo power is taken).
Lightning Speed 2 This relic weapon almost leaps into the owner’s hand, giving the hero a +4 to his quick draw skill when drawing this weapon.
Lion Heart 3 This power fills the hombre with courage and inner strength thus increasing the hero’s Spirit by +1 die type when drawn.
Major Medicine 3/5 An item with Major Medicine adds a +1 (for 3 points) or +2 (for 5 points) to all the Shaman’s ritual rolls.
Master Arcane Apprentice 3/5 This relic reveals even more mysterious of the universe and aids Mad Scientist in their studies, either giving a +1 (for 3 points) or +2 (for 5 points) to all their Mad Science rolls.
Minor Arcane Apprentice 1-5 This relic contains many secrets to the arcane world and can aid Mad Scientist in their twisted inventions. An item with the Minor Arcane Apprentice power will add a +1/point modifier to his Mad Science rolls but only on one type of device which must be selected when the power is chosen. Types of devices would be weapons, vehicles, alchemy, etc.
Minor Medicine 1-5 An item with Minor Medicine adds a +1 modifier/point the Shaman’s ritual roll for one ritual (which must be chosen when Minor Medicine is chosen). The item should reflect the ritual but isn’t required.
Missile Deflection 3 This melee weapon relic in the hands of the hero can move with incredible speed so as to block bullets and hero to make a fightin': (chosen weapon) vamoose against arrows, spears, and other thrown missile attacks, while the relic is drawn. The power can even be used against bullets and similar high velocity weapons, but the hero trying to block those attacks gets a –5 penalty to his fightin’: (chosen weapon) roll to do so.
Noble Countenance 3 The relic bestows a sense of nobility upon the owner. Whenever the relic is carried openly the hombre’s Mien die type increases by +1 (thus a character with 3d8 Mien draws wears the relic with the Noble Countenance power then his Mien would become 3d10 while the it is openly displayed.)
Pacts More Punch 3/5 The Pacts More Punch power increases the damage type of the relic. For 3 points the relic’s base damage is raised by +1 (thus a STR+2d8 sword becomes a STR+2d10 sword) and for 5 points the relic’s damage type is raised by +2.
Sense 2 This relic when worn or used can sense emotions, people or items. The relic sense must be chosen with this power. Examples are undead, hucksters, guns, anger, etc. It has a range of 10 yards radius in its ability to sense.
Totem 1-5 This device is some way connected with the great animal spirits and will store Appeasement points generated by the Shaman. It will store 1 Appeasement point for every point spent into this power.
Vitality 1-5 This relic fills the hero with supernatural energy giving him an additional point of Wind for each level of Vitality the relic possesses.
Warriors Soul 1 Part of the souls of the warriors who used the relic in the past remain within. This allows the wielder to draw upon their skill, giving a +2 bonus to fightin’: (Chosen Weapon) Aptitude rolls.
Witch Hunter 5 The relic causes additional Wind damage to any creature or person hit with the arcane backgrounds: huckster or witch and those using black magic spells. To these people the relic causes wind equal to the hero’s faith roll vs. the opponents faith roll, with the target taking the difference in Wind. If the target rolls higher than the hombre then no additional wind damage is taken. This wind damage is in addition to damage the relic causes.
Taints Some relics have picked up taints. Taints are defects and are used to reduce the cost of the relic. Below is a list of taints and the number of points off the relic cost.
Aura of Gloom 1 Whenever a power of the relic the is used then lights dim and an aura of darkness seems to surround the hero. This has no major game effects, but draws a whole lot of attention to the owner and makes him stand out like a sore thumb.
Bad Karma 5 There is a price to pay for these powers and that is that no Fate Chips can be spent while the relic is worn or used. For obvious reasons this Taint cannot be taken with the Epic power.
Blood Drinker 3 When the relic is used or worn it must taste blood. If the owner doesn’t draw blood from another creature (causing at least a Light wound level) and feed it to the relic, then he suffers 2d8 points of damage to his guts.
Chills 1/3 This relic feeds itself on fear, the hero suffers a –2 to Guts rolls for 1 point. For 3 points the relic also causes those with 5 yards radius of the owner to suffer a –2 to their Guts rolls.
Corrupter Variable When used, one of the relic’s powers gives the owner a Corruption point. Once the hero’s Corruption points exceed his Spirit die, bad things begin to happen. For every point past his Spirit die he gains the following Hindrances: Bloodthirsty, Mean as a Rattler, Death Wish and finally Vengeful, once all these Hindrances are gained he becomes an Abomination and falls completely under the Marshal’s control, becoming a non-player villain. Spending a Legend Chip can reduce a character’s total Corruption points by 1. If the power is constantly in effect the player can choose not to use it to avoid a Corruption point. The points gained by this taint are equal to one less than the cost of the power that is corrupted.
Cursed 5 The owner of the relic is cursed with Bad Luck as the Hindrance. If the owner has the Bad Luck Hindrance, then she is extremely unlucky. This means a failed roll is equal to a botch and a botch is really bad.
Possession 3 The relic is home to a powerful demon that’s trying very hard to escape. Every time the relic is used, the Marshal draws a card (read as you would for a manitou). The warrior must then make an opposed Spirit roll vs. the demons. If the demon wins, it takes over for a number of rounds per success and raises it got in the opposed roll. If the sword wielder is also a Harrowed, he suffers a –2 to his Spirit roll to resist the sword demon.
Plague 4 This relic contains the twisted souls that seek to slowly kill the owner. Whenever the relic is used, the user must make a Fair (5) Vigor roll or pick up the Ailin’: Minor Hindrance. If the wielder already has Ailin’: Minor, the malady increases to Ailin’: Chronic and finally to Ailin’:Fatal. Once Ailin’: Fatal is reached, the user gains a cumulative –1 to the Vigor roll to resist the illness at the beginning of each session.
Soul Drain 3-5 The relic draws energy from the owner’s soul. Every round the relic is used, he loses Wind. For 3 points, he loses 1 Wind/round; 4 points cost him 2 Wind/round; and 5 points is 3 Wind/round. Wind lost in this fashion is replenished normally.
Souls of the Damned Variable The relic contains the souls of the damned and taints the hero’s very soul. The relic’s owner has a Harrowed Hindrance (from the Book o' the Dead, except for Haunted) with the point cost equal to the Hindrance cost.
Wrath 2-4 This relic causes its owner to be filled with Wrath against a particular group of people or an organization. Whenever he sees one of these people, he must make an Incredible (11) Spirit roll or immediately attack. The Marshal makes the decision on the point value based on how common the target group is in her campaign. If the relic’s owner has intolerance against the same people group, he suffers a –4 to his Spirit roll to resist the rage.