M U T A T I O N - R E Q U E S T
Introduction:
Hakon's Grave has reacted to the man's frequent violent encounters and bloodthirstiness with a thirst of its own: his nightorch demands vitescence, and is not picky about the source. If there are no souls to engulf, it will happily feed from Hakon himself. His nightorch readily absorbs souls with little encouragement from him, needing almost no effort or ether on his part to Engulf, but every other ability requires more from him than it would a normal Grave practitioner, and he finds his nightorch seems to passively consume what's placed inside of it. Like a leaky bucket, it needs to be topped off with his own vitescence unless he can provide it significant sustenance. He must offer it at least three human souls per season to keep it from drawing on his own vitescence. If it not fed a soul for too long, he will lose his vitality and vigor, become withered, grey, and joyless, become frail, become ill, and eventually be confined by his nightorch.
Additionally, his distaste for magic will color his ability to master many of Grave's techniques. As he progresses through Grave, he will be locked out of the ability to channel vitescence into dead targets for the purposes of reanimating or controlling them. He will be barred from using Agony, Gloam, Nightshade, Ghast, Dark Knight, and Effigy. In return, his use of Winnow will change and will scale with his mastery of Grave.
Novice:
- Engulf: Hakon's nightorch uses this ability readily, with less effort and less ether necessary from him than from the average Engraver.
- Imbue: Hakon's tether is blue, not white, and the ability chills the target.
- Agony: Hakon cannot use this ability.
Apprentice:
- Spectate: Unaffected
- Hound: Unaffected
- Winnow: Unaffected, but subsequent attainment will affect and improve the base ability. His hand will glow blue, not black, and white flecks that look a bit like snow will fall from his hand as he uses the ability. Winnow takes marginally more ether for Hakon to use compared to a normal Engraver, and this scales up with each version of Winnow he attains, with the distance between himself and the ability, and with how much he is draining from a target.
Journeyman:
- Burnbright: Burnbright requires a contribution of Hakon's own vitescence to function but can be supplemented with supply from his nightorch should there be any available. Hakon's burnbright glows blue and affected targets are cooled by it, not warmed.
- Gloam: Hakon cannot use this ability.
- Unmold: Hakon cannot use this ability.
- Winnow (Journeyman): Hakon can now use Winnow to channel vitescence into his lantern for later use rather than immediately expending it. Winnow's efficiency and speed inceases, and continuous use on a target can sap them of vitality and vigor within several minutes of use.
Expert:
- Repose: This ability is unaffected by Hakon's mutation
- Nightshade: Hakon cannot use this ability
- Ghast: Hakon cannot use this ability
- Winnow (Expert): Hakon can use Winnow on any target within 25m as long as they remain in sight. It requires continuous concentration to do so. Winnow's efficiency and speed increases, and continuous use on a target can noticeably impair their ability to do strenuous activities or concentrate within minutes.
Master:
- Brightbane: This ability requires a contribution of Hakon's own vitescence to use. The lines that form between Hakon and Brightbane's intended recipients are blue, and they feel palpably cold as they are healed by him. The longer they are impacted by Brightbane, the more chilled they feel.
- Dark Knight: Hakon cannot use this ability
- Effigy: Hakon cannot use this ability
- Winnow (Master): Hakon can use Winnow on any target within sight at up to 50m with fewer constraints. He still needs to maintain concentration, but he can perform the ability while moving and performing other basic actions, like swinging a mace or using a shield. Anything requiring careful concentration (eg balancing on the edge of a cliff, suturing a wound) will break his concentration and interrupt Winnow. Winnow's efficiency and speed increases. It is now possible for Hakon to drain a target of vitescence completely within minutes, killing them and freeing their soul for his nightorch.
