Among the many "ghost stories" that Orpheus Group investigated was the phenomenon of zombies ­ the walking dead. Every so often there would be news of a grave dug up from the inside, or tales of someone whom everyone knew to be dead walking around. Some even claimed to have talked with these "arisen," and heard things that chilled the blood...

The company never found out the truth about the matter, though. They had many other, more pressing cases to command their attention. And given what they knew about the spirit world, they tended to put post-mortem appearances down as Manifestation.{Actual returns from the dead, meanwhile, were filed under "zombification," long since proven by science to be the result of pufferfish toxin in small amounts.}

However, Orpheus was wrong. It was possible for a ghost to return to her body and bring it back to life, after a fashion. It was a rare thing, and became rarer still after the night most ghosts vanished. But it happened often enough for these returned ghosts to have a special name given to them: The Risen.

And as matters have worsened, and things have gotten stranger ­ and much more deadly in the spirit world ­ more and more of these "Risen" are coming out of the ground. It may only be a matter of time before members of the Crucible encounter one of these creatures.

Or join them...

Advantages:

The greatest advantage a Risen has over a ghost is a physical body, and a damn tough one at that. It can handle damage much better than a ghost or spook, and ignores things that would incapacitate or kill a living being.

For Hues, Rising provides not only a tougher body, which they can use to wreak havoc amongst the living, but a stable "base" they can use while skimming through the afterlife. So long as they maintain a connection to their regained body ­ however dangerous that connection can be ­ they can act as though they were a Skimmer, albeit with a few modifications

As for Spirits, once they have Risen, they are trapped in the flesh until they choose to return to the lands of the dead. But while they are in that dead flesh, they keep their worst nightmare contained: their Dopplegangers must come along with them, thus making sure it can do no harm behind their backs.

Disadvantages:

The chief disadvantage for Risen is Spite. All gains of Spite have an extra dot added on, due to the nature of being Risen, and they cannot ever lose Spite while a Risen. They are also limited in the Horrors they can use while in the flesh, and some of the ones they can use operate under handicap.

Hues cannot regain Vitality through resting while a Risen. They also cannot use their Stains while in the body, negating one of their primary advantages.

Spirits, meanwhile, must not only worry about increased Spite, but must also be wary of the Doppleganger that came with them. While it no longer has independent action, it is capable of whispering in the Risen's ear, and offering her Vitality in exchange for dark "favors." And if it tires of the game it might try to throw them both out of the body they share.

What To Do With Them:

Storytellers might wonder why they should have Risen in their Orpheus Chronicle. The setting, as presented, is rich enough without having to introduce the concept. And there is also the danger that, much like the old-style Risen from Wraith: the Oblivion, having the option of coming back as a Risen will encourage the players to do so, if only to kick major ass.

One reason is to give formerly live characters another chance at "life." Some players have a problem playing a ghost, for whatever reason, and might elect to drop an otherwise-good character just because she died. So Rising gives Skimmers or Sleepers who lost their lives during the attack on Orpheus' offices ­ or at any other time during the Chronicle ­ a way out of their situation.

Another reason is to give ghost characters a way to come back for heavy-duty vengeance, or to do things that a Spirit or Hue finds extremely costly. Vitality is both power and life to a ghost, and both can be taken away quite easily while Manifesting and then using Horrors. Having a real body again cuts down on the overall cost, and allows the ghost to do more with the limited "health" and energy it has.

Likewise, a Risen need not be a player character. The antics of such a person might make for an intriguing Mission ­ one that would take the Crucible beyond what they're used to. Any Risen they encounter in this fashion could pose a problem to solve, and then become either a dangerous adversary or valued friend, or at least a Contact. And if any of the Crucible would care to learn how to Rise, herself, this person could be turned to.

On the other hand, one of the adversaries of the Crucible might come back to bedevil the characters in this fashion. A rampaging ghost that wants to kill your character is bad enough, but a rampaging Risen is another thing altogether. Especially if your Crucible was responsible for her death...