General Terms:

Affinities: Small supernatural powers that are the "deathright" of every Wraith, and allow them to go about their ghostly business. It is said that Numina are natural outgrowths of these basic abilities, but hard facts are hard to come by in the world of the dead.

Anchors: People, places and things that were massively important to Ghosts and Wraiths during their life, or else formed an integral part of their death, and are keeping them from moving on.

Angst: The permanent power of the Shadow. The more Angst a Shadow has, the more powers it can offer a Wraith in Shadowstate, and the more dice it can offer a Wraith to "help" on a roll. Also, the amount of Angst forms an upper cap on how high a Wraith's Morality can go.

Arisen: The state of being a fully-aware Ghost, as opposed to a Sleeper.

Art: A specific Numina power. All Numina have one "Basic" Art {*}, which forms the backbone of the Numen in question. Various different applications branch out from that core understanding, going from ** all the way to *****, and possibly even beyond...

Artifacts: A catch-all term applied to functional objects that come from beyond The Barrier. They all seem to be made of black metal, and are molded in a strange, baroque fashion, so that they appear somewhat alien. Some are even "alive," in a sense...

Asleep: Used to describe a Ghost who is unaware of being one, either because she's still a Sleeper, or has Woken Up but hasn't been told the truth yet. Also used as an insult towards foolish or stupid Wraiths.

Barrier, The: The invisible "wall" that separates the world of the living, which Ghosts and Wraiths inhabit, from The Spirit World beyond. Some entities - such as Reapers, Ferrymen and The Damned - are capable of crossing from the Spirit World to here, and back again. Ghosts and Wraiths can only make the trip once, though, and are never seen again.

Believers: A loose "Concord" of Wraiths who firmly believe that Paradise waits beyond the Barrier. They tend to be a fractious bunch, but most groups of Believers tend to agree on listening to the Ferrymen, Resolving their Anchors and upholding the Injunction.

Charun: The Emperor of the Underworld, leader of The Ferrymen and soverign king of all Wraiths. He laid down the Injunction in the wake of the Sundering, and bid his Ferrymen to form The Order to be His voice in the land of the dead.

Concord: A social group of Wraiths who hold certain, shared - or enforced - beliefs on death and their role in it. Some are very loose confederations, split into competing groups who are "together" only because of mutual enemies, while others are very unified in view and action {in theory, anyway...}

The Concord: (1) The timeperiod following the forming of The Order by Charon's agents. (2) The Order is more properly called The Concord, which is why the other Concords are refered to as Concords.

Consort: A mortal that a Wraith has spiritually "bonded" with, by expending effort and energy. Certain Numina are easier, or at least less-costly, to perform on or around a Consort, and a Wraith can extend her senses out to sense the environs of the mortal. A Wraith can also use a Consort as an "Anchor" of sorts, allowing her to travel far from her real Anchors without the penalties normally associated with that.

Corpus: The "physical" substance that makes up a Wraith's body, and a measure of their Spiritual togetherness. Corpus is formed by a Wraith's residual self-image, which usually conforms with how they saw their body in life. Altering one's Corpus in a radical fashion requires the use of Numina.

The Damned: A Ghost or Wraith completely lost to goodness and sanity that has become an insane, amoral and evil thing. When someone becomes one of The Damned, she disappears across The Barrier, and then comes back across to indulge outrageous and murderous drives. Wraiths rightly fear such creatures, and are under standing orders to destroy them.

Dark Walkers: Cunning and vicious killers from beyond The Barrier. They seem to be Ferrymen, when seen from a distance, but are given away by the fact that they can't talk. They seem to exist just to try and destroy Wraiths and Ghosts, but tend to flee from the Ferrymen.

Day of Dominion: The prophesied time when The Barrier shall break down, and the Spirit World shall be opened to the dead once more, so that all may come to the Underworld, and Paradise, under the reign of Charun. Also known as Dominion Day.

Essence: A Wraith's spiritual power, which she can use to heal herself and fuel her Numina. A Wraith with no Essence has no energy, and must either spend a point of Corpus to gain back a point of Essence, or else get to an Anchor to replenish herself.

Essence Pool: The maximum amount of Essence a Wraith can carry within her. A Wraith's Essence pool is made up of whatever she has in the Essence trait {equal to starting Willpower}, plus one for each dot she has in Anchors. So a Wraith with an Essence of 5 who has a full 10 dots in Anchors can have up to 15 Essence. It is possible to go above that number, in certain circumstances, but these are almost always costly and dangerous.

Ferrymen, The: Enigmatic and powerful beings who claim to come from the other side of The Barrier. They appear to Wraiths and speak of a better place that lies on the other side of the Barrier - a realm of final peace and deliverance. They call upon Wraiths to let go of their Anchors and follow them back to the other side, but few heed their call.

Ferrymen are also known to destroy the Damned on sight, and have a great deal of skill and prowess - and strange, black weaponry - to bring to bear for this unpleasant task. No one has ever seen a Ferryman lose against one of the Damned, no matter how large they may be, or how many there are.

Freewraiths: A loose "Concord" mostly comprised of Wraiths who think the Ferrymen are lying - or at least not telling the whole truth - and The Order are a bunch of fascists. Others just want to live by their own rules, rather than the Injunction. Some fight the power, some lay low, and others just thumb their noses at "the man."

The Fugue: The dreamy, half-awake state that a Sleeper endures while still in her Shroud.

Ghost: More or less what it sounds like - the spirit of a deceased person that is bound to the land of the living for some reason. This term can be used to include Sleepers and Wraiths, along with other creatures which exist in the same, ethereal state.

Haunters: A Concord made of those Wraiths who think their true purpose is to frighten the living. They delight in scaring, driving off and even slaughtering the living - sometimes for pay, and sometimes because they like it. Their activities do not make them popular with other Wraiths.

The Injunction: The five rules handed down by Charun, Emperor of the Underworld. All Wraiths are supposed to follow this code, and The Order and The Ferrymen uphold it as best as they can. Meanwhile, some Concords break it as a daily course.

The Land of the Dead: The reality that Ghosts and Wraiths inhabit, which lays beside the land of the living.

Messengers: A Concord made of Wraiths who believe that have been tasked to save lives. They act as invisible (or very visible) guardian angels and saviors for mortals.

Numen (pl. Numina): One of the arcane powers of the dead.

The Order: This Concord - the first - is a quasi-religious society that hews to, and enforces, the Injunction. They see themselves as the shepherds of the dead, and servants of Charon. Others have less charitable opinions.

Ossify: A strange, creeping physical and mental paralysis that happens to Wraiths who "give up." Fully Ossified Wraiths often resemble statues, and are considered to be "Sleepers" in terms of the Injunction.

Paradise: What awaits on the other side of The Barrier, in the Spirit World, according to both the Ferrymen and the Believers.

Pardoners: A martial Concord that see themselves as warriors of the soul. They patrol in search of Wraiths who need their spiritual aid, ever on the lookout for The Lost and The Damned. And they'll save you, whether you want it or not.

Projectors: Living beings who can send their souls out of their bodies, and into the land of the dead.

Reapers: Strange creatures from beyond The Barrier who hunt Wraiths and Ghosts, seemingly for sport. Any souls they capture are taken back across The Barrier with them, and are never seen again. Reapers almost always carry Artifacts with them.

Shadowland: A place where the worlds of the living and the dead are so close that they actually overlap. Shadowlands can be both naturally-ocurring and purposely-created, and can be made by man and ghost.

Shadowstate: A state of being where the Wraith's Shadow actually helps her out by placing its Thorns at her disposal.

The Shroud: The flimsy, ethereal membrane that covers Sleepers from head to foot. No one is certain if it is the cause, or a byproduct, of the Fugue. Removing the Shroud from a Sleeper wakes her up, and some Sleepers have been known to Arise on their own.

Sleeper: A Ghost still in her Shroud. They are in a dreamy, half-awake stupor, and are not fully aware of their surroundings. Sleepers aren't always aware that they are dead, and repeat certain moments of their lives over and over again. They can respond to stimuli, but tend to go back "asleep" once the excitement dies down.

Solitaries: Wraiths who don't belong to a Concord, or steadfastly refuse to join one. They tend to be unpopular, and looked upon as poor cousins.

The Spirit World: Whatever lies beyond The Barrier. The exact nature of the Spirit World is subject to fierce debate, especially amongst Believers and The Order. The Ferrymen refuse to talk about it, other than to say that Paradise awaits there.

Storm: In terms of the land of the dead, a Storm is a terrible, near-volcanic eruption from the Spirit World, where dangerous winds and legions of The Damned spill out of holes in ghostly reality. These do a lot of damage, and are thankfully rare. The only way to protect oneself from a Storm is through the use of Numina, in a Shroud, or Ossified.

The Sundering: The great Storm of ages past that pushed The Spirit World away from the land of the living, and created The Barrier. Everything that has happened since The Sundering is said to have taken place during The Concord.

Tainted Essence: The free-floating power that the Shadow collects for Itself. These can be used to fuel Its powers, and offer dice to "help" Its Wraith. If the amount of Tainted Essence ever goes past a Wraith's Morality, the Shadow has a chance to trade it all in for a dot of permanent power, known as Angst.

Thorns: Powers the Shadow can use to affect ghostly reality around the Wraith. These are often used to confuse the Wraith - making her doubt her senses, or distrust her friends - so she'll rely on the Shadow, instead.

Wraith: A fully-aware Ghost, and the protagonists of this particular game. They are fully fleshed-out characters, as opposed to Sleepers, who function under much stricter parameters {and much simpler rules}. Most Wraiths were once Sleepers, but woke up due to one reason or another.

Old Form:

Atran (pl. Atranes): The name the middle-management priests of The Order use amongst themselves.

Arcanos (pl. Arcanoi): The old name for a Numen (pl. Numina), which dates back to the Old Times.

Charontes: An ancient term for The Damned, most often used by The Ferrymen, or those who work closely with them.

The Concord: The proper term for The Order. It has slowly fallen out of favor due to every other socio-political faction amongst the dead also being refered to as Concords. Sometimes refined as The First Concord.

Haruspex: One who is skilled in using the Numina of Fate.

Lucomun (pl. Lucomones): The name the highest priests of The Order use amongst themselves.

Truna: An ancient name for Essence.

Underworld: The more "proper" name for the Spirit World, used by Ferrymen and the priests of The Order. Most Wraiths prefer to use "Spirit World," since it sounds more gentle.

Modern Slang:

Boo -Job: Trying to scare the living. This is most often used in the context of getting someone else to do it for you: "I offered to cast lots for him if he did a boo job for me."

Dark Angels: The Ferrymen, according to people who don't trust them.

Day Trippers: What Wraiths tend to call Projectors.

Do-Gooder: A derogatory way to refer to Wraiths who go around Waking Up Sleepers. This title is applied whether the Wraiths in question are acting from unselfish motives or not.

Frighteners: The most common nick-name for the Haunters, and the only one they have no problems overhearing. Repeating the others in their presence is asking for real trouble...

G.D.I (God-Damn Independents): Often used to refer rudely to Freewraiths and, increasingly, to Solitaries as well.

Halo Hunters: A name applied to any Wraith who does a lot of good for the living, seemingly overcompensating for sins real or imagined. Often applied to the Messengers.

Juice: The street name for Essence, most often used by those trying to refuel themselves. "Damn, I need some more Juice."

Meat Puppet: A mortal that is the "property" of someone, via Bios, Regis or some other Numina.

Rabble: People who don't belong to The Order, according to loyal members of the first Concord.

Shotgun Priests: One of many rude name for the Pardoners, who do tend to live up to it. In fact, it's said that they started the name's use, themselves.

Soul-Gestapo: One of the less rude names for The Order, often used by people who see the First Concord as fascists.

Walking Dude: A recent term for a Dark Walker. Also used to refer to a Ferryman, girded for war, that's headed your way.

The Wall: Another way to refer to The Barrier, common amongst Wraiths who died during the Cold War {or Pink Floyd fans}.

Zealots: A rude name for the Believers, usually applied by people who don't believe in Paradise and/or hate the Ferrymen.