Rank 3 Uktena Gift
Sometimes, death is the only way out. But that doesn’t mean you want to stay that way. With this Gift, the Uktena may appear dead, following the expected progression (lividity, rigor, etc.) well enough to fool a forensics team. While “dead,” the Uktena is in a muted state, unable to move; his senses are still active but dulled and dreamlike. The danger is reviving, as the effort required to return to the living increases with time, and eventually the character is no longer feigning. An opossum-spirit teaches this Gift.
System: It takes a Gnosis point, a Wits + Occult roll (difficulty 6) and three turns to “die.” Once in a state of “death,” the body cools and exhibits all the normal signs of death at the proper rate of progression for environmental conditions (Players would do well to look through a forensics manual for hints). To realize something isn’t right, observers must make a Perception + Investigation roll (difficulty 7) and achieve at least the same number of successes the “dead” werewolf achieved. A view from the Penumbra shows the spirit still resides in the body, but appears to be in some kind of Slumber. During this death trance, the Uktena need not breathe, but fire and such can still hurt him badly. Physical wounds do not bleed until the trance is lifted, but neither do they heal.
The character may hear, smell, and see (assuming his eyes are open) while in the death trance, but all rolls to perceive anything are at +2 difficulty.
The Death Trance Gift lasts as long as the Uktena wishes. However, to wake at any time during the first day requires a successful Willpower roll difficulty 4 (to fully revive requires three turns, plus one turn per day spent in a death state). Every day after that the difficulty increases by 1. If the Garou fails to wake in time, he must wait a day before trying again (although the Storyteller may make allowances, such as friends trying to wake him, or he finds himself on a pyre). After a number of days equal to the character’s permanent Gnosis rating, his spirit slips loose from the husk and the character dies. As it is, some Uktena have eventually figured out they were being buried, but weren’t able to care enough to do anything about it for a long time.
Source: Tribebook: Uktena (revised)
