The divine forces flowing through creation are not for anyone to control, let alone monsters like you. The faithful who call upon their power learned long ago one does not command the divine; you beseech them to intercede on your behalf, to loan you a measure of their power, in exchange for penance and servitude. For those who would be content with the tiniest mote of power, they find they can be gifted with a sudden and powerful flood of energy that gives them not just what they need but the ability to help more than just one individual at a time. The cost is great, but one does not join the Jeremiad without being prepared to sacrifice much of what makes one inhumanly powerful.
Summoning a miracle leaves a mark on the land around it. Those who summon forth a ray of healing light find the area continues to glow long after the light has stopped. The crumbs left over from the feast summoned forth from a few loaves of bread and fishes continue to nourish those who eat them and never grow stale. This is a highly visible act that may attract attention, but for those who have found their fervor, it does not matter. They want to spread the good word to all who can accept it into their hearts, and in the nights where the Contagion blazes, they must do more than just sit and wait for the most hardened to come around.
Of course, the sacrifice is more than just public scrutiny. Some Jeremiad genuinely believe they are channeling the divine, while other, more cynical members of the faction state they’re honing their monstrous powers into an awful, monstrous exaltation. Modern Miracle ruins Covers, risks the Masquerade, breaks Touchstones, and drives one closer to their basest nature. It is a great power, but to use it comes at a great risk.
The spirits flow around the shaman and leave words of power in the hearts of those listening to their chant, all as tears of anguish and hate roll down her cheeks. The divine miracle of Azoth burns so bright that all those nearby are comforted by its warmth, and while the people are fed and happy, the land around them will be blighted for decades. The light of God shimmers in the moonlight and gives the Sanctified the strength to burn his enemies, but he feels the Beast within stirring, hungry, and without mercy.
System: Modern Miracle requires the participation of at least two fanatics, as they summon forth a “divine” act that invokes a positive and negative effect on those who witness it in person (not remotely, and not via technology). As a default, Modern Miracle removes all Health damage from any injured witnesses, mortal or otherwise, but cannot heal damage caused by Contagion or someone Contagion-Touched. This power does not affect other members of the Jeremiad.
Those invoking a Modern Miracle must declare a benevolent and malevolent side to it. This represents the warmth and vengeance of the fanatic, the human hope blended with the monstrous hunger, rage, hopelessness, or alien nature. A vampire might choose to break all witnesses’ blood bonds, but in doing so severs a link with their Touchstone. A werewolf may purge a group of any spirits riding them, but shifts immediately into Gauru form as the unleashing of power proves too much. Mages can soothe the sting of Quiescence, granting three dice to all Sleeper witnesses breaking points due to witnessing obvious Supernal or Abyssal phenomena for the scene, but must immediately roll an Act of Hubris with a dice pool equal to the users dots in Fervor. Created might remove the Disquieted Condition from all witnesses, but simultaneously trigger a Wasteland to manifest at twice the Promethean’s Azoth rating. See the Miracle Dread Power (Chronicles of Darkness p. 147) for more examples of granting positive effects in exchange for a cost.
In all cases, the use of Modern Miracle amplifies a creature’s existing powers, demonstrating what they’re capable of in both the positive and the negative.
The vector requires at least two members of the Jeremiad, as the channeling of power and the sacrifice of self-control requires Sworn witnesses or teamwork. If they so choose, one creature can make the sacrifice as the other evokes a miracle befitting their nature.
This vector is highly noticeable and difficult to cover up to the authorities and the media. Word of it spreads like wildfire if left unchecked, and soon social media comes alive with supposed miraculous sightings. While fanatics can work to limit this effect, it may attract attention from other, malevolent groups.
Cost: 1 Willpower and 1 Sworn Experience
Requirement: At least two Jeremiad must be present for the use of this power
Dice Pool: Presence + Occult Action: Instant
Duration: One scene
Edges
Mummies, Sin-Eaters: You know the mysteries of life and death and the evocation of your monstrous nature is enough to bring a target back from the brink. If one of your targets dies in this scene and their body remains intact, they are revived with their two rightmost Health boxes cleared of all damage.
Demons, Deviants, Mages: The strength of your words and belief is enough to reassure anyone in your audience. Anyone who witnesses the vector can ignore any Tilts affecting them for the remainder of the chapter.
Changelings, Hunters, Prometheans, Werewolves: You are inspired by the legends of old and draw upon the realms of religion and myth, of hopes for humanity’s greatness, or make a Wyrd pact or exchange, to impose a sense of order upon the miracle. You can make the effects of your miracle selective to certain members of your audience.
Beasts, Vampires: Hunger has been a form of sacrifice for many religious sects. For you, the hunger constantly lurking at the back of your mind echoes the prayers of the pious over the centuries. All Jeremiad in the vicinity of your miracle gain a point in one of their temporary pools, with the exception of Willpower, as their hunger is sated. The affected trait cannot exceed its usual maximum.
Specializations
Cahalith: The balance of harmony and legends of hubristic deeds always punishable by dire ends are both themes well-known to werewolf fanatics. The Cahalith among the Jeremiad are able to use this vector to take the sacrifice element of this power from another being, even if the sacrifice is already in effect. Sometimes, burdens must be shared or shifted, and the Cahalith can completely remove the weight from the shoulders of this vector’s practitioner.
Nemeses: These Beasts act not only to purify the innocent of Contagion, but the punish those who use it as a weapon. Nemeses using Modern Miracle are able to shift the sacrifice element of the power on to another being, if that being has a Contagion-linked Condition.