A Crossover Player Guide to the Hisil
"The Shadow lives up to its name; light seems pale and thin, even at noon."
— Werewolf: The Forsaken 2nd Edition
Introduction
The Shadow (Hisil in the First Tongue) is the spirit world that exists alongside the material realm. Werewolves are native to both worlds, but other supernatural beings—and even ordinary humans—can be brought across the Gauntlet under certain circumstances.
This guide explains what non-werewolf characters experience in the Shadow, what dangers they face, how they can contribute, and the mechanical considerations that apply to crossover scenes in the spirit world.
How Non-Uratha Enter the Shadow
Werewolves can cross the Gauntlet at a locus—a point where the barrier between worlds thins. However, they cannot simply drag others along. Non-werewolves typically enter the Shadow through one of the following methods:
Shadow Gates
A Shadow Gate is a hole punched through the Gauntlet. When this Condition exists on a location, spirits, packs—and even incautious humans—can cross through without the use of any powers. The Shadow Gate is visible even to material beings, as the two worlds visibly mix at the crossing point. Shadow Gates are temporary (lasting one scene) and can be created by powerful spirits using the Shadow Gateway Manifestation.
Wolf-Blooded as Crossing Points
Certain spiritually-attuned Wolf-Blooded can serve as crossing points themselves. Wolf-Blooded with the Waystone Tell possess supernatural connections to the spirit world that can allow others to cross through them.
Rites and Gifts
Some werewolf Gifts and Rites can open passages for others or create temporary openings in the Gauntlet. A pack planning to bring non-werewolf allies into the Shadow should coordinate with their Ithaeur (shaman) ahead of time.
Verges
A Verge is a location where the Gauntlet is essentially nonexistent (Gauntlet Strength 0). At a Verge, anyone can simply walk between worlds without any special powers. Verges are rare and often unstable or dangerous.
The Experience of the Shadow
To a human or other non-werewolf who crosses over, the Shadow feels eerie and unnerving. The Hisil lives up to its name. This is not a place where mortals belong, and the world itself seems to know it.
Sensory Experience
- Light: Seems pale and thin, even at noon. Everything has a washed-out, twilight quality regardless of the time of day.
- Sound: Echoes and carries much farther than in the material world. Whispers travel; silence feels unnatural.
- Sky: Perpetually roiling with gray clouds that only occasionally part. When gaps appear, you might glimpse Luna or Helios hanging in the sky—both look different here, more primal and aware.
- Atmosphere: The charged feeling of an approaching storm. The air feels heavy with potential.
- Weather: When the overcast sky changes, it does so dramatically—flash floods, dust devils, torrential downpours accompanied by multicolored lightning.
The Landscape
The Shadow resembles the material world but reveals its inner nature. What people feel about a place becomes visible here. A hidden drug lab becomes a festering hive of addiction spirits. A burned-out car wreck that children use as a fort becomes a site of idyllic joy.
The Hisil remembers even when the material world has forgotten. Demolished buildings stay in the Shadow until something happens on the flesh side to replace them. Ancient forests long since logged sprawl across the Shadow wilderness.
One critical difference: there are no humans in the Shadow. Roads, towns, cities, farms—all reflected. But not people.
Day and Night
| Time | Effect |
|---|---|
| Day | The Gauntlet is harder to cross into the Shadow. The Shadow feels subdued; fewer spirits are active. Gaps in the cloud cover create shafts of pale sunlight that increase gravity where they touch. |
| Night | The Shadow comes alive. Essence flows more easily. Dormant spirits stir. Luna's changing face casts light into the darkness, and the auroras constantly dance in Northern skies. |
Spirits and Dangers
Perceiving Spirits
Human travelers often have difficulty picking spirits out from the landscape until they're close by, especially when spirits are dormant. Werewolves perceive spirits clearly—they can smell the scent of Essence. Non-werewolves lack this advantage and must rely on mundane perception or whatever supernatural senses their own nature provides.
Spirit Attitudes
Spirits are not automatically hostile, but they are alien. They think in terms of their nature—a rage spirit understands conflict; a joy spirit understands celebration. They do not have human morality. Negotiation is possible, but it helps to speak their language.
Spirits organize into hierarchies based on Rank. Werewolves have an honorary Rank based on their Renown, which spirits respect. Non-werewolves have no such standing; to spirits, they are either prey, curiosity, or irrelevant.
Combat Considerations
- Spirits in the Shadow are solid and can be attacked physically. However, physical attacks that would normally deal lethal damage only deal bashing damage unless the attack uses the spirit's bane (a specific substance or phenomenon that the spirit is vulnerable to).
- Each spirit has a unique bane tied to its nature. A fire spirit might be baned by water; a fear spirit might be baned by courage.
- Werewolves deal extra damage to spirits they "outrank" due to spiritual deference. Non-werewolves do not benefit from this—all spirits are equally dangerous to them.
Creature-Specific Experiences
Vampires
- Sunlight Concerns: The Shadow-sun is not true sunlight. It is pale, filtered through eternal cloud cover. This sunlight does not cause physical damage perse but a discomfort that imposes a -1 on all actions within the Hisil.
- Feeding: There are no humans in the Shadow. Vampires cannot feed on spirits. A vampire entering the Shadow should feed beforehand.
- The Beast: The Shadow is full of predatory things. The Beast may react with heightened wariness or aggressive excitement.
- Spirits of Death: Vampires attract spirits of death and dependence. Spending time in the Shadow may draw unwanted attention.
Changelings
- A Different Kind of Strange: The Hedge follows dream-logic; the Shadow follows spirit-logic. Both are weird, but in different ways.
- No Glamour (Usually): Spirits run on Essence, not Glamour. Changelings cannot harvest Glamour from spirits unless specific Contracts allow it.
- Pledges: Spirits love deals. Changelings excel at deals. A changeling skilled in pledgecraft may find that spirits respond well to properly formalized bargains.
- Refuge from the Gentry: The True Fae have no hold over the Shadow. For changelings fleeing their Keepers, the Hisil might provide temporary sanctuary.
Hunters
- No Supernatural Perception: Unless they have Endowments, hunters perceive only what their mundane senses reveal.
- Human Vulnerability: Spirits can affect hunters with their Influences and Numina. Hunters must rely on willpower, preparation, and their allies' protection.
- Special Equipment: Certain hunter conspiracies have Endowments that function against spirits. TF:V's ETHERIC ROUNDS, etc.
- Clear Eyes: Hunters know they don't belong. This clarity can be an asset—they're less likely to be seduced by promises of spiritual power.
Practical Considerations
Returning to the Material World
Non-werewolves cannot cross the Gauntlet on their own. You need your werewolf allies to bring you back the same way you came. If separated from the pack in the Shadow, you are stranded until help arrives or you find another exit.
Before entering the Shadow, establish a plan for extraction. Know where the crossing points are. Have a rendezvous protocol if separated.
The Gauntlet
| Location | Strength | Crossing Time |
|---|---|---|
| Dense urban areas | 5 | 10 turns (~30 seconds) |
| City suburbs, towns | 4 | 8 turns (~24 seconds) |
| Small towns, villages | 3 | 6 turns (~18 seconds) |
| Wilderness, countryside | 2 | 4 turns (~12 seconds) |
| Locus | 1 | 2 turns (~6 seconds) |
| Verge | 0 | Instant |
How You Can Help
- Vampires: Disciplines work normally. Dominate, Nightmare, and Majesty may affect spirits (Clash of Wills if resisted). Physical Disciplines provide combat support.
- Changelings: Contracts function. Emotion manipulation affects spirits strongly. Pledge-making skills translate to spirit bargaining.
- Hunters: Human skills remain valuable. Investigation, medicine, tactics. Certain Endowments function against ephemeral entities.
- Everyone: Physical attacks work (bashing without a bane). Social skills work. Teamwork works.
The Alaska Shadow
The Shadow in Anchorage reflects Alaska's extremes. Vast wilderness spirits dominate outside the city. Mountain spirits tower impossibly high. The Shadow-reflection of Cook Inlet is a tidal flat of liquid silver that rises and falls with terrifying unpredictability.
In winter, the Shadow's night-nature becomes dominant for months. Spirit activity surges. Ancient things stir that sleep through the summer. The auroras in the Shadow-sky affect spiritual powers, enhancing or distorting them unpredictably.
In summer, the perpetual daylight suppresses the Shadow. Spirits are sluggish. The Gauntlet feels heavier.
Final Notes
Entering the Shadow as a non-werewolf is an act of trust. You are depending on your Uratha allies to bring you safely in and safely out of a world where you do not naturally belong.
For werewolves, bringing outsiders into the Hisil is a significant choice. They are responsible for those allies' safety in a realm that belongs to the Uratha. This is why such crossings don't happen casually—and why, when they do happen, they represent a deep level of pack integration.
The Shadow is dangerous. It is also wondrous. For those who survive it, crossing into the spirit world is an experience that changes their understanding of reality forever.
The Shadow for Non-Uratha: A Crossover Player Guide
Chronicles of Darkness | Multi-Venue Chronicle