There are some supernatural beings that can possess people or animals. These are usually malignant, evil forces which crave to hurt or toy with humans. The entity are actually able to transfer all or part of their life essence into another living being and completely dominate it. The possessing force is so strong that it can suppress the victim's own consciousness and control the body like a puppet master.
The Act of Possession
A supernatural being is only capable of possessing another living creature when it is in energy form or a psychic energy extension of itself is made (essence fragment) and is adjacent to the victim. Monsters with the ability to possess can try to do so as often as once per melee round.
A possession attempt is an instantaneous battle of wills. Like all combat in the Palladium system, a 20-sided die is rolled by the possessing entity. This is the attack strike of the attacker. The defender, who is the intended victim, gets to roll for a mental block or parry. Again, a 20-sided die is rolled. The high roll wins, the low roll loses, defenders always wins ties. Many characters will have a bonus to save vs possession, giving them an edge in defending against the mental onslaught. If the defender's roll (plus bonuses to save vs possession) is lower than the attacker's roll, the character has failed to defend against the possession attack and is immediately possessed.
Possession Modifiers (all modifiers are cumulative):
+6 The target of a possession is in a magical circle of protection or otherwise has a supernatural immunity to possession.
+5 The target of a possession is currently within a sanctuary, sacred place that is believed to provide protection or is otherwise dramatically opposed to the possessing entity.
+5 The target of possession is extraordinarily strong-willed or a supernatural resistance to possession.
+4 Character has been previously possessed in the past, and successfully fought it off.
+4 The character or ally possesses a weapon, form of magick or bit of lore that is believed to be useful against possession.
+3 The target of a possession knows that if he becomes possessed, he will become a danger to his loved ones.
+3 The target of a possession is surrounded by strong-willed allies who are skilled in defeating possession or knowledgeable about the subject.
+3 Character is the exact opposite alignment as the possessing entity (i.e the entity is aberrant evil, and the person is Unprincipled good).
+2 The target of a possession knows that if he becomes possessed, he will become a danger to his allies.
+2 Character has been warned that he might become a target of possession.
+2 Character is the opposite alignment as the possessing entity (i.e the entity is evil, and the person is good).
+2 The character is surrounded by friends or allies.
+1 The character is not alone.
+1 Within the line of a sight of a holy symbol.
-6 The target of a possession is in a coma, catatonic, or brain-dead (i.e an empty shell).
-5 The target of a possession is a genuine willing worshiper, servant or ally to the entity.
-5 The target of a possession is holding or otherwise in direct contact with the entity's former host (person, place or object), and making direct eye contact with it or ingested or been infected by some magical pathogen designed to induce possession in the target.
-4 The target of a possession is standing directly within the center of the entity's place of power, the place where the entity is present and at its strongest (altar, throne room) or where it has been imprisoned.
-4 The target of a possession is extremely weak-willed, has low self-esteem, is clinically depressed, suicidal, or otherwise mentally unbalanced with more than three different insanities.
-4 The target has a phobia of being possessed, or is deathly afraid of possessing entities such as ghosts or demons, and is now being confronted with the prospect of possession.
-4 The character has been in possession of a magic item, bit of lore believed to be sacred to the entity and through which the entity may channel its power, and has repeatedly touched, looked at, examined or otherwise been in frequent contact with it for at least the last 24 hours.
-3 The target of a possession has been offered something valuable by the entity and has been successfully tempted by its promises (not necessarily accepting, but is fascinated and is considering it).
-3 The target of a possession has just seen some especially impressive or horrifying manifestation of the entity and has failed to save vs its awe/horror factor.
-3 The target of a possession is a child.
-3 The target of a possession attempt was in the middle of committing an evil act (murder, rape, desecration) or is an unhallowed or desecrated area and has been calling attention to himself.
-3 The target of a possession attempt has the exact same alignment as the possessing entity (I.e both the entity and the person are Diabolic evil).
-2 The character has recently failed a save vs horror factor within the past 24 hour or in general is frightened or jumpy due to recent events.
-2 The target of a possession attempt is the same general alignment as the possessing entity (I.e both the entity and the person is evil).
-2. The target of a possession has a minor insanity.
-2. The character is distracted, asleep, dazed or hypnotized.
-2 The character is in a place vaguely associated with the entity.
-1. The target of a possession is alone.
-1 The target of a possession attempt is a (non-combatant) woman.
-1 The target has been surprised attacked or otherwise hasn't been forewarned that he might be possessed or that the entity exists.
-1. The target of possession has just seen a minor manifestation of the entity's presence, and while may be surprised, has not failed to save vs its awe/horror factor.
Various. The character is lacking sleep or is exhausted. -1 if the character has gone 12-18 hours without sleep, -2 having gone without 24-36 hours; -3 having gone 48-72 hours without sleep, and -4 having gone 80 hours or longer without sleep.
Various. The character is seriously wounded, tortured or ill: When a character’s Hit Points are down by 50% or more, concentration is difficult (feels weak, tired in pain, etc) and the pain and fatigue are distracting -3 to save vs possession. The penalty worsens to -4 when the character has less than 25% of his Hit Points. Illness, especially fever, can cause similar penalties. Debilitating illness will usually indicate skill penalties ranging from -2 to -4 to save vs possession.
-Various. The target of a possession has been repeatedly the subject of various rituals, drugs, spells or other actions to render him vulnerable to possession over a long duration of time (-3 days, -4 weeks, -5 months, -6 years or since birth). In the alternative, the target has been subjected repeatedly to spells by the entity designed to control their will, and failed to save against them (-1 for each time that this has happened in the last 72 hours).
A successful possession means the creature has inhabited the body of the person (or animal) and completely dominates that body. The creature in possession of a body becomes a part of the victim, aware of what is going on around the creature that they possess. It can see and hear as well as the victim can. The essence and intellect of the original person is completely submerged, dormant, as if asleep, and will have no memory of what the possessing creature is doing with his/her body. The entity can commit murder or worse, and the person is totally oblivious to what is happening. A favorite ploy of many possessing intelligences is to play schizophrenia with the person. This is done as much to unnerve and torment friends and associates of the possessed person as anything else. What the creature does is let the person seemingly have control of his/her body and then, at the right moment, seize control and do something completely out of character (usually insulting, violent or depraved). Then let the person back into control to suffer the consequences of something he has no recollection of committing, even if there are a dozen witnesses. Unlike the victim of the possession, the creature is completely aware of everything that person experiences.
Conditions and Restrictions for Possession
1. The possessing force must be an energy being or produce a psychic energy essence fragment as an extension of itself.
2. Entities and intelligences can rarely possess more than one living creature at a time within the immediate area.
3. The possessing being can relinquish its hold over the person to let the individual seem to regain control without actually surrendering the host body. During these quiet moments, the being simply sits back and observes. Even in cases when the entity allows the individual some freedom, however, it is totally in control of him. It can reassert its control instantly, whenever it desires to do so, compelling him to say and do things he doesn’t to do. He may attribute this to some other supernatural agency — a curse or mind-control spell of some sort — or may actually realize that he is possessed (either if the play figures it out or the Investigator succeeds in an Occult roll), Once the PC determines he is actually possessed, the spirit within him either takes total control of him immediately — effectively making the character a GM-controlled character until the spirit leaves — or it toys with him, taking total control only the character tries to seek help or tell someone of his plight. Of course, once the entity within him starts to manifest itself, the PCs’ companions may quickly figure out that he’s possessed, especially if the entity is malevolent or strikingly different in personality from the character.
4. The possessing force can willingly leave the host body whenever it so pleases, departing effortlessly and without inflicting damage.
5. The act of possession can be instant and completely unknown/invisible to everyone except the intended victim, or it can be gradual. A malevolent entity, once in possession of a body, may attempt to conceal its presence as long as possible, making its host’s companions believe the person is quite normal.
6. A possessed host body can be dominated by the alien force immediately.
7. The entity or energy intelligence can use all of the powers and knowledge it may have while in the host body, and (depending on which abilities it possesses) may cause physical manifestations through the character’s body. It can change the sound of his voice (so that a female character speaks with a male voice, or vice versa); temporarily change his facial features or body shape within the limits of their abilities; or cause illusionary shapes or images. The entity may use telekinesis or levitation to cause the possessed character to float in the air, spin around, perform physically impossible contortions of his body, and (to a certain extent) resist sleep, hunger, pain or injury without ill effect. It can also cause wounds to open on his body and bleed, then make them over as it wills. Normally, only a malevolent spirit performs acts harmful to the body it possesses or to anyone else. Sometimes, however, a neutral spirit possessing a person indulges in the less harmful acrobatics described above.
Some entities can also increase the body’s power. Otherwise the host’s physical attributes and abilities remain the same and are at the disposal of the residing essence. S.D.C can be increased by up to three times at a cost of 100 P.P.E each level. P.P.E is the same as the essence in addition to the host’s. Physical attributes can be increased by the residing essence’s attributes by up 50% more, with 10 P.P.E spent per one attribute point. When (if) the essence leaves or is expelled, the body still holds all permanent changes performed (increased S.D.C, etc), unless specially changed back by the departed essence.
8. The battle of wills and saving against possession occurs only once, at the very moment of the attack. Once an individual is possessed, he remains so until the possessing force decides to leave or is removed. A neutral or benevolent entity may possess a character in order to give information by speaking to or through the character, but does so only if invited to do so. A benevolent spirit leaves as soon as its task is finished or the character asks it to leave.
9. Possession should not be confused with magic enchantments, like domination, trance, compulsion, or hypnotic suggestions or psychic mind control. The difference is that an alien life-force has actually inhabited the person's body and taken complete control.
10. The entity or intelligence is aware of everything the person experiences, unless it also has telepathy it does not know what that person is thinking, nor does it gain the person's skills.
11. Victims of possession are rarely willing hosts. But if the person willingly allows himself to be possessed, there is no battle of wills and the act of possession is an automatic success.
12. The experience of being possessed is a terrible one. Although the victim rarely remembers any of the things the creature may have done, the experience is traumatic. A possessing entity can, at any time, speak mentally to the creature that it possesses in a language that the creature can understand, although if the victim isn’t very intelligent, its understanding may be limited.
Getting rid of a possessing force is extremely difficult.
Magically, only exorcism has any chance of success. Banishment, control or summon beings, and all the rest, are ineffective. Of course, one can always try to talk the damned thing out, but that seldom works. Psychic powers can be used to attack the entity itself, but will definitely provoke the creature to violence. A psychic healer can also use his form of exorcism against the possessing entity. The incapacitation of the host body through drugs or magic for long durations (1D6 months) may entice the entity to leave in search of a more fun body. Killing the host body will always set the entity free, but doesn't do much good for the victim.