Hunters

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Protectors or Fanatics?

Hunters in Savannah trace their origins back to colonial times, when early settlers faced inexplicable phenomena within the dense, ancient forests and swamps. Formed initially as loosely organized bands to protect their communities, these Hunters developed into a range of groups over time, from family-driven vigilantes to secretive organizations like The Watch, each sworn to keep supernatural forces in check.

Hunters are humans born with an innate sensitivity to telluric energy: the psychic residue of the supernatural. They don’t cast spells or wield magic. Instead, their bodies and minds are trained as tools sharpened by intense discipline, ancestral knowledge, and a mix of ancient and modern sciences.

Hunters are dedicated to identifying, tracking, and eliminating supernatural threats. While many see themselves as protectors of humanity, their motivations, methods, and allegiances vary greatly. Some are lone vigilantes driven by personal loss, while others operate as part of organized groups like the Ebon, secretive government programs, or fringe religious groups.

Hunters are scholars, priests, warriors, and field researchers who chose to walk into the dark, armed only with their wits and will.

History

Evolution of American Paranormal Study:

The study of the paranormal in America began in the mid-19th century with the rise of Spiritualism, when the Fox sisters’ séances in 1848 inspired a nation to seek proof of life after death. While most treated it as faith, early academics like William James and the American Society for Psychical Research (1885) sought to give the supernatural a scientific foundation

Influences and Historical Developments:

After the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and William McKinley, tied to the supernatural and waves of national grief and anxiety, stirred governmental curiosity about unseen influences, whether faith, emotion, or even psychic resonance could shape human behavior. Quiet research initiatives grew from this unrest, foreshadowing the later formation of the FBI and its Behavioral Science Unit, which would study aberrant psychology, ritual crime, and unexplained phenomena alongside criminal motive.

The U.S. government began a covert campaign against supernaturals, leading to the creation of specialized units within the FBI dedicated to investigating supernatural threats. Hunters became deeply tied to this movement, operating both independently and, at times, in collaboration with government operatives.

The Specialists:

In the mid-20th century, Cold War paranoia and psychological-warfare programs widened the scope of inquiries into psychic research and energy phenomena. It was within this atmosphere that Dr. Adelaide “Addie” Mercer, a physicist turned parapsychologist, and Father Nathaniel “Nate” Collins, a defrocked exorcist and folklorist, met in Savannah. Drawn by the city’s haunted past and Tellric anomalies, their partnership fused science and faith: Mercer’s empirical rigor with Collins’ intuitive understanding of the unseen.

Together, they founded The Watch in 1951, a covert organization dedicated to studying, cataloging, and protecting humanity from the supernatural. Their early missions involved not only hauntings and possessions but also sightings of spectral beasts and inexplicable biological entities, placing them in quiet conflict with Freemason engineers and Temion cultists who sought to harness or weaponize the same forces. The Watch’s legacy endures through its modern successor, Sixth Sense Paranormal Investigations & Tours, which continues the balance Mercer and Collins envisioned—equal parts skepticism and reverence, science and spirit, human and unknown.

Modern-Day Hunters:

In present-day Savannah, Hunters operate with a fierce dedication to their cause, aware of the delicate balance they must maintain to protect the city without tearing apart its supernatural underworld. Guided by both tradition and a sense of duty, Hunters serve as guardians of the city’s shroud, battling darkness in secret to preserve the fragile peace, though always ready to strike when that peace is threatened.

Today’s Hunters are split among independent trackers, organized local groups, and government-aligned operatives. They walk a fine line between secrecy and strategy, knowing that outright exposure of supernatural beings could plunge Savannah and the world into chaos. They maintain complex relationships with other races.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths

Specialized Training: Some hunters are highly skilled in combat, survival, and tracking. Others specialise in research and diplomacy, and are in charge of providing information to their group and can help dealing with other gifted and supernaturals.Hunters craft and wield an arsenal of tools, including weapons and advanced surveillance equipment.
Knowledge of the Supernatural: Experienced hunters are well-versed in identifying supernatural beings and exploiting their vulnerabilities.
Will power

Weaknesses:

Human Limitations: Despite their training, hunters are mortal, vulnerable to injury, illness, and supernatural powers.
Moral Ambiguity: Hunters often walk a fine line between justice and fanaticism, risking alienation from both mortals and supernaturals.
Divisions: Hunters are fragmented, with rival groups and ideological conflicts undermining their unity.

Shroud Hunters Curse:

Obsession of the Quarry: Masters of the physical hunt, they risk merging their identity with their prey. Once they fixate on a creature, it consumes them an Ahab-like obsession. In extreme cases, the hunter begins to mimic the behavior, instincts, or aura of what they hunt, losing themselves to the chase.

Phantasmal Hunters Curse:

Spiritual Residue: Hunters of spirits and demonic entities accumulate residue from the beings they banish or destroy. This residue clings to their aura and soul like soot, attracting further hauntings or corrupting their perception. Without ritual cleansing after repeated confrontations, they risk partial possession or madness.

The Triad’s Influence

Gaia

Hunters aligned with Gaia see themselves as protectors of the natural order, targeting supernaturals who disrupt the balance. They often work in harmony with shifters or witches who share their goals.

Lilith:

Lilith’s hunters are rebellious, questioning the institutions and hierarchies within the hunting community. They value personal freedom and often challenge the rigid dogma of religious or governmental groups.

Hastur:

Corrupted hunters fall under Hastur’s influence, becoming unwitting agents of chaos. These hunters sow discord and destruction, often under the guise of righteous crusades.

Hunter Callings

There are two types of Hunters:

Shroud and Phantasmal

This is born into, it can't be chosen.

Shroud Hunters

“Know the shape. Break the shape.”

Shroud Hunters specialize in cryptids, supernatural or gifted. These hunters of physical beings blend military tactics with field biology, tracking, and engineering to understand and destroy unnatural threats.

Origins

Anthropology & Biology: Originally many came from early frontier naturalists or colonial scientists who documented “beasts” in the wild.
Secret Orders: Some trace their roots to elite warbands from Rome, the Inquisition, or even Native traditions that guarded sacred hunting grounds.
Modern Era: They’re often ex-military, ex-cops, or survivalist scholars who study creature behavior, design tools, and dissect weaknesses.

Phantasmal Hunters

“Fear no shadow. Hold the line.”

Phantasmal Hunters face the unseen: spirits and demonic possession. With no magic of their own, they use occult knowledge, will power, and spiritual science to hold the line between the living and the dead.