Hunter Tools

AX.GHW.09.06

Standard investigative and operational tools used in hidden-world field work. Most of these are commercially available or improvised from common materials; the challenge is sourcing the specialized items without creating an obvious purchase pattern.

EMF Detector

Cost: $30–$150 (Basic) Effect: +1D to Notice rolls when searching for supernatural activity that produces electromagnetic signatures. Does not detect all supernatural threats, fae leave no EM signature, most demons do not, most physical threats do not. Effective against: ghosts, poltergeists, dimensional aberrations, some undead. Notes: Commercially available as a ghost-hunting tool; owning one is not unusual. Calibration matters, commercial-grade EMF detectors are less sensitive than specialist builds. A character with Technical 1D+ can calibrate a commercial detector to +2D effectiveness (Wit + Technical vs Threshold 2, takes 1 hour).

UV Light (High-Intensity)

Cost: $50–$300 (Basic to Advanced) Effect: Treats the illuminated area as daylight for purposes of vampire vulnerability. A vampire caught in a high-intensity UV beam takes damage as if in sunlight for the duration of beam contact (see 02-undead.md). Standard UV flashlights are insufficient, requires industrial or medical-grade UV output. Notes: Industrial UV lamps are available commercially for sanitation purposes. A handheld UV spotlight at adequate intensity requires sourcing or modification (Technical vs Threshold 2 to modify a commercial unit). The beam requires the character to aim and maintain it, a Primary Action to deploy and hold on target; targets who move out of the beam are no longer affected.

Holy Water

Cost: $0–$20 (Basic, freely available from religious institutions, or a Sacred Fire practitioner can produce it) Effect: 2 damage to Shadow entities and undead, Close range thrown. Can be deployed as a barrier (splashed across a threshold, applied to surfaces), a Shadow entity or undead approaching a holy water barrier makes a Wit Save Threshold 2 each round to pass through (failure = cannot cross, takes 2 damage; success = crosses but takes 1 damage). Notes: Standard consecrated holy water from a church is effective. A Sacred Fire practitioner can consecrate water themselves (Wit + Sacred Fire vs Threshold 1, produces a bottle's worth per use). A Haunt practitioner using Mediumship can produce a variant that is effective against spirit-category undead only (not Shadow entities).

Holy water in a squirt gun is a field-deployable weapon. Holy water in a water balloon covers a Close-range splash radius. Holy water in a super-soaker is genuinely considered a legitimate tactical tool in Network field notes.

Iron Chains / Cold Iron Restraints

Cost: $50–$200 for iron chains (Basic); $300–$800 for fabricated cold iron restraints (Restricted) Effect: Standard iron chains restrain supernatural entities physically but do not provide bane effects. Cold iron restraints restrain fae and additionally prevent fae ability use (fae in contact with cold iron cannot use glamours, phase, or dimension-step, sustained contact suppresses these abilities entirely, not just for one round). Notes: Cold iron restraints require proper unalloyed iron, not standard steel chain. The sourcing challenge is the same as cold iron ammunition. Characters who frequently engage fae should maintain a supply. Iron shackles that are not cold iron work as physical restraints only.

A fae secured in cold iron restraints and unable to break free physically is entirely at the characters' mercy; this is one of the few ways to hold a powerful fae for extended interaction.

Salt (Bulk)

Cost: $5–$20 for a large supply (Basic, rock salt is sold at hardware stores) Effect: Salt circles create barriers against ghosts, poltergeists, and some lower-tier Shadow entities. A salt circle large enough to contain one person requires approximately 5 pounds and takes 1 minute to lay. A salt circle barrier has Defense 5 against ghost and spirit attacks, the entity cannot cross the circle without disrupting it, and a disrupted circle loses its barrier property immediately. Notes: Salt is the most cost-effective supernatural countermeasure available. Its limitations: it does not affect physically present threats, fae, most undead, or anything with a corporeal body. A salt line across a threshold prevents ghost entry; it does not prevent a Redcap from walking through the door.

Salt circles must be complete and unbroken to function. A character inside a salt circle who breaks the line (crossing out, dropping something across it) disrupts the barrier.

Rowan Wood / Iron Items (Fae Warding Kit)

Cost: $30–$100 assembled kit (Basic to Advanced, materials are available, assembly requires knowledge) Effect: Rowan wood charms force fae to spend a Primary Action to approach or cross a barrier made from them. Iron threshold markers (a piece of iron laid across a doorway or window) prevent fae entry without a Wit Save (Threshold 2) each attempt. Combined rowan-and-iron barriers stack both effects. Notes: Rowan (mountain ash) is commercially available as a landscaping plant. Rowan wood must be cut from live branches, not dried or processed. A character with Lore (Fae) 1D+ can construct effective rowan barriers without a roll; others require Wit + Lore vs Threshold 2 to confirm they've assembled it correctly. Network lore keepers typically carry a small supply of pre-cut rowan as a standard kit item.

Exorcism Kit

Cost: $100–$400 assembled (Basic, materials individually available; knowledge is the constraint) Effect: Provides +1D to ritual exorcism attempts (Wit + Lore vs appropriate Threshold). Does not substitute for tradition ability or Lore knowledge; it is a material supplement that ensures the correct ritual components are present. Contents: Holy water, blessed salt, specific incense, ritual text (denomination varies), iron components, rowan or consecrated wood items, candles. The specific combination varies by tradition and target entity; the kit covers the most common configurations. Notes: Purchasing an assembled exorcism kit requires a hidden-world sourcing contact, no commercial retailer sells these, and the components become more obviously purposeful when assembled together. Characters can assemble their own from component purchases with Wit + Lore vs Threshold 2 and access to the individual items (about 3 hours).

Ritual Supplies (General)

Cost: $50–$500 depending on ritual complexity (Basic to Advanced) Effect: Required material components for specific rituals, binding, warding, Breach closure, curse removal, and others. Each ritual in the catalog that requires material components specifies what is needed. Notes: Ritual supplies are categorized here as a catch-all for GM and player reference. When a player character needs ritual components for a specific operation, the GM should assess what materials are required and what tier they fall under. Most ritual components are individually innocuous, candles, herbs, specific salts, organic materials, but their combination and purpose raises questions.

Characters with Lore 2D+ typically know where to source standard ritual components locally (Wit + Lore vs Threshold 2 to identify a local supplier; Threshold 3 for unusual components). Organizations with research arms (Grimoire Compact, Aldersham Institute) maintain component supplies for affiliated characters.