Second Sight (World of Darkness) [Hardcover]

David Hicks (Author), Alan Alexander (Author), Conrad Hubbard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 2007

"Ordinary people don't know it, but the world is shrouded in lies. Immerse yourself in them, and you discover that there are lies within lies. There are things in our world, monsters hiding among us, lurking in the shadows, preying upon us. But there also beings who are us and who are not us, people born or "blessed" to move objects with their minds, to read our innermost thoughts, to combine innocuous items to bring about results nothing short of miraculous.
Are these people our friends for looking like us, for being like us?
Yes.
Are they our most dread threat, for looking like us, for being like us?
Yes.
While some things are monsters without, others are monsters within."
- Further excerpt from the notes of the unpublished "Sasquatch," by deceased author David Hicks

Mysterious Powers Made Manifest

Not every entity with supernatural powers is one of a species of creatures that prowl the night. Solitary psychics, crazed sorcerers and doomsaying cultists all share the World of Darkness. This book explores their unique abilities.

A character and setting book for all World of Darkness Games

This book includes:

* New character types for your Storytelling game: mortal psychics and mystics

* Storytelling ideas for introducing cosmic forces and otherworldly beings to your games

* A companion to Vampire, Werewolf and Mage, or an opportunity to play a completely new and unique chronicle set in the World of Darkness

US Page Count: 160 (hardcover). Authors: Alan Alexander, Conrad Hubbard, John Snead, etc. Developer: Ken Cliffe. Cover Artist: Katie McCaskill. For use with the World of Darkness Rulebook.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: White Wolf Publishing; 1 edition (October 15, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1588464873
• ISBN-13: 978-1588464873
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #369,430 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this book!, July 6, 2006

By 

kidnugget (Bakersfield, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Second Sight (World of Darkness) (Hardcover)

Second Sight is a great book to use with any WOD setting. It has some really nice rules for psychic abilities and "low magic" that is nowhere near what a true WOD Mage can do.

Both systems are very simple and very well designed. The following is a bit of technobable, and if you're not a WOD gamer, it may not make much sense. There is a new Trait called "Supernatural Advantage" which takes the place of Blood Potency, Gnosis, or Primal Urge. The characters will some times add this to dice pools and use it to combat the supernatural equivalents of the other gaming systems.

After that, the psychic abilities and magical powers are all merits. In the psychic camp, there are four main categories: ESP, mediumism, psychokinesis, and telepathy. There are plenty of powers under each category.

Low Magic allows you to play a Thamaturge (not a Mage), and it is broken down into multiple traditions: ceremonial magician, hedge witch, shaman, taoist alchemist, and vodoun. Again, all the individual powers are merits, and again there are plenty of them.

The only drawback is that there isn't a very big section of baddies in the back. I'm fine with that, but if you include one at all, make it thorough. A nice section on artifacts and items would have been a plus.

This is truly a five star book for WOD. It's as thorough as Armory is (and far, far more packed with abilites than the weak Ghouls book is). If you're planning on including a psychic or a mundane magician in your games, this is a great book. And at Amazon's price, it can't be beat!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Second Sight delivers a ton of mystical abilities for any World of Darkness game., September 13, 2006

By 

C. Richeson "CWRicheson" (Lexington, KY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Second Sight (World of Darkness) (Hardcover)

Second Sight gives World of Darkness fans the opportunity to play characters in the same vein as The Dead Zone, The 4400, the lower key mystics of early Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, and other similar entertainment. A lengthy list of psychic and magical abilities, along with traditions and general plot hooks with a horror bent, are presented. Due to the high cost of many of these abilities this results in a system that is good for characters that are mundane folk except for one or two supernatural tricks.

In addition to psionics and magical traditions the book focuses on horrors beyond space and time similar to those mentioned in various H.P.Lovecraft publications. Such horrors get a lengthy discussion, and rules for the cultists serving them are presented.

While the book states these abilities are not meant to be mixed with other types of supernaturals, such as vampires or werewolves, there's nothing here to prevent a buyer from doing just that. Whether you're looking for new powers to tack onto your Mages or a tool that will let you run a cabal of mystics dedicated to taking down the corrupt mayor of their town this product has a lot to offer.

4.0 out of 5 stars Definitely Worth A Read, December 6, 2011

By 

Nikoli - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Second Sight (World of Darkness) (Hardcover)

The psychic stuff is what really hooked me, but the minor magic is relatively interesting too.

I've been a fan of the World of Darkness games for a few years now. I've played tons of base human campaigns, some Vampire, some Promethean, some Changling, and have a player in our current campaign who plays a werewolf religiously. After reading through this book, I find it a solid addition to any campaign, or a good start for a campaign of its own.