Worshipers must choose one of their number
to serve as the Effigy, shaving this person’s hair
and removing all signs and symbols of gender
or identity. The person is then scourged bloody
over every inch of their body, their ears and
nose cut off, their eyes gouged out and replaced
with shiny black stones. Finally, they are made
to drink the “privileged blood” of a person of
wealth or high birth. This blood must be fresh,
and the Effigy must consume every drop. Then,
if the offering is accepted by the god (which it
often is not), Skaen will manifest in the Effigy,
becoming an utterly unstoppable and pitiless
vessel of the god’s power, immune to pain and
imbued with monstrous strength. As soon as
the target oppressors are slain (usually in a
gruesome manner), the Effigy falls dead.
