>Question: can I do this with the rules as written? I've been
>reading through the practise spirit and spirit allies sections, and
>as far as I can see the rules don't seem to say I can release a
>practise spirit and then command it to go and attack someone whilst
>I do something else.
As I understand it, you're right as regards practice spirits bound into a fetish: you can use their abilities actively or release them for a bonus to your own abilities, but they're still enhancing you, not acting independently.
(So in practice, using the spirit's ability actively could be narrated as "the shaman points his fetish at you, and a hideous spirit comes forth. As the shaman cackles madly, the spirit attempts to Infect You With Creeping Chills 3W!" But for the shaman to do something else in the same contest would be an unrelated action.)
Spirit allies, however, act as followers - so I don't see why you can't order a follower to act independently while you do something else. Shamans can have multiple spirit allies, too.
Finally, no reason why a major villain can't have additional followers who happen to be spirits of disease - after all, a PC could presumably specify this as part of their 100-word description if the Narrator allowed it...
Stephen
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