You gonna dump that no-good dog of a man. Don’t make me go over there and beat his sorry ass for you…

This archetype is new within the last 20 to 30 years, having its origin in so-called blaxploitation films of the ’70s and ’80s. Since the Sassy Black Woman is a common cultural stereotype, it’s probable more than half of the avatars are in fact black, but a respectable number are white, Asian or Latino, which is why “Black” is in parentheses. Some well-known examples of sassy women of all races are presented under “Masks” and “Suspected Avatars in History”.

Attributes: A Sassy (Black) Woman always speaks her mind, no matter how inappropriate or unwelcome her thoughts may be. She gives you advice whether you want it or not, and genuinely believes it’s for your own good (whether it turns out to be good advice or not). Always self-assured, confident and well put together, she has a personality that draws attention and keeps it. She sticks in the memory of most everyone who knows her, and seems to have the ability to light up even the most dismal situation just by being her own outrageous self. She’s the cool boss you loved to work for, the mother you always wished you could have had, and a firecracker in the bedroom besides. The darker side of this archetype is, of course, that she can sometimes be controlling, overly self-centered, rude, tactless, arrogant, or emasculating. (Often this is in the eye of the beholder.)

Taboos: While being black does increase the connection to the archetype somewhat, there are plenty of non-black sassy women around. There are even a few sassy men channeling this archetype; they are invariably black drag queens. Expressing uncertainty or a lack of self-confidence about anything, including apologizing for anything you did wrong, weakens your connection to the archetype; this also includes hiding or running away. So does dishonesty, knowingly giving bad advice to anyone, or being anything but completely forthright about any detail of your life, no matter how personal. Being quiet about something isn’t as bad as lying outright, but it still weakens your connection to the archetype. Also, sassy ladies love the limelight, so you’ll need to be the center of attention most of the time you’re in a group setting. Being chubby or zaftig is common and increases the connection with the archetype slightly, but isn’t required. Finally, if you’re in a relationship, you always need to be in charge.

Symbols: Gold hoop earrings, acrylic nails, any book by Oprah, Dr. Phil, or Dr. Ruth, Bluetooth headsets, wild gestures, heels or platform shoes

Masks: Foxy Brown is definitely a mask for this archetype. The orisha Oya is a possibility, as is Kali. Pretty much every female character except Dorothy in “The Wiz”. Aida. Motormouth Mabel, from Hairspray.

Suspected Avatars in History: Queen Latifah, Whoopi Goldberg, Michelle Obama, The Queens of Comedy, Rosa Parks, Alexyss K. Tylor. Oprah, possibly. Some male examples include RuPaul and the Lady Chablis. Some non-black examples include Margaret Cho, Chelsea Handler, Ann Coulter and Janeane Garofalo.

1% – 50%: You may substitute your avatar skill for any social skill involving impressing someone, getting someone to listen to what you have to say, intimidating someone, giving someone advice, persuading someone to do something, getting someone to agree with you, or detecting (but not telling) lies.

51% – 70%: By telling someone the absolute truth about themselves and / or the situation they just faced, and helping them to accept it, you can remove a Hardened or Failed notch from the person. This can only be done within three days of whatever event triggered the check in the first place. It uses your avatar skill and follows the rules for psychological first aid on p. 69 of Unknown Armies 2nd Edition.

71% – 90%: Now, by motivating and inspiring someone with your sassiness, you can temporarily imbue them with it for the purpose of one particular skill check. The person must have a conversation with you about whatever it is they have to do, and it must be something that you could do without breaking taboo (so no helping with apologies, hiding, running away, or being dishonest). If you give the person advice and they freely accept it, they may substitute your avatar skill for the appropriate one when making the skill check that’s relevant to what you discussed. This freely given and freely accepted advice is also binding; if they try to go back on whatever you’ve convinced them is the right thing to do, they will find themselves unable.

91%+: Your devotion to truth is so great at this level that you become unable to be deceived in any way, mundane or supernatural. This includes any kind of illusion, invisibility, or power that might make you not notice someone or something. The power still affects anyone around you normally, though you can make an avatar skill check to cause it to fail for everyone else if you choose.

What You Hear:
Some people say that the godwalker of this archetype is in fact the Lady Chablis, and that her special channel is the ability to talk her way into any man’s pants.

It’s also been whispered that the godwalker might be a woman from Michigan who can instantly know, upon meeting you, whether you’re currently involved in an adulterous affair.