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White Wolf Entertainment: Vampire The Masquerade
White Wolf Entertainment: Vampire The Masquerade
ENTERTAINMENT
Vampire the
Masquerade
info@white-wolf.com
www.white-wolf.com
Karim Muammar, Karl Bergstrom and Kenneth Hite, with
contributions, editing, and testing from Martin Ericsson and
Jason Carl
In Vampire, you are the monster; you are a vampire struggling for
survival, supremacy, and your own fading humanity. You’re afraid
of what you are capable of (personal), and afraid of the inhuman
conspiracies and mysteries that surround you (political).
Design Goals
Before we wrote any rules, we spent a lot of time thinking about
what we want the rules to accomplish. Some goals were clear and
easy for us to describe: speed up play, make the rules easier to
teach and to learn, and create options for players to customize the
rules to suit their preferred styles of play. But some goals are
expressed less easily in rules, and it’s these areas in which we ask
for your help today.
Development Status
This pre-alpha playtest draws on 25 years of Vampire the
Masquerade. We have selected some rules and concepts from
different editions, choosing what we felt each edition did best to
help us create this newest version of the game. Some rules, like
Hunger, are completely new. Nothing here is final, and almost
everything will go through several iterations of design, redesign,
and testing before it’s ready for the Alpha Playtest later this year.
Feedback
We appreciate your help today. Please help us improve these pre-
alpha rules by sharing your opinions about it with us. You can
provide us with feedback as part of the playtest or immediately
after, any time that you see us at the World of Darkness Berlin
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convention, or through the playtest survey that we will share with
you in email after the convention.
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BASIC ACTION RESOLUTION
Dice Pool
How to Succeed
When you roll a dice pool, every die result that is 6 or higher
is a success. This includes 10 (represented as “0” on most
d10s).
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The Storyteller determines how many successes you need for
each role, depending on the difficulty of what you’re trying
to accomplish. Example difficulties:
Easy = 1 success
Standard = 2 successes
Moderate = 3-4 successes
Challenging = 5 successes
Hard = 6 successes
Very Hard = 7-8 successes
Nearly Impossible = 9-10 successes
If your roll included some successes, you can try again later
in the scene, but you suffer a setback. The next time you try,
the task gets harder: the Difficulty increases by at least 1.
The Storyteller may ask you what you do differently the next
time to justify getting to retry an action.
Succeed at a Cost
DESIGN NOTES
CHARACTER TRAITS
Attributes
Physical
Social
Mental
Attribute Specialities
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Physical
Social
Mental
Strength, Dexterity, Stamina
Charisma, Manipulation, Appearance
Intelligence, Wits, Perception
DESIGN NOTES
Skills
Skills are the abilities, knowledges, aptitudes, and expertise
that each character possesses, rated from 1 (novice) to 5
(expert).
Using Skills
To use any skill, add the number of dice equal to the skill
rating to a number of dice equal to the relevant Attribute:
that’s the basic dice pool. (Before rolling, add dice for any
applicable specializations or situational modifiers, and
remove dice for any penalties.)
DESIGN NOTES
Willpower
DESIGN NOTES
Virtue and Vice are traits that are central to defining your
character. Both are adjectives that describe these dominant
personality traits. Virtue is a point of strength and integrity
in the character’s life, Vice is a place of weakness.
CONFLICT
Fighting
Attacks with weapons (melee or ranged) are opposed rolls.
Remember that NPCs can always Take Half instead of making
an opposed roll, to speed up the conflict.
Ranged Attack
Multiple Attackers:
When engaged by multiple opponents, the defender must
subtract one dice for every opponent from his resisting dice
pool. As actions are not declared simultaneously, this
penalty is added in sequence with the first defense receiving
no modifier, the second -2, the third -3 etc.
Damage
Brass knuckles: +1
Switchblade: +2
.38 Revolver: +3
Assault rifle: +5
Superficial Damage
Superficial damage is painful and can impair a character’s
actions, but is usually not lethal unless inflicted in massive
amounts. For mortals this is bashes, sprains, bruises and
general body fatigue. For vampires, it’s all this plus damage
from things that could kill mortals, such as bullets, knives,
swords, and animal bites. Mark superficial damage on the
character sheet by making a “/” on the Health Track.
Aggravated Damage
Aggravated damage can kill very quickly. For mortals, it’s
nearly anything exceeding bashes, sprains, bruises and
general body fatigue. For vampires, it’s limited to a very few
things, including fire, sunlight and the teeth and claws of
other supernatural creatures. Mark Aggravated damage on
the character sheet by making a “X” on the Health Track.
Armor
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For the purposes of this playtest, assume each point or
armor changes one point of Aggravated damage (per
damage roll) to Superficial damage, which is then halved
according to the standard rules for Superficial damage,
above.
(Final) Death
A mortal with his Health track filled with Aggravated Damage
will die in Physical(Stamina) minutes, unless first aid is
applied. A mortal can also die as a result of Critical Injuries
(see chart).
DESIGN NOTES
Humanity
Below are the most common reasons to rouse the Blood. Not
all of them will occur in this playtest. Kindred call these
actions “Rousing the Blood.”
When you rouse the blood you may gain Hunger (add Hunger
dice to your Hunger pool; see below), and when you feed you
reduce Hunger (remove dice from your Hunger pool).
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Feeding on blood reduces Hunger dice. When your character
feeds on blood, remove Hunger dice as follows:
Hunger
To reflect this in the game, always use your all Hunger dice
(if you have any—and remember that the only time you don’t
have any Hunger dice is when you’ve just fed from and killed
a human) as part of every dice pool. Form your dice pool
normally, and then substitute your current Hunger dice for
an equal number of normal dice from your pool, so that you
have a dice pool that combines normal dice and Hunger dice.
Note that it’s not the action itself that inflicts the
compulsion: it’s that hunger that you haven’t dealt with yet
by feeding. Searching through a haven or driving a car are
relatively mundane tasks, but the effects of Hunger can
strike anytime, anywhere, and without warning. You must
stay well fed in order to reduce these risks.
Roll 1d10 for each time you roused the blood. For every die
that is not 6+, add a new Hunger die to your Hunger dice
pool. If this takes your Hunger above 5 make an immediate
Hunger Frenzy check with a -1 penalty for every step above
5.
Frenzy
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Frenzy is a state of intense fear or anger that can bloom
suddenly and cause the vampire to lose control completely.
It is usually provoked by outside circumstances but can
sometimes be triggered by a vampire’s own unchecked
appetites (see Hunger).
Frenzy Provocations
DESIGN NOTES
Compulsions
General Compulsions
1: Overpowering blood whisper. Memories or emotions of
your last victim rise to the surface, whispering insistently
in your ears. Lose an action if in combat, otherwise remain
immobile listening to the murmurings for 1 minute.
2. Check the surroundings! You feel an overpowering
predatory need to survey the area for prey. You’ll stop at
nothing to get a better view of the situation, spending
precious time to reach a good vantage point, or become
disabled by claustrophobia-like anxiety for a turn (or
more, depending on scene and circumstances).
3: Life nostalgia. You feel a sudden urge to do something
that reminds you of the person you were when you were
still alive. Call someone you knew in life. Zone out over a
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smell from childhood. Eat your favourite food and then
throw it up. Do something comforting and familiar to
temporarily forget you are a blood-addicted monster.
4: Dead people problems. Fail at being human during this
scene, with consequences. Forget to use the lungs
properly. All that comes out is whispers. You grow
temporarily cold and pale. Touch screens stops working.
You stop blinking. (If you spent blood to appear mortal in
this scene, the blood ceases to have the desired effect
immediately.)
5: Predator’s taint. Lash out. Hurt the person in the scene
you like the most, socially, emotionally, or physically.
6: Clan specific – 1
7: Clan specific – 2
8: Clan specific – 3
9: The hunger rises. You suffer an overwhelming urge to
feed during this scene. You must have blood. You must
taste it, drink it! At least 1 blood must be consumed. If
impossible, feed from self, causing 1 Aggravated wound.
10: Frenzy! Make an immediate frenzy roll against
perceived provocation or fear.
Brujah
1: Triggered. You are offended by something in this scene
and react to it with extrovert anger.
2: Devil’s advocate. Take the opposite stance to the next
suggestion that comes up and refuse to budge.
3: Frenzy! Make an anger frenzy roll. If you fail react with
terrible anger at a perceived slight or provocation.
Gangrel
1: Check the surroundings! You feel an overpowering
predatory need to survey the area for prey. You’ll stop at
nothing to get a better view of the situation, spending
precious time to reach a good vantage point, or become
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disabled by claustrophobia-like anxiety for a turn (or
more, depending on scene and circumstances).
2: Animalistic. You lose the ability to communicate with
language, temporarily unable to speak for the entire
scene. With an effort you may make a few grunts, growls,
or snarls.
3: Regression. Your higher brain functions are temporarily
subdued, reducing you to acting on instinct for the entire
scene. Self-preservation becomes a top priority, though
you can still tell friend from foe.
Malkavian
1: Sanguine animism. You become haunted by your last
victim for the rest of the scene. You may do something to
help your victim or even believe that you are your victim
for the rest of the scene.
2: Madness Network – You are overwhelmed by a flash of
insight about the current scene. Storyteller chooses the
exact details and information, which you see as images
and sounds in your mind. This is never pleasant.
3: Derangement triggers in a severe way (See character
sheet)
Toreador
1 Aesthetic fugue state. Enter a fugue state over a face, a
voice, an image, a smell, a taste, etc. for the rest of the
scene. You lose all sense of your surroundings, becoming
immobile and focusing all your attention exclusively on
this one thing. Describe the experience.
2 Crave intimacy. You crave intimacy with a mortal, or a
kindred if no mortals are in the scene. You want and need
someone to whisper that it’s all gonna be fine, to feel the
primal intimacy of the motions of mortal sex, someone to
hold you tight. The intimacy can be one-sided. If you fail
you must feed
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scene. This feeling continues until you act clearly on it,
then the feeling passes.
Ventrue
1: Be seen. Make a declaration or speech, and make sure
no one ignores it. Do whatever you must to be heard:
stand on a chair, a table, a rooftop; shout if you must, and
silence anyone who dares to interfere with you.
2: Obey orders. Look for instructions from above to
comfort you—demand them if necessary!—and then carry
them out to the letter. If you are alone God is always there.
3: Assert dominance. Give a command and make sure
someone obeys it. Threaten, coerce, persuade, or use
Dominate if you have to, but make sure your instructions
are carried out.
Appendix 2
Critical Injuries
Roll a D10 and add current Aggravated damage on the Health
track.
Auspex
Heightened Senses
Description: This power increases the acuity of all of the
vampire’s senses, effectively doubling the clarity and range
of sight, hearing, and smell. The Kindred may magnify her
senses at will, sustaining this heightened focus for as long as
she desires. Occasionally, this talent provides extrasensory
or even precognitive insights.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate for one scene. While
active, add the characters Auspex rating to any dice pool
involving Alertness or Awareness. For exceptional
precognitive insights, roll only Auspex, but unless the threat
is immediate and somewhat obvious, multiple successes are
required.
Aura Perception
Description: Using this power, the vampire can perceive the
psychic “auras” that radiate from mortals and supernatural
beings alike. The stronger the emotions involved, the more
intense the hues become. Aside from perceiving emotional
states, vampires use Aura Perception to detect supernatural
beings.
System: The character Rouses the Blood and stares at the
subject for a few seconds. Roll Mental(Perception) +
Empathy.
Successes Result
1 success: Can distinguish only the shade (pale or bright).
2 successes: Can distinguish the main colour.
3 successes: Can recognize the colour patterns.
4 successes: Can detect subtle shifts.
5 successes: Can identify mixtures of colour and pattern.
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Aura Colors
Celerity
Alacrity
Description: You are capable of an incredibly fast response
time. By activating Alacrity, you have the ability to make
incredibly rapid movements, increasing both dexterity and
reflexes.
System: When you Rouse Blood to activate Alacrity, your
Initiative value doubles, and you can add your Celerity rating
to all rolls involving Physical(Dexterity) and/or Athletics.
Alacrity lasts for one scene.
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Swiftness
Description: Your body responds so quickly that the world
around you seems to slow down. You can use this extra time
to avoid dangers that would otherwise be unavoidable.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate Swiftness for one scene.
While active, Swiftness allows you to use your Dodge skill
against firearms even with no cover without losing your next
action. You also don’t suffer penalties when fighting multiple
opponents.
Rapidity
Description: You can move faster than humanly possible.
Before a normal human can move or breathe, you are already
acting a second time.
System: When you Rouse Blood to activate Rapidity, you gain
an extra Action (including normal movement) at the end of
the round. This action can only be used for physical
activities. Rapidity lasts for a number of rounds equal to your
Celerity rating.
Dominate
Command
Description: The vampire locks eyes with the subject and
speaks a one-word command, which the subject must be
obey instantly. The order must be clear and straightforward:
run, agree, fall, yawn, jump, laugh, surrender, stop,
scream, follow. If the command is at all confusing or
ambiguous, the subject may respond slowly or perform
the task poorly. The subject cannot be ordered to do
something directly harmful to herself.
System: Rouse the Blood and make a resisted
Social(Charisma)+Intimidation roll vs Willpower. (Roll dice
equal to targets remaining Willpower.)
Mesmerize
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Description: With this power, a vampire can verbally implant
a false thought or hypnotic suggestion in the subject’s
subconscious mind. Both Kindred and target must be
free from distraction, since Mesmerize requires intense
concentration and precise wording to be effective. The
vampire may activate the imposed thought immediately
or establish a stimulus that will trigger it later. The
victim must be able to understand the vampire, though
the two need to maintain eye contact only as long as it
takes to implant the idea. Mesmerize allows for anything
from simple, precise directives (handing over an item) to
complex, highly involved ones (taking notes of someone’s
habits and relaying that information at an appointed time). It
is not useful for planting illusions or false memories (such
as seeing a rabbit or believing yourself to be on fire). A
subject can have only one suggestion implanted at any
time.
System: Rouse the Blood and make a resisted
Social(Manipulation)+Leadership roll vs Willpower.
Fortitude
Endurance
Description: You are beyond pain or fatigue, ignoring such
hardships. Your body simply does not feel such minor
inconveniences.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate Endurance for one
scene. Your character does not suffer the regular -2 pool
penalty to being Impaired and other critical injuries have
their penalties reduced by 1.
Mettle
Description: Your body can take more damage than others,
suffering only light injuries even under circumstances that
should do serious harm.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate Mettle for one scene.
Each time your character takes Aggravated damage, you may
convert 1 point of Aggravated damage to Superficial
damage.
Resilience
Description: Beatings that would slow or maim others mean
nothing to you. You can shrug off such detrimental injuries.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate Resilience for one scene.
Each time your character takes damage, you may ignore 1
point of Superficial damage. You can use this power in
conjunction with other powers that convert Aggravated
damage into Superficial damage. (You can use Mettle to
downgrade a point of aggravated damage into normal
damage, then you can use Resilience to ignore that point of
normal damage.)
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Obfuscate
Cloak of Shadows
Description: The vampire conceals herself from sight by
relying on nearby shadows and cover to assist in hiding her
presence. She steps into an out-of-the-way, shadowed place
and eases herself from normal sight. The vampire remains
unnoticed as long as she stays silent, still, under some
degree of cover (such as a curtain, bush, door frame,
lamppost, or alley), and out of direct lighting. The immortal’s
concealment vanishes if she moves, attacks, or falls under
direct light. Furthermore, the vampire’s deception
cannot stand up to concentrated observation without
fading.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate Cloak of Shadows. No
roll is necessary. The power lasts until the user moves or
otherwise makes herself noticed, or the scene ends.
Unseen Presence
Description: The vampire can move around
without being seen. Shadows seem to shift to cover
him, and people automatically avert their gazes as he
passes by. Others move unconsciously to avoid contact
with the cloaked creature; those with weak wills may
even scurry away from the area in unacknowledged
fear. The vampire remains ignored indefinitely unless
someone deliberately seeks him out or he inadvertently
reveals himself.
System: Rouse the Blood to activate Cloak of Shadows. No
roll is necessary. If the user takes any action other than
walking, roll Mental(Wits)+Stealth with a difficulty
determined by the ST to avoid breaking the stealth. The
power otherwise lasts until the scene ends.
Potence
Prowess
Description: Your strength is clearly supernatural. You attack
with mighty force, overwhelming your enemies and awing
your allies.
System: Rouse the Blood to add your Potence rating as
automatic successes in any Physical(Strength)-based roll for
a turn.
Mighty Leap
Description: Vampiric strength can not only be used to crush
and break, but to propel the user further than any natural
muscles would allow, in flight-like leaps.
System: Rouse the Blood to leap through the air, travelling a
distance equal to five times the number of successes on a
Physical(Strength)+Athletics roll if jumping horizontally, or
times two if going for a vertical leap. (Yes, this can be
combined with Prowess for some truly spectacular flying.)
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Penetrating Strike
Description: The user is able to concentrate her strength
with such speed and focus to make a mockery of armour.
System: Rouse the Blood to make the next brawl or melee
attack ignore armour.
Presence
Awe
Description: Those near the vampire suddenly desire to be
closer to her and become receptive to her point of view. Awe
is extremely useful for mass communication. It matters
little what is said — the hearts of those affected lean
toward the vampire’s opinion. The weak want to agree
with her; even if the strong-willed resist, they soon
find themselves outnumbered. Awe can turn a chancy
deliberation into a certain resolution in the vampire’s
favor almost before her opponents know that the tide
has turned. Despite the intensity of this attraction, those so
smitten do not lose their sense of self-preservation. Danger
breaks the spell of fascination, as does leaving the area.
Those subject to Awe will remember how they felt in
the vampire’s presence, however. This will influence
their reactions should they ever encounter her again.
System: The player Rouses the Blood and rolls
Social(Charisma) + Persuasion. The number of successes
rolled determines how many people are affected, as noted
on the chart below. The power stays in effect for the
remainder of the scene or until the character chooses to
drop it.
Dread Gaze
Description: While all Kindred can frighten others by
physically revealing their true vampiric natures — baring
claws and fangs, glaring with malevolence, hissing loudly
with malice — this power focuses these elements to insanely
terrifying levels. Dread Gaze engenders unbearable terror
in its victim, stupefying him into madness, immobility,
or reckless flight. Even the most stalwart individual
will fall back from the vampire’s horrific visage.
System: Rouse the Blood and make a resisted roll of
Social(Charisma)+Intimidation against Composure of a single
target. On 1-2 Successes the target is cowed, effectively
losing the next action. On three or more successes the target
tries to flee by any means necessary. Vampires affected thus
need to make an immediate fear frenzy test.
Entrancement
Description: This power bends others’ emotions, making
them the vampire’s willing servants. Due to what these
individuals see as true and enduring devotion, they heed
the vampire’s every desire. Since this is done willingly,
instead of having their wills sapped, these servants retain
their creativity and individuality.
While these obedient minions are more personable
and spirited than the mind-slaves created by Dominate,
they’re also somewhat unpredictable. Further,
since Entrancement is of a temporary duration, dealing
with a lapsed servant can be troublesome. A wise Kindred
either disposes of those she Entrances after they
serve their usefulness, or binds them more securely by a
blood bond (made much easier by the minion’s willingness
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to serve).
System: The player Rouses the Blood and makes a resisted
roll of Social(Appearance) + Empathy vs Willpower; the
number of successes determines how long the subject is
Entranced, as per the chart below.
The Storyteller may wish to make the roll instead, since the
character is never certain of the strength of her hold on the
victim. The vampire may try to keep the subject under her
thrall, but can do so only after the initial Entrancement wears
off. Attempting this power while Entrancement is already in
operation has no effect.
Mental
Academics
This skill covers the character’s erudition in one academic
field, specified at skill purchase. This can be as general or
specific as the Storyteller decides, and is not limited to the
Humanities, but can equally well be of a more “hard
scientific” nature. A character with dots in Academics is
generally well rounded in this field, and at high levels may
be considered an expert in her area of study.
Alertness
This is your basic knack for noticing things that go on
around you, even when you’re not actively looking for them.
Alertness describes the attention you pay to the outside
world, whether otherwise occupied or not.
Awareness
Awareness is an instinctual reaction to the presence of the
supernatural. It differs from Alertness (which measures
sensitivity to mundane events) and Occult (which covers
actual knowledge about the supernatural). Characters with
Awareness sometimes get hunches, chills, or sudden flashes
of inspiration when they are near supernatural creatures,
objects, or events. This insight is purely subconscious, and
knowing that something’s wrong doesn’t mean that the
character knows what it is.
Firearms
This Skill represents familiarity with a range of firearms,
from holdout pistols to heavy machine guns. Further,
someone skilled in Firearms can clean, repair, recognize, and
accurately fire most forms of small arms. This Skill is also
used to unjam guns. It is never used in a defensive capacity,
however. (Use Dodge instead).
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Investigation
You’ve learned to notice details others might overlook, and
might make an admirable detective. This skill represents not
only a good eye for detail, but also an ability to do research
and follow leads. Such research may include Internet
searches or more specific research techniques like hitting
the law books and periodicals archives at the library.
Medicine
You have an understanding of how the human body — and
to a lesser extent the vampiric body — works. This skill
covers knowledge of medicines, ailments, first-aid
procedures, and diagnosis or treatment of disease. Medicine
is of great use to those Kindred with an interest in repairing,
damaging, or reworking the human body.
Occult
You are knowledgeable in occult areas such as mysticism,
curses, magic, folklore, and particularly vampire lore. Unlike
most other skills, Occult does not imply a command of hard
facts. Much of what you know may well be rumor, myth,
speculation, or hearsay. However, the secrets to be learned
in this field are worth centuries of sifting legend from fact.
High levels of Occult imply a deep understanding of vampire
lore, as well as a good grounding in other aspects of the
occult. At the very least, you can discern what is patently
false.
Technology
The Technology skill represents a broad acumen with
electronics, advanced machinery and computers, both
hardware and software. This is the wide-ranging skill used
to build one’s own computer, hack a security system, repair
a mobile phone, or kitbash a shortwave radio. Just like
Academics, you must choose a specialization in Technology,
even though you possess some skill in multiple fields.
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Physical
Athletics
This skill represents your basic athletic ability, as well as any
training you might have had in sports or other dynamic
activities. Athletics concerns all forms of running, jumping,
throwing, swimming, sports, and the like. However, Athletics
doesn’t cover static motor actions such as lifting weights
(that’s Physique, below), nor does it govern athletic feats
covered by another, more specific, skill such as Dodge.
Brawl
The Brawl skill represents how well you fight in tooth-and-
nail situations. This Talent represents skill in unarmed
combat, whether from formal martial arts training or simply
from plenty of experience. This skill is especially important
to a vampire, as it not only covers the use of hands and feet,
but fangs as well.
Dodge
This represents a characters aptitude for immediate self-
preservation, whether it’s avoiding blows and sharp
implements or finding the best cover in a surprise firefight.
A character can use Dodge in place of any combat skill in a
resisted combat roll, but will in that case never inflict any
hits on the opponent, no matter how many successes are
rolled. Note that, as per the combat rules, trying to dodge a
bullet without available cover will result in going prone.
Larceny
This Skill entails familiarity with the tools and techniques for
the sorts of physical manipulation typically associated with
criminal activity. Picking locks, manual forgery, safecracking,
simple hotwiring, various forms of breaking and entering,
and even sleight-of-hand all fall under the auspices of
Larceny. Larceny is useful not only for theft, but also for
setting up “the unbeatable system” or deducing where a thief
broke in. This skill does not confer any aptitude with
advanced security or anti-crime technologies such as video
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surveillance or alarm systems — those are covered by the
Technology Knowledge.
Melee
Melee covers your ability to use hand-to-hand weapons of
all forms, from swords and clubs to esoteric martial-arts
paraphernalia such as sai or nunchaku. And, of course, there
is always the utility of the wooden stake.…
Physique
This skill represents your physical training in feats of static
strength and stamina. Whereas Athletics is usually about
movement and traversal, Physique covers static feats such as
lifting weights, tests of endurance or both.
Stealth
This skill is the ability to avoid being detected, whether
you’re hiding or moving at the time. Stealth is often tested
against someone else’s Perception + Alertness. This skill is,
for obvious reasons, highly useful in stalking prey.
Survival
Although vampires have little to fear from starvation and
exposure, the wilderness can still be dangerous to a Cainite.
This skill allows you to find shelter, navigate your way to
civilization, track prey, establish a makeshift haven, and
possibly even avoid supernatural threats like werewolves that
also prowl the World of Darkness. Note that Survival need
not be used only in areas considered “wilderness.” There’s
plenty of Survival that goes into getting by in various parts of
modern cities.
Social
Art
Art represents both your knowledge of, and ability to
socialize in, the world of art and artists, as well as your abilty
to express yourself in one or more forms of art. Each
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specialization allows you to pick an art form to be proficient
in.
Empathy
You understand the emotions of others, and can sympathize
with, feign sympathy for, or play on such emotions as you
see fit. You are adept at discerning motive, and might be
able to discern when someone’s lying to you. However, you
may be so in tune with other people’s feelings that your own
emotions are affected.
Intimidation
Intimidation takes many forms, from outright threats and
physical violence to mere force of personality. It needn’t be
course or callous, and a well-placed intimidating word under
the right circumstances might well be called “diplomacy” in
certain circles. You know the right method for each occasion,
and can be very… persuasive.
Leadership
You are an example to others and can inspire them to do
what you want. Leadership has less to do with manipulating
people’s desires than it does with presenting yourself as the
sort of person they want to follow. Anyone can lead a group
into some sort of conflict; a good leader can get them back
out intact.
Persuasion
Persuasion is your character’s ability to change minds and
influence behaviours through logic, fast-talking, or
appealing to desire. It relies on the force of your character’s
personality to sway the listener. Persuasion is perhaps the
safest way to convince a potential meal to meet in private.
Socialize
Socialize reflects your character’s ability to present herself
well and interact with groups of people (alive or dead). It
reflects proper (and setting-appropriate) etiquette, customs,
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sensitivity, and warmth. A character with a high Socialize is
the life of the party.
Streetwise
The Streetwise skill is your character’s knowledge of life on
the streets. It tells her how to navigate the city, how to get
information from unlikely sources, and where she’ll be
(relatively) safe. If she wants to get something on the black
market, Streetwise is how.
Subterfuge
Subterfuge is the ability to deceive. With Subterfuge, your
character can lie convincingly, project hidden messages in
what she says, hide motivations, and notice deception in
others.
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Appendix 5
The Generation Game
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Mental Physical Social
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Academics Athletics Art