Vampire:

Degeneration

A Custom Ruleset
For
Vampire: The Masquerade

By

Dr. Michael E. Lopez

With special thanks to:

Albert Kirby
&
Rick Arthur
 Table of Contents

Table of Contents
INTROIT ...............................................................................................................1
PROLOGUE: Contests and Mathematics .................................................. 2
PART I: Character Generation ........................................................................ 5
1. Overview ....................................................................................................... 5
2. Abilities .......................................................................................................... 5
3. Attributes ....................................................................................................... 5
4. Disciplines ..................................................................................................... 6
5. Backgrounds .................................................................................................. 6
6. Lores ............................................................................................................... 8
7. Willpower ....................................................................................................... 9
8. Humanity ....................................................................................................... 9
9. Beast ............................................................................................................... 9
10. Beast Traits .................................................................................................. 9
11. Inhumanities ............................................................................................. 10
12. Stigmata....................................................................................................... 11
13. Clans ........................................................................................................... 12
Brujah .................................................................................................... 13
Gangrel ................................................................................................. 14
Malkavian.............................................................................................. 15
Nosferatu .............................................................................................. 16
Toreador ............................................................................................... 17
Tremere ................................................................................................. 18
Ventrue.................................................................................................. 19
Caitiff..................................................................................................... 20
Followers of Set .................................................................................. 21
Lasombra .............................................................................................. 22
Tzimisce ................................................................................................ 23
Asuras .................................................................................................... 24
14. Sanguinis .................................................................................................... 25

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15. Freebie Points ........................................................................................... 26

16. Archetypes ................................................................................................. 27

PART II: Combat............................................................................................... 31

1. Overview ..................................................................................................... 31
2. The Combat Round ................................................................................... 31
Blood Expenditures ............................................................................ 32
Declaration of Actions ...................................................................... 32
Unopposed Actions ............................................................................ 33
Combat Contests ................................................................................. 33
Damage Contests ................................................................................ 33
Apply Wound Penalties ...................................................................... 33
Power Use/Activation ........................................................................ 33
Blood Expenditures ............................................................................ 33
3. Calculating Combat Statistics ................................................................... 34
Blood Figuring CBT and DMT ........................................................ 34
HIGH and LOW damage totals ....................................................... 35
Special Rules for Firearms ................................................................. 37
Combat Contests ................................................................................. 33
Damage Contests ................................................................................ 33
4. Resolving Combat Contests ..................................................................... 38
5. Resolving Damage Contests ..................................................................... 40
6. Damage, Wound Penalties, and Death.................................................... 41
7. Combat Disciplines .................................................................................... 42
8. Multiple Opponents ................................................................................... 42
9. Grappling ..................................................................................................... 43
10. Biting in Combat ...................................................................................... 44
11. Hitting Them When They’re Down...................................................... 45
12. Healing ....................................................................................................... 45
13. Action Priority and Change .................................................................... 46

PART III: Degeneration .................................................................................. 47

1. Overview ..................................................................................................... 47

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2. Frenzy ........................................................................................................... 48
Types of Frenzy .................................................................................. 48
Frenzy Mechanics ................................................................................ 48
Advantages of Frenzy ........................................................................ 49
Ending Frenzy ..................................................................................... 49
3. Beast Traits .................................................................................................. 49
Rage Beast Traits ................................................................................. 51
Hunger Beast Traits ............................................................................ 52
Fear Beast Traits .................................................................................. 53
4. Of Humanity… and Inhumanity ............................................................ 55
Degeneration Checks ......................................................................... 55
Becoming a Monster........................................................................... 56
Salavation .............................................................................................. 56
Subhuman Inhumanities .................................................................... 57
Monstrous Inhumanities .................................................................... 58
5. Stigmata ........................................................................................................ 60

PART IV: Game Systems ................................................................................ 66

1. Status and Social Contests ........................................................................ 66
2. Willpower ..................................................................................................... 68
3. Blood Bonds ............................................................................................... 68
4. Ghouls .......................................................................................................... 70
5. Out-of-Clan Disciplines ............................................................................ 72
6. Creation Rites.............................................................................................. 73
7. Diablerie ....................................................................................................... 75
8. Torpor and Revival ..................................................................................... 76
9. Masquerade Skill ......................................................................................... 78
10. Daylight Operations................................................................................. 80
11. Sheer Strength ........................................................................................... 81
12. Influences .................................................................................................. 82
13. Retainers .................................................................................................... 84
14. Hunting ...................................................................................................... 86
Hunt Methods ..................................................................................... 86

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Calculating Your Hunt Totals............................................................ 87

Calculating Hunt Difficulty ............................................................... 89
Hunting Botches ................................................................................. 89
A Killing Mood ................................................................................... 91
Herd....................................................................................................... 91
Territory Type Descriptions .............................................................. 91
15. Lores ........................................................................................................... 93

PART V: Disciplines ......................................................................................... 97

1. Power Modifiers ......................................................................................... 97
2. Alternate Power Advancement .............................................................. 100
ANIMALISM .................................................................................................101
AUSPEX ........................................................................................................ 104
CELERITY ................................................................................................... 107
CHIMERSTRY ............................................................................................. 109
DEMENTATION ........................................................................................ 111
DOMINATE .................................................................................................112
FORTITUDE ................................................................................................115
METAMORPH .............................................................................................115
OBFUSCATE ................................................................................................117
OBSIDIA ....................................................................................................... 120
OBTENEBRATION ...................................................................................121
POTENCE .................................................................................................... 123
PRESENCE .................................................................................................. 123
PROTEAN .................................................................................................... 126
SERPENTIS ................................................................................................. 129
VICISSITUDE ..............................................................................................131
ATAVISM ...................................................................................................... 133

PART VI: Thaumaturgy ................................................................................ 134

ALCHEMY ................................................................................................... 135
BIOTHAUMATURGY............................................................................... 137
COUNTERMAGIC .................................................................................... 139

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THE FOCUSED MIND ............................................................................ 140

THE HEARTH PATH ................................................................................141
LURE OF FLAMES .................................................................................... 142
THE MUTED PATH.................................................................................. 143
NEPTUNE’S MIGHT ................................................................................ 145
PATH OF ATHENA .................................................................................. 146
PATH OF BLOOD ..................................................................................... 147
PATH OF CONJURING ........................................................................... 148
PATH OF CORRUPTION ........................................................................ 149
SPIRIT THAUMATURGY .........................................................................151
TECHNOMANCY ..................................................................................... 152
TERRA’S POWER ....................................................................................... 153
WEATHER CONTROL ............................................................................ 154
Rituals ............................................................................................................. 156
Level 1 ................................................................................................. 157
Level 2 ................................................................................................. 164
Level 3 ..................................................................................................171
Level 4 ................................................................................................. 178
Level 5 ................................................................................................. 184

PART VII: Necromancy ................................................................................ 189

THE SEPULCHRE PATH ........................................................................ 190
THE BONE PATH ..................................................................................... 192
THE SHROUD PATH ............................................................................... 194
THE ASH PATH ......................................................................................... 196
Rituals ............................................................................................................. 198
Level 1 ................................................................................................. 199
Level 2 ................................................................................................. 202
Level 3 ................................................................................................. 205
Level 4 ................................................................................................. 209
Level 5 ................................................................................................. 213

PART VIII: Fate Points and Aspects......................................................... 217

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1. Fate Points ................................................................................................. 217

2. Aspects ....................................................................................................... 218

PART IX: Realms of the Dead .................................................................... 220

PART X: Wraiths .............................................................................................. 223

1. Spirit Attributes ........................................................................................ 223
2. Spirit Game Systems ................................................................................ 223
3. Spirit Powers ............................................................................................. 226
4. Sample Wraiths ......................................................................................... 228

PART XI: Influence Examples ................................................................... 229

Sample Character Sheet ................................................................................. 231

Combat Record Sheet .................................................................................. 232

vii
 INTROIT
INTROIT
A beginning is a delicate time.
1. WHAT IS THIS BOOK?
This book is an adaptation of White Wolf ’s
Vampire: The Masquerade Role-Playing
Game. It is a streamlined, high action rules
set developed as an expanded, dice-based
version of rules found on the Los Angeles:
Out of Control MUSH, which were based on
the Sanguinis Nobilis MUSH rules, which
were in turn loosely based on the Mind's
Eye Theatre rules. It is assumed readers will
have some basic familiarity with the White
Wolf Storyteller system. No time is taken
to explain terms such as Attributes, Freebie
Points, Generation, or anything else. Play-
ers who do not have this knowledge should
consult their Gamemaster.
2. WHAT IS DIFFERENT?
Some highlights:
 Disciplines are generally more effective.;
many powers do not require any roll.
 Play is mostly accomplished with 2d6.
 Combat is faster-paced, slightly less le-
thal, and has clearer winners and losers.
 All clans have four in-clan disciplines.
1
 New abilities, disciplines, and back-
grounds.
3. WHAT’S INSIDE?
 Part I deals with character generation.
 Part II deals with the new Combat rules.
 Part III explains new Humanity and De-
generation rules.
 Part IV explains other revised Game
Systems.
 Part V presents the adapted disciplines,
and introduces new disciplines.
 Part VI deals with Thaumaturgical paths
and rituals.
 Part VII deals with Necromantic paths
and rituals.
 Part VIII introduces a Fate Point/
Aspects system based on the Fantastic
Adventures in Tabletop Entertainment
(FATE) and FUDGE rules.
 Part IX briefly examines the realms of
the dead and cosmology.
 Part X presents rules for governing
Ghosts and Wraiths.
 Part XI provides Influence Cost exam-
ples.
 PROLOGUE
PROLOGUE:
Contests and Mathematics
I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the
strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet
favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.
1. CONTESTS
The basic mechanic in these Rules is the
Contest: a challenge between two separate
values (“Contest Values” or “Values”).
One will usually belong to a player charac-
ter, and the second may belong to another
player, an NPC, or it may be a static
“Difficulty.”
Contests are intended to quickly resolve
game issues. Imagine Max the Ventrue is
attempting to Dominate John the bartend-
er. John’s Willpower is 4, and he resists
Dominate with half of that. Max’s Domi-
nate Value is 5 (Manipulation + Intimida-
tion). Their Values are 5 and 2. Each side
rolls 1D6 and adds it to their Value. The
highest total wins. That’s all there is to it.
And both sides get to roll something.
What happened to dice pools?
The standard V:tM rules aggregated attributes
and abilities to form “dice pools” — the higher
your stats, the more dice you got. This system
still uses those same numbers in many cases as
Contest Values— but the number is added to the
one die roll the player makes in the contest.
2
It can be impossible to win a contest: if
Max rolled a 4, his total would be 9 and it
would be impossible for John to successful-
ly resist — without some type of bonus.
2. ADVANTAGE
These rules also include something called
Advantage. Imagine that John had been
Conditioned (a Dominate power) by Astrid,
an NPC elder. That power works to pre-
vent further meddling, and it gives John a
little extra edge — an "Advantage" - on his
roll to resist Max.
When a character has Advantage, instead
of rolling 1D6, he rolls 2d6, selecting only
the higher of the two dice, and then adds
that number plus one to his Value.
Advantage can only ever be possessed by
one character in a contest. If there is a rea-
son for John to have Advantage, and also a
reason for Max to have Advantage, then
they cancel out. If Max has four reasons
and John only has one, Max still only gets a
single Advantage.
 PROLOGUE
3. DIFFICULTY AND AUTO-
MATIC SUCCESSES.
There is no such thing as a truly unopposed
roll: every contest will involve two sides.
Even where there is no actual “opponent”
— such as when trying to break down a
door, climb a building, or fix a computer
— if there is a need for a contest at all, it
will be “opposed” by the difficulty of the
task.
A. Automatic Success
If a character has any ranks in the relevant
Ability for a task, however, the Gamemas-
ter should give serious thought to whether
a contest is even warranted at all.
Many player actions should be automatic:
for example, intimidating an average office
worker probably should not require a roll
for any vampire with two dots of Intimida-
tion, and hopping a chain link fence – even
with basic barbed wire (though maybe not
concertina) – probably shouldn’t require a
contest if the vampire has even one dot in
Athletics and a Dexterity over 1.
The circumstances matter: hopping a fence
is easy. Doing it in the dark pouring rain
while being chased by a werewolf is anoth-
er matter entirely.
B. Difficulty of “Unopposed” Rolls
Sometimes, actions do require rolls —
jumping that fence in the dark, in the rain,
while running away from a werewolf is
tricky and requires some skill. In cases
3
ROUND UP
THE USUAL SUSPECTS
When a contest requires a statistic to be divided by
a number (e.g., half of a character’s Willpower), the
result should always be rounded up unless other-
wise specified.
where there is no opposing character —
what are sometimes called “environmental”
contests — the “Difficulties” on Table 1,
below, can be used by the Gamemaster to
determine the “opposing” value.
In such a contest, ties should almost always
count as successes.
TABLE 1: “Unopposed” Difficulties
Difficulty of Action
3
Simple/routine tasks when the PC has
no relevant Ability
Moderate tasks requiring at least some
4 skill
Specialized displays requiring training
5 and experience
Complex tasks requiring significant
6 training or experience
Very difficult tasks, even for profession-
7 als in the field
Daunting challenges for all but the high-
8 est level professionals
Exceptional feats even for high-level
9 professionals
10
Heroically difficult and complicated
feats that often lead to fame
Either the GM is being a dick or the
11 Player is being silly
 PROLOGUE

C. What that Means TABLE 2: Dice Mathematics

The descriptions on Table 1 are a little
opaque, and every GM will likely develop Differential With
their own sense of where difficulties (PC skill Winning Advantage
should lie. There are no hard and fast minus diffi- Ties (Winning
rules. But here are some guidelines: culty) Ties)
+5 100% 100%
 You want to shoot a bullseye on a target
at 15 yards with a pistol? Not terribly +4 97.22% 100%
hard to do if you’ve fired a gun before.
+3 91.66% 99.54%
Difficulty 4.
+2 83.33% 97.68%
 Free climb a slightly irregular brick wall?
Probably difficulty 4 or 5 — 6 if it’s +1 72.22% 93.52%
particularly bare — with checks every
0 58.33% 86.11%
twenty feet or so.
-1 41.66% 74.55%
 Reconstruct a traffic accident based
solely on skid marks or track an un- -2 27.77% 57.88%
wounded deer through a forest? Diffi- -3 16.66% 41.67%
culty 6 or 7.
-4 8.33% 26.86%
 Take an icy mountain road turn at 45
miles an hour, drifting to avoid the -5 2.77% 14.36%
edge? Difficulty 8 (9 if you’re in a
Camry). -6 0% 5.1%

 Want to hack NORAD and play a nice
game of chess with Joshua? That’s a 10.
4. MATHEMATICS
Players may want to know exactly how diffi-
cult something is. For number-crunchers,
the table to the right shows the percentage
change of winning a contest if you win
ties. If you lose ties, everything shifts
down one level. The chart also shows how
important Advantage can be!
So let’s say that you took that icy turn at 45
mph with WITS+DRIVE of 10 (i.e., 5+5).
You would have an 83.33% chance of suc-
cess — not bad, but you’re one of the best
drivers in the world! If you’re just a skilled,
experienced professional driver
(WITS+DRIVE of 6 or 7), your chances
drop to 27% or 42%. Not the best odds.
So with all of that out of the way, let’s get
to it!

4
 PART I
Character Generation
By attribute I understand what the intellect perceives of substance as constituting its
essence .
1. OVERVIEW
The character generation process has not
changed much under this rules set. Players
still pick attributes, abilities, disciplines,
backgrounds, and set Willpower and Hu-
manity. Players still spend freebie points,
and can take flaws to gain more freebie
points. However, there have been a num-
ber of new abilities introduced, and several
limiting distinctions have been discarded in
favor of greater flexibility. Virtues are no
longer used, and instead there is a direct
competition between a character’s Humani-
ty and his or her Beast, which is represent-
ed by a separate stat.
2. ATTRIBUTES
The nine basic attributes are unchanged. A
major change to how attributes are assigned
is that players need not set priority for
Physical, Mental, and Social Attributes.
Every attribute still starts at 1. Each player
starts with fifteen (15) ranks (or “dots”) to
put into attributes however they choose.
5
Nosferatu may not put any of these 15
points into Appearance (their appearance is
locked at 1 forever).
3. ABILITIES
Like attributes, points are assigned to abili-
ties without reference to the distinctions
between talents, skills, and knowledges.
Players receive thirty (30) dots to place
wherever they will; Nosferatu may not pur-
chase Masquerade skill during character
generation (not even with Freebies).
There are many more abilities available in
the custom ruleset than in standard Vam-
pire. Lores are no longer considered Abili-
ties — they are their own separate category
of statistic. A complete list of abilities is
shown on the following page.
A. Arts & Sciences
Players may take any number of “Arts &
Sciences” abilities if they wish their char-
acters to have exceptional talents in those
areas. These can be nearly anything the
player wishes: Sculpture, Painting, Singing,
 CHARACTER GENERATION

ACTING ETIQUETTE MELEE

ALERTNESS EXPRESSION MUSIC
ANIMAL KEN FINANCE OCCULT
ARCHERY FIREARMS PERFORMANCE
ATHLETICS HVY. WEAPONS POLITICS
BRAWL INTIMIDATION RELIGION
COMPUTERS INVESTIGATION SUBTERFUGE
DEMOLITIONS LAW STREETWISE
DISGUISE LEADERSHIP STEALTH
DODGE LINGUISTICS SURVIVAL
DRIVE MASQUERADE THROWING
ELECTRONICS MECHANICS TORTURE
EMPATHY MEDICINE VAMP. PHYS.

Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Art His- 5. BACKGROUNDS

tory, Poetry, Psychology, Architecture, His-
tory… nearly anything that you’ve ever
heard of as a Department in a university.
Just remember that Arts & Sciences abili-
ties represent clinical and/or technical
skills: having many dots in Sculpture means
that your Sculptures are realistic and well-
made. It does not mean that you’ve cap-
tured anything particular deep in your art
(that realm belongs to Expression). Like-
wise, having 5 ranks in Singing is likely less
useful than having 4 ranks coupled with 4
ranks of Performance.
4. DISCIPLINES
Disciplines are essentially unchanged. Each
player starts with 3 ranks in his or her clan
disciplines, distributed however the player
chooses. The “clan” disciplines, though,
have changed. Read on…
Players start with six (6) dots to distribute
to backgrounds. The available back-
grounds have changed somewhat, and there
is not only a more robust influence system
in place, but also a number of new back-
grounds — some of which represent spe-
cializations within certain disciplines.
A complete list of backgrounds is shown
on the next page.
A. General Backgrounds
Most of these should be familiar to Vam-
pire players. Some of them function a little
differently under these Rules (e.g., Herd,
Retainers) but these are explained else-
where in the text. Only Identities and Li-
brary are new.
IDENTITIES
Identities are additional mortal identities
your character has established. These have

6
 CHARACTER GENERATION

GENERAL STATUS Financial

Fame Anarch Rep Legal
Herd Clan Prestige (by Media
Identities clan) Medical
Library Status Military
Mentor Sabbat Esteem Occult
Resources Police
Retainers INFLUENCES Political
Academic Society
DISCIPLINE- Artistic Street
RELATED Church Transportation
Affinities Civil Union
Maskings Criminal
Rituals Education

 Each usable rank gives a +1 to a charac-

everything an identity requires: birth certifi-
cate, SSN, driver’s license, passport, credit
rating, perhaps even separate assets, lines
of credit, or a social media presence. Eve-
ry rank taken grants an additional identity.
LIBRARY
Library represents a character’s personal
occult library. This may have been inherit-
ed, gathered, stolen… whatever the source,
it is invaluable when investigating or re-
searching occult history, demonology, mys-
tical properties, legends, and the like. A
character may not take full Advantage of a
Library with a rating higher than his or her
Intelligence + Investigation (i.e., if your In-
telligence + Investigation is 3, then a rank 5
library is only as useful to you as a rank 3
library). The benefits of a Library can be
substantial:
ter’s Occult ability when performing re-
search.
 Each usable rank of 3 or higher grants a
+1 to Mage Lore, Arcanum Lore, and
Inquisition Lore when performing re-
search on discrete topics.
 Each usable rank of 4 or higher grants a
+1 to Vampire Lore, Demon Lore, and
Faerie Lore when performing research
on discrete topics.
 A Library is very useful when research-
ing rituals, and adds directly to the con-
test.
B. Discipline-Related Backgrounds
Three of the backgrounds are tied to spe-
cific disciplines. They are Affinities
(Animalism), Maskings (Obfuscate), and
Rituals (Thaumaturgy and Necromancy).

7
 CHARACTER GENERATION
AFFINITIES
Affinities is only available to vampires with
the discipline of Animalism. Each rank of
Affinities allows a vampire to select a spe-
cies (not a genus) for which he or she has a
special affinity. The vampire receives Ad-
vantage for all social or supernatural inter-
actions with members of the chosen spe-
cies.
MASKINGS
Maskings is only available to characters
with the Mask of a Thousand Faces.
(Obfuscate 3A) Each rank in Maskings al-
lows the character to have a practiced and
perfected identity; no roll or contest is ever
needed to use one of one's Masking identi-
ties, and the character receives Advantage
on any non-supernatural attempts to dis-
cover the deception. Maskings may be
fashioned on actual people, or may be
made up. Maskings may be purchased after
character generation with experience
points.
RITUALS
Rituals is only available to character with
Thaumaturgy or Necromancy. It gives ad-
ditional starting rituals, and may not be
purchased after character generation. The
rituals selected may be of any level that the
character may use. Normal ritual limits ap-
ply. The starting number of levels (not the
number of rituals) that may be selected in
this way are:
●: 5 levels
●●: 6 levels
8
●●●: 14 levels
● ● ● ● : 19 levels
● ● ● ● ● : 26 levels
C. Using Influences
Influences are examined in greater detail in
Part IV. For now, players should know that
influences can be used in two ways: First,
influence rating can be added directly to his
or her contest value when making a roll
where the influence may be relevant (i.e.,
using Manipulation + Acting to convince a
bureaucrat to perform some action or an-
other).
Alternately, as explained below, Influence
generates "Influence Pool" over time,
which can be saved and then spent to cause
relevant things to happen when the players
and/or Gamemaster do not feel like
roleplaying out every encounter.
6. Lores
Under these customized rules, Lores are a
separate category of their own. The enter-
prising GM is encouraged to create lists of
“secrets” given only to those with adequate
Lore. Characters receive three (3) dots to
place into their “home lores,” which consist
of (1) Vampire Lore, (2) the relevant sect
lore (i.e., Camarilla, Anarch, Sabbat), and (3)
the relevant clan lore. With freebies and
experience points, a character may purchase
other lores. The full list of available lores
will vary from Chronicle to Chronicle, but
will usually include:
 CHARACTER GENERATION
 Vampire Lore
 Anarch Lore
 Camarilla Lore
 Sabbat Lore
 Clan Lores (by clan)
 Mage Lore
 Faerie Lore
 Demon Lore
 Wraith Lore
 Arcanum Lore
 Inquisition Lore
 Domain Lore (by domain)
7. Willpower
Almost all characters start with a Willpower
of three (3). This may be increased
through the use of freebie points or
through experience points. Note that Bru-
jah vampires start with one additional Will-
power.
8. Humanity
Almost all characters start with an initial
Humanity of seven (7). Malkavian Vam-
pires begin with a Humanity of six (6). It
can be increased through freebies or expe-
rience, and it can fall quickly if a player is
not careful.
9. Beast
Beast is a new statistic designed especially
for this rules set. It represents the strength
of the vampiric Beast within the character.
Beast is not diametrically opposed to Hu-
manity as in the standard rules: characters
may have both a very high Beast and a very
high humanity, for instance. This would
9
represent a strongly conflicted character
with a deep moral fiber and a short fuse.
By contrast, a character with a low Beast
and a low humanity might not be very mor-
al, but the evils they do are because of their
own soul, not because the Beast makes
them do it. Remember, the Beast is not
evil — not in the way that we think about
evil as something that festers within a mor-
al agent, though it is a far cry from being
any sort of good. It is ferocious. It is in-
stinctive. It is inhuman. It is something
that has been thrust upon the vampire — a
different sort of tragedy. (Though there
are those who claim that a vampire’s Beast
is perhaps not so “foreign” at all, and that
such talk is just another way for vampires
to avoid taking responsibilities for their ac-
tions.)
A character’s Beast rating starts at three (3).
(Certain NPC clans such as the Followers
of Set and the Cappadocians begin play
with a Beast of two (2).) More rules ex-
plaining how the Beast statistic works are
presented in Part III, below.
10. Beast Traits
Beast Traits are new type of characteristic
that works in tandem with Beast Rating.
They are something like certain types of
“Flaws” under the traditional rules. Beast
Traits signify the specific manner in which
the Beast has gained a strong foothold over
a particular vampire. When a character
gains a Beast Trait, he gains an additional
“trigger” that may allow the Beast to take
over.
 CHARACTER GENERATION

Table 3—Beast Traits

RAGE TRAITS HUNGER TRAITS FEAR TRAITS

Subhuman Monstrous Subhuman Monstrous Subhuman Monstrous
Crimson Rage Alpha Blood Blood Smell Bane Coward
Embarrassed Bullied Blood Rush Desire Beta Fire
Frustrated Failure Cauchemar Diablerie Bound Passive
Humiliated Furious Fetish Glutton Crowded Religion
Isolation Inviolate Impatient Insatiable Pain Skittish
Item Pride Instinctive More Phobia Timid
Primal Violent Predator Reluctance
Territorial Lust Shame
Touchy Starved Submission
Unfettered Sympathy Sunlight
Vigilante Trapper
vampires feel towards human morality as
Beast traits come in three varieties: Rage, their humanity disintegrates. Inhumanities
Hunger, and Fear. These represent the and the inhumanity that they represent a
three types of Frenzy that can afflict a different type of conflict than Beast Traits;
vampire. Beast Traits are also divided into they are intended to portray a vampire’s ac-
“Subhuman” Beast Traits and “Monstrous” tual, personal evil as a moral agent. from
Beast Traits, with the Monstrous ones pre- the Beast, and represent actual evil.
senting broader, more frequent opportuni-
ties for the Beast to take control. Inhumanities come in two degrees – Sub-
human Inhumanities, and Monstrous Inhu-
A full listing of Beast Traits is set forth on manities. The primary difference between
Table 3, above. Each individual beast trait Monstrous and Subhuman Inhumanities is
is described in Part III. the experience point cost for removing
them. Inhumanities “encourage” certain
11. Inhumanities bad behaviors by removing the in-game
Inhumanities represent the other side of a penalty associated with misdeeds and mal-
vampire’s moral struggles. They are traits feasance: when a character commits an im-
that signify the growing callousness that moral act that is covered by one of his In-

10
 CHARACTER GENERATION

Table 4—Inhumanities
INHUMANITIES
Subhuman Monstrous
Authoritarian Honorable Agency Removed
Believer Iconoclastic Capricious Sadistic
Bestial Immortal Covetous Superior
Callous Larcenous Dishonest Traditional
Consensual Lawyer Homicidal Utilitarian
Destructive Pedagogue Humanity
Driven Predator Obedient
Follower Rancher Payback
Furtive Reciprocity Possessive

humanities, he or she does not suffer any degener-
ation effects. This can — at first blush —
make Inhumanities seem beneficial. They
are not.
Most Player Character vampires do not
start with an Inhumanity. (Malkavian char-
acters begin play with a Monstrous Inhuman-
ity.) Characters gain Inhumanities as their
Humanity score drops. The gaining, losing,
and operation of inhumanities is explained
in Part III.
A complete list of Inhumanities is set out
in Table 4, above.
12. Stigmata
Another new trait created for the Vampire:
Degeneration rules, Stigmata are supernatu-
ral weaknesses possessed by vampires.
They range from the traditional (e.g., Re-
pelled by Garlic, Permission) to Stigmata
of physical appearance (e.g., Satanic Eyes,
Pallor), to the exotic (e.g., Millet, Cold, Ul-
traviolet). For game purposes, they are
broken into two categories — Hindering
Stigmata, which range from inconveniences
to serious difficulties, and Crippling Stig-
mata, which represent truly debilitating
weaknesses that often end in a vampire’s
destruction.
The particulars of each Stigma as well as
rules for their acquisition and operation are
set forth in Part III. As a general rule,
vampires will slowly accumulate Stigmata
over time, with elder vampires perhaps hav-
ing two to five. Perhaps most importantly,
Stigmata are absolutely permanent.
There is no way to remove them, buy them
off, or ameliorate their effects. If a rule

11
 CHARACTER GENERATION

Table 5—Stigmata
STIGMATA
Hindering Crippling
Aura of Evil Running Water Bleeder
Blood Breath Satanic Eyes Blood Addiction
Coffin Shadowless Carnivore
Cold Tainted Flesh Contagion
Earthbound Talons Elder Hunger
Eerie Presence Truthful Inflammable
Light Sensitivity Ultraviolet Lunacy
Millet Unholiness Ravenous
Nature Bane Vicious Predator Selective Feeder
No Reflection Vitae Addition Torporous Sleep
Pallor Voice of the Devil
Permanent Fangs Vulnerability to Silver
Permission Wood
Repelled by Crosses
Repelled by Garlic

would otherwise conflict with a Stigma, thematic and game-system-level changes to

the Stigma takes priority. A listing of
Stigmata is set forth in Table 5, above.
13. Clans
As in the standard rules, every vampire
must select a “clan.” There have been both
the various vampire clans. The seven Cam-
arilla clans are detailed on the following
pages. Brief descriptions of the others fol-
low.

12
 CLANS
BRUJAH
DESCRIPTION
Brujah are alternately thought to be the
most introspective and philosophical clan,
or perhaps the most stubborn and danger-
ous. “All of the above” may be closer to
the truth.
Brujah are almost uniformly strong, excep-
tional personalities who prosper because of
their unique gifts; consequently, they tend
to choose as progeny the similarly strong,
powerful, and daring. There is a strong
mystical streak in the clan—though many
eschew the clan’s necromantic gifts. The
Brujah are also characterized by a profound
idealism: they tend to truly believe, whether
in a political ideology, a religion, a philo-
sophical system, or merely in loyalty.
Individually, they are among the most for-
midable and inspiring vampires, but be-
cause they believe so strongly in so many
different things, they lack the unity that
some other clans possess. Their “clan
structure” (to the extent they have one) is
based chiefly on personality and—
sometimes—on lineage. Neonates can and
do wield tremendous influence within the
clan, and they are more apt than many oth-
ers to seek out the company of like-minded
vampires from other clans.
13
The curse of their line is that their Beast
bubbles close to the surface, and they are
more apt to experience its temptations and
trials. Fortunately for the Brujah, their
strength of character and force of person-
ality are often enough to beat back the
Beast.
THEMES
What is the purpose that drives your eternal
existence? It is not enough merely to main-
tain your humanity in the face of the Beast.
What will you do with it? Who will you be?
Advantages:
 Brujah begin play with an addition-
al point of Willpower
 Brujah get an additional dot in At-
tributes during character genera-
tion.
Disadvantage:
 Brujah give away Advantage on all
Frenzy rolls
Clan Disciplines:
 Celerity
 Necromancy
 Potence
 Presence
 CLANS
Gangrel
DESCRIPTION
Considered by many to be the most animal-
istic of vampires, the Gangrel are as a rule
extraordinarily independent and prone to
eschewing the company of other vampires.
This is as often due to personality as it is to
the clan’s curse: their Beasts grow stronger
more quickly than in other clans. No other
bloodline loses so many of its elders to
endless frenzy.
The Gangrel embrace those who impress
them: it is said that the best way to be em-
braced by a Gangrel (as a mortal) is to at-
tack it with bare hands and a fierce heart.
The clan tends to the predatory and is
more prone to killing mortals than most
other non-Sabbat clans—though it is not
clear whether this is an effect of the clan’s
blood or merely a psychological trait sires
seek out in their progeny.
Despite their proclivity to be loners, the
Gangrel have a thick and rich clan organi-
zation based on tale-telling, song, and ritual
combat. The young generally look up to
the elders, and in return the elders often
look out for the younger members, doing
what they can to smooth things over with
the elders of other clans if and when the
youngsters get out of line – which they of-
ten do, being so independent-minded.
14
THEMES
The cities of mortals are at once a salve
and an irritant. Should a vampire remove
themselves to safety from temptation, seek-
ing the solitude of the wild? Or should they
plunge into the seething masses of humani-
ty and attempt to rediscover what it means
to be human? Venture not too far in either
direction: it is a balance. The Gangrel
more than any other clan represent the
basic, uncomplicated struggle to maintain
that wedge of consciousness holding back
the primal rage within.
Advantage:
 Gangrel ghouls begin with both
Fortitude and Potence, and may
purchase both disciplines at half
normal cost.
Disadvantages:
 Buying off Beast ranks costs Gan-
grel double experience point cost.
 Their ghouls have the Lunacy and
Vulnerability to Silver Stigmata.
Clan Disciplines:
 Animalism
 Fortitude
 Obsidia
 Protean
 CLANS
Malkavian
DESCRIPTION
Contrary to some popular beliefs, Malkavi-
ans are neither “mad” nor “insane” – not
as a rule. If they tend that direction, expla-
nations can be found beyond stereotypes.
Malkavians are “mystic” in the religious
sense: they are in touch with things beyond
the mundane, for which there may be no
description. There are the most psychically
attuned vampires, and often serve as
“seers” to other vampires. They are the
most likely to be involved with religion –
whether as a devotee or simply wrapped up
in mysticism, control, and the occult in a
religious manner.
They are the darkest of the clans, more apt
to sink into evil and depravity than other
vampires. As a clan, they are removed, de-
tached, and unstable. True, these go hand
in hand with insanity, but the Malkavians
prefer to embrace those who are “broken”
in some important respect – whether from
insanity, trauma, disease, or some other
cause.
Despite certain façades, Malkavians are not
cute, and they are not funny. Not really.
They are tragic and disarming, mysterious
and wise. And they can be terrifying.
15
THEMES
The Malkavians are the Riddle writ undead
flesh: Monsters we are, lest monsters we become.
They blur the distinction between the hu-
man in control and the Beast within, and
they represent the desensitization to evil
that comes with the vampiric condition.
They have insight and wisdom – but does
anyone wish to see the truths that they see?
They are a clan of darkness consuming the
light.
Advantage:
 Malkavians gain Advantage on all
Frenzy checks.
Disadvantages:
 Malkavian Humanity begins at 6.
 They begin the game with a Mon-
strous Inhumanity trait.
Clan Disciplines:
 Auspex
 Dementation (Malkavian only)
 Dominate
 Obfuscate
 CLANS
Nosferatu
DESCRIPTION
The Nosferatu are an afflicted, warped
clan, wearing their curse on their bodies.
Not monstrous, neither are they pleasant to
look at. They are permanently fanged, with
an off-putting, eerie pallor making them
more corpse-like than other vampires. Still,
they can pass as human if they don’t smile
overmuch., perhaps with the aid of a scarf
or wide hat.
Because of this, they often to live on the
outskirts of society, as outcasts or the
homeless. Indeed, some few even live in
the sewers.
They tend to excel as spies and brokers of
secrets, roles helped by unusually strong
clan ties. This familial comity likely has its
roots in their shared curse.
Nosferatu embrace from all walks of life,
looking for what will aid the clan and tak-
ing greater care than most in deciding
whom to inflict with their conditions. Nev-
ertheless, or perhaps because of this, they
also tend to be among the more humane of
vampires.
16
THEMES
Everyone about you is a monster — per-
haps even you. Shouldn’t it be enough to
wear your curse on your face? How far will
you go to stop evil, if only for a while?
The Nosferatu represent the dying sense of
morality that vampires face. If such a thing
were possible, they would be the “heroes”
of the vampiric world. But such a thing is
not possible, for vampires are monsters,
Advantages:
 Nosferatu begin play with two free
ranks in their home lores.
 Buying off Beast ranks and Inhu-
manity traits is at half cost.
Disadvantage:
 They start with the Pallor, Eerie
Presence, and Permanent Fangs
stigmata. They have an appearance
of one (1) and can never have more.
Clan Disciplines:
 Animalism
 Obfuscate
 Potence
 Protean
 CLANS
DESCRIPTION
Toreador
More than any others, the Toreador swim
through the mortal world, wearing their
Humanity like clothes — or a disguise.
They are rivaled only by the Brujah in their
relationships with humans, though they are
more often muses or seducers than leaders.
Many Toreador are artists — or at least
dabblers. They tend to be drawn to it be-
cause it gives them a tie to their fading hu-
manity. Like other clans, they also have
warriors, teachers, politicians, and hair-
dressers. But when they seek progeny, they
seek passion, fire, and humanity. Often,
they seek those of great beauty, looking to
preserve that spark of vital attraction.
It can be a tragic, vicious cycle: The Torea-
dor who is embraced is a vibrant, energetic,
passionate chosen to bring some spark
back into their hollow sire’s unlife. Then
over years, they become that hollow sire,
and seek a new plaything to stir their heart.
Many Toreador are scholars or philoso-
phers, particularly in the Old World. In the
New World, however, they are more often
socialites and visionary creative minds.
17
THEMES
The Toreador theme is a lonely one: vitality.
No clan feels more poignantly what is de-
stroyed in becoming one of the walking
dead. Some try to fan the dying embers,
drowning themselves in the world of deca-
dence and excess. Others try to touch the
pulse of life by nurturing mortal talent, act-
ing as patrons, or inspirational shadows.
But whatever their proclivities, they repre-
sent what was lost in the Embrace.
Advantages
 Toreador begin with 1 dot in Herd
and 1 dot in Masquerade.
 Toreador gain Advantage on the
first roll of an Inhumanity Check.
Disadvantage:
 Toreador must spend double expe-
rience to remove Inhumanities or
purchase Humanity.
Clan Disciplines:
 Auspex
 Celerity
 Presence
 Protean
 CLANS
Tremere
DESCRIPTION
The Tremere are a study in paradox: no
clan is as loyal to the Camarilla, and no clan
is so distrusted by the others. They have a
reputation for treachery, though this is
based less on history than on the (perfectly
justified) sense that Tremere hold their clan
loyalties above even the Traditions.
Clan Tremere is tightly-knit and insular:
they are not so much a “clan” as an orga-
nized cult of vampires, dedicated body and
soul to their elders’ mysterious ends. They
are organized into formal lodges or houses,
steeped in their own rituals and traditions,
and follow a strict hierarchy.
They are the youngest clan, and also the
smallest. They appeared sometime in the
Middle Ages, seemingly out of nowhere.
In the modern nights, perhaps 75 cities in
total contain a Tremere haven.
But what is most disturbing — and what
makes them indispensable to the Camarilla
— is that the Tremere are, almost to a man
and woman, wizards of fell power and
practitioners of dark blood magicks. They
are fortunate that their skills at Thaumatur-
gy are so useful… they are not likely to be
voted off the island. Not yet, anyway.
18
THEMES
The Tremere walk a path of one-
upsmanship, rivalries, and the struggle for
position. They compete both within the
clan and in the larger realm of vampire pol-
itics. But no matter their schemes, they can
never get high enough: there is always
someone just above them, dancing out of
reach. How high to stretch? How far might
you fall? And in the quiet of reflection, is
the power and security that you seek really
your goal? Is it your elders’? Or is it just
the Hunger and the Beast, driving you on?
Advantages:
 Tremere begin the game with Thau-
maturgy as a clan discipline.
 Tremere may always haven at a clan
shelter if the city has one.
Disadvantage:
 They are locked in a rigid caste
structure, and start off 1 step blood
bound to both their local clan lead-
er and the clan’s ruling council.
Clan Disciplines:
 Auspex
 Dominate
 Potence
 Thaumaturgy (Tremere only)
 CLANS
Ventrue
DESCRIPTION
The Ventrue have styled themselves the
rulers of the Vampire world, and by and
large the other clans—at least the Camaril-
la—have given their grudging acquiescence.
The Ventrue traffic in influence and wealth,
proudly counting more Princes among
them than any other clan, and stoically
bearing the burdens of noblesse oblige. They
consistently embrace from the “best” of
society — whether that meant ancient
kings, noble knights, elegant courtiers, and
merchant princes, or fearsome generals,
barons of industry, and corporate mavens.
Wealth and power are not enough: to be
selected for the Ventrue blood is to be
judged worthy of a great legacy reaching
back centuries. It is to be reborn to lead in
the shadows and rule over the dead.
No other clan takes tradition and etiquette
so seriously. There is no room in the tight-
ly-knit Ventrue society for failures or em-
barrassments. While the Ventrue lack the
Tremere’s insular zeal and devotion, no clan
has the same “no excuses, no exceptions”
practice of coming to each other’s assis-
tance in times of need, no matter the con-
sequence.
19
THEMES
The Ventrue theme is one of control and
power – laced with futility. They seek to
enforce order and obedience, but find
themselves in a world filled with mortals
and vampires who refuse to fall in line. To
what lengths will they go to impose their
will? What lies will they tell themselves to
justify their actions? Are the ends the
Ventrue seek good ends, and are they
worth the cost of wielding such power?
The answers to these questions are not al-
ways clear.
Advantages:
 Ventrue only spend 1 Willpower
when creating True Childer.
 They start with 1 free rank of Re-
sources and 1 free rank of Status.
Disadvantage:
 Ventrue begin play with the Selec-
tive Feeder Stigma.
Clan Disciplines:
 Dominate
 Fortitude
 Obfuscate
 Presence
 CLANS
Caitiff
DESCRIPTION
Life’s not fair, and just because you are cho-
sen to be among the immortal undead, it
doesn’t mean that you will actually be invit-
ed into the club, and it doesn’t mean that
you’ll have all the powers and abilities of
your sire. Sometimes the Embrace just
doesn’t take right — and when that hap-
pens, the result is a “thin-blood”, or a Cai-
tiff as the elders call them. They are mis-
takes, defects in the vampiric order.
Caitiff are vampires who do not manifest
the characteristics of their clan. How or
why these creatures come about is a mys-
tery. What is known is that they are rare,
few in number, and generally looked down
upon by vampire society. After all, who has
their back? Even the largest cities likely
will not have more than one or two of
these creatures.
Most Caitiff, if they were candid, would
likely confess that an Embrace that doesn’t
work is worse than none at all. Caitiff are
stuck in their condition — imperfectly
transformed. Some say that this lets them
understand the vampiric condition in a way
that full-bloods cannot.
The Caitiff would just say it sucks.
20
THEMES
The Caitiff are, to a one, testaments to suf-
fering: suffering the worst of the vampiric
condition, suffering the loneliness that
comes of not having a family to support
you, suffering the scorn and derision of the
vampiric elite — which from their vantage
is everyone but them. There is no light at
the end of this tunnel. The theme of the
Caitiff is despair and futility, and the dog-
ged perseverance that comes de rigeur with a
life you didn’t choose.
Advantages:
 Caitiff have no in-clan or out-of-
clan disciplines. All disciplines are
learned at 6xCR experience.
 They do not gain Stigmata over
time (but may choose them).
 Caitiff start with a Beast of 2.
Disadvantages:
 Caitiff may not begin play with Age,
True Childe, or Status.
 No discipline may start higher than
2 dots or ever exceed 3 dots.
 Caitiff do not gain Sanguinis.
Clan Disciplines:
 None
 CLANS
Followers of Set
DESCRIPTION
As their name suggests, the Followers of
Set seem to have a strong connection to
ancient Egypt, and in the modern nights
Egypt is the center of the clan’s power.
They are distrusted, feared, and — oddly
enough — respected for the knowledge.
No other clan — not even the Tremere —
has such an assemblage of scholars.
The Followers, or “Setites” as they are
called, are not members of the Camarilla:
they most often eschew vampire company
and move among the mortals, feeding and
drawing their herds into ritual, ecstasy, and
decadence. It is said that they have a tre-
mendous amount of influence in the inter-
national drug trade, and also in slave mar-
kets. A very wise Ventrue once said of the
clan, “They are the Tremere without disci-
pline, the Nosferatu without compassion,
and the Toreador without restraint.”
The Setites are few outside of Egypt and
the Mediterranean, but they are not un-
heard of and their arrival is always greeted
with a blend of apprehension and anticipa-
tion. They carry wisdom, and the promise
of power. They are also infamous for their
lack of morality, their fascination with suf-
fering, and an inhumanity that rivals the
Sabbat.
21
THEMES
The Followers of Set represent the themes
of decadence and temptation: they move
amongst the humans, exploiting weakness-
es, and their nature suggests that perhaps
the terrible thing that is vampire is really
not so different than that terrible thing that
lurks just beneath the human skin, after all.
Perhaps the Beast is really just an excuse,
and the evil that vampires work in the
world nothing more than human moral
weakness given the immense power, li-
cense, and freedom granted the undead.
Advantages:
 Setites begin with two additional
ranks of Lore and treat all Lores as
Home Lores.
 Setites start with a Beast of 2.
Disadvantage:
 Setites begin play with both the Ul-
traviolet and Light Sensitivity Stig-
mata.
Clan Disciplines:
 Dominate
 Celerity
 Presence
 Serpentis
 CLANS
Lasombra
DESCRIPTION
The Lasombra are to the Sabbat what the
Ventrue are to the Camarilla: leaders, or-
ganizers, and kings. They are a powerful
clan with worldwide influence, and they
embrace from among the leaders, conquer-
ors, and visionaries of the world. But un-
like the Ventrue, they have no pretensions
of gentility - they are openly competitive
and combative, both with outsiders and
among themselves. They will fight ruthless-
ly among themselves for positions of dom-
inance, but all inter-clan rivalries will be
forgotten in a moment if there’s any seri-
ous threat that the coveted position might
fall to a non-Lasombra, or if the rivalry be-
gins to threaten the security of the Sabbat.
Lasombra are equally prepared to enforce
their will through force, sabotage, or ma-
nipulations; they are not concerned with
methods, only results.
It is said that somewhere in the distant
past, the founder of the Lasombra clan
made a pact with a demon, and then be-
trayed that demon and consumed his es-
sence. Legend holds that it is this demon
— a creature of great darkness — that
runs in the Lasombra veins and which gives
them their command over shadow and
blackness.
22
THEMES
The Lasombra are an image of what many
vampires — especially but not exclusively
the Ventrue — could be, and of what they
may yet become. They are connected to
the institutions and powers of mortal soci-
ety, but this does not stir echoes of their
humanity, for they have come to see it as
nothing more than a tool to be wielded.
They are cold, rational, and alien, possessed
of an iron rationality and not an ounce of
compassion.
Advantages:
 Lasombra begin the game with one
rank of Sabbat Status.
 Lasombra gain Advantage when at-
tempting to recover Willpower.
Disadvantages:
 Lasombra begin play with the No
Reflection stigma.
 Lasombra start with Humanity 5.
Clan Disciplines:
 Dominate
 Obsidia
 Obtenebration
 Potence
 CLANS
Tzimisce
DESCRIPTION
The Tzimisce are the twisted mirror image
of the Lasombra: they, too, have left their
Humanity behind. But where the Lasom-
bra are simply dead inside, the Tzimisce
pulsate with a depraved, horrific life. They
are torturers, sadists, hedonists, and mon-
sters in the most literal sense of the word.
The Tzimisce do not lead the Sabbat to the
degree the Lasombra do, but they are its
heart and soul: they are the glue that holds
the Sabbat together, the priests in its rituals,
the rock upon which the rest of the unholy
Church is built.
Most Tzimisce live well-apart from Human-
ity, surrounded by servitors and ghouls and
their fellow Sabbat. They do not seek mor-
tal companionship, unless as a prelude to
their newest experimentation, or perhaps as
a canvas upon which to discover new fron-
tiers of pain and misery.
The clan as a whole seeks out the refined,
the spiritual, and the depraved. Tzimisce
were in times past drawn from the ranks of
nobility almost exclusively: in modern
nights, the clan has become more egalitari-
an, seeking the most outrageously flawed
souls wrapped in the most attractive pack-
ages.
23
THEMES
Vampires can avoid the Beast — perhaps.
The Tzimisce have chosen to give it free
rein, to remove the leash entirely. They are
the resolution of the Riddle’s paradox: they
do not seek to indulge their savage natures
to quell the Beast — they seek to own their
darkness, to make it fully their own, and to
redefine what it means to be human into
something sick, twisted, and evil.
Advantages:
 Tzimisce gain Advantage on all Ani-
malism contests.
 Tzimisce gain +1 to Contest Values
whenever using any type of magic.
Disadvantages:
 Tzimisce begin play with the Earth-
bound stigma.
 Tzimisce start with Humanity 4.
 Tzimisce gain a Stigma every time
they gain an Inhumanity.
Clan Disciplines:
 Animalism
 Auspex
 Presence
 Vicissitude
 CLANS
Asuras
DESCRIPTION
The Asuras are a mysterious, little-known
clan of vampires who live primarily (and
almost exclusively) in India and other parts
of Southeast Asia. They have not indicated
any affinity for either the Camarilla or the
Sabbat, although some Ventrue in India
have had dealings with them.
There is little but rumor and legend about
these vampires, and the vast majority of
vampires in the modern nights have never
even heard of these reclusive creatures.
Some sources have claimed that the entire
clan is part and parcel of a great Death
Cult, driven by religious imperatives.
What is known for certain by those who
know they exist is that the Asuras are dan-
gerous, and different — inhuman, but not in
the way of the Sabbat. They are not evil or
decadent or cold or dead; rather, they are
savage and otherworldly, supernatural pred-
ators whose lost humanity seems but an
afterthought, not a tragedy.
24
THEMES
The Asuras represent a third way — a path
separate from both the desperate Humanity
-clinging Camarilla and the indulgent, re-
leased Sabbat. The Asuras are something
like vampires in their purest form — apart
from mortals, above them, concerned with
their own realities and divorced from socie-
ty in a way that other clans can only envy.
Advantages:
 Asuras may re-roll a Frenzy check
once per scene.
 Asuras start with five dots in disci-
plines (nothing higher than 3).
Disadvantages:
 Asuras start with both the Carni-
vore and Aura of Evil stigmata.
 Asuras cannot take Influence in
character generation.
Clan Disciplines:
 Chimerstry
 Fortitude
 Metamorph
 Obfuscate
 CHARACTER GENERATION

Table 6—Sanguinis
Blood per
Sanguinis Blood Pool Trait Cap Approx. Age
turn
1 10 1 5 0-25
2 12 1 5 20-60
3 13 1 5 45-100
4 14 2 5 90-180
5 16 2 6 165-300
6 18 3 6 275-500
7 20 3 7 400-650
8 24 4 8 600-850
9 30 5 8 800-1250
10 36 6 9 1100-1800
11 38 6 9 1600-2200
12 40 7 10 2000+

age and Sanguinis at the time of the Em-

14. SANGUINIS
Sanguinis is a statistic that replaces Genera-
tion — it is something like “Potency” from
Vampire: The Requiem, but it works a little
differently.
A vampire’s Sanguinis goes up as he or she
gets older (or as he or she commits Diable-
rie). Most vampires start at Sanguinis 1,
but “True Childer” — vampires who are
part of a special process of Embracing —
start off with a Sanguinis one less than
their Sire’s current Sanguinis. A vampire
may, with Gamemaster approval, use his or
her Freebie points to start play as a True
Childe. This will require that the sire’s own
brace be established.
Vampires may also increase their Sanguinis
by taking Age (see below), subject to Ga-
memaster Approval.
The powers, abilities, and approximate age-
ranges for the various levels of Sanguinis
are listed above on Table 6. Note that the
“Trait Cap” is only the limit for permanent
scores; it does not affect the limit for en-
hancing physical attributes with vitae
(which limit is set at twice the relevant per-
manent statistic).

25
 CHARACTER GENERATION

Table 7—Freebie Points

Item Freebie Point Cost Notes
Attributes 5 per dot GM approval for attributes at 5
Abilities 2 per dot GM approval for abilities at 4 or 5
Backgrounds 2 per dot
This is a change from standard rules; GM approval
Disciplines 6 per dot
for out-of-clan disciplines
Willpower 3 per dot GM approval for 6+
Lores 1 per dot GM approval for Lore of other clans
Age 5 GM approval; Chronicle dependent
True Childe 12 GM approval
Beast 3 Buys “off ” one rank of Beast
Humanity 2 per dot
+1 Beast +2 Freebies No limit
-1 Humanity +2 Freebies No limit
Stigma +3 Freebies Assigned randomly by GM; may only take once
Player may choose subject to GM approval; may
Inhumanity +2 Freebies
only take once

15. FREEBIE POINTS
Freebie points are essentially unchanged,
save that Players receive twenty (20) free-
bie points instead of fifteen. Players may
gain additional Freebies by taking addition-
al Beast Ranks, sacrificing Humanity ranks,
selecting an Inhumanity, or accepting a ran-
dom Stigma (no take backs!). The costs are
set forth in Table 7, above.
Age is a special trait that can only be taken
at character creation. The bonuses and
penalties associated with each rank of Age
are set forth below in Table 8.

Table 8—Age
Time since Humanity/ Beast
Inhum. Discs. Stigmata Sanguinis
Embrace Beast Traits
Up to 75 yrs -1 / 0 0 +1 -- +1
Up to 100 yrs -1 /+1 +1 +1 +1 dot +1
Up to 150 yrs -2 /+1 +2 +2 +2 dots +1 +2
Up to 200 yrs -2 /+2 +3 +2 +3 dots +2 +3

26
 CHARACTER GENERATION
16. ARCHETYPES
As in the standard rules, all characters
should be given a Nature (their true per-
sonality archetype) and a Demeanor (the
way that their personality is projected to
and/or interpreted by others). A charac-
ter’s nature and demeanor need not be dif-
ferent from each other — some people are
just who they seem to be.
A. Effect of Demeanors:
Demeanors are primarily an aid for devel-
oping a character concept — they have lit-
tle effect on game play. The GM may, at
his discretion, award experience points for
particularly good portrayals of a demeanor.
B. Effect of Natures:
Natures are also an aid for role-play, but
they also serve an important in-game func-
tion. When a character performs a signifi-
cant act that aligns with his or her nature,
he or she will typically (at the GM’s discre-
tion) receive an immediate point of Will-
power, up to his or her maximum total.
The GM may also award experience points
for particularly good role-playing insofar as
a character’s Nature is portrayed as some-
thing separate from his or her Demeanor.
C. Available Archetypes:
Below is a non-exhaustive list of available
archetypes that may be selected for Natures
and Demeanors. Players are encouraged to
develop their own to the extent that a
strong character concept does not fit into
one of these existing archetypes.
27
Note, however, that to the extent there was
a previously available archetype under the
standard rules that is no longer available, it
has likely been assimilated into one of the
archetypes below.
ARCHETYPES:
Architect: You desire to leave a legacy,
whether tangible or intangible. This need
not involve recognition (although it can): it
is enough that you have brought something
that has lasting significance, value and/or
effect.
Autist: You seek to conceal yourself from
others, hiding your true nature and living
inside of your carefully guarded shell.
Genuine human connection terrifies or re-
pels you, and revealing the 'real' you could
among the worst things that could ever
happen.
Autocrat: You seek to be in control of sit-
uations, recognized as the decision-making
authority. This does not mean that you are
a tyrant, or one in the making (although it
does not preclude this either). You simply
enjoy – indeed, require the assurance of
knowing that yours is the last word.
Benefactor: While you don’t necessarily
always have a bounty of riches, your life
finds meaning in providing for others when
you can. You enjoy the position of sharing
what you have with those who have less, of
being a patron or savior.
 CHARACTER GENERATION
Bravo: You enjoy exercising power over
those weaker than you, and you are almost
certainly a bully. Bravos come in both the
traditional form of the physical bully, as
well as the vindictive bureaucrat (and simi-
lar types) who enjoy flaunting their little bit
of authority over others and seeing them
squirm.
Caregiver: You desire to take care of oth-
ers, ease their pain, and heal them when
they are broken or wounded in some way
(not necessarily physically). You nurture
the suffering, and shelter the lost.
Chameleon: You keep your head down,
and try not to get noticed – you feel safe
and secure when you know that no one is
paying any attention to you at all. You may
be a wallflower, or maybe just a very effec-
tive spy, but you know that nothing good
comes from drawing attention to yourself.
Competitor: There is no greater thrill
than the thrill of victory, and you'll do any-
thing to feel it.
Confidant: You like and understand peo-
ple and like to give advice-and you're usual-
ly good at it too. You feel fulfilled when
someone trusts you enough to share their
innermost thoughts and feelings with you.
Conformist: You are more than just a fol-
lower – your sense of identity is deter-
mined by others. You go along to get
along, because that’s genuinely the best way
to succeed. You are attracted to strong, dy-
28
namic personalities who provide you with a
foundation for your own sense of self.
Critic: You make the world a better place
by pointing out its flaws – often repeatedly.
Nothing is ever perfect, and you don’t mind
saying so. This does not necessarily make
you mean-spirited – but even well-
intentioned suggestions for improvement
are not always taken with unfailing grace.
Dealmaker: You love to bring people to-
gether, to forge bonds of mutual benefit
through the power of negotiation and your
(almost certainly) dynamic and friendly per-
sonality. You could be a rug merchant in a
bazaar, or the CEO of a major multination-
al bank: but for you the best thing in life is
closing the deal, and seeing everyone happy
and better off than they were before.
Follower: You enjoy being a part of the
group, a cog in the machine. You’re an or-
ganization man (or woman) and recognize
that to get things done, some people have
to lead, and others need to just do their
part. This does not mean that you are sub-
missive – at least not necessarily.
Gallant: You love to be the center of at-
tention, to have exceptional experiences
and turn them into even more exceptional
stories. You seek to impress, enthrall, and
capture the hearts and minds of those
around you.
Judge: You are an arbitrator and peace-
maker, acting as a neutral voice in a con-
 CHARACTER GENERATION

flict. You find satisfaction in resolving

things justly and efficiently, and others of-
ten rely on your wisdom.

Loner: You have your own path and no

desire to share it with anyone else. You do
not seek out the company of others,
though you can tolerate it. You enjoy the
freedom of not being responsible for or to
anyone else, and being able to address
problems on your own terms.

Loyalist: Friends, family, co-workers…

they probably all consider themselves lucky
to have you, for you are unfailing in your
loyalty to those who are close to you or
who deserve it. The Loyalist doesn’t care if
his friend is wrong: you stick by your
friends, and you dance with who brung ya.
Manipulator: Some manipulate people to
accomplish goals – but for you, manipulat-
ing people is the goal. You take pride and
comfort in understanding people and being
able to maneuver them around for your
own designs – or sometimes just to see if
you’re right about how they will react. Ma-
nipulators need not be evil: many therapists
and psychologists are Manipulators.
Masochist: You find pleasure in suffering
– your suffering. You seek to take on pains
and trials – whether out of a twisted sense
of martyrdom or simply because you like it.
Monster: You are a depraved, horrible
creature who revels in pain, misery, and
evil. You may recognize it, may regret it,
and may even want to be something else.
But this is what you are.
Pedagogue: You are a teacher, one who
helps others to stand on their own and ex-
perience new horizons. Your lessons may
not always be pleasant, but you find fulfill-
ment in knowing that you have done what
you can to help someone meet the chal-
lenges that they may yet come to face.
Penitent: You are filled with guilt –
whether for specific acts, or just the course
of your life, which you don’t see as worthy.
You attempt to make yourself better, to
atone for your failings.
Praise-Seeker: You’re a people-pleaser
and seek external validation. Nothing fills

29
 CHARACTER GENERATION
you with more confidence than hearing
about your merits and accomplishments
from the mouths of others.
Rationalist: You seek to understand and
explain things, and to see the world in such
a way that it makes sense.
Rebel: The expectations of rules of other
people are stifling: you are not a loner, for
if you were you would simply leave. In-
stead, you fight back against the oppression
of others, against their systems, laws, and
disapprovals. Rebels need not be icono-
clasts – they can be revolutionaries seeking
to impose their own order. But they will
eventually want to overthrow that, too.
Reveler: You live for the moment, indulg-
ing in sensation and pleasure and infecting
those around you with your deep enthusi-
asm for (un)life. You are almost certainly a
hedonist of some sort or another, and en-
joy the social currents of a lively party.
Savior: You see yourself as something of
a hero, coming to the rescue of those in
need. Whether this is expressed through a
series of “fixer upper” relationships, charity
work, or teaching inner city kids – you want
to save the world, or at least your part of it.
Stalwart: Your chief concern is that you
be a good person. This can come in many
forms – protecting the weak against evil,
resisting temptation, doing good works –
but what matters most at the end of the
day is what you see when you look in the
30
mirror, and perhaps what your God (if any)
will think of you.
Survivor: It doesn’t matter what you have
to do – the important thing is to get
through it. You can do anything, be any-
thing, and suffer anything if it means
emerging out the other side of it relatively
intact. You don’t quit: there’s always a way
out.
Thrillseeker: The stakes are just never
high enough. More adrenaline, please! This
is a dangerous nature for an immortal, and
there may not be a single elder on the plan-
et with this nature. They don’t tend to live
that long.
Traditionalist: You are deeply conserva-
tive, always wanting to support the status
quo and inherently wary of any change.
You live your life by the rule of Chester-
ton’s Fence, and by the maxim that if it’s
not broke, don’t try to fix it. You are likely
to have a great respect for age and experi-
ence as well, though this is not universal in
Traditionalists.
Visionary: You have dreams – big dreams.
You also have the drive and imagination to
keep pursuing those dreams. When you are
pursuing them, when you bring others into
your vision for what could be, you feel
filled with purpose and confidence.
 PART II

Combat
I am the right hand of vengeance, and the boot that is going to kick your sorry ass all
the way back to Earth., sweetheart. I am death incarnate and the last living thing that
you are ever going to see. God sent me.

1. OVERVIEW
As has already been hinted at, the Combat THE COMBAT ROUND
system has undergone a total transfor-
mation. The largest departure from the 1. Blood Expenditures
standard rules is that are no longer such
thing as individuated “attacks.” Instead, 2. Declaration of Actions
Combat is resolved between two conflict-
ing characters with a single contest repre- 3. Unopposed Actions
senting all the various moves, defenses, etc.,
that take place during a single combat 4. Combat Contests
round. In other words, the relative success
of attacks is resolved as a whole, and one
person generally will “win” a round of
5. Damage Contests
combat. When that happens, damage isn’t
“rolled” in the traditional sense— two fixed 6. Apply Wound Penalties
damage values are calculated in advance,
and every form of attack, a “HIGH” and a 7. Power Use/Activation
“LOW” number. This makes the resolu-
tion of combat somewhat faster, although 8. Blood Expenditures
there is a little more mathematics involved
prior to play.
during each of which every character has an
opportunity to participate before the round
2. THE COMBAT ROUND moves on to the next phase. The phases
The combat round under these Rules is ten are listed immediately above, and are dis-
seconds long, and consists of eight phases, cussed in detail in the following pages.

31
 COMBAT
A. Blood Expenditures
The first thing that happens in a combat
round is that characters have the option to
spend blood to do things such as increase
physical statistics or heal wounds.
The only critical thing to remember during
this phase is that blood spent now counts
against the per-round limit established by a
character’s Sanguinis. So if a character can
only spend 1 point per round, and he or
she uses it to heal at the beginning of a
round, then he or she cannot use it to power
Celerity or another power later in the
round.
B. Declaration of Actions
The next thing that occurs is that all char-
acters involved in the scene make their dec-
larations as to what they intend to do dur-
ing the round. Prior to beginning play,
each player should record his or her Initia-
tive Rating, which is calculated with:
WITS + ALERTNESS + AUSPEX
Actions are declared in ascending order of
Initiative Rating, so that those with the
highest value get to declare last. This can
be quite valuable, as the latter declarants
will be able to know if they may perform
certain types of unopposed actions without
penalty. He or she may also choose to en-
gage someone in combat in an attempt to
foil someone who has declared a hitherto
unopposed action.
32
Note that characters declaring use of a dis-
cipline (such as Dominate or Presence) may
not do anything except evade during the
round, although they may do that without
penalty.
If a character wishes to perform some sort
of physical, non-combat action during the
round — shutting a door, loading a weap-
on, running down the hall, running over to
pull the alarm, etc. — but another character
is attempting to engage him or her in some
sort of close-quarters combat, then as a
general (but not unbendable) rule the com-
bat will take precedence. It’s hard to do
things while you are under attack. This
gives considerable power to late-declaring
characters: they effectively get to decide
whether certain things will happen or not.
Note that the common scenario of, “I do
x” followed by “I stop him” should not be
entertained: the way to stop someone is to
grapple them or attack them.
Exceptions to this can (but need not al-
ways) be made for extremely quick actions
such as flicking a light switch that is right
next to you, or kicking a gun across the
floor that is at your feet. If a character
wishes to engage in a short, immediate ac-
tion like this while being subject to attack,
he or she may treat it as an “unopposed”
action while giving away Advantage in the
resulting combat. The GM has wide dis-
cretion on adjudicating these matters, and is
encouraged to exercise wisdom and re-
straint.
 COMBAT
C. Unopposed Actions
Once everyone knows what they are doing,
characters making unopposed non-combat
actions may take those actions. The GM
should ensure that these actions can be per-
formed within the 10 seconds of the com-
bat round. The GM will be called upon to
exercise judgment in many cases.
D. Combat Contests
The next thing that happens is that charac-
ters who are in combat with each other (i.e.,
where at least one character has declared an
attack of some kind against the other)
make their combat contests.
Every attack a character can perform will
have a Combat Value, abbreviated as
“CBT”. Characters will also have other
combat values, such as their EVADE and
ESCAPE ratings. These combat values are
added to the contest roll, and the higher
roll wins the combat round. (The outcome
of ties depends on the specific situation;
see below.)
E. Damage Contests
If someone who was attacking was the
winner of a Combat Contest, then a sec-
ond contest is made to determine damage.
Every attack a character can perform will
have a Damage Value, abbreviated as
“DMT”. This value is contested (with a
die roll) against the losing character’s SOAK
total.
Every attack also has a HIGH damage to-
tal and a LOW damage total. If the winner
33
of the Combat Contest also wins his Dam-
age Contest against the loser’s SOAK, then
the winner will inflict HIGH damage on
the loser. If he or she ties or loses the
Damage Contest, LOW damage is inflict-
ed. Note that Fortitude is subtracted from
all non-aggravated damage inflicted.
F. Apply Wound Penalties
Characters who have suffered damage now
remind themselves that their wound penal-
ties now apply, and will affect all actions for
the rest of the round.
G. Power Use/Activation
Discipline use generally happens at the end
of the round. As a general rule, unless a
discipline has either the Combat or Tacti-
cal modifier, it will take effect during this
step of the combat round. The exact
method in which various Disciplines func-
tion in Combat is discussed in greater detail
in Part V, below.
If a character wishes to use a discipline
(or similar power) during this step, he
or she can do nothing but Evade —
without penalty — during the earlier
part of the round.
Wound penalties will apply to power use if
the character is damaged earlier in the
round.
H. Blood Expenditures
If the Character has not already exhausted
his per-round limit, he or she may spend
blood to heal or increase statistics.
 COMBAT

3. CALCULATING COMBAT provide either fixed numeric values, or will

provide the relevant statistics to calculate
STATISTICS the combat and damage values. The most
When figuring out a character’s combat sta- common values that a character will have to
tistics, remember that each type of attack has calculate are set forth below in Table 9.
its own set of numbers: its own CBT,
DMT, and HIGH and LOW damage. Brawl CBT/DMT Example: If Joe the
Brujah had Strength 3, Dexterity 2, Brawl
A. Figuring CBT and DMT 3, and Potence 2, then his Brawl CBT
Determining these values for the most would be 5 (Dexterity 2 plus Brawl 3),
common form of attacks (brawl, melee, while his Brawl DMT would be 8 (Strength
etc.) is usually simply a matter of adding 3, Brawl 3, and Potence 2). DMT values
together certain statistics and writing down can get quite large when vampires have Po-
the total. tence; vampires with Potence not only do
more damage on a hit, but they are more
Most Tactical disciplines (i.e., disciplines likely to inflict HIGH damage as well.
that have their own combat values) will
Table 9—Combat Values
Combat Value (CBT) Damage Value (DMT)
Brawl DEX + BRAWL STR + POTENCE + BRAWL
STR + POTENCE + BRAWL
Melee DEX + MELEE
+WEAPON
STRENGTH + POTENCE + BRAWL
Claws DEX + BRAWL
+2
Guns DEX + FIREARMS + GUN MOD. FIREARMS + GUN MOD.
STR + POTENCE +ARCHERY +
Bows DEX + ARCHERY + BOW MOD.
BOW MOD. (May be capped)
STR + POTENCE + THROWING +
Thrown DEX + THROWING
WEAPON MOD.
Grapple STR + POTENCE + BRAWL n/a
EVADE DEX + DODGE n/a
ESCAPE WITS + DODGE + DEX –3 n/a
SOAK n/a STAMINA + FORTITUDE + DODGE
Fire/Sun n/a FORTITUDE + DODGE

34
 COMBAT

Strength gives him or her a pair of num-

B. HIGH and LOW damage totals bers (the “Strength Modifiers”) that serve
Every form of attack will also have two as the starting point for these calculations.
damage totals — HIGH for when the at- The larger is called the “HIGH” modifier,
tack wins the damage contest, and LOW and the smaller is called the “LOW” modi-
value for when the losing character’s Soak fier.
wins or ties. Like CBT and DMT, these
values are figured separately for each attack. The HIGH and LOW damage modifiers
for a particular character’s strength are dis-
Strength-Based Attacks: Many attacks played on Table 10, below.
(e.g., Brawl, Melee, and Thrown Weapons)
base their damage primarily on the at- Additionally, for every dot of Potence that
tacker’s Strength. Every character’s a vampire possesses, his or her HIGH and
Table 10—Strength Modifiers
STR HIGH LOW STR HIGH LOW
1 +1 0 6 +3 +1
2 +1 0 7 +4 +2
3 +2 0 8 +4 +2
4 +2 +1 9 +5 +2
5 +3 +1 10 +5 +3

35
 COMBAT

LOW damage values are increased by 1. (A (Strength 3, Melee 2, Potence 2, and +3

point of Potence is worth far more than a
point of Strength!)
Thrown and melee weapons also will pro-
vide additional bonuses to HIGH and
LOW damage totals based on the weapon’s
statistics. (See Table 11 below.)
Melee CBT/DMT Example: If Joe the
Brujah (Strength 3, Dexterity 2 and Po-
tence 2) also had Melee 2, then his CBT
using a Medium melee weapon such as a
Broadsword would be 4 (Dexterity 2 plus
Melee 2), and his DMT would be 10
Table 11—Melee & Thrown Weapons
from the weapon).
Ranged Weapons: Weapons such as bows
and firearms almost always have their dam-
age determined by the weapon themselves.
(See Table 12 on the next page.)
Disciplines: Tactical disciplines (with
their own CBT and DMT) will have their
own HIGH and LOW damage totals as
well. Please refer to the individual disci-
pline for more details.

Weapon Type CBT DMT HI LO Special

Brass Knuckles Brawl +1 +1 0
Damage cap: 4High, 3
Tiny: Scalpel, Kitchen Knife Melee +1 0 0
Low; Usable in grapple
Damage cap: 6 High, 4
Small: Combat Knife Melee +1 +1 0
Low; Usable in grapple
Light: Rapier, Shortsword Melee +1 +2 +1 +1
Medium: Broadsword, Spear Melee +3 +2 +1
Requires 2 hands or
Great: 2H sword, Battle Axe Melee -1 +4 +3 +2
Str+Pot > 5
Rifle Butt Melee -1 +1 +1 0 Lets you hang on to it.
Heart Strike: -2 add’; CBT,
Stake Melee -1 +1 +1 0
requires 4dmg
Improvised Chair Melee -2 +2 +1 0
Improvised Street Sign Melee -2 +3 +2 +1 Needs Strength+Potence 6
Throwing Knife Thrown +1
Throwing Axe Thrown +1 +1 +1
Thrown Spear Thrown -1 +2 +2 +1

36
 COMBAT

C. Special Rules for Firearms Point Blank: Guns shot from less than 1
foot away gain +1 DMT, and +1 to both
SNAP: Certain guns are more difficult for HIGH and LOW damage.
the inexperienced novice to use effectively.
If a character’s Firearms ability is less Automatic Weapons: The combat statis-
than a weapon’s SNAP rating, the char- tics for assault rifles and sub-machine guns
acter suffers –2 CBT. assume short bursts of fire. But when the
weapon is used for sustained fully automat-
AIM: Certain guns are better for measured ic fire, the results can be impressive. Fully
shots. If a character spends an entire automatic fire can be used in two ways:
round aiming the gun at a target, he or
she gets to use the AIM bonus to his or  “Spray”: The weapon can be used to
her CBT. attack multiple opponents in a reasona-
Table 12—Ranged Weapons
Weapon AIM SNAP CBT DMT HI LO Special
Light Pistol (.22, 9mm) +2 1 +1 +3 4 2
Medium Pistol (.45, .38) +1 1 +3 5 2
Hvy. Pistol (.44M, 357M,.50) +1 2 +4 6 3
Light Rifle (.22, .30-30) +3 1 +4 4 2
Med. Rifle (.270, .278, 30-06) +3 2 +5 6 2
Heavy Rifle (.375M, .50) +3 3 +7 8 4
Gives away DMT
Shotgun +1 2 +5 9 3 adv to Fort; -1 DMT
per 30’.
Max range of 40’;
Shotgun with Dragonsbreath +1 2 +2 2A 1A
frenzy
Full auto available
Assault Rifle (M16, AK47) +2 3 +5 7 3
for up to 2 rounds
Full auto available
SMG (Ingram MAC 11, Uzi) +1 2 +4 6 3
for 1 round
+1
Recurve Bow 2 1 +1 5 2 Not useable in Me-
(max 7)
lee. Heart shot: -3
+2
Compound Bow 1 3 6 3 CBT, reqs. 4 damage
(max 9)
“Brujah Special” Spring Steel +4 Requires Str+Pot 8
0 3 -1 8 4
Bow (max 11) to use. No melee.
Flamethrower -1 5 (Fire) 5A 2A Not usable in melee

37
 COMBAT

ble arc of fire (~90o) at –2CBT (the 4. RESOLVING COMBAT

shooter only rolls once).
CONTESTS
 “Stream”: The clip is emptied at a sin- In terms of dice rolling, a combat contest
gle target: +1 CBT, +2 DMT, and an +1 is no different than any other contest: roll
to both HIGH and LOW damage. and add the relevant total. However, there
are different sorts of attacks and actions
Ammo: GMs should discourage different available (e.g., Brawl, Melee, Ranged, Evade)
types of ammunition. If allowed, variant and they each have their benefits and draw-
ammo should be statted to be special purpose backs when it comes to interacting with the
ammo rather than simply “better”. High others. Think about the old adage: “Never
explosive rounds, for example, may inflict a bring a knife to a gun fight.” Each combi-
point or two of aggravated damage, but nation is handled in its own manner with its
could also have both a –1CBT penalty, and own particular rules. Those rules are sum-
do two or three points less regular damage. marized on Table 13, below, and examined
in detail on the next page.
Table 13—Combat Contests
ONE PARTY AND THE OTHER
SPECIAL RESOLUTIONS
IS USING…. IS USING….
BRAWL BRAWL CBT Ties are mutual hits
BRAWL EVADE Tie goes to the evader
Melee combatant gains Advantage; ties go to
BRAWL MELEE
melee combatant.
MELEE MELEE Ties are mutual misses
MELEE EVADE Ties are considered melee hits
RANGED EVADE (AT RANGE) Ties are considered misses
Ties are considered hits; shooter may claim
RANGED “CLOSING” EVADE Advantage on both CBT and DMT; next
round of combat is at close range.
Close combatant gains Advantage vs. long
RANGED BRAWL/MELEE
guns and wins ties; gun DMT/damage is +1
Both sides separately contest Firearms vs
RANGED RANGED
Evade; ties are considered misses.
Only usable after successful evade; attacker
BRAWL/MELEE ESCAPE
gains Advantage; ties yield an escape.

38
 COMBAT
A. Brawl v. Brawl:
Where two combatants are determined to
punch or kick each other into oblivion,
they contest their Brawl CBTs. Ties are
considered mutual hits when brawling:
both characters will resolve their damage
against the other (simultaneously).
B. Brawl v. Evade:
When one party is attempting to brawl and
the other is simply attempting to avoid get-
ting hit, the players contest Brawl and
Evade. Ties are considered a successful
evade and no damage is resolved.
C. Brawl v. Melee:
As one might suspect, the relevant contest
here is Melee v. Brawl. Bringing a knife to
a fistfight, though, gives a number of Ad-
vantages. The Melee combatant gains Ad-
vantage on this test, and also wins ties.
D. Melee v. Melee:
The scales are more even when both com-
batants are wielding deadly melee weapons.
Weapons can be used defensively, and com-
batants also tend to be a bit more careful,
so ties are considered mutual misses
when weapons are in play.
E. Melee v. Evade:
It’s a little harder to dodge a sword blade
than a fist, so when one person is attacking
with a melee weapon while the other is
simply evading, ties count as hits.
39
F. Ranged Combat v. Evade (at Range):
“At range” simply means “out of reach”
for brawl or melee purposes. Evading a
ranged attack absolutely requires that the per-
son evading at least attempt to find cover.
If the person evading has no potential cov-
er, he or she has two choices: throw them-
selves to the ground (which has its own set
of problems) or the shooter gains Ad-
vantage. However, it is at least a little diffi-
cult to hit a moving target, so ties are con-
sidered successful evades.
G. Ranged Combat v. “Closing Evade”:
There’s one other option for the person be-
ing shot at while at range: charge the bas-
tard who is shooting at you. This is dan-
gerous: the shooter gains Advantage on
both CBT and DMT, and now ties are con-
sidered hits. The good news: if you sur-
vive such a charge, the next round of com-
bat will be at close range.
H. Ranged Combat v. Ranged Combat:
When two characters just stand and shoot
at each other, someone is going to get hurt.
The person left standing in such encoun-
ters is generally the quickest and best shot.
Therefore, both ranged combatants contest
the CBT of their respective ranged weap-
ons. The loser gets shot and damage is re-
solved as normal. If there is a tie, both
combatants missed. The combatant with
the best cover may claim Advantage.
I. Ranged Combat v. Close Combat:
It is possible to engage in brawl or melee
combat with someone who is trying to
 COMBAT
shoot you. In fact, in some ways, it’s the
safest way to go. Generally the ranged
combatant can only attack with their weap-
on if it is a firearm (bows and flamethrow-
ers can’t be used in close combat). Both
combatants use their respective CBT
(Firearms and Brawl, for example). The
close combatant wins ties, and also gains
Advantage against long guns (but not
against pistols.) However, because guns are
more potent at point blank range, DMT
and all damage values are increased by 1.
J. Brawl/Melee v. Escape:
ESCAPE is used to put some distance be-
tween you and someone who is beating (or
trying to beat) the crap out of you. Using
ESCAPE is only allowed if you have al-
ready successfully evaded on the previ-
ous round. You must have evaded all at-
tacks — any hits that land make escape im-
possible. The attacker gains Advantage,
but ties yield a successful escape. If the es-
cape is successful, the characters are no
longer at close range. Note that using your
ESCAPE successfully does not end combat
the way that the Fair Escape power modi-
fier does.
5. RESOLVING DAMAGE
CONTESTS
Damage contests are not as complicated as
Combat Contests: it is a straightforward
contest of DMT against the relevant
SOAK total. As has already been ex-
plained, a victory for the DMT side indi-
cates HIGH damage. A tie or a loss indi-
cates LOW damage. The only complica-
40
tion is that characters have more than one
soak total, depending on the circumstances
and the sort of attack being used.
A. Basic SOAK:
The basic soak total is calculated with
Stamina, Fortitude, and Dodge. This is the
number used for most attacks in normal
combat. Dodge is included because being
able to roll with a punch goes a long way
towards minimizing its impact.
B. Fire/Sun SOAK:
Vampires are quite susceptible to fire dam-
age and the deadly rays of the sun. Their
Stamina is not counted — only Fortitude
and Dodge are included. The Fire/Sun
SOAK may also be used for certain magic
effects, and for certain types of chemical
damage as well.
C. Confined SOAK:
When a vampire is in a Grapple (see be-
low), or where there just isn’t any room to
move around, the character’s Dodge is not
counted — only Stamina and Fortitude are
used. This is applied at the GMs discre-
tion, but remember that fundamentally
Dodge is about getting out of the way of dam-
age: a character with no way to get out of
the way (for whatever reason) cannot take
Advantage of their Dodge score.
Vampires may also face a situations where
only Fortitude applies — such as damage
from fangs (when in a grapple), or when
faced with a lot of sunlight and nowhere to
hide.
 COMBAT

Table 14—Health Levels

6. DAMAGE, WOUND PEN- MORTALS
ALTIES, AND DEATH
The damage contest determines whether a LEVEL PENALTY MOVE
character suffers HIGH or LOW damage
UNHARMED Default
— the number of Health Levels that the
character loses. (Vampires are more dura- BRUISED No penalty Normal
ble than Mortals, and have a much larger
number of Health Levels. ) Health levels, HURT -1 Normal
along with the wound penalties associated
INJURED -1 80%
with each, are listed in Table 14, right. Al-
so listed are approximate movement penal- WOUNDED -2 50%
ties that the GM may choose to apply to
characters who have suffered damage. MAULED -3 25%

A. Types of Damage: CRIPPLED -5 10%

There are two types of damage: Aggravat- INCAPACITATED n/a none
ed and Normal. In terms of health levels
and wound penalties, there is no difference VAMPIRES
between the two. The only difference is in
how they heal. LEVEL PENALTY MOVE
UNHARMED Default
Aggravated damage is usually denoted by
an “A.” So an attack that did HIGH of 3A, RUFFLED No penalty Normal
and LOW of 1A, would inflict either three
points or one point of aggravated damage. SHAKEN No penalty Normal
BRUISED No penalty Normal
While in combat, normal damage is always
healed before any aggravated damage that BATTERED -1 Normal
was taken. This is covered in more detail
below, under Healing. HURT -1 80%
INJURED -1 50%
B. Incapacity:
When a vampire is reduced to WOUNDED -2 35%
"INCAPACITATED" through wounds, he
or she may not do anything further that MAULED -3 20%
round. He or she will collapse from the
CRIPPLED -5 10%
damage.
INCAPACITATED n/a none

41
 COMBAT
If the character is a vampire, the next round
cannot be spent doing anything except
healing. This is not to say that he must
heal, only that this is all he can do that
round. After that round, if he is still alive,
he may rise or frenzy or do whatever else
he wants, subject to the limits of his
wounds and wound penalties.
If the character is a mortal, he or she is in-
capable of action when incapacitated, and
must succeed on the following contest every
minute (6 rounds) to avoid dying:
STAMINA + WILLPOWER V. 7
7. COMBAT DISCIPLINES
The exact method in which various Disci-
plines function in Combat is discussed in
greater detail in Part V, below. The follow-
ing is only a brief summary.
A. Potence:
Potence figures directly into Combat values
as already discussed. It generally means
more damage. Lots more damage.
B. Celerity:
A character with Celerity may have special
powers in combat, but will also be able to
spend blood in order to claim Advantage
on either CBT, DMT, or maybe both.
C. Fortitude:
As discussed above, Fortitude is added to
SOAK totals, and is also subtracted from
ALL non-aggravated damage that the vam-
pire suffers. It is a powerful discipline.
42
D. Tactical Powers:
Some powers, identified with the Tactical
power modifier, may be listed with Combat
statistics (i.e., with their own CBT and
DMT totals). Such powers are used just
like any other attack.
E. Other Powers:
All other power uses occur at the end of
the round by default. If a character wishes
to use a power, he or she must do nothing
but Evade that round, though he or she
may do that without any penalty. Wound
penalties will apply to power use if the
character is damaged earlier in the round.
F. Fair Escape:
Certain powers allow Fair Escape. If the
power user successfully evades during the
combat round, activating this power ends
combat —period. Pursuit of the escaping
character may allowed by the GM on a case
by case basis, if practical.
8. MULTIPLE OPPONENTS
When faced with more than one opponent
in combat, a character has 3 options, with
normal Advantage rules applying in all cas-
es (Celerity, etc.):
“Dance Like a Butterfly”: The character
simply Evades against all opponents. The
character gives away Advantage on all
EVADE contests, but is able to use his or
her full EVADE rating.
“Sting Like a Bee”: Attack one opponent.
At full CBT Any evades against other op-
 COMBAT
ponents are performed at CBT 0. The
character gives away Advantage on only the
EVADE contests.
“Split Decision”: The character attacks
one opponent and evades another. Any
further Evades are performed at a CBT of
0, and the character cannot do anything
other than Evade any additional attacks
coming his or her way. The character gives
away Advantage on all CBT and EVADE
contests. This is best when facing two
somewhat inferior opponents.
9. GRAPPLING
Grappling is combat at extremely close
quarters where at least one of the combat-
ants has actually grabbed hold of the other
and is attempting to maintain physical con-
trol of the fight. Grappling is the best way
to accomplish the ubiquitous “I stop him
from doing that,” action that shows up in
role playing games with such alarming fre-
quency.
Once the combatants have entered a grap-
ple, an additional step is added to the com-
bat round: a “Grapple Check” is made at
the beginning of every combat round to
determine the state of the grapple — either
one character is in control, the other is in
control, or neither is in control. This con-
test is made using the combatants Grapple
CBT.
A. Entering a Grapple:
If both combatants agree to enter a grap-
ple, a grapple will begin automatically and
43
normal attacks may be made. But when
one character wishes to grapple and anoth-
er does not, the grappling character must
succeed in a combat contest (just as if mak-
ing a normal attack) using his or her Grap-
ple CBT, and giving away Advantage. If
the grappler either wins or ties, the combat-
ants are “in a Grapple”,.
B. Fighting in a Grapple:
Once in a grapple, characters are restricted
in their actions and attacks until the grapple
ends. Among these restrictions:
 Only small weapons (e.g., knives) and
brawl attacks may be made in a grapple.
 No Evades or Escapes can be made in a
grapple.
 Soak values never include Dodge while
in a grapple
 While in the grapple, the character who
won the last Grapple Check between
the characters (i.e., the character “in
control”) receives Advantage on both
CBT and DMT for that round, and re-
ceives Advantage on the next grapple
check.
 All damage inflicted in a grapple is (net)
reduced by one.
C. Ending a Grapple:
A grapple will continue until one character
breaks it, or both characters release. To
break a grapple, a character must declare
his or her intention prior to the Grapple
Check, and then win the Grapple Check at
the beginning of the round. (If the charac-
ter lost the Grapple Check last round, he or
 COMBAT
she gives away Advantage as noted above.)
If he or she wins, the grapple is broken and
no damage is inflicted. If both characters
wish to break the grapple, the grapple is
broken automatically and combat continues
as normal for the round.
10. BITING IN COMBAT
Normally, when a vampire feeds from a
victim, it inflicts one level of damage that it
easily healed by licking the wound. Howev-
er, a vampire may also choose to use his or
her bite in combat. A vampire may bite in
combat only while the vampire is in a grap-
ple, and only if his or her opponent is not
in control of the grapple. Biting in combat
uses Brawl CBT.
The vampire can make two types of bite
attacks: (1) a Feeding Attack, or (2) a Fang
Attack. Each of these has a different ef-
fect.
A. Feeding Attack:
To make a feeding attack, a vampire first
wins his CBT contest while in a grapple,
and then inflicts 1 level of aggravated dam-
age on the target. This will end combat
with most mortals, as they slip into the ec-
stasy of the Kiss. (Vampires with the Vi-
cious Predator Stigma, of course, do not
have this Advantage.) Making a feeding at-
tack on a vampire, however, is exceptionally
difficult. They tend not to sit there and let
you drain them without a fight.
If a vampire successfully makes a Feeding
Attack on another vampire, he or she may
44
immediately drain 1 Blood Point from the
target. Beginning on the next round of
combat, if and only if the vampire contin-
ues to win the Grapple Check, the vampire
may choose to continue feeding rather than
attack.
Vampires feed at the rate of 2 blood points
per round. This can be increased in two
ways:
 When making the Feeding Attack, the
vampire may contest WITS + MEDI-
CINE VS. 6. Success indicates that the
vampire may take an extra blood point
per round.
 If the target has a Sanguinis of 6 or
higher, the vampire may take an extra
blood point per round.
A vampire who is being fed from in com-
bat must immediately make a Rage Frenzy
check. The Beast does not like this at all.
B. Fang Attack:
A vampire can also just use his or her fangs
to tear at her opponent’s flesh. While nor-
mally a vampire’s bite does 1 level of aggra-
vated damage, this can be increased by
gnawing and ripping at the target. A fang
attack inflicts the following aggravated
damage:
DMT: Strength+Potence+1
HIGH: (Potence+2)A
LOW: (Potence+1)A
The damage is soaked using Fortitude
only.
 COMBAT
11. HITTING THEM WHEN
THEY’RE DOWN
Typically, if a character is down and unable
to move (i.e., completely tied up, incapaci-
tated, paralyzed, etc.) no roll is needed for
attacks. If the situation is such that killing
the target should not be a problem – slit-
ting the throat of a person tied to a chair,
for instance – then the target simply dies.
If the target is a vampire or some special
consideration applies (GM discretion) the
attack succeeds automatically and inflicts
HIGH Damage +2.
12. HEALING
A. Healing While Awake:
Vampires may spend blood to heal their
normal health levels of damage, at a rate of
1 blood per health level. A vampire may
spend as many blood to heal in a round as
he or she is able, given his or her Sanguinis
rating.
Vampires may not heal aggravated damage
while awake.
B. Healing While Asleep:
Normal damage will heal automatically dur-
ing the day as the vampire sleeps, burning
as many blood as necessary to restore the
vampire to full health (1 blood per health
level). If there is insufficient blood to
bring the vampire at least to Bruised (i.e.,
zero wound penalty), the vampire will slip
into Torpor instead.
45
Aggravated damage heals at the rate of one
level per night, and burns three blood per
level healed. Aggravated wounds will only
be healed if the vampire is otherwise fully
healed. If a vampire has aggravated
wounds when he or she falls asleep at
dawn, and cannot heal one of them during
the day, the vampire slips into Torpor.
C. Mortals:
Mortals only heal with the passage of time.
Without medical care, a mortal will heal
one health level at a time, in a number of
days equal to the square of the number of
wounds they have suffered, minus 2 (with a
minimum of 1 day). Thus, if a mortal were
Wounded (4 levels), they would heal to
Injured in two weeks (14 days). Then in
another week (7 days), they would heal to
Hurt.
Doing nothing but resting reduces mortal
healing times by 3 days (still minimum of
1).
Being under constant professional medical
supervision and attention cuts healing
times in half.
 COMBAT
13. ACTION PRIORITY AND
CHANGE
It’s every GM’s nightmare:
GM: OK, declare actions, everyone.
Jack: I unlock the dog’s cage.
Dave: I stop him.
GM: Stop him?
Dave: I grapple him.
Elias: I grapple Dave so Jack can
open the cage.
Susan: I shoot at Elias and see if I
can prevent him from attacking.
Richard: I also try to open the cage.
<GM slowly dies inside>
How to resolve this? Start at the end: Rich-
ard declared an action, and because he de-
clared last, his action is unopposed. The next
thing that’s going to happen is that he is
going to open that cage. Then go down
the initiative order.
GM: OK, Richard opens the cage
unopposed. Next, Susan shoots at
Elias. Elias, you’re being engaged by
multiple opponents — attacking
Dave while Susan is shooting at you.
How do you want to respond?
Elias: Well, since the cage is getting
opened anyway, I’ll abandon my at-
tack, and just jump for cover.
GM: OK, you’re evading so that’s
fine. Go ahead and resolve the shot.
Sometimes later-declared actions will cause
a player to re-evaluate his or her chosen
course. Switching plans midstream in a 10-
46
second round puts you off your game for a
few seconds. The following rules apply.
 A character may choose to abandon an
attack if (1) the target did not declare
combat against him, and (2) he or she is
also being attacked by someone else.
 If a character finds himself with multi-
ple combat opponents, he or she must
choose which multiple-combat option
he or she is taking.
 A character who changes actions when
attacked may choose to evade with no
penalties, or may choose to attack or act
in response, giving away Advantage.
 If a character’s action has simply be-
come impossible or impractical, then he
or she may change that action, but will
give away Advantage and may not
choose to attack anyone.
A character may always choose to evade an
attack directed at him or her of which he or
she is aware, and a character may always
choose to respond to an attack with a
GM: Dave, you’re not being grap-
pled, so you go ahead and grapple
Jack disrupting his action. Jack,
you’re being grappled by Dave. Go
ahead and resolve the combat round.
It’s up to the GM to exercise reason and
fairness in resolving these things.
Good luck.
 PART III
Degeneration
Hell is empty and all the devils are here.
1. OVERVIEW
Vampires face nightly the temptations of
hunger, the yawning chasms of their un-
controllable rage, and the quiet, guilty re-
monstrations of their conscience for the
deeds that their nature forces upon them.
This has adapted a number of different
systems in order to reflect the many, tex-
tured ways in which a vampire can fall to
the Beast.
The first, and most obvious, is Frenzy: the
Beast can seize control if you lead it into
temptation. You will do terrible things if
the Beast takes hold. It would be different
if it were just some outside force — but it’s
not. It’s within you. A part of you.
Because it is a part of you, each vampire’s
Beast is somewhat different. Some vam-
pires have raging, terrible Beasts who surge
forth at the slightest provocations. Others
have cautious, even skittish Beasts that flee
from any threat. To account for these vari-
47
ances, this game has a system called Beast
Traits.
The Beast wars against a vampire’s humani-
ty, but that humanity itself slips into dark-
ness as well as vampires age, as they watch
people die, as they lose track of their vic-
tims, and as the realities of their world
press them into darker and darker conspira-
cies. Most vampires seek to save their Hu-
manity, to stay in control, by rationalizing
their behavior. To account for this, the
game has a system called Inhumanities.
Inhumanities are the poisonous cure — the
way that vampires keep themselves in the
driver’s seat… by becoming as terrible as
the Beast itself.
Finally, there is a new system called Stig-
mata. Stigmata are the supernatural weak-
nesses and characteristics of vampires —
characteristics that grow over time. Some
are inconvenient, others are debilitating.
They seemingly strike at random, and they
are absolutely permanent.
 DEGENERATION
2. FRENZY
A. Types of Frenzy:
When the Beast takes control, it follows
animal instincts. Everything is reduced to
three overriding impulses: fight, flee, feed.
There are thus three different types of
frenzy, each associated with one of these
impulses.
Rage Frenzy: Brought about by humilia-
tion, extreme danger, or intimidation by
those the Beast considers inferior, a rage
frenzy drives the character to destroy the
source of the frenzy, and likely several
nearby things or people as well. A charac-
ter in a rage frenzy will respond to any even
potentially negative stimulus with a savage
and unrelenting attack. Characters in rage
frenzy cannot evade and cannot escape.
Fear Frenzy: Fear Frenzy is triggered by
being threatened with fire, exposed to sun-
light, massively overpowered by an oppo-
nent, faced with destruction by aggravated
damage, etc. Fear Frenzy should be
checked anytime the Storyteller thinks the
Beast may fight up to the surface to insure
survival, really. The effect of fear frenzy is
that the character must leave the source of
the frenzy by the quickest, most direct
route possible. If the character is detained
or prevented from leaving, the character
must check for a rage frenzy against the
source of his or her confinement.
Hunger Frenzy: If a character is at 3
blood or less, he or she must check for
48
Hunger Frenzy at the sight or smell of
blood. If a character is at one blood or
less, he or she must check for Hunger
Frenzy every hour. The effect of hunger
frenzy is that the character feeds without
regard to the consequences. If the charac-
ter is prevented from feeding, he or she
must check for rage frenzy against the
source of his or her confinement.
Of course, if multiple triggers are present,
a character could experience more than one
type of frenzy at once. Each type of fren-
zy is treated separately with respect to leav-
ing it. The various frenzies will manifest
with this order of priority: Rage, Fear,
Hunger. Thus, if you are experiencing all
three, your behavior will be dictated by the
Rage frenzy.
B. Frenzy Mechanics:
A character can enter Frenzy in one of two
ways: being involuntarily triggered, or
choosing to accept the Beast. If that seems
like madness, consider this: sometimes the
Beast and the heedless strength that comes
with it, is the only way to survive.
Triggered Frenzy: A character exposed
to a frenzy trigger – whether a generic trig-
ger described above, or a trigger based on a
Beast Trait – may resist frenzy with a con-
test of his or her:
HUMANITY VS. BEAST
If their Humanity wins, they are able to re-
sist frenzy. If their Beast wins, they enter
 DEGENERATION
the appropriate type of frenzy. In a tie, the
character may resist for ten seconds (one
round) but then must check again if the
stimulus is still present. A character can
spend Willpower to gain Advantage. A
character who chooses not to resist a
triggered frenzy is considered to have
Voluntarily Frenzied.
Voluntary Frenzy: Characters may also
voluntarily enter frenzy (this includes
choosing not to resist a triggered frenzy).
No roll is necessary to enter voluntarily
frenzy, however, a character who does so
must immediately perform a contest to see if
he or she has strengthened the Beast. The
character must contest:
HUMANITY VS. BEAST
The character’s Beast rating gains Ad-
vantage on this roll — voluntarily indulging
the Beast comes at a cost. If the Beast
wins, the character gains an additional
rank of Beast. The character will also
gain a Beast Trait (see below).
C. Advantages of Frenzy:
The Beast is, in some ways, stronger than
the mortal flesh it dominates. There are
three distinct “benefits” to Frenzy:
 A character in frenzy is immune to
Dominate and Presence
 A character in frenzy does not suffer
any wound penalties at all.
 While in a state of Frenzy, a character
may reroll a number of combat or phys-
49
ical contests equal to his or her Beast
rating. Any given roll can only be re-
rolled once.
However, if a character uses all of his or
her re-rolling opportunities in a single fren-
zy, he or she immediately gains a Beast
point. It is a slippery slope…
D. Ending Frenzy:
Frenzies may end when the character is in
no further danger (fear), when there are no
further threats of any kind (rage), or when
the character reaches full blood pool
(hunger). The character simply spends a
Willpower point and leaves Frenzy.
Absent the spending of a Willpower point,
the character will leave Frenzy 5 minutes
after the relevant condition is achieved — 5
minutes for each rank of Beast that he or
she possesses, that is. A character may also
spend a Willpower to leave frenzy if there
is sufficient other reason, such as a friend
attempting to talk them down.
3. BEAST TRAITS
The legends say that every vampire eventu-
ally succumbs to the Beast. But some suc-
cumb more quickly than others. The sys-
tem of Beast Traits is designed to simulate
and account for that difference. Every
time a character gains a rank of Beast,
he or she receives a Beast Trait of the
same type (Rage, Fear, Hunger) as the
frenzy which generated the acquisition of
the Beast Point.
 DEGENERATION

Beast Traits present additional frenzy trig-
gers -- anytime a character's beast trait is
triggered, he or she must either resist fren-
zy or give in (which will likely lead to an-
other Beast Trait!). Characters do not get
to pick their own Beast Traits unless they
agree to accept a Stigma as well (which they
do not get to pick).
Beast Traits come in two categories: Sub-
human and Monstrous. Normally, a sub-
human beast trait is acquired. However, if
a character has three or more beast traits
already, a Monstrous Beast Trait is acquired
instead. A character may always select a
Monstrous Beast Trait instead of a Subhu-
man Trait, although at the cost of a Stigma.
A. Lost to the Beast:
When a character gains five beast traits, he
or she becomes “lost to the Beast.” There
is no coming back from this: the vampire is
in a state of nearly perpetual frenzy. Vam-
pires in this state (which is sometimes
called “the Keening” among elders) are typ-
ically hunted down and destroyed, for they
are tremendous threats to the Masquerade.
Players should create a new character at this
point.
long period of time - and never enter fren-
zy because of it. Losing control even once
means you have to start all over again. It is
not sufficient to simply avoid temptation,
you must confront it, and survive. A vam-
pire can only “work on” one Beast Trait at
a time. If and when the Gamemaster ap-
proves, a character who has met the re-
quirements above may buy off a Beast Trait
with experience, removing the Trait.
Removing Subhuman Traits costs five (5)
times the number of Beast Traits the char-
acter possesses. Removing Monstrous
traits costs eight(8) times the number of
Beast Traits. In every case, buying off your
last Beast Trait, however, costs double the
normal cost.
A list of the possible Beast Traits is availa-
ble on Table 3 in the Character Generation
section. Full descriptions are available
starting on the next page.

B. Salvation:
Losing Beast Traits is a matter of will, time,
desire to lose them, and many other factors.
Such salvation is largely a matter of role-
play that will involve extensive discussion
with the Gamemaster. However, there are a
few ground rules: to lose a particular Beast
Trait one must resist it, repeatedly, over a

50
 DEGENERATION
RAGE BEAST TRAITS:
SUBHUMAN:
Crimson Rage (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy when you are physically threat-
ened by another.
Embarrassed (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy whenever someone brings up one
of your failures or criticizes your actions in front
of others. Test once per scene per person, or if
criticized by a group, test once, but lose Ad-
vantage.
Frustrated (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy when you fail a challenge involv-
ing mental attributes. Examples include: being un-
able to find a crucial piece of evidence
(Perception), being unable to solve a logic puzzle
(Intelligence), or not being fast enough to come up
with that on-the-spot-story (Wits). If you are
completely unaware of the event, you do not need
to check, although you will if you find out later.
Humiliated (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy whenever someone humiliates/
insults you in public (e.g., slaps you or calls you
names).
Isolation (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy when someone attempts to leave
you alone in your haven, or if you awake alone.
Item (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy when you encounter a certain
item (e.g., stake, firearm, bible - work with the Ga-
memaster to select something not too specific).
Primal (Subhuman)
You rage frenzy whenever you are in a physically
violent confrontation without a weapon in hand. If
you don't have a weapon and it looks like a fight,
it's all nails, fists, and teeth. Note that being dis-
51
armed during a fight will also trigger this trait, as
will being successfully grappled.
Territorial (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy whenever you witness someone
entering your haven (i.e., the immediate surround-
ings of your sleeping place(s)). This by definition
means that you will rage-frenzy if you see anyone
upon waking from your daytime sleep, unless you
are somewhere outside your usual territory.
Touchy (Subhuman)
You rage frenzy whenever a specified topic is
brought up in conversation in any way, no matter
how tangential. Bringing up this conversation
yourself requires the expenditure of a temporary
Willpower point, and anyone who replies to you
regarding the topic will trigger this Beast Trait.
Unfettered (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy when kept somewhere against
your will, or unable to go where you wish.
Vigilante (Subhuman)
You rage-frenzy when you witness a killing, against
the killer(s). This occurs regardless of their intent
or whether the victim is human, ghoul, or vampire
(animals are excluded). Note that this trigger does
not occur if you yourself are the killer.
MONSTROUS:
Alpha (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever someone expresses any
doubts about your abilities or questions your judg-
ment, whether in public or private.
Bullied (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever you lose a contest in-
volving social attributes, or realize you have been
outdone in any social affair. This could be some-
thing as simple as another vampire showing up to
the ball in the same dress you are wearing, or
someone snubbing you in order to talk to another.
 DEGENERATION
Failure (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever you realize that you
have failed doing anything, whether the failure is a
result of a dice contest or roleplaying.
Furious (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever someone crosses you in
any way. 'Crossing' you would include someone
cutting you off on the freeway, getting that last
piece of cake you wanted before you got it, or any-
thing more severe than that.
Inviolate (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever someone physically
touches you or anything you are wearing or carry-
ing without your consent, no matter how well-
intentioned or slight the contact.
Pride (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever anyone speaks to you in
a disrespectful way – whether they are yelling, criti-
cizing in a non-respectful way, or insulting you.
Violent (Monstrous)
You rage-frenzy whenever you witness violence,
regardless of its target, intent, or intensity. A
friendly punch in the shoulder between comrades
could lead to your tearing them both apart. (This
does not occur if you yourself are inflicting vio-
lence, unless the target fights back.)
HUNGER BEAST TRAITS:
SUBHUMAN:
Blood (Subhuman)
You hunger-frenzy when you encounter spilled
blood or open wounds. This does not apply when
you are feeding.
Blood Rush (Subhuman)
You hunger-frenzy when you spend more than
1/2 your blood capacity in a single scene.
52
Cauchemar (Subhuman)
You hunger frenzy whenever you espy a sleeping
mortal.
Fetish (Subhuman)
You hunger-frenzy when you encounter a particu-
lar type of vessel - prostitutes, police, ladies in red
dresses - make the choice and note it on your
sheet. Picking overly common criteria such as
"female" or "human" is strongly cautioned against.
Impatient (Subhuman)
If you have not fed for 24 hours or more, you
hunger frenzy at the sight of any mortal or animal
from whom you could feed.
Instinctive Predator (Subhuman)
You hunger frenzy whenever you are alone with a
mortal from whom you are able to feed.
Lust (Subhuman)
You hunger-frenzy when you encounter a willing
mortal victim – and all they have to be willing to
do is let your teeth bite their neck (or whatever).
It is not necessary that they know you are feeding
from them. Don Juans beware, you will almost
assuredly have to face this trait in the course of
your hunting.
Starved (Subhuman)
You hunger-frenzy when below half of your blood
capacity. You must face this trait either the first
time you drop below the halfway mark dur-
ing a scene, or upon waking if you went to sleep
hungry or dropped below half during the daylight
hours (due to wound healing, etc.).
Sympathy (Subhuman)
You hunger-frenzy whenever you see another
vampire feeding on anything or anyone. If you are
unable to drink from the vessel, you will attempt
to feed from the feeding vampire.
 DEGENERATION
Trapper (Subhuman)
You hunger frenzy whenever you encounter a
mortal or vampire who is bound. You need only
check once per individual per binding (i.e., a suc-
cessful resisting of frenzy lasts for more than one
night vis a vis a particular bound individual).
MONSTROUS:
Blood Smell (Monstrous)
You can smell the blood in other people, vam-
pires, etc. You will hunger-frenzy in 'crowds',
which could be as simple as five people on an ele-
vator with you, and certainly includes the average
cocktail party.
Desire (Monstrous)
You hunger-frenzy whenever you encounter an
object of your desire. This is limited to suitable
vessels (humans, animals, vampires), but unlike the
Fetish trait (see above) can vary based on your
'tastes' of the moment, and can include people rep-
resentative of your desires. You want a nice car
and spot the driver of that BMW? Check for fren-
zy. You're on the hunt and spy out an intended
victim that catches your fancy? Check for frenzy.
You want higher status or standing, and encounter
a vampire with such? Check for frenzy. Desire is a
sociopathic 'I want' reflex, coupled with insatiable
hunger. It's very, very bad.
Diablerie (Monstrous)
You hunger-frenzy when you encounter an inca-
pacitated vampire, and you will commit diablerie.
Glutton (Monstrous)
You hunger frenzy whenever you attempt to stop
feeding from a vessel before they are drained.
Insatiable (Monstrous)
You hunger-frenzy whenever you taste blood. This
flaw is extremely nasty.
53
More (Monstrous)
You hunger-frenzy whenever you obtain an object
of your desire. Note that unlike the Desire trait
(and all other hunger-frenzies), this can include
inanimate objects, which you will mindlessly at-
tempt to rend and ingest, possibly injuring yourself
to the point of incapacitation in the process. Note
that the Selective Feeder Stigma only applies to
drinking blood, so is of no help if you frenzy upon
that priceless Van Gogh you just acquired.
FEAR BEAST TRAITS:
SUBHUMAN:
Bane (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when you encounter a certain item
(e.g., brandished weapons, bible, wine - pick one
and record it, although overly common items are
not recommended).
Beta (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when you are physically threat-
ened by another.
Bound (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when you leave your home territo-
ry. This territory must be defined when you re-
ceive this flaw, must be contiguous, and can be
absolutely no larger than a princely Domain in size
(i.e. no defining this as 'Greater Los Angeles').
Crowded (Subhuman)
You fear frenzy whenever you are threatened in
any way by a group of people greater than the
group to which you currently belong.
Pain (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when you take health levels of
damage, whether normal or aggravated. You may
not heal the damage until you come out of frenzy.
 DEGENERATION
Phobia (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when encountering a certain situa-
tion, such as heights, enclosed spaces, open spaces,
meeting new people, etc. Choose a situation when
you receive this trait.
Reluctance (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy whenever you are in the presence
of anyone who has reduced you to Incapacitated in
the past.
Shame (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when you fail a challenge involv-
ing physical attributes.
Submission (Subhuman)
You fear frenzy whenever you are in the presence
of a vampire or werewolf who is rage-frenzying.
Sunlight (Subhuman)
You fear-frenzy when encountering even the
slightest amount of sunlight, including movie or
54
video images of the sun itself (though not movies
of mere daylight). Note that this means being
abroad during twilight hours will necessitate a
check, although the moon will not.
MONSTROUS:
Coward (Monstrous)
You fear-frenzy whenever you witness violence,
regardless of its target, intent, or intensity. A
friendly punch in the shoulder between comrades
is sufficient. Note that this trigger does not occur
if you yourself are inflicting violence, unless it is
felt appropriate to the situation.
Fire (Monstrous)
You fear-frenzy when you encounter fire of any
size, including even a lit cigarette.
Passive (Monstrous)
You fear-frenzy whenever anyone speaks to you
with a raised, threatening, severely disapproving,
or harsh voice.
Religion (Monstrous)
You fear-frenzy when you encounter anything per-
taining to a religion. Holy symbols, holy books,
holy men/women, and holy places all count, and
count regardless of what beliefs you hold or
whether the faith involved might be 'true'. Merely
passing by a church will just make you uncomfort-
able, but staying in its presence will necessitate a
check.
Skittish (Monstrous)
You fear-frenzy whenever you are surprised or
startled in any manner. Cars backfiring, doors
slamming open suddenly... even sudden move-
ments can trigger this trait, especially if they are
directed towards you.
Timid (Monstrous)
You fear-frenzy whenever you feel threatened at
all by anything.
 DEGENERATION
4. OF HUMANITY . . . AND
INHUMANITY
As discussed elsewhere in this book, a char-
acter’s Humanity is a statistic that
measures how much of a vampire’s (or,
frankly, a mortal’s) reasoning, “moral” self
remains. A character with a high Humanity
has a deep sense of self, a great capacity for
sympathy, and a profound sense of respon-
sibility for his or her actions. He or she
sees himself as a part of a larger communi-
ty, as someone sitting inside a web of rela-
tionships and obligations with other peo-
ple. As Humanity fades, a person’s world
becomes smaller, circumscribed more and
more by their own whims and desires.
Other people become tools, sources of sa-
distic amusement, or food.
A. Degeneration Checks:
A character with a high humanity risks los-
ing his or her humanity if he or she engag-
es in immoral acts. The Hierarchy of Sins
from the standard rules can be used with
the these custom rules, or the GM can feel
free to substitute his own sense of well-
thought-out morality. (Off-the-cuff im-
provisation is discouraged.) An example of
the Hierarchy of Sins is set forth to the
right, in Table 15. Note that this hierarchy
focuses exclusively on acts, not on motiva-
tions: to the extent that a character is able
to rationalize their actions without feeling
guilty, they are displaying an inhumanity. In
this sense, Inhumanities aren’t “evil” —
they’re just a coping mechanism. But when
you get too good at coping….
55
Table 15—Hierarchy of Sins
Hum. Sin
1 Depraved, sadistic torture.
2 Murder, Slavery
3 Aggravated violence, mayhem, for-
cible rape
4 Robbery, extortion
5 Life-ruining theft or fraud, reckless
or negligent killing
6 Grand theft, social cruelty & humili-
ation; serious violence
7 Generic bullying and intimidation;
minor theft; minor battery, vandal-
ism
8 Lies, cheating, betrayals of friends
9 Minor theft in extremis; ignoring
cries of suffering
10 White lies with semi-selfish motives
When a character performs an act equal to
or less than his or her humanity, he or she
risks losing humanity and weakening his or
her defenses against the Beast. When such
a thing happens, the following MUST oc-
cur:
FIRST: Check the character's list of Inhu-
manity Traits. If the wrongdoing is cov-
ered by one of the Inhumanity traits, there
is no effect. Proceed no further. For ex-
 DEGENERATION
ample, if someone with the Inhumanity
Trait “Larcenous” and a Humanity of 6
steals someone’s life savings, no check
would be needed.
SECOND: The character must make a
Degeneration Check, which involves con-
testing:
HUMANITY VS. (#/INHUMANITIES +2)
Willpower cannot be used, but extenuating
circumstances may grant Advantage. If the
character's Humanity succeeds or ties, there
is no effect. Proceed no further.
If Humanity loses, then the character un-
dergoes Degeneration. Normally, this
means that the character loses a Humanity
point, then proceeds to the third step. If
the underlying sin was committed while in
frenzy, however, the character gains a Beast
point instead — and a Beast Trait to go
with it; if so, proceed no further.
THIRD: Perform the same contest once
more (Willpower still cannot be used). If
the character's Humanity wins, he or she
gains a Subhuman Inhumanity. If it loses
or ties, he or she gains a Monstrous Inhu-
manity. The player may choose the Inhu-
manity, but only by accepting a Stigma.
B. Becoming a Monster:
When a character gains five inhumanities, it
has lost all touch with humanity,. It may
look and sound human, but it is just a fa-
çade: beneath the smiles is a creature who
56
can rationalize any and all manner of sin
and horror, who feels little guilt for even
the greatest of evils. Such a character is
beyond redemption. He or she immediate-
ly gains three additional stigmata and is no
longer considered suitable to be a player
character.
C. Salvation:
Losing Inhumanities is a matter of will,
time, desire to lose them, and many other
factors. Such salvation is largely a matter of
role-play that will involve extensive discus-
sion with the Gamemaster. However, there
are a few ground rules: to lose a particular
Inhumanity Trait one must resist it, repeat-
edly, over a long period without committing
wrongdoing covered by it. Even a slight
indulgence means you have to start all over
again. It is not sufficient to resist tempta-
tion, you must confront it, and emerge with
your humanity intact. A vampire can only
“work on” one Inhumanity at a time.
If and when the Gamemaster approves,
you may buy off Inhumanities at the prices
listed on the experience chart, above. Buy-
ing off your last Inhumanity, however,
costs double.
A list of the possible Inhumanities is availa-
ble on Table 4 in the Character Generation
section. Full descriptions are available
starting on the next page.
 DEGENERATION
SUBHUMAN
INHUMANITIES:
Authoritarian: Wrongdoing has no mean-
ing to you if your actions are performed to
preserve order – the lawless must be made
to understand, or must be eliminated.
Believer: Wrongdoing has no meaning to
you so long as you are convinced that your
God would approve of your conduct. (This
Trait must involve a religious belief system
rooted in the characters background.)
Bestial: You bear no moral consequence
for any wrongdoing you commit while you
are in frenzy.
Callous: Accidents happen. People break.
The world goes on. You are not responsi-
ble for the accidental consequences of your
actions -- only intended or clearly foreseen
consequences. If you are speeding and a
mortal steps in front of your car... oops.
Consensual: You can engage in any act
against a person(s) so long as the person(s),
or someone you recognize with authority
over them, consents to your act.
Destructive: You feel no remorse whatso-
ever for destroying tangible things – wheth-
er works of art, antiques, a child’s toy…
people need to get over it already. Smash-
ing things is fun. It’s just stuff.
Driven: You have a clear purpose or goal
that drives you through the endless nights.
57
Any actions that further this agenda are not
considered to be wrongdoing. (This Inhu-
manity Trait must be strongly grounded in
the character concept/background.)
Follower: Your morality is defined by your
peers. You will accept and participate in any
action supported by a majority of members
of any coterie to which you belong. Such
conduct is not wrongful to you.
Furtive: You only feel guilt if you get
caught: you feel nothing so long as no one
— no one at all — knows that you have
committed the deed in question.
Honorable: You have a simple, strict per-
sonal code of honor. Actions in accord
with this code are not considered to be
wrongdoing. (This Inhumanity Trait can
only be taken in character generation.)
Iconoclastic: You do what you need to do
to resist or otherwise undermine those who
assert authority over you. So long as your
actions serve either of these purposes, such
actions are not considered wrongful.
Immortal: Wrongdoing has no meaning to
you when the alternative is your imminent
destruction. You can and will do anything
necessary for you to survive in those cir-
cumstances.
Larcenous: The physical property rights
of others have no meaning for you, and
you do not consider it wrong to convert
things to your own use.
 DEGENERATION
Lawyer: Your ethics are for sale. Wrongdo-
ing has no meaning so long as someone
compensates you -well- for what you do.
Pedagogue: Any action is acceptable as
long as it serves to educate the subject to
some degree in a direct fashion and does
not result in their death. The axiom 'live
and learn' is your guiding principle.
Predator: Anything you need to do to eat
is fine.
Rancher: Humans are a food source and a
commodity. You neither inflict unnecessary
suffering nor waste your commodity, but
you will slaughter them as needed. They
serve your needs, but you bear them no
malice.
58
Reciprocity: If someone commits an act
against you, a like or less severe act in re-
sponse is not wrongful.
MONSTROUS
INHUMANITIES:
Agency: You can commit any wrongdoing
whatsoever, so long as it is committed
through your employees, retainers, ghouls,
agents, or other representatives, and not by
you personally.
Capricious: You are prone to actions that
provide you no identifiable benefit or that
create more trouble than benefit for you.
Such actions are not considered wrongdo-
ing for you.
 DEGENERATION
Covetous: You covet material and intangi-
ble things that do not belong to you. No
action is wrongful to you so long as it is
committed in an effort to acquire some-
thing you covet.
Dishonest: You are a deceiver and dishon-
orable. You can do anything so long as it is
predicated upon active deception and lies.
Homicidal: Death is your answer to most
of life’s problems. Whether directly or indi-
rectly, you can kill anything or anyone for
any reason without moral consequence.
Humanity: Nothing is more important
than the big picture: you feel no guilt so
long as your act advances society as a whole
or benefits the whole of humanity, whether
in terms of lifespan, health, or even elevat-
ed consciousness.
Obedient: You can commit any act so long
as someone with power over you directs
you to do so.
Payback: Your actions are not considered
wrongdoing if they are to repay or avenge a
slight or offense against you. Such respon-
sive actions are generally not in proportion
to the slight or offense against you.
Possessive: Wrongdoing has no meaning
to you when something or someone you
possess might be taken from you. You can
and will do anything to keep what belongs
to you, even if your belonging is destroyed
in the process.
59
Removed: You plot and scheme from be-
hind the scenes. Others do your bidding
outside of your presence, and you may lay
traps (both real and metaphorical) for those
you would see brought low. You can cause
any wrongful act so long as you do not wit-
ness its execution or immediate aftermath.
Sadistic: You will not pass up an oppor-
tunity to get away with inflicting suffering
or pain upon someone else. Actions in pur-
suit of inflicting such pain or suffering are
not wrongdoing for you.
Superior: You may commit any manner
of violence, harm, or wrong against those
whom you perceive as beneath you in the
social pecking order. It is the way of
things.
Traditional: Conduct that is in accord with
the Camarilla Traditions is not wrongful to
you. (Malkavians cannot choose this Inhu-
manity Trait as their clan disAdvantage.)
Utilitarian: The greatest good for the
greatest number: you do not suffer the
moral consequences of your actions if
those actions are designed to benefit more
people than they harm. You may butcher
thousands to protect the lives of millions,
or enslave one for the service of many.
Quality of benefit/suffering gets at least as
much weight as the number of people it
affects.
 DEGENERATION
5. STIGMATA
Stigmata is the name given to a wide
range of supernatural weaknesses to which
vampires can succumb over time, as a result
of their blood, or as a result of embracing
their vampiric nature. Stigmata range from
the traditional (an aversion to crosses) to
the obscure (a fascination with counting
grains of rice) to the bizarre and repellent
(a need to eat flesh rather than just drink
blood).
Stigmata are very powerful: they always
prevail over other rules, and they are per-
manent. They cannot be overruled or
counteracted in any way.
Like Beast Traits and Inhumanities, they
come in two categories, divided by degree
of inconvenience: Hindering Stigmata are
the more numerous, and range from the
inconvenient to traits posing a moderate
threat to one’s well-being. Crippling Stigma-
ta will radically change the way a vampire
approaches his or her existence: they re-
shape behavior and just as often as not lead
to destruction within a few years at most.
A. Stigma and Role-Playing
Vampires of the Camarilla tend to be
ashamed of their Stigmata. Rationaliza-
tions and explanations for Stigmata vary
tremendously, with some vampires seeing
them as a sort of scientific “proof ” of a
vampire’s monstrous nature, others looking
at them as a curse from God, and still oth-
ers believing that they are a karmic balance
for “stolen” time. In every case, vampires
60
tend not to discuss these matters, and they
universally (and justifiably) fear that they
could be exploited by their enemies.
For the most part, “clan” Stigmata are
properly recognized as such — ibut such
matters are primarily the concern of vam-
piric scholars and philosophers.
B. Acquiring Stigmata:
As discussed above, when a player is gain-
ing an Inhumanity or a Beast Trait, he or
she may choose to accept a random Stigma
in order to be able to choose a particular In-
humanity or Beast Trait. This choice must
be made before knowing which trait will be
assigned.
Stigmata can also be gained simply by living
a very long time as a vampire: every 100
years a vampire is active (i.e., not in torpor),
he or she should contest, the following
gaining Advantage:
HUMANITY
VS.
#/INHUMANITIES+#/BEAST TRAITS
If the Humanity loses, the vampire gains a
Stigma. The first or second stigma should
usually be a Hindering Stigma. After that,
it is a matter of GM discretion.
A list of Stigmata is available on Table 5 in
Character Generation, above. Full explana-
tions for each Stigma are available on the
following pages.
 DEGENERATION
HINDERING STIGMATA:
Aura Of Evil: Priests, rabbis, imams, gyp-
sy fortune tellers, and devout mortals know
instinctively that there is something horri-
bly wrong, even unholy, about you, and re-
act accordingly.
Blood Breath: Your breath smells of
dried blood and death, and cannot be cov-
ered up.
Coffin: You must sleep your days either in
a graveyard or tomb or – failing that – ei-
ther in a coffin or casket. Failure to do this
has two effects: you do not recover Will-
power from your sleep, and you burn an
additional point of blood each day.
Cold: Your touch is just above freezing on
direct contact. Air within one or two feet
of you is noticeably chilled: moisture con-
denses on glass and mortal breath is visible.
This can make the Masquerade difficult
without dramatic precautions.
Earthbound: You must sleep in contact
with at least a coffin's worth of soil from
your mortal “homeland” (not necessarily
place of birth). Failure to do so causes you
to give away Advantage on all contests after
one night, and to suffer a (cumulative) -1
penalty to all contests on the six subse-
quent nights. After seven nights of depriva-
tion, you will enter involuntary torpor
when you sleep. One night’s rest in contact
with your native soil will remove all penal-
ties, but will not end torpor.
61
Eerie Presence: Mortals are instinctively
uneasy around you as your predatorial na-
ture activates their instinctive flight or fight
response. You are at -1 total rating in all so-
cial interactions with mortals.
Light Sensitivity: For you, even a room
full of candles can feel like the noonday
sun. If you are in a brightly lit area (a
sports stadium, most classrooms and offic-
es, a busy downtown street with bright
signs, a safely designed truck stop...) you
give away Advantage on all contests. Any
sort of bright light will be extremely un-
comfortable, and approaching the source
of a bright light requires the expenditure
of a Willpower point. You may alleviate
this somewhat by wearing sunglasses —
but only enough to tolerate something like
the typical theatre lobby.
Millet: You are unable to pass a bowl, pot,
or similar open-top container of rice or un-
cooked grain without stopping to count
each individual grain. Tearing yourself away
from this task and turning back requires the
expenditure of a Willpower point, but you
will be unable to pass the container until
you have completed counting.
Nature Bane: Plants wither, become sick-
ly, and perhaps die when you touch them.
Animals find your presence disturbing,
avoiding you or attacking you in a greater
than usual manner for a vampire. You lose
all ranks in Animal Ken, and purchasing
any subsequent ranks is triple cost.
 DEGENERATION
No Reflection: No one (except perhaps
Minor Gods) can see your reflection in
mirrors, water, or shiny surfaces, though
you will still be picked up by photography
and video even if those devices use a mir-
ror. Although if someone were to attempt
to look into that mirror, they would not see
your image there.) Photos, film, or video
of you will capture your image in a mirror.
The image is still in the mirror – it’s just
that people can’t see it. Note that this stig-
ma makes it impossible to use the Thauma-
turgy Ritual Mirror Walk.
Pallor: You resemble a corpse much more
than is usual in a vampire, including visible
veins and a sickly pallor. All skill at Mas-
querade is lost, and purchasing any further
skill in Masquerade is triple cost, and can
62
only be used to simulate biologic functions,
not to eliminate your pallor.
Permanent Fangs: You have lost the abil-
ity to retract your fangs. When you smile,
your vampiric nature is plain for everyone
to see.
Permission: You must acquire permission
from a permanent resident or long-term
guest (someone who has been in residence
for over two weeks) before entering their
home for the first time. Any sort of writ-
ten invitation from a resident will count as
permission. Note that the definition of
"home" is somewhat subjective; a peculiarly
bloodless corporate executive's home may
actually be his office (though his wife's
home may be the house).
 DEGENERATION
Repelled By Crosses: You cannot stand
the sight of a cross or similar holy symbol
and must spend a Willpower point merely
to remain in the presence of one. Ap-
proach or attack is out of the question. If
you are threatened by one and are unable to
back up or flee, you will Fear Frenzy with
no chance to resist and attempt to leave the
area by any means possible, even if it
means fleeing past the religious symbol.
Such a Frenzy does not earn you a Beast
Point for failing to resist.
Repelled By Garlic: You are repelled by
garlic and cannot approach it. The presence
of Garlic will force you to spend a Will-
power or flee its presence. It does not harm
you, however.
Running Water: You cannot cross run-
ning water, such as rivers, streams, or run-
ning storm drains without expending a
Willpower point. You can step over a curb
that has water running along it, but it
makes you uneasy.
Satanic Eyes: Your eyes have become like
those of a serpent or cat. Yellow and slit-
ted, they shine faintly in the darkness, and
glow when you are nearing frenzy; they are
quite obviously not the result of contact
lenses. This does not give you any vision
beyond normal, but may prove a disAd-
vantage in stealth, and certainly will be a
problem for the Masquerade.
Shadowless: You cast no shadow, no mat-
ter how bright a light you are in front of.
63
You still have a silhouette (i.e., you will cast
a shadow inside someone's eyeball, but no-
where else).
Tainted Flesh: Crosses, medallions, holy
water, and other religious items may be
used to inflict aggravated damage on you
by anyone of reasonably strong faith. You
are not repelled by them (e.g., Repelled by
Cross, above) but you had best keep your
distance.
Talons: Your hands are long, skeletal, and
topped with thick, yellowing nails. They
look like the hands of a demon-corpse,
though the nails do not do any additional
damages. Invest in gloves.
Truthful: You may not lie to mortals,
though you can speak the truth in mislead-
ing ways, omit critical information, or
change the subject. (Ghouls are not con-
sidered “mortals” for these purposes,
though mages are.)
Ultraviolet: You are sensitive not only to
sunlight, but to intense ultraviolet radiation
such as sunlamps. Treat strong UV light as
sunlight for all purposes.
Unholiness: You may not tread on Holy
Ground, including churches and cemeter-
ies, and will even avoid it in frenzy. If you
are forced onto such ground against your
will you will immediately Fear Frenzy with
no chance to resist until you leave the holy
ground. (You do not gain a Beast Trait for
failing to resist.)
 DEGENERATION
Vicious Predator: Mortals do not feel
ecstasy at your bite, and will react as if bit-
ten by a wild animal, including fighting
back. Hunting is far more difficult.
Vitae Addiction: You crave the blood of
other vampires. If you encounter more
than one vampire at a time, you must drink
at least one point vitae before dawn or else
suffer a hunger frenzy check upon waking
the next night. Additionally, if you ever
hunger frenzy, you will seek out the closest
source of vampire blood, if any. You give
away Advantage when resisting Hunger
Frenzy when there is a ready source of
vampiric vitae available. Combine with the
"Diablerie" Beast Trait for extra goodness.
Voice of the Devil: Your voice is distort-
ed and evil-sounding, a supernatural-
sounding bestial growl that unsettles any
that hear it. You give away Advantage on
any and all social contests save those that
rely purely on fear and intimidation. Your
voice immediately betrays your supernatural
nature, and you are considered a serious
danger to the Masquerade.
Vulnerability To Silver: Damage inflicted
upon you by silver weapons is aggravated,
and the touch of silver causes you pain.
You will be unable to break silver chains
unless you are in frenzy (in which case, giv-
en silver's relative weakness, it will be sim-
plicity itself.)
Wood: You are both repelled and can be
severely damaged by traditional woods –
64
Oak, Rowan, Ash, Holly, Aspen, Haw-
thorn, Blackthorn, Juniper, and Linden.
Contact with these will cause painful and
unsightly burns against your flesh (such
burns can be easily healed with a blood
point once out of contact with the wood).
Weapons made of these woods cause ag-
gravated damage, and perhaps most alarm-
ingly, stakes made of these woods do not
paralyze you when driven through your
heart, but destroy you forever.
CRIPPLING STIGMATA:
Bleeder: You constantly leak vitae from
various parts of your body. This does not
have any effect on your blood pool, but it is
incredibly unsightly and also dangerous in-
sofar as you leave traces of your blood eve-
rywhere you go. Blood seeps out from
your eyes, fingernails, gums – even your
ears and nose on occasion. Your mere
presence will trigger Beast Traits such as
Blood Smell.
Blood Addiction: You suffer an insatiable
hunger. Your Beast receives a +2 bonus
when you are attempting to resist it for
purposes of a hunger frenzy. Attempting
to resist a Hunger Beast trait requires that
you burn a Willpower (Gain a Beast Point
if you do not or cannot burn this Willpow-
er.) Every night that you do not feed from
at least one vessel, you suffer a cumulative -
1 total rating penalty on all rolls.
 DEGENERATION
Carnivore: Blood is not enough for your
nourishment. When you hunt, you must
also consume the flesh of your victims.
The Don Juan method is forever barred to
you, unless you find yourself a truly degen-
erate herd. And even then, how long will
they last? Note that this does not allow the
ingestion of any other sort of food, even
flesh that is consumed outside the act of
the hunt.
Contagion: Any mortal from whom you
feed will evince signs of vampirism –
whether you shared your vitae or not.
They will find light uncomfortable, run a
chill, sleep through the day if allowed, be-
come pale, and will find vegetarian food off
-putting. On a single feeding, the signs will
be mild and only last 2-3 days. They be-
come more pronounced on a second, last-
ing a week or more. If you feed from the
same mortal 5 times, for a year they will be
unable to drink anything but blood, their
temperature will run at 80 degrees, and they
will be unable to tolerate sunlight or fire at
all (though it will not harm them any more
than normal). This stigma tends to end in
death, as others step in to enforce the Mas-
querade.
Elder Hunger: Only the vitae of other
vampires can sustain you.; you receive no
nourishment from any other blood source.
This Stigma typically only manifests in very
old vampires. The GM may allow other
forms of supernatural blood to provide
sustenance, if appropriate to the Chronicle.
65
Inflammable: Your dead flesh is particu-
larly susceptible to burning, and once lit by
any size flame — even a candle — you will
burst into a raging fire that inflicts 2 aggra-
vated points of damage per round, causing
near-unavoidable fear frenzy until extin-
guished. Double your effective Beast rating
for these frenzy checks.
Lunacy: On nights of the full moon you
lose control of your Beast. You automati-
cally rage frenzy with no chance to resist
on these nights. All night. This does not
add Beast Traits for failing to resist.
Ravenous: Whenever you feed, you only
receive one half (round up) of the blood
taken from a victim. Thus, if you drain a
healthy adult (10 points) you would gain 5
points. You receive full benefit when feed-
ing from other vampires, however.
Selective Feeder: Your feeding is restrict-
ed to one particular type of prey (almost
always a type of human). For whatever rea-
son, you cannot tolerate vitae of other
types, and you will become very ill if you
consume blood of an origin you cannot de-
termine to be within your prey-class (take
one health level of damage for each point
so consumed). Your prey-class must be de-
scribed in your character background, and
it must be sufficiently restrictive to exclude
at least 75% of possible mortal prey.
Torporous Sleep: You cannot awake dur-
ing the day under any circumstances. Good
luck with the next 100 years.
 PART IV

Game Systems

Rules are for the obedience of fools and the guidance of wise men.

This section sets forth all of the supple- 1. STATUS AND SOCIAL
mental game systems for the Degeneration
Rules Set. A complete list of the topics
CONTESTS
discussed in this part are set forth below: The social pecking order is extremely im-
portant to vampires: theirs is a small, insu-
lar society. Under these Rules, status-based
1. Status and Social Contests backgrounds have a significant in-game
2. Willpower effect.
3. Blood Bonds
4. Ghouls A. Status Advantage:
5. Out of Clan Disciplines Specifically, if two characters share a com-
6. Creation Rites mon status-based background ( including
7. Diablerie Clan Prestige, Status, Sabbat Status, and
Anarch Reputation), the character with the
8. Torpor and Revival higher status may claim Advantage on all
9. Masquerade Skill social contests — including certain uses of
10. Daylight Operations Dominate and/or Presence where such an
11. Sheer Strength Advantage would be appropriate.
12. Influences
13. Retainers Both parties must possess a non-zero score
14. Hunting in the relevant background for it to matter.
Social Advantage is determined as a whole
15. Lores — it is not several different Advantages
cancelling each other out.

66
 GAME SYSTEMS
B. Ignoring Status:
A party who is losing Advantage because
of an inferior status may choose to ignore
the relevant status backgrounds, effectively
cancelling the other character's Advantage.
The effect of this is to simply remove sta-
tus from the equation entirely: the person
ignoring status is ignoring all relevant status
backgrounds and cancelling out the overall
Advantage that results.
Ignoring status has a steep cost: if a status
is ignored in such a way that others with a
vested interest will find out (i.e., it is done
in public, in front of witnesses, or the ig-
nored character decides to socially retaliate
within a reasonable time) then the character
ignoring each relevant background must roll
1D6 and subtract one. If the result is equal
to or less than the difference between the
two characters' relevant status background,
then the ignoring character immediately
loses one rank of the applicable Status
background.
67
EXAMPLE: Clarissa is attempting to in-
timidate Demeter into leaving an art gal-
lery where the two have come into con-
flict. Their backgrounds are listed below.
Clarissa may claim Advantage for her Sta-
tus and for her Brujah Prestige. Demeter
may claim Advantage for her Anarch Rep-
utation. Other statuses are not shared and
do not matter. Thus, Clarissa has social
Advantage on her Intimidation contest.
However, Demeter may choose to nullify
that Advantage by ignoring Clarissa’s back-
grounds — both her Status and her Brujah
Prestige. If this is done in such a way that
word gets around (most likely by Clarissa
telling everyone), then Demeter must roll
1D6-1 for each statistic.
For Status, the difference is two (4-2) so
Demeter must roll 4+ or lose a dot of Sta-
tus. As to her Brujah Prestige, the differ-
ence is only 1, so Demeter need only roll a
3 or higher. to avoid losing a dot.
Status BG Clarissa Demeter
Status 4 2
Brujah Prestige 2 1
Anarch Reputation 2 4
Toreador Prestige 4 0
Gangrel Prestige 0 2
 GAME SYSTEMS
2. WILLPOWER
Willpower represents a character’s determi-
nation, psychic integrity, and force of per-
sonality. It measures the ability to resist ex-
ternal influences as well as the ability to
push one’s self up to and even past normal
limits. It is a dynamic statistic: it can be
gained and lost temporarily, and it can also
be gained or lost on a permanent basis.
Spending permanent Willpower is a rare
thing – usually involved only in certain
magical rituals or in making “True Childer.”
Temporary Willpower is spent and re-
stored much more frequently.
A. Spending Willpower:
A character may spend one (and only one)
Willpower to gain Advantage on nearly any
contest (i.e., unless the contest specifically
prohibits it).
B. MULTI-Willpower:
Many disciplines allow the victim to expend
multiple Willpower points to resist a power.
These disciplines have the (MULTI) power
modifier.
When this option is available, a vampire
does not spend Willpower to gain Ad-
vantage, but may instead spend one Will-
power to gain a +3 bonus to resisting the
power. A second point may be spent to
gain an additional +2 (total of +5), with as
many subsequent Willpower as they wish,
gaining +1 per point spent. Note that the
total spent must be declared before rolling.
68
C. Recovering Willpower:
When a vampire spends temporary Will-
power, it comes back slowly, over time.
Every evening, provided the vampire has
had a chance to rest during the day, he or
she contests his or her Current Willpower
vs. 3. If "3" wins or ties, no Willpower is
regained, otherwise 1 point is regained.
Thus, if you bring yourself down to 1 or 2
Willpower, it may be some time before you
start feeling like yourself again. At the end
of a major storyline, the GM may simply
allow all characters to recover their Will-
power. Characters may also be given Will-
power for accomplishing goals that are very
personal to the character, or for taking sig-
nificant actions that are in accord with the
character’s Nature.
If a character loses a permanent point of
Willpower for one reason or another, he or
she can typically gain it back only by spend-
ing experience points.
3. BLOOD BONDS
Vampiric vitae has many potent properties,
though few are as feared as the Blood
Bond, also known as the Blood Oath, the
Communion, Coniuctio Sanguinis or the Koi-
nonia, among other names. Consuming a
vampire’s blood in a deliberate fashion
forms a mystic connection — a supernatu-
ral affection and loyalty that can either rein-
force existing affinities, or impose a resent-
filled but undeniable subservience.
 GAME SYSTEMS
A. Forming a Blood Bond
Blood bonds are very special, sacred things
– they are not something that happens
through happenstance or lightly. The fol-
lowing rules apply to the formation of
blood bonds:
 Forming a blood bond requires three
separate drinks on three separate nights
within a certain period of time. (Check
your Vampire Lore sheets for more in-
formation.)
 Both the donor and the recipient must
be physically present, and the blood
must come either directly from the do-
nor, or be consumed within a few
minutes of being poured in a glass or
somesuch. (Note that blood preserved
by Thaumaturgy will not work this way.)
 Both parties must be consciously con-
senting to the act of drinking. Because
the Blood Bond is a mystic bonding be-
tween two conscious spirits, it cannot be
established if either party is not aware
of his or her actions.
Thus, waking someone from torpor does
not serve to make a blood bond, nor does
being drunk from while in frenzy. This
does not mean that the recipient must
know he or she is potentially being bound,
only that the drinking of the donor’s blood
itself must be a conscious act. Note that
the key word here is “conscious” – not
“freely willing.”
For reasons no one understands, the blood
for a blood bond must be freely given. If it
69
is taken against the recipient’s will, no bond
will be formed.
B. Effects of Blood Bonds
The effect of blood bonds depends on the
number of times that the recipient has con-
sumed the donor’s blood previously within
the relevant time period.
First Drink: The recipient will feel a
strong connection to the donor, an appreci-
ation and understanding of whatever it is
that the recipient thinks the donor is. This
is sufficient to give the donor Advantage
on social contests to persuade, impress,
charm, or intimidate. This effect will last
one moon (28 days) in mortals, and a year
and a day in vampires.
Second Drink: The recipient will start to
feel “tied” to the donor. This is not neces-
sarily love, or even a positive feeling – more
an acknowledgement that their fates are
tied together. The recipient will be very
disinclined to act against the donor in any
active way. The donor will continue to gain
Advantage on relevant social contests, and
will also receive Advantage on the use of
any “mental” powers (Dementation, Domi-
nate, Auspex, etc.) against the recipient.
The recipient must spend a Willpower to
act against the interests of the donor, and
only if the Gamemaster determines that
the situation warrants such an extraordi-
nary betrayal. This effect will last 6 months
in mortals and a year and a day in vampires.
 GAME SYSTEMS
Third drink: The third drink within the
relevant time frame creates an incredibly
strong bond – though again, not necessarily
any feeling of love or affection. It could –
and usually does – manifest that way, espe-
cially with mortals. But it may also mani-
fest like an extremely unhappy marriage (at
least from the recipient’s point of view)
where no one is willing (or able) to leave.
The recipient will feel absolutely tied to the
donor, and will be unable to imagine a life
without them in it. The donor receives Ad-
vantage on all contests against the recipi-
ent, and the recipient may not resist the
donor’s mental disciplines. The recipient
may not act against the recipient absent ex-
traordinary justification (GM discretion)
and even then only at the cost of a perma-
nent point of Willpower. Under no cir-
cumstances will the recipient act in such a
way as to kill the donor or remove him or
her from the recipient’s life. This lasts a
year and a day in mortals (an effect that is
refreshed with every drink within that peri-
od), and is permanent in vampires.
A vampire may participate in as many
blood bonds as he or she wishes as the do-
nor, and may have as many First and Sec-
ond Drink effects as he or she wishes as a
recipient. However, once a vampire takes a
third drink from another vampire within
the relevant time period, he or she will be
immune to any and all other Third Drink
effects as long as the bond persists.
C. Ending the Blood Bond:
Blood Bonds are, for most purposes, per-
manent. While there are rumors and leg-
70
ends of ways to break them, as a practical
matter not a single one has proven true.
There are two escapes: the embrace and
death. Embracing a bonded ghoul will
shatter the bond. When a vampire is de-
stroyed, all of his or her blood bonds are
immediately released, completely. The re-
cipients will feel this, and are likely to slip
into several nights of depression. Depend-
ing on the length of time the bond persist-
ed, they may even slip into torpor from the
shock.
If a recipient dies, the donor will experi-
ence a feeling of loss — no matter the dis-
tance — and will immediately know that
the recipient has perished (although they
will gain no information whatsoever re-
garding the circumstances of death).
4. GHOULS
In addition to the blood bond effects dis-
cussed above, Vampiric vitae has a pro-
found effect on mortals’ physiology. It can
also be highly addictive.
Even a single point of vitae will immediate-
ly transform the mortal into a Ghoul — a
sort of “servant” for the vampire blessed
with special powers. Ghouls are known by
many names, including servitors,
“daywalkers,” and “Renfields.” Being a
ghoul grants several specific benefits:
 Ghouls may “store” up to six points of
vampiric vitae in their system. As long
do have it, ghouls do not age. There are
 GAME SYSTEMS

reputedly ghouls belonging to ancient

vampires who are older than most
Princes, and who have all the vitality of
their younger days and more besides.

 A ghoul may use the vitae in its system

to heal itself at an astonishingly effec-
tive rate – two health levels per blood
point.

 Ghouls may use vitae to raise their

physical attributes just like vampires, but
never beyond five dots (and still not
more than double the original statistic).
 Feeding revitalizes a ghoul – giving
them the greatest high possible. When
a ghoul has fed on fresh vampiric vitae
for the first time each night, the ghoul
in question heals three health levels im-
mediately (if injured) and gains a free
“virtual” dot in all physical attributes for
the next hour. (These virtual dots go
away if the ghoul uses vitae to raise the
statistic.)
 Ghouls may learn the discipline of Po-
tence. (In addition, Gangrel Ghouls
may learn Fortitude.) This does not re-
quire a teacher; it requires only experi-
ence points.
hunger frenzy – but there’s nothing to be
gained and the taste is unpleasant.
Ghouls burn the vampiric vitae in their sys-
tem at the rate of one point per moon (28
days); in fact, it happens on the full moon.
A ghoul with no vampiric vitae in his or her
system at dawn after the full moon will be-
come a normal mortal again. The ghoul
will lose all Potence (or Fortitude) that may
have been gained; this loss is permanent.
Additionally, the ghoul will, within ten
minutes or so, immediately and rapidly
begin returning to his or her natural age.
This effect is both horrific and fatal to
ghouls who have already lived past their
normal mortal lifespan.

There is a reason, however, that the entire Most vampires “feed” their ghouls at least
planet has not been ghouled by vampires: twice a month; favored servants may be
ghoul blood is not palatable to vampires so feed weekly.
long as there is even a point of vitae in the
ghoul’s system, and it offers no sustenance.
A vampire can drink it – and will if in a

71
 GAME SYSTEMS
5. OUT-OF-CLAN
DISCIPLINES
Learning the disciplines of another clan is
usually a daunting task. A vampire's four
clan disciplines are inherited in their blood,
and many vampires only have those pow-
ers. However, vampires can (and do) fre-
quently learn non-clan disciplines. The
most common way to do this is through
Diablerie. (see below) But a vampire can be
“taught” disciplines as well. This process
has a number of requirements.
A. Blood:
In order to learn a non-clan discipline, a
vampire must consume a point of vitae
from a vampire who has the discipline “in
their blood.” In game terms, this means
one of two things:
 A vampire for whom the discipline in
question is an “in clan” discipline and
who has that discipline at a rank of
three (3) or higher.; OR
 A vampire who possesses the discipline
in question at a rank of five (5) or high-
er, even if not a clan discipline.
This vitae must be consumed each time
the vampire learns a non-clan discipline:
learning three ranks of a non-clan disci-
pline requires three points of vitae.
An exception to this is the Blood Bond: a
recipient who has partaken of a donor’s
blood three times and formed the strongest
of attachments may learn any of his or her
72
donor’s in-clan disciplines without the need
to drink any additional blood.
B. Teachers:
In order to learn a non-clan discipline, a
vampire must also have a willing teacher.
The teacher (very often the donor of the
vitae discussed above) must possess the dis-
cipline in question, with the following re-
quirements:
 If the student is learning the first rank
of a discipline, the teacher must possess
the discipline at Rank 3 or higher.
 If the student is learning any additional
ranks of the discipline, the teacher
needs only possess the discipline at a
rank higher than that sought to be
learned.
With the exception of Celerity, Potence,
and Fortitude, a teacher is needed for each
separate rank of the non-clan discipline,
and the student may only learn the particu-
lar powers that the teacher possesses.
(Thus if the teacher has Presence 4b but
not 4a, then the student may not learn 4a.)
A teacher is only necessary for learning the
first rank of Celerity, Potence, and Forti-
tude. After that, the vampire may develop
the discipline without a teacher.
Note that a teacher must also pay experi-
ence points equivalent to one third
(rounded up) of the amount spent by the
student in learning the non-clan discipline.
 GAME SYSTEMS
6. CREATION RITES
Vampires can create other vampires – but it
is no easy feat. It requires knowledge, pow-
er, effort, and luck. The basics are simple:
drain a mortal to the point of death, and
before the mortal expires, feed him or her a
generous helping of your own blood. With
luck, the process takes about 15 minutes,
but many would-be vampires perish, unable
to survive the strain of the transformation.
There are two types of fledgling vampires:
regular childer, and “true childer.” Making
a true childe is far more difficult and ex-
hausting, but your new childe begins unlife
far more powerful and capable. The vari-
ous requirements, effects, and chances of
success for each type of embrace are set
out on Table 17 on the next page.
A. Regular Embraces:
Creating a normal childe requires draining
the childe of his or her blood, and then
giving him or her three points of the sire’s
own vitae. The sire must have either Vam-
pire Physiology at 1, or Vampire Lore at 2,
and must also spend two temporary Will-
power. The base chance of success is only
15%. But this can be raised in a number of
ways:
 +5% for each level of the Sire’s Sangui-
nis over 1 (i.e., +15% at Sanguinis 4.)
 The sire may spend permanent Will-
power to raise the chance of success by
5 percent per point.
73
 If the potential childe knows what is
happening, he or she can help or hinder
the process. Cooperation grants an ad-
ditional 5%, while resistance subtracts
5%.
 If the childe is suffering from severe
wounds (other than from blood loss),
the process is more difficult and there is
a –10% penalty.
 A skilled sire with both Vampire Physi-
ology and Vampire Lore may increase
the odds substantially. If both stats are
at 2 or higher, there is a +5% chance of
success. If both are at 4 or higher, the
bonus is +10%.
 Having recently made childer, however,
reduces the potency of the sire’s vitae.
Each child successfully made in the pre-
vious 50 years reduces the chance of
success by 10%.
If successful, the resulting childe will start
their existence with a Sanguinis of 1 and
one dot in a a single in-clan discipline.
B. True Childer:
As set forth in the table, making a True
Childe is a far more costly process, but with
a far greater chance of success. The most
significant differences are:
 Creating a True Childe costs two per-
manent Willpower points.
 The childe begins with Sanguinis of one
less than the sire, and three dots in in-
clan disciplines (maximum rank of 2).
 The child's willingness is taken as a giv-
en; resistance by the childe has a greater
effect.
 GAME SYSTEMS

Table 17—Creation Rites

Normal Childe True Childe

REQUIREMENTS
Blood Points Spent: 3 blood points 8 blood points
Vampire Physiology 1 OR Vampire Physiology 2 AND
Knowledge Possessed:
Vampire Lore 2 Vampire Lore 3

Willpower Spent: Two temporary points. Two permanent points.

Sire Sanguinis Needed: 1 3
SUCCESS FACTORS

Base Chance 15% 35%

Bonus per level of Sire’s Sanguinis over +5% +5%

Bonus per additional permanent Will- +5% +15%

Childe is aware of what is happening +5% +0%

Childe is aware of what is happening -5%% -15%

Childe is severely wounded (other than -10% -10%

Sire has both Vampire Physiology and +5% n/a

… at 4 or higher +10% +5%

… at 5 or higher +10% +10%

Sire’s previous embraces in the last 50 -10% per embrace -5% per embrace

RESULTS
Childe’s Sanguinis 1 Sire’s Sanguinis minus one
1 dot in a clan disc. possessed 3 dots in clan discs possessed
Childe’s Disciplines
by Sire by Sire (maximum rank of 2)

74
 GAME SYSTEMS
7. DIABLERIE
Diablerie… the word itself is practically ta-
boo among the vampires of the Camarilla.
It is a dark practice — a sin so grave that
only announcing the existence of vampires
on national news compares. The act of Di-
ablerie is the act of drinking not only the
blood of another vampire… but consuming
their very soul.
A. Committing Diablerie:
Committing diablerie requires either Vam-
pire Physiology or Vampire Lore at rank 2 –
otherwise you simply don’t understand how
it’s done. To commit diablerie, you must
drain the victim vampire completely… and
then keep drinking. You will, given a little
time (1 round per Sanguinis of the victim)
consume their very essence. To successfully
diablerize, a vampire must succeed on a
contest of:
WILLPOWER VS. VICTIM’S SANGUINIS - 2
B. Benefits of Diablerie:
The benefits of Diablerie are considerable:
 The diablerist gains 1/2 of the differ-
ence (rounded down, minimum of 1)
between his current Sanguinis and that
of his victim. Thus, if the diablerist is
Sanguinis 2, and the victim Sanguinis 6,
the diablerist would gain two Sanguinis.
 The diablerist may immediately gain one
dot in a discipline (if any) that he or she
already possesses, which the victim pos-
sessed at a greater rank.
75
 The diablerist may thereafter buy ranks
in your victim’s clan disciplines as if they
were his own in-clan disciplines.
 If the Diablerist’s permanent Willpower
is lower than that of his victim, the dia-
blerist immediately gains a permanent
point of Willpower.
C. Drawbacks of Diablerie:
Nothing so powerful comes without a price.
There are a number of penalties associated
with being a Diablerist.
 A diablerist immediately gains a Stigma
upon completing the deed.
 The diablerist’s aura becomes “stained”
— those with Auspex 2A or a compara-
ble power will see dark veins coursing
about the diablerist, marking him for his
crime. These veins remain for five years
per level of the Victim’s Sanguinis.
 There are rumors that particularly pow-
erful vampires can survive being dia-
blerized… that they live on within their
hosts.
 GAME SYSTEMS
8. TORPOR AND REVIVAL
Torpor is a state, akin to coma in humans;
vampires enter when they are injured be-
yond their ability to recover, are blighted by
some supernatural power, or when they
end the night with no vitae at all. Vampires
may also, for various reasons, choose to en-
ter torpor and escape from the nightly hor-
rors of their unlife… for a time.
A. Voluntary Torpor:
“Voluntary” torpor occurs either by choice
or by courtesy when a vampire falls asleep
for the day with no vitae in his or her sys-
tem at all. (The latter is rare: vampires with
no blood generally frenzy.) Truly voluntary
76
Torpor is not a feat for the novice: it re-
quires Vampire Lore of three (3) or high-
er.
To be awakened from voluntary torpor, a
vampire merely needs to be fed blood. It is
usually advisable to feed such a vampire
sufficient blood to avoid frenzy when they
wake.
B. Involuntary Torpor:
Involuntary torpor occurs in any of the fol-
lowing situations:
 The vampire suffers damage beyond in-
capacitated with no blood to lose; or
 GAME SYSTEMS
 The vampire falls asleep for the day
with insufficient blood to heal existing
wounds; or
 The vampire is the target of a game ef-
fect that directly causes torpor.
To be awakened from involuntary torpor,
the vampire needs the vitae of a vampire
with higher Sanguinis. A single point will
suffice, but again, it is wise to have more on
hand to avoid frenzy.
C. Other Escapes from Torpor
After one year and a day in torpor, a vam-
pire may attempt to wake themselves with a
contest of:
HUMANITY VS. 5 (OR 9)
The difficulty is 5 for voluntary torpor, and
9 for involuntary torpor. Willpower may be
spent for Advantage on this roll, but the
expenditure is of a permanent Willpower
point. Failure indicates that no further at-
tempt may be made for one year.
Alternately, a vampire may “force” them-
selves awake by spending a temporary Will-
power and surrendering to the Beast. The
vampire awakens in an automatic hunger
frenzy, and receives both a Beast Point and
a Monstrous Beast Trait.
D. Benefits of Torpor:
There are certain benefits associated with
falling into torpor. Chief among them is
that when in torpor, even without blood,
a vampire’s body will continue to heal, albe-
77
it at a dramatically slow pace. The pace is
slower for older, more powerful vampires,
who can spend years recovering from griev-
ous wounds.
While in torpor, a vampire will first heal
any normal damage at the rate of one
health level every two weeks, plus two days
per level of Sanguinis (thus, an elder of
Sanguinis level 5 will heal more slowly – 24
days per health level – than a Sanguinis 1
Neonate, who will heal a level every 16
days).
If all normal damage is healed, the vampire
may continue on to heal any aggravated
damage at the rate of one health level every
two months, plus one week for every level
of Sanguinis. A vampire who is in torpor
for twenty years or longer may, upon
awakening, make a contest of:
HUMANITY VS. 4
If the vampire is in torpor for longer than
a century, the vampire gains Advantage on
this contest. Success indicates that the
vampire has gained a Humanity Point or
lost a Beast Point (it is the player’s choice).
 GAME SYSTEMS
9. MASQUERADE SKILL
The Masquerade Ability represents a vam-
pire’s skill at using his or her vitae and con-
trol of his or her body to simulate being a
living being. As a general rule, Vampires
without the requisite skill cannot do these
things convincingly, especially in the case
of elders who may have forgotten what it
was like to be alive. Below are definitions
of what can be accomplished with various
ranks of the Masquerade ability.
Use of this power is typically automatic; an
astute observer with appropriate abilities,
however, may have suspicions that require a
relevant contest. While aura reading is still
the simplest and surest way of spotting an-
other vampire (for those with Auspex), an
some who is aware that vampires exist and
who wishes to try to spot whether some-
one is merely masquerading as a human
may do so by making a contest of:
PERCEPTION + VAMPIRE LORE
VS.
MANIPULATION + MASQUERADE
If the observer has a higher Vampire Physi-
ology rating than his or her Vampire Lore,
he or she may use that ability instead.
A vampire is normally incapable of using
the techniques from a level of Masquerade
that exceeds his or her own. It is possible,
however, to spend a Willpower point, and
where appropriate, a Blood Point, to gain a
level of Masquerade for a single scene.
78
Note that a number of vampires – especial-
ly older Gangrel, Malkavians, and Ventrue
– consider use of the Masquerade skill to
be somewhat distasteful, though it is no
doubt useful for maintaining The Masquer-
ade.
● The Pale Copy
The vampire can maintain a human body
temperature in desired parts of the body by
forcing vitae through her body - this costs a
Blood point and will typically cause the
skin around the particular area to appear
flushed. This effect will last for no more
than 5 minutes.
The vampire can also simulate breathing in
such a way as to not attract attention,
though it is not an unconscious action at
this level. With the expenditure of a Will-
power, the vampire may consume small
amounts of normal food or drink without
immediately vomiting it back up, and hold
it down for up to an hour.
A vampire at this level will typically remem-
ber to do things like blink, fidget, swallow,
etc. – but it will appear somewhat artificial
and forced and if agitated or distracted, the
vampire may forget.
●● Impressionist
At this more advanced stage of control, the
vampire can create a realistic pulse in spe-
cific areas of the body when required (i.e.,
wrist, throat, etc.). Body temperature can
be maintained over all extremities without
 GAME SYSTEMS
concentration, and for less effort (1 Blood
point per scene) and normal 'breathing' can
be simulated without concentration. With
minor thought and effort, breathing can be
made faster/slower/deeper/shallower in a
realistic manner. Routine movements are
more automatic and more natural looking.
●●● Mimic
At this rating, the vampire has sufficient
control of her internal organs to be able to
take in a small amount of food/drink orally
and hold it internally for several hours –
only needing to expunge it before dawn.
Eating no longer requires the expenditure
of a Willpower point to keep food down,
although it doesn't mean you enjoy the
taste or like doing it.
Warmth can be created simply by the vam-
pire's superior control of the flow of vitae,
and it is no longer required to burn a Blood
point to do so. With some limited effort,
the pulse can also be made faster/slower,
and continued in more than one pulse
point simultaneously.
●●●● Simulacra
Maintaining a pulse throughout the body
becomes more or less automatic, and it will
tend to quicken and slow as appropriate.
The vampire becomes so proficient at
maintaining a human front that it is even
possible to maintain warmth and
'breathing' while asleep (but not pulse).
The vampire may make itself bruise realis-
tically when bumping into things, but may
79
also experience minor aches, pains, and fa-
tigue, whether they wish to or not (the
price of being so good at pretending to be
human). Routine movements are com-
pletely automatic at this level, and look nat-
ural.
●●●●● Viriditas
The vampire has total control of her body's
reactions, and can even simulate clear tears
and bodily fluids through the use of blood
plasma (i.e., they still aren't real). Producing
body fluids in this manner requires spend-
ing a Blood point. The vampire can realis-
tically simulate sex, although no desire or
pleasure is had in the act.
He or she can pass as a human in almost
every other respect in a manner that will
astonish most other vampires. Vampires at
this level of skill often come to think of
themselves as human, and may sometimes
react as a human would to pain, pleasure,
heat, cold, etc.
If a vampire with this level of Masquerade
is fed from, it takes a conscious effort, and
a Willpower point, not to succumb to the
pleasure of the Kiss in the same way that a
mortal would. Vampires who have achieved
this type of mastery are often scorned by
their fellows and shunned as degenerates.
 GAME SYSTEMS
10. DAYLIGHT
OPERATIONS
Vampires are vulnerable when asleep. At
dawn, a vampire will normally fall into a
deep slumber. During the day, a vampire is
extremely weak: once the sun has risen, a
vampire may never have a contest value
higher than his or her Humanity rating.
A. Remaining Awake:
A vampire may remain awake for 5 minutes
at a time if either (1) he or she is in imme-
diate danger, especially from sunlight, and
spends a temporary Willpower point, or (2)
if he or she succeeds on a simple contest
of:
HUMANITY VS. 4
Vampires in frenzy receive Advantage on
this roll. Vampires with the Torporous
Sleep stigma may only stay awake by spend-
ing a Willpower when in immediate danger.
B. Waking Up:
Once asleep, waking up requires a stimulus
of some sort – the greater or closer the
stimulus the easier it is for the vampire to
awaken. Each new “level” of stimulus that
a vampire experiences allows a vampire a
separate attempt to wake.
To awaken, the vampire may make a con-
test of:
HUMANITY VS. STIMULUS RATING
80
The ratings for various stimuli are set forth
in Table 18, below.
Success indicates the vampire may spend a
temporary Willpower point to awaken, and
then remain awake as described above.
Table 18—Daylight Waking
Level Stimulus
2 The vampire is physically harmed
or roughly handled
3 A light touch to the vampire di-
rectly, or someone speaking the
vampire’s name in his or her im-
mediate presence – even if not ad-
dressed to the vampire.
4 A loud, close stimulus such as an
alarm, a door to the vampire’s
room being forced, etc.
5 A soft but close stimulus, such
opening the vampire’s coffin,
pointing a flashlight onto the vam-
pire’s face, or talking while in the
same room as the vampire.
6 Someone entering the same room
as the vampire; a loud crash in the
next room.
8 Distant or muffled noises, such as
someone entering the vampire’s
haven but not necessarily the same
room.
 GAME SYSTEMS

11. SHEER STRENGTH

As discussed in the Prologue, certain ac-
tions that do not involve other characters
still have difficulties. It would be impracti-
cal to set out a chart for every type of ac-
tion, but one thing that comes up with reg-
ularity is applying brute force: whether to
lift something, break something, bend
something, or simply jump over something.
Table 19, below, sets out the basic difficul-
ties for a number of different strength-
based actions. (Use Strength + Potence.)
The following rules also apply:
 Characters automatically succeed on an-
ything two or more difficulties below
their Strength+ Potence.
 Characters give away Advantage when
attempting anything two or more diffi-
culties above their Strength+Potence
 Characters with Potence gain Advantage
on all these contests.

Table 19—Feats of Strength

Jump**
Lift and Carry* Break Through/
Diff. (Distance/ Bend/Break
(w/purchase) Open
Height)
1 25-40 lbs. 3’ / 1’ Hvy. gauge screen Coke can
2 41-140 lbs. 5’ / 2’ Lt. interior door Steel Fork
3 141-220 lbs. 7’ / 3’ Plexiglass Wall Broom handle
4 221-350 lbs. 9’ / 4’ Windshield Light twine
5 351-550 lbs. 11’ / 5’ Interior Drywall Rope
6 551-800 lbs. 14’ / 7’ Wooden wall 4’x4’
7 801-1100 lbs. 17’ / 9’ Hvy. wood door Pure Silk Rope
8 1101-1400 lbs. 21’ / 11’ Plaster Wall Chain Link
9 1401-1800 lbs. 25’ / 14’ Corrugated Alum. Handcuffs
10 1801-2500 lbs. 28’ / 16’ Metal Fire Door 3’ Lead Pipe
11 2501-3500 lbs. 36’ / 20’ Safe Door Hvy. Steel Chain
12 3501-5000 lbs. 44’ / 24’ Concrete Wall Street sign pole
13 5001-7500 lbs. 52’ / 33’ Bank Vault Door Telephone Pole

* If merely trying to lift (not carry), lower difficulty by one.

** With a running start, add Athletics to this total and gain Advantage.

81
 GAME SYSTEMS
10. INFLUENCES
The various Influence backgrounds — Po-
litical, Police, Society, etc. — are in some
sense what separates the true rulers of the
Undead from the mere pawns. Vampires
with extensive influence in the mortal
world are able to bring that influence to
bear in a number of ways, some of which
can easily prove fatal to their adversaries.
Under these Rules, Influences can be used
in two ways. The first should be used when
role-playing the use of influence; the sec-
ond should be used for situations where
the influence use occurs over a period of
time, or “off screen.”
A. Role-Playing Influence:
The easiest way to use a particular type of
Influence is to simply add your influence
rating directly it to a relevant contest value.
For example, if you are trying to talk your
way into Police Headquarters in order to
steal evidence of a Masquerade violation,
you might normally use Manipulation +
Acting. But if you had three dots of Po-
lice Influence as well, you could name--
drop, reference particular procedures or
rules, and otherwise take Advantage of the
fact that you are intimately familiar with the
goings-on of the department. You would
gain three additional dots to your roll, alt-
hough using your influence in this way may
shift the relevant statistic to Intimidation.
82
B. Overview of Off-Screen Influence:
Players may also use their Influences to ac-
complish “off-screen” effects — effects
that occur in downtime, or while the char-
acter is busy chasing down the Sabbat pack
that has infiltrated the city. These rules
were designed to allow that to happen in a
predictable framework that realistically sim-
ulates influence use and heavily rewards in-
vesting in additional dots past the first.
Anything that a player might wish to ac-
complish will have an Influence Cost as-
sociated with it. An extensive list of costs
for various types of actions are set out in
Part VIII. This number will typically be
between two (2) and two hundred (200) —
although world-shattering influence use
might cost as much as three hundred.
To accomplish the task, the character mere-
ly needs to spend the requisite number of
Influence Points. As soon as the points
are spent, the action takes place.
So, for example, if a player wanted to use
his Academic Influence in order to dis-
solve a Department at a local university, he
would likely have to spend approximately
80 Influence Points. Assuming no one
tried to stop him, as soon as he had spent
80 points, the department would be dis-
solved.
Of course, things aren’t always that easy.
The rest of this section deals with the com-
plications and systems for accomplishing
these feats of influence.
 GAME SYSTEMS

C. Gaining Influence Points: Table 20—Influence Pool

A character gains Influence Points for his
or her Influence Pool on a regular basis, Rank Max Pool Replenish
up to a maximum that is determined by his
or her Influence Rating. The rate of re- ● 10 2 / week
plenishment and the maximum pool size
are set out below on Table 20, right. ●● 15 3 / week

D. Spending Influence Points: ●●● 20 5 / week

If a particular action costs fewer points
than a character possesses, the character ●●●● 30 7 / week
may simply spend the points, and the ac-
tion will take place after a reasonable ●●●●● 50 10 / week
amount of time. (This is a matter of GM
discretion.) ●●●●●● 65 15 / week

If an action costs more than the character

currently has, then the action will have to
be accomplished over time. The player
should spend any remaining influence pool,
and then make up the difference on a
weekly basis as his or her pool replenishes.
EXAMPLE: Diego attempts to use his
Criminal Influence (Rank 3) to find a fugi-
tive who escaped from the police. That
action costs 25 Influence Points, but Die-
go only has 18 available at the moment.
Diego spends the 18 points he has, and
needs to generate 7 more to complete the
action. The next time his pool replenish-
es, he gains 5 additional points, which he
immediately spends. Then the next week,
he gains another 5 points, and he immedi-
ately spends two of them, completing the
action. He is left with an Influence Pool
of three (3). The GM tells him that he’s
located the fugitive...
●●●●●●● 80 21 / week
E. Counter-Influence:
If you use influence to do something that
someone who has the same influence does
not like, there is a chance that they will no-
tice and react. The percentage chance to
be noticed is equal to the number of total
points expended on the action (including
not yet spent) times the difference between
the relative influences (minimum of 1).
Thus, if Alexis Mourning tries a 12 point
Society action with her 2 dots of Social In-
fluence, and Harrison Mayfair would object
with his 6 dots, his chance of noticing this
is 4x12, or 48%. If he notices, he can
spend points on a 1:1 basis to cancel her
expenditures. Player characters may, from
time to time, be asked to make influence
“perception checks.” Such checks may al-
low them to discover what NPCs are up to.

83
 GAME SYSTEMS

13. RETAINERS
The Retainers background provides for
having servants, but does little to explain
who they are or how powerful and skilled
they might be. These rules are designed to
allow players to answer those questions.
Everything in these Rules is explicitly sub-
ject to GM discretion: over-powerful re-
tainers can quickly derail a Chronicle.

Every rank of the Retainers background RPs may be spent on any of the Retainer
now gives Retainer Points. These retainer “Packages” set out on the following page.
points can be used to acquire additional re- Note that the various packages are chosen
tainers, or to improve existing retainers. in sequence for each retainer, and once a par-
The number of retainer points given for ticular package has been skipped, players
each rank of the Retainers background — cannot go back and purchase it.
along with the maximum number of allow-
able Retainers — is set forth in Table 21, Where multiple costs for a package are in-
below. dicated, the package may be taken more
than once with an increasing cost. So, for
example, You can buy two “Attribute
Table 21—Retainer Points Packages” for a total cost of 8 RP. If you
wanted to buy three, it would be 15 RP.
Rank Retainer Pts Max.
Note that Combat Skills include all of the
● +5 2 Retainers following: Dodge, Firearms, Brawl, Melee,
Archery, Heavy Weapons, and Alertness.
●● +8 (13) 3
CAUTION: If a character’s retainer is far
●●● +12 (25) 6 more powerful than the character himself,
there is a very good chance that some elder
●●●● +18 (43) 10 is going to recognize the retainer’s value
and embrace it (shattering any Blood
●●●●● +28 (71) 15 Bond). That elder is then likely to dare the
character to do something about it, because
●●●●●● +32 (103) 20
clearly a such a weak vampire should not be
treated with such excellent toys.
●●●●●●● +40 (143) 25

84
 GAME SYSTEMS
1. Basic Retainer Package: 1 RP
You now have 1 additional retainer. Your
new retainer has a 18 dots in attributes to-
tal (they do not get the free initial dot).
 Only two attributes can be at 3;
 No attribute can be over 3.
Select any five abilities and put one dot in
each of those five abilities. Then select one
ability with no dots and put two dots in it.
2. Attribute Package: 3/5/7 RP
 Add 2 dots in attributes;
 No attribute can be set over 4 with this.
3. Gifted Retainer: 4/5/7 RP
 Add a single dot to an attribute; that at-
tribute may be set up to 4.
4. Combat Package: 3/5/7 RP
 Add 2 dots in combat skills;
 No ability may be set over 3
5. Gifted Combatant: 4/7/12 RP
 Give your retainer a 4th dot in any one
combat skill;
 Requires that the ability be already at 3.
6. Supreme Combatant: 12 RP
 Give your retainer a 5th dot in a combat
skill;
 Requires that the ability be already at 4.
7. General Abilities: 2/4/6/8 RP
 Add 4 dots in non-combat abilities
 No ability may be set over 3.
85
8. Specialty Package: 3 RP
 Pick two related non-combat abilities (i.e.,
Drive/Mechanics, Empathy/Animal
Ken, Occult/Linguistics, Computer/
Finance, Law/Finance, etc.) and give the
retainer two dots in each of them.
 This package may not raise an ability
above 4.
9. Specialization: 2/4/6/8 RP
 Add a 4th or 5th dot to a non-combat
ability.
10. Ghoul Package: Free!
 Add a dot of Potence (and Fortitude if
Gangrel);
 Prepare to have to feed your retainer on
a regular basis.
11. Experienced Ghoul: 6 RP
 Requires Ghoul Package
 +1 Vampire Lore
 You may spend 12 xp on the ghoul
12. Treasured Servant: 16 RP
 Requires: Experienced Ghoul Package
 +1 Potence (and +1 Fortitude if Gan-
grel)
 +1 Vampire Lore
 The ghoul will have Status equal to your
status minus two
 You may spend 15 xp on the ghoul.
 Your ghoul receives 1/2 as much XP as
you do during the course of play.
 Your ghoul will have a personality and
must be RPed; he or she may be a pain
in the ass sometimes.
 GAME SYSTEMS

14. HUNTING something that has profound statistical ef-

There are ways in which these Rules are
more complex than the standard rules: hunt-
ing is one of those ways. There is a lot of
calculation that goes in on the “front end”
of gameplay, with the goal of making for a
nuanced and realistic hunting experience
while reducing hunting down to a single
roll. The basic mechanism is simple: to
hunt, the character makes a contest of:
HUNT TOTAL VS. HUNT DIFFICULTY
A character has three separate Hunt Totals
– one for each of three methods. The To-
tals are calculated in advance based on
traits. Hunt Difficulty is determined by ex-
ternal factors: the time of night and the
type of environment.
fects.
A. Hunt Methods:
There are three methods: PREY, DON
JUAN, and ANIMAL. Each has its bene-
fits and drawbacks, some of which are
summarized in Table 22, below.
The table shows (1) the humanity rank at
which a Degeneration Check needs to be
made for using that Hunt Method; (2) the
amount of time spent hunting that is repre-
sented by each roll; (3) the total yield in
blood points for each successful contest;
and (4) a range for determining whether a
hunt has gone horribly awry if the charac-
ter loses a hunt roll (known as a “Botched
Hunt”).

Additionally, to the extent that certain por- The three hunt methods are described on
tions of the city are going to be classified the next page.
as different types of hunting environments,
this system allows the Gamemaster to make
in-character “control” of territory into

Table 22—Hunt Methods

PREY DON JUAN ANIMAL
Degeneration
Check 7 or higher 8 or higher none
@Humanity
Time per Roll 1 hour 2 hours 1 hour
Yield (blood
3 (3 per hour) 4 (2 per hour) 1 (1 per hour)
points)
Failure Botch
Range 4-6 4-5 4
(Roll 4D6 after fail)

86
 GAME SYSTEMS
 PREY: You stalk a human, then attack
them (like a mugging) and force your-
self on them. Vampires with a humani-
ty of 7 or higher must make a Degener-
ation Check whenever using this meth-
od.
 DON JUAN: You seduce someone
into being alone with you, at which
point they believe the encounter is ro-
mantic and/or sexual. Vampires with a
humanity of 8 or higher must make a
Degeneration Check whenever using
this method. Note that vampires with
the Carnivore Stigma may never use
Don Juan as a hunting method.
87
 ANIMAL: You stalk your prey as in the
PREY method, but your prey are ani-
mals (rats, cattle, dogs, cats, etc.) Vam-
pires do not need to make a Degenera-
tion Check when using this method.
B. Calculating Your Hunt Totals:
Table 23, on the next page, provides a
framework for calculating a player’s Hunt
Total for each method. Simply take the
base total for that method and then add or
subtract based on the character’s various
traits.
Attributes: For each relevant attribute that
is at 3 or higher, you get +1 for that meth-
od.
 GAME SYSTEMS

Ability: For each relevant ability that is at 2 Stigmata/Beast Traits: For each relevant
or higher, you get +1 for that method. stigma or beast trait that you possess, you
get a -2 for that method.
Disciplines:For each relevant discipline
that you possess (at any rank) you get +1 Note that Wound Penalties do affect hunt
(or in some cases +2) for that method. totals. Additional modifiers may also apply
Table 23—Hunt Totals
PREY DON JUAN ANIMAL
Base Total 1 2 2
Attributes Strength Charisma Dexterity
(+1 for each attrib- Dexterity Manipulation Perception
ute at 3 or higher) Wits Appearance Charisma
Stealth Expression Animal Ken
Abilities
Investigation Subterfuge Survival
(+1 for each ability
Brawl Masquerade Alertness
at 2 or higher)
Alertness Empathy Athletics
Potence
Disciplines Presence (+2) Animalism (+2)
Dominate
(+1 or +2 per listed Dominate Auspex
Obfuscate
discipline) Auspex Obsidia
Obsidia
Furious
Inviolate
Instinctive Predator
Lust (-3 penalty)
Crimson Rage
Blood Smell
Primal
Insatiable
Insatiable
Glutton
Stigmata / Beast Glutton Blood Breath
Blood Breath
Traits Beta Nature Bane
Cold
(-2 per applicable Passive Cold
Eerie Presence
trait) Skittish Bleeder
Pallor
Timid
Permanent Fangs
Selective Feeder
Satanic Eyes
Vicious Predator
Selective Feeder
Talons
Vicious Predator
Bleeder

88
 GAME SYSTEMS

at GM's discretion. Also, Nosferatu em-

ploying the Don Juan Method only suffer a Thus, each of these two factors yields, de-
total of -4 for their three clan stigmata, not pending on the method employed, a value
-6. between “Very Easy” and “Very Hard.”

C. Calculating Hunt Difficulty:
Hunt difficulty is determined by two fac-
tors – (1) the time of night at which the
hunting starts; and (2) the territory in
which it is taking place.
Once those two values are obtained, the
overall Hunt Difficulty is obtained by
cross-referencing a value for the time of
night with the value for the territory type
on Table 24, below.

 On Table 25, on the next page, all time D. Hunting Botches:

periods are rated between “Very Easy” Sometimes routine activities go tremen-
and “Very Hard”, depending on the dously awry. And sometimes a simple
method being employed. thing like bringing a mortal back to your
apartment for a little feeding ends up with
 On Table 26, also on the next page, three buildings on fire, five dead cops, and
each territory type is similarly rated three dozen naked screaming mortals run-
against each method. ning through the streets covered in blood,
Table 24—Overall Hunt Difficulty
VALUE Very Easy Easy Medium Hard Very Hard
Very Easy 2 3 5 7 9
Easy 3 4 6 8 10
Medium 5 6 7 9 11
Hard 7 8 9 10 12
Very Hard 9 10 11 12 14
Additional Factors Modifier Special Notes
Regular Hunting Ground -1 Character’s regular hunting grounds
Unfamiliar Ground +1 Any unfamiliar or unusual hunting area
Irregular Method +1 Players must select one method as primary
“Low Profile” +1 Reduces chance of being noticed by others
Heedless Predator -2 Roll a botch at –3 even if successful

89
 GAME SYSTEMS

Table 25—Hunt Time Values

START TIME PREY DON JUAN ANIMAL
Early Evening
Hard Easy Medium
Sunset - 9pm
Nighttime
Easy Easy Medium
9pm - Midnight
Closing Time
Very Easy Medium Easy
Midnight - 2am
Dead of Night
Medium Hard Easy
2am-4am
Earliest Morning
Very Hard Very Hard Medium
4am-Dawn

Table 26—Hunt Territory Values

TERRITORY TYPE PREY DON JUAN ANIMAL

Apartments Hard Very Hard Hard
Beaches Medium Hard Easy
Business Hard Very Hard Very Hard
Cultivated Parks Easy Very Hard Hard
Colleges Medium Easy Hard
Industrial Easy Very Hard Medium
Commercial Medium Medium Very Hard
Poor Commercial Easy Hard Hard
Racks Medium Very Easy Very Hard
High End Retail Easy Medium Hard
Sewers Hard Very Hard Medium
Slums Easy Hard Medium
Society Very Hard Medium Very Hard
Suburb Residential Hard Very Hard Medium
Uncultivated Parks Medium Very Hard Very Easy
Vagrant Space Very Easy Very Hard Medium
Rich Residential Very Hard Very Hard Medium
Wetlands Very Hard Very Hard Easy

90
 GAME SYSTEMS
gibblets, and bone fragments. (Don’t ask.)
These are called “Hunt Botches,” and they
happen from time to time. But they hap-
pen less if you’re careful.
If you fail a hunt contest, you must imme-
diately make a Botch check. To do this, roll
4D6 and pray for big numbers. If the total
result is within the “Failure Botch Range”
listed on Table 22, then you have botched
your hunt and the Gamemaster has his
work cut out for him. Otherwise, it’s just a
failure.
E. A Killing Mood:
A vampire may hunt without regard to the
life of his or her victim. In this case, the
yield of PREY and DON JUAN is in-
creased to 8, and ANIMAL is increased to
5. That’s a tremendous increase.
Bodies add up, though, and every time a
vampire kills when he or she is hunting,
there's a chance that the authorities might
notice something amiss. Degeneration
checks are likely to be called for as well.
Note that choosing to hunt “in a killing
mood” removes any penalty for hunting
with the Glutton Beast Trait.
F. Herd:
A Herd is, in most cases, one of a Vam-
pire’s most prized “possessions.” It is a
stable group of humans from whom the
vampire may safely feed. Herds can be
based on deception, mind control, consent
(be careful!), or economics. A vampire
with the Herd background must describe
91
his or her Herd in terms of a method and
location (though more detail can and
should be given).
Hunting with the Herd -- if and when it is
available -- has a Hunt Difficulty of 2, and
yields a number of blood point equal to the
Herd rating. Certain Herd descriptions
may call for Degeneration checks.
G. Territory Type Descriptions:
Table 26 lists a number of territory catego-
ries. Most of them are self-explanatory,
but the following are offered for clarifica-
tion:
 Apartments: Urban apart-
ments/townhouses, high-rise res-
idential, college complexes.
 Beaches: Actual beaches
(associated wharfs and piers may
count as Racks or Business).
 Business: High rises, office
parks.
 Cultivated Parks: Urban
parks with fences, lighting, etc.;
elementary schools, high schools.
 Colleges: College campus and
immediate surroundings.
 Industrial: Railyards, Auto
parks, industrial districts, Air-
ports.
 Commercial: Typical retail
zones; stand-alone buildings; res-
taurants.
 Poor commercial: Strip malls,
fast-food restaurants, K-Mart.
 GAME SYSTEMS
 Racks: Collections of Night-
clubs, Late-Night entertainment
complexes (e.g., LA Live, The
Grove, The Block, Santa Monica
Promenade, Old Town Pasadena,
Beach Boardwalks, Sunset or
Santa Monica in WeHo etc.)
 High-End Retail: Large well-
maintained shopping complexes
with restaurants, some hotels,
Malls (Fashion Island, Westwood
Promenade, etc.).
 Sewers: Sewers and drainage
ditches
 Slums: Lower-class apartment
residential complexes, blighted
commercial districts, really dan-
gerous parks
 Society: Museums, concert halls,
theatres, exclusive parties, movie
92
premieres – usually with lots of
targets and opportunity, but a lot
of observation and security.
 Suburb Residential: Tract
homes with light to moderate
commercial development.
 Uncultivated Parks: Large
open parks or wilderness areas
with wildlife, little lighting
(Griffith, Canyon parks, Angeles
National Forest, Hahn Rec area)
 Vagrant Space: Skid Row, Civic
Centers (at night), Under Free-
ways/interchanges, Subways, etc.
 Rich Residential: Neigh-
borhoods with better houses,
larger lots, gates, security patrols,
etc.
 Wetlands: Open wetlands
(Bolsa Chica, Playa del Rey, etc.)
 GAME SYSTEMS

15. LORES  The teacher must possess the rank of

Lores can be one of the most exciting and
interesting parts of a game if the Ga-
memaster is willing to put enough work in-
to them. Different ranks of Lores can
mean more than just having a larger num-
ber added to your contest to see if you
know anything about the mysterious vam-
pire who just showed up: they can unlock
in-character actions and provide thick, use-
ful context for roleplaying as well.
Lore sought by the player.
 Instruction can only take you up to 4
dots in a Lore.
 The student must spend at least two
weeks per dot in “off screen” time
working with the instructor.
 Lores are cheaper when they are
“shared” — that is, when the Lore in
question is a “home” lore for both stu-
dent and teacher.

Unfortunately, characters are often loathe If all these conditions and restrictions are
to spend their hard-earned XP on some- met, the student may reduce the cost of the
thing as nebulous and “soft” as lores. It Lore according Table 27, below.
makes little sense to spend ten experience
points on lores when that third dot of Ce- Table 27—Lores by Instruction
lerity beckons. Faced with this problem,
enterprising GMs may wish to consider the Shared Boon Req’d New XP Cost
following optional rules regarding certain
types of actions and items that can serious- ● Trivial 1
ly reduce or eliminate the experience point
cost for Lores.
●● Minor 1
●●● Minor 2
A. Instruction & Boons
Perhaps the easiest way for a vampire to ●●●● Major 2
learn something new is to ask someone
Not Shared Boon Req’d New XP Cost
who knows better. Anyone with infor-
mation worth knowing, however, is going ● Minor 2
to know that this information is worth
something: they are going to demand pay- ●● Major 2
ment, and that payment (more often than
not) will be in the form of Prestation. The ●●● Major 3
player should first locate a suitable teacher ●●●● Blood 5
and role-play getting reasonably within that
teacher’s good graces.
There are a few restrictions on this method: Special thanks to Scott “Deeds” Tidwell for
fundamentally designing the Lores rules.

93
 GAME SYSTEMS
B. Investigation:
Sometimes the best way to learn something
is to go out and find it. Hit the pavement,
and look for the information in the world
around you. Unfortunately, you have to be
able to start somewhere, so this method is
only useful for learning additional ranks of
Lores that the player already possesses.
These inquiries can take a variety of forms,
including careful interviews, forensic analy-
sis, archaeological digs, and clandestine ob-
servation. This sort of prying is not always
well received, and the player and storyteller
should discuss ways in which the investiga-
tion might go wrong and the possible con-
sequences of drawing the attention of se-
cretive supernatural beings.
An investigation takes several months of
intense inquiry. The exact time should be
no less than two months for each dot in the
relevant Lore that the character will have at
the end of the process. This investigation
should take up all of the character’s “off
screen” time.
The player and the storyteller should dis-
cuss the exact nature of the investigation,
what skills might be useful or required to
see it to completion, and possible compli-
cations that might cause the investigation
to fail.
The chief benefit of this method is that
experience point costs are entirely
waived, and no one owes anyone any
boons.
94
There are, however, several restrictions on
this method of acquiring Lores:
 The character may not obtain a Lore
higher than rank 3, and may not obtain
the first dot in any Lore with this meth-
od. This method is only useful for
getting ranks 2 and 3.
 The character rmay not obtain a Lore
higher than his or her Investigation skill.
 Only one Lore may be investigated at a
time.
C. Research:
Research is solitary and academic. A great
deal of knowledge is available to those who
put in the time and effort to study in occult
libraries, search public records, and collect
newspaper clippings. It is more time con-
suming and far less efficient to cut through
unfounded speculation and extraneous in-
formation without a guide, however.
Acquiring lores by research is easier for
lower level lores, where what is sought is a
broad base of common knowledge. It
takes much, much longer for the higher lev-
els, where a player seeks to know just not
the broad strokes of things, but their finer,
myriad details.
The largest obstacle is finding an appropri-
ate library: you can spend years in a public
library without finding but a dozen scraps
of true information about vampires. The
Library background does not help with
this: that library belongs to the character,
who presumably already knows at least most
what it contains.
 GAME SYSTEMS

Private libraries, certain university libraries, D. Tomes:

and a few museums have the appropriate
materials. What is sought is not simple in-
formation, but expertise — to simulate the
experience of decades.
The requirements for researching a new
rank of a Lore are:
 Time spent per Table 28, below.
 Access to an appropriate library.
 Dedication of all “down time” to the
research.
 Depending on the Lore in question, the
player may need to speak/read certain
languages.
Most books on the occult contain only
scattered bits of lore, often buried among a
large number of half-truths and outright
falsehoods. A few venerable books, howev-
er, such as the fabled Book of Nod, are
brimming with occult secrets. These leg-
endary tomes are highly sought after, nearly
impossible to find, and richly repay careful
study. If a character can acquire a copy of
such a tome, he can acquire a single dot in
one or more Lores at a rapid pace. It gen-
erally takes between one week and one
month to read and digest a tome and gain
its benefits.

There are, as with the other methods, a few
restrictions:
 Rank 5 Lore cannot be obtained in this
way.
 The character may not learn a higher
Lore through Research than his or her
Intelligence.
The characteristics of each tome should be
carefully designed by the Gamemaster. At a
minimum, he should specify the language
in which a tome is written, the Lore or
Lores that it can be used to improve (if two
are listed, it should improve both), and the
maximum number of dots that the tome
can impart (i.e. its rank).

The GM might also decide that the infor-

Table 28—Lores by Research mation in some tomes is too twisted or
damning to be digested without conse-
Level Time New XP Cost
quence. Such tomes might require the ex-
● 3 Months Free penditure of Willpower to study, or, in par-
ticularly extreme cases, lead to humanity or
●● 6 Months Free beast checks. Of course, tomes with such
extreme effects are likely to be especially
●●● 1 Year 1 enlightening, but characters will likely be
unaware of such dangers until it's too late.
●●●● 2 Years 2
Some sample tomes are listed on the next
page.

95
 GAME SYSTEMS

Fragments of the Book of Nod The New Geometry

Rumored to have been written by the very
first Vampire (perhaps Caine?), the Book of
Nod has not been seen whole in millennia.
Fragments, though, have survived and
been copied into dozens of obscure lan-
guages. The statistics below are for the
Arsaces Fragment.
Language: Ancient Hebrew
Requisites: Religion 3, Linguistics 2
Lores: Vampire, Malkavian
Max Dots: 4 Vampire, 5 Malkavian
Drawbacks: This text will cause night-
mares for a month; the reader will give
away Advantage on rolls to recover Will-
power during that time.
of the Celestial Spheres
The author of this difficult text is un-
known; it was published under the name
of a famous author (Archimedes), but few
believe it to be his. It is an exposition of a
bizarre non-Euclidean geometry which the
author claims describes the true geometry
of the distant heavens. It is heavy with oc-
cult references and discussions of obscure
occult traditions.
Language: Ancient Greek
Requisites: Occult 2, Intelligence 4
Lores: Mage Lore, Arcanum Lore
Maximum Dots: Mage 4, Arcanum 3
Drawbacks: None

The Necronomicon
Written by mad Arab Abdul Al’Hazred hours before he was killed by demons, the Necro-
nomicon contains blasphemous descriptions of demons, the undead, and various dark
rites. Its great knowledge comes at a terrible price. It has been translated many times, but
each translation loses some of the power of the original text.

Language: Arabic Language: Latin Language: Greek

Req: Occult 3 Req: Occult 3 Req: Occult 3
Lore: Wraith, Demon Lore: Wraith, Demon Lore: Wraith, Demon
Max Dots: 5 Max Dots: 3 Max Dots: 4

Drawback:: Reading any version of the Necronomicon for the first time requires an im-
mediate contest of HUMANITY VS. 4. Failure indicates that the reader loses a Humanity
Point and gains an Inhumanity. (The Arabic text forces the reader to give away Ad-
vantage.) Demons and wraiths tend to be drawn to the text with alarming frequency.

Rituals: This tome is a superlative source of Necromancy and Spirit Thaumaturgy rituals.
The reader may learn any one ritual he may otherwise use within a week. If the Arabic
text is used, no experience is paid.

96
 PART V
DISCIPLINES
...a whole race perpetually in pursuit of the rainbow’s end, never honest, nor kind, nor
happy now, but always using as mere fuel wherewith to heap the altar of the future
every real gift which is offered them in the Present.
Vampiric powers come in many, many vari-
eties. Some vampires are swift, others
strong, others able to blink in and out of
sight. Still others can control the stuff of
their own bodies, or fly, or read minds.
This Part is designed to accomplish four
main tasks.
First, a formal system of power modifiers
will be introduced which will allow for
some uniform treatments of various disci-
plines without resort to extensive explana-
tions.
Second, a system of alternate power ad-
vancement is presented which allows for a
little (but not a lot) more variety in choos-
ing disciplines.
Third, all of the disciplines have been sub-
stantially reworked both to make them
more interesting (in the author’s opinion) as
well as to make them compatible with all fo
the rules presented in this book.
97
Finally, a slightly more complex and unified
system/structure is presented for Necro-
mancy and Thaumaturgy. That presenta-
tion — and the dozens and dozens of ritu-
als that go with it — actually takes up
more room than anything else in this book.
1. POWER MODIFIERS
Power modifiers are uniform rules that can
be assigned to various discipline-based abil-
ities through the use of a single keyword.
They can be treated as abbreviations for
rules. The power modifiers are:
Audible: The target must be able to hear
the power user for this power to work.
Auspex: A character with total Auspex
ranks higher than the power user's rank in
this discipline is not affected by this power
or any of its modifiers, such as Fair Escape.
Note that this is a rules change: prior rules
allowed Auspex of equal rank to penetrate.
 DISCIPLINES
Attention: This power relies on the power
user taking no action to draw the attention
of others. If the power user makes an obvi-
ous action to draw attention of others,
such as attacking or make an obvious threat
against someone (including obviously
pointing a weapon at them within their line
of sight), others in the vicinity will become
aware of the power user's presence. Open-
ing and closing an unlocked door is not
considered to be an obvious action. The
same is true for picking up small objects
that can be held in one hand. But opening a
locked door, slamming a door shut, or pick-
ing up large objects are considered to be
obvious action which can draw attention.
Even so, if the user of this power slams a
door, or moves an object in such a manner
that it can be easily explained, then the ob-
ject will be seen to move or the door to
slam if anyone is looking at it.
Combat: Using this power does not count
as an action, and the power may be used at
any time during a combat round unless the
power specifies a particular phase.
Concentration: This power requires that
the power user maintain concentration to
keep it active. A character may engage in
combat while maintaining concentration,
but if subjected to damage must check to
see if concentration breaks.
WITS + WILLPOWER
VS.
2 + #/WOUNDS INFLICTED
98
Suffering aggravated damage will always
break concentration, as will frenzy or any
sort of successful mental interference such
as Auspex 6B or Dominate.
Conscious: This power only affects the
conscious mind and its intentions. It can-
not affect emotions, the subconscious, or
the Beast. For example, you cannot compel
someone to be happy, or to sleep - howev-
er, you can compel someone to pretend to
be happy, or to lie down and try to sleep.
The target's conscious mind will instinc-
tively attempt to rationalize the use of this
power, but if the target is forced to do
something to which he would otherwise
strongly object, he may experience a sensa-
tion of outside compulsion.
Distance: This power works at a distance,
there is no range limit.
Dawn: This power ends at sunrise.
Domain: This power affects the user's
personal domain, whenever they are within
that domain.
Emotion: This power can affect only
emotions. It cannot alter or control
someone's thoughts, affect the subcon-
scious mind, or the Beast. The target may
experience akrasia -- they may really want
to do something even though their intellect
tells them it is a bad idea.
Eye Contact: This power requires eye
contact, however brief, to work. Sunglasses
 DISCIPLINES
are sufficient to prevent eye contact, but as
a general rule eye contact is easy to estab-
lish unless someone is actively avoiding it.
A creature with no sight is not affected.
Fair Escape: If this power is successfully
used when combat has not been declared,
the power user may escape the scene they
are currently involved in. If used in com-
bat, the character may disengage from that
combat, effectively ending it with a success-
ful EVADE roll.
Gesture: This power requires its user to
make an overt gesture as part of its use.
The specifics are left to the creativity of the
player, but should be something obviously
tied to the effect created. (e.g. arms spread
and chest forthright for a glorious power,
stabbing motions with the hand for a tele-
kinetic use of scissors across the room,
etc.) The power cannot be activated if the
character is unable to move appropriately.
Mental: This power achieves its effects by
influencing others’ minds. It has no effect
on machines or cameras, but will affect
their operators if their operators would
otherwise be under the effect of the power.
MULTI: The target of this power may
expend multiple Willpower points to resist
this power. The 1st point gives a +3 to
one's total, the 2nd, +2, and any other
points +1 each
Nightly: This power may only be attempt-
ed once per night on a particular target.
99
Obfuscate: This power does not have any
effect with respect to characters whose Ob-
fuscate rank exceeds the power user’s rele-
vant discipline rank.
Personal: The power user must know the
target personally to use this power. This re-
quires a minimum of: having met the tar-
get, held a conversation with the target for
at least five minutes, and knowing a name
the target commonly uses (even if it is not
the real name).
Presence: If the target of this power has
a higher Presence rank than the power user,
the target gains Advantage when resisting.
Range: This power has a range of approx-
imately 20 feet.
Resistance: Targets of this power build
resistance to all powers of the discipline
over a single night when they successfully
resist. Once this power is successfully re-
sisted, the target gains Advantage against
this discipline for the remainder of the
night.
Sanguinis: This power may not be di-
rected at a target with a higher Sanguinis
than the power user.
Sight: This power has a range of sight.
This cannot be extended with technology
such as lenses or electronics. However,
magical means of extending sight can ex-
tend the range.
 DISCIPLINES
Subtle: This power give no indication that
it has been used, and its use cannot be de-
tected absent either supernatural means or
some reasonable, prior suspicion.
Tactical: This power has a CBT or
EVADE value and may be used as a com-
bat action. Some Ranged Tactical powers
do not have a CBT, but automatically hit.
Touch: The user of this power must
touch the target. Touching an unaware tar-
get is normally automatic. Many Touch
powers are also Tactical and can be used in
combat. Touching an unwilling target in
close combat (Melee or Brawl) is resolved
with a basic Brawl attack that deals no nor-
mal damage. The power is used when the
attack is successful, or at the end of the
round even if unsuccessful. A successful
Evade or Dodge by the target, however,
will avoid contact entirely.
Visual: The target must be able to see the
power user for this power to work.
2. ALTERNATE POWER
ADVANCEMENT
Under these Rules, there is sometimes
more than one power available for each dis-
cipline at a given level. For example, there
may be three "Presence 3" powers (3A, 3B,
3C) that do three different things.
When a character achieves, say, their third
dot in Presence, they may choose any of
the available level three powers. (unless
100
learning an out-of-clan discipline from a
teacher).
Once a character selects such a power it is
possible for the character to “go back” and
get other powers from the same level. This
can only be done after the character pur-
chases the next level of the discipline; in
other words, you cannot buy a second Lev-
el 3 power until you have a Level 4 power.
If that has been accomplished, however,
the character may purchase an alternate
lower power as if it were one higher level.
The character does not gain any additional
“dots” in the discipline, but he or she will
be able to access the new power. Players
are encouraged, when faced with alternate
powers, to select the power that best suits
the character's personality and style.
EXAMPLE: Cherry has Presence 2. She
survey the Presence 3 powers, and selects
from among her options. She spends 10
XP (5xCR) to buy Presence 3B. Later,
she decides she wants to learn Presence
3a. To do this, she must first learn a level
four Presence power (15 XP), bringing her
overall discipline rank to 4. She decides to
learn Presence 4A. Then she can spend
an additional 15 XP to purchase Presence
3a. The additional power is marked on
her character sheet, but does not affect
her rank in Presence. She still has four
dots, even though she possesses five pow-
ers.
 DISCIPLINES

Animalism 0: If Song of Serenity is used within 1 minute (or the

All vampires with any skill in the Animalism disci-
pline gain four separate benefits:
 Advantage on all contests involving Animal
Ken (except for Animalism rolls);
 The vampire will always know when another
vampire is on the edge of frenzy;
 Due to their inherent connection to the Beast,
the vampire ties are considered successes when
resisting frenzy; and
 Animals will not normally bother the vampire
(or even enter his or her haven) while the vam-
pire is asleep.
● (1A) Whispers of the Beast
(Eye Contact) (Concentration)
The user of this power can communicate with a
single animal. They must look into the animal's
eyes, and then communication will be achieved si-
lently on a mental level. The communication is lim-
ited to what the animal could communicate to an-
other of its species. The power user may also be
able to persuade the animal to do them a favour -
this will be determined by a social test.
next round, if in combat) against the target, the
power user gains Advantage.
The Target may resist this power with:
HUMANITY/2
VS.
ANIMALISM + ANIMAL KEN
●● (2A) The Beckoning
The user of this power can summon a single spe-
cies of animal. Roughly half the animals of that spe-
cies within a two mile radius will respond; each ani-
mal must travel at its own speed. When the animals
are present, the power user may silently communi-
cate with that group of animals, and may attempt to
persuade the group to do a favor or service by
means of a social test. This method of communica-
tion is much less precise than Whispers of the
Beast, and groups of animals have their own social
structures, so the group will resist using the stats of
the strongest of them, and will usually gain Ad-
vantage on the social test.

● (1B) Knowing the Beast ● (2B) Heart of the Hunter

(Range) (Nightly) (Subtle) (Concentration)
By closing its eyes and concentrating, the power
The user of this power is capable of gleaning cer-
user may detect the presence of any predators –
tain information about the Beast, if any, within a
including vampires and particularly predatory hu-
vampire. Available information includes the fol-
mans – within approximately 500 yards. The vam-
lowing:
pire will know the general direction of each preda-
 The total number of Beast Points possessed by
tor, as well as the strength of its Beast. No other
the target;
activity is possible while using this power. This
 If the target has any Beast Traits and how
power will register concealed vampires with Obfus-
many;
cate but will not reveal their location in any way.
 If the target is in Frenzy, and if so, what kind;
 When the target’s last Frenzy was.

101
 DISCIPLINES
●●● (3A) Song of Serenity
(Range) (Resistance)
The user of this power may sing to the Beasts of
those nearby, calming the Beast. It is impossible to
do anything more physical than walking while using
this power. The song may bring a vampire out of
frenzy or prevent a vampire from going into frenzy.
In either case, contest 2x the Target's Beast vs.
the power user's Charisma + Empathy. Those
with no Beast Rating are robbed of the little Beast
they have for the rest of the night; they cannot
spend Willpower, and becomes very submissive.
This power may be resisted before the roll to leave
or avoid frenzy is made. Resisting this roll is the
same as voluntarily frenzying and carries the same
consequences. This power has no effect on mortals
or ghouls.
●●● (3B) Greater Affinity
The user of this power may automatically succeed
in any social contest against a single chosen type
animal. Animals of this type will refuse to attack
the power user. The power user's range for The
Beckoning is doubled to four miles when summon-
ing this type of animal, and the power user may use
Sweet Whispers for this type of animal so long as
the animal is within sight, without the necessity of
eye contact. This power does not affect ghouled
animals blood bound to another vampire. The pow-
er user must select a single type of animal when
they obtain this power. This power can only be tak-
en once.
●●●● (4A) Conquer the Beast
(Combat)
This power is invoked by calling forth the Beast in
a controlled form. The power user must make a
Rage Frenzy check; if it fails then they are in Rage
Frenzy. If they succeed, they are under the follow-
ing effects:
102
 Effective Sanguinis is +2 for powers with the
Sanguinis modifier
 Immune to Presence powers rank 4 and below,
and immune to frenzy
 Advantage on all physical rolls, including com-
bat
 Ignore wound penalties
 Automatically fail any mental or social contests
or rolls
 Character must expend a Willpower to avoid
attacking anything that threatens him
 Character may not dodge in combat (this does
not affect Soak)
This power lasts until dawn or the user expends a
WP while not immediately threatened.
●●●● (4B) Animal Rider
(Range)
You may move your conscious mind into a (non-
ghouled) animal . You will retain your human fac-
ulties but have control over that specific animal un-
til either dawn, the animal loses consciousness, or
the power user's choice to return to her own body.
Additionally the power user will gain the hearing,
sight, etc. of the possessed animal. Disciplines other
than Animalism may not be used while within this
form. The power user gains Advantage on all social
tests vs. other animals of the same species. The
animal may use no powers / disciplines other than
Animalism-based powers while in this state. The
host body is left in a state of vulnerable trance,
though the slightest injury will instantly return con-
sciousness to the original vampire's body. The ani-
mal so ridden will possess a distinctly vampiric Au-
ra (per Auspex).
Prerequisite: Affinity (Either the background or
Animalism 3B) for the target animal
 DISCIPLINES
●●●● (4C) Totemic Possession
(Range) (Dawn)
You may only take this power once, and when you
take this power you must select an animal. That
animal may never change. The power user may
summon the primordial spirit of that animal and
bond with it. Using this power requires the ex-
penditure of a Willpower point. The character will
then begin to act like that animal, and will gain 2
ranks or Advantage on any contest at which that
animal would be particularly skilled. The character
will also suffer a 2 rank penalty or give away Ad-
vantage on anything the animal would not be good
at. Some examples of what might be chosen:
 Wolverine: Attack rolls, Intimidation
(Penalty for Social skills, Frenzy rolls)
 Hawk: Visual perception, surprise attacks
(Penalty for grappling/close combat)
 Cat: Balance, Evade
(Penalty for Swimming, Mental skills)
 Bear: Strength, Damage
(Penalty for Frenzy rolls, perceiving traps)
 Wolf: Tracking, Bite attacks
(Penalty for Dodging, Manipulation)
These are just suggestions. Details should be
worked out with the Gamemaster. The benefits
should vastly outweigh the drawbacks: this is a
rank 4 discipline, after all.
Prerequisite: Affinity (Either the background or
Animalism 3B) for the target animal
●●●●● (5A) Drawing out the Beast:
(Sight) (Visual) ( Multi) (Nightly)
This power is one of the most prized powers a
vampire can possess, though it can only be used
when one is either on the verge of frenzy or lost to
it. Characters already in frenzy must spend a Will-
power to activate this power. This power allows
the character to transfer his or her Beast to another
103
person, mortal, ghoul, or vampire. Unless the target
successfully resists, they are instantly overcome by a
frenzy of the same type facing the power user. Tar-
gets of this power are subject to the normal damna-
tion rules regarding frenzy. The target may resist
this power with a test of:
WP/2 VS. WITS+EMPATHY
●●●●● (5B) Sharing of Spirits
You may move your conscious mind within that of
an animal and possess it. This allows you to con-
trol the actions of that animal. Your body is left,
effectively in torpor, while this power is in effect.
This power may allow the vampire to travel during
the day within the animal. Disciplines other than
Animalism and Auspex may not be used while
within the animal. While in effect, the power user
gains Advantage on all social tests vs. the same spe-
cies of animal.
●●●●●● (6A) The Great Call
This power is similar to the Beckoning, save in the
following respects: (1) Every animal in the area of
effect will come; (2) Every animal will come as fast
as they can; (3) Every animal will be ready to serve
the power user even unto the risk of their life. All
animals summoned must be put to the same task:
attacking a target, removing an obstacle, etc. Show-
ing up does not count as part of the relevant task.
The animals will disperse when their task is done.
●●●●●● (6B) Beast Mastery
The character with this power is more easily able to
resist frenzy. He or she receives Advantage on all
frenzy checks, and if the power user fails a frenzy
check, he or she may send a Willpower point to
make a second check immediately.
 DISCIPLINES
Auspex 0:
(Combat)
Characters with Auspex may add their Auspex rat-
ing to their “initiative” scores.
● (1A) Heightened Senses
The user of this power may enhance any one of
their senses at any one time. For example, they may
see in near darkness, read handwriting by touch
alone, listen to nearby whispered conversations, etc.
By spending a Willpower point, they may heighten
all of their senses. The power user is very suscepti-
ble to bright lights, foul smells, loud noises, etc -
when this power is used.
● (1B) Second Sense
The power user may add his or her Auspex rating
to any rolls the Gamemaster requires for ambushes,
hidden objects, etc. This power does not function
if the character is actively looking for something.
●● (2A) Aura Perception
This power user may see auras. This power auto-
matically works. This allows detection of vampires,
supernaturally active mortals, and a wide variety of
other conditions as well as someone’s predominant
emotional state.
●● (2B) Blood Sympathy
(Range) (Sight) (Subtle)
The user of this ability is so acutely attuned to the
nuances of his or her own vitae that they are able to
sense whether other vampires are 'related' to them
104
by blood. Doing this requires at least three minutes
of uninterrupted observation (this can be while in
conversation with the single target but should not
involve anyone else). The user can then detect:
 Whether or not the other vampire is the same
clan as the user and approximate remove
 If the vampire's sire was from the same clan as
the power user if the target is a Caitiff
 By viewing two vampires of the same clan as
the user, she can determine if the two share the
same bloodline and their approximate relation-
ship
●● (2C) Knowing One's Own
(Distance) (Obfuscate)
The power user spends 1 Willpower and will in-
stantly know the location of a vampire he or she
created. For one additional Willpower, he or she
may know the location of a grandchilde, and so on
down the line. The power user will not have a
street address, or even the name of a town, but his
or her sense of the target will grow more precise
the closer he or she gets.
●●● (3A) Spirit's Touch
(Touch)
The user of this power may, by picking up an ob-
ject, gain impressions and images from it. This
power is resolved with a contest of:
PERCEPTION + EMPATHY
VS.
OBJECT STRENGTH
Object Strength is measured inversely. An Object
with Strength 1 would be a treasured heirloom used
to murder a good friend in a violent rage just last
 DISCIPLINES
week. An Object with Strength 10 would be a dis-
carded bubblegum wrapper from a month ago.
Ties yield partial information.
●●● (3B) Watchword
(Touch) (Personal)
The power user spends 1 Willpower and gives the
target the ability to speak his or her name three
times (within a minute's span) with the result of,
regardless of distance, alerting the power user the
name has been spoken (and by whom). The power
user gets an impression of how far away the speak-
er is to them at the time it is spoken and the general
direction. This provides a single use, and must be re
-asserted to be used again. The name should be a
name reasonably well associated with the power
user.
●●●● Telepathy
(Multi) (Range) (Resistance) (Subtle)
The user of this power may read the target's surface
thoughts. They must spend a Willpower point to
read the mind of a vampire. The target is not nor-
mally aware of this mind-reading attempt. The
power lasts for a maximum of 15 minutes, but can
be activated again after it expires - costing another
Willpower point if the subject is a vampire, and giv-
ing the subject another chance to resist. If the sub-
ject resists, the power may not be used again on
that same subject that night. A target who is aware
that an attempt is being made to read his or her
thoughts may claim Advantage to resist. This pow-
er may be resisted on a contest of:
WP/2 VS. INTELLIGENCE + SUBTERFUGE
●●●●● (5A) Psychic Projection
The user of this power may, by spending a Will-
power point, separate from their body and travel in
spirit form. The spirit form is normally only visible
105
with Auspex 2, but by spending another Willpower
point, the spirit form may become visible and com-
municate for a while. The maximum speed (albeit
unimpeded by physical barriers) the astral form may
travel is roughly 40 miles per hour. Under the
Shorthand System, this power simply works.
●●●●● (5B) Precognitive Sense
(Combat) (Obfuscate)
The power user gains two distinct abilities. First,
he or she always declares his or her actions last in
combat (unless there are two characters with this
power): no roll is needed. Second, the power user
may expend a Willpower point to put themselves in
a precognitive state for the rest of the scene. The
character will see the most likely future unfolding a
few seconds before it does; he or she gains Ad-
vantage on any and all contests in which it would
be useful to “see things coming” (including all CBT
contests) and cannot be ambushed or surprised.
GMs should be liberal with providing information.
●●●●●● (6A) Mind Speak
(Multi) (Range)
The user of this power may transmit thoughts and
even have a conversation while using Telepathy
(Auspex 4). This power may be used without using
Telepathy for the cost of a Willpower point. This
power may be used to transmit commands via the
Dominate discipline. The target of Mind Speak
can block the user with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. INTELLIGENCE + SUBTERFUGE
●●●●●● (6B) Psychic Assault
(Sight)
The user may focus his or her will in a devastating
assault, rendering opponents helpless, even cataton-
ic. The first successful use causes the target to lose
Advantage on all rolls or contests for 5 minutes.
 DISCIPLINES

The second, and each subsequent use of this power ●●●●●●● (7A) Domain Awareness
in the same scene drains a temporary Willpower
(Domain) (Obfuscate)
from the target. If the target has no Willpower left
to drain, the target loses of a permanent Willpower
By expending a Willpower point, the user of this
point or is rendered catatonic (target choice). Mor-
power may identify any significant supernatural en-
tals will be in a permanent coma, while Vampires
tity within his or her personal domain. "Significant"
slip into torpor. Use of this power requires the ex-
in this context means vampires that either: (1) have
penditure of 2 blood points for each use. It can be
Sanguinis 5 or higher, (2) have Willpower 8 or high-
resisted with a contest of:
er, or (3) have any disciplines at 5 or higher. De-
mons and other extradimensional entities are no-
WILLPOWER VS. WILLPOWER
ticed with this power, as are powerful mages and
other, similar entities.
If a target successfully resists, the power may not be
used on that target for the rest of the scene. If the
"Identify" means to detect such a creature, its gen-
target does not possess Auspex, the power user
eral location (i.e., narrowed to within a 1-mile radi-
gains Advantage. If the target possesses Auspex
us), and why it qualifies under 'significant'.
greater than the power user, the target gains Ad-
vantage or 2 extra die.

106
 DISCIPLINES

Every rank of Celerity gives a different power, and ● Flash

in addition any character with Celerity may use Ce-
lerity 0 ("Combat Celerity"). If Celerity powers are
used in a non-combat situation, other persons in
the scene with equal or greater celerity than the
power user can activate it and intercept their
'unopposed' actions.
Although it is noted for each power, players are
reminded that every use of celerity requires the ex-
penditure of a blood point.
Celerity 0: "Combat Celerity"
(Combat)
By spending a blood point the user of this power
can act with superhuman speed for a single combat
turn, taking Advantage of an opponent’s compara-
tive sluggishness. This is more than just fast reflex-
es; it is blurred strikes and near-instantaneous
evades.
(Combat)
The user of this power can react with superhuman-
ly fast reflexes. This allows them to react to any
physical action they can see, as that action occurs.
For example, as an opponent draws a weapon, they
can draw one of their own. As an object is dropped
on them, they can dodge it. As someone appears
from Obfuscate in their peripheral vision, they can
respond as if they'd seen it coming. This power
would not, however, allow a reaction if someone
appears from Obfuscate using a higher level of ce-
lerity than the power user, or if the power user is
caught completely unawares (such as a bullet to the
back of the head with a sniper rifle).
Use of this power also allows the power user to aim
a firearm (and receive aiming bonuses) in effectively
zero time for the cost of a Blood Point, provided
they are not engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

In hand-to-hand combat (Brawl or Melee), or when ●● Dead Time

evading, the user gains Advantage on CBT or DMT
(Fair Escape)
if they have one more level of active Celerity than
their opponent. If they have 2 or more levels, they
By expending a blood point, the user of this power
gain Advantage on both. Combat Celerity does not
moves so fast that most others simply cannot react.
affect ranged combat unless the power user is evad-
While moving this fast they may only make very
ing.
simple actions - such as running in a straight line,
drawing a weapon, opening an unlocked door, or
In multi-person combat, the power user may split
moving an object that no one is holding.
their active levels of Celerity between opponents,
compare the number allocated to each one with
For the power user, the world appears to stop.
that opponents Celerity; then treat as above. Note
They may take simple actions for (subjectively) 6
that separate blood points must be spent to activate
seconds. For everyone else, no time seems to pass.
Combat Celerity and another Celerity power.
Those without either Auspex or active Celerity will
be unable to see the power user - they are invisible
while in Dead Time. Those with Auspex will see a
brief blur

107
 DISCIPLINES

●●● Blur ●●●●● Abattoir

(Combat) (Combat)
When using Combat Celerity, the power user may The possessor of this fearsome power has the abil-
move so fast that they appear to blur. This gives ity to become a whirlwind of death and destruction
them Advantage on Soak, as well as the other Ad- in close combat. This power offers two distinct
vantages given by Combat Celerity, for no addition- benefits:
al blood cost, though the initial point for Combat
Celerity must still be spent. First, levels of Combat Celerity need not be split
between opponents.
●●●● Foresight
Second, if a blood point is expended to activate
(Combat)
Combat Celerity, the power user may engage --
without any penalty -- as many opponents as he or
The power user has developed their reflexes to
she has levels of Celerity. A vampire with Celerity 5
such an extent that it almost seems that they can
may thus engage five opponents at full CBT. Addi-
see a few seconds into the future. This allows them
tional opponents beyond the number of celerity
to react to any physical action they can sense in any
levels incur penalties per the normal rules.
way (including with Auspex 'Danger Sense'), before
that action completes. For example, as an oppo-
Levels of Celerity used to add additional opponents
nent draws a weapon, they can activate Dead Time,
are subtracted from the power user’s Celerity total
sprint across to them, and grapple them before the
for purposes of Combat Celerity, but the remaining
gun leaves the holster. They can dodge a dropped
levels may be used against each opponent. (I.e., if a
object before it begins to fall. If attacked from total
character with Celerity 5 used this power to add
surprise, they may react as if they had a few seconds
three additional opponents, 2 levels of Combat ce-
warning. This aspect of the power does not require
lerity would apply to each.)
blood expenditure.

If the power is activated in combat (by burning a ●●●●●● Blink

blood point), the power user may wait to hear what
any character who does not have Foresight is do-
ing, before deciding his or her own actions. (This
takes priority over Auspex 5B’s similar power.) Ad-
ditionally, if the power user does nothing but
Evade, this power grants an additional claim to Ad-
vantage on all Evade rolls, and relieves the power
user of the necessity to seek cover while evading
ranged attacks. (You are so fast you can dodge bul-
lets.)
(Fair Escape)
This power is essentially identical to Dead Time,
but the power user moves so quickly, that he or she
has twenty seconds of subjective time available to
perform actions.
A lot can happen in twenty seconds, change a vam-
pires’ life…

108
 DISCIPLINES
● Minor Alteration
(Range) (Mental) (Concentration)
The user of this power may wrap an object up to
the size of a suitcase in an illusion that makes it
seem to be something similar, but different. For
example, a piece of paper could become a dollar
bill, a toy gun could look real. The power works
automatically.
●● Negative Illusion
(Mental) (Concentration) (Range)
By expending a blood point, the user of this power
may cause an object of holdable size (e.g., a shot-
gun, a sword, a small television set, a kitchen gar-
bage bag) to vanish. The object will remain masked
as such so long as the user maintains concentration.
The user may affect anything within their unen-
hanced view (mirrors ok, binoculars not). Any use
of the object or slightest interaction of the object
with other objects will cancel the effect. Making
the object vanish while it is being watched is auto-
matic cause for Disbelief challenge (with Advantage
to the disbeliever).
●●● (3A) Alteration
(Range) (Mental) (Concentration)
By expending a Willpower, the user of this power
may use the Minor Alteration power continuously,
over a number of objects simultaneously. The ob-
jects cannot be any larger than a small table, and the
power user can only maintain a number of Minor
Alterations equal to his or her Chimerstry rank plus
one.
109
Disbelieving Illusions:
Chimerstry creates illusions. Targets may
attempt to disbelieve an illusion with a con-
test of:
PERCEPTION+AUSPEX+(ABILITY)
VS.
WITS+CHIMERSTRY+(ABILITY).
This roll can either be made instinctively or
with suspicion. If the disbeliever has a rea-
sonable cause for believing that there is an
illusion present, then the contest proceeds
as normal. If there is no reasonable suspi-
cion, and a character OOCly announces
that they wish to roll disbelief anyway, then
the power user gains Advantage on the test.
The appropriate “Ability" for the contest
depends on what the illusion is of - eg, an
illusion of an animal would use Animal
Ken, of a grand piano, Music, etc. The
GM may feel free to use Intelligence if no
other ability seems relevant.
●●● (3B) Nightmare Illusion
(Personal) (Mental) (Subtle) (Touch)
By expending a Willpower, the user of this power
may place into the target's psyche a dream to be
keyed upon either a specific event or time. The user
need not speak aloud the image, only form it in
their head.
 DISCIPLINES

When the trigger is realized, the target will "slip"

into the dream, though he or she will appear to oth-
ers to be awake and responding to things that aren't
real. The dream can last no longer than 20 minutes,
and anyone attempting to "wake" the target allows
another chance to resist.

 Sample event trigger: After your next meeting

with the Sheriff
 Sample time: Next Tuesday at sunset

The target may resist with a contest of:

WILLPOWER VS. WITS+EMPATHY

The power user gains Advantage if expanding on or

exploiting known concerns, hopes, loves, fears, etc.
of the target.

●●●● (4A) Sensory Deprivation

(Sight)
By expending a Blood Point, the user of this power
may remove any one of the target's senses. For ex-
ample, they may make the target blind, deaf, or in-
sensitive. The power user may use this power mul-
tiple times at once if he or she can spend more than
one Blood Point. This power lasts for one hour.

The appropriate skill for disbelief of this power is

Medicine.

●●●● (4B) False Splendour ●●●●● Permanancy

(Mental) (Concentration)
By expending a temporary Willpower point, the
By expending a blood point, the user of this power vampire may make any Chimerstry 1, 2, or 4B
may throw a room-sized illusion up over a location. illusion permanent -- meaning it will not require
The illusion will move, and will appear in all five concentration. This power lasts for 1 year, or
senses. It must be loosely based on what is actually until otherwise dispelled.
present: i.e., the walls can be made to look different,
but cannot be made into thin air, and a giant bed
can be created, but there must at least be a bundle
of newspapers of roughly the same size at its core.
Umbrella stands can become ferns, etc.

110
 DISCIPLINES
● Passion
(Range) (Emotion) (Resistance) (Multi)
The user of this power enhances or diminishes the
target's emotional state. The power user selects
which he is attempting to do. The power user may
not select any particular emotion: he or she must
work with whatever emotions the target is feeling.
Thus, minor irritation can be enhanced into rage,
and mad passionate love can be dulled into mild
affection. This power may be resisted:
HUMANITY + BEAST VS. WILLPOWER
NOTE: The power user uses the target’s own Hu-
manity+Beast; the target uses his own Willpower.
●● Subliminal Discontent
(Multi) (Touch) (Resistance)
The user of this power may taint the target's sanity,
brushing a light coat of madness across the canvas
of the target's soul. The target will begin to see,
hear, smell, and feel things that aren't really there.
Some of the visions may be extremely disturbing,
but they will vanish as soon as they are noticed.
The precise effects of this power are left to the
GM. The target may resist with
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + SUBTERFUGE
●●● Eyes of Chaos
The user of this power may see patterns in everyday
life, in a person's soul, or in the stream of events
around him or her. The vampire with this power
may determine a person's true nature, may solve an
extremely difficult puzzle based on available clues,
or may divine hidden intentions behind seemingly
111
unrelated events. If the power user is attempting to
divine someone's nature, the target may resist with:
MANIPULATION + SUBTERFUGE
VS.
PERCEPTION + EMPATHY.
The power user has Advantage. Other uses of this
power should be worked out by the GM and the
player. This power may take several hours to work.
●●●● Voice of Madness
(Multi) (Audible) (Resistance) (Dawn)
The user of this power expends a Willpower to
speak a word, perhaps a phrase, to a target and
drive him or her mad. This affects the power user
as well, though he or she gains Advantage in resist-
ing. This power doubles the target's Beast, and
enhances his or her nature to a grotesque carica-
ture. The target may resist with:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + SUBTERFUGE
●●●●● Total Insanity
(Touch) (Multi) (Resistance)
The user of this power may, with but a touch and
the expenditure of a Willpower point, drive the tar-
get to the lunatic fringes of insanity. The target
gains five derangements (GM discretion) and loses
a point of permanent Willpower. This power may
be resisted by the target, once per night, with the
following:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + INTIMIDATION
Ties result in the infliction of two derangements.
Vampires gain Advantage when resisting.
 DISCIPLINES
● Command
(Sanguinis) (Range) (Multi) (Conscious)
(Resistance) (Eye Contact) (Audible)
The power user stresses one word in the next sen-
tence they say (or simply issues an imperative, one-
word command). You must obey that one word as
a command. The compulsion remains in effect until
completed, with a maximum of one scene. One
round after full completion of the compulsion, an
additional resistance check may be made once per
round to then counter the command if the com-
mand could be interpreted as lasting for a period of
time (e.g., "Sit"). This power may be resisted with:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + INTIMIDATION
●● Mesmerism
(Sanguinis) (Range) (Multi) (Conscious)
(Resistance) (Eye Contact) (Audible)
The user of this power can give you a command
which you must obey. This command cannot alter
who you are, but it can compel you to do or not do
something. The command may include contingen-
cies or conditions (e.g. an event that triggers the
compulsion), however the compulsion once in-
voked can last no longer than a number of days
equal to the user's Dominate squared. (commands
from someone with Dominate 3 will last 9 days).
Within this period, you must continue to obey this
command until you have fully completed it, or until
it is no longer possible to obey it due to reasons
you cannot control (i.e., you cannot engineer such a
situation). It cannot alter or remove memories.
This power may be resisted with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + LEADERSHIP
112
●●● Forgetful Mind
(Sanguinis) (Eye Contact) (Multi) (Resistance)
The user of this power may add, alter or remove
memories concerning a single event from your
mind. The extent of the information is limited to a
maximum of 15 minutes of memory. The power
user may change an additional 15 minutes for each
Willpower point expended. Though eye contact
need only be a moment, this power takes at least 3
minutes to work, and the power-user must describe
precisely the memory changes or removal. This
power may be resisted with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. WITS + SUBTERFUGE
●●●● (4A) Conditioning
(Sanguinis) (Eye Contact) (Multi) (Resistance)
The user of this power may render the target more
susceptible to their mind-control powers in future.
This power takes 30 minutes of eye contact to work
and lasts 2 weeks on vampires, 1 month on ghouls,
and 2 months on mortals. It has three distinct ef-
fects:
(1) The power user receives Advantage on
all subsequent Dominate attempts, in-
cluding Conditioning;
(2) The target gains Advantage vs. subse-
quent Dominate attempts by anyone
else; and
(3) The target receives a bonus of +2 to
resist contradictory commands from
other power users and must resist.
This power may be resisted with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + LEADERSHIP
 DISCIPLINES
●●●● (4B) Sap the Vital Will
(Sanguinis) (Eye Contact) (Multi) (Range)
(Resistance) (Subtle) (Audible)
The user of this power can cloud the target's senses
by brief eye contact and conversation. This power
requires at least 5 seconds to work and requires that
the target be able to hear and understand the domi-
nator as well as make eye contact.
The target of this power loses all sense of time, can-
not recall most of his memories, and generally wan-
ders aimlessly for approximately 30 minutes. The
victim often allows himself to be "aided" during
this time; this can lead to a gruesome fate. Being
led into actions contradictory to the target's Nature
will allow additional resistance checks. This power
may be resisted with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + EMPATHY
●●●● (4C) Crowd Control
(Sanguinis) (Multi) (Range) (Resistance) (Visual)
(Audible)
The user of this power may use Command
(Dominate 1) on multiple targets simultaneously. A
number of targets equal to the power user's current
Willpower may be affected. The power user may
also use Mesmerism, provided that the command
can be executed immediately (i.e. the command may
not contain contingencies or conditions). This pow-
er may only be used on mortals and ghouls. The
power user rolls once; each target resists separately.
●●●●● (5A) Possession
(Sanguinis) (Eye Contact) (Multi) (Resistance)
The user of this power may possess the target, in-
serting his consciousness into the target's body
while his own body falls inert. The possessor must
expend a Willpower if the victim is resisting, and
must expend an additional Willpower point every
113
30 minutes to maintain possession of a resisting
victim.
The possessor may use only the following disci-
plines while in the host body: Auspex, Animalism,
Dominate, Presence, Thaumaturgy. Any vitae cost
must be paid by the host, and using a point of non-
vampiric blood inflicts one health level of damage,
so well-fed ghouls are more useful hosts. The pos-
sessor may only spend Willpower to defend against
mental or social disciplines or to maintain this pow-
er, not for any other reason. This power can be
resisted on a contest of:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + INTIMIDATION
By expending a Willpower point of their own, the
target of this power may make another attempt to
resist once every hour.
●●●●● (5B) Mindscript
(Sanguinis) (Eye Contact) (Multi) (Resistance)
The user of this power may make extensive and
permanent changes to the target's memories. These
changes can concern any number of events and any
amount of detail. The use of this power takes a
minimum of one hour, but can result in very real
emotional reactions to false memories. If faced with
evidence contrary to the fabricated memories, the
target will ignore the evidence and remain con-
vinced of their view of things. This power can be
resisted on a contest of:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + SUBTERFUGE
 DISCIPLINES

●●●●●● (6A) Silent Dominion ●●●●●●● Mind Block

(Sanguinis) (Range) (Resistance) (Visual) (Sanguinis) (Eye Contact)
(Gesture)
The user of this power may lock another's will
This power allows the user to use Command the against subversion and dominate attempts. This
Wearied Mind with but a gesture, and without process requires that the target drink at least one
speaking. The command must be something that point of the power user's vitae, and takes at least
can be communicated with a gesture, such as two hours to complete.
"stop" (hold a hand out upright), "come" (gesturing
inwards), "sit" (pointing down), "speak" (rolling of Once the process is finished, the target is effectively
the wrist), "silence" (the 'zip it' motion), etc. immune to dominate unless the new power user is
of a higher Sanguinis than this power user. (In
●●●●●● (6B) Soul Rider which case the target receives Advantage in resist-
ing subsequent attempts).
(Sanguinis) (Eye Contact)
Once broken, this power fails entirely. This power
This power allows the power user to construct a may be circumscribed by the power user to particu-
second identity within the target. The initial use of lar acts, revelation of particular topics, or any other
this power requires at least three hours of mental reasonable limitation. This power may not be used
surgey; it cannot be resisted but it cannot be used on an unwilling target.
on a target who is in a position to resist. The sec-
ond identity has the following characteristics:
 Its Willpower is equal to the power user's base
Willpower minus 2;
 If the power user possesses the Conditioning or
Mind Block powers, it is Conditioned or Mind
Blocked, permanently;
 It possesses Intelligence, Wits, Manipulation,
and Charisma of 2.

All other statistics are the same as the host body.

The implant can be dominated separately from the
host's own personality. The implant can only con-
trol the host body under the following conditions:
(1) If necessary to carry out a Dominate command;
or
(2) If the host body is about to work some grave
harm against the power user.

To take control, the implanted identity contests its

Willpower against the Host's Willpower. If it wins,
it has control of the body. The Host may make
another attempt to resume the control once every
10 minutes.

114
 DISCIPLINES
Fortitude is always active and figures into combat
statistics. It is, in the opinion of the author, the
most powerful of the three “combat” disciplines
(Celerity, Potence, and Fortitude). It may quite
● Gender Modulus
The power user may fully concentrate in meditation
for one full minute without distraction and com-
pletely alter their gender: male to female, female to
male. The user will have a consistent appearance in
either identity and look like a fraternal twin of the
other. The change requires expenditure of 1 vitae.
Its effect is physical and permanent until the power
is employed again.
●● Deity's Wrath
(Visual) (Range) (Nightly)
The user of this power extends an image to a single
recipient. It is a mental image so all others present
will see nothing. It requires no gesture or sound,
only expenditure of 1 vitae. The user will appear a
terrifying manifestation, with the head of a beast, a
brilliant glow and many arms. The target must leave
the area in a state of fear, and will be very uncom-
fortable if forced to approach the power user again
this night. He or she is likely, if religious at all, to
believe that he or she just saw a demon or a God of
some sort. The target may resist this power by a
contest of:
WILLPOWER
VS.
CHARISMA + INTIMIDATION
115
possibly be the most powerful discipline in the
game. It not only drastically increases your chances
of taking LOW Damage, but after that, it also takes
damage off of nearly every attack.
●●● Shapechange
(Fair Escape)
This power grants the user the ability to transform
themselves into one animal, chosen at the time this
power is gained. The animal has a distinctive ap-
pearance, and the species must be chosen but once
for the character. No special powers other than
those the creature would mundanely have are grant-
ed. Only physical powers may be used in conjunc-
tion with this power (Fortitude, Potence, Celerity,
etc.)
The transformation includes clothing, takes one full
action and requires one vitae point. Additional
forms may be taken through the Maskings back-
ground. Fair Escape is allowed if appropriate to
the form (bird, house cat, etc.)
●●●● Doppleganger
(Range) (Sight) (Personal)
The user of this power slowly takes on aspects and
likeness of the target through careful and up-close
personal study. This requires being in close proxim-
ity and being passingly familiar with the subject.
The study requires they observe a variety of actions
such as speaking, mannerisms, how they move and
walk, etc. The power user's own likeness and seem-
ing and mannerisms will incrementally match those
 DISCIPLINES
of the target until near perfect mimicry is possible,
given a single contiguous block of study time:
Minutes / Resemblance
5 / Body Shape
10 / Facial Appearance
20 / General vocal tone + physical mannerisms
40 / Facial expressions
80 / Perfect replication including vocal inflections
It does not afford the ability to speak other lan-
guages but an accent can be copied. This is not Ob-
fuscate but a shaping of the body and vocal chords
- therefore it is not subject to Auspex in the con-
ventional way. Only one form can be "held" by the
power user at a time. The target will have disturbing
visions when sleeping - that they themselves have a
predator's head (e.g. Tiger) and have devoured peo-
ple alive - whenever the power user has been acting
as them on a given night. However, the link be-
tween the visions and the use of the power will not
necessarily be obvious in-character. Note that
study via high quality video or one-way mirror is
possible but will increase the time needed for study
(depending on the quality of access, by 2-10 times.)
116
●●●●● Raksasha
The vampire may transform into a terrible, power-
ful tusked monstrosity, with four arms and massive
taloned feet and hands. Certain practitioners may
have the head of a tiger, or a panther, but most will
have a demonic visage. This transformation re-
quires burning a Willpower and three blood points,
but confers a number of benefits and drawbacks:
 The vampire gains 2 dots of Fortitude and 2
dots of Potence.
 The vampire gains Advantage on resisting any
magical attack or effect.
 The vampire can do aggravated damage in
Brawl combat (+2, per Wolf Claws)
 The vampire may engage up to three opponents
in melee or brawl combat without penalty.
 The vampire gives away Advantage on Rage
Frenzy rolls, but gains Advantage on Fear Fren-
zy rolls.
 The vampire cannot change back, but rather
continues in this form until Dawn, at which
point he or she becomes a near-unbreakable
statue. At sunset the next night, he or she may
choose to transform back into their normal self.
 DISCIPLINES
● Cloak of Shadows
(Auspex) (Mental)
The user of this power may become invisible pro-
vided they do not move. To assume this invisibility
they must be at least partly hidden, by an object or
a shadow, and must not be observed at the time
they become invisible.
●● Unseen Presence
(Auspex) (Attention) (Mental)
The user of this power may become invisible and
may move about while so cloaked. As long as they
do not draw attention to themselves, they will re-
main unseen, unnoticed by any senses. This power
does not confer the ability to vanish in plain view.
It must be activated while not being observed.
●●● (3A) Mask of a Thousand Faces
(Auspex) (Mental)
The user of this power may adopt a different (but
still human) appearance. There are five ways to use
this power:
 You may disguise yourself as an "average
joe" (jane) with appearance no more than 2
without cost;
 You may have one 'instinctive' disguise, which
you can assume and maintain automatically
when conscious. This disguise may not have an
appearance greater than 2;
 With prolonged study and practice, the Mask-
ings background may be used to adopt a greater
number of specific disguises without cost with
no appearance limit, though only one specific
disguise can be known per level of the Mask-
ings background;
117
 You may spend a Willpower point to adopt a
disguise with an appearance greater than 2 for
the duration of a scene;
 Finally, you may, for the duration of a scene,
attempt to impersonate a particular individual.
Regardless of their appearance rating, this re-
quires a Willpower point and a successful con-
test of:
WITS + ACTING
VS.
TARGET'S APPEARANCE + 2
Nosferatu give away Advantage when using the last
option to appear as specific individuals of appear-
ance 3 or higher.
●●● (3B) The Living Veil
This power grants the user the ability to hide the
paleness of his or her aura. It appears as a normal
human aura would.
●●● (3C) Peripheral Haunt
(Auspex) (Mental)
This power is used in conjunction with Unseen
Presence and represents a limited exception to the
Attention power modifier. By spending a blood
point to activate this power, the power user may
appear (at will) in the peripheral vision of a single
target for a single scene; essentially, this power re-
moves the Attention modifier with respect to a sin-
gle target.
As soon as the target looks in the power user's di-
rection, the power user disappears from the target's
view once more. This power allows the power user
to speak to the target while appearing, but he may
 DISCIPLINES

not engage in combat or take obvious actions af- ●●●●● (5A) Combat Obfuscate
fecting the environment (such as opening doors)
(Auspex) (Combat) (Mental)
without cancelling the power. This power does not
affect anyone other than the target; if the power
The user of this power has perfected the art of slip-
user would be overheard by anyone else, he will
ping rapidly in and out of view and playing visual
appear in accordance with the Attention modifier.
tricks with his or her appearance to gain Ad-
vantages in combat. The user of this power gains
Other powers that require eye contact cannot be
Advantage on CBT when evading, or when en-
used while this power is in effect (as the power user
gaged in brawl or melee combat, and treats ties on
disappears if in a position to make eye contact).
CBT contests as victories. Advantage can be
The power user may not be affected by powers that
claimed to initiate grapple, but Advantage is not
require sight of the target while this power is in ef-
had in a grapple. The user of this power also gains
fect. Extended use of this power may drive mortals
Advantage on all attempts to evade.
mad.

●●●● Vanish from Mind's Eye ●●●●● (5B) Cloak the Gathering
(Auspex) (Fair Escape) (Mental) (Auspex) (Mental)
Use of this power requires the expenditure of a
The user of this power has developed Obfuscate to
Willpower point. The user of this power may at-
such a level that it is instinctive. It requires slight
tempt to use Unseen Presence (●●) on multiple
concentration to remain visible - so if they fear-
individuals other than the power user himself. The
frenzy, sleep, or are Incapacitated, this power is ac-
power functions exactly as Unseen Presence other-
tivated. In Torpor, they become visible, and revert
wise. The power may automatically succeed for
to their true appearance. More importantly, if no
one additional person. Two or more persons re-
one present successfully resists, they may vanish;
quire that the power user to contest:
becoming invisible even while in plain sight. The
target will forget their presence and any actions tak-
STAMINA + FORTITUDE + STEALTH
en for the previous 15 minutes if the target either
VS.
chooses not to resist or automatically fails the re-
# OF TARGETS X 2
sistance check.

This power can also be used while invisible, to take

an action that would normally attract someone's
attention. It nullifies the Attention modifier on oth-
er Obfuscate power cards, unless this power is re-
sisted. Attempting to harm another present will still
make the power user appear, and these attempts
will not be forgotten. This power may be resisted
with:
WITS + ALERTNESS
VS.
MANIPULATION + STEALTH
●●●●●● (6A) Soul Mask
(Auspex)
The user of this power may mask the true appear-
ance of their aura. They may have one 'instinctive'
disguise, which they can assume and maintain auto-
matically when conscious. Other disguises can be
adopted temporarily at the cost of a Willpower
point.

118
 DISCIPLINES

●●●●●● (6B) Hidden Mind

(Auspex)
The user of this power can hide their thoughts
from Telepathy of any form, and even present false
surface thoughts to be read.

●●●●●● (6C) Obscure

(Auspex)
While under the influence of any other Obfuscate
power, the user of this power is immune to at-
tempts to ascertain his location or intentions
through mystical scrying or divination.

●●●●●●● (7A) Veiled Projection

(Auspex)
The user of this power is able to mask his or her
Psychic/Astral/Spiritual Projections as set forth in
Mask of a Thousand Faces (●●●).

●●●●●●● (7B) The Great Disappearing Act

The user of this power may burn five Willpower
points and cause all written, photographic, electron-
ic, or video records of him, his existence, or his ac-
tivities to simply up and vanish. The power user
will be weak and acting at -3 to all activities for the
rest of the night, and will slip into torpor at dawn.

Anyone attempting to remember any facts about

the power user during the next year must first suc-
ceed on a contest of:

Intelligence + WP/2 + Auspex

vs.
10

The difficulty drops by one during each successive

year.

119
 DISCIPLINES
● The Limitless Drop
The vampire with this power may fall (or jump)
from any height without injury, landing on the
ground as if he or she had just stepped off a high
curb. This power will not function if the power
user is bound, unconscious, or otherwise unable to
land on his or her feet.
●● Grim Jaws
This power gives the character the power to bite
through anything they can get between their teeth -
steel chains, bones, etc. In combat, they inflict an
absolute minimum of one level of damage with a
bite, after Fortitude or any other modifier. They
will chew through anything (that they can get their
mouth around) eventually, although it may take
some time.
●●● Wall Walking
The user of this power can walk/crawl on any sur-
face that would hold them as if the surface were the
floor. (e.g. wood/stone, but not water/paper). In
essence, the user's personal 'gravity' is oriented to-
ward the surface. Objects let go from the user's
touch return to normal gravity. This power re-
quires the expenditure of a blood point, and lasts
for one scene.
120
●●●● The Yogi’s Blessing
(Combat)
By expending 2 blood points, the power user’s
joints and bones become incredibly flexible, allow-
ing the power user to turn his head 180 degrees,
fold his arms behind him, hyperextend his joints, or
even do the “Exorcist” walk. This condition lasts
for the rest of the scene. In addition to being terri-
fying to mortals, this power allows the power user
to escape from most (but not all) bonds and re-
straints, slip through bars, and grants specific bo-
nuses when activated in Combat. The vampire
gains Advantage on all soak rolls versus brawl dam-
age (including Grapple), and also gains Advantage
against blunt trauma inflicted by baseball bats, etc.
The vampire gains both a +1 CBT and Advantage
when in a grapple (but not to initiate one).
●●●●● Set Free the Bonds of Earth
By expending a blood point, the user of this power
may either float up or down very slowly, or hover
in place. Flight is not possible, but while this pow-
er is in effect, the vampire may move as if walking
under lower gravity, jumping or pushing off surfac-
es. He or she may carry as much with him or her as
he or she would normally be able to lift on the
ground. This power lasts for once scene.
●●●●●● Aerial Predator
By expending three blood points, the vampire with
this power may fly, at speeds up to 25 miles per
hour. This will be increased slightly (~45 miles per
hour) when diving. The Lasombra and Gangrel
clans prize this power greatly, and it can be consid-
ered a mark of prestige to possess it.
 DISCIPLINES
● Darkening Mood
The user of this power may spend one blood point
to manipulate shade and shadow in his immediate
vicinity. This effect is limited to the dimming of
light, the strengthening or weakening of shadow,
and other minor effects. Use of this power may
give Advantage on any contest involving Stealth or
Intimidation abilities - including other power uses.
This power lasts one scene.
●● Shroud of Night
(Fair Escape)
The user of this power may expend a blood point
to create an area of impenetrable blackness. No
sight-enhancing disciplines will function within this
area. The effect will fill a room or area up to forty
feet in diameter, and is extremely disorienting. All
characters should role play accordingly.
Those who can enhance their other senses may
claim Advantage on physical contests performed
against others while within the blackness. The pow-
er user will feel at home within the darkness, and
although unable to see, may also claim Advantage
on physical contests. All characters attempting to
evade within the darkness may claim Advantage.
●●● Arms of the Abyss
(Sight) (Tactical)
The user of this power may summon tentacles of
shadow to crush or capture her enemies. Each ten-
tacle costs one blood point, and the user may sum-
mon as many per round as he or she can afford.
The maximum number of tentacles that may exist
at any one time is equal to the user's Sanguinis.
121
The tentacles will spring from any available shad-
ow, and will act independently of the power user,
allowing the power user to engage multiple foes. A
tentacle may attack the turn it is summoned, has a
reach of approximately twenty feet, and does not
suffer wound penalties. They are destroyed when
they suffer five levels of damage. They may not
evade, but have the following combat statistics:
Brawl: CBT-4 DMT-6
HIGH-3 LOW-1
Grapple: CBT-6
Soak: 4
The power user may choose instead to spend two
blood points on each tentacle with +1 to all of the
above statistics, or (if able) spend 4 blood points on
each tentacle with +2 to the above statistics.
●●●● Black Metamorphosis
(Combat)
The power user expends two blood points, and as-
sume a demoniac shadow-form. His or her flesh
assumes a semi-translucent, black, depthless quality,
his or her outline becomes indiscernible, and tenta-
cles flash out the darkness that was just moments
ago the user's body. The power user gains the fol-
lowing effects:
● He gains Advantage when soaking purely kinetic
attacks (brawl, bats, bullets, etc.).
 He gains 4 tentacles which may act separately,
and which have the following statistics:
Brawl: CBT-5 DMT-8
HIGH-5 LOW-2
Grapple: CBT: 8
Soak: 4
 DISCIPLINES
●●●●● Shadow Step
(Distance) (Fair Escape)
The user of this power may step into any available
shadow with the expenditure of a Willpower point.
The power user may then step out of any shadow
in any location known to the power user. No spe-
cial knowledge is gained of what lies on the other
side of the shadow, and the power user must know
where he or she is going prior to stepping into the
abyss.
If the location proves to be unavailable (i.e. there
are no shadows to step out of) the power user may
change the destination with the expenditure of an-
other Willpower point. If the power user is caught
in the abyss with no Willpower, he or she is forever
lost to shadow. The power user may not bring oth-
ers with him or her, although items up to the size
of a rifle may be transported, as may clothing.
●●●●●● (6A) Shadow Demon
(Combat) (Fair Escape – but why would you?)
This power is a more potent version of the Black
Metamorphosis power. By burning three blood
points, the power user gains all of the benefits of
the Black Metamorphosis, with the following bo-
nuses:
● The power user is surrounded with a double-size
Shroud of Night (1 large room such as a ware-
house, or up to 80 feet in diameter)
122
● The power user may ignore the first two points
of damage from every attack that involves only ki-
netic force (i.e., Brawl, most melee weapons, normal
bullets).
● The power user gains 6 tentacles instead of 4.
●●●●●● (6B) Shadow Servant
By spending five (5) blood points a Willpower
point, the power user may call a dark creature from
the abyss to do his bidding. The creature must
emerge from darkness, and will obey the power-
user’s commands for the rest of the night. The
servant may slip through narrow cracks and be-
neath doors, but it is not insubstantial; it is consid-
ered to have a Stealth + Dexterity of 10 for sneak-
ing purposes as long as there is some darkness in
which to hide. It does not suffer wound penalties
and is destroyed when it takes 8 levels of damage.
It may not be grappled, and gains Advantage on all
soak contests against brawl, melee, and firearms
attacks. It is very intelligent, however, and may
communicate with the power user telepathically
when within a line of sight. Shadow Servants are
used most frequently as guards, scouts, and spies,
though they are autonomous demons and can be
subverted It has the following combat statistics:
Brawl: CBT-6 DMT-7
HIGH-3 LOW-2
Soak: 6
Willpower: 7
 DISCIPLINES
Like Fortitude, Potence is always active and figures
into combat statistics. It increases both DMT
(making HIGH damage more likely) and increases
both HIGH and LOW damage. Potence also
● Fascination
(Visual) (Multi) (Emotion) (Range) (Presence)
When the user employs this power, everyone in
the immediate area becomes strongly attracted to
them. They want to listen to the power user, watch
them, be near them. Any hostility they feel to-
wards the power user has gone. The power is bro-
ken if the power user attacks anyone or is obvious-
ly insulting. It has no effect on someone already
in combat with tor anyone intent on entering com-
bat with him If this power is resisted, it may not
be used again on the same target during the same
scene. Victims may resist by a contest of:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + PERFORMANCE
●● (2A) Dread Gaze
(Visual) (Multi) (Emotion) (Range) (Presence)
The user of this power is projecting fear and terror
at a single target. The target must leave the area in
a state of fear, and will be very uncomfortable if
forced to approach them again this night. If this
power is resisted, it may not be used again on the
same target during the same scene. This power
may be resisted by a contest of:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + INTIMIDATION
123
(perhaps obviously) adds a point of effective
Strength when making Strength checks for lifting,
jumping, etc. However, it also gives you Ad-
vantage on such contests.
●● (2B) Across a Crowded Room
(Visual) (Multi) (Emotion) (Range) (Nightly)
This power allows a vampire to focus his Presence
at a single mortal within his physical sight. This
power has two effects: it causes the target to be-
come Fascinated with the vampire, as if he were
employing Presence 1 – but only at the target. Sec-
ond, it will cause the target to approach the vam-
pire, and perhaps even initiate a conversation.
This will not necessarily happen immediately but it
will almost always happen if the target is able. The
vampire’s attention in the target is obvious when
this power is being used. This power may be re-
sisted by a contest of:
WP/2 VS. APPEARANCE + PERFORMANCE
●●● (3A) Entrancement
(Visual) (Multi) (Emotion) (Presence)
The target becomes is entranced, even obsessed
with the user of this power for the rest of the
night. The target will want to look good in their
eyes and will do almost anything to please them. If
the power user attacks or directly threatens the tar-
get, then this power is broken. This power has no
effect on those already in combat with the power
user, but may be used on those who merely intend
 DISCIPLINES
to enter combat. If this power is resisted, it may
not be used again on the same target during the
same scene. The victim may resist with:
WP/2 VS. APPEARANCE + EMPATHY
●●● (3B) Emotional Projection
(Visual) (Multi) (Emotion)
The user of this power may project a single emo-
tion of their choice at one target. The emotion and
target must be specified when the power is used.
Use of this power requires expenditure of a point
of WP, and the effect lasts for a single scene. Power
Users may select one of the following emotions to
be able to project upon buying the power. Addi-
tional emotion options are gained by purchasing
levels of the Emotions background (per normal BG
development). The options for the emotion to be
projected are limited to the following:
 Despair (give up on hope)
 Desire (drive want/emotion to action)
 Delight (Euphoria / elation)
 Anger (Undirected; not frenzy)
 Drain (Emotional emptiness)
 Disgust (Sense of loathing and dislike)
 Courage (Bolsters confidence and di-
minishes fear/inhibition)
If this power is resisted, it may not be used again
on the same target during the same scene. This
power may be resisted with:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + EMPATHY
●●●● (4A) The Summoning
(Multi) (Personal) (Distance) (Nightly) (Presence)
The user of this power may demand the immediate
and physical appearance of a person known to
them, by sending them a mental summons. The
target will know whom they are traveling to see,
and will have a rough idea of where they are going.
124
The target cannot take any action to delay their re-
sponse to the summons unless they resist the pow-
er. Use of this power requires the expenditure of a
Willpower point. This power may be resisted with:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + LEADERSHIP
If the target has ever drunk the vitae of the power
user, the power user gains Advantage on a contest
to resist. If the target is within line of sight, the
"Personal" modifier does not apply.
●●●● (4B) Recrudesce
The power user may spend 1 Willpower and conse-
quently re-attempt a presence effect upon a target
who has successfully resisted previously. This pow-
er works in conjunction with Presence powers of
level 4 or less only. It allows the power user to ig-
nore the (Nightly) modifier.
●●●●● (5A) Majesty
(Presence) (Visual) (Multi) (Emotion)
The user of this power radiates an aura of power
and indomitability as long as they take no offensive
action against anyone present. Those present will
feel no emotions towards the power user other than
awe and respect, to the extent of being almost over-
whelmed by those emotions. Anyone wishing to
make any offensive action against the user -- or
even be openly disrespectful -- must first resist this
power for each such action taken, on a test of:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + INTIMIDATION
If the resistance test is failed, the user will go to ab-
surd lengths to humble themselves before the pow-
er user.
 DISCIPLINES

●●●●● (5B) Cloak of Wrath ●●●●●● (6B) Love

(Presence) (Visual) (Multi) (Emotion)
The user of this power wraps himself in a nearly
irresistible aura of anger, might, and terror. All in-
telligent creatures (mortals, vampires, birds, dogs,
etc.) in the vicinity must either flee in terror or cow-
er in fear so long as the power user remains in the
area -- they are unable to effectively defend them-
selves, speak, or perform any actions that require
reasoning other than flee. Victims of this power will
not willingly approach the power user for the rest
of the night. This power may be resisted with a
contest of:
(Presence) (Visual) (Multi)
The user of this power becomes incredibly im-
portant to you, someone you are in love with,
someone you'd be willing to risk your life for.
You'd do nothing to offend them and anything to
please. You are in effect, blood-bound to them un-
til you leave their presence. The victim may tempo-
rarily (1 round) resist this power on a contest of:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA+EMPATHY

WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + INTIMIDATION

Those who resist may act normally, but will give

away Advantage on the first round if attempting to
attack the target. This power cannot be directed at
individual targets.

●●●●●● (6A) Domain

(Presence) (Multi) (Domain)
Any person within a mile radius of the established
seat of the power user's domain will feel an oppres-
sive atmosphere of authority which makes them
fearful of violating the rules of etiquette in the do-
main. It conveys no understanding of what the
rules are, although if they encounter the power user
they will see them as a figure of authority with the
right to establish the rules of conduct. A person
who doesn't know the rules of conduct will be fear-
ful of violating what they consider to be polite and
courteous behavior. Anyone wishing to violate the
perceived rules of conduct, must first resist this
power on a test of:

WP/2 VS. CHARISMA+LEADERSHIP

If the resistance test is failed, the user will go to ab-

surd lengths to make amends for the violation

125
 DISCIPLINES
● Gleam of the Red Eyes
The user of this power may see perfectly in total
darkness. When the power is in use, their eyes glow
red. It takes 10 seconds to activate this power.
●● (2A) Wolf Claws
(Combat) (Tactical)
By spending a blood point, the power user may
grow a wicked inch-long talon on the end of each
finger. These claws do aggravated damage as ex-
plained in the combat section of the rules. They
give +2DMT and +1 HIGH damage to brawl at-
tacks.
●● (2B) Feral Tracking
This power, once gained, is always active. The us-
er of this power may identify someone by scent if
he or she has smelled them before. Obfuscate will
still mask and cloud such detection, but the user
can sniff an item and identify the same scent on
another. It will also facilitate tracking of the individ-
ual -- with an accuracy equivalent to a bloodhound.
●●● (3A) Earth Meld
(Fair Escape)
The user of this power may expend one Blood
Point and fade into the earth, provided they are
standing on natural earth. If in combat, they may
relent on the current test (allowing the opponent to
win the current CBT test), and vanish into the earth
after that action is resolved. If they are being grap-
pled, the earth's pull gives the power user an effec-
tive 3 dots of Potence for breaking the grapple, at
which point the power user sinks into the earth.
126
●●● (3B) Osmosis
(Combat)
The user of this prized power may feed on blood
by absorbing it through his or her skin. Any ex-
posed skin will work, but the power works best
through the hands. Feeding takes place at between
1-4 points per round, at the Gamemaster’s discre-
tion. The power user simply touches a quantity of
spilled blood and adds it to her blood pool. This
will not clean a stained surface. Blood bonds may
not be formed through this power. When in direct,
stable skin-to-skin contact, the power user may
“feed” at 1 point per round. When in control of a
grapple against an opponent with exposed skin, the
power user may feed 1 point per round from the
other character in the grapple.
●●●● Shadow of the Beast
(Fair Escape – Bat only)
The user of this power may turn into an animal -
typically a wolf and/or a bat. The user's simple
clothing and concealable items will shift with them.
The user maintains all mental faculties but cannot
speak. The transformation requires three rounds
and costs 1 blood point.
When in the form of a wolf, a vampire may make a
Bite Attack as a Brawl Attack outside of grapple,
using the following statistics:
CBT: Dex + Brawl
DMT: Str + Potence + Brawl +3
HIGH: 3A (+Potence)
LOW: 2A (+Potence)
 DISCIPLINES
●●●●● Form of Mist
(Fair Escape)
The user of this power may turn into a cloud of
dark, damp, smoky mist. This form is immune to
physical damage except fire and sunlight. It may
seep through cracks and holes, but moves at a
walking pace. Winds may slow it, but will not harm
or disperse it. The transformation requires three
rounds and costs 1 blood point. This power may
be used for "Fair Escape" (see below) even with an
unsuccessful Evade, or while being grappled. It's that
good.
●●●●●● (6A) Flesh of Marble
The power user’s skin becomes nearly unbreakable
(though still flexible enough for movement). By
expending 3 blood points, the power user gains Ad-
vantage against all forms of bashing or penetrating
attack, including sword cuts, bullets, and claws.
Damage suffered from such sources is also reduced
127
by two points (in addition to any Fortitude bonus-
es). This power does not affect fire, sunlight,
chemical burns, sonic attacks, or the like. This
power lasts for one scene. If used before going to
sleep, it lasts until sunset.
●●●●●● (6B) Stone Meld
The user of this power may use the level 3 Earth
Meld power on natural stone – even where that
stone has been cut and laid over earth. This power
does not, however, work with artificial aggregates
such as concrete.
●●●●●● (6C) Blissful Slumber
The user of this power may sleep the day away in
Mist Form (Protean 5). He or she will rematerialize
at sunset. During this time, the power user will not
be harmed by fire or sunlight; indeed, he or she is
effectively immune to any and all damage. Activat-
ing this power costs 2 blood points.
 DISCIPLINES

●●●●●●● (7A) Lupus Hybrid huge, taloned wings will erupt from his or her back.
There is no mistaking this form for a human.
(Combat) (Dawn)
While in this form, the power user gains the follow-
ing Advantages:
With the expenditure of a Willpower point, this
vampire can transform him or herself into a terrify-
 The power user can fly and glide.
ing, bipedal wolf-like beast, similar to a werewolf.
 The power user’s sense of hearing is increased,
The power user will approximately double his or
and he or she can use echo location to ascertain
her mass, and will be covered in thick, flowing fur.
his or her surroundings, even in total darkness.
While in this form, the power user gains the follow-
 Because the power user is able to attack from
ing Advantages (and disAdvantages):
elevation, as well as use both his or her feet and
barbed wings, the power user gains Advantage
 The power user gains three (3) points each of
on all Brawl contests, and inflicts damage as if
Strength and Dexterity. (This does not increase
using Wolf Claws.
the limit by which the power user can increase
 Because of the additional limbs (each tipped
stats with blood.)
with a deadly barb) combined with echoloca-
 The power user gives away Advantage on fren-
tion powers, the power user may engage up to
zy checks.
three opponents in brawl or melee combat
 The power user gains Advantage on all physical
without penalty.
contests except soak.
 The power user grows Wolf’s Claws as per Pro-
tean 2 (●●). ●●●●●●● (7C) Animal Swarm
 The power user’s sense of smell is dramatically (Fair Escape) (Dawn)
increased.
 The power user may make bite attacks without The user of this power may dissolve into a swarm
grappling (use brawl) and his or her bite inflicts of small creatures; only creatures with a menacing
an additional 3 levels of aggravated damage. or frightening aspect may be assumed (crows, bats,
 The power user will cause all normal mortals to spiders, scorpions, rats, snakes, etc.). The power
flee or cower. Supernaturals and certain gifted user may disperse into twice as many creatures as
or experienced mortals may resist this with a he or she has blood points, and each creature
contest of : “carries” one half a point. The creatures remain
fully under the user’s control..
WP/2 VS. 7
This power lasts until sunrise, or until the power
●●●●●●● (7B) Chiropteran Hybrid user chooses to retake humanoid form. At that
time, all of the component creatures present are re-
(Combat) (Dawn) (Fair Escape)
absorbed, along with the blood points they carried.
Creatures who do not rejoin the body may be reab-
With the expenditure of a Willpower point, this
sorbed through the course of the night, but any
vampire can transform him or herself into a terrify-
creatures left running around at dawn instantly dis-
ing, winged bat-like monstrosity. The power user’s
solve into small piles of ash and blood, whether
skin will become dark and covered with fine fur; his
they are in direct sunlight or not. The power user
or her fangs will grow out, ears will become pointed
must reform at sunrise, even if only from a single
and the face will assume a bat-like aspect, hands
creature, although any of the swarm’s members will
and feet will become slender grasping claws, and
do.

128
 DISCIPLINES
● Eyes of the Serpent
(Range) (Eye Contact)
The power user is able to hypnotize with his glance.
When this power is activated, the power user's eyes
become gold with large black irises, similar to a
snake's. Any mortal meeting the power user's gaze
becomes entranced, and cannot move so long as
eye contact is maintained. Vampires may resist this
power, gaining Advantage, with:
WITS + WILLPOWER
VS.
CHARISMA + ANIMAL KEN
●● Tongue of the Asp
(Combat) (Tactical)
The user of this power can transform his or her
tongue into a long, forked snake tongue, up to 18
inches long. The tongue can be used to feed, and it
allows the vampire to make a feeding attack outside
of grapple, as a regular brawl attack inflicting 1 level
of aggravated damage and stealing a blood points.
●●● (3A) Skin of the Adder
The user of this power transforms his or her skin
into a mottled, scaly hide. This power requires the
expenditure of both a blood point and a Willpower
point. This power takes 2 rounds to activate, dur-
ing which time the power user cannot do anything
else, and lasts one scene. The power user gains Ad-
vantage on all Soak contests except those versus
fire, sunlight, or magical energies, and gains two
"virtual" dots of Fortitude.
129
●●● (3B) Serpent’s Kiss
(Combat) (Tactical)
By spending a blood point, the power user is able
to unhinge his or her jaw and extend his or her
fangs to more than double their size. This allows
the power user to fit their mouth around much
larger objects (volleyballs are not out of the ques-
tion) and increases the damage done by bite attacks.
When this power is active, the DMT for the vam-
pire’s bite is increased by 2, and the HIGH and
LOW damage values are each increased by 1.
●●●● Venom
(Combat)
With the expenditure of a blood point, the user's
fangs (or tongue) excretes a venom which is in-
stantly fatal to mortals and which can send other
vampires into torpor. The toxin will remain potent
for 10 minutes after this power is activated, or for
one successful attack, whichever comes first. The
power user must make a successful bite attack.
Mortals die instantly. Vampires are put into torpor.
This venom may be resisted by a vampire using:
STAMINA + FORTITUDE + SURVIVAL
VS.
WILLPOWER + MEDICINE
If the resist is successful, the vampire only suffers a
-2 penalty to all actions for the rest of the night.
 DISCIPLINES
●●●●● (5A) Heart of Darkness
This power allows the user to remove his heart, or
the heart of another. This process takes a whole
night. The heartless vampire cannot be staked, and
may ignore the first time any Beast Trait is triggered
on any night. However, if the heart is found and
destroyed, the heartless vampire suffers a horrible,
unavoidable death. This power only works on the
power user. The Setite's empathy is reduced to ze-
ro while this power is in effect.
●●●●● (5B) Dark Obsession
(Audible) (Multi) (Subtle)
This power is activated simply by having a conver-
sation with the target and spending a Willpower
point. It requires at least a few minutes talking with
the target, discussing the merits of a substance,
condition, or experience which might cause the tar-
get pleasure, whether a drug, money, sex or ro-
mance, driving fast, a video game… anything that
might be considered a vice when taken to extremes.
The target may resist this power with:
WP/2 VS. CHARISMA + EXPRESSION
Failure means that the target becomes completely
obsessed with the subject for the next moon (28
days). If the target does not experience the subject
at least once in a given day, he or she cannot recov-
er Willpower and gives away Advantage on any-
thing requiring concentration, judgment, or critical
thinking for next day. If this deprivation lasts three
consecutive days, the target loses a Willpower; if it
lasts six, the target loses another Willpower. If it is
sustained for a week, however, the target may make
a contest to escape the obsession:
HUMANITY VS. 6 and Sun damage.
130
●●●●●● (6A) Subversion
(Touch) (Subtle) (Emotion) (Nightly)
With but a gentle touch and the expenditure of a
Willpower point, the power user shatters bonds of
loyalty and affection the target feels towards anyone
other than the power user. This does engender af-
fection for the power-user, it merely wipes away
relationships that might interfere with his or her
designs. This power lasts one moon (28 days). The
target will likely remember that he or she felt some-
thing in the past, but will not feel it at all in the pre-
sent. The target may spend one Willpower to
“resist” this and feel something of their former
feelings for five minutes per level of Humanity.
●●●●●● (6B) Form of Apophis
(Combat) (Dawn) (Fair Escape)
The power user spends a Willpower point to trans-
form themselves into a dark, shadowy cobra with
faintly glowing golden eyes. The cobra is jet black,
approximately eighteen feet in length, and weighs
approximately 225 pounds. The transformation is
dramatic: the snake emerges from the power user’s
mouth in a burst of shadow, essentially turning the
power user inside-out. Mortals witnessing the dis-
play will flee in terror. The serpent may speak, and
may use any disciplines that could reasonably be
used. While in this form the power user gains the
following benefits:
 Use of Serpent’s Kiss (●●●), and Venom
(●●●●) at will without spending blood.
 Advantage on uses of Eyes of the Serpent (●)
 Advantage on all stealth rolls.
 Advantage on all Grapple rolls.
 +2 to all Physical Attributes
 The power user may use Stamina to soak Fire
 DISCIPLINES
● Adjustment
The possessor of this power may make alterations
to his or her own physical appearance, including
height, build, voice, and coloration. These changes
can be quite drastic, but do have some limitations:
 No more than 1 foot of height may be gained
or lost
 Total mass cannot be changed
 Physical attributes may not be altered with this
power
 Appearance may be changed by 1 with the ex-
penditure of a permanent Willpower point.
Alterations must be made with the hands by actu-
ally rearranging the flesh and drawing out changes.
The power user forever ceases to have a "true"
physical appearance once this power is used -- his
or her body will heal nightly to reflect the most re-
cent changes. Use of this power requires the ex-
penditure of a blood point, and takes from 15
minutes (for simple adjustments) up to a full night
(for total body changes). Imitation of another re-
quires spending a temporary Willpower point cou-
pled with extensive study of the subject, and does
not normally change the Appearance attribute.
●● Body Crafts
The possessor of this power may make substantial
changes to another creature, living or undead -- it
cannot be used on the power user. These changes
can be drastic, and are often used to create fear-
some, hideous ghoul servants. There is practically
no limit to the changes that can be made, as mass
can be altered through the incorporation of addi-
tional biomatter from other targets.
131
This power cannot be used quickly, and requires
either that the target be either willing or restrained.
Use of this power requires a blood point, and an
additional blood point must be spent to use this
power against a vampire. Physical attributes cannot
be raised with this power, though Strength and
Dexterity can easily be lowered. An increase of ap-
pearance requires the expenditure of one perma-
nent Willpower point and appearance cannot be
increased more than the power user’s relevant Art
skill (usually sculpture) -- decreases are free and
easy.
Vampires subject to this power will uncontrollably
revert to their "normal" appearance slowly over
three nights, burning an additional three blood
points each of the nights as their body forces itself
to heal.
●●● Changeling
The possessor of this power has gained total con-
trol over his or her flesh, and may use the Adjust-
ment power at will, without the need to shape flesh
with the hands. These changes occur quickly: minor
changes (eye color, etc.) occur instantaneously,
while total body transformations may take up to
five minutes. All non-time limitations set forth in
the description of Adjustment apply.
 DISCIPLINES

●●●● Corporal Deployment

The possessor of this dread power may transform
his or her body into an armoured array of deadly
weapons, including claws, spikes, tentacles, bone-
axes, and bludgeons. The user of this power may, at
his or her option, choose to transform into a large,
carapaced demon-form, or any other shape he or
she chooses. The form must be kept for the dura-
tion of the power use, and cannot be changed. Use
of this power requires expenditure of three blood
points, and does not take effect until the third point
is spent. This power has the following effects:

 Temporary and Maximum Strength are raised

by three
 Temporary and Maximum Dexterity and Stami-
na are each raised by one.
 The power user may ignore the first point of
damage from any attacks except fire and sun-
light.
 The power user may engage one additional op-
ponent in brawl or melee combat without pen-
alty, incurring penalties for three or more oppo-
nents as if he or she were fighting one fewer
opponents.
 The power user's Brawl attacks are considered A vampire with this power who is reduced to ashes,
to be either Melee or Brawl attacks -- whichever however, is considered to be in torpor, and will re-
is more Advantageous to the power user. constitute itself when exposed to at least three
(Though the dice pools/Contest Values remain blood points' worth of vitae. The power user will
based on Brawl.) reform in torpor, and must be awakened normally.

Destruction by fire or sunlight cannot be reversed

●●●●● Reformation with this power. There must be some material left
from which to reconstitute, however: dissolution in
The possessor of this power has gained such con- acid will require a great feat of chemistry to distill
trol over his or her flesh that true immortality is the power user.
almost in reach. The power user may recover from
nearly any injury: severed limbs can be reattached If only there were vampires who knew Alchemy….
with the expenditure of a blood point, and even the
head can be regrown with the expenditure of four
blood points. The power user will not be destroyed
from aggravated damage alone, but will dissolve
into ash as most vampires do.

132
 DISCIPLINES
This is a not a “discipline”, but a set of powers pos-
sessed by werewolves. Older vampires will have
more dots. Unless specified, these powers are only
(and always) active during the full moon, as well as
on the nights before and after. (Some older were-
wolves may be able to activate these powers at will.)
● The Savage Spirit
The werewolf’s form will take on a slightly savage
aspect – crouching, narrowed eyes, etc. The draw-
back of this “power” is that the werewolf while this
power is active, the werewolf suffers -2 on all at-
tempts to resist its own version of Rage Frenzies.
He or she gains a number of benefits:
 Wound penalties are reduced by 2.
 Advantage is gained on fear-related checks
 1 blood point may be spent to raise Strength,
Dexterity, and Stamina by 1 each for the rest of
the scene, though this can only be done once.
 The werewolf gains +2 on any Alertness checks
concerning possible dangers
●● Hunter’s Resilience
When this power is active, the werewolf’s flesh re-
generates normal wounds at an astonishing rate,
healing 1 health level every 5 minutes, unless the
wound is “aggravated.” Werewolves typically only
take aggravated damage from silver and the teeth/
claws of other supernaturals.
●●● Wolf ’s Claws
The werewolf begins to change with the moon:
brows and body hair thicken, shoulders broaden
some, and hands and feet grow larger. The fingers
become tipped with razor sharp claws — use the
same statistics as the Protean Power, Wolf’s Claws.
133
●●●● Wolfman
The werewolf changes into a classic “wolf man” –
mostly human in shape and form, but covered with
fur, with a distorted, fanged face — only mistaken
for human from a distance or in the dark. This
power replaces Savage Spirit with the following:
 Wound penalties are reduced by 3
 Advantage is gained on fear-related checks
 The raising of the three physical attributes may
now be done twice.
 The werewolf gains +2 on any Alertness checks
concerning possible dangers
 Fangs allow a bite attack in a grapple
 The werewolf must make Rage Frenzy checks
as if he or she were vampire
●●●●● The Moon Warrior
The werewolf transforms into a terrifying bipedal
canine form, gaining some 250% in mass, and
growing thick, flowing fur. There is no mistaking
this for a human, as he or she frenzies at every per-
ceived threat. However, the following benefits are
added to the Wolfman form powers:
 Strength, Stamina, and Dexterity are automati-
cally increased by three
 The werewolf may cancel an opponent’s Com-
bat Celerity (up to rank 3).
 Hunters Resilience heals 1 level per round.
 The werewolf is immune to Dominate
 The werewolf projects an aura of terror caus-
ingmortals (not vampires) to flee in fear unless
they succeed on a contest of:
WP/2 VS. 6
●●●●●● Harnessed Transformation
The werewolf can activate the Wolf Man/Moon
Warrior forms at will, without suffering frenzy ef-
fects. He or she may also transform into a large
wolf.
 PART VI

Thaumaturgy
No matter how subtle the wizard,
a knife between the shoulder blades will cramp his style.

Thaumaturgy is a tremendously versatile B. The Paths

“discipline,” large enough to take up over half of Below is a list of all the available Thaumaturgical
this book. It’s versatility is primarily due to the Paths. They are each described in detail on the
fact that it is not really a discipline at all so much following pages.
as a broad field of study.
1. Alchemy
The various Thaumaturgical paths are each the 2. Biothaumaturgy
result of painstaking research and development — 3. Countermagic
each is practically a discipline unto itself. It is 4. The Focused Mind
powerful, and it is also almost exclusively the 5. The Hearth Path
realm of House and Clan Tremere, who have 6. Lure of Flames
fused the power of vitae with the knowledge of 7. The Muted Path
magic in a way that the world had never seen be- 8. Neptune’s Might
fore. 9. Path of Athena
10. Path of Blood
A. Home Paths: 11. Path of Conjuring
Every character who wishes to learn Thaumaturgy 12. Path of Corruption
must learn a “home path.” This is selected at the 13. Spirit Thaumaturgy
beginning of Character Generation and will al- 14. Technomancy
most always be the Path of Blood. 15. Terra’s Power
16. Weather Control
The home path, for all intents and purposes, is the
character’s Thaumaturgy discipline. Each “dot” in
Thaumaturgy that the caster gains raises their
home path by 1 as well. Other paths must be de-
veloped separately, and can be developed simulta-
neously, but they can never exceed the Thaumatur-
gy rating of the caster (i.e., the Thaumaturge’s rat-
ing in his or her home path).

134
 THAUMATURGY

This path is practiced primarily by elder Tremere. ● Refine

It is popular with the Traditionalists, and generally
ignored by the younger vampires. This path abso-
lutely requires a laboratory, stocked with a number
of highly specialized and rare substances and chem-
icals (many of which are or can be created through
the rituals of the path).
Laboratories:
The difficulty of Alchemy contests depends in
great part on the quality of the laboratory. Labora-
tories are rated between one and five dots:
The Thaumaturge may refine a small amount (max.
of 1 pound) of a substance. With a successful con-
test of:
ALCHEMY + WITS VS. 3 / 5
This takes 1 hour, and it can be used in either one
of two ways:
 Simple: Impurities are removed and gross
compounds are separated. (E.g., separating salt
from water in saltwater.) The difficulty is 3.
 Elemental: Materials are broken down into
their constitutive elements (i.e., water into hy-
drogen and oxygen). The difficulty is 5.

● Poor: The bare minimum needed for Alchemical ●● Mutable States

workings. -1 to contests, and disAdvantage. Cost:
The Thaumaturge transmutes up to one mol of a
Approximately $15,000.
material from one state (gas, liquid, solid) to anoth-
er without changing temperature. This takes 1 hour
●● Mediocre: A few esoteric items, and perhaps a
and can only be used on a relatively pure substance
few ritually created items. DisAdvantage on con-
– suspensions/solutions will not transform. The
tests. Cost: Approximately $75,000.
Thaumaturge contests :
●●● Average: A well-equipped laboratory with an
ALCHEMY + INTELLIGENCE VS. DIFFICULTY
extensive reagent collection. Most ritually created
items can be found here. No modifiers. Cost: Ap-
Success transforms for 366 days, a tie for 24 hours,
proximately $350,000.
and a failure for 6 hours. Difficulties are below.
 Gas to Solid / Solid to Gas: 6
●●●● Impressive: A fully-stocked laboratory with
 Either state is a liquid: 5
essentially nothing missing. All but the rarest of
 Element/diatomic: -1
ritually created items are present. Advantage on all
 Simple compound: +0
contests. At least 4 ranks of the Alchemy Path are
 Complex compound: +1
needed to take Advantage of such a lab. Cost: Ap-
 Stable: +1
proximately $1,800,000.
 Substance is Quintessence: +5

●●●●● State of the Art: Nothing is missing from

A complex compound has 7+ atoms, or is an alloy
such a facility, and all materials are of the highest
with 4+ metals. A Stable substance would be a no-
possible quality. Alchemists receive +1 and Ad-
ble gas, diamond, platinum, silver, gold, etc.
vantage on all contests. At least 5 ranks of Alche-
my are needed to use such a lab to its full effect.

135
 THAUMATURGY
●●● Cold Forging
Using this process, the Thaumaturge may combine
liquid elements together into a solution and cast
them into a solid, composite form of any shape de-
sired. No form or mold need be used (although it
can be). The liquid will defy gravity, and can be
shaped with tools or by hand as needed.
The resulting composite is absolutely uniform, with
perfect distribution. With the proper recipes, some
truly amazing metals can be crafted.
Cold Forging is useful, but its true value is in work-
ing Transmuted elements. (See Transmutation,
right.)
●●●● Quintessence
The Thaumaturge may combine air, water, earth,
and fire in a mixture and transform it into Quintes-
sence — an Alchemist’s most prized element.
Quintessence is an colorless, odorless, weightless
vapor. It is essentially useless for anything except
Alchemy, though if it ever was found in public its
presence would baffle the scientific community and
could constitute a breach of the Masquerade, even-
tually.
The required reagents for this power are a small pail
of earth, a small pail of water, an extremely hot,
clean flame (Oxygen or Methane works best), and
air (which can be taken from the air around the
power user). The power requires a full night to use
— the time of production is the major limiting fac-
tor — and produces approximately a tablespoon of
quintessence. That tablespoon may be used to fuel
Alchemical rituals, or to improve the powers on
this path.
A dose of quintessence can be used to gain Ad-
vantage on any Alchemy contest. It may alterna-
tively make any alchemical ritual automatically suc-
ceed.
136
●●●●● Transmutation
The Thaumaturge may transmute one element into
another. This power requires sustained work over
several nights and only works on pure elements; it
may not be used to produce compounds.
Material created by this power can only be shaped
using Cold Forging. (Thus, any product must be
turned into a liquid through the Mutable States
power before shaping.) Attempts to shape or use
the substance otherwise will result in immediate
reversion to the original element. Thaumaturges
practicing this prized power have a saying, a quote
from Baruch Spinoza: "All things excellent are as
difficult as they are rare." This principle holds true:
to use this power, a Thaumaturge contests:
INTELLIGENCE + ALCHEMY VS. DIFFICULTY
The difficulty of creating an element is in part de-
termined by how rare the desired product is. Con-
sult the following table for difficulties:
6: Abundant: H, He, O, C (as coal),
Ne, Fe, N, Ma, S, Si, K
7: Common: Ti, Ni, Ar, Cl, Al,, Ca,
Zn, Cu, C (as graphite), Mg
8: Uncommon: Li, As, Sn, Xe, Ba,
Pb, Ag
10: Rare: W, Se, Hg, Au, Be
11: Ultrarare: U, Ra, Br, synthetic ele
ments, C (as diamonds)
The Thaumaturge may contest once per night. 3
successful contests are required for a solid mass
about the size of an iPhone, 12 fl. oz. of liquid
(Bromine and Mercury only), or approximately 4
liters of gas at 1 atmosphere. Ties have no effect,
but lost contests start the count over.
 THAUMATURGY

This is a relatively recent path, and also one of the
rarest -- not for its difficulty, but because it is rather
unsettling. Some more religious vampires see this
Path as unholy. Like Alchemy, use of this path is
restricted to the laboratory setting, though the type
of laboratory needed is different. Consider the Al-
chemy rules for laboratory quality (and cost) to be
applicable here.
● Bioanalysis
With only the smallest of organic tissue samples —
a hair or a cheek swab is enough — the Thauma-
turge may divine a great deal of information about
the subject from whom the sample comes. This
information can include: any of the following:
●● Biothaumaturgic Restoration
The Thaumaturge may aid a living or undead body
in its healing processes. This takes a full night (10
hours) before the roll can be made, and requires a
number of very expensive chemicals. The subject
will spend 24 hours recovering from the Restora-
tion, during which time he or she will give away
Advantage on all contests. Performing Restoration
on one's self is possible, but the Thaumaturge gives
away Advantage.
Two wound levels of any type may be healed with-
out rolling. If more healing is desired, the Thauma-
turge may contest (using Medicine for mortals,
and Vampire Physiology for vampires):

(1) Species BIOTHAUMATURGY + RELEVANT STAT

(2) Age VS.
(3) Sex TOTAL # OF HEALTH LEVELS X 2.
(4) Presence of a particular drug (including
vampiric vitae in ghouls) Success means that all levels are healed; a tie heals
(5) Last meal (major components) two levels, and failure is just that.
(6) Sanguinis (vampires only)
(7) Clan (vampires only)
(8) Diablerie history (vampires only)
(9) Magic using ability

This power requires a full night to perform. The

Thaumaturge makes a contest of::

BIOTHAUMATURGY + WITS
VS.
4+ # OF INFOBITS DESIRED.

Success indicates that all infobits are discovered. A

Tie means that 1 is discovered. The sample is de-
stroyed in the process, although the clever Bio-
Thaumaturge will divide a larger sample into small-
er pieces in order to make multiple attempts.

137
 THAUMATURGY
●●● Biothaumaturgic Enhancement
The Thaumaturge may perform a full week's worth
of experimentation on a subject and give that sub-
ject enhanced physical abilities. No other substan-
tial activity (including hunting) can be performed
during this week. Any of the following may be se-
lected:
 1 level of Potence
 1 level of Fortitude
 1 level of Celerity
 +1 to all Physical Attributes
The Thaumaturge must choose how many bonuses
he or she is attempting to grant before performing
the experiment. (A given bonus may be chosen
more than once.) Success or failure is not deter-
mined until the end of the week. The Thaumaturge
contests:
INTELLIGENCE + BIOTHAUMATURGY
VS.
BASE DIFFICULTY + (2X# OF BONUSES)
The base difficulty is:
3 Mortals
4 Ghouls
5 Biothaumaturgic Constructs
7 Vampires.
If the Thaumaturge has previously failed to en-
hance the same subject, increase the difficulty by
another 2. The experiment’s effects last 28 days for
a success, and 7 days for a tie. Failures inflict 5
wound levels on the subject with no positive effect.
●●●● Biothaumaturgic Construct
The Thaumaturge may endow a dead lifeform with
magical energy and essentially bring it back to a
mocking shade of life. The creature so created will
be mindless (Social and Mental attributes of zero),
but will have their original Strength and Stamina.
Their dexterity will be reduced by 1 (to a minimum
of 1). The construct will have one half the total
number of health levels that it had in life.
138
The size and complexity of the creature determines
how long it takes to use this power.
1 Night: A plant, medium fish, a
small bird, or a rodent.
3 Nights: A small cat, dog, a hawk,
bat, or medium tree.
1 Week: A large dog or person
3 Weeks: A great cat, horse, or shark.
The Thaumaturge may create patchwork creatures,
giving a person the claws of a cat, the head of a
dog, and so forth. The GM should work with the
player to resolve these situations.
The construct must be given a simple set of in-
structions -- no more than a sentence or two and
nothing that requires any sort of reasoning -- at the
time it is created. Failure to do so results in an inert
construct that simply sits there. All Biothaumatur-
gic constructs are destroyed instantly if exposed to
sunlight. They suffer double damage from Fire.
To create the construct, the Thaumaturge must
contest:
WITS + BIOTHAUMATURGY VS. DIFFICULTY
Difficulty varies with the amount of change worked
into the construct (6 for an unchanged corpse, 10
for a complex hybrid). Success means the con-
struct lasts 366 days. A tie means the construct
lasts 1 week. Failures fail.
●●●●● Creo Vivum
This power is identical to Biothaumaturgic Con-
struct (●●●●) save that:
(1) the length of time to work it is doubled; and
(2) the creature will have Mental attributes 1 less
than what it had in life..
Instructions are not necessary, as the construct may
have reasoning and memory. It will still desire to
serve the caster, but it can be convinced to do oth-
erwise.
 THAUMATURGY
Much prized for its utility in Certamen duels, Coun-
termagic represents the Tremere's first line of de-
fense... against each other.
● Resistance Charm
(Combat)
By expending a blood point, the caster makes him
or herself momentarily more resistant to magic ef-
fects, gaining Advantage on any contest to resist a
magical power. This power can be activated in-
stantly in response to any minor magical effect of
which the Thaumaturge is aware. "Minor" in this
context means a Rank 2 power or ritual or lower.
The charm does not affect purely physical damage
or attacks caused indirectly by magical sources such
as a telekinetically thrown rock, Tactical elemental
attacks such as Lure of Flames, and has no effect
on vampiric disciplines other than Thaumaturgy
and Necromancy.
●● Negate
(Combat)
This power functions the same as Resistance
Charm, but the caster gains resistance (i.e., Ad-
vantage) against any magical effect. This still does
not affect indirect physical attacks.
●●● Deflection
(Combat)
By spending a Willpower point, the power user may
cause any offensive Thaumaturgical or magical ef-
fect directed at him to rebound against the original
caster. Attacks with range limitations will always be
able to reach back to the original caster. All charac-
teristics of the attack are handled as if the original
caster had cast it at himself. The caster must be
aware of the attack to activate this power. This
does affect elemental castings such as Lure of
Flames.
139
●●●● Spell Breaker
(Range)
By expending a Willpower point, the Thaumaturge
may dispel any permanent Thaumaturgical or magi-
cal enchantment, including but not limited to
wards, personal rituals, spirit bindings, and item
enchantments. Use of this power requires at least a
full minute. The enchantment MUST attempt to
resist with:
LEVEL VS. THAUMATURGE WILLPOWER
Compare the level of the enchantment with the lev-
el of the caster's Countermagic path. Whichever is
higher gains Advantage on this contest. Perma-
nently or semi-permanently enchanted items always
gain Advantage.
●●●●● Spell Shield
By expending a Willpower point, the Thaumaturge
may wrap him or herself in a protective cloak of
Countermagic. This power lasts for one scene.
While this power is active, any use of magic or
Thaumaturgy (other than Countermagic) directed
against the caster automatically fails unless the op-
posing caster immediately spends a Willpower
point.
If the additional Willpower point is spent, then the
magical effect must resist as if the Thaumaturge
used the Spell Breaker power against it. This power
does NOT affect permanent magic items: only ef-
fects cast at the Thaumaturge.
 THAUMATURGY
This path was developed by a Tremere Kabbalah
scholar in North Africa around 1911. It has not yet
caught on to widespread use.
● Processing
(Combat)
By expending a blood point, the Thaumaturge ef-
fectively increases his or her Wits. The Thauma-
turge gains Advantage on any Wits contests for that
turn. This power does not constitute an action and
may be used in response to the call for a contest.
●● Centering the Chi
(Mental) (Subtle) (Range) (Combat)
By expending a Willpower point, the caster may
cause him or herself, or another target, to enter a
state of enhanced mental clarity, peace, and stabil-
ity.
Characters affected by this power are unaffected by
wound penalties, gain a +1 in contests to resist
Mental and Emotion disciplines used against him or
her. This power lasts for two turns per Path Rat-
ing.
●●● Power of the Single Mind
(Mental) (Subtle) (Range) (Combat)
By expending a blood point, the caster may cause
him or herself or another target to enter a state of
extreme mental focus, pursuing a single task and
their mind ignoring much of what goes on around
them. The subject may resist with:
WILLPOWER VS. WITS + PATH RATING
The effect lasts for one scene, the task is complet-
ed, or until the subject is forced to do something
else (the caster may choose to end it at will if he is
the target).
140
While under the influence of this power, the subject
will not be oblivious to the rest of the world, but
they will tend to zone out anything that isn't ex-
ceedingly important. This will typically give a +1
to +2 bonus on activities requiring extended con-
centration or mental activity, and force the subject
to give away Advantage on Perception-based rolls
unrelated to the task..
●●●● Multitasking
(Combat)
The Thaumaturge is able to draw upon the power
of his blood and his training in the Path to frag-
ment his attention -- effectively multiplying his
mental capacity. By expending a blood point, the
caster gains additional actions equal to his Path Rat-
ing -- though any additional actions must be pri-
marily mental (though it may include speaking,
small hand manipulations, or even be the use of a
discipline such as Dominate or Auspex). If the
character turns his full attention to a mental prob-
lem using this power, he or she may make multiple
rolls and take the best result. All actions under this
power happen simultaneously.
●●●●● Perfect Clarity
This power is one of the most prized powers a
Thaumaturge can possess, though it is also ex-
tremely difficult to master and extremely taxing. Its
use requires the expenditure of two Willpower
points. The caster enters a deep contemplative
trance, effectively accelerating his or her mind at
the same time that it becomes completely calm,
centered, and stabled. This power lasts for one sce-
ne. The caster becomes immune to frenzy, Domi-
nate, and Presence, and gains Advantage on any
and all contests.
 THAUMATURGY
This path is a conglomerated path that brings to-
gether a number of traditions, rituals, and thauma-
turgical tricks that the clan has used to defend its
havens, chantries, and homes for centuries.
● Guest's Herald
This power lasts for 24 hours per blood point spent
at casting. When used on a door or other portal,
anyone entering or leaving through the portal cre-
ates an audible or visual effect that can take place
anywhere in the house: it could be a creak of the
enchanted door, the ringing of a bell in the main
hall, or the rotation of a decanter in an upstairs
lounge. The effect must be selected at the time of
casting and cannot be changed. The effect must be
simple and cannot last longer than a second or two.
●● Master's Order
(Dawn)
This power requires spending a blood point and
lasts until sunrise. While it is active, the Thauma-
turge knows where almost everything in his haven
is: where he placed an important book, where his
keys are, where the rats have taken his twinkies....
the only things for which he doesn't know the loca-
tion are living or undead creatures and items
brought into his haven without his permission or
knowledge. Some Thaumaturges give guests “gifts”
allowing them to track their whereabouts...
●●● Rhyme of Discord
Use of this power requires spending at least two
blood points, and it remains active for 24 hours per
two points spent. When active, anyone in the cast-
er’s haven without express permission will find
themselves hopelessly lost, no matter how small the
building. They will also be unable to remember any
but the most insignificant details of the place. Any-
one approaching the entrance of the haven without
141
permission will have a sense of unease sufficient to
dispel casual visitation. The effects may be resisted
with a contest of:
WILLPOWER VS. INTELLIGENCE + OCCULT
Success grants freedom from the enchantment for
approximately five minutes, at which time another
resist must be made. A Tie means the resistor suc-
cumbs to the enchantment and may not resist for
fifteen minutes. Failure indicates that no further
attempts can be made while remaining in the haven.
●●●● Temportal
(Dawn)
By expending a Willpower point, the Thaumaturge
creates a space-distorting field of magical energy
throughout his or her haven. The caster may use
any door to access any room in his or her haven,
even if that room has no other doors or entrances.
This power lasts until sunrise. Only the caster and
those he willingly brings with him while touching
may use these doorways in this manner.
●●●●● Living Manor
(Dawn)
By expending a Willpower point, the Thaumaturge
may imbue his haven with a limited sentience. The
caster may ask his haven questions about what is
happening within its walls or immediately outside
of them (the haven can "see' through windows), or
even about what has transpired since the power was
activated. The caster must talk to a particular ob-
ject in the haven -- though it can be any object at
any given time. The haven will not initiate a con-
versation unless there is some grave danger to the
haven itself or the caster (i.e., four Sabbat smash
through the front door). The Haven is not consid-
ered to have any Auspex.
 THAUMATURGY

Other vampires fear the Tremere for many reasons,

but no reason is perhaps so primal as their ability to
wield flames against their enemies.

● Candlelight
Using this power, the Thaumaturge may create a
small candle-sized flame on the palm of his or her
hand, or on the tip of a finger. The flame will not
harm the power user (though it may induce Fren-
zy), but it will cause one level of fire damage to any-
one directly exposed to it for 10 seconds or more,
and it may be used to ignite combustibles. The use
of this power requires the expenditure of a blood
point. The caster may maintain the flame as long as
he or she wishes, but cannot use the hand for any
other purposes.
●●●● Engulf
(Tactical) (Range) (Gesture)
●● Flame Wreath By expending a Willpower point, the caster may
(Combat) cause a target to be consumed with flame. Lest the
By spending a blood point, the character may author be accused of understatement, let me repeat
wreathe his or her hands in flame for one round, that. The caster may cause a target to be consumed
adding one point of aggravated damage to brawl with flame.
and grapple attacks (and potentially causing frenzy).
Alternatively, he or she may wreathe a melee weap- CBT: Dex + Occult DMT: Willpower
on in flame, causing up to two points of the dam- High: 5A Low: 3A
age to be aggravated (though no additional dam- Soak using Fire/Sun total only.
age). Normal soak totals are still used in both cases
-- not the Fire/Sun total.
●●●●● Immolations
●●● Flame Bolt (Tactical) (Range) (Gesture)
(Tactical) (Range) (Gesture) The caster may use the Engulf power on multiple
The character may, with the expenditure of a blood targets simultaneously. In calculating CBT, x is the
point, create a stream of flame that shoots forth number of targets. The Thaumaturge may thus use
towards its designated target. Immolations on two targets without any penalty.

CBT: Dex + Occult DMT: Willpower CBT: Dex + Occult + 2 - x DMT: Willpower
High: 3A Low: 1A High: 5A Low: 3A
Soak using Fire/Sun total only. Soak using Fire/Sun total only.

142
 THAUMATURGY
A path of shadow and darkness, the Muted Path is
often viewed as the opposite of Lure of Flames,
and its practitioners may quench the fires of that
Path. If a power from this path is used against
Lure, it must be of equal or greater level (i.e., Mut-
ed Path 2 can only affect Lure of Flames 1 or 2).
If a Thaumaturge with skill in this path declares a
combat action, then someone attacks them with fire
(or some sunlight equivalent), this power may be
used reactively without giving away Advantage
for changing actions (i.e., it counts as an “Evade”
against fire and sun-type attacks).
143
Some say that this path is related to the Obtene-
bration powers of the Lasombra, and that it comes
dangerously close to consorting with demons. For
this reason, some extremely conservative Thauma-
turges will have nothing to do with it.
The first four levels of this power may only be di-
rected at one specific target (unless the Thauma-
turge is using Path of the Focused Mind to multi-
task). Thus, the level four power (Extinguish) can-
not extinguish all light in a city block, but only, say,
the lights connected to the electrical system (i.e.,
what is being affected is the power grid). "All the
lights in a house" would be considered a single ob-
ject, because the house is a single object.
The GM and the player are encouraged to discuss
the parameters of this power, and the GM is gently
reminded that it is supposed to be an impressive line
of blood sorcery.
● Snuff
(Sight) (Combat) (Concentration)
By expending a blood point, the Thaumaturge may
extinguish a light source no more powerful than a
single large bulb (i.e., a yard floodlight). Flames will
simply go out (without leaving even residual em-
bers) and electric sources will continue to function,
but will simply produce no light.
This power automatically succeeds, but if used
against another magus using the Lure of Flames
path, the affected magus may resist with:
STAMINA + LURE OF FLAMES
VS.
STAMINA + MUTED PATH.
A tie means that this power works and the flame is
put out.
 THAUMATURGY
●● Mute
(Sight) (Combat) (Concentration)
This power functions identically to the Snuff Pow-
er, but it may affect flames as large as a campfire, or
electric sources as intense as a car's headlights and
running lights.
●●● Quench
(Sight) (Combat) (Concentration)
This power functions identically to the Snuff and
Mute powers, but may affect flames as large as a
bonfire, may smother incendiary or flash grenades,
and can put out electric lights equivalent to a
searchlight or all the lights in a small or medium-
sized house.
At this level, the Thaumaturge may also instinctive-
ly spend a blood point — subject to the per round
limit — to reduce fire damage by one point. (But
not sunlight.)
144
●●●● Extinguish
(Sight) (Combat) (Concentration)
This power functions identically to the Snuff, Mute,
and Quench powers, but may affect flames the size
of an entire house fire, and may darken all connect-
ed electric lights in a city block.
●●●●● Blackout
(Sight) (Combat) (Concentration)
At this level, the Thaumaturge may perform one of
the most valuable magical acts a vampire can have:
he or she may blot out the sun. The area of affect
is limited to approximately 100 yard radius, give or
take. Sunlight in the area will be dampened consid-
erably -- the area will appear as if at twilight. All
vampires in the area of effect gain Advantage when
soaking sunlight, and take one less damage from
sunlight after Soak. Alternatively, this power may
be used to counteract Lure of Flames 5.
 THAUMATURGY

● Read the Ripples has an extremely dramatic effect: water/blood rush-

es out of the victim's pores, eyes, and orifices and
(Touch)
then disappears. The caster chooses how much
By spending a blood point, the Thaumaturge may
fluid he or she is going to attempt to destroy
peer into a standing body of water (including foun-
(x=number of wounds or points). The power is
tains) and see what transpired in the immediate vi-
automatically contested, with a tie indicating that
cinity up to ten years past. This takes several
half of the targeted amount of fluid (rounded up) is
minutes, and may not be done in combat, If seeking
destroyed:
a particular target, the Thaumaturge must contest:
WILLPOWER + OCCULT + PATH – X
PERCEPTION + OCCULT + AUSPEX
VS.
VS.
STAMINA + FORTITUDE + SURVIVAL.
4 + (OBFUSCATE X 2)

●● Poseidon's Prison ●●●● Channel Barrier

(Range) (Tactical) (Touch) (Dawn)
Be expending three blood points, the Thaumaturge
By spending a Blood Point, the user summons a
may make a body of running water up to the size of
shell of water to surround a subject, binding a vam-
a large stream impassable to any supernatural crea-
pire or suffocating a mortal. The power requires at
ture. Although failure results in a fear frenzy check,
least two cubic yards of fluid nearby. The victim
by spending a Willpower, a supernatural creature
cannot breathe, but is protected by the water
may attempt to cross by contesting:
(equivalent to Fortitude 1).
STRENGTH + POTENCE VS. 10.
CBT: DEXTERITY + SURVIVAL.

No damage is inflicted. The victim may escape, but
each attempt takes one full round of action and re-
quires a contest of:
STRENGTH + POTENCE
VS.
CASTER'S WILLPOWER.
●●● Parch
(Range) (Combat) (Gesture)
By calling this power into effect and spending a
blood point, the Thaumaturge can drain a target of
fluid. The power dehydrates mortals, causing dam-
age, and destroys blood pool in vampires. It may
not be used in close or melee combat. This power
●●●●● Blood to Water
(Touch) (Tactical)
By expending a Willpower and touching an oppo-
nent, the Thaumaturge may transform his/her
blood to water. This power kills mortals instantly.
In vampires, it destroys blood and inflicts a level of
damage for each point destroyed. Ghouls are treat-
ed as vampires only so long as they have vampiric
vitae in their system. If the touch is successful, the
caster contests, with the difference between the to-
tals indicating how many points are destroyed:
MEDICINE + PATH RATING
VS.
TARGET'S FORTITUDE.

145
 THAUMATURGY
● Battle Sense
(Combat)
The Thaumaturge may spend a blood point to re-
ceive the blessing of the Goddess of War and Wis-
dom, increasing his or her reaction time and ability
to discern opponent’s intentions. In game terms,
the Thaumaturge gains +3 Initiative Rating for the
rest of the scene and also gains Advantage on one
Evade roll per round.
●● Combat Analysis
(Combat) (Sight)
The Thaumaturge must study a target combatant
who is in Brawl or Melee combat for two full
rounds before activating this power. (The Caster
may or may not be fighting at the time.) Then, by
spending a Willpower, the caster will gain Ad-
vantage on any and all physical combat contests
against the target for the rest of the scene.
●●● Parthenos
(Touch) (Multi)
By touching a target (the “Parthenos”) and expend-
ing a Willpower, the Thaumaturge may mark the
target as inviolate — one who cannot be assaulted
or desecrated. Anyone wishing to attack the target
for the rest of the scene must first succeed on a
contest of:
WILLPOWER + SANGUINIS
VS.
TARGET HUMANITY + CASTER PATH RATING
Success means that the attacker (and only the at-
tacker) may attack the Parthenos for the rest of the
scene.
This power is instantly dispelled if the target makes
an overtly hostile gesture or attack.
146
●●●● Aegis
(Combat) (Gesture)
When wielding a melee weapon in his or her prima-
ry hand, the Thaumaturge may expend a blood
point to fend off Melee and Brawl attacks with his
or her free off hand, merely making a pushing or
warding gesture to stop the attack and stagger the
opponent. In game terms, the attacker gains the
following bonuses against the attack:
 +2 Soak
 HIGH damage is treated as LOW damage.
 LOW damage is ignored.
●●●●● Battlefield Wisdom
(Combat)
By expending a Willpower, the Thaumaturge may
place his mind in direct contact with all sentient
combatants (mortals, vampires, mages, ghouls,
werewolves, faeries) in the immediate vicinity. Use
of this power will replace active Battle Sense (●).
This has five major effects:
 The caster becomes more vulnerable to Mental
and Emotion disciplines powers that are used
against him or her, giving away Advantage.
 The caster and all his or her allies each gains a
+2 to their Initiative Ratings.
 The caster gains Advantage on all Evade rolls,
and does not give away Advantage on any Evade
rolls as a result of Multiple Opponents (but still
gives away Advantage on attacks as required).
 The caster gains three ranks of “virtual” Auspex
for the purpose of seeing through Obfuscate
effects.
 The caster may spend Willpower to give any of
his or her allies Advantage.
 THAUMATURGY
● A Taste of Vitae
(Touch)
By touching or tasting even a tiny drop of blood for
5 minutes, the user of this power can discern the
following: species and sex of the target, the state of
health at the time the blood was lost (and whether
he or she died as a result), and the approximate
time since the blood was spilt.
For vitae, the clan, approximate Sanguinis, and
rough age can be determined as well. Sanguinis will
not be expressed as a number; the GM should give
an accurate, non-numeric description (i.e.,
"Stronger than your sire").
●● Blood Mastery
(Combat) (Distance)
The user of this power may use a target's blood
against him. This power requires that the Thauma-
turge possess a point of the target's blood. The
caster may automatically succeed in any contest
with the target. This burns the blood.
●●● Blood of Potency
This power raises the user's Sanguinis by 1-3 levels,
to a maximum of 7. It requires 1 full round of un-
interrupted action and spending 1 Willpower. The
cast must also burn 1 blood for each level he seeks
to gain. This power lasts for 3 hours or sunrise,
whichever comes first. Multiple uses are not cumu-
lative, though the power may be used more than
once per night to gain a greater effect. An increase
of 1 is always successful, and 1 level will be gained
no matter what. The Thaumaturge may seek a
greater increase (2-3 levels) by contesting:
INTELLIGENCE + PATH
VS.
2 + (3 X INCREASE SOUGHT)
147
●●●● Theft of Vitae
(Range) (Gesture) (Tactical)
The user of this power may steal blood up to twice
his or her current per-turn Sanguinis limit from a
target into their own blood pool. This counts as a
Ranged attack (Tactical) that automatically hits.
Once stolen, the blood is considered theirs, not the
target’s. If blood is taken from a vampire, the tar-
get will be aware they have lost vitae. If from a
mortal, they will feel only agonizing pain. (The
power causes one damage for each point taken, but
a transfusion will heal them.) The theft is not obvi-
ous to witnesses. The target may resist with
WP/2 VS. WITS + MEDICINE.
●●●●● Cauldron of Blood
(Touch) (Tactical)
By expending a Willpower and placing a hand firm-
ly on the target, the power user literally boils the
target's blood inside their body, destroying it and
causing incredible damage. Steam erupts from the
target's skin, which may melt or blister.
This power will kill mortals and ghouls instantly,
though ghouls with Fortitude may lose blood
points equal to their Fortitude before dying, though
if they survive at all they will be Incapacitated..
The caster boils two points by default, causing two
damage, but may boil an additional blood point
(causing 1 damage) for every additional blood point
he or she expends at the time the power is used (up
to his or her Sanguinis limit). This damage cannot
be soaked.
The damage continues for some time: each round
after the first, the target loses 1 less blood point and
takes 1 less damage, until the effect ends.
 THAUMATURGY
● Palm
(Touch) (Combat)
By expending a blood point, the Thaumaturge may
cause any object no larger than a small book, a
small pistol, or a can of soda to immediately vanish
from his or her hand. The object still exists, but is
transported to a pocket of extradimensional space
that is created upon using this power.
The object will reappear within 10 seconds, but if
the Thaumaturge has a path rating of two or more,
he or she may spend a blood point, causing the ob-
ject to stay disappeared until brought back with the
Presto power. The power cannot be used on living
material, and cannot be used on material that is
physically connected to anything else. A caster can-
not “store” more items in this space than his Path
of Conjuring rating.
●● Presto
(Combat)
By burning a blood point, the Thaumaturge can
immediately bring back into one of his hands any
object that was subjected to his Palm or Vanish
powers.
●●● Vanish
(Touch) (Combat)
This power functions exactly as Palm, save that the
object may be up to the size of a sword, rifle, or fire
extinguisher, and use of this power requires a Will-
power point (no matter how long the item is Van-
ished).
148
●●●● Long Fingers
(Range) (Combat)
The Thaumaturge has advanced his conjuring skill
to be able to teleport small objects into his hand at
a distance, even out of the hands of another with-
out regard to Strength.
Effectively, he can use the Palm power at range,
and at the same time, use the Presto power to cause
the object to appear in his hand. Using this power
requires the expenditure of a Willpower. This pow-
er may be used, without regard for distance or
range, on any item that the Thaumaturge has im-
printed with his Sigil (Hearth Path ritual) by ex-
pending a blood point instead of a Willpower.
●●●●● Escape
(Fair Escape)
The Thaumaturge has mastered the Path of Conjur-
ing and may perform the Vanish power on himself
and any objects he or she is carrying. Using this
power requires the expenditure of a Willpower
point.
The player must declare at the time he or she van-
ishes how long he or she will remain in the extradi-
mensional space. At the end of the expired time,
he or she appears in his or her original position. If
the original position is occupied by another object,
the caster is unable to leave, but will appear the in-
stant the space is unoccupied. While in the extradi-
mensional space, the caster effectively ceases to ex-
ist, but will continue to lose blood with each Dawn.
The Thaumaturge loses a blood point when he or
she reappears. If the Thaumaturge loses all of his
or her blood while in the space, he or she reappears
in torpor.
 THAUMATURGY

This Path is adapted from an ancient line of Setite
sorcery. It was developed by Hasham ibn Adal of
the Cairo chantry — and further refined by a num-
ber of contributors — in the mid 1800's. It is not
practiced widely, being concentrated mostly in the
Eastern Mediterranean. There is some stigma at-
tached to practicing this Path; it is considered by
some to be “unclean.”
Learning this Path is cause for a Degeneration
Check (as, obviously, are many uses of its foul pow-
ers). Learning Level 1 is considered a Rank 6 “sin.”
Learning Level 2 is considered a Rank 5 sin, Level 3
a Rank 4 sin, and so forth.
clutch it even more tightly. This power can disrupt
negotiations and tense social situations, leading to
catastrophic consequences.
The target will not be aware of the change, and will
likely attempt to rationalize it until he or she has
had some time (and cause) to reflect on his or her
actions. The target may subconsciously resist this
power with a contest of:
WP/2
VS.
MANIPULATION + SUBTERFUGE

● Malaise
(Touch) (Dawn)
By expending a blood point and touching the sub-
ject, the power user may attempt to poison the spir-
it of the target. The taint is visible as an ill-yellow
blurriness in the target's aura. While under the in-
fluence of this power, the target gives away Ad-
vantage on all Social Contests as well as Frenzy/
Degeneration rolls. The target may resist with a
contest of:

HUMANITY VS. WILLPOWER + EMPATHY.

●● Contradiction
(Range) (Subtle) (Personal) (Multi)
By expending a blood point, the Thaumaturge may
cause the target to do the exact opposite of whatev-
er it is they intended to do for the next ten seconds.
If they were going to voice their disagreement with
something, they will instead endorse it. If they
were going to walk out, they will instead sit down.
If they were going to attack someone, they will in-
stead attempt to defuse the situation. If they were
going to hand something over, they will instead

149
 THAUMATURGY
●●● Soul Turning
(Personal) (Range) (Subtle) (Multi) (Dawn)
This power allows the Thaumaturge to expend a
blood point to change a character's Demeanor to
one of his or her own choosing. This does not
change the target’s Nature — only how they act.
The target will not realize that they have changed,
and will continue to think of themselves in terms of
their original Demeanor, rationalizing any action as
necessary. The target may resist this power when it
is used with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + EMPATHY
●●●● Accursed Form
(Touch) (Multi)
With a touch, the Thaumaturge warps the target's
appearance, reducing it by that Caster’s path rating.
The effect may vary: they may become misshapen
and diseased-looking, they may adopt a Nosferatu-
like mien, or their features may just distort and
wrinkle. This power may not be used in combat.
The target may resist this power with a contest of:
WP/2 VS. INTELLIGENCE + MEDICINE
150
●●●●● Addiction
The Thaumaturge may make some of his or her
vitae incredibly addictive, though it will not form
Blood Bonds in this form, The power must be used
at the time the vitae leaves the caster's body, but
may not be used in combat. When the target drinks
it, if he or she is not addicted, he or she becomes
addicted unless he or she resists with:
WP/2 VS. CASTER'S CHARISMA + OCCULT
An addict who goes more than three nights without
the potion gives away Advantage on all contests
until he or she partakes. The addiction may be bro-
ken by refusing the potion on three separate, con-
secutive instances, or by going without for one full
month. When the addict is presented with an op-
portunity to partake, he or she may resist with:
WP/2
VS.
CASTER'S WP + (# OF DRINKS TAKEN, MAX 3)
The MULTI modifier applies to this second con-
test only. The target may gain Advantage is some-
thing egregious is being demanded by the Thauma-
turge.
 THAUMATURGY

This is the path dealing with the control and manip-

ulation of various Spirits. It is a practical, thauma-
turgical take on the various studies that are Necro-
mancy, and has been spearheaded by a young Re-
gent in Los Angeles named Augustin Malecourt,
though many of the more sophisticated develop-
ments have built upon his work in Vienna.

● Veil Sight
The Thaumaturge with this power will be aware of
the presence of spirits who are not actively conceal-
ing themselves, and by concentrating can see and
communicate with spirits. Most spirits react to
vampires with hatred and fear. This power can be ●●●● Fetishes
used at will. The Thaumaturge may bind a spirit into an object
so that the powers of the spirit may be used repeat-
●● Spirit Slave edly. This power will cost a variable amount of
(Range) (Resistance) (Multi) blood depending on the power of the spirit, but will
The user of this power can command one service be at least equal to the spirit's Willpower. Use of
from a spirit by expending a Blood Point. The this power calls for an immediate Humanity check
powers of most spirits to affect the physical world in any circumstance. The GM and the player will
are extremely limited. The spirit must resist this work out how this power works on a case by case
power with: basis.

WP/2 VS. MANIPULATION + EMPATHY ●●●●● Spirit Walk

By expending a Willpower point, the Thaumaturge
●●● Melding may separate from his or her body and enter the
The caster may meld a spirit with his own, granting Spirit World. The body is left behind until they
him an additional two Willpower points that may return. The travelling Thaumaturge is considered a
be used at any time prior to sunrise. The character spirit while this power is in effect. The caster may
becomes more insulated against the Beast, but risks not spy on the physical world from the spirit world:
his or her humanity. The caster will gain Ad- this power is intended to allow the Thaumaturge to
vantage on frenzy rolls, but give away Advantage find and identify even more powerful spirits. The
on humanity checks. This power requires the ex- caster's body remains inert and the caster will be
penditure of 3 blood points, and is considered an unaware of anything that transpires around or to it.
extremely evil thing to do: check Humanity if hu-
manity is 6 or higher. The spirit will almost always
resist with:

WP/2 VS. CASTER'S WILLPOWER.

151
 THAUMATURGY
● The Currents of Knowledge
The Thaumaturge has learned how to turn his mind
into a computing machine capable of tremendous
feats of analysis and recall. He or she may expend a
blood point and gain 1 effective level of every tech-
nical field (Computers, Chemistry, Medicine, Phys-
ics, Biology, etc.). This power lasts for one hour
per rank of Intelligence the caster possesses.
●● Disrupt
The user of this power temporarily disrupts a tech-
nological device sensitive to static or EMP energy
(i.e., computer chips, pacemakers, ATMs, traffic
light controllers). The duration is momentary --
just enough to cause a reset or reboot. The power
requires spending a blood point at Touch range, +1
blood point for every 10 feet of additional range.
If the Thaumaturge expends a Willpower, the dis-
ruption is more serious: the device will require re-
pair or replacement before functioning again. A
successful contest is required for large and/or hard-
ened systems. The caster contests:
INTELLIGENCE + ELECTRONICS
VS.
DIFFICULTY
The Difficulty is: 5 for large systems (bigger than a
room), 7 for hardened systems, and 9 for systems
that are both large and hardened.
●●● iCell
(Dawn)
The user of this power can access cell networks for
messaging and phone calls without use of a device.
This use is untraceable by standard means. The user
need only carry a mental image of a phone in their
152
head and pantomime a phone (or use a prop, such
as a banana). This power costs one blood point.
●●●● Crack
(Touch)
By expending a Willpower point, the Thaumaturge
may gain access to or approval from any electronic
system. He or she may divine computer account
passwords, ATM PINs, may cause electronic locks
to unlock or security systems to validate his or her
identity. This power automatically works, but only
on one system in one place (i.e., the system log in
for a single PC -- password-encrypted files will each
require a separate use of this power). Of course,
once the Thaumaturge gains a password... he knows
the password forever.
●●●●● Matrix
(Touch)
The user of this power may call upon the collective
capabilities of all connected GPS, satellites (e.g.
ground-penetrating radar), surveillance cameras,
online blueprints, cell phones, internet connections
(unencrypted), motion sensors, etc., to expand his
senses and knowledge and allow eavesdropping.
All he needs is an access point.
This requires full focused attention and expenditure
of 1 Willpower to activate. While active, the power
user cannot move (any movement disrupts the
power) or communicate until they de-activate. The
effective range of the power is limited by the con-
centration of technology present. Typically it can
range from a building to a city block — though
connection is a strict requirement. Additional
Technomancy powers may be employed while this
is in use so long as the users neither moves nor
communicates. The Player and the GM should col-
laborate in sketching the limits of this power.
 THAUMATURGY

● Earthspeak ble 29 below, and may not affect any object with a
size greater than his or her Thaumaturgy score.
(Touch)
The Thaumaturge contests his Willpower vs. the
By placing a point of his or her vitae on a patch of
indicated difficulty. If the difficulty is higher than
open earth or upon a rock, the caster will immedi-
the caster's Willpower, it gains Advantage as well.
ately become aware of everything that has tran-
Using this power requires 1 minute for each rank of
spired in that location in the last twenty four hours.
size.
●● Passwall
By expending a blood point, the Thaumaturge may Table 29—Crumbling (Path of Terra)
pass through stone, concrete, or earthen barriers.
Wooden, artificial, or texture-coated surfaces are Blood Size Diff.
not affected by this power: only pure earthen,
stone, or natural cement barriers. This is not as 1 Briefcase, small sculpture 4
useful in modern nights as it was in the day of cas-
tles. There is no limit to the thickness of the barri-
er that can be crossed, but the caster must travel in
2 Up to the size of a person 6
a straight line once he or she enters and may not
stop. 3 Semi-Truck, large wall 7

●●● Uncertain Footing 4 Small house 9

(Concentration)
This power allows the Thaumaturge to expend a 5 Large building 11
blood point to make stone and earthen surfaces
more treacherous for his opponents. This power
lasts for 1 round, but the caster may prolong the ●●●●● Stoneskin
effect by burning a blood each round. The area of By expending a Willpower point and two blood
effect is approximately 100 yard radius, but stops at points, the Thaumaturge may infuse his or her skin
the limit of available earthen surfaces. All creatures with the essence of rock and earth. For the remain-
except those in flight and the caster give away Ad- der of the scene, the Thaumaturge can be consid-
vantage on physical contests so long as they remain ered to have 3 levels of Fortitude for the purposes
in the area. of Soaking and preventing damage. The caster los-
es 1 point of Dexterity while this power is in effect.
●●●● Crumbling
(Touch)
The caster may cause an object made of stone or
earth to crumble to dust. The power may affect
any sized object, but must expend 1-5 Blood
Points, depending on the size of the object on Ta-

153
 THAUMATURGY
● Weather Sense
By spending one blood point, the Thaumaturge can
sense weather patterns and tell with precision what
the weather will be like in the next 5 days. He or
she may also determine if weather is naturally oc-
curring or not. The GM should work with the
player to determine if or how he or she can deter-
mine the source of any tampering with the weather.
●● Atmospheric Anomaly
(Gesture) (Concentration) (Sight)
By spending one Blood Point, the user of this pow-
er may affect minor changes in the weather for a
local area roughly 100 yards in diameter for one
scene. Use of this power requires a full minute, dur-
ing which time the caster may not take any other
actions. Possible alterations include:
 Fog Bank: Fog gathers within 5 minutes, cut-
ting visibility to 5 feet, and halving Sun damage.
 Cloud Cover: Clouds gather within 5 minutes,
blotting out all starlight, moonlight, and quar-
tering all damage from sunlight.
 Drizzle: Caster may summon rain from a
clouded sky. A light shower will begin immedi-
ately.
 Stiff Breeze: Caster may cause the wind to pick
up, clearing away fog, gases, and paper trash.
 Dead Calm: The caster may completely elimi-
nate all winds. The effect is immediate.
 Temperature Adjustment: Caster may adjust
the local air temperature by 10 degrees up or
down. The temperature will shift over the
course of a minute.
154
●●● Local Control
(Gesture) (Concentration) (Sight)
By spending a Blood Point, caster may quickly
cause dramatic weather effects within a local area
(200-yard radius) for one scene. These effects may
include, but are not necessarily limited to:
 Instant Fog: Within one minute, impenetrable
fog fills the area, limiting sight to one foot, five
feet for bright lights.
 Cloud Bank: Clouds gather within 1 minute,
subject to the caster's continuing control (i.e., if
the caster concentrates, he can cause breaks in
the clouds at will, or can adjust their rough
shape).
 Downpour: From a clouded sky, the caster
may call a torrential rain that starts out as a
drizzle but builds in intensity over 1 minute.
Visibility is reduced, and any fire-based contests
give away Advantage. This will extinguish build-
ing fires and wildfires within 5-60 minutes, de-
pending on the size of the blaze.
 Lightning Storm: Caster may cause a localized
lightning storm to occur from a clouded sky.
Bolts will randomly streak down, approximately
1 every 10 seconds, for as long as the caster
concentrates. These cannot be used to attack,
but will have the sorts of destructive effects
that lightning normally would.
 Temperature Extremes: The caster may ad-
just the local temperature by up to 25 degrees.
The temperature changes over 5 minutes.
 THAUMATURGY
●●●● Weather Control
(Gesture) (Concentration) (Sight)
By spending one Blood Point, the Thaumaturge
may alter the weather on a city wide basis for one
evening. Effects include rain, thunderstorms, city-
wide fog, temperature changes of up to 10 degrees
past typical highs and lows, minor hail in the win-
ter, Santa Ana Winds, etc.
Using this power requires at least ten minutes of
concentration. The caster may continue to alter the
weather state as long as he or she maintains con-
centration, but if he or she stops, whatever weather
effect is currently in place will continue until sun-
rise.
155
●●●●● Weather Mastery
(Gesture) (Concentration) (Sight)
By spending one Blood point, the caster may con-
trol weather with extreme precision and may cause
highly anomalous, acute local effects. These effects
include, but are not limited to:
 Lightning Bolts: Lightning can be called down
from a cloudy sky, to target any target within
range.
 Gusts: The caster can, with a gesture, attack
his foes with tremendous gusts of hurricane
force winds.
 Wind Walls: The caster may create a wall of
dense churning air to defend himself.

The GM should work out the details of these pow-
ers with the player. Typically, this power cannot be
used if engaged in any sort of melee combat.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Rituals are of two types: “General” rituals and
“Associated” rituals. General rituals may be
learned by anyone based on their Thaumaturgy
score (i.e., if you have Thaumaturgy 3, you can learn
Level 3 General Rituals.)
Associated rituals require the equivalent rating to be
on the associated Path, so that if you wish to learn a
Level 4 ritual associated with Neptune’s Might, you
must have 4 ranks in Neptune's Might (which in
turn requires 4 ranks in Thaumaturgy).
To cast any ritual successfully, the Thaumaturge
must succeed or tie on a contest of:
INTELLIGENCE + OCCULT
VS.
LEVEL OF THE RITUAL +3.
1. Active Ritual Limit:
No Thaumaturge may have more active rituals than
his Wits + Thaumaturgy rating. Rituals marked
with a * do not count toward that limit.
2. Learning Rituals:
Learning new rituals takes place in one of two ways:
either learning it directly from a teacher who is fa-
miliar with the ritual, or attempting to research the
ritual. The first is by far the easiest. The second
requires effort.
Researching a ritual is always successful – what mat-
ters is how long researching the ritual in question
takes. The Thaumaturge should perform the fol-
lowing contest:
INTELLIGENCE + OCCULT + LIBRARY
VS.
(LEVEL OF THE RITUAL X 5)
156
If the Thaumaturge wins the contest, researching
the ritual takes two nights per level of the ritual. If
the Thaumaturge ties, it takes one week per level of
the ritual. If the Thaumaturge loses, the research
takes one week per level of the ritual, plus one
month per point by which the contest failed.
Ritual research is assumed to consume all of a char-
acter’s “down time” for the time period that he or
she is researching.
3. Wards:
All "Ward" spells function identically: the ward is
inscribed on a surface, and any creature meeting the
specifications who touches the ward suffers an un-
preventable 3 health levels of damage for every
round they are in contact with it.
Affected creatures must succeed in a contest of...
WILLPOWER VS. 7
...merely to attempt to touch an object with an obvi-
ous (or discovered) ward. The ward only affects
ONE object: the fender of a car (not the vehicle), a
door (not the house), a golf club (not the set or the
bag), etc. Alternately, the ward may be cast on an
inscribed circle, preventing passage and inflicting
damage when the specified creature type attempts
to pass through. Impermanent circles and wards,
however, such as those of chalk, can be erased
without needing to touch them (such as with a
hose).
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
LEVEL 1:
Blood Rush
Casting Time: 1 minute
Duration: Instant
Components: S, M
The Thaumaturge scratches the skin of his hand
with the talon or tooth of a predatory animal and
murmurs a brief incantation. He or she experiences
the sensation of feeding. This can be used for
pleasure, or, more usefully, to stave off the effects
of hunger frenzy for 1 hour. It does not give any
Advantage of hunger frenzy rolls that are required
before casting.
*Communicate with the Undead Sire
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Concentration
Components: V, S
This ritual allows the initiation of two-way mind-to-
mind communication on a verbal level with anyone
whose vitae you have drunk (i.e., who you are at
least 1 step bonded to). It works over any distance,
and is usually used by a vampire to speak with his
or her sire, but this need not always be the case.
Note that verbal communication in this context
does refer to oral means, not merely mental. Both
parties must speak out loud (at least the volume of
an audible whisper to be "heard".
Communicate with Familiar
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
This ritual allows the caster to communicate com-
plex commands to an animal familiar and to receive
general empathic impressions in reply (acceptance,
eagerness, fear, denial etc) for one night. It does not
allow the caster to command the Familiar to do an-
ything it does not wish to (Though it may allow a
157
persuasion attempt with manipulation + animal
ken) nor does it allow the caster to communicate
with any animal other than a familiar he has sum-
moned himself.
Deflection of Wooden Doom
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S
This ritual causes attempts to stake the vampire
through the heart to fail, as the wooden implement
rots immediately to dust on contact. It will operate
even while the vampire is in torpor or asleep, alt-
hough its protection will terminate at sunset on the
day after its casting.
Encrypted Scroll
Casting Time: 5-7 minutes per page, de-
pending on writing speed
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge may write out any amount of
material -- usually a letter or research summary -- in
his or her own blood. (1 point allows up to 3 pages
of writing.) He or she then sprinkles sand across
the page and whispers the names of those whom he
or she wishes to receive the writing. The message
will appear as indecipherable gibberish to anyone
save those named (including the Thaumaturge!).
This ritual is easily counteracted by disciplines and
other supernatural means, but the encryption will
be impervious to mundane decryption, no matter
how powerful the computer or experienced the
reader. Any number of pages may be created in a
single casting of this ritual, though each casting
counts separately against the active ritual total.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
* End of the Immortal
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
By placing a small coin over the eyes of a vampire
in torpor, or in the ashes of a destroyed vampire,
the caster of this Ritual will receive knowledge of
how the vampire in question either entered torpor
or was destroyed. This ritual will only reveal the
cause, not the identity of any actors.
Engaging the Vessel of Transference
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual prepares a sealed vessel filled with one
point of the caster's blood, and is generally used for
taking discrete samples from victims for later use.
As this is a mystical effect, the container need only
be able to hold about 1 ounce (25 ml) of liquid vol-
ume, rather than the usual pint. Once the vessel is
finished, it can be used to magically exchange the
point of the caster's blood inside it for one point of
the victim's. The transfer is triggered by touching
the vessel against bare skin, with the only sign of
the effect being a slight shivering sensation.
The blood is preserved for as long as the ritual is
maintained, but the ritual will end as soon as the
vessel is opened or broken, at which time the blood
inside will pour forth at its full physical volume (if
the ritual is ended by the caster without opening the
vessel, it will burst open quite messily). If the cast-
er's original vitae is still within the vessel when the
ritual ends, the vitae will turn to dust, regardless of
how long it has been 'preserved'. Note that when
transferred the caster's blood transmogrifies itself
to mimic the target's in order to avoid detection,
and thus is useless in terms of creating blood bonds
or ghouls.
158
* Expedient Paperwork
Casting Time: 1 minute
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S
By casting this ritual on a sheet of paper, or a group
of attached papers, the Thaumaturge may ensure
that the target is never lost in bureaucracy, and will
always draw the attention of those to whom it is
properly addressed. This ritual affects the mind of
those in the vicinity of the paperwork, and its magic
is powerful enough that if the pages were left on
the desk of a bureaucrat who was, say, on an ex-
tended vacation, a passing colleague would notice
the pages on his or her desk and pick them up to
deal with them on his or her own initiative. The
Thaumaturge may never have more Expedient Pa-
perwork rituals active at any one time than his or
her Thaumaturgy score.
Impressive Visage
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
By casting this ritual and placing a sprig of dried
mint in his or her pocket, the caster may enhance
his or her sexual appeal. He or she becomes simply
more desirable than others. The caster gains a
functional +2 appearance for the duration of this
ritual (though this does not change his or her actual
appearance). Note that this ritual will have no ef-
fect on those who would otherwise be uninterested
in the caster sexually, including Vampires old
enough to know better. This ritual may be used to
gain additional ranks to one’s Contest Value if the
caster attempts to hunt using the "Don Juan" meth-
od.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
* Purity of Flesh
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires that the caster inscribe a circle
on the floor in chalk and set out the appropriate
glyphs and symbols. The caster then places him or
herself within the circle and begins incanting the
ritual. Nothing occurs for the first half hour, but
over the course of the second half hour, the caster's
body is slowly purged of all non-living impurities,
including pollutants, bullets, most poisons, and
drugs. It will not remove living pollutants (viruses,
bacteria, etc.) nor magical contaminants such as
Shaft of Belated Quiescence, though it will remove
wood fragments.
Rebirth of Mortal Vanity
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S
This ritual allows the caster to grow their hair, nails,
etc., to a length the caster wills. These will remain at
the length they are grown to, even through sleep,
until and unless the ritual is performed again, or the
caster voluntarily cancels the ritual, at which point it
will become a Dawn-Terminated effect.
* Rite of Introduction
Casting Time: 1 minute
Duration: Concentration
Components: S
This ritual sends a telepathic message to the Regent
of a local Chantry, and then to the other members
of that Chantry in descending rank order. It will
allow a very brief conversation with each member
of that particular Chantry (no more than twenty
words each), if they wish it. None of those contact-
ed need reply. This is often one of the very first
rituals any Tremere learns, and failure to cast it up-
159
on arriving in a new city is considered a shocking
breach of clan etiquette.
* Sense Magic
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Scene
Components: V
The Thaumaturge may detect the use of Thauma-
turgy, Necromancy, Koldunic Sorcery, or any other
type of applied magic (not the use of disciplines).
This includes the powers of the mortal mage tradi-
tions. It will detect both the active use within ap-
proximately 30 feet, as well as the presence of
standing enchantments. It reveals nothing of the
source or nature of the enchantmentts.
Wake with Evening's Freshness
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires the expenditure of a blood
point, which is destroyed in the casting. The caster
must cover his or her face with runes of blood,
which then flare with light and vanish without
trace. The vampire must retire to rest within 5
minutes of this ritual's being completed. The Thau-
maturge will wake immediately if in any danger
while asleep, and will suffer no waking penalties at
all for 5 minutes. Someone entering the vampire's
haven with ill-intent will usually be enough to trig-
ger this ritual.
Brand of the Paramour (Blood)
Casting Time: 2 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires that the caster enchant one
blood point from each of two mortal twins (the
mortals must be twins of each other). Both the
Thaumaturge and one of his ghouls each drink 1
point of the blood. Thereafter, the Thaumaturge
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
will know immediately if his or her ghoul believes
he or she is in danger, and will also immediately
know if his or her ghoul is injured, and how severe-
ly. Likewise, the ghoul will know these things of
the Thaumaturge. There is no limit to the distance
over which this ritual is effective.
* Culling the Herd (Blood)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Instant
Components: S, M
This ritual was developed by the Tremere in order
to keep an accounting of the health of the humans
they depend upon for food and support. By exam-
ining a sample of mortal or ghoul blood in a thau-
maturgical laboratory, the caster can gain detailed
information about the status of the subject. All in-
formation is given in terms of the time the sample
was taken. This includes:
 The subject's gender and exact age, including
the cumulative amount of time spent as a ghoul,
if they are one or were one in the past.
 Any diseases, ailments, or other infirmities the
subject currently suffers from, or suffered from
within the last month, regardless of their origin
(bacteria, virus, genetic, etc.). Mystical afflic-
tions will only register if they have material ef-
fects, such as Shaft of Belated Quiescence,
though Tremere often deduce mystical curses
and the like by the lack of finding other cause.
 Wounds the target has suffered within the last
month, whether or not they are healed (such as
the healing of a vampire's kiss).
 Drugs, poisons, and other foreign substances
the subject has had in their bodies within the
last week.
 Whether the subject has drunk any vampiric
vitae within the last month, and at what approx-
imate time it was ingested. Details on the vitae
in question are not possible unless a full point
or more was drunk within the last month, in
which case the traces are enough that the Clan
160
and general age (Neonate, Senior Ancilla, etc.)
of the vampire will be discernable. The pres-
ence of a blood bond, or steps towards one,
will register regardless of the amount of time
that has passed - as well as whether it is to the
caster or not.
The Thaumaturge may have to make Medicine
and/or Occult rolls to properly interpret some of the
information provided by this ritual. This ritual has
no effect on vampiric vitae.
* Inquisition of Captive Vitae (Blood)
Casting Time: 15 minutes per question
Duration: Special
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the caster to analyze a sample of
vampire or ghoul vitae in a laboratory, gaining de-
tailed information about the subject the blood came
from. A number of questions may be 'asked' of the
blood. For the first question, the Thaumaturge
contests:
PERCEPTION+OCCULT VS. 3
+1 is added to the contesting value for each succes-
sive question. If the caster fails, no further ques-
tions may be asked of that sample and the ritual
ends. The following information may be ques-
tioned:
 The subject's exact age, including how long they
have been a vampire.
 The subject's exact Sanguinis (Clan Tremere has
devised means of scaling this)
 Details of one diablerie incident, which includes
year committed, plus the Clan and Sanguinis of
the victim and an impression of their identity. If
no time period or other specification is given, it
will be the most recent incident.
 The presence of a blood bond, as Regnant or
Thrall. If the question is simply if the subject is
bound, or binds others, the answers will be yes
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
or no questions. If names are provided, they
will be confirmed or denied. Each question in
this manner must be asked separately.
 Any non-clan disciplines possessed by the sub-
ject. These can be asked for specifically, for a
yes or no answer, or generally, in which case
only the number will be given.
 The strength of the subject's Beast (given as a
total of Beast + Number of Beast Traits)
 The subject's most recent consumption of vam-
piric vitae, which includes the Clan and a rough
idea of the blood's strength (Sanguinis). If a
name is included in the question, it will be con-
firmed or denied that the subject ever drank
from that individual. The Thaumaturge may
ask about a name and a specific time period as
well.
 Any foreign substances in the blood: this is lim-
ited to non-biological contaminants such as
drugs, and the answers will be phrased in mysti-
cal/alchemical forms (cocaine would make
blood appear to be 'agitated' and choleric).
 If the subject had active Thaumaturgy, its pres-
ence may be questioned. Individual paths or
rituals may be questioned for yes or no answers
(this of course will be limited by the Caster's
knowledge).
 Any Thaumaturgical rituals or other mystical
contaminants, including spirit possession, af-
fecting the subject. The presence of any con-
taminants and details on individual contami-
nants are separate questions.
Crimson Sentinel (Hearth)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires that the Thaumaturge possess a
blood point from the target and use it to create a
ward against a specific individual, marked on a
doorway or other entrance. It may be concealed.
To approach the door, the target must contest:
161
WILLPOWER VS. 10
Passing the doorway is even more difficult, and re-
quires a separate contest of:
WILLPOWER VS. 11
Failure of either roll means that the target is strick-
en with Fear and may fear-frenzy if appropriate. A
tie means there is no effect, but the target must
burn Willpower point to attempt again (at a lower
Willpower now!). If the symbol is located and de-
stroyed by someone, the ritual ends immediately.
Haven's Shelter (Hearth)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V
This ritual enchants the vampire's haven so that
supernatural creatures such as vampires, demons,
and ghosts must have the caster's permission to
enter. Failure to obtain that permission means that
the uninvited guest gives away Advantage on all
contests while within the haven.
* Perfect Recall (Focused Mind)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
By meditating, chanting, and inscribing a glyph on
his or her forehead made of the ash of a freshly
burned book, the Thaumaturge may bring forth his
memories of any one particular incident he or she
has experienced. He or she can notice tiny details
that escaped notice, note reflections in windows
that were missed, etc. The player may ask any
questions of the GM regarding his or her memory,
though the GM need not volunteer any infor-
mation. This ritual may be performed on another,
but the target must succeed in a contest of:
WILLPOWER VS. 4
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Defense of the Sacred Haven (Muted)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset / Semi-
Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires the expenditure of a blood
point. By marking the windows of a single building
(up to the size of a small house) with his or her
blood with glyphs that disappear upon completion
of the casting, the Thaumaturge causes the win-
dows to block out sunlight. The windows will ap-
pear normal from the outside (although dark if
there is no light within) but will not allow any sun-
light at all to pass.
The world as viewed from inside appears as if it
were night -- darker, usually, as people will not have
lights on. This ritual may be made semi-permanent
by putting a container of the caster's vitae some-
where within the affected area. As long as it re-
mains within the area, the ritual will stay in place.
Almost all Tremere Chantries have this ritual cast
on them by someone who knows the Muted Path.
Serenading the Kami (Spirit)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated / Transi-
ent
Components: V, S, M
Through invocations and the burning of rare in-
cense, the Thaumaturge gains the temporary sup-
port of the Kami, a type of spirit found in all things.
After casting (but before sunrise) the caster may call
upon the Kami to aid him or her in any one physi-
cal action (though the action may be extended).
The caster gains both Advantage on the physical
action and an additional +1 to his or her relevant
total.
162
Summon Guardian Spirit (Spirit)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S, M
By sacrificing some semi-intelligent animal (a
mouse or sparrow will do but an earthworm will
not), the caster may bind its spirit to him or her un-
til the next sunset. The spirit functions as a sort of
guardian for the caster, and has the following ef-
fects:
 The caster has a 50% chance to avoid being
surprised by attacks from behind.
 The caster will be awakened if in immediate dan-
ger while asleep.
 The caster will know if a nearby vampire is on
the edge of Rage frenzy, though no information
as to why will be available.
* Analyze Technology (Technomancy)
Casting Time: Variable
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S
This ritual requires the expenditure of a blood
point, and may take anywhere from 5 minutes to 6
hours to cast. It allows the Thaumaturge to under-
stand the workings and nature of any technological
device. Extremely simple functions will come
quickly -- the Thaumaturge will know how to turn
something on within 5 minutes. The basic nature
and purpose will come within 5 minutes to 1 hour,
depending on the complexity and novelty of the
device (though the caster may lack sufficient
knowledge to understand what the purpose of the
device means). More complex workings and re-
pair/diagnostic information take longer.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS

* Reconstitute Ash (Technomancy)

Casting Time: 2 Nights
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M

This ritual requires a laboratory with various acids,

a centrifuge, a convection oven, some sort of refrig-
erator, and some common reagents. The Thauma-
turge may treat the ash from a vampire corpse (at
least 2 cups) and reconstitute it as a sample of the
subject's vitae. One night is needed for prepara-
tion, and one night for development of the sample.

* Song of Earth's Passing (Terra)

Casting Time: 5 minutes, variable
Duration: Instant
Components: S

By pressing his or hear ear to the earth, the caster

may hear the echoes of those who have passed the
location before him. For every 5 minutes, the
Thaumaturge will gain information about the next
most recent passersby. The information will in-
clude how long has elapsed since they passed, and
the approximate number. Some differentiation will
be possible (i.e., telling a group of 5 that is moving
together from a man being pursued by 4 others).

163
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS

LEVEL 2: (either at dawn or at the caster's discretion), the

Bind the Accusing Tongue
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual prevents the target of the enchantment
from speaking (or writing) ill of the caster in any
way. No resistance is possible, so tremendous rhe-
torical gains can be made in public; however, to
enact the ritual the caster must possess a lock of the
target's hair, which crumbles to dust upon its cast-
ing. There is no range limitation to this ritual.
Devil's Touch
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
This ritual curses a mortal (it is ineffective on vam-
pires). The mortal must be present when the ritual
is cast, and the Thaumaturge must touch the mor-
tal. For the remainder of the evening, all who inter-
act with the target will treat him as the most despic-
able, loathesome individual imaginable. All who
deal with him will do whatever is within their pow-
er (within the constraints of their own natures) to
make him or her miserable. Even bums will spit on
the target.
Eyes of the Night Hawk
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a predatory bird that must be
present for the casting. The caster annoints the
bird's eyes with a drop of his or her own blood, and
for the rest of the night may see through the bird's
eyes. The caster may control where the bird goes
but may not make it take any other action (picking
things up, attacking, etc.). Before termination
eyes of the bird must be put out, or the caster will
suffer blindness for 1 week.
Illuminate the Trail of Prey
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge takes an object belonging to the
target (a lock of hair, a piece of clothing, or some
other somewhat personal possession) and burns it
while chanting and making mystic gestures. At the
conclusion of the ritual, he or she may rub the ash-
es on either his or her own eyes, or the eyes of oth-
ers (or both). Only those present for the casting
may be affected. Any persons affected by this ritual
will see the "footprints" of the target of the ritual
glowing on the ground. The brilliance of the glow
is indicative of how long it has been since their
passing. Only trails from that evening will show
up.
* Nectar of the Bitter Rose
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is a dark secret to those who know it, for
there is a standing order from Vienna that orders
both the destruction of any written copies of the
ritual and the Final Death of any who know it. It is
said that the clan's Founder himself developed the
ritual.
The ritual requires a number of ingredients: the pet-
als of twelve roses, each rose cut from a living stem
during a different new moon; powdered Night-
shade gathered at the height of the Summer Sol-
stice; silk from a ghouled spider; vinegar made from
wine that was pressed on All-Hallow's Eve; the af-
terbirth of a woman who died in childbirth; a pow-
dered opal worth at least $8000; and the ashes or
powdered bones of both a male and a female virgin

164
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
who died without sin on their soul (most casters of
this ritual simply use babies).
This ritual creates a draught from the life-essence
of a vampire, who must be restrained throughout
the whole three-hour process. If the ritual is suc-
cessful, the victim is utterly destroyed, exactly as if
they had been diablerized. Up to five Diabolists
may share the draught, each gaining the effects of
diablerie against the victim.
Phantom Ecstasy
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is an improved version of the Blood
Rush ritual, and requires an hour to cast. It will
prevent the caster from entering a hunger frenzy
once. The Thaumaturge must prepare a fang or tal-
on from a predatory animal, inscribed with glyphs,
and carry it on his or her person. The first time the
caster is forced to check for hunger frenzy, the fang
disintegrates and the caster is filled with the sensa-
tion of feeding. Frenzy is automatically resisted.
Thaumaturges with hunger-related Beast Traits are
known to have necklaces of several enchanted
fangs on their person.
Raise the Hackles (Multi)
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
This ritual may be cast on either the caster or an-
other. If cast on another, the ritual must be resist-
ed as described below.
While this ritual is in effect, the target of the ritual
will exude threatening pheremones that will put
animals on edge, and which will add an effective +1
Beast to the difficulty of any frenzy checks made in
the target's presence. If the frenzy trigger is the
target's attacking another vampire, the Beast re-
165
ceives an effective +2 bonus instead. The target
must resist with a contest of:
WILLPOWER/2
VS.
MANIPULATION + ANIMAL KEN.
* Sanguineous Phial
Casting Time: 15 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge may enchant an earthenware jar
to preserve a point of vitae or blood within it; this
ritual requires that the caster expend a blood point.
Note that this ritual does not compress the blood,
therefore the jars should be able to hold at least 1
pint of volume. The ritual must be cast as the blood
is placed in the jar. The jar, sealed with beeswax
mixed with the caster's own blood, will prevent the
blood within - even vampire blood - from spoiling:
the blood will be as fresh when removed from the
jar as it was when it was placed in the jar. Breaking
the seal or jar ends the ritual for the particular sam-
ple it contains, though the ritual can be
"recast" (with the expenditure of a new blood point
to refresh the wax) to allow samples to be swapped
out, added, or discarded as needed.
Although this ritual does not count against the cast-
er's active total, the caster may not have a number
of jars that exceeds twice his or her Thaumaturgy
score.
* Tears of the Blood
Casting Time: 1 minute
Duration: 10 minutes
Components: S
When the Thaumaturge casts this on a target by
tracing the shape of mystic glyphs about the target's
head, the target begins to very slowly weep tears of
blood. The tears will not stop for 10 minutes, and
the target will lose, effectively, 1 point of blood.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
This ritual can only be cast on victims who remain
relatively still for the entire minute of casting. This
ritual is often used on sleeping mortals to collect
blood, as it causes no pain and no discomfort in the
target. In social situations it can be quite dramatic
and disturbing, though difficult to cast.
Traceless Passing
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires an owl's feather and the ashes of
a toad, bound together in a package with silk
thread. When the ritual is effect, and so long as the
caster carries the packet on his or her person, the
Thaumaturge may travel through even the densest
forest and thickest mud without leaving any trace
of his or her passing save a faint odor that can only
be followed by the most astute bloodhounds.
Many practitioners who know this ritual prepare
their packets ahead of time and never leave home
without them.
Ward vs. Ghouls
Casting Time: Variable; 30 minutes mini-
mum.
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual wards an object or a circle against
Ghouls (See Wards, supra). The casting requires a
blood point of the Thaumaturge's vitae, and takes
at least 30 minutes, though it may take longer (up
to several nights) if the ward is being marked in a
particularly difficult way (i.e., carved into stone and
inlaid in silver).
166
Blood Walk (Blood)
Casting Time: 1 hour per step
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
By examining a point of the target's blood in a la-
boratory, the Thaumaturge may trace the target's
lineage, gathering information on the target, their
sire, grandsire, etc. At each stage, the information
gathered is the subject's True Name, exact age (or
date of destruction if they are gone), Demeanor,
Nature, and whether a step in the lineage was a
"true" embrace or not, (the Thaumaturge must
know what this is). Information on the target him
or herself is gathered automatically. For each step
beyond, the Thaumaturge contests:
WILLPOWER VS. 4
The difficulty increases by +1 for each step beyond
the target’s sire. Failure means the Walk is inter-
rupted, ends, and another sample must be gathered.
Craft Bloodstone (Blood)
Casting Time: 90 minutes over three nights
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a large bloodstone (heliotrope)
— at least an inch across. On each of three succes-
sive nights, the caster must successfully cast this
ritual and expend a point of vitae, which is ab-
sorbed into the stone. On the third casting, the
stone and the Thaumaturge form a permanent
bond: he or she will know the relative direction and
distance of the stone at all times. The Thaumaturge
can usually narrow down the location to an area in
diameter about 1/50 of his distance from the stone.
A caster may have as many active bloodstones as he
or she wishes, and will be able to keep them distinct
in his or her mind. (Note: each separate blood-
stone counts separately against the active ritual lim-
it!)
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Incantation of the Shepherd (Blood)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Concentration
Components: V, S
With this ritual, the Thaumaturge is capable of lo-
cating a given mortal whose blood he has tasted in
the last week. The precision of the location is rela-
tive to how close the target is, and the location is
conferred in a sense of distance and direction (cf.
Bloodstone, supra). The caster must continue to
concentrate in order to "track" this resonance.
Movement (walking) is possible, though any dis-
traction such as Discipline use/combat/etc. will
end the ritual. Driving while this ritual is active re-
quires the expenditure of a Willpower point. Due to
the imprecision of the sense, it generally takes twice
as long to reach the target as it would if the caster
knew exactly where he was going. Note also that
only a _taste_ of the blood is needed. This ritual
may only be used on a given mortal three times
without the need to "refresh" the taste.
* Principal Focus of Vitae Infusion (Blood)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
Using this ritual, the Thaumaturge may mystically
"compress" a full point of blood or vitae and store
it within any object made of just one substance
(metal alloy, plastic, stone, etc.). The object must
be larger than a pea, and will take on a dull red
sheen after casting. The caster may end this ritual
at will, dissolving the object and producing a full
pint of blood—preferably into a container of some
sort (including the caster's mouth, though no more
than one point may be dissolved this way each
round). While stored this way, the blood or vitae
retains its full potency and freshness.
Note that it is permissible to use instantane-
ous powers such as Path of Blood 2 on the blood
point in its solid form, but more analytic or extend-
167
ed actions (e.g., Inquisition of Captive Vitae) will
require that the blood be dissolved. This ritual
does not count against the caster's active ritual total,
but the caster may have no more than 1 infused
object per level of Thaumaturgy that he or she pos-
sesses.
Minor Anti-Magic Charm (Countermagic)
Casting Time: 1 half-hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a diamond worn by the caster
near his or her skin (it may be on a ring). Some
Thaumaturges swallow the diamond. It must be at
least .5 carats, though it need not be of high quality
(though it shouldn't be cracked). While the dia-
mond is so situated, the caster may force re-rolls of
magical effects directed at him. The caster may ei-
ther re-roll his or her resistance roll, or force a re-
roll of a roll made by the caster. The re-roll is made
with the exact same parameters as the original roll -
- including any Willpower spent. If either roll fails
to affect the Thaumaturge, then no effect is had.
This charm only affects magic of ranks 1-3, and
does not affect vampiric disciplines other than
Thaumaturgy.
Flesh of the Fiery Touch (Flame)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual turns the caster's skin a subtle orange-
bronze color. Anyone deliberately touching the
caster, bare skin to bare skin, suffers 2 levels of fire
damage per round. There is no effect if the Thau-
maturge touches a target (though if the caster holds
out his hand, it may be reflex to take it... and no
one says the caster has to let go). The caster's skin
will seem to be warm, even feverishly so. Casting
this ritual requires burning a coal down to an em-
ber, and swallowing it. Doing this inflicts a point
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
of fire damage on the caster that cannot be pre-
vented.
When attacked by a brawler, the caster may ensure
that the opponent touches his skin by giving away
Advantage on both CBT and DMT. If the caster
does this, he inflicts 2 points of fire (aggravated)
damage on his opponent(s) no matter what the out-
come of the contest.
Absorb Knowledge (Focused Mind)
Casting Time: Variable/Instant
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: None
By entering a meditative trance, the caster may ab-
sorb tremendous amounts of information into his
or her head, information that is stored outside of
his or her normal consciousness. The caster may
read even the most dense texts at a rate of 30 sec-
onds per page. A computer screen filled with data
can be absorbed at astonishing speed. Essentially,
the Thaumaturge turns his or her mind into a snap-
shot camera. This information can only be ac-
cessed, however, with the Perfect Recall ritual. The
limit of information that the Thaumaturge can hold
in one casting of this ritual is approximately 1 large
book (i.e., the complete works of Shakespeare) per
dot that he or she possesses in Focused Mind. If
the information is accessed, the Thaumaturge must
immediately begin to write or type the information
down, or it will fade within minutes. There have
been stories of Thaumaturges who forced them-
selves to stay awake through the day as they franti-
cally spilled forth the contents of some rare book
or another that they memorized....
168
* Sigil of Ownership (Hearth)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual mystically marks an object as belonging
to the Thaumaturge. There is no way to remove
this mark save by the caster's own will: even Coun-
termagic will fail. Other than flawless identifica-
tion, the ritual only offers one benefit: no item that
has been marked by the caster may be successfully
used in the casting of a ritual without the caster's
express permission. The sigil may be placed on the
flesh of a ghoul or even a mortal. The sigil also
gives the caster Advantage on any magical attempts
to observe or locate the object or person so
marked. A caster may create any number of sigils
up to twice his or her Willpower.
Lesser Kinetic Ward (Movement of the Mind)
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated/
Triggered
Components: V, S, M
The caster must place a ball of rubber on his per-
son somewhere to complete this ritual. After it is
cast, this ritual will grant tremendous resistance to
the first serious kinetic attack or damage effect that
the caster experiences. For these purposes, a
"serious" kinetic attack is a physical attack involving
kinetic force of some sort that causes at least 3
health levels of damage. Most melee attacks, all
brawl attacks, falling damage, being hit by a car or a
thrown weapon... these are all kinetic attacks. Be-
ing burned by acid or the sun is not. The caster
may soak the damage from this first attack/damage
effect as if he or she possessed three additional
ranks of Fortitude. The ritual is dispelled after it
provides this bonus once.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Donning the Mask of Shadows (Muted Path)
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
When the Thaumaturge casts this ritual and pours
a small vial of squid ink over his or her head, he or
she assumes a darkened, semi-translucent form.
This does not make the caser insubstantial, but
merely alters his or her appearance. It does, how-
ever, mute sounds coming from the caster to a
small degree. While this ritual is in effect, the caster
may hide in shadow by remaining perfectly still --
only detectable by accident (bumping into the cast-
er) or by those with Auspex 2 or higher (or equiva-
lent power). In addition, the caster gains 3 virtual
ranks in stealth while this ritual is in effect.
* Principal Focus of Aqueous Infusion
(Neptune’s)
Casting Time: 6 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the caster to infuse an aquamarine
gemstone with large amounts of water. Up to two
cubic yards of water may be absorbed. This water
may then be released by the wearer at a later time,
appearing directly around the gemstone. All the wa-
ter is released within the gem when invoked. It is
intended to be used in conjunction with Neptune's
Might 2. The ritual remains active until the water
has been released from the gem. The gem will glow
with a soft blue tinge while enchanted, and will re-
lease its water if struck or dropped onto a hard sur-
face. The gem may be re-enchanted after use, and
must be of at least two carats weight (though it can
be a rough stone, and thus isn't terribly expensive).
This ritual does not count against the caster's active
ritual total, but the caster may have no more than 1
infused object per level of Thaumaturgy that he or
she possesses.
169
Gift of Shadowed Vision (Spirit)
Casting Time: 10 minutes for 1, +5
minutes per additional person
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual grants its targets -- and there may be as
many as the caster wishes -- the ability to see into
the Spirit world as if they possessed Veil Sight. The
caster must rub human bone ash mixed with his or
her vitae across the eyelids of each participant in
the ritual (the ritual costs 1 BP to cast and affect
one target, and 1BP for every two additional tar-
gets). The ritual only works within fifty feet of the
initial casting point, which is marked by a series of
glyphs that surround the bowl in which the ash and
vitae are mixed. Once mixed with ash, the vitae
transforms, and may not be used against the Thau-
maturge with Thaumaturgical powers.
Seance (Spirit)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Concentration / Dawn-
Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the caster to open a channel
through the spirit world to the realm where spirits
of the dead reside. The caster can (and indeed
must) name the specific spirit to be summoned.
Once the channel is opened, the named spirit may,
if it chooses, travel through the channel into the
spirit world near the caster. The spirit will recognize
that someone is trying to contact it. The spirit is
more likely to appear willingly if it has recently left
the material plane, or if a loved one is making the
call.
Spirits summoned by a Seance will not generally be
hostile, as this ritual is a very inoffensive, unobtru-
sive summons. There is a slight (1%) chance that
some other spirit will take Advantage of the chan-
nel and come through, but most spirits aren't that
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
motivated. Spirits of destroyed vampires cannot be
reached with this ritual. The material components
are a summoning circle drawn on a flat surface, a
white beeswax candle, and at least 3 black beeswax
candles.
Summon Watching Spirit (Spirit)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: 24 hours
Components: V, S
This ritual summons a minor spirit to watch the
place it is summoned to. The spirit will remain for
up to 24 hours, departing at the end of that time.
At any time before it departs, the caster may use
Spirit Thaumaturgy to communicate with the spirit
and learn what it has observed. Spirits do tend to
have an unusual view on the world.
Mystic Cypher (Technomancy)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual must be cast on a particular electronic
data source, which can be as small as a single email,
or as large as a 50TB drive. The file or source be-
comes mystically encrypted, will appear as hopeless-
ly corrupted to any who attempt to view or access
it. It cannot be opened or accessed by any normal
means (though it may be erased!). When the ritual
is cast, the Thaumaturge may name those whom he
or she wishes to be able to decrypt the file. Anyone
so named will be able to remove the encryption
(deactivating the ritual) with a simple incantation:
Ducite scientiae absconditi.
Stone Trap (Terra)
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge casts this ritual by drawing a cir-
cle on the ground no more than two and a half feet
170
across with appropriate glyphs, and then covering it
with a light coating of grave dirt. After it is com-
plete, the caster may speak a single phrase - sds -
and the trap is sprung. Anyone standing in the trap
will find themselves caught in the earth, submerged
18 full inches in solid stone. This would obviously
be fatal to a mortal standing on his or her head, but
is sufficient to trap most beings in place. The trap
is no longer considered an active ritual after it has
been sprung. Vampires with Celerity 4 who are
able to move may avoid this trap. Vampires with
Protean can probably escape. Vampires with Po-
tence may be able to shatter the stone. Vampires
with Auspex may roll to escape the trap with a con-
test of:
DEXTERITY + ALERTNESS VS. 8.
Ties mean the target is trapped.
Meteorological Charm (Weather)
Casting Time: 1 Night
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires that the Thaumaturge spend an
entire night treating an opal with a series of baths:
one of his or her own blood (1 point), one of fresh
rainwater, one of seawater, one of fresh crow's
blood, and one of melted snow. After several such
baths, the opal begins to take on a black color.
When the ritual is complete, the gem becomes a
charm that is extremely sensitive to the weather. It
will change colors depending on what the predomi-
nant weather for the next 24 hours will be in the
immediate area. The charm only works if outside.
It will flare a bright white for a moment if a magical
effect alters the weather in the immediate area.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
LEVEL 3:
* Bonding the Mundane Familiar
Casting Time: 1 Night
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
Casting this spell is a major undertaking, and most
Thaumaturges are not willing to take the risks in-
herent in having an animal familiar. The Thauma-
turge spends an entire night casting this ritual. The
material component is the desired familiar, and a
plentiful supply of its favourite food. Over the
course of the night, the caster burns 5 blood points,
infusing the food with the eldritch power of his
blood. At dawn, the caster goes to sleep and must
release the animal -- which can be no larger than a
medium dog. The caster then rolls to see if the fa-
miliar comes back. If it does, the familiar becomes
attached to the caster, and the following occur:
 The caster may spend 1 "free" Willpower per
night, but only when touching the familiar.
 The caster gains a +1 on ritual checks, provided
his familiar is in the immediate vicinity.
 The caster may, by concentrating for 5 minutes,
see, hear, smell and taste what the familiar does.
 The familiar gains a Willpower equal to one less
than the caster's, and 1 point of intelligence.
 The caster gains the ability to have 4 additional
active rituals.
But the spell is not without its drawbacks:
 The caster loses (temporarily) a permanent
point of Willpower if the familiar is further than
5 miles away.
 The caster immediately enters torpor and loses
two permanent points of Willpowerif the famil-
iar is killed.
If the familiar is ever ghouled, the ritual is immedi-
ately dispelled.
171
Bone of Lies
Casting Time: 2 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual enchants a mortal thigh bone, which
must be both at least 200 years old and never previ-
ously exposed to vampiric blood. The bone is in-
fused with up to 10 Blood Points of the caster's
vitae during the casting. If a lie is spoken in the im-
mediate presence of the bone (10' radius with no
obstructions), it will consume one of these blood
points and darken in color. The speaker must know
they are speaking falsely or consciously tell an un-
truth. (Ground truth is not ascertained). When no
blood remains in the bone it is completely black-
ened and the ritual ends.
Illusion of Perfection
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the caster to don a plain white
mask, and look like an ordinary, nondescript person
in their late 20s. They blend easily in crowds, and
no one will be able to remember the caster being
present specifically ("Well there was this guy... and
this other guy...."). Auspex (at any level) can see
through the disguise, and the illusion is shattered if
the caster speaks or attracts attention to themselves
in any way whatsoever.
Nightshade's Touch
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The caster must cover his or her entire body (save
eyeballs) with the dust of burned nightshade. This
requires a great deal of the plant. At the conclusion
of the ritual, he or she burns a blood point, which
seeps through the skin and absorbs the ash. The
caster immediately suffers 4 health levels of dam-
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
age. For the rest of the night, the caster's touch is
toxic. Any skin to skin contact will result in grave
illness or death for mortals, and will severely incon-
venience vampires. Using this ritual is call for a
Level 6 humanity check. A mortal target may resist
with a contest of:
STAMINA + FORTITUDE
VS.
MANIPULATION + MEDICINE
Success means that the target is rendered incapaci-
tated. A tie means they are rendered comatose.
Failure results in immediate death. A vampire may
resist the same way, but success means that there is
no effect. A tie causes a a -2 to all contests for 1
hour, and failure means that the target suffers a -4
on all contests for the rest of the night.
One Mind of the Covens
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Concentration
Components: V, S
This ritual sets up a multi-way telepathic conversa-
tion between all those who perform it at the same
time. It is used by Tremere Regents to communi-
cate with both their counterparts elsewhere and
their superiors. It is never taught to anyone of a
lower rank than Regent. The ritual must be simulta-
neously cast by all who wish to participate. Every-
one involved in a casting of this must agree as they
cast the ritual on one caster as the Maior denominator
nominis, or the ritual fails. The Maior denominator
nominis has the power to "boot" anyone.
Pavis of Foul Presence
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual prepares a blue silk ribbon, which the
caster wears around his or her neck (although it
may be concealed beneath clothing). The ritual pro-
172
tects the caster against vampiric charm, such that
the first Presence power used against the caster will
be reflected back on the Presence user, who may
then resist as if the power were being used by the
caster. The ritual ends one such use. This ritual will
not reflect level-4 or higher powers.
Rutor's Hand
Casting Time: 2 Nights
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This grisly ritual requires that the Thaumaturge cut
off his own hand and gouge out one of his eyes.
This requires the expenditure of two Willpower
points and inflicts two aggravated wounds on the
vampire. The preparations for the cutting and the
severance itself takes one night. The second night
is spent constructing the hand: the caster places his
eye on the hand and fastens it on with a silver
chain. The hand is then marinated for several
hours in a briny mixture of salt, vinegar, at least
four dozen crushed spiders, three points of the
caster's vitae, and vomit from a sea cucumber while
the Thaumaturge chants. At last the hand is re-
moved, ritually dried, the cloth burned, and the
hand is dipped into water where it must be shocked
by an electric eel. The hand will then come to life.
The hand is considered an unintelligent servitor: it
will obey any commands, though it may get fidgety
and move around a little. At any time, the caster
may take control of the hand directly, putting his
consciousness in it and seeing through its eye.
The hand may grasp very small objects and move,
or it may move at approximately 6 miles an hour.
The hand requires a point of blood -- any blood --
each night or it falls apart into a nasty slime. The
hand may, if it can catch the victim unawares, at-
tempt to strangle, though it isn't particularly good at
it. It can do combat fairly evenly with small mam-
mals such as cats. It's primary purpose is as an ex-
tended viewing device for the caster.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS

Sense The Source Sleeping Powder

Casting Time: 5 minutes Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S Components: V, S, M

This ritual must be enacted at the site of some mag- Using this ritual, the Thaumaturge may concoct a
ical effect (a magical item is considered an effect). powder made of sand, powdered lead, and pow-
When it is completed, the Thaumaturge will be able dered limestone that may be stored in a container
to see a thin, glowing cord that, if followed, will until needed. The powder must be placed in the
lead him to the caster. Thaumaturge's hand upon use, and blown into the
face of a mortal. It will put that mortal into a deep,
Shaft of Belated Quiescence magical sleep from which he or she will not awaken
Casting Time: 5 hours naturally until dawn, though pain or injury will
Duration: Semi-Permanent awaken the mortal. This ritual has no effect on
Components: V, S, M vampires (though it does work on ghouls!).

This ritual turns an ordinary stake of rowan wood Spider's Promenade

into a particularly nasty weapon. The stake must be Casting Time: 10 minutes
soaked with three points of the caster's vitae, in- Duration: 1 scene
scribed with sigils and glyphs, and blackened in an Components: V, S, M
oak fire. If any damage is scored against an oppo-
nent, the tip of the stake will break off and begin The Thaumaturge smashes a spider across his or
working its way to the heart. Mortals and ghouls her forehead, and then swallows the paste. For the
will suffer two unpreventable damage per day for remainder of the scene, the Thaumaturge may
three days, at which time the tip will pierce the climb walls or even ceilings. He or she cannot
heart and kill the mortal. Vampires do not suffer move terribly quickly, and Celerity may not increase
any damage, and will likely not even notice anything movement rate across these surfaces. This is ex-
more than an occasional itch until the third day tremely unnerving to mortals.
when they will become paralyzed. The tip will react
quite negatively to attempts to remove it, and it will A Thousand Tongues
increase its pace and burrow away from any sensed Casting Time: 30 minutes
intrusions. Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
Removal of the tip requires that the surgeon con-
test Dexterity + Medicine vs. 11. Repeated at- The Thaumaturge gains the ability to understand
tempts may be made, but each attempt inflicts one (but not speak!) any language. The material com-
level of damage. ponent for this is a copper chain that must be
bathed in a point of the caster's blood and worn
about his or her neck. If the chain is removed be-
fore dawn, the ritual ends.

173
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
* Veneficus Certamen
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge may take a blood point from two
magi and prepare two circles for a minor Certamen
duel. If the duel is carried out according to the ritu-
al, all damage inflicted will be healed with one day's
sleep. While under the influence of this ritual, the
combatants gain Advantage on all frenzy checks.
Any Willpower spent during this ritual by the com-
batants is gained back with one day's sleep.
Ward vs. Beast
Casting Time: Varies; 30 mins. minimum.
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual wards an object or a circle against crea-
tures of the Beast (See Wards, supra). Creatures of
the Beast include anyone with a Beast of 6 or more,
with 4 or more Beast Traits, or anyone in frenzy.
The casting requires a blood point of the Thauma-
turge's vitae, and takes at least 30 minutes, though it
may take longer (up to several nights) if the ward is
being marked in a particularly difficult way (i.e.,
carved into stone and inlaid in silver).
Subtle Knife (Alchemy)
Casting Time: 1 Month
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This is a tremendously prized ritual among alche-
mists. It requires titanium, iron, diamond, obsidian,
mercury, and helium, all in liquid form, as well as a
full Alchemical laboratory. It also requires the ex-
penditure of two permanent Willpower points,
and two blood points every night for a month.
(The caster must work all but one hour each night.)
At the end, if the ritual is successful, the caster will
have a small, scalpel sized knife that can cut
through any substance with only the slightest appli-
174
cation of pressure. This makes it difficult to carry.
The blade is extremely fragile, and not suitable for
combat use. It will dissolve instantly in fire or sun-
light. There are only 11 known to be in existence.
Vitae of the Hydra (Blood)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge must consume a live scorpion, a
live poisonous spider, and the head of a poisonous
snake in order to complete this ritual. While the
ritual is active, the caster's vitae becomes a toxic
poison. One point will render mortals seriously ill
and comatose until they day a few days later, while
two points will kill instantly. Vampires will gain no
benefit from the caster's blood, and will operate at -
1 per point ingested for 1 hour per point ingested.
Dead Zone (Countermagic)
Casting Time: 1 week
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge needs unrestricted access to a
room for a full week to cast this ritual. He or she
covers the walls with a variety of sigils and runes,
made from lead, lodestone ferrofluid, and silver. At
least 10 lbs. of each is required. (Approximately
$12,000.) At the end of the last night, the room
becomes a magical near-dead zone.
Attempts to use magic within the room require
burning a Willpower point, and even then they have
only a 5% chance of succeeding. Magic items
brought into the room will cease to function while
in the room, and active rituals will be temporarily
surprressed. The ritual may be ended by defacing
any of the sigils. For this reason, the sigils are often
covered underneath wall paper or paintings. They
may not be painted over, nor may adhesive be stuck
directly to the sigil. Clever Thaumaturges build a
second set of "walls" within the room.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
* Memory's Search (Focused Mind)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V minutes, the 'shape' of a head. After 10 minutes it
The Thaumaturge may search his or her own
memory for a particular piece of information. This
is different than Perfect Recall in that Perfect Recall
requires that the caster remember what happened
in order to go back and gather more detail.
Memory's search is used for answering questions
like, "Where do I know this person from?" At the
end of the ritual, the caster will have "refreshed"
the memory enough for Perfect Recall to be used
upon it, if necessary.
Fire Ward (Flames)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge casts this ritual by burning a sigil
into his or her chest with a smoldering rod of yew,
causing 1 level of unsoakable aggravated damage.
The caster must also spend a blood point. At the
end of the ritual, the caster's Stamina may be used
to soak fire damage (and ONLY fire damage) as if
it were Fortitude. This ritual may be cast on oth-
ers, but it requires spending a Willpower point.
Wychfire (Flames)
Casting Time: Variable
Duration: Concentration / Disrupti-
ble / Dawn Terminated
Components: None
This ritual was more useful in the times of hearths
and camp fires. The caster takes time to enter a
trance, at which point he becomes "aware" of sur-
rounding fires greater in size than a human head.
He can then project his awareness into these fires,
one at a time. Switching fires takes roughly one mi-
nute. A caster can only inhabit a particular fire once
per casting, but may observe and hear events within
175
ten feet of an inhabited fire. The flames of an in-
habited fire will slowly begin to look like a head:
after 2 minutes faint 'eyes' can be seen. After 5
will clearly be a face. After 20 minutes, the face may
be identifiable.
The range of the ritual extends in a radius of one
mile per 30 minutes spent entering the trance. Any-
one can end this ritual by dousing an inhabited
flame, disorienting the viewer for several minutes.
Inky Darkness (Muted)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge may enchant a room, covering
the walls with a series of sigils written in squid ink.
At the conclusion of the ritual, the room is plunged
into absolute and impenetrable darkness. No light
of any kind may enter the room. Fire gives off no
light and inflicts one half damage, rounded down.
If cast outside, the caster must draw a circle to
serve as the “room” and if that circle is destroyed
or disrupted, the ritual immediately fails. (The inte-
rior version will fail if the sigils are disrupted.)
The caster may spend a Willpower at the time of
casting to allow the ritual to persist throughout the
day. Additional Willpower may be spent on subse-
quent nights to keep it in existence for additional
days. A permanent Willpower may be spent at cast-
ing to make the darkness permanent.
* Call from the Depths (Neptune's Might)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge places his or her hands into a
body of water and begins the ritual. The material
component is a solid gold fish hook (approx.. $250)
which is consumed in the casting. At the end of
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
the ritual, he or she names one person or item. If
that person or item is within the body of water, the
water itself will move to eject it. It will be thrown
gently upon the shore beside the caster. This is a
useful ritual for finding objects lost at sea. Note
that the item can only travel about 10 miles per
hour, so if something is lost in the deep sea, this
ritual is best cast from a boat near where it was lost.
Water Haven (Neptune's Might)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S
By casting this ritual, the caster becomes immune
to sunlight that is shining through water. This is
most often used to haven in shallow lakes or
streams without ill effect (other than being nibbled
at by fish).
Earth Haven (Terra's Power)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S
The Thaumaturge presses his or her hand to open
earth (grass is fine, but stone will not work) and
incants for 5 minutes. At the conclusion of the rit-
ual, he or she is drawn down into the earth. The
ritual ends at the first sunset, at which point the
caster re-emerges. Use of this power requires the
expenditure of a Willpower point. The point of
entry will be obvious, and the earth will look dis-
turbed.
Recure of the Homeland (Terra's Power)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires that the caster prepare a fresh
poultice from a point of his or her own vitae (the
point normally expended in casting the ritual) and a
few handfuls of earth from the city or town of his
176
or her mortal birth. This poultice can be spread on
aggravated wounds prior to sleeping for the day,
and if left undisturbed until sunset, will allow the
caster to heal up to two additional levels of aggra-
vated damage without cost. This ritual will only
work on the caster, and ends at sunset, or if the
poultice is compromised.
Haunted House (Spirit)
Casting Time: 2 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual summons a host of minor spirits to a
house. They will make any mortal entering the
house feel uncomfortable, and may take harmless
but unnerving actions like opening doors, moving
objects slightly, or causing images to momentarily
appear in mirrors or in the movement of curtains.
Over time, the house will probably develop the rep-
utation of being haunted, and mortals will avoid it.
This ritual must be repeated to cancel the effect, as
the spirits will stay once summoned. Three blood
points of the caster's vitae must be poured or
spread onto the foundation of the house.
Summon Mischievous Spirit (Spirit)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge may summon a spirit to vex and
torment a named foe. The caster must have either
a lock of hair, a drop of blood, or something ex-
tremely personal that belongs to the intended target
of the ritual, and that something is consumed in
casting. The spirit will seek out the target with un-
erring accuracy, moving at 50 miles per hour.
When it arrives, it will begin making an incredible
nuisance of itself, causing things to go wrong in the
worst possible ways. While plagued by this spirit,
no matter what the rules call for, all ties are
counted as failures for the target.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS

Ward vs. Spirit (Spirit) Telecommuting (Technomancy)

Casting Time: Variable; 30 minutes mini- Casting Time: 30 minutes
mum. Duration: 10 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent Components: V, S
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge may commandeer any television
This ritual wards an object or a circle against Spirits that he or she has touched in the last five days, pro-
(See Wards, supra). The casting requires a blood vided that it is either equipped with an antenna or is
point of the caster’s vitae, and takes at least 30 hooked up to cable or satellite. The caster may
minutes, though it may take longer (up to several view through the television screen, and may exer-
nights) if the ward is being marked in a difficult way cise total control over what is seen on the screen --
(i.e., carved into stone and inlaid in silver). whether he chooses to allow broadcast or digital
signals, or generate his own programming.
Hard Drive (Technomancy)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S

The Thaumaturge may turn a portion of his or her

brain into a virtual hard drive. To download data,
the user merely touches the computer in question.
His brain will show up as an authorized system
drive to which files may be copied. (10 TB maxi-
mum)

The caster may keep the data in his or her head, but
cannot access it in any way. (This ritual is similar to
the Focused Mind ritual Absorb Knowledge in this
way.) The caster uploads the data the same way.
Data must be uploaded by Dawn or it is lost.

The caster may carry 2 TB without penalty, but in-

curs a -1 die penalty to any Intelligence pools for
each full 2TB after the first 2. This data is not sub-
ject to electric disruption, but may be destroyed if
the caster suffers severe head trauma.

177
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
LEVEL 4:
Fist of Judgment
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The ritual will only affect a target who has flagrantly
broken an agreement -- written or oral -- with the
caster. The caster carves the name of the subject
into a smooth riverstone that fits into his hand, and
infuses the stone with a point of his vitae. The
caster may then hold the stone in his hand when in
combat with the target, gaining effective Potence 5
on brawling attacks against the target. The ritual
ends when the caster wills it, when the stone is
damaged or defaced in any way, or when the sub-
ject is killed or destroyed.
The Living Mark
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The caster of this ritual performs a sacrifice of an
animal to start the ritual. Once the animal dies, the
caster only has three hours to complete the ritual.
Any interruption means that the ritual fails. Once
the animal is dead, the caster makes an ink from the
blood of the animal, his own blood, and a number
of other materials including iodine, graphite, and
some food that the animal in question commonly
eats. He then gives himself a tattoo of the animal
in question. (A caster with any rating in art suc-
ceeds automatically. Other casters must contest
DEXTERITY VS. 1.) At the end of the ritual, the
caster expends a permanent Willpower to finalize
the ritual and the tattoo erupts in color and move-
ment as the animal's spirit is trapped in the tattoo.
Thereafter, with the expenditure of a single blood
point, the caster may "release" the tattoo; the ani-
mal will erupt from his or her skin and will carry
178
out whatever task the caster demands of it; the
beast is effectively blood bound -- though being
ghouled destroys the ritual. Communication with
the beast is only possible through Animalism or
while it is within the caster's skin. The caster may
accept the animal back into his skin with the ex-
penditure of another blood point. If the caster ex-
pends a (temporary) Willpower point when he or
she releases the creature, the creature gains the abil-
ity to slide onto two-dimensional objects as if it
were a tattoo or a painting at will. While the animal
is resident in the caster's skin, it will occasionally
move about, sliding this way and that on his skin,
looking out at those to whom the caster is speaking,
etc.
The Lost Limb
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: 1 cycle of the moon (4
weeks)
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is most often used as a punishment
against clan members who have committed some
venal slight. When this ritual is cast on the stump
of an amputated limb, and the stump is smeared
with a mixture of the ashes of the amputated part
and quicklime, the limb cannot be grown back for
nearly a month. This is occasionally used on the
tongue of someone who reveals lesser clan secrets.
* Mirror Walk
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
The caster performs this ritual by enchanting a large
mirror. The caster inscribes the mirror with a point
of his own blood, and then swallows at least a fluid
ounce of mercury to activate the ritual. The caster
may then walk into the mirror (if he fits), and then
walk out of any mirror that he or she is familiar
with (even by hearsay). The caster must hold the
image of the destination mirror in his or her head
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS

as he or she enters. If the destination mirror is up joins with the diamond, moving inside of it. The
against a wall, covered with a cloth, has been bro- mercury coats the diamond and changes, giving it a
ken, or is no longer in the same place, the ritual hard, polished, mirrorlike skin. When the ritual is
fails. The existence of this ritual is why all mirrors complete, the resulting stone can be carried about
in Tremere chantries are covered with silk cloths. by the Thaumaturge. When it is touched to some-
one who is not in their True form -- someone con-
Splinter Servant cealed by Obfuscate or Protean or some other dis-
Casting Time: 1 night guising power -- the stone forces them to revert.
Duration: Semi-Permanent The three regeants separate when this occurs.
Components: V, S, M There is no resisting this ritual.

The ritual requires a full night’s casting and spend- Ward vs. Vampires
ing a Willpower point. A stake must be hand- Casting Time: Variable; 30 minutes mini-
fashioned from wood from a tree from a sanctified mum.
graveyard. It is inscribed with glyphs and sealed in Duration: Semi-Permanent
a container of prepared wax mixed with fresh badg- Components: V, S, M
er blood. When the seal is broken, the stake ani-
mates, tearing itself apart in the formation of limbs. This ritual wards an object or a circle against Vam-
It will relentlessly attack any one target designated pires (See Wards, supra). The casting requires a
by the caster, attempting to impale the target's blood point of the Thaumaturge's vitae, and takes
heart. Removing the Splinter Servant inflicts an at least 30 minutes, though it may take longer (up
additional 1 level of unpreventable damage, and the to several nights) if the ward is being marked in a
various splinters can only be removed from the vic- particularly difficult way (i.e., carved into stone and
tim's heart with a successful contest of: inlaid in silver).

DEXTERITY+MEDICINE VS. 8 * Impervious Vessel (Alchemy)

Casting Time: 1 week
The Splinter servant may sustain up to 5 levels of Duration: Semi-Permanent
damage, but cannot open doors or windows, etc. It Components: V, S, M
remains active for ten rounds, then falls to pieces.
It has the following combat statistics: This ritual requires a week to cast. The material
components are: Clay, Powdered Iron, Powdered
CBT: 8 DMT: 8 Tortoise Shell, all of the blood from a freshly killed
High: 8 (+ Paralysis) Low: 3 Armadillo, a handful of broken glass, Casting this
Soak: 6 ritual requires a blood point be spent each night for
7 nights, and a Willpower point be spent on the
Stone of the True Form first and seventh nights. When the ritual is com-
Casting Time: 3 hours plete, the caster will have constructed an earthen-
Duration: Semi-Permanent ware jar that can hold any substance, no matter
Components: V, S, M how hot, acidic, corrosive, or elusive. The contain-
er is still earthenware, though, and may shatter. It
This ritual requires that the caster possess a black can be cut with a Subtle Knife. A caster may only
pearl, a fluid ounce of mercury, and a rough-cut have 1 Impervious Vessel for each level of Alche-
diamond. Over the course of the ritual, the pearl my he or she possesses, unless one breaks.

179
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Greater Anti-Magic Charm (Countermagic)
Casting Time: 1 Night.
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This extensive ritual requires a number of extremely
expensive and rare components. The primary com-
ponent is a near-flawless Chameleon Diamond of at
least 1.5 carats weight. This typically costs about
$20,000-$40,000, if it can be found at all. The dia-
mond must be carefully inscribed with the appro-
priate symbols; in year’s past this was accomplished
with an Alchemist’s Subtle Knife, but lasers are be-
ing used in some chantries now. Other material
components include a live electric eel, the spittle of
a leper, garlic, and the tear of a widow from her
husband's funeral.
Once the materials are assembled, the casting takes
a full night. When icomplete, the gemstone must
be wrapped in the skin of the eel. So long as it is
worn above the heart and against the skin, the
wearer may roll 1D6 each time he or she is subject
to a magical effect, subtracting the level of the effect.
If the total is 2+, the magic fails to affect the Thau-
maturge.
A Thaumaturge may only have one of these rituals
active at a time. The charm must be "recharged"
each day by sitting in sunlight, from dawn to dusk.
If it is not recharged, the ritual fades.
Firewalk (Flames)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The caster pouts water over himself that has been
exposed to at least 8 hours of direct sunlight. He
then writes sigils into his skin with some sort of
fairly indelible ink and cuts off his finger, tossing it
into a fire to burn. For the remainder of the night,
the caster is resistant to fire damage, soaking Fire
damage with his or her normal soak pool, and ig-
180
noring the first level of fire damage from each at-
tack that he or she suffers. Cutting off one's finger
requires the expenditure of a Willpower point.
Flame Blade (Flames)
Casting Time: 1 week
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual enchants a sword (or other melee weap-
on, but swords are most common) with the fell
power of thaumaturgical flame. Casting this ritual
takes an entire week, and also requires approxi-
mately $300,000 in rubies which are crushed and
destroyed in the course of the ritual. If the ritual is
successful, the sword will steal, without chance for
resistance, 1 point of its wielder's blood every time
it successfully inflicts damage. This will cause the
blade to spring up in a white hot jet of flame, in-
flicting 3 levels of fire damage on whomever was
injured with the sword (above and beyond the
sword's normal damage). This is considered part of
the sword's attack, not a separate damage source.
Outside the Box (Focused Mind)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
This ritual allows the caster to fragment his con-
sciousness in a far more impressive manner than
the Multitasking power. The caster may create du-
plicates of himself that can work on problems com-
pletely independently of each other. This allows
the caster to quite literally do many things at once,
up to the limit of his body's ability to keep up. He
can type a report with one hand, while drawing a
picture of something with the other, while dictating
a third project, all the while working to crack the
code that he's looking at. The maximum number of
tasks the caster can do at once is his path rating -1.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Barrier of the True Home (Hearth)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
This Thaumaturge may only cast this ritual on his
or her own haven. It is extremely potent: as long as
the caster is within his or her haven and the ritual is
active, vampires cannot enter without express per-
mission. They are utterly and completely incapable
of doing so. There is no resisting or working
around this ritual, save that the vampires in ques-
tion can burn the haven down, of course.
Greater Kinetic Ward
(Movement of the Mind)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated/
Triggered
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is an improved version of the Lesser Ki-
netic Ward. The caster must place a ball of rubber
on his person somewhere to complete this ritual.
Most Thaumaturges wear it around their neck, for
when the caster is aware of an impending kinetic
attack, he may expend a blood point and dissolve
the rubber ball to cause the attack to fail complete-
ly, or for all the force involved in the effect to be
absorbed. This is a very powerful ritual: the vam-
pire could activate it to survive being hit by a
speeding freight train and only be knocked out of
the way, or to fall 300 feet unharmed.
Scrying (Neptune’s Might)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Concentration
Components: V, S, M
The caster of this ritual may use a small, still pool
of water to view events happening simultaneously
elsewhere. Both audial and visual elements are in-
corporated. The caster expends the blood point
necessary to activate the ritual by dripping it into
181
the water. Only one location can be viewed, and
the caster must specify the location at the time of
casting. The caster may view a particular individual
(without knowing his or her location) provided the
caster possesses either an object belonging to the
target or some piece of the target's body (hair,
blood, etc.). If the target has Obfuscate, focusing
the ritual at all requires a contest of:
PATH RATING VS. OBFUSCATE
The caster will see things as if he or she were there:
he or she can be affected by disciplines such as
Presence or Obfuscate. The scrying will last as long
as the caster maintains eye contact with the water.
Contact Water Spirit (Neptune's Might)
Casting Time: 40 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The caster of this ritual may summon the spirit of a
natural body of water, including rivers, lakes,
ponds, oceans, etc. The caster walks naked into the
water and drips a point of vitae into the water while
pouring the water over his or her head with a stone
cup or bowl. After approximately 40 minutes, the
spirit will mentally communicate with the Thauma-
turge. Spirits of water are not like humans, but they
know have seen much. The spirits of great oceans
will be particularly alien in psychology.
Water Walk (Neptune's Might)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The caster of this ritual may temporarily enchant a
bracelet with at least ten carats of aquamarine on it.
If the caster wears the bracelet as an anklet, he or
she may, for the rest of the night, expend a Will-
power point to be able to walk on water for a sce-
ne. The caster may not run The bracelet may be
reused. This ritual is not transferrable.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Haunting (Spirit)
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The caster of this ritual must possess a lock of hair
from the intended victim, and must tie the hair
around a small doll made to represent the victim.
The caster then engages in an extensive three hour
summoning of a host of minor spirits, all the while
speaking the victim's name over and over again. At
the conclusion of the ritual, the caster expends two
Willpower points and the minor spirits are released
and fly forth to find the victim with unerring accu-
racy. They will pester, annoy, and haunt the victim
ceaselessly -- he or she will feel like her life is
haunted (and he or she will be right). Voices, mis-
placed objects, creaking doors, ghostly faces visible
in reflections... the spirits will be quite eager to
drive the victim to die (or beg the Thaumaturge for
forgiveness and relief) so that they may be released.
The ritual ends when the Thaumaturge removes the
hair from the doll, when the victim dies, or when
the victim manages to banish all the spirits.
Wraithform (Spirit)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge must remove one of his or her
own ribs for this ritual. Doing so inflicts two levels
of damage if carefully and surgically done, four if
done haphazardly. The rib must be ground to pow-
der in advance of casting this ritual. Using the
powder and two points of his own vitae to make a
paste, the Thaumaturge inscribes his or her body
with sigils and glyphs. At the conclusion of the rit-
ual, the caster becomes a wraith-like creature,
though the caster is still primarily anchored in the
material plane.
The caster is immune to damage while in the
wraithform, and may pass through any barrier. He
182
or she is considered a spirit for purposes of any
powers that affect spirits. At dawn, or when the
caster wishes, the ritual ends and the caster's body
reverts to its solid, material form. While in wraith-
form, the caster may burn a Willpower point to ex-
ert some limited effects in the physical world such
as manifesting, or moving a small object.
Invisible Link (Technomancy)
Casting Time: 1 week per adapter
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual involves the construction of a network
adapter that is then enchanted, warded, and ensor-
celled. The Thaumaturge may construct as many
adapters as he or she wishes, but they all must be
done simultaneously. This ritual may be interrupt-
ed for up to a week without spoilation. The Thau-
maturge must expend a blood point every night
that he or she works on the ritual (though this bur-
den can be shared among multiple casters if they
are working together). At the end of the ritual, a
Willpower point must be expended for each adapt-
er, to infuse the magical glyphs and begin the actual
magical effect.
The effect of these adapters is to create a wireless
datalink that transmits instantaneously and without
any electromagnetic signal: it is truly "action at a
distance". The connection is equivalent a major
fiber optic cable – measured in gigabytes per sec-
ond The casting of this ritual is of the greatest im-
port, for the ritual itself includes the recitation and
incantation of a series of 2,001 alchemical symbols.
That series is the encryption key for all of the
adapters in the network. If someone were to rec-
ord or overhear the casting, they could
(theoretically) create their own adapters which
would instantly join the network.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS

Heart of Stone (Terra's Power)
Casting Time: 9 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge lies naked on a flat stone surface
and places a bare candle over is heart. The candle
burns down to nothing while the caster recites in-
cantations. When the candle burns out, it flares,
causing 2 aggravated damage. The caster's heart
hardens to stone. The caster may add twice his or
her Thaumaturgy rating to soak rolls for attacks
aimed at his or her heart, and is completely immune
to the Shaft of Belated Quiescence. Additionally,
the caster gains Advantage against all Presence
powers.
The ritual is not without its drawbacks: the caster
gives away Advantage on the first inhumanity check
he or she faces. Additionally, the Thaumaturge's
Empathy score is temporarily reduced to zero, and
both Charisma and Manipulation are reduced by 1
rank each (minimum of 1).
Flood Waters (Weather)
Casting Time: Variable (2 hours per night)
Duration: Variable
Components: V, S, M
ends when the shark jaw leaves the circle, or when
the caster stops casting. Use of this ritual will al-
most certainly bring investigation by very, very
powerful members of very, very powerful groups of
vampires and wizards.
Scorched Earth (Weather)
Casting Time: Variable (2 hours per night)
Duration: Variable
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is the flip side of Flood Waters, supra.
The Thaumaturge must cast this ritual under an
open sky, for a minimum of two hours per night.
The caster may continue this ritual as long as he or
she wishes, provided that no more than 22 hours
pass between the end of one casting session and the
beginning of another. The caster must carve or
sketch out a circle with appropriate glyphs and sig-
ils, and must place within the circle a large snake-
skin. While the ritual is in effect, the region in
which the ritual is taking place (approximately 100
mile radius) will experience no rain, clear skies, near
-zero humidity, and record and near-record high
temperatures; even the nights will be unusually
warm and dry. The ritual ends when the snake
skin leaves the circle, or when the caster stops cast-
ing.

The Thaumaturge must cast this ritual under an

open sky, for a minimum of two hours per night.
The caster may continue this ritual as long as he or
she wishes, provided that no more than 22 hours
pass between the end of one casting session and the
beginning of another. The caster must carve out a
circle with appropriate glyphs and sigils (the caster
could sketch the circle, but given the nature of the
ritual such a circle would be easily destroyed), and
must place within the circle a shark's jaw.

While the ritual is in effect, the region in which the

ritual is taking place (approximately 100 mile radius)
will experience non-stop rain. It will not storm, but
it will be heavy rain -- 3-6 inches a day. The ritual

183
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
LEVEL 5:
Court of Truth
Casting Time: 1 Hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual enchants an entire room, compelling all
within to speak the complete and blatant truth. The
caster places a rib bone from an honest man or
woman at each and every entrance to the room,
including windows and vents. Each rib must be
treated with two points of the caster's vitae, and
cannot be used in rituals again.
To omit a relevant truth, the subject must success-
fully contest his Willpower against 11.
Silence is possible, but the effort required cannot
go unnoticed and all within the room will be able to
tell the speaker is withholding information and
fighting the ritual. The Tremere occasionally enact
this ritual for Princes, but the debt incurred to the
clan and the resentment such a heavy-handed tactic
breeds make it a questionable tool of Praxis.
The Curse Belated
Casting Time: 1 Night
Duration: Special
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is reserved for the most valued of
ghouls. The caster spends an entire evening casting
this ritual, during which time the caster sacrifices 1
permanent blood point, which remains with the
ghoul until death. This cannot be used for any pur-
pose and does not count towards a ghoul's blood
limit. If the ghoul is killed, after 15 minutes have
passed, the ghoul will become a vampire as if the
caster had embraced him or her. At this point, the
caster gets his blood point back (the capacity, not
the blood itself). This ritual may not be broken
save by the death of the ghoul or by countermagic.
184
Mirror of the True Form
Casting Time: 1 Night (does not include
frame construction)
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual enchants a mirror to reveal the true form
of anything that the caster sees reflected in it. Only
two people can see what is revealed in the mirror:
the caster, and the creature whose true form is be-
ing revealed. To cast this ritual, the Thaumaturge
must expend five blood points, and must place the
mirror in a wooden frame made of poplar. The
frame must be carefully enruned and inlaid with
silver. The mirror itself must be treated with an
enchanted mixture of mercury, the liquefied eye of
a hedgehog, the powdered skin of a chameleon,
heather, and hemlock.
Painted Shelter
Casting Time: 1 Night
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
Using this ritual, the Thaumaturge creates a place
for him to hide in extremis. The material component
is a realistic-looking painting of a landscape or a
building or a cityscape. There cannot be any identi-
fiable figures in the painting or the ritual will fail.
When the ritual is complete, after one night and the
expenditure of a Willpower point, the caster may
speak a phrase while standing in front of the paint-
ing and be transported into the scene. The caster
will appear visually in the painting, looking perfectly
in place in terms of the style of the painter and the
lighting, etc. The caster cannot emerge on his own:
someone else must speak the phrase to let him out.
Anyone who knows the pass phrase (or speaks it by
accident) will be taken into the painting... but it's
rare for someone to say something that convoluted
in Latin by accident.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
Paper Flesh
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This dreadful ritual makes the target's skin brittle
and weak: humors rise to the surface and flesh
tightens around the bones. The victim is left a dry,
fragile husk. The ritual itself is simple: the caster
writes the True Name of the victim on a piece of
paper, using the caster's vitae. The piece of paper is
then burned in a candle after a great deal of chant-
ing and waving of hands, and the caster burns two
blood points and a point of Willpower.
The effect of this ritual is immediate and cannot be
resisted: the target's stamina is reduced to 1, and he
or she may not spend blood to increase it. The tar-
get takes double damage from fire. If the target has
Fortitude, it is reduced to half of its value (round
down) for the duration of the ritual. This ritual's
effect is immediately obvious and quite uncomfort-
able. There is no range limitation on this ritual.
Talisman
Casting Time: 6 hours per night (28 nights,
see below)
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This casting of this ritual is required for admission
into the ranks of elder sorcerers. The Thauma-
turge must select an object -- and great social status
or opprobrium may be attached to a particularly
excellent or pitiful choice. The caster burns a Will-
power point. Until the ritual is completed, no fur-
ther Willpower can be recovered by the Thauma-
turge. (At all!) That object is then enchanted each
and every night for a full cycle of the moon: this
ritual must be successfully cast 28 times in succes-
sion. Any failure means that the object is destroyed
and the ritual must begin anew.
185
If the ritual is successfully concluded, the Thauma-
turge gains his Talisman. While in possession of
his Talisman, the caster:
 Gains Advantage on all ritual castings
 May keep an additional 2 active rituals
 Gains +2 to any contests involved in casting his
or her home path powers. This will be less help
to some paths than others, but applies to CBT
values as well.
If someone else possesses the caster's Talisman,
that someone else may gain +2 Contest Value on
any casting or ritual directed at the Thaumaturge. A
Thaumaturge may never have more than 1 Talis-
man. This ritual can only be ended by the destruc-
tion of the Talisman.
Validus Certamen
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The caster may take a blood point from two magi
and prepare two circles for a major Certamen duel.
If the duel is carried out according to ritual, all
damage inflicted will be healed upon termination.
While under the i this ritual, the combatants cannot
frenzy. Any Willpower spent during this ritual by
the combatants is gained back immediately upon
the end of this ritual.
Philosopher's Stone (Alchemy)
Casting Time: 1 week
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This prized ritual is the fabled Philosopher's Stone
of legend – a tool that reduces the difficulty of any
transmutation by 1. If a small handful of the ele-
ment being created was included in the casting, the
stone reduces the difficulty by 2 instead. This ritual
requires a full week, and casting checks must be
made each night. The stone will fit neatly into the
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
palm of the hand regardless of how much material
was used in its creation. Failure means that the al-
chemist must start over. A Thaumaturge may nev-
er have more than one Philosopher Stone at any
given time. The material component is a chalk, ab-
solutely pure water, and three doses of Quintes-
sence, plus any other elements the caster wishes.
Blood Contract (Blood)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is perhaps the most feared of all the
Tremere tools. It allows the Thaumaturge to draft
a contract, written in the blood of both parties sign-
ing the contract (or all parties if more than two).
The terms of the contract can be whatever are de-
sired -- the only requirement is that the parties to
the contract choose to sign it. They cannot be com-
pelled by Dominate, though they can be compelled
by threats to loved ones. The contact may have its
own terms governing breach of the agreement, but
those terms become part of the contract and suffer-
ing those penalties is not considered a breach of the
contract -- merely a contingent operation. Breach
of the contract itself by either party has the fol-
lowing results:
 The breaching party can be affected by the oth-
er party's Dominate, regardless of Sanguinis.
 The breaching party gives away Advantage on
all contests against the other party.
 The breaching party may not choose to resist
the powers of the other party if there is a
choice.
 The breaching party becomes absolutely unable
to take any physical action to harm the other
party.
 The breaching party becomes immediately
blood bound to the other party.
186
* Escape to a True Friend (Conjuring)
Casting Time: 1 round
Duration: Instant
Components: V
This ritual requires that the Thaumaturge whisper
the name of a true friend, provided that either the
caster or the friend has drunk the other's blood on
at least one occasion. If successfully cast, the caster
expends 3 Willpower points and will be immediate-
ly teleported into that friend's presence regardless
of distance. The friend has the option to make the
ritual fail.
Nova Gem (Flames)
Casting Time: 1 Night
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a ruby of at least $50,000 value,
rock from an erupted volcano that travelled at least
three miles in the blast, a vial of kerosene, a handful
of sulfur, and a handful of molten iron. The mol-
ten iron must be handled by hand during the ritual
and inflicts 2 aggravated wounds that are not soaka-
ble. The Thaumaturge must also expend a perma-
nent Willpower point in the casting of this ritual.
When the ritual is finished, the caster will have a
deep red and black gem that, when held, increases
the damage of his or her Lure of Flames Path com-
bat abilities. (DMT is increased by 2, while
HIGH, and LOW are both increased by 1A). A
vampire may only ever possess one nova gem, and
another may not be created until the first one is
destroyed. A vampire’s Nova Gem only works for
him or her.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
.Daylight Thought (Focused Mind)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: None
This Thaumaturge may cast this immediately before
retiring for the day in order to separate a portion of
his or her mind from his or her vampiric nature.
The portion remains conscious, and has access to
all the abilities and disciplines that the caster nor-
mally possesses, with the single exception that the
portion of the mind can do absolutely nothing to
move or animate the caster's body. While the pow-
er is useful in and of itself, the primary purpose of
the ritual is to allow Tremere to maintain control of
their Possessed hosts during the daylight hours,
without succumbing to the need for sleep. While
this ritual is active, the caster is immune to frenzy.
This ritual is exceedingly exhausting, and requires
the expenditure of a Willpower point every 4 hours.
Liquid Form (Neptune's Might)
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Concentration / Dawn-
Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the Thaumaturge to transform
him or herself into water. The caster may control
the water to a limited extent -- moving along the
ground at slow walking speed and flowing through
pipes and other bodies of water at approximately 25
miles per hour. The caster takes up approximately
15 gallons of space. No attacks are possible while
in this form, but the caster is immune to fire and
sunlight. Any impurities will be removed when the
ritual is ended. If the caster loses part of his vol-
ume while in liquid form, he or she suffers tremen-
dous damage: 1 health level of aggravated damage
for every gallon lost. If more than 10 gallons are
lost, the ritual ends immediately and the caster
emerges from the ritual in torpor. If the caster
gets caught, say, in an outboard propeller, it will
disorient him for a few minutes, but the traces of
187
his body will quickly flow back together. Likewise
if he is splashed across a floor: the droplets will
move slowly to join together.
Raise the Dead (Spirit)
Casting Time: 1 Hour
Duration: 28 days
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the Thaumaturge to place a spirit
summoned by the caster into a recently dead
corpse. It will not be the spirit previously inhabit-
ing the corpse. Being put into a body is extremely
stressful for a spirit, and due to the strain, the spirit
has no Willpower to spare and no resistance to
mind control. It also has little in the way of free
will. The body is animated solely by the spirit's
force: there are no biological functions going on at
all. This ritual may be renewed prior to ending.
Spirit of Torment (Spirit)
Casting Time: 1 Hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual summons a very aggressive and nasty
spirit that can be used to torment others. The spirit
has no physical body, but can directly attack the
soul of any creature that has one. When the ritual
is cast, the Thaumaturge names the intended victim.
The spirit will immediately seek out the victim and
begin causing excruciating pain and suffering.
As long as this continues, the victim makes all rolls
at -x, where x is half of the character's humanity
rounded up, plus 1. (Thus a character with a 7 hu-
manity would suffer -5 to all rolls.) Every hour that
passes causes the victim to lose either a temporary
humanity point, or a temporary permanent Will-
power point. If both are reduced to zero, the vic-
tim will begin suffering health levels of damage
from the stress: 1 point per hour. Willpower is re-
gained normally once the victim’s capacity returns.
Lost humanity is regained at a point per week.
 THAUMATURGY RITUALS
The major drawback to this ritual is that the spirit
in question cannot keep his or her mouth shut: the
victim will be able to hear the spirit mocking him
while the torment continues, and the spirit will cer-
tainly reveal who sent him. The caster may end this
ritual at will -- though ending while the caster is
asleep during the day is not possible.
Ride the Lines (Technomancy)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
The Thaumaturge who casts this ritual gains the
ability to spend a Willpower point to physically
traverse power and/or communication lines, in-
cluding copper wire, fiber optics, etc. A Willpower
must be spent each time the caster travels, but there
is otherwise no limit to the number of times the
caster may travel in a night when the ritual was suc-
cessfully cast. This ritual has drawbacks: the caster
suffers one extra LOW or HIGH damage if struck
with a conductive weapon (including most steels).
Teletargeting (Technomancy)
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: 1 scene
Components: V, S
The Thaumaturge can cast his or her rituals and use
his or her thaumaturgical powers over data and
phone lines, or even through broadcast and satellite
signals. For instance, the caster could use Nep-
tune's Might 2 to encase someone whom they were
watching on a CCTV in water, or could cast a curse
over the phone. Each use of a power over distance
in this way requires the expenditure of a blood
point. When combined with Technomancy Path
power 5, this is a dangerous ritual.
188
Stone Slumber (Terra's Power)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Post-dawn sunset
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge smears his or her entire body
with blood from a 12-hour old corpse stands com-
pletely still in an open area facing east. Watching
dawn break requires the expenditure of a Willpower
point. When the first rays of the rising sun strike
her, the vampire's body turns to stone and he be-
comes immune to all forms of physical damage,
sunlight, and most flames. The caster's mind is
completely inert. The only thing that can harm the
caster is heat enough to melt stone.
Summon Elemental (Terra's Power)
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge makes a circle of salt on stone or
earth, and then begins to call. At the end of the
three hour casting time, an earth elemental rises
from the ground, appearing within the circle. The
elemental is a creature of limited intelligence, but
will do its best to follow the caster's commands.
The elemental may travel through earth and stone,
has Strength 6, Stamina 6, Dexterity 2, Brawl 2,
Fortitude 3, and Potence 2.
Hurricane (Weather)
Casting Time: 1 Night
Duration: Natural
Components: V, S, M
The Thaumaturge must stand on the ocean's shore
when casting this spell. The casting takes all night.
The effect is to summon a hurricane some 500
miles offshore. The hurricane will come directly
towards the casting site beginning at dawn. It will
arrive in 3 days and will then behave as naturally as
it is able to. The caster must throw a silver spoon
into the ocean
 PART VII
Necromancy
Ordinary people seem not to realize that those who apply themselves to Philosophy are
directly and of their own accord preparing themselves for dying and death..
Necromancy is, like Thaumaturgy, more of a field
of study than a specific set of powers, and it is
composed of separate Paths that practitioners may
learn.
There are four “paths” of Necromancy:
 The Sepulchre Path, dealing with knowledge
and mastery of the spirits of the departed;
 The Shroud Path, which allows Necro-
mancers to reach into and manipulate the
world of the dead;
 The Bone Path, which deals with corpses and
remains; and
 The Ash Path, which deals with the powers
of death and decay.
189
Necromancy is different than the path of Spirit
Thaumaturgy and its accompanying rituals: it is
concerned solely with human (and vampire) spirits,
and Necromancers are capable of much more re-
fined manipulations, with a more flexible, nuanced
approach.
With each dot of the Necromancy Discipline, Nec-
romancers automatically receive the corresponding
level of the Sepulchre Path. (I.e., this is the “home
path” of all Necromancers.) Other paths can be
developed once the Necromancer reaches Level 3
Necromancy.
Necromancy also has rituals which are listed after
the paths.
 NECROMANCY
The Sepulchre Path
● Spirit Sight
(Subtle)
The Necromancer may shift his sight to see into the
Borderlands. This allows him to see irregularities or
spiritual phenomena nearby (such as attenuations
or weak points in the Shroud), as well as any disem-
bodied or deceased spirit – manifested or not –
within his visual range.
Shifting into Spirit Sense is instantaneous, but shift-
ing out takes 18 seconds (3 rounds). While using
Spirit Sight, the Necromancer gives away Ad-
vantage in physical combat due to the distractions
and uncertainties in the Borderlands. If the Necro-
mancer possesses Auspex, it functions with respect
to the spirits the Necromancer can see.
●● Wraith Binding
(Concentration) (Dawn) (Range) (Sight)
By expending a blood point, the Necromancer may
bind a spirit in either the Borderlands or the materi-
al plane such that the spirit may not leave the im-
mediate area and may not attack the Necromancer
or anyone in his immediate vicinity. This also pre-
serves the spirit from deterioration due to being in
the material world.
The spirit may attempt to break free only once,
though if it was summoned with Summon the Soul
(below) the Necromancer gains Advantage. To
break free, the spirit must contest:
GUILE
VS.
WITS + NECROMANCY
190
●●● Summon the Soul
(Distance) (Gesture) (Dawn) (Resistance)
By expending a blood point, the Necromancer can
force the attendance of a deceased person’s ghost,
bringing it into the Borderlands and forcing it to
manifest in the Necromancer’s location.
The Necromancer must know the spirit’s name and
possess an object with some sort of connection to
that person (it need not be a fetish). This ritual will
not force the ghost to speak, although most will
want to know why they are being bothered. Most
ghosts will try to resist this power; if so, the caster
should contest:
MANIPULATION + OCCULT
VS.
GUILE
The Necromancer receives Advantage if he has an
object that was particularly dear to the ghost ( a fet-
ish), or if the summoning is taking place in a loca-
tion that was important to the ghost. If the ghost
was pulled from the Glorious Heavens or the Hells,
it will return there at Dawn.
●●●● Inquisition of the Dead
(Range) (Visual) (Sight) (Audible) (Nightly)
By expending a Willpower point, the Necromancer
can bind a ghost that is in his immediate presence
and manifested (as in Wraith Binding, above), forc-
ing it to answer any number of questions. This is
extremely uncomfortable for the ghost in question,
and will likely cause the ghost to be hostile. The
ghost cannot, however, attack the Necromancer or
do much other than answer questions.
 NECROMANCY

The ghost may resist the imposition of this power

once when it is first used, with:

WILLPOWER
VS.
INTELLIGENCE + INTIMIDATION

Success indicates that the Ghost need not answer

the questions and may attack the caster. A tie indi-
cates that the Ghost need not answer the questions,
but may not attack the caster.

Failure indicates that the ghost must answer, and

answer truthfully – but it need not be the “whole”
truth and the questions should be worded very
carefully.

Use of this power calls for a Degeneration Check if

the Necromancer’s Humanity is above 8.

●●●●● Banish
(Range) (Sight) (Gesture) (Resistance)
By expending a Willpower, the Necromancer may
banish a disembodied ghost from the mortal world
for a year and a day (366 days). A ghost may
choose to resist this effect with a contest of:

ATTACHMENT
VS.
STAMINA + SUBTERFUGE

If the ghost is bound with Wraith Binding, the

Necromancer gains Advantage. The exact effect is
different depending on whether the ghost attempts
to resist or not.
If the Ghost came from the Glorious Heavens or
If this power is not resisted, the ghost is banished was assigned to one of the Hells, he will return
and may not cross through the Shroud or manifest there when this power is used.
in the material world in any way for the year and a
day, but may still be summoned by external forces. Use of this power calls for a Degeneration Check if
However, if the ghost attempts to resist and fails, the Necromancer’s humanity is above 7.
the ghosts form will be disrupted in addition to being
banished.

191
 NECROMANCY
The Bone Path
Many of the powers on this Path are easier to use
with more recent corpses. When a power calls for
an Age Difficulty, consult Table 30, below. Note
that success is automatic for corpses 2 weeks old
or less.
Table 30—Age Difficulties (Bone Path)
Diff. Age
n/a 14 days or less
2 Up to 3 months
4 Up to 2 years
5 Up to 50 years
6 Up to 100 years
7 Up to 300 years
9 Up to 750 years
10 Over 750 years
● Shell Preservation
The Necromancer may, by burning a blood point
and running his hands gently over a corpse, prevent
any further decomposition or rotting in the corpse:
it will be perfectly preserved, without the need for
refrigeration.
This power can be used on as many corpses as the
Necromancer wishes, for one blood point per
corpse. The effect lasts 28 days. By burning a
Willpower, the Necromancer may make his use of
this power last one year and one day (for as many
corpses as are treated — only one Willpower point
need be spent). Note that this power halts decay
for purposes of determining Age Difficulty.
192
●● Eyes of the Dead
(Nightly)
By expending a blood point, the Necromancer may
peer directly into the eyes of the corpse and, with a
few minutes’ concentration, “see” how the corpse
died. The Necromancer must contest:
PERCEPTION + NECROMANCY
VS.
AGE DIFFICULTY
A full account of events that the dead person would
have considered relevant to his or her death can be
viewed from a first-person perspective, though no
information the dead person did not possess.
When looking into the eyes of a vampire’s corpse,
the body is ‘dated’ from the time of embrace, and
the Necromancer gives away Advantage.
●●● Animation
(Range)
The Necromancer may burn two blood points to
animate a corpse for twenty-eight (28) days, captur-
ing echoes of the former spirit. (This requires a
Degeneration Check at Humanity 6 or higher.) To
use this power, the Necromancer must contest:
STAMINA + LEADERSHIP
VS.
AGE DIFFICULTY
The corpse will not have higher cognitive func-
tions, and will wander aimlessly, groaning to itself.
It will respond to commands issued by the Necro-
mancer in a language it spoke in life. It is only ca-
pable of very basic tasks: stay here, silence, carry
this, fetch that, guard this, etc. It has limited com-
bat statistics, but has as many health levels as a
vampire, and suffers no wound penalties.
 NECROMANCY

Brawl: CBT-3 DMT-4

HIGH-2 LOW-0
Grapple: CBT-4
Soak: 5
Evade: 1
Effective WP: (May not spend) 10

●●●● Investment
By spending a Willpower and two blood points, the
Necromancer may “prepare” an empty corpse to
receive a spirit. The spirit must be nearby and ei-
ther be willing or Wraith Bound. First, the Necro-
mancer must spend a full night preparing the
corpse with a contest of:

INTELLIGENCE + MEDICINE
VS.
AGE DIFFICULTY

Then, if the spirit is resisting, the spirit may contest

the investment with:

GUILE VS. NECROMANCER’S WILLPOWER

If the investment is successful, then the spirit ani-

mates the body, gaining full use of its physical and
sensory abilities (i.e., physical attributes, appearance,
and perception). All other attributes, as well as all
Abilities, are the Spirit’s. The spirit is considered
anchored. This power requires a Degeneration
Check at Humanity 6 or higher. As with Animation, the contest is:

●●●●● Shambling Hordes STAMINA + LEADERSHIP

VS.
(Range) (Dawn)
AGE DIFFICULTY
This is an improved version of Animation (●●●).
For three blood and one Willpower, a number of
The Shambling Hordes are more mobile and pow-
corpses up to the Caster’s Charisma + Occult
erful than normal zombies:
may be animated. Corpses 14 days old or less will
Brawl: CBT-4 DMT-6
be automatically animated. If there are older corps-
HIGH-3 LOW-1
es present that the caster wishes to animate, he
Grapple: CBT-4
should make one contest vs. the corpses’ age diffi-
Soak: 6
culties; any corpse against which he is successful
Evade: 2
may be selected to rise.
Effective WP: (May not spend) 10

193
 NECROMANCY
The Shroud Path
● Shroud Sense
(Subtle)
This power places the Necromancer directly in
touch with the Borderlands, weakening the Shroud
in his or her vicinity. In addition to gaining the
benefits of Spirit Sight (Sepulchre Path), the Necro-
mancer may sense whether nearby creatures in the
mortal world are at the edge of death (~15 mins.).
He or she may also sense the presence (or recent
presence) of nearby spirits (within 200 yards or so).
The approximate age, power, and predominant
emotional mood can be determined with a success-
ful contest of:
PERCEPTION + EMPATHY VS. 4 etc. While this power is active, the caster may speak
As with Spirit Sense, use of this power is instanta-
neous, but reversion requires approximately 18 sec-
onds (3 rounds). While using Shroud Sense, the
Necromancer gives away Advantage on all contests
involving physical action or perception.
●● Death’s Herald
(Touch)
By expending a blood point and touching a crea-
ture with a soul or spirit while concentrating for
approximately 30 seconds, the Necromancer may
assess the strength of the binding between the crea-
ture and its spirit – in particular, he or she may tell
whether the creature is in imminent danger of
death, and if so, what the cause of the danger is,
and approximately how long the creature has left to
live if nothing is done. This will detect diseases,
injuries, magical afflictions, curses, and other con-
ditions of the target itself that threaten death within
approximately two weeks – but it will not in any
way detect external threats (e.g., it will not detect a
team of assassins on the way into the city). The
194
power works automatically on non-supernatural
mortals. When used on mages, vampires, or the
like, it requires a contest of:
PERCEPTION + MEDICINE VS. 6
●●● Shadow Tongues
(Audible) (Visual)
The Necromancer may speak to any spirit as if the
Necromancer were speaking that spirit’s native lan-
guage. Both parties still speak (or in the case of a
spirit, appear to speak) their normal native tongues;
but by putting the caster’s mind in touch with the
spirit realm, this power acts as a peculiarly effective
translator – conveying mood, connotation, idioms,
to any number of spirits, each with separate native
languages. The caster will understand what each
spirit says, but this power will not allow the spirits
to communicate with each other in the same way.
●●●● Shroud Dancing
(Dawn)
The Necromancer with this power has become so
attuned to the realm of the dead that he or she can
balance his or her physical form between this world
and the Borderlands by spending a Willpower
point. This condition lasts for the rest of the night,
and has a number of effects.
 It allows the Necromancer to physically interact
with spirits, and vice versa: including combat,
grappling, touch activated powers, etc.
 It allows interaction with objects of the spirit
world; the Necromancer may bring them back
and forth across the Shroud. (This can be a
particularly effective way to hide something in
the short term – although leaving a physical
object in the spirit realm for any substantial
length of time will almost certainly destroy it.)
 NECROMANCY
 It infuses the Necromancer’s body with the en-
ergy of the dead – a cold lifeless energy that
grants the Necromancer Advantage when soak-
ing fire and sun damage.
 It grants enhancement to the Necromancer’s
Brawl attack damage: +1 DMT, +1 HIGH, and
+1 LOW.
This power makes the Necromancer appear more
corpse-like, and surrounds him with a chill aura.
While this power is in effect, the Necromancer
temporarily loses all Masquerade Skill.
●●●●● Ex Nihilo
This prized power allows the Necromancer to step
out of the material world and completely into the
spirit world – body and all. It is an invaluable way
to escape the sun, in extremis. By creating a properly
sigiled circle or doorway, and spending two Will-
power points, the caster will be able to step into the
195
realm of the dead, physically entering the Border-
lands. The Necromancer may travel to the River,
may cross it if able, and may continue on to the
Warrens or the Hells, although it is unlikely that he
or she will be met by any angels, save perhaps as a
warning.
Leaving the land of the dead while using this power
requires spending a Willpower point, but if the
Necromancer is not in the Borderlands when this is
done, there is no telling where he or she will
emerge. While in the Realm of the Dead, the caster
will continue to lose blood as normal, but loses his
or her vampiric vulnerability to the spirit world
equivalents of fire and sunlight.
Note that when in the realm of the Dead, a vampire
is surrounded by a deep black and purple aura that
broadcasts his or her nature to everything and eve-
ryone. Most vampires are not welcome.
 NECROMANCY
The Ash Path
● Ashes to Ashes
With the expenditure of a blood point, the Necro-
mancer may cause a dead body (not a vampire) that
is not animated or enchanted in any way to rapidly
decompose and turn to dust. This is extremely use-
ful in covering up hunting accidents. The power
works on any sort of body – fresh, decomposed, or
skeletal. The caster can stop the process at any
point.
●● Rictus Mask
(Touch) (Dawn) (MULTI)
By expending a blood point and touching a mortal
or vampire, the Necromancer may cause the target
to assume the appearance of a moderately aged
corpse. Skin tightens and dries, cartilage crumples,
gums recede, nails grow and yellow.
This hideous power will lower the target’s appear-
ance by 4 points (minimum 0) and is quite painful
for mortals, who operate at -2 to all contests while
under the influence of this power. Vampires may
resist its effects with:
WP/2
VS.
INTELLIGENCE + VAMPIRE PHYSIOLOGY
●●● Dust to Dust
(Touch) (Tactical) (Dawn)
With this fearsome power, the Necromancer lets
loose death energy channeled from beyond the
shroud into the target, corrupting their flesh and
quite possibly killing them.
The power requires expenditure of two blood
points and a touch. Mortal targets are aged sixty-
four years in a matter of seconds; this kills most
adults, from the strain if nothing else. A mortal
196
who has mind to endure such a power may attempt
to survive the process by contesting:
STAMINA
VS.
NEW AGE DIVIDED BY 10
The new age should be rounded up.
When used against a vampire, this power inflicts
tremendous damage, but damage that is easily
healed as the Vampire target spends his or her
blood to restore his or her youth. If the Necro-
mancer successfully touches a vampire with in com-
bat using this power, the following damage is in-
flicted, as the vampire’s flesh begins to wither and
die in the area around the touch:
DMT: 8 (no Dodge on Soak)
HIGH: 8 LOW: 4
●●●● The False Death
(Touch) (Sanguinis)
The Necromancer with this power may – temporar-
ily – reverse the curse of vampirism and set loose
the soul of a vampire, leaving a merely dead body
behind. The soul is stuck in the Borderlands and
will be forbidden passage across the River; if and
when the vampire returns to its body, it will have
no memory of its time in the Borderlands
(although other creatures may remember it…).
This power requires expending two Willpower
points. If the Necromancer uses it on himself, suc-
cess is automatic and the Necromancer decides
how many sunsets will pass before he returns,
burning 1 blood per sunset. (So burning 5 blood
will mean that on the fifth sunset, he will rise.) The
Necromancer has no control of his body whatsoev-
er while this time passes, and any injuries to his
 NECROMANCY

body that are not immediately healed upon rising
will become permanent. If the Necromancer at-
tempts to use this on another vampire, it lasts till
the next sunset, and that vampire may resist, gain-
ing Advantage, with:
SANGUINIS + HUMANITY
VS.
CHARISMA + EMPATHY
●●●●● Revivication
This power may be used in two ways.
Most spectacularly, it may bring a deceased mortal
back to life. To do this, the Necromancer must
touch the body, burn a Willpower point, and suc-
ceed in a contest of:
The difficulty is determined by the length of time
that the corpse has been dead, with a base difficulty
of 8, with a +1 difficulty for each 24 hours or por-
tion thereof that the corpse has been deceased. If
the deceased is a ghoul, the Necromancer gains Ad-
vantage.
Alternatively, the Necromancer may also use this
power to revive a vampire from torpor. Use of this
power for this purpose requires only the expendi-
ture of a single Willpower point, and does not re-
quire any blood, although it is recommended that
you have some on hand if awakening someone who
might be hungry. The power succeeds automatical-
ly.

STAMINA + MEDICINE
VS.
8 +1/DAY AFTER DEATH

197
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
Rituals
Necromancy has its own collection of ghastly and
potent rituals, some of which are truly terrifying.
As with Thaumaturgy, these rituals are of two
types: “General” rituals and “Associated” rituals.
General rituals may be learned by anyone based on
their Necromancy score (i.e., if you have Necro-
mancy 3, you can learn Level 3 General Rituals.)
Associated rituals require the equivalent rating to be
on the associated Path, so that if you wish to learn a
Level 4 ritual associated with The Ash Path, you
must have 4 ranks in The Ash Path (which in turn
requires 4 ranks in Necromancy). There are no
associated rituals to the Sepulchre Path, as that Path
is, effectively, the “General” Path.
198
To cast a ritual successfully, the Necromancer must
succeed or tie on a contest of:
INTELLIGENCE + OCCULT
VS.
LEVEL OF THE RITUAL +3
1. Active Ritual Limit:
No Necromancer may have more active rituals than
his Wits + Necromancy rating. Rituals marked
with a * do not count toward that limit.
2. Learning Rituals:
Necromancy rituals are learned in the same way and
using the same system as Thaumaturgy Rituals.
 NECROMANCY RITUALS

LEVEL 1: with a single, stylized letter or symbol signifying the

Necromancer, usually the first letter of the Necro-
mancer’s name. This mark is visible to spirits, and
Antipathy to anyone using shroud sight or similar powers,
Casting Time: 15 minutes who will see it as a flaring, yellow-green brand
Duration: Dawn-Terminated across the target’s soul’s forehead. Wraiths familiar
Components: V, S, M with the Necromancer’s symbol will recognize it
immediately. This power can be used on a wraith,
By making a small cross of rowan branches tied but it requires the expenditure of a blood point.
with red thread which is kept on his or her person,
and swallowing a pinch of salt, the Necromancer Spirit Charm
makes themselves distasteful and bothersome to Casting Time: 4 hours (plus 96 hours of
spirits. Spirits will generally avoid him, preferring prep)
to retreat than remain in his presence. This power Duration: Semi-Permanent
does not have any combat effects, and a spirit that Components: V, S, M
is forced into combat will fight as normal. The rit-
ual ends at dawn, or when the cross is separated This ritual requires six very specific types of bone –
from the Necromancer. It may be re-used. finger bones from (1) an infant who died within a
month of childbirth; (2) a murderer executed for
his crimes; (3)(4) a married couple who died with-
Eyes of the Shroud out children; (5) a priest, rabbi, imam, monk, or
Casting Time: 5 minutes other holy person; and (6) a warrior of great virtue
Duration: Dawn-Terminated (this last can be interpreted with some degree of
Components: V, S, M breadth).

This simple ritual involves a bit of hallowed grave
dirt, the blood of the target, and a tiny bit of sage
for burning. The Necromancer makes a paste from
the blood and dirt, and then ritually applies it to the
eyelids of the target, stopping to circle the target’s
head four times with the burning sage after each
eye. For the rest of the night, the target gains the
Spirit Sight power (as on Sepulchre Path).
* Soulblaze
Casting Time: 30 seconds
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S
The casting of this ritual is simple: a muttered
phrase in Latin, and then the Necromancer licks his
or her thumb and presses it against the forehead of
the target, speaking the name of the target (even a
nickname will do). This marks the target’s soul
The six bones must be prepared by soaking them in
holy water for 24 hours, then in wine for another
24, then in oil, and finally in two points of the Nec-
romancer’s vitae. With each soaking, the bones will
assume a warmer, shinier tone, till they are like pol-
ished red oak. When they are prepared, the Necro-
mancer binds them together with gut string taken
from a living victim while the ritual is cast. This
will likely require a humanity check.
After much more chanting and incantation, the
Necromancer will have created a terrible necklace
with a strong magic aura that can only be used by
the Necromancer, and it makes him or her seem
exceptionally amiable and attractive to the spirits of
the dead. Any spirit who is not already hostile will
be positively inclined to the Necromancer. In game
terms, the Necromancer may gain Advantage on
any and all social contests with such spirits.

199
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
* Spirit Stone
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a large (2 carat) piece of either
Morganite or Red Beryl. (These can be quite ex-
pensive.) The gem must be cut in such a way that it
has a face large enough to accept etching. The
Necromancer carves the name of a spirit into the
gem face while in the presence of that same spirit.
Usually, this means that the spirit must be sum-
moned and bound first – but not always. The ritual
takes 3 hours. At any point in the future, the Nec-
romancer may crush or shatter the stone. Doing so
immediately summons the spirit in question, fully
bound, with no chance of resistance or failure.
This ritual is often extracted by Necromancers as a
price for favors done for spirits.
Voices of the Dead
Casting Time: 15 minutes
Duration: 1 week
Components: V, S, M
To perform this ritual, the Necromancer must ob-
tain a lock of the target’s hair. The hair is tied into
an elaborate knot, which is then dipped into a mud
made from hallowed grave dirt and blood (of any
type). The knot is then held in a candle flame until
it begins to burn. A little more chanting, and the
target will receive the ability to hear nearby spirits
speaking, even when they are not manifesting. This
can be extremely disconcerting if the target is not
aware that the ritual has been cast, for there is no
indication of from where the voices are coming
and, as a practical matter, there are almost always a
few spirits about murmuring. Sleep becomes ex-
tremely difficult. If the target reacts with fear or
surprise, particularly cruel or malicious spirits are
likely to start a game with the torment. This ritual
does not allow the target to communicate in any
way; it simply lets the target hear what is going on
around him. The ritual will end after one week, at
200
which point the knot will crumble to dust. If the
knot is undone prior to this, the ritual ends.
Breathe on the Embers (Ash)
Casting Time: 12 seconds
Duration: 15 minutes
Components: V, S
By expending a Willpower point, the Necromancer
may prevent an otherwise dying mortal from actual-
ly dying for up to fifteen minutes. This power can
be used multiple times in sequence. Each and every
use of the power, however, causes the mortal target
to burn a Willpower as well (he or she has no
choice in the matter). A target with no Willpower
can only be sustained once. Use of this power of-
ten requires a Humanity check, as it can be cruel to
keep someone alive who would otherwise die.
Skull Sentry (Bone)
Casting Time: 5 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
Using a human skull, a handful of silver coins,a
brass bell, and a gold chain, the Necromancer may
bind a spirit – any spirit will do and is considered to
be readily available – to the skull to serve as a sentry
of sorts. The silver is melted and used to inlay sigils
that must be carved into the bone. The chain is set
into the skull like a crown or circlet, but must be
anchored in with melted silver as well. The bell is
placed into the skull’s mouth. The skull will ob-
serve everything that its eyes could normally ob-
serve, but will also have Spirit Sight. The caster
may at a later time look into the eyes of the skull
for no less than five minutes, and will gain
knowledge of everything the skull has seen over the
previous seven days and nights. The skull can also
be “instructed” to sound an alarm upon certain
basic conditions being fulfilled; the alarm will
sound as a loud, sustained, ghostly wail. Any near-
by Skull Sentries within earshot will automatically
pick up the wail. Any zombies who hear it will
 NECROMANCY RITUALS

begin wailing as well. The wailing lasts for two

minutes. The ritual is permanent, but can be ended
by destroying the skull or removing the gold chain
or the bell. The confined spirit is considered an-
chored while the ritual is anchored.

Smoking Mirror (Shroud)

Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M

By burning a great deal of very expensive incense

on a platinum-backed mirror in a bone frame
etched with appropriate sigils. The Necromancer
causes the mirror to function as a window into the
Borderlands for the rest of the evening. The view
through the mirror will seem partially obscured
with wisps of smoke, and wisps of vapor will con-
tinue to come out of the mirror until the ritual is
terminated. Nothing other than this smoke may
pass through in either direction, however.

* Stabilize (Shroud)
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S

This ritual allows the Necromancer to “settle” the

Shroud in a discrete area – usually a room, but in
no case larger than a small house. This ritual re-
quires the expenditure of a Willpower point. This
smooths over the Shroud, strengthening weak spots
and removing irregularities. Because so many nec-
romantic powers rely on exploiting minor weak-
nesses and irregularities, any attempt to pierce the
Shroud in any way that would normally require a
contest will give away Advantage. Furthermore,
Spirits in the Borderlands will generally be unable
to manifest within the stabilized area, receiving an
effective -1 Attachment and giving away Ad-
vantage.

201
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
LEVEL 2:
Nightmares
Casting Time: 2 hours
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This diabolical ritual summons a spirit from the
Hell of Revisited Guilt to inflict terrible nightmares
on the target. The material components are a rea-
sonably sized piece of the target’s body (a large lock
of hair, a pile of nail clippings, or a vial of blood
will do), a goose feather, and a piece of barbed
wire.
The components must each be purified in clean
saltwater for two hours. The caster then places all
the components in his hand and then grinds them
together, mixing them with his blood and chanting
the name of the target as his hand is torn apart by
the wire. (This inflicts two levels of damage.) The
target – wherever he is – will be visited by the most
vivid and awful nightmares imaginable, and those
nightmares will focus on the target’s guilt and past
misdeeds.
The effects are dramatic: that night’s sleep does not
allow any Willpower recovery, and instead the tar-
get loses a Willpower. Any and all actions are per-
formed at -1. This penalty is cumulative in mortals
if the ritual is used over sequential nights. Addi-
tionally, mortals and vampires with a Humanity of
9 or 10 will give away Advantage on all contests.
Use of this power requires a Degeneration Check if
the Necromancer’s Humanity is 7 or higher.
202
Puppet
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
To cast this ritual, the Necromancer must prepare a
doll, marionette, mannequin, or dummy. The con-
struct must have a movable mouth, must have two
arms and two legs, and should be stuffed with
crushed human bone with a mixture of lavender,
cinnamon, and wormwood. Once a proper puppet
is constructed, it may be reused over and over
again. The actual casting of the ritual requires 30
minutes and expenditure of a blood point.
Any spirit invited by the Necromancer during the
casting of the ritual may “possess” the puppet, ani-
mating it, moving around, and speaking through its
mouth. The spirit will “see” through the puppet’s
eyes – though it will still have Spirit Sight.
A Necromancer may use Wraith Binding
(Sepulchre Path, Level 2) to bind an unwilling ghost
to the Puppet. If so, the Necromancer gains Ad-
vantage on any attempt by the spirit to break free
of the binding. The puppet will anchor spirits
while they are within it. There have been stories of
Necromancers who were tricked into inviting de-
mons into their Puppets… demons who do not
depart with the dawn…
Spirit Beacon:
Casting Time: 15 minutes
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a very specially prepared scepter
made from the following materials: the femur of a
hanged man, the skull of a priest or holy man, a
garland of nightshade, all bound together with plati-
num thread. The scepter is covered with inscrip-
tions and sigils, and then infused with no less than
12 points of the caster’s own vitae. The infusions
must occur on the night of a new moon, out of
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
doors, under the open sky where the moon is visi-
ble. The scepter may be re-infused at any point
(subject to the listed restrictions) before it is ex-
hausted.
By spending a Willpower point and burning one of
the blood points infused into the scepter, the Nec-
romancer makes the scepter function as a beacon,
drawing nearly every spirit either on the material
plane or in the Borderlands for a ten mile radius.
This is usually a LOT of spirits. Most spirits will be
mildly annoyed, for they cannot resist this call.
They are most likely to simply leave, however.
What the Necromancer wishes to do with the veri-
table parade of spirits that will be forced to attend
is entirely up to him.
Spirit Chime
Casting Time: 3 nights
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
The caster must spend two uninterrupted nights
casting this ritual – any interruption over five
minutes in length will cause the entire ritual to fail.
It requires a hollow silver tube suitable for making a
wind chime. The caster spends two nights carving
the chime, inlaying it with human bone, and infus-
ing it with a total of 8 points of vitae (4 per night).
At the end of each night, the caster also spends a
point of Willpower. The chime must then spend
the third night soaking in freshly spilled blood from
a sacrificed human being of great virtue, under the
light of a full moon. (Obviously, casting this ritual
requires a Degeneration Check at nearly any Hu-
manity.)
At sunset on the fourth night, the caster will have a
chime that will ring any time any human spirit ap-
proaches within ten feet of it. The ringing causes
spirits great pain and consternation, and will cause
any spirit within twenty feet to give away Ad-
vantage on any and all contests for the next hour.
203
Visions of Death
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S, M
To cast this unsettling ritual, the Necromancer first
constructs a small voodoo doll of the target, using a
lock of hair or a point of the target’s blood. To
cast the ritual, the Necromancer gives the doll a
proper Greek funeral, with a miniature pyre and
two drops of molten gold dripped onto the doll’s
eyes. At the end of the ritual, the Necromancer
speaks the target’s name and spends a blood point.
Until the next sunset, the target will be assailed by
malicious spirits who will send constant visions of
his or her own possible death.
None of the visions will offer any particularly use-
ful information – they will just present situations in
which the target could die. (i.e., if he were going to
his grandmother’s house, he might have a vision of
being poisoned by his grandmother, even if nothing
of the sort were in the works). Most mortals will
be effectively incapacitated by this ritual after just a
few short hours. Most vampires will be extremely
agitated, and will give away Advantage on any and
all frenzy checks as the Beast responds to these dis-
turbing visions. Additionally, a vampire suffering
from this ritual will not gain any Willpower from
the day’s rest.
* Set Loose the Coil: (Ash)
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S
By murmuring a few quick words of comfort and
concern, the Necromancer may use this power to
hasten the death of a mortal who is already near to
dying. Any mortal who would otherwise die
(absent intervention) within the next week from a
disease, condition, or injury may be targeted with
this power, but only if the disease or condition is
progressive (i.e., this will not work on someone who
 NECROMANCY RITUALS

would otherwise suffer a heart attack or stroke in a
week’s time). The death will appear to be caused by
whatever would have killed the mortal anyway – it
is almost entirely undetectable. Use of this power
may require a Degeneration Check… but maybe
not.
* Corpse Repair (Bone)
Casting Time: One hour
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the Necromancer to restore a
damaged corpse to pristine physical condition. It
will not function on a corpse that is older than two
weeks. It requires a small crystal and a branch of
Thyme. If a zombie is made from a recent corpse,
and then injured, it will restore the Zombie’s health
levels.
hawks, squirrels, possums, and the like will re-
spond, in far greater numbers. This is an extremely
disturbing ritual and a gross breach of the Masquer-
ade in most circumstances.
Safe Space (Shroud)
Casting Time: Variable
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
This ritual allows the Necromancer to very quickly
ward a room against spirits. By spending a Will-
power point and tracing each and every window or
door to the room (which could take time), the cast-
er will create a “safe space” into which spirits of the
dead may not enter – either in the material world or
in the Borderlands… for the most part. Any spirit
may – if given sufficient motivation – attempt to
enter by contesting:

Nature’s Remains (Bone) GUILE VS. 12

Casting Time: 12 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated Casting this ritual takes approximately 3 minutes
Components: V, S, M for an average room. It will take considerably long-
er for extremely large rooms or rooms with a lot of
By casting fresh (killed within 1 hour) animal blood windows.
and salt to the cardinal directions, the Necromancer
sends a call echoing through the Shroud for nearly
a mile in every direction. Any and all animal corps-
es in the area – and there are always more than peo-
ple think – will immediately become animated by
the random animal spirits begin to stumble in the
direction of the Necromancer (or more precisely,
the location from where he cast the ritual).

The caster may exercise a crude sort of control over

these, ordering them to head in a direction, to at-
tack a target, or swarm a building. These creatures
will have negligible combat statistics, but their sheer
numbers present a threat even to vampires. The
exact number and type of creatures will depend on
the location. In a dense city, dogs, cats, pigeons,
and rats are the most likely to respond – usually
between four and five dozen. In the canyons, deer,

204
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
LEVEL 3:
Anchor:
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a spirit as the subject, and an
object with some connection to the spirit (it need
not be a fetish, but if it is the Necromancer gains
Advantage on casting the ritual). Most spirits will
welcome this ritual being used on them, and some
will even trade favors for it. The Necromancer, in
a short one-hour ritual that involves burning in-
cense and the sacrifice of a small animal, may bind
the spirit to the object such that the spirit is able to
exist on the material plane without deterioration.
The only restriction is that the spirit must return to
the object at least once every twenty-eight days, and
remain near it for twenty-four hours, or the con-
nection will be broken. Spirits gain emotional pow-
er from being on the material plane, interacting
with mortals, so they tend to like being here. The
ritual can also be ended by destroying the object.
Deathsight Curse
Casting Time: 30 seconds
Duration: Post-Dawn Sunset
Components: V, S, M
The material component for this ritual is a large
portion of crushed Nightshade powder. The caster
merely speaks the name of the target and blows this
powder in the target’s face. Until the next sunset,
the target will see every living creature (plants in-
cluded) as dying and deteriorating. This is not an
illusion – merely a supra-heightened awareness of
everyone’s mortality. This will drive many mortals
mad. Note that vampires do not appear to be dying
– and thus stand out to a target of this ritual.
205
Discorporeal Claw
Casting Time: 5 Nights
Duration: Semi-Permanent (11 charg-
es)
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires the severed hand from the rea-
sonably recent corpse of a very bad person – Hu-
manity 3 or less. (A vampire will not do.) The
Necromancer spends 5 nights in sequence – at least
five hours per night – rendering the hand and pol-
ishing the bones. On the fourth and fifth nights,
the Necromancer creates a candle out of the ren-
dered flesh and fat, tallow, and gravemoss. The
candle is decorated with the bones, which are
placed as if the hand is holding the candle. The
Necromancer must use a point of his own vitae in
the fashioning each of the five nights. On the last
night, the Necromancer spends a Willpower and
casts the ritual. If successful, the Necromancer
must make a Degeneration Check if his or her Hu-
manity is over 5.
To use the candle, light it (the candle glows with a
sickly green flame), hold it in one hand, and press
the other hand against a wall or door while mur-
muring the name of the hand’s deceased owner –
whose spirit is bound in the candle. The wall/door
will become intangible as the candle’s flame flares
out. The intangibility is roughly the size of a per-
son, and lasts exactly 121 seconds. With each use,
the candle becomes slimmer, and the hand grasps
tighter. After 11 uses, the bones shatter and the
ritual ends. When it ends, the captive spirit is dis-
rupted and banished for a year and a day.
Geas
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: 28 days or until completion
Components: V, S, M
The Necromancer writes a command – a task – on
a piece of cured human skin, using his vitae. Then,
in the presence of the target spirit – who must be
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
bound – he burns the skin while uttering the com-
mand word for word. The command must be
something that can be accomplished by the spirit
within a month (at least theoretically). The spirit
will then feel a strong compulsion to perform the
task. The spirit may resist this compulsion, with a
contest of:
WILLPOWER VS. 9 the eyes of a dead person and then drink from the
Resistance must be checked every twenty-four
hours. Each successful resistance inflicts agonizing
pain on the spirit, causing it to lose two temporary
Cohesion. The spirit gives away Advantage on the
second and any subsequent attempts to resist. If a
spirit resists four times, it will be disrupted, and
banished from the material world for a year and a
day.
Haunt
Casting Time: 30 minutes
Duration: 28 days (1 lunar cycle)
Components: S, M
Using this ritual, the Necromancer may bind a
ghost to a physical location – much like with the
Anchor ritual, but in a decidedly nastier fashion.
While the ghost will not deteriorate during this
time, it will still experience the sensation of deterio-
ration. The ghost will be in anguish, possibly furi-
ous, and is likely to manifest in unpleasant ways.
To cast this ritual, the Necromancer secures a prop-
er spirit then defines an area (usually a building),
walking its bounds, chanting and muttering. Final-
ly, the Necromancer spills a point of his blood in
the center of the area and spends a Willpower
point. The location becomes haunted. Use of this
power requires a Degeneration Check at Humanity
8 or higher.
206
* My Servant’s Keeper
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual was created to ensure that no one kills a
Necromancer's servants without his being able to
exact revenge. The Necromancer must first devour
target and spend two Willpower. Once this is com-
plete, if the target is killed or mortally wounded, the
Necromancer will receive a vision of what the tar-
get sees at the moment as well as a feeling from
how he died. (i.e., if the target was stabbed to death
the Necromancer would feel sharp pains akin to
stabbing in his own body.)
Ritual of Fetishes
Casting Time: 2 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires a finger bone of a corpse. By
treating the finger bone in a variety of infusions
(Lavender, Cardamom, Cypress, Mandrake, and
Yew, in that order) and binding it with a willow
branch, the Necromancer creates a “compass” of
sorts which will lead to the nearest object with any
strong connection to the corpse in question (i.e.,
fetishes). The ritual will end when the Necro-
mancer is within three feet of the object and can
see it; the Necromancer will know what the object
is when he sees it. The same finger bone may not
be reused.
Terrifying Visage
Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S
By casting this ritual, the Necromancer causes him
or herself to assume the appearance of a corpse – a
particularly chilling, decaying corpse. This has a
number of obvious benefits and drawbacks, but in
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
game terms it lowers the Necromancer’s appear-
ance to zero, except in connection with intimida-
tion and fear effects in which case the Necro-
mancer’s appearance is considered to be 4. The
Necromancer also gains Advantage on all intimida-
tion-based rolls.
Chill the Soul (Ash)
Casting Time: 45 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This frightful ritual involves hanging the fresh
corpses of three mortals, cutting open their throats,
and bathing in their spilling blood. It obviously
requires a Degeneration Check in almost every in-
stance.
The benefit of this ritual, however, is substantial:
the Necromancer’s body becomes filled with death
energy – functioning as a type of conduit to the
realms of the Dead. The Necromancer’s Humanity
and Beast rating are each lowered by 1, and the
Necromancer gains Advantage on all frenzy rolls.
The Necromancer also gains Advantage on all soak
rolls, even against fire and sunlight. Finally, be-
cause the Necromancer is removed from his or her
humanity, he or she gives away Advantage on any
contest involving Charisma or Empathy, but gains
Advantage in resisting Presence powers.
Soulsickness (Ash)
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: 28 Days
Components: V, S, M
To cast this ritual, the Necromancer must first
build a shrine to the target. This shrine must have
at least three fetishes (objects with a strong connec-
tion to the target), a lock of the target’s hair, and a
picture of the target. (A painting will do – Lasom-
bra are not immune.)
207
Once this shrine is assembled, the Necromancer
must place three points of vitae into a silver chalice
and expend two Willpower. At the completion of
the ritual, the silver chalice will overflow with a
sickly green slime, and will give off foul yellow va-
pors. The slime will corrupt and destroy the alter
and everything on it (including the chalice). The
vapors will float up into the sky and will spread in
every direction, searching out the target. (For this
reason, the ritual must be performed within ap-
proximately 50 miles of the target.) The vapors will
not stay visible, and when they find the target (they
always do) the target’s soul will be poisoned.
This is not a trivial problem: while poisoned, the
target may not spend Willpower for Advantage and
may not regain Willpower. The target also may not
spend experience points. Mortals will be overcome
with fatigue, with their stamina effectively reduced
to 1 for endurance purposes. Vampires will tempo-
rarily gain the equivalent of the Torporous Sleep
Stigma. Use of this ritual requires a Degeneration
Check if the caster’s humanity is over 5.
Strength of Rotting Flesh (Bone)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: A year and a day
Components: V, S, M
This ritual, which requires expending a Willpower
point, allows a Necromancer to enhance one of his
Zombie servants. The ritual requires the heart of a
bull and a large (30 pound) chunk of granite. After
bathing the Zombie in clean water and blessing him
with burning sage and cedar, the heart is smashed
over the granite in the presence of the target Zom-
bie. (Many a Necromancer’s laboratory has a gore-
encrusted chunk of granite in one corner. Now
you know why.) The Zombie immediately gains 1
point of Potence and 1 point of Fortitude.
 NECROMANCY RITUALS

* Passage to Death (Shroud)

Casting Time: 5 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M

When this ritual is cast on a mortal body within

twenty-four hours of his or her death, the spirit will
be unerringly guided to the River, and the Ferryman
will transport them across. The ritual requires two
gold coins which must be placed over the eyes of
the corpse. (Though they can be removed after it is
finished.) Necromancers use this power primarily
to keep certain souls out of the hands of other Nec-
romancers.

* Shroud Disturbance (Shroud)

Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M

This is the opposite of the Stabilization ritual: it

destabilizes and weakens the Shroud in an area.
The material component is a block of cedar, which
is burned during the casting. The result is that any
attempt to summon any sort of spirit will gain Ad-
vantage, and any spirit in the area attempting to
manifest may do so with Advantage, gaining 1 ef-
fective level of Attachment.

208
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
LEVEL 4:
Cadaver’s Touch
Casting Time: 2 minutes
Duration: Special
Components: V, S
By chanting and drawing symbols in the air, then
laying a hand flat against the target’s chest, the Nec-
romancer may curse the target with the appearance
of a rotting cadaver. The target’s appearance will
drop to zero, and they will give away Advantage on
any contest involving dexterity or fine motor skills.
If the target is mortal, this ritual ends when the
mortal is exposed to sunlight. If the target is a
vampire, the ritual ends at Dawn.
Flesh Puppet
Casting Time: 2 hours
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
To cast this ritual, the Necromancer prepares a hu-
man body (a vampire will not do) to be possessed
by a particular spirit, chosen at the outset of the
ritual. Using this power results in an immediate
Degeneration Check, no matter the humanity.
The target must be carefully prepared (this usually
requires that he or she be bound). The target is
covered with a dusting of human bone, and then
has his or her mouth and anus stuffed with laven-
der, cinnamon, and wormwood. Sigils are traced
into the skin with a point of the Necromancer’s
vitae. At the end of the two hour ritual, if success-
ful, the spirit may easily and automatically possess
the “flesh puppet” until sunrise. The spirit may use
any and all physical abilities of the body, and is re-
stored to full Pathos. The spirit may not, however,
leave without the Necromancer’s permission.
At dawn, the spirit will be forced out. The target is
likely to be extremely traumatized by this experi-
209
ence, maybe to the point of becoming catatonic.
Necromancers often kill their used flesh puppets to
prevent Masquerade breaches.
Halls of the Damned
Casting Time: 6 Hours
Duration: One year and one day
Components: V, S, M
The Necromancer who invokes this terrifying ritual
will effectively make it impossible to speak in his
haven without his permission. The ritual summons
an unearthly wailing and screaming which assaults
the hearing like a blizzard rends trees apart – it is, in
fact, the sounds of the most awful of the Hells –
Hells such as the Hell of Eye-Gouging, the Hell of
Tongue-Lashing, and the Hell of Molten Posts.
The Necromancer must slay three young (under 12)
children in a ritual, slitting their throats, cutting of
their ears and taking out their tongues. The three
tongues are symbolic for the ritual, which allows
the Necromancer to give his blessing to up to two
other people at the same time who will not hear the
wailing. The ritual during which he slays these three
chidlren takes almost six hours, and requires a De-
generation Check for Necromancers with a Hu-
manity of 1 or higher.
The caster may exempt two people by placing a
mark on their foreheads created by his own Blood
(usually made by opening the thumb and pressing it
against the person's forehead). These two will not
be affected by the ritual unless and until the Necro-
mancer removes his permission. Most mortals will
flee the building/room in terror. Vampires, mages,
particularly stout mortals, and the like may remain,
but will be unable to do anything that requires hear-
ing or deep concentration.
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
* In Memoriam
Casting Time: 7 hours
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the Necromancer to build a
shrine to a spirit. The shrine must include three
items from any of the following categories, at a
minimum: (a) a fetish for the spirit; (b) a piece of
the spirit’s mortal body (a whole bone, not one
bone split into three pieces); (c) an established An-
chor for the spirit. The shrine should have candles
and gifts (incense, rum, silver coins, jewelry, and so
forth are traditional favorites). At the end of the
ritual, which involves a great deal of meditation and
chanting, the Shrine is activated.
Any Spirit who is within a mile of his or her shrine
gains the following benefits:
 Pathos restores at 1 point per hour
 The spirit does not suffer material degeneration
 The spirit gains +2 on all Manifestation checks
 The spirit gains Advantage on all rolls
It should go without saying that building a Shrine
to a spirit is likely to ingratiate the Necromancer to
the spirit, and encourage it to “stick around.” The
Necromancer may deactivate the Shrine at any
time. A Necromancer may not have more than 1
active Shrine at a time.
Melding the Vessel
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated (maybe)
Components: V, S, M
Using this perilous ritual, the Necromancer allows a
willing spirit to meld with his own soul, taking a
spirit in and sharing emotions and experiences in an
extraordinarily intimate way. This ritual requires a
fetish (an object with a strong connection to the
spirit) for the spirit to be so invited, and also re-
quires the burning of sage and rosemary to cleanse
210
the area. The Necromancer must use a point of his
own blood to paint sigils on his body.
What makes this ritual so dangerous is that it works
no matter what. The ritual roll is to see if the ritual
actually ends like it is supposed to. Regardless,
the caster and the wraith will see each other’s most
poignant and emotionally charged memories, and
will be able to engage in a deep, substantive com-
munication at incredible, near-instantaneous speed.
Attempting to hide information from the other par-
ty requires one of the following two contests
(depending on whether it is the vampire or the spir-
it):
MANIPULATION + SUBTERFUGE
VS.
PATHOS
or
GUILE
VS.
PERCEPTION + EMPATHY
If the ritual fails, the spirit may inhabit the Necro-
mancer for as long as it wishes, taking full Ad-
vantage of any and all abilities, knowledges, or any
other sort of skill. Each sunset, the Necromancer
may attempt to seize control again by making a
contest of:
GUILE
VS.
PERCEPTION + EMPATHY
Necromancers who use this power very often de-
stroy the spirit afterwards. Can’t have someone
running around with that kind of knowledge….
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
Spectral Prison
Casting Time: 4 hours
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows the Necromancer to ward a room
such that any spirit within its walls is trapped and
unable to leave. The caster must sketch wards and
sigils across every wall, around every window, and
around every doorframe, ventilation duct, or mouse
hole. The wards will be as permanent as the mate-
rials from which they are made – some Necro-
mancers keep permanent chambers with silver-
inlaid sigils. The Necromancer must also spend 1-4
blood points infusing these wards, depending on
the size of the room – 1 for a closet, 4 for a ball-
room).
The ritual requires approximately 4 hours and the
sacrifice of a pet beloved by a family, after which
the spirit will be unable to leave and may not mar
the wards (but may take Advantage of the environ-
ment to mar them indirectly). The spirit will be
considered anchored while in the prison. Only the
Necromancer may enter or leave the chamber
while this ritual is in effect; if anyone else does, the
ritual ends. Casting this ritual requires a Degenera-
tion Check for Humanity 6 or higher.
Walk the Line
Casting Time: One hour
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
This powerful ritual requires that the target be pre-
sent and immobilized – either voluntarily or invol-
untarily. The Necromancer prepares two long
strips of pure white cotton cloth, into which he
writes both mystic inscriptions and legal principles.
The Necromancer drapes one over himself, and the
other over the target. Then a small bowl is filled
with a bit of the target’s blood – a pint or so. The
effect is dramatic: the target’s ancestors will begin
to materialize, summoned from their resting places.
211
The power of this ritual is such that they cannot be
bound or compelled while they are present. The
spirits will know why they have been summoned –
and it is to judge the target.
The spirits – up to seven generations of them – will
judge based entirely on their own values and biases.
The Necromancer may play either prosecutor or
defense attorney, but the target is magically bound
not to speak. The ultimate question – whether the
target is a worthy descendant – is decided by vote.
If the spirits judge the target to be unworthy, he or
she is cursed: for a year and a day, the target will
become sterile (whether mortal or vampire), will be
unable to spend Willpower for Advantage, and will
give away Advantage on any and all social contests
involving Charisma or Appearance. If the spirits
judge the target to be worthy, however, the target
immediately gains a point of Willpower as his an-
cestors bless him.
Gates of Hel (Ash)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires that a Necromancer sacrifice a
human being in front of a doorway. A femur must
then be removed, and inscribed with the phrase,
“Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.” (The
phrase can be in any language, and the translation
merely needs be accurate, not perfect.) The Necro-
mancer then carves his own name and the name of
any he wishes to exempt from the ritual into the
bone as well. The femur is hung over the door, and
the ritual is complete.
Anyone trying to enter through the door will be
confronted with his deepest, most powerful fears,
and will only be able to enter if he can overcome
these horrors and despairs. Anyone who does not
resist may not approach closer than ten feet. Any-
one who resists and fails will flee in terror
(vampires must make a Fear Frenzy check). To
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
resist and pass the door, anyone not specifically ex-
empted must succeed on a contest of:
WILLPOWER VS. 11
Mouldering Presence (Ash)
Casting Time: 20 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated
Components: V, S, M
To cast this ritual, the Necromancer must take four
long, thin strips of cloth from a used burial shroud;
this usually requires digging one up. The Necro-
mancer then prepares a generous poultice of grave
earth, Nightshade, Mandrake, Oleander, and Hem-
lock, mixed with two points of his or her own vitae.
The strips must then be covered with the poultice
and allowed to sit – completely undisturbed and in
the dark – for no less than a week. After that time
– and for any time until they disintegrate (usually a
year or two), the strips can be used to cast the ritu-
al.
The Necromancer merely wraps the strips around
his wrists and ankles while uttering the proper in-
cantations. When the ritual is complete, the Necro-
mancer will be surrounded with an aura of death
and decay. All plants within a twenty foot radius
will shrivel and die as will small animals such as
worms, flies, etc. Larger animals will be extremely
unsettled by the Necromancer, and will refuse to
approach him unless supernaturally compelled.
(This ritual does not harm them, however.) Even
organic materials such as wood and paper will with-
er, rot, and decay. Cotton clothes will fall apart in
less than 5 minutes. Leather goods will turn to dust
in ten to fifteen minutes. The effect of this ritual is
dramatic, terrifying, and absolutely a breach of the
Masquerade.
212
Thy Master’s Will (Bone)
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: A year and a day
Components: V, S, M
This ritual requires several components: mercury,
three silver bells, several branches of rowan wood,
a live parrot, and the brain from a fresh corpse.
The parrot is sacrificed in a fire of rowan wood, the
ashes are used to coat the brain, which is also in-
jected with mercury. This process takes approxi-
mately 3 hours, at which time the zombie is bathed
in clean water, and blessed with burning sage and
cedar. Then the brain is smashed against a large
chunk of granite in the presence of the Zombie.
The Zombie will immediately become more re-
sponsive and capable of more initiative. It will be
able to manage very rudimentary speech (“Yes,”
“No,” “Now,” “Give,” etc.), will be able to follow
more complex commands, and can differentiate
colors, identify shapes, distinguish between 1, 2, 3,
and more than 3, etc.
Pact of the Styx (Shroud)
Casting Time: 1 hour
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual allows a Necromancer to enter into an
agreement with a spirit. The terms may be of any
nature – but performance by each party must be
possible at the time that the pact is made. If the
spirit breaches the agreement, it will be disrupted
over and over again for a year and a day – being
immediately disrupted as soon as it regains form; it
will then be Banished from the material plane for
nine years and nine days, unable to cross over,
manifest, or even be summoned. However, if the
Necromancer breaches the agreement, he or she
will immediately fall into torpor, and his or her soul
will find itself on the far side of the River, where an
Angel will send it to one of the nastier hells for nine
years and nine days. This will effectively remove
the character from the Chronicle for that time peri-
od, and usually requires making a new character.
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
LEVEL 5:
Death Talisman (Variable)
Casting Time: 28 days
Duration: Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This powerful ritual is considered a symbol that
defines the Necromancer, both in terms of his cho-
sen path and in terms of his mastery of the art. The
ritual is simple: the caster makes a pendant of some
sort. It must be made of human bone. Then start-
ing on a night of the new moon, and for twenty
seven nights thereafter, the Necromancer sacrifices
a new human victim in an hour-long ceremony.
These murders must be performed at the same time
of night, in the same location, using all of the same
objects. Each sacrificed victim’s blood is drained
into a large brass or copper bowl, in which the Tal-
isman sits. A tooth is also taken from each victim
to string on the chain for the Talisman. On the
28th night, the caster expends a permanent Will-
power point and four blood points. The ritual is
complete.
The Talisman serves as a focus of the Necro-
mancer’s power for one specified path only. It
grants the Necromancer Advantage on every at-
tempt of every ritual of that path, every attempt to
resist the powers of that path, and every contest
necessary to employ the powers of the chosen path.
If the Necromancer spent Willpower on powers or
rituals of the chosen path during a night, it gives
the Necromancer Advantage on the roll to recover
Willpower during the next day. The Talisman must
be worn (though not openly) to have any effect.
A Necromancer may never have more than one
Death Talisman, and if the Talisman is destroyed,
the Necromancer immediately loses three perma-
nent Willpower points.
213
Destruction
Casting Time: 10 minutes
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
This powerful ritual allows the caster to simply de-
stroy a soul entirely – not send it to Hell, not ban-
ish it, not disrupt it: gone. Finito. The End. The
material component is a large near-flawless dia-
mond (at least 4 carats, typically around $250,000-
$600,000). The spirit must be bound, and the Nec-
romancer must have a fetish for the spirit. The
spirit is drawn into the diamond, and then the dia-
mond is smashed. Game over. If the diamond is
not smashed immediately (i.e., within a minute or
so) the ritual ends and the soul is freed. Use of this
ritual always requires a Degeneration Check.
Exorcism
Casting Time: Variable
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
The time needed to cast the ritual depends on the
size of the area: an hour for a small room, five
hours for a medium house, a full night for a man-
sion. The Necromancer must go from room to
room with a smoking brazier of cedar, sage, laven-
der, and rowan wood, letting the smoke permeate
the room. In each room, the Necromancer must
trace a rune on the floor in his own vitae. This vi-
tae disappears at the end of the ritual, and in any
case it only requires 1 blood point.
At the end of the ritual, the Necromancer burns a
Willpower point and casts the ritual. Success
means that the room or building, and everything in it,
no longer functions as an anchor for any spirits that
may have been anchored there. Additionally, any
spirits present in the home are subject to an imme-
diate application of the Level 5 Banish power
(contest Attachment vs. Stamina + Subterfuge).
Failure merely results in the spirit being forced to
leave the house and not return for a year and a day.
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
* Phylactery
Casting Time: A year and a day
Duration: Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual is used to bind a soul to an object – usu-
ally the spirit’s own skull, but always something
similarly close to the spirit – forever. This requires
that the Necromancer engage in casting the ritual
for 6 hours at a stretch, once a week for 52 weeks,
burning a Willpower at each session. The soul
must be present for the ritual at each of these 52
occasions, either bound or willing. (How the Nec-
romancer accomplishes this is his business, though
Spectral Prisons work well enough.)
At the end of casting, the spirit is permanently
bound to the new phylactery, which serves to an-
chor the spirit on the material plane. This limits the
spirit in some ways – the spirit cannot travel more
than 100 yards from the phylactery and will be ut-
terly destroyed if the phylactery is destroyed – but
also grants the spirit an immediate +2 to Willpow-
er, Attachment, and Pathos.
Shadow Speak
Casting Time: 3 hours
Duration: 10 minutes maximum.
Components: V, S, M
This power allows a Necromancer to speak with a
mortal’s soul… while the mortal is still alive. The ma-
terial component is a silver-backed mirror at least as
large as a human. The Necromancer must possess
at least two objects that would be fetishes were the
mortal to die, and must place the mirror upright
inside a circle of crushed human bone. A baby less
than a year in age must be killed, and his or her
blood spilled over the mirror’s surface. The Necro-
mancer then summons a shade of the mortal’s spir-
it, which appears in the bloody mirror. The Necro-
mancer may ask the spirit three questions, which
the spirit must answer truthfully and completely –
although wording, as always, is important. The rit-
214
ual ends after ten minutes, or when the third ques-
tion is answered. During this time, the target will
feel faint and dizzy, and will give away Advantage
on any Willpower contests. But he or she will not
be aware of the questioning.
Wraithblade
Casting Time: 28 days
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual consumes every night for an entire lunar
cycle. It must be completed on the night of the full
moon. Each night, the Necromancer must sum-
mon a different spirit and bind it to a melee weap-
on of the highest quality and materials. Each night
the Necromancer must also let two blood points of
his or her vitae soak into the weapon, which will
take on a deep scarlet tinge. On the 28th night, the
Necromancer sacrifices a live warrior of considera-
ble talent and binds his soul to the blade as well.
The Necromancer then spends a permanent Will-
power and attempts to complete the ritual. If suc-
cessful, the resulting weapon will glow with a faint
pale light, and may be used to strike spirits in the
physical realm or in the Borderlands.
Scythe of Hades (Ash)
Casting Time: 6 seconds
Duration: Instant
Components: V, S, M
This dreaded ritual is one of a Necromancer’s most
potent weapons. The Necromancer must prepare a
special scroll for the target of this ritual. The scroll
must be made of paper that includes the target’s
hair or skin. The Necromancer then writes the true
name of the target on the scroll in the target’s own
blood, and spends a Willpower point. This scroll
will maintain its potency for a year and a day.
Then, where the target and the Necromancer can
see each other, the Necromancer simply reads the
name from the scroll and tears it in two, burning
another Willpower point. If the ritual is successful-
 NECROMANCY RITUALS
ly cast, then the target’s soul will be immediately
ripped out of his or her body, and the body will
collapse. This will instantly kill mortals. For vam-
pires, it is a trickier situation. All the vampire has
to do is get back in… before falling under the Nec-
romancer’s power.
Soul Drain (Ash)
Casting Time: 6 minutes
Duration: Dawn-Terminated / Instant
Components: V, S, M
This ritual takes 6 minutes to cast, and requires a
small bone disc be affixed to the Necromancer’s
palm with scarlet ribbon. The caster must spend
three blood points to power this ritual. If the ritual
is successful, the disc will sink into the Necro-
mancer’s palm partway, and the hand will feel
slightly chilly.
At any point prior to the dawn, the Necromancer
may place his hand against the bare skin of a physi-
cal target – mortal or vampire – or simply place his
hand through a spirit target and steal up to three
Willpower points from that target (the Necro-
mancer may not exceed his total Willpower, and
cannot steal points he cannot hold). The disc will
flare with a bitter cold, inflicting two points of
damage on the Necromancer, and three on the tar-
get if mortal, two if vampire.
215
This power may not be resisted, although Fortitude
will prevent the damage. A vampire with the Cold
stigma will suffer no damage, nor will a vampire
under the influence of the Chill the Soul ritual. If
the power is not used prior to sunrise, the ritual
ends.
Cerberus (Bone)
Casting Time: 3 Nights
Duration: Semi-Permanent
Components: V, S, M
This ritual involves butchering three large, savage
dogs (Wolves, Mastiffs, Presa Canarios, Tosa Inus,
etc.) and sewing the heads of two of the dogs onto
the body of the third. The resulting chimera is then
carved with sigils and runes of warding, then in-
fused with the most savage animal spirits the Nec-
romancer can summon (summoning them is part of
the ritual, as is sorting through the summoned spir-
its to find the really nasty ones). Each night the
Necromancer must spend no fewer than four
points of his or her own vitae. Each head is given a
different collar: one of gold, one of silver, and one
of copper, and the beast is then animated by the
spirits. The result is a ferocious guardian who will
be immediately hostile to anyone who does not
have the caster’s blood (i.e., the caster, his or her
ghouls and childer).
The dog can both see and physically attack spirits
(and will). It will follow the commands of the Nec-
 NECROMANCY RITUALS

romancer, but those commands are limited to Portal to the Underworld (Shroud)
“Stay,” “Kill,” “Guard here,” “Heel,” and the like. Casting Time: 3 Nights
The Cerberus heals one health level per round, may Duration: Concentration
engage up to three opponents without penalty, and Components: V, S, M
has the following combat statistics:
This ritual must be cast over three nights, with the
Brawl: CBT-8 DMT-9 middle night being the night of the full moon. It
HIGH-5A LOW-2A takes 6 hours per night. The material components
Soak: 8 are rib bones from seventy-two corpses (one from
Evade: 5 each). These rib bones are laid on a floor, or fas-
Effective WP: 8 (May not spend) tened to a wall or similar surface, in a circle, square,
Health Levels: 12 (no wound penalties) or other closed shape. Each rib must be individual-
ly carved, “blessed,” and then painted with the
* Undying Servants (Bone) Necromancer’s vitae. (This requires approximately
Casting Time: One night three points per night.) The caster must spend a
Duration: Variable Willpower at the ritual’s conclusion.
Components: V, S, M
If the ritual is successful, the shape begins to bend
This ritual allows the caster to create a special Spirit and warp, and a portal to the Realm of the Dead
Stone (see Level 2 Rituals) for a living being; it is opens up. There is no telling where this portal will
usually used on the Necromancer’s ghouled retain- emerge – it could be in the Great Caves, at the Riv-
ers. The target must be present for the ritual, er, or in the Hells. (It will not be in the Heavens.)
which takes an entire night. The stone is placed There is no Shroud between the two sides of the
within the target’s breastbone, visible on his or her portal. Casting this ritual in anything other than a
bare chest. If and when the target dies, the gem Spectral Prison is highly inadvisable.
flares, the ritual ends, and the target must immedi-
ately contest: Really, casting this ritual at all is somewhat stupid

STAMINA + FORTITUDE + SURVIVAL

VS.
5

The target receives Advantage if he or she is a

ghoul. If the contest fails, there is no effect. If it is
successful, then the target immediately (as in the next
combat round) rises as a Zombie animated by his
or her own soul. The “new” servant receives a -1
to Dexterity and Charisma, but also no longer suf-
fers from wound penalties and will not bleed to
death, etc. This effect will last a year and a day, giv-
ing the Necromancer some time to decide what to
do with his faithful servant.

216
 PART VIII
Fate Points and Aspects
For whatever reasons, Ray, call it… fate, call it luck, call it karma…
I believe that everything happens for a reason. I believe that we were destined
to get thrown out of this dump.
Fate points and aspects are game mechan-
ics designed to promote role playing and to
help players envision and individualize their
characters. Fate points are intimately linked
to a vampire’s humanity, and the more in-
human a vampire is, the less his or her indi-
vidual personality matters.
1. Fate Points
A. How many Fate Points do I have?
Every character has a base maximum of
six (6) Fate Points, no more. This maxi-
mum, however, is reduced based on how
“vampiric” the character is. Specifically:
Reduce by 1 for each 2 points of vampiric
disciplines the character possesses over
rank 3. (Thaumaturgical and Necromantic
paths count as disciplines!)
Example: You have Potence 5, Celerity 4, and
Presence 3. You have three points over three (2 in
Potence and 1 in Celerity), and your Fate Point
total is thus reduced by 1.
217
It is reduced by 1 for every three (3) beast
traits or inhumanities possessed.
Example: You have 2 Beast Traits and 2 Inhu-
manities. This means that your total is 4, which
reduces your Fate Points by 1. If you had 4 Beast
Traits and 2 Inhumanities, it would reduce your
maximum Fate Points by 2.
And under no circumstances may Fate
Points exceed a character’s Humanity score.
B. What are Fate points useful for?
Fate Points can be spent in two ways, both
of which involve Aspects, which are ex-
plained below. The two ways are:
 A Fate Point can be spent to "tag" an
aspect, allowing your character some
leeway or flexibility in shaping the nar-
rative to accommodate your vision of
the character.
 Two (2) Fate Points can be spent in or-
der to decline a Compulsion, which is
what happens when the Gamemaster
“tags” an aspect to shape the narrative
 FATE POINTS & ASPECTS
to accommodate what you have said is
your vision of the character.
C. How do I get them back?
 Fate points are regained at two points:
 At the end of a Chapter a character is
restored to their maximum Fate Points
 At the end of each session, a character
receives back a number of Fate Points
equal to his or her Humanity divided by
4, rounded up. (So between 1 and 3)
2. Aspects
A. What is an Aspect?
An aspect is a short "catch phrase" used to
describe your vision for your character’s
place and role in the story. It is a way of
getting at your character’s essential nature
as a character. It may or may not be tied to
your character’s internal psychology; it cer-
tainly doesn’t have to be. An Aspect can
relate to any number of things:
 How your character typically approach-
es problems or situations
 Your character’s primary motivations
 Things that regularly seem to happen to
your character
 What your character wants to be, or
what he must be
 Social relations
 Character quotes that perfectly encapsu-
late something about the character
 Strong, pervasive attitudes that your
character has
 Situations with particular emotional or
historical significance
218
 Ways in which the rest of the world sees
your character, insofar as this establishes
your character’s narrative externally

B. How do I get my Aspects?
Every character is required to take at least
three (3) aspects when they are created.
These should be discussed at length with
the GM. At least one of these must be a
Trouble aspect. A trouble aspect is an as-
pect that is more likely than not to result in
misfortune for a character, or one which
signifies such misfortune. All three can be
a trouble aspect if the player wishes.
Examples: Here are a few possible aspects
for famous characters. (Trouble aspects are
listed in italics)
Han Solo:
 “It’s not my fault!”
 “I take orders from one person… me.”
 Loveable scoundrel.
Gregory House:
 “No one stays with me.”
 “Everybody lies.”
 Ask forgiveness, not permission.
Paul Atreides:
 I cannot avoid my visions.
 They think I’m the Messiah.
 I’ve been raised for this.
C. What is involved in “tagging” an As-
pect?
When it seems appropriate in the game –
when an Aspect’s narrative force and the
 FATE POINTS & ASPECTS

story line up well – a character may "tag"
his or her aspects by spending a Fate Point.
This can have any one of three separate
effects, at the player’s discretion:
 Automatic Advantage on some roll
yet to be made. This may combine with
another Advantage you have, becoming
an additional +2 plus a second die in-
stead of the normal +1.
 Re-roll any roll already made by the
player (and presumably failed).
 Force a Declaration. A Declaration is
an alteration of the time-space fabric of
the game to make for a better story, a
way of saying “Screw it, that’s totally
cool.”
 Alternatively, he/she may decline the
compel. This requires the expenditure
of two (2) Fate Points.

Example: Paul Atreides has seen a vision of the
Emperor's henchman, Count Fenring, killing his
mother. This has not yet happened. Paul is in
combat with Count Fenring, and rolls a killing
strike against him. The GM says, "Hang on a
second... you aren't supposed to be able to avoid
your visions. What say you just miss, and Count
Fenring escapes through the back door?" Paul may
either accept this outcome and gain a Fate Point, or
refuse the outcome and expend two Fate Points.

Example: Your character has "Speak of the

devil" as an aspect. Two other characters are talk-
ing about you. You might tag the aspect and ask
the GM for a declaration that you happen to walk
in the room, even if you weren't actually at the
building.

D. What is a “Compulsion”?
An aspect can be compelled by the Game
master. When this happens, the game mas-
ter announces which aspect is being com-
pelled, and why, and (perhaps most im-
portantly) what will happen in the story.
This can be an ex post decision, even inval-
idating die rolls that have already been
made. (The GM is exercising a position of
trust in such things, as he or she always is.)

The player then has two options:

 First, he or she may accept the compel
and gain a Fate Point,

219
 PART IX

Realms of the Dead

The soul takes nothing with her to the next world but her education and her culture.
At the beginning of the journey to the next world, one's education and culture can
either provide the greatest assistance, or else act as the greatest burden,
to the person who has just died.

The realms of the dead are composed of
four “layers,” each at a greater remove from
the physical, mortal world (also called the
material plane).
1. The Borderlands
The first of these realms is the Border-
lands – a weakly instantiated shadow-realm
that mirrors the physical world to a great
extent, existing as a sort of corresponding
overlay. “Reality” in the borderlands is ex-
tremely dependent on perception and be-
lief: a building there may show up as a pal-
ace to someone who thinks fondly of it,
and a cobweb-covered wreck to someone
who has a different view. The Borderlands
act as a sort of filter – keeping mortal
things out of the other Realms, and keep-
ing the denizens of the Realms out of the
mortal world. Most spirits in the Border-
lands are what people think of when they
think of “ghosts” – restless spirits that
have not yet found their “final destination”.
The Borderlands are separated from the
material world by a powerful metaphysical
barrier known as the Shroud that requires
tremendous power to pierce, although it is
weaker in some places than others and is in
a constant state of flux. When a spirit in
the Borderlands becomes visible in the
physical world, or interacts with it some-
how – i.e., when it “manifests” – it is pierc-
ing the Shroud to a greater or lesser degree.
Sometimes these intrusions are fleeting –
the spirit just manages to push through and
move a cup on a table, perhaps. Sometimes
they are considerable. And sometimes a
spirit comes fully into the material world
and is trapped here, unable to break back
through the Shroud.
Spirits that are in the material world proper
will almost always deteriorate quickly if
measures are not taken to preserve them.
Occasionally, a spirit will find itself an-
chored to something – its body, a house, a
loved one, etc. – in which case the spirit
can survive much longer periods. A spirit
that is fully in the material world may mani-
fest much more easily.

220
 REALMS OF THE DEAD
2. The River
At various places in the Borderlands, one
can find a gate, doorway, hole, or winding
path that will allow one to pass through to
the shores of the Great River of Souls,
which the Greeks called Styx. Here, the
ferrymen – there are legions of them, each
with their own vessel, stretch of river, tem-
perament and price – await the spirits of
the dead or other passengers. The River’s
waters have extremely potent and extremely
unpredictable magical properties. Beyond
the River, every spirit is supposed to be met
by an angel, who either takes the spirit up
to the Glorious Heavens or places a mark
upon the spirit indicating the hell to which
it is consigned, leaving them to wander and
find their way into the Great Caves. These
marks take the form of a Geas, such that
the spirit will lack the motivation to do
much else than travel to where the mark
takes him or her.
The waters of the River are feared by spir-
its, for the waters will wipe a spirit’s past
clean, causing it to be as the spirit was
when it was new, before it was placed into a
body. Such spirits are very weak, and very
tasty to the darker denizens of these
realms…
3. The Great Caves
For spirits not taken up to the Glorious
Heavens, there are numerous cavern en-
trances that can be found all along the far
bank of the River. These caves lead down
for a great, but ultimately subjective dis-
tance. They form a great twisting labyrin-
221
thine warren, and there are many larger
caverns in which various supernatural hor-
rors, creatures, and entities make their
homes. But a dead spirit cannot go wrong
continuing down… always down. Eventu-
ally, the spirits will arrive at the Gate to the
Hells.
Creatures other than spirits of the Dead
destined for one of the Hells will find it
extremely difficult to navigate these warrens,
and are likely to spend the rest of their bru-
tally short lives wandering in the dark.
4. The Hells
There are supposed to be 1,001 hells –
though perhaps there are an infinite num-
ber. In any case, there are many: some of
torment, and some of pleasure, some emp-
ty and dark, some simply strange. The
roads and passages and rivers that join
them are not fixed in any stable arrange-
ment – the topography of the Hells is high-
ly fluid and unpredictable. The Hells are
“ruled” by Demons of all varieties. They
come in many temperaments and powers,
and some hells are strictly ruled by one De-
mon, while others are places of great con-
flict and chaos, while in others the demons
have concerns other than the spirits that
dwell within.
It is here in the Hells that the marks given
by the angels on the shore of the River
come into play and have power, for De-
mons have no power whatsoever over a
marked soul unless the soul is marked for
their hell. Once the spirit arrives at the
 REALMS OF THE DEAD
specified hell, however, the mark fades.
And while escape is theoretically possible,
the path through the hells is fraught with
peril.
Demons often trade souls based on their
various qualities, so there is no guarantee
that a spirit will stay in the hell in which it
finds itself.
5. The Iron City & The Adversary
Amidst the Hells – it would be in the
“center” if there was one – stands the Iron
City of the Fallen It is not a layer itself,
but merely part of the Hells. The Lord of
this City is the Shining One, Lucifer the
Lightbringer, called Iblis Shaitan, Hades,
Pluto, the Dragon, Baal, Abaddon, Satan,
and the Adversary. He is the Lord of the
Hells – but he is, truth be told, a fantasti-
cally disinterested ruler, at least most of the
time. His attention is directed towards the
222
Heavens and the Material Plane. The indi-
vidual Hells tend to operate with almost
full autonomy.
6. Liberate
Most spirits of the dead are assigned either
to a Heaven or a Hell, such that when they
are banished or disrupted, they find them-
selves returned to their assigned fate. Thus,
even if you escape, the odds are that you
will end up back there sooner or later. Cer-
tain spirits, however, have either bargained
their way out of their assignment, been re-
warded with freedom, or through one error
or another were either never marked or
simply never arrived at their proper place.
These “free” spirits are known as Liberate,
and they make up a large majority of spirits
in the Borderlands.
 PART X
Wraiths
“Endings are not always bad. Most times they're just beginnings in disguise.”
This section presents a simple-to-use but
detailed system for such things. If the GM
wishes, he or she can have more textured
rules governing the strength of spirits, their
abilities, powers, and weaknesses.
1. SPIRIT ATTRIBUTES
A spirit is presumed to have six relevant
attributes, each rated on a scale of 1-10:
 Willpower: The strength of a wraith’s
will to live and resist influences;
 Pathos: A spirit’s humanity and emo-
tional strength;
 Malice: A spirit’s rage and hatred, and
thus its combat effectiveness;
 Attachment: The ability to influence/
interact with the material world;
 Guile: Craftiness and subtlety, includ-
ing the ability to cross the Shroud; and
 Cohesion: Resilience and ability to
maintain form under stress.
223
A. Age and Power
As spirits age, their Pathos and Attachment
generally drop, while Malice, Guile, and Co-
hesion go up. Older, more powerful spirits
are likely to have a greater variety of pow-
ers that they can call upon as well. Some
of these are covered in Section 2, below. A
spirit’s manner of death substantially af-
fects their statistics, especially Malice, Pa-
thos, and Attachment.
2. SPIRIT GAME SYSTEMS
A. Manifestation
Spirits in the Borderlands (and, usually, in
the Material Plane as well) are invisible and
undetectable by normal mortal means un-
less they Manifest – which is a fancy way of
saying that the spirit makes itself known or
attempts to interact with the physical world
in some way. Manifesting lasts for an entire
scene, and typically requires a spirit to
spend one Pathos and make a contest:
ATTACHMENT VS. DIFFICULTY
 WRAITHS

The difficulty depends on the degree of B. Spirits in the Material Plane

interaction that the spirit would like to Spirits that are actually in the material
have. A spirit may attempt to manifest as plane, rather than in the Borderlands, gain
many times as it wishes: success means that Advantage on all Manifestation tests, and
the spirit can manifest at the chosen level, also gain an effective +1 to their attach-
or any level below that, for approximately 5 ment score. However, such spirits also lose
minutes. If the spirit fails, however, it fails 1 point of Cohesion every two hours un-
completely: it does not get “partial success” less they are bound, anchored, or in some
and it gives away Advantage on any subse- other way stabilized.
quent attempts to manifest until the next
sunset. The difficulties are set forth on Ta- C. Fetishes and Anchors
ble 31, below. Spirits can have special relationships to cer-
tain objects, location, and people. Objects
Table 31—Manifestation Difficulties that were important to the spirit in its mor-
tal life – personal possessions, pictures,
Diff. Age
gravestones, etc. – are called fetishes and
1 Make a soft sound/cause a light breeze they have a strong link to the spirit. A
Necromancer can (and is often required to)
Make a moveable object tremble or sway, use fetishes to exercise control over a spirit.
2
make a light flicker
Move a small object slowly (Ouija board,
3
etc.) or flip a switch
An anchor is a thing, place, or person that
Move a medium object slowly (chair, etc.),
allows the spirit to rest on the material
4 plane. Anchors can be imposed externally
shut a door
Slam a door, throw a light object across a through powers or rituals, or they can de-
5 velop spontaneously either at the time of a
room, break a window
Fine motor control: write in a steamy mir- spirit’s death, or through the course of a
6
ror, use a pencil, etc. spirit’s long-term exposure to a potential
7
Speak in a normal voice, appear as a vague, anchor. Many times, the anchor will be a
distorted image fetish, especially when the anchor develops
Short out an electrical device, hurl a small spontaneously when the spirit’s mortal
8
object with great force body dies.
Appear as a clear, spectral image, make a
9
psychic assault
D. Spirits in Physical Combat
Boil water, move large objects, cause a bolt
10
to snap Spirits normally cannot engage in physical
Make a room go nuts: objects flying every- combat – they are “out of phase” with the
11 material world, and physical attacks
where, light a fire
Manifest physically to engage in physical (including fire and the like) will simply pass
12
combat through them. However, certain powers

224
 WRAITHS
allow vampires and/or mortals to physically
interact with spirits, and very powerful spir-
its can manifest in such a way that they can
– for very short periods – physically attack
a material target. To do this, a spirit must
contest In those cases, a spirit’s relevant
Brawl combat scores are:
CBT: Attachment
DMT: Malice
HIGH: WP/2 (rnd up)
LOW: WP/3 (rnd down)
Dodge: Guile
Soak: Cohesion
Spirits do not suffer wound penalties; ra-
ther, they lose temporary points of Cohe-
sion (as if they were health levels).
E. Cohesion:
A spirit may fully replenish his or her Co-
hesion at any time by spending a temporary
Willpower. A spirit that loses all Cohesion,
however, has been disrupted (this will hap-
pen most often in the case of an over-
whelming attack that causes the spirit to
suffer more damage than it has Cohesion –
otherwise the spirit will just spend a Will-
power and heal). A disrupted spirit will re-
form in 11 weeks, minus 1 week for each
level of Pathos it possesses. It will find it-
self reforming either in the Hell or Heaven
to which it has been assigned, or in the
Borderlands nearby where it was disrupted
if it is a Liberate.
225
F. Losing Cohesion and Degeneration:
Spirits that lose their Cohesion also risk
coming back colder and “more dead” than
before. When a spirit is disrupted, it must
contest:
PERMANENT PATHOS RATING
VS.
MALICE
If the Pathos succeeds, there is no effect.
If the Malice succeeds, then the Spirit loses
a permanent point of Pathos. Willpower
may not be spent on this roll.
If a point of Pathos is lost, there is a
chance that the Spirit will gain a point of
Malice. Make the same contest again (using
the original rating, not the new lower rat-
ing) and if Malice wins again, the Spirit
gains a point of Malice as well.
G. Regaining Pathos and Willpower:
In the realms of the dead, Spirits regain Pa-
thos primarily through interaction with
items from the material world or their
shades, although they can regain it through
great joy or suffering as well. In the materi-
al plane, a spirit recovers 1 Pathos per
week.. Spirits may also gain Pathos by in-
teracting with mortals in a positive way;
every positive, substantive interaction may
grant a full point of Pathos immediately.
Spirits regain Willpower at the rate of 1
point every sunset when in the Borderlands
or the material plane. In the realms of the
 WRAITHS
dead, they regain Willpower at the rate of
one point per week.
H. Spectres
Spectres are wraiths who have lost all of
their Pathos, and have become consumed
with Malice. A Spectre fuels his powers
with Malice instead of Pathos, once again
losing a permanent point (but recharging)
if his temporary malice ever reaches zero.
Spectres regain Malice by causing pain or
destroying/consuming other souls. If a
Spectre’s permanent Malice ever reaches
zero, it ceases to exist.
3. SPIRIT POWERS
Spirits may have any number of powers
that they can employ, including several
types of attack. These powers, described
below, each require the spirit to expend
temporary Pathos. If a spirit’s temporary
Pathos ever reaches zero, the Spirit loses a
permanent point. Whether a spirit has a
power is a function of the spirit’s age. De-
mons are entirely immune to these powers.
● Pain Projection
(Multi) (Sight)
By expending a Pathos point, the spirit may
cause a target to experience excruciating
pain. The target of this power must imme-
diately attempt to resist with:
STAMINA + WP/2 + FORTITUDE
VS.
MALICE
226
Failure results in the target’s being incapaci-
tated for the next round of Combat (if
any), and suffering “virtual wounds” equal
to the spirit’s Malice rating. These wounds
cannot be healed, but will disappear within
10 minutes or so. If the target is already at
incapacitated (through regular or virtual
wounds) each failure burns a point of Will-
power instead. If the resistance is success-
ful, the target suffers only 1 virtual wound.
● Fear Projection
(Multi) (Sight) (Emotion)
By expending a Pathos point, the spirit may
cause a target to experience debilitating
fear. The target must immediately flee the
area unless he or she successfully resists
(vampires gain Advantage in resisting):
WP/2 VS. MALICE
● Psychic Assault
(Sight) (Multi)
This potent attack can take any number of
forms (a keening wail, a burst of light fo-
cused at the target, an image of flames,
etc.). But whatever the form, the mechan-
ics of the psychic assault are the same, and
are similar to the Auspex 6B power, Psy-
chic Assault. Using this power requires
spending two Pathos.
Each assault drains Willpower from the tar-
get equal to Malice divided by 3 (rounded
up). The affected target also gives away
Advantage on every contest for the next 5
 WRAITHS

minutes as they reel and teeter from the on-
slaught. The power may be resisted with:
WP/2 VS. MALICE
● Possession
(Touch) (Multi) (Nightly) (Dawn)
This dread power requires the expenditure
of one Pathos merely to attempt it; against
an unwilling target, it requires an additional
one Pathos if it is successful, two if the tar-
get is a vampire. To use this power, the
spirit simply jumps into the target and tries
to take over. This is difficult: first, the spir-
it must succeed by winning a contest of:
GUILE VS. HUMANITY
Then, successful, the target may resist,
gaining Advantage, with:
WILLPOWER VS. WILLPOWER
If a target successfully resists, there is no
effect. If the resist fails, the spirit gains
control of the host body until Sunrise, and
is able to use any and all physical abilities
of the body, including muscle memory (for
things like juggling and so forth). A wraith
that successfully possesses a living body
will immediately be restored to full Pathos
as they taste the breath of life. A wraith
that possesses a vampire gains only a single
point of Pathos (which is less than it cost
to use the power in the first place).
● Telekinetic Assault
(Range) (Tactical)
By spending a Pathos, the spirit may release
a bolt of telekinetic force at a target. An
attack with this power has the following
statistics:
CBT: Attachment DMT: Malice
High: 6 Low: 3

227
 WRAITHS

4. SAMPLE WRAITHS Lola the Murdered Whore

15 years dead, murdered for $15 in an alley.
Willpower: 5 Pathos: 9
The following are a few sample wraiths that Malice: 6 Guile: 5
could be encountered by a Necromancer: Attachment: 7 Cohesion: 5
Joe the Plumber Amat-Neru, High Priest of Egypt
40 years dead, died of a heart attack fat and 4000 years dead, entombed alive.
happy. Willpower: 8 Pathos: 3
Willpower: 3 Pathos: 8 Malice: 9 Guile: 8
Malice: 4 Guile: 3 Attachment: 3 Cohesion: 8
Attachment: 6 Cohesion: 4

Father Raphael de Villalobos

220 years dead, died of old age.
Willpower: 7 Pathos: 7
Malice: 3 Guile: 4
Attachment: 5 Cohesion: 6

Sandra the Grieving Widow

100 years dead, threw herself of a bridge in
grief.
Willpower: 4 Pathos: 9
Malice: 6 Guile: 4
Attachment: 7 Cohesion: 5

Sir Guillame the Knight

640 years dead, died in battle.
Willpower: 6 Pathos: 6
Malice: 5 Guile: 5
Attachment: 5 Cohesion: 8

Brian the Orphaned Child

300 years dead, starved alone and cold at
age 12.
Willpower: 4 Pathos: 7
Malice: 5 Guile: 7
Attachment: 6 Cohesion: 6

228
 PART XI

Influence Examples
You can get more with a kind word and a gun than you can with just a kind word.

The following are just examples of what Financial Influence:

some different types of Influence might be  Cancel a valid trade 5
used for, and how much it would cost to  Put a hold on someone's account 8
accomplish such things “off screen.”  Get in on an IPO 10
 Temporarily inflate a stock price 25
Academic Influence:  Call an institutional loan due early 35
 Get confidential records: 5  Change the Fed Rate 50
 Change a transcript: 8  Crash the Peso: 60
 Get a student expelled: 25  Crash the Dollar 110
 Get a tenured Professor Fired: 50  Keep the IMF from saving Greece 160
 Replace the University President: 65
 Dissolve a Department: 80 Military Influence:
 Remove a University's accreditation 110  Access a base: 5
 Obtain small arms: 10
Criminal Influence:  Arrange military air transport 20
 Find a fence: 2 (useful!)
 Arrange a drug purchase: 5  Obtain heavy armaments 45
 Find a contract killer: 15  Task a Satellite and obtain pictures 45
 Find a fugitive in hiding: 25  Obtain operational records: 60
 Arrange a hit on someone: 35  Order a commando strike: 85
 Elevate a mafia don: 50  Order an airstrike: 100
 Obtain a month of "protection" 60  Order a nuclear strike: 300
(at 6 dots, this can be perpetual)
 Stop a racially charged gang war 80

229
 INFLUENCE EXAMPLES

Occult Influence: Union Influence:

 Find a rare herb shop 3  Get local membership rosters 2
 Schedule a talk at an occult shop 6  Get an apprentice thrown out 3
 Locate the head of a local coven 12  Obtain local records 3
 Get a witch shunned 30  Get a journeyman thrown out 10
 Discover the owner of a grimoire 30  Cause the blue flu in a workplace 15
 Find a real mage 35  Arrange some thugs for something 25
 Locate the head of a real coven 40 semi-union related
 Reschedule the Samhain: 70  Citywide Blue Flu 30
 Redirect Political Funds 35
Political Influence:  Cause a local strike 50
 Get 10 minutes with the mayor 4  Arrange some thugs for something 70
 Get the city council to pass a bill 10-40 totally irrelevant
(depending on the bill)  Steal all political funds 80
 Get a well-qualified candidate 28  Cause a city-wide series of strikes 120
appointed to a position
 Assign a closed-bid contract 35
 Get a congressional earmark 40
 Get the state legislature to hold 45
a hearing on something
 Kill the Red Line 50
 Appoint a Supreme Ct. Justice 130

Society Influence:
 Get a party guest list 2
 Access an exclusive nightclub 4
 Get invited to a party 5
 Get someone uninvited to a party 12
 Get invited to a film premier 15
 Force an A-Lister to show up 20
(or you could use Dominate!)
 Get invited to the Oscars 25
 Get a party of 10 invited 40
to the Oscars
 Cancel the Oscars 90

230
 Vampire: Degeneration
Name: Nature: DoB:
Clan: Demeanor: Embrace:
Sanguinis: Affiliation: Sire:
Attributes
Strength OOOOOOO Charisma OOOOOOO Perception OOOOOOO
Dexterity OOOOOOO Manipulation OOOOOOO Intelligence OOOOOOO
Stamina OOOOOOO Appearance OOOOOOO Wits OOOOOOO
Abilities
Acting OOOOOOO Etiquette OOOOOOO Melee OOOOOOO
Alertness OOOOOOO Expression OOOOOOO Music OOOOOOO
Animal Ken OOOOOOO Finance OOOOOOO Occult OOOOOOO
Archery OOOOOOO Firearms OOOOOOO Performance OOOOOOO
Athletics O O O O O O O Hvy. Weapons O O O O O O O Politics OOOOOOO
Brawl O O O O O O O Intimidation O O O O O O O Religion OOOOOOO
Computers OOOOOOO Investigation OOOOOOO Subterfuge OOOOOOO
Demolitions OOOOOOO Law OOOOOOO Streetwise OOOOOOO
Disguise OOOOOOO Leadership OOOOOOO Stealth OOOOOOO
Dodge OOOOOOO Linguistics OOOOOOO Survival OOOOOOO
Drive OOOOOOO Masquerade OOOOOOO Throwing OOOOOOO
Electronics OOOOOOO Mechanics OOOOOOO Torture OOOOOOO
Empathy OOOOOOO Medicine O O O O O O O Vampire Phys. O O O O O O O
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O
Disciplines Backgrounds / Lores / Influences
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O
_______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O _______________ O O O O O O O

Humanity OOOOOOOOOO BEAST TRAITS:

Beast OOOOOOOOOO
Willpower OOOOOOOOOO INHUMANITIES:

Blood pool OOOOOOOOOO

___ / rnd OOOOOOOOOO STIGMATA:

FATE: OOOOOO
 Combat Record Sheet
Character Name: _________________________________
Strength ____ Brawl ____ BRAWL BRAWL CBT Ties are mutual hits

Dexterity ____ Melee ____

BRAWL EVADE Tie goes to the evader

BRAWL MELEE Melee combatant gains Advantage; ties go to melee combatant.

Stamina ____ Firearms ____
MELEE MELEE Ties are mutual misses
Archery ____
MELEE EVADE Ties are considered melee hits
Potence ____ Dodge ____ EVADE (AT
RANGED Ties are considered misses
Fortitude ____ Throwing ____
RANGE)
“CLOSING” Ties are considered hits; shooter may claim Advantage on both
RANGED
EVADE CBT and DMT; next round of combat is at close range.
Evade Escape RANGED
BRAWL/ Close combatant gains Advantage vs. long guns and wins ties; gun
MELEE DMT/damage is +1
Both sides separately contest Firearms vs Evade; ties are consid-
RANGED RANGED
ered misses.
BRAWL/ Only usable after successful evade; attacker gains Advantage; ties
ESCAPE
MELEE yield an escape.
Dex + Dodge Dex + Dodge +Wits Successful Grapple attack to start (give away Advantage). Grapple
Minus 3 check every round. Only small weapons; no evades/escapes; Con-
GRAPPLE GRAPPLE
fined Soak only; last to win Grapple check is “in control” and gains
Adv on CBT/DMT/Grapple Checks; all damage at -1 (net)

CBT DMT HIGH LOW

Brawl ________ ________ ________ ________
Dex + Brawl Str + Pot + Brawl Str Mod + Pot Str Mod + Pot
* Claws +2 +1, Aggravated Aggravated
* Fang (Grapple only) +1 Potence only +2 Potence Only +1

Melee
_________ ________ ________ ________ ________
Dex + Melee Str + Pot + Melee + Weapon Str Mod + Pot + Weapon Str Mod + Pot + Weapon

_________ ________ ________ ________ ________

Dex + Melee Str + Pot + Melee + Weapon Str Mod + Pot + Weapon Str Mod + Pot + Weapon

Ranged
_________ ________ ________ ________ ________
AIM: SNAP: Dex + Firearms Firearms + Gun Gun Gun

_________ ________ ________ ________ ________

AIM: SNAP: Dex + Firearms Firearms + Gun Gun Gun

UNHURT
(No penalty) 0 0 0 -1 -1 -1 -2 -3 -5 n/a

Soak Confined Fire/Sun STR HIGH LOW STR HIGH LOW

1 +1 0 6 +3 +1
2 +1 0 7 +4 +2
3 +2 0 8 +4 +2
Stam. + Dodge + Fort. Stam. + Fort. Fort. + Dodge 4 +2 +1 9 +5 +2
(No Dodge) (No Stamina) 5 +3 +1 10 +5 +3