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World of Darkness

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

World of Darkness is the name given to three related but distinct fictional universes created as settings for supernatural horror themed role-playing games.The first was conceived by Mark Rein-Hagen, while the second was designed by several people at White Wolf Gaming Studio, which Rein-Hagen helped to found.[1] The first two World of Darkness settings have been used for several horror-themed role-playing games that make use of White Wolf's storyteller/storytelling system, as well as Mind's Eye Theatre, a live-action roleplaying game based on the core games. The third, Monte Cook's World of Darkness, created by Monte Cook based on the first two World of Darkness settings, includes only a single product.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Terminology and themes ◾2 One World of Darkness (formerly Classic World of Darkness) ◾2.1 Publication (settings) ◾2.2 Annual themes ◾2.3 End of cWoD (Time of Judgment) ◾2.4 Onyx Path ◾2.5 Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (card game) ◾2.6 Television series

◾3 Chronicles of Darkness (formerly New World of Darkness) ◾3.1 New rule system ◾3.2 Publication ◾3.2.1 The core setting ◾3.2.2 Limited series setting ◾3.2.3 Publication history

◾4 Monte Cook's World of Darkness ◾5 World of Darkness Online ◾6 Now in Print ◾7 References ◾8 External links

Terminology and themes

In order to avoid confusing the two product lines, players refer to the most recent version of the World of Darkness line, released on August 21, 2004, as "New World of Darkness", and the previous version as "Classic World of Darkness". Prior to the re-release of cWoD it was often referred to as "oWoD" for "Original" or "Old" World of Darkness.

While the newer setting is superficially very similar, the overall theme is one of "dark mystery", with an emphasis on the unknown and personal horror. The apocalyptic theme present in cWoD has been removed from nWoD, as have the "Gothic-Punk" aspects of the world setting.

After White Wolf was purchased by Paradox Interactive in October 2015, the franchise was re-branded in December 2015. The “new World of Darkness” was renamed “Chronicles of Darkness”, while the “Classic World of Darkness” has retained the name “World of Darkness”.[2]

One World of Darkness (formerly Classic World of Darkness)

Sometimes also referred to as "Original World of Darkness" or "Old World of Darkness". The original World of Darkness line was created in 1991 with the release of Vampire: The Masquerade. Support for it ended in 2004 with the release of Time of Judgment. The theme of the Classic World of Darkness is described as "Gothic-Punk" by the developers.

The World of Darkness resembles the contemporary world, but it is darker, more devious and more conspiratorial. The dichotomy between rich and poor, influential and weak, powerful and powerless, is much more pronounced than in the real world. Decadence, cynicism and corruption are common. Humans are unwitting victims or pawns of vast secret organizations of supernatural creatures. Vampires, werewolves and wraiths—among others—struggle with internal factionalism and against other species in secret wars of intrigue for control of reality. The battles in these wars may last centuries, beyond the realization or comprehension of ordinary humans. This status quo is recently threatened by the rise of a global Technocratic cabal (and/or an animistic spirit of stasis and control) intent on monopolizing the power of belief and destroying all traditional supernatural societies. The mystical abilities of these non-human entities and their ability to alter reality at will are restricted by the rise of reason and disbelief in the supernatural and they are forced to rely on more mundane methods in their struggles for supremacy.

The darkness of the setting is reflected everywhere: architecture is dominated by Gothic styling and fashion and personal style embrace Goth, Punk and fetishistic elements. The game uses both historical (Wild West, Dark Ages, and Victorian) milieus as well as modern settings. Despite the fantasy elements, the game emphasizes that any action has real world consequences, and abilities beyond what is considered normal by mainstream society will draw unwanted attention and potentially disastrous results.

Publication (settings)

White Wolf Publishing developed the following game sets in the Classic World of Darkness between 1991 and 2003: ◾Vampire: The Masquerade ◾Kindred of the Ebony Kingdom (not a distinct game-line, but a sort of spin-off of Masquerade) ◾Kindred of the East (this, conversely, was essentially a distinct game-line, although it required Masquerade for a few basic rules of play and thus was not completely standalone) ◾Werewolf: The Apocalypse ◾Mage: The Ascension ◾Wraith: The Oblivion ◾Changeling: The Dreaming ◾Hunter: The Reckoning ◾Mummy: The Resurrection (like Kindred of the East, this was not entirely playable without access to a base rules system such as Vampire) ◾Demon: The Fallen ◾Orpheus

Each consists of a Rulebook and a number of supplemental Sourcebooks, detailing specific clans and tribes, specific gadgets, and entire cities including descriptions of all the supernatural denizens. White Wolf Publishing also developed historical settings for their major product lines. These include: ◾Vampire: The Victorian Age (set in the late 19th century) ◾Werewolf: The Wild West (set in the 19th century) ◾Mage: The Sorcerer's Crusade (set in the late 15th century) ◾Wraith: The Great War (set during and immediately after World War I) ◾Vampire: The Dark Ages (12th century version that was later reworked into the Dark Ages product line) ◾Dark Ages (13th century Middle Ages) versions of the settings: ◾Dark Ages: Vampire ◾Dark Ages: Werewolf ◾Dark Ages: Mage ◾Dark Ages: Fae (Changeling) ◾Dark Ages: Inquisitor (roughly equivalent to Hunter)

After White Wolf Publishing acquired the rights to Ars Magica, additions were made to that game's setting to bring it into the World of Darkness timeline. Atlas Games would later acquire Ars Magica and remove these alterations, and the connection between Ars Magica and the Classic World of Darkness is no longer considered canonical. Early advertisements for the Exalted game established it in a pre-historic age of the World of Darkness. Although many elements of Exalted correspond with the WoD, the two game lines were divorced after the classic WoD was brought to a conclusion.

A World of Darkness sourcebook was published in two editions as well and provided general guidelines for story creation on any continent and in any milieu. These outlined the differences between African therianthropes and North American ones, for example. There was also a similar title for Werewolf entitled A World of Rage.

Annual themes

Each subsequent year of publication had a different theme. This brought about new sets of character types, but more importantly it dictated the focus of all the sourcebooks published that year. For instance, Vampire and Werewolf produced sourcebooks in the Year of the Lotus cycle concerning a variety of Asian themed creatures and expansions.

Year

Name of the year

Theme

1996 Year of the Hunter Groups of Mortals trying to take back the night. 1997 Year of the Ally Mortal and semi-mortal allies to the supernatural beings. 1998 Year of the Lotus Supernatural beings from eastern Asia. 1999 Year of the Reckoning Start of Hunter: The Reckoning game line. Revised Edition published. 2000 Year of Revelations Secrets of the ancient period. (Related to Exalted Game line.) 2001 Year of the Scarab Restart of Mummy as Mummy: Resurrection game. 2002 Year of the Damned Start of Demon: The Fallen as game. 2004 Time of Judgment End of the game line.

End of cWoD (Time of Judgment)

In late 2003, White Wolf Publishing announced it would stop publishing new books for the line, bringing the published history of the setting to an end with a series called The Time of Judgment. This event is described from different supernatural perspectives in four Sourcebooks: Gehenna (for Vampire: the Masquerade); Apocalypse (for Werewolf: the Apocalypse); Ascension (for Mage: the Ascension); and Time of Judgement (covering the rest of White Wolf's less-established product lines: Demon: The Fallen, Changeling: The Dreaming, Kindred of the East, Mummy: the Resurrection and Hunter: the Reckoning).

The publishers stated that, in doing so, they followed up on a promise that has existed in the World of Darkness since the first edition of Vampire, with the concept of Gehenna, and in Werewolf, with the Apocalypse, as well as some elements of some of the published material that pertain to 'end of the world' themes in other games. Fiction novels from each of the three major gaming lines concluded the official storyline.

Onyx Path

In 2011, a 20th Anniversary Edition of Vampire: The Masquerade, also called V20, was released, and a series of further books for the cWoD were announced.[3] Those books include conversion rules between some cWoD games and their nWoD counterparts, as well as material that was planned but not published before the End of the cWoD, as well as additional material for V20 and a 20th Anniversary book based on Werewolf: The Apocalypse.

For V20, as well as the upcoming V20 Companion and the 20th Anniversary Werewolf: the Apocalypse White Wolf Publishing used an Open Development approach, where readers and gamers could give feedback to the authors.[4] At GenCon 2012, it was announced that Onyx Path Publishing will produce material to the new and classic World of Darkness as licensee. In November 2012, it was announced by Onyx Path Publishing that due to the resounding success of the W20 Kickstarter, which reached over 400% of its target funds goal, a 20th Anniversary Mage: the Ascension would be launched for 2013.[5]

At GenCon 2012, the 2013 release schedule was outlined, including 2 new game settings, Mummy: The Curse and Demon: The Descent. Onyx Path also announced that 2013 would feature a Revised World of Darkness 1.5 core rules update titled The God-Machine Chronicle (for New World of Darkness) and The Strix Chronicle (for Vampire: the Requiem).[6]

Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (card game)

One of the earliest collectible card games (CCG) Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (formerly called Jyhad) is also based on the original World of Darkness, staying very true to the setting. As one of the longest-running CCGs in existence, it is the only WoD product that has not been discontinued - the Gehenna-theme (end of the old WoD Vampire setting) was featured in one expansion, but further expansions have been produced, without any reboot of the franchise.

Television series

In 1996, there was also a short lived TV series set in the WoD called Kindred: The Embraced that was produced by Spelling Television and broadcast by Fox. The show was based on the game Vampire: The Masquerade. It was canceled in the U.S. after only eight episodes. The possibility of a Canadian television station picking the show up was pre-empted by the death of Mark Frankel, one of the stars of the show.

Chronicles of Darkness (formerly New World of Darkness)

Many details of the setting, especially in regards to its history, are left vague or otherwise have multiple explanations. The first editions of the New World of Darkness games left the core rules to a central rulebook, The World of Darkness, which was well received and won the Origins Gamers' Choice Award for 2004. This book established core rules and a tone and mood for games featuring human protagonists. The old setting also made humans a minor threat to the supernatural races, but the new rules make it possible for humans to be powerful opponents to the things in the night. In order to play other supernatural entities (such as Vampires or Mages), both the World of Darkness core and the specific book detailing the rules for that character type were required.

The second edition of rules was released in a companion volume for the core World of Darkness book called The God-Machine Chronicles, and Vampire: the Requiem was given an unofficial second edition in Blood and Smoke: the Strix Chronicles, which contained complete rules for the Vampire characters, including the core system that had previously only been found in the World of Darkness core book.

As White Wolf Publishing attempted to keep the original World of Darkness separate, the new World of Darkness was rebranded as the Chronicles of Darkness, releasing a new core book with the God-Machine Chronicles errata folded in. Blood and Smoke received minimal changes to be re-released as Vampire: the Requiem 2nd edition, and other games previously part of the New World of Darkness began work on their own second editions.

New rule system

The Chronicles of Darkness rules are much more streamlined than the previous system. One 10-sided die is rolled for any 'dot' possessed in Attributes and Skills, and 1 success is achieved for every die showing a result of 8 or higher. The "10-again" rule has been added, in that a 10 indicates a re-roll, and the 10 still counts as a success (this rule was present in the original WoD only for Traits ranked at least 4 out of the usual maximum of 5, and then only for a "Specialty" or particular sub-field of the Trait's application). If another 10 is rolled, this step is repeated until anything but a 10 is rolled. 'Exceptional Successes' are indicated by having 5 or more successes on the action and can be regulated by the Storyteller. 'Dramatic Failures' are now only possible on "Chance" die rolls: When a dice pool is reduced by penalties to 0 or less, a single Chance die is rolled. If a 10 is rolled, it is a success (and, as mentioned above, is re-rolled). If the result is less than 10 but not 1, then it is a 'Simple Failure'. On a Chance die, if the roll is a 1, then it is a 'Dramatic Failure', which is usually worse than a Simple Failure of the action and is regulated by the Storyteller (although examples of Dramatic Failures in certain situations are frequently given).

The game also features a much more simplified combat system. In the old system, each attack made during a combat scene could easily involve 4 separate rolls and, in many cases, required more due to supernatural abilities possessed by the characters. Combat scenes involving large numbers of combatants could take a very long time to resolve. The new system requires only 1 roll which is adjusted by the defensive abilities of the character being attacked and represents both the success and failure of the attack, as well as the damage inflicted (indicated by number of successes).

The nature and demeanor rules which represented the personality of the characters that were common in the old games have also been removed. In the new system, characters have a virtue and a vice trait that not only represents the personality of the characters, depending on how well the player role-played the trait, but also represents actions that the character can take in order to regain willpower points that have been spent during the course of play. The vices are the same as the deadly sins (lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, pride), while the virtues correspond to the four cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, temperance, courage) and three theological virtues (faith, hope, charity). In the game's second edition, players do not select virtues or vices from a list. Instead, they may select any lofty ideal to be their Virtue, and any guilty pleasure to be their Vice.

The morality stat represents the moral outlook of the character and the notion that, as a character takes more and more morally questionable actions, he/she will eventually stop feeling bad about it. A character with a high morality would be more moral and saintly, while a person with a low morality would be able to take more dubious actions. As a person’s morality falls, they run the increasing risk of becoming mentally unstable. This, too, was changed in the second edition. Morality was replaced entirely by an "integrity" stat which reflects a character's mental stability. Integrity can be lowered not only by performing questionable actions, but by witnessing or being subjected to the horrors, supernatural or otherwise, that occur in the setting.

Publication

The core setting

The Chronicles of Darkness rules have improved compatibility between games; all characters are created as normal humans and thus have the same basic traits. Supernatural traits still vary for each character type, but their interactions with each other are governed largely by a single, simple mechanic. The playable supernatural types generally follow similar rules in terms of game mechanics, including: ◾4–6 inherent "sub-races", to which every character belongs based on the circumstances of his/her transformation into a supernatural being (five Vampire Clans; five Werewolf Auspices; five Mage Paths; five Promethean Lineages; six Changeling Seemings; five Sin-Eater Thresholds; five Mummy Decrees; four Demon Incarnations; five Beast Families). ◾4–8 chosen "factions", to which a character may belong based on his/her beliefs; a character does not usually need to belong to any of these groups (five Vampire Covenants; five Werewolf Tribes; five Mage Orders; five Promethean Refinements; four Changeling Courts; eight Sin-Eater Archetypes; five Mummy Guilds; four Demon Agendas; five Beast Hungers). ◾Power level trait (often generically referred to as "Supernatural Tolerance"), rated 1–10 (Vampires: Blood Potency; Werewolves: Primal Urge; Mages: Gnosis; Prometheans: Azoth; Changelings: Wyrd; Sin-Eaters: Psyche; Mummies: Sekhem; Demons: Primum; Beasts: Lair). High levels of this trait often limit the character's ability to interact with the world. Mummy: The Curse is the only World of Darkness game in which players begin at rating 10 and progressively become weaker (called the Descent). ◾Morality/Integrity trait, on a scale of 0 to 10 (Vampire: Humanity; Werewolf: Harmony; Mage: Wisdom; Promethean: Humanity; Changeling: Clarity; Sin-Eaters: Synergy; Mummy: Memory; Demon: Cover; Beast: Satiety). Falling to 0 typically results in complete insanity and loss of control of the character. ◾Energy trait, consisting of temporary "points" used to fuel various powers with capacity and spending ability based on the "power level trait" (Vampire: Vitae; Werewolf: Essence; Mage: Mana; Promethean: Pyros; Changeling: Glamour; Sin-Eaters: Plasm; Mummy: Pillars; Demon: Aether; Beast: Satiety). ◾Learned powers arranged in traits rated 1–5, capable of rising higher when "power level trait" exceeds 5 (Vampire: Disciplines; Werewolf: Gifts; Mage: Arcana; Promethean: Transmutations; Changeling: Contracts; Sin-Eaters: Manifestations; Mummy: Affinities; Demon: Embeds and Exploits; Hunters (if part of a conspiracy) have access to similar powers/technologies known as endowments; Beast: Nightmares).

The three core games are as follows: ◾Vampire: The Requiem (released August 21, 2004 alongside The World of Darkness core book) ◾Werewolf: The Forsaken (released March 14, 2005) ◾Mage: The Awakening (released August 29, 2005)

Limited series setting

In addition to the main three games, there are also additional limited series games. Like Orpheus for the Classic World of Darkness, each of these "fourth games" will have a limited series of approximately six books, including the core rulebook.[7] The first such game is Promethean: The Created for August 2006, based largely on Frankenstein and similar stories of giving the unliving life through alchemy. The second game is Changeling: The Lost, and was released in August 2007. It is a game based around characters that were taken and enslaved by Fairies similar to those of European folk tales, who managed to escape to find they were no longer human themselves, and must find a new place in life. Due to overwhelming positive response to Changeling, White Wolf Publishing has continued publishing material for it, although it is not recognized as a Core series. The third game, Hunter: The Vigil, was released in 2008, dealing with humans who decide to confront the supernatural. The fourth game, Geist: The Sin-Eaters, came out in 2009. The game concerns characters known as sin-eaters who, at the point of death, bonded with one of the strange entities known as geists. They returned to life, and are now able to journey into the Underworld. No additional games were released in 2010 or 2011, but at the 2011 Gen Con, it was announced that a new Mummy game would be released in August 2012. It was announced at the Los Angeles By Night Convention that the newest World of Darkness game is Demon: The Descent.[8] At the 2014 Gen Con, Onyx Path announced that their next line would be Beast: The Primordial. At the 2015 Gen Con, Onyx Path announced that Deviant: The Renegades would follow. ◾Promethean: The Created (released August 11, 2006) ◾Changeling: The Lost (released August 16, 2007) ◾Hunter: The Vigil (released August 15, 2008) ◾Geist: The Sin-Eaters (released August 19, 2009) ◾Mummy: The Curse (released March 27, 2013) ◾Demon: The Descent (released May, 2014) ◾Beast: The Primordial (released March 30, 2016) ◾Deviant: The Renegades

Publication history ◾World of Darkness (August 2004) ◾Ghost Stories (November 2004) ◾Antagonists (December 2004) ◾Mysterious Places (June 2005) ◾Chicago (December 2005) ◾Armory (January 2006) ◾Second Sight (April 2006) ◾Shadows of the UK (June 2006) ◾Skinchangers (July 2006) ◾Tales from the 13th Precinct (July 2006) ◾Shadows of Mexico (October 2006) ◾Urban Legends (April 2007) ◾Book of Spirits (May 2007) ◾Asylum (August 2007) ◾Reliquary (September 2007) ◾Changing Breeds (October 2007) ◾Chicago Workings[a] (PDF only) (January 2008), inspired by Chicago ◾Midnight Roads (February 2008) ◾The Harvesters[a] (PDF only) (February 2008) inspired by Midnight Roads ◾Innocents (April 2008) ◾The New Kid[a] (PDF only) (May, 2008) inspired by Innocents ◾Dogs of War (June 2008) ◾Ruins of Ur[a] (PDF only) (July 2008) inspired by Dogs of War ◾Slasher (2008)—initially for Hunter: The Vigil, later made into a general nWoD book. ◾Inferno (January 2009) ◾Armory Reloaded (April 2009) ◾Immortals (May 2009) ◾Mirrors (July 2010) ◾Glimpse of the Unknown (July 2011) ◾Strangeness in the Proportion (November 2011)[b] ◾Falling Scales (SAS[a] August 2012) ◾The God-Machine Chronicle Anthology (April 2013)[b] ◾The God-Machine Chronicle (August 2013) ◾The Chronicles of Darkness (January 2016) ◾Dark Eras (May 2016)

a. Uses the Storytelling Adventure System. b. This is not a gamebook but a novel first serialized on the White Wolf website.

Monte Cook's World of Darkness

In August 2007, White Wolf published the single volume Monte Cook's World of Darkness. It was a take on a World of Darkness-theme by veteran RPG-designer Monte Cook. It was advertised as his last RPG book, before he would shift to writing fiction. (Cook has since returned to RPGs.)

The World in this setting is an Earth that has, some time prior to the start of the game, been hit by a global catastrophe caused by extra-dimensional alien beings, who sought to enter reality, but have since been repelled by mankind's emotion or will. Starting with that catastrophe, several supernatural beings and phenomenon appear, some accidental, some induced by the aliens to make mankind suffer to a level that allows them to enter reality.

The game uses a d20-like system, with level-based advancement. It incorporates vampires, werewolves, mages, and demons into its setting, and has therefore some similarities to the classical/new World of Darkness. It also tries to capture certain aspects of these game worlds, like the mages' free magic system: the game offers d20 compatible rules to design spells and a magic system based on exhaustion, rather than a classic d20/D&D-like "spells per day" system.

Although sharing the "World of Darkness" title, this game is a setting in its own right.

World of Darkness Online

A merger between CCP Games and White Wolf Publishing was announced at the annual EVE Online fanfest in Reykjavík, Iceland, in November 2006. As part of the deal, it was announced that White Wolf would be adapting the EVE Online intellectual property into a role-playing game, and CCP Games announced a World of Darkness Online massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG). According to news at the time, work had already begun on a World of Darkness MMORPG and full-time production was to commence within the year and launch in four to five years.[9]

As of January 2008, full production of World of Darkness Online was scheduled to start March 2009 after the EVE Online expansion was finished according to CCP.[10] Official confirmation that the game was in development surfaced in August 2009 on the official CCP web site.[10]

The game was to be based on Vampire: The Masquerade and would have "focus[ed] on player politics and social interaction". According to Senior Producer Chris McDonough there "is no release date" set.[11]

In October 2011, CCP announced that they would be significantly reducing the staff for the MMORPG, choosing instead to focus on the existing EVE Online universe.[12]

In a February 2012 interview at Ten Ton Hammer it was reported that there were still at least 60 dedicated developers on the MMO and the project was still moving forward.[13]

In April 2013, in an interview at EVE Fanfest 2013, it was reported that the World of Darkness Online team has worked on multiple projects at CCP, and were sharing technology with the company’s other titles and teams. There are 70 people working on the tools and technology that will be used to build the World of Darkness and it was stressed that the game is in pre-production. Chris McDonough said "What we're doing is building a lot of tools, and we're trying to do it in a smart way... we have to be able to use the tools to make up the ground for the number of guys we have", and he also added "Now, we'll ramp the team up when it comes time to go into actual production but, for sure, we're making phenomenal progress". It was also announced the game was to be a next-generation MMO and will work like a vampire simulator. "We're making sure this is a next-generation MMO. It's very focused on movement and motion and capturing what it's like to be a vampire. People ask about our high level designs for World of Darkness and we've called this a vampire simulator. What's it like to be a vampire. Not a super hero, but a super-powered individual. The way the characters move around the city feels very vampiric", McDonough explained. The demo showed during the World of Darkness presentation at EVE Fanfest 2013, proved this out.[14]

On April 14, 2014, CCP announced that the World of Darkness MMORPG was cancelled.[15]

On October 29, 2015, Paradox announced that it bought White Wolf, including World of Darkness and Vampire The Masquerade from CCP. Paradox stated it planned to create "multiple digital games titles" following this acquisition.[16]

Now in Print

In 2011, White Wolf and online role playing game store DriveThruRPG.com, began offering the new and classic World of Darkness source books in a print on demand format through the DriveThruRPG website, starting with a number of formerly out of print Vampire: The Masquerade books, and gradually adding more as they were ready for print. DriveThruRPG and White Wolf have indicated that eventually all World of Darkness material will be available in this way.

References

1. Konzack, Lars (2015). "Mark Rein-Hagen's Foundational Influence on 21st Century Vampiric Media." (https://www.academia.edu/17844167/Mark_Rein_Hagen_s_Foundational_Influence_on_21st_Century_Vampiric_Media). 2. One World of Darkness: White Wolf stellen ihre Zukunftspläne vor (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waHQeOrKxK8) 3. "White Wolf Release Schedule 2011-2012" (https://web.archive.org/web/20110910054210/http://www.white-wolf.com/community/news/white-wolf-release-schedule-2011-2012). White Wolf Publishing. Archived from the original (http://www.white-wolf.com/community/news/white-wolf-release-schedule-2011-2012) on September 10, 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 4. [1] (http://whitewolfblogs.com/v20companion) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20111020002955/http://whitewolfblogs.com/v20companion) October 20, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. 5. "20th Anniversary Mage: the Ascension official announcement" (http://theonyxpath.com/mage-the-ascension-20th-anniversary-edition/). White Wolf Publishing. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 6. "Release Schedule August 2012 to August 2013" (http://theonyxpath.com/release-schedule-august-2012-august-2013/). The Onyx Path. 2012-07-24. Retrieved 2012-11-27. 7. [2] (http://www.shadownessence.com/forum/?showtopic=9252) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20060326074821/http://www.shadownessence.com/forum/?showtopic=9252) March 26, 2006, at the Wayback Machine. 8. Flames (2011-08-04). "White Wolf 2011-2012 New Release Schedule!" (https://web.archive.org/web/20121031135631/http://www.flamesrising.com/2011-2012-ww-release-schedule/). Flamesrising.com. Archived from the original (http://www.flamesrising.com/2011-2012-ww-release-schedule/) on October 31, 2012. Retrieved 2012-11-27. 9. [3] (http://razorwire.warcry.com/news/view/68606-World-of-Darkness-MMORPG-details-emerge) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20070213183508/http://razorwire.warcry.com/news/view/68606-World-of-Darkness-MMORPG-details-emerge) February 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine. 10. "2009 CCP financial .pdf & Grand Masquerade Notes > World of Darkness News > Home" (https://web.archive.org/web/20160117173124/http://www.wodnews.net/Home/tabid/41/Article/422/2009-ccp-financial-pdf-grand-masquerade-notes.aspx). Wodnews.net. 2011-02-20. Archived from the original (http://www.wodnews.net/Home/tabid/41/Article/422/2009-ccp-financial-pdf-grand-masquerade-notes.aspx) on January 17, 2016. Retrieved 2012-11-27. 11. "PC Gamer UK states 2012 for WoD MMO > World of Darkness News > Home" (https://web.archive.org/web/20160117173124/http://www.wodnews.net/Home/tabid/41/Article/491/pc-gamer-uk-states-2012-for-wod-mmo.aspx). Wodnews.net. 2012-01-01. Archived from the original (http://www.wodnews.net/Home/tabid/41/Article/491/pc-gamer-uk-states-2012-for-wod-mmo.aspx) on January 17, 2016. Retrieved 2012-11-27. 12. "Press Releases" (https://web.archive.org/web/20120812044826/http://www.ccpgames.com/en/public-relations/press-releases/article/2990/ccp-focuses-on-the-eve-universe). Ccpgames.Com. 2011-10-19. Archived from the original (http://www.ccpgames.com/en/public-relations/press-releases/article/2990/ccp-focuses-on-the-eve-universe) on August 12, 2012. Retrieved 2012-11-27. 13. "World of Darkness News > Home" (https://web.archive.org/web/20130101160912/http://www.wodnews.net/Home/tabid/41/ctl/ArticleView/mid/401/articleId/108/New-David-Reid-interview.aspx). Wodnews.net. Archived from the original (http://www.wodnews.net/Home/tabid/41/ctl/ArticleView/mid/401/articleId/108/New-David-Reid-interview.aspx) on January 1, 2013. Retrieved 2012-11-27. 14. "The World of Darkness Will Be Brutal Social And Player-Driven" (https://web.archive.org/web/20130504000620/http://www.penny-arcade.com/report/article/the-world-of-darkness-will-offer-you-a-world-of-vampires-to-conquer-bu). Penny-Arcade.com. Archived from the original (http://www.penny-arcade.com/report/article/the-world-of-darkness-will-offer-you-a-world-of-vampires-to-conquer-bu) on May 4, 2013. Retrieved 2013-05-02. 15. "CCPGames.com - Press Releases" (https://web.archive.org/web/20140415074435/http://www.ccpgames.com/en/public-relations/press-releases/article/77171/ccp-games-halts-development-of-world-of-darkness-mmo/). Archived from the original (http://www.ccpgames.com/en/public-relations/press-releases/article/77171/ccp-games-halts-development-of-world-of-darkness-mmo/) on April 15, 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2014. 16. Meer, Alec (October 29, 2015). "Paradox Buys White Wolf – Including World Of Darkness & Vampire The Masquerade – From EVE Online Firm CCP" (https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2015/10/29/paradox-white-wolf/). Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2016-01-12.

External links ◾The Onyx Path website (http://theonyxpath.com/) Current publishers of all White Wolf Games Studios products ◾Database of classic World of Darkness products (http://www.werwolf-live.de/booklist.php) ◾Database of new World of Darkness products (http://www.werwolf-live.de/booklist_nWoD.php)

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Geist: The Sin-Eaters

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Geist: The Sin-Eaters

GeistTS-E cover.jpg cover of Geist: The Sin-Eaters

Designer(s) Ethan Skemp

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date August 2009

Genre(s) Personal Horror

System(s) Storytelling System

Geist: The Sin-Eaters is a tabletop roleplaying game and setting for White Wolf Game Studio's World of Darkness line released in August 2009. "Geist", in this context, refers to a spirit bound to a once-dead human, resulting in a Sin-Eater.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Overview ◾1.1 Premise ◾1.2 Thresholds ◾1.3 Archetypes

◾2 Mechanics ◾2.1 Powerstat: "Psyche" ◾2.2 Energy: "Plasm" ◾2.3 Morality: "Synergy" ◾2.4 Powers: "Keys" ◾2.5 Powers: "Manifestations" ◾2.6 Merit: "Ceremonies" ◾2.7 Merit: "Haunt" ◾2.8 Merit: "Memento"

◾3 Antagonists ◾3.1 Ghosts ◾3.2 Geists ◾3.3 The Sacrosanct ◾3.4 Abmortals ◾3.5 The Wretched ◾3.6 The Vacant ◾3.7 Kerberoi ◾3.8 Chthonians

◾4 Special: "Symbiology: The effects of being Bound" ◾4.1 New Life, New Body, New Health ◾4.2 Dealing with Ghosts ◾4.3 Deathly Knowledge

◾5 Publication history ◾6 Reviews ◾7 See also ◾8 Notes ◾9 External links

Overview

Premise

A Geist is a kind of spirit that was once a ghost but has given up their mortal identity. Instead they have become an embodiment of the ideas and imagery of their own deaths.

Players portray Sin Eaters who have died and returned to the world of the living. Unlike vampires, however, Sin Eaters (also called the Bound) are not undead, but rather living beings bound to fundamental forces of death. Upon the first death, every Sin Eater is approached by a Geist, an embodiment of an aspect or personification of death. In exchange for being returned to life, Sin Eaters allow the Geist to accompany them, effectively merging into each other in a symbiotic relation with the "human" in control. Upon this return to life, the Bound discover that they can see and interact with the restless shades of the dead, and must choose what to do with their second chance at life. In all instances, Sin Eaters are forced to deal with the dead, whether through altruism, greed, or just the plain fact that the dead will not leave them alone.

Thresholds

Every Sin Eater has a Threshold, relating to the way in which they died. Thresholds can be somewhat fluid, depending on what aspect of death the Sin Eater-to-be focused on at the moment of death. For example, someone who drowns could be either one of the Prey, who are killed by nature, or one of the Silent, who die from deprivation (a lack of oxygen), or even one of the Torn, if they are held under water. There are five Thresholds. ◾The Torn: The Torn are called the Bleeding Ones, and the victims of Malice, and they are those who die from violence. Their patron is the Red Horseman, and they are those who are killed by murder or violent means, such as stabbing, shooting, or particularly traumatic and damaging deaths. The Torn often attract angry and vengeful Geists, and they have an affinity for Stigmata and Passion powers. ◾The Silent: The Silent are called the Starving Ones, and the victims of Neglect, and they die from deprivation, such as suffocation, starvation, and heartbreak. Their patron is the Black Horseman, and they attract hungry and needy geists. They have an affinity for the powers of the Cold Wind and Stillness. ◾The Prey: The Prey are the Eaten and the Drowned, and the victims of the Elements. They are those taken by the wild, from exposure, animal attacks, and drowning. Their patron is the Pale Horseman, and of all the Sin Eaters, their geists are the most elemental and inhuman. They have an affinity for Primeval and Grave-Dirt powers ◾The Stricken: The Stricken are called the Ravaged Ones, and the victims of Plague. They are those who died of disease, illness, or poison. Their patron is the White Horseman, and in defiance of their demise they become very hardy in nature, seeking out challenges to beat. The mementos of this threshold feel unclean or disease ridden. They are affiliated with the powers of the Phantasmal and Tear-Stained Keys. ◾The Forgotten: The Forgotten are called the Lightning-Struck, and the victims of Misfortune. They are victims of random chance. Their patron is the Gray Horseman, and they often see the world as random and tend to gamble more because of that. Their mementos feel as if they could kill by accident at any given moment. They possess the powers of the Industrial and Pyre-Flame Keys.

Archetypes

A sin-eater's archetype refers to their personal views on what has happened to them and how they are going to deal with it. ◾Advocate: Advocates are sin-eaters who dedicate their second lives to helping the dead, either out of a sense of obligation or because it will make their dealings with the dead easier. ◾Bonepicker: Bonepickers focus on the material comforts they can gain with their powers, and keep good track of what they're owed by whom. ◾Celebrant: Celebrants embrace their second life and everything that it has to give, typically as adrenaline junkies or pleasure seekers. ◾Gatekeeper: Gatekeepers believe it is their duty to police the boundaries between life and death, standing against ghosts who meddle with the living and the living who meddle with the dead. ◾Mourner: Mourners are obsessed with the fact that they died, and they feed off the emotions of those who are in mourning. Some believe they are still dead. ◾Necromancer: Necromancers use ghosts and sometimes trips into the Underworld to gain occult lore and knowledge of the past. ◾Pilgrim: Pilgrims focus on the spiritual side of death, and try to help people avoid the Underworld by destroying the connections that could form anchors. ◾Reaper: Reapers try to make the world a better place, either by murdering the guilty or haunting them until they change their ways.

Mechanics

Powerstat: "Psyche"

Psyche is the power trait of this venue, and it is a measure of the combined will of the sin-eater and their geist, and the strength of the bond between them. As with other power traits, it can be added to contested rolls against supernatural powers. Psyche is increased by constant work with the dead, resolving fetters, and traveling to the Underworld. High psyche sin-eaters require anchors to tie them into the mortal world, and regular visits to the Underworld to maintain their connection to the dead.

Energy: "Plasm"

Plasm is what sin-eaters use to fuel their powers. It can be collected at Haunts, cenotes ("low places" with a connection to death, such as a graveyard), and Avernian Gates. It can also be gained by eating the corpus of a ghost, but few sin-eaters will ever resort to this. Death masks are a type of memento that naturally collects Plasm, and wearing one allows the sin-eater to access that plasm. Acting in resonance with one's threshold to the point of jeopardizing one's health or synergy can generate plasm. Finally, releasing a ghost from its anchors and helping it move on will completely refill a sin-eater's plasm bank. The amount of Plasm a sin-eater can hold and spend in a turn is determined by their Psyche rating.

Morality: "Synergy"

Synergy takes the place of morality for the sin-eater, and measures how well a sin-eater and geist work together. The higher the synergy, the more united the two are in pursuing a goal. This is not always a good thing, as geists don't usually care about right and wrong, so acting in accordance with their wishes may be harmful. In this way, a sin-eater could be a serial killer and still have high synergy. Synergy goes down when a sin-eater causes discord with their geist.

Powers: "Keys"

Keys are what a sin-eater uses to "unlock" a manifestation. The type of key used determines how the manifestation works. Two sin-eaters using the same manifestation but different keys will have different results. Each key has an associated skill for making activation rolls, though the skill may change depending on which manifestation is used. A sin-eater starts with two keys, one of which must be associated their threshold, and both of which must reflect their death or their geist in some way. More keys may be purchased later with experience points. ◾Elemental keys; Associated Skill: Occult. Each elemental key is a separate key that must be purchased alone. Each one is associated with an element combined with death and decay. They are the Cold Wind key, the Grave-dirt key, the Pyre Flame key, and the Tear-stained key. In general, each key can only be used in an elemental environment favorable to it, while using it in an opposing elemental environment is difficult. ◾The Industrial Key; Associated Skill: Crafts (Except for use with Oracle manifestation, when it is Investigation). This key grants influence and control over technology and machinery. However, technology that is too new is difficult to influence. This key works best on older or archaic technology. ◾The Passion Key; Associated Skill: Empathy (Except when used with Rage manifestation, when it is Intimidation). This key has to do with the influencing, shaping, and control of emotions of people, places or things. Use of this key can, as a side effect, alter the sin-eater's own emotions. ◾The Phantasmal Key; Associated Skill: Persuasion (Intimidation when used with Rage, Investigation when used with Oracle). This key lets the sin-eater create illusions. At higher manifestations, they can drive a man mad or kill with it. The side effect of this key is that sin-eater will also experience fleeting hallucinations. ◾The Primeval Key; Associated Skill: Animal Ken (Survival when used with Oracle). This key allows a sin-eater to influence or control plants and animals. It also grants control over certain fertility rites and allows the sin-eater to take on animal traits. It causes the sin-eater to become more feral, though they do not lose their ability to think. ◾The Stigmata Key; Associated Skill: Occult (Medicine when used with Curse). This key allows the sin-eater to influence or control ghosts or spirits through the use of blood and sacrifice. A sin-eater using this key may choose to take bashing instead of spending plasm, or lethal instead of spending willpower. The damage must be deliberately caused by the sin-eater for this purpose. ◾The Stillness Key; Associated Skill: Stealth (Subterfuge in Boneyard, Occult with Marionette, Investigation with Oracle). This key helps the sin-eater in matters of stealth and subterfuge. This key works best when the sin-eater remains still and silent. Most who use this key will even avoid speaking to friends while it's active. ◾The Stygian Key; Associated Skill: Medicine. This key give the sin-eater influence or control over death, decay and rot. This key requires that a sacrifice be made before unlocking any manifestation, and can only be learned from a Kerberos after crossing three rivers and drinking from each.

Powers: "Manifestations"

A sin-eater is able to access their geist's power through manifestations. They are rated 1-5. Each manifestation is associated with a specific attribute. The properties of the manifestation are determined by the key used. The roll to activate is (associated attribute)+(associated skill)+(manifestation rating). Unless otherwise stated, the manifestation lasts for a scene. ◾Boneyard; Attribute: Wits. By bleeding plasm into the ground, the sin-eater is granted influence over a large area. The sin-eater's body must remain in a trance-like state while this manifestation is active. While active, a sin-eater can sense any person or thing they wish to find if it is within the boneyard, and affect it with other manifestations. (Note: The Rage manifestation cannot be used in this way.) ◾Caul; Attribute: Stamina. The sin-eater allows the geist to merge with their physical body, changing it in a way defined by the Key used to unlock it. All forms of the Caul affect the sin-eater directly, rather than anyone around the sin-eater. The manifestation lasts till the end of the scene, or until the sin-eater dismisses it. ◾Curse; Attribute: Presence. This manifestation places a hex on another person, which is carried out by the geist. Typically, only the area around the cursed person is affected, rather than affecting the person directly. The length of the curse is determined by the activation successes. A condition may be placed on the curse's activation, and the cursed person gets an automatic resistance roll. ◾Marionette; Attribute: Manipulation. The sin-eater can control people, animals, or objects. The victim retains free will, but cannot control their actions. The nature of the control depends on what key is used. Control typically ends when line of sight is broken, unless used with oracle or boneyard. ◾Oracle; Attribute: Intelligence. This manifestation alters a sin-eater's perception, according to the key used to unlock it. Anyone who can see plasmic energy knows a sin-eater who has activated the oracle on sight. In some cases, the astral self leaves the body, while in others, a bonus is added to wits based rolls to perceive anything associated with the key. ◾Rage; Attribute: Strength. This is a direct attack on another person by the geist. With a few exceptions, the rage is invisible, though the effects are known by the target and anyone with the ability to see such things (such as mage sight). The range of the rage is 10 yds per dot of Psyche. The level of rage determines what kind of damage is done. ◾Shroud; Attribute: Resolve. Plasm envelops the sin-eater, creating a form of armor. The form of the armor depends on the key. It is invisible to the physical, except to those who have supernatural sights. The armor bonus is equal to the shroud rating, and there are special effects added on based on the key. ◾Pit; Attribute: Composure. Using the cursed plasm that shapes the Underworld, a sin-eater can remove some aspect of the target, or force some aspect of the world to ignore him. Unlocking this manifestation is a level 7 synergy sin. Also, only Underworld plasm can fuel this ability. If the Sin-eater wants to use an Archetypal manifestation, he must be within one yard of an Avernian Gate.

Merit: "Ceremonies"

Ceremonies are rituals to achieve specific effects. All ceremonies are extended actions, and all have a target number of successes equal to 2+ ceremony rating, unless otherwise stated. Purchase of this merit, however, is only important at character creation. The number of dots in this merit are equal to the total number of dots for ceremonies a starting character can have. For example, a starting character with 3 dots in the ceremony merit may have one 3-dot ceremony, three 1-dot ceremonies, or one 1-dot and one 2-dot ceremony. After this, ceremonies may be purchased at 2 xp per dot. The number of dots in the ceremony merit does not indicate a cap on how high a level ceremony you may purchase, and the new ceremonies are not treated as an expansion of the merit.

Merit: "Haunt"

A Haunt is a place with a strong connection to the Underworld. Sin-eaters may use such places to harvest plasm or to open an Avernian Gate. Any place with strong death energy can become a haunt. Haunts have three factors, each of which is treated as a separate merit. Utility is the size, security, accessibility, and mundane usefulness. Fluidity represents how strong the connection to the Underworld is and how easily an Avernian Gate can be opened at the Haunt. A modifier of +1 per dot in fluidity is added to all attempts to open an Avernian Gate at the location. Residue represents how well the Haunt collects plasm. each dot in residue represents a dot of plasm per week. Because of how well connected the haunt is to the Underworld, sleeping in a Haunt will not allow the sin-eater to regain spent Willpower or being well rested due to nightmares.

Merit: "Memento"

Mementos, also called memento mori, are items that contain a connection to death and act as a focal point of power. All sin-eaters have at least one memento, their keystone, which is given to them by their geist. The Keystone grants access to one threshold and two keys. This memento is free at character creation, and is typically kept in the Twilight. All other mementos must be purchased as separate merits. A memento cannot be improved—it is what it is. There are 5 other kinds of mementos: ◾Charms: Level one mementos that grant access to one threshold. The death energy in a charm is unfocused, but use of the "Dedicate charm" ceremony can focus the energy into a Key associated with the charm's threshold. A charm that has been dedicated grants a +1 bonus to all manifestation rolls involving that Key. Having an impressive charm or a large number of charms adds +3 too all social rolls with the Bound. ◾Vanitas: Level two mementos that allow the sin-eater to regain spent willpower. The sin-eater must make their own vanitas, and it can be anything they wish it to be. The threshold of a vanitas is the threshold of the sin-eater. Meditating on a vanitas and the nature of their own death allows the sin-eater to regain spent willpower by making a resolve+composure roll. Doing so takes a full scene. Destroying the vanitas of another sin-eater grants full willpower. A sin-eater may only have one vanitas at a time. ◾Fetters: Level three mementos that have one threshold and one key. A +2 bonus is given to manifestation rolls using this key. A fetter is created by binding a ghost to its own anchor. The ghost may or may not be pleased with the arrangement. The ghost is no longer able to affect the physical realm or use their numina. However, once per scene, the sin-eater may channel a numen through their own body. Each fetter has only one numen associated with it and the roll is attribute+skill, all of which is determined at the formation of the fetter by the ST. ◾Deathmasks: Level four mementos that are the physical remains of a geist. They have one threshold, one key, and one associated skill. They supply a +1 bonus to ceremonies relating to the threshold, a +2 bonus to manifestation rolls using the key, and a +1 bonus to rolls involving the associated skill. In addition, the deathmask retains a memory of the second key, which can be accessed as a manifestation. The deathmask holds 5 plasm, and replenishes spent plasm at the rate of 1 plasm a night. The plasm cannot be drawn into the sin-eater's own reservoir but may be used in place of it. The sin-eater must be wearing the deathmask to access any of the bonuses, and cannot have more deathmasks than half their psyche rating. ◾Memorabilia: Level five mementos that are connected to the death of a famous person, and are more powerful charms because of this. They come with a threshold and can be dedicated to a key, granting a +1 bonus to manifestations used with that key. They grant the +3 bonus to social rolls; however, these rolls now have 9 again. If the memorabilia is a piece of equipment, it grants a +5 equipment modifier. If it is not equipment, it has an associated skill to which is grants a +3 bonus if the sin-eater focuses for a round. Using this memento will result in nightmares the following sleep period, and when carried gives a -3 penalty to dealing with regular humans.

Antagonists

Ghosts

Ghosts are what remains of a person who refused to move on after death because of some unfinished business. If they exist in the mortal realm, then they are found in the Twilight state unless manifesting. These ghosts have anchors which tie them to the mortal realm. An anchor can be any person, place, or thing that held great significance to the ghost in life. A ghost can have many anchors or only one. When the last of these are gone, either from being destroyed or simply disappearing with time, and the ghost has not resolved their unfinished business, they are sent to the Underworld. Sin-eaters can attempt to help a ghost move on, either from the Twilight or from the Underworld, by resolving whatever business the ghost has left. Most ghosts do not understand their own condition, many are far less than coherent, and some simply don't want to move on, so they often try to fight any sin-eaters that are trying to help them.

Geists

No one is quite certain where geists come from, or what makes a geist, though there are several theories. Many believe that they were ghosts who, having lost all of their anchors and found themselves in the Underworld, latched on to some archetype of death and created an anchor with it. Others believe that they traveled through the Underworld to the Avernian Gates that open into the Shadow, and devoured a spirit. Whatever they are, and wherever they come from, they are most certainly not human anymore. For mechanical purposes, they are treated as a ghost-spirit hybrid. It is important to note that the geist does not control the sin-eater. The geist may tempt, threaten and otherwise attempt to get the sin-eater to go along with its desires, but the choice is ultimately up to the sin-eater. Unfettered geists do not typically present a problem, and most sin-eaters will never deal with them. However, some who have been without a bargain for a long time may become desperate to gain one, and will go to drastic lengths to get one, often leaving a trail of deaths in their wake.

The Sacrosanct

Take any two krewes (groups of sin-eaters) and you will usually find very different philosophies run each group. Usually krewes stay out of each other's way, except when there are disputes about territory, or when philosophical difference are so great that conflict cannot be avoided. For the most part, however, the krewes are content to ignore each other as long as they keep to their own sides. This is not the case for Sacrosanct. Sacrosanct krewes are fanatical believers, seeing their way as the only way, and viewing other krewes as dangerous cults that must be stopped. They will even hunt down and kill krewes with beliefs similar to their own, because they believe theirs is the true channel, and the other is being influenced by demons in disguise.

Abmortals

Abmortals can be made from any number of means, most of which are unknown. An abmortal is a person who, either by accident or through some dark ritual, has become immortal and lost its humanity. Most sustain this status by killing others in their place. Some have even been known to make slaves out of the ghosts of their victims. Each abmortal kills its victims in a different way, according to the ritual that grants it immortality. Most abmortals can be killed by interference with their ritual. However, other times a quicker way to deal with the abmortal must be found to stop the deaths. Coming into the world as they do, most abmortals are ignorant of the supernatural world in general.

The Wretched

The Wretched are sin-eaters who have reached synergy 0. This means that they can no longer work or communicate with their geist. This does not sever the original bargain, however. Wretched end up suffering from a form of multiple personality disorder, as two souls are sharing one body. Eventually, the geist will completely overpower the human soul, gaining full and total control of the body. For obvious reasons, this is a fate to be avoided. Surprisingly enough, most geists wish to avoid this as well, as such a state ultimately fails to last, and the geist will soon have to seek a new merger if it is not destroyed by angry sin-eaters. It is important to note that synergy can be restored through serious attention by the sin-eater and their krewe or neighboring sin-eaters.

The Vacant

The Vacant are sin-eaters who have either destroyed their own geist or had their geist destroyed by another. Because of how deep the bond between sin-eater and geist goes, this leaves the sin-eater with a gaping hole in their soul, which they are driven to fill through any means possible. They often try to force unfettered geists (those who are in between mergers) into a bargain. This rarely works out, either because the geist doesn't want anything to do with someone who's already destroyed their geist, or because the synergy of such a bond begins as 0, with little hope for increasing it. Their other method is to attempt to steal a geist from another sin-eater, usually killing them in the process.

Kerberoi

The Underworld has many layers and dominions, and each of these dominions has a Kerberos attached to it. Kerberoi are the guardians of the Underworld and enforcers of the "old laws", the rules that govern each dominion. Many times, the old laws are hidden, confusing, and arbitrary, meaning that many trips end with fleeing a Kerberos. They often take vaguely humanoid forms, but could never be mistaken for a human. They are extremely powerful, and rarely communicate with sin-eaters except to inform them of a broken law and the penalty for breaking it. Most Kerberoi are hesitant to kill except for the most serious crimes against the laws. Most prefer to give the transgressors a type of quest (Return an object other transgressors have stolen, get information about a certain thing, etc.). It's possible to defeat a Kerberos, but their power is so great that attempts to do so are discouraged.

Chthonians

Chthonians are strange and alien inhabitants of the Underworld. No one knows where they come from; some think they are ancient ghosts who have lost all vestiges of humanity, some say that they are the result of killing the Kerberoi, and some think they are the ghosts of pre-human races. Chthonians are completely inhuman and hideous. Even their actions seem to only vaguely follow the needs of survival, and their behavior is illogical and unpredictable. It is possible to communicate with a chthonian after they have recently devoured a ghost, but even then the communication is haphazard at best.

Special: "Symbiology: The effects of being Bound"

New Life, New Body, New Health ◾A sin-eater can never be incapacitated or made unconscious from damage. No matter type, source, or how much damage they suffer, the geist will always force them to remain conscious. Wound penalties still apply. ◾The blood of a sin-eater has trace amounts of ectoplasm in it. This helps the sin-eater fight off the effects of poison or disease. Add psyche rating to any roll to resist the effects of poison or disease. Note: Only that which is harmful to the sin-eater's health is affected. Alcohol, recreational drugs, and helpful medicines will not activate this defense. ◾A sin-eater may spend plasm in a 1:1 ratio to negate damage taken. The type and source of damage are irrelevant. Damage negated in this fashion is marked in the health box as a dot. At the end of the scene all dots are converted to bashing. If new damage is taken before the end of the scene, that damage replaces the dots, rather than moving them down. (Note: This is only if the new damage is not negated in the same fashion.) There cannot be more dots than health boxes. If all health boxes have dots in them, any new damage cannot be negated and replaces the dots. ◾If a sin-eater is wounded and has no plasm to spend, they can regain health by "old death" or "new death". ◾"Old Death" is the destruction of a memento. The death energy of a memento is drawn into the sin-eater, restoring health equal to twice the memento's rating. A resolve+occult roll is required. Keystone mementos cannot be destroyed in this fashion. ◾"New Death" is the cold-blooded murder of another person. The death cannot be self-defense or accidental. All health is restored, but the sin-eater automatically loses a point of synergy.

◾A geist needs the sin-eater to experience the living world, and does not give them up easily. If a sin-eater dies, the geist will automatically resurrect them on the next sunrise or sunset. The sin-eater automatically loses a point of synergy, and their max synergy goes down by 2. Because someone is supposed to die, in order to create balance Death will take someone else in the sin-eater's place. The sin-eater awakens with the memory of their replacement's last moments. A sin-eater who dies of old age cannot be resurrected in this fashion.

Dealing with Ghosts ◾A sin-eater can always see ghosts unless actively trying not to. They can spot a ghostly possession on sight. If a ghost is actively hiding, either by moving behind an object or turning invisible, a Perception roll is required. To shut off this ability, a synergy roll is required. Success means that the Sight is turned off for the scene, unless the sin-eater chooses to turn it back on. ◾A sin-eater can always speak to and hear ghosts unless actively trying not to. Language is not a barrier. A synergy roll can shut off this ability. ◾While a sin-eater can see and hear ghosts at all times, this does not mean they are seeing the Twilight. In order to interact with the Twilight, a sin-eater can "reverse possess" their geist. This allows them to physically interact with anything in the Twilight. Weapons and objects aside from the Keystone memento do not transfer over. The sin-eater's body still moves according to their actions, which can create interesting problems in a crowded area. Because any weapons used in twilight are in Twilight, a battle with a ghost in Twilight will not harm bystanders in the physical unless they walk into the sin-eater's physical body, or their physical fist. A -3 penalty is added to all rolls to perceive events in the physical world. ◾If a ghost uses a numina to affect the living world within 30 yds of the sin-eater, the sin-eater may make a wits+occult+psyche roll to notice, regardless of whether they have deactivated their sight. Likewise, ghosts can always sense a sin-eater and the use of manifestations in range. ◾Ghosts are drawn to the death energies within a sin-eater. All ghosts within 10 yds of a sin-eater gain a +1 bonus to manifest, plus one more for each memento the sin-eater is carrying, to a maximum of +5. ◾Using a drop of blood and a point of plasm, a sin-eater can re-energize a ghost to being an echo of their former self. This lasts for a scene. Assume that Int= Power. ◾As mentioned, a sin-eater can gain plasm by eating the corpus of a ghost. This must be done after the ghost has been defeated, but before the corpus fades away. The ghost must either have been manifested, or the sin-eater must be possessing their geist. The sin-eater is allowed 3 resolve+stamina rolls, and gains 1 plasm per success. This is a synergy 6 sin. This method is avoided by most sin-eaters, partly because the corpus tastes like rotting meat, partly because it makes dealings with ghosts more difficult, but mostly because of the metaphysical implications. ◾A sin-eater can eat a geist. This give a -3 penalty to the resolve+stamina rolls. If a sin-eater can accumulate 5 successes, they may purchase their next manifestation for new dots ×5. In order to eat a geist that has bonded to a host, the host must first be killed, then the geist defeated. This is taboo among sin-eaters for obvious reasons.

Deathly Knowledge ◾A sin-eater can tell on sight the exact age of a person, down to the hour. Non-human impostors, such as Vampires, will register the approximate age of the body. Also, with reflexive wits+composure roll, the sin-eater can tell a person's health. Undead such as Vampires register as dead. ◾A sin-eater can sense "Death stains": places where people have died. The stain registers as a chill. The more recent or violent the death, the colder the chill is. A wits+psyche roll can determine the age of the stain to the year, month, day, or hour, depending on how old the stain is. ◾A sin-eater can make a wits+medicine roll to determine the cause of death of a corpse. The death is felt, not seen, so deaths with little physical sensation induce a -3 penalty. The sin-eater must be touching the corpse or a part of it. Age and amount of corpse are irrelevant.

Publication history ◾The Return of Mr. Monster (June 2009) Quickstart Guide, distributed as part of Free RPG Day[1] ◾Geist: The Sin-Eaters (August 2009) ◾Dem Bones* (PDF Only) (August 2009) ◾The House Always Wins* (PDF Only) (August 2009) ◾Book of the Dead (October 2009) ◾Through the Ebon Gate* (PDF Only) (December 2009)

Reviews ◾Black Gate #15 (Spring 2011)

See also ◾Sin-eater

Notes 1. See also: FreeRPGDay (http://www.freerpgday.com)

External links ◾Geist Website (http://www.white-wolf.com/geist/index.php)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Geist:_The_Sin-Eaters&oldid=757603028"

Categories: White Wolf Publishing games World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 2009

Changeling: The Lost

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Changeling: The Lost

ChangelingTheLostCover.jpg Changeling: The Lost cover

Designer(s) Ethan Skemp

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date August 2007

Genre(s) Personal Horror

System(s) Storytelling System

Changeling: The Lost is the fifth supplementary role-playing game line published by White Wolf, Inc. It uses the Storytelling System for rules and is set in the Chronicles of Darkness setting. Changeling is the second limited game published by White Wolf after Promethean: The Created, but in April 2008 it was announced that because of the success of the line it would be an extended limited series not limited to 5 books.[1] Since then, three full hard-cover books were published: Equinox Road, Dancers in the Dusk, and Swords at Dawn. A PDF only book, Goblin Market, was also created.[2] This was followed by a setting book: Victorian Lost.

The game is primarily inspired by tales of changelings from European folklore but includes elements of similar stories from around the world. While superficially similar to the original World of Darkness game Changeling: The Dreaming, Changeling: The Lost approaches the legends from a more traditional perspective of mortals kidnapped by Fae and eschews the past life angle that characterized its predecessor.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Release History ◾2 Game overview ◾2.1 Themes

◾3 Characters ◾4 Books ◾5 References ◾6 External links

Release History

The game was released on August 16, 2007, "just in time for Gen Con," according to the White Wolf website. Previous to that, updates on the White Wolf Inc. website slowly revealed more about the setting and the mechanics. Much of what was known about the game, prior to the official updates, was disseminated by members who attended the 2007 GAMA Trade Show in Las Vegas.

On April 25, 2007, a White Wolf staff member's publicly posted photograph documenting a prank revealed the Changeling cover for the first time.[3]

On April 30, 2007, the cover for Changeling: The Lost was officially revealed via White Wolf's news feed;[4] coupled with this description of the game line from the publisher:

Taken from your home, transformed by the power of Faerie, kept as the Others’ slave or pet — but you never forgot where you came from. Now you have found your way back through the Thorns, to a home that is no longer yours. You are Lost. Find yourself.

The cover depicts the Changeling title super-imposed over a mass of green thorns; a battered Luna Moth is impaled on the thorns.

A "quickstart" version of Changeling: The Lost was released for Free RPG Day, June 23, 2007. This free demo was made available for download from the White Wolf, Inc. website on June 26, 2007.

In 2014, Onyx Path announced that there would be an updated release of Changeling: The Lost, similar to the remakes of their other creative properties.

Game overview

The game is set in the World of Darkness, a fictional analog to the real world in which human beings unknowingly coexist with legendary monsters and other supernatural phenomena. The "Changelings" of the title are ordinary human beings who were kidnapped by the Fae and taken as slaves to their world (alternately known as Arcadia or Faerie). The player characters are changelings who have managed to escape their otherworldly captors and struggle through the barrier (known as the Hedge or the Thorns) that separates Faerie from Earth. The game focuses on the experiences of these changelings as they re-discover the world of their birth, try to cope with the changes they have undergone, and seek to evade recapture.

Themes

The dominant themes of the game are the pain of loss, the quest for identity, and the bittersweet nature of human existence.

Changelings refer to themselves as "the Lost": they were kidnapped by the godlike Fae, taken to an alien realm, and held prisoner. While trapped there (referred to as their "Durance"), they were forced to serve their otherworldly masters and endure inhuman tortures; to survive under the twisted laws underpinning Arcadia, they also had to undergo physical and supernatural changes. Many escape only to find that they have been replaced by a faerie simulacrum (called a "Fetch") and that they have not been missed at all. Most also discover that time passed differently in Arcadia than in the mortal world, and they are either too old or too young to resume their normal lives. Those who can often do attempt to pick up where they left off before they were taken, with varying degrees of success, while others try to build new human lives elsewhere. However even under the best possible circumstances, the Lost are no longer fully human; they have become part of both worlds and while they are still human enough to make sense of human things, they have been changed just enough to skew their perceptions. Many embrace their new existences, compensating for the loss of their mortal lives by immersing themselves in changeling society. Most find that they have come to appreciate humanity in a new way, finding beauty in the most mundane or painful of experiences, aching for things they did not appreciate before their capture.

Characters

Changeling characters are unique individuals, each one shaped differently by his or her personal experiences in the world of the Fae. As a result, Changeling: The Lost features a more nuanced and detailed character-creation system than the other World of Darkness games. Each Changeling possesses a Seeming, and may possess a Kith which further defines a seeming, a Court represented by Seasons or any other patterns, and Entitlements which are used to distinguish and describe the nature of the character according to the changes that her time with the Fae have wrought upon her. Some Changelings exhibit inhuman beauty, while others exhibit atavism; some are defined by a particular season, while others are defined by their approach to social interaction.

All things fae, including changelings, are also protected by the Mask, an illusion that makes them appear as mundane versions of themselves. Only fae beings can see through the Mask, though they can ensorcell humans and thereby grant them the temporary ability to see through the Mask.

The Seemings are as listed:

Beasts: Changelings that share qualities with animals both mythical and mundane.

Darklings: Changelings that represent the aspects of Fear and Shadow.

Elementals: Changelings that have become one with an aspect of nature.

Fairests: Changelings that embody the beauty and majesty of the Fae.

Ogres: Changelings that were subject to violence and became avatars of it.

Wizened: Changelings that served as workers and servants only to become the figure of their profession.

The Lost have many problems to deal with, the most prominent being the Gentry, or True Fae. Other problems include their fetches, Hobgoblins, Enchanted Mortals, Mad Changelings, and the various other beings within the World of Darkness Cosmology. Not to mention conflicts within the political bodies that make up Changeling society, from debates to full scale underground wars, between Courts, Freeholds and Entitlements.

Books ◾Changeling: The Lost (August 16, 2007) (WW70000) (ISBN 978-1-58846-527-6) Core rulebook. ◾The Fear Maker's Promise (August 16, 2007) (electronically published) (WW70905) Adventure for Changeling the Lost. ◾Autumn Nightmares (October 5, 2007) (WW70300) (ISBN 978-1-58846-531-3) Antagonists book.[5] ◾Winter Masques (November 30, 2007) (WW70200) (ISBN 978-1-58846-532-0) Seemings and kith book.[5] ◾Rites of Spring (February 6, 2008) (WW70201) (ISBN 978-1-58846-716-4) Contracts and magic book. ◾Lords of Summer (June 11, 2008) (ISBN 978-1-58846-715-7) Courts and entitlements book. ◾The Equinox Road (August 6, 2008) (ISBN 978-1-58846-717-1) Advanced guide on playing with themes, moods, epic levels of play and variants. ◾Night Horrors: Grim Fears (October 6, 2008) (ISBN 978-1-58846-743-0) An Antagonist book filled with Fae and Lost for any Chronicle and Crossover. ◾Dancers in the Dusk (April 1, 2009) (ISBN 978-1-58846-361-6) Sourcebook on dreams and nightmares, the Hedge and the Dusk court. ◾Swords at Dawn (June 24, 2009) (ISBN 978-1-58846-370-8) An Antagonist book filled with Fae and Lost for any Chronicle and Crossover. ◾Ready Made Characters (Changeling the Lost) (July 1, 2009) (electronically published) (WW70001) Characters with art and backgrounds ready to play without preparation. ◾Goblin Markets (September 9, 2009) (electronically published) (WW70002) Sourcebook about goblins and goblin markets. ◾Victorian Lost (June 5, 2012) (electronically published) (WW70006) Sourcebook for running chronicles set in Victorian England.

References

1. White Wolf Forums :: View topic - 6th Changeling book and/or more Changeling? (http://forums.white-wolf.com/viewtopic.php?t=73595&view=next) 2. White Wolf Forums :: View topic - Confirmation from WW LJ: Another Changeling Book? (http://forums.white-wolf.com/viewtopic.php?t=70416&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=15) 3. "jachilli" (2007-04-25). "They Got Me" (http://community.livejournal.com/whitewolf_lj/38065.html). Retrieved 2007-07-23. 4. "Changeling Cover Revealed" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070707183132/http://www.white-wolf.com/changeling/index.php?line=news&articleid=733). White Wolf, Inc. 2007-04-30. Archived from the original (http://www.white-wolf.com/changeling/index.php?line=news&articleid=733) on 2007-07-07. Retrieved 2007-07-23. 5. WW70900 (Changeling: the Lost Free Rules and Adventure, page 32

External links ◾Official Homepage (https://web.archive.org/web/20070502123729/http://www.white-wolf.com:80/changeling/index.php?) ◾Changeling: The Lost Demo (https://web.archive.org/web/20070701045225/http://www.white-wolf.com:80/downloads.php?category_id=119) - Freely available PDF demonstration version of the game

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Changeling:_The_Lost&oldid=773220427"

Categories: World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 2007

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Promethean: The Created

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Promethean: The Created

PrometheanTheCreated cover.jpg Promethean: The Created cover

Designer(s) Bill Bridges, Conrad Hubbard

Publisher(s) White Wolf, Onyx Path

Publication date August 11, 2006 (First Edition), August 3, 2016 (Second Edition)

Genre(s) Personal Horror

System(s) Storytelling System

Promethean: The Created is a role-playing game published by White Wolf, set in the Chronicles of Darkness setting.

The game is inspired by the classic tales of Frankenstein's monster, the Golem and other such simulacra. The characters are individuals created by first dismembering and reassembling a human corpse in most cases or multiple corpses in others to form a human body, then animating the body with Pyros, the Divine Fire. The resulting creation is known as a Promethean. Animated by the Divine Fire, but lacking a soul, Prometheans seek the greatest prize they know: humanity. Prometheans have no direct equivalent in the original World of Darkness (though Frankenstein's monster, as well as the ability to create and play as such, were associated with the Sons of Ether), but elements of the game, on the surface, recall elements of such games as Wraith: The Oblivion and Mummy: The Resurrection.

Contents [hide] ◾1 The life of a Promethean ◾2 Lineages ◾3 Refinements ◾4 Pandorans ◾5 Qashmallim ◾6 Books ◾7 External links

The life of a Promethean

A Promethean is created from the corpse of a human by a creator; in certain cases, desired components from more than one corpse are combined into a single end-product. Very rarely, otherwise inanimate matter may be used, making a sort of magical android similar to a Golem but with considerably greater variation in form and composition. Most Prometheans are created by other Prometheans, who must create more of their kind as part of their journey towards achieving a state of true mortality. Much less common are instances where mortal creators wield the Divine Fire in order to create a new form of life; these mortals are known as demiurges, and are the most likely to create new types or Lineages of Prometheans. When a Promethean is brought into the world, they often have full knowledge of any languages their body spoke in life, and the processes necessary to control the body (hand-eye coordination, basic visual navigation, etc.). In all other aspects, they are a blank slate, although individuals may discover "memories" of skills, locations, knowledge, etc. once possessed by the mortal(s) whose bodies they now use. Some Prometheans aid their progeny in learning the basics needed to survive in the world; others leave them to figure things out on their own. There are also cases when the maker is destroyed by one means or another before the progeny wakes.

The Promethean is not human, in either the physiological or cognitive sense. It is a corpse that walks, its autonomic functions and soul replaced by the power of the Divine Fire. While the Divine Fire allows him to pass as a human from a distance, it does not make up for the lack of a soul. When a Promethean spends enough time around humans, the humans begin to fall prey to Disquiet, the feeling that there is something not just fundamentally different, but utterly wrong about the Promethean. Disquiet initially manifests itself as distrust or avoidance of the Promethean; at its worst, it can blossom into mindless rage that can only be abated by the death of the Promethean. Different Promethean Lineages generate different manifestations of Disquiet, each with their own enervating effect on the local environment and population. Disquiet affects more than just mortals; a Promethean who spends too long in one place will find the landscape and environment itself becoming tainted by his Disquiet, eventually turning into a Wasteland. Leaving the tainted zone far behind allows the land to eventually heal, but it does require the Promethean to keep on the move.

There is only one true means by which to truly escape from Disquiet: attaining mortality. Such an act requires years of dedication, but it is possible for Prometheans. By undertaking the Pilgrimage, the Promethean gains knowledge of his self, other Prometheans, and humanity as a whole. The various steps of the Pilgrimage vary widely from one Promethean to the next, but one step remains constant and inviolable: the creation of another Promethean of their line. The Pilgrimage is difficult and lengthy, but it can be achieved.

It is worth noting that the understanding and becoming of humanity can just as easily refer to the baser and worse of human impulses as to the noble and good - although those Prometheans that actually perform reprehensible acts (murder, stealing etc.) are less likely to successfully complete the Pilgrimage.

Lineages

Each Promethean takes after the traits of the progenitor, the first of their kind. The various Lineages of Prometheans take their roots from notable "Created" or "reconstructed" throughout folklore and fiction. Each Lineage is also aligned towards one of the five classical elements, and, in keeping with the alchemical theme of the game, is imbalanced towards one of the respective humors. The Lineages consist of: ◾Frankensteins, otherwise known as "the Wretched." The story of their creation follows Mary Shelley's novel, with a few distinguishing variations: Frankenstein created his monster using a mixture of current scientific knowledge and Paracelsian alchemy, and the monster survived the death of his creator to create others like himself. Frankensteins are created by taking the best parts from multiple corpses, assembling a patchwork man from said parts, then animating it through a mixture of the Divine Fire and electricity. Frankensteins are aligned with the element of fire and are imbalanced towards choler, and are thus driven towards vengeance and ambition. Frankensteins are also known for their massive strength. A Frankenstein named "Verney," who may be the original progenitor of his Lineage created by Victor Frankenstein, appears in the game's framing fiction, providing the point of view throughout the corebook. ◾Galateids, otherwise known as "Muses." Like their progenitor, they are known for their beauty and want of companionship; unlike their progenitor, they are not fashioned from stone, but rather from the unmarred corpse of a beautiful youth. Less commonly, they are built from two or more corpses possessed of components (eyes, hands, legs, etc.) considered beautiful by the Promethean Maker. They are walking contradictions, attracting people through their beauty while driving them away with Disquiet. Galateids are aligned with the element of air and are imbalanced towards blood, often making them courageous and amorous. A Galateid named "The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter" appears in the game's framing fiction, providing the point of view throughout Strange Alchemies. ◾Osirans, otherwise known as "Nepri." The Osirans draw from their legacy as "children of a god" and often carry themselves with regal bearing, expecting others to follow them and bow to their wills. Another element they share with their progenitor is an incomplete body; as in the legend of the resurrection of Osiris, the creation of a Nepri involves the division of the body into 13 parts, the "least" of which (decided upon by the creator and not limited to the piece that Isis "could not find" in the original legend, i.e. his penis) is thrown away, and reassembly of the remaining 12. Osirans are aligned with the element of water and are imbalanced towards phlegm, giving them a tendency to seem cold and uncaring to others. An Osiran named "Dr. Brine" appears in the game's framing fiction, especially throughout Pandora's Book. ◾Tammuz, otherwise known as "Golems." Golems draw their history from conflicting tales, one Hebrew in origin, the other resting in Babylonian myth. Nevertheless, the stories share one common element: rejection of the bonds of slavery. The Tammuz loathe slavery in all its forms, and wish to achieve mortality in order to break away from the fierce restrictions that Disquiet confers upon them. Golems are not created directly from clay, as in Jewish folklore; rather, a body is imbued with the Divine Fire and buried in the earth. Once the Tammuz awakens, it is his duty to claw his way out and face his new life. Tammuz are aligned with the element of earth and are imbalanced towards melancholy, making them both introspective and prone to fierce rage. They are also known for their seemingly limitless stamina. A Tammuz named "John Ash" appears in the game's framing fiction, especially throughout Saturnine Night. ◾Ulgan, otherwise known as "Riven." The Ulgan's origins lie in shamanism, drawing from an initiation rite in which the hopeful shaman's spiritual body is torn apart by hungry spirits and reconstructed piece by piece. Sometimes, the rite goes horribly awry, and the young initiate's physical body is torn to pieces as well. The remains, when stitched together and reanimated, produce a Riven, who can perceive and interact with the realm of ghosts and spirits. The occurrence of the rite in the life of the corpse is not necessary, as long as it is replicated in death by the Ulgan's creator. Some Ulgans draw their origins from the legend of Orpheus, who they claim was brought back to life after being torn apart by the Maenads. Ulgans are aligned with the element of spirit and are imbalanced towards ectoplasm, driving them towards intuitive and instinctual thought and action. An Ulgan named "Zo Malak" appears in the game's framing fiction, providing the point of view throughout Magnum Opus.

The fifth book in the game line, Saturnine Night, allows players to play characters of various other Lineages. Two of the more prominent are the Unfleshed and the Zeky. ◾Unfleshed are mechanical inventions animated by the Divine Fire and given life. The Divine Fire gives them human form and shape, but underneath the illusion, they are still mechanical. Each Unfleshed has a different elemental imbalance; thus, each one produces different forms of Disquiet and suffers different forms of Torment. The Unfleshed can claim any Transmutation, including those favored by Pandorans, as their Bestowment, and can carry devices from their lives as machine within their body. They can be considered an expansion of the "Constructs," otherwise ordinary Prometheans created from or incorporating inorganic matter (such as a Galateid actually carved from stone), detailed in the Saturnine Night sourcebook. ◾Zeky, singular Zeka, exist as urban legends amongst Prometheans. They are Prometheans animated by nuclear energy. They can spend very little time near humans, as their Disquiet transforms fertile land into a radioactive Wasteland, as well as making humans extremely paranoid about being attacked from outside. The Zeky are constantly in pain from the nuclear energy that burns through their body; as a result, many forsake the Great Work and embrace the path of Centimanus. The Zeky have three different possible Bestowments, including the ability to animate corpses through nuclear energy, the ability to become a "Hiroshima shadow" in order to prevent the spread of Disquiet, and the ability to draw Pyros from nuclear energy. In addition to these Bestowments, a Zeka can use the Irradiation Transmutations, focused on the manipulation of nuclear energy, without fear of losing their humanity.

Refinements

During the course of a Promethean's journey towards mortality, they must dedicate themselves towards a Refinement. A Refinement is equal parts philosophy and alchemical regimen, framing the Promethean's outlook on humanity and their own existence as well as granting them knowledge of Transmutations, the ability to alchemically alter the properties of their bodies and Pyros to great effect. It is expected that a Promethean will change Refinements at least once in their journey. There exist six major Refinements, but only five are viewed as "acceptable" by most Prometheans. These Refinements draw their names from five of the seven planetary metals: ◾Aurum, the Refinement of Gold, or Mortality. The Refinement of Aurum requires the study of humanity: their cultures, their beliefs, their emotions, and their actions. Truly "understanding" humanity may take many routes, some as benign as attending church services, others as horrific as committing cold-blooded murder in order to understand why humans do the same. Those who practice Aurum gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Deception (using Pyros to escape the notice of others) and Mesmerism (using Pyros to subtly gain control of the emotions and thoughts of others). Practitioners are often called Mimics or Adamists. ◾Cuprum, the Refinement of Copper, or Self. Practitioners of Cuprum wish to gain total control of their bodies, their minds, and hopefully their Torment, in order to ease the control their humors have over their bodies and the toll their Disquiet takes on the land. Many followers of the Refinement take to isolation in nature, avoiding the "threat" that humans affected by Disquiet pose towards them. Those who practice Cuprum gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Metamorphosis (using Pyros to shapeshift) and Sensorium (using Pyros to enhance the senses beyond physical limits). Practitioners are often called Pariahs or Eremites. ◾Ferrum, the Refinement of Iron, or Corpus. Those who practice Ferrum follow the path of the practiced warrior, believing that they can earn the trust of humans through martial prowess and the necessity for defenders in times of crisis. Practitioners of the Refinement often learn as much from martial arts and military training as their Disquiet allows them to do. Those who practice Ferrum gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Corporeum (using Pyros to power and harden the body) and Vitality (using Pyros to perform unnatural feats of strength). Practitioners are often called Titans. ◾Mercurius, the Refinement of Quicksilver, or Pyros. Followers of Mercurius believe that for Prometheans to understand what makes a mortal a being with a soul, they must first understand that which serves as a replacement in themselves: the Divine Fire. To gain such an understanding, they often demonstrate a moral, intellectual and spiritual flexibility unmatched by other Prometheans, pursuing whatever avenues they believe might lead towards enlightenment. Those who practice Mercurius gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Alchemicus (using Pyros to alchemically analyze and transform objects) and Vulcanus (controlling the very flow of Pyros through their bodies and bodies of others, using it to fantastical effect). Practitioners are often called Ophidians. ◾Stannum, the Refinement of Tin, or Torment. Disciples of Stannum have most likely witnessed first hand the horrible effects that Disquiet has on humans; often, they have been the target of that very rage. They believe that the best course of action is to get even, cultivating the flow of Disquiet and gaining revenge on those who have wronged them. Many Prometheans likely practice Stannum at some point in their journeys, but many outside of the Refinement view it as "youthful rebellion" at best, and obsession at worst. Those who practice Stannum gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Disquietism (controlling the flow of Disquiet to redirect its effects towards humans and away from the Promethean, or easing its influence all together) and Electrification (using Pyros to generate electricity). Practitioners are often called Furies.

The sixth Refinement is Centimani, the Refinement of Flux. Taking their name from the Hundred-Handed of Greek mythology, the followers of Centimani study Flux, the force of destruction that acts opposite of Pyros. Many Centimani are viewed as monsters by other Prometheans due to the fact that they have effectively abandoned the pursuit of mortality and have firmly embraced the belief that they are monsters. If this were not enough, the study of Flux often bring Centimani into close association with Pandorans. Some Prometheans, however, follow Centimani as a step along their Great Work. These creatures study monsters among humanity - serial killers, rapists, and criminals - as well as manipulating their own monstrous forms.

The fourth book in the line, Magnum Opus, introduces four lesser-known Refinements, each one coming about due to certain rare conditions. ◾Aes, the Refinement of Bronze, or Aid. Practitioners of Aes have sworn to protect their throng mates and other Prometheans in need. The practitioner usually serves both to protect their throng mates from physical harm and to keep them devoted to the Great Work. The Refinement can't be practiced alone, however, as it requires the Promethean to protect those close to themselves. Those who practice Aes gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Benefice (providing aid to another Promethean) and Corporeum. Practitioners are often referred to as Sentries. ◾Argentum, the Refinement of Silver, or Mystery. Practitioners of Argentum have discovered that they are not the only monsters in the Chronicles of Darkness. There also exist vampires, werewolves, mages, and things unknown. The practitioner of Argentum seeks to understand humanity by understanding its opposites. It observes the various other supernatural creatures of the Chronicles of Darkness, as well as mortals who are mentally ill, in an attempt to discern the secrets of the works. Those who practice Argentum gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Sensorium and Spiritus (using Pyros to blend in with and rebuff other supernaturals). Practitioners are often referred to as Mystics. ◾Cobalus, the Refinement of Cobalt, or Impurity. Practitioners of Cobalus have realized that certain parts of Promethean existence, such as Disquiet and Torment, are impurities that keep them separate from humanity. As a result, they seek to understand imperfection in all its forms - in their selves, in objects, and in humanity. Unlike Centimani, they do not spurn humanity; rather, they seek to truly understand what humanity is by examining the flaws of human existence. Those who practice Cobalus gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Contamination (drawing out and purging the imperfections of humans and Prometheans) and Deception. Practitioners are often referred to as Cathars. ◾Plumbum, the Refinement of Lead, or Source. Practitioners of Lead believe that, before they attain Mortality, they must understand what it means to be a Promethean. They wish to understand what they are, how they do what they do, the history of the Great Work, and the various threats Prometheans face in daily existence. Those who practice Plumbum gain an affinity towards the Transmutations of Disquietism and Saturninus (control over one's own Azothic Radiance, their humors, and their Bestowments). Practitioners are often referred to as Originists.

Pandorans

In the pursuit of mortality, one step must be undertaken by all Prometheans: the creation of another Promethean of their line. There are times, however, when the creator is not fully prepared to bring a new life into the world, doing so out of haste, impatience or selfishness rather than necessity. When this occurs, the process of creating new life becomes tainted; Flux takes the place of Pyros, and a Pandoran is created. Most Pandorans exist as mindless entities driven solely by instinct; there are the occasional few, however, who attain full sentience and possess human levels of intelligence. These Pandorans are known as Sublimati.

All Pandorans center their existences around one goal: the acquisition of Pyros to feed upon. Pandorans react strongly to the flow of Pyros, awakening from states of dormancy induced by mortal Disquiet (in which the Pandoran appears as if a statue or similar object) and chase after the source of flame. If a Pandoran is successful in its hunt, it will likely kill and cannibalize the Promethean. Some Pandorans keep their quarries alive but helpless, feeding off the Promethean's constantly regenerating Pyros. Each Pandoran exists as a Mockery of a Lineage, sharing similar elemental alignments and humorous imbalances as their creators. The Mockeries are: ◾Ishtari (the Mockery of the Golems, given to imprisoning their foes and keeping them alive as long as possible while feeding on their Pyros) ◾Renders (the Mockery of the Riven, tending to tear apart the Promethean quickly and drain the Pyros from what remains) ◾Sebek (the Mockery of the Nepri, given to inhabiting watery environments and drowning their prey quickly) ◾The Silent (the Mockery of the Muses, tending to mutilate and disfigure their prey) ◾The Torch-Born (the Mockery of the Wretched, given to charring the flesh of their prey before consuming it) ◾Carcinoma (the Mockery of the Zeka) ◾Gremlins (the Mockery of the Unfleshed)

Ironically, the bane of Prometheans' existence, Disquiet, is the most effective weapon against Pandorans, as a Pandoran subject to the attention of a mortal (and the Disquiet thereby generated) for more than a short span of time will be forced into a physically inert state of dormancy, as well as physically transmuted into some form of stone. Many Pandorans remain this way for centuries, as only close proximity to a source of Pyros (such as a Promethean, Firestorm, or qashmallim) will rouse them.

Qashmallim

The Qashmallim are powerful manifestations of the Divine Fire, seemingly angelic beings who exist to carry out a single mission on behalf of something they call simply "The Principle." They are bringers of visions and messengers of doom, givers of hope and swords of retribution. Each qashmal vanishes after carrying out its task or if it failed in the attempt, and they never try again.

Just as the Divine Fire itself is mysterious and ineffable, the qashmallim are unfathomable and their motives impenetrable. One qashmal might be dispatched to warn a person of impending danger, even as another is urging a separate person to bring about that danger. Even as they may work at cross-purposes, they also seem to be divided into two general Choirs: ◾The Elpidos serve Elpis, promoting change, creativity, and fertility even as they punish and warn. They can be both benefactors and scourges to humans and Created alike. ◾The Lilithim serve Flux, encouraging waste, corruption, and mutation. They are capable of awakening and commanding Pandorans, and pursue the cause of transformation for its own sake.

Books ◾Promethean: The Created. White Wolf. August 2006. ISBN 1-58846-606-X. WW60000. The core rulebook. ◾Pandora's Book. White Wolf. October 2006. ISBN 1-58846-488-1. WW60300. Information on the creatures of Flux and Pyros, the Pandorans, as well as the Qashmallim and new enemies for the Created. ◾Strange Alchemies. White Wolf. November 2006. ISBN 1-58846-607-8. WW60100. Detailed discussion of the existing Lineages and Refinements. New Transmutations and Bestowments. Discussions of important issues in Promethean campaigns. ◾Magnum Opus. White Wolf. February 2007. ISBN 1-58846-608-6. WW60101. The living history of the Created, new Refinements, discussion of the Pilgrimage. ◾Saturnine Night. White Wolf. March 2007. ISBN 978-1-58846-609-9. WW60301. New lineages, rules for creating new lineages and support for long term Promethean campaigns. ◾To The Flame. White Wolf. August 2008. WW60102. Storytelling Action System adventure (PDF Only) ◾Character Sheet Pad. White Wolf. September 2006. ISBN 1-58846-544-6. WW60700. ◾Storyteller's Screen. White Wolf. September 2006. ISBN 1-58846-545-4. WW60701. ◾Promethean: The Created Second Edition. Onyx Path. August 2016.

External links ◾Official White Wolf page (http://www.white-wolf.com/promethean/index.php)

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Categories: World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 2006

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Mage: The Awakening

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mage: The Awakening

MageTheAwakeningCover.jpg Mage: The Awakening first edition cover

Designer(s) Bill Bridges, Conrad Hubbard

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date August 29, 2005 (First Edition) May 4, 2016 (Second Edition)

Genre(s) Personal Horror

System(s) Storytelling System

Mage: The Awakening is a role-playing game developed by White Wolf Publishing and based in their Chronicles of Darkness setting. The characters portrayed in this game are individuals able to bend or break the commonly accepted rules of reality to perform subtle or outlandish acts of magic. These characters are broadly referred to as "mages". Mage: The Awakening is loosely based on a prior White Wolf product, Mage: The Ascension, which had similar game mechanics, though the terminology differs.

Mage: The Awakening won the 2006 ENnie Award for Best Writing.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Background and setting ◾2 Characters ◾2.1 Paths and Orders ◾2.2 Legacies

◾3 Magic ◾3.1 Covert and Vulgar Spells

◾4 Antagonists ◾5 Differences between Ascension and Awakening ◾5.1 Mechanics and terminology ◾5.2 Background and setting

◾6 Books ◾7 References

Background and setting

As with the other games in the Chronicles of Darkness, the history presented in the game provides for some ambiguity. However, the "origin story" of magic and mages is less ambiguous (or at least given more lip-service) than that of vampires or werewolves.

In the mythic past, a mysterious island existed with a single towering mountain, encircled by dragons that lived upon its summit. The mountain called to humanity through dreams and visions. Over time, the dragons left and the mountain continued to call. Some humans answered the call and sought it out. The humans who moved there discovered the first secrets of magic, and through magic they created the mighty city-state now known as Atlantis, Meru, Lemuria, etc. though its true name has been lost to time.

Over time, the mages became filled with hubris, and began fighting over how best to lead the world. The battle separated the Earth into the Fallen World and the Supernal Realm, with the chasm of the Abyss in between. The Fallen World is the world where humanity now exists, and the Supernal realm is the realm of magic, where the victorious mages of long ago now reside. The Abyss that separates the two worlds prevents most of humanity from awakening to magic, and hampers the power of mages trapped in the Fallen World.

Mages believe that the Supernal Realm is the truth of reality and the origin of magic. It is ruled by the Exarchs, powerful mages who had established themselves as rulers of it. The Exarchs wish to snuff out the memory of "Atlantis" and knowledge of magic so they will remain the supreme masters of reality. They are more god-like forces than human beings now, however this means that they must influence the Fallen World through servants.

Resistance against the Exarchs is possible because of the Oracles, a small number (probably five) of Atlantean mages who also reached the Supernal Realm. They each created (or maybe are) one of the Watchtowers, which are locations in the Supernal Realms that can cut through the Abyss. They serve as paths towards magic, allowing Sleepers (humans unaware of magic) to awaken to it. Each mage visits a Watchtower during their Awakening—through means perhaps accidental, or perhaps resulting from a person's nature or understanding—and their magical abilities are forever affected by that journey.

Fragments of the organizations, artifacts and writings from the First City survive to the present day, and mages hope to use this knowledge to further their various causes, by gaining a stronger connection to the Supernal Realm.

Characters

The process of awakening can be slow or fast, but there are two major ways in which the event may manifest: the Mystery Play (in which the mage's senses blur the real world and the magical symbolism of their awakening) and the Astral Journey (which takes place entirely within a dreamscape of the prospective mage). In both sorts of "awakenings", the mage-to-be goes on a journey that culminates with them arriving at or in their respective Tower and inscribing their name upon it.

Paths and Orders

There are five Paths of Magic that have a sympathetic connection to one of the Five Watchtowers, each with a particular style and focus. A Mage's Path is decided with his or her awakening. ◾Acanthus: Enchanters who work with luck, intuition and destiny. ◾Mastigos: Warlocks who work with perception and inner demons. ◾Moros: Necromancers who work with death, mortality and material things. ◾Obrimos: Theurgists who work with the divine energies infusing the world. ◾Thyrsus: Shamans who work with all aspects of the natural world.

After awakening, a mage typically joins one of the five Orders, although some choose to remain free of political connections, or remain outside of mage society due to ignorance, and are called apostates. The Five Orders are united in their opposition to the Exarchs, and four claim a heritage going back to the First City. ◾The Adamantine Arrow: spiritual warriors and masters of conflict, who claim a heritage going back to the First City's defenders. Currently, the Order of the Arrow could perhaps be described as something akin to a knightly sect, though bushido and other warrior codes find a place in The Arrow. These mages conduct intensive physical and mental training, honing the minds and bodies of order members into deadly weapons which magical society may then wield against its enemies (such as vampires, werewolves, Seers of the Throne, and so on). ◾Guardians of the Veil: spies and conspirators who claim their descent from the intelligence officers and enforcers of the First City's laws. Currently, they bear a resemblance to a combination of many occult conspiracies, such as the Thule. Many obscure their activities and identities even from other mages, and act as a check on humanity's dangerous curiosity for "that which man was not meant to know". ◾The Mysterium: dedicated to pursuit of magical lore and the acquisition, cataloguing, and study of mystical and occult knowledge and artifacts. The "mystagogues" (as they are called) continue the ancient heritage of the scholarly and intellectual of Atlantean society. Their internal structure often resembles the academic structures of the part of the world in which they reside. The Mysterium gathers, catalogues and maintains items of all types of magical and historical significance. ◾The Silver Ladder: dedicated to ruling, guiding and reshaping the world, the viziers, senators and priests of the First City remain in force. Politicians and authoritarians, the théarchs believes in creating a perfect hierarchy (with themselves at the top, of course) which will seize control of reality, subjugating it to the will of mankind; this dream is not without its altruistic appeal. As a member of the Ladder might point out, control over reality could bring an end to human suffering in all its forms. ◾The Free Council: modernists who wish to create new forms of magic, a union of mages who have discovered ways of using magic that do not adhere to the Atlantean methods, joining the Pentacle during the Industrial Revolution after their previous form rejected an offer from the Seers. The "Libertines", as they are also called, possess a strong belief in democratic process and anti-authoritarianism.

The Orders have competing agendas and opposing beliefs, leading to a lack of cooperation and trust, however this does not lead to open warfare between the Orders. When enemies of the Orders, such as the Seers of the Throne, appear, the Orders put aside their differences, as their squabbles are petty compared to the battle between the Oracles and the Exarchs.

Legacies

Legacies are an optional third grouping, literally portrayed as refinements of one's soul that are passed on from master to student. These grant additional innate benefits, including abilities and gifts called Attainments, which are exempt from the usual Paradox. There exists certain Legacies—which might practice unwholesome arts such as necromancy or infernalism, or perhaps simply espouse political views that are unpopular amongst local mages—known as Left-Handed Legacies. They are largely meant as antagonists rather than player characters. Many who practice these have a low Wisdom score, representing a progressive moral decline that comes from practising them.

Magic

Magic is simply the ability of a mage (or "willworker") to impose their will onto reality. Mages are able to do this because of their sympathetic connection to the Watchtowers in the Supernal Realms, because their names are inscribed upon it, and because they realize the Fallen World is a lie.

A mage's power, or level of awakening and understanding of the depths of the Supernal, is called Gnosis.

Arcana represent the understanding a mage has over particular facets of reality, and govern their ability to affect those aspects. Subtle Arcana (Death, Fate, Mind, Prime, and Spirit) are those that deal with the more ephemeral matters of existence, while Gross Arcana (Forces, Life, Matter, Space, and Time) are those relating to the physical aspects of the world.

Covert and Vulgar Spells

Covert spells are those that do not outwardly appear magical, and therefore do not automatically risk backfiring (called Paradox), while Vulgar spells are unmistakably magical, and risk backfiring. All spells have a greater risk of Paradox when they are cast in the presence of Sleepers, or non-Awakened humans. Supernatural beings, or humans that have some hint of the supernatural about them (Ie: Ghoul, Sleepwalker, Wolfblooded) do not contribute to Paradox

Antagonists ◾Seers of the Throne: The Seers are Awakened who have sworn service to the Exarchs. They claim to follow the will of the Exarchs, and seek to remove magic from the world, enforce power structures that support unquestioning obedience, and strengthen the Lie. Seers believe that an Exarch is a man-made-god, and serve them in the hopes that once they succeed in destroying those that oppose them they will be rewarded by their distant masters. ◾The Banishers: Banishers are warped Mages who dedicate themselves to destroying other Mages. Generally speaking, their Awakening was traumatic, undesired, and misunderstood, and they do not accept their mystical powers. They exist outside of normal mage society, and are often obsessed with hunting and killing other mages, usually driven by a desire for repentance or a belief that doing so will cause their life to be returned to normal. ◾The Mad: Mad are Mages whose Awakening caused them to lose their minds, rendering them insane mystics who use their magic for their own mad ends. ◾The Acamoth / The Gulmoth: The monstrous, alien beings that originate beyond the threshold of existence, in the Abyssal gulf between the Supernal Realm and the Fallen World. Because of their nature, they are incapable of contacting or having any power in either the Supernal or Fallen World, and as such they require agents to grant them potency. Gulmoth are the entities that normally reside in the Abyss until summoned either by catastrophic Paradox or deliberate summoning by insane or desperate mages, existing only for a time in the Fallen World to further the Abyss' overall goal of destroying the cosmos. Acamoth are those Abyssal beings that have somehow become trapped in the cosmos, and offer mages pacts in return for using their souls as vessels to mentally journey back to their home - a proposition that deeply threatens their sanity. ◾The Scelesti: Mortal mages who serve/worship the Abyss are known as "Scelesti" (sing. Scelestus), or simply "The Wicked". They serve the "Divine Purity" of the Abyss and seek the end of all things. They are hunted as heretics and abominations by all other Mages. ◾Goetic Demons: Goetia is a practice that mages use that summons the vices of their minds into a physical form, in the belief that it will make them possible to subdue, or even destroy. Quite often, however, a Goetic mage will summon an "inner demon" that is too powerful for him to defeat, and it will escape, or even take control of the overconfident mage. ◾Tremere Liches: A Left-Handed Legacy of Liches who consume the souls of others in exchange for immortality and power. Their name and origins are a reference to the clan of the same name, from the old World of Darkness vampire game. ◾Witch Hunters: Mortals who seek out and destroy mages for ideological reasons.

Differences between Ascension and Awakening

While both this game and its predecessor center on mages—people who are specifically described as "awakening" to the power of magic—and use some similar mechanics, the two have many differences within both system and setting. The differences between the old and new Mage games include:

Mechanics and terminology ◾The original nine "Traditions" (and to a lesser extent the four "Essences") have been replaced by five "Orders"—delineating a character's political affiliation—and five "Paths," reflecting his spiritual affinities. Some Orders, Paths or combinations thereof correspond roughly to the original Traditions, while others are unique to the newer game. ◾"Arete" has been replaced by "Gnosis", the latter a term lifted from Werewolf: The Apocalypse, another game from the previous World of Darkness line. ◾"Rotes", practiced spells, are a more established mechanic, and play a stronger role in the game. ◾The nine "Spheres" have been replaced by ten "Arcana." In particular, the Entropy sphere has been separated into the Death and Fate Arcana. ◾"Quintessence" has been replaced by "Mana". "Quintessence" now refers to specific magical components necessary for spells cast by Archmasters. ◾Mages, like all characters in the Chronicles of Darkness, are now subject to a morality system. The specific morality scale applicable to mages is called "Wisdom"; it measures how far a mage has fallen into hubris.

Background and setting

The concepts of consensual reality and magical paradigms are essentially gone; while the core concept behind magic in Ascension was that belief was reality, in Awakening mages are tapping into the Supernal Realm using the Truth and underlying or alternate reality. "Paradox" represents the Abyss striking back at a Mage for daring to alter the world, rather than a deviation from the process of reality.

The closest thing to Ascension's setting-defining and perpetual "Ascension War" is present. Rather than an ongoing and present conflict, however, it occurs within Awakening's origin story: a group of mages—the Exarchs discussed above—achieved that control and severed the world from magic in the distant past. Instead of centering on a battle over paradigms, Awakening shifts the conflict to returning magic back to its natural state, unified with the world of men.

Due to the differences in the setting themes and core concepts, critics question whether it is appropriate to call Awakening a successor to Ascension or a completely different game.[1]

Books ◾Mage: The Awakening (August 2005) ◾Boston Unveiled (October 2005) ◾Sanctum and Sigil (November 2005) ◾Legacies: The Sublime (January 2006) ◾Guardians of the Veil (February 2006) ◾Tome of the Watchtowers (April 2006) ◾Secrets of the Ruined Temple (May 2006) ◾Reign of the Exarchs (July 2006) ◾Tome of the Mysteries (November 2006) ◾Legacies: The Ancient (January 2007) ◾Intruders: Encounters With the Abyss (March 2007) ◾The Free Council (May 2007) ◾Magical Traditions (June 2007) ◾The Mysterium (September 2007) ◾Astral Realms (November 2007) ◾The Adamantine Arrow (January 2008) ◾Banishers (March 2008) ◾Lines of Power (PDF Only)* (April 2008) ◾Grimoire of Grimoires (May 2008) ◾Silver Ladder (July 2008) ◾Keys to the Supernal Tarot (November 2008) ◾Seers of the Throne (February 2009) ◾Summoners (April 2009) ◾The Abedju Cipher (PDF Only)* July 2009 ◾Night Horrors: The Unbidden (September 2009) ◾Mage Chronicler's Guide (July 2010) ◾Mage Noir (November 2010) ◾Imperial Mysteries (January 2012) ◾Left-Hand Path (November 2012) ◾Mage: The Awakening Second Edition (May 2016)


 * Storytelling Adventure System

References

1. Sheftall, Sherm RPGnet Playtest Review November 21, 2005 (http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/11/11740.phtml)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mage:_The_Awakening&oldid=770831187"

Categories: World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 2005

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Werewolf: The Forsaken

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Werewolf: The Forsaken

WerewolfTheForsaken cover.jpg Werewolf: The Forsaken first edition cover

Designer(s) Carl Bowen, Conrad Hubbard, Rick Jones, James Kiley, Matthew McFarland, Adam Tinworth (First Edition), Chris Allen, Dave Brookshaw, David Hill, Matthew McFarland, Stew Wilson, Filamena Young (Second Edition)

Publisher(s) White Wolf, Onyx Path

Publication date March 14th, 2005 (First Edition), March 4th, 2015 (Second Edition)

Genre(s) Personal Horror

System(s) Storytelling System

Werewolf: The Forsaken is a tabletop role-playing game set in the Chronicles of Darkness created by White Wolf Game Studio. It is the successor to Werewolf: The Apocalypse, the "game of savage horror" from the old World of Darkness line of games, but has moved to a more personal sort of horror, reflecting the "dark mystery" theme of the Chronicles of Darkness.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Characters ◾2 Society ◾2.1 Auspices ◾2.2 Tribes

◾3 Biology ◾3.1 Forms

◾4 Supernatural abilities ◾5 Backstory ◾6 Antagonists ◾7 Comparisons with the previous game ◾8 Books ◾9 References ◾10 External links

Characters

Players portray the Forsaken, werewolves, known as Uratha, who are sworn to a duty to maintain a balance and prevent ingress between the spirit worlds and the material world. Any human who may unknowingly possess a werewolf heritage could undergo a First Change at some time in their life, though what triggers the change is unknown. It is only known that it almost never happens before puberty or after the age of 60.[1] Following this Change, each character develops an Auspice, defined by what phase the moon was at during their First Change, and most join a Tribe or become a tribe-less werewolf known as a Ghost Wolf. Unlike traditional fictional werewolves, Uratha may change at any time into various forms between man and wolf, though they do find this easier when the phase of the moon matches their Auspice.

Uratha are fierce territorial predators who feel the compulsion to hunt. Many have trouble containing their aggression, hindering their ability to live normal human lives. Additionally, humans feel this aggression and are repelled by this feeling. Also, every werewolf is in danger of entering a violent Death Rage (Kuruth in the First Tongue). In this frenzied state the werewolf is a threat to everything, no matter whether friend or foe.

Uratha also possess an instinctive understanding of the First Tongue, the language spoken by their ancestors and spirits. Although initially rudimentary, many Uratha can eventually learn to speak the First Tongue fluently.

In the broader context of published setting material, the Uratha are a specialized form of were-beast in the Chronicles of Darkness setting, and belong to the so-called Changing Breeds (beings part human, part animal and part spirit). Among these beings, the Uratha are not the only shapeshifters, but are one of the breeds with the deepest spiritual connection. There are also other differences to the other Changing Breeds. However, the Uratha don't have much contact with the other Changing Breeds and those Breeds mostly avoid the Uratha.[2]

Society

Uratha can, theoretically, come from any part of human society, however following the werewolf's First Change some may choose to abandon human society completely. Instead, most Uratha form packs of at least three other Uratha in order to hunt more efficiently and better protect their territory. Every pack is adopted by a totem (a spirit who bonds with the pack).

Each Forsaken werewolf who belongs to a Tribe must swear the Oath of the Moon, which acts as a moral guide for the Uratha (represented in a game system called Harmony). The tenets of the Oath are: ◾The Wolf Must Hunt (the Uratha have to fulfill the roles of Father Wolf) ◾The People do not murder the People (Uratha don't murder other Uratha) ◾The Low honor the High, the High respect the Low ◾Respect your Prey ◾The Uratha shall cleave to Human (Uratha are forbidden to mate with each other or with wolves and are mandated to reproduce) ◾Do not eat the flesh of Human or wolf ◾The herd must not know (the Uratha must be hidden from the humans)

Auspices

Each Uratha has an Auspice, a traditional role in Uratha society, tied to one of five phases of the moon. Luna decides each Uratha's Auspice, based on their personality and abilities; accordingly, a Uratha will go through the First Change during the corresponding moon phase. The five Auspices have the following names in the First Tongue. ◾Rahu (The Full Moon, The Warrior) – warriors of all kinds from brawlers to seasoned commanders. ◾Cahalith (The Gibbous Moon, The Visionary) – seers, storytellers and lorekeepers. ◾Elodoth (The Half Moon, The Walker Between) – diplomats to the spirit courts, judges and arbiters. ◾Ithaeur (The Crescent Moon, The Spirit Master) – occultists and keepers of spirit lore and rituals. ◾Irraka (The New Moon, The Stalker) – scouts, spies and trackers.

Each Auspice is broken down in to further subdivisions called Aspects. These aspects emphasize strengths (in the form of bonuses or free purchases) of the Auspice but also introduce weaknesses to the character (in the form of flaws or penalties).

Tribes

The Forsaken have five Tribes. These Tribes consist of Uratha who choose to follow one of five ancient and powerful wolf-spirits, called the Firstborn. These Firstborn are the first born children of Father Wolf (but not of Mother Luna) and have allied with the Forsaken. Every one of the Firstborn demands that the Uratha who belong to his Tribe act in accordance to a certain ban. These Five Tribes, with their First Tongue names in parentheses, are: ◾Blood Talons (Suthar Anzuth) – the Tribe of Fenris Wolf, who promotes the warrior and wolf aspects of the Uratha. Their tribal ban is "Offer no surrender that you would not accept". ◾Bone Shadows (Hirfathra Hissu) – occultists who seek to restore relations with the Spirit Courts with the guidance of their patron, Death Wolf. Their tribal ban is "Pay each spirit in kind". ◾Hunters in Darkness (Meninna) – protectors of loci, the spiritual centres of the world. Black Wolf is their totem. Their tribal ban is "Let no sacred space in your territory be violated". ◾Iron Masters (Farsil Luhal) – this Tribe, following the teachings of Red Wolf, embrace change and new ideas. They are closer to humanity, keeping up with technology and taking cities for their territory. Their tribal ban is "Honor your territory in all things". ◾Storm Lords (Iminir) – the Tribe of Winter Wolf seeks to lead all Uratha through strength and noble example. Their tribal ban is "Allow no one to witness or to tend your weakness".

Next to these five Tribes, there are the Ghost Wolves among the Forsaken (Thihirtha Numea). These are not an actual Tribe, but rather a collective term for all Uratha who do not belong to a Tribe. Therefore, they neither have a tribal ban nor a tribal patron. Some follow the Oath of the Moon and others do not. Some never belonged to a Tribe and others left their Tribe (this includes Uratha from the ranks of the Pure). The only thing that all Ghost Wolves have in common, is that they don't belong to the Uratha society in the traditional sense, apart from that, no generalizations can be made.

Biology

The Uratha are physical and spiritual creatures, who can use the energy of the spirits (called Essence) to activate certain supernatural powers (called gifts), supernatural tools (called fetishes), change form or accelerate their healing.

Unlike humans, Uratha heal very fast (sometimes in a matter of seconds) and can theoretically regrow limbs and organs (which is accompanied with a great deal of effort). An exception to this rule are wounds caused by silver. These wounds have a resemblance to burns and only heal very slow and with difficulty. The Uratha are immune against normal diseases and most foreign particles are expelled from their bodies very quickly.

The metabolism of a Uratha is faster than that of a human and so they have to eat more. What they can eat depends on their personal taste and the form they wear at the moment. Most prefer meat, but a vegetarian diet is also possible (but very difficult).

Uratha can only reproduce with humans, but the chance that the child will be a Uratha is very small. Reproduction with wolves is not possible and a mating between two Uratha can result in the birth of a Spirit monster (mating with other Uratha is considered as a serious sin).

Forms

Every Uratha may change at will into five distinct forms, each with its own benefits and drawbacks (physical abilities, digestive traits, reaction to certain drugs, instincts). The three hybrid forms between human and wolf (just like the usage of clearly supernatural powers) create a certain defense mechanism in normal humans called the Lunacy. Due to the effects of Lunacy, humans will forget or bury their memories in their minds and mechanical means of observation (e.g. cameras) will malfunction. Only humans who are supernatural themselves or have an extremely iron will are immune to this effect. The forms, named in the First Tongue, are: ◾Hishu – human form. A Uratha appears to be a normal, if very fit and healthy, human. An unconscious or dead werewolf returns to this form. This is the form most Uratha are most comfortable with. ◾Dalu – near-human form. The Uratha is significantly bigger, hairier and stronger. Ears, teeth and nails are slightly pointed and the face is more angular. Facial hair is noticeable even on females. This form reacts in a similar manner as that of the human form. ◾Gauru – wolf-man or war form. Half-human, half-wolf, the Gauru form of Uratha are generally 8 to 9 feet (2.7 m) tall and much heavier and stronger than any human. In this form a werewolf's blood-lust rises to the surface and is much harder to control. Uratha can only channel the power of the Gauru form for a limited time, and generally only take this form to kill. This forms' reaction towards chemicals is nearly impossible to predict and a Uratha takes this form automatically when he enters Death Rage. ◾Urshul – near-wolf form. A Uratha in this form is a huge wolf 3 to 5 feet (1.5 m) high at the shoulder, resembling the extinct dire wolf. This form reacts in a similar manner as the wolf form. ◾Urhan – wolf form. The Uratha is indistinguishable from a normal grey wolf. Depending on the area where the Uratha comes from, respectively which area shaped the majority of his ancestors, this form differs. If there are grey wolves in the area, this form looks similar to these wolves respectively similar to other canines like the African wild dog, dhole, or red wolf (but never like domestic dogs). Some Uratha of Africa and the Near East even developed forms similar in coloration and to a certain extent build of hyenas.[3]

Supernatural abilities

Besides the physical abilities, which all Uratha possess, they can also have access to a wide range of individual powers called Gifts. These Gifts aren't inherited and cannot be learned from other Uratha, but are bestowed by spirits as part of a deal. Some Gifts are easier to learn than others, depending on Tribe, Lodge, or Auspice. Others are only open to specific Uratha. The effects of these Gifts are variable, some enhance physical abilities, while others change the form, bestow powers of divination, control the elements etc. The more powerful the Gift, the higher the rank of the Uratha in question among the spirits must be to learn the Gift.

Furthermore, the Uratha can, with the help of certain rituals, bind spirits into objects and even tattoos and bestow these objects with supernatural power. These objects are called fetishes and can be used once or multiple times. The power of the fetish depends on the power of the bound spirit.

Backstory

According to the legend of the Forsaken, the world was once a perfect place called Pangaea—although it is not apparent whether the term refers to a certain place or time. In this world, the barrier between the spirit world and the material world was thin and it was easy to travel from one world into the other.

The spirit who watched over the balance between both was Father Wolf, the mightiest warrior of his time. Father Wolf patrolled the barrier between the two worlds and allowed spirits to remain in the spirit world and even form cults around them. But only so long as they did not become as humans are and flesh and spirit remained separated. Many of the powerful spirit lords saw the wisdom in that and followed the rules.[3] However, those who threatened the balance between the worlds were either chased back to their world or were killed outright.

Over time Luna, the spirit of the moon, began to travel the world in a body of flesh. She had many suitors but only chose Father Wolf as a mate, due to his strength and power. With him she sired the First Pack (children part human, part wolf, and part spirit), who were the ancestors of all Uratha and assisted their father in his duties.

Over time Father Wolf grew weak and was no longer able to fulfill his duties. When his children saw his weakness, they began to rebel against their father and succeeded in killing him and taking his place. As Father Wolf died, the barrier between the worlds became so strong that traveling from one to another was only possible in special places for most beings. The pain over the death of her lover caused Mother Luna to curse all children she had ever borne, so that silver (her sacred metal) is able to kill them.

Those Uratha who killed Father Wolf, later swore the Oath of the Moon and promised to fulfill the duties of their father. To those Uratha, Luna gave her Auspices and lifted the curse partly. The Forsaken sought out the Firstborn and later founded the five Tribes of the Forsaken.

Besides this main legend, there are other legends in the published material (e.g. Father Wolf had not become weak in general but had been weakened due to the fight with an enemy. Therefore, it would not have been necessary to kill Father Wolf).

The above story is only the most widespread version, as several modifications only have the basics in common. As the spirits who could attest to the stories mostly don't communicate with the Uratha, at least not directly, the "truth" is not sure and many myths concerning the origin of the Uratha exist. The published book Blasphemies deals with several possible origins of the Uratha as well as the Uratha who believe in them and provides rules to create myths of origin.

Antagonists

In the Chronicles of Darkness, there are many dangers for the Uratha. But these rivalries rarely result in open combat, since most supernatural beings in the setting prefer to be hidden. The main threats to the Forsaken are: ◾Spirits: Spirits who do not acknowledge the barrier between the worlds are the most common adversary of the Forsaken. Spirits gain sustenance by feeding on the concepts they represent. Some spirits possess humans in order to create more sustenance for themselves by manipulating their victims, others travel to the material world for the alien experiences offered by possessing a human. For example, a pain spirit might possess a child in order to inflict pain on other children in order to feed itself. Some claim the bodies of living beings outright and become some of the most dangerous foes. These Claimed are unique amalgamations of being and spirit and can bestow the claimed body with a variety of powers. Some can even warp the bodies to unknown levels and become shapeshifters themselves (e.g. some leopard-spirits possess human beings and can take on the shape of a leopard as well)[3] or develop supernatural abilities of extraordinary power. The Forsaken's primary duty is to hunt down these wayward spirits and return them to the spirit world by any means necessary, defending humanity from their depredations. Most spirits hate the Forsaken for denying them the pleasures of the material world, which makes travel to the spirit world dangerous for them. The problem is, that the Forsaken cannot just destroy every wayward spirit because this would leave the physical world as a hollow shell or make room for even more dangerous foes. ◾The Pure (Anshega): Werewolves descended from those who chose not to rise up and slay Father Wolf. They blame their Forsaken cousins for the loss of Pangaea and view the extermination of the Forsaken as a holy crusade. They are superior in number to the Forsaken, and their culture of hate and battle prowess has made them the Forsakens' most implacable enemies. The Pure have only contempt for humanity and feel no duty to defend them from spirits, which makes spirits far friendlier to them than to the Forsaken. Their only disadvantage is that Luna has not granted them her favor, which means they have no Auspices and are more susceptible to silver than the Forsaken. The Pure venerate Father Wolf but do not take on his duties. They mostly live by a "the end justifies the means"-philosophy which lets their Harmony, which is actually were precious to them, erode over time. Physically they do not differ from the Forsaken, except for the lack of Auspices. The Pure are not a uniform group, but consist of three Tribes who all follow a Firstborn of Father Wolf, who never forgave the death of their father. These Tribes are: the Fire-Touched (Izidakh) who follow Rabid Wolf with religious zeal and are the most numerous of all Tribes; the Ivory Claws (Tzuumfin) who follow Silver Wolf, are obsessed with "purity" and see themselves as the most pure werewolves and the rightful leader of the Pure; and the Predator Kings (Ninna Farakh) who follow Dire Wolf and see themselves as the top of the food chain, the ultimate predators and leave their human side behind them as far as possible. ◾The Hosts: Bizarre creatures who, like the Forsaken, are a hybrid of spirit and flesh, man and animal. They are descended from powerful Pangaean spirits hunted by Father Wolf for their attacks on humanity. They escaped total destruction by splitting themselves into thousands of spirit shards, each of which inhabited an animal. These shards became the Hosts. These hosts are the Azlu (spider-monsters) and the Beshilu (rat-things). These beings strengthen or weaken the barrier between the worlds (which can have very negative side effects in both cases), as well as seek and consume more of their own kind to become stronger. When they reach a certain level of power, they may seek out a suitable human, merge with him, and evolve into a unique combination of human and animal (spider or rat). Humans are mostly tools or food for these Hosts. Apart from these main Hosts, there are other Hosts in the form of locusts, ravens, and snakes. There are possibly even more kinds of Hosts who don't have much in common with either Azlu or Beshilu. ◾The Idigam: The rarest of the Forsaken's enemies, these cthonic entities are the spirits that represent concepts that existed before the world was fully formed. The term "Idigam" means "moon banished," used to denote that these powerful spirits were exiled beyond the spirit world, possibly by Father Wolf himself. As such, they have no place in reality and exhibit powers and motives beyond comprehension. Idigam are vast and unknowable, which makes them almost impossible to confront physically. When the Idigam appeared the last time, in the 1960s, they were such a threat that they led to the few times in history that the Forsaken and the Pure had to cooperate to defeat them – and even then they did not manage to defeat all of them. Originally believed to be linked to the Abyss from Mage: the Awakening, it was revealed in Night Horrors: Wolfsbane that they are terrestrial spirits who were sealed on the physical moon, and that they stowed away on the Apollo missions to return to Earth. ◾The Bale-Hounds (Azah Gadar): these Uratha devoted themselves to the Maeljin, archetypal spirits of the Seven Deadly Sins plus Violence and Deception. From their view, the world is fundamentally flawed and they want to be on the winning side. Therefore, they committed themselves to the worst kind of spirits in the world and commit acts which are unspeakable and warp the place they inhabit into places of evil over time. Supposedly, the spirit who serves as an ambassador and is called Soulless Wolf is a Firstborn of Father Wolf and the Azah Gadar are the Ninth Tribe. The Azah Gadar are some of the few enemies which can bring the Forsaken and the Pure to cooperate to destroy a common foe. ◾Humans: Humans can be friend or foe for the Uratha, especially those who are part supernatural themselves, since the Lunacy provokes a weaker reaction or sometimes even fails to affect them. The main threat that humans embody is the fact that they influence the spirit world more strongly than any other species, even when they are practically severed from the spirit world. Some facts about the Uratha have found their way into human culture, and the fact that such a thing was possible is very unnerving, especially since, with the help of modern weapons, even a single human can be very dangerous. ◾Other Supernaturals: The Forsaken occasionally come into conflict with other supernatural denizens of the world, like ghosts, vampires, mages, skinthieves, or the other were-beasts. However, there is a difference in the relationship of the Uratha with other members of the Changing Breeds (also called beast-folk). Even when a Uratha will never see another beast-folk as an equal, there is a sort of kinship and respect that beast-folk acknowledge with one another even if they try to kill each other.[2] Reasons for a conflict can be very different, but there is no dead set animosity towards other supernaturals. The Uratha can cooperate with other supernaturals if it is worth the effort, but prefer the presence of their own kind. Furthermore, there are other uncommon and sometimes unique beings whose motives, and therefore reasons, for conflict with the Forsaken can differ enormously from each other.

Comparisons with the previous game

Werewolf: The Forsaken, while thematically similar to the prior game, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, is different in both mechanics and setting details, although there are strong similarities between the two games and their settings beyond the thematic ones.

Werewolves in both games struggle to interact with humanity while maintaining their spiritual and animalistic sides for example, defending their territory. Conflict with other Werewolves of different ideologies was present in Apocalypse. The Pure in Forsaken are far more prevalent, numerous and morally ambiguous than the diabolical Black Spiral Dancers of the prior game, and more roughly parallel the cultural divide between the Native American Tribes (Wendigo, Uktena and the extinct Croatan) and the "European" Tribes (all the others). The primary difference in the conflict is that Werewolves in Forsaken are not set to defend the planetary ecosystem and its spirit (Gaia) from the depredations of human civilization and technology. Furthermore, the decision to behave in a moral fashion is enforced by rules that are foremost and dire: a werewolf could become consumed with derangement and insanity should they become murderers. In Apocalypse, any werewolf who could claim just cause could kill someone—and many were those who might be slain freely outside conscience.

Other design changes have been made with regard to the spirit world; werewolves now have a much more hostile relationship with spirits than they did in the prior game.

Uratha cannot be born from wolves or a pairing between two Werewolves and the war-form can only be held for a very short time.

Books ◾Werewolf: The Forsaken (March 2005) ◾Hunting Ground: The Rockies (April 2005) ◾Predators (June 2005) ◾Lore of the Forsaken (August 2005) ◾Blood of the Wolf (October 2005) ◾Lodges: The Faithful (November 2005) ◾Blasphemies (January 2006) ◾Territories (April 2006) ◾Lodges: The Splintered (September 2006) ◾The Pure (November 2006) ◾The Rage: Forsaken Player's Guide (February 2007) ◾The War Against the Pure (March 2007) ◾Parlor Games (PDF Only)* (January, 2008) ◾Tribes of the Moon (April 2008) ◾Night Horrors: Wolfsbane (2009) ◾Signs of the Moon (2010) ◾Forsaken Chronicler's Guide (PDF, Print On Demand format) (2011) ◾Werewolf: The Forsaken 2nd Edition/The Idigam Chronicle (PDF, Print on Demand format) (March 2015) ◾The Pack (PDF, Print on Demand format) (June 2016)


 * Storytelling Adventure System

References

1. Blood of the Wolf, Pg 32 2. Changing Breeds; Phil Brucatto, Jackie Cassada, Alexa Duncan; White Wolf Publishing; 2007; ISBN 978-1-58846-493-4 3. Skinchangers; Chris Campbell, Jess Hartley, Peter Schaefer; White Wolf Publishing, 2006; ISBN 978-1-58846-335-7

External links ◾Official website (http://www.white-wolf.com/werewolf)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Werewolf:_The_Forsaken&oldid=772692022"

Categories: World of Darkness Werewolves in games Werewolves in written fiction Role-playing games introduced in 2005

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Orpheus (role-playing game)

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Orpheus

OrpheusRPG cover.jpg Orpheus cover

Designer(s)

Bryan Armor · John Chambers · Genevieve Cogman · Richard E. Dansky · B. D. Flory · Harry L. Heckel · Ellen Kiley · James Kiley · Matthew McFarland · Dean Shomshak · Colin A. Suleiman

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date September 2, 2003

System(s) Storyteller System

Orpheus is a role playing game by White Wolf Game Studio, set in a microcosm of the World of Darkness. Unlike the other World of Darkness game lines, Orpheus has a specifically planned metaplot and a set number of books that were published. Although it uses the same system as White Wolf's other games, ghosts and spirits are the exclusive focus of this story. Other supernatural creatures in the World of Darkness are strongly discouraged from entering the events of Orpheus. It is, however, tied with Wraith: The Oblivion, White Wolf's previous game dealing with the afterlife; some of the events in Orpheus are related to Ends of Empire, the final book in the Wraith: The Oblivion line.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Volumes ◾2 Character types ◾3 Antagonists ◾4 External links

Volumes

There are six books total in the Orpheus line; the first is the main rulebook, which hold the rules used throughout the series. The five that follow carry out a specific, albeit optional, plotline, told through fiction and roleplaying, as well as expanding on the roleplaying tools presented in the first game. They are, in chronological order:

Book Name

White Wolf Product Number

ISBN Number

Orpheus WW21000 ISBN 1-58846-600-0 Crusade of Ashes WW21001 ISBN 1-58846-601-9 Shades of Gray WW21010 ISBN 1-58846-602-7 Shadow Games WW21011 ISBN 1-58846-603-5 Orphan-Grinders WW21012 ISBN 1-58846-604-3 End Game WW21015 ISBN 1-58846-605-1

Orpheus is noteworthy in that it began the trend of White Wolf creating game series with limited numbers of supplements. This concept continued on with the new World of Darkness games Promethean: The Created, Changeling: The Lost, Hunter: The Vigil, and Geist: The Sin-Eaters, all of which were initially planned as limited releases.

There also was an anthology based on Orpheus named Orpheus: Haunting the Dead (WW11905 / ISBN 1-58846-837-2).

Character types

Characters in Orpheus are either living individuals capable of astral projection (via meditation or cryonics) or are ghosts of the recently deceased. It is assumed that characters work for the Orpheus Group, a company that employs the talents of projectors and spirits to investigate and clear ghostly activity and perform other tasks difficult for those without access to the world of the dead. The way a person manifests as a ghost is called the Lament; two Laments are projection-based, while two are based on a person being dead. ◾Skimmers use drugs and meditative techniques to temporarily eject their souls from their bodies. While they can enter and exit the spirit world quickly, their close connection to their empty shells means damage they take as a ghost manifests on their bodies. ◾Sleepers are cryonically frozen; once the body reaches a certain temperature, it is "dead" and ejects the spirit. While in stasis, the body is treated with special drugs to keep necrosis from setting in. While it keeps sleepers from the close connections skimmers have that allows them to be injured, the process means that both entering and leaving the world of ghosts is a slow process. ◾Spirits are your run-of-the-mill dead person, souls who have unfinished business that allow them to remain on earth. Most who work for Orpheus have a high degree of independence because of a remarkable willpower they held in life that transitions to death; not all spirits, however, are able to keep their independent attitudes when they die and become doomed to repeat themselves endlessly. ◾Hues are spirits with one major difference; while alive, they took the designer drug pigment. Pigment keeps a spirit from feeling ultimately fulfilled, so while a hue may be as stubborn as a spirit, they have more fragile forms and are closer to their dark sides.

Each character has a set of special traits, called a Shade, which determine how they manifest and what ghostly powers (or Horrors) they are able to use and which ones they cannot. There are eight Shades total; the first five were introduced in the Orpheus corebook, while the remaining three were introduced in three of the supplements. ◾Banshees are the empathetic shades, full of compassion. They manifest their abilities of emotional manipulation, physical damage, and looking into the future through their voices. ◾Haunters are those who care for things over people. This focus allows them to manipulate inanimate objects and machines to a disturbing degree. ◾Poltergeists are usually full of rage, either quiet or overt. This allows them to pick up objects without touching them directly, and also to alter their own forms in violent ways. ◾Skinriders are control freaks. They are granted the ability to possess the bodies of others and bend them to their will. ◾Wisps are the trickster shade. They have abilities that allow them to draw attention, escape in a flash, or manipulate ghostly items. ◾Phantasms, introduced in Shades of Gray, are the artists and dreamers. They can see and manipulate the dreams of the living. ◾Orphan-Grinders, introduced in The Orphan-Grinders, are ghosts who gave in to their dark sides, and then came back. They can use the abilities of the dark ghosts, or Spectres. ◾Marrow, introduced in End Game, can adapt to any situation. Appropriately, they are shapeshifters and also have a rapport with animals.

Antagonists

Along with ghosts as antagonists, there are also rival projection companies, such as Terrel and Squib, and a new designer drug called pigment or black heroin that allows users to see the spirits of the dead. There are also dark spirits called Spectres, some of which are corrupted spirits and hues, and others that have spawned from an unknown but powerful source. These create much of the storyline and challenges the players must face as they move through the series.

External links ◾Orpheus (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Orpheus) in The official World of Darkness wiki (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness) ◾Interview (http://www.flamesrising.com/interview-with-lucien-soulban) with Lucien Soulban (Orpheus Developer)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Orpheus_(role-playing_game)&oldid=689997336"

Categories: World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 2003

◾ This page was last modified on 10 November 2015, at 17:43. ◾Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

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Vampire: The Requiem

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Question book-new.svg

Vampire: The Requiem

Vampreq c.jpg Vampire: The Requiem first edition cover

Designer(s) Ari Marmell, C.A. Suleiman, Dean Shomshak; Justin Achilli, Philippe R. Boulle, Bill Bridges, Dean Burnham, Ken Cliffe, Michael Lee, Chris McDonough, Ethan Skemp, Richard Thomas, Mike Tinney, Stephan Wieck, Stewart Wieck, Fred Yelk, Aaron Voss, Pauline Benney

Publisher(s) White Wolf, Onyx Path

Publication date August 2004 (First Edition), December 2013 (Second Edition)

Genre(s) Modern Gothic

System(s) Storytelling System

Vampire: The Requiem is a role-playing game published by White Wolf, Inc. for the Chronicles of Darkness setting, and the successor to the Vampire: The Masquerade line. It was first released in August 2004, together with a new core rule book for the World of Darkness. Although it is an entirely new game, rather than a continuation of the previous editions, it uses many elements from the old game in its construction, including some of the clans and their powers. The game's title is a metaphor for the way vampires within the game view their (un)life. In the first edition, it required the World of Darkness corebook for use.

The second edition was released in December 2013. Titled "Vampire the Requiem, Second Edition", initial copies were titled Blood and Smoke: The Strix Chronicle. This addition adds a default world setting and significantly revises certain aspects of the game, including matching the second edition Storytelling System mechanics. It was announced that Blood and Smoke would be re-branded as a second edition at GenCon 2014, and was officially retitled Second Edition, with a new cover, index and very minor changes in November 2014. This release was a stand-alone game, able to be played with no other books as references.

Contents [hide] ◾1 History ◾2 Background ◾2.1 Clans and covenants ◾2.2 Powers, abilities and weaknesses ◾2.3 Weaknesses ◾2.4 Antagonists

◾3 Books ◾4 Movie adaptation ◾5 Notes ◾6 References ◾7 External links

History

White Wolf combined their new World of Darkness setting and rule system in a single game book, The World of Darkness (2004), and simultaneously released Vampire: The Requiem (2004), a sourcebook that supplemented The World of Darkness by offering up all the rules needed to play a vampire in the setting.[1]:228–229 The first Storytelling Adventure System adventure was Will Hindmarch's The Resurrectionists (2007) for Vampire: the Requiem.[1]:229 Greg Stolze was working on Vampire: The Requiem when he developed the One-Roll Engine for Godlike (2002).[1]:249 In 2015, the "new" World of Darkness was rebranded as the Chronicles of Darkness by White Wolf Publishing, in an effort to further differentiate the setting from the Classic World of Darkness.[2]

Background

The game takes place in modern-day earth where vampires form complex societies hidden from human awareness. Vampires that share common physical powers and qualities group themselves into "clans", but they also join "covenants" along religious, political or philosophical lines (a player's covenant is generally more important to his character than his clan). These groups differ radically in purpose and outlook and are often in conflict, though one principle they agree upon is that they must hide their existence from humans.

Vampires are unliving humans created when a vampire drains a human dry of blood and then feeds the corpse a few drops of its own vampiric blood. This process is called the Embrace and is draining for the sire, so vampires do not procreate often.

Vampires generally dwell in large cities, where they can find plenty of prey and easily remain inconspicuous. Vampires do not need to kill humans to steal blood; humans go into a trance when a vampire feeds on them and do not remember the moment, and a vampire can erase the bite marks it made by licking them. Every evening, their bodies consume a portion of their stored blood in order to rise from their daytime slumber - a vampire will enter an extended period of torpor if it does not have any blood.

Clans and covenants

Similar to the previous game, Kindred are brought into one of five clans as part of their transformation into vampires. Each clan covers a broad range of vampiric archetypes: ◾The Daeva evoke the image of vampires as seductive, decadent, sexually transgressive predators who blur lust and hunger together, equating the act of feeding with sensual pleasure, like Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla. ◾The Gangrel embody the idea of vampires as predatory feral demons. An upper level in the feeding chain with little or no interest in humans as anything other than food, they represent vampirism as crude predation and evoke ideas of basic instinct, untamed ferocity and freedom that are commonly associated with predators. ◾The Mekhet are mysterious conspiratorial occultists, obsessed with knowledge and information, who hide in the shadows and manipulate others from afar. ◾Nosferatu vampires are the repulsive, yet fascinating, alien and hideous monsters of legend (such as Count Orlok of their movie namesake). ◾Ventrue are regal vampires who value power and dominion to the point of obsession, self-styled "lords of the night" they represent vampirism as a metaphor for maddening power, like Bram Stoker's Dracula.

Within these clans are many sub-clans, known as bloodlines.

There are also many political or religious factions, known as Covenants. These include: ◾The Carthian Movement works towards finding the best form of government for the Kindred, basing its experiments on mortal systems like Democracy, Fascism and the like. It is the only Covenant that elects leaders, and is the newest major Covenant. Members frequently argue over the best form of government and this Covenant is primarily secular in outlook and character.[3][4] ◾The Circle of the Crone is a collection of pagan and Neopagan cults and religions within the vampiric culture. Generally, these groups are structured around a belief in a generative cycle, though they often revere a particular representative goddess, and these shared associations give rise to their eponymous association with the Crone. They celebrate most of the major pagan holidays, such as the solstices and Yule, and practice the Blood Magic known as "Crúac". Despite many differences in belief and opinion between various circles and cities of the Covenant, they typically dislike the Lancea Sanctum.[5][6] ◾The Invictus (also known as the "First Estate") An order of vampires that claim to be descendants from an ancient Roman sect known as the Camarilla. They are mostly concerned with material gain and power and therefore heavily involved in city politics and business.[7] ◾The Lancea Sanctum is an organization which grew parallel to Christianity, therefore commonly being mistaken for a vampiric equivalent of it. They claim the Roman Centurion Longinus as their founder and they believe Kindred (the word vampires use for themselves) have a role in the Divine Providence: that of the ultimate predators. As vampires, they're to prey upon humans, thus unleashing God's Wrath upon the unworthy and representing tests for the pious.[8][9] ◾The Ordo Dracul is focused on understanding the vampiric condition, improving upon it and ultimately transcending its limitations. They learn a collection of powers known as The Coils of the Dragon which alter the practitioner, generally alleviating particular limitations of the vampiric condition. The members of the Ordo believe that this discipline was created by the founder of the covenant, the infamous Dracula.[10] ◾The Unaligned is simply a catch-all term for any Vampires that do not belong to a covenant.[11][12]

Powers, abilities and weaknesses

A vampire's power is roughly measured by his Blood Potency. Regardless of their sires' power, all vampires start off at level 1. Blood Potency increases steadily with age, but can also be boosted by spending experience points or consuming the soul of another vampire (diablerie). As its Blood Potency increases, a vampire can store more blood points and access greater supernatural powers. However, his feeding needs become more stringent as well: the weakest vampires can live on animal blood, but the most powerful vampires can only live on the blood of other vampires. Such powerful vampires who cannot meet this need usually go into prolonged slumber to weaken themselves.

Kindred can use a variety of supernatural powers called Disciplines. These are special abilities associated with their curse which, like their undead bodies, are "fed" in a way by the living blood they take from mortals. Many of the Disciplines provide Kindred with preternatural means of ensuring their continued existence, or of easing the process of hunting and stealing blood from mortals.

Disciplines can be broken down into four categories: common (commonplace among the Kindred and more than one clan has an innate knack for them), uncommon (the proprietary abilities of each of the five clans), covenant (possessed only by a specific covenant and never shared with outsiders), and bloodline (known only to the members of a particular bloodline within a clan). However, each Kindred has the capability to, given a tutor and the proper amount of time (sometimes years for powerful disciplines), learn a discipline that is not natural to their clan or covenant. In game mechanics, the experience point cost for such disciplines is higher than that of a clan discipline innate to a specific Kindred, and given the amount of time in a given storyline necessary to successfully master an other-clan discipline, many players never get the chance to fully master such things.

Disciplines common to every clan include: Celeritysuperhuman speed.Resiliencesuperhuman toughnessVigorsuperhuman strengthAnimalismthe power to commune with and command animals as well as their own inner "Beast".Obfuscatethe ability to mask one's presence by clouding the minds of others. Each Clan tends to specialize in one particular "uncommon discipline". Uncommon disciplines include: Auspexsupernatural sensitivity and awareness and the ability to foresee and know things seemingly unknowable.Dominateallows a piercing stare that commands minds and the ability to break the will of others.Majestygrants a seductive or commanding sway of emotions and the predatory manipulation of the weak.Nightmarethe power to evoke sheer terror by revealing one's primal nature.Proteangrants the ability to assume a variety of forms such as a wolf or a mist. Covenant disciplines include: Carthian LawAlters social and supernatural dynamics, boosting or crippling individuals or groups.Coils of the DragonUsed to cheat the Curse, stripping away limitations and negative effects of the Unliving state (practiced by the Ordo Dracul).CrúacPagan blood sorcery (practiced by the Circle of the Crone).Invictus OathsSigned with blood, these pacts loan supernatural abilities and are enforced by magic.Theban SorceryMiraculous magic taught by, or in some interpretations stolen from, an "avatar of God" (practiced by the Lancea Sanctum). The various Rare Disciplines are numerous and wildly diverse. While they are generally only available to their respective bloodlines, and highly specialized, there are a few which provide significant advantages in combat. Most bloodline disciplines cannot be learned by vampires outside of the associated bloodline.

Weaknesses

Unlike many fictional portrayals, vampires in Requiem are not repelled by crucifixes, garlic or holy water, and they can enter any private domain without invitation. A stake through the heart merely paralyses them. Fire, sunlight and the claws and fangs of supernatural animals inflict terrible injuries that take a lot of time and blood to heal. During the daytime most vampires become catatonic and cannot operate, even if they are sheltered from sunlight.

Antagonists

Vampires have many enemies, most from within their own clans and covenants. There are some that stand out as being opposed to Vampire society as a whole, and some of the most prominent of these are vampires themselves. There are only two "enemy only" covenants in the core rulebook: Belial's BroodA loose confederation of Satanists, demon-worshippers and overt miscreants. The Covenant claims that the Damned originate from Hell itself, and exalt in the spread of misery and pain. They are intended to be more straightforward enemies than other antagonists that might be fought against in The Requiem, as their goals (spreading wanton misery and violence, heedless of whether they expose the existence of vampires) are antithetical to nearly any character.VIIA very mysterious organization, VII is dedicated to the destruction of their own species. They carry out attacks of sabotage and murder against other vampires for mysterious reasons. In the game, they serve as the shadow antagonists - the monster's monsters. The Storyteller is encouraged to invent his own reasons for VII's agenda. The rules revision Blood and Smoke: The Strix Chronicle also focuses on a different, unplayable race with vampire-like traits that have often clashed with the Kindred. StrixVampires that were never human, the Strix, or Owls, are monsters inspired by Roman spirits of the same name. Strix are living shadows who seek to take over physical bodies so they may experience physical sensation, particularly torpid vampires. They are completely amoral beings who despise the very concept of humanity, to the point where even draugr, insane vampires who have lost their Humanity completely, are too much like the living for their liking. Books

◾Vampire: The Requiem (August 2004) ◾Coteries (October 2004) ◾Nomads (November 2004) ◾Rites of the Dragon (November 2004) ◾Bloodlines: The Hidden (February 2005) ◾Lancea Sanctum (March 2005) ◾City of the Damned: New Orleans (May 2005) ◾Ghouls (May 2005) ◾Ordo Dracul (July 2005) ◾VII (August 2005) ◾The Invictus (October 2005) ◾Bloodlines: The Legendary (January 2006) ◾Requiem Chronicler's Guide (February 2006) ◾Carthians (April 2006) ◾Mythologies (June 2006) ◾Circle of the Crone (August 2006) ◾Belial's Brood (January 2007) ◾The Blood (May 2007) ◾Bloodlines: The Chosen (July 2007) ◾Damnation City (August 2007) ◾Requiem for Rome (October 2007) ◾Fall of The Camarilla (January 2008) ◾Criminal Intent (PDF only)[note 1] (January 2008) ◾Scenes of Frenzy (PDF only)[note 1] (January 2008) ◾Blood Red + Ash Gray (PDF only)[note 1] (January 2008) ◾The Resurrectionists (PDF only)[note 1] (January 2008) ◾Ventrue: Lords Over the Damned (April 2008) ◾Kiss of the Succubus: Daeva (May 2008) ◾Savage and Macabre: Gangrel (September 2008) ◾Shadows in the Dark: Mekhet (January 21, 2009) ◾New Wave Requiem (PDF & Print on Demand) (February 2009) ◾Night Horrors: Immortal Sinners (February 2009) ◾The Beast that Haunts the Blood: Nosferatu (March 2009) ◾Vampire: Ancient Mysteries (April 2009) ◾Ancient Bloodlines ◾Night Horrors: The Wicked Dead ◾Invite Only ◾The Danse Macabre (March 2011) ◾Strange Dead Love (PDF & Print on Demand) (December 2011) ◾Blood Sorcery: Sacraments & Blasphemies (PDF & Print on Demand) (September 2012) ◾Vampire: The Requiem Second Edition (originally published as Blood and Smoke: The Strix Chronicle) (PDF & Print on Demand) (December 16, 2013) ◾Secrets of the Covenants (PDF & Print on Demand) (February 2017)

Movie adaptation

New Line Cinema optioned the feature rights to Vampire: The Requiem in 2004, but to date no script has emerged.[13]

Notes

1. Storytelling Adventure System

References

1. Shannon Appelcline (2011). Designers & Dragons. Mongoose Publishing. ISBN 978-1-907702- 58-7. 2. Thomas, Richard (12 December 2015). "Announcing Chronicles of Darkness" (http://theonyxpath.com/announcing-chronicles-of-darkness/). Onyx Path Publishing. Onyx Path Publishing. Retrieved 16 December 2015. 3. "White Wolf Publishing" (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Carthian_Movement). Wiki.white-wolf.com. Retrieved 2014-04-18. 4. http://carthian.cam-wiki.org/About_the_Movement 5. http://www.girotest.net/About_the_Circle.html 6. http://cam-wiki.org/index.php/Circle_of_the_Crone 7. "White Wolf Publishing" (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Invictus). Wiki.white-wolf.com. Retrieved 2014-04-18. 8. "White Wolf Publishing" (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Lancea_Sanctum). Wiki.white-wolf.com. Retrieved 2014-04-18. 9. "借りる目的 - カードローンの限度額" (http://www.lanceasanctum.org/Creeds). Lanceasanctum.org. 2013-10-08. Retrieved 2014-04-18. 10. http://ordodracul.cam-wiki.org/index.php/Main_Page 11. "White Wolf Publishing" (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Unaligned). Wiki.white-wolf.com. Retrieved 2014-04-18. 12. http://cam-wiki.org/index.php/Unaligned 13. "New Line will stake claim to 'Vampire'" (http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117907774.html?categoryid=1238&cs=1). Variety. 2004-07-14. Retrieved 2014-04-18.

External links ◾Official website (http://www.white-wolf.com/)

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Categories: Vampire: The Requiem Role-playing games introduced in 2004

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Demon: The Fallen

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Demon: The Fallen

Demonthefallen c.jpg Demon: The Fallen cover

Designer(s) Michael B. Lee (Editor), Greg Stolze, Adam Tinworth, Pauline Benney (Art Director)

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date November, 2002

Genre(s) RPG

System(s) Storyteller System

Demon: The Fallen is a trademark embracing both a role-playing game and a fictional setting from the World of Darkness line by White Wolf Game Studio. The player characters in the game are demons; fallen angels who were cast out of Paradise after siding with Lucifer in a thousand-year war with God known as the War of Wrath. The game focuses on "infernal glory" as the driving force behind its storyline and character development; the attainment and strengthening of a demon's former angelic glory through the power of human faith, even in the face of God's damnation and their own inner torment.

Contents [hide] ◾1 History ◾2 Setting ◾3 Characters ◾4 Antagonists ◾5 Houses ◾5.1 Defiler ◾5.2 Devil ◾5.3 Devourer ◾5.4 Fiend ◾5.5 Malefactor ◾5.6 Scourge ◾5.7 Slayer

◾6 Factions ◾6.1 Cryptics ◾6.2 Faustians ◾6.3 Luciferans ◾6.4 Raveners ◾6.5 Reconcilers

◾7 Banishment and Death ◾8 List of published Books ◾9 See also ◾10 External links

History

The War in Heaven began when an Elohim (angel) named Ahrimal, one of the Seers, foresaw a disaster in the future - a disaster which God had either directly orchestrated or would allow to happen. The Elohim debated whether or not to act against God in order to prevent this disaster; many argued that it would be safer to do nothing, because their action could potentially be the cause of the disaster. Lucifer, one of the Heralds as well as the first and greatest Elohim created by God, was the first to make a conclusive decision in favor of rebellion, and he became the leader of the rebel Elohim; the Fallen.

These Fallen revealed themselves to humanity in order to bring them the light of forbidden knowledge and awareness. In so doing they incurred the wrath of God, who had given humanity the potential to be aware of the Word, the good and evil, yet had not intended Man to have this kind of awareness yet. The humans, Adam, Eve and their descendants, had been given gifts that they could not use due to their initial innocence, and Adam and Eve are portrayed as having had only rudimentary knowledge and awareness, solely concerned with their survival. During the war that followed, the sin of Caine taught the Fallen how to kill and many grew twisted and evil. In the end, the Fallen lost the war, and were banished to the abyss of Hell as punishment for their transgressions. Lucifer was not among their ranks and wandered the Earth aimlessly after the war until finally setting down in modern-day Los Angeles.

This background provides a possible explanation for the conflicting origin stories of the other games in the Classic World of Darkness setting. Reality is presented during the Fall as being far less static and banal than it is in the modern game settings. The world went from being populated by two humans to having billions of humans with various civilizations and pasts existing at the same time (even when those pasts were contradictory to each other). One could deduce from this that the answer to which game provides the correct world origin story is: all of them were correct, all at the same time, and all at that one crucial point (the Fall).

Setting

Due to the sixth maelstrom (caused by other supernaturals in the World of Darkness), the Gates of Hell that kept these demons from escaping their prison have begun to weaken, allowing the weakest of the Fallen to escape. However, to continue existing on Earth, a demon must find a suitable host for itself: bodies with weak souls, for example: comatose patients, severe drug addicts, the severely or clinically depressed, or suicidal people. The demon severs the weakened soul from the body and takes its place inside the host, merging with the host's memories and emotions, and continues existence on Earth to follow its own personal agenda while still balancing out the life of its vessel and the machinations of their demonic superiors to whom they are still bound.

While the mortal body provides the Fallen with a shield against the full memory of their torment in Hell, they are sometimes hindered by the memories and feelings the mortal soul left behind. The personal agendas of the demons vary from individual to individual; some demons wish to finish the war against Heaven, believing the disaster is still to be averted, some wish to take revenge upon humanity, believing humans the primary cause for the war and the overall ruined state of the world, while other demons want to reconcile and repent for their sins and be able to return to God who, along with the remaining Elohim, has seemingly vanished from Creation for reasons unknown, leaving the unattended world to fall into chaos and despair.

Characters

All characters must choose a "House" and a "faction". The seven Houses are similar to classes or character categories in other RPGs, to clans in Vampire: The Masquerade and similar groupings in other White Wolf games. The different factions are based on the demons' personal opinions and positions regarding the war, and can have been formed before the War or after their escape.

All demons can use special magical powers called invocations, or Lores. All demons have access to two common Lores: Fundament, which allows them to suspend the laws of physics to perform superhuman feats, and Humanity, which allows them to commune with and manipulate mortals. Their other three Lores are determined by their House. All demons have an "apocalyptic form" or "visage"; this is an image or shadow of their true nature, their form before they were forced into mortal bodies. They can be demonic and horrible to behold, or angelic and beautiful, depending on the level of Torment a demon possesses in comparison to their Willpower.

Antagonists

Upon their emergence, the Fallen quickly discovered that they were not the first to escape the Abyss. Hundreds of other demonic spirits were summoned back to Earth in the intervening centuries through the use of sorcery, and were then anchored to objects in place of the bodies possessed by the Fallen. This unnatural connection had left them hollow, tormented, and possessed of alien emotions and thought processes, as these artifacts do not provide the buffer against the memories of their suffering in the Abyss. The five Archdukes, lieutenants of Lucifer, were the first of the fallen angels to be summoned back to Earth. These included Asmodeus, Azrael, Dagon, Belial, and Abaddon, but were soon followed by hundreds of lesser-known demons. These "Earthbound" are immensely powerful, having had centuries to practice their abilities to perfection, as well as having been worshipped as gods by deranged cults for millennia. The rise of organized religion, as well as the Age of Enlightenment drove them into hibernation, but the return of the Fallen has led to the awakening of many of the Earthbound, who take steps to revive the cults which worship them, as well as enslave or destroy the Fallen. Every Earthbound possesses their own unique goals, but most involve the enslavement of humanity so that their potential can be harnessed to achieve the ends of that individual Earthbound.

There are also various human enemies that the Fallen may encounter: from those who mistake them for alien invaders to demonologists intent upon enslaving them to the Society of Leopold (the Modern Nights equivalent of the Inquisition) and others.

And then there are all the other supernatural creatures of the World of Darkness, who can become either ally or enemy to the Fallen. This all depends upon the views of both the Fallen and the supernatural that the Fallen is interacting with (i.e. a Ravener is more likely to make friends with a Black Spiral Dancer than would be a Reconciler).

Houses

Houses are groups, orders, or classes of Elohim. Unlike factions, Houses resemble the demons' "families" or races. An Elohim's House encompasses both cultural and personal characteristics and is a fundamental and definitive part of who they are. A demon's House determines what personality and outlook they have, their Lores, and their weaknesses. They remain in the same Houses throughout their existence. The Houses resemble the clans of White Wolf's Vampire series, and the tribes of the Werewolf series.

Defiler

The Defilers, known formally as Lammasu, were given dominion over the seas, and were meant to inspire humanity through the longings of both races. Before the War in Heaven, they loved the humans, although their love was unrequited as God had forbidden the Elohim from direct contact with their human charges. The Lamassu were the first of the Houses to succumb to Hell. Since their return to the Earth, the Lammasu have become seducers, sensualists and sexual predators, succubuses and incubuses who fulfill such desires as ruining families, destroying businesses, and toppling governments. Their Lores give them power over the weather and seas as well as dominion over physical appearance and the emotions of mortals. Defilers are attracted to humans with extreme vanity, deep insecurity, great artistic talent, or insufficient sex lives.

Devil

The Devils, originally known as the "Heralds" or the Namaru, were of the first and highest House of Elohim, the House of the Dawn. During the Age of Wrath, the Namaru acted as leaders on both sides of the war. The Namaru specialize in social skills such as charisma, manipulation, and subterfuge as they are deceivers and master manipulators. Their Lores give them power over the minds of mortals and demons alike, as well as the ability to control fire, including the Faith of other Elohim. Lucifer belonged to this House, and they made up the largest contingent of rebel Elohim. Most Devils join the Luciferian faction out of loyalty to Lucifer.

Devourer

The Devourers, or Rabisu, were the Angels of the Wild, warriors without equal, the Sixth House. They are reckless, violent, and impulsive. Their lore allow them to command animals and plants alike, as well as shaping and reshaping the flesh of other beings as they desire to achieve such feats as increasing their strength, reflexes and senses, as well as taking the form of animals.

Fiend

The Fiends, known formally as Neberu, had the ability to sense the future. The Seer Ahrimal foresaw the War in Heaven, so many Fates turned from God's side to Lucifer's. Because of them, Lucifer and the rebels won many early battles, but their helpfulness decreased as the war went on. When God cast the rebels into Hell, the Neberu were put in their own special Perdition. When they emerged from Hell they had recovered a fraction of both their powers and their sanity. Their Lores give them dominion over time and light, and the ability to teleport through doorways.

Malefactor

The Malefactors, known formally as Anunnaki, were angels of the forge, of tools, and of the earth, and were to guide humans in mastering these skills. But the humans were unable to follow the angels' instructions, and from this frustration they came to despise their mentors, much to the angels' confusion. When the War in Heaven broke out, they became rebels mainly because of their hatred for the humans they once loved: hatred against God for not allowing them to help the humans directly; and because they felt the others loved them. Once sentenced to Hell, they were without pure earth and fire and began to feel empty. Now free, they've found the humans have learned to use tools and manipulate the Earth, but have (as the Anunnaki see it) destroyed the planet in the process. These demons now see their goal as the destruction of the human race, so that the planet might be healed.

Scourge

The Scourges, originally known as Asharu, were once guardian angels. They loved the humans, but their closeness to humanity drove them mad. When Lucifer started the rebellion they were the most followers in numbers, second only to his own house. Instead of being brave fighters, they made better spies. Now that they are free they find great respect, being able to heal with the right hand and harm with the left.

Slayer

The Slayers, originally known as the Reapers or the Halaku, were once angels of death. They were shunned by the other angels before the war. When Lucifer started his rebellion they joined him, as he promised them that they would be able to explain to humanity the reason that things they loved had to die. Their lore gives them the power to enter the Shadowlands, commune with and control ghosts, to severe the spirit from a body, and to create zombies. The Slayers usually join either the Ravener or Reconciler factions due to their affinity with death, their resentment of other Elohim, and their desire to return to Heaven.

Factions

Factions are ideological groups of like-minded demons who share a similar outlook on humanity, God, and themselves. Unlike Houses, which are inherent, factions are open to any and all, although a demon's House can influence what faction they may gravitate towards.

Cryptics

The Cryptics have used their time in Hell to think. They feel that if God is omniscient, then his creations would be as perfect as reality would allow, and since Lucifer was God's highest angel, then his rebellion was a part of God's plan. The philosophers of the Fallen, the Cryptics gather knowledge to determine what is really going on and what they should do next. They dislike the Luciferans and the Faustians, approve of the Reconcilers asking questions, and dislike Raveners' destructive tendencies. They were initially to be called 'Inquisitors', but this was changed during production, although there are occasional references to them under this name in some books due to editing errors.

Faustians

The Faustians lust for revenge against God, whom they believe unjustly exiled them from Heaven. Even without the leadership of Lucifer, they still try to awaken the human race to its true potential, but only so humanity can be used as a potent weapon in yet another war against Heaven. The plots and intentions of a Faustian are often as subtle as they are dangerous. They have no patience for the Cryptics, their goals are directly opposite to those of the Raveners, Reconcilers can be friend or foe, and they can work with Luciferans.

Luciferans

The Luciferans still believe that Lucifer was right to rebel against God. Even though Lucifer cannot be found, they still follow what they feel to be his directives. Their leadership has divided them into three legions: the Legion of Majestic Liberation (who are searching for and attempting to free Lucifer), the Legion of Glorious Victory (who were organized to fight the Heavenly Host, but found no angels to oppose them), and the Legion of Stark Defiance (who secure supplies, resources, and safe havens for the rest of the faction). They dislike the Cryptics, can work with Faustians, consider the Reconcilers to be traitors, and consider Raveners to be enemies.

Raveners

The nihilistic Raveners look at the broken world and wasted potential of humanity and believe there's only one option left: destroy everything - first humanity, then themselves. Some see it as a way to finally lure out God and His angels, either to answer or to mercifully destroy them; others see it as an act of mercy to a near-dead and stagnant world; and many just don't care at all. They are enemies with all the other factions of demons, though they can tolerate the Cryptics as the Raveners assume they will eventually stop asking questions and start down destructive paths.

Reconcilers

The Reconcilers have used their time in Hell to reconsider their actions and the punishment that God meted out to them. Many have come to the conclusion that they were punished justly and that they must atone for their misdeeds; others simply feel that there is no point in continuing to fight a war they lost long ago against an omnipotent enemy. Now that they are free they wish to do some good, thinking that God might forgive them and allow them to return to Heaven. Even if he won't they might be able to help the humans, even fix things so the humans can have what they themselves can't. They are on good terms with the Cryptics and the Faustians, but are diametrically opposed to the goals of the Luciferans and the Raveners.

Banishment and Death

When a demon's host is slain, the demon is not killed. The demon must merely find a new host or be pulled back into the Abyss. There are only two methods for slaying a demon written in the rulebooks. The first is if demon's soul is devoured by another demon. The second is a ritual that can be performed by the members of the Inquisition which will "unmake" any high torment demon, but leaves low torment demons unaffected. There is no defense for demons against this, so the demons that know of it greatly fear Inquisitors.

List of published Books

Taken from White Wolf's The Comprehensive World of Darkness Booklist (http://download.white-wolf.com/download/download.php?file_id=378). Since the production of the game line ended, no further books are to be expected.

Book Name

White Wolf Product Number

Year

ISBN Number

Role Playing Source Books

Demon: The Fallen WW8200 2001 ISBN 1-58846-750-3 Demon Storytellers Companion WW8201 2002 ISBN 1-58846-751-1 Demon Players Guide WW8202 2003 ISBN 1-58846-756-2 Houses of the Fallen WW8203 2003 ISBN 1-58846-760-0 Hunter Book: Defender WW8004 ISBN 1-56504-740-0 City of Angels WW8211 2003 ISBN 1-58846-752-X Saviors and Destroyers WW8220 2003 ISBN 1-58846-754-6 Damned and Deceived WW8221 2003 ISBN 1-58846-758-9 Fear to Tread WW8270 2003 ISBN 1-58846-753-8 Earthbound WW8280 2003 ISBN 1-58846-761-9 Days of Fire WW8281 2003 ISBN 1-58846-762-7

Novels

Demon: Lucifer’s Shadow WW11904 2002 ISBN 1-58846-824-0

See also ◾Paradise Lost

External links ◾Demon: The Fallen (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Demon%3A_The_Fallen) in The official World of Darkness wiki (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness)

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Categories: World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 2002

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Hunter: The Reckoning

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Hunter: The Reckoning

Huntreck c.jpg Hunter: The Reckoning cover

Designer(s) Mark Rein·Hagen, Andrew Bates, Phil Brucato, Ken Cliffe, Greg Fountain, Ed Hall, Jess Heinig, Michael Lee, Richard Thomas, Mike Tinney, Stewart Wieck

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date November 1, 1999

System(s) Storyteller System

Hunter: The Reckoning is a role-playing game based in White Wolf Game Studio's World of Darkness. Compared to the other game in the franchise, Hunter does not explore the secret society of supernatural creatures founded over centuries, preferring to throw the player in a world of danger and mysteries. Players will take on the roles of hunters (or Imbued)—humans who are given powers by unknown entities to fight the supernatural. Those people will normally proceed to hunt down and take care of monsters, be it by killing them, cutting deals or leading them toward redemption. The Messengers will stay in the background and let their Imbued figure out what to do with their newly acquired powers.[1]

The game states that hunters are really new to the World of Darkness, causing them to be unorganized and uninformed. In a classic game, they will form a team of mismatched protagonists arguing on how to attack or deal with monsters. They will try to keep a semblance of normal life, giving the player the opportunity to explore the troubles of living a double life. They will also have to try to figure out what being a monster really means and what being human is, as they meet humans worse than monsters and genuinely kind monsters.

The game is best played by gamers new to the World of Darkness as metagaming can interfere greatly in the experience. For example, the Imbued might think all supernatural creatures are on the same team, which is false in World of Darkness canon. Of course, a player can simulate ignorance or the storyteller (the game master) can alter as many details to create a new personal World of Darkness for the players.

Note that there have been groups of "hunters" prior to the Imbued that appeared in previous games and game supplements as antagonists. These groups however are very different from the Imbued. These "mortal hunters" were either normal people trying to fight against the monsters, ancient orders (such as the Shi or the Society of Leopold/Inquisition) that have protected humanity for centuries, or government agencies (Project Twilight and Strike Force Zero) that were equivalent to the X-Files with high-tech monster hunting gear.

Contents [hide] ◾1 History ◾2 Setting ◾2.1 Hunters ◾2.1.1 Virtues & Creeds ◾2.1.1.1 Mercy ◾2.1.1.2 Zeal ◾2.1.1.3 Vision

◾2.2 The Hunter-Net ◾2.3 Dark Ages

◾3 Inspired media ◾3.1 Novels ◾3.2 Video games ◾3.3 Movies

◾4 See also ◾5 References ◾6 External links

History

White Wolf used 1999's yearly event, the Year of the Reckoning, to launch their next RPG line; Hunter: The Reckoning (1999), the sixth modern World of Darkness game, allowed players to take on the role of humans in the World of Darkness.[2]:224 World of Darkness: Time of Judgment (2004) ended the Changeling, Demon, Hunter, Kindred of the East, and Mummy lines.[2]:228 By the time the New World of Darkness' sixth RPG, Hunter: The Vigil (2008), came out, the "Storytelling Adventure System" (SAS) program was active; while Hunter's short-run line only received four print books in 2008, it was supplemented by numerous PDFs, including about a half-dozen adventures.[2]:229

Setting

A Hunter's life is fraught with danger. The "bliss of ignorance" has been taken from them and the existence of supernatural manipulation of humanity cannot be ignored. However, the Hunter cannot simply reveal this knowledge to mundane authorities since they will be branded as unstable and insane. Supernatural forces control many human media, law enforcement, and government agencies; any attempt to reveal the existence of these forces would result in the supernatural manipulators using those connections to paint the Imbued as crazy and dangerous, and to dispose of Imbued who snoop in their affairs and try to impede their control.

Hunters wage a desperate, clandestine war against the inhuman, ageless forces that manipulate mankind. They see their task as taking back the night from bloodsuckers, ravaging beasts, vengeful spirits and manipulative sorcerers. The Imbued must face mankind's worst fears made real in the most deadly game of the Hunt in order to fulfill the task they have set before them to "Inherit the Earth".

The Hunter: The Reckoning storyline, along with those of Demon: the Fallen, Changeling: The Dreaming, Kindred of the East and Mummy: The Resurrection, was ended in the World of Darkness: Time of Judgment supplement as White Wolf stopped its whole World of Darkness line. As a minor product line, it received comparatively little attention in the whole Time of Judgment setting, which left many of the series' fans unsatisfied.

Hunters

The Imbued are relatively new to the World of Darkness and, unlike Kindred or Garou, have little in the way of a coherent society of Hunters. The closest thing to a social organization for Hunters is "Hunter-Net," described later. Although Hunters are generally unaware of the labels, a Hunter is defined by their Creed. Additionally, Creeds are grouped by a primary Virtue that engenders the Creeds. A Hunter's creed is chosen at the imbuing directly related to their actions. Hunters creeds and powers are given for a reason. You will not find any pacifist Avengers.

Atypical of other World of Darkness splats, the Hunter's Edges (powers) do not have a linear growth, meaning an early ability may be stronger or more useful than a later one.[3]

Virtues & Creeds

The ways of hunters differ radically according to the personality and the type of imbued. They develop a strong tendency of how to deal with monsters and how to protect humanity. This leads to three main virtues a hunter may follow in an active, an assessing and a passive way.

Mercy

Those hunters that tend to show compassion towards creatures of the dark, and attempt to persuade the dark supernatural forces to turn to light, follow one of the Mercy Creeds. The Mercy Creeds are: ◾Martyrs: Those who sacrifice their all for their cause. ◾Redeemers: Those who wish to bring the monsters back into the light. ◾Innocents: Those who refuse to prejudge the supernatural.

Zeal

Those hunters that are unforgiving and dogmatic in their belief that humanity is meant to "Inherit the Earth", and that the dark supernatural forces are arrayed against this manifest destiny of mankind, tend to be one of the Zeal Creeds. The tendency of these hunters to be warriors/soldiers among a group of Hunters gives these Creeds the stereotype as brute "zombie-killers." These Hunters do the dirty work out of a passion few humans may understand. ◾Avengers: Those who seek revenge for the harm done by creatures of the dark. ◾Judges: Those who mete out punishment based on how monstrous the creatures have acted. ◾Defenders: Those who safeguard and protect the innocent from the darkness.

Vision

Understanding and information gathering are the primary gifts of these Creeds. Originally charged to lead the Imbued in their war against the unnatural powers of the world, the Visionary Creeds consist of one viable Creed and two "Lost Creeds." In theory, these "Lost Creeds" consist of people who were granted too much insight for the mortal mind to handle and have ended up either deranged or overly violent due to this Calling. However, there is some implication throughout the different source books that these "Lost Creeds", specifically Waywards, ended up precisely how the Messengers wanted them. ◾Visionaries: Those who seek to understand the greater meaning behind the imbuing and the existence of the supernatural. ◾Waywards: Lost Creed. Imbued who have become overly violent towards the dark. Many Waywards suffer from some sort of mental derangement. They should have been the strategists and tacticians of the Imbued; however, Waywards cannot turn the benefits of second-sight off, and are subject to supernatural visions at any time. This tends to cause extreme mental trauma. Though some Waywards can handle this mental strain, the constant reminder of the supernatural can, and sometimes does, turn some Waywards into psychotic killers. Because of either psychosis or Calling-inflicted violent rage, Waywards often see only the need to destroy the enemy, and are known to cause large amounts of collateral damage in the completion of this task. ◾Hermits: Lost Creed. Imbued who receive psychic static near other Hunters and supernaturals. They should have been the intelligence gatherers for the Imbued, receiving information directly from the Messengers. The unfortunate side effect of Hermit's powers result in debilitating social anxiety around any form of the supernatural.

The Hunter-Net

Hunters communicate via a forum network called "Hunter-net" which is located at the fictional website www.hunter-net.org. Though the site is relatively secure at least one instance of a supernatural being infiltrating Hunter-net has been recorded. It was maintained by an Imbued called Witness1, and other Imbued who maintain and add data to it included Bookworm55, Doctor119, and the infamous God45. When taking a screen name on Hunter-net one takes a word to describe oneself and then a number signifying what order they joined in—by this Doctor119 is a Hunter who has decided to describe himself as a doctor and is the 119th person to sign in.

Throughout the path of what is now known as the "Old World of Darkness" (as opposed to the New World of Darkness, the current incarnation of which is called Hunter: The Vigil), the original Hunter-Net was dismantled and broken. Witness1, the proprietor of the site, deleted a number of accounts on the original H-Net, but claimed that someone or something else had hacked his account. A new Hunter-Net was built, but it hardly had the following of the original.

Many subsets of the site sprung up around Hunter-net, founded by specific hunter creeds. One of the most notable is the Firelight mailing list located on the first page of the Creedbook Avenger.

Dark Ages

The Dark Ages time setting closest equivalent to Hunter: The Reckoning is Dark Ages: Inquisitor. The reason for this is probably the fact that the Imbued did not exist until the Final Nights time period in the World of Darkness. Despite the similar nature of the two games, Inquisitors tend play at a significantly greater powerful level than Hunters.

Inspired media

Novels

The following novels were released by White Wolf: ◾Inherit the Earth (WW11903) ◾Predator & Prey #1: Vampire (WW11700) ◾Predator & Prey #2: Judge (WW11701) ◾Predator & Prey #3: Werewolf (WW11702) ◾Predator & Prey #4: Jury (WW11703) ◾Predator & Prey #5: Mage (WW11704) ◾Predator & Prey #6: Executioner (WW11705)

Video games

Three Gauntlet-style video games have been produced with the Hunter license: ◾Hunter: The Reckoning on the Xbox and GameCube ◾Hunter: The Reckoning: Wayward for Sony PlayStation 2 ◾Hunter: The Reckoning: Redeemer for Microsoft Xbox

Movies

Ambox current red.svg

A film adaptation based on the above video games was announced for release in 2007. The movie was originally planned as a simple videogame-to-movie adaptation, but writer Drew Daywalt confirmed that the writers worked with White Wolf in order to create a new, darker story, more in the spirit of the RPG. Uwe Boll was, for a time, attached to direct the film, a fact that further displeased fans of the game, given the negative opinions and reviews of his previous game-to-movie films.[4]

See also ◾List of Hunter: The Reckoning books

References

1. "Darker Days Radio Episode #22" (http://darkerdays2.podbean.com/2011/02/23/darker-days-radio-episode-22/). Darker Days Podcast. February 23, 2011. Retrieved 2012-02-26. Old World of Darkness game overviews. 2. Shannon Appelcline (2011). Designers & Dragons. Mongoose Publishing. ISBN 978-1-907702-58-7. 3. Darker Days Radio Episode #9. "Chuck Wendig Interview" (http://darkerdays2.podbean.com/2009/09/03/darker-days-radio-episode-9/). Darker Days Podcast. Retrieved 2012-02-26. 4. Movies Online. "Uwe Boll's Hunter The Reckoning" (http://www.moviesonline.ca/movienews_2595.html). Retrieved 2012-02-26.

External links ◾Official site (https://web.archive.org/web/20050406144340/www.white-wolf.com/hunter) ◾Hunter: The Reckoning (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Hunter:_The_Reckoning) in The official World of Darkness Wiki (https://web.archive.org/web/20080517043916/http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/)

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Categories: Hunter: The Reckoning Role-playing games introduced in 1999

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Changeling: The Dreaming

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Changeling: The Dreaming

Chandrea c.jpg Changeling: The Dreaming 1st edition cover

Designer(s) 1st edition: Mark Rein·Hagen, Sam Chupp, Ian Lemke, Joshua Gabriel Timbrook 2nd edition: Ian Lemke, Jackie Cassada, Brian Campbell, Richard E. Dansky, Chris Howard, Angel Leigh McCoy, Neil Mick, Nicky Rea

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date June 1, 1995 (1st edition) August 1, 1997 (2nd edition)

Genre(s) Personal Fantasy

System(s) Storyteller System

Changeling: The Dreaming was part of White Wolf Game Studio's original "World of Darkness" role playing game line. Player characters are changelings, fae souls reborn into human bodies, a practice begun by the fae to protect themselves as magic vanished from the world. The game explores the balance between imagination and practicality, and the struggle of art and beauty against the dark, mysterious "Gothic-Punk" World of Darkness. Changeling draws primarily from Gaelic mythology, particularly stories of the sidhe and Tuatha Dé Danann, but also uses mythology and folklore from various other cultures including Native American nations, Greece, India and Yoruba mythology of Africa.

On March 5, 2015 Onyx Path Publishing announced that the Changeling the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition was in production.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Overview ◾1.1 Seelie Court ◾1.2 The Seelie Code ◾1.3 Unseelie Court ◾1.4 The Unseelie Code

◾2 Kiths ◾2.1 The standard kiths ◾2.2 The Gallain - Kiths not from the corebook ◾2.2.1 Hsien ◾2.2.2 The Mer

◾3 History ◾4 Changeling in the new World of Darkness ◾5 See also ◾6 References ◾7 External links

Overview

The fae are creatures of dreams, drawing magical power and their very existence from "glamour", the dreams of mankind. Glamour created and maintains a separate realm of imagination known as the Dreaming, from which the fae originally came to the mortal world. During the Iron Age and the subsequent rise of rational thought and science, glamour became less common in the real world, and the opposing force of banality could injure or kill the fae. In response, the fae nobility (the sidhe) withdrew to Arcadia, their home deep in the Dreaming, and the commoner fae developed "the Changeling Way Ritual", and became changelings. Eventually banality became so strong that the Dreaming was sundered from reality. This time period is known as the Shattering and it is associated with the time of the Black Plague. It was at this time that the Changeling Way ritual was created allowing fae souls to inhabit human bodies. For many years commoner changelings lived amongst mortals and made their way as best they could in a world where glamour was fading, this was the Interregnum. Then came the Resurgence, man landed on the moon and belief and dreams broke open the doors to Arcadia. Some sidhe were able to return by inhabiting existing human bodies. With the return of the sidhe and their desire to once again rule all changelings, the Accordance War broke out. Commoners and nobles fought for control of the freeholds and glamour until a peace accord was reached by the new High King David.

Traditionally, a changeling is a fairy child substituted for a human baby, but Changeling: The Dreaming uses a very different interpretation. In the game, a changeling is a fae soul born into a human body. Early in the human's life, usually before puberty, she undergoes the "Chrysalis", a magical awakening of the fae soul which previously lay dormant. Once through the Chrysalis, the Changeling exists simultaneously in both the real world and in the "chimerical" reality of the fae, where creative ideas and imagination have substance. (The metaphysical aspects of this are the complex concepts present in the game.) The human soul becomes joined with the fae soul.

As well as the usual roleplaying traits representing their skills and abilities, Changeling characters are further defined by their ties to the Dreaming. Each Changeling has Seelie and Unseelie aspects of their being, one of which dominates a given Changeling. The courts do not easily map onto human ideas of good and evil, but instead represent a host of philosophies - light and shadow, law and freedom, duty and passion. In days past rule would be divided between the courts, the Seelie court ruling in the summer months from Beltaine to Samhain, and the Unseelie court in winter from Samhain to Beltaine, but now an uneasy truce exists and each court rules its own regions. Each Changeling has two legacies, one for each court, which represent how the dual nature of her fae soul is expressed.

Each Changeling is also a member of a "kith". Somewhat like different species of fairy, a Changeling's kith indicates the kind of dreams which birthed her soul in the Dreaming. The kiths are based on fairy archetypes from various sources, and while the most common kiths are drawn largely from Irish mythology, many others also exist. The descriptions below touch on only a few of the types of stories or traditional fairies which correlate to each Kith.

Each Changeling also falls into a certain seeming which is related to their age. The seemings include Childlings, which are the youngest group between the ages of three and thirteen, Wilders, which are between the ages of thirteen and twenty five, and Grumps, which include any older changelings though they rarely make it very long before becoming undone. As Changelings age and pass through the various seemings they lose some of their glamour which is the stuff changeling magic is made of. They also gain Banality, a force created by mortal disbelief.

Seelie Court

The Seelie have a reputation as the guardians of fae traditions. They are the peacekeepers, protectors of the weak, and the ideals of chivalry. Most seelie seek the reunion between the mortal world and the dreaming, and would like to be back to the time before the realms became divided.

The Seelie Code ◾Death before dishonor: honor is the most important virtue, the source of all glory. ◾Love Conquers all: love lies at the heart of the dreaming. True love transcends all and epitomizes what it means to be Seelie. ◾Beauty is life: beauty is a timeless, objective quality that, while it cannot be defined, is always recognized for itself. ◾Never forget a debt: one gift deserves another. The recipient of a gift is obliged to return the favor.

Unseelie Court

Where the Seelie dedicate themselves to preserving the traditions of the fae, the Unseelie style themselves as mockers of those traditions. They stand for the principles of constant change and impulsive action. They have a reputation for fostering war and madness, despising those weaker than themselves, and valuing freedom and wildness over any chivalric code. The unseelie see themselves as radical visionaries, bringing about vital change and transformation through whatever means necessary, including violence. Most members of the unseelie court believe that the dreaming has abandoned them, and therefore, that they owe no special loyalty to it or to their lost home of Arcadia.

The Unseelie Code ◾Change is good: security does not exist. The slightest of circumstances can transform a king into a peasant. Chaos and discord rule the universe. Adapt or die. ◾Glamour is free: glamour is worthless unless used. Acquire it by any means possible, and you will never be without a constant supply. ◾Honor is a lie: honor has no place in the modern world. It is a fairy tale constructed to cover the essential emptiness behind most traditions. ◾Passion before duty: passion is the truest state of the fae spirit. Follow your instincts and act on your impulses. Live life to the fullest without regard to the consequences, they will come about regardless of what you do. Youth passes quickly, so have fun while you can. Death can come at any time, so live without regret.

Kiths

The standard kiths ◾Boggan - workers and busybodies, house fairies, gnomes; The dream of the home and the hearth and the people who tend it. ◾Eshu - African or Indian spirits; travellers, storytellers, adventurers. The dream of foreign and exotic people and places, and the freedom of travel. ◾Nocker - technological beings, like dwarves and gremlins. The dream of technological creativity and creation of your dreams, but also the frustration which people feel when their dreams fail to meet up with reality. ◾Pooka - tricksters, shapechangers, animal spirits. The dream of a carefree and less controlled life, similar to that of animals which the pooka have affinities with. ◾Redcap - murderers and cannibals, monsters, hobgoblins; Formed from the bottomless hunger which people felt in the depth of winter and the desperation which people felt to fight their hunger. ◾Satyr - lovers and revellers, horned god, Pan. Formed from the deep passions and lusts of mortals ◾Sidhe - the nobility, Lords and Ladies, elves, the Shining Host. The dream of all that is noble and honourable in leaders, but also the arrogance of many leaders ◾Sluagh - keepers of secrets, bogeymen, shadows. The dream of all creepy-crawly which crawl about in the dark of the night, tap on the windows and can never be seen in the clear light ◾Troll - honour-bound warriors, titans, giants. The dream of the honorable and chivalric warrior.

The Gallain - Kiths not from the corebook ◾The Nunnehi - This comprises 13 individual kiths, based on Native American geographies, tribes, lore, and archetypes; include the May-may-gway-shi, Rock Giants, Water Babies, Nanehi and Kachina among others. ◾The Thallain - Introduced in the Shadow Court book, these were dark reflections of the standard kith who had their origins in nightmares and were bent on malice and destruction. They had escaped into the mortal world along with the other members of the Shadow Court, and often pretended to be "normal" Changelings; include the Beasties (resembling Pookas), Boggarts (resembling Boggans), Bogies (resembling Sluagh), Ogres (resembling Trolls) and Goblins (resembling Nockers). ◾The Menehune - Similar to the Nunnehi, the Menehune are a race of their own existing only in Hawaii; they have their own Kiths which reflect their social roles. ◾The Inanimae - a series of 6 kiths, five of which are based on the classical elements (with earth split into rock and wood) and one based on human creations; their equivalent of the Court system is based on whether they are occur naturally or have been crafted somehow by humans. ◾Clurichaun - From the Immortal Eyes: Court of All Kings Sourcebook; leprechauns. ◾Piskies - childish tricksters, imps, pixies. ◾Selkies - Sea and seal spirits, skin changers. ◾Gillhe Dhu - tree spirits of Britain, dryads, the Green Man. (See also dryad.) ◾Kinain - technically not a fae kith themselves, these are humans with enough fae blood to work with glamour in the way changelings do. ◾Adhene - the Dark-kin that were released from their confines in the Dreaming after the destruction of the Ravnos Antediluvian. Many are allied with the Fomorians. ◾Spriggan - child thieves ◾River Hags - Closely related to Redcaps, but able to breathe water. Connected to some sort of river; cannot leave area of said river for more than a week without starting to die. ◾Oba - The little known nobility of the Eshu. Bound to land they rule over. Have perfect, regal features and glowing orbs for eyes. ◾

Hsien

Found in the book Land of Eight Million Dreams (by James A. Moore) these are the closest equivalent to kithain native to the realms of central and western Asia. More so than any other of the gallain, the hsien are not like standard changelings. They use an entirely different system of magic much closer to that of Mage: The Ascension. The closest analogue mythologically are the Hsien or Shinma, small gods who were once the servants of greater spirits and who now must secretly answer the prayers of the faithful. Rather than their souls being born into human bodies, Hsien appropriate the bodies and mortal personalities of the recently deceased, usually hiding the fact that they died at all. They are organised into ten "kwannon-jin", kith-like divisions which include the noble Kamuii and the commoner Hirayanu. ◾Each of the Kamuii are aligned with one of the five Chinese elements: Suijen (Water), Chu-ih-yu (Metal), Komuko (Earth), Hou-chi (Wood) and Chu Jung (Fire). ◾The Hirayanu are equivalent to the commoner kith; each can transform into a certain type of animal. There are five: the Nyan (cats), Tanuki (badgers), Hanumen (monkeys), Heng Po (usually fish, particularly carp or catfish, or sometimes dolphins) and Fu Hsi (snakes).

The Mer

Introduced in the Blood-Dimmed Tides World of Darkness sourcebook: Merfolk (Tritons, mermaids, mermen, the ocean's nobles and seducers) and Murdhuacha (pronounced me-ROO-cha; nucks, merrow, sea monsters). These two Kiths both begin life as Nereids (Mer children, or the "larval" stage) yet attain maturity by merging with an Apsara, a sea creature ritually bonded with the Nereid to form roughly half of the changeling's new body (usually the body's lower half and the extremities). Nereids whose Apsarae are bony fishes, sharks, cetaceans or even oceanic reptiles evolve into merfolk; Nereids who bond with crustaceans, jellyfish, squids, octopuses, worms or other oceanic invertebrates become murdhuacha. The two Kiths are traditionally mortal enemies, but the rising tides of Banality and the human defilement of the oceans have forced merfolk and murduacha into an unsteady truce.

History

Changeling was met with mixed response from the gaming community. While Changeling developed quite a devoted cult following, its themes and subject were often perceived as unnecessarily complex or too childish, and it was generally thought that the game was indecisively written (i.e., Is it a hopeful game about returning magic and imagination to a dull, banal world, or is it a depressed game of accepting the decay of all that is imaginative and colorful?) and White Wolf discontinued the game more than a year before the end of the World of Darkness line due to exceedingly low sales.

Time of Judgment, published in early 2004, included a chapter on the end of the world from a Changeling perspective, and was the last official published material for the game.

Dark Ages: Fae is a World of Darkness: Dark Ages game with strong links to Changeling.

Changeling in the new World of Darkness

In August 2006, White Wolf published Promethean: The Created, which included an advertisement for a 2007 version of Changeling, confirming the rumors that Changelings will appear in the New World of Darkness.

In April 2007, White Wolf unveiled the new "Changeling" line, Changeling: The Lost, and updated their site periodically with information about the new game. The game approaches changeling legends more traditionally: the characters are actual humans who were stolen by the Fae, taken to Arcadia as slaves, and finally escaped back to Earth. Their magical nature is the result of changes wrought upon them in the world of the Faerie. The types of changelings lack any direct connection to a particular culture's legends. The Fae are purely antagonists, while Courts are determined by the four seasons, and the spiritual and past life dimensions have been discarded.

Changeling: The Lost was released on August 16 of 2007.

See also ◾List of Changeling: The Dreaming books

References ◾Changeling: The Dreaming 2nd Edition - White Wolf Game Studio, ISBN 978-1-56504-716-7 ◾Changeling: The Dreaming Players Guide, 2nd Edition - by Phil Brucato, published by White Wolf, ISBN 978-1-56504-701-3 ◾The Shining Host- Changeling: The Dreaming for Mind's Eye Theatre - White Wolf Game Studio

External links ◾White Wolf Publishing, Inc. (http://www.white-wolf.com) ◾White Wolf's Official Changeling: The Dreaming wiki (https://web.archive.org/web/20131016071608/http://wiki.white-wolf.com:80/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Changeling%3A_The_Dreaming)

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Categories: Contemporary role-playing games Fantasy role-playing games World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 1995

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Wraith: The Oblivion

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wraith: The Oblivion

Wraithoblivi c.jpg Wraith: The Oblivion 2nd Edition cover

Designer(s) Mark Rein·Hagen, Sam Chupp, Jennifer Hartshorn

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date 1994 (1st edition) February 1, 1996 (2nd edition)

Genre(s) Horror

System(s) Storyteller System

Wraith: The Oblivion is a role-playing game designed by Mark Rein·Hagen. It is set in the afterlife of White Wolf Game Studio's classic World of Darkness setting, in which the players take on characters who are recently dead and are now ghosts.

Wraith: The Oblivion featured an artistically consistent depiction of the afterlife and strong emotional themes, but was the least commercially popular of the World of Darkness games. White Wolf discontinued their production of the game line in 1999, before having published all material that was originally planned.[1]

Following the game's cancellation in 1999, White Wolf revisited some of Wraith's themes in their role-playing miniseries Orpheus. Their 2009 release, Geist: The Sin-Eaters, worked as something of a spiritual successor to Wraith the Oblivion. In 2011, online role playing game store DriveThruRPG.com began offering the Wraith the Oblivion books in a print on demand format through the DriveThruRPG web site, making all books available for purchase once again.[2] A 20th Anniversary print edition has also been announced by Onyx Path Publishing. [3]

Contents [hide] ◾1 Main Concept ◾2 Setting ◾3 System ◾4 Books ◾5 References ◾6 External links

Main Concept

The game of Wraith: The Oblivion sets the players as characters who have recently died and found themselves within a grim afterlife. Characters have the options of struggling to find a means of ascending into a 'true' afterlife (referred to in the game as Transcendence), becoming embroiled in the politics of the afterlife's denizens, or gradually succumbing to the dreaded Oblivion that seeks to devour all newly deceased souls.

Wraiths draw their strengths from the passions that held them to the living world. In game-terms, each character possesses Fetters, representing an object, place or person which binds them to the world of the living, and Passions, representing an emotion that they have not resolved. Fetters allow a Wraith to remain close to the world of the living, while Passions allow them to gain emotional energy to sustain themselves. However, each Wraith also possesses a secondary personality called a Shadow. Their Shadow, often portrayed by another player, works to assert dominance over the character. The Shadow's motives are always self-destruction of the Wraith. With a mix of emotional fetters and the confrontational play style that the Shadow presents, games of Wraith: The Oblivion are often powerfully emotive.

Setting

Wraith: The Oblivion primarily takes place in the Deadlands of the western world. There are two main regions of the afterlife within the game's setting. The first is referred to as the Shadowlands, which is a darkened reflection of the living world. Wraiths can explore the landscapes and cities as they were during their mortal life, but are unable to interact with it in any meaningful way without the use of special ghostly powers called Arcanoi.

Deeper into the underworld is the Tempest, a perpetually churning chaotic sea of darkness. Within the Tempest are several islands of stable reality, the largest one of which in the western world is the Empire of Stygia (also called the Dark Kingdom of Iron), a massive city-state founded by the legendary Charon. Stygia's authoritarian governing body, The Hierarchy, stands opposed to the disparate Renegades, who challenge its rulership for any number of political reasons, and to the Heretics, cults formed in search of Transcendence (officially proclaimed by the Hierarchy to be neither possible nor desirable). Unaffiliated wraiths are referred to as Freewraiths. The game permits the players to select any of these factions as playable options.

All Wraiths are constantly at risk from Spectres, beings which serve Oblivion and lurk within the seas of the Tempest. Most Spectres are the result of a Shadow taking complete control over a Wraith's personality. They are ruled in sections by ultra-powerful beings known as Malfeans (nightmarish eldritch entities that exist outside of reality). Ferrymen also exist, lone pathfinders who exist above political concern and act as guides through the Tempest and withstand the threat of the Spectres.

Because of the risk of the Spectres, the Hierarchy maintains their own standing army, divided into multiple different Legions based on cause of death. As well as striving to drive back the threat of the Spectres, each Legion's commanding Lord or Lady vies for control over Stygia for their own ends. The slave trade is highly active within the Hierarchy, with many Wraiths bought and sold for trade. Also, as physical objects rarely exist within the afterlife, some unfortunate Wraiths may be subjected to 'Soulforging', a process that renders them into inanimate objects - for example, each coin that exists for trade within Stygia is created from one forged Wraith.

Other Dark Kingdoms also exist in the Tempest, each claiming dominion over the Wraiths of a particular geographical region, such as the Bush of Ghosts, also known as the Dark Kingdom of Ivory, which holds sway over Africa's dead, and the Yellow Springs, also known as the Dark Kingdom of Jade, which rules over the dead of China and surrounding countries.

System

Wraith: The Oblivion uses White Wolf's Storyteller System. As in all Storyteller System games, there are several special rules and systems that support the theme of the game. The most notable are: PathosPathos is an emotional energy that the Wraith is able to draw from their Passions. They can use this to power their various Arcanoi abilities, to resist their Shadow, and to heal their Corpus.Corpus (Health)As the characters are already dead, they do not necessarily sustain physical damage from attacks. Instead, they have a rating score called Corpus which measures their ability to maintain physical integrity. When Corpus falls to zero, a wraith may undergo a Harrowing, a nightmarish psychodrama which pits the wraith against his/her Shadow in a battle for control.ArcanoiArcanoi, the magical abilities Wraiths can use, are open to most Wraiths, with members of secret groups called Guilds specializing in their use. Although membership within a Guild is outlawed by the oppressive Hierarchy, they still exist in secret and are playable options within the game. The Arcanoi and their respective Guilds are:◾Inhabit: the art of possessing inanimate objects, a skill of the Artificers' Guild ◾Keening: the art of inducing emotion through song, a skill of the Chanteurs' Guild ◾Argos: the art of Underworld travel, especially in the Tempest, a skill of the Harbingers' Guild ◾Pandemonium: the art of causing chaos in the traditional "ghostly" manner, a skill of the Haunters' Guild ◾Moliate: the art of bodily transfiguration (similar to Soulforging), a skill of the Masquers' Guild ◾Lifeweb: the art of manipulating Fetters and their connections to the wraiths who possess them, a skill of the Monitors' Guild ◾Fatalism: the art of reading a wraith's past, present, and future, a skill of the Oracles' Guild ◾Castigate: the art of taming the Shadows of other wraiths, a skill of the Pardoners' Guild ◾Embody: the art of manifesting in the mortal world, a skill of the Proctors' Guild ◾Puppetry: the art of possessing mortals, a skill of the Puppeteers' Guild ◾Phantasm: the art of interacting with the dreams of mortals, a skill of the Sandmen's Guild ◾Outrage: the art of using telekinetic force, usually manifesting as traditional "poltergeist" activity, a skill of the Spooks' Guild ◾Usury: the art of manipulating and drawing on the emotional power of Pathos, a skill of the Usurers' Guild

Other Arcanoi exist in the possession of minor Guilds and other Dark Kingdoms. Spectres also possess their own Dark Arcanoi in addition to the standard wraithly Arcanoi.

Books ◾Wraith: The Oblivion. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-133-X. WW6000. ◾Wraith Storyteller's Kit. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-168-2. WW6002. ◾Love Beyond Death. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-611-0. WW6004. ◾The Face of Death. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-122-4. WW6005. ◾Haunts. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-610-2. WW6060. ◾Wraith Players Kit. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-132-1. WW6100. ◾Midnight Express. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-156-9. WW6101. ◾Necropolis: Atlanta. White Wolf. 1994. ISBN 1-56504-164-X. WW6200. ◾Sea of Shadows. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-612-9. WW6006. ◾Wraith Players Guide. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-601-3. WW6007. ◾The Quick & the Dead. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-613-7. WW6008. ◾The Hierarchy. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-614-5. WW6009. ◾Guildbook: Artificers. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-661-7. WW6300. ◾Guildbook: Sandmen. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-662-5. WW6301. ◾Dark Kingdom of Jade. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-615-3. WW6010. ◾Guildbook: Masquers. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-604-8. WW6011. ◾Dark Kingdom of Jade Adventures. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-617-X. WW6012. ◾Reflections: Spectres. White Wolf. 1995. ISBN 1-56504-650-1. WW6902. ◾The Risen. White Wolf. 1996. ISBN 1-56504-663-3. WW6302. ◾Wraith: The Oblivion, 2nd Ed. White Wolf. 1996. ISBN 1-56504-600-5. WW6600. ◾Buried Secrets. White Wolf. 1996. ISBN 1-56504-603-X. WW6601. ◾Shadow Players Guide. White Wolf. 1997. ISBN 1-56504-602-1. WW6013. ◾Mediums: Speakers with the Dead. White Wolf. 1997. ISBN 1-56504-619-6. WW6102. ◾Guildbook: Haunters. White Wolf. 1997. ISBN 1-56504-604-8. WW6303. ◾Guildbook: Pardoners and Puppeteers. White Wolf. 1997. ISBN 1-56504-665-X. WW6304. ◾Charnel Houses of Europe: The Shoah. White Wolf. 1997. ISBN 1-56504-651-X. WW6903. ◾Guildbook: Spooks and Oracles. White Wolf. 1998. ISBN 1-56504-666-8. WW6305. ◾Doomslayers: Into the Labyrinth. White Wolf. 1998. ISBN 1-56504-635-8. WW6064. ◾Renegades. White Wolf. 1998. ISBN 1-56504-636-6. WW6065. ◾The Book of Legions. White Wolf. 1998. ISBN 1-56504-652-8. WW6063. ◾World of Darkness: Tokyo. White Wolf. 1998. ISBN 1-56504-633-1. WW6103. ◾Wraith: The Great War. White Wolf. 1999. ISBN 1-56504-634-X. WW6800. ◾Ends of Empire. White Wolf. 1999. ISBN 1-56504-618-8. WW6014.

References

1. Darker Days Radio Episode #20. "Interview with Richard Dansky" (http://darkerdays2.podbean.com/2010/08/27/darker-days-radio-episode-20/). Darker Days Podcast. Retrieved 2011-07-23. 2. DriveThru RPG web site. "Wraith the Oblivion Catelogue" (http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/index.php?cPath=43). Website. Retrieved 2013-09-06. 3. Onyx Path Publishing. "The Onyx Path Publishing Wraith the Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition Announcement" (http://theonyxpath.com/wraith-the-oblivion-20th-anniversary-edition/). Website. Retrieved 2013-09-06.

External links ◾White Wolf's Official Wraith: The Oblivion wiki (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Wraith%3A_The_Oblivion_Second_Edition)

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Categories: World of Darkness Role-playing games introduced in 1994

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Mage: The Ascension

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Mage: The Ascension

Mageasce c.JPG Mage: The Ascension (Revised Edition) cover

Designer(s) Stewart Wieck, Christopher Earley, Stephan Wieck, Bill Bridges, Sam Chupp, Andrew Greenberg

Publisher(s) White Wolf

Publication date 1993 (1st edition) 1995 (2nd edition) 2000 (Revised edition) 2015 (20th anniversary edition)

Genre(s) Modern Mysticism

System(s) Storyteller System

Mage: The Ascension is a role-playing game based in the World of Darkness, and was published by White Wolf Game Studio. The characters portrayed in the game are referred to as mages, and are capable of feats of magic. The idea of magic in Mage is broadly inclusive of diverse ideas about mystical practices as well as other belief systems, such as science and religion, so that most mages do not resemble typical fantasy wizards.

In 2005, White Wolf released a new version of the game, marketed as Mage: The Awakening, for the new World of Darkness series. The new game features some of the same game mechanics but uses a substantially different premise and setting.

Contents [hide] ◾1 History ◾2 Lore ◾3 Game setting ◾3.1 History ◾3.1.1 Early times ◾3.1.2 The Order of Reason ◾3.1.3 Rise of the Technocracy ◾3.1.4 Contemporary setting ◾3.1.5 Later plot and finale

◾4 Factions ◾4.1 Council of Nine Mystic Traditions ◾4.2 The Technocratic Union ◾4.3 Marauders ◾4.4 Nephandi ◾4.5 Others

◾5 Rules and continuity ◾5.1 Correspondence ◾5.2 Entropy ◾5.3 Forces ◾5.4 Life ◾5.5 Mind ◾5.6 Matter ◾5.7 Prime ◾5.8 Spirit ◾5.9 Time ◾5.10 The tenth sphere ◾5.11 Sphere sigils

◾6 See also ◾7 References ◾8 External links

History

Following the release of Vampire: The Masquerade, White Wolf put out a new roleplaying game every year, each set in Vampire's World of Darkness and using its Storyteller rule system. The next four games were: Werewolf: The Apocalypse (1992), Mage: The Ascension (1993), Wraith: The Oblivion (1994) and Changeling: The Dreaming (1995).[1]:217–218 Mage was the first World of Darkness game that Mark Rein•Hagen was not explicitly involved with, although it featured the Order of Hermes from his Ars Magica as just a single tradition among many.[1]:218

Lore

The basic premise of Mage: The Ascension is that everyone has the capacity, at some level, to shape reality. This capacity, personified as a mysterious alter-ego called the Avatar, is dormant in most people, who are known as sleepers, whereas Magi (and/or their Avatars) are said to be Awakened. Because they're awakened, Magi can consciously effect changes to reality via willpower, beliefs, and specific magical techniques.

The beliefs and techniques of Magi vary enormously, and the ability to alter reality can only exist in the context of a coherent system of belief and technique, called a paradigm. A paradigm organizes a Mage's understanding of reality, how the universe works, and what things mean. It also provides the Mage with an understanding of how to change reality, through specific magical techniques. For example, an alchemical paradigm might describe the act of wood burning as the wood "releasing its essence of elemental Fire," while modern science would describe fire as "combustion resulting from a complex chemical reaction." Paradigms tend to be idiosyncratic to the individual Mage, but the vast majority belong to broad categories of paradigm, e.g., Shamanism, Medieval Sorcery, religious miracle working, and superscience.

In the Mage setting, everyday reality is governed by commonsense rules derived from the collective beliefs of sleepers. This is called the consensus. Most Magi's paradigms differ substantially from the consensus. When a mage performs an act of magic that does not seriously violate this commonsense version of reality, in game terms this is called coincidental magic. Magic that deviates wildly from consensus is called vulgar or dynamic magic. When it is performed ineptly, or is vulgar, and especially if it is vulgar and witnessed by sleepers, magic can cause Paradox, a phenomenon in which reality tries to resolve contradictions between the consensus and the Mage's efforts. Paradox is difficult to predict and almost always bad for the mage. The most common consequences of paradox include physical damage directly to the Mage's body, and paradox flaws, magic-like effects which can for example turn the mage's hair green, make him mute, make him incapable of leaving a certain location, and so on. In more extreme cases paradox can cause Quiet (madness that may leak into reality), Paradox Spirits (nebulous, often powerful beings which purposefully set about resolving the contradiction, usually by directly punishing the mage), or even the removal of the Mage to a paradox realm, a pocket dimension from which it may be difficult to escape.

In Mage, there is an underlying framework to reality called the Tapestry. The Tapestry is naturally divided into various sections, including the physical realm and various levels of the spirit world, or Umbra. At the most basic level, the Tapestry is composed of Quintessence, the essence of magic and what is real. Quintessence can have distinctive characteristics, called resonance, which are broken down into three categories: dynamic, static, and entropic.

In order to understand the metaphysics of the Mage setting, it is important to remember that many of the terms used to describe magic and Magi e.g., Avatar, Quintessence, the Umbra, and Paradox, Resonance, as well as the game mechanics a player uses to describe the areas of magic in which his character is proficient—the Spheres, look, mean, and are understood vary depending on the paradigm of the Mage in question, even though they are often, in the texts of the game, described from particular paradigmatic points-of-view. In-character, only a Mage's Paradigm can explain what each of these things are, what they mean, and why it's the way it is.

Game setting

History

Early times

In the game, Mages have always existed, though there are legends of the Pure Ones who were shards of the original, divine One. Early mages cultivated their magical beliefs alone or in small groups, generally conforming to and influencing the belief systems of their societies. Obscure myths suggest that the precursors of the modern organizations of mages originally gathered in ancient Egypt. This period of historical uncertainty also saw the rise of the Nephandi in the Near East. This set the stage for what the game's history calls the Mythic Ages.

Until the late Middle Ages, mages' fortunes waxed and waned along with their native societies. Eventually, though, mages belonging to the Order of Hermes and the Messianic Voices attained great influence over European society. However, absorbed by their pursuit of occult power and esoteric knowledge, they often neglected and even abused humanity. Frequently, they were at odds with mainstream religions, envied by noble authorities and cursed by common folk.

The Order of Reason

Mages who believed in proto-scientific theories banded together under the banner of the Order of Reason, declaring their aim was to create a safe world with Man as its ruler. They won the support of Sleepers by developing the useful arts of manufacturing, economics, wayfaring, and medicine. They also championed many of the values that we now associate with the Renaissance. Masses of Sleepers embraced the gifts of early Technology and the Science that accompanied them. As the masses' beliefs shifted, the Consensus changed and wizards began to lose their position as their power and influence waned.

This was intentional. The Order of Reason perceived a safe world as one devoid of heretical beliefs, ungodly practices and supernatural creatures preying upon humanity. As the defenders of the common folk, they intended to replace the dominant magical groups with a society of philosopher-scientists as shepherds, protecting and guiding humanity. In response, non-scientific mages banded together to form the Council of Nine Traditions where mages of all the major magical paths gathered. They fought on battlefields and in universities trying to undermine as many discoveries as they could, but to no avail - technology made the march of Science unstoppable. The Traditions' power bases were crippled, their believers mainly converted, their beliefs ridiculed all around the world. Their final counteroffensives against the Order of Reason were foiled by internal dissent and treachery in their midst.

Rise of the Technocracy

However, from the turn of the 17th century on, the goals of the Order of Reason began to change. As their scientific paradigm unfolded, they decided that the mystical beliefs of the common people were not only backward, but dangerous, and that they should be replaced by cold, measurable and predictable physical laws and respect for human genius. They replaced long-held theologies, pantheons, and mystical traditions with ideas like rational thought and the scientific method. As more and more sleepers began to use the Order's discoveries in their everyday lives, Reason and rationality came to govern their beliefs, and the old ways came to be regarded as misguided superstition. However, the Order of Reason became less and less focused on improving the daily lives of sleepers and more concerned with eliminating any resistance to their choke-hold on the minds of humanity. Ever since a reorganization performed under Queen Victoria in the late 1800s, they call themselves the Technocracy.

Contemporary setting

The Technocracy espouses an authoritarian rule over Sleepers' beliefs, while suppressing the Council of Nine's attempts to reintroduce magic. The Traditions replenished their numbers (which had been diminished by the withdrawal of two Traditions, the secretive Ahl-i-Batin, and the Solificati, alchemists plagued by scandal) with former Technocrats from the Sons of Ether and Virtual Adepts factions, vying for the beliefs of sleepers and with the Technocracy, and perpetually wary of the Nephandi (who consciously embrace evil and service to a demonic or alien master) and the Marauders (who resist Paradox with a magical form of madness). While the Technocracy's propaganda campaigns were effective in turning the Consensus against mystic and heterodox science, the Traditions maintained various resources, including magical nodes, hidden schools and fortresses called Chantries, and various realms outside of the Consensus in the Umbra.

Finally, from 1997–2000, a series of metaplot events destroyed the Council of Nine's Umbral steadings, killing many of their most powerful members. This also cut the Technocracy off from their leadership. Both sides called a truce in their struggle to assess their new situation, especially since these events implied that Armageddon was soon at hand. Chief among these signs was creation of a barrier between the physical world and spirit world. This barrier was called the Avatar Storm because it affected the Avatar of the Mage. This Avatar Storm was the result of a battle in India on the so-called "Week of Nightmares."

These changes were introduced in supplements for the second edition of the game and became core material in the third edition.

Later plot and finale

Aside from common changes introduced by the World of Darkness metaplot, mages dealt with renewed conflict when the hidden Rogue Council and the Technocracy's Panopticon encouraged the Traditions and Technocracy to struggle once again. The Rogue Council only made itself known through coded missives, while Panopticon was apparently created by the leaders of the Technocracy to counter it.

This struggle eventually led to the point on the timeline occupied by the book called Ascension. While the entire metaplot has always been meant to be altered as each play group sees fit, Ascension provided multiple possible endings, with none of them being definitive (though one was meant to resolve the metaplot). Thus, there is no definitive canonical ending. Since the game is meant to be adapted to a group's tastes, the importance of this and the preceding storyline is largely a matter of personal preference.

Factions

The metaplot of the game involves a four-way struggle between the technological and authoritarian Technocracy, the insane Marauders, the cosmically evil Nephandi and the nine mystical Traditions (that tread the middle path), to which the player characters are assumed to belong. (This struggle has in every edition of the game been characterized both as primarily a covert, violent war directly between factions, and primarily as an effort to sway the imaginations and beliefs of sleepers.)

Council of Nine Mystic Traditions

The Traditions (formally called the Nine Mystic Traditions) are a fictional alliance of secret societies in the Mage: the Ascension role-playing game. The Traditions exist to unify users of magic under a common banner to protect reality (particularly those parts of reality that are magical) against the growing disbelief of the modern world, the spreading dominance of the Technocracy, and the predations of unstable mages such as Marauders and Nephandi. Each of the Traditions are largely independent organizations unified by a broadly accepted paradigm for practicing magic. The Traditions themselves vary substantially from one another. Some have almost no structure or rules, while others have rigid rules of protocol, etiquette, and rank. Though unified in their desire to keep magic alive, the magic practiced by different Traditions are often wildly different and entirely incompatible with one another. Understanding Traditions as a whole requires understanding each Tradition separately, and then assembling them into a somewhat cohesive whole.

The nine traditions are: the Akashic Brotherhood, Celestial Chorus, Cult of Ecstasy, Dreamspeakers, Euthanatos, Order of Hermes, Sons of Ether, Verbena and Virtual Adepts. ◾Mages of Akashic Brotherhood are ascetics, martial artists, and monks, largely drawing from Buddhism, Taoism, Shinto, Hinduism and other such religions. They are masters of the sphere of Mind. ◾Mages of Celestial Chorus are pious believers in a supreme being that encompasses all Gods ever worshipped. They are masters of the sphere of Prime, the raw essence that fuels magic itself. ◾Mages of Cult of Ecstasy are intuitive seers using sensory stimulation, consciousness-expanding techniques, and meditation. They are masters of the sphere of Time. ◾Mages of Dreamspeakers are shamanistic emissaries to the spirit world. They are masters of Spirit magic, such as summoning or binding spirits, necromancy, creating fetishes and travelling to the Umbra. ◾Mages of Euthanatos are Thanatoic willworkers and killers drawing from a legacy of death-cults in India, Greece, and the cultures of the Arabs and Celts. They are masters of the sphere of Entropy. ◾Mages of Order of Hermes are formalized sorcerers, alchemists, and mystics drawing from classical occult practices. They are masters of the sphere of Forces. ◾Mages of Sons of Ether are inspiration-oriented scientists dedicated to fringe theories and alternative science. They are masters of the sphere of Matter. ◾Mages of Verbena are blood-shamans, healers and primordial witches and warlocks. They are masters of the sphere of Life. ◾Mages of Virtual Adepts are technological adepts capable of informational wizardry. They are masters of the sphere of Correspondence, magic dealing with three-dimensional location, space, and communications.

The Technocratic Union

The Technocracy is likewise divided into groups; unlike the Traditions, however, they share a single paradigm, and instead divide themselves based upon methodologies and areas of expertise. ◾Technocrats of Iteration X are experts in the arena of the physical sciences, especially when it comes to mechanical and robotic advancements. ◾Technocratic Progenitors, on the other hand, are masters of the biological sciences as a whole, including genetic engineering and the medical science. ◾Technocrats of the New World Order maintain control of information and knowledge, controlling the thoughts and actions of the masses by directing what they learn and see. ◾Technocrats of the Syndicate control the flow of money and power—though the two are frequently the same thing—between disparate groups. ◾Technocratic members of the Void Engineers are explorers of the unknown. In the modern day, this not only extends to outer space, but to extradimensional planes of existence.

Marauders

The Marauders are a group of mages that embody Dynamism. Marauders are chaos mages. They are completely insane. To other mages, they appear immune to paradox effects, often using vulgar magic to accomplish their insane tasks. Marauders represent the other narrative extreme, the repellent and frightening corruption of unrestrained power, of dynamism unchecked. Marauders are insane mages whose Avatars have been warped by their mental instability, and who exist in a state of permanent Quiet. While the nature of a Marauder's power may make them seem invincible, they are still severely hampered by their madness. They cannot become Archmages, as they lack sufficient insight and are incapable of appreciating truths which do not suit their madness. In the second edition of Mage: The Ascension, Marauders were much more cogent and likely to operate in groups, with the Umbral Underground using the Umbra to infiltrate any location and wreak havoc with the aid of bygones. They were also associated heavily with other perceived agents of Dynamism, particularly the Changing Breeds (who equate Dynamism with the Wyld) and sometimes Changelings. For example, the Marauders chapter in The Book of Madness is narrated by a Corax (were-raven) named Johnny Gore, who relates his experiences running with the Butcher Street Regulars. In the revised edition, Marauders were made darker and less coherent, in keeping with the more serious treatment of madness used for Malkavians in Vampire: The Masquerade Revised Edition. The Avatar Storm was a very convenient explanation for the Underground's loss of power and influence, though they also became more vulnerable to Paradox. In this edition, the Regulars are a cell of the Underground, and like the other cells have highly compatible Quiets.

Nephandi

With the Technocracy representing Stasis and the Marauders acting on behalf of Dynamism, the third part of this trifecta is Entropy, as borne by the Nephandi. While other mages may be callous or cruel, the Nephandi are morally inverted and spiritually mutilated. While a Traditionalist or Technocrat may simply fall prey to human failings or excessive zeal in their ethos, while a Marauder may well commit some true atrocities in the depth of her incurable madness; a Nephandus retains a clear moral compass, and deliberately pursues actions to worsen the world and bring about its final end. To this end, the Technocracy and Traditions have been known to set aside the ongoing war for reality to temporarily join forces to oppose the Nephandi. Some of their members, called barabbi, hail from the Technocracy and Traditions, but all Nephandi have experienced the Rebirth, wherein they embrace the antithesis of everything they know to be right, and are physically and spiritually torn apart and reassembled. This metamorphosis has a sort of terrible permanence to it: while each Mage's avatar will be reborn again and again, theirs is permanently twisted as a result of their rebirth: known as Widderslainte, these mages awaken as Nephandi. While some of the background stories detail a particular mage and her teacher trying—and succeeding—at keeping her from falling again, this is very rare.

Others

Another tradition, but not part of the nine are the mages of Ahl-i-Batin (also known as The Subtle Ones). They are masters of the Correspondence Sphere and former holders of the seat now held by the Virtual Adepts. Others include Crafts, The Taftani and the Hollow Ones.

Rules and continuity

The core rules of the game are similar to those in other World of Darkness games; see Storyteller System for an explanation.

Like other storytelling games Mage emphasizes personal creativity and that ultimately the game's powers and traits should be used to tell a satisfying story. One of Mage's highlights is its system for describing magic, based on spheres, a relatively open-ended 'toolkit' approach to using game mechanics to define the bounds of a given character's magical ability. Different Mages will have differing aptitudes for spheres, and player-characters' magical expertise is described by allocation of points in the spheres.

There are nine known spheres:

Correspondence

Deals with spatial relations, giving the Mage power over space and distances. Correspondence magic allows powers such as teleportation, seeing into distant areas, and at higher levels the Mage may also co-locate herself or even stack different spaces within each other. Correspondence can be combined with almost any other sphere to create effects that span distances.

Entropy

This sphere gives the Mage power over order, chaos, fate and fortune. A mage can sense where elements of chance influence the world and manipulate them to some degree. At simple levels machines can be made to fail, plans to go off without a hitch, and games of chance heavily influenced. Advanced mages can craft self-propagating memes or curse entire family lines with blights. The only requirement of the Entropy sphere is that all interventions work within the general flow of natural entropy.

Forces

Forces concerns energies and natural forces and their negative opposites (i.e. light and shadow can both be manipulated independently with this Sphere). Essentially, anything in the material world that can be seen or felt but is not material can be controlled: electricity, gravity, magnetism, friction, heat, motion, fire, etc. At low levels the mage can control forces on a small scale, changing their direction, converting one energy into another. At high levels, storms and explosions can be conjured. Obviously, this Sphere tends to do the most damage and is the most flashy and vulgar. Along with Life and Matter, Forces is one of the three 'Pattern Spheres' which together are able to mold all aspects of the physical world.

Life

Life deals with understanding and influencing biological systems. Generally speaking, any material object with mostly living cells falls under the influence of this sphere. Simply, this allows the mage to heal herself or transform simple life-forms at lower levels, working up to healing others and controlling more complex life at higher levels. Usually, seeking to improve a complex life-form beyond natural limits causes the condition of pattern bleeding: the affected life form begins to wither and die over time. Along with Matter and Forces, Life is one of the three Pattern Spheres.

Mind

Dealing with control over one's own mind, the reading and influencing of other minds, and a variety of subtler applications such as Astral Projection and psychometry. At high levels, Mages can create new complete minds or completely rework existing ones.

Matter

Matter deals with all inanimate material. Thus, being alive protects a thing from direct manipulation by the Matter sphere. Stone, dead wood, water, gold, and the corpses of once living things are only the beginning. With this Sphere, matter can be reshaped mentally, transmuted into another substance, or given altered properties. Along with Life and Forces, Matter is one of the three Pattern Spheres.

Prime

This sphere deals directly with Quintessence, the raw material of the tapestry, which is the metaphysical structure of reality. This sphere allows Quintessence to be channeled and/or funneled in any way at higher levels, and it is necessary if the mage ever wants to conjure something out of nothing(as opposed to transforming one pattern into another). Uses of Prime include general magic senses, counter-magic, and making magical effects permanent.

Spirit

This sphere is an eclectic mixture of abilities relating to dealings with the spirit world or Umbra. It includes stepping into the Near Umbra right up to traveling through outer space, contacting and controlling spirits, communing with your own or others' avatars, returning a Mage into a sleeper, returning ghosts to life, creating magical fetish items, and so forth. Unlike other Spheres, the difficulty of Spirit magic is often a factor of the Gauntlet, making these spells harder for the most part. The Sphere is referred to as Dimensional Science by the Technocratic Union.

Time

This sphere deals with dilating, slowing, stopping or traveling through time. Due to game mechanics, it is simpler to travel forward in time than backwards. Time can be used to install delays into spells, view the past or future, and even pull people and objects out of linear progression. Time magic offers one means to speed up a character to get multiple actions in a combat round, a much coveted power in turn-based role-playing.

The tenth sphere

One of the plot hooks that the second edition books put forth were persistent rumors of a "tenth sphere". Though there were hints, it was deliberately left vague. The final book in the line, Ascension implies that the tenth sphere is the sphere of Ascension (in as much as spheres are practically relevant at that point in the story). As the book presents alternative resolutions for the Mage line, Chapter Two also presents an alternative interpretation that the tenth sphere is "Judgement" or "Telos" and that Anthelios (the red star in the World of Darkness metaplot) is its planet (each sphere has an associated planet and Umbral realm).

Sphere sigils

The various sphere sigils are, in whole or in part, symbols taken from alchemical texts.[2][3] ◾Correspondence is a symbol for amalgam or amalgamation, "Amalgama". ◾Entropy is a symbol for rotting or decay, "Putredo/putrefactio". ◾The sigil of Forces is part of the symbol for "boiling," "Ebbulio". ◾Life is a symbol for composition, "Compositio". ◾As with Correspondence, the sigil of Matter is another symbol for the process of amalgamation, "Amalgama". ◾Mind is a symbol for solution, "Solutio". ◾Prime is a symbol meaning essence, "Essentia". ◾Spirit may be derived from the symbol for fumes, "Fumus". ◾Time is the symbol for dust, "Pulvis". ◾The tenth symbol depicted in Ascension is a symbol for vinegar.[4] Mage: The Sorcerer's Crusade also presented a symbol for the tenth sphere, a combination of the symbols for stone and distillation.[5]

The third revision of the rules, Mage: The Ascension Revised, made significant changes to the rules and setting, mainly to update Mage with respect to its own ongoing storyline, particularly in regards to events that occurred during the run of the game's second edition. (Like other World of Darkness games, Mage uses a continuing storyline across all of its books).

See also ◾List of Mage: The Ascension books

References 1. Shannon Appelcline (2011). Designers & Dragons. Mongoose Publishing. ISBN 978-1-907702-58-7. 2. From Symbols, Signs and Signets, Lehner, Ernst (1950) published by World Publishing Co., Cleveland by way of a post to Everything2.com (http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=812282) (possibly containing the archived contents of an email to the old wizards.com Mage email list). Accessed 15 December 2006. 3. Latin terms obtained from The alchemy website (http://www.levity.com/alchemy/alchemical_symbols00.html)'s copy of symbols from Medicinisch-Chymisch- und Alchemistisches Oraculum, Ulm, 1755. Accessed 15 December 2006. 4. Symbols.com (http://www.symbols.com/encyclopedia/41b/41b32.html), accessed 15 December 2006 5. A post to Bill's Mage Forum (http://www.auterytech.com/enantiodromos/MtAForum.html) by Enantiodromos, 14 September 2003

External links ◾Official page (https://web.archive.org/web/20080212012215/http://www.white-wolf.com/Games/Pages/MageHome.html) ◾GURPS edition (http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/MageTheAscension/)

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Categories: Mage: The Ascension Origins Award winners Role-playing games introduced in 1993

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Werewolf: The Apocalypse

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Werewolf: The Apocalypse

Werewolf - The Apocalypse cover.jpg Werewolf: The Apocalypse (Revised edition) cover

Designer(s) Mark Rein·Hagen

Publisher(s) White Wolf (1992 to 2004) Onyx Path Publishing (since 2012)

Publication date 1992 (1st edition) 1994 (2nd edition) 2000 (Revised edition) 2013 (20th Anniversary E.)[1]

Genre(s) Savage Horror

System(s) Storyteller System

Werewolf: The Apocalypse is a role-playing game from the Classic World of Darkness line by White Wolf Publishing. Other related products include the Collectible card games named Rage[2] and several novels (including one series). In the game, players take the role of werewolves known as Garou (from the French 'loup garou'). These Garou are usually warriors who are locked in a two-front war against both the spiritual desolation of urban civilization and supernatural forces of corruption that seek to bring about the Apocalypse. Game supplements detail other shapeshifters.

Along with the other titles in the World of Darkness, Werewolf was discontinued in 2004. Its successor title within the New World of Darkness, Werewolf: The Forsaken, was released on March 14, 2005.

In 2011 new publications for the Classic World of Darkness were announced, including a 20th Anniversary Edition of Werewolf: The Apocalypse.[3] The Werewolf Translation Guide is the first new publication, being available in April 2012.[4] Also older Classic World of Darkness books are made gradually available as Print on Demand-Versions, through DriveThruRPG (http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/?).[5]

As revealed at GenCon in August 2012, Werewolf: The Apocalypse is among the White Wolf properties licensed to be developed by Onyx Path Publishing.[6]

Contents [hide] ◾1 Premise ◾2 Fictional history ◾3 Player character creation of the Garou ◾4 Changing Breeds ◾5 List of books ◾5.1 Print on Demand

◾6 Tie-ins and adaptations ◾7 References ◾8 External links

Premise

The basic premise of the game is that the player characters are Garou. Specifically player characters usually are supposed to have undergone some training as Garou and succeeded in an initiation rite known as the Rite of Passage. After this, they are considered of Cliath rank (see Rank). Usually the player characters form a pack and work together to gain renown among the other Garou, so that they can advance in rank.

The game takes place in a fictional version of our Earth, a secret world, where werewolves, vampires, and other legendary creatures secretly live beside humans. However, it is a dark reflection of our world, filled with corruption, apathy, violence and hopelessness. The setting is also described as Gothic-Punk."

The Garou battle to maintain this world before all the negativity leads to a total collapse, the titular Apocalypse. They do so hidden from the public eye and live in secret from humanity in general. In their war the Garou often hunt down and kill humans or supernatural creatures that either actively pursue the Apocalypse or unwittingly contribute to it, due to their parasitic nature. This includes fallen Garou, vampires, evil spirits, mages/sorcerers, and humans (and other creatures) possessed by demons or evil spirits. In doing so, the Garou regard themselves as the immune system of the planet, after a fashion.

Other themes of the game include the inability of the Garou to live as/among humans, although they were born in human form due to The Curse, interaction with spirits that today are separated from the physical world in a realm the Garou can enter.

Fictional history

According to Garou oral history, it has always been their duty to maintain the balance of nature on behalf of Gaia. They have done so by culling overgrown populations, hunting too powerful predators that would otherwise rampage unchecked and fending off otherwordly spirits that overstepped their stance. In addition they believe in the existence of the Triat, a trio of deities that define how the world works: the Weaver is the deity of order and scientific advancement, the Wyld is the deity of creation and chaos, while the Wyrm is the deity of entropy and charged with keeping the balance between order and chaos. At some point, the Weaver went mad by trying to bring the entirety of the Wyld's chaos into order and in doing so, trapped the Wyrm in her Pattern Web, injuring it while also driving it to madness and making it seek out the destruction of the world of Gaia's creation.

The formation of nations and cities was the first radical change wrought on the Garou by humanity. The Garou prevented it by declaring a limited war upon humanity, a period known as the Impergium. During this time, Garou are credited with destroying large human cities, retarding the technological and scientific progress of the human race, and even imposing population caps upon the humans of any given area, killing and sometimes eating humans when they grew too numerous. Though the Impergium dates back to the Mythic Age before recorded history (occurring over a period of approximately 3,000 years between 13,000 and 10,000 years ago), humanity has retained an inborn fear of the Garou. Humans seeing Garou in their hybrid (Crinos) form are usually struck with a condition known as Delirium, a state of panic and denial that has been largely responsible for modern humanity's disbelief of the existence of the Garou. Most humans who have suffered from Delirium either have very little memory of the incident that caused it or they rationalize it and remember an animal attack or the work of a psychopathic human. Subconsciously, however, the human may experience an aversion to wolves and other canids in general or to the particular Garou they witnessed. The memory loss or rationalization of events as well as the fact that the general public is unaware of werewolf existence is called The Veil (not to be confused with the mystical barrier between material and spiritual world called The Gauntlet).

Following the end of the Impergium, the Garou maintained an active but subtle role in the direction of humanity through the Industrial Revolution and to the present. During such time the Garou waged war with the other Fera, dramatically reducing the numbers of the other shifters as well as completely destroying at least 2 Fera breeds (the Apis were-bulls and Grondr were-boars); this time is known as the War of Rage. The War of Rage lasted approximately another 3,000 years after the end of the Impergium, and the Garou claim that it was started when the Gurahl were-bears refused their duty to teach the Garou a powerful rite.

During the period of the "taming of the West" in America in the 1700-1800s, the Garou engaged in a second War of Rage against not just the Fera of the New World, but against their own brethren, the Native American tribes of Garou (who call themselves the Pure Ones); in this war, the Garou exterminated the Camazotz were-bats and drove their totem, Bat, to madness and the service of the Wyrm. The careless progress of the European Garou (called Wyrmcomers by the Pure Ones) also severed the mystical bonds restraining a powerful bane (a spirit servitor of the Wyrm). This bane captured and devoured a powerful servant of the Weaver, combining their essences and becoming the Storm-Eater. The Storm-Eater whipped the umbra of the West into a terrible frenzy resembling an earthly storm, gaining it the nickname "Storm Umbra," and further threatened to bring on an early Apocalypse. The Storm-Eater was eventually re-bound by the sacrifice of 13 Elder Garou and the execution of the Rite of Still Skies (discovered by the Two-Moons pack, led by the Silver Fang Theurge Isaiah Morningkill of House Wyrmfoe).

The overwhelming societal transformation of the Industrial Revolution weakened Gaia and pushed the Umbra away from terrestrial reality, giving it less influence over the world. This period was marked by the withdrawal and extinction of many spirit varieties, but also heralded the birth of new "urban" spirits (such as glass and electricity elementals). These changes were visible in the Umbral landscape, as sites associated with Gaia became fewer and weaker, while the Pattern Web of the Weaver and the corrupt influence of the Wyrm became more prominent.

As the defense of Gaia becomes more difficult, the Garou have found their tasks increasingly harder to perform. Once able to act as silent warriors and guides, many have been reduced to guerrilla tactics and monkeywrenching. These ill omens have led to a general consensus that an Apocalypse is nigh, in which a final desperate battle will be waged by all sides. In addition to discrete threats such as the Wyrm and its minions, Garou find themselves opposed to the faceless foe of general disinterest in Gaia. Environmental disasters and modern warfare have done considerable damage to Gaia in recent decades. This callousness is sometimes spread by the Wyrm itself (as best exemplified by the Pentex corporation, a global conglomerate dedicated to spreading the Wyrm's influence). The Garou themselves are a self-acknowledged dying race; the largest Gaian tribes number 2000 Garou worldwide,[7] with the smaller tribes numbering less than 500. The wyrm-serving Black Spiral Dancers comprise fully one-tenth of the total Garou population and are the largest single tribe.

Player character creation of the Garou

Players are given the opportunity to create Garou, the werewolves of the setting, or their allies or rivals. Lycanthropy in the World of Darkness setting is an inherited trait, and thus players are born with their abilities, although they only manifest in what the game calls the "First Change," an event generally during puberty that triggers the character's latent Garou powers to surface. Players are given the opportunity to have their character inherently know that the Garou exist, or be an effective "orphan" from Garou society and require other Garou to find him/her. It is after this point that they join Garou society and cut off their ties to their previous worlds except to make sure their blood relatives remain safe.

There are three archetypes that the player can use that define how their character was born, referred to as a Breed in the games. A Garou's parents are generally Garou and a non-Garou human or wolf with strong Garou heritage referred to as Kinfolk.[8] Garou with human parentage (Kinfolk or not) are Homid and Garou of wolf parentage are Lupus. There is also the option to play as a Metis, a Garou born from the union of two Garou parents; Metis are born already transformed, are infertile and deformed, and usually results in the death of the mother. Such unions are forbidden in Garou society, but Metis are still born even as the Apocalypse approaches. Each Breed has its own benefits and disadvantages. Homid Garou can blend in better with human society but are not as intune with the spiritual side of themselves, Metis are more attuned to Garou society and spirituality and can recover health in all of their forms but are pariahs, while Lupus are more attuned to the spiritual world but cannot integrate into human society. The choice of Breed also determines the player's starting Gnosis statistic, or how well they are spiritually aware.

Garou manifest their latent powers in an event called the "First Change", a traumatic event where their Garou form becomes necessary. It is after this point that they are found by their Garou relatives and integrate themselves into Garou society, only making sure that their Kinfolk are safe from time to time. It is also possible to have a Garou born of two Kinfolk who are cut off from Garou society, resulting in what is a "Lost Cub".

Garou have the inherent ability to shapeshift into one of five distinct forms. Aside from the human form, each changes the characters' inherent Attributes such as Strength, Dexterity, or Appearance: ◾Homid is the human form, completely indistinguishable from other humans in most cases. ◾Glabro is the "near-human" form, one that is described as resembling a prehistoric human, although slightly taller than their human form. ◾Crinos is the monstrous form resembling a traditional werewolf, usually growing to nine feet tall and made of pure muscle. This form is what most Garou prefer to fight in. In this form, any weak willed human that sees it will resort to a genetic memory-induced state of pure fear and terror known as the "Delirium". Metis are born in this form. ◾Hispo is a massive dire wolf-like form, usually preferred by Lupus Garou for fighting. ◾Lupus is the wolf form, granting certain abilities that stem from the wolf's greater senses than that of humans.

In the game mechanics, Garou can transform to their Breed form with ease, but it is more difficult to transform into the other forms across the spectrum from Homid to Lupus.

In addition to these, players also choose the character's archetype known as an Auspice. This is defined as the lunar phase that the player's character was born under. Each defines the player character's general role in the game, as well as the player's Rage status, or violent predatory instinct. ◾Ragabash are Garou born under the new moon. They are defined as the "Questioner of Ways" and are usually played as trickster or rogueish types who excel in chicanery and subterfuge. ◾Theurge are Garou born under the waxing or waning crescent moon. They are defined as the "Searcher of the Ways" and are the seers and shamans of Garou society who most directly intercede with spirits. ◾Philodox are Garou born under the quarter or half moons. They are defined as the "Keeper of the Ways" and serve as mediators, counsellors, and judges amongst Garou society, discerning right from wrong just as their lunar phase is half lit and half dark. ◾Galliard are the Garou born under the waxing or waning gibbous moon. They are defined as the "Lover of the Ways" who serve as bards and teachers amongst the Garou. ◾Ahroun are the Garou born under the full moon. They are defined as the "Protector of the Ways" and are the warriors of Garou society whose Rage is strongest.

By performing acts that fit their Auspice, player characters advance in Rank and Renown. It is possible in the game to change Auspice, but it is seen within the fiction as a grave act and only performed if the character's destiny does not seem to fit their assigned role.

Garou society has since been divided into several Tribes that define the character's ancestral or racial background. Within the fiction of the game, there were 16 Tribes that served Gaia, but three have since become extinct. Tribe determines the Willpower stat of player characters. ◾The Black Furies are a Tribe of solely female Garou who are most in tune with the Wyld and claim to be descended from the mythical Amazons. ◾The Bone Gnawers are a Tribe that reside in slums and poor areas of human society. ◾The Children of Gaia are a Tribe of pacifists who believe that war is not the way to stave off the Apocalypse. ◾The Fianna are a Tribe originating from the Celts who are the carousing storytellers of Garou society who claim to have had the first Galliard. They also have a connection to the fairy-folk (Changeling: The Dreaming). ◾The Get of Fenris are a Tribe with Germanic roots who believe physical strength and fighting prowess are most important, often coming to head with other Tribes who disagree with their warmongering ways. ◾The Glass Walkers are a Tribe who are most in tune with the Weaver, directly involving themselves in human society and having technological prowess. In the various settings set in the past developed for the World of Darkness, the Glass Walkers' name has changed to reflect the technological advancement of the era. In Dark Ages books they are known as the Warders of Men, during the Renaissance they are called the Tetrasomnians, and during the Wild West books they are the Iron Riders. A sect of Glass Walkers is also involved with the Asian sphere of other lycanthropes and are called the Boli Zouhisze. ◾The Red Talons are a Tribe of Lupus-only Garou who are highly separatist and see humanity as an example of the Wyrm's effects on Earth and seek to wipe them out. A group with Lycaon pictus Kinfolk exist as part of Africa's Ahadi coalition of lycanthropes. ◾The Shadow Lords are a Tribe of Slavic Garou who seek to usurp the Silver Fangs as Garou society's leaders, and often have ulterior motives to their actions. A Japanese sect of Garou resembling the Shadow Lords are known as the Hakken, and hold the codes of bushidō as important. ◾The Silent Striders are a Tribe of Egyptian origin who have been exiled from their homeland by a group of Vampires and are most in tune with the Umbra. Silent Strider characters are usually most involved with the Vampire: The Masquerade, Wraith: The Oblivion, and Mummy: The Resurrection books. ◾The Silver Fangs are considered the leaders of Garou society, often having relatives who were members of royal families. They have since been the result of heavy inbreeding and many members possess mental illnesses. ◾The Stargazes are a Tribe of Hindu origin named for their proficiency in astrology. They have since parted ways with the Garou Nation for perceiving the others as having lost their way in protecting Gaia, and instead align themselves with the Beast Courts of the Emerald Mother. ◾The Uktena are a Tribe of Garou who originated in the indigenous peoples of the Americas, but have since allowed other animistic peoples into their fold. They are the "Older Brother" of the Garou known as the Pure Ones, Garou who claimed the Americas as home, and also are more into mysticism than their closest relatives. ◾The Wendigo are the "Younger Brother" of the Native American Garou, who have human Kinfolk amongst people who inhabit the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America. They hold a grudge against the European Garou, whom they call the Wyrmbringers, for the events of the European colonization of the Americas that resulted in deaths of the native peoples and the extinction of the third group of North American Garou.

The extinct Tribes of Garou are as follows: ◾The Bunyip were a tribe of Garou who made it through the Umbra to Australia where they interbred with the Aboriginal Australians and the thylacine. They were killed off during the colonization of Australia when the invading Garou were tricked by a group of Black Spiral Dancers into believing the Bunyip were enemies. Their ghosts haunt the Australian Umbra, the Dreamtime, despite Garou attempting to apologize for the mistakes of their ancestors. ◾The Croatan were the third tribe of the Pure Ones, the American Garou, referred to as the "Middle Brother". They sacrificed themselves to protect the world from an aspect of the Wyrm known as Eater-of-Souls that had been awakened during the colonization of the Americas. ◾The White Howlers were a tribe of Garou of who were descended from the Picts in Scotland. They attempted to battle the Wyrm directly by seeking it out directly in its lair known as the Black Spiral. They were driven mad by the Wyrm and only survive to modern times as the antagonistic Black Spiral Dancer tribe who actively foster the Apocalypse and are heavily deformed due to their devotion to the Wyrm instead of Gaia.

In addition to these groups, other groups of Garou exist but are not part of the greater Garou Nation aside from the evil Black Spiral Dancers. ◾Ronin are Garou who have been expelled entirely from Garou society for grievous acts that violate the very laws of the Garou Nation. ◾The Siberakh are a disavowed group of Garou who are allegedly the result of a breeding program between the Silver Fangs and Wendigo to produce a hardy group that can survive in Siberia as well as lack the insanity plaguing the inbred Silver Fangs. The Silver Fangs acknowledge them as Ronin, while the Wendigo accept their reluctance to join the Garou Nation. ◾The Skindancers are disenfranchised Kinfolk who have learned a forbidden Rite that allows them to become Garou after killing five other Garou to become one themselves, tainted by the Wyrm itself. ◾The recent 20th anniversary edition of Rage Across the World has introduced a dwindling tribe of Garou living on New Guinea who have the Indonesians, Papuans, and New Guinea singing dog as Kinfolk.

Breed, Auspice, and Tribe all affect the various other stats, such as Abilities and Backgrounds a player can choose, as well as the Gifts, or special (often magical) skills the player's character can perform.

Changing Breeds

In addition to the Garou, several other groups of shapeshifters known as the "Changing Breeds" were also developed for the Werewolf: The Apocalypse games. Most despise the Garou for having decimated their numbers during the prehistoric War of Rage, which also claimed some Changing Breeds, or Fera to the Garou, to extinction. ◾The Ajaba are a group of were-hyenas in Africa who have a matriarchal society. They are claimed to have been created by Gaia to serve as the Garou in Africa, where no wolves lived, and thus she made them to be more like the feline Bastet, but the Garou slaughtered them for being different as did the Simba amongst the Bastet. They have a set of five forms like the Garou. ◾The Ananasi are a group of were-spiders who are grandchildren of the Weaver and serve her daughter the Queen Anasasa. They were previously aligned with the Wyrm because Anasasa was imprisoned, but have since freed her and attempt to be part of Gaia's grace, again. They differ from other Changing Breeds in that they require Blood to power their abilities, and they possess the ability to transform into a swarm of small spiders in addition to a spider-human hybrid and a massive spider form. Amongst the Hengeyokai of Asia, they are known as "Kumo". ◾The Bastet are a collection of werecats who seek out Gaia's secrets and usually work alone. There are nine surviving Tribes amongst the Bastet based on the different species of cat they can transform into. They also possess five forms like the Garou and Ajaba. ◾The Bagheera were-leopards of India and Africa. ◾The Balam were-jaguars of Central and South America. ◾The Bubasti werecats of Egypt whose feline "kyphur" Kinfolk are thought to be extinct. ◾The Ceilican werecats of the British Isles who are thought to be extinct, much like their white lions of the Fae Kinfolk, but have since gained feline forms resembling large domestic cats. ◾The Khan were-tigers of India and Eastern Asia. ◾The Pumonca were-cougars of North and South America. ◾The Qualmi were-lynx of North America. ◾The Simba were-lions of Africa who claim to be the leaders of the Bastet, and most often work together in Prides. ◾The Swara were-cheetahs of Africa who are most in tune to the Umbra. ◾The Khara are an extinct Tribe who took saber-toothed cats as Kinfolk.

◾The Corax are a group of were-ravens who act as messengers and have been most resistant to the acts of the Triat. In the Hengeyokai, they are known as the Tengu. They only possess three forms, a humanoid form, a bird form, and an anthropomorphic bird form. ◾The Gurahl were-bears are the Healers of Gaia and are most tied to her. They possess a Gift that allegedly brings the dead back to life, and their refusal to teach this Gift to the Garou led to the War of Rage. A group of panda Gurahl once lived in Asia, but have since gone extinct. They have a set of five forms like the Garou. ◾The Kitsune were-foxes are the most recent of the Changing Breeds, having allegedly been created by Gaia after the War of Rage after she saw that the others were not worthy and claimed they will survive the coming Apocalypse. They are most interested in magic in all its forms. They have a set of five forms like the Garou. ◾The Mokolé are ancient were-reptiles of various species who possess a deep genetic memory of their ancestors the Dinosaur Kings and tap into their Mnesis ability to recover memories of the ancient times. They can come from monitor lizard or crocodilian stock, known as Varnas, and their war form, the Archid, is formed from their ancestral memories and can resemble an amalgamation of various dinosaur traits. They are divided into four Streams based on their homeland: the Gumagan of Australia and Oceania, the Mokole-mbembe of Africa and the Americas, the Zhong-Lung of East Asia, and the Makara of India. A group of turtle Varna Mokolé previously existed, but they have disappeared into the Umbra and no one has heard of them since. ◾The Nagah are were-snakes who act as the judges and executioners of Gaia and possess a potent venom that they use in their duties. They possess 5 forms like other Changing Breeds. ◾The Nuwisha are were-coyotes of North America, who are the epitome of Ragabash as they possess no Rage and seek to prank the Wyrm in their lives, owing to their ancestor Coyote having done something so reprehensible to the moon's Incarna Luna. ◾The Ratkin are wererats who dwell in the slums of cities and were made to cull human populations by eating grain and spreading disease, although in modern times they have lost this role. They possess only three forms like the Corax. The Ratkin of the Hengeyokai are known as Nezumi. ◾The Rokea are were-sharks who do all they can to protect the Sea and have no relation with the Unsea (land) and mostly exist as shark- or Rokea-born. In fact, Rokea hunt down any of their race who have decided to live on land, instead, and most importantly any Homid-born Rokea that may have been born from their Kadugo Kinfolk. A group of Homid Rokea exist amongst the Hengeyokai and are known as the Same-bito.

Three groups of Changing Breeds have since been made extinct through the War of Rage. ◾The Apis were-aurochs were the matchmakers of the Changing Breeds, possessing several rituals to celebrate the cycles of the Earth. They had three forms, of which their Crinos was known to humanity as one Apis went into the Umbra to seek knowledge during the War of Rage and returned thousands of years later driven mad by his people's extinction and became the Minotaur of myth. ◾The Camazotz were-bats of Central America who served Gaia in a similar fashion to the Corax. They were driven to extinction as they were thought to be vampires, but some Shadow Lords seek retribution for their act by pledging their totem Bat. They possessed four forms, of which their Crinos and giant bat forms could fly; a fifth form of a swarm of small bats was possible if the Camazotz knew a particular Gift or had the ability inherently. ◾The Grondr were-boars who were the purifiers of the land, doing their best to root out nests of Wyrm tainted spirits, believing they were immune. They were wiped out by the Garou for their relation to the Gurahl during the War of Rage.

List of books

Print on Demand

Werewolf: The Apocalypse books are, like all Classic World of Darkness books, still available as PDF download through White Wolf Publishing's exclusive marketing partner DriveThruRPG [3] (http://www.drivethrurpg.com/). DriveThru also makes them gradually available as Print on Demand books under the label "Now in Print". Such books are usually identical to the original versions in content. However, DriveThru's printing partners do not offer full bleed in Black&White books, so "Now in Print"-books have a white border and are therefore printed on slightly larger pages. Also, some previously hard covered books are now available as both hard and soft covered versions.

Tie-ins and adaptations ◾In 1995, White Wolf Publishing released Rage, a Collectible Card Game based on the Werewolf property. ◾A PC adventure game named Werewolf: the Apocalypse - Heart of Gaia was developed by DreamForge Intertainment but the company went bankrupt before it finished. ◾A PlayStation/Sega Saturn game by Capcom titled Werewolf: the Apocalypse was announced[9] but never published.

References 1. PDF became available to backers 2013/03/06 as shown on Kickstarter Update Page (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/200664283/deluxe-werewolf-the-apocalypse-20th-anniversary-ed/posts/420547) 2. Rage article states, that two games by that name exist. 3. White Wolf Release Schedule 2011-2012 (http://www.white-wolf.com/community/news/white-wolf-release-schedule-2011-2012) 4. Werewolf-Translation-Guide Werewolf Translation Guide on DriveThru [1] (http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product/100710/Werewolf-Translation-Guide) (retrieved April 17th, 2012) 5. DriveThru RPG White Wolf "Now in Print" Products [2] (http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/index.php?&filters=0_0_0_0_44294&manufacturers_id=1) (retrieved January 20th, 2012) 6. What is the Onyx Path? Panel from GenCon on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzjC6lD7JCs) 7. Werewolf Storyteller's Handbook revised - page 23 - FAQ section 8. Brian Campbell, et al. Werewolf: The Apocalypse Revised Edition (White Wolf Publishing, 2000, ISBN 1-56504-365-0) - Page 30 9. "Next Wave". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis (75): 88. October 1995.

External links ◾Werewolf: The Apocalypse (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness/index.php?title=Werewolf:_The_Apocalypse) in The official World of Darkness Wiki (http://wiki.white-wolf.com/worldofdarkness) ◾Catalogue of all classic World of Darkness books with ISBN and link to PoD offer (http://www.werwolf-live.de/booklist.php) at werwolf-live.de (http://www.werwolf-live.de)

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Categories: Werewolf: The Apocalypse Role-playing games introduced in 1992

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Vampire: The Masquerade

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Vampire: The Masquerade

Vampmasq.jpg Vampire: The Masquerade (Revised Edition) cover

Designer(s) Mark Rein-Hagen, Graeme Davis, Tom Dowd, Lisa Stevens, Stewart Wieck[1]

Publisher(s) White Wolf Publishing, Onyx Path Publishing, By Night Studios

Publication date 1991 (1st edition) 1992 (2nd edition) 1998 (Revised edition) 2011 (20th Anniversary)

Genre(s) Personal horror

System(s) Storyteller System

Vampire: The Masquerade is a tabletop role-playing game (tabletop RPG) created by Mark Rein-Hagen and released in 1991 by White Wolf Publishing as the first of several Storyteller System games for its World of Darkness setting line.[2][3] It's set in a fictionalized "gothic-punk" version of the modern world, where players assume the roles of vampires, who are referred to as "Kindred", and deal with their night-to-night struggles against their own bestial natures, vampire hunters and each other.[4]

Several associated products were produced based on Vampire: The Masquerade, including live-action role-playing games (Mind's Eye Theatre), dice, collectible card games (Vampire: The Eternal Struggle), video games (Vampire: The Masquerade – Redemption and Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines), and numerous novels. In 1996, a short-lived television show loosely based on the game, Kindred: The Embraced, was produced by Aaron Spelling for the Fox Broadcasting Company.

Contents [hide] ◾1 Development ◾2 Gameplay ◾2.1 Concept ◾2.2 Game system

◾3 Vampires in World of Darkness ◾3.1 Weaknesses ◾3.2 Vitae ◾3.3 The embrace ◾3.4 Myths and origins ◾3.5 The Masquerade ◾3.6 Society ◾3.6.1 Age ◾3.6.2 Clans and sects ◾3.6.2.1 Sects ◾3.6.2.2 Clans

◾3.6.3 The 13 Clans ◾3.6.3.1 Antitribu ◾3.6.3.2 Bloodlines

◾4 Reception ◾5 Versions ◾6 Tie-ins and adaptations ◾7 Print on Demand ◾8 See also ◾9 Notes ◾10 References ◾11 External links

Development

Vampire was inspired by RPGs such as Call of Cthulhu and RuneQuest, as well as the writings of Joseph Campbell and vampire movies such as The Lost Boys.[5][6] Rein-Hagen felt that hunting vampires, as a game premise, would get boring so he came up with the idea of a game where the players played vampires instead of hunting them.[5][6] Rein-Hagen specifically stated that he purposefully didn't read Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles until "very late" in the development process but admitted she was probably an influence on the vampire films that inspired the game.[5] He wanted to go beyond what Anne Rice had done by creating individual vampires, with a whole secret vampire society and culture.[5][6]

Some of Vampire's central themes of the power of belief developed out of Rein-Hagen's religious upbringing. Inspired by a comic book given to him by White Wolf business partner Stewart Wieck, Rein-Hagen developed the idea that the cursed character of the Biblical Cain was the original vampire. In an "Ask Me Anything" interview on Reddit Rein-Hagen referred to the idea of Cain as the progenitor of all vampires as a "big turning point".[5] He commented further: "I was trying to shy away from religion. After that... I went all in. The game and the world became about religion and belief. My father was a Lutheran minister, and I think that played a huge role in not only Vampire but the whole WoD series. I was always fascinated by what made people believe so strongly when I didn't seem to believe at all. Talking about that theme, the power of belief, fueled the second half of Vampire game design."[5]

Vampire was notably new in many respects. It was conceived as a dark, moody urban fantasy game with a unique gothic feel that harkened back of TSR's Ravenloft.[7] It would also be the first of a series of linked games sharing the same game world.[7] Its simple cover photo of a rose on green marble set the tone for the game and differentiated it from other games on the market. Its content was also novel, as the game focused on plots, intrigue and story as opposed to more straightforward dungeon scenarios. While the RPG industry in general had been trending towards a more narrative approach, Vampire was one of the first games of its kind to center on these things.[7]

Horror games had traditionally been a tough sell in the RPG industry, but Vampire included elements that made it a dark superhero game rather than purely a horror game. An extensive list of broad supernatural powers, called disciplines, which included superior strength, speed and toughness, as well as other powers such as mystic senses, mind control and blood magic, gave the player characters a more super-human rather than horror feel. The 13 clans added late in the development process provided a much needed character-class-like system based on vampiric archetypes which proved very popular with players.[7]

For its mechanical elements Rein-Hagen turned to Tom Dowd, co-designer of Shadowrun (1989). Vampire's system of "comparative" dice pools drew on the mechanics innovated by Shadowrun changing only the type of die rolled; ten sided rather than six sided. Skill values that determined the number of dice rolled had been used in games like Champions, but rather than add the result of the dice in total, Vampire compared the result of the dice with a fixed value to determine the degree of success or failure. Skill levels were relatively low, ranging usually from one to five, and were represented with dots rather than numbers, which was the standard of its contemporaries. Players could easily figure their dice pool and roll against the assigned difficulty rating. This system was a boon for narrative style of play that emphasized story over mechanics, as it was easy for new players to quickly grasp.[7]

Gameplay

Concept

The game uses the cursed, immortal vampiric condition as a backdrop to explore themes of morality, depravity, the human condition (or appreciation of the human condition in its absence), salvation, and personal horror. The gloomy and exaggerated version of the real world that the vampires inhabit, called the "World of Darkness," forms an already bleak canvas against which the stories and struggles of characters are painted. The themes that the game seeks to address include retaining the character's sense of self, humanity, and sanity, as well as simply keeping from being crushed by the grim opposition of mortal and supernatural antagonists and, more poignantly, surviving the politics, treachery, and often violent ambitions of their own kind.

Game system

Vampire is based on the Storyteller System. In addition to the general Storyteller rules, it uses a number of specific mechanics aimed towards simulating the vampiric existence. A vampire has a blood pool signifying the amount of human blood or vitae currently in their body; this blood can be spent to power abilities and perform supernatural tricks. These tricks simulate many of those portrayed on film, such as turning into animals or mist, sleeping in the ground or having unnatural charisma and powers of hypnotic suggestion.

Close to the central theme of the game is Humanity. Each vampire has a Humanity score, measuring how closely in touch with his human nature the vampire is; as it decreases, the vampire becomes more susceptible to his Beast, the feral side of the vampiric soul that is driven entirely by rage, hunger, and hatred of God and humanity. Brutal, immoral actions risk lowering a vampire's Humanity score. If the individual's Humanity drops to zero, the Beast takes over and the vampire is in a state of constant frenzy known as Wassail.

The actions taken during gameplay are expressed using ten-sided dice. The number of dice used correspond to the player's current skill level, often based on two different skills that together represent the player's ability. For example, to land a punch, the character's dexterity and brawl skill are combined. The resulting number is the number of dice rolled to perform the task. It is up to the story teller to set how high a dice roll must be to be considered a success (usually 6 for standard actions).

Vampires in World of Darkness

Vampires in the World of Darkness make use of several familiar tropes of vampires in myth and legend such as immortality and a powerful thirst for blood. They are truly undead as their hearts do not beat, they do not require food or drink, they do not age, their skin is cold and pale, and the only sustenance they require is blood. Despite their undead status, vampires of this world are thinking, feeling beings capable of thought, emotion, and empathy (though this capacity may diminish with age, or through a desensitization caused by immoral actions, referred to as "loss of Humanity").[8]:8 Other tropes or weaknesses are described as mere legends or superstitions, such as a vampire's victim becoming a vampire simply from a bite; though in the first edition of the game it was possible, that changed in subsequent editions. Though they are typically not repulsed by garlic or holy symbols, there is a system of merits and flaws that can affect characters in this way, though they are not animated by some demonic spirit according to in game lore.[8]:8

Weaknesses

Sunlight is fearsome and deadly to vampires of this canon, and at most, they can tolerate a few seconds of exposure before perishing. A wooden stake through the heart is not deadly to these creatures but will immobilize them until it is removed.[8]:8 Arguably their biggest weakness is what is known in-game as the Beast. The Beast is a savage, carnal predatory drive within all vampires. The Beast seeks only to satisfy its base urge to survive. Anger, mortal threats, hunger, or blood lust are some of the things that can cause the Beast to rise. The Beast is capable of taking over the vampire's conscious mind, forcing them into a frenzied state where they take violent, often deeply regrettable, actions that they perhaps otherwise would not. One of the major themes of Vampire is characters' battle to strike a balance between their violent, predatory nature and being morally responsible before their humanity is eroded by this powerful force within themselves.[8]:16-17 This theme is summed up in the axiom, "A Beast I Am, Lest a Beast I Become."[8]:14

Vampires may enter a deathlike sleep called torpor. Torpor may be caused by near-fatal injuries or may be entered voluntarily. In-game, the level of the vampire's humanity determines how long they sleep for.[8]:283-284 Though they cannot die of old age, vampires in this setting can die. Fire, sunlight, decapitation, supernatural powers, or succumbing to a clan weakness can cause the vampire to reach what is referred to as Final Death - to truly die.[8]:283-284 Torpor allows the vampire release from their existential pain but it also may make them vulnerable. Vampires in this state, if not well hidden, may have difficulty defending themselves and are vulnerable to destruction by vampire hunters or Diablerie by other vampires.[8]:283-284

Vitae

Characters in this world refer to the supernatural blood in their bodies that sustains them as vitae. Vampires gain vitae by drinking blood. In-game, this accumulation of vitae is called blood pool. This represents the amount of vitae the player has available to expend to fuel supernatural powers, to heal wounds, or to increase their physical strength, agility, or stamina. Characters can replace lost Vitae by drinking more blood.

A vampire's vitae can inspire false feelings of love and foster dependency if drunk by others. This addiction to vampiric blood is called the Blood Bond. The vampire performing the bond is called a Regnant and the one being bound is called a Thrall. In most cases, a victim must drink three times from the same vampire on three separate nights to become bonded. Once bonded, the victim feels something akin to a very twisted sort of love for the vampire and they become the most important person in their life. They also become more susceptible to mind control by that vampire and are willing to do anything, even risk their own life, to aid their regnant. Mortals, animals, and even other vampires and other supernatural creatures may be bound. The Sabbat practice a different form of group blood bonding by incorporating ancient Tzimisce Blood Magic called the Vaulderie that inspires loyalty and sodality among the sect. It will also instantly break conventional blood bonds if performed correctly by a trained vampire, typically a Pack Priest. They can also be negated by extended amounts of time depending on how far the Bond has gone (steps one, two or three), willpower and the extended absence of the regnant in order to do so.[8]:286-288

The embrace

Vampires may create more of themselves by draining a human to the point of death and then feeding the victim some of their blood. The creator vampire is known as a sire, the newly created vampire a childe and the creation process is referred to as the embrace. Very little vitae is required to trigger the transformation but the victim must be freshly dead. It does not work on corpses that are more than a few minutes old.

A vampire's relative power is limited by something called their Generation, which is set at the time of their embrace. Generation is the vampire's distance from the race's mythical founder, Cain, who is alleged to be the first vampire. For example, a ninth generation is nine generations from Cain. Should this ninth generation vampire embrace someone their progeny would be tenth generation regardless of how many times they do this.[8]:28 Generation is largely a fixed trait but characters can lower their generation by committing diablerie — the consumption of the soul of a vampire of lower generation. Attitudes towards diablerie range from criminalization to an act of liberation. Regardless, diablerie is a serious act not to be taken lightly.[8]:24, 28

Motivations and mores surrounding the embrace differ from clan and sect. In some sects, such as the Camarilla, the creation of new vampires is tightly controlled.[8]:22-23 Among the Sabbat or the Anarchs the norms are much looser.[8]:19 Individual clans, especially the Independent Clans, have different norms, rituals and restrictions surrounding the creation of new vampires. Some only embrace a certain ethnic group, such as the Romani with the Ravnos[8]:64 or within certain mortal families as with the Giovanni[8]:47, 56-57. Others simply look for certain qualities such as the ability to survive, intelligence, curiosity or artistic talent. Some create other vampires for power, others for companionship and some are created as fodder for the endless, ancient conflicts, known as the Jyhad, that are central to gameplay.

Myths and origins

Vampires in the World of Darkness believe that their race originates with the Biblical figure of Cain. Cain was said to have been cursed by God with a vampiric state for murdering his brother. The vampires of this canon believe themselves to descend from this Biblical progenitor.

It is said that Cain was able to pass on his cursed state to others, thereby, making them like himself only somewhat weaker. These first childer, known as the second generation, were said to have been made to keep him company, and they in turn made the third generation. The third were supposedly numbered thirteen and are the semi-legendary founders of the thirteen original clans. According to in-game legend, all of these vampires lived in peace under Cain's rule in the legendary city known as Enoch, or the First City. When God caused the Great Flood, however, the city was destroyed and Cain disappeared, leaving his Childer to fend for themselves. The third generation eventually rose up and slew their sires. Cain, upon discovering this, cursed them. Cain's curse is supposedly the reason each clan now has its own weakness.[9] These myths are collected in an in-game document of dubious reliability known as the Book of Nod. Those who study the mythical vampire origins are called Noddists. According to Noddist mythology there are claims that Cain will return at the end of time to judge his descendants: the Antediluvians and all vampires descended from them. This event is known as Gehenna, the end of all vampiric races. Others claim that Gehenna is simply the wakening of the Antediluvians who have returned to feed on the blood of their descendants.

Differing interpretations of the myths divide vampire society. The Sabbat, for example, take the myths quite literally and believe that it is their purpose to defend vampires from the depredations of the ancients. The Camarilla is more dismissive, either claiming that Cain is nothing more than a myth or metaphor or outright suppressing the myths and their study. Contentions between the different societies surrounding the origins of vampires and Gehenna are important in-game motivations for the Jyhad that color the character's understanding of their world. Regardless as to whether or not the myths are true in the context of the game the myth of Cain represents important themes presented in the metaplot such as sins of the father coming back upon his children, the threat of apocalypse, questions of faith, conspiracies, and war of ages.

Golconda is a fabled state of enlightenment that offers vampires a release from their struggle with the Beast. Different editions have gone into different level of detail as to what Golconda is but all agree that it is an elusive and mysterious state and there is very little information in-game or out as to how to achieve it.

The Masquerade

In Vampire: The Masquerade, the Masquerade refers to an organized conspiracy primarily orchestrated by the Camarilla to convince the general public that vampires do not exist. The Camarilla believes the Masquerade is the cornerstone survival strategy for Kindred and fear that without it the kine would rise up and exterminate all the undead.[8]:14, 22, 33

Prohibitions against exposing the existence of Kindred existed prior to the 15th century in a set of ancient laws known as the Traditions. The First Tradition reads:

"Thou shall not reveal thy true nature to those not of the Blood. Doing such shall renounce thy claims of Blood."[8]:22-23

This stricture was not consistently nor as strictly enforced until the Inquisition of the 15th century required it. During this period vampires were destroyed in large numbers by vampire hunters which largely prompted the formation of a sect known as the Camarilla whose primary purpose was to promote and enforce the Masquerade as a means of survival.[8]:38

The Masquerade is largely enforced through self-policing, but it is primarily the job of the Prince in Camarilla controlled cities to enforce it. Princes may use any means at their disposal to ensure vampire society stays hidden and that those who break the Masquerade are duly punished. Punishments for breaches have a range but are usually draconian in nature due to the seriousness of the Masquerade. Final Death, often by means of a ritualized "Blood Hunt" by other vampires, is not uncommon. When breaches do occur, the Camarilla takes great pains to repair them. This could include anything from erasing mortal's memories using supernatural powers to manipulating mortal pawns in order to keep events out of the media.

The Masquerade is one of the main in-game points of contention between the two major factions of vampires in the World of Darkness. While many vampires see the pragmatism in the Masquerade some do not agree with it. For example, the Sabbat do not uphold the Tradition that justifies the enforcement of the Masquerade but behind closed doors even they take some steps to contain breaches.

Society

A diagram of the genealogy of the Assamites

Vampires in the World of Darkness have a rich, complex, and diverse secret society with a range of ideologies, goals, and backgrounds. Sects largely divide along ideological disputes surrounding the distribution of power among vampires, the role of vampires in the human world, and the ancient myths that allegedly explain the origins and purpose of vampires.

Age

An important means of social distinction among vampires in this setting is through age. Younger vampires wanting respect and power must prove themselves to their elders. While ambition can provide a degree of upward mobility among immortals, oftentimes respect comes to those who can prove they can survive.[8]:18-19 Characters are loosely divided into several age groups. Ages aren't titles or jobs but rather loose descriptions to describe a vampire's development and the social expectations that come with aging.[8]:19 ◾Fledgling - Newly Embraced vampires who have yet to formally enter vampire society. Fledglings are still too ignorant and weak to survive on their own (though some among the Sabbat manage it) and are dependent on their Sires for protection and education. ◾Neonates - Though still young, a neonate has proved that they can survive on their own and is seen as a full-fledged member of their society. ◾Ancilla - Ancilla have survived a few decades or perhaps a few centuries. They have also likely accomplished something in their time for their sect or clan though what this might be varies. ◾Elder - A relative term that could indicate a vampire is anywhere between 200 and 1,000 years old. They generally have a great deal of wealth, influence, or power to leverage in the Jyhad. ◾Methuselah - Methuselah range between 1,000 and 2,000 years old. At this age, vampires begin to retreat from society and many do not survive the profound changes brought on by surviving this long. ◾Antediluvian -Antediluvians are believed to be those vampires of the Third Generation who are descended from Cain’s original childer. There are rumored to be only thirteen of them.[8]:19

Clans and sects

Vampires organize and divide themselves politically and ideologically into sects which form governing structure for undead societies. Laws and norms concerning the place of vampires within the mortal world, feeding, the treatment of vessels, vampiric morality, secrecy, feeding grounds, Gehenna and the distribution of power form the basis of these divisions. The two major sects are the Camarilla and the Sabbat, but there are other sects as well, such as the Inconnu or the Anarchs. A sect is something a character may choose in-game, though this decision is often chosen for them by their Sire. Defection to one side or the other is possible, but come with great risk, as much of what motivates the Jyhad are the ideological differences between the Camarilla and the Sabbat.[8]:19-22

Sects

Vampire: The Masquerade offers the players the opportunity to play in a politically diverse world in which sects rule over all of vampire society. While many factions and sub-sects exist in the game, the main focus is the conflict between the Camarilla, the Sabbat and the Anarchs. ◾The Camarilla — Nicknamed the "Ivory Tower", the Camarilla strictly adheres to a set of ancient laws known as the Traditions. The Camarilla was created as a reaction to the Inquisition and sees its purpose as maintaining the Masquerade as a means of ensuring the survival of all Kindred. The Traditions are enforced and order in each jurisdiction (usually one city in the mortal world) maintained by a powerful leader known as a Prince. It is the Prince's duty to interpret the Traditions and act as judge, jury, and executioner. The Camarilla describes itself in idealistic terms suggesting it is a genteel society of undead peers but harbors a vast, complex, and rigid hierarchy that breeds ancient rivalries and vicious political machinations. The Camarilla actively denies or suppresses myths about Gehenna and the race's legendary ancient founders.[8]:19-22 Camarilla vampires refer to themselves (and all other vampires) as "Kindred" as a means of reminding themselves of their origins in humanity. Camarilla vampires often refer to humans as "Kine", an archaic term for cattle. The Sabbat scorn the idea of vampires being Kindred referring to themselves as Cainites preferring to emphasize their origins in the blood of Cain. They often use more vulgar epithets for their human vessels.[8]:19-22 ◾The Anarch Movement — Ostensibly a faction within the Camarilla, the Anarch Movement are decentralized groups of vampires spread out across the world who question what they see as the Camarilla's outmoded means of governing. It contains a diverse range of ideologies but they believe in a more equitable redistribution of power between Kindred.[8]:19-22 ◾The Sabbat — Nicknamed the "Sword of Cain", the Sabbat was formed during the Anarch Revolt in response to the oppressive rule of the Elder vampires. The Sabbat do not openly follow the Traditions but instead adhere to a system of self-rule, freedom, and interdependence as outlined in the Code of Milan. The Sabbat actively believe that Gehenna is real and it is their duty to protect Cainites from the predation of the Antediluvians. The Sabbat believe themselves superior to humans and ultimately believe that they should rule over the human world rather than hide from it. Many have a flagrant disregard for human life which is evinced in the brutal tactics they use in the Jyhad. While anyone may ostensibly claim membership in the Camarilla the Sabbat have brutal initiation rites where characters must prove their loyalty. They also practice cult-like rituals and a form of ceremonial group Blood Bonding, called Vaulderie, to ensure loyalty.[8]:19-22, 288 ◾The Inconnu — A mysterious sect of elders rumored to have achieved or are in pursuit of Golconda; a sort of redemptive transcendence for the Damned. The most visible sign of the sect are its Monitors who sometimes take up residence in a territory.[8]:22 ◾Tal’Mahe’Ra — Otherwise known as the "True Black Hand", the Tal’Mahe’Ra is a strange and insular sect with its base of operations deep in the Shadowlands. Its motivations and purpose are unknown and most know very little about it.[8]:22 ◾The Independents — The Independent Clans operate outside of the Camarilla or the Sabbat. Many of them function like small-scale Sects, such as the Followers of Set or the Giovanni, with specific agendas in mind. Others, such as the Ravnos are more individualistic. The Assamites lie between these extremes, having a centralized hierarchy in the Middle East, but generally operating as freelance mercenaries. These are the only four proper Clans to be regarded as independent (prior to the game's third edition, in which Clan Gangrel formally left the Camarilla), but "Antitribu" splinters of other clans may become independent agencies, as may the more minor "Bloodlines" which do not hold full Clan status.[8]:22

A vampire who rejects all associations with any sect and clan is known as "Autarkis". The Laibon, called Kindred of the Ebony Kingdom by Western Kindred, are not so much a sect as a cultural group bound together loosely by a powerful spiritual bond to the land and the people of Africa. The Kindred of the East, while sharing some superficial similarity to the western Kindred, are actually an entirely different variety of supernatural being.

Clans

A clan is the character's vampire family. All characters of a single clan allegedly descended from the clan's Antediluvian founders. It is widely accepted that there are thirteen clans with thirteen founders though not all of them are technically Antediluvian. Some clan founders, such as Giovanni or Tremere, usurped their position via Diablerie. Clans may have a social or political component to them but a clan is not something a character chooses it is something they are Embraced into. Those with out a clan are known as Caitiff and are considered outsiders.[8]:19-22

The 13 Clans

Vampire: The Masquerade introduces the use of 13 clans (or major bloodlines) in the game. Each accepted clan can trace its origins to one of 13 elder vampires known as an Antediluvian, for they survived God's biblical flood. Each Antediluvian is a “grandchilde” of Cain, who killed Abel and was cursed by God and His archangels into becoming the first vampire. Through the back story of the game, Antediluvians started a war among themselves, called the Jyhad, and use their clansmen to fight this war for them.

Each Clan and Bloodline has a unique set of powers called Disciplines, and their own set of weaknesses, also unique to that particular branch of vampire. ◾Assamite: A cult of undead assassins based in the middle east. They kill for hire, and are paid in Vitae for use in special rituals that bring the clan's members closer to Cain. They possess a specialized Discipline called Quietus, which aids in stealth and killing. In the ancient past, the Tremere placed a curse on the entire clan in order to curb their rampant Diablerie. As a result, the clan could not consume Vitae without suffering terrible wounds and is unable to benefit from Diablerie. (This curse was broken in the game's third edition, and the "Antitribu" faction in the Sabbat was never affected by it; un-cursed Assamites are instead highly susceptible to "blood addiction", and may be driven to compulsively attack other vampires for their Vitae). Assamites are largely independent of sects.[8]:20, 49 ◾Brujah: In ancient times, the Brujah were a clan of noble philosophers and warriors-poets. Since the loss of their city of Carthage, which was their crowning achievement, they have become a clan of malcontents, rebels, rogues, and anti-authoritarians. Brujah possess great passion, but this same passion makes it harder for them to resist the Beast. Brujah are one of the seven founding clans of the Camarilla.[8]:20, 51 ◾Followers of Set: A clan of cultists who worship their Antediluvian progenitor, the Egyptian snake god Set. They are masters of secret and forbidden lore and foster corruption and desperation in the world as part of their worship of their god. Their signature Discipline is Serpentis which allows them to take on aspects of snakes. Setites are especially sensitive to light and take twice as much damage from sunlight as other Kindred. Followers of Set independent of the sects considering themselves a sect unto themselves.[8]:20, 52-53 ◾Gangrel: A clan of animalistic shape-shifters who shun the cities for the wilderness beyond. Independent and more interested in their own survival the Gangrel prefer to run with wild animals rather than play politics with others of their kind. Gangrel are masters of the Discipline Protean which allows them to change their bodies into bestial shapes. When Gangrel frenzy they begin to resemble the Beast taking on animal features and disfigurements. Gangrel are one of the seven founding clans of the Camarilla, although they broke from it close to the end of the game line.[8]:20, 54-55 ◾Giovanni: The Giovanni originate from a wealthy Venetian merchant family of necromancers whose patriarch, Augustus Giovanni, was embraced into clan Cappodocian. Giovanni exterminated the parent clan, Diablerized its founder, and founded a new clan but in doing so gained the enmity of the larger Kindred community. Branded "Devil Kindred" the Giovanni were able to make peace with the rest of the clan by swearing to remain neutral in the Jyhad. The Giovanni are tight-knit, highly organized, and embrace only within certain mortal families. The Giovanni appear to be only interested in wealth and necromancy but these are simply a means to an end. The clan's founder wishes to remove the barrier between the living world and the dead in order to reign supreme. The clan's weakness is that their bite (which in other vampires is normally pleasurable to the victim) causes excruciating pain. The Giovanni are independent.[8]:20, 56-57 ◾Lasombra: Darkly aristocratic vampires who see power over others and self-mastery as their noblesse oblige. As one of the two founding clans of the Sabbat they gained notoriety for allegedly destroying their Antediluvian founder. The Lasombra practice a Discipline known as Obtenebration that allows them to manipulate shadows and darkness. Perhaps as a result of their signature Discipline they do not appear in mirrors or on film that uses mirrors in its development.[8]:20, 58-59 ◾Malkavian: A clan of lunatics whose madness grants them strange insight. Their Discipline of Dementation allows them to spread their insanity like a plague (prior to the third edition, knowledge of this Discipline was suppressed within the Camarilla). All members of this clan are insane in one manner or another. They are one of the seven founding clans of the Camarilla.[8]:20, 60-61 ◾Nosferatu: Clan Nosferatu are doomed to wear their bestial nature on the outside. The Embrace turns its victims into hideous and deformed monsters who are marginalized by their appearance and forced to dwell in the shadows of the sewers. Their lives on the fringes and their stealthy abilities allow them to learn secrets others would rather keep hidden; and as a result, they often traffic in information. All Nosferatu are hideously ugly and obviously monsters to the point that appearing openly would break the Masquerade. They are one of the founding members of the Camarilla.[8]:20, 62-63 ◾Ravnos: Clan Ravnos have reputations as outcasts and troublesome thieves and charlatans. While some among them follow Indian spiritual beliefs of cycles of incarnation others are simple opportunists taking advantage of whatever chaos can be had. Ravnos rarely embrace those not of Eastern European Romani backgrounds. They practice a special Discipline known as Chimestry which allows them to create illusions. All Ravnos indulge in a particular vice as their clan weakness. The Ravnos are independent.[8]:20, 64-65 ◾Toreador: A clan of sensitive, artistic, and sometimes debauched hedonists fascinated by the mortal world and its artistic creations. The Toreador are enthralled by the ever changing mortal world and are one of the few clans, as a whole, to seek to keep up with it. Toreador often Embrace for beauty or to preserve some artistic talent. Beauty can utterly captivate them causing them to become immobilized and unable to act for a period of time. They are one of the founding seven clans of the Camarilla.[8]:20, 68-69 ◾Tremere: A clan of blood sorcerers and mages originally belonging to the Order of Hermes. The Tremere gained their immortal status by experimenting with Tzimisce Vitae. Their ambitious founder Diablerized the Antediluvian of the former clan Salubri, solidifying the Tremere's status as a clan. Their Discipline of Thaumaturgy allow them to use the power of their blood to cast spells but their dependency on Vitae makes them more easily susceptible to Blood Bonds. The clan is highly organized and its members are all partially Blood Bound to the ruling seven Elders of the clan. They are one of the founding seven clans of the Camarilla.[8]:20, 68-69 ◾Tzimisce: Otherworldly and scholarly, the Tzimisce ruled over their lands in Eastern Europe for centuries. Like the Lasombra, the Tzimisce also claim to have destroyed their founder and are pillars of the Sabbat. Alien but mystical, the Tzimisce use their unique flesh and bone shaping Discipline of Vicissitude to transform themselves into superior beings. The Tzimisce are deeply tied to the lands where they were Embraced. If they do not rest within proximity of at least two handfuls of the land where they were born or Embraced they become increasingly debilitated.[8]:20, 70-71 ◾Ventrue: The Ventrue are the aristocrats and kings of vampires having historically played a leadership role among the clans. Clan Ventrue seek power and wealth to support their legacy of rulership over Kindred and Kine. Ventrue, as a clan, may only feed from a specific kind of vessel (e.g. virgins, blondes, youngest siblings) which the player selects at character creation.[8]:20, 72-73

Antitribu

Most Sabbat vampires consider themselves to be the “anti-Clans” or antitribu in rebellion against their parent clans' values, goals, or loyalties. For example, Toreador within the Sabbat style themselves Toreador antitribu. Some rebel or twist the expectations of their clans, while others take a more radical view of their lineage's core ideas. Some are so different that they are considered different bloodlines manifesting different Disciplines, weaknesses or even a different name.[8]:43 The Lasombra and Tzimisce do not consider themselves antitribu as most of their members are within the Sabbat. Lasombra outside the Sabbat are considered antitribu while the Tzimisce outside the Sabbat are referred to as Old Clan. A Sabbat offshoot of the Followers of Setites is known as the Serpents of the Light, and have rejected both the clan founder and his Egyptian origin, in favor of the cultural trappings of Caribbean voodoo.[8]:436, 439

Bloodlines

Bloodlines, on the other hand, either cannot trace their lineage to an Antediluvian founder or are too little in number to be considered a major player in the Jyhad. Some Bloodlines are considered to be offshoots of existing clans. All bloodlines are treated as exceptionally rare in the game, leaving most of the interactions and story lines centered around the clans.[8]:393 ◾Baali: An obscure and malevolent bloodline of demon worshiping vampires legendarily descended from Baal-the-Destroyer. Baali practice a dark Discipline called Daimoinon which allows them to summon the powers of hell, learn dark secrets, or exploit other's weaknesses. Baali are repulsed by holy symbols. If the Baali join a sect at all they do so under false pretenses. Their true loyalties are to their infernal master.[8]:395 ◾Blood Brothers: Members of the Sabbat. Artificially created as shock troops, they are born in groups of seemingingly identical "twins" or "triplets" etcetera, and have the power to share wounds, appendages and even disciplines with other members of the same group. ◾Daughters of Cacophony: A mysterious mix of Malkavian, Toreador, and Ventrue, who all claim parentage for the bloodline, the Daughters of Cacophony are devoted to singing of all kinds. They practice a special discipline called Melpominee which allows them to enhance their voices to increase their beauty, or even cause madness or wounds. Daughters exist in small numbers in both sects or as independents.[8]:398-399 ◾Gargoyles: Created by the Tremere from other Kindred during their early nights to defend them from their enemies the gargoyle bloodline is exactly what the name entails: stone-skinned, demonic looking, winged monsters who designed to haunt the exterior of castles. Some remain enslaved by Tremere magic but others have freed themselves and joined the Camarilla. Besides being hideous, gargoyles easily fall prey to supernatural mind control.[8]:400-401 ◾Harbingers of Skulls: Rumored to be an ancient bloodline freshly awakened from torpor, the Harbingers of Skulls are necromancers loyal only to the Sabbat. They resemble rotting corpses similar to the Samedi[8]:402-403 Some believe that they are the long lost remains of the Cappidocians. ◾Kiasyd: The calm and studious, fey-touched Kiasyd descend from clan Lasombra. They are a rare bloodline ostensibly loyal to the Sabbat but more interested in their scholarship than the Jyhad. Iron inflicts terrible wounds on them and may even cause them to frenzy.[8]:405-406 ◾Laibon: Originally presented as a single Bloodline of African vampires, which were later expanded into a multi-clan society with their own hardcover sourcebook. ◾Lamia: A particularly obscure Bloodline, thought extinct. ◾Lhiannon: Celtic vampires with powers of druidic witchcraft. Thought extinct. ◾Nagarajah: Members of the True Black Hand. Asiatic vampires who eat flesh as well as drinking blood. ◾Old Clan Tzimisce: Members of the True Black Hand. The Tzimisce clan as they were prior to joining the Sabbat and being "infected" by the Vissicitude discipline. The legendary Dracula is likely to be a member of the Old Clan, and others of the Bloodline share similar characteristics - a background in Slavic aristocracy, a deep tie to the lands of Carpathia, and so forth. ◾Salubri: The Salubri were one of the thirteen original clans until their founder, Saulot, was diablerized by Tremere. Since then the bloodline has been nearly hunted into extinction by the hands of their usurpers. Far from the reputation of their evil diablerists the former clan practices a Discipline known as Obeah which has the power to heal bodies and minds. The bloodline intentionally keeps itself small with only seven in existence at any given time. The entire bloodline is devoted to finding Golconda. Salubri cannot feed from unwilling victims. All of this is untrue of the Sabbat branch of the Salubri, who are as "evil" as the original Salubri are "good", practicing compulsive warfare and using their "Valeren" discipline, a perversion and reversal of Obeah, to literally steal human souls. Due to a mix of Tremere propaganda and encounters with the Antitribu faction, Salubri in general are feared and reviled by nearly all vampires, which keeps them on the fringes of vampire society.[8]:409-410 ◾Samedi: A loathsome necromantic bloodline arising from the Caribbean, being embraced by the Samedi literally causes the victim to appear as a walking corpse. One of the few vampires as horrendous as the Nosferatu, the Samedi practice necromancy and a special Discipline called Thanatosis which they use to weaken or cause death in others. Samedi exist in small numbers in both sects or as independents.:410-411 ◾True Brujah: Members of the True Black Hand. Ostensibly the original Brujah clan, whose Antediluvian was displaced by a renegade offspring of their founder. Virtually the exact opposite of "false" Brujah, the bloodline's members are coldly unemotional, but possess the ability to manipulate the flow of time.

Reception

In 1992, Vampire: The Masquerade won the Origins Award for Best Roleplaying Rules of 1991.[10]

Versions

The original 1991 version was superseded by a second edition in 1992, and a revised edition in 1998.

The Vampire: The Masquerade game line was discontinued in 2004, at which point it was superseded by Vampire: The Requiem.

On March 17, 2011, White Wolf announced the 20th Anniversary Edition, which was published during the Grand Masquerade event in New Orleans on September 15–17, 2011, released to the attendees. Customers not attending The Grand Masquerade were offered a limited time preorder option. The 20th Anniversary Edition contains revisions of rules and is a compendium of most information provided in supplemental material in the game's earlier life. The 20th Anniversary Edition officially revived Vampire: The Masquerade as part of White Wolf Publishing's shift to a print on demand business model,[11] and multiple new Masquerade products have been announced.[12] All of White Wolf's tabletop roleplaying games are now published by Onyx Path Publishing, including Vampire, while all of White Wolf's Mind's Eye Theatre products are now published through By Night Studios.[13]

In early 2018, there will be a 5th edition of Vampire: The Masquerade released. Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary (published in 2011) is the 4th edition.[14]