The PC builds using V20 rules:
Attributes - 8/6/4
Abilities - 17/12/7
Disciplines - 7 (you can spend 1 point on non-Clan Celerity/Fortitude/Potence if you so choose)
Backgrounds - 8
Virtues - 7
Freebies - 22
Merits up to 7 points
Flaws up to 7 points
Starting Generation 12th (you can go as low as 7th)
[PCs take 1 Ritual per dot in Thaumaturgy including Paths - so if you take a 4 Thaumaturgy and 3 Movement of the Mind - you take 2 1st, 2 2nd, 2 3rd and 1 4th level Ritual].
Starting Year 1910.
Your history is not terribly important but feel free to draft one if you wish, you can be from anywhere in the world as the PCs will be assembled in Vienna at the start of the Chronicle. If you wish to take a non-Clan Discipline besides the physical ones, that will need to be in a Background and make sense.
For Thaumaturgy ANY Path can be primary. Blood Magic (traditional Thaumaturgy) can be secondary or you don't have to take it at all if you don't want to.
[Period specific skill TBD].
I don't know why the text is all in red but it's definitely appropriate! I'm still toying with various ideas but will absolutely be making a character to apply for this game. Do you have thoughts on when recruitment will close? I sometimes find deadlines help concentrate the mind.
I feel that, Wastrel. I got too excited when the first range of dates was presented and came up with this thaumaturgically inept hardboiled private detective, but it's a little early for that stuck-in-the-golden-age-of-detective-stories image I had in mind for the character.
So, it's back to the drawing board, and I'm leaning toward a recently (as in within the last decade) embraced contemporary of Tesla who had collaborated with him on wireless lighting (prompting his study of the Path of the Levinbolt).
Yeah, we're not quite into the noir or pulp era yet, 1910 is almost still fin-de-siecle as the 19th century still has a hold and the 20th century struggles to get going. That said, it looks like there was a lot of interest at that time in parapsychology and occultism so one idea I'm considering is a dabbler/seer type who tugged at the edges of the Masquerade once too often and got dragged behind the curtain.
I don't know why the text is all in red but it's definitely appropriate! I'm still toying with various ideas but will absolutely be making a character to apply for this game. Do you have thoughts on when recruitment will close? I sometimes find deadlines help concentrate the mind.
You know what, I don't know why either! I thought it might be just a new feature for DMs.
Have a character ready by June 1. Until then I will need time to prep everything out and get my son into a sleeping pattern versus what we are dealing with now, which is inconsistent sleep.
I feel that, Wastrel. I got too excited when the first range of dates was presented and came up with this thaumaturgically inept hardboiled private detective, but it's a little early for that stuck-in-the-golden-age-of-detective-stories image I had in mind for the character.
So, it's back to the drawing board, and I'm leaning toward a recently (as in within the last decade) embraced contemporary of Tesla who had collaborated with him on wireless lighting (prompting his study of the Path of the Levinbolt).
If you like the Detective theme you can be a Sherlock Holmes type of character :-)
I do like that angle for Way of Levinbolt though as a primary path.
Given the theme of this particular leg of the game, I was thinking something of a slightly-less pulpy Indiana Jones type. Prior to being embraced he was an in-the-field academic that taught classes only when it was required to keep the job.
His last official "dig" for the University (TBD) led to him discovering something that the Kindred (House and Clan Tremere in particular) found objectionable. Being ultimately a pragmatic clan, rather than destroy a resource that could be valuable to them, they brought him into the fold so that the House and Clan could use and control his work.
Per Victorian Age Vampire:
Drive replaced by Ride.
Computers replaced by Enigmas.
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Hey, I'm not applying, but I wanted to note that there's a bug in the Paizo boards (one of many!) where if a campaign has certain words in it, the non-link text in all associated threads will change. "Red" in the campaign title is the reason most of the text here is red. Other known words are "green" and "tiny," which change the text to green or a smaller font size, respectively.
Storyteller Shadow, once your Recruitment is done, you might want to start up a new campaign named something without those words if you want to avoid all of the campaign's threads having freaky text.
Hmm... might we also consider the versions of personality archetypes presented in Victorian Age Vampire?
Hmm... might we also consider the versions of personality archetypes presented in Victorian Age Vampire?
Absolutely.
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Hey, I'm not applying, but I wanted to note that there's a bug in the Paizo boards (one of many!) where if a campaign has certain words in it, the non-link text in all associated threads will change. "Red" in the campaign title is the reason most of the text here is red. Other known words are "green" and "tiny," which change the text to green or a smaller font size, respectively.
Storyteller Shadow, once your Recruitment is done, you might want to start up a new campaign named something without those words if you want to avoid all of the campaign's threads having freaky text.
Thanks for the heads up.
To be honest, I like it, I'll keep it!
It's very fitting, thematically!
I didn't know there was a Victorian Age Vampire which is clearly an oversight on my part. Is it V20 or original?
Per Victorian Age Vampire:
Computers replaced by Enigmas.
What does the Enigma skill cover? How does it differ from Occult?
It's very fitting, thematically!
I didn't know there was a Victorian Age Vampire which is clearly an oversight on my part. Is it V20 or original?
What does the Enigma skill cover? How does it differ from Occult?Per Victorian Age Vampire:
Computers replaced by Enigmas.
-----
I believe that Victorian Age was part of the Revised Edition (which I guess is 3rd Edition) Vampire as the main book was written by Justin Achilli in 2002.
I've never actually run anything from that period (except a portion of the Transylvania Chronicles IV (or was it III?) that had a chapter cross over in that time period but I do not believe that it was an "official" Victorian Age chapter.
I had a 6 year table top game that ran from 1190 to 2001, using time jumps, which actually ended in 2001 when I started Law School. So by the time this was released I was not running Vampire. Since then, the games that I have run were either Dark Ages or Modern.
-----
Knowledge: Enigmas
Logic problems, puzzles and mysteries are all in the realm of Enigmas. Characters with this Knowledge link information and hunches together to solve conundrums of all varieties, from the spiritual to the material. It's not that they have any sort of ESP, they just put things together uncannily well. Those characters who have Enigmas probably enjoy matching wits against devious villains or even packmates in contests of the mind.
• Student: You always solve the daily crossword.
•• College: Why bother to read whodunits? You always know the ending.
••• Masters: The pack regards you as the resident riddlemaster when witty spirits are around.
•••• Doctorate: You can win contests of logic even with faulty information.
••••• Scholar: Even the deepest philosophical mysteries and issues are clear to you.
Possessed by: Theurges, Mystics, Wise Elders, Gamers, Mystery Fans, Puzzle-Lovers.
Specialties: Logic Problems, Ancient Mysteries, Things Werewolves Weren't Meant to Know.
Dotting with interest I haven’t looked at v20 in a while but I really love the era so I’m gonna put something together!
Posting my interest!
I have a question: Will be allowed to start with more than one path of Thaum? If so, would those dots come out of our starting 7, or do we need to buy them with freebies?
Posting my interest!
I have a question: Will be allowed to start with more than one path of Thaum?
If so, would those dots come out of our starting 7, or do we need to buy them with freebies?
Yes.
They can come from your starting 7 or Freebies (or both if you really want to max out your Blood Sorcery). As always, no Path may be higher than your primary path (which should be clearly indicated). Until Primary reaches 5, no other Path may reach 5.
Reading/refreshing my memory around the Path of Conjuration, I think I'll be passing on that in favor of a different primary path - leaning towards Movement of the Mind.
Reading/refreshing my memory around the Path of Conjuration, I think I'll be passing on that in favor of a different primary path - leaning towards Movement of the Mind.
Funny, I was thinking the same Path based on your concept, but I don't generally provide ideas for PC creation unless they ask.
Hi,
As this is my first foray into play by post, I have a question with regard to game mechanics in the chronicle. How are actions that would be determined with dice rolls in a table top game handled in the play by post chronicle? Does the story teller consider the declared action and the dice pool of the character and make a judgment call on a result or is there some virtual dice mechanism?
Below the posting box is language that states - How to format your text.
If you click show, that box will open and show you how to craft your post for the dice roller.
The example presented: This is a dice expression.
For Vampire, it's a bit of a pain in the ass, I will explain in my Edit.
EDIT: Unlike Pathfinder, Vampire has a system for Botches and Additional successes which remove successes or increases successes (i.e. you roll a 1 or a 10).
So every 1 reduces a success, every 10 (assuming you are specialized in that roll) generates 2 successes instead of 1. Thus, to ensure that you are not posting a few times in a row, you need to Preview your post, then Edit that post based upon your roll. Especially in Combat where extra successes can create extra damage dice for your pool.
I can explain that further by way of example when I have more time but I wanted to give a brief overview real quick, gotta get back to work!
So about the clan weakness... Originally, we didn't have one and the practice of the Transubstantiation of Seven was treated as the clan weakness since it bound us to the clan not just the seven. In V20, that stuff still happens, but we have an actual weakness of being more susceptible to blood bonds. I don't have a problem with this in itself, but it does create issues given another V20 change: learning an out-of-clan discipline requires ingesting a point of the teacher's blood.
I don't have any real preference about how all this is resolved. I just want to know how it's all going to work because having to become partially blood bound to learn any out of clan discipline would significantly impact the clan's policies toward anyone doing that given loyalty is one of the clan's highest values.
I'm very much not up on the lore of Vampire or World of Darkness generally, I enjoyed the games but it was a long time ago. I'm limited to knowing what's RAW in the V20 book, and that seems to suggest that the Tremere weakness means that the first point of blood you drink counts as two, so you would be fine with taking a point to learn a discipline as long as you then didn't take a second point from the same vampire, because then you would be bound.
As far as I can tell, being 'partially' blood bound isn't a thing by RAW - you either are or you aren't; but if I'm wrong then please correct me.
So about the clan weakness... Originally, we didn't have one and the practice of the Transubstantiation of Seven was treated as the clan weakness since it bound us to the clan not just the seven. In V20, that stuff still happens, but we have an actual weakness of being more susceptible to blood bonds. I don't have a problem with this in itself, but it does create issues given another V20 change: learning an out-of-clan discipline requires ingesting a point of the teacher's blood.
I don't have any real preference about how all this is resolved. I just want to know how it's all going to work because having to become partially blood bound to learn any out of clan discipline would significantly impact the clan's policies toward anyone doing that given loyalty is one of the clan's highest values.
I must have been sleeping on that change for learning Disciplines. I'm overruling that, stick with the 2ed method, you are taught by a mentor, no imbibing of Blood necessary. I can see the allure in the idea of it but i'll pass on that rules change.
The Tremere Weakness of course remains.
As far as I can tell, being 'partially' blood bound isn't a thing by RAW - you either are or you aren't; but if I'm wrong then please correct me.
There's more detail on Blood Bonds on pages 286-288 of the V20 book, but the relevant text follows:
Second drink: The drinker’s feelings grow strong
enough to influence her behavior. Though she is by
no means enslaved to the vampire, he is definitely an
important figure in her life. She may act as she pleases,
but might have to make a Willpower roll to take ac-
tions directly harmful to the vampire. The vampire’s
influence is such that he can persuade or command her
with little effort (Social rolls against the thrall are at
-1 difficulty).
More importantly, though, I was commenting on how this would affect the clan's policies. The Pyramid is maintained in no small part by an expectation of loyalty reinforced with a second level blood bond. That would mean any Tremere with an out of clan discipline also has another bond tugging at their loyalties. It's a thing the clan would view unfavorably if the practice wasn't outright banned in favor of finding ways to replicate other disciplines via Thaumaturgy.
OOp, missed that! In fairness, it's a long book. Thanks for pointing it out as well as for the lore on clan Tremere and the Pyramid :)
Second drink always had an effect, not quite as strong as a full bond but it always made you more favorably disposed towards that Cainite.
Hi,
Will all characters be presumed to be able to read and write and do basic math or given the time period, will characters need a dot in academics to have basic literacy?
Hi,
Will all characters be presumed to be able to read and write and do basic math or given the time period, will characters need a dot in academics to have basic literacy?
For Clan Tremere Vampires I won't require the single dot in academics as it's unlikely that a Mortal would be chosen without the basic reading writing skill set.
For other Clan one shots, this presumption won't be in place.
What about languages? Is there no other way to get them except via the Freebies?
WW,
Unless V20 is really different from orig and revised WOD, you can take linguistics as a knowledge.
In V20 languages are a 1 point merit (each) and no longer a knowledge ability.
That being said, I wouldn't see a reason you couldn't spend XP down the line (along with the appropriate role-playing) to pick up more - but obviously I'm not the ST here.
This is an example of my not knowing what it is that I don’t know about V20. My rough draft character is heavily invested in linguistics as a knowledge when that knowledge apparently no longer exists.
Here's a list of the V20 abilities (with the substitution of Enigmas for Computer and Ride for Drive mentioned above).
Talents:
Alertness:
Athletics:
Awareness:
Brawl:
Empathy:
Expression:
Intimidation:
Leadership:
Streetwise:
Subterfuge:
Skills:
Animal Ken:
Crafts:
Etiquette:
Firearms:
Larceny:
Melee:
Performance:
Repair:
Ride:
Stealth:
Survival:
Knowledges:
Academics:
Enigmas:
Finance:
Investigation:
Law:
Medicine:
Occult:
Politics:
Science:
Technology:
Merits for Linguists:
You know a language in addition to your native one. You can take this Merit multiple times, each reflecting a different language.
You have a flair for languages. You may add three dice to any dice pool involving written or spoken languages, and each purchase of the Language Merit (previous page) gives you two languages instead of just one.
My only objection to the way V20 handles this is that you only get to choose so many points of starting merits. Natural Linguist seems like it should count against your 7 points worth of merits, but not necessarily Language. Also, as Talomyr hinted, it seems odd that the rules don't really support you being able to learn a new language with experience like you can other Abilities.
Edit: Upon re-reading the beginning of the V20 Merits and Flaws section, it seems there is no cap on merits RAW, so just the fact that you can't learn languages later RAW is weird. Am I remembering a cap on merits from Revised or is it just a coincidence that Shadow and my ST from high school had a 7 point cap?
I just remembered I had a question. When you say 22 Freebie Points in the first post, is that 22 to start or a maximum of 22 if we take 7 points of flaws?
I have a cap on merits of 7.
That said, if we are JUST talking languages, I am ok with a PC taking extra language merits above that 7 points if that is the crux of the build.
No book in front of me but does Academics provide a language per dot? Maybe I am just thinking f some old house rule of mine versus an actual rule.
I just remembered I had a question. When you say 22 Freebie Points in the first post, is that 22 to start or a maximum of 22 if we take 7 points of flaws?
22 to start. Flaws provide extra above that of course.
I have a cap on merits of 7.
That said, if we are JUST talking languages, I am ok with a PC taking extra language merits above that 7 points if that is the crux of the build.
No book in front of me but does Academics provide a language per dot? Maybe I am just thinking of some old house rule of mine versus an actual rule.
Must have been a house rule...I think you granted a language per dot of Academics in the Bloodlines game.
In the V20 modern Academics does not grant you any languages, rules as written. In Dark Ages V20 it grants you Latin as a language, but that's it.
Personally I'll be interested in seeing what the final ruling will be here, as an archeologist type, I could easily see my character knowing a number of languages.
What about a PF-based house rule like having 1 extra language per dot in Intelligence? If you want more than that, you take the relevant Merit.
What about a PF-based house rule like having 1 extra language per dot in Intelligence? If you want more than that, you take the relevant Merit.
You know what, sure, I think that's a good baseline.
Probably just for the Tremere though as they seek out the scholarly, other Clans, I will stick to the rules as is.
Course with PbP speed we won't get there that quick anyhow.
What about a PF-based house rule like having 1 extra language per dot in Intelligence? If you want more than that, you take the relevant Merit.You know what, sure, I think that's a good baseline.
Probably just for the Tremere though as they seek out the scholarly, other Clans, I will stick to the rules as is.
Course with PbP speed we won't get there that quick anyhow.
Cool! Now I have to go back and spend 4 more freebies!
Thanks for the V20 list of abilities. I’ll remove dots in quick-draw, mediation and mage lore. I should get the anachronism flaw OOC.
Once upon a time, a dot or two in academics granted the scholars tongue, Latin.
It's worth noting that there's also a catch all for each category that I think is supposed to represent a potentially infinite number of skills: Hobby Talent, Professional Skill, and Expert Knowledge.
I mention it because Archaeology was one of the suggestions for an "Expert Knowledge" and I remember someone had that concept.
In V20 character creation, when allocating dots to an ability is 3 the limit unless it’s raised beyond 3 with freebie points? Or nowadays can you just plunk 4 or 5 dots into an ability with the pool of dots available ?
RAW, Abilities are still limited to 3 dots unless you spend freebie points. No clue if Shadow is house-ruling that.
This site lists specialties for a vast number of skills. Could be useful.
What are the general concepts people have so far? Tryin to decide what exactly I wanna play.
So far I've built out a thaumaturgically inept thief/smuggler. He's like a British Lupin III. I'm also working on an electricity-obsessed physicist/inventor. I figure I'll probably go with whichever one has less overlap with the rest of the coterie, but I'm leaning toward the guy that can't use Thaumaturgy at the moment.
Concept thus far is a war wizard.
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In V20 character creation, when allocating dots to an ability is 3 the limit unless it’s raised beyond 3 with freebie points? Or nowadays can you just plunk 4 or 5 dots into an ability with the pool of dots available ?
You can exceed 3 here because you are not neonates.