I've been somewhat enamored with the White Wolf systems for as long as I've been playing tabletop RPGs but never played or DMed one. It's taken a few years but I finally find myself in a position to make one of those goals a possibility.
This thread is to gather interest and get the pot stirring for a potential White Wolf game in the nearish future. I call it an 'ensemble' game because I want to run a game features multiple White Wolf game systems. I'm leaning more towards the Old World of Darkness for this campaign as that's the setting that garnered my interest to begin with.
The character's I'm looking at including are:
Changeling
Hunter
Mage
Vampire
Werewolf
Wraith
This isn't a recruitment thread (that'll come later). Right now I'm just looking for general interest, interest in which character archetype folks want to play, and who has experience with the system.
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No experience with the system beyond what I've thumbed through at 2nd & Charles, but I loved the idea. I also have played and love Hunter: the Reckoning Wayward for the PS2 (not the same, I know, but at least I'm semi-familiar with that world).
From what I can read, I'd be interested in playing a Hunter, a Vampire (maybe), or a Wraith.
1) Which version of White Wolf? Second edition? The new Reboot? First Edition?
2) Kindred of the East? (If Second Edition)
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I have play in Home game a World of darkness campaign, unless there is a strong motivation werewolves, vampires and hunters usually do not get along very well.
(plus you are going to run in the problem that vampires players are only active at night)
i am interested but it does depend on what would be the plot hoock
I'd play if I can find what I need. I have a ton of NWOD stuff on a PDF somewhere, but none of the old material.
As far as what creature I'd want to play, ranked in order of preference: Changeling, Wraith, Mage, Hunter, Werewolf, Mosquito.
Mosquito?
I have played and gm'd alot of vampire, 2nd + 3rd edn.
Mosquito, vampire, what's the difference?
I'm not super familiar with the editions but I believe I'll be using 2nd edition Classic World of Darkness.
If you're not familiar with World of Darkness, don't be scared off (neither am I!). I'd like a good mix of experienced and unexperienced players.
The plot will be mostly western focused but a eastern Kindred isn't impossible.
In that case I'd be interested in playing either an eastern vampire, or a eastern vampire hunter.
I've GM'd melange games before in WW, off an on for about 10 years (Second edition). The thing to be aware of is, the power levels are extremely hard to balance.
At starting level, Werewolves kick anything except an Eastern Vampire's butt, no problems. Eastern Vampires can hold their own against Werewolves. Vampires and Hunters are about the same power level to start off. Mages are alternately the most squishy and the most powerful characters around. They can literally alter reality. But, reality alters them right back in revenge, and a mage in arms reach of a vampire or werewolf is dead. Changelings are the curb-stomped abuse toys of everything. Wraiths are pretty much the ghostly whimper of something and can't affect anything outside the umbra/spirit world. And even in the spirit world, Eastern Vampires and Werewolves kick their butt.
I'm somewhat aware of the drastic difference in power levels. I was unaware that eastern vampires were so much more powerful than normal vampires. Kindred might not work out after all.
If you're going to allow werewolves, then Eastern Kindred are no more powerful than they are. THey're slightly less powerful, but can hold their own usually.
I understood that part and when it comes to butt-kickingness, I'm comfortable with werewolves occupying that spot. I don't want to muddy the roles by having asian vampires that are their equals.
I appreciate the advice - you obviously have leagues more experience with the system than I do. I'm not looking to build a combat-balanced party.
No problem. In that case, I'll bow out, as I've never been able to play an eastern vampire, and wanted to. Thanks anyway.
I understand. I may PM you to pick your brain for WoD knowledge anyway. =P
Mage sounds fun, Changeling as well. Hunter might also be fun. I've played Vampire before, not a lot.
I'd love to try out Werewolf, Hunter or Vampire.
Yes, I'd be interested in it. I grew up just outside of Stone Mountain and played with some of the devs in a monthly LARP in Atlanta when they got started. Good times. I dropped the system after the "reboot", although when I look at the new systems it's okay.
So, I'd play Vampire, Mage or Werewolf. The other WW stuff never really got me interested. I could go new system or the old school stuff. Things I didn't like about new vampire were the different sects. The clans were fine, but the sects were dumb. The tremere and malkavians were gone, which was nice, depending upon your point of view.
The Mage system is easier now than it used to be, but it eliminates some of the roleplay aspects. Mage can just get goofy if people aren't trying to tell a story and are instead just metagaming. "I turn the vampire into a lawnchair!"
Werewolf was always like, eco terrorists, and I never did like that part about them. Werewolf is for more combat focused games. Vampire is like middle of the road, and mage is really story over system. At least that's my point of view on them.
Is there detailed information anywhere on how the different systems interact? What happens to a vampire that enters the Shadowlands? What's a Hunter's gnosis rating for purposes of using a werewolf relic? Etc.
I'm comfortable feeling my way through these things but I thought I remembered hearing about a crossover guide somewhere that might handle some of this stuff for me.
There are rules for all that in the books themselves, usually in a section about 'additional systems' if I remember correctly. Generally, things can't use a relic of a different tradition. So, mages/hunters can't use a Werewolf Relic without a specific trait or ability (which defines how to use it).
Werewolves have gifts that let them use vampire and mage items, for example, and the gift tells you how to do so (IE: Expend one gnosis per blood point normally required).
Changeling had a book called 'Book of Lost Dreams' that explained how to use it with all other WW systems, so you could use it to sort of 'back in' to Vampire -> Werewolf. That may be what you're thinking of.
I'd be interested in Wraith, Werewolf or Hunter the Vigil. I don't have the hunter book but I have all the rest.
Is there detailed information anywhere on how the different systems interact? What happens to a vampire that enters the Shadowlands? What's a Hunter's gnosis rating for purposes of using a werewolf relic? Etc.
I'm comfortable feeling my way through these things but I thought I remembered hearing about a crossover guide somewhere that might handle some of this stuff for me.
As a long time White Wolf player/storyteller I would be interested, most likely a vampire or mage.
Like mdt said, there are sections in the books about interactions with the other WoD systems. That being said, trying to combine the old WoD systems can be tricky as they really were not meant to be run concurrently.
The new WoD was set up, mechanically, so that running each of the different supernaturals in the same game would be simpler. (Not that I am advocating a switch to the nWoD, as I greatly prefer the oWoD.)
It's less that they were not meant to be run concurrently than it is that the development teams kept trying to one up each other.
I'd be interested in playing. I'm pretty familiar with oWoD vampires and garou. I'd want to see what the story is like before picking what to play- those two don't tend to get along very well.
Too bad about no kuei-jin; that was the first thing I thought about when I saw this thread. The funny thing about that is that eastern vamps and eastern changing breeds are better integrated than their western counterparts. It probably helps that the Hakken aren't genocidal killers like the Euro breeds.
There are a couple of changing breeds that would play better with vampires - nagah and ananasi in particular, and probably bastet, but nagah wouldn't work if there are werewolves around.
I've read through most of Wraith and Mage now. I'm considering playing with the wraith/shadow mechanics a bit and making them two entirely separate characters.