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Disciplines

D
iscipline is a general term used loosely by level Discipline, three for the second level and four for
Vampires to describe the plethora of super- the third level.
natural powers that distinguish them from
mortals. Their exact origin is unknown, though those Since the same Disciplines cancel each other out and
Vampires who have spent decades studying Noddism some have similar powers, it is helpful to quickly whis-
point to the legend of Caine and to Lilith as his teach- per the name of the Discipline used to your target,
er. What is indisputable is that the powers themselves in case you aren’t sure they know what you are using.
come from the blood itself; each Clan has a unique Regardless, such mishaps happen, and we strongly en-
spread inherent to them, passed down from Sire to courage you to just go with the flow when they do rath-
Chile, and learning out-of-Clan Disciplines requires er than disrupt the game and try to retroactively fix it.
drinking the blood of a Vampire who already possesses
them. Choosing your Disciplines
The powers themselves come in a variety of forms, Choosing your Disciplines is a simple process. You get
from superhuman strength and endurance to the abil- a number of Discipline points as determined by your
ity to shapeshift and even fuel ritual magic with your age (look at the table below to see how many you get).
blood. Regardless, Vampires themselves take a much You can assign them into any Discipline you like, but
less structured approach to them than we do as play- the total amount of points in your in-Clan Disciplines
ers. A Toreador might see and hear much better than MUST equal or exceed the amount of points in out-
others, but he is extremely unlikely to actually call that of-Clan Disciplines. In addition, all Ghouls have to
“Auspex” rather than consider it a simple enhanced put at least one point into Potence. Since higher level
perception, and the same goes for all other Disciplines Disciplines can take centuries to master, you can only
except Blood Magic, but even thaumaturgical rituals take a third level in a Discipline if you are older than
can vary a great deal from chantry to chantry. 120 years! If you have out-of-Clan Disciplines, you
For the sake of simplicity and keeping the game must have drank the blood of someone who already
smooth, the vast majority of Disciplines in our game possesses them! You also cannot start with any form
use the so-called “really, really” principle. Some powers, of Blood Sorcery unless it is a Clan Discipline for you.
however, are passive, and don’t require activation.
Example: Boris, a Brujah Ancilla who is 137 years old,
The “really, really” principle gets 6 points to put into Disciplines. Even though he
is a Brujah, the player has de- Age Points
Using the words “Really, really…” activates a Discipline cided that he wants Animalism
Ghoul 1
you possess. The more “Really” there are in a sentence, to be his primary Discipline.
the more powerful your Discipline use is. As an exam- Since he is older than 120 Ghoul(50+) 2
ple, if someone with Auspex 1 would wish to discover years, he can put 3 points into 1-40 3
someone’s emotional state, he could look them in the Animalism, and has 3 points 41-80 4
eye and say: “I really, really know exactly how you feel right remaining. He puts 2 of those 81-120 5
now...” Their target would then HAVE TO answer into Presence and the last one 121-160 6
truthfully, unless they posses an equal or higher level into Potence. The number of 161-220 7
of the same Discipline, in this case Auspex. Even if you his in-Clan Disciplines now
221-350 8
possess a higher level in a Discipline, you can still use equals the number of his out-
its weaker variants freely if you wish. The amount of of-Clan Disciplines, so he is 351-499 9
“Really” indicates the Discipline’s level: two for a first legal and done. 500 + Variable
Animalism even harness their own Beast as a weapon.

Clans: Gangrel, Nosferatu, Ravnos, Tzimisce ● Animal Spies: At the beginning of the event, you will
be provided with a single random secret that was told
Somewhat inappropriately named, while Animalism to you by an animal, such as a bat or a rat… or a cat.
does concern itself with controlling animals, it is in re-
ality nothing more than a deep understanding of one’s ●● Quell the Beast: Stop Frenzy in another charac-
instinctual, predatory nature; the Beast itself. Users of ter. Soothing the Beast must be roleplayed appropri-
the Discipline exude a primal, animalistic magnetism ately and is never an instant power. Examples include
strong enough to make lesser creatures instinctually singing to the frenzied character, asserting your dom-
feel their superiority and menace, and thus obey the inance or simply talking them down. You cannot use
Vampire’s commands out of fear. The Vampire also this power on yourself.
becomes capable of communicating with animals on
some level, though such communication is limited by ●●● Drawing out the Beast: Become immune to Fren-
the creature’s intellect. At higher levels, this aura of zy for a scene by forcing your Beast into another char-
terror extends to the Beasts of other Kindred, cowing acter and making them Frenzy. This Frenzy cannot be
them into submission, and masters of Animalism can stopped by any Discipline. An example would include
a scene in which the power’s user would clearly show causing them to Rötschreck when conjuring phantom
his Beast being brought to the surface, perhaps begin- fire or lost themselves in their own fantasies. A Ravnos
ning to pace and fume, barely able to control himself must also be able to perceive the illusion, so one that
as his eyes bulge out before saying “Feel the wrath of has been blinded cannot weave visual illusions, etc.
an Elder’s Beast, pup. You will really, really, really, really
Frenzy until you are sated.” ● Ignis Fatuus: Create an illusion that affects a single
sense of a single person. You can make them, hear, see,
Auspex smell, taste or feel something physically, but only one
of these senses can be affected. “You really, really hear
Clans: Malkavian, Toreador, Tremere, Tzimisce your Sire calling you intently from that dark room.”

Auspex is the Discipline of heightened perception, ●● Fata Morgana: Create an illusion that can affect
allowing its practitioners to attune themselves to the all the senses of a single person. Have them close their
emotions and thoughts of others as well as heightening eyes and describe what they see. Such scenes are best
their physical senses. Each sound, sight or sensation is conducted in private.
amplified for its users, each tiny twitch or impercepti-
ble muscle movement speaking volumes to a percep- ●●● Weave Reality: Use your Chimerstry powers on
tive Vampire. It is an incredibly subtle Discipline, and groups of people.
one can never notice when Auspex is being used on
them unless they have an equal or higher level of it. To
differentiate it from other “really, really” Disciplines, its
use is always followed by KNOW, as in “I really, really
know…”

● Aura Perception: Discover someone’s current emo-


tional state. “I really, really know how that made you
feel.”

●● Sense Desire: Discover someone’s desires. “I real-


ly, really, really know what you want most right now.”

●●● The Mind Revealed: Discover someone’s deep-


est held secrets. “I really, really, really, really know
everything about your secret ties to the Tremere.”

Chimestry
Clans: Ravnos

The strange powers of Chimerstry are the staple of


Clan Ravnos and perhaps the main reason they are
regarded as a clan of rogues and tricksters. The Dis-
cipline allows them to conjure elaborate illusions into
reality, confounding the senses of their targets. When
a Ravnos uses this power, he himself must also experi-
ence and believe the illusion for a moment, sometimes
Dementation against their nature will surely notice its use, those who
master this Discipline can subtly and effectively take
Clans: Malkavian control of people’s lives and rearrange entire identities
at a whim. Indeed, rumors abound about Manchuri-
Perhaps the strangest of the Disciplines, Dementation an Candidates programmed to execute their orders
allows Malkavians to make unique sense of their mad- at specific triggers by scheming and fanatical Sabbat
ness and infect others with it. It is because of Demen- Elders… Thankfully for Elder Kindred, Dominate’s
tation that Malkavians are considered both unrivaled use is limited by Generation. As such, Dominate never
prophets and dangerous lunatics. Nobody can learn works on a character whose Generation is lower than
Dementation unless they are deranged first. It is only that of the user.
through insanity that Dementation can manifest, and
it does so in different ways. A schizophrenic might hear ● Command: Give a simple, one word command that
voices guide him to his goal, while someone with de- must be obeyed. “You will really, really leave.”
pression would experience the visions quite differently.
What’s more, Dementation is one of the Disciplines ●● Mesmerise: Give complex commands or implant
that can be activated without the user even wanting it a triggered command into someone’s mind. “You will
. really, really, really go and insult the next Prince you see.”
● Passion: Ask a character about their current strong-
est emotion. Make it much stronger for a scene. “You ●●● The Forgetful Mind: Alter or remove a scene
say you’re feeling a bit angry? Actually, I think you are re- from someone’s memory. “How dare you accuse me of
ally, really angry…” starting that rumour?! In fact, you really, really, really, re-
ally seem to remember that you were the one who first spread
●● Eyes of Chaos: All characters with Eyes of Chaos it.”
will receive a cryptic vision during the course of the
event. They will then have the option of deciphering Fortitude
it together with others who posses this power, piecing
together the puzzle. Blades, bullets, even fire… You can withstand it all.
What’s more, you can sometimes resist even the un-
●●● Silence the Sane Mind: Inflict a target with a breakable Blood Bond or other supernatural abilities.
great insanity of your choosing. You may describe the Vampires with Fortitude eventually become walking
effects to them, and they must roleplay it for either the fortresses; even if they have no combat ability whatso-
rest of the night or until they find a way to cure them- ever, they are nearly impossible to hurt.
selves. “As I speak, your mind begins to cloud… Henceforth,
you are really, really, really, really paranoid, passionately Clans: Gangrel, Ravnos, Ventrue
distrustful of even your closest friends.”
●● Cumulative +1 to Combat Rating. Once per night,
Dominate you may ignore pain. “That really, really didn’t even
hurt.”
Clans: Giovanni, Lasombra, Tremere, Ventrue
●● Cumulative +2 to Combat Rating. Once per night,
Dominate is the Discipline of control. The very words you can ignore the effects of a blood bond for a single
of its users carry such authority that only those of im- scene.
mensely strong will can resist obeying them. Its use is
limited by eye contact, so Dominate can only be used ●●● Cumulative +3 to Combat Rating. Once per
on a single person, unless one is truly ancient. While it night, you may ignore any one use of a Discipline
can be somewhat crude, as those forced to commit acts aimed at you.
Obfuscate
●● Unseen Presence: Remain hidden while moving.
Clans: Assamite, Followers of Set, Malkavian, Nos- Cross your arms across your chest so that your hands
feratu are over your shoulders. Extend two fingers on each
hand to indicate the second level of the Discipline.
Your vampiric blood allows you to move like a ghost.
The shadow of the wall just slightly elongates to cov- ●●● Cloak the Gathering: Hide up to three people
er your passing. Just as you open the door, the victim with you. Cross your arms across your chest so that
sneezes. And as you leave, the guard is conveniently your hands are over your shoulders. Extend three
looking the other way. You are hidden, even though fingers on each hand to indicate the third level of the
you stand in plain sight. Obfuscate works differently Discipline. Anyone also hidden by this power does the
than the other Disciplines, in that it doesn’t have a same and must remain in close proximity to you during
verbal component. Its user simply crosses his arms and the powers duration.
indicates the power’s level by using his fingers.
Obtenebration
● Cloak of Shadows: Remain hidden if you stand still.
Cross your arms across your chest so that your hands Clans: Lasombra
are over your shoulders. Extend your index finger on
each hand to indicate the first level of the Discipline. Mysterious and terrible, the Lasombra’s signature
discipline invokes a primeval darkness at the heart
of humanity’s deepest fears. Shadows themselves
prostrate themselves and bend to its practitioners will,
providing cover or even moving to assail their enemies.
Its use leaves an eclectic stain on the user, marking
them as someone removed from Humanity, sometimes
going so far as to manifest as empty black eyes or an
aura of despair. Feared and badly understood even
by Lasombra themselves, Obtenebration is not to be
toyed with.

● Cloak of Shadows: Remain hidden if you stand still.


Cross your arms across your chest so that your hands
are over your shoulders. Make fists with your hands.

●● Black Veil: Cause up to three people to be blinded


for a scene. “A sudden darkness descends upon your vision.
You are really, really, really blinded, the pitch black almost
suffocating you.” (We will provide all Lasombra players
with simple black veils to use.)

●●● Night Shades: You can force the targets of your


Black Veil power to gaze into the Abyss itself. They
experience whatever you describe. No matter what
you create, they tend to leave the experience shaken to
their core.
Potence
Clans: Brujah, Giovanni, Lasombra, Nosferatu

Superhuman strength. Your fists break bones and


nobody escapes your grip. Only the brave and the
stupid will accept a duel against someone with Potence,
for these Vampires are like tanks plowing their way
through battlefields. In fact, those with advanced
Potence often have trouble controlling their own
strength, hurting those close to them with unchecked
might.

● Cumulative +1 to Combat Rating. Prevent someone


from passing by you. “You really, really can’t get through
here, peasant.”

●● Cumulative +2 to Combat Rating. Immobilise


someone. “You really, really, really cannot hope to break my
hold.”

●●● Cumulative +3 to Combat Rating. Completely


overpower someone. Once per night, you may
automatically win a combat engagement. “You’ve really,
really, really, really already lost, fool.”

Presence
Clans: Brujah, Followers of Set, Toreador, Ventrue
●●● Majesty: Use your Presence powers on whole
With Presence, you can never run out of fans. With crowds, inciting any emotion you desire. “My very gaze
but a few words, you can end the most bitter hatreds makes you all really, really, really, really intimidated!”
against you, and you can incite a burning rage or
deep remorse in your victims. It is essentially force of Protean
personality pumped to superhuman levels, and masters
can cow whole rooms into submission with but a gaze. Clans: Gangrel
Note, however, that Presence is not permanent, and
generally lasts a single scene, after which the victim The shapeshifting powers of Protean are perhaps the
realizes he has been fooled. main reason why Clan Gangrel has been able to survive
and even thrive on the outskirts of mortal society,
● Awe: Make someone like you more for a scene. “We away from prime feeding grounds and easily accessible
are really, really getting along, aren’t we?” shelter. The staple of the Gangrel, it is inherently tied
to their weakness; it brings the user closer to their
●● Dread Gaze: Incite a great fear or anger in Beast and allows them to form a sort of symbiosis with
someone. “That made you really, really, really angry…” the predator they carry in their soul.
● Claws: A passive power that allows you to wear your blood to make anyone who ingests it in any way to
prosthetic claws, clawed gloves or fake nails that become sick and be forced to purge his vitae. The target
simulate claws. If you do, you gain +2 to your Combat returns to normal when they next feed, including from
Rating. another Vampire.

●● Predatory Instinct: By shutting down your rational ●●● Blood of Acid: At will, you may transmute
mind and immersing yourself fully in the instinct of your blood into acid which is only harmful to others.
the Beast, social constructs and tangled webs disappear, Whenever someone attempts to drink directly from
revealing only the naked truth. You may find out if a you, they are immediately burned and hurt, causing
single statement was a truth or a lie. They target should intense pain and damage. You may do the same by
answer with a simple yes or no; you can smell lies but pouring some of your blood into a cup and giving it
not the truth behind them. Invoking this power brings to someone, though acidic blood outside of your body
the Beast to the forefront, making the user snarl, pace only retains its properties for a single scene.
around the room or otherwise act like an animal. “I can
really, really, really smell if you are lying right now.” Serpentis
●●● The Beast Within: Once per night, you may Clans: Followers of Set
Frenzy at will and retain the ability to control your
actions. This power is not to be used lightly, as upon The powers of Serpentis are not simply a Discipline;
invoking it, the Gangrel has great difficulty controlling they are a divine gift bestowed by the God Set to his
his animalistic side, taking on animal mannerisms and Childer. Dealing in vice and corruption, as well as
thus becoming rather unsuited for civilised company abilities associated with serpents, Serpentis is the tool
for the rest of the night. Please roleplay this accordingly. the Setites use to break down the barriers of the prison
of flesh. It has a religious significance to the Clan,
and they revere it as such. Some of its abilities stem
Quietus from the time when the Setites ruled ancient Egypt,
where they learned the arts of mummification and the
Clans: Assamite preservation of organs even in death.

The strange powers of the Children of Haqim ● Gaze of the Basilisk: Paralyze a player by looking
originated as a tool in their duties as the judges of into their eyes. “For as long as I look you in the eyes, you
vampiric society, but over the millenia developed really, really cannot move.”
into something more akin to an assassin’s toolkit.
Essentially, Quietus is a form of control over blood, ●● Indulgence: Strip away someone’s will to resist
giving the ability to transmute it into deadly poisons their urges. They will wantonly indulge in their current
dangerous even to kindred. For some reason, however, strongest desire for a scene, without inhibitions.
practitioners of the Discipline seem to become highly “Whatever it is you desire… Now is really, really, really the
susceptible to blood curses, as proven by the Tremere time to take it, and let nothing stop you!”
after the Anarch Revolt.
●●● Cheat the Scales of Anubis: Through an
● Silence of Death: Make another character unable to elaborate, gruesome ritual, you are able to remove the
speak for a scene. “You will really, really hold your tongue, heart of a Vampire, including yourself. The ritual must
infidel.” be acted out appropriately and can only be done with
the aid of at least one other Setite. If you plan on using
●● Baal’s Caress: Use your blood as a poison to gain this power, we strongly suggest you bring a prosthetic
+2 to Combat Rating for a scene. This also causes heart of some kind.
Vicissitude yourself to imitate fleshcrafting.

Clans: Tzimisce ●● Fleshcraft: Once per night, you may perform a


gruesome operation in which you move the target’s
The gruesome art of fleshcrafting is what makes the organs inside their body and relocate fat and flesh
Tzimisce entirely unsuitable for Camarilla society; the to the body’s weak-points. The target of the power
Fiends are far too proud to use it in ways that conform increases their combat rating by +2 for the rest of the
to the Masquerade. Indeed, masters of the power tend night. You may use this power on yourself. When using
to reform themselves into entirely inhuman forms, this power, please roleplay the exceedingly painful and
night unimaginable to mortals or even Vampires of bloody procedure.
other Clans. When using it, the Tzimisce literally
tear the skin and flesh off their victims and surgically ●●● Inner Mastery: At this level, the Fiend has learned
recreate it into whatever form they wish. Its use is how to manipulate and mold a target’s very personality
always accompanied by intense pain and suffering. The by performing a surgical procedure on their very brain.
Discipline of Vicissitude is unique as far as it’s system By opening a target’s head and playing around inside
is concerned: it always requires the user to portray the of it, you may either alter their memory of a single
procedure, which is akin to a surgical operation. scene, break a single blood bond or change a single
personality trait. The procedure must be roleplayed,
● Malleable Visage: This is a passive power that allows and the target’s player should be aware of what you are
you as a player to use prosthetics and make-up on doing.
B
lood sorcery is a perversion of true magic devel- caster also discovers any curses or other magical effects
oped over long centuries by scholarly Vampires. the target is suffering from and their specific details. A
Since Vitae hold great power on its own, it is target must participate in this ritual willingly.
only natural that it can be used as a focus for magical
effects, be it hermetic, animistic or otherwise. There ●● Keeper of the Heartsblood: You may collect blood
are three Clans who have made blood magic their sta- tithes from other characters and use them for various
ple; the Tremere, the Giovanni and the Assamites, but effects. All Assamites may collect them and bring them
their respective brands of sorcery are very different, to you for use. Once five are collected, they may be
created as they were in entirely different contexts and used to lower the generation of whoever drinks them
environments, but they do have certain common char- by one for the rest of the event. The effect cannot
acteristics. stack. Any custom Dur-an-ki rituals MUST also al-
ways consume at least one vial of Heartsblood.
In terms of system, Blood Sorcery is treated quite dif-
ferently from the other Disciplines. It still has powers ●●● Purification: Once per night, you may cleanse
ranked from level 1 to level 3, but they cannot be used by another Vampire from some ill effect, such as a curse,
simply speaking, each use MUST be accompanied by the effects of a Discipline or a blood disease. Perma-
a short ritual, such as drawing glyphs, saying a prayer, nent effects, such as a Malkavian’s core derangement,
doing a ritualistic dance or whatever is appropriate a Nosferatu’s visage or other quirks acquired at the
for the power use, as long as it looks cool. A ritual that Embrace cannot be affected.
activates one of the leveled powers can be conducted
alone. In addition, practitioners of Blood Sorcery can Necromancy
conduct elaborate, custom rituals provided they follow
the guidelines for doing so, which are presented below. Clans: Giovanni

Dur-an-ki By far the most gruesome and dangerous form of


Blood Sorcery, Necromancy deals exclusively in
Clans: Assamite death and decay. Focusing on both the material and
spiritual aspects of death, learned necromancers can
Possibly the oldest form of Blood Magic by far, Dur- do anything from raising corpses to summoning the
an-ki harkens back to a time of belief in djinns, demons spirits of the dead to do their bidding. Since Wraiths
and animism. In modernity, it has been mixed heavily feed on strong emotion and pain, the Giovanni have
with Islamic mysticism, but also incorporates elements made sure to invoke powerful feelings of dread, fear,
of other Abrahamic traditions and strange beliefs disgust or even pleasure into all of their rituals, often
adopted by the Assamites from the varied childer they including sacrifices, an abundance of blood and ritu-
Embraced and the societies they found themselves in. alistic sex acts. Due to its origins, Necromancy often
An extension of the Discipline of Quietus, Dur-an-ki comes hand in hand with a perversion of Christianity,
too deals largely in power over blood, though like all and self-flagellation or mockeries of the eucharist are a
sorcery, it can be far more versatile. common implement.

● Chart the Soul: You know how to perform a magical ● Reaper’s Passing: Force someone to experience vi-
reading of a person’s soul and destiny through an elab- sions of their own death. Have a player close their eyes
orate seance. You might use their astral charts, the in- and describe what they see. Such a brush with mortali-
testines of an animal, tarot cards or some other strange ty can be jarring to Vampires, and most leave the scene
ritual, but it must be roleplayed in full. Upon its con- shaken and frightened.
clusion, the target must divulge its real name, real
Clan and a single minor secret about themselves. The ●● The Summoning: You are able to conduct a ritual
that summons a Wraith. The ritual must be played out perhaps the most powerful Vampiric Clan to walk the
with the aid of at least two other necromancers and night. Based entirely in hermeticism, symbols are the
look and feel appropriate. Use an NPC to play the focus of its casting; everything must be reduced to its
Wraith and discuss what it knows before the scene. A purest form, often as a sigil or word of power, which is
Wraith must be compensated for its service by strong then used to produce a magical effect with the aid of its
emotion, or it may return to haunt you. purest implement, Vampiric Vitae. Highly organised
and codified, Thaumaturgy requires rigorous study
●●● Visage of Thanatos: You suffuse yourself and memorization of occult philosophy and practice,
with entropic energy until it overflows into your and is often made more powerful with the use of
surroundings, impregnating everyone around you with various implements, such as staffs, orbs or rods that
a sense of utter despair. Young and weak willed kindred focus the Will of the caster. Indeed, the motto of the
fall unconscious while everyone else can do naught but Tremere is “Will above all.”
writhe in horror and dread. For the remainder of the
scene no one is able to use disciplines as their willpower ● A Taste for Blood: By tasting another Vampire’s vitae,
is sucked out of them and they wish for nothing more a Tremere can discern that Vampire’s Clan, whether
but for you to end the nightmare. This power is most his generation is higher or lower than the caster’s,
effective when used on small groups. and whether that Vampire has recently commited
Diablerie. More information can be discerned at the
Thaumaturgy convenience of the players. The caster receives a level
of the Blood Bond as normal by tasting the Vitae.
Clans: Tremere
●● Curse of the Pariah: For a scene, you may curse
Thaumaturgy is undoubtedly the most advanced and another Vampire to appear as a social pariah, essentially
versatile form of Blood Sorcery; indeed, on its merit making everyone else shun him. This works in the same
the Tremere went from a minor outcast bloodline to way as if the Harpies were to denounce the character.
●●● Blood of Potency: For a scene, you become As to the effects of the ritual, they can be pretty much
immune to the Dominate Discipline, and your own anything, but some simple rules apply as well:
Dominate works on all characters regardless of their
Generation. You must still have a higher level of -If the ritual affects another player, they MUST be
Dominate than your target. informed beforehand and agree to the effect. If they do
not, try to negotiate something that they would agree
Blood sorcery ritual rules to. You cannot outright kill or otherwise inconvenience
other characters without their player agreeing to it
All blood sorcerers can conduct custom rituals which first.
can have a wide variety of possible effects. To do so,
they must follow the following rules: -If the ritual somehow affect the entire event or the
castle itself, consult with the STs first.
-Any ritual must be conducted by at least two Vampires
who possess levels in the same kind of Blood Sorcery. -Both the Tremere and the Giovanni Clans include
The more participants in a ritual, the more powerful an ST, consult the effects of the ritual with them if
the effect can be, and the cooler the scene is. you have any questions. The Assamites should simply
consult any ST.
-All rituals MUST use fake blood in some way.
-We strongly suggest those of you who wish to conduct
-Rituals must be elaborate and take a whole scene to be rituals to prepare them before the event, and perhaps
enacted. We strongly suggest you practice during free take a look at the many published rituals in Vampire
time and are on the same page with other participants. books for inspiration.

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