>Previous Thread: >>47894805
>Pastebin:
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http://www.mediafire.com/download/a1kpjrm41yzozkq/V20_Ghouls_%26_Revenants.pdf
>Latest News
The Kickstarter for Beckett's Jyhad Diary is live!
http://theonyxpath.com/the-deluxe-becketts-jyhad-diary-kickstarter-is-now-live/
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http://theonyxpath.com/hacky-coughy-edition-monday-meeting-notes/
>Question
How do you handle downtime?
What's the main difference between Dark Ages: Mage and Mage: The Sorcerers Crusade.
What are the best one to run a High-Fantasy game?
Which book are the Holy Engineers from Requiem in? I want to have a minor plot with Vampires involved in my upcoming Demon chronicle and want to skim them for ideas.
>>47943195
Nothing in that image makes sense.
>>47943251
It looks like someone got a huge hit to their Emotional Matrix.
>>47943218
Danse Macabre
So with that CofD Midnight Circus we were talking about, one idea I had was the version of Calabris. in this version of the Circus Calabris is a Burning Iron Spiral Scelestus with Death and Fate on top of his other Arcana. Also he practices both forms of Blood Sorcery, because he can.
>>47943409
Many thanks
>>47943515
Both Blood Sorceries seem a bit much, especially since you can recreate most of it with magic already if you put in the effort.
>>47943582
So drop that then, got it.
>>47943629
If you still want spooky blood stuff, that aspect can be the showmanship part, a means to misdirect while he does the real work.
>>47943195
Dark Ages is a bunch of individual mages fucking around and just doing whatever. While there are a few big factions, the game stresses that even cabals are rare.
Sorcerer's Crusade is where you start to see the foundation of the Tradition/Technocracy split, and is much more about all these different feuding political groups.
Both are a lot more fun than modern Mage, IMHO
Building a character for Requiem and having trouble picking merits. I want to do a vampiric health nut. Very choosey about feeding, because obviously drinking from bad mortals makes bad vampires. Probably Ordo Dracul with a focus on balancing the humors to prepare for change. What merits should I look at to support this? I was thinking the one for feeding on ghosts might be an interesting idea, but I'm at a loss for anything else that goes with it.
I am looking for the PDFs of V20 Ghouls & Revenants, and V20 The Black Hand: A Guide to the Tal’Mahe’Ra
Also, any opinions on these two books are appreciated, i might actually Buy a Hardcopy of the Black Hand one if i like it.
My mage spends his down time investigating minor things that interest him, and going out to clubs or bars.
>>47944545
V20 Black Hand is full of gonzo shit and terrible art. If you liked Dirty Secrets you'll love it, but it killed any further interest I had in V20 as a line.
>>47944545
Read the OP, anon.
>>47944666
>gonzo shit
God dammit that made me think of a Nossie version of the muppet.
>>47944666
>Gonzo shit
What do you mean by this? How is it different from the other Books (partially) written in a in-universe style, like Lore of the Clans?
>Terrible art
Imo all the art in almost all V20 Publications has been pretty hit or miss, and far more often the later then the former, so what makes this worse than the rest?
In general, what did you really dislike about it?
>>47944838
Secret fey bloodlines. Secret ghoul wizards. Secret children raised in Enoch to be trained from birth to be vampire assassins. Eating a guy and birthing his ghost.
The whole thing reeks of the most over the top shit from the Vampions era.
Just bought MtAw 2ed.
How backwards compatible is it?
What are the major things that I need to change about the old stuff?
I know that Legacies changed to have 5 powers instead of 3.
I know ritual casting isn't an extended action any more.
I am figuring out the Reach mechanic (not sure how it affects balance though, compared to old stuff)
I think I get Conditions and Tilts.
Am I forgetting anything major?
>>47944926
Vulgar/covert isn't a thing anymore.
>>47944978
Is there a thread somewhere with detailed analysis of the implications of the different rules in 2nd edition?
Are these threads an acceptable place to discuss it, or are people sick of talking about it?
What are the general opinions about the changes, besides the agreement that the Arcana are badly balanced against each other?
Hey folks could use a little advice.
I want to use a Seer Agent as the main antagonist for the next chapter of my game. The idea is that he's trying to start a war between the Werewolves and the pentacle and is going around destroying Pentacle interests and vice versa.
What should his gnosis and arcana ratings be for him to mimic werewolf regeneration and gifts?
I was thinking Gnosis 5, Life 5, Spirit 5, Fate X, Mind X, but I'm getting lost in numbers.
>>47945265
How much Experience above starting do the Mages have?
>>47945265
He'd have to be Gnosis 6 to have multiple Arcana at 5, though if he's already a Master in two Arcana it begs the questions why he's doing this instead of working on Archmastery and Ascension. The guy you're describing could easily stomp most people and is likely one of the most powerful mages in the area. Every single Spirit in the loval Shadow knows and either hates or fears this guy.
>>47945290
We've been playing for awhile. Not sure of the exact number off the top of my head but some where around 40-60.
>>47945323
>why he's doing this instead of working on Archmastery and Ascension
It takes an Awakened equivalent of a mid-life crisis to decide to try to become an Archmaster.
Especially with the Seers of the Throne who have a bunch of Tetrarchs and Ministers trying to keep you down.
>>47945323
You realize that as an NPC the Seer can be as weak as the Storyteller decides to make him.
>>47945324
Especially since it sounds that the Players are first rank Masters themselves.
>>47945323
I'm going to start using 2e rules for this chapter. So I may need to spend time and rebalance around the parties sudden boost in power.
>>47945566
>rebalance around the parties sudden boost in power.
What is it about 2e that gives the players a boost in power?
I know some of the Fate spells really seem OP, but besides that...
So Enhanced Item says that a Dot can provide a +1 to the item's bonus as a tool.
Does that include Yantras, or are tools only used for skill checks?
What about the Fate spell Monkey's Paw?
+3 Reach boon version seems to explicitly allow it, with +4 taking it beyond the typical maximum of +5 dice.
>>47945620
It's +5 after you subtract everything else. So as I understand it you want as many bonuses as possible so you can just add potency or other spell factors and get yourself back to the +5 limit.
>tfw made an npc that's an 11 year old lasombra who was embraced in as part of a deal her mother made to avoid them both being thrown into a concentration camp.
>find remember lasombra are catholic
We'll crap now I gotta change it or come up with a workaround
>>47945679
The Lasombra care more about being the meanest most efficient motherfucker around than anything else. They're Catholic because that's where the power was in Medieval Europe, not because they love church.
Dave, if you're still around, was the Coil you wrote about torpor/sleep ? I recall there are two coils that cover these things.
Will the Lower Depths rules ever se... light? 8D
SoS ? Tome of the Pentacle? The third, yet-to-be-announced-book ?
>>47945849
I'd love to see some sample Depths described.
>>47945910
Only info we have on them is gleaned from interrogation of their inhabitants who have arrived in the Fallen World though.
>>47945930
But everybody knows that Duat is a Lower Depth whose central missing thing (is that still a Depths thing?) is Sekhem.
>>47945963
I swear to God I can't tell if you're genuinely retarded, or that you actually think that's funny.
Either way, I'm so sorry.
>>47945849
>Dave, if you're still around
I think we drove him away by all of the hate that followed the full .pdf release of MtAW 2e.
>>47945999
I blame 2hou
>>47945979
Mages trying to force shit into their model of the universe is funny to me, what can I say.
>>47946114
What mysteries of CofD would be beyond the ability of a group of Gnosis 10 Arcana 10 Archmasters to explore?
The fact that pursuit of hidden knowledge being a Theme for Mages makes figuring out WoD cosmology quite relevant.
>>47946174
What the hell kind of campaign are you running where you have gnosis 10 arcana 10 archmages as PCs?
>>47945323
>though if he's already a Master in two Arcana it begs the questions why he's doing this instead of working on Archmastery and Ascension.
Almost no Masters, even double Masters, work toward Archmaster or Ascension. Actively pursuing Archmastery is about as common as vampires actively pursuing Golconda.
>>47946174
The act of obtaining Arcana 10 is an act of Ascension.
>>47946257
Incorrect.
Very many Masters try for ascension.
Almost all of them fail.
>>47946213
The Cabal's theme is a Nameless Order called 'Brotherhood of the Eternal'.
They are all apprentices of an Ascended Archmaster and their goal is for each of the 10 of them to make their Golden Road into a link between 2 Supernal realms.
Making a comprehensive map of WoD's cosmology is only one of the tasks they will have to face.
Fun little detail: One of them has the True Friend (Aeon of Fate) Merit.
>>47946307
I am using Imperial Mysteries, where Arcana 10 is very much not the same as Ascension.
>>47946307
>Almost all of them fail.
Fun fact: Not a single person is known to have failed to become an Archmaster.Because failing erases you from existence so thoroughly that it is as if you never existed.
>>47945999
He was here last thread and is developing a new line as we speak. Let's not be so full of ourselves as to think we actually drive people off, as opposed to "they got busy".
>>47946368
Of course they have, they're the ones who constantly bemoan their inability to catch hold of the practice of Dynamics.
>>47946371
>developing a new line as we speak
I really think Deviant should have waited until all of the kinks were ironed out from the MtAw 2e .pdf
>>47946390
I mean failed during the big 'walking across the Abyss stage'
If anyone hasn't read Imperial mysteries, I highly recommend it.
One of the most flavorful and interesting supplements published for MtAw 1e
>>47946439
If you've survived to that point, trained until you're capable of Archmastery, but fail at the Abyss Walk?
You're a big fucking disappointment.
>>47946395
It's the game for 2016, so they at least have to start planning it in 2016, Mage or no Mage.
>>47946627
That whole 1 game / year is entirely self imposed.
Plus I think Beast proved that taking more time on a game is a wise idea.
>>47946627
Doing quantity over quality is what killed TSR...
>>47946395
It may have worked out better for everyone's sanity, but I'm sure I'm not the only one out there who is much more interested in the potential of Deviant over the powerwank of Mage.
I just had a thought. Can Ochemata earn experience? If they can wouldn't an Archmage become a God overnight? Create dozens upon dozens of Ochemata send them to the fallen world (preferably into the past if you can manage it) with a particular task like master driving, master hand to hand combat, Attain mastery of the Life arcana etc. And then when they succeed reabsorb them and gain experience by the boatload.
>>47946956
>Can NPCs earn experience?
This is the main issue.
For PCs, the per scene limit on Experience will take care of the problem.
Does your storyteller allow you to fast forward through a bunch of scenes just to say that you gained Experience from them?
>>47946681
I don't think any of Beast's problems would have been solved by time. There's just not a lot you can do after the initial hook, and there's not enough support for the weird mysteries of the CofD to explore, probably because that ends up being Mage's bag.
>>47946699
When Onyx Path starts selling woodburning kits en masse, maybe then it's time to worry. The worst thing OPP's done so far is trying to have a few KSes per year.
Does the new Mummy have Peruvian and Chinese variants like CWOD? Or is it just Egyptian.
>>47947235
Technically Pre-Egyptian, but they are all amnesiacs and can take on new bodies.
>>47943900
I see. So Dark Ages are the best for a high-fantasy setting?
>>47947459
Not really. To be quite honest, the Modern Nights feels pretty damn high fantasy, it's just that the fantasy world borrows the names of our streets and countries.
So what are the quick and dirty details on differences between chronicles and nWoD?
>>47947488
I see. I guess mage isn't suitable for high fantasy with a lot of races and stuff right?
>>47945750
The Jewish and Moorish branches of the clan were killed off though, out of religious zeal.
>>47947531
Not really. Nothing WoD-related does.
>>47947235
To give you an actual answer: Egyptian only, although you might have a different appearance, if your original body was destroyed.
Egyptophilia is a core concept of Mummy, and utterly irremovable.
>>47947844
>To give you an actual answer:
What, Atamajakki's chopped liver now? >>47947324 answered it just fine.
>>47946174
Things from the Lower Depths can be missing more than"insert Arcana here." This isn't to say they aren't missing some Arcana, but it's like saying Vampires are Death Arcana. While this is partially true, it's also absurdly simplified.
For example, if I had to peg an Arcana to Sekhem, it would actually be a combination of Fate, Time, and Life. I think DaveB speculated in a blog post about the lower Depths that the Inferno was missing either Virtue or Vice, I can't remember which. That means it's likely missing parts of Death, or Mind, or Prime (they always lie, even when telling the truth) or all three. Things aren't always cut and dry. There isn't any reason that a Lower Depth can't be missing part of an Arcana which causes it to manifest in weird ways.
So my players seem to have decided:
No Uncharted Maging.
Dave has given city building advice, and I'm working on making Mages to flesh out the city, but I could really use some suggestions for actually RUNNING a game. How should I incorporate my city's core mystery into the chronicle? It's not so much a problem to solve as it is just a backdrop. Here I'm sticking with the Silent Hill inspired setting, where the Primordial Dream is bleeding into and Verging in the city. My idea is that the area has a bit of an intelligence, and wants to "help" people by making them face their fears and guilt. Though I'm thinking I should really loosen that up a bit; The Astral is Mastigos territory first and foremost, and beyond that it's pretty crazy to have the city outright scare the shit out of people at a semiregular basis.
I have ideas for a Beast/Circle of the Crone cultist thing, but I'm not really sure how I'd get the players involved in that.
I may just go for a more generalized spooky vibe, where ghosts are common and goetia can form in the city based on urban legends (like that one episode of Supernatural, with the Tulpa).
>>47947502
Tighter themes, improved rules.
>>47949070
Obviously the place of sin isn't missing Vice.
>>47943900
Medieval mage sounds pretty cool, wish Awakening had gotten a Middle Ages setting in Dark Eras
>>47949070
Which book talks the most about Lower Depths?
MtAw2e seems very limited in what it says.
I heard that Left-hand Path mentions the Lower Depths, can anyone tell me what level of detail they go into?
>>47949437
I think you need a Chronicle idea first, if the Primordial Dream Verges aren't the main seed.
>>47949521
Well, I'll need player characters for that, and only one of them so far has a definitive character concept. Everyone else is nebulous, or has several. Some of my players are having trouble coming up with concepts, which is one reason I really need to figure out some guidance for them. It's also hard since they're on a scale of newness but mostly still pretty inexperienced, so I can't just ask what kind of things they like in the WoD.
I do know that I'm going to give all my players about 5 free dots of Merits, probably Mentor 2 and Sanctum 3, with the set up being that their training mentors set them up in the new city so they can make a name for themselves and go bother someone else for a change. Much easier than "you all meet in a bar".
>>47949708
Then you're just going to have to wait on that before you do anything. When in doubt, use pre-mades.
>>47949777
What's that one book that's a full length Mage chronicle? I know Dave used one story from it when he ran one of his games. That story was about having the players make new characters and telling them that this is a side game to take a break from the main stuff, but its actually a Truman Show sort of thing and the characters are actually trapped in a Lotus Eater Machine.
Maybe I should look at that book.
The motherfucking archived subnet site got taken down, anyone know where else to get it or have it saved?
>>47945158
This might be just me, but IMO the arcana are overall no worse in balancing in 2e, it's just DIFFERENT problems.
For instance, Time has supplanted Mind as one of the two rulers of the roost. Fate has been retardedly OP since 1e, at least now it references a sufficiently universal system (IE conditions) that screwing over people who rort it is easy.
The newer casting rules are more codified, which makes system mastery a bit more important than it once was.
The Mage Sight and Mage Armor systems are fucking glorious triumphs over 1e though.
The new paradox/reach system takes significant effort to get used to but is an improvement.
The specific keywords relating to ephemeral entities have diversified and the spells that effect them are more explicit (As of the entire 2e line but this is still really relevant), which I initially wasn't sold on but now I've had a chance to play, they are really good.
Honestly my overall view is that M2e is HARDER to play (Even for a beginner), but better. It's made as many problems as it solved, but the new problems are much easier to patch up as a GM than the old ones were.
>>47951047
>Honestly my overall view is that M2e is HARDER to play (Even for a beginner), but better. It's made as many problems as it solved, but the new problems are much easier to patch up as a GM than the old ones were.
This is honestly my biggest worry as someone about to ST Mage for a group of mostly beginners.
>>47951164
Something I can't recommend enough would be to very quickly get through a oneshot of 2e with some veterans to try and get your own understanding of the system up to speed. So you can pass on the 'correct' understanding to your beginners.
Not like, veterans of M2e but just people who are good at RPGs in general. They'll make SURE that you're appraised of every single difference and rule quirk etc.
Calculating Reach for instance was something that I almost immediately *got* but it wasn't until halfway through the test game that I realised half the group were doing it wrong. People are going to make mistakes interpreting 2e, and you can't take much for granted from 1e in terms of mechanics, even if the fluff is virtually identical.
If none of you have EVER played Mage before, it'll be an uphill struggle, but you'll never actually stall out from disagreeing on something, which is a risk I found uncomfortably common with my group who were familiar with 1e, we had to stop and reconsult the book like, every 20 minutes-ish.
The new Dark Eras can't come soon enough. Deliver us from Mageposting.
>>47951220
>Calculating Reach for instance was something that I almost immediately *got* but it wasn't until halfway through the test game that I realised half the group were doing it wrong.
In what way?
>>47951047
>For instance, Time has supplanted Mind as one of the two rulers of the roost. Fate has been retardedly OP since 1e, at least now it references a sufficiently universal system (IE conditions) that screwing over people who rort it is easy.
But doesn't that make Acanthus the god-tier best path now?
>>47951249
Into era-specific Mageposting.
>>47951439
The only Mage stuff in the new book is the Mummy crossover so brace for more of Atamajakki's tranny ass
>>47942972
>The Kickstarter for Beckett's Jyhad Diary is live!
>http://theonyxpath.com/the-deluxe-becketts-jyhad-diary-kickstarter-is-now-live/
>https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/200664283/deluxe-v20-becketts-jyhad-diary
>https://docs.google.com/document/d/13WDVErUbdGpg2PIOO6Bd7S5r66gXfs8t3BklnCjPSdU/pub
Oooh, I see they're finally making Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines canon... more or less:
>Armando Rodriguez, Brujah; *1922, #1949.
>Rodriguez had to fend for himself from an early age. As a child in a near-starving family of nine, he quickly learned to hold down small jobs (many of them illicit) to aid his family. That did not save Rodriguez' younger brother though, who died when the local doctor refused to look at the child unless the family paid him. Nor did it stop his father from being fired after decades of faithful employment, or his mother selling herself to the same employer so she could feed her family. When Rodriguez was Embraced, he finally had the power to fight back and has defended the downtrodden since. Rodriguez is a rising star in the Anarch Free States and many Unbound look to him for leadership. He's rumored to have been involved in the fall of the most recent nominal Camarilla Prince of L.A., LaCroix, aiding parties unknown in his destruction.
>>47952747
I thought his name was Nines.
>>47952896
Maybe it's a nickname, maybe Bloodlines isn't really canon.
>>47952896
>I thought his name was Nines.
Nines is his nickname. If you play as a Malkavian, you can ask Nines "what happened to one-through-eight?", and Nines will answer "Same thing that happens to a lot of Anarchs", implying that he's the ninth leader or somesuch. It's also possible Nines is his chosen/given vampire name; a lot of vampires give up their mortal names when they become, well, immortal.
>>47953027
>maybe Bloodlines isn't really canon
Beckett's diary does seem to make references indicating that it is canon, at least in the V20 timeline.
>The New Asylum, Santa Monica, United States: Los Angeles is the same as I remember: The Anarchs are back in power after the Camarilla's failed attempt to install a Prince.
>Explosions rocked the Los Angeles harbor this evening. Three container ships hailing from China and Japan are still ablaze, and the fire department is struggling to contain the fire. Police have issued no statement yet, but insiders fear this might be related to the domestic attack 12 years ago that destroyed the Golden Temple in Los Angeles' Chinatown.
>Hallowbrook Hotel, Los Angeles, United States: Are there no decent hotels in L.A.? This one absolutely reeks of blood.
>Ocean View Hotel, Los Angeles, United States: I've checked in to a newly-renovated hotel and only now begin to suspect there's some weirdness to the place. Lots of footsteps at night, creaking floorboards, walls, and ceilings. A vase even shattered as I closed the door to my room. At least it's isolated, however.
>>47953205
Is the PC from the game referenced?
Also I like how all the characters are now Canon.
LaCroix, Isaac,Gary
all great fun characters.
>>47953257
>Gary
Meow.
>>47953310
Gary Golden was secretely a cat?
>>47953257
>Is the PC from the game referenced?
Only barely, in Nines' own profile info, where it says he's suspected of aiding in the destruction of Lacroix:
>He's rumored to have been involved in the fall of the most recent nominal Camarilla Prince of L.A., LaCroix, aiding parties unknown in his destruction.
And y'know, that suits me just fine, since it makes it easy for VTMB fans to use the Fledgling in whatever fashion they want to. Was he/she an Anarch, Camarilla, Independent or something else? What clan was (s)he from? Were they the kind who helped others, or the type of person who slaughtered everyone they came across? That's up for the Storyteller to decide.
>>47953323
yeah its always hard to put a character from a game in cannon when theres a lot of decisions in the game. But having them be some near mythical figure is fine.
>>47953320
that was meant to be a terrible, terrible reference to Spongebob.
>>47951270
They didn't realise you got 1 free reach *at* the arcanum level necessary to cast a spell, they thought you just got extra stuff as your arcanum increased. Its a natural mistake coming from 1e where you needed to go over the arcanum level to access advanced tables.
>>47951404
Yes, but now you only have 1 problem child to watch instead of 2. It's easy enough to just repeatedly create encounters that fuck over the Acanthus player, not so much to fuck over Acanthi and Mastigoi to the same extent as each other without collateral.
Also, it's easy enough to try your hand at balancing the boon/hexes and time-travel systems with just one or two changes, whereas you used to be at the point where you'd have to fundamentally change the purview of Mind and Fate to fix them up.
For instance, banning Chaos Mastery and saying "You cannot gain Steadfast or Inspired using Fate" immediately ramps down Fate to like, merely among the most powerful of the arcana. Rewriting Shifting Sands is a pretty serious fix to Time too but I'm not yet familiar enough with it to be certain that is what I want to do, or enough to fix it.
>>47951047
My players are constantly whining that internal balance is fucked, and that it's impossible to resist a Mage who wants to cast a spell on you.
From a cursory glance at the system, it looks as if they have a point, but we haven't really played it. So do they actually have one?
>>47953449
>that it's impossible to resist a Mage who wants to cast a spell on you.
Withstand is roughly half way between Resisted and Contested in effectiveness.
Withstand is a lot better as a defense than Resist (you resitance attribute counts -2 dice against withstood abilities, but only -1 die against resisted abilities). While neither add supernal tolerance traits, at least M2e has better integration of Clash of Will which does allow adding supernal tolerance traits, and if you have an ability to raise one of your attributes it's twice as effective against Mage 2e spells than against 1e resisted ones.
>>47953512
>Withstand is roughly half way between Resisted and Contested in effectiveness.
Is that proven? Because I'd like to think it's true.
What the players are angry about are the free successes one gets when one raises the Arcanum. At Mind 4, if Potency is the primary factor, someone needs 5 in a resistance attribute to even have a Withstand rating.
>>47953449
Its (nearly) impossible to resist a Mage who wants to cast a spell on you UNLESS you have a magical defense of some sort, which are easy to come by as a Mage at least.
An important thing of note for this viewpoint though is that spellcasting successes are uncoupled from potency now. If they are gunning to get an exceptional success to ignore your withstand, their spell likely isn't very potent, doesn't last beyond a scene, and only effects one person. Because of the reach economy, making it last longer than a turn is going to hurt them because they're already spending a reach for instant casting and another to manifest on target (rather than throwing it as a bolt that can be dodged using defence, which is HUGE in 2nd not to mention other supernaturals can buff it).
At this point, there is still a handful of spells that are fucking awful to be hit by even if they have short duration and low potency. In this case, you can probably find something in your non-Mage super's library of powers that will trigger a clash of wills, and if you are a Mage, you DEFINITELY can. If you defend with a clash of wills, you've EFFECTIVELY put a 50% failure chance onto their spell in addition to whatever their chance of failing to reach an exceptional success was. Actual fail chance varies wildly but assuming they are of roughly equal XP...
Another good defence against Mages is to simply be impossible to target. This approach will never work against a whole cabal of them, but simply being in some kind of twilight will stymie 4 in every 5 Mages, and they can't target what they can't see, at least not in combat timeframes.
>>47953532
Spending willpower to add 2 to withstand is pretty excellent though in the face of this.
>>47946956
No. In the 1e rules, they even spent their creator's Arcane Experience when they cast archmastery-level spells.
>>47953863
But... Having an Ochema experience something new, from an utterly alien viewpoint could probably be worth Arcane Experience. Possibly might even be a really, really simple Quintessence.
Is there anything stopping a vampire from just not participating in politics? Vampires can't be touchstones and you can feed just fine on your own, so why bother?
>>47954306
>and you can feed just fine on your own
Can you now? What about Feeding Ground rules. Unless you play politics you either need steal from another vamp or rely on their dubious charity
Writing a new bloodline and need help balancing the curse. The idea I have is 'boredom', that they require every part of their life to be interesting or they lose interest.
The mechanics, so far, are pretty vague. I'm thinking 'If you haven't gained a beat from a touchstone in [x amount of time] then you lose them, and must get another'. The idea is that it encourages you to intentionally spice up your involvement with them, take risks or meddle in their lives. This loss of touchstone would be 'free', you neither suffer detachment nor pay for the replacement but you are without a touchstone until you get a new one.
The trouble I'm having is the timing. Any suggestions?
>>47954306
You assume participation in politics is voluntarily.
>>47943195
>that fucking sheet from Eoris
I still feel bad for that group a little, they had to destroy all their unsold books because they couldn't pay for the storage.
>>47949946
Reign of the Exarchs. You'd need quite a bit of finagleing to make it fit the 2e version of the setting.
>>47953205
The rough events of Bloodlines were canon, if not the exact way that it went down. It's referenced at one point on the Gehenna book, as well as in the Gehenna novel with the Prince of San Francisco being interim Prince of Los Angeles, and the Kueijin pulling out after their 'leader's death' and bribery on the part of the Camarilla.
Alright, so in our V20 game, I used Freebies to give my Neonate 10 Willpower at the beginning before I really grasped the gravity of what 10 Willpower entailed, and now it's been a few months, so I wouldn't want to retcon it to back down into a more reasonable number. The Storyteller didn't shoot me down at any point, either.
So what's the Highest Possible Willpower feel like? Just overwhelming conviction and fortitude of thought? I want to at least own it properly, if I'm going to be That Guy.
>>47951684
>brace for more of Atamajakki's tranny ass
I think Atamajakki is the one who needs to brace their ass. I'm goin' in dry.
>>47955018
Why would anyone care to participate in politics in the first place? Why are they there at all?
>>47955141
All it takes is one greedy asshole to make being a greedy asshole right back the smart play, because not being a greedy asshole towards another greedy asshole is a good way to get fucked over.
Capitalism, bitch.
How do I pic related in CofD?
>>47955186
Beast. Or a particularly dickish Changeling, but that describes Beast in general.
>>47954997
Seems like a Daeva bloodline
>>47955186
Setite. Its kind of literally their whole deal
>>47954997
Will you call the Curse "The Bleaching", anon?
As for time, i would same maybe a week?
>>47953409
>They didn't realise you got 1 free reach *at* the arcanum level necessary to cast a spell, they thought you just got extra stuff as your arcanum increased. Its a natural mistake coming from 1e where you needed to go over the arcanum level to access advanced tables.
Ah. Already got that down, then. I made it clear that it's one Reach for every dot you MEET or exceed.
>>47953449
>>47953532
Magic powers have always favoured the attacker. Except for the strongest Mages, they're going to need to take penalties to get over your Withstand, and Withstand lowers the final Potency. Except for things like Unmaking spells, you're not going to get the same effect once Withstand is through.
Keep that in mind. Withstand is SUBTRACTED from the Potency, not compared. If you have Mind 4 and someone has Composure 4, your spell doesn't work. If you have Mind 4 and they have Composure 3, your spell with Potency of 4 is treated as if it were a spell of Potency 1.
>>47953538
I don't see how its impossible to resist. Even muggles can avoid a beginner Mage, who'll need to pump their spell's Potency to get passed weak Withstand.
>>47955141
>Why would anyone care to participate in politics in the first place?
Power, esteem, security, upbringing, a sense of belonging, etc.
Sure the Prince's cock tastes salty and vile, and having five 500+ year old elders teabag you night after night sucks but its pretty good when they get rid of that pack of asshole werewolves that decide all vampires must die, the cabal of hunters out to murder you or that gang of diablerist devil worshippers.
I mean you're right, a vampire can go at it alone but the odds of dying like a bitch dramatically increases and getting help is likewise more difficult since you are the weird cat lady on the edge of the suburbs (possibly literally) and the local harpies say that you're probably a diablerist, a strix, Sabbat sellout, kue-jin enabler, etc.
Only way you can really pull it off is if you are so powerful and badass that no-one dares mess with you, which 99% of vampires aren't. And then you can still get lonely and decide that you'll make just ONE childe to ease the isolation... And then its back where you begun except you're King Asshole till your kids decide that they're better off without you, or you're better off as ash.
oWoD Sabbat had the right idea but then they let themselves get infiltrated by infernalist and the pawns of the antediluvians, so thats fucked.
nWoD courts CAN become more liveable if the ruling cabal is relatively high humanity but good luck with that when the game is rigged against you.
>>47955232
>>47954997
Curses are always based on Humanity. Humanity nights.
>>47955044
What?
>>47955077
Would I? I doubt I'd run the whole thing, I just want to look at it for ideas.
>>47955269
>I don't see how its impossible to resist. Even muggles can avoid a beginner Mage, who'll need to pump their spell's Potency to get passed weak Withstand.
The problem is the current Withstand and free Potency system means that mages have one hell of a geometric progression. Arguably worse than before.
As you say, beginning mages have trouble getting past even an average person's Withstand. A Master just blows right past most Withstand and even if they do not, they still have 6+ dice left afterwards, more if they go crazy on the Yantras. In 1e even a Master at least had to often contend with a good Resistance + Gnosis when facing roughly equal opponents.
>>47955271
>oWoD Sabbat had the right idea
>>47955202
It is, yeah.
>>47955232
>Will you call the Curse "The Bleaching", anon?
I don't get the reference.
>As for time, i would same maybe a week?
I'm worried about using real time, since a game might speed up or slow down. A beat a week from one touchstone seems pretty high too. I don't mind it making more than a couple of touchstones difficult to maintain, as that's part of the point, but I don't want to cripple to the player.
>>47955271
>kue-jin enabler
Truly a fate worse than death
>>47955304
See the second half of that sentence. The Sabbat also suffers from severe writer dissonance thanks to multiple writers writing about them for decades. They are a reasonable pro-vampire domination religious organization that maintains that they also owe humans and have a divine mandate on protecting and cultivating the tribe of Seth but they are also cackling chucklefuck chainsaw rapist satanists that eat babies for shits and giggles. 80s edgy gone overdrive and writers shoehorning the Sabbat into antagonist faction, for the Camarilla's sake, so deeply that the light is no longer visible from the bottom of the hole.
V20 dark ages had a neat snippet for an alternate Sabbat that includes the united Salubri clan. Things go way differently, and there is hope for the world, if a grim hope, for a change.
Incidentally the Cainite Heresy suffers from the same dissonance.
>>47955271
I will take the wherever.
>>47955404
>V20 dark ages had a neat snippet for an alternate Sabbat that includes the united Salubri clan.
>includes the united Salubri clan
I need this book, harlot
>>47955404
>Dem titties
Who is this? and please dont let that be padding.
>>47955300
A Master is going to hit people and do something to them, yes. That's not really anything new. But because of the way the old system worked, that was still true. You could also get a lot more dice at a lower level in 1e.
Resistance + Gnosis doesn't really compare to Attribute + Skill + Gnosis.
>>47955320
Not him, but I think he's referring to the way Gnomes in Pathfinder go through "Bleaching" if they don't get excitement and new things. Also, these things use real time all the time. Or you could just base it on regaining Willpower through interacting with a Touchstone. But like I said, base it on Humanity. That's how Banes work. You can read more about Bane design in that section of the book.
>>47955404
Man, I want to make that Seras expy who's controlled by VALKYRIE as a vampire hunting vampire.And also for fucking, since this was for F-list
>>47955498
>But like I said, base it on Humanity.
I don't understand what you mean there. If the character is between touchstones then they're at serious risk to humanity.
>>47955465
I tired anon but 4chan doesn't want either a pastebin link with the text or a dropbox link with the book.
Just... Use google.
>>47955487
I dunno.
>>47955498
>Man, I want to make that Seras expy who's controlled by VALKYRIE as a vampire hunting vampire.
>Vampire controlled by vampire hunter organization controlled by vampires
We need to go deeper.
>>47955465
Try this, its the public manuscript without the art/layout.
https://www.scribd.com/doc/243335558/V20-Dark-Ages-manuscript-public-pdf
>>47955563
And here's the full book.
https://www.scribd.com/doc/276683448/V20-Dark-Ages
>>47955563
Or this.
http://www.4shared.com/office/PGy3OlLFba/V20_Dark_Ages.html
>>47955563
>>47955574
>>47955591
>>47955523
Banes are all based on Humanity. They use Humanity in some way to determine their effects. So, for yours, base it on humanity:
"If you haven't interacted with a Touchstone in a number of nights equal to your Humanity dots, you lose that Touchstone".
>>47955556
>Acknowledging Compacts & Conspiracies
>>47955654
>Banes are all based on Humanity. They use Humanity in some way to determine their effects. So, for yours, base it on humanity:
>"If you haven't interacted with a Touchstone in a number of nights equal to your Humanity dots, you lose that Touchstone".
Yeah, alright. I can dig it.
>>47955140
Good lord anon.
>>47956475
Are you sure he doesn't want to be called Daddy?
>>47956475
>>47955591
>>47955574
>>47955563
Here's the section
>>47956554
>Implying that's not a strawman
>>47956498
What about "Mommy"?
Anybody know of any good play by post games?
>>47955654
Compacts & Conspiracies was *top* stuff. I have never understood why some people are so salty about it. Especially about the Cheiron component.
How does a vampire turn back into a human?
>>47956995
Ersatz Mortality lets a Rank 4+ Qashmal turn supers back into humans temporarily.
Rebirth is a numen that lets a spirit kill three people and then revive one (you) as yourself aged 18. If you were turned into a vamp after 18 then you're human again for good.
>>47956733
http://thefinalcrossroads.com/
>>47957070
>Rebirth is a numen that lets a spirit kill three people and then revive one (you) as yourself aged 18. If you were turned into a vamp after 18 then you're human again for good.
Whelp, looks like I just found my group's next plotline.
>>47956751
Because a lot of it is really stupid. For instance, Cheiron and Valkyrie are both controlled by the supernatural. For Cheiron, it makes sense and them being controlled by aliens is neato. But when every group is controlled by the supernatural? That's some oWoD bullshit. Also, most of the Compact Endowments are just sort of ass backwards and mechanically ill thought out. They feel like something from a blue book.
>>47957070
>>47957135
>Parent searches for a way to bring back their child, who died at a young age
>Child is revived as a rebellious teen
>>47956995
Golconda.
>>47957258
>Golconda
They aren't human, they're just Blade or twilight vamps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmbU5tXcR9M
A Moros Adamantine Arrow Dreadnought based on Lockdown seems cool. I mean, the dude literally has a sniper rifle for a face. Also the whole turning into a lambo thing makes him violating the Lie less of a problem considering he's now a dirty great murderbot.
>>47957258
>Golconda.
Is thia a thing in VtR?
>>47957297
It was in 1e, don't think it made it to CofD
>>47957269
It's vague what it actually entails.
>>47957297
>>47957306
It was in Requiem, and the original Blood and Smoke, but they edited the term to something more generic, like redemption, probably because it was only mentioned the one time and if that was your first VtR book, you would have no idea what it meant. Even googling it wouldn't help, since it's a place.
>>47955297
You would. A lot of the adventures are based in ideas and concepts that don't really mesh with Mage now. You'd be better off coming up with your own plot.
>>47955077
>You'd need quite a bit of finagleing to make it fit the 2e version of the setting.
Wait, what changed that significantly?
I love the new Mage fluff, but most of it is just making more sense of the Ideas that were already present, No?
Mind you, I haven't read Reign of the Exarchs.
>>47956554
I only ever started wearing a trip because multiple threads derailed into anons accusing each other of being me. I'd rather look like an attention whore than see more of that.
>>47958417
What doesn't mesh?
>>47956655
A Sabbat game where one of the remaining Salubri decides that their weird diablerie enlightenment thing is ultimately a selfish endeavor born from despair and joins the Sabbat. They end up in charge of the local Sabbat. The first arc would be the players being given the task of helping purge all the crazy stereotypical Sabbat from the city. After that it would probably be about collecting Noddist lore.
>>47958891
Aren't there already a bunch of Salubri as antitribu over in the Sabbat?
THE FURIES, or whatever.
>>47959138
The warrior Salubri joined the Sabbat canonically, but they degenerated into vengeful assholes carrying the Code of Samael in their blood like the faggots they are. The Healers joined the Camarilla. The watchers, I dunno.
>>47958841
Go fuck yourself, seriously.
>>47959234
Pretty sure the Watchers and Healers are the same thing. The Salubri specifically didn't join the Camarilla do to the Tremere slaughtering all of them and then helping form it.
>>47959385
They're distinct bloodlines like the Assamite castes and it's exactly like that anon described, with the Warriors becoming killers for the Sabbat (as the Furies) rather than their traditional guardian role. I'm not sure about the Healers joining the Camarilla; I'm not sure there's enough of them left for that.
>>47959385
Nah, the watchers are separate, I think the kue-jin wiped them out though. On the Healers though
>>47959451
The Healers joined the camarilla for two reasons, the sabbat was antithetical towards their nature and secondly the origin of the modern day Healer caste (thirdly because all vampires fall under the Camarilla, according to the Camarilla :^) ). Supposedly all Healers were exterminated by the modern day, so their re-emergence was surprising to all, the unsaid but implied origin of their return was clan Tremere, Tremere embraces could result in Healer salubri due to Saulot and pretty much all healer caste's diablery at the fangs of the Tremere (supporting this is the fact that the Tremere could occasionally develop the clan weakness of the Salubri even in modern days, ie third eyes).
Regardless the modern day Healer caste are an extremely small bloodline, and made effectively irrelevant due to how corrupt the world became after the dark ages. Its too late to save anyone now.
So, I just started a Mage 2nd ed game, and I'm having trouble getting things for my players to do.
I've got them watched by some high-level vamps (plus one low level chump to get them an 'in') but every time they run across the chump they just stand there talking to him before spending three turns spending mana and charging a spell, after which he just leaves in the middle of casting because *why the fuck* would you stick around?
Should I just be throwing weird shit at them until they decide to investigate some of it? Should I just feed them Hunters and Vampires to mulch until they hit Gnosis 6?
I might just be retarded, but I'd at least like some confirmation I'm the retard rather than the players not understanding something and everyone getting confused.
>>47959562
It's a game about detectives, man. Give them things to investigate. Mage Sight should be coming up often every single session.
"Addicted to Mysteries" only works if there's Mysteries.
>>47958841
>>47959343
Don't acknowledge people. This goes for both of you. Half the hate for tripfags is because they derail threads because dumbasses can't keep it in their pants when they see a name and want to make their epeen bigger by arguing, then the person with the name defends themselves. Both of you can fix this by not being either side.
>>47959562
I feel like you're approaching the game all wrong on both fronts. >>47959587 has it right, but beyond that, your CITY should be founded around some kind of Mystery. There should be something in the background to interest players even if they mostly just dick around with political or social stuff. Hunters and Vampires aren't the antagonists of a Mage game. The real antagonist is the self as they become addicted to shit and try to decide their way of running the world is right.
>>47958841
>I only ever started wearing a trip because multiple threads derailed into anons accusing each other of being me.
That doesn't check out.
Think about it...
If you only ever posted as Anon, then why would anons accuse each other of being you?
Are you a Game Dev, like DaveB?
If not, why should we care who the fuck you are anyway?
>>47959652
>If you only ever posted as Anon, then why would anons accuse each other of being you?
Because he posts on the forums, where you're required to have a name, because the rest of the internet isn't an anonymous image board.
Are you new or something? He's not even kidding. That really is a thing that used to happen. Jesus, if you don't like him, just filter him. Don't ruin the thread for the rest of us who don't give a shit.
>>47959587
>>47959648
Okay. So the City is set in Los Angles, which has the big dick swinging contest between the Free council and the Pentacle. I don't really have a grasp on the setting, so what is "Mage politics"?
Also, Mage Sight I don't think I've funny wrapped my head around. It tells you stuff based on Arcana when Mage sight is Active, but I can't figure out how Focused Mage Sight is supposed to work, other than:
Here's a mystery thing. Roll Gnosis + Arcana. If win, here's info, and we're done (if Opacity is 0) otherwise, keep trying...?
>>47959648
One thing that helps me in my Mage brainstorming is to ask "why are there Mages here?" Sure, anyone anywhere can Awaken, but these are folks who can teleport across the world with ease. Something in this city is interesting enough for an entire community of detectives to coalesce around it, and it falls on the Storyteller to answer that.
Granted, vampires could very well be your core Mystery, but they have to be distinct; are they weirder than normal? More numerous? Less? Are there tons of Strix here, or a torpid elder on the brink of waking back up, his undead hunger reaching out into the dreams of mortals?
If you want to get real weird, you can have the Pentacle cooperating with the Ordo Dracul to find and explain occult secrets together.
>>47959734
shit, los angles. that's an old joke that I thought I stopped using
shit, maybe I am the problem
>>47959734
Los Angels is just as about rampant Astral possession than it is about the Pentacle/Libertine split. If you don't get or like politics, focus on Astral weirdness. Why is it so common here? What happens when the goetic representations of the Manson Family impose themselves upon the city? What dread secrets can be gleaned from the Elvis impersonator on the street corner?
>>47959721
Serioulsy, considering how it was happening with Aspel before Touhoufag shit up everything with mageposting, I was considering suggesting he do the same.That's the worst part of avatarfags, though, always has been. They're as recognizable as a Tripfag to a human eye, but not in a way that we can have the system filter them out automatically.
>>47959721
>Are you new or something?
Yep, this is my 5th or 6th CofD thread.
Asking questions that others take for granted, and are not bound to come up even if I lurk for months on end.
>>47959721
>Because he posts on the forums
I am sure a lot of people post both on the forums and here, why were his forum posts significant enough for people to impersonate him / or accuse others of impersonating him?
>>47959782
I don't think he's using the official Los Angeles.
>>47959734
Honestly, from the sound of it you really need to read the book. Chapter Two has a whole big section on how Mage Society works, and Mage Sight gets a whole subsection in Chapter Three.
>>47959979
Because his opinions are obvious. What questions do you feel aren't getting answered?
>>47959734
If you don't grasp the mechanics, setting, or goal of the game... why are you running Mage? Not trying to be mean, but it seems like the basics of it are completely unknown to you.
>>47960065
>why are you running Mage?
Because his group wants to play it?
Let's be helpful instead of antagonizing people new to the system.
>>47960008
>Because his opinions are obvious.
>What questions do you feel aren't getting answered?
Well to start, what are his opinions?
>>47960143
I haven't the faintest idea. I'm an outspoken fan of one of the least-popular lines (Mummy), and so whenever it comes up people assume it's me.
There was also a spell where people had me confused with some weirdo from Reddit.
>>47960008
Anon mentioned the Pentacle-Libertine divide, which I think is part of canon LA.
>>47960065
>>47960008
I enjoy Mage conceptually. I actually understand a majority of the mechanics, especially spellcasting, but some of the greater concepts are kind of lost to me.
I kind of learned how to GM in a vacuum, so I'm probably missing fundamentals even on a first pass of a book. Like Focused Mage Sight. Like, I understand what the *are*, what the rolls *do*, but doesn't it just make investigating a series of rolls?
And the original point was more of a question of how do I get my players to do stuff, or am I the problem. It would seem that it's both, as the players aren't really searching for things more than finding dudes and trying to beat them up.
I'll take another, deeper pass at the book. I'm sure I'm due for it, especially after posting here.
>>47960119
I'm pretty new to /tg/, so I expected a lot worse. I'm enjoying the feedback so far.
>>47960211
One other thing to consider; CofD hands you a lot of tools as the Storyteller in the form of the characters' Aspirations and Obsessions. If you're struggling to find a narrative thread, just start tossing stuff in along those lines.
If you know what those are, we could even help with some plot hooks?
>>47959734
To run a Mage Chronicle, come up with a bunch of Mysteries.
Give your players the sense of depth in the setting by implying that there is stuff going on behind the scenes that they notice signs of once in a while, and that might affect them eventually.
I don't like using red herrings in Mage games until the players are really motivated to keep looking for stuff.
Make sure that there is a healthy bit of a payoff whenever they start investigating and turning over rocks.
To 'get' Mage politics, ask yourself what mystery each group is working towards, and how they might be contradictory and cause conflicts of interest.
>>47960200
The Diamond and Libertines are always at a divide.
Also, you're ambiguously trans and ambiguously furry.
>>47960211
It turns gathering clues into a roll. The Scrutiny isn't the whole investigation. Also, Jakki is right, use your players to learn what you should do. Outright ask them what aspects of the setting they want to explore. Throw Verges and strangeness at them.
>>47960119
That anon wasn't trying to antagonize him. it's a valid question. Knowing why he decided to run a game he doesn't seem to have a grasp on can help us help him.
>>47959519
The Healer bloodline did NOT join the Camarilla in any version of canon; Salubri is, to the Camarilla, synonymous with Infernalist because of the Tremere propaganda against them. They're essentially hunted on sight if the Camarilla finds out that they're in their domain and they're a Salubri.
>>47960396
Between the outright answers provided by Aspirations/Obsessions and their choices of Orders, you have a solid blueprint for what your Mysteries should look like. A game with a Mastigos Arrow might involve fighting demons while one with a Moros Guardian could be an introspective look at where souls come from.
>>47960211
>but doesn't it just make investigating a series of rolls?
More like a series of descriptions on your part.
Don't focus on describing what the answer is, describe what the character sees.
Never say
>You guys find a trap door under the rug.
Describe how it looks to their Mage sight, and let them guess the (sometimes obvious) solution.
Time Sight:
>The temporal afterimage of the rug is translucent, and bunched up towards the wall.
Life Sight
>There is an odd gap in the presence and movements of termites underneath this room.
etc.
>>47960263
So, here are the players.
Matrim Verner
"Trip"
Thyrsus
Free Council
Virtue: Open-Minded
Vice: Gullible
Nimbus: Iris and pupils flare a rainbow color and my hair seems to lift slightly. The air seems to crispen, and colors and sounds intensify.
Obsession: Realizing and conquering inner darkness.
Aspirations: Generate large social network, Gain mental and spiritual control of self
Jared Richardson
"Fixxen"
Moros
Adamantine Arrow
Virtue: practicality
Vice: stubbornness
Nimbus: The sound of wrenches and banging hammers fills the air
Obsession: The Ghostly shadow for that haunted me before awakening
Asima Abernathy
"Wisteria"
Acanthus
Silver Ladder
Vice: Instability
Virtue: Modesty
Nimbus: Little vines start growing out of cracks in the ground.
Obsession: Glowing Beings and The Guy from the library.
Aspirations:
To Become Stronger, physically and in faith.
To understand why I became awakened.
So, all three of them were menaced by the vampire coven I mentioned earlier, but when they found that out by knocking out The Chump and invading his dreams, they...let him go because they couldn't take him in a fight if they woke up.
Next session, I tell them that the vampires they saw in The Chumps dreams have been noticed to make some people vanish every month. Also, The Chump was sent to a bar close to the Free Council hang out spot to harass mages until he's killed for his failure.
The party elects to harass The Chump some more. In a bar. With people.
When combat inevitably begins, they cast a couple spells to buff their attacks, attack, then when they go to cast more buffs they realize the paradox is mounting and just decide to leave.
...
So I'm at a bit of a loss right now.
>>47960598
Although that is decently helpful.
>>47959734
Minstrel is a Thyrsus mage of the Free Council.
When breaking into a building to set up an observation post she smells the tell tale signs of active magic(Peripheral Mage Sight). Fearing coming under the effect of said magic, she focuses and looks around for magic.
She turns on her free mage sights(Life,Spirit) and hallucinates, seeing bars on the windows made of silvery light, cuts in the floor and walls held shut by blue string and a drum beat coming from the distance.The bars on the window are full of symbols for spirits, the drums echo in high speech words of spirit as well.(she has seen the room and sees at least 2 spell effects are in fact spirit magic, the bars and drums)
Worried at what she has seen, she focuses her sight(in this case, her ears) on the drum beat to get a revelation on what it is doing(an instant action) The opacity is 3, with only 2 dots in spirit, she spends a willpower(Gnosis 1 + 2 + 3 Willpower) to get 6 dice, -opacity she rolls 3 dice and nets 1 success, letting her learn the surface information.
>The drum beat is mage magic(perfecting to be exact), and worse, she sees the snakes of her nemesis the Meister's nimbus slithering around the comers of the spell's pattern. Just as worrying the spell is only hours old.
Scrutinizing the spell, she peels back layers until it reaches 0, were she learns the truth.
>The drum beat summons spirits with the resonance of imprisonment and opens the room and everyone in it to their powers.(Spirit Summons (Spirit •••) pg 182)
It is at this point she realizes her mistakes. 1 was not realizing she was next door to an abandoned prison. 2 was staying in a room with spells going on(sometimes its better to let it stay a mystery and get somewhere safe!). 3 was turning her back to the door, which has just vanished. 4 not keeping exorcists eye cast at all times and 5 was getting out of bed this morning.
Spending a mana Minstrel turns on spirit mage armor and braces for whats to come.
>>47960609
So you've got a mysterious shadow creature, you have energy beings and a vague stranger in the library, you've got a town full of vampires, and you've got the road to taming himself that your Thyrsus is on. That's a ton of potential there!
Maybe the haunting shadow is a vampiric spirit stalking the cabal for some reason? Maybe the energy beings are angels (whatever "angel" means to you)? Maybe something unnatural - like the aforementioned sleeping elder, maybe, or maybe a subconscious beacon - is drawing the, to LA. Your Thyrsus could use a spiritual mentor, either someone to take him on adventures through his Oneiros or a totemic patron from the Shadow.
>>47960693
Not the same guy, but this is quite helpful, thanks.
>>47960447
>The Healer bloodline did NOT join the Camarilla in any version of canon
They didn't -officially- join but they exist within the Camarilla and pretend to be other clans. If only till they reach Golconda and fuck off to await Gehenna.
>>47960783
You got a source on that? I've never heard that before.
>>47960783
Why are their no healer-focused Hunter Conspiracies / Compacts.
>>47960798
Just go look at the sect part of the Salubri writeup in the end of the v20 masquerade book.
>>47960808
Hunter Compacts/Conspiracies are CofD, the Salubri are oWoD. If you're asking for Hunter groups that heal people, then the Talbot Group, Habibti Ma, amd Cheiron Group all do that.
>>47960808
Because there is no hope for the game.
>>47960783
It wouldn't be accurate to say they are members of the Camarilla though, I'm pretty sure most Healers seem to be Unaligned. Doesn't help that the number of Healers in the world is probably way below 100.
>>47960814
>citing V20 as canon
>>47960693
That's good.
>>47960808
>>47960829
>Cheiron
>Healers
Haha, you so funny, Jakki
Also, the Tribulation Militia. I forget what they're called.
>>47960834
>It wouldn't be accurate to say they are members of the Camarilla though
I mean, you're right, like Baali pretending to be brujah antitribu aren't Sabbat but they're still mostly there. But yeah it doesn't really matter.
>>47960847
>Implying anything is canon
>>47960867
Cheiron exists primarily as a genuine medical corporation, and likely provide tons of mundane, life-saving drugs and surgeries. The morally-dubious Hunting is a very minor part of a multinational organization.
The militia is called The Reckoning, but it's not fair to cite unpublished material.
>>47960880
>>Implying anything is canon
Hey, "Nothing is canon" is an nWoD and CofD thing.
>>47960867
I'm an idiot. You're thinking of The Long Night.
>>47960900
Cheiron is a parody of the "we'll hold back the cure until it's a treatment" evil medicorp.
Also, yes, I meant the Long Night.
>>47960907
V20 is meant to be metaplot agnostic, and it's just as viable to cite.
>>47960900
>The militia is called The Reckoning, but it's not fair to cite unpublished material.
No, he's talking about the Long Night, their long name is the Tribulation Militia.
They have ideas about "curing" supernaturals by making them come back to the light of god again.
They have the belief that everyone can stop being a super if they just want to. They just have to believe in Jeezus.
>>47960765
>>47960867
Thanks.(guy who made>>47960693) Really I love new mage sight. Anything that avoids just saying that they have 2 points of armor. Also love the new nimbus stuff. Honesty I just like making up these scenarios. They are fun.
>>47960609
If your players aren't searching for things, ask why. make things for them to hunt. lets brain storm.
"Trip"
>Obsession: Realizing and conquering inner darkness.
>Aspirations: Generate large social network, Gain mental and spiritual control of self
Make sure to define the difference between Gain mental and spiritual control of self, and Realizing and conquering inner darkness. Otherwise they might just end up being the same thing and that is boring. Work on obstacles for aspirations to help fill dead time and raise tension for story time.
>Realizing and conquering inner darkness
Put him in a senario where this stands out, were he is at his worst. Create a antagonizing force(not a villain! A person, event, etc.) that constantly brings out the worst in him.
>Generate large social network
The reason you can't make new connections in because someone(something?) is following behind you and making people forget they ever met you. Is it a mage? Paradox? An angry spirit? Ill tell you what it is, its drama.
>Gain mental and spiritual control of self
to gain control you have to loose it. I see no one on your team is a Mastigos. Tear open his mind. Have him forget things and have things he didn't do put into his head("I'm friends with that mobster!" "no, no you are not"). When he is alone make him question what is real and what really happened. Someone or something is tearing apart his mind. Whats worse, is it might be himself(asked someone to do this so he could gain better understanding, then deleted the memory because there is no point to a test if you know all the answers).
talk to people and see what works.
>>47960396
Since when is atamajakki trans?
Anyone know a good place to find a hunter game? My local group loves fantasy too much to try WoD or anything too different from DnD.
>>47961083
>They have ideas about "curing" supernaturals by making them come back to the light of god again.
>They have the belief that everyone can stop being a super if they just want to. They just have to believe in Jeezus.
How would you run a Hunter game if the assumption has to be 'they are right'.
My friend goes to a VERY conservative ChurchUPCI
I had a long conversation with their pastor, explaining that RPGs are a good thing, and not the work of Satan.
I managed to win him over on the idea, but now he wants me to run an after-Sundayschool game, with him, the youth pastor, my friend, and the pastor's college aged son.
Is CofD flexible enough to handle it?
>>47961508
Game Finder, reddit's r/lfg, roll20.
>>47961253
I wish nimbus were a bit more fleshed out (or maybe I don't understand them). Anyone who scrutinizes your good time ally buffing nimbus gets buffed, but you can't use your "you activated my trap card" nimbus tilt with friends. I'm tempted to have my players create two Nimbus Tilts, or let them do both bonuses and penalties.
I also wish the Nimbus creation was more in-depth, and allowed for ones that were more than just +/-.
>>47961315
According to prevailing theories, since birth, or at least close to it. Though I'm assuming you mean "how do you know Atamajakki is trans?"
In which case he's admitted to feeling a bit gender dysphoric, but doesn't know how far those feelings go. Some people will argue that you're only transgender if you're transsexual, but I'm in favour of a more lax use of the term, with more specific terms being used as necessary, but honestly that's just digressing.
>>47961618
Compacts & Conspiracies has that as a mechanic, but it mostly talks about how it shouldn't be easy to do.
>Pentacostle
Wew lad.
>>47961315
He's not, he's a trap
>>47961618
That is really hard.
Can you pray at a butterfly and make it turn back into a caterpillar?
Can you pray at a dead man, and make it come back alive?
The supernatural creatures aren't human any more. They have turned into something else.
Honestly, one of the most Christian-friendly groups I can think of are the Mysterium. They believe that everything is empowered by a singular, almighty being, which is the magic. It's basically god.
Sure, there are the Seers, but they don't represent believers, they represent the bastards who victimize true believers. They use any kind of means to control people, Faith, Force of arms, Willingness to belong, Surveillance.
>>47961618
>CofD
>post-sunday school game
That's trouble waiting to happen, anon.
Try something "clean" like FATE with a generic or non-fantasy setting.
>>47961618
Dude, don't run CofD for a guy who you had to convince that RPGs aren't satanic. Run something less morally flexible, like DND, where all the alignments are set in stone, and then have them all be a good/neutral party.
>>47961696
Trap means a male crossdresser who enjoys being perceived as female. I don't think Jakki crossdresses, and probably doesn't (attempt to) pass.
>>47961717
>Can you pray at a butterfly and make it turn back into a caterpillar?
>Can you pray at a dead man, and make it come back alive?
To be fair, in CofD those are possibilities.
Also, the Mysterium are literally the most Sleeper-hating group. They believe that sleepers will literally destroy Magic if they get their grubby hands on it.
>>47961782
Atamajakki crossdresses, or atleast I got that impression from his tumblr
Very much enjoying this bizarre discussion.
>>47961618
CofD is very much a horror game. In my eyes, "pray to fix the monster" is /at best/ going to let them avoid going to Hell when they die (a la Dracula) rather than fixing them.
Run something lighter for the younguns, like Young Centurions with a Christian bent.
>>47961782
>To be fair, in CofD those are possibilities.
If you use actual magic dressed up as Catholic rituals like the Malleus Maleficarum does, sure.
>Also, the Mysterium are literally the most Sleeper-hating group. They believe that sleepers will literally destroy Magic if they get their grubby hands on it.
They also have evidence of this.
The Guardians agree, but use different methods to handle it.
>>47961788
He has a tumblr?
>>47961841
Hey, for what it's worth, I'm rootin' for you. I've been tempted to get in touch with you and shoot the shit off site.
>>47961842
No, even regular shit can. You don't need to be in the Malleus for religious rituals to have power. Abjuration is a ritual that any human can do. Even some non-humans.
>>47961875
http://atamajakki.tumblr.com/
>>47961875
>No, even regular shit can. You don't need to be in the Malleus for religious rituals to have power. Abjuration is a ritual that any human can do. Even some non-humans.
And can they raise the dead?
>>47961717
>Can you pray at a dead man, and make it come back alive?
Yes.
Lazarus, et al.
>>47961903
Which is a Malleus ritual. WHICH IS MY POINT.
>>47961899
>>47961925
You should never limit the game to only what exists in rulebooks, and only how it appears in those books.
>>47961890
>tfw want to follow him because he's an okay dude
>tfw don't want to follow him because his tumblr is trash
>>47961618
Virtue can prevail.
Always keep that in mind.
Let goodness win every now and then, let evil loose.
Keep the fire going, let people be redeemed.
How many WoD/CofD fans are furries?
I feel like the answer is "a lot."
>>47961983
What the fuck are you talking about?
Of course I use what's in the books when talking in places like this. That's the ONLY COMMON GROUND we have to talk about.
If you let the Long Night pray people back to life in your games, that's fine by me. But don't go here and claim that they can do it, because as far as the books are concerned, they can't.
>>47962057
Correlates with splat.
Werewolf, Changeling, and Beast see the most.
Then there are the occasional Thyrsus and Gangrel players who are shitty at hiding their furry love.
>>47962114
>Beast
No thanks. As a furry, I hate otherkin.
>>47962114
Werewolf has a smaller furry community than one would expect. Werewolf is very much RIP! TEAR! KILL!, which isn't very Furry.
Changeling I'll give you though.
>>47962178
All the furries play oWoD Werewolf, yeah
>>47962207
Yeah. oWerewolf is about magical people saving the world, despite it being fucked. OH SO NOBLE. nWerewolf is gangstas + shamanism.
>>47961692
Cutter is a Moros Adamant Arrow who's highest Arcanum is Matter.
As he lives his boring, mundane mage life of hunting for mysteries things come to him, strange contraptions that don't make sense, objects made from impossible things("where did this sword made of hate come from?") and the occasional ghost or two. This is his long term Nimbus, the thing that makes sure his life can never truly be boring.
When he casts a spell(lets say Alter Integrity potency 3) his nimbus flairs to life; new machines flicker and fail, as older objects spring to life. In the distance you can hear a train engine roaring to life as a dial up modem screeches one final time.
In game terms everyone with resolve 3 or lower if affected by the Nimbus tilt pg 90. with Gnosis 1 he can only grant a change of 1 dice to an attribute or a die modifier to a skill. So being as he has 0 dots in computers, his Nimbus Tilt causes computer rolls taken to loose the 10 again quality. This effect lasts for a number of turns equal to the effective reach of the spell.
Cutters signature nimbus looks like rust wiped clean and sounds like the clicking of a dying electronic device, a week after casting a spell his nimbus is gone.
Looking at Cutter's Nimbus can you tell me anything about him, or about how he sees the world, or more specifically, feels about technology? In mage a characters Nimbus isn't just there to look cool, its the window into their soul and lets people know about them.
Try flavoring your spells with the casters Nimbus to make sure everything feel unique.
>>47962511
The answer to shitposting is not more shitposting, anon.
>>47962561
>objecting to shitposting
>on 4chan
Do you know where we are?
If you could pitch one CofD supplement, what would it be?
>>47962093
The RAW itself tells you to do that. Quit acting like anyone else shares your stupid ideals on how to run a fucking game.
>>47962466
Yeah that's basically how I figured. I wish Nimbus wasn't so binary. There are a lot of ways to use your Nimbus actively to aid or hinder, but each nimbus can only do one of those things.
>>47962636
Not /b/
>>47962909
Dark Eras and Thousand Years of Night are both dreams come true, honestly.
Give me more vague weirdness like Midnight Roads, honestly. Or more rules hacks like Mirrors and Danse Macabre. Every gameline deserves a Chronicler's Guide.
>>47962926
>The RAW itself tells you to do that. Quit acting like anyone else shares your stupid ideals on how to run a fucking game.
But... The Long Night isn't a Conspiracy. None of the Compacts have magic. Especially not on that level.
>>47962966
And? Magic doesn't just come from Endowments. Hell, the corebook itself talks about magical rituals. Hunter talks about them as well. You are not supposed to treat the things that exist within the book as if they are the only things that exist. Especially not in Hunter, the game all about discovering forbidden knowledge and fighting unknowable forces.
Is there a tl;dr Mage 1e to Mage 2e explanation file out there? I don't want to read a however many hundred page document just to update my understanding of the rules.
>>47963100
Yes, but saying any member of the Long Night can bring someone back from the dead is like saying any member of Network Zero can hack the FBI.
Sure, they can, in theory. So can anybody. But the vast majority of them can't, in reality, because they don't know how to.
A member of the Long Night has no inherent benefit above any other Hunter aside from connections.
(By default, that is)
>>47963100
I feel like you are shifting the goalposts here.
There are no supernatural merits in the core books that allows ressurection, (and especially not stuff on the archmaster-level tier of modifying major template bearers). The only mortal level stuff that allows that in Hunter is the Boon of Lazarus. Which is strictly a Malleus Maleficarum thing.
If the evil sorcerer you face can revive his minions, and force them to do his bidding, showing how not even death is an escape from his power.. That says nothing about what's intended as player stuff.
>>47963178
>Wanting to play Mage
>Not wanting to read a thousand+ words to understand something
Bruh I think you got the wrong game
>>47963267
I did it for Ascension. I did it for Awakening. I'm tired. Just...
>>47963178
Firstly, the Vulgar/Subtle distinction is gone.
All spells are default transitory, touch/thrown range, and ritual speed, with effects based off of "Potency" which usually starts at a rating equal to primary Arcanum.
These are improved with dice modifiers (roughly-linearly), and reach to achieve the "advanced" scale. You get 1 free reach for meeting the Arcanum requirement, then 1 more for every dot in excess. Any reach you take which is not free gives you Paradox dice based on your Gnosis.
Successes do nothing for a spell except let it happen, or achieve an Exceptional Success, you must determine all modifiers before casting the spell. Rotes are now split into a passive and yantra effect.
Passive lets you use a Master's free reach (e.g. Fate 2 spell with a Rote gives you 4 free Reach).
Yantras are effects you add to your spellcasting to increase your dice pool. The more you add, the longer it takes. High Speech, Rote Mundras, Glyphs, Path/Order Tools, Locations, these are all Yantras, there are a maximum number you can use based on Gnosis, and the bonus caps out (after removing negatives) at +5.
Sleeper witness add +1 die, with dice tricks based on number (9-again, 8-again, or even Rote). Dissonance happens at end of scene with dice based on the witness's Integrity.
Withstand is a mental/physical/mystical barrier which decreases Potency by rating. If Potency reaches 0, your spell fails. So e.g. to affect someone with Resolve 4 with a direct force mental manipulation spell you'll need minimum Potency 5.
