Vampire: The Masquerade Interest Check

[Jaded]

The new Humble Bundle reminded me how much fun I had when I got to play the game on other websites.  While I will admit I would prefer to be a player, I would be willing to run a Vampire game if there is enough interest. 

The basic idea I have in my mind is basically a city that has reached an uneasy, and still somewhat violent, truce between the various powerful factions (Camarilla, Sabbat, maybe Garou and others).  The characters, probably relatively new neonates, would be caught in the middle of it all. 

I am not sure on a city, or really most details.  I could see having a bit of a plot (being ordered around by the elders), though do like the idea of keeping things somewhat sandboxy if I can figure out how.  It would probably be NC-Exotic, though I am not sure how much smut would be included.

Is there any interest?  Is it worth developing more?

[BenedictWolfe]

I might be interested. As for locale I'd like to suggest New York City in the year 1979; just prior to Michaela pronouncing herself Prince and setting off the decades long conflict over the city. This was also the most violent period in the city's history IRL with muggings and other violent crimes sweeping across the five boroughs.

What clans and bloodlines and which sect were you thinking of allowing?

[Pumpkin Seeds]

:: peeks::

[KrataLightblade]

Vampire is my jam.

I might be interested, depending on what you decide to go with, though I suppose it also depends on what the other players might be looking for.

Vampire's the kind of game where I'm used to keeping one eye on my coterie, after all.

[Tamhansen]

I'd love to play a game like this.

[Kolbrandr]

Potential interest if you're using the revised stuff and crossover is kept to a minimum (or none at all. It's very much not my bag)

I suppose it depends on if you do feel cool running (because I don't know that you're going to get anyone to otherwise step forward given how these threads usually go), and what sort of setting you have in mind to develop. I would say it would be nice to be ancillae simply for the sheer slowness of pbp advancement, but neonates are alright.

[Callie Del Noire]

We talking oWoD?

[BenedictWolfe]

We talking oWoD?

Yeah: The Masquerade, the Camarilla and the Sabbat are all oWoD stuff.

[AndyZ]

Hello hello ^_^

[Jaded]

I might be interested. As for locale I'd like to suggest New York City in the year 1979; just prior to Michaela pronouncing herself Prince and setting off the decades long conflict over the city. This was also the most violent period in the city's history IRL with muggings and other violent crimes sweeping across the five boroughs.

What clans and bloodlines and which sect were you thinking of allowing?

Hrm.  I'm not sure on the city.  I am back and forth on whether to go with one that is well-developed in the gameworld (especially as I don't own any of those books, so would have to buy the PDF), or one that is more of a blank slate.  Though not sure I want to set things in the past, as I'm not sure how well I could pull off a 70s or 80s vibe.

I'd probably keep things relatively open on clans and antitribu, though might exclude the less common ones (Baali and Salubri and what not). 

Potential interest if you're using the revised stuff and crossover is kept to a minimum (or none at all. It's very much not my bag)

I suppose it depends on if you do feel cool running (because I don't know that you're going to get anyone to otherwise step forward given how these threads usually go), and what sort of setting you have in mind to develop. I would say it would be nice to be ancillae simply for the sheer slowness of pbp advancement, but neonates are alright.

I would go Revised or 20th Anniversary, I need to look up how compatible the two are.  Crossover as in Mage and Werewolf and what not?  I could see them as occasional antagonists, but not as characters. 

I figured I would have to run it.  I'm not strictly opposed to starting at a slightly higher level, but it does make things more difficult.  They have more of a history (and are probably more well known at least locally), it is a bit harder to just have an elder toss them together and make them run an errand, etc. 

We talking oWoD?

Yes, Old World of Darkness Vampire.

[Rook Seidhr]

If it's V20 and the city doesn't have a huge canon background to learn, I'm interested.

[Jaded]

What do people think of modern Miami, something along the lines of:

Miami write up

Miami by Night, a city at war.  With the Sabbat pushing north and east from their stronghold in Mexico City, and with the loss of Atlanta and other east coast cities, Miami very nearly fell from the Camarilla’s grasp.  The final death of the Prince, a thousand year old Ventrue, should have been the end.  The Sabbat even went so far as to declare the city theirs, and appoint one Fabrizia Contreraz as Archbishop.

The Brujah Sheriff Alfred, however, was not willing to admit defeat.  He declared himself Prince, rallied those he could, gave permission to embrace an army of cannon fodder, and fought back.  The battles raged for nearly two decades.  At first the Camarilla fought a guerilla campaign, hunted and pursued through the darkened streets of Miami.  Slowly, gradually, they managed to push back, to build up their influence.  Now, in modern nights, the city is very nearly split down the middle.

Prince Alfred claims that the recent lull is a sign that the Sabbat’s back in the city has finally been broken, while others believe that they are just rallying for a counter-offensive.  Regardless, there are plenty of opportunities for the Kindred, both young and old, to carve out their own domain and build their influence in the city.

Also, do people have a preference between Revised and 20th?  From a quick search, below are some of the changes, so it shouldn't be hard to modify one or the other to fit.

Attributes & Abilities
Awareness has been added as a Talent.
Dodge has been removed as a skill; its former functionality has been moved to Athletics.
Security has also been removed; its former functionality has been subsumed by the Larceny skill and the Technology knowledge.
Linguistics is no longer a skill; each language known is a 1-dot Merit instead. (p. 484)
Clans
The Tremere have a new clan flaw; they succumb to the blood bond after only two drinks from a regnant, rather than three. (It's not made clear whether the effect of the first drink is magnified to that of the second drink, or whether the second drink is skipped.) (p.69)
The animal features of the Gangrel that manifest after a frenzy are now temporary, and may be behavioral rather than physical. (p.55)
Character Creation and Costs
During character creation, Humanity/Path dots costs 2 freebie points instead of 1.
Core Disciplines
Potence and Celerity have been significantly altered. Each now adds a passive bonus (at no vitae cost) to their governing physical attribute; you add your dots as extra dice in pools using Strength and Dexterity, respectively. In addition, Potence and Celerity allow the vampire to spend vitae for effects: spending 1v allows a Potence user to add his dots in Potence as successes to all subsequent Strength rolls made during that turn--which used to be inherent to the discipline--and a Celerity user may choose to spend 1v to convert a Celerity dot into an additional physical action for that turn, which may be done multiple times, reducing the Celerity rating accordingly for the turn (Generational blood-spending maxima do not apply to these expenditures.) (pp. 142, 192)
Dominate and Presence powers whose difficulties were once equal to the subject's permanent Willpower rating now target the subject's current Willpower.
Systems
If "splitting one's action" in a turn, compare the dice pools for each action, find the one with the fewest dice, and then allot that number of dice among all the actions being attempted. (p.248)

Would people prefer to start as basic characters, or with a higher exp? (but associated higher expectation on background)

[Kolbrandr]

I've really soured a lot on v20, though I'm not looking to start a whole debate on it with people, I think you have enough interest that if it's majority preference/your own preference, you'd still have players to work with.

The premise otherwise sounds interesting. 

[Callie Del Noire]

I ask because I got V20

[AndyZ]

No real preference on which edition, but I'll probably go for a Tremere, unless someone else was planning that.

[KrataLightblade]

I personally prefer V20 but I don't have anything against Revised at all.

And I think Miami's a good spot, and I like a city with opportunities.

[Kolbrandr]

Oh, missed this, sorry.

Would people prefer to start as basic characters, or with a higher exp? (but associated higher expectation on background)

It would be nice to start with higher xp, just for reasons from pbp slowness to that it would be nice to get to write a background that's something other than just outside of fledgling neonates, which is most vampire online.

[AndyZ]

Stupidly forgot to say, but Miami is cool, and more XP would be awesome.

[Rook Seidhr]

Miami's fine. As I stated, I have a strong preference for V20 over Revised. I prefer not to write pages of background before I even start playing.

[RubySlippers]

Getting out book, getting folder of psychological disorders of all kinds since why limit oneself for derangements to the book and works on a Dominate Malkavian that will appear quite normal at first - be afraid - be very afraid. (Only half-kidding ...  :D )

[BenedictWolfe]

I prefer V20 on the whole, though there are some changes to bloodlines that I don't really care for. Since that probably won't figure into this RP it's a moot point, though. Since I'm currently on staycation I've been busying myself with writing some quick reference documents concerning VtM and this seems as good an opportunity as any to share them.

These contain materials from both Revised and V20 as well as a few additions of my own. As such they shouldn't be seen as entirely canonical. They are all in Rich Text Format.
Clans & Bloodlines
Disciplines WIP!
Paths of Enlightenment
Revenant Families
Sects

Some more background on the city would be cool. Like, who are the Primogen? Keeper of Elysium? Is there a Scourge or are Caitiff permitted?

[Jaded]

It seems like V20 is the preference, so we can go with that (though Revised shouldn't be too hard to port if that is all someone has access to). 

I'll probably go with 100XP Ancillae, though will want where you spend the XP tracked.  Though for now please just provide a paragraph or two background as well as your choice of clan.  Also, do people want more plot heavy or more sandboxy?

I will try to start working on the setting more. 

Some more background on the city would be cool. Like, who are the Primogen? Keeper of Elysium? Is there a Scourge or are Caitiff permitted?

I am not sure on the Primogen yet, or if it will be a bit open with no official council.  There wouldn't be a scourge, and caitiff would be common. 

A brief (basically point form) write-up on my initial thoughts for some of the city's main roles, suggestions are welcome as my VtM lore is a bit rusty. 

Powers that be

Prince – Brujah – ‘Alfred’
Alfred is believed to be somewhere around eight hundred years old, though he is not one to discuss his history.  He was the muscle-for-hire of the former Prince, and only truly came into his own when the Sabbat attacked.  While he has been an effective leader in war, many criticize his leadership in almost every other area.  The caitiff and thin-blooded have swelled in number under his rule, and there is little control over new embraces. 

Seneschal – Ventrue – ‘Casimiro Alfaro’
The childe of the former Prince, Casimiro’s role as Seneschal has predated Alfred’s role as Prince.  There are no few that whisper that Casimiro is pulling the strings of a puppet Prince, and that he is the true ruler of the Camarilla in the city.

Sheriff – Brujah – ‘Ryland’
An old comrade in arms of Alfred, Ryland came to the city to fight the good fight.  He is brash, disrespectful, and often unpleasant to be around.  He is also a formidable foe, and an effective captain in the war against the Sabbat.

Keeper – Giovanni – ‘Furlano’
Furlano is ancient and powerful, that much is certain.  She maintains her own private army of vampires, ghouls, and mortals, and is said to be heavily involved with the banks that call downtown Miami home.  While it is debateable whether or not she can be considered a member of the Camarilla, and there are rumours of her trafficking with the Sabbat, she provides an Elysium whose peace even the Prince wouldn’t challenge. 

[RubySlippers]

Too many ... ideas ... my poor little brain is going to explode ... need to get one idea into character form ... oweiii ....

;D

Which sect are we doing Camarilla or Sabbat?

[Rook Seidhr]

Will it be possible to buy up Backgrounds with starting XP in some way?

EDIT: Ugh, I don't think I can manage this. Sorry. But the question stands, because others will need to know the answer.

[KrataLightblade]

Hmmm... Fascinating city politics I'm seeing develop just from what you've said so far.

I personally like sandboxy-ish games though again I'm not even a LITTLE bit opposed to something more directed, I just love me some Vampire.  Either way I'm sort of assuming there'll be things going on for people to get into even if there's not a directed specific plot in mind.  Particularly if we're effective embroiled in a cold/medium war with the Sabbat.

As for character seed:

Sean

Sean Julian Terell is a bit of an odd duck.  A Gangrel in a Cammie city?  Sure thing, happens all the time.  A Gangrel who's been skipping back and forth between half the cities on the Eastern Seaboard for a century now?  Happens a little less often.  A Gangrel willing to sell his services for boons or favors?  Well, that's just potential asset in the making, right there.

Sean is a transient, though he's got some ties to Miami from way back.  The chaos of the last few years has left a lot of things uncertain, a lot of people aren't really sure what happened to who and when, and a Gangrel who just doesn't talk much about his history isn't exactly a shocker.  So Sean's got secrets, and while they're not secrets that'd lead to the betrayal of the Camarilla--far from it, in fact--they're not secrets that'd make him popular, either.  So Sean's a man with a lot to hide, but a lot to gain from sticking around in a potential war zone in the making.  He could make a lot of allies.

If his enemies don't catch up to him first.

Sound good?

[Kolbrandr]

It seems like V20 is the preference, so we can go with that (though Revised shouldn't be too hard to port if that is all someone has access to). 

Fair enough. I'll be bowing out then, but I do hope the game works out for you regardless.

[Jaded]

Which sect are we doing Camarilla or Sabbat?

Camarilla.

Will it be possible to buy up Backgrounds with starting XP in some way?

EDIT: Ugh, I don't think I can manage this. Sorry. But the question stands, because others will need to know the answer.

Hrm.  I could do freebie points, but is annoying to mix, so will say Current Rating + 1 (so 1 for the first rank, 2 for the second, 3 for the third, etc.  15 for 0-5)

Ah, sorry you can't manage it. :-( 

Sound good?

Looks good. :-)

Fair enough. I'll be bowing out then, but I do hope the game works out for you regardless.

Sorry. :-(

[BenedictWolfe]

I would prefer some direction from the ST with a lesser focus on sand-box.

Also, I should ask, is a Tlacique permissible? If only strict Camarilla clans are allowed I will have to go back to the drawing board.

Julio

Julio Cenyaotl arrived in Miami during the mass Embraces encouraged by Alfred, chasing a Sabbat Kindred for reasons unrelated to the local conflict. A consummate deceiver he blended in with fledgling Caitiff and seemingly joined the Camarilla cause, all the while pursuing his own quarry.

In truth, Julio is a Tlacique from central Mexico, Nahua by birth, and has for many decades resisted the Sabbat in his homeland along with his clanmates. Equal parts warrior, spy and mystic, Julio has been pursuing a particular Sabbat from the jungles of east Mexico to the docks of Miami, and his ambitions are focused solely upon catching his prey. To this end he has aided the Camarilla in their struggle against the current Sabbat incursion in Miami, making enough of a name for himself to come to the notice of people he would have preferred never knew of his existence: It's not merely the Sabbat that would do harm to a Setite blood sorcerer in Miami.

The current lull in hostilities has made it harder for Julio to carry out his own mission against the Sabbat and he now finds he has to look for assistance if he is to bring down his quarry.

[Miroque]

Is there still room for an camarilla excemplary application ? (Tremere apprentice of the year)

[BenedictWolfe]

Well, we only have one confirmed character (KrataLightblade's), so I'm sure there's plenty of space for more.

[Jaded]

Also, I should ask, is a Tlacique permissible? If only strict Camarilla clans are allowed I will have to go back to the drawing board.

That should be fine. :-)

Is there still room for an camarilla excemplary application ? (Tremere apprentice of the year)

There is still room, though I believe AndyZ expressed interest in joining as a Tremere. 

[Miroque]

is there an character thread coming up, or will we post our application here or directly to you?

[RubySlippers]

Odelia  Martel

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Born in the United States in 1890 she was embraced by a Malkavian Elder in 1916 after she was mortally wounded in a Zepplin bombing in England, who was her lover at the time, and inducted into the Camarilla shortly thereafter in London being twelve generations from Caine.

She has before that a career as an artists model, a writer of steampunk horror novels most quite risqué for the time and one recently made into a motion picture earning some accolades and a re-release of her books which pleases her and was and still is one of the most exquisite looking women one will see among the mortals and among vampires and the cause of her insanity. She simply revels in this which would be unseemly for most Kindred as a waste of time and well warps her personality she feels she is a gift to the world in her being in it, gracing it with her beauty and grace and is shallow now. That doesn't mean impractical when the Grand Prank happened she was unaffected and always was one of the most "sane" of her clan in any area the ones that run things and she does - in a manner of speaking - well she has parties to attend and clubbing to do and buying clothes and selecting the right look and trying her best to inspire mortals and immortals to admire her. That uses up an amount of her precious time.

She arrived in New York more recently and although built up a decent shallow domain however she did come with her personal fortune of funds from carefully made investments over the decades, so money does tend to open door and grease the mortal ex machina of their institutions to some degree helping her../spoiler]

Will suffer from the enlightenment of one version of this Personality Disorder but in a vampire so its hardly funny: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histrionic_personality_disorder

[Miroque]

"I am here to serve.. You, if there is something I can do for you. If not, maybe there is someone you know, that I can serve?"

Name: Mai Ling
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black, Long
Build: Slender, Athletic
Sex: Female
Race: Oriental (Chinesse)
Height: 5' (151cm)
Weight: 105lb (46.8kg)
Actual Age: 68
Apparent Age: 19

Appearance

Mei dresses conservatively while among the kindred, but she loved to test new fashions and suck in the pulse of life. Something she never felt while alive.

Personality

Mei has perfect face and body for any fashion magazines, but her eyes are shadowy and dark like she had seen too much for her young age. Her black hair is normally kept in long ponytail and outside the strict rules of chantries, she dresses up with goth fashion.

Background

Mai Ling was daughter of doctor and his wife. As the second world war hit and Japanice soldiers toke over Sanghai, she was sent into consentration camp with her parents. That was the place, where her gift manifested. She started to gain nightmarish visions of days to come.

First she spoke about them only with her mother, but word got around, as few of her visions came to pass. Most importantly the decapitation of her father, as she refused to bow the camp leader when he walked past them. Mei had spoken it with her mother, who knew Mei was touched by the ancestral spirits. Mei also knew her mother would die before the year was full, to famine that was to ravage the camp, but she was too afraid to tell anyone. German officer, Hans Uriah, who was visiting the camp, got word of the child that suposed to possess gift of foresight, and him being an ghoul to prominent member of House Tremere and heavily into arcane studies himself, he asked the child to be handed to him. Camp leader was gifted with germanic arms and tanks as Mei was handed to the whiteskinned devil. Somehow she did not manage to pierce his future, like it was shrouded from her.

War went as it went and Mei was raised by Hans in Vienna, where his master lived. As soon as Mei turned 19, she was ghouled to the house and the clan, and molded toward the greatness of the clan and her to be Sire. Magic in her died and rebirthed into something new. Her avatar, one she did not even knew to possess changed into beast within. Even she was only ghouled, her thirst for knowledge and power was something her dominor noticed. Her magic made her sucpectible to spiritual powers, and her dominor made sure she was taught by the masters of the art.

Wilhelm Swartsteele, elder of the house and the clan embraced Mei at her 50th birthday, and bind her to the Pyramid, as one of the few female magi.

Now, she was send back to the world, to seek out her vengeance. The Japanice officer that murdered hr parents, was in deed somehow still alive and somewhere southeast parts fo US. Mai cared not, if that man would have been Justicar, Inner Cirle member or Archon, he was going to pay what he had done to her, something her sire knew was boiling inside her, and he send his trusted ghoul with her, to keep her unharmed and offer his vast skills to her, if she needed them. Elder William had seeked out information about Daiki Chinen, and he's name was not known to any Camarilla contact he contacted, and it made him an person of intrest atleast, in Clan books.

[Jaded]

I will try to work on the setting a bit more this week, and get things started by the weekend or early next week.  Sorry for the delay. 

[Miroque]

Ping ?

[Jaded]

I'm going to hold off on running this I think, apologies to everyone for wasting the effort you put in, but I should find a group game or two to play in before I try and run another one and burn myself out.  :P