Campaign of the Month: October 2017
Blood & Bourbon
Devotions
Then Lilith commanded that I stop, saying that I had overreached my bounds
That I had gone too far
That I threatened my very essence.
She used her powers and commanded me to stop.
Because of her power, I heeded her, but deep within me a seed was planted a seed of rebellion
and when she turned her face from me, I opened myself up once more, to the Night
—The Book of Nod
The rote Disciplines that are common to all Kindred are not the only supernatural capabilities at their disposal. Every so often, an entirely new Discipline “technique” emerges from the ranks of the undead. Like standard Disciplines, these techniques—called Devotions—can be learned from or taught to other Kindred in much the same time frame and manner as the broader powers from which they originate. Any vampire with the appropriate prerequisite Discipline dots can, in theory, develop the Devotions for which he qualifies. It’s simply a matter of time and effort.
Some claim to have truly secret Devotions, however, and the claim does have some basis in truth. Kindred may find themselves incapable of developing some of the more esoteric techniques without a learned mentor at their side. Indeed, not all Kindred have even heard of Devotions. By their nature, they are rarer than the common Disciplines are, and knowledge of them is more fleeting than the understanding of the unique Disciplines that sometimes accompany the creation of new bloodlines. Few young Kindred possess Devotions, and fewer still have been wise enough to create their own. Kindred may learn of them through a “secret knowledge” a sire wishes to pass on to them, the (re)payment of a prestation debt, the confidences of a mentor, stolen wisdom in the hands of rebellious vampires, or by any other manner in which they come up in a story.
Although any Kindred can potentially learn any Devotion as long as she has the Discipline prerequisites, some measure of “creator’s pride” exists pertaining to each, depending upon who claims to have developed the power first. Most of the Devotions stemming from and involving the Protean Discipline are known as Gangrel Devotions, for example, while those involving Theban Sorcery are referred to as Lancea et Sanctum Devotions.
GM’s Note: This page contains (well, at this point, may eventually contain) Devotions from 2nd edition I’ve decided to tweak, Devotions from 1st edition that weren’t converted to 2e rules, Devotions from Vampire: The Masquerade that I’ve converted to Requiem’s ruleset, and a few Devotions of my own personal creation.
Devotions are not something unique to this game, they are a standard option in the core rulebook. That said, to have heard of Devotions, a character requires either Occult • or to have interacted in-game with another Kindred who revealed their existence.
To independently purchase a Devotion (that is, for a character to develop it completely on their own), characters must have a number of Occult dots equal to the combined dots of all the Devotion’s prerequisite Disciplines (for example, to independently develop a Devotion with Auspex 2 and Dominate 1 as the prerequisites takes Occult 3). This requirement can be bypassed by learning the Devotion from another Kindred who already knows it (or has at least heard of it). Players of PCs who want to purchase a Devotion but don’t meet its Occult prerequisites are encouraged to either put down “learn Devotion X” as an Aspiration, or to simply use Setups to have learned it from another Kindred tutor.
GM’s Note: This list of Devotions is also far from comprehensive. A more complete listing can be found on the White Wolf Wiki’s article. If players are interested in any of the Devotions there, ask me and I’ll post a conversion to the Storytelling System’s ruleset. (Prerequisites may also get lowered as part of that conversion, as VtR’s Disciplines have more bang at lower levels next to VtM’s.)
Recent Additions
• 11/3: Converted Claws of the Unholy, Of Rose and Thorn, Sleep Unseen, Swarm Form, and Thousand Forms from Merits to Devotions.
• 7/25: Army of One
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Beast’s Vigor | Animalism ••, Resilience • | 1 | You can transfer your wounds to an animal. |
| Of Rose and Thorn | Animalism • | 2 | You can use Animalism on plants. |
| Song of Serenity | Animalism ••• | 2 | You can lull vampires out of frenzy. |
| Subsume the Spirit | Animalism •••• | 2 | You can possess the bodies of animals. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Arcane Sight | Auspex ••, Blood Sorcery (any) • | 1 | You can use Auspex to ask questions about magic. |
| Call Upon the Blood | Auspex •• | 1 | You can sense other vampires and ghouls over a large area. |
| Command from Afar | Auspex ••••; Dominate • or Majesty •• | 3 | You can issue telepathic orders to victims under your thrall from over any distance. |
| Divine Aura | Auspex •, Majesty •• | 2 | People who try to read your mind are subject to your Majesty. |
| Draught of the Soul | Auspex •••; Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) ••• or Quietus ••• | 3 | You can absorb knowledge and memories from diablerized souls. |
| Eye for the Weakness of Steel | Auspex •, Celerity • | 1 | You can ignore an opponent’s worn armor with your attacks. |
| Eyes of a Thousand Shades | Auspex •, Blood Sorcery (Necromancy) ••• | 2 | You can see through the eyes of nearby ghosts. |
| Heart’s Desire | Auspex ••, Chimerstry 1 • | 2 | Your illusions reflect what your target most wants to see. |
| Honeyed Words | Auspex ••, Majesty • | 2 | You always know the wrong thing to avoid saying during conversations. |
| Material Projection | Auspex •••••, Vigor • | 3 | Your astral projection can physically affect your surroundings. |
| Psychic Assault | Auspex ••••, Dominate • | 2 | You can attack victims with the force of your mind. |
| Psychic Double | Auspex •••••, Obfuscate ••• | 4 | You can make your astral projection appear real and solid. |
| Solidsight | Auspex ••• | 1 | You can see through walls and solid objects. |
| Telepathic Command | Auspex ••••, Dominate • | 2 | You can use Dominate without speaking out loud. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Arcane Sight | Auspex ••, Blood Sorcery (any) • | 1 | You can use Auspex to ask questions about magic. |
| Draught of the Soul | Auspex •••; Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) ••• or Quietus ••• | 3 | You can absorb knowledge and memories from diablerized souls. |
| Remote Access Buffer | Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) ••••• | 3 | You can use Auspex, Chimerstry, Dementation, Dominate, Majesty, and Obfuscate over the internet. |
| The Humberside Panic | Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) • or Majesty •••; Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor • | 1 or 2 | You can grant other vampires use of your physical Disciplines. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Eye for the Weakness of Steel | Auspex •, Celerity • | 1 | You can ignore an opponent’s worn armor with your attacks. |
| Forced March | Celerity •, Resilience • | 1 | You can cover ground at a faster rate without spending Vitae. |
| Retain the Blood | Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor •; Protean •• or Quietus • | 1 | You regain Vitae you spend on physical Disciplines at the end of scenes. |
| Scourge of Alecto | Celerity •, Majesty ••• | 2 | You can make other vampires suffer frenzies in your place. |
| The Humberside Panic | Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) • or Majesty •••; Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor • | 1 or 2 | You can grant other vampires use of your physical Disciplines. |
| Tireless Tread | Celerity •••• | 2 | You can run vast distances in an eyeblink. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Heart’s Desire | Auspex ••, Chimerstry 1 • | 2 | Your illusions reflect what your target most wants to see. |
| Waking Dream | Chimerstry •, Resilience • | 1 | You can use a simple illusion as if it were real. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Chain of Command | Dominate •••• | 2 | You can grant use of your Dominate to victims. |
| Conditioning | Dominate •••• | 2 | You can turn victims you’ve Dominated into permanent slaves. |
| Command from Afar | Auspex ••••; Dominate • or Majesty •• | 3 | You can issue telepathic orders to victims under your thrall from over any distance. |
| Distant Friend | Dominate •••, Majesty •• | 2 | You can seal Majesty effects to activate when a victim talks about you. |
| Measure the Will | Auspex ••, Dominate • | 1 | You can use Auspex to ask questions about a target’s mental capabilities. |
| Mistaken Identity | Dominate •, Obfuscate •••• | 2 | You can make people mistake you for someone else. |
| Telepathic Command | Auspex ••••, Dominate • | 2 | You can use Dominate without speaking out loud. |
| The Forgetful Mind | Dominate •• | 1 | You can alter a larger swath of victims’ memories. |
| Whispers in the Dark | Dominate •, Obfuscate ••• | 2 | You can use Dominate on victims without them noticing. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Beneath Contempt | Majesty •, Obfuscate • | 1 | You can make others feel you are unworthy of hostility. |
| Command from Afar | Auspex ••••; Dominate • or Majesty •• | 3 | You can issue telepathic orders to victims under your thrall from over any distance. |
| Distant Friend | Dominate •••, Majesty •• | 2 | You can seal Majesty effects to activate when a victim talks about you. |
| Divine Aura | Auspex •, Majesty •• | 2 | People who try to read your mind are subject to your Majesty. |
| Honeyed Words | Auspex ••, Majesty • | 2 | You always know the wrong thing to avoid saying during conversations. |
| Internet Famous | Majesty •••• and Summoning | 2 | You can use Summoning on subjects over the internet. |
| One of Us | Majesty •, Obfuscate • | 1 | You can convince groups of people that you belong among them. |
| Scourge of Alecto | Celerity •, Majesty ••• | 2 | You can make other people suffer frenzies in your place. |
| Scourging the Instinct | Majesty ••••• | 2 | You can whip crowds of people into frenzy. |
| Summoning | Majesty •••• | 2 | You can summon people to your side from across the world. |
| The Humberside Panic | Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) • or Majesty •••; Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor • | 1 or 2 | You can grant other vampires use of your physical Disciplines. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Worst Fear | Nightmare ••, Obfuscate •••• | 2 | You can appear as whatever person your victim fears most. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Army of One | Obfuscate •••• | 2 | You can make yourself appear surrounded by a mob. |
| Beneath Contempt | Majesty •, Obfuscate • | 1 | You can make others feel you are unworthy of hostility. |
| Cloak of the Gathering | Obfuscate ••••• | 2 | You can make entire groups disappear. |
| Familiar Face | Obfuscate •••• | 1 | You can assume a single visage for 1 Vitae instead of 2 Vitae. |
| Forbidden Zone | Obfuscate •••••, Resilience • | 3 | You can ward your Oubliette with invisible force. |
| Iron Facade | Obfuscate •, Resilience •• | 1 | You can appear invulnerable to harm. |
| Mistaken Identity | Dominate •, Obfuscate •••• | 2 | You can make people mistake you for someone else. |
| One of Us | Majesty •, Obfuscate • | 1 | You can convince groups of people that you belong among them. |
| Second Face | Obfuscate •••• | 2 | You can assume a single visage for 0 Vitae instead of 2 Vitae. |
| Sleep Unseen | Obfuscate • | 2 | You can use Obfuscate while sleeping. |
| Tenebrous Veil | Obfuscate •, Obtenebration • | 1 | You can use Obfuscate in areas people don’t expect you to be, so long as shadows are present. |
| Whispers in the Dark | Dominate •, Obfuscate ••• | 2 | You can use Dominate on victims without them noticing. |
| Worst Fear | Nightmare ••, Obfuscate •••• | 2 | You can appear as whatever person your victim fears most. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Steel of the Abyss | Obtenebration •••; Resilience • or Vigor • | 2 | You can form weapons and armor out of solid darkness. |
| Tenebrous Veil | Obfuscate •, Obtenebration • | 1 | You can use Obfuscate in areas people don’t expect you to be, so long as shadows are present. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Claws of the Unholy | Protean •••• | 2 | Your character’s Protean claws inflict horrific wounds. |
| Favored Form | Protean ••• | 1 | You can transform into a single type of animal for 0 Vitae instead of 2 Vitae. |
| Quickshift | Protean ••• | 1 | You can transform into animal form as a reflexive action. |
| Retain the Blood | Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor •; Protean •• or Quietus • | 1 | You regain Vitae you spend on physical Disciplines at the end of scenes. |
| Shared Entombment | Protean •• | 1 | You can bring other people with you when you use Unmarked Grave. |
| Suck it Up | Protean •• or Vicissitude •• | 1 | You can make spilled and/or dried blood disappear, and derive Vitae from it. |
| Swarm Form | Protean ••• | 2 | You can turn into a swarm of insects. |
| Thousand Forms | Protean ••• | 2 | The power to assume an unlimited number of animal forms with Protean. |
| Turnabout | Protean •••• | 2 | You can rapidly travel through solid earth and barriers. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Draught of the Soul | Auspex •••; Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) ••• or Quietus ••• | 3 | You can absorb knowledge and memories from diablerized souls. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Alabastard | Resilience •• | 1 | You are unaffected by wound penalties. |
| Beast’s Vigor | Animalism ••, Resilience • | 1 | You can transfer your wounds to an animal. |
| Body of Will | Resilience •••, Vigor • | 2 | Taking wounds empowers you. |
| Forbidden Zone | Obfuscate •••••, Resilience • | 3 | You can ward your Oubliette with invisible force. |
| Forced March | Celerity •, Resilience • | 1 | You can cover ground at a faster rate without spending Vitae. |
| Iron Facade | Obfuscate •, Resilience •• | 1 | You can appear invulnerable to harm. |
| Retain the Blood | Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor •; Protean •• or Quietus • | 1 | You regain Vitae you spend on physical Disciplines at the end of scenes. |
| Steel of the Abyss | Obtenebration •••; Resilience • or Vigor • | 2 | You can form weapons and armor out of solid darkness. |
| The Humberside Panic | Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) • or Majesty •••; Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor • | 1 or 2 | You can grant other vampires use of your physical Disciplines. |
| Waking Dream | Chimerstry •, Resilience • | 1 | You can use a simple illusion as if it were real. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Suck it Up | Protean •• or Vicissitude •• | 1 | You can make spilled and/or dried blood disappear, and derive Vitae from it. |
| Devotion Name | Prerequisites | Experience Cost | Effect |
| Body of Will | Resilience •••, Vigor • | 2 | Taking wounds empowers you. |
| Material Projection | Auspex •••••, Vigor • | 3 | Your astral projection can physically affect your surroundings. |
| Retain the Blood | Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor •; Protean •• or Quietus • | 1 | You regain Vitae you spend on physical Disciplines at the end of scenes. |
| Steel of the Abyss | Obtenebration •••; Resilience • or Vigor • | 2 | You can form weapons and armor out of solid darkness. |
| The Humberside Panic | Blood Sorcery (Transmutation) • or Majesty •••; Celerity • or Resilience • or Vigor • | 1 or 2 | You can grant other vampires use of your physical Disciplines. |
Arcane Sight (Auspex ••, Blood Sorcery •)
Those who know this Devotion have learned how to expand their mystical sight by incorporating rudiments of blood magic. Kindred with this power can use their Auspex to scrutinize the auras of objects, as well as people, and may glean information from the eddies of power that whorl through the world.
Cost: -
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
Arcane Sight increases the effects of Uncanny Perception and The Spirit’s Touch. The vampire can now sense the ebb and flow of magical power around the person or object, allowing her to ask questions about any magic currently affecting the subject. Magic from sources besides Blood Sorcery, such as a werewolf’s Rites or an Awakened mage’s True Magick, are unaffected by this power.
Sample Questions
• Does an object (or person) have any magic of its own?
• How strong is the magic?
• Is the object or person currently under enchantment?
• Does the magic come from the object or creature directly or from an external source?
• What Themes are involved in the magic?
• What type of Blood Sorcery is affecting the object or creature? (i.e., Crúac, Necromancy, Thaumaturgy, etc.)
This Devotion costs 1 Experience to learn.
Army of One (Obfuscate ••••)
Outnumbering an opponent provides tremendous advantages. When it’s not possible to actually have more allies present than the enemy does, a savvy tactician will fake it. Some Anarch somewhere along the line took this idea very literally, creating this Devotion to make herself seem like an entire angry mob.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: None
Action: Reflexive
Duration: Scene
When the vampire activates this power, she seems to be accompanied by an additional number of people equal to (Obfuscate + Blood Potency dots). These phantom allies have whatever appearance that all onlookers would most expect, formed of a gestalt of the whole audience’s emotional responses. None of the phantoms conjured by this power match exactly with any real person. The vampire is aware of the kind of phantoms she has conjured, so she can play the scene accordingly. Disbelieving the phantoms uses the same rules as seeing through Chimerstry.
This Devotion costs two Experiences to learn.
Body of Will (Resilience •••, Vigor •)
Kindred trained in this Devotion can push through pain, and find strength in pain and injury. On the outside, it looks like masochism; crippling blows empower and invigorate the vampire. But this Devotion transfers the energy of a wounding attack into the fuel for the vampire’s Vigor.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: None
Action: Reflexive
For the rest of the scene, the character suffers no wound penalties. As well, during any turn where he takes damage, he does not need to spend Vitae to activate one effect of Vigor.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
A Gangrel’s claws are deadly and bestial; vampires with this Devotion have ones that are downright unnatural. All she has to do is let the Beast out of its cage to punish all those around her
Cost: -
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
Claws of the Unholy enhances the effects of Unnatural Aspect. When wielding claws borne of Unnatural Aspect while in frenzy, this Devotion takes effect. The weapon modifier for the claws becomes +0 aggravated. These claws ignore all armor not generated by Resilience.
This Devotion costs two Experiences to learn.
Cloak of the Gathering (Obfuscate •••••)
The vampire slips from the mind as easily as easily as blood dripping from an open wound, though rather than picking off his victims, he can make a whole group vanish at once. He might obscure his comrades — or pluck a group of unwilling victims from the minds of onlookers, leaving them scared and isolated.
Cost: 2 Vitae
Dice Pool: None
Action: None
Cloak the Gathering enhances the effect of Touch of Shadow and Cloak of Night. By paying two extra points of Vitae, the vampire can expand the effect of Touch of Shadow to encompass a number of people equal to his Blood Potency, though each one cannot individually have a Size greater than the vampire’s own. He can also opt to activate Face in the Crowd at the same time. If he also pays the extra cost for Cloak of Night to vanish completely rather than fading into the background, the effect applies to everyone masked by Cloak the Gathering—so for four points of Vitae total he can vanish from sight along with a number of people equal to his Blood Potency. The vampire doesn’t have to touch everyone he takes with him, but they must be within his (Obfuscate + Blood Potency) yards (meters).
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Command from Afar (Auspex ••••; Dominate •• or Majesty ••)
This power has lost much of its former value since the advent of the cellphone, but many Kindred still swear by it for its impeccable security. By combining the mental pull of Dominate or Majesty with the communicative benefits of Lay Open the Mind, the vampire can give complicated instructions over nearly any distance to any individual who is under her thrall.
Requirement: The victim must currently be under the Blood Bound (any stage), Charmed, Dominated, Mesmerized, or Subservient Conditions to the vampire.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: (Presence or Wits) + variable Social Skill (depending on the message sent) + (Auspex, Dominate, or Majesty)
Action: None
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The vampire communicates her message to the nearest hostile target.
Failure: The vampire cannot mentally reach the target they want to contact.
Success: The vampire can communicate a single sentence to an individual over any distance, so long as it is night where both of them are. The target intuitively knows whom the mental message comes from. The target is under no particular compulsion to obey, beyond any the compulsion normally attached to the blood bond.
Exceptional Success: The vampire can communicate one sentence per Auspex, Dominate, or Majesty dot.
Chain of Command (Dominate ••••)
Dominate masters can implant suggestions and commands into their victims. With this Devotion, the vampire can force more of her own will into her victim, imparting a single use of her own Dominate for the victim to use later. She must clearly explain on whom he must use the gift, and how. She can give a general description, such as “the first person you see wearing red.” Or, she can be very specific: “Tell this to Gregor at 11:45 P.M. sharp.”
Cost: 2 Vitae
Dice Pool: (relevant Attribute) + (relevant Skill) + Dominate, vs. Resolve + Supernatural Tolerance
Action: Instant and contested; resistance is reflexive
The victim does not have to resist if he so chooses. If successful, the vampire plants one of her Dominate effects deep within the victim. At the specified moment, he uses the Dominate command as directed. However, this uses the vampire’s dice pool, not the victim’s.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Conditioning (Dominate ••••)
Over a period of weeks, the vampire pushes on her victim’s will, forcing him to repeat the same tasks over and over until he cannot resist her voice. She slowly builds up control over her victim to the point where he can barely manifest his own thoughts or feelings. Instead he’s an empty shell, waiting for his mistress’ next command. Many Kindred use this Devotion to maintain large stables of servants it would be otherwise costly to ghoul.
Cost: None
Dice Pool: Presence + (Intimidation, Persuasion, or Subterfuge) + Dominate vs. Resolve + Blood Potency
Action: Extended. Each roll takes an instant action and can be made once every two nights.
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The victim reasserts his will in a dramatic fashion. He resolves the Mesmerized Condition; he keeps the bonus to resist further Mesmerize attempts for the next week.
Failure: The vampire cannot get her victim to repeat exactly the same tasks for now.
Success: The victim’s will bends before the vampire. He gains the Subservient Condition. Once the vampire accumulates successes equal to the victim’s (5 + double victim’s Willpower), the victim exchanges the Subservient Condition for the Enthralled Condition. If the Subservient Condition is allowed to fade naturally, the vampire loses all accumulated successes.
Exceptional Success: The victim’s will bends like grass before the storm of the vampire’s commands. Mark an extra cross when applying the Subservient Condition.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Subservient
A vampire has pressed down on your will, and you find it hard to resist doing what she wants even when she doesn’t use her supernatural powers of command. She can give you commands as though you were Mesmerized even when you do not have that Condition. You can spend a Willpower point to resist her commands, but she can just Mesmerize you and order you that way. She still needs to use Dominate to alter your memory. This Condition fades naturally after a week unless the vampire applies it to you again during that time.
Possible Sources: The Dominate Discipline.
Resolution: Take more lethal damage than you have Stamina when following the vampire’s command. Experience a breaking point when following the command and succeed at the roll.
Beat: The vampire makes you do something that you wouldn’t normally do.
Enslaved
You’re totally in thrall to the vampire who inflicted this Condition. You can no longer tell when her instructions end and commands issued by Dominate begin. She tells you to do something and you do it. She tells you what you remember, and you remember it. This Condition counts as the Mesmerized Condition for the purpose of the Dominate Discipline. She doesn’t have to look at you to issue a command as long as you can hear her voice. You do not apply your Resolve as a penalty to the vampire’s dice pool for Entombed Command and Possession. Other vampires who attempt to Dominate you must succeed on a Clash of Wills against the vampire who inflicted this Condition.
Possible Sources: The Dominate Discipline.
Resolution: Kill the vampire who controls you. Undo her mental control by supernatural means.
Beat: You’re made to do something that you wouldn’t normally do.
Eye for the Weakness of Steel (Auspex •, Celerity •)
Developed among Toreador and Ventrue of the Fellowship of Our Lady, this power spread to its successors after the Fellowship collapsed from infighting in the Middle Ages. Having examined the way her flesh binds itself against assault, the vampire sees where that property fails in an opponent’s armor, sensing openings and weak spots. Her trained reflexes note it quickly enough to redirect blows to these weak points.
This Devotion’s use is obviously not as widespread as it once was, but it remains just as effective against opponents wearing modern Kevlar as it does against Medieval full plate.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Action: Reflexive
Duration: One turn
The vampire’s next Brawl or Weaponry attack ignores a single point of an opponent’s general armor rating. If the vampire can spend multiple Vitae per turn, she can do so to ignore multiple points of armor. This power has no effect on the benefits of Resilience, an opponent’s innate armor rating (ie, creatures with naturally protective hides), or any supernaturally bestowed armor rating, with the sole exception of mundane armor that has been somehow magically reinforced.
This Devotion costs one Experience to learn.
Eyes of a Thousand Shades (Auspex •, Blood Sorcery (Necromancy) •••)
While not everyone who has died went on to become a ghost, the dead are legion. They stand in a necromancer’s room while he sleeps, and walk the halls when he works late. This power allows the vampire to harness the ghosts in a given area to act as a kind of phantom clairvoyance. Some younger Sangiovanni refer to this power as “spook surveillance.”
Requirement: The ghosts must be enslaved to the vampire through Necromancy. Free-willed ghosts cannot have their senses puppeteered in this manner.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Wits + (Investigation or Occult) + Auspex
Action: None
Duration: Scene
Dramatic Failure: The vampire peers too closely into the realms of the dead and sees something horrible. He takes the Shaken or Spooked Condition.
Failure: The area’s ghosts are too demented, wrathful, or self-absorbed for the vampire to perceive anything of use through their eyes.
Success: The vampire can see through the eyes of all the ghosts within a single large building or equivalent space. He can flip from one ghost’s perception to another’s as a reflexive action. However, the ghost’s vision is filmy, colored by the sudario. The detritus of memory is strewn about, and can cause confusion or obscure fine details of the living world. This imposes -3 on Perception rolls.
Exceptional Success: The vampire can see through the area’s ghosts with perfect clarity. He takes no penalty on Perception rolls.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Familiar Face (Obfuscate ••••)
Kindred trained in this Devotion refine The Familiar Stranger and find it less costly to assume a single familiar form.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
Choose a single visage. This can be a subjective face like “a frail old woman” or a “young lothario,” or a specific person, like “Tom’s friend Jason.” That visage now costs 1 Vitae instead of 2 Vitae to assume with The Familiar Stranger.
This Devotion costs 1 Experience to learn. Unlike most Devotions, characters can purchase this Devotion multiple times for different visages.
The Forgetful Mind (Dominate ••)
Kindred trained in this Devotion can reshape larger swaths of their victim’s memories.
Cost: 0 Vitae
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
The Forgetful Mind increases the effects of Mesmerize. On a success, the vampire can alter any of the victim’s memories within the current night. On an exceptional success, the vampire can alter any of the victim’s memories within the past three nights.
As part of this alteration, she inflicts a persistent Condition on the victim. If she deletes a broad swath of memories, the victim receives the Amnesia Condition, otherwise he takes the False Memories Condition.
This Devotion costs 1 Experience to learn.
Honeyed Words (Auspex ••; Majesty •)
Kindred are preternaturally skillful at telling their listeners what they want to hear. So skillful, in fact, that a vampire sometimes doesn’t even need to know what he’s talking about. This power assures the vampire that, no matter what words tumble out of his mouth, they are always the perfect response (or at least not the wrong one).
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: (Manipulation or Wits) + (Empathy or Socialize) + (Auspex or Majesty) vs. Composure + Blood Potency
Action: None
Duration: Scene or until expended (see below)
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The vampire believes she can win over the target by saying something they actually find offensive. Take the Misinformed Condition.
Failure: The vampire can’t get a bead on the right things to say to the target.
Success: The Storyteller (or player if this power is used against another player’s character) must advise the vampire’s player if she has typed anything that might offend, confuse, or worry the target, allowing her to retcon her response. Once the Storyteller has given a number of warnings equal to the character’s Auspex or Majesty dots, this power is expended.
GM’s Note: The tabletop version of this Devotion has the Storyteller advise the player if she’s “in danger” of saying anything wrong. Obviously, that’s less tenable over the gaming format we use.
Exceptional Success: The Storyteller must give the player an unlimited number of warnings for the remainder of the scene.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Iron Facade (Obfuscate •, Resilience ••)
Sometimes intimidation is a vampire’s best weapon, particularly when facing an opponent who is unaware of the Kindred’s true ability. Through the use of this power, the vampire appears to shrug off even the mightiest of blows, to ignore wounds that should cripple even one of the undead. Kindred with this power have been known to rout far more capable foes, for the enemy truly believed that such vampires were invulnerable. Kindred facing more informed adversaries may not use this power to appear indestructible, but to simply appear uninjured (when they actually are) or to have higher levels of Resilience than they actually do.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: (Composure, Manipulation, or Stamina) + Subterfuge + (Obfuscate or Resilience)
Action: Instant
Duration: Scene
Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The vampire fools himself and takes the Misinformed Condition. He doesn’t believe he is uninjured (if he isn’t), but he can’t tell when anything else hurts him. The Storyteller should secretly track any additional damage the vampire takes and reveal it at the end of the scene.
Failure: The vampire is unable to hide the full extent of his injuries.
Success: The vampire can hide the full extent of his injuries. Wounds are invisible and he does not appear to slow down, limp or grow weary. He seems to function at full capability, regardless of how badly injured he actually is. This negates any penalties to Social rolls from his wounded appearance and grants a bonus on Intimidation rolls against characters who injure him, equal to the total amount of damage they would inflict (before factoring in Resilience) during the scene, to a maximum of +5. Iron Façade does not actually heal wounds but simply appears to do so, making it impossible for any observers to determine the character’s true condition. A vampire with Auspex might be able to see through this power with a Clash of Wills.
Exceptional Success: The vampire is mentally reinvigorated by his enemies’ fear. He regains a point of Willpower from the first Intimidation roll he succeeds on.
This Devotion costs 1 Experience to learn.
Scourge of Alecto (Celerity •, Majesty •••)
An obscure power often found among older Brujah, Scourge of Alecto allows the vampire to chain his own Beast and then, through an act of supreme will, unleash it within the body of someone else nearby. Doing so does not alter the vampire’s own propensity for frenzy, but it can inflict both damage and frenzies upon his enemies.
Requirement: The vampire must have just failed a Resolve + Composure roll or spent Willpower to avoid frenzy.
Cost: 2 Vitae
Dice Pool: Presence + Intimidation + (Celerity or Majesty) vs. Stamina + Blood Potency
Action: Reflexive
Dramatic Failure: The vampire turns her Beast back on herself. She immediately frenzies, even if she had spent Willpower to avoid doing so, and takes an amount of bashing damage equal to her Blood Potency.
Failure: The vampire’s Beast is too savage to be forced onto someone else. She must deal with the consequences of her own frenzy.
Success: The vampire releases her Beast in someone else’s body. She suffers no frenzy and the victim takes 1 point of bashing damage per dot of the vampire’s Blood Potency. If the victim is someone normally susceptible to frenzy (such as another vampire or a werewolf), he must immediately roll Resolve + Composure to resist frenzy at a penalty equal to the vampire’s Blood Potency.
Exceptional Success: The vampire’s release of her Beast is a cathartic experience. She takes the Sated Condition. The victim treats a failed frenzy roll as a dramatic failure.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Second Face (Obfuscate ••••)
Kindred trained in this Devotion refine The Familiar Stranger and find it effortless to assume a single familiar form.
Cost: 0 Vitae
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
Choose a single visage. This can be a subjective face like “a frail old woman” or a “young lothario,” or a specific person, like “Tom’s friend Jason.” That visage now costs 0 Vitae instead of 2 Vitae to assume with The Familiar Stranger.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn. Unlike most Devotions, characters can purchase this Devotion multiple times for different visages.
Sleep Unseen (Obfuscate •)
The power of Obfuscate usually requires a vampire to concentrate at least a little. However, Kindred with this Devotion can lock the power on, allowing them to sleep while remaining hidden.
Prerequisite: The vampire must have just entered daysleep.
Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: -
Action: Reflexive
Duration: Until the vampire awakens or the next nightfall (whichever comes first)
This Devotion modifies the effects of other Obfuscate powers and causes them to last throughout a day’s rest. Kindred with Auspex can still attempt to detect the characters, but mortals will be unaware of their sanctuary. This can be a useful trick for Kindred who like to travel.
This Devotion costs 2 Experiences to learn.
Swarm Form (Protean •••)
Protean lets the vampire assume a single animal’s shape. Kindred with this Devotion can transform themselves into dozens or even hundreds of individually tiny animals.
Cost: -
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
When taking the Beast’s Skin, some Gangrel can instead become a swarm of small creatures: Size 0 or Size 1 animals. The character may perceive through any of the senses of any individual creature in the swarm, but the swarm acts as a single entity.
The swarm may spread over five yards or meters per dot of Blood Potency. Creatures beyond that range die and rapidly decompose. The swarm moves at the vampire’s speed in any logical direction.
The swarm limits visibility and hearing, and causes panic in all those present. Everyone within the swarm’s area suffers the persistent Distracted Condition (see p.302) until they get away. With Storyteller discretion, a swarm may have other features suited to the swarm animal. For example, rats should be better at biting through barricades.
The swarm resists most harm. Roll attacks against the swarm as normal, but after factoring armor and other modifiers, the swarm only takes one point of damage of the appropriate type at most, or two points of damage with an exceptional success. Fire, sunlight, explosions, and other large-scale threats cause normal harm to the swarm, which is affected by banes as normal. To attack those within her swarm, roll Strength + Brawl, ignoring Defense. Divide the damage however you wish among those inside. Apply a victim’s armor to the damage normally. The damage is lethal (bashing to Kindred). Alternately, a success may instead allow the vampire to take one Vitae from a victim.
This Devotion costs two Experiences to learn.
Suck it Up (Protean •• or Vicissitude ••)
The sites of Kindred conflicts are often slick with spilled blood, and even the side that arguably wins the conflict is probably ravenous after calling upon the gifts of Caine. Still, conflict attracts attention, and the last thing Kindred want is to be caught hunched over, sucking the last draughts of vitae from the beaten bodies or lapping up blood from the ground. This power allows the vampire to simply touch a pool of blood and draw it into herself. Of course, bloodless bodies with obvious wounds will still raise questions. Kindred are advised to use this power discreetly.
Cost: 0 Vitae
Dice Pool: -
Action: Instant
The vampire touches a quantity of spilled blood and adds it to her Vitae pool, up to her maximum. The blood itself instantly vanishes into the vampire and leaves no trace. The vampire can choose to leave behind any amount of blood. It is even possible to manufacture false evidence by using this power to selectively leave behind certain shapes or patterns of blood (such as absorbing a large pool and leaving behind smaller spatters that appear to originate from another direction or suggest a type of weapon used), though this takes a Wits or Intelligence + Investigation roll at a variable DC.
This Devotion costs one Experience to learn.
Thousand Forms (Protean •••)
Cost: -
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
This power allows the vampire to store an unlimited number of animal forms with Protean.
This Devotion costs two Experiences to learn.
Whispers in the Dark (Dominate •, Obfuscate •••)
Cost: -
Dice Pool: -
Action: -
This subtle power allows a vampire rendered invisible with Obfuscate to use Dominate on a victim without automatically revealing her presence to him (though Auspex and other means to pierce Obfuscate still function normally). The victim stands obliviously while the formless vampire whispers her desires to him.
The Devotion costs two Experiences to learn.
by:
False_Epiphany