Games PC VAMPIRE THE MASQUERADE-REDEMPTION User Manual

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SHORT STORY:REDEMPTION ..................................................................3

C

HAPTER ONE: I

Installing Vampire: The Masquerade Redemption........................................................10

C

HAPTER TWO: HOW TO P

Game Control Overview Sheets ..................................................................................17

Game Menus................................................................................................................19

Main Game Screen.......................................................................................................24

Some General Notes about Combat .............................................................................30

CHAPTER THREE: TRAITS AND DISCIPLINES .....................................32

Character Traits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Disciplines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Common Disciplines . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Animalism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Auspex. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Celerity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Dementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Dominate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Fortitude. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Mortis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Obfuscate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

CHAPTER FOUR: ENEMIES AND EQUIPMENT......................................45

Enemies........................................................................................................................45

Equipment and Treasure ...............................................................................................48

Weapons.......................................................................................................................48

Armour.........................................................................................................................50

Other Equipment .........................................................................................................50

Artifacts........................................................................................................................51

CHAPTER FIVE: MULTIPLAYER AND STORYTELLING ......................52

The Haven and Character Creation..............................................................................53

Creating A New Character...........................................................................................53

LAN Games: Lobby and Chat......................................................................................55

Internet Games: The WON Lobby and Rooms............................................................56

Create A Game.............................................................................................................57

Playing in a Multiplayer Game.....................................................................................58

Storytelling a Multiplayer Game...................................................................................59

CHAPTER SIX: THE WORLD OF DARKNESS.......................................64

C

REDITS ....................................................................................................98

C

USTOMER SUPPORT............................................................................101

S

OFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT .......................................................102

NSTALLATION AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT ............10

LAY VAMPIRE..........................................12

Potence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Presence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Protean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Thaumaturgy - General . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Thaumaturgy - Blood Magic . . . . . . . 41

Thaumaturgy - Lure of Flames . . . . . . 42

Thaumaturgy - Hands of Destruction. 42

Thaumaturgy - Blood Rituals . . . . . . . 43

Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Numina. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

REDEMPTION

REDEMPTION

A sliver of moon broke through the grey
clouds as Christof reached the top of the hill.
The night wind cut through his battered
armour, chilling his overheated body. His
limbs ached as they never had before and
cried out for rest. But he had not prayed all
day and would not let his body collapse until
he had done so.

The Crusaders of the Order of the
Swordbrethren had been on a forced march
since dawn, chasing the faster, lighter­armoured barbarians. Sir Cuthbert had
reluctantly allowed them to stop only when
nightfall made further travel impossible.

After pitching their tents, the Crusaders
gratefully collapsed onto their straw mats.
But Christof did not. He had a need greater
than sleep. Friar Bertrand’s energetic orations
against the barbarians were stirring, but his
perfunctory prayers gave little consolation to
the eighteen-year-old Crusader. The Saviour
had decreed that Christians pray alone, in
their private chambers, and Christof had
diligently followed that stricture every day
since childhood. But there were no private
chambers in the wastelands of Moravia, so
the desolate, windswept hilltop would have
to suffice.

Christof paused at the peak of the hill and
looked down. From his perch he could see
the entire Crusader camp etched in cold
moonlight. A dozen watch-fires glowed
reassuringly around the perimeter, warding
off the terrors of the night. Most of the
Crusaders slumbered, bone-weary from the
day’s forced march. Even some of the watch
dozed fitfully at their posts. All was quiet,
except for a few unarmoured serfs who
scurried about the camp, hauling sacks of
grain, digging a shallow cesspit and preparing
for the morning meal.

For the first time that day, Christof felt
safe. He pulled off his heavy, battered helmet
and let it clatter to the ground. The cold
night air lashed his long, brown hair, which
was matted and dripping wet. He rubbed his
eyes with a mailed fist, wiping away rust and
sweat mingled with the grit of the road. His
armour was battered and in need of repair.
The white cloth over his mail hauberk was
torn in many places and streaked with dull,
brown dried blood. But the crimson cross
across the chest was still as bright and proud
as the day he first wore it. His limbs ached
from weeks of marching. But Christof was
not ready to rest.

2

He drew his broadsword from its
scabbard, plunged the tip into the crust of
the dry earth and knelt before it. He pressed
his feverish brow into the handle, closed his
eyes and prayed quietly.

“Our Father who art in Heaven....”

But his mind did not stay on the prayer.
The tension that had coiled around his
warrior’s spine slowly melted away. And as
the tension ebbed, a flood of memories rose
up, unbidden. And unwelcome.

***

In his sixteen years, Christof had never
struck a blow in anger. In the little French
village of St. Claire, he had raced against,
wrestled and mock-duelled every lad and
able-boded man. He won most of his bouts

and always emerged unscathed, as if
protected from on high. Until the day a wild
boar had thundered across the village green.

The boar charged the villagers, who
scattered before it like geese, jabbering in
terror as the boar snorted and slashed. Two
watchmen panicked and fled, dropping their
hatchets as they ran past slower-moving
villagers. Christof easily outran the massive
pig, but a scream more piercing than all the
others cut through him like a razor. He
turned and saw that the boar had trampled a
small child, who lay crying on the green. A
white-hot fury ignited in Christof’s chest. He
stopped, and held his ground as the slower
villagers ran past him. In a moment, the
village green was empty except for the child,
the boar and Christof.

The massive pig wheeled to survey the
damage it had done. It snorted with
satisfaction and lowered its yellowed tusks to
charge the screaming child again. Then it
noticed Christof, now very alone on the green.
It charged in Christof ’s direction, testing the
lone, impudent creature who did not fly from
his wrath. Christof quickly stepped sideways,
toward a hut, narrowly evading the creature.
The boar sped past
him and hurtled back
around the green.
Satisfied that Christof
no longer defied him,
the boar returned his
attention to the
squalling child.

Christof grabbed a
sharpened tent pole
from the hut and
approached the child.
The boar snorted with
rage, stomped the
grass and charged
Christof, determined
to punish this act of
defiance. Christof
crouched low, planted
the butt end of the
spike in the ground
and braced against it.
He faced the beast
and lowered the
toward its onrushing
jaws.

The spike snapped
like dry kindling as
the boar toppled Christof and gored his right
shoulder. The beast snarled a blast of hot, foul
breath in frustration as it realised that it had
charged, open-mouthed, right into the tent
spike. It stomped its hooves and ripped at
Christof ’s chest, tusks inches from Christof ’s
face. But the spike had torn though the boar’s
gaping mouth and shattered its neck bone. Its
monstrous head glowered with impotent,

disbelieving rage as the light slowly faded from
its eyes.

The villagers poured into the green,
cheering. They hauled the monster off the
gasping and bleeding Christof. The village
elders held a week-long festival in Christof ’s
honour, and for those seven days, he was great
as King David. “Christof, God hath given thee
a great gift of courage,” the elders said. “Thou

art meant for greater
glory than life as a
freeman baker or
cobbler! Perhaps thou
shalt become the
youngest village elder.”
The vainglory felt
sweet but also
embarrassed him. The
lasses adored him and
lavished him with
honeyed praise.
“Christof, thou art the
bravest man in
Christendom! Blessed
is she thou takes to
wife!” The lads also
admired him.
“Christof, thou
should’st fight for the
glory of God! Go
thou! Go far from St.
Claire! Join the
Crusade, and bring
fame to our village!”
But Christof barely
heard any of them.

All he could see was
the massive, oppressive face of the beast inches
from his face. Angry. Hateful. Fire
in its dead eyes.

***

Christof shook his head to dispel the
memory and focused again on his prayer. He
was anxious to finish and eager to sleep. He

continued quietly, “Forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us....”

***

In his seventeen years, Christof had never
killed a man. The hot sun beat down on him
and a roaring filled his ears, drowning out
the angry clash of steel on steel. Sparks flew
before his eyes, and his head spun around as
the barbarian’s axe struck his helmet from
the right.

Christof was certain he was dead. He
prayed that the Lord would find his soul in
the midst of the battlefield wasteland and
blindly gave his sword one final thrust. The
pommel rattled painfully in his hand as his
blade bit deeply into flesh and struck hard
bone. The barbarian collapsed like a straw
man at a harvest festival and lay still.

The ringing in Christof ’s ears subsided,
and his vision
slowly cleared.
He tugged at
his sword,
which had
pierced the
barbarian’s
heart. But the
weapon did not
budge. It was
caught on the
barbarian’s ribs,
and would not
dislodge.
Christof
gripped the hilt
with both hands
and yanked
furiously . The
barbarian’s
corpse vaulted
upwards, as if rising from the dead. The
shattered chest bones groaned like the hinges
of Hell and snapped open as the sword burst
free. The broken body crashed back to the

earth, shuddered and lay still. But one hand
stuck straight up, as though begging Christof
for absolution.

Christof stared down into the dead man’s
hollow eyes. The piercing black pupils stared
back with the same accusing, disbelieving
look as the boar. Christof looked away but
knew the sight would never leave him for all
his days.

***

Again Christof tried to shake off the
memory and focused on his prayer. But he
felt ill at ease, and the prayer brought him no
comfort. “Lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from-”

His attention drifted from the prayer but
not to another memory. He opened his eyes
and peered down the hill to the troops
slumbering below. The camp was quiet,

except for a few
serfs finishing
their chores.
Though they
carried heavy
packs that
weighed as
much as a
Crusader’s arms
and armour,
they were
expected to
labour while the
troops slept. All
seemed well.

Christof was
closing his eyes
again when he
realised that a
guard outside
Sir Cuthbert’s

tent was swaying drunkenly at his post.
Christof opened his eyes and watched as a
small serf in a hood and tunic whispered into
the ear of the tall guard. The guard fell

backward, nearly toppling into Sir Cuthbert’s
tent. But the short serf effortlessly pulled the
large man away from the tent and quietly
lowered his body to the ground. Then the serf
darted toward the guard at the opening of Sir
Cuthbert’s tent.

Christof pulled the sword from the ground
as he leapt to his feet. He tried to cry out but
no sound emerged from his mouth. He
charged down the hill as the small serf gently
lowered the second guard to the ground.
Weary Crusaders glowered at Christof as he
stormed past them. Only when the serf
disappeared inside Sir Cuthbert’s tent did
Christof finally find his voice.

“Alarum! Alarum!” he shouted breathlessly,
bursting into the tent. The serf was already
crouching over Sir Cuthbert, who lay atop his
straw palette, dead to the world. Christof
sword flashed in the torchlight and crashed
down on the serf ’s head, where it bit deeply,
with a satisfying crunch. The skull caved in,
and a chunk of bone and gristle flew across
the tent. But the serf did not fall. Instead he
turned and glowered at Christof with eyes that
were black pools of hate. Christof froze. For a
moment, all was still in the tent as the serf
locked eyes on him. Dead eyes. Full of hate.

Then the serf snarled and clawed at
Christof with long, cracked fingernails
encrusted with filth. Christof dimly noticed his
sword bouncing silently off the hard earth at
his feet, and his right arm suddenly felt cold
and faraway. The serf paused to wipe his eyes
clean of the blood that flowed freely from the
gaping head wound Christof had delivered.
The serf crinkled his ashen face into a wicked
leer. His thin dry lips peeled back to reveal
long, glistening yellow teeth. The yellowed
fangs flashed in the torchlight as he silently
lunged toward Christof ’s unarmoured head.

The stillness abruptly shattered with a roar,
as shouting men in clanking mail burst into
the tent. The serf unlocked his grasp on
Christof ’s arm and pushed him toward the
charging Crusaders. Christof stumbled

backward, blocking their path. The serf
howled a hideous, high-pitched snarl and
turned, shredding the back of the tent with a
sweep of his razor-sharp talons. He bounded
through the hole and ran, toppling a Crusader
who stood in his path.

Christof found he could suddenly move
again and charged after the serf. He ran
headlong through the dark, past groggy troops
rising from their deep and troubled sleep. An
uproar swept through the camp. Finally,
Christof slowed. He peered into the darkness
but to no avail. The creature had vanished
into the chill of the night.

Fear replaced exhaustion in the hearts of
the Swordbrethren and banished all hope of
sleep as word of the blood-mad devil raced
from man to man. Two of Sir Cuthbert’s
officers found the shivering Christof and led
him back to Sir Cuthbert’s tattered tent,
which flapped in the night wind despite the
efforts of several serfs to mend it. The tent was
now ringed with a barrier of Cuthbert’s
retainers, who muttered angrily to one
another, debating the most fitting punishment
for the serf, once they caught him. Sir
Cuthbert’s steward parted them and beckoned
for Christof to enter. The retainers stepped
aside to admit Cuthbert’s officers, but they
scowled suspiciously at Christof, who
appeared indistinguishable from any other
young, front-line soldier.

Inside the tent, the white-haired company
empiric was examining a pale Sir Cuthbert,
who looked weary, but solid as granite. At
length, the old man gruffly announced, “’Tis
the will of God that Sir Cuthbert be delivered
from the devil’s grasp! He is whole.”

The officers roared with relief and toasted
his health. But an impatient Sir Cuthbert
pushed past them and strode out of the tent.
Outside, the anxious troops erupted in
cheers. With an abrupt wave of his hand, Sir
Cuthbert cut them off, and the camp fell
silent. Sir Cuthbert surveyed his men for a
long moment before speaking.

“Saved,” he hoarsely bellowed, “by the
grace of God!” The troops cheered again,
louder.

Christof tried to follow Sir Cuthbert out
of the tent, but the empiric blocked his path.
The old man peeled back the blood-soaked
mail from Christof ’s right forearm and
gripped his bicep to stanch the blood flow.
He forced Christof to sit on a barrel.

“The demon unleashed a torrent of blood
from thy arm,” the old man scolded, pouring
wine over the jagged claw marks. “Thy very
life leaks out upon the uncaring soil!” He
gently rinsed grit from the wound and
wrapped it tightly in fresh linen. “Disturb
not this dressing,” he said sternly. When he
finished, the empiric retrieved Christof ’s
broadsword from the ground. The old man
scowled as he handed Christof the weapon,
saying, “When next thou are inclined to
chase the spawn of Hell... pray remember to
bring thy sword!” And just for a moment,
Christof thought he saw a hint of smile on
the sour face of the old man who had
witnessed so much suffering and death.

Outside the tent, Friar Bertrand intoned,
“In the name of our Lord and God Jesus
Christ, for His glory and for the exaltation of
His holy faith. Amen. The barbarian dogs
felt the sting of God’s wrath in our swords,
and they fear us. They flee our wrath like
coward’s! They cannot win by honest force of
arms, so they have sent a devil to our camp
to slay your lord and master, Sir Cuthbert.
But the Lord was with us this day and drove
the devil from the sight of righteous men!”

The Crusaders cheered again, louder. As
Friar Bertrand continued his litany, Sir
Cuthbert stepped back into the tent. He
approached his steward and said, “Give the
men an extra tot of brandy tonight, or they
will never rest.”

“But is that wise?” the steward asked. “We
must rise before dawn! If we should delay
further, that barbarian hoard shall surely-”

“We’ve lost those jackals,” Sir Cuthbert
snapped. “We could wander these hills for
weeks and not find their trail. The filthy
barbarians wear armour of fur so that they
may run like deer and hide like mice. But it
will protect them no more than it did the
beast they skinned!” He paused and
composed himself. “No. Let the men sleep
past sunrise. We’ve pushed them hard enough
for one week.”

“Whither do we go after sunrise?” the
steward asked.

“To the barbarian supply camp! We shall
seek for it here in these Moravian hills. It was
doubtless the hoards destination. And we are
close, by God, or their demon master would
never have risked entering our camp, even by
night!”

“Yes, my lord!” the steward replied. “But
they will continue to seek thy murder!”

“Aye. My retinue will protect me, if God
wills it. Now fetch the men their brandy.
Tomorrow we scout these hills. I want the
men full of vigour when we find the
barbarian camp.”

“It shall be so,” the steward nodded,
turning to leave.

Sir Cuthbert glanced at Christof.

“Who is this boy?” he snapped at
the steward.

“The very one who smote the demon and
drove him from this tent!”

Cuthbert studied Christof a moment and
then motioned him to approach. Christof
stepped forward, trying to conceal the
trembling in his knees. He had never been
this close to the great Crusader before.
Christof fumbled as he clumsily sheathed his
sword and knelt.

“What is your name, boy?” asked Sir

Cuthbert.

“Christof Romuald, of St. Claire.”
“Thou art a brave lad, and true, Christof

Romuald of St. Claire. Dost thou love God?”

“Aye, my liege.”
“Seek ye salvation of thy sinner’s soul?”
“With all my heart, my liege.”
“Art thou prepared to die for the

Kingdom of God?”

“Aye, my liege.”

“No longer shall thou fight upon the line.
Thou shalt join my retinue and smite all who
would kill me.”

Christof felt light-headed. Almost giddy.
“I obey, my liege,” he said, breathlessly.

“Thou hast cleft the devil’s skull in twain

and lived to boast of it.”

Christof nodded slowly.

“God has smiled upon thee. He spared
thee from certain death because He has
conceived a higher purpose for thee.
Therefore, fear not in battle, but give the
devil his due, for thou art blessed!”

“Aye.” Chirstof replied, though he was far
from reassured.

Christof slept deeply that night, dragged
under by weariness and wine. For the first
time, the hateful, hollow eyes of the dead
boar and the dead barbarian no longer
haunted him. Instead, all he could see were
the hateful, living eyes of a dead man.

CHAPTER ONE:

CHAPTER ONE:

INSTALLATION AND

INSTALLATION AND

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

After Vampire setup is complete, your

computer will install the Microsoft DirectX

7.0 or higher drivers if you do not already
have them. When DirectX 7.0 or higher
installation is complete, you will need to
restart your computer for the new drivers to
take effect. For more information on
DirectX 7.0 or higher, see the Technical
Help file.

Now you can run Vampire by choosing
Programs/Vampire The Masquerade
Redemption/Play Vampire (CD 2 required).
Please note, that the game will require that
you have the Play CD in your CD Rom
Drive at all times in order to play the game.

IMPORTANT: Your copy of the
game came with a CD-key, which
should be located on the jewel case.
When you first launch the game, it will
request this key. Please enter the key
exactly as it appears on the jewel case.
Keep your copy of the CD-key safe
and private in case you need to
reinstall the game at a later point. Your
CD Key is unique, and you should
safeguard it because without this key,
you will not be able to play the game.

INSTALLING VAMPIRE:
THE MASQUERADE
REDEMPTION

Please make sure your computer system
is 100% Windows 95/98 compatible.
Vampire is not compatible with Windows

3.1 or other operating systems.

Note: For Vampire to operate the best, it
requires that your system have the latest
DirectX 7.0 or higher compatible drivers for
your CD-ROM drive, sound card and video
card, as well as any other peripherals you want
to use. If you have any problems running the
program, older sound or video drivers are the
most likely cause.

If you need help to obtain the latest
sound and video drivers, check out our
Technical Help file accessible from the Start
menu or the Vampire title screen. Just insert
the Install CD into your CD-ROM drive,
and once the splash screen appears, simply
press the More button and then the Help
button. We have supplied a list of major
computer hardware companies and their
telephone numbers to help you with most
problems. You can find them listed under
Vendor List. This file has a lot of other

helpful information on installation and
system setup, as well as game-specific
technical help.

HOW TO INSTALL

1. Before installing, close all other
applications. Also make sure Virtual
Memory is on (located in your System
Control Panel). Verify that you have 1,300
MB (plus 80 MB for Windows swap file)
of free hard drive space for a full install or
720MB (plus 80MB for Windows swap
file) for a minimum install.

2. Insert Vampire CD#1, the Install CD,
into your CD-ROM drive. If you have
Autoplay enabled, the title screen will
display shortly after inserting the
Vampire CD into your CD-ROM drive.
If Autoplay is not enabled, simply
double click on My Computer, and then
double click on your CD Rom Drive to
launch the game installer. On the title
screen, click the Install button to begin
the installation process, and then follow
the on-screen instructions.

10

11

CHAPTER TWO:

CHAPTER TWO

OW TO

H

OW TO

H

PLAY VAMPIRE

PLAY VAMPIRE

The following chapter explains the basic

information needed to play V ampir e: The

Masquerade Redemption
Redemption, you will take on the role of

Christof Romuald as he makes his journey
from the world of mortals to the world of
the undead. Travelling through four
different cities across the span of time, you
will venture into the dark underbelly of the
world in your undying quest for love.
Choices will be made that will affect your
future, and you must learn to temper your
unending thirst for blood brought on by the
Beast raging inside you. You will encounter
all of this as you journey into the world of
V ampir e: The Masquerade Redemption.

®

. In V:TM

GAME CONTROLS

In this section, you will learn the
various controls and commands used to
play V:TM Redemption. To interact with
anything in the game, position your mouse
cursor over the desired object, which will
highlight to show that it is being targeted,
and then press one of the mouse buttons
to trigger a command.

When you put your cursor over an
object that highlights, the cursor will
change shape to show what action will be
performed if you click on the highlighted

:

item: The cursors are Talk, Attack and
Pickup/Use. Rollover text will also appear
in the text window, giving you more
information about your target.

C

HARACTER MOVEMENT

To move your character around the
game world, position your mouse cursor
over the spot you wish your character to
move towards, and then left click on that
spot. If your character can move there, a
movement target icon will appear on the
ground, and your character will
immediately move towards it. If your
character cannot move to that spot, then a
large red X icon will appear, and your
character will stay where s/he is.

If you do not wish to click on the
destination for your character, there is
another method of moving him as well.
You can click on your destination and, as
your character begins to move toward it,
hold down the mouse button and begin to
move it to a new destination point. As
long as you hold down the mouse button,
your character will redirect himself to
wherever you place the mouse cursor.
However, if your character runs into a wall
or you leave you cursor in an area where
he cannot walk, then he will stop moving

and you will have to restart this process.
This method may be easier for those who
know an area well and wish to run quickly
through it without clicking repeatedly.

Depending on the distance to your
destination, your character will either
carefully walk towards the spot or run
towards it. If the destination is near the
character, s/he will walk carefully to it. If
it is further away, then the character will
run to the location. If you want to make
the character run to a desired spot
regardless of the distance, then hold down
the shift key and left click with the cursor
over the spot. Also, if you have a three­button mouse, you can use the third
mouse button instead of clicking and
holding down the shift key.

Please note, if your character is badly
wounded, s/he will limp for several steps
before resuming his or her normal
walking speed.

To operate doors and other portals,
you must place your cursor on the portal
and left click. When you first place your
cursor on the portal, it will highlight to
show that it has been targeted. After you
left click on the portal, your character
will move toward and interact with it
(e.g. open the door.) If the portal cannot
be opened, then a message will appear in
the text box in the middle of the screen.

ATTACKING

In order to initiate an attack, move your
cursor over an enemy, and the Attack icon
will appear. When you left-click on the
target, the character you are controlling
will then attack the target using whatever
weapon is in his or her hand at the time. If
you continue to hold the left mouse button
down, your character will continue to auto
attack your target until the target is killed
or until you are damaged. Pressing the
third mouse button or holding the shift
key while attacking, will cause your
character to perform a secondary attack.

This is normally a slower, yet more
damaging attack.

Next to the standard melee weapons,
there are a variety of ranged weapons in the
game. Unlike melee weapons, ranged
weapons will require ammunition, which
can be found by defeating enemies or
purchasing it from a store. On some of the
ranged weapons (e.g. pistols, revolvers,
bows, crossbows, rifles, etc), the secondary
attack will fire rounds with a higher
accuracy, however this will be at the
expense of a slower firing rate. As you
progress through the game, you will also
encounter certain guns (e.g. machine guns,
chain guns) with which you can hold down
the ALT key and point at the location
where you would like to fire. You can then
focus your fire on an entire group of
adversaries in the distance instead of one
single enemy.

To use a throwing weapon (e.g. grenade
or holy-water vial), you will first have to
select the item by either right or left
clicking on the item when it is in your
inventory. If you have selected the item,
then your icon will change into the image
of the item that you have selected. Also, if
item the is in your quick items slot, then
you can hit the corresponding quick item
key to use the item (For more
information, please see Chapter Two:
Main Game Screen). To use the item on
an enemy, you will simply have to left
click on your target, and the item will be
thrown and it will then disappear from
your inventory. If you accidentally
equipped an item and wish to return it to
your inventory, you can left click on an
open spot in your inventory or right click
anywhere on the in-game screen and the
item will be automatically returned to
your inventory. Special targeting modes
such as ALT+Left Mouse click will work
for thrown weapons as well as projectile
weapons.

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13

Using a scroll is done in a similar
fashion as well. To prepare a scroll for use,
right click or left click on the scroll when
it is in your inventory. Your cursor should
now become the image of the scroll
indicating that you are now ready to use
the scroll. To use the Discipline, place the
image of the scroll over the intended target
and press the Right Mouse button. Your
character will then use the scroll on the
intended target (which may be an enemy
character, a friendly character, an item in
your inventory, or comrade depending on
the purpose of the scroll) and the scroll
will then disappear from your character’s
inventory. If you choose not to use a scroll
which is being held, simply left click on an
empty inventory slot, and the scroll will be
placed there.

DISCIPLINE U

To attack a target with a Discipline,
make sure that you have the correct
Discipline selected and then right-click
over the highlighted target. If your place
your cursor over the Discipline icon in the
Discipline window, a small description of
the Discipline, which includes the target
type, will appear in the status window,
which is located in the bottom middle of
the screen. Note: if you have selected a
Discipline that does not require a target,
for example Blood Healing, that Discipline
will activate even if nothing is highlighted
by the cursor. Also, if you right click on a
target and cannot use the Discipline, then
you may not have enough blood to use the
Discipline or the selected target may not
be affected by the selected Discipline.

SAGE

COTERIE CONTROL

In your travels through the World of
Darkness™, your party of vampires,
which is also known as a coterie, will
encounter a variety of enemies. In order to
survive in this world, you will need to

carefully control the attitudes and actions
of your coterie members.

By default, the characters in a player
controlled coterie are set to a Neutral
stance, meaning that they will follow your
lead character and engage in combat as
needed and directed by their leader. To
switch characters, click on the head of the
character that you want to control in the
middle bottom of the screen. This
character will then become the lead
character that the others take their cues
from, and a red border will surround the
status bar of this character to indicate that
you are currently controlling him. Also,
you can hit the Tab key to cycle through
the characters until you find the one that
you want to control. Another keyboard
shortcut that you can use is the F6-F9
keys. Hitting F6 will allow you to take
control of Christof, F7 will allow you to
take control of the character to the right of
Christof, F8 will let you take control of
the character two slots to the right of
Christof, and F9 will let you control the
character in the fourth slot.

When you control a character, you can
change the stance of the coterie members
by clicking on the Offensive/Defensive
buttons, which are located in the lower left
hand corner of the game interface. A
character set to offensive will seek out
enemies to fight on his or her own and
will be freer in their use of Disciplines and
blood. A character set to defensive will
conserve his or her resources and avoid
combat wherever possible. You can return
a character to neutral stance by clicking on
the Neutral button at any time.

To gain more control over individual
coterie members, you can separate them
from the group by clicking on the green
light next to their character portrait. Once
a character is “out of the group” s/he will
no longer follow the lead character.
Clicking the Regroup button will cause

the entire coterie to return to the lead
character. If you want the entire party to
meet at a specific point, move the cursor
to that point and hold down the CTRL
key and left click on that location. Note,
when a coterie member is separated from
your group, s/he will not come to the lead
character’s aid if he is damaged nor will
this character engage any enemies at all.

If you want to focus all of the coterie’s
attacks on one enemy, then highlight the
enemy with the cursor and hold down the
CTRL key on your keyboard as you
attack. The entire coterie should then
focus their attacks on this enemy as long
as you continue to hold down the CTRL
key while you attack.

BLOOD

As a human, blood courses through
your veins in order to sustain life. As a
vampire, blood no longer courses through
your veins, but it is still as important as
ever in sustaining your unlife. In order to
be able to use your Disciplines, as well as
to prevent your character from frenzying,
you will require blood. In your character’s
status bar, there is a red bar, which
indicates your Blood Pool. As you use
Disciplines, blood will be used from your
Blood Pool, and this bar will go down. In
order to replenish your Blood Pool, you
will need to Feed (for information on
using the Feed Discipline, please see
Chapter 3: Traits and Disciplines) on other
creatures throughout the game. However,
not all creatures can be fed upon, and
there are many that will attempt to resist
you. Failure to catch someone in your
grasp will leave you in a vulnerable
position, and you will be open for a
counterattack. It is commonly known that
a creature under your powers can be more
easily fed upon than creatures that still
have the use of their own free will.

If you are unable to find a suitable

vessel of blood, there are other ways of
obtaining blood in the game. Rats that
you can find scurrying around the city are
always good for a small supply of blood.
However, there is always a chance that
they will infect your character with any
disease that they may have. Also, bottles of
vitae can be found scattered throughout a
rival vampire’s haven and are excellent
sources of blood. In certain cases, some
bottles of vitae may not only replenish
your Blood Pool but even hold some
special powers when ingested.

FRENZY

Vampires are monsters, possessed of an
inner Beast. Though, like humans, they
have the capability to overrule their baser
instincts, sometimes they fail. When this
occurs, the Hunger and the Beast become
uncontrollable, and no one is safe.

In the game, there is an orange bar,
which monitors your Frenzy level. As you
take damage from enemies, your Frenzy
level will increase until you can no longer
control your actions, and friend and foe
alike must be wary of you, since you will
begin to attack indiscriminately. The rate
at which you frenzy does depend on a few
variables including the clan type (some
Clans frenzy more quickly than others),
Blood Pool level (if your character is
starving for blood, then he is more likely
to frenzy), and the type of damage (some
types of Aggravated damage such as fire
will increase the Frenzy level faster).

Certain Disciplines will also cause a
character to frenzy faster, and there are also
a few Disciplines that will lower the Frenzy
level as well. Eventually, your character will
naturally become unfrenzied. However, if
you are on the verge of frenzying, the use
of the Heal Discipline has been known to
subside the need to rage.

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15

AWAKEN

If one of your characters is damaged
until s/he no longer has any Health, then
that character will fall into a state of torpor,
which is a death like sleep. In order to
bring your character out of torpor, you will
need another character to use the Awaken
Discipline on the fallen comrade. The
Awaken Discipline is available for use by
acquiring scrolls or learning the Discipline
by spending experience. When you have the
Awaken Discipline selected, simply right
click on the portrait of your fallen comrade,
and your character will use this Discipline.
If your character is successful, then your
fallen friend will Awaken with a low blood
supply and a minimal amount of Health.
For more on Disciplines, please see Chapter
Three: Traits and Disciplines.

If all of your characters fall into a state
of torpor, then the game is over, and you
will need to load from an older saved game.

SAVING/L

OADING A GAME

In V:TM Redemption, there are two

possible ways of saving a game.

First of all, you can choose to let the
game autosave for you. Every time you
enter a new area (this occurs when the
“loading” screen appears), all of your
character’s information and status will be
automatically saved. The autosave is
particularly useful when you are going
from one level of a dungeon to another
and you do not wish to travel back to the
Haven in order to save the game.

Second, you can save the game by
clicking on a save cross (if you are human)
or a save ankh (if you are a vampire),
which are located in your Haven. When
you clicking on the save cross/ankh, this
will bring up the save game screen. Simply
click on the slot, where you wish to save
the game, and then click on ok.

To load a saved game, just go to Single
Player, and then click on “Load a Saved
Game.” When the Load game screen
appears, you can then click on Autosave (to
load an autosaved game) or click on a
specific game slot. In the game slots, the
name of the level and the time, which you
saved, will be listed here. Once you have
chosen the game that you wish to load, just
click on “OK”, and the game will load it up.

GAME CONTROLS OVERVIEW

The following is a summary of the game controls in both Single Player and

Multiplayer. Generally speaking the controls will do the following:

Left Click Walk to Location, Talk to Person, Attack an Enemy, Pickup Item
Left Click + Alt Fire at Ground (clicking on the ground), Pickup to Cursor (clicking on an item)
Left Click + Ctrl Party Attack (clicking on enemy), Party Regroups to Location (clicking on the ground)
Left Click + Space Hold Attack (enemy), Turn in Place (ground)
Hold down Left Click Automatic Attack
Right Click Use Discipline or held scroll. Store held item back into inventory.
Right Click + Space Use While Stationary
Third Mouse Button Acts like Shift + Left Click

For users with a Mouse with more than two buttons:

Button 3 (middle) Acts like Shift-Left Click
Button 4 Zoom to first person view/Acts like “Z”
Button 5 Party Attack (clicking on enemy), Party Regoups to Location (clicking on the ground),

+ Space Stationary cast

The specific combination controls for single player and multiplayer are the following:

M

OUSE CONTROLS (SINGLE PLAYER)

Select current character Left click on character portrait
Autowalk Hold down Left click on desired target location
Attack Left click on highlighted enemy to attack
Secondary Attack Third mouse button click on enemy to attack
Activate door/switch Left click on door/switch
Talk to NPC Left click on NPC if talk cursor is present
Pick up item Left click on item if pickup cursor is present
Use current Right click on target to use Discipline

Discipline/Numina (different powers have different targeting requirements)
Use inventory item Right click on item to use from inventory
Set current Left click on Discipline from quick-list or from the Discipline Pane

Discipline/Numina
Feed/Kiss Press “F” or select “Feed” Discipline from list and use as normal
Display Statistics Pane Left click on “Character” button
Display Inventory Pane Left click on “Inventory” button
Display Discipline Pane Left click on “Disciplines” button
Display Map Left click on “Map” button
Display Quest Log Left click on “Quest” button
Change Coterie stance Left click on desired stance from coterie controls icons
Take gold/money Left click on gold display, type in amount (defaults to half total).

from inventory Gold/money drops to the floor.
Remove stake from Left click on character to de-stake, the current character will approach and remove

coterie member the stake

Group Toggle (clicking on the UI head ) / Acts like Ctrl + Left Click

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KEYBOARD CONTROLS (SINGLE PLAYER)

Pause game/display in-game menu Esc
TAB Cycle current character s, release Possession of character
Stop action Spacebar
Force run to destination Shift + Left Click on destination
Display Character Pane “C”
Display Inventory Pane “I”
Display Discipline Pane “D”
Display Map “M”
Display Quest Log “Q”
Close all Panes Backspace
Use quick item F1 – F5
Quick Character Selection F6 – F9, F6 for Christof, F7 for character in slot two, etc.
Toggle Status Bar Display F11
Take Screenshot F12 (saves shotxxx.bmp in current directory)
Select active Discipline from quick list 1 – 6
Zoom Camera +/­Regroup coterie R
In/Out coterie toggle G
Switch to First Person View Hold down Z
Swivel View Toggle X or Numpad 5
Fire at the ground (missile weapons only) ALT + Left click on the ground
Party attack CTRL + Left click on target
Party Regroup to Locations CTRL + Left click on destination
Secondary attack Shift + Left click on target
Force run Shift + Left click on the destination
Turn in place Space Bar + Left Click on the ground
Stationary Discipline casting Space Bar + Right Click on the target
Skip current conversation line Space
Abort/End current conversation Esc
Exit shop/conversation bar Esc

KEYBOARD CONTROLS
(ADDITIONS/CHANGES FOR MULTIPLAYER GAMES)

Talk Enter
Toggle between Storyteller and Player Mode \
Toggle Possession (ST only) “P”
ST Actor Pane Toggle “A”
ST Object Pane Toggle “O”
ST Controls Pane Toggle “V”
ST Locations Pane Toggle “L”
ST Scenes Pane Toggle “S”
Emote commands Type “wave,” “bow,” “menace,” etc. in talk prompt
Scroll Text Display Page Up / Page Down
Place ST Head (ST Only) Right click on target position
Jump to Location (ST Only) ALT+Right Click

GAME MENUS

MAIN MENU

The main menu offers the main
options to the game. You may choose
Single Player, Multiplayer, Options, View
Credits or Quit.

SINGLE PLAYER

This will start a Single Player game.
You will be prompted to Start A New
Game or Load A Saved Game.

M

ULTIPLAYER

This will start a Multiplayer game. You
will be prompted to connect over the LAN
or the Internet.

OPTIONS

This brings up the Options Menu.

VIEW CREDITS

This will bring up the list of all the
people who have contributed to this game.

QUIT

This will exit the program.

SINGLE PLAYER MENU

NEW GAME

This option starts a new game of V:TM

Redemption. After selecting this option, the

game transitions into the opening
cutscene, and the game begins. Warning:
Clicking on New Name will erase the
current autosave.

L

OAD GAME

You can use this option to load
previously saved games. A list is presented
containing the save game names. The first
item on this list is always your autosave.
The names of the other saves consist of the
save location, game date and time (e.g.
“Convent,” 3:54am). By selecting one of
these options and hitting ‘Ok’, the game
loads and begins from the point at which
you saved. Selecting ‘Cancel’ on this
screen returns you to the Main menu.

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GAME MENUS GAME MENUS

MULTIPLAYER MENU

LAN

LAN games are played over a Local
Area Network. You will not need to login
(assuming your computer is constantly
connected) and will be taken directly to
your Crypt when you choose this option.
In a LAN game, you will only be able to
chat and play with other users that are on
the same LAN as you are.

Should you wish a wider range of
games and players, you will need to
connect to the Internet via WON.

INTERNET GAMES

Internet Games connect your computer
to WON, where you can chat, find games
to play and connect with users from all
over the world. You can connect to
WON from any machine that has direct
Internet access.

From here, you can log onto WON
with an existing account or create a new
account. To use an existing account,
simply enter in your Username and
Password, and click the OK button.
Remember, both your User Name and
Password are case sensitive.

FOR ALL NEW USERS TO WON:

To create a new account, click on the
Create Member button. Your Internet
Browser will open, taking you to the WON
pages that allow you to create an account.
Please follow the onscreen instructions in
order to create a new account. If you are
having problems creating a new account,
please contact WON.

The panels on the right-hand side of
the login screen will take you to the
websites of WON, Activision, Nihilistic
Software and White Wolf.

OPTIONS SCREENS

Select Options from the Main Menu to
bring up the Game Options Screen. There
are four options to select from the Game
Options Screen. From any of the options
screens hit OK to accept the changes you
have made or CANCEL to return to the
previous screen making no changes.

DISPLAY

The Display Options Screen allows you
to optimise the look and performance of
the game based on the video card in your
system. The options are broken down into
basic and advanced options.

BASIC SETTINGS

DEVICE: Shows the current display
driver installed on your computer, and
allows you to change drivers between
primary and secondary cards (if you have a
secondary card installed.)

VIDEO MODE: Shows the current
display resolution and colour depth. Not
all video cards will support all resolutions,
and colour depths and settings that are too
high may severely impact performance.

DETAIL LEVEL: This allows you to
raise or lower the graphics detail to
optimise performance on your machine.
Detail level ranges from Very Low to High
and can be adjusted by clicking the arrows
next to the box.

BRIGHTNESS: This slider controls
the brightness of the game display. Slide
the arrow to choose a setting that is
compatible with your monitor’s settings

ADVANCED DISPLAY OPTIONS

The Advanced Display Options allow
you to customise the graphics settings for
the game on your machine. If a feature

does not have a check box in it, then it is
most likely that your video card cannot
support this particular feature. Some of
these options are very video card
dependent and may cause the game to
fail to run properly if they are enabled.
Non-advanced users are cautioned
against any changes of these settings!

DRIVER INFO: This box displays
information about the video card currently
used by the game.

DRAW SKY: This box turns the sky on
and off.

3D UI HEAD: This enables the
animation of the 3D User Interface Head.

REFLECTIONS: This will toggle
whether the game displays reflections or
not.

TEXTURE BIT DEPTH: This allows
you to switch between 16-bit and 32-bit
colour depth.

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GAME MENUS GAME MENUS

TEXTURE FILTERING: This allows
the selection of bilinear or trilinear texture
filtering. Filtering reduces jitter and
“sparkling” of textures as they move into
the distance and smoothes them when they
are close.

STATIC LIGHTING: This toggles
between the use of lightmap or vertex­based lighting. Lightmaps provide more
accurate shadows but are slower. Vertex
lighting is faster but less detailed.

STYLED LIGHTS: This turns styled
lights on or off.

DYNAMIC LIGHT BLOBS: This
enables dynamic lighting (from fireballs,
muzzle flashes, torches).

MODEL LOD: This slider sets the level
of detail for character models.

UI HEAD LOD: This slider sets the
level of detail for the character portraits.

PARTICLE LOD: This slider sets the
level of detail for particle effects in the game.

DECALS: This slider sets the number
and frequency of decals in the game.

AUTOMATIC MIP LEVELS: This
determines how many mip levels of a
texture the engine will auto-generate.

MIP SELECTION: This will allow
users, who have 3D cards with low
memory, to select a default mip map level
lower than the default. This causes textures
to appear blurrier, but uses less texture
memory and increases performance.

CHARACTER DYNAMIC LIGHTS:
This slider sets the level of dynamic
lighting on character models.

CHARACTER SHADOWS: This slider
sets the number of shadows that each
character in the world casts.

SHADOW DETAIL: This slider
controls the appearance of shadows from
simple blobs to detailed character silhouettes

SOUND

This options menu allows you to adjust
the in-game sound settings. The following
options are available:

3D SOUND DRIVER: These selections
allow you to set the best sound driver for
your hardware should you have 3D sound
available.

SPEAKER SETUP: These buttons allow
you to chose the configuration of the
speakers that best describes your
computer’s setup.

MUSIC VOLUME: This slider allows
you to adjust the volume of the in-game
music.

SOUND FX VOLUME: This slider
allows you to adjust the volume of game
sound effects.

CONTROL

The Control Options menu allows
you to set some of the basic control options
of the game relating to the mouse and
coterie AI.

Control Options

ENABLE MOUSE PITCH: This
options toggles whether moving the cursor
to the edge of the screen will move the
camera or not.

AUTO CAMARA SLEWING: This
option sets the camera to automatically
swing into position behind your lead
character

AUTO REPEAT ATTACK: This option
allows you to repeat attacks by holding
down the mouse button.

AUTOLOAD QUICK SLOT FROM
BACKPACK: This option toggles whether
items on the Quick Inventory Slots are
reloaded from the character’s backpack if
the same item, e.g. a Blood Vial, exists in
both places.

Coterie AI Options

USE QUICK DISCIPLINES ONLY:
This sets the AI to only use the Disciplines
in their Quick Discipline Slots.

USE QUICK ITEMS ONLY: This sets
the AI to only use Quick Inventory Slot
items and not to reach into their backpack

AUTO-DISCIPLINE USE:

AUTO-USE HEALING: This toggles if
you allow AI controlled characters to use
healing Disciplines, e.g. Blood Healing

AUTO-USE BUFF: This toggles if you
allow AI controlled characters to use
buffing (enhancing) Disciplines, e.g.
Fortitude

AUTO-USE DAMAGE: This toggles if
you allow AI controlled characters to use
damaging Disciplines, e.g. Fireball.

AUTO-USE SPECIAL: This toggles if
you allow AI controlled characters to use
special Disciplines, e.g. Earth Meld

GAME OPTIONS

The Game Options screen allows you
to turn blood and subtitles on or off.

NO BLOOD: Use this option to turn
the appearance of blood off in the game.

SUBTITLING: Use this option to turn
subtitling during cutscenes on and off.

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MAIN GAME SCREEN

The Main Game Screen contains the In-Game Screen, Coterie Commands, Quest
window, Map window, Text box, Portrait box, five Quick Items slots, six Quick Discipline
slots, Character window, Inventory window, Discipline window, Conversation box,
Purchase window, Advancement Screen and the In-Game Menu.

IN-GAME SCREEN

The 3D view shows the environment
from a third person perspective, with the
camera view being behind the currently
selected character at about a 45’ angle. You
can alter the perspective by moving the
mouse cursor to the edges of the 3D
window. Thus, you can tilt the camera up
or down slightly, so you may look at the
horizon, cityscape and sky.

If you press and hold-down the Z key,
you can shift into first-person mode for a
better look at your surroundings. While in
first-person mode, your cursor is disabled.

COTERIE COMMANDS

These buttons allow
you to issue commands
to the rest of your group
and are very useful in
determining how your
characters will react
when not directly
controlled by you.

The first series of buttons, Aggressive/
Neutral/Defensive, set the stance of the AI
for each character in the coterie.
Characters set to Aggressive stance will be
much more proactive, seeking out and
destroying enemies on their own initiative.
Also, they will burn a lot of blood,
choosing to use powerful Disciplines in
order to eradicate the opposition.
Characters in the Neutral stance will
follow the main (player-controlled)
character’s lead, conserving their resources
and staying closer together. Characters set
to the Defensive stance will protect
themselves from harm and will show little
initiative even in dangerous situations.

Beneath these buttons is the Regroup
button. Pressing this will cause all coterie
members to rejoin the group and gather
close to the main character. Next to the
Health, frenzy and blood bars, there is a
small green light. If you wish to separate a
particular character from your coterie (i.e.
have the character ignore the player
character’s actions), then simply click on
the green light of the character that you
want to separate. To have the character
resume taking orders from the player
character, then click on the green light
again. When the light is on, then that
particular coterie member will follow the
orders of the leader, and if the light is off,
then that coterie member will be
independent of the player’s coterie.

In addition to these specific tools, you
can influence the coterie AI in subtle ways:
Items such as Blood Vials that you place in

the Quick Inventory Slots are available for
AI use; and the Disciplines you place in
the Quick Use Slots are more likely to be
used by the AI than any other powers. In
this way, you can influence the actions of
the characters that you are not directly
controlling. You can set many options
relating to coterie AI control from the
Control Options menu.

QUEST PANE

This button opens the Quest
pane, which lists all the quests
your coterie has undertaken
and whether they have been

When a new quest is available, the Quest
Button will have a flashing red border to
indicate this. Also, when you complete a
Quest, the red flashing border will appear
as well. After bringing up the Quest pane,
if you leave your cursor over a specific
quest, more description about that quest
will appear in the text box.

MAP

on this map and that your coterie’s current
location is also displayed. While the Map
pane is open, the game is paused.

marked with diamonds on the map. The
one that is highlighted in green shows the
current location of your character. The
map only shows the outside of the areas –
you will have to explore the interiors of
buildings and dungeons without a guide.

successfully completed or not.

PANE

This button opens the Map
pane, displaying a map of the
city you are currently in. You
will notice that specific
locations are identified by name

The separate locations within a hub are

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25

TEXT BOX

Below the In-Game Screen, but above
the Portraits Box, is an area where you will
see various text messages displayed. These
text messages cover a variety of situations
but usually appear when you attempt an
action or something happens to one of
your characters. In multiplayer games, this
area is also used to show text messages
from other players (refer to the Multiplayer
and Storytelling chapter for more
information on multiplayer games).
Extended rollover text will appear in place
of the character portraits.

PORTRAIT BOX

An animated head on the bottom of the
screen represents each person in your
coterie, including the main character, and
this portrait is used to show what state, or
condition, each character is currently in. A
few of these conditions are listed below:

Damaged: The portrait will show the
character is under pain when taking damage.

Unconscious: The character’s head will
roll back and stop moving when he is
unconscious/dead.

Frenzy: The portrait will flash red; the
character’s portrait will show a frenzied look.

The Kiss: As the character feeds, his or
her portrait is displayed with fangs bared.

Animal: If you change into an animal
form (e.g. a wolf), the portrait will change
into that animal’s head.

Below the portrait are three bars of
different colours, representing the status of
the characters Health (Blue), Blood (Red)
and Frenzy (Orange) statistics. A full bar
means that the character is at his or her
maximum for that character Trait. As the
level falls, the Trait is correspondingly lower.
This is very useful information as it provides
quick access to a character’s overall state of

being and whether or not s/he is about to
die, run out of blood or enter into a frenzy.

If you place the cursor over a character’s
portrait you will receive a numerical display
of his or her Health, Blood Pool and
Frenzy levels (Health, Mana and Faith for
humans.) You can transfer inventory items
between characters by dragging an item
onto the character portrait. If the
characters are close enough to each other,
the item will be transferred.

QUICK ITEMS

Within the status bar are five slots for
quick use items. These items can be used
by either right clicking on them or by
pressing the function keys F1-F5. Items
may also be dragged/dropped from the
inventory screen into these slots.

QUICK D

quick selection of Disciplines. Any of these
Disciplines can be selected as active by
either left clicking on them or by pressing
the numeric keys 1-6. You can set up
which Disciplines are housed in the Quick
Discipline slots by opening your Discipline
Window and left-clicking on the desired
Discipline’s icon and dragging/dropping it
into the correct slot.

ISCIPLINES

The status bar also displays six slots for

CHARACTER WINDOW

The character’s Traits are shown in this
window: Their name, clan, rank and
generation followed by their Attributes,
Health, Blood Pool, Humanity and Frenzy
levels.

The character’s Attributes are shown
with the current level, influenced by
wounds, Discipline use or magic, first
followed by their base level. This allows
you to gauge the effect of different
equipment and powers on your character.

Another important Attribute that is
listed is your Humanity level. Your actions
within the story will change your
humanity, and if your Humanity falls to
zero, then your character will go mad, and
the game will end.

The range for the character’s currently
equipped weapon is displayed along with
the damage type. Also, the soak totals for
all of your armour (including helms,
shields and body armour) against both
normal damage and elemental attacks are
clearly shown here as well.

All of these character Traits are
explained in their own sections later in
this manual.

INVENTORY WINDOW

This window shows all of the items and
money that the character is carrying. A
graphical icon, which takes up a certain
number of inventory slots, represents items
carried by the character. Characters are
limited to how much they can carry in
their inventory by having a finite number
of inventory slots. You will receive an
audio cue if your character is
overburdened and cannot carry any more
items. If a character is unable to use a
certain item, then it will highlight in red,
and there will be an audio cue if you
attempt to use it.

To equip an item, simply drag it to the
appropriate spot on your character
portrait. Items can only be placed in a
specific location on the character portrait.
Weapons (e.g. bows, swords, guns) can
only be placed in the slot with the “sword”
icon, and shields or utility items (e.g.
footman’s shield, torch, flashlight) can
only be placed in the slot with the “shield’
icon. To equip armour, simply drag the
piece of armour to the “chest” slot, and
helms can be equipped by dragging it to
the “head” slot. Finally, necklaces can be
placed in the slot to the left of the “head”
icon, and items such as rings can be placed
in the “hand” slots.

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Please note, if the sword or weapon
that you are equipping is a two-handed
weapon (this can be seen by rolling your
cursor over the weapon and seeing “2H”
appear in the item description), then you
cannot equip a shield or utility item. If
you have a shield or utility item equipped,
then you will have to first remove this
item, prior to equipping the sword. Also,
some weapons and armour have a
minimum requirement to equip them.
Some items may require a certain
Strength, Humanity or even Faith
requirement before you can equip them. If
you cannot equip an item, please roll your
cursor over the item to bring up the item
description. Verify that you have the
requisite characteristics, if any, in order to
equip this item.

D

ISCIPLINE WINDOW

A list of the character’s current
Disciplines is displayed, including the
current level of proficiency in each,
indicated by the number of filled dots.
You may set up the Quick Discipline slots
by dragging and dropping the Discipline
icons into one of the six slots in the status
bar. You may also left-click to select a
Discipline from this list (and later right­click to use it) or right-click on any
Discipline in this list from this pane to
activateit immediately.

CONVERSATION B

During some conversations between
your characters and non-player characters,
you will be given the option to choose one
of several responses. Your response has an
affect upon how the non-player character
responds back to you and, in some cases,
the state of the game. When these response
options appear, you must select one by
clicking on it with your cursor.

OX

PURCHASE WINDOW

When dealing with merchants, a
purchase menu will appear, allowing you
to buy or sell items. The merchant’s wares
will be displayed on the left-hand side of
the screen, while your character’s inventory
will be on the right. To switch the
character that is purchasing or selling to
the merchant, just hit TAB or click on the
character’s portrait.

When buying, you are presented with a
list of the merchant’s wares with prices. If
you highlight an item you will see it’s icon
and be able to hit the Buy button to
purchase it if you have sufficient money.
The cost of the item will then be deducted
from your cash reserves. If you do not
have enough money to buy an item, then
that item will be greyed out. Also, if an
item is listed in red, then your character
does not currently have the Attributes to
wield the weapon or wear the armour. You
can still purchase the item, however you
will not be able to equip it until you meet
the item’s minimum Attribute
requirements. When selling, you can select
any of the items that your character is
carrying, and the price you are being
offered will appear on the merchant’s side
of the screen. If you accept the offer, hit
the Sell button, and the money will be
added to your total.

On a side note, the price your character
pays for items and the money they receive
for selling can be higher or lower
depending on the Manipulation Attribute.
Thus, a Manipulation of 90 will garner a
much better buying and selling price then
if your character has a manipulation of 10.

ADVANCEMENT SCREEN

Between completing quests in the
single player chronicle, you will have the
opportunity to spend the experience

points you have earned on the various
character Attributes. In certain missions,
an advancement window will
automatically pop up after the mission is
complete. You can also visit your Haven at
any time to spend experience points for
any of your coterie. To do this, when you
are at your Haven, just click on the coffin
in your Haven to bring up the
Advancement Screen. In multiplayer
games, you can click on the coffin in your
Haven to bring up the advancement
screen, however it is also up to the
Storyteller’s discretion to award extra
experience points for a well played
scenario or completing a quest.

The Advancement Screen shows your
character sheet with the current levels of
Attributes and Disciplines, and crosses
next to each item that you may advance.
To increase the level of your Attribute or
Discipline, simply click on the cross to
spend your experience points in exchange
for the increase. If you place your cursor
over an Attribute or Discipline, the
experience point cost will appear in the
dialogue box at the bottom of the screen.
You can cancel or reverse changes in order
to tweak things as desired by hitting the
reverse arrow below your character sheet.
Once you are satisfied, hit the OK button.

As you gain experience from your
battles, your ranking will go up as well.
Starting as a Fledgling, your character will
climb the ranks as more experience is
gained. As your character’s ranking
increases, the character’s Health will also
increase, as well as the Blood Pool. Thus,
the Blood Pool and Health level of an
Antediluvian will far exceed a character,
who is merely a Neonate.

The Storyteller has access to an
Advancement Screen similar to this,
although s/he has the capability of
modifying the experience you receive,
along with what new Disciplines are
available to you. There is an Advancement

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Screen for each character (showing the 3D
head and other stats of the character) from
which the Storyteller can assign and spend
experience points for each coterie member,
thereafter returning to the game

IN

-GAME MENU

You can press ESC at any time to bring
up the In-Game Menu. This pauses the
game in single player and allows you to
resume the game, exit the game, load a
saved game or adjust options.

SOME GENERAL NOTES
ABOUT COMBAT

DAMAGE TYPES

There are three main types of damage
that can be suffered in the game: Bashing,
Lethal and Aggravated. These types are
distinguished in order to allow for certain
resistances that vampires may have and to
show how human and Kindred alike can
soak them.

LETHAL

These are attacks meant to cause
immediate and fatal injury to a victim.
Vampires can soak Lethal damage with
their Stamina Attribute, but humans have
no natural resistance to it.

AGGRAVATED

Attacks that are deadly even to the
undead, including fire, sunlight, the teeth
and claws of vampires and werewolves and
certain Holy attacks, are considered to be
Aggravated attacks. Aggravated damage
can only be soaked with the Fortitude
Discipline.

In addition to these three main types of
damage, the game supports resistance or
sensitivity to the following specialised
forms of damage:

Electrical

Includes lightning bolts, high­voltage traps, etc.

Cold

Freezing attacks, ice weapons,
freezer traps, etc.

Fire

Fireballs, fire traps, lava, hot
rooms, etc.

Sunlight

Direct sunlight or sunlight­casting artifacts. Only damages
vampires.

SOAKING

Before damage is applied, the victim
has the chance to absorb part or all of the
damage before it affects the character’s
Health. This ability to absorb damage is
also known as “soaking.” Soaking accounts
for the existence of armour and other
natural and preternatural abilities to resist
damage. As indicated above, there are
specific requirements for soaking certain
types of damage. The factors involved in
soaking are:

ARMOUR

Armour allows soaking of all three
forms of damage, except for the specialised
Aggravated types of fire, sunlight, holy,
electrical and cold (some exceptions exist
here, like special grounding armour,
magically enhanced items or heated
devices.)

STAMINA

Humans may soak only Bashing
damage using their Stamina. Vampires use
their Stamina to soak both Bashing and
Lethal damage but not Aggravated.

FORTITUDE

Fortitude is a specialised Discipline that
allows soaking of Aggravated damage. It
has an advantage over items and armours
which normally only defend against a
limited number of Aggravated damage
types. Fortitude also adds to the soak
values for Bashing and Lethal damage.

STAKING

When a vampire is impaled in the heart
with implements of wood, it renders them
completely immobile until the stake is
removed. If one of your characters is staked,
another member of the coterie can remove
the stake by selecting the available character
and then left-clicking on the staked
character. Also, if you do not have a
character that can unstake you, a staked
character will be able to expel the stake from
his or her body after some time has passed.

Staking can occur with actual stakes
(used as a melee weapon) or with ranged
weapons such as crossbows and stake-guns.
If the stake hit is considered critical, a
staking occurs.

COTERIE COMBAT AI

During play, all coterie members, other
than the ones you have selected, will move
and attack on their own, but in accordance
with any coterie commands you have
selected. AI controlled characters can
perform a wide range of tasks
automatically, including reloading their
weapons, switching from a ranged attack
to a melee weapon, as well as healing and
replenishing their Blood Pools. Also, by
holding down CTRL and left-clicking on
an enemy, you can tell the rest of your
coterie to concentrate their attacks on that
one opponent.

BASHING

These attacks include punches, kicks
and any other kind of blunt trauma, which
are less likely to kill a victim instantly
(especially a vampire). All characters
(including humans) can use Stamina to
soak Bashing damage.

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Holy

Prayers, attacks with holy water
or holy ground. Only damages
vampires.

31

CHAPTER THREE:

CHAPTER THREE:

TRAITS AND

TRAITS AND

DISCIPLINES

DISCIPLINES

Much of a character’s life comes from the
way in which you describe and roleplay
him. However, certain aspects of a character,
his physical prowess, looks and special
powers, are described in numerical terms
and used in conjunction with the mechanics
of the game. These features are called Traits
and Disciplines.

CHARACTER TRAITS

Most Traits are based on a 1-100 scale
for player characters, though there is no
upper numerical limit. Disciplines are the
exception, as they utilise a system of dots
(•) to represent levels of power. The more
dots, the more power a character has in
that particular Discipline, with the
maximum being five dots.

PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES

Strength

The raw brute power the character can
use for lifting, pushing and inflicting
melee attacks. Strength allows the
character to be able to move large objects
and also modifies the amount of damage
inflicted by melee weapons. Some items,
such as armour, have minimum Strength
limitations you must meet before you can
utilise the equipment.

Dexterity

Dexterity modifies the base movement
and attack speeds for the character and also
increases the aiming ability for projectile
weapons. A high Dexterity will also increase
a character’s chance of making a critical hit,
which causes an enormous amount of
damage. Also, some weapons have a
minimum Dexterity for usage.

Stamina

Stamina is the character’s constitutional
ability to soak damage. Humans use
Stamina to soak only Bashing damage,
while Ghouls, Vampires and some
monsters can soak Bashing and Lethal
damage with their Stamina Attribute.

MENTAL ATTRIBUTES

Perception

Perception is the ability to observe one’s
environment.

Intelligence

Intelligence is the character’s grasp of
facts and knowledge and ability to reason
and solve problems. A high Intelligence is
required for the most advanced Disciplines.

Wits

Wits is the ability to maintain your cool
and think on your feet, especially in intense
situations. Most importantly, characters
with high Wits will have a slower
progression towards becoming frenzied.

SOCIAL ATTRIBUTES

Charisma

Charisma measures your character’s force
of personality and command. Characters
with a high Charisma are better able to
overwhelm the minds of their foes with
Disciplines such as Dominate and Presence.

Manipulation

Manipulation is the ability to lie,
connive and convince others of your point
of view. It is an insidious Attribute that
allows you to influence others.
Manipulation grants you success at some
mental Disciplines and also lowers prices
at shops.

Appearance

Appearance is the measure of the
character’s physical attractiveness, poise
and natural beauty. This becomes
extremely important as you use the
Presence Disciplines.

RANK

Based on a character’s experience
points, they are given a Rank. This can be
very useful in quickly determining how
ancient, powerful and dangerous a
particular character is. Refer to the
“Generations of Caine” section in Chapter
Six for detailed information on each Rank.
In the game, a character’s rank will apply
bonuses to his or her Blood Pool and
Health as s/he gains experience.

BLOOD POOL

A Character’s Blood Pool measures how
much blood (a.k.a. vitae) the vampire has
in his or her body, and it is from their
Blood Pool that characters draw energy to
use their supernatural powers. Most

Disciplines drain anywhere from a small to
a large amount of your character’s Blood
Pool when activated (the rollover text will
list each Discipline’s specific cost.)
Vampire characters may replenish their
Blood Pool by drinking blood from any
number of sources including bottles of
vitae or humans.

HEALTH

Health measures a character’s physical
condition, from perfect health to torpor or
Final Death. As characters are wounded
their Health level goes down and they have
a harder time performing actions. The
more a character’s Health diminishes the
harder it will be for him or her to do the
things you want him or her to do. As a
character loses Health, s/he will move
slower and suffer penalties to his or her
Attributes. Once a vampire’s Health
reaches zero, s/he will collapse into a
comatose state know as torpor. Without
the intervention of an ally with the
Awaken Discipline, this sleep of the ages
can lead to Final Death.

Note: Characters in frenzy ignore all
Health-related penalties.

FRENZY RATING

The Frenzy rating is the character’s
tendency to frenzy and speed at which s/he
will reach it. As a character takes damage
or loses blood, s/he becomes more prone
to frenzy, eventual falling into an
uncontrolled rage. While a character is
frenzied, s/he will attack anyone without
any discretion. Over time, the Frenzy level
will subside and the character will regain
his senses.

HUMANITY RATING

The Trait of Humanity is an integral
part of the underlying theme of any V:TM
game. It is a moral code that allows
vampires to retain their mortal sensibilities
even though they’ve been transformed into

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parasitic monsters. In essence, it is what
keeps a vampire from becoming a mindless
animal, enslaved by his or her thirst for
blood. In game terms, the lower a character’s
Humanity is, the more monstrous s/he
appears to others. If a character’s Humanity
rating reaches zero, then that character has
lost all sense of reason and becomes nothing
more than a mindless beast of evil over
which you no longer have control.

Certain events during the chronicle may
raise or lower your Humanity: Killing the
innocent will almost always cause it to
drop, while protecting the weak may cause
it to rise.

INCREASING TRAITS

Between completing quests in the
single player chronicle you will have the
opportunity to visit your Haven to spend
the Experience Points (XP) you have
earned. In multiplayer games you receive
this opportunity after each scene in the
story (or whenever the Storyteller decides.)
To spend your characters’ experience
points, you must go to your Haven and
click on the rest coffin.

HUMAN

multiplayer games, differ from the
Kindred. They do not use blood, cannot
frenzy and use Numina and Holy Power
instead of Disciplines.

humans, empowers any holy powers they
possess. The Faith Trait can be raised with
experience and can also be temporarily
boosted by the possession of holy objects.
Many holy powers have a minimum Faith
requirement.

on Mana, which is used to fuel the spells
and abilities of Holy Power and Numina.
Unlike vampires, who need to feed to gain
power, humans naturally regenerate their
Mana pools over time.

CHARACTERS

Mortal characters, who are available in

The Faith Trait, which is unique to

Instead of blood, human characters rely

There are certain items in the game,
which may only be used by human
characters. Likewise, humans may not use
Kindred Disciplines or mystical items.

DISCIPLINES

Though vampirism is a curse, the Blood
of Caine grants great mystical powers to
those with the insight and dedication to
pursue them. These powers are known as
Disciplines.

Following is a list of the more common
Disciplines wielded by vampires and other
supernatural creatures. Rare vampires and
stranger creatures may have powers not on
this list, as there are mysteries that remain
hidden within the World of Darkness. The
term Discipline refers to both the
Discipline group (Animalism, for example)
and the powers within that group (Feral
Whispers.) Each clan possesses a group of
Disciplines that are common among their
ranks. However, it has been whispered that
vampires can learn Disciplines outside their
clan’s strengths but at a much higher cost.

Most Disciplines are linked to a key
Attribute and will be resisted if used upon
an enemy. There is also a chance of failing
to use a Discipline based upon the
character’s Attributes and power in the
Discipline. Almost all Disciplines have
minimum Attribute requirements; for
example, you cannot use Heightened
Senses unless you are already perceptive or
Fireball unless you are very intelligent.

As you gain more experience through
your battles, you can use this experience in
order to increase your specialty in your
Disciplines. As you increase in power, your
mastery over the Discipline will allow you
to cast the Discipline more effectively and
at a lower blood cost. Thus, if you have a
Discipline of five dots, then you are truly a
master, while a vampire with a Discipline
level of one dot will be casting it a very
rudimentary level.

COMMON DISCIPLINES

Note that in V:TM- Redemption all
vampiric characters automatically

start with the Feed and Blood
Healing Disciplines. This represents the
inherent ability of all vampires to feed and heal
themselves. In multiplayer games, all vampires
and ghouls will start with these abilities.
However, human characters will not have any
inherent Traits.

FEED

Various levels of this Discipline
indicate the ability to effectively
drain a creature of its’ blood
without killing the victim.

Feeding is remarkably important
for a vampire, as it is the best way to replenish
your Blood Pool. As your lev el increases, your
ability to feed without killing your victim will
increase as well.

BLOOD HEALING

This allows a vampire to convert

Blood Pool points into Health

points, in order to heal his or

her wounds. The various levels

of the Discipline dictate how
fast you can heal and how much Health is
regained and may enable healing of
extraneous things like disease.

BLOOD STRENGTH

This Discipline grants a
temporary increase of the
character’s Strength Attribute,
which can be used to increase
melee damage or for any

Strength-related puzzles.

BLOOD DEXTERITY

This Discipline grants a
temporary increase of the
character’s Dexterity Attribute,
which can be used to increase
combat effectiveness.

BLOOD STAMINA

This Discipline grants a
temporary increase of the
character’s Stamina Attribute,
which can allow for the soaking

of more damage than normal.
It does not grant you the ability to soak
Aggravated damage.

AWAKEN

This Discipline is normally
used to awaken, or reanimate,
another Vampire who has
nearly been killed and lies in

torpor. Unless a character has
died an unequivocal Final Death, the use of
this Discipline allows the subject to be
awakened. Such characters will awaken
with little blood or Health and will need to
feed very soon, since they are quite prone to
frenzy with their need for blood.

WALK THE ABYSS

This dark power draws on the
connection between a vampire
and its Haven, opening a
mystical portal between the two.

When this Discipline is used, a
two-way gate opens between the coterie’s
current location and its Haven. To be able to
open such a portal, you must know the
location of your Haven and the abyssal
portal can be blocked by mystical means.

Key Attributes: Intelligence and Wits.

ANIMALISM

Vampires with the Discipline of
Animalism find themselves with

greater control over both the
animal world and the Beast Within. While
the Gangrel are known to be the masters of
this Discipline group, other clans, such as the
Nosferatu, have shown skill in Animalism
as well.

Key Attributes are Charisma and

Manipulation.

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35

FERAL W

HISPERS

Makes the targeted animal
temporarily fight for the player’s
coterie.

Key Attribute: Manipulation

BECKONING

Allows the caster to temporarily
enlist the assistance of an animal
ally, possibly lasting beyond
the scope of a single combat.

action by the vampire’s will and disappears
when finished. The summoned animal acts
like a temporary member of the character’s
coterie, fighting with and travelling alongside
the caster until the effect wears off. (For clans
that have separated themselves from the
natural world, the creature thus summoned
may be distinctly unnatural; for example,
Cappadocians summon a skeleton to fight at
their side, and the Tremere a homunculus!)

The animal is summoned to the

Key Attribute: Charisma

QUELL THE BEAST

Has the effect of calming the
target. When cast upon a coterie
member, this reduces his or her
frenzy amount, bringing him or

stopping it altogether.

S

UBSUME THE SPIRIT

hit TAB to return to your own body.

her out of frenzy faster or indeed

Key Attribute: Manipulation.

Allows temporary possession of
an animal. You will have full
control over the creature,
perceiving the world through its
eyes until the effect ends or you

Key Attribute: Manipulation

DRAWING O

behave erratically, with all the advantages/
disadvantages frenzy offers). In mortals, it
triggers the fear mode. Use of this should be
limited to times when the Frenzy level is
nearly full, but at the highest level, a full
Frenzy level is not required to cast this.

Key Attribute: Manipulation

UT THE BEAST

Dumps the caster’s Frenzy level
onto another. This causes a
frenzy mode on enemies
(frenzied enemies would attack
each other, flee or generally

AUSPEX

The Discipline of Auspex bestows
telepathic and extrasensory

itioners. As the vampire’s powers grow, he will
not only be able to sense the psychic aura and
flow on creatures and objects, but he will also
be able to project his or her body into an astral
form in order to see what is around him or
her. The death-loving Cappadocians, as well
as the Toredor and Tremere clans, all
specialise in the Auspex Discipline.

HEIGHTENED SENSES

AURA PERCEPTION

the target. The user will learn information
about the creature including the target type,
Health and Blood Pool.

perception powers on its pract-

Key Attribute is Perception.

This allows the character to see
invisible or hidden enemies and
objects.

Key Attribute: Perception.

The user of this Discipline
may sense the invisible “aura”
surrounding all living creatures,
allowing the caster to gain
insight into the true nature of

Key Attribute: Perception.

THE SPIRIT’S TOUCH

Allows the caster to determine
the nature of an object – its base
statistic limitations, its abilities
/curses, its “true” name, etc. A

successful use of this Discipline
will give an enhanced description of that
item from then on. When this effect is
activated, you will need to click on an
unidentified object in your possession to
receive information about it.

Key Attribute: Perception.

PSYCHIC PROJECTION

Psychic projection allows you to

control a “ghost” object, much

like the ST ghost, to move

unseen through areas for a brief

time. No interaction with objects
is possible in this state.

Key Attribute: Perception.

CELERITY

Those with Celerity are dangerous
foes, for this Discipline enables

them to move and attack at
superhuman speeds. To mortals, they appear
to be nothing more than a blur. As the levels
of this power increase, so does the speed of
the vampire and the duration of the
Discipline.

DEMENTATION

This Discipline is the special

legacy of the Malkavian clan, a

mental sickness that allows those
infected with it to channel madness, focus
it and pour it into the minds of those
around them.

Key Attributes: Charisma,

Manipulation and Perception.

PASSION

The character may stir his victim’s
emotions, either heightening their
fear or stirring them into a crazed
frenzy.

Key Attribute: Charisma.

THE HAUNTING

This power is used to disturb the
sensory centres of the target’s
brain, flooding them with
visions, sounds, scents or feelings

that aren’t really there. In effect,
the victim will believe himself to be under
attack from a host of nightmarish apparitions.
Most mortals will flee in fear, while
supernatural creatures will be momentarily
distracted as they fend off their imagined
ghostly assailants.

Key Attribute: Manipulation.

EYES OF CHAOS

This peculiar power allows the
user to take advantage of the
fractured wisdom hidden in
insanity. With it, the character
can detect the aura of another.

Key Attribute: Perception.

VOICE OF MADNESS

With this power, the character

can speak to another and pull

forth the madness that resides in

the deepest recesses of the

victim’s mind, focusing it into an
overwhelming wave of total insanity. This
power has driven countless victims, mortal
and supernatural alike, to unfortunate ends.

Key Attribute: Manipulation.

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DOMINATE

Those with Dominate may
mesmerise others or even control

the powers of Dominate are resisted by the
victim’s Wits Attribute. Kindred who
specialise in the use of Dominate include the
Giovanni, Lasombra, Tremere and Ventrue.

Charisma.

C

the vampire who used the power.

MESMERISE

towards the character that mesmerised him
or her. The effects of Mesmerise are
cancelled if the target is attacked by one
who used the Discipline.

THE FORGETFUL MIND

normal routine.

their minds outright. Many of

Key Attributes: Manipulation, Wits and

OMMAND

This power allows the vampire
to seize control of another’s
mind for a short time. While
the effect lasts, the victim is
under the total command of

Key Attribute: Manipulation.

Use of this Discipline puts the
target into a trance-like state,
whereby they cease all action
and stand still. At higher levels,
the target will dreamily walk

Key Attribute: Manipulation.

This power sends the target into
a dazed state and causes them to
forget about what they were
doing. This will make enemies
ignore you and return to their

Key Attribute: Wits.

POSSESSION

The user of this Discipline forces
their will upon the target and
takes total control of them. This
gives the player total control over

the enemy character, seeing the
world through his or her eyes and forcing
him or her to perform any action until the
effect expires.

Key Attribute: Charisma.

FORTITUDE

Characters with Fortitude prove
unnaturally resistant to damage.

They must often be literally hacked
apart before they can be stopped, as even the
most devastating wounds prove nothing more
than a nuisance. This Discipline also helps
protect against damage from sources such as
sunlight and fire. The Cappadocian, Gangrel
and Ventrue clans all have a natural
predisposition to this Discipline.

MORTIS

This Discipline was developed by
the Cappadocians in an attempt

to uncover the secrets of death. It
seeks to explore many aspects of death,
from outright cheating it, to causing it with
a single touch.

Key Attributes: Wits and Intelligence.

SHAMBLING HORDES

This power allows a character
to call forth the dead from their
graves to fight alongside him or
her. Though weak and not

particularly adept, these undead
allies can still be of great aid in battle. To
use this power, target a fresh corpse close to
the character.

Key Attribute: Wits.

VIGOUR MORTIS

By feeding a corpse some of his
blood, the character may
reanimate the body, creating an
undead servant that serves its

master until it falls completely
into decay. To employ this power, the
character must find a corpseto target.

Key Attribute: Wits and Intelligence.

SUMMON SOUL

With this power, the character is
able to summon a wraith beyond
the shroud that separates the
world of the living from that of

the dead. The wraith can only
exist in the world of the living for short
period of time, but while there, it will do the
characters bidding. A wraith can only be
summoned at the scene of a recent death.

Key Attribute: Perception.

PLAGUE WIND

An advanced Mortis effect, this
power conjures up a whirlwind
of decay and chaos. Any caught
within this cloud of destruction

will suffer massive amounts of
damage, as the full effects of Death’s cold
breath are unleashed upon them.

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

BLACK DEATH

This power turns the character’s
hand into the hand of Death
itself. By touching an individual,
the character can cause the

victim to experience an early
death or, in the case of vampires, to enter
torpor. This power inflicts massive damage
on a single target.

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

OBFUSCATE

Obfuscate is the ability to mystically
cloak oneself in illusions or

shadows, thereby disguising or
concealing oneself. With Obfuscate, you can
attack an enemy and then mystically fall back
into the shadows. At higher levels, this ability
will becomes more effective, and you will be
able to strike your enemy before they can
realise it. Obfuscate can be defeated by the use
of other Disciplines, most notably Heightened
Senses. If a creature has a Heightened Senses
Discipline higher than your Obfuscate level,
then he will be able to detect you with ease.
While there are several clans that use this
power, it is the Nosferatu that has truly
perfected its use.

Key Attribute: Wits.

CLOAK OF SHADOWS

The vampire may disappear
from plain sight. The lowest level
of this power allows the user to
remain effectively invisible if

standing still within shadow.
Higher levels of Obfuscate allow the user to
remain invisible even while moving.

Key Attribute: Wits.

CLOAK THE GATHERING

This Discipline is similar to
Cloak of Shadows, save that it
affects the entire coterie. The
level of this Discipline indicates

duration, and the effectiveness
is equal to the equivalent level of the Cloak
of Shadows power.

Key Attribute: Wits.

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39

POTENCE

Characters with Potence are
terrifying opponents, for they

possess the strength of several
humans. The higher the level of Potence is,
the stronger the character. The Giovanni ,
Brujah, Lasombra and Nosferatu clans have
superhuman strength through the use of
this Discipline.

PRESENCE

All supernatural creatures are

impressive, scary monsters, but

those with the Discipline of
Presence are particularly captivating.
Characters with Presence can manipulate
others’ emotions, becoming their victims’
dream lovers - or their most terrifying
nightmares. Vampires must learn to be wary
of their feelings when they are in the
company of a Brujah, Malkavian, Toreador
or Ventrue as these clans are known for their
skills in this Discipline.

Key Attribute is Charisma.

AWE

The character gains a charismatic
aura, becoming a natural leader,
seducer and orator. This power
draws mortal victims near and
stops enemies from attacking.

Key Attribute: Charisma.

DREAD GAZE

The character, by hissing and
baring fangs, instills an
unnatural terror in foes. This
power instills fear in those who
are targeted by it.

Key Attribute: Charisma.

ENTRANCEMENT

The character becomes super­humanly fascinating and the
victim becomes convinced that
the character is his friend, lover
or whatever - a figure to be

protected and adored.

Key Attribute: Appearance.

MAJESTY

Characters with Majesty are
quite literally awesome. Majesty
bestows an almost godlike aura
upon the vampire; mortals fall to

their knees in worship or terror,
and even other supernatural creatures must
struggle with themselves to attack, insult or
be anything other than respectful and
deferential to the character. This power
allows the character to do anything without
fear of reproach.

Key Attribute: Charisma.

PROTEAN

Protean is the Discipline most
closely associated with the shape-

shifting Gangrel, though they
have taught their secrets to a few outside of
their clan. Characters with Protean may
shape-shift into a variety of forms.

EYES OF THE BEAST

This power increases a character’s
visual senses. In some instances it
has been known to cause fear in
mortals that see it in action, as
the user’s eyes turn a sinister red

in colour.

FERAL CLAWS

The character’s nails transform
into long, bestial claws. These
talons are wickedly sharp, able to
rend flesh with ease and even

carve stone and metal with little
trouble. These talons cause Aggravated
damage and are feared by all in combat.

EARTH MELD

Using this Discipline, the
character can burrow into the
earth and remain there,
basically safe, until he or she

reduction rate is doubled when buried, and
the character also gains Health back slowly
(without further blood usage.)

SHAPE OF THE B

not use any items or most other powers while
this Discipline is active.

chooses to emerge. The frenzy

EAST

The character may transform
into a wolf; gaining increased
movement speed and the ability
to cause Aggravated damage with
his or her bite. The character may

MIST FORM

The character transforms into
a cloud of misty vapour. The
character may not attack while in
mist form but can be damaged
only by sunlight or fire.

THAUMATURGY

GENERAL

-

Thaumaturgy is a form of vampiric sorcery
that is divided into a number of Paths, each
with its own focus and special range of spells.
These Disciplines are largely restricted to the
Tremere, although certain other clans are
rumoured to employ them as well, such as the
Assamite viziers and the Koldunic sorcerers of
the Tzimisce.

THAUMATURGY

BLOOD MAGIC

-

The Blood Path is based upon
the manipulation of blood, both
mortal and Kindred vitae.

Key Attribute is Intelligence.

BLOOD RAGE

This power allows the character
to force another to spend blood
against his or her will. This act
has two effects; it reduces the

in him or her, and increases the likelihood
that the target will lose control of the Beast
and enter frenzy.

BLOOD OF P

While this power is active, all other Disciplines
will cost less blood to use.

THEFT OF

serious harm to mortals and enrage vampires.

amount of blood the target has

Key Attribute: Intelligence and Wits.

OTENCY

The character gains such control
over his own blood that he may
effectively concentrate, or focus it,
making his or her blood more
powerful for a limited time.

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

VITAE

A character using this power
can siphon blood from a distant
target, effectively feeding from
the target without any physical
contact. This power can cause

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

CAULDRON OF BLOOD

This dreadful power causes the
blood within the target’s body to
boil and burst into flame. It
causes Aggravated fire damage

of his or her Blood Pool. Few beings can
survive even a single attack with this dreadful
power.

and “burns off ” a large portion

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

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41

THAUMATURGY

LURE OF FLAMES

-

The Path Lure of Flames is based
upon the manipulation of fire;

vampiric existence has been harnessed by the
sorcery of the Tremere.

T

torch. Though this flame provides light, it
does not generate any heat.

FIREBALL

FLAME RING

means that neither the caster nor those they
ally with can be harmed.

IMMOLATE

through it, a traditional bane of

Key Attribute is Intelligence.

ORCH

This power allows the character
to call forth a small magical flame
that floats near his or her head.
The light from this flame is
similar to that of a hand-held

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

The character may hurl mystical
fireballs that engulf their target in
a fiery conflagration. This spell
may hurt friends as well as foes
and so should be used with care.

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

The character generates a pulse
of heat and flames that surrounds
him or her for an instant,
incinerating any nearby enemies.
The mystical nature of the flames

Key Attribute: Intelligence

This power calls a bolt of fire into
existence that strikes a single
enemy, doing extreme damage.

Key Attribute: Intelligence

THAUMATURGY

HANDS OF DESTRUCTION

-

This Path is practiced almost
exclusively by the thaumaturges of

seen outside of that sect, a few non-Sabbat
have managed to learn its secrets.

Humanity.

DECAY

ACIDIC TOUCH

burns to living tissue. In combat, this power
provides the user with an attack causing
Aggravated damage.

Humanity.

ATROPHY

are also irreversible. Enemies so afflicted
suffer a long-term reduction in their physical
Attributes.

Humanity.

the Sabbat. Though it is not widely

Key Attributes: Intelligence and low

This power accelerates the
decrepitude of its target, causing
it to wither, rot or otherwise
break down. Key Attributes:
Intelligence and Low Humanity.

The caster secretes a bilious,
acidic fluid from any portion of
his body. The viscous acid
corrodes metal, destroys wood
and causes horrendous chemical

Key Attributes: Intelligence and Low

This power withers a victim’s
limbs, leaving only a desiccated,
almost mummified husk of
bone and skin. The effects are
instantaneous; in mortals, they

Key Attributes: Intelligence and Low

TURN TO DUST

This fearsome power accelerates
decrepitude in its victims.
Mortals literally crumble to dust
at the mere touch of a skillful

When used on supernatural creatures, this
power causes massive damage. If a vampire
dies from this damage, they too will crumble
to dust, leaving nothing behind to Awaken.

Humanity.

practitioner of this Discipline.

Key Attributes: Intelligence and Low

THAUMATURGY

BLOOD RITUALS

-

Rituals are unique thaumaturgical
formulas, meticulously researched

magical effects. Rituals are less versatile than
Paths, as their effects are singular and
straightforward, but they are better suited
towards specific ends.

HEART OF STONE

PRISON OF ICE

damage.

CALL LIGHTNING

and prepared, that create powerful

Key Attributes: Intelligence and Wits.

While it lasts, this ritual protects
the character from being staked.

Key Attributes: Intelligence

and Wits.

This power engulfs the target in
an icy prison, immobilising him
or her for a short period, during
which time s/he suffers from a
freezing form of Aggravated

Key Attributes: Intelligence and Wits.

The character calls forth a
bolt of lightning from above,
obliterating the intended target.

Key Attributes: Intelligence

and Wits.

IGNORE THE SEARING FLAME

This power temporarily makes
the caster immune to the effects
of fire and, at higher levels,
sunlight.

Key Attribute: Intelligence

and Wits.

SUMMON ELEMENTAL

The caster summons forth a
supernatural creature of the
elements that will remain under
the character’ s control for a short

period of time. Use of this power
has its dangers, as sometimes the summoned
elemental will attack the one who called
it forth.

Key Attribute: Intelligence and Wits.

FAITH

Faith is one of the few truly
powerful personal weapons a

mortal has against his or her
supernatural foes. With Faith, a hunter can
cause a Vampire to turn away or be unable to
approach any further. Although the character
may believe that this power comes from a
higher power, it is actually the strength of his
or her belief that protects him or her.

HEAL

This power draws on a mortal’s
inner strength to repair damage
to his or her body.

Key Attribute: Faith

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43

TRUE F

Faith is able to surround him- or herself with
a protective field that causes damage to any
supernatural creature coming into contact
with it.

AITH

True Faith is belief in a power,
entity, consciousness that is
greater than oneself, and as such,
it is not limited to any particular
religion. A character with True

Key Attribute: Faith

PRAYER

This power allows the character
to focus his or her Faith and
direct it in a ranged attack to
damage an enemy. Those with

power can affect several targets within a
given area.

particularly high levels of this

Key Attribute: Faith.

NUMINA

Numina consists of those strange
and amazing powers which some

throughout the ages, powers such as psychic
abilities, spells and complete faith in a higher
power. Numina and Faith are unique to
mortals. Humans power these abilities with
Mana instead of blood.

INVISIBILITY

while moving about and performing actions.

few mortals have possessed

This power allows the mortal to
hide from plain view, effectively
turning invisible. Higher levels
of this power allows the
character to remain invisible

Key Attribute: Wits.

FLASH

The character can create a flash
of light that temporarily stuns
supernatural creatures and may
even trigger frenzy in vampires.

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

TRUE SIGHT

Mortals with this power can
see through the effects of
powers that hide others from
normal sight, as long as the

character’s True Sight is more
powerful than whatever power is keeping
the other hidden.

Key Attribute: Perception.

C

HAPTER FOUR:

CHAPTER FOUR:

ENEMIES AND

ENEMIES AND

E

QUIPMENT

EQUIPMENT

In your travels, you will encounter many
foes – both living and dead – and be able to
find many treasures ranging from weapons
and armour to artifacts of ancient power.

ENEMIES

GHOULS

Ghouls are mortal

Kindred servants that

have been fed
vampiric blood by

their masters. The

ghoul does not age

as long as it is
supplied with vitae

and gains some

limited vampiric

abilities (most

notably level one

Potence). Since

by sunlight as Kindred are, they make
useful servants and protectors during the
daylight hours. Most ghouls appear as
normal kine, but some long-term ghouls
develop side effects resembling their
domitor’s clan weakness (i.e. a Nosferatu
ghoul may begin sprouting unsightly boils

they aren’t affected

and buboes.) Some ghouls may also learn
one level of a Discipline their masters are
familiar with, but this is very uncommon.
Ghouls have use of any kind of weaponry
usable by humans, along with their learned
Disciplines.

KNIGHTS OF ST. JOHN

Led by Grand Prior Pierre de Varreau,
the Knights of St. John patrol the streets
of Prague, especially the Little Quarter
(Mala Strana), and keep the peace. Usually
heavily armed with armour,
shield and sword, these
mortals are formidable
enemies, especially when
patrolling in
groups. If the
Knights witness
an illegal act, they
will attack.

44

45

SZLACHTA

The Tzimisce use their Vicissitude

Discipline to mould the flesh and bone of

their ghouls into horrific

shapes, most of which

serve the purpose of being

“war-ghouls”, with

pointed bones
erupting from their

arms and great maws
filled with razor-sharp
teeth. The Tzimisce

also create Szlachta

from animals when

useful, including
grotesque forms based on wolves, dogs,
horses, etc. Szlachta use a variety of melee
attacks, involving the use of their crafted
claws/teeth.

GHOUL-RATS

These ghouled rodents grow to large
size, with horribly extruded fangs and
claws. They create large tunnels
throughout their underground lairs, and
are in constant search for blood. They
normally travel in packs.

ZOMBU

The Cappadocians create Zombu from
corpses and fuel them with vampiric vitae.
They usually crumble to dust after three
days but, while animated, are mindless and
capable of only simple labour or
aggression. Their saving grace is
an utter absence of fear; they
will battle any opponent until
destroyed.

DARK A

GES

CAPPADOCIAN KINDRED

These vampires can be found

somewhere in medieval Prague,

where they pursue their endless

research of death. Dressed

in black robes and bearing

a deathly white visage, they

attack using various

Disciplines, mostly
death spells.

HOMUNCULI HOPPER

Homunculi Hoppers are small creatures,
similar to a witches ““familiar,”” created
from a sacrifice of blood and flesh from
their Tremere master. They are simple­minded and mischievous and require
regular feedings of blood from their
creator. These tiny homunculi are usually
no larger than a rat, having large, staring
eyes and opposable thumbs. They attack by
clawing and biting their razor-sharp teeth
into an unsuspecting enemy.

GARGOYLES

The Tremere created the
Gargoyles from the unliving
flesh of captured
Tzimisce, Nosferatu and
Gangrel. A “base”
Kindred is given

various potions

and is the focus of several rituals, after
which a horrific transformation takes place
with great black wings sprouting from the
victim’s back and the addition of large
claws and a demonic visage. Gargoyles are
particularly dangerous opponents and
easily capable of killing a careless vampire.

DEMONHOUNDS

These demon-possessed dogs turn
night-black and grow to disturbing
proportions. Further evidence of their
possessed nature is the sizzling saliva that
drips from their massive fangs and the way
shadows seem to come alive in their
presence. They can be found in packs
guarding infernalist worship sites or
private chambers, and they attack with
vicious bites.

WEREWOLVES

Werewolves are the mortal enemies of

vampires and will normally

attack them on sight.

They can be found in
forested areas, where

they roam hunting

wild beasts and

seeking to
restore the land

to its rightful

natural beauty.

Their claws and

teeth make

deadly weapons, and

some werewolves will

“rage” when highly
damaged, which results in quick, sporadic
attacks with great fury.

ghouls without needing to drink a
vampire’s blood; something all other
ghouls must do in order to retain their
supernatural powers.

SOCIETY OF LEOPOLD MEMBERS

The members of this order are
sworn to kill any creature of the
night. They arm themselves
heavily with the weaponry of the
time, also including weapons
designed to fight vampires such as
holy water, stakes, torches and holy
symbols. They wear the dress of
scholar-priests and soldiers.

GHOUL-SPIDERS

Immense arachnids created by the

feeding of vampiric vitae.

They attack with a

venomous bite and leave

sticky traps of web in

attempts to snare

passers-by to appease

their hunger for blood.

WRAITHS

The wraiths in Redemption
can harm Kindred using
strange life draining spells.
Seen as translucent
apparitions, the wraiths
normally occupy deserted
places of worship or areas
where scenes of torment or
death have occurred.

46

PREMYSL REVENANTS

Revenants are families of ghoul servants
that have been fed vitae for so many
generations that they are now born with a
tiny amount of vampiric blood already in
their system. This allows them to exist as

47

VIPERS

A powerful Setite (using
the Serpentis Discipline)

may disgorge from his

mouth a large

poisonous serpent.

The Setites use

these creations as
guards, patrolling
their temples. Most

are individually marked
with a pattern representing their creator.
They attack with a fierce poisonous bite.

GHOUL-ALLIGATORS

Within the sewers of NYC, the
Nosferatu have drawn all sorts of beasts to
their lairs through the use of Animalism.
The most dangerous of these is the small
number of alligators in the sewers, flushed
there by those in the city who won them
at Coney Island. They’ve since been
transformed by Nosferatu blood into
horrendous creatures of great size and
disfigurement, having enormous maws and
extruded points of bone.

EQUIPMENT AND
TREASURE

Throughout your adventures, the
coterie will find many items – some of
them mundane, others concealing secret
powers. You may also find unique items
such as a Discipline Tome, which will give
your character the ability to learn a new
set of Disciplines that would normally not
be available to him.

Most items need to be equipped in
your inventory to prove useful, and each
has a specific place to go. Other items
require activation, which can be done with
a right-click on the object or by using the
Quick Slot inventory hot-keys.

A few items that you find will require
identification to reveal their secrets. To

identify an item, you must use the Spirit’s
Touch Discipline (which can also be found
as a blood scroll). When you activate this
Discipline, your cursor will change into
the identify icon. Then, bring up the
Inventory Pane of your character, and left
click on the item that you wish to identify.
The item should now be identified, and a
description will appear when you leave
your cursor on top of the item.

WEAPONS

There are many weapons to be found
and used in V:TM Redemption, ranging
from medieval swords to modern assault
rifles.

Weapons’ statistics fall into three
categories: Damage, which determines how
much hurt you can inflict with the
weapon; Accuracy, which adds a bonus to
your chance-to-hit and increases the
chances of a critical strike; and Speed,
which determines how fast your character
can wield his or her weapon. This
information will appear in the rollover text
for each weapon.

Not all weapons are created equal: You
may find rusty and other poor quality
items on your travels as well as fine and
even exquisite weaponry. The quality of
the weapon adds bonuses to the base
weapons statistics. Even modern firearms
can be modified to increase their power
with laser sights and other adaptations.

Some weapons have minimum
Attribute requirements representing a
particular difficulty in using those items:
For example, a Great Sword requires a
high score in your Strength Attribute to
wield. Likewise, characters with low
Strength cannot wear some heavy armour.

All weapons also have three different
stats: Damage, Accuracy and Speed. The
damage number is quite simply the
amount of damage that you will inflict on
an enemy. Accuracy is the amount, which

is added to your base dexterity, when
calculating the chance of you hitting an
enemy. If a weapon has an Accuracy of 10
and you have a Dexterity of 20, then the
game will assume that you are attacking
with a Dexterity of 30. Certain weapons
will have an accuracy bonus while others
will not, and this usually depends on the
type of weapon, it’s size, ability to be
wielded easily, etc. Finally, speed is the
amount of time it takes for your character
to swing the weapon again. If the weapon
that you are wielding has a high number,
then you will be able to swing this
particular weapon faster than one with a
low number, which indicates that the
weapon cannot be swung as easily.

BLADED WEAPONS

Bladed weapons include
anything with a sharp edge
and are primarily found in
the Dark Ages, but they
continue to be used by some
even in the modern nights.
In game terms, these sharp
bladed weapons do Lethal
damage.

One-handed blades include anything
with a sharp edge or pointy tip. One­handed weapons come in a great variety of
shapes and sizes and are the most common
armaments found in the Dark Ages. They
occupy the weapon slot on your character
and can be used with a shield. Examples of
one-handed bladed weapons include the
Dagger, Hand-Axe, Broadsword and the
feared Wooden Stake.

Two-handed weapons are less common
and usually found in the hands of
professional soldiers. Due to their size, these
weapons occupy both the weapon and shield
slots on your character. Heavy, unwieldy,
and quite dangerous examples include the
Great Sword, Battle-Axe and Spear.

BLUNT WEAPONS

Any weapon without a
bladed edge or sharp point
is considered to be a blunt
weapon. Instead of cutting
their targets, these weapons
deliver their damage
through hard, crushing
blows. Painful bruises,
broken bones and ruptured

internal organs are the result of attacks
from these weapons. In game terms, blunt
weapons cause Bashing damage.

One-handed blunt weapons include any
blunt weapon that can be held in one
hand. They occupy only the weapon slot
on your character and can be used with a
shield. Common examples include the
Club, Mace and Flail.

Two-handed blunt weapons are slower
than their one-handed cousins but are
capable of delivering much more damage
in any given attack. These weapons occupy
both the weapon and shield slots on your
character. Examples of these weapons
include the Quarterstaff and Warhammer.

RANGED WEAPONS

In both the Dark Ages
and modern nights, there
are many weapons that can
inflict damage from afar.
These weapons are
collectively referred to as
ranged weapons. Some
examples from the Dark
Ages include the Short Bow

and Crossbow. Modern examples include
everything from a simple Pistol to such
heavy weapons as the Rocket Launcher. A
unique component of ranged weapons is
Ammo, each ranged weapon uses a certain
type of Ammo and becomes useless once
that supply has been exhausted. Special
Ammo types can enhance, or even alter, a
ranged weapons affect.

48

49

THROWN W

Thrown weapons are a special class of
ranged weapons. These items are all
individually thrown at an opponent and
disappear after one use. These weapons
can be activated by equipping them in the
character’s hands or by using the Quick
Inventory slots. Examples include Greek
Fire, Holy Water, Concussion Grenades
and Satchel Charges.

EAPONS

ARMOUR

There are many types of armour
available in V:TM – Redemption, ranging
from simple leather clothing through full
Gothic plate and modern tailored Kevlar.
Just like weapons, certain types of armour
may require your character to have a
minimum level in an Attribute (normally
Strength) to be able to equip them.

Each piece of armour provides soak
bonuses against Bashing, Lethal and
Aggravated damage. Some special armour
will also provide protection from
environmental damage and even True Faith.
Such special armour is very rare indeed.

PIECES OF ARMOUR

Sets of armour usually
come in individual pieces
that can be equipped in the
different slots of your
inventory. Helmets need to
placed on the character’s
head; gloves and gauntlets
on their arms and hands;

character’s body slot: Thus, a character
may have a metal chest plate, leather
gloves and no headgear at all as his
armour. Examples of armour include
Chain and Plate Mail, Tailored Armour,
Full Helms and Motorcycle Helmets.

and large sets onto the

SHIELDS

Shields are a special class
of armour that is equipped
in the character’s
shield/utility slot. If you
want to use a weapon that
requires both hands, such as

the Halberd, you will not be able to equip
a shield. Likewise, you may have to choose
between equipping a shield and equipping
a utility item such as a torch. Shields are
more common in the medieval period than
today, with the exception of police riot
shields. Example shields include the
Buckler and the Footman’s Shield.

OTHER EQUIPMENT

Your character can find many other
pieces of equipment in the World of
Darkness. Some of these items are merely
cosmetic, others can be powerful indeed.
Most of these items need to be equipped
in the appropriate inventory slot for their
power to take affect. Others require
activation by right clicking on the object
in question or activating them from a
Quick Item slot with keys F1 – F5.

UTILITY ITEMS

The most common utility items that
you will find are sources of light. Such
items can be equipped in your character’s
utility/shield slot thus negating the use of
a shield or two-handed weapon. Examples
include a Torch and a Flashlight.

RINGS AND JEWELLERY

Rings and jewellery are often merely
cosmetic, but many conceal hidden
powers. You will need to equip rings on
the character’s hands, bracelets on his or
her arms and a necklace about his or her
neck. You may find magic jewellery that
alters your character’s Attributes, makes
the use of Disciplines easier and many
other powers.

POTIONS AND VIALS

Ranging from witches brews to modern
pharmaceuticals, potions can save a
character’s life. Humans can use a range of
salves and cures ranging from Herbal
Salves (which restore lost Health) to
Disease Vaccines (which cure infections.)
Vampires scorn such mortal concerns,
carefully hoarding vials of vitae and other
stranger blood with which to restore their
strength. Kindred can find vitae in many
forms, including simple bottles and
mystically created Bloodstones. Not all
vitae is simple blood, and you may find
strange blood vials with unpredictable
effects such as Fae Blood or Elder Ichor.

To use a potion, vial or stranger source
of blood, right-click on the item in your
inventory or use the Quick Slot hot-keys.

SCROLLS

Scrolls are another product of sorcerous
research – the essence of a Discipline or
Numina encoded onto paper, their power
stored to be released at a later time.
Human mages have created Numina scrolls
that temporarily awaken the power of
human potential, and Kindred alchemists
have made Discipline scrolls (also known
as bloodscrolls) that unlock powerful
Disciplines to any Cainite.

To use a scroll, either activate it from a
Quick Slot or right-click on it from your
inventory. The power’s icon will appear in
your Active Discipline slot. You can use
that power once, activating it as you
would any other Discipline (right-clicking
on an appropriate target). Using a scroll
costs neither blood nor Mana, and you
require no ability in the power being
activated, so these items are greatly prized.

DISCIPLINE TOMES

These rare books contain the Cainite
wisdom of the ages, revealing secrets of the
blood that unlock great power. Each fabled
tome is named after a specific Discipline

so, according to legend, there is one for
each Discipline group. The character that
studies such a tome will unlock its
Discipline group and be able to develop
powers from it.

TREASURE

In addition to items that you can
equip, you can find many forms of
treasure in the game: Such treasures range
from negotiable currency (silver coins to
modern cash), precious stones and even
gold bullion. All of this treasure can be
sold to merchants to allow your characters
to buy the equipment they need.

ARTIFACTS

Unique and extremely rare, artifacts are
handcrafted items with mystical powers.
Every artifact is a one-of-a-kind creation.
There are a number of artifacts scattered
throughout the world, but examples
include the Ainkurn Sword, the Monocle
of Clarity and any number of Holy Relics.

AINKURN SWORD

An ancient Cainite relic, this blade is
rumoured to have been quenched in the
blood of an Antediluvian during its
forging. The blade is entirely black, with a
matte look.

MONOCLE OF CLARITY

This device, created by the Tremere for
the purpose of unmasking Nosferatu spies,
appears a heavy glass monocle framed in
gold and silver filigree.

HOLY RELICS

Items imbued with the venerated power
of Faith, the use of these weapons is limited
to mortals, as simply being in the presence
of one of these relics causes pain and
discomfort to most supernatural creatures.

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CHAPTER FIVE:

CHAPTER FIVE:

MULTIPLAYER AND

MULTIPLAYER AND

STORYTELLING

STORYTELLING

To begin a Multiplayer game, select the
Multiplayer option from the Main Menu
and then choose your method of
connection: LAN or Internet.

LAN GAMES

LAN games are played over a Local
Area Network. You will not need to login
(assuming your computer is constantly
connected) and will be taken directly to
your Haven when you choose this option.
In a LAN game, you will only be able to
chat and play with other users that are on
the same LAN as you are.

Should you wish to find a wider range
of games and players, you will need to
connect to the Internet via WON.

INTERNET GAMES

Vampire: The Masquerade – Redemption

supports Internet play exclusively through
the World Opponent Network (WON). By
selecting Internet from the Multiplayer
screen, you will be taken to the WON login
screen. Here, you are asked to input a name
and password. Currently registered WON
players may use their existing account info
to log in. New players not yet registered
with WON must click on the Create
Member button to create a new WON
account, which is free of charge. The
process of creating a new WON account
takes place with your Internet browser,
which will open automatically should you
select this option. You must select a WON
name, password and provide (optional)
information to create an account.

Remember: Both your User Name and

Password are case sensitive.

The panels on the right-hand side of
the login screen will take you to the
websites of WON, Activision, Nihilistic
and White Wolf.

THE CRYPT AND
CHARACTER
CREATION

Whether you intend to be a Storyteller
or player, the first screen you visit will be
the Crypt, where you can select a previously
created character or create a new one.

On the right-hand side of the Crypt will
be a list of all your available characters:
listed by name and clan affiliation. If you
highlight one of the character names, a
summary of his or her abilities as well as a
full-body character portrait will appear on
the left-hand side of the screen. If you have
a lot of characters in your Crypt, use the
scroll bar to peruse the list of names until
you find the one that you are looking for.

Should you wish to play that character,
highlight it and hit OK.

If you wish to permanently remove a
character from your Crypt, hit DELETE.

To begin creating a new character, hit
CREATE.

To return to the Main Menu, hit
CANCEL.

CREATING A NEW
CHARACTER

There are several stages to creating a new
character, most of which are fairly self­explanatory.

Should you decide you do not want to
create a character right now, hit the CANCEL
button to return to the Main Menu.

NAMING YOUR CHARACTER

Your character’s name is important in
that it will be how you are identified to
others. The name you choose will colour
people’s initial expectations of your
character; for example other players will
treat you differently if you call yourself
Player*Killer rather than Lady Lilian
D’Arcy.

Choose a name that you are
comfortable with and that suits the style of
play you most enjoy.

SELECTING A TYPE OF
CHARACTER

The type of character you play
determines your supernatural status and
what powers and vulnerabilities you might
have. You can play either as a Vampire, a
Human or a Ghoul.

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Vampires begin play with the most
basic vampiric abilities (Feed and Blood
Healing) but are able to spend starting
points on three Discipline groups
according to their clan.

Ghouls are caught in the no-man’s land
between vampires and the mortal herd.
Gifted with blood and power by their
masters, they can use basic vampiric
Disciplines, according to their master’s
clan, but cannot feed like a true vampire.
They must rely on stored blood (vials,
etc.) to restore their dark power.

A Human is one of the herd, but no
common mortal. Through faith,
dedication or strange events, you can
access the awakened powers known as
Faith and Numina. Lacking the great
supernatural powers of vampires, or even
ghouls, a human character has to rely on
equipment for many tasks, such as healing
or defending themselves. A human
character does not have a Blood Pool but,
instead, relies on Mana that regenerates
slowly over time. One major advantage of
a human character is that he will not
frenzy when damaged. As a result, the
frenzy bar is replaced by your Faith level,
which indicates the level of strength and
belief that you are crusading for the good
forces in the world.

SELECTING A CLAN

If you are a vampire or a ghoul, your
choice of clan is very important. (Humans
may not choose a clan.) Your clan
determines your character’s blood lineage
from Caine and defines his or her
supernatural abilities: As a ghoul, you are
selecting the clan of your domitor
(vampire master) whose blood defines your
supernatural abilities. Nine of the great
Cainite clans are available to play in
multiplayer games.

STARTING C

Brujah - Celerity, Potence and Presence
Cappadocian - Auspex, Fortitude and Mortis
Gangrel - Animalism, Fortitude and Protean
Giovanni - Dominate, Mortis and Potence
Malkavian - Auspex, Dementation and Obfuscate
Nosferatu - Animalism, Obfuscate and Potence
Toreador - Auspex, Celerity and Presence
Tremere - Auspex, Dominate and Thaumaturgy
Ventrue - Dominate, Fortitude and Presence
Caitiff - Any

Each blood lineage defines itself
through the Disciplines its members excel
in. Each clan has immediate access to
three Discipline groups in addition to the
common powers of vampires, and you may
only spend your starting points on these
powers. Choose your clan wisely, as it will
determine your character’s future progress.

There are also the Caitiff, clanless
vampires, who can chose from the full­range of Disciplines but pay greater
experience costs due to the lack of
refinement in their blood. The starting
Disciplines that come with the blood are
always the cheapest for you to learn and
enhance, other Disciplines will always to
harder for you to master.

More details on the vampire clans can
be found in Chapter Six: the World of
Darkness.

LAN DISCIPLINES

DEFINING YOUR TRAITS

The character creation screen functions
exactly the same as the character
advancement screen, which is used in
Single Player (See Chapter Two).

Next to each Attribute or Discipline
that you can spend experience to increase
will be a cross; clicking on that cross
spends the experience necessary to raise
that Trait to the next level. The rollover
text will provide full details of the cost
and, for Disciplines, the minimum
requirements.

Once you have spent your initial
experience point allocation, hit OK to
continue.

LAN GAMES:
LOBBY AND CHAT

When you join a LAN game, you will
begin in the LAN lobby. At the top left of
the screen will be a list of all the players
on the LAN, and to the right will be a list
of all the games currently up. The two
windows at the bottom of the screen are
for general (Lobby) chat and in-game chat.
To chat with other players on the L AN,
enter your text in the window to the left,
and to chat to only the other players in the
same game as you enter type the text in
the window to the right. You can use TAB
to switch between the two boxes.

The Create Game button allows you to

create your own game.

The Player Setup button takes you back

to the Haven.

The Join Game button allows you to
join a game that is running. First highlight
the name of the game in the window to
the top left, and then click this button.

The Start Game button allows
you to launch a game you have
created or joined.

The Game Options button will show
you additional details of the game you
have joined.

The Cancel button takes you back to
the main menu.

STARTING AND JOINING A
LAN GAME

To join a L AN game that is already in
progress, highlight the name of the game,
and click the Join Game button. After a
few seconds, you will have joined the game
and be able to chat to the other players.
When you are ready to start a game, click
on the Start Game button.

Note: The Start Game button will be
greyed out until the host/Storyteller has
started a game.

To create your own game, click on the
Create Game button to go to the game
creation screen.

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INTERNET GAMES:
THE WON LOBBY
AND ROOMS

After logging in to the WON network,
you will be taken to the Creating and
Choosing a Room screen. Here there will
be a list of the rooms currently open to
play Vampire in. The first room is always
the Lobby, which is a permanent room
that is always available. The other rooms
on the list are all player created.

CHOOSING AND CREATING
YOUR OWN ROOM

To join a room, highlight it’s name,
and then click on the Join Room button.

To create your own room, click on the
Create Room button. You will be asked to
name your room and can create a
password for it should you choose.

Note: The Vampire Lobby is also
accessible from your Internet browser, go to
http://vampire.won.net/ and select Elysium
Chat, and you will be able to chat with
other players without launching Vampire.

CHATTING, S
JOINING A G

Once you have joined a room, you will
be able to chat with other players and
create or join a game.

The windows at the top of the screen
show the name of the room you have
joined, the players in that room and any
games that are currently running.

The two windows at the bottom of the
screen are for general room chat and in­game chat. To chat to other players on the
LAN, enter your text in the window to the
left, and to chat to only the other players
in the same game as you, enter text in the
window to the right. You can use TAB to
switch between the two boxes. You can
only use in-game chat for a game that you
have joined.

The Create Game button allows you to
create your own game.

The Player Setup button takes you back
to the Haven.

The Join Game button allows you to
join a game that is running. First highlight
the name of the game in the window to
the top left, and then click this button.

The Start Game button allows you to
launch a game you have created or joined.

The Game Options button will show
you additional details of the game you
have joined.

The Cancel button takes you back to
the main menu.

TARTING AND

AME

CREATE A GAME

When you create your own game, you

have access to several options.

First, you should choose the chronicle
you want to play from the list of available
levels. Two of the chronicles are
prescripted, which means that all of the
events and story line have been setup prior
to the game launch. This makes it easier
for the Storyteller, since s/he will merely
have to maintain the story or embellish it
if s/he so chooses. The two chronicles that
are prescripted are “To Curse the
Darkness,” which is a Dark Ages tale, and
“Leaves of Three,” which takes place in
modern day New York. For the more
seasoned Storyteller, we have also included
blank chronicles, which can be filled and
altered to the Storyteller’s imagination.
These empty levels are “London by
Night,” “New York by Night,” “Prague by
Night” and “Vienna by Night.” Also, if
you simply wish to chat with other players
in one of the game levels, we have also
included empty salons. These are small
one-room areas, where players can enter
and interact as their vampiric characters.
The salons that we have included are Dark
Ages Inn, Prince’s Mansion and the Rave
Club. Finally, if you have a chronicle that
you have saved previously, you can choose
to load this at this time as well.

You can also password lock your game
by entering a password in the window near
the middle of the screen. To enable a
password only game, click on the box until
it is red. You can give this password to
your friends so that only they can join
your games.

In this screen, you can set toggles that
affect the game as a whole:

The Co-op/Combative toggle sets
whether the players in your game will be
able to attack one another or not. The
default “on” setting is cooperative.

The Track Humanity toggle sets
whether you want the players in your game
to suffer Humanity loss for evil actions or
not. The default “on” setting means that
Humanity will be lost for evil acts.

The ST Moderation setting allows
whether or not the host can switch to ST
mode during the course of the game.
Thus, the host can choose to either play as
one of the players or as the ST/Player. The
default setting of “on” allows the host to
become the ST at any time.

Finally, the Automatic Storyteller
option will enable java scripts that are
built into the chronicle. The host can
choose to either have complete control of
all story events in the game or allow java
scripts to play out and sit back and watch
the game events transpire. With the
default setting of “on,” all scripts will be
enabled.

When you are ready to begin, click on
the Create Game button. You will be
returned to the chat room you were in, and
your game will be visible to other players.

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57

PLAYING IN A
MULTIPLAYER GAME

The controls for a multiplayer game are
essentially the same as those used in the
single player chronicle. You move the
cursor around the screen, clicking on
selected targets to take an action. The core
differences arise from interactions with
other players and the Storyteller.

CONTROLS

The core controls for your character are
identical to the ones used in single
player games

Your character portrait has been moved
to the left-hand side of the screen. In place
of the portrait window in the centre of the
screen is the in-game chat window. This
area will display messages from other
players and the Storyteller.

CHAT

/TEXT INTERFACE

Replacing the character portrait
window is the new chat window. Here
messages from the other players and the
Storyteller will be displayed along with
rollover text. To chat to other players, hit
“Enter” or click in the text box below the
chat window, type your message and hit
enter to send it. The message will appear
as being spoken by your character.

There are several special chat commands
that you can use in multiplayer games.

CHAT CONTROLS FOR
MULTIPLAYER GAMES

(you must first hit “Enter” before doing
any of these commands)

Whisper /
Whisper to ST . (fullstop)
Team Say , (comma)
Emote : wave, bow, menace,

taunt
ST Emote ; (doesn’t show name)
Shout !
Roll one % (then hit Enter)
10-sided Die
Roll multiple %X (roll X d10s
10-sided Dice where the outputs will

be comma delimited)

ROLLING DICE

For those that are used to the pen and
paper game, the ST can use the 10-sided
die commands in order to make it easier to
make a roll. To use this command, bring
up the chat window, type “%,” and hit
“Enter” to roll one 10-sided die, or type
“%X,” where X is the amount of dice that
you want to roll (e.g. if you type “%5”
and then hit “Enter,” you will get five
different rolls shown on your screen.)

GAME MENU

Hit Escape to bring up the Game
Menu: This does not pause a multiplayer
game. The Game Menu has many of the
same controls as the single player menu.

Resume: This returns you to the game
in progress.

Save As: As a player, this forces a save
of your character (to protect it from a
crash or power surge, for example.) As a
Storyteller this saves the current state of
the chronicle into your multiplayer saved
games folder. As the ST, you can then load
this chronicle up in the future if you wish
to continue the game over another gaming
session.

Revive: If your character dies during
the course of the game, you can choose to
revive, which will place you at the start of
the chronicle.

Options: This brings up the game
Options menu.

Quit: This exits the game you are in.

STORYTELLING A
MULTIPLAYER GAME

The Storyteller has great power as well
as great responsibility. As a Storyteller, you
have great control over the game, being able
to alter events, add or delete objects or
actors and basically control the game world.

CORE STORYTELLER TOOLS

In Storyteller mode, you have a
different set of controls over the game
than do players. All objects in the world
will highlight under your cursor. Click on
an object to centre your camera view over
it; then you can use your Storyteller tools
to alter, delete or otherwise affect it.

To follow players through the
chronicle, you can either click on their
characters to attach your camera view to
them or use TAB to switch your view
between all the characters in the game.
Thus, if you happen to lose a player
character, simply hit TAB, and you will
eventually find him.

There are several controls which are
exclusive only to the Storyteller in a
multiplayer game:

STORY TELLER

End Possession Tab
Place ST Head Right click on

Toggle Player and \
ST hud
Actor Pane Toggle A
Object Pane Toggle O
Controls Pane Toggle V
Locations Pane Toggle L
Scenes Pane Toggle S
Jump to location ALT+ Right

Toggle Possession P

CONTROLS

target position

Click

OBJECT PANE

The Object Pane gives you the ability
to add new objects, props or actors to the
world. You can highlight an item from any
of the Object Pane lists and create it in the
world at your current location. The item
will immediately be apparent to any
players present and will interact with the
world normally.

Create Object: Hitting this button
creates the selected item at your current
location. The item you have selected appears
in a text box above the main display.

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Short/Long List: This toggles the
display between short (list of necessary
items in a particular chronicle) and long
(all the items in the game).

Show Only Objects: This sets the
Object Pane display to show only objects –
items that can be picked up and used by
characters such as weapons and armour.

Show Only Actors: This sets the Object
Pane display to show only actors – NPCs
that can move and interact with the world,
for example enemies.

Show Only Props: This sets the Object
Pane display to show only props – the
background objects that add details to the
world, such as trees.

A

CTOR PANE

The Actor Pane shows all the actors
(NPCs) at your character’s current location.
The item you have currently selected
appears in a text box above the main display.

In the main window, all the actors that
are in your current location will be shown,
along with the current state of their Health.

Go To: This button shifts your camera
point-of-view to the currently selected
actor. To do this, click on the actor’s name
that you want to view, and then click on
the “go to” button.

Possess: This button allows you to
possess an actor so that you have access to
his or her abilities. Once you have
possessed an actor, any text messages you
type will appear to come from that
character, not your own. To possess an
actor, click on the actor’s name that you
want to possess, and then click on the
“possess” button.

Revive: This button instantly revives a
character from death or torpor. It is most
useful to revive fallen PCs but can restore
an NPC also.

Set Stance: This sets a character stance
between Talk, Neutral and Enemy.

Talk: This stance sets the NPC as a talk
only character. The PCs will not be able to
attack them.

Neutral: An NPC in Neutral stance will
not be available either to talk or to be
attacked by the players. This effectively
sets them as background.

Enemy: An NPC set to Enemy stance
can be targeted by player attacks and will
actively seek to harm the players in the
game. Any opponents should be set to
Enemy mode.

Delete: This deletes the selected from
the game. You cannot delete player
characters.

Kill: This automatically kills the
selected character.

LOCATIONS PANE

The Locations Pane shows all the
locations available in the current chronicle.
The one you have selected appears in a
text box above the main display.

The list shows all the locations in the
game, the one you are currently in is
marked with a star (“*”).

Go To: This instantaneously moves
your character to the selected location

Jump All Players: This command moves
all the players in the game to the selected
location.

SCENE PANE

The Scene Pane shows the pre-scripted
scenes in the chronicle. Scenes govern the
players’ quests, as well as unlocking certain
location in the chronicle.

Advance Scene: This advances the
current scene to the next and makes all
necessary changes to the game world.

Skip to Scene: This jumps the chronicle
to the selected scene, skipping any
intermediary scenes.

CONTROLS PANE

The Controls Pane gives you meta­controls over access to the game.

AUTOMATIC S

TORYTELLER

CONTROLS

AI Enabled: This toggle turns enemy
AI on or off.

Lock Game: This locks the game from
any new players who attempt to join.

Lock Outside Communication: This
locks any messages from outside the game
(i.e. from the chat room) from being
displayed.

Elapsed Time: This shows the current
length of time you have been in the game.

Player List and Kick: This display
shows all the players in the game. The kick
button to the right allows you to ban the
selected player from your game.

In addition to these windows, there are
several controls available from the main
Storyteller UI.

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PAUSE G

preventing characters from moving outside
of a restricted radius. This is useful for
running conversational scenes, while other
players are elsewhere. You can resume the
game by clicking this button a second time.

AME

This pauses all action in the game,

STORYTELLER VIEWER

By hitting the Storyteller Viewer
button, you create the Storyteller head:
This is invisible to players and can be used
to manipulate the environment without
your character being present. There are
several uses for the Storyteller Viewer,
including the following:

The Storyteller interface was designed
to be similar to the normal player interface
(so it would be easy and familiar to the
players), which means a third-person
camera centring on your currently
controlled character. As the Storyteller,
you have the ability to select just about
anything as your current character
(players, NPCs, enemies, lamp-posts, etc).
This basically “selects” the object and
allows the Storyteller to take action upon
it, one of which could be deleting it.
When this happens, you need an “object”
for your view to be centred around
(since the previous object is now gone),
and so the Storyteller Viewer is spawned
at this position.

The main usage, however, is as a 3D
“pointer.” You can spawn the Storyteller
Viewer at your current position (say your
camera was currently following behind a
player as he or she was walking around
town) and use it to specify the position at
which you’ll be adding a creature or
object. You can walk the head around, just
like a normal character, and can also
teleport it instantly to locations you see on
the screen by using CTRL and right click.

ADVANCEMENT

When you hit this button, the
Advancement screen opens for each
character (including your character) in
turn. The multiplayer Advancement screen
is identical to the single player screen save
that, as the Storyteller, there is a plus-cross
next to the character’s earned experience.
If you click on this, a dialog box will
open, allowing you to assign a specific
experience award to that character.

You can also spend experience for that
character directly by clicking on any of the
crosses. When you are done, hit OK to
move onto the next character.

Finally, the buttons to the left of the
screen (replacing the character mode
portrait) give you direct control over the
item you have selected.

POSSESS

This allows you to possess an actor of a
player in the game, giving you full control
over his or her movements and abilities.
Once you have possessed an actor, any text
you enter as chat will appear to come from
him or her and not your character.

REVIVE

This instantly revives the selected
character, bringing them back form death
or torpor.

S

TANCE

This sets the actors stance between
Talk, Neutral and Enemy. Be careful
setting a stance other than Enemy for a
player character, as this can detrimentally
affect game play.

DELETE

This allows you to delete the currently
selected item from the game world. You
may not delete player characters.

CHARACTER MODE

When you switch into character mode,
the normal character screen replaces your
Storyteller tools. The only exception being
that underneath your character portrait is
a button that returns you to Storyteller
mode. You can go into character mode
either in your character body (to
experience the game as a player would) or
in the form of any of the NPCs.

CREATING YOUR
OWN MULTIPLAYER
CHRONICLE

The simplest way to create your own
chronicle is to use one of the empty hubs
we have included with the game (each
based on the single player chronicle but
empty of monsters, quests and items) and
then populate it using the Storyteller tools.
With the ST tools, you can easily go
through the level and place enemies at
your leisure. Once you have completed
your own version of the level, you can save
it by hitting the Escape key and then
clicking on Save.

For more advanced users, the overall
engine/toolset, which is known as the
“Nod Engine,” will be released to allow
players to create more complex chronicles.

Within the Nod Engine, the player will
have access to the “Codex” tools, which
you can use to create your own scripted
events and alter the parameters of various
facets of the game. The programming
language of the Codex tools is based on
Java, with lots of special native function
calls that allow you to interact with the
game engine.

The editing tool, which is known as the
“Embrace,” is based on QERadiant, which
is used to edit Quake levels. It is basically
a brush-based system where you place
walls, floors, etc., and the editor compiles
all the information to create a runnable
level file for you. Please note that it is not
BSP-based like Quake, so although the
tool looks the same on the surface, the
resulting level files are not compatible and
not at all similar.

Those of you that are interested in
creating your own chronicle should take a
look at Activision’s V:TM Redemption site
(http://www.activision.com/games/vampire/)
and other online sources for information.

PLEASE NOTE: the use of the
“Embrace” and “Codex” is up to the user
discretion and risk. Help with the editor is
not supported by Activision Customer
Support.

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CHAPTER SIX:

CHAPTER SIX:

T

HE WORLD OF

THE WORLD OF

DARKNESS

DARKNESS

The world of V ampire: The

Masquerade is not our own, though it is

close enough for fearsome discomfort.
Rather, the world inhabited by vampires is
like ours, but through a looking glass,
darkly. Evil is palpable and ubiquitous in
this world; the Final Nights are upon us,
and the whole planet teeters on a razor’s
edge of tension. It is a world of darkness.

Superficially, the World of Darkness is
like the “real” world we all inhabit. More
present than in our world, though, is the
undercurrent of horror — our world’s ills
are all the more pronounced in the World of
Darkness. Its fears are more real. Its
governments are more degenerate. Its
ecosystem dies a bit more night. And
vampires exist.

Many of the differences between our
world and the World of Darkness stem from
these vampires, or Kindred as they refer to
themselves. Ancient and inscrutable, the
Kindred toy with humanity as a cat does
with a trapped mouse. The immortal
Kindred manipulate society to stave off the
ennui and malaise that threaten them
nightly or to guard against the machinations
of centuries-old rivals. Immortality is a curse
to vampires, for they are locked in stagnant
existences and dead bodies.

THE GENERATIONS
AND CAINE

One way the Damned distinguish
themselves is through a combination of age
and generation, or how far removed a
Kindred is from the progenitor vampire,
Caine. Young vampires must prove
themselves to their elders to be afforded any
bit of status, and Kindred society is often as
stagnant and stultifying as the immortal
Damned themselves. There is a small degree
of mobility, however, as elder Kindred are
always looking for assets and allies who may
aid them against their rivals in the Jyhad.

The greatest status is accorded to the
Antediluvians, vampires of the Third
Generation. Most vampires consider these
Kindred to be legendary — certainly, none
has been verifiably seen in the modern
nights. The lowest rung of status is held by
rank neonates and the clanless Caitiff, those
claimed by no clan or with blood too weak
to trace a proper lineage.

• Antediluvians: These ancient
vampires, if they exist at all, are likely the
most powerful creatures in the world.
Members of the Third Generation, the
Antediluvians are only two steps removed
from the First Vampire, Caine.

Antediluvians, when they choose to rise from
their long sleep, affect all with whom they
come in contact; according to the few
fractured accounts of their doings, they
possess virtually godlike power. In Kindred
legend, there were 13 original Antediluvians,
though some have allegedly been destroyed.
Their eternal struggle, the Jyhad, touches all
Kindred, and innumerable layers of
manipulation and deception make the plots
of these Ancients almost imperceptible.

• Methuselahs: If the Antediluvians are
the Kindred’s gods, the terrible Methuselahs
are demigods and avatars. At a point
between a vampire’s thousandth and two­thousandth year, a grave change overtakes
the Kindred. Sometimes the change is
physical, while at other times, it is mental or
emotional. Whatever the nature of the
change, the end result is that the vampire no
longer bears any semblance of humanity.
Having truly moved from the earthly into
the realm of the supernatural, the
Methuselahs often retire into the earth,
where they may slumber, away from the
thirsty fangs of younger vampires. Their
powers are so great, however, that they
continue to direct their inscrutable plans
mentally, communicating magically or
telepathically (and almost always invisibly)
with their minions.

Kindred greatly fear the Methuselahs,
who are accorded any number of horrifying
characteristics. Rumours speak of
Methuselahs whose skin has become stone,
of everything from hideous disfigurements to
unearthly beauty that cannot be looked
upon. Some are believed to drink only
vampire blood, while others control the fates
of entire nations from their cold tombs.

• Elders: Elders are Kindred who have
existed for hundreds of years and typically
range from sixth to eighth generation. With
centuries of accumulated cunning and a
terrible thirst for power, elder Kindred are
the most physically active participants in

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the Jyhad — they do not suffer the long fits
of torpor that hamper the Methuselahs and
Antediluvians, but they are not so powerless
or easily manipulated as the younger
Kindred. The term “elder” itself is a bit
subjective; a Kindred who qualifies as an
elder in the New World might be just
another ancilla in Europe or older corners
of the Earth. Elders keep a stranglehold on
the Kindred power structure, preventing
younger vampires from attaining positions
of influence by exercising control they have
maintained for decades, if not centuries.

• Ancillae: Ancillae are relatively young
vampires (between one- and two-hundred
years of unlife) who have proved themselves
as valuable members of Kindred society.
Ancillae are the lackeys to greater Kindred
and — if they’re clever or lucky —
tomorrow’s elders. Ancilla is the rank
between neonate and elder, signifying that
the Kindred has cut her teeth (so to speak)
but lacks the age and experience to become
a true master of the Jyhad. Because the
world’s population has grown so in the last
two centuries, the vast majority of vampires
are ancillae or neonates (see below).

• Neonates: Neonates var y from newly
released fledglings to indolent Kindred of a
hundred years or more. Marked by the
stigma of not yet having proved themselves
to the elders, neonates are inexperienced
vampires who might one night make
something of themselves — but, more
likely, will fall as pawns in the schemes of
the other undead.

• Fledglings: Also known more loosely
as “childer” (although every vampire except
Caine is someone’s childe), fledglings are
newly reborn vampires still under the
tutelage and protection of their sires, the
vampires who created them. Fledglings are
not considered full members of Kindred
society and are often treated disrespectfully
or as the sire’s property. When her sire
decides her childe is ready, the fledgling
may become a neonate, subject to the
prince’s approval.

THE CLANS AND SECTS

If the myth of the Antediluvians is to be

believed, Caine sired a number

of progeny, who then sired

childer themselves. These

childer, accordingly of the

Third Generation, were the
progenitors of the modern

clans, and all vampires

descended from them
shared common Traits and
characteristics. Certainly this

is true to some degree, as

each clan has a set of vampiric

powers its members learn
more readily than others,

and each clan also has a distinguishing
weakness or character flaw by which its
members may be identified.

Lineage is important to the Kindred.
Though they are loners and typically shun
each other’s company by nature, the
Damned place great value on their heritage.
The honour a vampire is due stems from
clan as much as generation, and even the
most dull-witted Kindred is afforded some
modicum of respect if his legacy demands it.

There are 13 known clans, each
supposedly spawned by one of the
Antediluvians, but whispers circulate
through the Kindred world about “lesser”
clans or “bloodlines” that branched off from
their parent genealogies somewhere in the
nights of history. Few vampires have ever
met Kindred claiming to hail from these
mysterious bloodlines, and few of these have
turned out to be anything more than Caitiff
with delusions of self-importance. For more
information on the clans themselves, please
refer to the section on clans which is located
later in this manual.

Sects are groups of vampires that
supposedly share a common ideology. They
are a modern contrivance but an important
one. Most vampires belong to one sect or
another; others claim independence, no
preference or that they are affiliated with

their clan, not a sect. The sect known as the
Camarilla is arguably the largest and most
prevalent in the modern nights, though its
rival the Sabbat has recently made
considerable inroads against it and still
opposes the Camarilla at every turn.

The Camarilla came about in an attempt
to hold vampire society together against the
power of the Inquisition in the 15th century.
Under its iron guidance, the Tradition of the
Masquerade grew from a cautious suggestion
to the guiding principle of Kindred life.
Even tonight, the Camarilla concerns itself
with the enforcement of the Masquerade,
hiding among humans lest it be destroyed.

The Camarilla’s archenemy is the
monstrous sect known as the Sabbat. While
the “Kindred” of the Camarilla espouse
concealing themselves among mortals and
maintaining the tattered vestiges of their
Humanity, the Sabbat favours a different
philosophy. Not content to cower like beaten
dogs from humans nor to act as pawns in the
schemes of their elders, Sabbat vampires
instead prefer to revel in their undead nature.

THE BEAST AND
HUMANITY

Many of a Kindred’s first nights are
spent learning what it means to be
undead. The childe inevitably meets her
Beast — the wild, uncontrollable monster
inside her that thrives on terror and
bloodlust — and either falls to frenzy or
learns early on how to subjugate its wild
call. The sire may offer aid and guidance
in thwarting the Beast, or he may watch as
it overtakes his childe, then admonish her
for weakness afterward. It is now that the
childe learns that undeath is indeed a curse
— despite the power brought by the
Embrace, she is no longer entirely herself
and must forever be wary of the Hunger
that burns inside her.

Also at this time, a Kindred learns —
too late! — to appreciate the emotional
capacity possessed by mortals. As a
vampire, the childe’s heart has died,
leaving her a cold corpse incapable of truly
feeling anything. Most vampires
compensate by making themselves feel,
conjuring up memories of emotions long
dead. These last vestiges of humanity are

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all that separate them from ravening rage,
from falling to the Beast completely.
Desperation is all that remains in the hearts
of many vampires, as they realise what they
have lost as their mortal selves died.

The unlife of a vampire is a litany of
bleak revelations. Many Kindred cannot
cope with the terrible new world of night
into which they have been reborn and
choose to meet the obliterating rays of the
sun rather than continue their existences.

THE TRADITIONS

The Six Traditions that form the laws of
vampire society are believed to have been
passed down since the wars that slew the
Second Generation. They are rarely written
down, but they have never been forgotten,
and they are known by all Kindred in some
form. Even vampires who scorn the
Traditions know them; though their specific
wordings may vary, the intent behind them
never falters.

It is a popular Camarilla conceit that a
sire recite the Traditions to his childe before
that childe is recognised as a neonate. Some
princes stage grand spectacles to honour new
childer’s transition from fledgling to neonate,
while others need not even witness the
release, trusting the sire with the proper
execution. Almost all childer learn the
Traditions well before this recitation, but the
act is accorded great symbolism and gravity
in Camarilla affairs. Staunch supporters of
the Camarilla and the Traditions maintain
that a newly Embraced Kindred has not
truly become a vampire until her sire speaks
the Traditions to her. Obviously, the
Traditions are quite a serious matter, and the
sire is held accountable for the childe until,
by speaking them to her, he makes her
responsible for upholding the code herself.

Some vampires believe that Caine himself
created the Traditions when he sired his
childer and that what modern vampires
follow are their progenitor’s original wishes

THE T

RADITIONS

T

HE FIRST TRADITION: THE

Thou shalt not reveal thy true nature to those not of the Blood. Doing so shall

renounce thy claims of Blood.

MASQUERADE

THE SECOND TRADITION: THE DOMAIN

Thy domain is thy concern. All others owe thee respect while in it. None may

challenge thy word in thy domain.

THE THIRD TRADITION: T

Thou shalt sire another only with permission of thine elder. If thou createst

another without thine elder’s leave, both thou and thy progeny shalt be slain.

HE PROGENY

THE FOURTH TRADITION: THE ACCOUNTING

Those thou create are thine own childer. Until thy progeny shall be released, thou

shalt command them in all things. Their sins are thine to endure.

THE FIFTH TRADITION: HOSPITALITY

Honour one another’s domain. When thou comest to a foreign city, thou shalt
present thyself to the one who ruleth there. Without the word of acceptance, thou
art nothing.

THE SIXTH TRADITION: DESTRUCTION

Thou art forbidden to destroy another of thy kind. The right of destruction
belongeth only to thine elder. Only the eldest among thee shall call the blood hunt.

for his descendants. Others, however, think
that the Antediluvians created them to
maintain control over their childer or that
they were simply a set of common-sense
ideas that were upheld over the millennia
because they worked. The Tradition of the
Masquerade, for example, is thought to
have existed in some form since the nights
of the First City, but it changed in response
to the Inquisition.

A number of young vampires, children of
the modern world, see the Traditions as
being merely a tool of the elders to maintain
their stranglehold on Kindred society, and an
antique tool at that. The times that
produced the need for the Masquerade are
over and done, ancient history. Caine,
Gehenna, the Antediluvians — all myths
with about as much substance as the Flood
or the Tower of Babel — and all for the sake

of controlling the younger generations. It’s
time to drop the Traditions and live in the
modern age. The vampires of the Sabbat
rabidly adhere to this reasoning, and their
scorn for the Traditions is one of the primary
motivations behind their constant attacks on
the ancient power structures.

Most elders see the young as
temperamental adolescents who think they
know everything but who lack the wisdom
and experience of age. As many of the rebels
are anarchs and neonates, mostly powerless
and without voice in Kindred society, it
should come as no great surprise that they
are so wild. However, not every elder takes
such an indulgent viewpoint. Many feel that
the reckless whelps who demand the
Traditions be dropped may get their wish
when they bring mortal society down on
their heads. Natural selection takes care of a

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few of these, but such selection has
occasionally been “assisted” by a prince
exasperated beyond patience with a
particularly recalcitrant young vampire.

What follows is the most common
wording of the Traditions. Bear in mind
that this is the phrasing used by elders
and on formal occasions. The wording
may change according to the clan, the age
of the vampire speaking or simple
circumstance. During a childe’s
presentation to the prince, she may be
required to recite the Traditions as proof
that her sire has taught them to her.

LEXICON

The Kindred have their own dialect of
specialised words and phrases. Vampires
have a tremendous capacity for double­talk; what they say often means something
other than its literal interpretation or
something in addition to its simple
meaning.

Beast, The: The inchoate drives and
urges that threaten to turn a vampire into
a mindless, ravening monster.

Camarilla, The: A sect of vampires
devoted primarily to maintaining the
Traditions, particularly that of the
Masquerade.

Childe: A vampire created through the
Embrace — the childe is the progeny of
her sire. This term is often used
derogatorily, indicating inexperience.
Plural childer.

Clan: A group of vampires who share
common characteristics passed on by the
Blood. There are 13 known clans, all of
which were reputedly founded by
members of the Third Generation.

Coterie: A group of Kindred who work
together under a common purpose,
whether this be clan, gang, wartime or
even diplomatically related.

Embrace, The: The act of
transforming a mortal into a vampire. The
Embrace requires the vampire to drain her
victim and then replace that victim’s blood
with a bit of her own.

Generation: The number of “steps”
between a vampire and the mythical
Caine; how far descended from the First
Vampire a given vampire is.

Ghoul: A minion created by giving a
bit of vampiric vitae to a mortal without
draining her of blood first (which would
create a vampire instead).

Jyhad, The: The secret, self-destructive
war waged between the generations. Elder
vampires manipulate their lessers, using
them as pawns in a terrible game whose
rules defy comprehension.

Kindred: The race of vampires as a
whole or a single vampire.

Masquerade, The: The habit of hiding
the existence of vampires from humanity.
Designed to protect the Kindred from
destruction at the hands of mankind, the
Masquerade was adopted after the
Inquisition claimed many Kindred unlives.

Sabbat, The: A sect of vampires that
rejects humanity, embracing their
monstrous natures. The Sabbat is bestial
and violent, preferring to lord over mortals
rather than hide from them.

Sect: A group of Kindred arguably
united under a common philosophy. The
two most widely known sects currently
populating the night are the Camarilla and
the Sabbat.

Sire: A vampire’s “parent”; the Kindred
who created her.

Torpor: The death like sleep common to
the undead, particularly among ancient
vampires. Torpor may be entered voluntarily
(certain undead, weary of the current age,
enter torpor in hopes of reawakening in a
more hospitable time) or involuntarily
(though wounds or loss of blood).

THE LONG NIGHT AND
THE FINAL NIGHTS

THE DARK AGES

In the centuries
before the modern
nights, the Kindred
skulk throughout the
Dark Medieval world,
where the shadowy sides
of fantasy and reality
meet. Things are a little
more sinister, and the
wind blows a little
colder on a moonless
winter’s night. But it is

an exciting time to be alive, nonetheless…
and an even more exciting time to be
among the walking dead.

On the surface, little differs from the real
medieval age; castles serve as both homes
and fortresses to the nobility, while most
peasants count themselves lucky to live with
their families in drafty one-room buildings.
Wars are fought in the name of God and
man, and to speak out against one’s liege is
both blasphemy and treason. But in the
darkest hours of the night, undead spirits in
the shape of men walk in the shadows.…

The so-called Dark Ages of our world
were the period between the fall of the
Roman Empire and the beginning of the
Renaissance. The glory that was Rome
crumbled, and the roads and bureaucracy
the empire had brought to the continent
quickly fell apart. Trade decreased, and most
people were too busy simply trying to
survive to spend time learning to read and
write. Knowledge of science and technology
common during Roman occupation was
forgotten, and a cloud of superstition
descended on theWestern world.

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Times were difficult for the common
man during this period. Marauding armies
sacked towns and pillaged villages. Cities lay
in ruins. Most of the art produced during
this time was portable and often practical,
such as jewellery and pottery. Even some
rulers were illiterate, and only in scattered
Christian monasteries did reading, writing
and academic learning continue. Most
people were farmers, never blessed with the
luxuries of art or learning, living hard short
lives, more at risk from disease and
starvation than from invasions.

But the “dark” part of Dark Medieval
means something more and is not restricted
to a single decade or century. The shadow
that has fallen across much of Europe is a
moral darkness, a rejection of the spiritual.
Respect for one’s fellow man has been
eclipsed by the day-to-day struggle to
survive. Many commoners obey the laws of
God and man more out of fear of the
consequences than from any real belief in
what is “good” or “right.” The vampires who
hold much of the power rule unchecked and
rarely face the consequences of their actions.
But the mortal world will not live in fear
forever, and the day may come when the
living will rise up against the predators in
their midst.

In the centuries that follow the Dark
Ages, vampires learn the importance of
hiding themselves away from mortal eyes.
Inquisitions of Church and state decimate
the Cainite population, and only those who
are able to blend into mortal society survive.

But those nights seem distant in the
Dark Ages. In the minds of most mortals,
vampires are creatures of the Devil, to be
feared — and either fought by the Church
or avoided entirely. With the power of their
vampiric Disciplines and a cunning born
from centuries of experience, some vampires
set themselves up as lords of outlying areas,
taking their tithes of blood from any
unfortunates who pass by. Others influence
the mortal rulers of the land, through
potent blood oaths and the work of their
half-mortal ghouls.

CAINITES AND SOCIETY

Dark Medieval society is feudal, with
power and rank dependent upon lands
held and military might. In the medieval
world there is no such thing as “equality of
opportunity.” If your family is powerful,
then you will have an immediate and
tangible advantage over others. If your
family members are peasants, you will live
in poverty and die young. A man’s rank is
determined by his birth. A woman’s rank is
determined by her husband’s.

Medieval men divide themselves into
those who fight, those who work and
those who pray.

NOBILITY

The nobility are the military,
landholding class. The great nobles own
the land; petty nobles retain tracts of land
in exchange for military service and
money. Many nobles are trained from their

youth to fight and are equipped with fine
armour and weaponry. On a day-to-day
level, however, they are administrators and
civil servants — running their lands,
enforcing royal law, commanding garrisons,
working as officers of the law courts or as
senior servants in ryal households.

Cainites who dwell
among the mortal
nobility have a dual
existence. They must
function within the
society of other nobles
and lord over the lands
and people of their fiefs.
Just as mortal nobles
have responsibilities
to their overlords
and underlings, so do vampire lords. Yet
Cainite nobles also have responsibilities to
their undead kind, whether in positions of
authority or subservience.

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The difficulties of observing the
responsibilities of mortal gentility arise
from being undead. Vampire lords cannot
appear before their underlings and serfs
during the day and must arrange all affairs
to occur at night. Such nocturnal
behaviour cannot go unnoticed for long,
and that is when superstitious rumours
spread among the mortals.

The best way for a Cainite lord to
manage her mortal affairs might be
through kine proxies or ghouls. A sheriff
can be an effective tool at enforcing the
laws and seeing justice done, while a
seneschal can arrange the affairs of the
manor house. Of course, should there be a
daytime emergency….

The fact is, a feudal noble holds stable
power when his authority can be directly
attributed to a name and a face. When
many subjects fail to see the face of their
master, it is easier to blame problems on
him. Still, there’s much to be said for the
ominous silhouette of a lord standing atop
his battlements, the moon casting his
cold shadow across the cringing mortal
souls below.

Other difficulties of feudal authority lie
in reconciling mortal and immortal power.
How does a duke explain his meekness
before a mere baron who comes calling
after sunset? If a noble’s Cainite authority
spreads much further than his mortal
authority, how does he explain the
presence of some of his ghouls in the lands
of another mortal lord? And what of a
group of rebellious vampires who won’t
answer to a mortal overlord, but will
answer to a lesser lord, who also happens
to be the local Cainite prince?

PEASANTS

The medieval masses are the

peasants — the farmers who till

the nobles’ fields. The more

fortunate are “freemen,” who
rent land from the nobles,

working their plots in return

for heavy rents, tithes and
taxes. The less fortunate are
“serfs,” peasants who are the

slaves of their noble masters, who
own nothing — not even their

own bodies. A serf pays heavier

taxes and may not marry or
move away without his lord’s permission; if
a serf is assaulted, the attacker must pay a
fine or compensation to the serf’s lord for
damaging his “property.”

Although mortal social classes have little
bearing on Cainite society, it is difficult for
neonates and others sired since the time of
Charlemagne to recognise the prominence
of some vampires over others. Vampires
with such limited vision have particular
difficulty with Cainites who were drawn
from or exist among the mortal peasantry. It
is difficult for a newly sired vampire, who is
a noble or clergyman in mortal society, to
take orders from a vampire who is ostensibly
a mortal freeman. That is the paradoxical
nature of Cainite society, though, and the
newcomer who cannot adapt quickly is
short-lived.

Vampires who exist among kine peasants
do bear a terrible burden, though. To try
to remain true to her former lifestyle, a
peasant Cainite must somehow account
for her absence during the daytime, when
everyone else in the manor or town is
working. She is also expected to go to
Mass with everyone else and would be
missed at the frequent festivals that manor
lords often allow their serfs.

A clever Cainite who still lives as a serf
could make ghouls of the right people and
justify her strange behaviour as part of her
services “at the manor house.” The local
gossips could also be controlled to ensure
that no ill word is spread or that rumours
are actually squelched. Ultimately, though,
most vampires who are chosen from the
peasantry break their mortal social bonds
and seek higher lifestyles. Why be a
predator of humans while living a lie as
their prey?

CLERGY

The Church is the single greatest
institution in the medieval world.
Arguably it is the only important
institution. The Church runs the
universities and cathedral schools of
medieval Europe, educating the sons of the
wealthy and powerful. It appoints priests

to local parishes, and from every pulpit,
those priests tell the people to obey God
and their mortal masters. Few people
outside the Church can read, nor do they
own books. The monasteries and
cathedrals of Europe own vast amounts of
land and are the most important patrons
of the arts. The power of the Church in

the Dark Medieval
world can not be

understated. The lords

of the Church are very

wealthy and very

influential. They tell

people what to believe
and bribe and cajole
them with the promise
of eternal life. An
angered bishop may

“excommunicate” an

unfortunate soul, cutting

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off a person from the Church and from
God’s mercy, and only a priest may absolve
a person of her sins.

Cainites who exist among the mortal
clergy have the greatest protection from
vampire and mortal opponents, but that
protection comes at a price. By posing as
God’s devout — though usually only
through lip service — vampires in the
clergy have the power of the Church
behind them, the most influential
institution in the medieval world. If an
opponent ever grows too strong, Cainites
in the Church can bring the mortal
authority of God down upon them. All the
vampires need do is trump up the right
charges and provide the right “evidence.”

Ironically, the Church also provides
defences for its cursed brethren through
the power of faith. Mortal clergymen are

often unfaithful, but there are some who
are not, and their conviction can be
enough to stave off an attacker who would
hunt a Cainite in his very abbey or
monastery. All the Cainite brother need
know is who of faith should be avoided
among the disciples.

The dangers of hiding among the clergy
are immense, though. At some point it
must mean contact with True Faith.
Cainite power must also be wielded subtly
for fear of raising suspicion and avoiding
charges of diabolism. And the duties of the
clergy must be fulfiled to a point that is
convincing to other brethren; an obvious
lack of conviction would be as dangerous
to a vampire as exposure to too much.

Vampires’ failure to hide their existence
properly within the Church may
ultimately lead to witch hunts.

GEOGRAPHY

In the Dark Medieval world, Europe is
dominated by a small number of powerful
kingdoms. The Holy Roman Empire is the
largest state in Europe and covers
Germany, northern Italy and part of
western France. It is currently in the midst
of a long civil war fought between two rival
Emperors, Otto of Brunswick and Philip of
Swabia. The empire actually comprises
dozens of small duchies; the dukes owe
allegiance to the emperor but often rule
their lands as independent monarchs, and
it is the feuds between these rulers that so
often divide the empire.

The English kings (currently King
Richard the Lionheart) rule lands in
England, Wales, northern France and
(theoretically) Ireland. In 1199, Richard is
killed in battle and is succeeded by his
vicious brother John. The Kingdom of
France under Philip II, perhaps the
strongest single kingdom in Europe and
certainly the best administered, is expanding
by seizing lands in northern France from
England. Constantinople, under the
Emperor Alexius III, controls an empire
including modern-day Turkey (disputed
with the Moors), Serbia and Greece.

Other kingdoms rule the fringes of
Europe, including the kingdoms of
Hungary, Poland, Jerusalem (actually based
on Cyprus, as Jerusalem itself is in Moslem
hands) and Scotland; the Principalities of
Russia; and the “Empire” of Bulgaria.
Numerous smaller kingdoms and
principalities also exist, such as the petty
kingdoms of Iberia, the four principalities of
Ireland, the tiny states of Switzerland and
the kingdom of Denmark. Europe also
contains one last bulwark against
Christianity, the pagan kingdom of
Lithuania and the lands surrounding it
along the Baltic coast.

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Perhaps the most powerful person in
Europe is the Pope. The Pope controls his
own private principality in central Italy,
including the city of Rome itself, but more
importantly, he is the head of the Church
throughout Western Europe. For while the
earthly kingdoms are divided among
warring monarchs, all acknowledge the
Pope as a higher spiritual authority
beneath whose jurisdiction all mortal
kingdoms fall. Some also argue that as
Christ’s representative on Earth, the Pope
should have supreme authority on all
matters, and claim that all secular rulers
should bow down in obedience to him.
The year 1198 sees the death of the
moderate Pope, Celestine III, and his
replacement by the shrewd and
domineering Innocent III.

THE MODERN NIGHTS

“Gothic-Punk” is perhaps the

best way to describe the

physical nature of the modern

World of Darkness. The

environment is a
clashing mixture of

styles and influences,

and the tension caused

by the juxtaposition of

ethnicities, social classes and

subcultures makes the world

a vibrant, albeit dangerous, place.

The Gothic aspect describes the
ambience of the World of Darkness.
Buttressed buildings loom overhead,
bedecked with classical columns and
grimacing gargoyles. Residents are dwarfed
by the sheer scale of architecture, lost amid
the spires that seem to grope toward
Heaven in an effort to escape the physical
world. The ranks of the Church swell, as
mortals flock to any banner that offers
them a hope of something better in the

hereafter. Likewise, cults flourish in the
underground, promising power and
redemption. The institutions that control
society are even more staid and
conservative than they are in our world,
for many in power prefer the evil of the
world they know to the chaos engendered
by change. It is a divisive world of have
and have-not, rich and poor, excess and
squalor.

The Punk aspect is the lifestyle that
many denizens of the World of Darkness
have adopted. In order to give their lives
meaning, they rebel, crashing themselves
against the crags of power. Gangs prowl
the streets and organised crime breeds in
the underworld, reactions to the
pointlessness of living “by the book.”
Music is louder, faster, more violent or
hypnotically monotonous and supported
by masses who find salvation in its escape.
Speech is coarser, fashion is bolder, art is
more shocking, and technology brings it
all to everyone at the click of a button.

The world is more corrupt, the people
are spiritually bankrupt, and escapism
often replaces hope.

As if this weren’t fearful enough, the
last few years have seen a quiet but
pervasive dread grip the Kindred
community. Many Kindred whisper of the
Jyhad, the eternal war or game said to
consume the most ancient vampires. This
struggle has been waged since the dawn of
time, but many vampires fear that, as one
millennium passes to the next and the
curse of undeath grows weaker, an
apocalyptic endgame is at hand. Signs and
portents, many recorded in the prophetic
Book of Nod, trouble vampires of all clans
and lineages, even those who profess not
to believe. Whispers in Sabbat covens and
Camarilla salons alike speak of turmoil in
the East, of armies of clanless rabble, of
vampires whose blood is so thin that they
cannot Embrace, of meetings with
mysterious elders whose vast power betrays
no discernible lineage, of black crescent

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moons and full moons red as blood. All,
say the believers, are omens that the Final
Nights are approaching and that the end
of all thing is nigh.

Some Kindred believe that a Reckoning
is at hand, that the powers of Heaven are
preparing at last to judge the vampires and
what they have made of the world. Others
speak of the Winnowing, or Gehenna, the
night when the most ancient vampires will
rise to consume their progeny, taking their
lessers’ cursed blood to sate their own
hunger. Few admit to such superstitions,
but most feel a palpable tension in these
nights. Elder vampires play their hands in
one fell swoop, negating centuries-long
schemes in a single mad flurry of action.
The war packs of the dread Sabbat hurl
themselves at the fortresses of their
enemies, for they fear they might not get
another opportunity. Cells of Assamite
cannibals, formerly held in check by a
great curse, hunt other vampires and
ravenously drink their blood. Vampires of
uncertain lineage are hunted down and
destroyed by paranoid elders, who fear
them as harbingers of Gehenna. Though
patience is a special virtue among the
immortals, it is practiced less and less, and
the whole Kindred world teeters on the
verge of a great collective frenzy.

THE EVOLUTION OF THE SECTS

Sects are groups of vampires and clans
that supposedly share a common ideology.
They are a modern contrivance but an
important one. Sects as they are known in
these nights first surfaced after the Great
Anarch Revolt, a continent-wide upheaval
which took place in Europe during the
15th century. Many elders accept sect
membership grudgingly, deriding sects as
“foolishness — the Blood is all that
matters.” In the nights before the Great
Anarch Revolt and the Inquisition, these
elders claim, there were no sects at all.
Other vampires argue that this is still true

— a vampire in a sizable city may go a
decade or more without ever seeing
another Kindred, so of what use is a sect?

Regardless, most vampires belong to
one sect or another; others claim
independence, no preference or that they
are affiliated with their clan, not a sect.
The sect known as the Camarilla is
arguably the largest and most prevalent,
though its rival the Sabbat has recently
made considerable inroads against it and
still opposes the Camarilla at every turn.
The secretive Inconnu, when it may be
reached for comment, maintains that it is
not a sect, although it seems to be
organised and manages to steer clear of the
other sects. On the opposite side of the
coin, the anarchs make much show of
pretending to be a sect, though they are
the first to enlist Camarilla aid when the
Sabbat appears at a city’s borders. Thus,
the Camarilla considers the anarchs to be
under its purview.

THE CAMARILLA

The largest sect of vampires in
existence, the Camarilla concerns
itself with the Masquerade,
thereby hoping to maintain a
place for Kindred in the modern
nights. The Camarilla is an open
society; it claims all vampires as
members (whether they want to

belong or not), and any vampire may claim
membership, regardless of lineage.

According to the often-contradictory
history of the Kindred, the Camarilla came
to be at the end of the Anarch Revolt,
sometime in the 15th century. The Kindred
of Clan Ventrue loudly claim to have been
instrumental in the sect’s formation, to
which many Kindred owe their unlives.
With the enforcement of the Masquerade,
Kindred had a means of foiling the
Inquisition, a Church office sworn to the
destruction of super-natural creatures.

Though the Camarilla is the largest sect,
just over half of the 13 known vampire
clans actively participate in its affairs. The
sect holds meetings attended by active
clans’ representatives; these gatherings are
known as convocations. It also calls
periodic conclaves, which are open to any
and all members of the sect, to discuss
matters of imminent sect importance. Only
justicars, officers elected by the Inner Circle
to attend to matters of the Traditions, may
call conclaves. Justicars are always of great
age and rightly feared; as such, their
interpretations of the Traditions are heeded
out of self-preservation. Coteries of
vampires known as archons attend the
justicars; meeting an archon is usually a
portentous event.

Officially, the Camarilla does not
recognise the existence of the Antediluvians
or Caine. It reasons that these vampires, if
they ever existed at all, have long since
suffered the Final Death, and those who
allude to them are publicly derided.

THE S

ABBAT

Rumoured to have its
origins in a medieval death
cult, the Sabbat is greatly
feared by Kindred who do not
belong to it. The sect is
monstrous and violent and no
longer clings to any trappings

morality. Members instead revel in their
vampiric unlives. Sometimes referred to as
the Black Hand, the Sabbat actively seeks
the overthrow of the Traditions, the
destruction of the Camarilla and the
subjugation of humankind.

hold, spreading like a poisonous weed and
tearing down the established institutions
around it. Unlike the Camarilla, the Sabbat
recognises the existence of the
Antediluvians, though it rabidly opposes
them. According to Sabbat propaganda, the
Antediluvians pull the strings of the entire
world, and it is this malignant control they

of human philosophy or

The Sabbat recruits wherever it takes

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oppose. They see the Camarilla as pawns of
the Ancients, and oppose its members
politically as well as physically. Most
Sabbat express bilious contempt for the
vampires of the Camarilla, whom they see
as cowardly wretches unable to accept their
predatory natures.

Outsiders know little about the Sabbat’s
inner workings. Some Camarilla Kindred
even doubt its existence, believing it to be
a rumour created by elders to keep
troublesome childer in line — an undead
boogeyman. Lurid tales about the sect
spread like wildfire, including claims that
its members indulge in ceaseless diablerie,
worship demons, hunt and kill other
vampires and possess the ability to break
blood bonds. The only consistent rumour
attributed to the Sabbat is its members’
apparent love of fire — the sect has a
fearsome reputation for leaving burning
wakes behind it.

T

HE INCONNU

The Inconnu are not a sect so much as
they are a disparate group of like-minded
vampires. No longer wishing to be the
puppets of those older than they and tired
of the incessant manoeuvring of those
younger than they, the Inconnu seem to
have dropped out of the Jyhad altogether.
This is what distinguishes an Inconnu
vampire from those of other sects — the
Inconnu distance themselves from other
vampires and their contemptible
machinations.

The Inconnu are rumoured (as no one
ever really goes looking for them) to be of
great age and potency. Many reportedly
spend much time in torpor or otherwise
sleeping, the better to avoid the Jyhad.
Some Kindred liken the Inconnu to the
Antediluvians, claiming that they have
grown away from the world and into a
timeless, inhuman mindset. Other
Kindred believe that the Inconnu all

pursue or have attained Golconda, a fabled
state of vampiric transcendence.

Kindred who deal with the Inconnu
typically leave the encounter with a sense
of profound mystery and awe. Although
the Inconnu seem to be informal and
loosely organised, they communicate very
well among themselves. Inconnu know
when to avoid Kindred, when to hide from
them and when to unleash their significant
power to turn vampires away. Their
agenda, if they even have one, is unknown.

ANARCHS

Anarchs are vampires who reject the
Traditions of Caine and the dictates of the
elders who enforce them. Ironically, elders
grudgingly afford anarchs some degree of
status, due to the anarchs’ ability to obtain
power in spite of the elders’ opposition.
Anarchs are also respected for their passion
and drive, which few elder Kindred, mired
as they are in their age and dissatisfaction,
can muster. Ultimately, however, most
Kindred see anarchs as jackals, scavenging
their unlives from what slips through the
elders’ fingers. Although arguably
members of the Camarilla, the anarchs are
vocal in their desire to see Kindred affairs
change from the status quo.

GEHENNA — THE END IS NEAR

Central to Kindred myth is the idea of
Gehenna. The Kindred believe that this
approaching apocalypse bears down ever
more each night upon the world. When
Gehenna arrives, the Antediluvians shall
arise and make a wasteland of the world,
consuming Kindred and mortal alike in
the culmination of their horrendous Jyhad.

Although few Camarilla Kindred would
admit it, many vampires see the world on
a downward plummet and believe that
Gehenna will occur soon — perhaps even
within the next few years. Frantically
piecing together the signs from whatever

Cainite histories and mythological
fragments they can compile, the Kindred
seek to learn the true nature of Gehenna
and possibly avert it. Elder vampires know,
however, of the implacable wills of the
Antediluvians. Should they so will it,
Gehenna shall come and overwhelm the
world, destroying every mortal and
vampire in a tide of blood and fire.

Even so, the Kindred attempt to foil or
aid the Jyhad as they see their roles
coming to critical culmination. The
millennial tension that plagues the planet
is certainly a precursor to the coming
apocalypse, and the Final Nights are upon
us. Unless….

As the fear of Gehenna grips the
Kindred community, more and more
Gehenna cults form. These groups, which
resemble secret societies or cliques, are
most common among the Camarilla,
though some Gehenna cults pervade the
Sabbat and even the independent clans.
Due to the stigma of belonging to a
Gehenna cult, cult business is always
conducted in secret, and the cults are
officially derided as foolish rumour. In
recent nights, though, they have
proliferated, and certain vampires of great
power and influence secretly belong to
Gehenna cults.

THE STATE OF THE WORLD

Much has come to pass recently in the
World of Darkness, and many Kindred are
convinced that the Final Nights have
arrived. Numerous events portend the
movement of the Antediluvians; the world
has undergone significant changes, as have
the Kindred themselves.

Varying accounts of Antediluvians,
most unreliably accredited, have become
common, and it would seem that as the
world spirals toward its presumed
destruction, some subtlety has been lost in
the Jyhad. Whether these sighting are

actual or not, they reveal an unsettling
paranoia and a sense of urgency previously
unknown. Stories of encounters with a
being who claims to be Caine are also
circulating like never before. Whereas it
was once fashionable to mock such
preposterous conversation, many Kindred
wonder if there may be some legitimacy to
the matter.

The Sabbat has recently increased its
activity, actively vying for power in
Chicago, Atlanta, Washington, DC, and
other elder-controlled cities. Animalistic
and monstrous, the sect has swarmed like
locusts over the East Coast and southern
borders of the United States. Its influence
in Canada has also increased, and it
appears as if the Sabbat is realising a grand
enfilade, surrounding the United States
and cutting off all access except that which
it grants. Many Kindred en route to
Europe from the United States or vice
versa have been destroyed or disappeared
altogether as the Sabbat exerts its influence
where it can: at the borders.

It would seem that the West Coast is
relatively free of Sabbat presence, but this
is true only because an influx of exotic
vampires from Asia has taken root. The
anarch holdings of California have become
battlegrounds, and the proud anarchs have
even begged the Camarilla’s Inner Circle
for aid in turning back the Asian peril.
The Kindred of the East have made
significant advances into the United States
from the West Coast, and their presence
may soon shift the balance of power
among the Children of Caine.

The Camarilla as a whole seems less
and less dominant, its influence eroding by
the night. Years ago, it seemed as if the
sect virtually owned North America. As
millennial hysteria rises, more and more
slips through the ever-tightening grip of
the sect, leaving its members consistently
losing ground. Indeed, one of its greatest

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members, the mighty justicar known as
Petrodon, was struck down and destroyed
in Chicago by parties unknown.

The Sabbat has suffered its own losses,
however, and may hardly be said to have
the upper hand. Recently, all the Tremere
of the Sabbat were destroyed in a great
conflagration in Mexico City. Add to this
the fact that the Sabbat Malkavians have
communicated their terrible madness to
their Camarilla and anarch brethren, and
the Sabbat no longer has the edge it once
did. Both sides suffer from incursions of
independent Kindred, particularly the
Assamites, who pursue their murderous
ways anew. Even the formerly carefree
Ravnos have begun to act with greater
purpose and malevolence, and some elders
wonder if, in dismissing the Deceivers,
they have ignored fangs long poised at
their throats.

Thus, the World of Darkness decays
and crumbles more each night. With less
and less to be sure of and many more
ominous portents becoming plainly visible,
many Kindred wonder what the
immediate future holds, and it seems that
immortality may not mean much if the
end of the world is nigh.

THE CLANS

The following pages introduce the
characteristics of each of the 13 great clans
of Kindred. At the top of each page is their
outlook during the Long Night, or Dark
Ages; the bottom of each page presents
them as they appear in the modern nights.
Some of the Kindred have remained very
staid and static since almost a millennia
ago, while others have changed radically.…

The Crusaders brought back many tales from

the Holy Land, some of which concerned

a band of fanatical killers. The

word the Europeans coined for

these silent murderers was

assassin. The Cainites, however,

already knew of a similar but

far more dangerous threat from

Araby — the diablerists of Clan

Assamite. The vampires of the

West had encountered the

Assamites long before the

Crusaders. Some say that the

conquerors who set out for the

East — Alexander, for

example — were pawns

of the Cainites who
feared the Assamites. Rumours aside, the Assamites
are dreaded for good reason — they seek to better
themselves through the practice of diablerie.

The Assamites are feared assassins from lands far to
the east. No other clan has earned such a deserved
reputation for diablerie, though they also sell their
murderous services to other Kindred, acting as
contract killers. Some Kindred believe that the
Assamites act at the behest of older powers,
perhaps preparing to play their part in the
Jyhad’s final moves.

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CAPPADOCIANS

The Brujah are the ultimate scholar-warriors, always

striving toward perfection of mind and body. The
elders of the clan can recall the Golden Age
and speak wistfully of lost Carthage.
Unfortunately, no wound stings worse
than a dream denied. The death of
Carthage seems to have only increased
their rancor, and the other clans’
refusal to move beyond the
status quo leaves a bitter taste
in their mouths. So they fight.
They fight the Ventrue for
destroying Carthage, they fight

the Lasombra for encouraging the

status quo, they fight the Tremere

for slaying Saulot — the list

seems eternal. The Brujah are

nothing if not lovers of a cause.

In the modern nights, the Brujah are perceived as

little more than spoiled childer who have no sense of

pride or history. One of the mainstays of the Great

Anarch Revolt, the Brujah were barely brought

to heel by the founders of the Camarilla, and
the clan as a whole still resents the elders.

Although technically members of the

Camarilla, the Brujah are the sect’s firebrands
and agitators, testing the Traditions and

rebelling in the name of

whatever causes they

hold dear. Many Brujah

are outright anarchs,

defying authority and

serving no prince.

Known among Cainites for millennia as the “Clan

of Death,” the Cappadocians are shunned even by

their brethren for their macabre interests. Still,

the secretive nature of the clan has caused as

many people to fear them as respect them. In
vampiric society, Cappadocians often fill the
role of advisor to princes. They are respected

for their insight and wisdom and largely trusted

due to their lack of interest in earthly power.
The clan has recently Embraced a small cabal of
necromancers in order to further their studies.

Reviled perhaps more than any other

single clan of Kindred, the Giovanni clan is a

family of financiers and necromancers.
Trafficking in the commodity of souls has given
this clan a disproportionate amount of power,
while trafficking in world finance has made the

clan rich. Soon after
becoming a vampire, the
Giovanni clan leader
destroyed his sire,
reinventing the clan in his
own image.

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Few vampires would willingly
grant hospitality to a Follower of
Set, and for good reason. The
Setites, as they call themselves,
are servants of darkness and
corruption incarnate. The clan’s
ultimate goal is to corrode the
ethics away from humanity and
Cainites alike, creating a surfeit
of slaves for themselves and their

dark master. Legends name Set as the clan’s
founder. Some say Osiris banished Set, while
others claim Horus defeated him. In any

event, Set swore to re-establish
his rule but this time from the

darkness. And in his

footprints walked his childer.

Originally hailing from Egypt, the serpentine
Setites are said to worship the undead vampire­deity Set, serving him in all their efforts. The

Setites seem intent on “corrupting” others,

enslaving victims in snares of their own

weakness, but for what inscrutable purpose,

none can guess. Other Kindred despise the

Followers of Set, and the clan claims no

allies. Inevitably, sin and debasement follow

in the Setites’ wake, and

many Kindred refuse to

allow them in their cities.

Through the forest nights wander the lonely, nomadic

Gangrel. Unlike their brethren, Gangrel spurn the

trappings of civilisation, preferring to roam
the deep wilds in solitude. The Gangrel

is a clan only in the loosest

sense; its members tend to be

rugged individualists,

indifferent to the protocols

of either mortal or
vampire. Indeed, Gangrel
tend to be more

comfortable with the creatures of the
wilds than with the mortals they were or
the vampires they have become.

The night-prowling Gangrel are feral

vampires and possess disturbing

animalistic tendencies and

features. Rarely staying in
one place, Gangrel are

nomadic wanderers, satisfied only when

running alone under the night sky. Distant, aloof

and savage, Gangrel are often tragic individuals;

although many hate the cities’ crowds and
constrictions, the presence of hostile

werewolves prevents most

Gangrel from existing
outside their

confines.

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Elegant yet predatory, the Lasombra honestly think of

themselves as the apex of Cainite

existence. Firm believers in Divine
Right and the rule of the superior,

they have little patience, though
often much pity, for those Cainites who
are, through no fault of their own,

inferior. The Lasombra character is a

curious mix of noblesse oblige and
healthy contempt. They actively seek

power wherever it may be found, from
the halls of the cloisters to the corridors of
palaces, yet they do not seek the titles and

glory that comes along with

rule: Most Lasombra prefer

the role of kingmaker to the
title of king.

The Lasombra are

masters of darkness and

shadow. Many Kindred see

the Ventrue and

Lasombra as twisted

reflections of each other. The Lasombra

have all but turned their backs on their

former nobility; the chaos of Kindred
history and the formation of the Sabbat

have caused most of them to shun their

origins. Now, the Lasombra give

themselves wholly over to the

damnation of being
vampires.

Clan Malkavian seems to be the most incoherent
bloodline of vampires. The gently deluded and
slavering psychotics are found in equal

numbers, and they are but a taste of the

diversity characterising this clan. If not for
the common trait of insanity, they would
scarcely seem a clan at all. But the other

clans have no choice but to acknowledge

them. Malkavian oracles have been part of
vampiric courts for generations, and even the
Lasombra and haughty Ventrue, if they seek

information, will sup with the Malkavians —
with a long spoon. Every member of Clan
Malkavian is afflicted with madness, and all are
slaves to their debilitating lunacy. The Malkavian

clan founder is

rumoured to

have been one of

the most important
vampires of old, but in committing
some grievous crime, Caine cursed him

and his descendants with insanity.

Throughout Cainite history,
Malkavians have been alternately
feared for their bizarre behaviour
and sought out for their even
more bizarre insight.

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The Nosferatu bear an ancient and terrible curse,

for they are no longer made in God’s image; the

vampiric transformation warps their forms,

rendering them abominations in

the eyes of men and angels.

Outcast from mortal and

vampire society alike, these

misshapen horrors haunt the

catacombs, wastes and other
hidden places of the Dark
Medieval world. Recently, as
cities have grown, some

Nosferatu have ended their

exile, but this is relatively

uncommon; most other vampires still

revile and condemn them.

The members of Clan Nosferatu
suffer the most visible curse of all.
The Embrace hideously deforms
them, twisting them into literal

monsters. Nosferatu have

reputations as information brokers and

harvesters of secrets, as their horrid

appearances have forced them to perfect
their mystical ability to hide, sometimes in
plain sight.

Tramps and thieves, the Ravnos are scattered like

chaff on the wind throughout Europe. Every country

hosts a few, but where they can be

found varies from night to night

and whim to whim. Many travel

with bands of roving tinkers or

other undesirables. It is rare for more
than one or two to be found in the same
place at the same time, for they are solitary

Cainites and prefer audiences and marks to
company.

Descendents of the Gypsy Roma and their

forebears in India, the Ravnos vampires lead nomadic

unlives. The Ravnos are

also known for their

ability to create amazing
illusions, the better with

which to trick their

marks. Many vampires

persecute the Ravnos

because of the

chaos that

follows these
Kindred. The Ravnos return the
scorn of their peers manyfold,
holding other vampires in
contempt. Note: The Ravnos Clan
does not appear in Vampire:
The Masquerade
Redemption.

92

93

From their beginning, the

Toreador have always been

devotees of beauty in all its

forms. Beauty means so much

more to them, for they devote

the entirety of their vampiric

senses to it, immersing

themselves in the aesthetic.

They consider themselves the
preservers and guardians of the exquisite,
the bearers of the flame of inspiration. Of

all the clans, the Toreador are the ones

who appreciate most the
accomplishments of the human
race.

Prodigals of the Kindred,
Clan Toreador
indulges in excess
and degeneracy, all
while claiming to

maintain patronage of the arts. To a great
degree, this patronage is true, as the clan
claims many talented artists, musicians,
writers, poets and other gifted creators. On
the other hand, the clan possesses
just as many “poseurs,” those
who fancy themselves great
aesthetes but lack the ability to
create at all.

Once a cabal of mortal
sorcerers, the Tremere became
obsessed with the search for
immortality to permit them

time enough to perfect their

craft for eternity. Their efforts

proved fruitful; although it

took the deaths of an elder Cainite
and many of their apprentices, the cabal
achieved eternal life — or so they

thought. All they had truly

claimed was vampirism.

No clan is so

shrouded in deliberate

mystery as the

Tremere. The

inventors and
practitioners of
terrible blood
magics, the
secretive Tremere have

a tightly knit political structure

based on the acquisition of power. Some

Kindred claim that the
Tremere are not truly
vampires at all, but rather
mortal wizards who cursed
themselves for eternity while

studying the secret of

immortality.

94

95

From time immemorial, the Tzimisce

have haunted Europe beyond the

Elbe. Along the Oder and Danube,

through the Pripet Marshes, amid

the Carpathian crags stalk the
Fiends, each claiming its lair
and wrecking a terrible
vengeance on intruders.
Millennia of defending their
holdings from all sides have made
Tzimisce extremely vicious, and Tzimisce
cruelty is infamous even among
vampires.

By the modern nights, the
Tzimisce have been uprooted
from their Old Country
manses and relocated into the
clutches of the Sabbat.
Clan Tzimisce leads the
Sabbat in its rejection of

all things human. They practice a
“fleshcrafting” Discipline that they use to
disfigure their foes and sculpt themselves into
beings of terrible beauty.

Striding from battlefield to battlefield and throne room to throne
room, the Ventr ue are the knights and kings of
the Cainite chessboard. Theirs are the
conquests, the wars and the Crusades;

they rule from the manor

houses and the

throne rooms.
Many were
conquerors in life

and have yet to
shake the habit in
death, while others

achieved success as

merchants or

moneylenders. All
triumphed,
however, and as a
reward, were taken

into Clan Ventrue.
There are no failures among the Ventrue, only successes
and the fondly remembered dead.

The nominal leaders of the Camarilla, the Ventrue
claim to have created and supported the organisation of the sect
since its inception. Ventrue Kindred actively involve themselves in
the Jyhad, in which they exercise their formidable influence over
the doings of the kine. As reluctant aristocracy of the
Kindred, the Ventrue atone for their damnation by
enforcing the Traditions and the Masquerade.

96

97

CREDITS

NIHILISTIC SOFTWARE

Project Leader, Designer

Ray Gresko

Lead Programmer

Robert Huebner

Lead Level Designer

Steve Tietze

Lead Artist

Maarten Kraaijvanger

Designer

Jacob Stephens

Programmers

Yves Borckmans

Ingar Shu

Level Designers

Steve Thoms

Brent McLeod

Artists

Yujin Kiem

Anthony Chiang

Richard Servande

EXTERNAL

DEVELOPMENT

Interactive Screenplay, Story Co-

Writer, Additional Voice Direction

Daniel Greenberg

Video Cutscenes

Oholoko Productions, Inc.

Sound Design and Mixing

Nick Peck,

Perceptive Sound Design

Dark Ages Music,

Cutscene Scoring

Kevin Manthei,

KMM Productions

Modern Day Music

Chris Collins and Greg
Forsberg, Youth Engine

Additional Modern Music

Rob Ross,

Sound Endeavours, Inc.

Additional Conceptual Artwork

Peter Chan

Patrick Lambert

Seung Hong

Kyushik Shim

Manuel Planck,

Famous Frames, Inc.

Ronald Kee,

Oholko Productions, Inc.

QERadiant sourcecode licensed

from id Software, Inc.

Some tools based in part upon

the work of the FreeType Team

(www.freetype.org)

Voice Actors

Nicholas Guest

Michael Benyear

Maggie Baird

Curtis Armstrong

Tara Charendoff

Joe Alaskey
Kevin Killebrew
Christine Burke

Mary Elizabeth McGlynn

John Vickery

Tom Wyner

Dan Woren
John Rafter Lee

Jason Spivak

Melodee Spevak

Robert Neches

Greg Ellis

Mary Weiss

Onsite Testing Staff

David Silverstein

Mark Cooke

Joe Shackelford

WHITE WOLF

PUBLISHING, INC.

President

Steve Wieck

Computer Projects Director

(V:TMR Manual Design)

Chris McDonough

VP of Licensing/Marketing

Mike Tinney

V:tM Developer

Justin Achilli

Manual Editor

John Chambers

White Wolf Art

Vince Locke, Greg Louden,

William O’ Connor, Guy Davis,

Rebecca Guay, Alex Sheikman,

Richard Thomas,

Joshua Gabriel Timbrook

ACTIVISION, INC.

Producer

Chris Hewish

Global Brand Manager

John Heinecke

Press Relations

Michelle Nino

Executive Producer

Mark Lamia

Associate Brand Manager

Jamey Gottlieb

VP of CS/QA

Jim Summers

Staff Planning Lead

Tanya Langston

External Test Coordinator

Stacey Drellishak

QA Senior Project Lead

Nadine Theuzillot

QA Project Lead

Eric Lee

Production Testers

Sion Rodriguez y Gibson

Aaron Gray

Jim Hudson

Glenn Ige

Steve Rosenthal

David Silverstein

Mike Stefan

Chris Toft
Jon Virtes

QA Testers

Jeff Barthel

Matthew Beal

Ilya Berelson
Steve Boisvert
Alex Coleman
Dan Carreker

Nick Castaneda

Mark Cooke

John Cung

Mark Douglas

Sion Rodriguez y Gibson

Marat Gleyzer
Luke Grannis

Hector Guerrero

David Hakim

Keith Harris

Adam Hartsfield

Thann Harvey

Joseph Hemrick

Jason Kim

Victor King

Anthony Korotko

Mike Kusupholnand

Danny Lee

Linda Lozano

Erin Martel
Jeff Moxley

Doug Rothman

Marco Scataglini

Jeff Spierer

Jef Sedivy

Dave Stolfa

Claude Conkrite

David Hakim

Ron Weibel

Jon Virtes

Glen ViStante

Yon Vo

Eric Zimmerman

Network Lab Lead

Chris Keim

Compatibility Lab

Neil Barizo

QA Special Thanks

Eric Zala

Matt Powers

Sam Nouriani

Tim Vanlaw
Jason Wong

John Sherwood

Aaron King

Todd Komesu

Bob McPherson

Gary Bolduc

Marietta Pashayan

Chris Keim

Indra Gunawan
Joule Middleton
Jeff Poffenbarger

Joe Favazza

Ben DeGuzman

Jenny Cassell

Visioneers

Dizzy and Jack

Code Release Group

Juan Valdes

Manual Authors

Chris Hewish

Sion Rodriguez y Gibson

Glenn Ige

White Wolf Staff

Short Story by

Daniel Greenberg

Short Story Illustrations by

Richard Servande

Voice Recording/

Editing Engineers

Brian Bright

Bill Black, Big Fat Kitty

Productions

Kenny Ramirez

Installer

Paul Baker
John Fritts

WON.NET

WON.net Producers

Ross Perez

Scott Warren

WON.net Engineering

Erik De Bonte
Mike Nicolino

WON.net Quality Assurance

Eric Harmon

David Cain

WON.net Beta Testers

LOCALISATION

Localisation Coordinator

Stephanie O’Malley

Localisation Supervisor UK

Peter Lykke Nielsen

Localisation Assitant

Mark Nutt

Artworker

Alex Wylde

GERMAN L

Localisation Coordinators

Feder & Schwert for their

Karl-Heinz Staudenmeier

German recording sessions done

German engineering done by

OCALISATION

Bettina Bucher

Klaus Müller

Special thanks to:

consultancy work!

Voice Actors

Johannes Steck

Christina Puccita

Dieter Kring

Erik Borner

Eva Gosciejevicz

Hans-Jörg Karrenbrock

Helge Heynold

Helmut Winkelmann

Joachim Pütz

Klaus Bauer

Marianne Eisler

Markus Haase

Matthias Keller

Peter Bauer

Pit Krüger

Regine Vergeen

Renier Baaken

Songard Böhlke

Wolf von Lindenau

by M&S Music

Effective Media

98

99

THE FIRST OF OUR KIND WAS

AINE, WHO HAD SLAIN HIS BROTHER AND

C

WAS CAST FROM HUMANKIND

C

AINE, WHO WAS CURSED WITH ETERNAL

UNLIFE AND WITH
TERRIBLE LUST FOR BLOOD

C

AINE WHO WANDERED IN THE WASTES AND

BECAME LONELY

T

HE FATHER WHO CURSED HIS CHILDREN TO

JOIN HIM IN

.

CAINE.

.

.

ETERNAL NIGHT.
T

HIRTEEN CLANS
INHERITED THE EARTH AND MADE WAR UPON
EACH OTHER

W

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107106

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