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[OOC] Vampire: The Masquerade - Pyramid Scheme [PBP]
cj iwakura
The Rhythm RegentBears The Name FreedomRegistered User regular
The Rhythm RegentBears The Name FreedomRegistered User regular
It's the present day.
House and Clan Tremere have always been proud, and in these modern nights, their hubris has cost them dearly.
The Second Inquisition has begun, and Vienna was the first to fall before their literal witch hunt.
The Tremere power structure has been utterly ravaged. The warlocks, previously thought unassailable, have been brought low, beset by enemies both within and without.
The Camarilla never trusted them, and now they have the perfect excuse to cast the Pyramid out of their hallowed halls of power.
For their countless enemies, this is the perfect opportunity to finish what the SI started.
And possibly worse of all, are their own kind. Tremere have never been above stabbing their fellows in the back for an extra ounce of power, blood, or both.
Not to mention the new blood, the heretical upstarts from the likes of House Carna.
Still, the clan has to evolve to survive. The fall of Vienna proved that.
For Tremere to survive, a balance must be struck. The old ways need be honored, but the influence of the new must be considered, otherwise the fate of Vienna will be the fate of all Houses.
Where does this leave you?
As a new initiate to the ways of the Tremere, setting a bold new course for the future of the clan is not exactly your highest priority.
You'll be happy if you manage to survive without becoming fodder for the new Regentia's blood experiments.
The Chantry of the Integrated's influence has become undeniable in recent years. Based out of Boston, Massachusetts, it has the foundation of constant technological innovation from the ever growing pool of local brilliant minds, the political strongholds of the local Camarilla and mortal influences, and even, it's been whispered, heretical collaboration with the mortal Mages of the Pentacle.
Whether through turns of luck that were good or ill, you have been assigned to the Boston Chantry.
Do you intend to uphold the traditions of House and Clan? Are you a sympathizer to the alternate Wiccan traditions of House Carna?
Maybe you think all of it is outdated ancient history, and seek to bring your own direction to the future of the Tremere.
Or maybe none of it matters at all, and you are content with just surviving another night in the drama-filled world you've found yourself bound to, quite literally.
Character Creation Basics
As before, due to my preference and greater familiarity with the NWoD rule set, I'm going to be using a mashup of NWoD rules with OWoD stats.
This means that if you have, say, Auspex 3 and Perception 2, you'll roll 5d10, and need at least one success(8 or higher) to succeed.
Basically homebrewing off a hybrid of the NWoD rules, V:TM 5e, and whatever else is needed for reference.
(So, naturally, I'm flexible in terms of what I'll allow, feel free to ask.)
Do I have to be a Tremere?
Well, that's the rub. The idea of the campaign is for this to be a Tremere-centric story with all the in-fighting and drama that goes along with it.
However, if you're dying(so to speak) to play a different clan or have another concept that you think might work, let me know, and we can talk about it.
(If this proves too limiting as a whole, I could also adjust the campaign if interest/player base proves necessary.)
What your character sheet should have:
Name: your character's name.
Player: your name/handle/whatever.
Chronicle: Pyramid Scheme
Demeanor: Your character's facade, the personality they show to the world.
Nature: Your character's actual personality.
Examples: Architect, Bon Vivant, Bravo, Caregiver, Child, Conformist, Conniver, Curmudgeon, Deviant, Director, Fanatic, Gallant, Jester, Judge, Loner, Martyr, Rebl, Survivor, Traditionalist, Visionary.
Generation: Default is 13th, unless you buy down, and the cap is 10th.
Haven: If applicable, should be somewhere within Boston or the surrounding area. If you don't have one, the Regentia will assign one to you. That's probably not a good thing.
Concept: A brief summary of your character, i.e. 'Roving Pickpocket'.
Attributes, 5/4/3 allocated to the following(i.e. 5 to Physical, 4 to Social, 3 to Mental):
Physical - Strength, Dexterity, Stamina
Social: Charisma, Manipulation, Appearance
Mental: Perception, Intelligence, Wits
Abilities, 11/7/4 allocated to the following(specializations optional):
Talents: Acting, Alertness, Athletics, Brawl, Dodge, Empathy, Intimidation, Leadership, Streetwise, Subterfuge
Skills: Animal Ken, Drive, Etiquette, Firearms, Melee, Music, Repair, Security, Stealth, Survival
Knowledge: Bureaucracy, Computer, Finance, Investigation, Law, Linguistics, Medicine, Occult, Politics, Science
Advantages:
Disciplines, 3 points to allocate, varies on clan.
Tremere: Auspex, Dominate, Thaumaturgy
Backgrounds, 5 points to allocate.
Allies, Contacts, Fame, Generation, Herd, Influence, Mentor, Resources, Retainers, Status(specify what kind, i.e. Clan/Camarilla).
Virtues, 7 points to distribute among: Conscience, Self-Control, Courage.
Influence breakdowns: Bureaucracy, Finance, Health, High Society, Industry, Legal, Media, Occult, Police, Political, Street, Transportation, Underworld, and University.
Willpower: Equal to Courage rating.
Blood Pool: Roll a 1d10 to determine, +1 for whatever generation you bought down to. So if you roll a 5 and are an 11th gen, you will start with 7 blood, and a cap of 11.
Humanity: Defaults to seven, unless you buy up or drop down, but storyteller approval will be needed for an exceptionally high or low amount.
Freebie points: 15XP
Costs: Disciplines - 7 XP per dot, Attributes - 5 XP per dot, Abilities/Virtues/Willpower - 2 XP per dot,
Humanity - 1XP per dot, Backgrounds - 1XP per dot.
So a third point in Disciplines outside of creation would cost 21XP, a third Attribute would cost 15XP, and so on.
Experience point costs(for future reference: Disciplines(7), Attributes(5), Abilities/Virtues/Willpower(2), Humanity/Backgrounds(1, storyteller approval needed).
I would prefer 4 characters, though upwards of 6 is possible.
House and Clan Tremere have always been proud, and in these modern nights, their hubris has cost them dearly.
The Second Inquisition has begun, and Vienna was the first to fall before their literal witch hunt.
The Tremere power structure has been utterly ravaged. The warlocks, previously thought unassailable, have been brought low, beset by enemies both within and without.
The Camarilla never trusted them, and now they have the perfect excuse to cast the Pyramid out of their hallowed halls of power.
For their countless enemies, this is the perfect opportunity to finish what the SI started.
And possibly worse of all, are their own kind. Tremere have never been above stabbing their fellows in the back for an extra ounce of power, blood, or both.
Not to mention the new blood, the heretical upstarts from the likes of House Carna.
Still, the clan has to evolve to survive. The fall of Vienna proved that.
For Tremere to survive, a balance must be struck. The old ways need be honored, but the influence of the new must be considered, otherwise the fate of Vienna will be the fate of all Houses.
Where does this leave you?
As a new initiate to the ways of the Tremere, setting a bold new course for the future of the clan is not exactly your highest priority.
You'll be happy if you manage to survive without becoming fodder for the new Regentia's blood experiments.
The Chantry of the Integrated's influence has become undeniable in recent years. Based out of Boston, Massachusetts, it has the foundation of constant technological innovation from the ever growing pool of local brilliant minds, the political strongholds of the local Camarilla and mortal influences, and even, it's been whispered, heretical collaboration with the mortal Mages of the Pentacle.
Whether through turns of luck that were good or ill, you have been assigned to the Boston Chantry.
Do you intend to uphold the traditions of House and Clan? Are you a sympathizer to the alternate Wiccan traditions of House Carna?
Maybe you think all of it is outdated ancient history, and seek to bring your own direction to the future of the Tremere.
Or maybe none of it matters at all, and you are content with just surviving another night in the drama-filled world you've found yourself bound to, quite literally.
Character Creation Basics
As before, due to my preference and greater familiarity with the NWoD rule set, I'm going to be using a mashup of NWoD rules with OWoD stats.
This means that if you have, say, Auspex 3 and Perception 2, you'll roll 5d10, and need at least one success(8 or higher) to succeed.
Basically homebrewing off a hybrid of the NWoD rules, V:TM 5e, and whatever else is needed for reference.
(So, naturally, I'm flexible in terms of what I'll allow, feel free to ask.)
Do I have to be a Tremere?
Well, that's the rub. The idea of the campaign is for this to be a Tremere-centric story with all the in-fighting and drama that goes along with it.
However, if you're dying(so to speak) to play a different clan or have another concept that you think might work, let me know, and we can talk about it.
(If this proves too limiting as a whole, I could also adjust the campaign if interest/player base proves necessary.)
What your character sheet should have:
Name: your character's name.
Player: your name/handle/whatever.
Chronicle: Pyramid Scheme
Demeanor: Your character's facade, the personality they show to the world.
Nature: Your character's actual personality.
Examples: Architect, Bon Vivant, Bravo, Caregiver, Child, Conformist, Conniver, Curmudgeon, Deviant, Director, Fanatic, Gallant, Jester, Judge, Loner, Martyr, Rebl, Survivor, Traditionalist, Visionary.
Generation: Default is 13th, unless you buy down, and the cap is 10th.
Haven: If applicable, should be somewhere within Boston or the surrounding area. If you don't have one, the Regentia will assign one to you. That's probably not a good thing.
Concept: A brief summary of your character, i.e. 'Roving Pickpocket'.
Attributes, 5/4/3 allocated to the following(i.e. 5 to Physical, 4 to Social, 3 to Mental):
Physical - Strength, Dexterity, Stamina
Social: Charisma, Manipulation, Appearance
Mental: Perception, Intelligence, Wits
Abilities, 11/7/4 allocated to the following(specializations optional):
Talents: Acting, Alertness, Athletics, Brawl, Dodge, Empathy, Intimidation, Leadership, Streetwise, Subterfuge
Skills: Animal Ken, Drive, Etiquette, Firearms, Melee, Music, Repair, Security, Stealth, Survival
Knowledge: Bureaucracy, Computer, Finance, Investigation, Law, Linguistics, Medicine, Occult, Politics, Science
Advantages:
Disciplines, 3 points to allocate, varies on clan.
Tremere: Auspex, Dominate, Thaumaturgy
Backgrounds, 5 points to allocate.
Allies, Contacts, Fame, Generation, Herd, Influence, Mentor, Resources, Retainers, Status(specify what kind, i.e. Clan/Camarilla).
Virtues, 7 points to distribute among: Conscience, Self-Control, Courage.
Influence breakdowns: Bureaucracy, Finance, Health, High Society, Industry, Legal, Media, Occult, Police, Political, Street, Transportation, Underworld, and University.
Willpower: Equal to Courage rating.
Blood Pool: Roll a 1d10 to determine, +1 for whatever generation you bought down to. So if you roll a 5 and are an 11th gen, you will start with 7 blood, and a cap of 11.
Humanity: Defaults to seven, unless you buy up or drop down, but storyteller approval will be needed for an exceptionally high or low amount.
Freebie points: 15XP
Costs: Disciplines - 7 XP per dot, Attributes - 5 XP per dot, Abilities/Virtues/Willpower - 2 XP per dot,
Humanity - 1XP per dot, Backgrounds - 1XP per dot.
So a third point in Disciplines outside of creation would cost 21XP, a third Attribute would cost 15XP, and so on.
Experience point costs(for future reference: Disciplines(7), Attributes(5), Abilities/Virtues/Willpower(2), Humanity/Backgrounds(1, storyteller approval needed).
I would prefer 4 characters, though upwards of 6 is possible.
cj iwakura on
+1
Posts
Never played the RP system or the computer games, but have read about them. Would I be welcome as a pretty green player (I'd be willing to read up on 5e and the current lore), or are you looking for people who are more experienced with the game?
Experience isn't at all necessary, since it could line up with your character being new to the city(and Cainite politics in general).
If you want a primer in game format, Coteries of New York is very good, and not as involving as Bloodlines(or as buggy).
Player: mrpaku
Chronicle: Pyramid Scheme
Demeanor: Outgoing; Charming; Pragmatic; Rough around the edges, but mostly in a playful sort of manner
Nature: Social Climber; Inferiority Complex; Bitter; more than a little bit of a mean streak
Generation: 13th
Haven: A hovel of a studio apartment near Hyde Park, top floor of the building, jammed wall to celing with velvet curtains, vinyl records, burning candles, and old photographs
Concept: A former band manager to a world famous rock group; turned homeless addict/petty criminal; turned national recovery/success story, best-selling author and "Morning Zoo" radio co-host; finally, turned national pariah when his fellow co-host wound up brutally murdered with him the chief suspect
ATTRIBUTES:
Physical: 3
Strength: 1
Dexterity: 1
Stamina: 1
SOCIAL: 5
Charisma: 2
Manipulation: 2
Appearance: 1
MENTAL: 4
Perception: 1
Intelligence: 1
Wits: 2
ABILITIES:
Talents: 11
-Acting: 2
-Streetwise: 2
-Empathy: 2
-Alertness: 1
-Dodge: 1
-Leadership: 1
-Intimidation:1
-Subterfuge: 1
Skills: 7
-Survival: 2
-Drive: 1
-Firearms: 1
-Music: 1
-Stealth: 1
-Repair: 1
-Melee: 1
Knowledge: 4
-Law: 1
-Finance: 1
-Medicine: 1
-Occult: 1
DISCIPLINES:
-Auspex: 2
-Dominate: 1
-Thaumaturgy: 1
Backgrounds:
-Contacts: 1
-Fame/Notoriety: 1
-Herd: 1
-Resources: 1
-Influence (Media): 1
VIRTUES:
-Conscience: 2
-Self-Control: 3
-Courage: 3
WILLPOWER: 3
HUMANITY: 7 (+1 overflow point from my freebies points earlier, DM willing)
BLOOD POOL:
Geth roll 1d10 Blood Pool
Aside the phallas and previous ones of these.
So I'm always daunted by the pip allocation.
Was thinking turned mage/acolyte as a character.
It's fairly straightforward, you just use your combined stats as your dice pool, and if you get the required amount of successes(usually one), you succeed. I'm willing to work with you, I'm sure whoever else joins is too.
Chronicle: Pyramid Scheme
Concept: Embittered survivor of the Second Inquisition led purge of the chantry of Taunton. Long-lived elder with horrible luck, no matter how much he's tried to thrive in these nights, he always seems ends up losing it all through happenstance that he insists that is never his fault. He’s determined to claw back more than just the barest means of living through these nights and the Chantry of the Integrated seems like an excellent launching pad to satisfy these needs.
Demeanor: Fanatic
Nature: Deviant
Generation: 13th
Haven: A sanctum underneath Brambilla & Daughters Bakery, small in size and low in aesthetic and comfort. This will not do.
Attributes
Physical (Primary) - Strength 3, Dexterity 2, Stamina 3
Social (Tertiary) - Charisma 2, Manipulation 2, Appearance 2
Mental (Secondary) - Perception 2, Intelligence 2, Wits 3
Abilities
Talents (Secondary) - Alertness 2, Brawl 1, Dodge 2, Intimidation 1, Streetwise 1
Skills (Tertiary) - Animal Ken 1, Etiquette 2, Survival 1
Knowledge (Primary) - Bureaucracy 2, Finance 2, Investigation 2, Law 2, Linguistics 3
Disciplines: Auspex 3, Dominate 2
Backgrounds: Allies (Finance) 1, Influence (Transportation) 2, Resources 1, Status (Camarilla) 1, Status (Tremere) 1
Virtues: Conscience 1, Self-Control 2, Courage 4
Willpower: 4
Humanity: 7
Blood Pool:
Geth roll 1d10 Blood Pool
Bonus XP: Allies (Finance) to 1 (-1), Auspex to 3 (-14)
Chronicle: Pyramid Scheme
Demeanor: Bookish Curmudgeon, Deviant raising a group of students to feed from
Nature: Pedagogue, Conniver and Architect towards the same acquisition of knowledge before all else.
Generation: 13th
Haven: Department of Archaeology at Boston University
Concept: 13th generation vamp who works at a university in order to sound out what the mortal world knows about the curse.
ATTRIBUTES:
Physical: 3
Strength: 1
Dexterity: 3
Stamina: 2
SOCIAL: 4
Charisma: 2
Manipulation: 3
Appearance: 2
MENTAL: 6
Perception: 2
Intelligence: 4 - Research
Wits: 3
ABILITIES:
Talents: 6
-Alertness: 1
-Dodge: 1
-Leadership: 2
-Intimidation:1
-Subterfuge: 1
Skills: 7
-Drive: 1
-Etiquette: 1
-Firearms: 1
-Stealth: 2
-Security: 2
Knowledge: 11
-Computer: 2
-Investigation: 2
-Occult: 3
-Linguistics: 2
-Bureaucracy: 2
DISCIPLINES:
-Auspex: 0
-Dominate: 2
-Thaumaturgy: 3 - Blood magic path (Taste Blood, Blood Rage, Temp Gen; willpower beat 3+lvl), Communicate with Kindred Sire ritual (int+occult beat 3+lvl)
Backgrounds:
-Herd: 1 (PhD students)
-Resources
-Status (Tremere information broker)
-Influence (Occult): 1
-Influence (University): 1
VIRTUES:
-Conscience: 2
-Self-Control: 4
-Courage: 4
WILLPOWER: 5
.. and the 15 XP somewhere
7 on LVL 1 Dominate
5 for lvl 2 Perception
2 for lvl 2 Leadership
And 1 for Willpower
BLOOD: 5/4?
Minion roll 1d10 for blood
(in a good way)
I'll give Cheeseliker time as well as any last minute initiates.
(Not sure where 8,7,6 came from. Do we start with 1-1-1 and then +5,+4,+3 into each stat?)
(Ah we do, ok)
(I'm looking at this, which doesn't seem to be quite the same: https://digilander.libero.it/diservizio/vtm/vtm05.html
Which seems to indicate virtues start at 1/1/1 and then 7 on top of that as well.)
Ripping tables from that source:
Freebie Points
Trait Cost
Attribute 5 per dot
Ability 2 per dot
Discipline 7 per dot
Background 1 per dot
Virtue 2 per dot
Humanity 1 per dot
Willpower 1 per dot
Non-Freebie Experience Cost
Trait Cost
New Ability 3
New Path (Necromancy or Thaumaturgy) 7
New Discipline 10
Attribute current rating x 4
Ability current rating x 2
Clan Discipline current rating x 5*
Other Discipline current rating x 7*
Secondary Path (Necromancy or Thaumaturgy) current rating x 4
Virtue current rating x 2**
Humanity current rating x 2
Willpower current rating
To elaborate for the unfamiliar: they're basically a more "natural"(re: Wiccan) offshoot of Tremere, and they do not get along well.
Prof Adage is running a 'Mages of the Pentacle' sect/cult/thing ostensibly as an easy way to divest mortals of blood willingly, but more as a front to further his Tremere research into blood magic and the occult in general.
Yep, yours is fine. I'm running through the others to check, as well.
Due to your low blood pool, you may or may not want to run a feeding prior to your first meeting with the others.
And if you don't have any Thaum, that could make your first meeting awkward, and you may be expected to hit the proverbial books.
In addition to the core book's paths of Blood, Flames, and Mind, there's also some fascinating ones from the Guide to the Camarilla, which I'll allow if these pique your interest and you'd like to know more.
https://whitewolf.fandom.com/wiki/Thaumaturgy_(VTM)
Some of my favorites include Elemental Mastery, Green Path(plants), Neptune's Might, and Path of Conjuring.
(I like to think the fact that there's no warding specifically against mortals really bit them in the A when the SI came calling in Vienna.)
Would it be fine to adopt secondary Paths at 5 freebie points per pip (still restricted to less than primary path; Currently looking at Technomancy)?
The costs for secondary Paths after character creation being similar to attribute increases, but with 7XP to get the first pip.
I am thinking that João was never initiated into Thaumaturgy because his sire was looking for someone who could do their gruntwork without having to worry that João might develop the ability to kill them with blood sorcery.
If you can think up a backstory to justify the knowledge in the second path, tentatively.
Because mortals keep hiding secrets in better devices <_<
The Prof has Computer 2 and Security 2 for the same reason.
I'm also getting the feeling that the Prof might like poking the elders too.
Given it's less-than-common usage(and especially that most 'old school' Tremere tend to frown on it), he would need to find a mentor of some form.
The upstarts not embracing the upstarts.
I guess this is a future project then.
Oh, not to put you off, it's totally doable, just kind of an uphill battle, since most Tremere don't like technology. Again, ironic.
Blood cults are called out as risking the masquerade.
I might have to rethink this background.
Nothing some healthy application of bureaucracy can't fix.
What's the difference between bureaucracy and politics?
Whether done through red tape or a swipe of a pen. But basically, one means you know how to work the system, the other means you have connections in the government.
Yes, it definitely does, though the CAS building is an unlikely Haven.
BU owns tons of ever-shifting real estate along and near Commonwealth Avenue and Fenway Park, though, so you can likely slip a Haven in there somewhere.
In the meantime, feel free to establish if your characters know each other or will be meeting for the first time. Either is fine by me.
He's been contemplating dabbling with the occult more to shore up his deficiency in that field more and Gurstag would be a convenient in to get started on that. Perhaps with regards to Louie, it's been a similar tit for tat where João's been looking into learning more of the music industry since it seems to be particularly fruitful for getting into as a possible next venture and in return João's willing to share (what's left) of his network to help Louie out.
Gurstag has to keep tabs on vamps that are making waves, and Louie seems to be slightly less than subtle recently.
And Gurstag would be happy to help João with his training.
Normally it is meant to cost though.
But I'm sure João has had no trouble helping retrieve some items of interest for Gurstag.
@Kirindal There is also the small matter of your fairly low blood pool to address.
Yes, that's fine. If there's any special means he'd use or resource he's putting to use, let me know, unless he'd rather try his luck with the locals.
Louie's been going completely stir crazy while locked up. He's simmering pissed at his Sire, who wasn't the most forthcoming kind before, and now he thinks has all but abandoned him (in actuallity, they're probably the main reason Louie isn't dead already). The vampire has been sitting in his apartment this whole time, reading the same single ritual book over and over and over; throwing parties with the odd groupies who still remember who he is, where he shows off his "parlor tricks" and listlessly feeds; constant outgoing phone calls, to old friends in Music/the Media/The Pyramid out of boredom/loneliness, his innate desire to network, and a rather cloying need to feel remembered.
I think odds are good Louie could've run into João while he was working his New York DJ radio host gig, possibly while João was the muscle for another group? It's also possible him and Gurstag have spoken on the phone before, either on-air during a call-in segment (Louie's show was themed loosely around "the Occult"; mortal nonsense and superstition), or maybe after he came to Boston, during one of his desperate all-night phone sessions
It's coming back to bite him now though.
As much as Gurstag is trying to advise Louie against further infractions and attempting to teach him how to not ruffle more feathers, Louie is not handling the confinement well, and is calling more often than Gurstag would like.
Gurstag still has to put out video lectures and he'd prefer to continue his weekly chess sessions with his sire uninterrupted.