Looks Merits & Flaws

The Looks merits (Beautiful/Stunning), when used to add dice to a roll, imply not only that the character is good looking but that they are actively using their looks as part of their social effort to sway a character. Generally and by default, Looks merits can apply to all Siren hunts against SPCs; in other situations it is conditional, and STs may rule them applicable or not applicable on a case-by-case basis. Always ask a scene partner prior to rolling if the Looks merit will apply when using this with/against a PC.

The Looks flaws (Ugly/Repulsive) shouldn’t be used solely in conjunction with characters who have or exhibit disabilities, physical or skin conditions, scars/scarring, or other very real and human traits. Equating these real health issues to physical ugliness or repulsiveness is ableist and offensive to those who may themselves have or experience these conditions. These flaws and associated physical descriptions should not be used as a shortcut to indicating a character’s evil nature. Keep that in mind in your character creation and roleplay. Whereas the merits may not always apply to rolls, the flaws will always affect relevant social rolls, against SPCs or PCs alike. The supernatural nature of the Looks flaw doesn’t necessarily entail a Masquerade breach; rather, this is more of a vibe which causes others to become uncomfortable/distressed by the person.

Cobbling A Mask:

Intelligence + Tech/larceny Diff 3 for Mask 1

Diff 4 for Mask 2 A successful roll “kicks off” the process.

Three game day wait for Mask 1, Six for a Mask 2

Cobblers can work on up to a limit of 2 masks or mask-related tests at a time, but they must be started on separate nights.

While zeroing someone, Cobblers are unable to work on any other Mask project.

How Herd functions on server 

A PC can feed from their Herd once per game night/irl week. The amount of Hunger safely slaked in this fashion is reliant on the number of Herd dots on the sheet. Herd 1 (•) will slake one level of Hunger per week; Herd 2 (••) will slake two levels, and so on. Slaking more than two levels of Hunger from the same Herd member endangers the mortal per usual harmful feed mechanics (see the chart on page 212 of the corebook under Slaking Hunger); this is the case even if the 3+ hunger is slaked across consecutive nights.

Slaking from Herd members while at Hunger 4 can be exceptionally dangerous as you will have to roll for your character to resist Frenzy; failing may mean losing the Herd member, murder, and in particularly egregious cases, losing Herd dots.

Having a Herd merit doesn’t mean you don’t roll for temperament, even in cases where there is a set resonance for the Herd. Rolling less than a 6 on the temperament roll merely means that your chosen Herd member doesn’t currently have perceptible resonance in their blood for that week.

Research & Writing

Whereas prior the Academics skill was used as a ‘catch-all’ for research and writing in all topics, going forward we will now be using the relevant skill to the subject being written about or researched. The roll will be Int + Skill, to research a topic or write a paper/book; this might be Int + Science, Int + Occult, Int + Medicine, etc, depending on the topic/field. Creative writing endeavors (poetry, plays, writing song lyrics, etc) are still Academics, as Academics is the skill used to represent understanding of the liberal arts, whether or not that understanding has been formally trained through a university setting or acquired through self-study.

Kindred Iconography

Covering all forms of hidden messages within art, such as paintings, graffiti and other works rolled with an artistic creation pool. If a roll was made to encode the message in art/symbols, then the artist can choose the diff to interpret it up to the number of successes they had on that roll. Having this loresheet can help lower the difficulty in determining the other pieces of iconography.

No Haven Flaw Roll

Wits + Streetwise/Survival diff 4 done each week in order to ensure a safe location for daysleep, make an ask should this fail.

Homebrewed Advantages & Flaws

Flaw: (•) Suspected Blankbody: You are being watched closely by the Second Inquisition. They suspect something is going on, but they haven’t flagged you as a blankbody — yet.  Unlike ‘Known Blankbody,’ this Flaw can eventually be cleared by erasing any sort of evidence and/or with good behavior that proves that you are, indeed, human, and not a blood-drinking threat.

Studio (Haven Merit): Your haven has a performance practice space or a workshop or studio equipped with workbenches, easels, quality tools, and/or other art supplies, etc. Each dot of this Merit adds one to the dice pool for rolls related to one Craft or Performance specialty. Small havens limit this Merit to a maximum of one dot.

Haunted (homebrewed effect): Possible total daily Willpower regeneration is now reduced by 1 as the supernatural interference of the ghostly presence causes less restful sleep. (Example: Character’s Resolve is 4; normally, they can regain up to 4 WP a night. Now, they can regain up to 3 WP when daysleeping in their haven. If they use less than 4 WP, they regain as usual.) As well, ghost-themed consequences will be added to the possible outcomes for messy crits, bestial fails, and total fails on rolls conducted inside the haven.

Banned Advantages & Flaws

• High Functioning Addict advantage: banned.
• Stake Bait flaw: banned
• Resources 5 advantage: banned
• Fame 5 advantage: banned
• Kindred Fame 3+ advantage: banned (Kindred Fame is banned at Character Creation and must be earned in game. Kindred Fame 1 can be earned through ask-the-st; Kinred Fame 2 will most likely be achieved through a campaign).
• Influence 4+ advantage: banned
• Status advantage: Faction and Sect status are banned at Character Creation, whether specific to the city of Seattle (i.e., Illuminare faction) or more general (i.e. Camarilla sect), but must be earned in game. See Factions And Status. Clan status can be taken at CC with appropriate biographical support. Clan status above 3 is banned.
• Organovore flaw– banned on a first character. The flaw itself is not banned overall; however, when submitting a character with the flaw we will expect proper justifications on the sheet at CC for how the character survives and feeds with this flaw or it will not be approved.

Some merits and flaws found in books other than the corebook are banned or otherwise tweaked for use on server. See Children of the Blood and Forbidden Religions for further information.