Dark Realms RPG - Official Resources

Clans

In Vampire: The Masquerade, the clans are the major vampire lineages that comprise vampiric society. Like all bloodlines, each clan has greater familiarity with a set of three Disciplines, a weakness largely unique to its members, and various stereotypes attributed to it as a result of a tendency to Embrace individuals with certain characteristics. The clans are generally differentiated and set above bloodlines by their greater number and influence throughout the world, identification with an Antediluvian progenitor, a history that reputedly extends back to the Second City, and clan weaknesses that were said to be handed down by Caine himself. In the modern nights, there are thirteen recognized clans. However, our chronicle focuses on the Camarilla faction. Their recognized clans are as follows:

Clan Brujah

Clan Gangrel

Disciplines

In Vampire: The Masquerade, a Discipline is the term used for one of the supernatural powers of Cainites. The origin of the Disciplines is unknown, but many believe they are gifts from Caine or Lilith, and a few Antediluvians are thought to have invented unique Disciplines that have been passed down through their childer. There are seventeen "main" Disciplines that are well known and relatively common, but there are also a variety of much rarer Disciplines practiced by bloodlines and Thin-Blooded vampires.

Aside from their immortality, ability to heal, and ability to improve their physical capabilities through expenditure of vitae, the Disciplines are what grant Cainites their supernatural power and enable them to participate in the Jyhad. Training in each Discipline provides several related powers such as superhuman senses, shapeshifting abilities or influence over the minds of others.

Animalism
Auspex
Celerity
Dementation
Dominate
Fortitude

Obfuscate
Potence
Presence
Protean
Thaumaturgy Paths
Thaumaturgy Rituals

Lores & Cannon

Each sect has its own lore, as does the different clans. Each character is allowed, based on background, to have lore 1+ within their sect and clan at creation. Otherwise, you must earn these through game play and with the approval of the ST. For a complete collection of the recognized accumulated facts, traditions, or beliefs about particular Lores, Legends, and Occult topics recognized in our setting please see the Lores page.

Merits & Flaws

Merits, as the name suggests, provide boons or advantages and can be purchased through freebie points or experience only. Classic examples of merits include Common Sense, Code of Honor, Eidetic Memory, Ambidextrous, True Love, Lucky, and the infamous Fast Learner.

Flaws obviously provide the opposite effect. Unlike merits, adding a flaw to a character allows you to gain freebie points equal to that flaw's rating; however, there is a limit of seven points that can be gained in this manner. Classic flaws include Phobia, Curse, Vengeance, Amnesia, Distinctive Appearance, Enemy, and a set of flaws which limited the amount of points that could be spent in each Ability. Inept limited the points one could take in Talents, Uneducated limited Knowledges, and Unskilled affected Skills.

Detailed lists of Merits & Flaws may be located...

General Merits & Flaws
Mortal/Ghoul Only Merits & Flaws
Kindred Only Merits & Flaws

Willpower

Willpower Levels

• Spineless
•• Weak
••• Unassertive
•••• Diffident
••••• Certain
•••••• Confident
••••••• Determined
•••••••• Controlled
••••••••• Iron-Willed
•••••••••• Unshakeable

Spending Willpower
A player may spend one of her character's Willpower points to have an automatic success on a single rolled action. ONLY one point of willpower may be used in a single turn, but the success is guaranteed and cannot be canceled, not even by a botch.

Note: You -must- declare that you are spending a WP -before- you make an actual roll for an action; you cannot cancel a botch by spending a WP at the last minute. Also, keep in mind that the ST may declare that a WP may not be spent on a given action.

Sometimes, the Storyteller may rule that a character automatically takes some action based on instinct or urge - i.e, leaping away from a batch of sunlight filtering through a window. In this instance the ST may allow the player to spend a WP and avoid taking this instinctive maneuver. Keep in mind that the instance may return at the ST's discretion; a player may need to spend multiple WP over the span of a few turns to stay on task. Sometimes the urge can be overcome by the force of will; at other times, the character has no choice but to follow his instinct (i.e., the character runs out of WP or just doesn't want to expend them anymore).
WP can be spent to prevent a derangement from manifesting, with the ST's permission (of course). Eventually, if enough WP are spent (this amount is determined by the ST), the derangement may be overcome and eliminated, as enough denial of the derangement remedies the aberration. Malkavians may -never- overcome their derangements, though WP may be spent to deny it for a short period of time.
Willpower can be spent to ignore wound penalties for -one- turn. This will allow the character to override pain and injury in order to take one last-ditch heroic (or villainous) action. Although, an incapacitated or torpor'd character may not spend WP this way.

Regaining Willpower
Not only can a character spend willpower, it can also be regained. The following situations are ways the character can earn back a point or more of willpower, though a character's willpower pool may never exceed her willpower rating. The only way to increase a willpower rating is through experience point spending. (And doing that will take a LOT of time and effort and convincing the ST's as increasing willpower is not easily done. Not impossible, but not easy).

Most times a character's Willpower pool may be replenished whenever the character fulfills a goal or has an opportunity to restore her self-confidence. Ultimately, specific instances of WP restoration are solely the discretion of the ST.

Characters' WP pools replenish fully at the end of a given episode. (That means the night, not the scene)
If a character attains some extraordinary goal or fulfills an outstanding objective, the ST may reward her with a point of WP.
If a character behaves in a manner that fulfills her Nature archetype, the ST may reward the character with a WP point.