Venue Style Sheet: Intersections
Vampire: The Requiem –
Basic Information
Domain:
Venue: Vampire
Venue Storyteller (ST): Andrew Galan
ST Contact: vstcanberra@gmail.com
The Canberra Requiem Venue is based in the
The venue hosts a single monthly Requiem game.
Description of Venue
Monthly, Third Saturday of the month: 7.00pm to 11.00pm
Location: Turner Scout Hall
Lead ST: Andrew Galan (VST
Lead
Lead aST: Mitchell Hatherly (AVST Canberra)
Temporary Narrators: May be appointed for any game when necessary.
Styles of Play. 1(Never Present) to 5 (Always present):
Style of Play Rating
Conflict 5
Decisions 5
Darkness 4
Drama 3
Politics 5
Interaction 5
Mystery 3
Pace 3
Conflict - 5
Conflict will always be an option within the
Decisions - 5
Choices are the core of the Requiem game. The first choice is to be a passive or active participant in the Venue. Active participants will play a central role in shaping the game world. Passive participants will be buffeted by those shapers but may still make significant and consequential reactive decisions. Dilemmas will come within the game world when players have their characters make choices on how to proceed, either in active pursuit of an objective, or in reaction to the unfolding of events. No character will move untouched by events in
Darkness - 4
While Vampires are immortal, players and the game are not. Therefore long-term planning and a focus on politics are encouraged, but in order to have a dynamic venue players are encouraged to have their characters make choices and have their characters deal with the consequences of those choices. This ultimately leads to players having their characters engage with corruption and death, be it their own or that of adversaries. Treat this period in
Drama - 3
Core Vampire is dramatic interaction between player characters played out within Court. This includes shifts in status being done at Court, corrupt and exploitative Court officials, as well as omnipresent fear suspicion and paranoia played out through the formation and crumbling of alliances, cementing of power bases within the city through Allies and Retainers and an ever present drive to gain a foothold in something important within the city – most prized, a position at Court. But in order to not bog the game down in endless melodrama, drama will be encouraged at truly pivotal and significant moments.
Politics - 5
All the Covenants and Clans are political; do not let anyone tell you otherwise. Because, achieving power gives the Covenant and/or Clan access to the control necessary to pursue ambitions in full. Power comes through politics which requires engagement, negotiations and sometimes violence. For characters to pursue and meet their ambitions they will have to overcome adversity, most likely in the form of other protagonists and antagonists within the World of Darkness.
Interaction - 4
Social interaction in Vampire generally centres at Court gatherings. An understanding of status, the role of Court positions and that this is the World of Darkness is critical to playing the game. Vampire is deliberately designed to allow exploitation and corruption of every position within Court. While playing the just and nice character is always an option this should be an exception and exceptionally difficult. Insults are critical within this world; intentional, unintentional and imagined slights can have the potential for consequences far out of proportion to the slight.
Mystery - 3
The World of Darkness is full of the unknown for characters and looking outside their small domain should be terrifying and mystifying. For those characters that do pursue, or are confronted with, the unknown, proper planning or skilled reactions will generally be rewarded. But sometimes so to will dumb luck result in a useful outcome and rewards.
Pace - 3
Plot and interaction between characters can be played out over an extended period, dependent on the actions of the protagonists and antagonists. A mixture of fast-paced and slower paced developments will be aimed for to maintain engagement across a range of play styles.
Storytelling Mechanics
The Canberra Venue uses the rules as outlined in official World of Darkness sourcebooks and the most recent addenda, unless otherwise outlined below.
Feeding (MET Requiem p.230): The default will be the core rules for feeding (WW50001 pp230-231). Rules for characters that possess powers, disciplines or merits pertaining to feeding, for example Coils of Blood (WW50001 p209), Herd and Haven (pp129-130) or
Armory: Items from the Armory book that are not high approval are low approval with mid notification.
Carthian Law: The Carthians have ebbed and grown in
Allies, Contacts, Retainers, Staff and Status: These merits are limited to a single downtime action or single action per game. Use common sense when using these items. Use them when you need to, not just because you have them. Remember also what each of these merits represent:
Mentors are individuals that look out for your character in some way and will follow the rules as outlined in WW50000 p144.
Allies are friends and associates that you can count on the help you out sometimes. They are not servants, flunkies, minions or yes-men. You must ordinarily ask for them to act on your behalf, being friends and associates they will sometimes ask for something in return – especially if what you ask is a major favour (see WW50000 p138-140).
Contacts collect information and pass it on to you. They are passive, require no roll and need minimal maintenance. Contacts may pass on information they feel is relevant to you without your asking (WW50000 p142).
Status is a representation of direct and recognised authority in the chosen organisation. Your character has official special access, rights or control over places, people and resources. A character should be a member of an organisation to have status in it, and is expected to fulfil the requirements of that position (WW50000 pp146-148).
Retainers are your personal, loyal servants. They do what you ask them to do. When using and buying retainers consider the dot value carefully; a one dot retainer will ordinarily not do you much good, they may be invalids, small children or otherwise inept. Consider this when using them. Special retainers granted by special abilities (zombies, homunculi etc) are exempt from this restriction. The ST or assistant ST will design and play retainers (WW50000 pp145-146).
Staff represent a small group that work for you directly doing menial tasks. They do not wield influence or status for you and perform simple tasks only.
Downtime: As normal, characters receive 1 downtime action per dot in resolve, per game period. Downtime is due exactly 2 weeks prior to the next game.
Learning out of clan disciplines, other than Vigor, Celerity and Resilience, requires an action by both student and teacher in downtime.
Learning devotions (including Invictus Oaths) and rituals from a teacher requires an action be spent by the student and teacher.
A downtime action may be spent to regain a single willpower; as your character spends time recovering.
A character can spend a downtime action to gain two of their willpower instead, by indulging in her vice or spending time in spiritual contemplation (for Lance and Acolytes). Adequate descriptions of this action must be included (1 paragraph description or scene). (A single willpower is automatically regained per week).
A downtime action may be spent for additional feeding draws at the following game; the exact amount will depend on the feeding system being used at the time.
Eminence and Ascendance (MET Requiem p.290): Will be decided and changed on a monthly basis – the night of each game, based on the characters active within the domain from the previous game. The resulting eminence and ascendance from this calculation will apply for the entirety of that month. Status changes are to be done in character at the game session. To be effective status changes must be submitted with that character’s downtime each month.
Invictus Oaths (Invictus p.182): Must be taken seriously. If all of the information required by the addenda (successes, exact wording, involved characters and items gained) is not provided, the oath does not exist. Period. Also, any oath that requires action on your characters part will require downtime actions to fulfil, depending upon the oath.
The Oath of Running Blood: 1 action must be spent each downtime period to fulfil the oath. Failure to do so causes the blood glass to solidify.
Oath of the Bloody Hand: 1 action must be spent each downtime period to fulfil the oath. Failure to do so causes the character to take damage.
Oath of Blood Focus: Spending a downtime action on anything other than pursuing the completion of this oath costs the character 1 willpower.
Oath of Blood Service: 2 actions must be spent each downtime period to fulfil the oath. Failure to do so causes the blood oath to break.
Oath of Blood Loyalty: This is the oath you use to grant long-term, less demanding access to disciplines. The price is your free will and privacy.
Note that a character that swears many oaths, without the Resolve (DT Actions) to fulfil them will likely find himself in a lot of trouble as he or she is unable to fulfil their oaths (and suffer the subsequent consequences). A character will not be subject to the above penalties if the character is rendered unable to perform the actions required against his/her will.
Haven Merits: Havens are generally important to a vampire’s existence.
Location: Will give you a bonus to every feeding draw you do whilst staying in a haven in downtime. The merit itself represents easy feeding around the haven. This does not apply to random feeding scenes at games. A character can only benefit from one haven location at a time. You can’t simultaneously feed from 3 locations. This bonus, however, can apply to multiple characters staying one haven.
Security: Will provide the usual benefits as per the MET: REQ book.
Size: Will determine exactly how much space is covered by your other haven dots. Haven size need not necessarily represent the actual size of your haven. For example, a character may own and sleep in a large sprawling country estate. At haven size 1, this estate has only a single room that the resident can count on to keep the light out and intruders at bay. At size 5 the resident(s) can find a place to bunker down within moments so long as they are anywhere on the grounds, even out in some field.
Library: The
Frenzy (MET Requiem WW500001 p p253-258): Terrible and feared destroyer of countless requiems throughout the ages. The beast is a vampire’s greatest adversary. It is simultaneously terrifying and exhausting. The beast is indiscriminate and brutal.
Character Creation
What I feel the game needs, and the restrictions I place on new characters will change as the chronicle progresses. Contact the VST Intersections to discuss desirable character types (vstcanberra@gmail.com).
Proxy Rules and travel to play in Canberra
Please ensure you get your proxies to me at least 1 week before the game. Make sure you include travel instructions (Including defined Merit use).
Players should have their ST send their character sheet to me a week (7 days) prior to the
All proxy statements must include the declaration: “I recognize that travel is dangerous in the World of Darkness and by agreeing to proxy my character to this domain I accept the possibility that this action may result in the Death of my character.”
Proxy rules are as per the Camarilla Addenda.
Consider your proxy carefully, and please give as much time as possible before the proxy date. Triple check the following:
Make sure the PCs you’re coming to meet know what’s going on.
Make sure your travel arrangements are sound and safe, consider
Make arrangements for you PCs accommodation.
Note what you bring with you, and how (weapons, retainers, vehicles, luggage)
If required, find someone to play your PC at the game.
Travel:
This is the World of Darkness; travels are not safe, plan and take precautions for any travel to or from the ACT.
Air Travel:
Flights originating from outside the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) will ordinarily land at the Canberra International Airport.
Flights originating from within the ACT except
Flights originating from within the ACT with a destination outside the ACT, except NSW and Victoria must ordinarily depart from the
Rail Travel:
There is one civilian rail line operating between the ACT and the rest of
Road Travel:
Buses, a number of bus services are available into
Experience Awards:
Potential XP each month are as follows: (Max 10/Month).
Monthly XP – Average 6 and Max 10:
Attendance: 2 xp
Costuming: 1 xp
Role-playing: 1-2 xp
Interaction: 1 xp
Downtime: 1-3 xp
Storyteller Discretion 1 xp
Email Etiquette
All questions and approval applications relating to any of your Vampire characters should be included with your monthly downtime for that character.
When emailing your ST consider that he/she has an entire venue of players to consider and give time to.
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