children of blood

CHILILDREN OF THE BLOOD

Domain Networked (Portillon) (•)

A coterie whose domain overlaps with their cult’s You share access to the cult’s security precautions. If
area of influence enjoys the benefits if its proximity, while they have security cameras around their temple, you can
also potentially absorbing some of the dangers associa- log in to the live feed. If a security team patrols the block,
tion with the cult brings. When building your coterie’s the guards recognize you as a member. Once per story,
domain, consider how the cult affects its chasse, lien, and the coterie can use this asset in defense of its domain. For
portillon. Below are a few Merits and Flaws you might example, it may pull footage of an intruder, or ask the
wish to apply or adapt. patrol to expand their beat for a few nights.

Built-in Flock (Chasse) (•) Flaw: (•) Shared Vulnerabilities Despite your cote-
rie’s precautions, the cult’s own security is lax — a weak-
The cult maintains a front that attracts mortals such ness your foes can exploit to get to you. Enemies who take
as a Shalimite self-help center or Cinder Institute-spon- advantage of this add two dice to attempts to intrude on
sored retreats. Once per week, coterie members may visit the coterie’s domain.
this establishment to feed.
Bloodlines and
Mithraeum (Chasse) (••) Loresheets

Your coterie’s domain overlaps with the local Mithrae- The Children of the Blood are varied and unique.
um. Your coterie acts as enforcers for the cult’s protection With these Bloodlines and Loresheets, you can tie their
racket, and in exchange gains access to its resources. Re- faiths, beliefs, lives, and heritages closer to your character.
duce the Difficulty on hunting rolls in your domain by 1.
Bloodlines
Flaw: (••) Disputed Domain (Chasse): Your cult’s do-
main overlaps with a rival organization’s territory, causing Bloodlines are a special kind of Background that
frequent tension and conflicts over resources. A group of represents a unique heritage your character has. These
Bahari may butt heads with members of Gorgo’s Nest, or represent the Rossellini and Milliner families in Clan
Church of Set square off against the Cult of Mithras. When- Hecata.
ever you encounter its members, immediately roll to resist
fury frenzy. For each subsequent encounter, subtract one die You can only choose one Bloodline, but you may
from the roll. The start of a new story resets the dice pool. purchase one Bloodline and one additional, non-lineage
related Loresheet.
Community Outreach (Lien) (•)
Loresheets
The cult performs acts of community service and has
earned the residents’ goodwill. It makes frequent dona- Most of these Loresheets are connected to some of
tions to food banks or turns abandoned lots into commu- the characters in this book. For example, the Ashfinders,
nity gardens, though it might hide these activities under a the One True Way, and the Cleopatrans allow your char-
different name. Locals recognize your character or coterie acter to join the faiths of The Operator (p. XX) Miss
as part of that group. Add one bonus die to rolls when Fitzimmons (p. XX), or Belinde Buch (p. XX).
working with mortals in your domain.
The Amaranthans, Cleopatras, and Meneleans are
Flaw: (••) Visibility. Someone’s got it in their heads other Kindred faiths your character may join. These
that the cult’s bad news. Whether they’re right or not, Loresheets expand upon their descriptions in Cults of the
any spaces associated with the cult are watched. This Blood Gods.
may take the form of a lone conspiracy theorist posting
members’ comings and goings on social media, a handful
of bored teens holding up signs outside the meeting-place
of the cult’s self-actualization classes, or a full-on protest
attracting journalists and TV cameras. Increase the diffi-
culty on rolls to hunt in the Domain by 2.

10 0

NEW ADVANTAGES

LITTLE SIBLINGS

T (BLOODLINE, HECATA CHARACTERS ONLY)
he Rossellini and the Giovanni were once rivals
in necromancy. The Rossellini had more talent,
but the Giovanni had more ambition. That led to
the latter becoming the Clan of Death for 500 years, and
the other becoming a minor bloodline. The two families
share many traits, save for one: ghost manipulation. The
Giovanni prefer to coax and cajole, with an occasional
threat. The Rossellini begin with threats, browbeating,
and dominating wraiths into doing their bidding. The
Family takes a sadistic glee using Oblivion.

As a Rossellini, the Shadowlands are your play-
ground. Sure, your enslaved wraiths were human, just
like you were, but you conquered death. They are the
pitiful remains, doomed to lament about what they once
had. The least you can do is give purpose to their miser-
able unlives. One day you’ll die and join their sorrowful
ranks, but for now, you will show your cousins the true
depths of Oblivion.

• Grave Attitude: Your experi- LORE age it or cause it injury, the fetter
ence commanding wraiths taught bleeds ectoplasm drawn from the
you that even the Kindred will ••• Necromantic Expertise: ghost’s corpus. Consuming this
eventually cross the Shroud. This Your siblings in the Giovanni see bitter, stringy substance mends
certainty gives you peace. In any Oblivion as a means to an end. an amount of Aggravated or
attempt to intimidate or manipu- You know Oblivion is more than Superficial Willpower damage
late you, your aggressors always that. It’s a wonderous art, one equivalent to the ghost’s Will-
suffer a one die penalty, which that rewards those with the pa- power rating.
stacks with other penalties. tience and ruthlessness to exam-
ine its depths. When you perform ••••• Purge: You shred corpuses
•• Ghostly Dominance: You an Oblivion Ceremony, decrease with ease. Any attack made on a
brook no tolerance for the pleas the Difficulty level by one. ghost always causes Aggravated
and threats of the intangible dead. Health damage, even outside of
They are your tools. If they don’t see •••• Stolen Will: Ghosts are the Shadowlands. You are also
it that way, you will remind them. bundles of emotion cased in an capable of striking them when
When you damage a wraith’s fetter, ectoplasmic shell. While some they are intangible.
loved ones, or ectoplasmic form, Hecata slake their hunger from
you receive three bonus dice to any ghosts, you know a more sus-
rolls to command them. tainable use. When you bite into
the fetter of a ghost under your
command hard enough to dam-

101

CHILILDREN OF THE BLOOD

GRUDGE MASTERS

(BLOODLINE, HECATA CHARACTERS ONLY)

In the 1950s, the Milliner family joined Clan Gio-
vanni out of spite. They weren’t known for their
prowess with Oblivion, but their connections helped
the clan survive major shifts in organized crime, and the
rise of the Second Inquisition. Their only reward was
more work and tighter restrictions on feeding and the
Embrace, something the Family Reunion did little to
rectify. The Milliners have the most responsibilities and
the least respect.

As a Milliner, you’re not a household name like the
Clintons or the Waltons, but the right people dou-
ble-take when they hear it. You know that the Giovan-
ni haven’t and won’t give you the credit you deserve,
and it’s a deep and simmering grudge, one of the most
important among the many you hold. Now everyone is
one big happy family, it’s time to air all those grudges
out. After all, you’ve got plenty of new cousins that’d just
love payback.

• You Know Who I Am: The LORE you a favor in secret, and it’s
Milliners are a true American ••• Perfect Grudges: The now due. The SPC must fulfill
dynasty, and the name carries a Milliners are known for their that favor to the best of their
power even now and outside of grudges, but you’re the true ability by the end of the story,
the United States. Once per sto- poster child. When you are as decided by the Storyteller.
ry, when you invoke the legacy slighted or beaten on a roll ••••• Friends in High Plac-
of the Milliner line, you may add by a SPC, you may create a es: The Milliners’ connections
three dice to a Social roll. Project (Vampire: The Mas- in law enforcement turned
querade, p. 415) dedicated them on would-be vampire
•• Family Bank: The family to taking revenge. Its Launch hunters. This is more difficult
has plenty of money, but an- Roll automatically succeeds, these days, but you still have
yone that calls upon that for- and you may add two dice to the little black books. Pick a
tune needs to repay with cash, any Goal Rolls. The charac- faction within the Second In-
blood, or labor. Once per ter can have as many grudge quisition (FIRSTLIGHT, the Enti-
story, you may borrow money Projects as their dots in Com- ty, a local intelligence agency,
from a new or existing Milliner posure. Any aspirations of etc.). Once per story, when
SPC. You have Resources 5 for revenge beyond that limit are that faction acts against you,
the rest of the story but owe that regular Projects. you may automatically redi-
SPC a favor that must be ful- •••• You Owe Me: The Milli- rect that action onto any en-
filled before the end of the sto- ners always get their due, even emy Kindred SPC. If they sur-
ry. Your Storyteller will tell you at the worst possible times. vive, that SPC will know you
the favor, and the consequenc- Once per story, you may are to blame.
es you face if that debt isn’t re- spend a Willpower and de-
paid when the story ends. clare an SPC in the scene owes

102

NEW ADVANTAGES

THE ASHFINDERS

(THIN-BLOODED CHARACTERS ONLY)

The Ashfinders is a cult for the modern era. Its word
is spread over the internet, its holy land is the
island of Ibiza, and its sacred ritual is developing
designer drugs. The brainchild of a renegade Tremere and an
influential Duskborn, the Ashfinders are a radical new form
of Golconda cult. They seek transcendence through the cre-
ation and consumption of Ashe, formulated from the ashes
of deceased full-blooded vampires. The drug is ineffective
on mortals and full-blooded vampires, but in thin-blooded,
it enhances their blood and can even grant them memories
or abilities from the dead vampires mixed into the concoc-
tion. The cult hypes themselves with social media posts and
advertises as a New Age solution to mortals, and an exciting
journey into enlightenment to Mercurians. What the trend-
setters don’t talk about is Ashe’s highly addictive nature,
and the strange creatures the drug’s creation generates.

As an initiate of the Ashfinders, you find yourself in a
thrilling, dangerous time. You’re certain that you’ve found
a new path out of your condition, even if some of your
full-blooded peers consider your faith a complicated form
of diablerie. Let those wizened old has-beens believe what
they want. They can either get with the program or find
themselves in your furnaces.

•Influencer: As a member of LORE Ashfinders quickly become versa-
the Cinder Institute, the Ashfind- forms of semi-material weaponry, tile in multiple forms of distillation
ers’ mortal-facing front, you’ve you always take −1 damage. to accommodate, and you’re
developed some sway among no different. When you learn an
mortals. This keeps your cult ••• Addiction Resistance: additional Thin-Blood Alchemy
hidden in plain sight. Pick a local Ashe addiction (Cults of the distillation, you may choose up to
subculture. You receive two dots Blood Gods, p. 46) drives a four formulae to carry over to that
of Influence over that subculture. Duskborn into a vicious cycle new form of distillation without
of hunger and frenzy. You’ve having to spend experience
•• Shard Defense: Beast developed a natural resistance to points. Ashfinder Blood Alchemy
Shards, known among the that cycle. When you take Ashe, (Cults of the Blood Gods, p.
Ashfinders as “Shards,” are the make a Rouse Check. You suffer 44) cannot carry over to other
monstrous remains of dead vam- a point of Superficial Willpower forms of distillation.
pires used in the Ashe creation damage if you fail that Rouse
process. They flicker in and out of Check, but Hunger will not ••••• Cook: As an important part
existence and manipulate human increase. of the Ashfinders’ supply line,
emotions. You’ve become an you’ve had plenty of opportu-
expert a hunting and destroying ••••• Strange New Forms: nities to hone your craft. It’s im-
Shards, and it’s carried over to Ashe is exclusively made using proved your overall prowess with
similar creatures. When you are the fixatio distillation method Thin-Blood Alchemy. All times to
hit by spectral claws or other (Vampire: The Masquerade, research formulae are halved.
p. 284). Alchemists who join the

10 3

CHILILDREN OF THE BLOOD

AMARANTHAN

Legend states that Amarantha, a childe of the Tor-
eador Antediluvian, was one of the first victims of
diablerie. Her grieving lovers took vengeance upon
the act’s first culprit, and as the practice came into fashion,
swore to ensure anyone who drained a vampire would face
Final Death. The Amaranthans survive to this very day
hunting down diablerists with little mercy. While they
had long been tolerated in Camarilla domains for their
swift action against the Sabbat, the sect’s withdrawal has
led many domains to reject the cult as their focus turns
towards the Ivory Tower and the Anarch movement.

You were Embraced by an Amaranthan and indoc-
trinated. You know the true evils of diablerie, and what
must be done once rumors of the act surfaces in your
domain. You hunt without regard to allegiance or status.
When your catch your quarry, you are courteous enough
to deliver their final message, carry out any non-blas-
phemous final wish, or perhaps grant mercy. Your faith
may clash with your coterie and domain, but you will see
justice done.

• Judge: You know time and LORE dots in the eyes of any Kindred
supernatural forces hide the who view diablerie in a negative
telltale black veins in a diabler- until you feel their crime has been way. Conversely, you earn an
ist’s aura. You’ve been taught to repaid. Adversary rated at either two or
look for psychological signs, like three dots, who holds the act of
panicked glances or smiles that ••• Executioner: While you diablerie as sacred.
are too haughty. Whenever you may take pleasure in turning
interrogate suspected diabler- diablerists to ash, there is a ••••• The Final Hunt: Unlike
ists, you receive three dice to all process to the execution that must other Amaranthans, you’re dedi-
relevant rolls. be obeyed. That’s how you keep cated to hunt down and consume
your conscience clean. When the cannibalistic descendants
•• Jury: You are capable of you deliver a diablerist’s final of Amarantha’s murderer. It’s
granting clemency. It keeps message or complete their final dangerous, but you’re prepared
your faith from being a glorified wish, you may erase one Stain to sacrifice your soul for justice.
excuse to murder people. Once from your Humanity tracker. When you perform diablerie
per story, when you catch a on a confirmed descendent of
diablerist, expose their crime be- •••• Tense Respect: Your refusal Amarantha’s diablerist, you may
yond any doubt, and argue truly to acquiesce to sect and domain make a Remorse roll anytime you
for the sparing of their life, you traditions regarding diablerie would otherwise automatically
may take that vampire (if they doesn’t make you well-liked, lose Humanity. All other effects
survive sentencing from a Prince but it does bring about grudging still apply.
or Archon) as a two dot Mawla admiration. Even if you hold no
position in your domain, you
have a Status equivalent to three

10 4

NEW ADVANTAGES

CLEOPATR AS

L (NOSFERATU CHARACTERS ONLY)
ong-lived Nosferatu know the story of Yima, the
beautiful and virtuous childe of Absimilliard. She
either sacrificed herself to take the full brunt of
Caine’s curse, or was rejected by her sire when the curse
refused to take hold in her. In the modern nights, some
Nosferatu are visited in daysleep dreams by a woman
who removes their blemishes and guides them to rule
the Kindred. These Vagrants defy the clan’s stigmas
and stereotypes, dressing in fine clothes and adorning
themselves in oils and perfumes. The confidence and
charisma they project brings them into positions of high
society often denied to the clan. Though no one is sure
if the dream woman is the influence of a Methuselah,
the machinations of their Antediluvian, or the spirit of
Yima herself, few can deny the results.

You are a Cleopatra, one of the few Nosferatu that
receives these communal dreams. The woman who visits
you in your slumber shows you the person you could be,
and when you see them, you know it’s attainable. She
tells you about the secret ugliness in your superiors, the
kind that aesthetics just papers over. You can exploit
them. With the woman’s counsel, you can conquer any-
thing, even a clan’s Bane.

• Close Examination: You LORE Status. However, being second-
remember things the woman in-line also earns you a two or
told you at just the right time. ••• Dream Appearance: three dot Adversary, in the form
Once per story, you may select Before entering your daysleep, of a vampire who also wants the
an SPC, and tell the Storytell- you may roll your Composure + position.
er you want to discover their Resolve (Difficulty 3). If you’re
deepest flaw. You gain three successful, your sleeping form ••••• The Beauty Within: You
bonus dice to a Wits + Insight loses the effect of your clan are destined to rule the Kindred,
roll against that individual, with Bane, rendering your appear- and not even Caine’s curse
a critical success conveying the ance equal to that of your mortal hinders you. Once per story,
desired information. Revealing form just prior to your Embrace when you are dressed in your
this knowledge is a certain way (along with any scars from Ag- finest clothes, you may negate
to earn a long-term Adversary gravated Health damage). When your clan’s Bane entirely for the
Background, however. you wake, your Bane re-affects duration of a chapter for the
you within minutes, inflicting two purposes of interaction with other
•• Clothed in Power: You know Superficial Willpower damage. vampires. Your appearance has
how to make the ideal self in your not changed, but your intense
dreams a reality. Pick an outfit, •••• Figure-in-Waiting: Follow- confidence radiates and negates
perfume, hair style, make-up rou- ing your dreams paid off. Name your blemishes. This Lore has no
tine, or skin-care routine. When a titled position in the domain. effect on kine.
you use this, you may reroll a The current titleholder considers
Social roll failure or roll to resist you next in line should something
fury frenzy once per story. happen to them, granting four
dots to spread between Maw-
la (the present titleholder) and

10 5

CHILILDREN OF THE BLOOD

MENELEANS

The Meneleans once sought to rebuild Carthage.
Under the guidance and vitae of Menele, their
patron Methuselah, they learned the lost city’s
secrets. They believed vampires had a higher purpose
and enlightenment could be found through assimilation
with humanity. They struggled for a fairer society for the
Kindred. To the Meneleans, once of the greatest forms
of tyranny was one that elders held over younger genera-
tions. When Menele vanished and the cult’s blood bonds
shattered, his cultists were fully aware of the irony.

Abandoned by their Methuselah, the Meneleans
search for meaning. How much of their faith came from
their own morals, and how much came from Menele’s
direct influence? Though they may never know for sure,
some press on.

You are one of those adherents. You’ve set aside any
questions of whether or not you’ve been manipulated,
because you still feel that Menele had ideas worth spread-
ing. You’ve come away from the experience with insights
into the blood bond that the rest of the domain is keen to
hear.

• Mortal Empathy: You believe LORE connections, including family and
in the importance of cleaving to hu- friends (assumed to have been
manity and ensure you see them as of the best ways to prevent it is cultivated in the build-up to this
people, not just as food. Once per to humble the powerful. Once Loresheet), though they pose risks
chapter, you may reroll any failure per story, when you chastise or to your security and privacy as
on a Social roll involving mortals. humiliate someone in a higher they’ll ask the usual questions of
position of authority than you, “where are you going to work
•• Peacemaker: Menele’s you may add the number of these days?”, “why are you out
school taught you the impor- dots you possess in Status as all night?”, and “why did some-
tance of conflict resolution. Those bonus dice to your roll to cajole one come to my door saying
around you tend to see you as the individual or persuade the you’re a vampire and part of
a voice of reason. Once per crowd to turn against them. The something called a charcuterie?”.
chapter, when you are involved outcome of using this Loresheet
in a social or physical conflict, is a likely Adversary possessing ••••• Bond Breaker: The dissi-
you gain two bonus dice in an dots equivalent to your target’s pation of Menele’s blood bond
attempt to resolve things through power level. permanently changed you. You’ve
diplomacy. If one of your allies become Unbondable (Vampire:
(such as a retainer or member •••• Becoming the Mask: The Masquerade, p. 181), and
of your coterie) then breaks the You’ve assimilated into humanity feeding a Rouse Check’s worth
terms of your negotiation, you so well you have a separate, of vitae to a thrall immediately
must roll to resist fury frenzy. almost mortal life. You receive breaks the regent’s hold. Howev-
an identity represented by er, you are incapable of creating
••• Show of Defiance: Tyran- Mask 2 and may split two dots your own blood bonds.
ny is the enemy of peace. One between Contacts, Resources,
and Influence. When you take
on this Mask, you take on mortal

10 6

NEW ADVANTAGES

THE ON E TRU E WAY

Led by the “Master of Ravens,” the One True Way
encourages vampires to seek Golconda by master-
ing the Beast and becoming the ultimate predator.
Followers gather in meetings and encourage everyone,
including curious newcomers, to openly discuss the
lowest, darkest moments in their unlife. This is for two
reasons: to advise the Kindred on how to overcome their
inhuman natures, and to gather secrets the cult can use to
gain followers and power. The One True Way is banned in
many domains across the world, but this has only seemed
to increase its popularity.

As a traveler on the One True Way, you know that
Golconda isn’t about redemption, but about progression
and mastery. You’ve learned much about the darkness
within yourself and others. Taming the Beast is agonizing,
and it resists at every turn, but you work at it the best
you can. You know there’s times when the Beast must run
free, but you take heart in knowing even this is under your
control. You know the benefits of confession, which sooths
the spirit and gives you secrets to hold over your friends
and enemies. You hope you can fully understand your
place as a human predator, and that one night your higher
instincts and your Hunger will work in tandem.

• Trust Me: Showing vulnerabil- LORE ately enter frenzy and Ride the
ity is dangerous among Kindred, Wave (Vampire: The Mas-
but it’s necessary for the One ••• Beast Communion: You see querade, p. 219).
True Way. You know how to your Beast as a separate perso-
sidestep a vampire’s hesitance na. When it comes to the surface, ••••• The Road from Hune-
and get them to say things they’d it finds details you’ve missed. doara: When the Master of
never tell their closest friends. Whenever you roll a Messy Ravens himself invited you to
When you speak to a vampire Critical or a Bestial Failure, you journey to Hunedoara, Romania
with genuine empathy, the Diffi- may ask one question about to meet him, you accepted. He
culty of any roll to get them to tell the situation to your character’s taught you much, and you have
the truth lowered by one. Beast. Your Storyteller gives you returned a near apex predator.
a truthful answer in the voice of No matter what heinous acts you
•• Secret Keeper: Attending or the Beast. commit in frenzy, you never suffer
running meetings let you in on more than 1 Stain. This can only
so many secrets the Nosferatu •••• Calling the Wave: You see be applied once per story, and
consider you a trusted source. your Beast as a companion. It’d Convictions cannot further reduce
Once per story, when you act on be wrong to keep a companion these Stains.
a secret, a single roll concerning locked away forever, and so
that secret gains two extra dice. you release it on your own terms.
Once per story, you spend a
point of Willpower to immedi-

107

CHILILDREN OF THE BLOOD

STA RFA LL R A NCH

(M A L K AV I A N CH A R ACTE R S ON LY )

Starfall Ranch is well-known as one of the top
ranches in the Northeastern United States. Its cat-
tle are consistent state fair winners. Its horses have
been seen at dressages and other equestrian sports events
around the world. Owning these animals come at a high
price, and part of that premium involves the quality
service of Alberta Pennilee and the expert training of a
man only known as “Dr. Starr.”

Starr is Kindred. He serves the One Moon, a faith
that believes that Clan Malkavian is actually one single
person, experiencing themselves and the world around
them through the lives and perspectives of those they
Embrace. Aside from being a popular grange, Starfall
Ranch serves as a halfway house for dispossessed Malka-
vians. There, they can work, feed, and learn their place as
part of the One Moon.

Starfall Ranch plays a major part in your life, Whatever role Starfall Ranch has in your life, one thing
whether you once worked there after your Embrace, is for certain. Whenever someone tells you, “you’re a part of
or you still call it home. You might know the secrets something greater,” you can’t help but shake your head and
of Starr’s ranch hands, or the basic philosophies of the smile. As you’ve learned on the ranch, that turn of phrase is
One Moon. Perhaps you had the privilege of meeting the truer than the rest of the Kindred could imagine.
Methuselah that sleeps beneath the farmland.

• Herd Mindset: Your time on LORE you forever. You may take Dr.
the ranch brought you closer to Starr as a four dot Mawla. Once
your fellow wayward Malkavi- you start a Project at Starfall per story, Marta will speak
ans. Sometimes this was a bit too Ranch, you receive three bonus through him. You may ask her
close, and parts of their identities dice to the Launch roll. any relevant question to the story,
still linger within you. Once per and she answers truthfully, to the
chapter, you may either take ••• New Perspectives: You best of her knowledge.
two dots in a Skill you do not understand some basics of the
know for a single roll, or as the One Moon, and you’re starting ••••• But I Saw You Die: Starr
Storyteller for one fact about an to discover how you are only a is infamous for cheating death.
SPC that you do not know. The single aspect of a greater person. He’s shared his secret with you.
Storyteller decides on which fact You can even borrow the talents Once, when you undergo final
is received. and abilities of your faith’s other death, you may select another
followers. Once per story, you One Moon cultist SPC. This SPC
•• Clarity of Mind: Starfall may take one Skill rating and is now you, even taking on your
Ranch is a peaceful place. Here, replace it with that of another physical likeness if possible. Your
Malkavian from all levels of soci- One Moon cultist. This may either Skills, Advantages, Flaws, and
ety can rest and reflect upon their be another player’s character or any out-of-clan Discipline dots
future. Those that do find that they an SPC. remain, but you must redistribute
have a better chance of achiev- your Attributes and your in-clan
ing their greater ambitions. When •••• Starr and Marta: You’ve Discipline dots.
had the chance to see Marta with
your own eyes, and it changed

10 8