And, last but certainly not least, the Ventrue.

Do your thing, V20 fans!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Tm8VYOBHZYl80PrqLsx-ReNFYT40HeM8a1JjoknHz2w/edit?hl=en_US&authkey=CPfsyJEF

Before I leave on my cruise next week, I wanted to sneak out one more clan writeup: The Malkavians.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cyUnyLHsF4T9cZVxFGRhLEkaiLWzL_EnyZ67B4OOTgo/edit?hl=en&authkey=CMyk-_gH

EDIT: Swapping to Dementation in-clan. There will be a sidebar talking about "Dominate Malkavians," in line with the other ones Justin did, but that's being written by Matt McFarland, and therefore isn't a part of this text.

Let's have another look at Masquerade's musical associations, shall we? Time to rock out with the Daughters of Cacophony. Written by Matt McFarland.

Here are the Assamites for your stabbing pleasure. You know the drill -- toss your playtest notes, opinions, and rants in the comments below.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/17_dQ3ylgLVY8hv5yc0zor1sbMRGNdcoT7qDK1gMYqk8/edit?hl=en&authkey=CMuixis

EDIT: I will add in a comment about their skin growing darker as they age. Also, a note that I am reading and editing based on comments here and on Twitter, but I can't dive in on every question.

I've never much enjoyed the Setites in actual play. I like them enough as an idea, but the idea always felt a little too narrow in practice. Black guy with dreads? HE'S A SETITE. That always felt very limiting, especially if the idea was to offer a Faustian deal. When the guy you're dealing with is basically the local franchise of Whores-R-Us, there's not a lot of flexibility there, and there's even less if you're wanting to portray one.

What I've tried to do here is pull the camera back a bit. They keep all of the characteristics that make them classically "Setites," but there's a little extra breadth to the clan concept. More cult of vice, fewer stock wardrobe-department Egyptian costumes.

How does this feel? I think I'm close, but I'm not quite there yet. I want the second-edition feel of self-acknowledged sinister dudes, but I wanted the revised-edition effort of making them be sustainable. I'm on the road to liking them a bit more now, but the bus hasn't quite yet arrived. Feedback, please.

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1lUdZXWdMtmYWAnAsfN5Ysc_y0hPIx81HZG9gwfTGKi4

Quick bit of set-up: I've moved into a new position at CCP/White Wolf, and the most immediate consequence of that is that I have more time to help out with V20. Justin asked me to help him with some of the heavy lifting on the main V20 book, which is why I'm talking about Dodge and not, say, the Samedi.

Back when Justin posted his draft on Attributes and Abilities, he dropped Dodge to consolidate it into Athletics. At our Monday V20 meeting we talked it over, and agreed that we should add Awareness in to replace it, breaking out "mundane senses" and "mystical senses" for vampires. Here's the writeup draft I have for it at the moment:

<3>Awareness

<n>Awareness is an instinctual reaction to the presence of the supernatural. It differs from Alertness (which measures sensitivity to mundane events) and Occult (which covers actual knowledge about the supernatural). Usually, only supernatural creatures have access to this particular Talent, but some unique mortals have a sense that something is strange in the world. Characters with Awareness sometimes get hunches, chills, or sudden flashes of inspiration when they are near supernatural creatures, objects, or events. Of course, knowing that something’s wrong doesn’t mean that the character knows what it is; that’s the province of Occult.

A vampire can use Awareness deliberately if he suspects that something is supernatural, in order to determine a general impression of the item or creature. However, the Storyteller can ask for an Awareness roll to determine whether a vampire notices a strange event that’s not immediately visible.

• Novice: You sometimes get strange feelings or vibes from certain places or people.

•• Practiced: You feel the supernatural all around you.

••• Competent: When you concentrate, you can sometimes pinpoint the source of a particular supernatural occurrence.

•••• Expert: The very world around you hums with the power of the occult, and you can sense how it ebbs and flows.

••••• Master: You perceive the supernatural world nearly as well as the real one. They are one and the same to you.

Possessed by: Psychics, Mystics, New Agers, Paranormal Researchers

Specialties: Ghosts, Mystical Objects, Vampiric Disciplines, Sixth Sense 

This changes some Discipline dice pools, and there are a couple of Discipline powers that we'll have to buff up a bit because they played the role of "sensing supernatural shit," but give us your thoughts and playtest feedback.

You’ve got the keys to the penthouse and the Jag. Your expense account is practically bottomless. Nobody knows what you do, but whatever it is, they’re jealous.

To you, though, none of that matters. All that matters is the Blood. You need it, they have it. The masters. And oh, what you wouldn’t do for one more sip.

You’re a ghoul. An attache, an envoy, a companion… and a toy. The Kindred know you need them, and they can get you to do just about anything as long as you think they’re going to fill that need.

Yet they need you, too. You may be a junkie and a flunkie, but you can actually get up in the morning. You can walk in the daylight. You can do their dirty work.

Yeah, they need you… or at least, they need someone like you.

---

In Revised, ghouls get only a few mentions — mainly, a writeup in the antagonists section. I always thought that was rather a shame. Always seemed to me like your Renfield types deserved character creation rules in the core, right alongside their Damned masters.

That’s exactly what I’ve got for you today. In v20, ghouls aren’t lumped with the antagonists. They get their own appendix, character creation and all. And I'm throwing the raw mechanics out for you to kick the tires. Here you go:

Ghoul Character Creation

On ghouls in general: the primary model for this section is Fatal Addiction, which remained the best reference on ghouls for the rest of the line. I’ve played by those rules, and aside from “Pick Your Poison,” I’ve stuck by them.

I’d like to know what you folks think about that — any quirks that need ironing? What are the most important choices you make when creating a ghoul, and what do you want to see get the most coverage? Any great stories from your chronicles?

Look at these Gangrel I found loitering in the back parking lot and giving me the stink-eye.

The thing that needs the most stress-testing here is -- hey, surprise! -- clan weakness. Now, the only thing the rule stipulates is the appearance of the animal features upon frenzy. I didn't really like the way the previous weakness worked -- I frenzy five different times, and I end up with a giraffe neck, a totoro for a head, a serpent's lower body, helicopter blades for arms, and a crazy nastyass honey badger for a torso and all that happens is I lose a point of Manipulation? MAN WHAT So the new weakness moves the Gangrel weakness into to a very narrative function, and it asks Storytellers to shoulder much of the work in putting due emphasis on its contribution to the chronicle. It removes entirely the loss of Social Trait dots and puts all of the outcome on context. Is this too subjective? Too easy to become "not a weakness" in the hands of a lax Storyteller or overweening player?

I also removed the overt ties to Gypsies and werewolves. If you want your character connected to those groups, knock yourself out, but I wanted more focus on who the Gangrel are themselves rather than who they know.

From the comments on the Ravnos, there was a common sentiment that players wanted to see some attention to what the different age categories of the clans do, so I folded that in here. It's not a separate section, but rather a smattering of references throughout the spread that characterize the elders, ancillae, and neonates. That way, I can drop it in where it becomes relevant without adding an arbitrary subsection. Again, to keep it in line with "who they are."

I also didn't touch the secession of the Gangrel from the Camarilla. I haven't yet decided if this belongs in the clan spread or in the larger information on the sects.

Here's the writeup:

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1EhaZilRoG3wdEb5VLOPPw2Igv4vQSaVhKFTc1yXNvvc

Put it to the test, if you'd be so kind.

Update Edit: I've been watching the feedback down below and it looks like people want a written encouragement to use non-physical animal characteristics, as well as a little more systems definition for the weakness. Here's a tuneup:

Weaknesses: The Beast is close to the Gangrel clan, and as the Outlanders succumb to frenzy, so, too does the Beast leave its mark upon them. Every time a Gangrel frenzies, she acquires an animal characteristic. A patch of fur, a brief torpor after feeding, protruding fangs, a snout, skittishness around crowds — all of these and more may mar an Outlander after engaging in frenzy. Note, too, that characteristics acquired in Gangrel frenzies need not only be physical. Players should work with the Storyteller to determine what new animal trait a Gangrel acquires after a frenzy, and whether the frenzy involved the fight-or-flight impulse may be relevant. A good guideline is to require each frenzy-gained trait to have some effect grounded in system terms (though some Storytellers may allow narrative-only traits that can also shape the story).

Can you FEEL the Ravnosery?

This one was a challenge to write. On the one hand, there's a lot of Revised-era work that went toward expanding the clan from their original, somewhat shallow concept. On the other hand, the clan spreads are overviews that give only broad-strokes impressions of the clans, with lots of room for players to make the clan concept their own. I tried to hit an even stride here, giving enough detail to support the revised-era expansion while still keeping the kernel of clan identity that resonated with so many players when the Ravnos first appeared.

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=10SAgLvyyJsGsvt2BFIxrgWyKXhTGB-veby7WnQzgqMI

What say you?

(I've already caught a spelling error in this doc and a subject-clause problem, so it's still being polished, as ever.)

Edit: It looks like there were a pair of autocorrect errors and a dropped quotation paste this time (unless the Ravnos are secretly the Lasombra in disguise). Fixed on my end.

Here's the corrected doc:

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1ZzxR7RJEd2s4xnxkvM1x_WXzytK55KqQWWU08kjnjZ8

Here in the shadows we find the Keepers, Clan Lasombra. I did them this time around because people wanted to start seeing some of the non-Camarilla clans, but I didn't want to do the Tzimisce and the Tremere back-to-back. ("These guys are creepy. Oh, and these guys are creepy, too.")

The writeup this time around remains economical with words, coming in at just over a thousand. It continues the practice of going back to that second- or even first-edition feel of relying more on mood than on later developments. For example, I've excised references to les amies noir and abyss mysticism overtly, but the savvy reader can find references to them that are less overt.

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=160f5GzsSy_P8gf9aR9bw4lNDqyB0AWlvtZbR8jM5lF0