Posts made by tragedyjones

Doublepost again. I did often feel weird using Dominate on PCs. Just how I am. And yet I was the guy on TR who would slam someone with months of Depression via Despond for kicks.

I stand corrected re: Lashing Out. Defending only costs a Willpower if your BP is lower. My bad.

Doublepost: Full Trailer for Jessica Jones
https://youtu.be/nWHUjuJ8zxE

Just a clarification, Lashing Out only costs a Willpower when defending against a Kindred with higher BP. Initiating it is free.

Yeah so far one episode down and this show continues to barrel down the wtf track in the best way.

I won't lie to you and say it is a good show. But the final season of Hemlock Grove is now available on Netflix.

Getting shafted is something many Daeva actively enjoy, though.

Also a quick scan shows that Majesty doesn't actually rely on the Social Maneuvers system. If players are flat out just ignoring social stats in general, fuck 'em.

@derp - You make it abundantly clear that the game will or will not be using Social Maneuvering on Player Characters. If it is, you use the rule on page 193 about how to resolve it with PCs.

I was just making a dumb joke. And remember, if you ever get in a gunfight, SHIFT! Dalu can dodge bullets.

What discipline confuses you for MU useage though?

Also also. Animalism is totally a combat discipline in clever hands. You can summon hordes of beasts!

@Derp said:

@tragedyjones said:

My assessment of Obfuscate as a combat ability was probably tempered by my own Mekhet's complete inability to capitalize even on the opportunity to take advantage of total surprise.

Also, a lot of people in WoD underestimate the lethality of a grapple. I know @lordbelh doesn't, but a lot do.

I have a grappler werewolf. I've never even shifted him out of Hishu.

That's probably a breaking point towards Flesh by now!

My assessment of Obfuscate as a combat ability was probably tempered by my own Mekhet's complete inability to capitalize even on the opportunity to take advantage of total surprise.

Also, a lot of people in WoD underestimate the lethality of a grapple. I know @lordbelh doesn't, but a lot do.

@Tempest said:

@tragedyjones OP has given us no reason to think they won't, eventually. If anything, based on how they appear to be doing 2.0 Bloodlines, we can expect /more/ Bloodlines to get Dominate (and other 'Clan' discs), since they're doing 4 Discs + Devotions instead of unique disc.

That isn't acruelly how they are doing the new Bloodlines. That is how they did ONE of them. One got an extra discipline and some devotions. And yea, that was the model adopted on Reno.

Another gets a bonus discipline and a set of merits.

A third gets no extra discipline and just some inherent powers.

None of those bloodlines officially exist in 2nd Edition.

In response to the brief debate between @Ganymede and @Tempest I ended up putting way, way too much effort into ranking the various vampire clans. I am a damn nerd.

A comparison of Clans in Vampire the Requiem 2nd Edition

I will be comparing and contrasting these without taking Bloodlines in to account, and I will give them 3 Ratings - Combat Twinkiness, Social Twinkiness, and Overall Power. This is not a discussion of which I feel is coolest, because that is even more subjective.

Daeva
Favored Attributes: Manipulation or Dexterity
Disciplines: Celerity, Majesty, Vigor
Nickname: Serpents
Clan Bane: The Wanton Curse
Unique Merit: Kiss of the Succubus
Ghoul Merit: Taste of The Serpent

It is no question why the Daeva are so popular. First, they are the sexy vampires, so that is a big thing. Their favored attributes are the ever-useful Dexterity, great for fighters or even not-fighters who want to get away. And Manipulation is great if you actually attempt social rolls, but it only helps with one level of Majesty.

Discipline wise, they rock. Celerity and Vigor give you the only core clan with 2 physicals, and they are both great for offense. A Daeva can hit hard, hit first, and escape. And Majesty is as useful as you can be creative with it.

Their Weakness is mediocre. It serves more as a playstyle decision, do you slut it up or keep a giant harem? The fact that you can always spend a WP on the Humanity roll, and only need a single success makes this less than a huge issue.

Merits wise, Daeva do well for themselves. It doesn't actually help the Daeva as it gives them a long string of mortals wanting seconds, which is bad for the Daeva, but it can be a great means to control them. For Daeva Ghouls, Taste of the Serpent gives them a nice little social control tool.

Combat Effectiveness 4/5
Social Effectiveness 4/5
Overall Power: 4/5

Summary: The Daeva are very strong, but they lack any overt mystical power, and have virtually nothing going for them in subtlety.

Gangrel
Favored Attributes: Composure or Stamina
Disciplines: Animalism, Protean, Resilience
Nickname: Savages
Clan Bane: The Feral Curse
Unique Merit: Pack Alpha
Ghoul Merit: Taste of The Wild

The Gangrel are always a popular choice. Their discipline of Protean is extremely powerful AND versatily, leading to them being a common choice for combat kindred.

Attribute choice for most Gangrel will be Stamina, since it is the obvious combat selection, and frees up a dot for Strength or Dexterity. But Composure may be more useful, as it helps resist social powers, as well as adds to initiative.

Disciplines are good. Animalism is often neglected, but a smart player can find it excessively versatile and useful, especially if they Master it. Resilience is absurdly important if you want to survive a fight, and Protean makes them not only the most defensively powerful Kindred, but some of the most offensive as well. Protean 4 is one of the few ways to do lethal to another vampire, and if truly needed, there is always turning into a Bear.

The Feral Curse is, initially, not so big a deal. It becomes a true problem when Humanity plumets, but most Gangrel tend to not seem to mind if they Flip Out And Kill Things TM.

The merits are where the Gangrel fall off. Pack alpha, while decently flavorful, is fairly shitty and also niche. Ghouls make out much much better than their Regnants, gaining the kickass ability to have ghoul animals.

Combat Effectiveness: 5/5
Social Effectiveness: 1/5
Overall Power: 3/5

Summary: The Gangrel slightly edge out the Daeva in the fighting arena, but they are almost useless socially, with nothing to boost their skills with mortals. Between Animalism and Protean, however, the abilities of a Gangrel are possibly the most versatile of any clan.

Mekhet
Favored Attributes: Intelligence or Wits
Disciplines: Auspex, Celerity, Obfuscate
Nickname: Shadows
Clan Bane: The Tenebrous Curse
Unique Merit: Dream Visions
Ghoul Merit: Taste of Shadow

Mekhet are the only clan whose attributes come from the same column. Both are Mental, and both are useful. Auspex uses a split of 2 Wits, 3 Intelligence, so either choice is well served. Further, not only are they the only clan to get two mental attributes, they are the only clan which can choose Intelligence or Wits. The Shadows are just smarter than others, and can either get better Int for extended rolls, or Wits to buff Perception and, possibly, Defense

When celerity is your worst discipline you are doing good for yourself. The Mekhet see all and no one sees them back. Mastery of Auspex can make almost any secret trivial to uncover, and combined with decent Obfuscate, no one will ever know you did it. Celerity of course gives them the ability to make a retreat if they are discovered. Bonus points for being the only vampires that can see through Obfuscate, too.

The Tenebrous curse is either going to let you have a cool RP quirk, or it is going to get you killed. The extra damage from Sunlight, and the possible inconvenience or damage from banes may never come up. Often it will come up just once. When you die. But a Kindred stranded in the sun is pretty screwed regardless.

Dream Visions is useful, it is like an extra little secret the Mekhet can learn, though it isn't truly needed when you have Auspex. Ghouls get the pretty cool Taste of Shadow, which is again, kind of Auspex but not quite.

Combat Effectiveness: 1/5
Social Effectiveness: 3/5
Overall Power: 3/5

Summary: The Mekhet's power and influence are greatly determined by the intelligence and skill of the player. They can get access to almost any place, any secret, and escape unharmed. What they do with that information can make them either the most dangerous Kindred possible, or just a gossip.

Nosferatu
Favored Attributes: Composure or Strength
Disciplines: Nightmare, Obfuscate, Vigor
Nickname: Haunts
Clan Bane: The Lonely Curse
Unique Merit: Unsettling Gaze
Ghoul Merit: Taste of Fear

Nosferatu get to be Strong or they get to be chill. Composure is more thematic, as it lets them resist the powers of other emotional manipulators, but by itself doesn't add much to their arsenal. Strength is great if you need to get to a Superhuman level of strength quickly, combined with Vigor.

First, Nosferatu one of two clans whose special Discipline can cause lethal damage to other Kindred, though less overt and dangerously as a Gangrel. Nightmare lets you make most that you meet your play-thing. It also allows some truly creative roleplaying of how to enact various fears and illusions. Obfuscate grants the ability to escape or to be extra, absurdly creepy. Then "simple" Vigor lets the Haunt take matters - and victims- into their own hands.

Eventually a Nosferatu will suck at dealing with people. This is just a given. Weirdly, this flaw even impacts Intimidation rolls, but not discipline use. Huh. However, if you spend much of your time roleplaying with other Kindred, or your touchstones, this flaw does nothing to you.

For particular builds, Unsettling Gaze is amazing. It lets a combat-oriented Nosferatu throw on the Bestial Condition, break yout spirit and then get the perks to kicking your teeth in. Love it, ESPECIALLY combined with Atrocious. The ghoul merit, despite weirdly being contested with Resolve, can really fuck up someone's day.

Combat Effectiveness: 4/5
Social Effectiveness: 2/5
Overall Power: 4/5

Summary: Nosferatu are offensive, and not just their smell. Nightmare attacks others thoughts while Vigor attacks the body. While Nightmare and Obfuscate can grant tremendous social utility, the fact that they can become practically unable to interact with humanity in a meaningful way is a big kick in the boil.

Ventrue
Favored Attributes: Resolve or Presence
Disciplines: Animalism, Dominate, Resilience
Nickname: Lords
Clan Bane: The Aloof Curse
Unique Merit: N/A
Ghoul Merit: Taste of Gold

Born to be Kings, Ventrue follow the patern of being better at resisting their inate mojo by having higher Resolve, or having better Presence. Resolve is generally the better choice, as it boosts Willpower, and between their three disciplines, only one utilizes Presence at a single dot.

But the disciplines, boy. As with Gangrel, Animalism is what you make it. A clever player will put it to good use, both offensively and defensively. Resilience helps in those times when your minions fail you and someone decides to shuffle you off of the immortal coil. And then we have Dominate, the hot button discipline. It lets you break people. It won't make you friends among many players, because you will be making their characters do whatever the fuck you want. With the major increase in utility with 2nd Edition, Dominate is simply put, fucking dope.

The Aloof curse is not so bad. It is, more or less, an XP surcharge an an incentive to not lose all of your Humanity. Buying a single dot of Touchstone mostly removes this flaw for the duration of the average PC's existence.

Merit? Ouch. Ventrue just don't get a unique merit. Sorry guys. But for their Ghouls, they can really pile on the Willpower regain through Taste of Gold. Which is a dumb name.

Combat Effectiveness: 2/5
Social Effectiveness: 5/5
Overall Power: 4/5

Summary: The Ventrue lack significant combat power, primarily in offense. Their best means of dealing damage is to use pawns, but at least Resilience lets them take a licking and keep on ticking. But when you can have a higher than average Presence or just, y'know, make anyone do your bidding, Man or Beast, well, you are going to rule the social arena.

That would be awesome. I mean, the Facebook mobile update I just installed was larger than my entire HDD on my first PC.

Double post: Apparently I have given myself a respiratory/sinus infection by placing my CPAP machine directly above a patch of mold.

TIL @coin is reenacting Joe'so apartment.

Man I don't even own Reno anymore. But I do love being an inspiration for great ideas, so I'll take it!

A new scrap of news and information
http://theonyxpath.com/day-15-aberrant-splitting-time-like-a-trident/