Quietus (Dark Ages)

The signature power of Clan Assamite actually comprises two distinct Disciplines, both known colloquially as Quietus by not only those practicing the arts, but by those merely aware of them. Scholars of Alamut recite that their founder Haqim developed the twin Disciplines of Quietus to harmoniously compliment one another when he first divided the Warriors and Viziers and assigned them duties within the tripartite society of his clan. Though traditional Assamites generally prefer to utilize the original Phoenician name of “Abed Dume” or “destroy blood,” its Latin name “Quietus,” or “settling of debts” (especially as relates to death) is most common in discussion – in no doubt due to the epithet evoked by coupling the name with either of its branches.
The children of Haqim have ever seen themselves as pure and fierce judges of the righteous use of blood, separate from Caine’s other get. The Warrior Discipline Cruscitus (translated from the Phoenician “Hikmat Dume” or “blood wisdom,” defined in Latin as “the science of murder through blood”) revolves largely around the use of blood poisoning to kill. Whereas, the Vizier Discipline Hematus (translated from the Phoenician “Minhit Dume” or “blood offering,” defined in Latin as “an offering of blood”) makes use of subtle ways to manipulate vitae in aid to the tasks of mystic exploration and governance. When paired with their parent name, both Disciplines delineate their respective craft: Quietus Cruscitus as “the settling of debts by the science of murder through blood” and Quietus Hematus as “the settling of debts by an offering of blood.”
If your character already has one form of Quietus, the other type costs new rating × 4 XP to learn. It requires a teacher with that style of the power.
== Quietus Cruscitus ==
Quietus Cruscitus is Haqim’s gift to his Warrior Assamites.
=== • Blood Essence ===
This power provides definitive proof of a vanquished foe. Terrifying to behold, Blood Essence demonstrates one of the most frightening aspects of this Discipline: the ability to distill the essence of what Cainites refer to as the “heart’s blood,” the holy or unholy life force that contains a being’s soul.
System: Functioning even on mortals, the character must exsanguinate his victim of all but one blood point (or drain all blood points entirely if the victim is a Cainite). He then pricks his finger and marks the victim’s bare chest, near the heart, with a speck of his vitae. The player spends one blood point, spurring the speck of vitae to seep into the target’s skin. Then make an extended Willpower roll (difficulty 9) imposing a level of unsoakable aggravated damage to the victim per success. As in diablerie, if the victim remains alert during process, she can fight back. Should a vampire fail on the roll, he must pause, but can continue again next turn. With a botched roll, the effort fails (however, the vampire can still attempt traditional diablerie if the victim is a Cainite). Once all health levels have been exhausted, the vampire tears open the victim’s breast, moving past the rib cage to extract the heart. The vampire’s own blood has calcified the heart into a semi-translucent grayish-white flask known as a “Debitum.” The Debitum enshrouds the spiritual essence (the “heart’s-blood”) of the victim – which, if examined in detail, can be seen encased within, swimming in despair. Heart’s-blood preserved in this way endures indefinitely. If vampiric fangs pierce it, the heart reanimates, pumping a cupful of celadon-colored, aqueous, non-burning flame vaguely resembling the victim into the vampire’s maw. If the victim is a Cainite, upon devouring the essence, the vampire reaps all benefits and potential pitfalls of successfully diablerizing the victim, without risking the blood oath. A Debitum crumbles to ash if left vulnerable to fire or sunlight, or when emptied of its contents.
=== •• Scorpion's Touch ===
A variation of the Hematus power: Blood Tempering, Scorpion’s Touch is derived from isolating the mechanism inherent within vampiric blood’s function of converting regular blood into sustenance. In this case, the Assamite transmutes the properties of her vitae into a powerful venom that strips prey of its resilience.
System: The player spends the number of blood points (up to her Generational per-turn limit) that she wishes to convert to poison. Roll Willpower (difficulty 6). If the roll is successful, the poison remains potent until used, but harbors a vampire’s susceptibility to fire and sunlight. A botch renders the blood spent inert; it cannot be used to augment Attributes, heal the vampire, or fuel Disciplines. The poison looks and smells like normal blood and a Cainite is immune to her own poison, but not that of others utilizing this power. She may retain an amount of poisoned blood up to her maximum Generational spending limit per turn in her blood pool for later use, though any blood points converted to poison are inert for any other purpose. If the vampire is in danger of someone attempting to drink blood from her, she may rush any stored blood points to the surface as a defensive action, which may be used reflexively even if in slumber or torpor. A Cainite may also bite her tongue or lip to pool the poisoned blood in her mouth for a “kiss of death.” Likewise, she may cut her flesh to smear the poison on a pointed or edged weapon, or even place it in food, on a cup, utensil, or other seemingly innocuous item.
Spend one blood point and one turn per cubic foot/30 cubic cm that her chosen weapon occupies (minimum 1). A dart, arrowhead, or dagger requires a blood point and a turn to lightly coat it, while the average sword or axe may need three turns. Weapons remain poisoned for an amount of attacks equal to the Cainite’s initial Willpower roll; an envenomed weapon that is swung or fired loses the potency of its poison at a rate of one success per attack until depleted (whether it’s dodged, parried, deflected by armor, misses, or hits). Envenomed weapons bathed in water, or open to the mercy of heavy wind or rain, lose the potency of their poison the turn after exposure, while those passing through fire or sunlight lose it instantly and appear dusted in a fine ash.
In order to be effective, the poison must be ingested or enter the target’s bloodstream, usually through drinking or being pierced by a bloodied weapon. Once the poison is delivered, the target immediately rolls Stamina (plus Fortitude, if any). At the end of his next turn, he loses a number of Stamina points equal to the number of successes on the Cainite’s Willpower roll minus successes on the target’s Stamina roll. If a living being’s Stamina falls to 0, he dies. If a vampire’s Stamina falls to 0, the vampire enters torpor and remains that way until his Stamina points return to a minimum of 1. As a defensive action vampires and ghouls may spend a blood point to heal normally and completely purge the poison from their system before the effects take hold. This defensive action may be used reflexively with a successful Wits + Alertness roll (difficulty 6). Without vampiric blood healing, damage from Scorpion’s Touch is permanent.
=== ••• Dagon's Call ===
With the slightest scratch delivering a dab of blood to mingle with that of the target’s, Dagon’s Call twists a victim’s vitae against him. The target’s eyes swell and take a deep burgundy hue, muscles seize and veins bulge beneath the skin, and thin trickles of vibrant scarlet bleed into tiny rivers from all openings in the anatomy. This nightmarish affliction persists until the target collapses in agony or death throes, leaving no trace of the attacker’s presence.
System: In order to use this power, the character’s blood must first be ingested or enter the target’s bloodstream, usually through drinking (even from a ghoul belonging to the character) or being pierced by a bloodied weapon. The character waits a minimum of one hour for her blood to be fully absorbed, entering the circulatory system to securely grip the victim deeply. After a moment’s concentration, the vampire bursts her target’s blood vessels, internally constricting the target’s whole body by flooding it with ruptured hemoglobin that strangles him from within. To activate this power, the player spends one Willpower point and rolls Perception + Awareness (difficulty equal to the vampire’s current proximity to the target or the amount of time elapsed since she touched the target, whichever is greater).
Difficulty	Distance or Time Passed
6 	Within an hour or a few feet/a meter of the target
7 	Within a day or a mile/half a km from the target
8 	Within a week or ten miles/fifteen km from the target
9 	Within a month or 100 miles/150 km from the target
10 	Over a month or 100 miles/150 km from the target
The player and target make contested Stamina rolls (difficulty of each roll equal to the opponent’s Willpower). The target suffers levels of unsoakable lethal damage equal to the number of successes on the player’s Willpower roll minus successes on the target’s Willpower roll. To continue rending her opponent from within, the player may spend additional Willpower each turn after the first, accompanied by further contested Stamina rolls, until she is defeated on a roll. A botched roll results in the vampire suffering an amount of lethal damage equal to her failures on the roll.
=== •••• Baal's Caress ===
A refinement of Scorpion’s Touch, Baal’s Caress allows a vampire to transform her blood into an acidic toxin that burns any living or undead flesh, usually accomplished by licking a blade to lubricate it before assaulting an opponent. Commonly, warriors will spit the hateful ichor or cough it forth and vomit voluminous streams of vitae that corrode their enemies into heaps of bubbling sludge.
System: Aside from the following exceptions, this power otherwise works according to the rules for Scorpion’s Touch. Rather than attacking a target’s Stamina, the stinging venom generated through Baal’s Caress only necessitates skin contact and afflicts caustic burns. Touching the caustic blood causes one level of aggravated damage per Willpower success on the initial activation. If ingested, the damage is unsoakable. Prolonged touching of envenomed objects, through holding them directly or grappling a Cainite wearing envenomed clothing or armor, causes additional damage each turn. This includes attempts to disarm envenomed weapons or objects currently wielded by the Cainite.
Weapons coated in venom (including the vampire’s own slashed limbs, claws, or nails) cause aggravated damage. Add one additional die of damage per success on the activating Willpower roll. This damage bonus depletes at one point per turn, at which time, the venom is lost. Any coated weapon is destroyed by the venom at this point.
A vampire may also bite her tongue or lip to spit a single point of envenomed blood at a lone target, or regurgitate up to her maximum amount of blood point expenditure per turn and spray multiple targets. The Cainite may spit or vomit her envenomed vitae up to three feet (one meter) for each dot of Strength and Potence she possesses. Alternative, the spray can come from an open wound, including both self-inflicted wounds and those received in combat. Spitting at a lone target requires a successful Dexterity + Athletics roll (difficulty 6) to hit, though spraying hits multiple targets as a Hail of Arrows. Spewed blood contacting the victim’s skin causes aggravated damage as if the blood were a thrown weapon with a damage rating equal to the vampire’s Willpower successes.
The character may still use Scorpion’s Touch instead of Baal’s Caress.
=== ••••• Quicken the Mortal's Blood ===
To maximize the amount of nourishment possible from a mortal’s blood, those developing Cruscitus eventually evolve exceptional control over how they process the vitae they imbibe.
System: After quenching his thirst with mortal blood, the vampire can double the effectiveness of each blood point. Roll Stamina + Occult (difficulty 6). Each success converts one blood point into two.
=== ••••• • Taste of Death ===
By honing the nature of Baal’s Caress, this level of Cruscitus focuses and mutates vampiric blood into a noxious and corrosive sap that eats through flesh, bone, metal and glass with ease.
System: Aside from the following exceptions, this power otherwise works according to the rules for Baal’s Caress and Scorpion’s Touch. Venom created through this power is a thick, syrupy, highly concentrated, and sticky sap (like molasses or tar) that gives off a rancid odor. The difficulty of the vampire’s initial Willpower roll increases to 7, and two blood points are spent for every one blood point converted. The sap eats through nearly any compound; wood or leather is destroyed in a single turn, metal in two, stone in three. Especially well made, dense, or sturdy materials last for one more turn, while items created with mystical powers last for an extra three. Taste of Death can be used to unlock doors, dispose of evidence, or as a means of torture. The sap is immune to wind and water, though fire and sunlight still have the same effect.
Vampires frequently cut their flesh and smear the sap like a paste upon their claws, nails, or another portion of their body. Weapons almost never survive the time it takes to coat them; as such, the sap is rarely, if ever, used intentionally to augment a weapon’s damage. The viscous glue of the venom rubs off like grease, clinging to anything that touches it, and burns for a number of turns equal to the successes scored on the vampire’s Willpower roll. When that time has elapsed, the sap shrinks and hardens until settling into charcoal-like clay that turns crimson when crushed and powdered. The crimson dust produces the same effects as Scorpion’s Touch, and may be inhaled or mixed in a liquid to yield the desired results.
The damage inflicted from Taste of Death is identical to Baal’s Caress, but the venom remains after contact, continually causing harm. The initial contact causes damage equal to the Willpower successes to activate the power. Each additional turn, it causes one fewer aggravated damage, until it no longer causes damage. For example, with three successes, the initial attack causes three aggravated damage. The next turn, it causes two. The third and final turn, it causes one damage. Each turn, a character with Fortitude receives an additional soak opportunity.
A vampire may not retain the sap in her blood pool for later use or spray it, but he may still spit the sap at half the normal distance. A precise, self-inflicted puncture wound does not result in anything but the sap slowly oozing out.
Taste of Death acts as an alternative, not a replace-ment, for Baal’s Caress or Scorpion’s Touch.
=== ••••• •• Rapturous Touch ===
The vampire is now able to absorb blood through her skin, as long as she is in contact with the blood itself or an uncovered part of a vessel’s body.
System: This power is always in effect once learned. With a touch, any part of the vampire’s body may absorb blood through osmosis. Regardless of Generation, she may only absorb two blood points per turn. All the standard risks from drinking blood still apply (blood bond, poisoning, etc.), but vampires resist the effects of the touch-initiated Kiss at difficulty 6, while mortals may resist as if they were vampires (difficulty 8).
=== ••••• ••• Blood of Destruction ===
Someone foolish enough to drink from a vampire with Blood of Destruction is likely to perish and meet Final Death in a grisly fashion before she even realizes her mistake, simply attacking a vampire with this power risks wreaking damage to oneself or her weapon
System: This power may be used reflexively as a defensive action. Aside from the following exceptions, this power otherwise works according to the rules for Taste of Death, Baal’s Caress, and Scorpion’s Touch. The player rolls Willpower (difficulty 7) and spends one point of blood to convert all the vitae in the character’s system into all of the highly virulent or acidic toxins created through Taste of Death, Baal’s Caress, or Scorpion’s Touch. Using Blood of Destruction reduces a character’s blood pool by half (rounded up). The blood shares all three effects. This causes Scorpion’s Touch’s Stamina loss, Baal’s Caress’s aggravated damage, destroys objects like Taste of Death, and sticks to the victim after contact, causing one fewer damage each turn until reduced to zero.
Anyone attacking a character under the effects of Blood of Destruction with a slashing or piercing weapon that breaks the skin loses her weapon, as the venom corrodes away nearly any compound. In the case of natural weapons, such as those created by Protean and Serpentis, the attacker automatically suffers two health levels of aggravated damage. Any attacker in close combat that causes lethal or aggravated damage to the vampire is splattered with the venomous blood. Blood of Destruction lasts for a scene.
=== ••••• •••• Weaken the Blood of Ancients ===
The pinnacle expression of Cruscitus strips away the potency of another vampire’s blood to increase his Generation.
System: In order to use this power, the character’s blood must have been ingested or entered the target’s bloodstream at any time, usually through drinking (even from a ghoul belonging to the character) or being pierced by a bloodied weapon (for example, one augmented by other Cruscitus powers). The player and victim engage in contested Willpower rolls (difficulty for the player is the victim’s Stamina plus Fortitude, while the victim’s difficulty is the character’s Willpower). The target’s effective Generation increases by 1 for each success on the player’s Willpower roll minus successes on the target’s Willpower roll. A victim reduced to Thirteenth Generation acquires the appropriate Flaws. Higher Generations may be allowed at Storyteller discretion. Characters beyond Thirteenth Generation most certainly receive the Thin Blood Flaw, and may have other limitations. After a number of nights equal to 10 - the victim’s Stamina and Fortitude have passed, the victim regains one lost Generation per night. When a Cainite is under the effect of this power, she loses access to all benefits of her former Generation, such as higher blood pool (excess blood is vomited up), increased blood expenditure, and high-level Disciplines and Traits.
== Quietus Hematus ==
Assamite Viziers practice Quietus Hematus.
=== • Blood Tempering ===
A Cainite may instill vampiric vitality into an item drenched in her blood. Since antiquity, Viziers have made use of this power to conserve both common materials and the ancient relics of the clan.
System: The player spends one blood point and one turn per size by cubic foot that an object occupies (minimum 1) then rolls Intelligence + Crafts (difficulty 6). A book or scroll may require as little as one blood point, the average sword may need three, while a door might consume as many as 12 blood points and turns to lightly coat it. The item acquires a vampire’s susceptibility to fire and sunlight, but it gains an amount of temporary extra soak dice equal to the character’s dots in Stamina. It also gains immunity to erosion by time or elements, such as wind and water, for a period of time based on the successes rolled.
Successes 	Duration
1 success 	up to one day
2 successes 	up to three days
3 successes 	up to a week
4 successes 	up to two weeks
5 successes 	up to a month
6+ successes	indefinitely
The Stamina referenced here is the vampire’s base Stamina + Fortitude, unaffected by any modifications or enhancements. The extra soak dice are spent upon being rolled. Once this pool is depleted, the power ends and the object loses all vampiric immunities as well as susceptibilities gained through this power.
=== •• Truth of Blood ===
As a means to assure that their judgments are firmly grounded in truth, this power allows a vampire to use the blood of an individual being questioned to divine not only the truth of the subject’s words, but the truth behind those words.
System: To use this power, the Cainite must have one point of the target’s blood, which she pours into an open container capable of holding the fluid indefinitely, such as a basin or goblet. The container must have dimensions that permit her to, at the least, dip one finger into the vitae for the duration of the questioning. This power lasts for one scene or until the questioner stops touching the blood. The blood reduces until spent, gradually smoldering into a thin red mist that dissipates entirely to vapor by the scene’s conclusion.
At the start of the scene, the player spends a Willpower point. For each statement made by the target that the character wishes to examine, the player rolls Perception + Subterfuge (difficulty equal to the target’s Willpower). Successes on the roll indicate the degree of truth or false-hood that the questioner becomes aware of. Each level of success builds upon the last. For example, if you roll four successes, you receive all the results up to four successes.
1 success 	Intuitively know whether the target believes their statement is a lie, partial truth, or the whole truth.
2 successes 	Intuitively know whether the statement is genuinely accurate and unadulterated, only partially so, or completely false.
3 successes 	Intuitively sense the emotional reason (ennui, jealousy, anger) behind the target’s statement.
4 successes 	Intuitively understand the whole truth as the target consciously knows it, including information the target remembers, but does not understand.
5 successes 	Experience hazy visions of and receive veiled hints at information that the target himself does not have.
6+ successes	Intuitively know information that the target is not consciously aware of, or has lost due to supernatural influence like Dominate.
=== ••• Cleansed in Blood ===
By using the power of vitae to cleanse and restore, the vampire releases her blood, allowing it to wash over another and carry away spiritual impurities from outside influences. This power cleanses the target’s soul, purging his mind of externally imposed supernatural taints and stains.
System: Spend one Willpower point. The character baptizes the forehead of the intended subject with one blood point, then places her hands on his head. Both parties spend a minimum of one hour in deep concentration per power that the subject wishes to eliminate. The subject spends a number of blood points equal to the level of an individual supernatural mind influencing power he wishes to nullify and rolls Willpower (difficulty equal to the level of the power +4). Powers that would push the difficulty past 10 cannot be affected, and for inherent powers with no set level, the difficulty is 7. If the roll is a success, it removes the effects of that power. A failure wastes the blood spent and requires another attempt.
Cleansed in Blood can erase current and ongoing influences from Dominate, Dementation, Presence, or similar effects, but does not shield the subject from or ward him against those powers in the future.
This power does not remove non-supernatural techniques of persuasion, hypnosis, brainwashing, or genuine emotional states, and cannot dispel dispositions imparted by the subject’s clan or bloodline or influences transmitted by blood, such as a blood bond. A character cannot use Cleansed in Blood on herself.
=== •••• Ripples of the Heart ===
With this power, a vampire can leave an emotional echo that resonates in her own blood or the blood of those from whom she feeds.
System: The vampire drinks one blood point from a subject and spends a minute concentrating on the emotion he wishes to imprint on her blood. The player spends one blood point and rolls Charisma + Empathy (difficulty 7 under normal circumstances, 5 if the character is presently feeling the imprinted emotion, 9 if currently she’s experiencing a strong opposite emotion). A subject’s blood can only carry one emotion at a time; efforts to overlap multiple Ripples of the Heart on the same subject have no effect. The vampire and the subject are immune to the emotional effects they generate through this power, but not the effects of others who use it. A vampire may induce this power upon a living being, another Cainite (incurring a one-point blood bond to do so), or himself as a defensive measure. The subject’s blood carries the imprinted emotion for a number of days equal to the successes rolled.
Anyone who swallows the subject’s vitae rolls Self-Control or Instinct for each blood point ingested (difficulty equal to the vampire’s Hematus + 3, maximum of 9). The emotion overtakes the drinker to a degree and for a number of hours dependent on how many blood points ingested: one blood point results in a noticeable mood swing that lingers for an hour. Ingesting three or more enthralls the drinker for the better part of an evening, overwhelming faculties to supplant all other thoughts and feelings. The effects of five or more blood points may be spectacular or catastrophic.
A draught of fear paralyzes the drinker, causing her to panic and flee screaming in trembling terror if shaken by any sudden sound or movement. One overcome with hate might eviscerate an object unlucky enough to capture the attention of her wrath, while a romantically impassioned vampire could quite conceivably fall in love with her supper (or other hapless bystander). Ripples of the Heart can embolden allies before battle, invigorating them with bravery or steadying their nerves by calming restless anxiety with determination and courage. Strategic applications include protecting herds or offensively deploying “tainted” kine and animals into enemy territory to weaken an adversary’s defenses.
=== ••••• Blood Sweat ===
If a victim harbors a shred of remorse or pride for actions he has undertaken, a master of Blood Sweat can induce a torrential outpouring of vitae as a sudden rush of sanguinary perspiration soaks the victim’s clothes and puddles at his feet.
System: The Cainite must be in contact with at least a drop of the target’s fresh vitae. The character spends three turns concentrating on the victim, who must be within the character’s line of sight. Spend a Willpower point and roll Manipulation + Intimidation (difficulty equal to the target’s current Willpower points). The victim loses one blood point per success, which he perspires. Blood lost through this process is considered dead and inert, providing no sustenance to a vampire. It could, however, inspire frenzy in hungry Cainites.
Additionally, the target is emotionally compromised by feelings of guilt and remorse for past transgressions (Conscience), or a spiteful compulsion to boast (Conviction). Storytellers should suit the effect to the victim’s Road and Virtues. The number of successes rolled denotes the gravity of this impulse: with one success, the target receives a slight twinge of conscience, while five or more successes results in an excited exultation of his crimes.
=== ••••• • Blood Awakening ===
This power allows a Cainite to scan memories latent in the blood belonging to one from whom she has recently fed. 
System: The vampire must first consume one blood point from another character. Roll Perception + Empathy (difficulty 7). The number of successes determines the clarity accessed from archived memories echoed in another’s blood which the vampire has consumed. As the memories manifest, the vampire may lose track of reality increasing the difficulty of Perception-based rolls by two. Consult the chart below for effects, with each degree of success building upon the last. 
A botched roll floods the vampire with random memories from those whose vitae she has ingested in the past, during which time she is stunned and completely unable to act until she spends blood in an attempt to purge the visions (one blood point per failure on the roll which may require more than one turn to spend, depending on Generational limits).
Successes 	Effect
1 success 	Vague impressions from the most recent memories up to a few hours before the blood was consumed.
2 successes 	Vague impressions of memories that had a strong emotional impact throughout the subject’s existence up to when the blood was consumed.
3 successes 	Pertinent details surrounding memories up to a few hours before the blood was consumed.
4 successes 	Pertinent details surrounding memories that had a strong emotional impact throughout the subject’s existence up to when the blood was consumed.
5 successes 	Anything the subject knew or felt in the last decade up to the time the blood was consumed.
6+ successes	Anything the subject knew or felt throughout his existence up to the time the blood was consumed.
=== ••••• •• Damn the Heart's River ===
Vampires who reach this level of Hematus master control over the flow of blood in a body. Dam the Heart’s River is normally used to fortify a vampire from another’s attempts to exsanguinate him, but can also be applied tactically to force a victim to deplete her store of blood and possibly push her into a hunger frenzy.
System: The first effect of this power may be used reflexively as a defensive action. The player constricts a number of blood points (up to his Generational per-turn limit, but no more than 5) that he wants to condense in any areas of his body and rolls Willpower (difficulty equal to the number of blood points condensed +5). If the roll is successful, it compresses 4 cubic inches/6 cubic cm per blood point into a solid rubbery mass that completely restricts blood flow to or from any areas the vampire selects within his body, preventing any loss of vitae that may occur from a wound or attempts to feed from the areas selected. The blood remains locked in place and cannot be activated for any other purpose; non-passive Disciplines requiring use of a body part containing compressed blood do not function. He may release the blood at any time to return it to an expendable state.
The secondary effect of this power allows a vampire complete control over the blood of a target who is currently in skin-to-skin contact with him (such as through a grapple), or targets who have at any time consumed the vampire’s blood or whose blood the vampire has at any time consumed (even through drinking from a ghoul belonging to the opposing character), or if blood from either has entered the bloodstream of the other, usually through being pierced by a bloodied weapon. The player spends one Willpower point and rolls Manipulation + Medicine (difficulty of the target’s Stamina + 3, maximum 9). As long as the target remains in skin-to-skin contact with the vampire (or in his line of sight if an exchange of vitae has occurred), the vampire has total control over the target’s blood expenditure (subject to the target’s Generational limitations) and can either condense her blood pool to lock it up (per the first effect of this power) or activate any blood-related effect (augment statistics, heal the target, fuel Disciplines, etc.). The secondary effect of Dam the Heart’s River lasts for a number of turns equal to the amount of successes scored on the roll.
If used against mortals, the secondary effect Dam the Heart’s River can induce cardiac arrest or blood clots leading to stroke.
=== ••••• ••• Songs of Distant Vitae ===
Used as a chilling technique to punish Cainites who feed with excessive cruelty, this power is a sharpened advancement that pairs the methods of Blood Sweat with Blood Awakening to invoke residual impressions of emotion and personality etched on a victim’s soul by the vitae they’ve ravished.
System: To use this power, the Cainite must be in contact with at least a drop of the target’s fresh vitae. The character spends a turn concentrating on the victim, who must be within the character’s line of sight. Spend 4 blood points and roll Wits + Intimidation (difficulty equal to the victim’s current Willpower points). If successful, the target’s viewpoint is thrown into a nightmarish reenactment, flashing between the perspectives and terror felt by every individual whom he has ever stalked and fed upon. Throughout this sojourn, he experiences none of the pleasure that would normally accompany the Kiss. For each success scored on the roll, the victim is stunned and completely unable to act, he regurgitates and loses 2 blood points per turn, and the process lasts an additional 6 seconds/2 turns. If the victim at any point runs out of blood he falls into torpor for (10 - Stamina) nights, loses half his permanent Willpower (round down), and automatically gains the Sanguinary Animism Derangement.
Once this onslaught subsides, the victim makes two separate rolls, one for Courage and one for Self-Control or Instinct (both at difficulty 8). Failing the Courage roll causes him to enter Rötschreck for the rest of the evening, during which time his greatest fear is that of his own image. Should he fail the Self-Control or Instinct roll, he gains the Sanguinary Animism Derangement. In addition, the difficulty of all the target’s rolls increases by three for the rest of the scene.
If the victim has committed diablerie at any point, the character gains 1 automatic success for every Generation the victim acquired through the Amaranth.
=== ••••• •••• Condemn the Sins of the Father ===
Though heritage does not equate to guilt, vampiric blood is sometimes known to pass a blight from sire to childe who commit the same crimes, in such cases, this technique is employed to administer overreaching punishments upon a vampire’s entire brood.
System: The turn after successfully using any lesser Hematus power on another vampire, spend one a dot of Willpower (which can be regained by spending experience points). Roll Manipulation + Occult, then spends a number of blood points equal to the difficulty of the roll for this power (minimum blood points and difficulty equal to 4, +1 for each generation of the original target’s descendants that the player wants to affect, ignoring additions to blood points and difficulty for Generations that push the maximums past 10). The player may exempt a number of descendants from the effect of this power equal to twice the character’s Wits; to do so, the character must know the face or have tasted the blood of the Cainite(s) she wishes to exempt. If the roll succeeds, every descendant targeted within the specified range of Generations becomes subject to the same power that the original target experienced the turn before, using the same scores from applicable rolls made by the vampire conducting this power upon the original target. Each descendant resists the power’s effects with his or her own relevant Traits.
Category:Disciplines