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[Bluecho]

4) Vitality Needle (4 pt. Device; Arete 3, 5 Quintessence):
A common Device among 19th century Progenitors, the Convention can still be found using modern variants to this day. The original models were long hypodermic needles that fed into large glass syringes, with rather complicated plungers and an esoteric filter attached. A rather grisly tool of medicine, Enlightened doctors could plunge the needle into the chest cavity of recently dead (or sometimes still alive) bodies, extracting vital fluids from the heart. Naturally, this almost certainly killed living subjects (however, because...

[Bluecho]

That even assumes a character bigger than they need to be. Gargoyles that were short (even the Short flaw) or thin and wiry won't take up a lot of space, even with their wings. Ones embraced as children also count. The extra bulk from hiding the wings in a trench coat might serve to make them look more normal.

It's weird that when we talk about Gargoyles on this thread, we assume they are big, bulky creatures....

[Bluecho]

3) The Copper Scarab (6 pt. Talisman; Arete 3, 10 Quintessence):
A scarab beetle the size of the palm of a human hand, forged from copper, hailing from ancient Egypt. Where once it was likely a warm yellowish pink, time has corroded the metal to a soft seafoam (though some would consider this beautiful in its own way). Despite the discoloration, it has held up well over the millennia, owing either to effective Matter enchantments, or loving (if sporadic) polishing.

This item was crafted by a mage in ancient Egypt, on behalf of the mage's friend, a Mummy. This is known because...

[Bluecho]

2) The Banishing Bell (6 pt. Talisman; Arete 4, 5 Quintessence):
Bells act as important magical tools for a variety of cultures. Consequently, many magical groups - from the Celestial Chorus and even Order of Hermes, to the Akashayana and Euthanatos - employ them as Instruments. But while hand-held bells and chimes serve many mages as portable tools, the mightiest bells are those that are huge, loud, and difficult to move. Churches have employed bells for centuries, equipping their parishes and cathedrals with them for the purpose of telling (or, in the case of the Cabal of Pure Thought,...

[Bluecho]

Let's fill this thread up with a bunch of Wonders. Artifacts/Inventions, Talismans/Devices, Charms/Gadgets, Periapts/Matrices, Fetishes/Superstitionist bollocks, etc.

And for this one, I'd like everyone to not only explain why the Wonder is awesome, but why it might be not so awesome. Translation: include any Flaws such an item could have, if you care to. It gives the items personality.


1) Mundo's Black Velvet (2 pt. Artifact):
A pair of gloves, first seen on the hands of Mundo, The Magician (also known as Mundo the Amazing, or Mundo the Baffling) during...

[Bluecho]

Of course, just because the Disparates think the Nephandi have corrupted the Technocracy and Traditions, doesn't automatically make it true. They may be jumping at shadows, assigning the blame for the other sects' actions incorrectly to dark influence rather than human shortcomings, or even be the victims of a Nephandi con job (making the Crafts think their infiltration is more severe than it really is, in order to encourage more conflict).


Granted. But I still contend that, when a Syndicate member makes a short list of likely suspects for corporate espionage, all other things...

[Bluecho]

Oh, and it's worth remembering that the Disparate Alliance is SO new, few outside that alliance are liable to know it exists. Sure, the constituent Crafts are well known enough, but not that they are collaborating. Some of them - especially the Taftani - barely collaborated with members of their own Crafts, let alone with outsiders. The insular reputation of the Crafts give them an advantage in this regard, preventing the other sects from readily catching on to the partnership.

If a Bata'a starts causing trouble for a Tradition chantry, it would be assumed by the Traditionalists that...

[Bluecho]

I think this is the main idea. More than being a third major faction to alter the balance between Technocracy and Traditions, the Disparates serve the important purpose of being a new alliance in the modern day. As opposed to being the old alliance in the modern day, or the new alliance in the Renaissance, which is what the Traditions are/were. The Traditions were a barely cohesive sect when they first formed, having to deal with a great deal of animosity and prejudice between different groups. The Choir Celeste was wary of any pagans, the Verbana matched that animosity towards the organized religions...

[Bluecho]

I needed to raise this thread from the dead, because a crocodile in Indonesia returned the body of a man after a "crocodile charmer" performed a mystic ritual.

'Nuff said.

[Bluecho]

I agree. Do isn't just a martial art, it's a life-style. It's a philosophy. One can't examine Do in absence of Focus, because Do is intrinsically linked to a mystical Paradigm. You have to learn several other abilities to learn and advance in it.

If an Akashic were turned Technocrat, their understanding of Do would rapidly degrade. Most likely devolving into a "mere" Martial Art. The old teachings and thought processes are no longer acceptable to the mage's Conditioned mind....

[Bluecho]

Aren't we forgetting something? Baggy clothes and a hoodie go a long way towards hiding one's appearance, whether that Appearance is 0 (V20) or not (DAV20). It won't pass close examination, but it would allow the Gargoyle to walk the streets without immediately drawing attention. If they are dark streets, even better.

[Bluecho]

49) The city is home to a few "Real Life Superheroes" - people who dress up in costume and try to help the community. Most of these people are mere Sleepers - some are genuinely helpful (if unconventional) people, who volunteer to make appearances at events, give presentations at schools, and lend a helping hand around actual emergencies (though the police usually stick them to crowd control or dealing directly with children). Others are vigilantes, who the police do not endorse, and actively investigate (since such activity can make their jobs harder than they need to be). A few are...

[Bluecho]

I disagree with the idea of looking at VtM through the lens of two equal sides, squaring off against each other. Because that's not how the Jyhad works. Make no mistake, the Camarilla is the center of the Eternal Struggle; all other Sects are smaller groups that function around the Ivory Tower. Even the Sabbat - the largest competitor to the Camarilla, by virtue of having two Clans, a bunch of Antitribu, and Embracing regulations so lax they mass Embrace just for cannon fodder - are nonetheless a fraction of the size of the Camarilla. And half the time, the Sabbat is hobbling and hamstringing...

[Bluecho]

You could have the PCs all be shovelheads, created by a Sabbat pack with eyes on raiding the Anarch-controlled territory (since you talked about the setting not having great central authority, I'll assume it's Anarchs). Except before they could be indoctrinated and tied together via Vinculum, an Anarch gang discovered the proceedings and killed or drove off the Sabbat. Realizing that the fledglings were probably innocent, they were allowed to unlive, and were even invited to join "polite" vampire society.

But the newbies aren't really trusted by a large contingent of Anarchs,...

[Bluecho]

Speaking of the Mortuus Paths, The Grave's Decay gives Cappadocians two powers (the first two powers learned, in fact) that are useful for hunting, after a fashion.

Rank 1 means that a Cappadocian need never worry about disposing of a body. So long as they are callous (or desperate) enough to drain a victim, they can then get rid of all evidence of the crime. It also means they have a bargaining chip when dealing with other Kindred - all vampires have the chance to create bodies in need of disposing - that can be leveraged for help obtaining blood.

Rank 2, meanwhile,...

[Bluecho]

65) Once upon a time in Arabia, a ghula - a blood-drinking cannibal fairy or djinn of the desert - did as her kind often did, and got a man of wealth and vitality to marry her. She drank her husband's blood as he slept, in order to fuel the creation of their children. But, so this story goes, the man's great piety before Allah rubbed off on the desert fae, and in time she renounced her evil ways. No more did she feast upon the flesh of the dead, and she raised their children to revere Allah and the Prophet.

This member of the Ahl-I-Batin is a descendant of that union, and he carries...

[Bluecho]

It's in the original Sorcerer book, which has general guidelines for how to convert dots in Sorcery Paths into various supernatural powers of other splats. And one of the options is that if a character's prior knowledge fits a Discipline more than a Path of blood magic, you buy that. Presumably, therefore, a Mage works under the same basic idea when transferring to a vampire....

[Bluecho]

My theory is that if the Tremere were specialists in anything, it would be the arts that would eventually become Mind (I forget the OoH Pillars, and don't have the time to check right now). Given that mortals with prior magical experience are capable of turning that experience into Disciplines, it's likely that Clan Tremere's proficiency with Dominate and Auspex has as much to do with their arcane training as it does the relation to the Tzimisce. I suspect that the first things the Tremere managed to develop were those two Disciplines, as they explored ways to recapture arcane power. It was a...

[Bluecho]

I think the crux of this problem stems from the assumption that because a Cappadocian doesn't natively possess Disciplines perfectly suited for hunting, that they are incapable of hunting. Mundane skill exists. Indeed, a Cappadocian that has to skulk and stalk without the aid of Obfuscate might be better at it than one who can lean on the power. If it's the difference between feeding and not - surviving and not - a vampire will "Git Gud" or perish.

Or how about an atypical Cappadocian who, far from the scholars of stereotype, is a brute. Between Fortitude and their natural...

[Bluecho]

299) Reefer Madness [Quiet]: Of course, Marijuana is largely harmless, especially compared to other drugs. But for a few ulterior reasons, propaganda campaigns were started in the early and mid 20th century to demonize the drug in the US. These ulterior motives varied; certain businesses like the paper industry didn't like the competition from hemp paper, and prohibition officials needed a new target to remain relevant once alcohol prohibition was dying off. And, of course, there's the reason all Tradition mages know for why Marijuana was outlawed: the Technocracy wanted to stamp out the substance...