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Stafford's Vampire Venue Style Sheet
Ascendant Unconquered VSS Part 1: Basic Information Region: Northern Domain: Stafford Venue: Requiem Lead Venue Storyteller: Liam T. Draper Storyteller Contact: StaffordRequiem@gmail.com Part 2: Styles of Play Style of Play Description Rating Action Combat and Challenges 1 Character Development Personal Dilemmas and Choices 4 Darkness PC Death and Corruption 3 Drama Ceremony and Grand Story 5 Intrigue Politics and Negotiation 5 Manners Social Etiquette and Peer Pressure 5 Mystery Enigmas and Investigation 3 Description of Rating 1 Low; present, when player introduced, at a game once every four games. 2 Moderate; present at a game once every three games. 3 Average; often present at one game in every two. 4 Influencing; often present at each game 5 Constant; always present at each game. Part 3: Description of Venue Theme The Death of Virtue: People know they live in a decaying, vice-riddled world. They’ve learned it from centuries of greed and lies from leaders in business, government, religion and every other institution. Cynicism and despair saturate the culture, from tags on the walls to movies in the theatres. Everyone knows that virtues such as compassion and charity mark one as a sucker, ready to be victimized, while justice and faith are words used by scoundrels to hide their sins. True selflessness, love or honour is more rare and precious than diamonds. No More Good Guys: Did they ever really exist at all? Modern mortals certainly have no one to inspire him or her. The media has caught possible heroes in sex scandals or taking bribes, or maybe destroyed their reputations just to create a story. Local community leaders sold out or died in the endemic urban violence. The precious few people who genuinely seek to make the world a better place remain voices in the wilderness, their good works obscured by the torrent of cynicism and sleaze. Violence and Fear: Crime is omnipresent and life is cheap, especially for the young. The poor lash out from frustration and greet, with well-heeled criminals as their anti-heroes. Bored rich kids who look for thrills in violence and drugs; at every level of society, people find no shortage of other groups to blame – other races, other classes or just people who like other things. Isolation: Many families and neighbourhoods adopt a siege mentality against the rest of the world; convinced they live surrounded by enemies who want to strip them of whatever they have. Those who are well to do hide behind walls, gates and security systems, sending their children to private schools, careful to avoid anyone outside their class. The less affluent watch out for gangs and stay away from windows, especially at night, lest they become targets. Everyone watches TV instead of talking to neighbours. Churches, clubs and other social groups merely give people a chance to hide from the world together, with a few people who think like them. Mood The Danse Macabre: Kindred existence is a ghastly, undercover war of each against all, with power over mortals as both weapon and prize. Young vampires struggle to gain some power and security despite the greed of their elders. Older vampires struggle to keep the power they’ve acquired and gain more, to use against their rivals. Young and old are both willing to betray other Kindred of their age in order to better their own positions, all the while striking alliances of conveniences. Dark Redemption: Undeath horrifies some newly Embraced Kindred. They struggle to reclaim as much of their lost humanity as they can and redeem themselves to their own consciences, if not necessarily to God. Characters who seek redemption might try to use their Kindred powers to do good. That could involve anything from destroying a predatory street gang to intriguing for the power to shape the mortal city government’s policies towards the poor and homeless. Of course, such characters find plenty of other Kindred to oppose as well. Most Vampires consider such altruistic campaigns foolish at best, a threat to their own power and food supply at worst. The characters’ own nature presents the most immediate threat and ineradicable threat, however. One moment of surrender to the Beast could turn a mission of mercy, justice or other virtue into a horrific bloodbath. Can the Damned truly do good in the world, or are they doomed to corrupt and destroy everything and everyone they touch? Can any number of good deeds make restitution for the evils that vampires inevitably commit? 3.1 Setting - Mortals The World of Darkness with in Stafford is in a state of ever shifting war. Gangs terrify local residents into their houses, politicians are rarely seen in their constituencies, and it's crime rate spiralling out of control with police officials being accused of taking bribes and Stafford housing one of the highest rates for prostitution in the West Midlands. The Catholic Church has reclined from taking an active role in the lives of its parishioners, favouring to remove themselves from the threat of victimization from criminals after a spat of incidents with other religious groupings within Stafford. 3.2 History - IC “So it is I that you have come to, to learn of the history of the Domain in which you reside. Very well, childe, I trust that you have been educated on the boon in which I request for this service?” “Trust then, that the accounts I confer unto you are as truthful as I know them to be, and know that I sought out the truth of these accounts long since they first touched mine ears. But whether the truth eludes me yet still… I cannot say.” “Where shall I begin?” “You’re more familiar with the rule of Edward Christian Dorimant, aren’t you?” “It may surprise you to learn then that Staffordshire hasn’t always in the possession of the Invictus. Yes, that’s correct; the Invictus had to work to achieve a foothold in this domain. It was one of very few I am told of staple domains within England that the Lancea Sanctum had a Prince of. It had been that way for more than a century when Dorimant rose to prominence.” “But I am sure you do not want to hear all about your current Prince. You wish to know of the past.” “In the late years of the Ninth Century, the Circle of the Crone began to experience a resurgence of power, causing strife between the Invictus and the Circle of the Crone in the area. Into this breach stepped Archbishop Kinnaerd, who with two of his Inquisitors quickly stamped out the Crone threat, earning the appreciation of the others in the area, easily sliding into a position of power in the area. By ruling the area with an iron fist, he was even able to maintain peace between the different covenants after the crusades were over. He remained in power until shortly after Thomas of Canterbury’s death in 1170.” “Upon hearing of Canterbury’s death, rumours began to flow through the populace that the King had found out that Thomas of Canterbury had been dealing with the Devil for his powers, making all of the church subject to suspicion. A noble named James Lowry arrived one night and convinced the peasants that Archbishop Kinnaerd was in league with the devil, assisting them in routing out the devil and sending the Archbishop and his Inquisitors into the night.” “Lowry seated himself as the Invictus Prince in the area, the first time that the Invictus had held power in the area. He quickly re-established a power base of Invictus Nobles around him, naming them as Regents, entrusting them as his eyes and ears to influence mortal nobles who kept the peasants in a state of poverty that kept the lands running, but very little else. He laid down rules that the others in the area found extremely stifling; a Prince that didn’t much care for the well being of the other Kindred of the area. He maintained his rule until died of symptoms similar to the Black Death in 1365 and had to be put down like the rabid dog that he became.” “The remaining kindred were not surprised when one of the Lancea Sanctum priests named Isidore stepped forward. He had been living in the area for years under Lowry’s rule, carefully insinuating himself into the minds of the populace as a fair and just individual. A distinctly different style of managing his relations than what Lowry had evidenced.” “After some very subtle but intense meetings, and a few of the outspoken going missing, the leaders of the Invictus, who had lost much of their power with Lowry’s death and the Unaligned, who as always, struggled to maintain even a foothold in the domain, were convinced by the other covenants to accept Isidore as Prince.” “Augustus arrived in Staffordshire during the mid 16th Century, and it was not long after arriving that he secured peacefully and graciously away the Praxis of Staffordshire from fellow Lancea Sanctum member Isidore. “It was in 1560, there or thereabouts, that Augustus of Florence, who was Bishop of Staffordshire at the time, ascended to the Praxis of Staffordshire whilst Isidore returned to be a humble Priest. The Lancea Sanctum from that day on has been lead by Augustus of Florence.” “Where Isidore had stemmed the tides of Kindred appetite with benevolence Cardinal Augustus brought reforms to the way Staffordshire ran. He introduced tithes to the domain that each Kindred must pay a tithe to remain in his domain, and of course, these tithes depended on which Covenant you represented.” “It has been said that Cardinal Augustus earned many Staffordian Kindred’s ire, especially those of the Circle of the Crone, when his chosen Inquisitors were granted position within his domain seemingly passing over Kindred from other Covenants for his chosen Sanctified. He instituted his Inquisitors as; Regent of Spirituality, Scourge of Heretics, Scourge of the Damned and Confessor.” “It has even been said on more than one occasion that the Cardinal established a penalty for performing the ‘heretical blood magics’ of the Circle of the Crone; sentencing many an Acolyte of the Crone to be enslaved and tortured for decades before he would consider them worthy of releasing, so that they may learn the price of their damnation and the price of spreading their heresy.” “Cardinal Augustus served the domain of Staffordshire as it’s Cardinal for more than a century before he was deposed from the Praxis by Edward Christian Dorimant in 1649. There have been many theories on how Dorimant was able to secure the domain away from the Lancea Sanctum; the most popular has been that the Cardinal, in a move to strengthen relations between the First and Second Estates, appointed Edward Christian Dorimant as his Seneschal and retired more to concentrate on religious matters… leaving the political minefield open for Dorimant to exploit to his wishes.” “It was in 1650 that Edward Christian Dorimant first convened a meeting of his Primogen. This was done in an attempt to sate the unhappiness of the Kindred who had seen the effects of now Bishop Augustus whilst he was in Praxis. He convened his Primogen in order to receive nominations for the officers of his Court.” “The Primogen considered their options heavily, and wisely for two decades they did debate, when it was that Dorimant revealed his Court Officers to the domain of Staffordshire.” “In 1697, Children of the Ministry of Darkness arrived within the domain of Staffordshire. Hearing the news of the coup of Praxis away from Augustus di Florenzia, they made their way to the domain to discuss the issue with Dorimant. Entertained these guests were, seen again- they were not.” “This is probably the first you will have heard of the mean steak of your good lord Dorimant, isn’t it? It however is not the only reference to his cruelness. Over the span of two years, beginning in 1846, two prominent Invictus disappeared. One, a Ventrue named Johnathon Rayne, was Dorimant’s Seneschal was reported to have committed rape in Dorimant’s domain.” “The second was the purported lover of Jonathon Rayne, one Carmella Michaels. That won’t be the last you will hear of his cruelty, I assure you…” “Let me not drown my recollection with tales of sadness. I will tell you of the time Dorimant announced the promotion of his student, Gibson, an Incubus of the First Estate, I do believe, to the illustrious position of Sheriff. Never let it be said that the Invictus doesn’t reward its own. This, if I remember correctly, was done in 1849.” “Again in 1850 did Dorimant’s infatuation with women result in a major political move when he removed Benjamin-Charles Michaels as the Master of the Elysia. From what I have gathered, his major crime was failing to attend an important gathering held by a once female Daeva of some regard. Her name has been lost during my research, I am afraid.” “The first major contention to the Praxis of Edward Christian Dorimant occurred in 1889 when it was rumoured through gatherings in and about Staffordshire that their long standing Prince had finally entered Torpor. These rumours were quashed, of course, much as you would expect by Dorimant’s Harpy. Oh, you are not aware of his Harpy? Dorimant kept positions within his own Covenant primarily, and his most notable addition, aside from promoting his protégé in 1848, was the promotion of the Incubus of First Estate, Nikolai.” “Of course these rumours were happily supported by the Lancea Sanctum. But Dorimant would have the last laugh, wouldn’t he? Yes. Not long after these rumours circulated would Dorimant take his revenge, and publicly bring the Lancea Sanctum to task for their commentary.” 3.3 Setting - Kindred The Kindred population in Stafford reflects the dire state of affairs. Very few Kindred claim Stafford as a home. Those who do have either lived in Stafford for some time, are naive to its machinations seeking to repair it or seek to fit in and carve their own niche into the decadent and decaying urban county town of Staffordshire. The Kindred are often lost when it comes to the affairs of the mortal population of Stafford, searching instead to play their own games of status and power, promoting those who are loyal to Stafford's cause (or the cause of its Prince?) and exiling any who would stand against the established order. Succubi of the First Estate, Dorimant, claims Staffordshire and beyond as his own personal demesne and has done since the 1600s. Unchallenged has his reign been since his initial ascension to Praxis bar one incident with Kindred of the Lancea Sanctum. He rules over his domain with authority brought only from the wisdom and ruthlessness of age. Despite repeated unsuccessful forays into the National spotlight of the Kindred, Edward Christian Dorimant has always had Staffordshire (and that of the Greater Midlands as he calls it) to fall back onto it though recently, Alder Dorimant has fallen to the rest of eclipse. Alder Edward Christian Dorimant has appointed a Regent to serve his will in his eclipsed absence, Gibson has previously seen a century of winters as the Sheriff of Staffordshire, and is known for his loyalty to His Grace Alder Edward Christian Dorimant, and his enchantment with females. The sire of Thomas Taaka and childe of Abigail Clemence, Nikolai has exceeded expectations in the court of Staffordshire. Nikolai has served notably as Daeva Priscus and Princes' Harpy. Though Nikolai takes a back seat within the court of Alder Edward Christian Dorimant's domain he is still widely respected. The childe of Nikolai has definitely lived up to expectations. As his brood mate carved a nice place for himself in the Domain's hierarchy, so has Thomas. Firstly Thomas successfully held Priscus Harpy, notably the first Priscus Harpy to serve Alder Dorimant's domain, for many months until rumours were circled about both Harpies that lead both to lose face as the Arbiters of Social Conscience. The Prince decided on selecting a single "Undisputed" Harpy serving both the Priscus and himself. The young Daeva Invictus was not without position for long. When His Grace Alder Dorimant fell into Torpor and his brother rose up to the lofty heights of Regent to the Domain, Taaka took his place at his brothers’ side as the Regent's Herald. He is respected within Stafford but not totally because of his lineage. He is known to be loyal to Dorimant and the Invictus. The Undisputed (meaning support of both the Prisci and the Prince) Harpy of the Greater Midlands, Brendan O'Connor is a Daeva with a loud and often aggressively violent tongue with vitriol. He made his first appearance in the domain not long after the assassination attempt on Edward Christian Dorimant's unlife, much to the surprise of the Daeva Invictus presence, that, yes, an Acolyte of the Crone would even dare show their face in the Greater Midlands. Mystery abounds the Archons of Stafford. Unknown are the identities of the Archons to Kindred still experiencing their Requiem. Their ruthlessness and precision, however, are not. Those who have indeed met the Archons of Stafford have either done so unknowingly or have met their end soon after. It is said that the Lancea Sanctum view Staffordshire with an uneasy eye. Members of this Covenant once peacefully resided within the borders of Staffordshire until the Sanctified Kindred came to believe that their views and pursuits were falling on the deaf ear of the Succubi Prince. Their subsequent violent uprising against the Prince of the First Estate brought unity amongst the remaining Covenants against the Sanctified whom had made little allies in their time in Stafford and resulted in exiling from Staffordshire. 3.4 Setting - Werewolves There is an Uratha community in Staffordshire that remains withdrawn from the supernatural community of Staffordshire. 3.5 Setting – Mages If an Awakened community exists within Staffordshire, it has remained withdrawn from the overall supernatural community and continues to do so. Part 4: Storytelling Mechanics Stafford Requiem uses White Wolf’s Vampire: the Requiem and The Camarilla’s Fan Club Addendum to Vampire: the Requiem with the below alterations. In some cases, the below is just a restatement of policy and existing rules within The Camarilla. 4.1 General Player Information The Camarilla is a global organization. Plots and effects from other chapters/domains/ regions/nations will be allowed into the local game. However, the VST reserves the right to deny any effect coming into the game without the plot kit or notification being provided beforehand for review in order to maintain game balance. 4.2 Rules Calls The VST (and any appointed AVSTs) has final say on all rules calls. We operate on a "one-chance" warning system. Arguing with the STs will result in that player being removed from the game. The Storytelling staff reserves the right to decide on an appropriate course of the action of said PC, up to and including PC Death. Further action may be taken beyond this level if deemed appropriate. 4.3 "Same Ol’, Same Ol’" To restrict players from experiencing the Requiem from only one perspective (such as one Clan or one Covenant only); players are unable to begin with a character of the same Clan or Covenant that they had previously played before and must keep that PC for a period of six months. Attempting to violate this rule (…by creating a character with the intent to die and therefore resetting what you can and cannot play) will result in character’s being removed from the Venue and disciplinary action being taken by the Coordinator chain. 4.4 Proxy Rules The following excerpt from the Camarilla Addendum, Section 4.0, applies to proxies run in any Stafford Requiem game: To engage in a proxy, a player must get local Low Approval, as well as informal approval from the supervising Storyteller of the scene into which she proxies. Mid Storytellers may choose to require notifications of any proxies into their areas of responsibility. The player must provide the Storyteller of the scene into which she proxies with her full character sheet, and her character’s motivations and potential actions for whatever situations may develop during the proxy. Storytellers must keep players informed of proxy progress, providing status updates on at least a weekly basis, and should portray proxied PCs to the best of their ability should unforeseen situations arise. For time-critical proxy approvals a Low Storyteller email that specifically gives approval for the proxy to commence is sufficient instead of DB usage. In addition, notification of inbound and outbound proxies must be sent to Stafford_Proxies@yahoogroups.com at least 48 hours prior to the in-game time of the proxy. To facilitate Stafford Requiem members’ access to live games, same-day notification of intention to attend a live game will be sufficient. If you submit your PC more than 48 hours prior to the game, you have "reserved" a spot, and can attend and play your PC. If you do not, then you may have to wait- sometimes for a significant period of time- before the ST can get around to checking in your PC. The STs first duty is to run the game, and check-in takes second priority to that duty. If you do not wish to wait, and take the chance that you will not get to play your PC, the ST will have several NPC's ready. Whenever possible, you will be offered an NPC to play. If you do not wish to wait, and do not wish to portray an NPC, then you can at least be aware that this rule is in place. Please do not be angry with the ST staff for enforcing it. Complaints may be directed to the VST or the Northern England RST. 4.5 Visiting Characters Guidelines Visiting characters can expect to encounter a wide variety of power levels in both PC’s and (potentially) NPC’s. In addition to the characters of the members, Stafford Requiem is uniquely suited to visitations from characters from every corner of the Chronicle, and therefore a travelling PC can potentially encounter nearly any other character currently in play. Combat is not anticipated to be a common occurrence, but it is always a possibility, and the fact that Stafford Requiem games are conducted online does not in any way decrease the finality of character death suffered while attending them. Non-combat conflict, especially of a political nature, is expected to be common. The in-game consequences of such conflict are likewise as serious as those resulting from a more conventional game. 4.6 Downtime Scenes Actions may be resolved in downtime scenes (with the presence of needed players and their characters) via net play (such as MSN Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger) or in person; provided that all players involved in these actions have fair and equal access to attend (if in doubt; verify with the VST). The VST must be present for any scene involving challenges. 4.7 Travel Risks Stafford is a utopia for crime. Carjackers lay in wait for cars to be left unattended. Gangs police the streets of Stafford town centre victimizing random people for drug money and thrills. Stafford is easy to travel to via rail and car; but beware any who would knowingly walks its streets in its current state. 4.8 Experience Guidelines As per the Camarilla UK Addenda 4.9 Registered Channels #Stafford-Requiem-OOC The Out of Character room for the Camarilla UK Online game: Stafford Requiem. #Stafford-Requiem-SignIn The Sign In room for the Camarilla UK Online game: Stafford Requiem. #Stafford-Requiem-Dice The Dice Roll room for the Camarilla UK Online game: Stafford Requiem, to adjudicate challenges between characters. #Stafford-Estate-Entrance The In Character room for the Camarilla UK Online game, Stafford Requiem, that is the entrance of Shugborough Hall, the Elysium of Staffordshire, owned by Prince Dorimant. #Stafford-Estate-Hall The In Character room for the Camarilla UK Online game, Stafford Requiem, that is the main hall of Shugborough Hall, the Elysium of Staffordshire, owned by Prince Dorimant 4.10 Registered Signals When playing the Stafford Requiem game online we ask that you suffix the important parts of your PCs notable presence, like so... Mask of Tranquillity - [Obf2] Aspect of the Predator - [Pro1] Striking Looks - [SL # of dots in the Merit] Sovereignty - [Sovereignty # of successes on activation]
Dramatis Personae
Edward Christian Dorimant – Prince - City Status 5 Player: Rowan Draper Respected Elder of the First Estate, Admired within Staffordshire, Edward Christian Dorimant has held the Praxis of Staffordshire for an unequalled three centuries without serious challenge to his Praxis. Nikolai – Priscus of the Daeva - City Status 4 Player: John Watson Acknowledged Elder of the First Estate, Respected within Staffordshire, Nikolai served faithfully as the Prince’s Harpy for over a century, and recently was selected to be his Clan’s voice on the recently formed Priscus Council. Gibson – Sheriff - City Status 4 Player: Anthony Doughty Acknowledged Elder of the First Estate, Respected within Staffordshire, Gibson has seen a century of winters as the Sheriff of Staffordshire, and is known for his loyalty to Dorimant, and his enchantment with females. Marcus – Priscus of the Mekhet - City Status 3 Player: Marc ‘Monz’ First Estate Newcomer to the Court of Staffordshire, Marcus’ first appearance in perhaps five years saw him attain the support of Clan Mekhet as their Priscus on the newly formed Priscus Council. Lady Jessica – Priscus of the Nosferatu - City Status 3 Player: Bonnie Lawson Companion of Lady Noriko, Jessica’s introduction to Staffordshire has seen the domain’s level of debauchery rise, if ever it was low enough with an active number of Daeva residents. She has also received the support of Clan Nosferatu as their Priscus on the newly formed Priscus Council. Thomas Taaka – Harpy of the Priscus - City Status 3 Player: Toby Lawson Whispered amongst the Courts of Staffordshire that the childe of Nikolai, Thomas Taaka, is a dogsbody, currying favour on behalf of his peers and betters, but surely these whispers should be discounted for he has some degree of influence as he has been chosen by the Priscus of Staffordshire to be their Harpy. Menolly Smith - City Status 2 Player: Victoria Hadley Recently released Menolly Smith has been unaligned since her arrival on the Court scene as a representative of her Incubi sire in March of 2005. The mistress of innuendo and art, Menolly lusts to tease and leave her prey… unsated. Noriko - City Status 2 Player: Natasha Companion of Lady Jessica, the most notable member of the Circle of the Crone within Staffordshire only appeared after the unsuccessful assassination attempt upon Edward Christian Dorimant, which he easily rebuffed, Noriko was elevated to the position of Seneschal in late October and did not stand a month in the position before she was removed. Sir Michael Stone – Princes’ Harpy - City Status 2 Player: Rob Griffiths Resident in Staffordshire since the late 1980’s, Michael Stone has only recently appeared on the Staffordshire Kindred radar, servicing himself to the whims and needs of Lady Jessica and Lady Noriko. He was recently elevated to the role of Princes’ Harpy in the absence of Nikolai, having himself been selected to be Priscus of the Daeva. David de Montford – Priscus of the Ventrue - City Status 1 Player: David Mountford Childe of Sir Michael Stone, David de Montford is a recent addition to the Court of Staffordshire, and was recently chosen by his Clan to represent them on the newly formed Priscus Council of Staffordshire