World/Chronicles of Darkness: you turning werewolves into wereterriers

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Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

When I talked to my usual players about doing the mortal one shot, we started to reminisce about our first game together and decided to go back to Santa Sangre, the city I created for our Werewolf: the Forsaken game. It's going to be set in 2029, so ten years after we finished our WtF game and this time they'll be playing vampires.

The city is based on Corpus Christie

The pack was in the Old Town neighborhood and worked out of the Squat which was an abandoned building that two of them had been fixing up and running a community help center out of before their first change. They were the only full time Luna aligned pack in the city, although across the bay there was an alliance between a high tech faction of the Ivory Claws that were using medical research and bioengineering to try and create the perfect werewolf, and the Invictus/Ordo Dracul who were trying to find a way to eliminate the traditional vampiric weakness. What they ended up doing were creating the CHUDs, small goblin like creatures who existed only to feed on human flesh. CHUDs weren't a problem on their own, but they bred fast and travelled in packs. There were also the Alpha CHUDs, which where bigger and meaner, but also could go gauru and even a single Alpha was a challenge for a pack of Forsaken. Long story short (too late) the big ending fight of the chronicle was the pack destroying the research facility out on the border of the swamp where the CHUDs were created. They summoned a gator-nado and assembled an impressive group of allies, included some enchanted items gifted to them by local mages, and some Carthian vampires who were allied with pack and helped build The Squat.

Currently I'm doing a timeline of what happened since then and it's super fun. Since my players naturally gravitate to queer revolutionaries and, thankfully, those are the type of stories I like telling, I made a concept for them that's gonna start them in a much different place than normal.

The destruction of the BioGen facility in the swamp led to a war between supernatural factions that ended up destroying the Ivory Claws entirely and caused a civil war in the Invictus and their allies. The war raged on for years and almost destroyed the Masquerade before it ended, and the Invictus vampires lost. Their numbers drastically decreased, their werewolf allies dead or driven out, they sued for peace and now the city is an East/West Berlin situation. Aristaville, Fort Tulane, and Carmalita are Invictus territory. Old Town, Dockside, and Yellowfin are Carthian territory. Japeth's Swamp, Ascending Heights, and most of Scoundrel's Island are no man's land.

The coterie of Invictus and Ordo Dracul vampires who overthrew the old reigme has become the Prince and Primogen of the city. Each player is the childe of one of the new Primogen, the only new vampires that have been officially sired since the war. They've just finished a year of fledgelinghood with their sires and are being released to act as a coterie of ambassadors. They're going to have to strengthen the sect's hold on it's territory, establish their own power bases, and keep the peace when many of the vampires aligned with them really want things to go back to how they were before when they were the absolute power in the city.

Last night I started to update my old neighborhood descriptions with information their sires would make sure they knew.

quote:

Aristaville:
Alignment -Invictus
Violence � Low Risk
Factions � Invictus, Lancea et Sanctum, The Union
Notable Places- St Matthew's Church. ILA Local 107 Union Hall, The Stevedore

All the trade and shipping traffic still coming to Santa Sangre arrives through this port, although even that is starting to dry up. The city has a heavy police presence in the high rises and few remaining single family homes that make up the residential area of the neighborhood, inhabited by the dockworkers. The police presence is so heavy that it's actually oppressive, particularly towards people of color, skewing the racial demographics of Aristaville, once a heavily Hispanic neighborhood, almost as white as Carmalita or Fort Tulane. Anyone not passing the paperbag test can expect to find themselves pulled over or questioned by the seemingly omnipresent police officers patrolling the street. Gentrification of Aristaville is almost complete, with only those homes directly bordering the dockside warehouses and work yards still affordable.

The actual docks are the only real respite from the cops. The International Longshoreman's Association is the union running the docks and, while their numbers are drastically reduced from back in the day, they still maintain a policy of monitoring and resisting the police that grew up around the original unionization efforts in the 1920's.

The proximity of vampires and vampire hunters should be a volatile mixture, but the Lancea has been around far longer than the Union which is not even 20 years old, and well practiced in hiding their presence. Since the literal union does a stellar job taking care of member's families who suffer accidents or become ill, the folks who attend church outreach programs, the places where Lancea vampires prefer to feed, are over looked by the Union, which keeps to it's own neighborhood, a territory which has shrunk with gentrification. The well off folks who're encroaching have the police and Secure-U to protect them.

The Lancea is led by Father O'Riely, a Mekhet who hasn't been seen by a mortal parishioner in fourty years. O'Riely keeps to the catecombs beneath the church, spending much of his time in meditation on how to act as God's perfect Monster. He is one of the few surviving elder vampires of the previous regime, and sent many Carthians to their final death. Previous to the war, he was training a sect of dark paladins, all of whom are now dust along with most of the former Lancea members. Father O'Riely claims that he and his paladins were attacked by Carthian vampires who's eyes glowed with the light of the sun. He is convinced this was the work of witches and has vowed revenge, but his faith was shook to the core and aside from conducting a mass on the night of the new moon, he keeps to his meditations, only eating when prey is brought to him.

St Matthew's Church- Not the oldest church in Santa Sangre, but the oldest Catholic church in the city, it's also the home base of Lancea et Sanctum in the city. The church runs it's own homeless outreach programs and medical clinics all of which serves to keep the kindred of the Lancea well fed.

ILA Local 107 Union Hall- Home base for the Union, a sect of Vampire Hunters. Not every member of the actual union is a vampire hunter, or even aware of the supernatural, but ever single card carrying union member will grab a pipe, board, or wrench if they see one of the Union getting into a fight, doesn't matter if that fight is against some guys, the cops, or a rampaging werewolf, no member of the Union is ever alone.

The Stevedore- This high end restaurant is a slap to the face of everyone working person in Aristaville. Blatantly stealing the aesthetic of the docks, the seafood place sits on a refurbished wharf overlooking the bay and utilizes undercover Secure-U agents to keep protesters or anyone who looks too poor away. The Stevedore is 100% mortal owned and operated, but as it's popularity has grown, the safety of the area and it's location makes it a good meeting place for sit downs between the Invictus and Lancea.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ascending Heights:
Alignment -No Man's Land
Violence � Moderate Risk
Factions � Circle of the Crone, unaligned vampires, ghosts, unknown entities
Notable Places � Pauper's Field, Sisters of Mercy Sanatirum, Ang Lubus

Just called �rear end End� by the locals, Ascending Heights is the forgotten, under developed, dirty secret of Santa Sangre. Enviormentally, the area is a drainage basin for Japeth's Swamp, damp soggy land with only a�minimum of commercial or residential build up the further you get from the 69 or 37. Near the highways, you see the expected amount of service stations, fast food joints, and cheap stores for travellers to stock up on food and supplies.
Outside the travel corridor though, street lights stop working (if they're installed at all), poverty is endemic. Houses and apartments have barred windows and snarling dogs strain at chain leads in front yards. Garbage lies in piles when it isn't blowing through the street. There are homeless everywhere and, unlike those in Old Town, there isn't a Squat around to keep themselves. Everyone here knows someone who has dissapeared. The really unlucky know someone who's come back.

rear end End is probably the most supernaturally populated neighborhood in Santa Sangre and is a no man's land. The vampires that lair there are the Circle of the Crone, who practice a version of blood magic derived from Filipino mysticism, itinerant vampires passing through the city briefly, and unaligned vampires who sat out the war. The biggest threat come from the unaligned vampires some of whom were pushed out of territory now held by both the Invictus and the Carthains, as neither side trusted or wanted fence sitters in their territory. This has made life worse for the humans of Ascending Heights and anemia is a common ailment. The Circle keeps things from getting too bad with a series of underground �clinics� using a mixture of folk medicine and western medicines, thanks to a very limited partnership with the werewolves of Renewal.

The neighborhood is also very haunted. Almost every human has had an encounter with a ghost whether they acknowledge or not. The Circle manages to keep their havens and haunts ghost-free, but the unaligned vampires are magnets for the vengeful dead and some have greated the sunrise thanks to the torments inflicted upon them by the disembodied spirits.

Finally there's another hidden faction in Ascending Heights. No one is quite sure what type of beings they are, but the Circle suspects some sort of emotional vampire, although this is just a suspicion based on the flat affect of victims and the way their emotions and vitality seem to return after time spent in safe clinics. So far there has been no reported conflict with these beings, but the Circle keeps communication with those outside the neighborhood to a minimum.

Sisters of Mercy Sanatorium- An abandoned mental hospital built in the 1920's. So haunted that not even the most hardcore urban explorers go much past the entry hall before turning back. The hospital borders the swampland and has sunk a few feet into the moist soil over the past century.

Pauper's Field- A cemetery initially for the patients of Sisters of Mercy, it spreads out across the dilapidated road behind the crumbling hospital. In modern nights, the cemetery is used for the destitute and unclaimed dead. It is closed well before sundown, and no caretaker patrols the ground at night thanks to all the ghosts. What grass that does grow in the rocky soil, is yellow and spiked, with a bad smell when crushed underfoot. In the far end of the field, nearest the wetlands of Japeth's Swamp, there is a mass grave. Despite bodies being placed there with as much respect as possible for a mass grave of the unnamed poor and soil being replaced, it is not uncommon for undertakers to discover the soil disturbed. Whether someone was digging down towards the bodies or up to the sky is not always clear. They have seen both.

Ang Lubus- The nosferatu called Lola operates out of this �clinic�. Lola is the leader of the Circle of the Crone, her eyes are corpse white, but the small, wrinkled woman can see perfectly. She walks with a slight hunch to her back and prefers to wear dark glasses when dealing with mortals. Despite the bad vibes she gives off as a nosferatu, the community loves Lola. Many residents, not just the tiny Filipino community come to her for healing or protection from spirits, or even just to rid themselves of bad luck.

The kindly old woman gimmick isn't an act, not really, but Lola is also a blood sorceress and sees the humans of Ascending Heights as her flock in the most literal sense. There to be tended and protected, but also slaughtered when the time is right. The Circle as a whole keeps to itself, and while Lola's faction is the most populous there are a few other, covens in Ascending Heights based in their own mystic practices and a mutual respect for their sect-mates.

# ? Jan 6, 2023 16:54

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# ? Jun 5, 2024 04:25

That Old Tree: Jun 24, 2012; nah

I would be excited for that game. Looks fun.

# ? Jan 6, 2023 19:12

Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

TY, the chronicle song for the last game was Devo's Beautiful World, the song for this game is Flowers Everywhere by Talking Heads.

quote:

Carmalita:
Alignment -Invictus
Violence � Low Risk
Factions � Free Ghouls
Notable Places- Barrens, The Compound

The bulk of New Santa Sangre's residential area is in Carmalita. Those houses closest to Fort Tulane are multi-million dollar residences. Iron gates, privacy hedges isolate the individual manses while still allowing easy access to all the amenities of downtown Santa Sangre. The further out from the city center you travel, the smaller and closer to modest the homes become, with the upper middle class homes of the middle management HENRYs forming a protective ring around the truly wealthy.

This used to be the area where many of the Elders had their lairs. Powerful enough to build safe compounds on large tracts of land, to have prey brought to them, and an army of retainers to handle their buisness in the city, the isolated nature of existence in Carmalita led to Final Death to many of these vampires. Carthians aligned vampires and their werewolf allies made use of spirits and strange magics to invade these properties and kill the vampires inside.

Most of these strikes were surgical, targeting only the vampires and leaving the mortals, ghouls, and property in tact. This has led to the neighborhood being controlled by free ghouls. These ghouls are still Invictus aligned and some have used their previous expertise and service to transfer to other vampires but, understandably, many kindred have intense suspicion bringing on a ghoul who's previous master was killed and is already blood bound to that dead master. As a result these ghouls are treated as contractors, hired on a temporary basis, paid with vitae and allowed to exist without a master as long as they toe the line.

A few vampires still lair here, but all of them were in torpor during the war. Some still are.
[10:32 AM]
The Barrens- Carmalita is residential, unless a vampire is into breaking and entering, there is no hunting here. Maybe you'll get luck with a late night jogger or dog walker, but the neighborhood is rich and well patrolled by police and private security. The more wealthy residents have fortified homes with multiple layers of security making home invasion risky and resource intensive. The entire neighborhood is classified as Barren.

The Compound- The compound is a cause for concern, it's where the free ghouls live, arrange business, and train. Run by Major Gregory Peterson, the Major's master was killed by the Carthians, but the vampire's property and wealth were in the ghoul's name. Without the blood bond controlling him, the Major used that wealth to gather and support the other free ghouls and secure a steady source of vitae. He uses that supply of vitae to control the other ghouls as they all train in hand to hand and firearms, creating a fighting force dozens strong that is capable of taking on any threat, even elder vampires. It is rumored that the Major has kidnapped or purchased neonates that he keeps secured for use as milk cows. If confirmation of this was ever obtained, the Invictus would have to seriously reconsider their hands off stance to the ghouls and commit to a scorched earth attack, just the existence of this faction strains the false loyalty of the blood bond, if the free ghouls were able to gain independence from vampiric upkeep, that loyalty might shatter entirely

soonmot (he/him) � Today at 11:52 AM
Dockside:
Alignment -Carthian
Violence � High Risk
Factions � Carthian, Renewal
Notable Places- The Boardwalk, That Ol' Black Magic

Dockside has changed much in the last ten years. It heritage as a working class entertainment district was threatened by real estate development, but the election of Alvi Alverson to city council managed to shore up political alliances and super charge public sentiment to keep Dockside, Old Town, and Yellowfin neighborhoods where poor and working families could live in safety and dignity. There is still a police presence depsite the councilperson's very loud ACAB rhetoric, especially on the Boardwalk, which attracts lots of tourists, but strong civilian oversite, steep penalties for turning off body cams, and community based justice reforms has blunted police excess. Crime in Dockside is historically low with most of it being petty theft and pickpocketing on the Boardwalk.

The only murders or violent crime in the past two years have been gang violence spilling out of Ascending Heights, two feeding accidents, and a handful of domestic disputes.

The Boardwalk- The past few years has seen much needed repairs to the historical attraction. Councilperson Alverson has diverted city fund, applied for state and national grants and used that money to refurbish the restaurants and stores lining the Boardwalk, as well as building the largest Ferris Wheel in Texas and working with city historians and architects to create a boat tour, popular with both tourists and residents that shows off Santa Sangre from it's start as a pirate port to the modern day as one the jewels of Texas. During October, the boat tour goes spooky mode and highlights the (fake) supernatural past of the city.
[11:52 AM]
That Ol' Black Magic- A New Orleans style Jazz club run by a mysterious man who calls himself Otenbe, this seems to be the meeting place for the supernatural element of the Carthian aligned elements of the city. No violence or powers are allowed in the club, while blood can be provided to vampires, no feeding is permitted. Breaking the rules is an easy way to be exiled from Carthian territory and those who push the patience of Otenbe too far, even if the rules are technically unbroken, find themselves the victims of terrible bad luck until restitution is made.

# ? Jan 6, 2023 19:34

Dawgstar: Jul 15, 2017

https://twitter.com/TheOnyxPath/status/1611482785629327378

# ? Jan 6, 2023 23:11

Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

Dawgstar posted:

https://twitter.com/TheOnyxPath/status/1611482785629327378

This is a very solid base for an urban fantasy game, highly recommend

# ? Jan 7, 2023 01:38

Dawgstar: Jul 15, 2017

https://twitter.com/jachilli/status/1612787612107919361

Achilli's finishing up his Werewolf stuff but he's leaving Paradox.

# ? Jan 10, 2023 13:33

That Old Tree: Jun 24, 2012; nah

EFB -

Welp, looks like Achilli is moving on from WoD again.

https://twitter.com/jachilli/status/1612787603639508992?t=K9FD-BZZ_UdxWxtbLrAURw&s=19

https://twitter.com/jachilli/status/1612787610719485952?t=2cc2n_qpDCePJDJyJr8aFg&s=19

# ? Jan 10, 2023 13:34

Fuzz: Jun 2, 2003; Avatar brought to you by the TG Sanity fund

He's not even "leaving" Paradox, he was only a contractor to begin with despite being creative lead, which is loving ridiculous and shows you how terrible the publishing world is. Dude probably wanted real benefits and better healthcare. I don't blame him.

# ? Jan 10, 2023 16:57

Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

Off the top of your heads, what does CoD say about vampires becoming ghosts. I'm writing up the description for the downtown area of the city, where the coterie are going to have their base, which they've decided is a high class strip club. I'm saying that this club used to be the haven of the previous regime's deava primogen and that she was staked out for the sunrise and left on the roof during the Invictus civil war. It might be cool to have her ghost antagonize the players. I'll probably do it no matter what because it seems like a fun sideplot that my players will really bite on, but I'm curious as to if there's any offical word on vampires becoming ghosts (not strix, I've got those planned for something else.)

# ? Jan 10, 2023 21:07

worm girl: Feb 12, 2022; Can you hear it too?

I believe in most editions it is considered to be a thing that shouldn't happen (because vampires arent human, because they don't have human souls anymore, because they died when they got embraced, nobody knows for sure) but still occasionally does, usually through magical bullshit.

The most prominent example I can think of is Hollow Mekhet in 1e, who are haunted by a ghost of themselves that split off of them. This could ve a useful jumping off point. Cruac stuff might also come in handy to explain it, I'm guessing the Lancaea wouldn't like it because dead vampires are supposed to be in hell.

I can't recall any 2e specific examples, though.

worm girl fucked around with this message at 22:54 on Jan 10, 2023

# ? Jan 10, 2023 21:33

Chernobyl Peace Prize: May 7, 2007; Or later, later's fine.
But now would be good.

Personally, the funniest outcome is that the ghost of the person who was embraced (who was created when they died, in the act of the vampire being created), and the ghost of the vampire, are two distinct entities

# ? Jan 10, 2023 21:52

Nessus: Dec 22, 2003; After a Speaker vote, you may be entitled to a valuable coupon or voucher!

Chernobyl Peace Prize posted:

Personally, the funniest outcome is that the ghost of the person who was embraced (who was created when they died, in the act of the vampire being created), and the ghost of the vampire, are two distinct entities

Then they join the same krewe

# ? Jan 10, 2023 21:54

Wittgen: Oct 13, 2012; We have decided to decline your offer of a butt kicking.

Diablerize this malchavian and in addition to the point of blood potence you will get not just one, but two, count them, two ghosts to keep you company through your undying torment.

# ? Jan 10, 2023 21:58

Chernobyl Peace Prize: May 7, 2007; Or later, later's fine.
But now would be good.

Nessus posted:

Then they join the same krewe

Then they kiss

# ? Jan 10, 2023 21:59

cptn_dr: Sep 7, 2011; Seven for beauty that blossoms and dies

Chernobyl Peace Prize posted:

Then they kiss

# ? Jan 10, 2023 22:10

worm girl: Feb 12, 2022; Can you hear it too?

Chernobyl Peace Prize posted:

Personally, the funniest outcome is that the ghost of the person who was embraced (who was created when they died, in the act of the vampire being created), and the ghost of the vampire, are two distinct entities

This would be a pretty amusing curveball in a Wraith game, though I'm sure it's been done a million times. You are just moping around watching the mortals live their lives and you see your body walking around killing people.

# ? Jan 10, 2023 23:02

Kurieg: Jul 19, 2012; RIP Lutri: 5/19/20-4/2/20

worm girl posted:

This would be a pretty amusing curveball in a Wraith game, though I'm sure it's been done a million times. You are just moping around watching the mortals live their lives and you see your body walking around killing people.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 03:17

MonsieurChoc: Oct 12, 2013; Every species can smell its own extinction.

Technically in the old WoD, the soul is multi-part and the Mage part, the Avatar, reincarnates at the moment of the Embrace so you could totally have a Vampire meeting the living Mage who's got his old Avatar.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 04:46

Gatto Grigio: Feb 9, 2020

One of the best WWDITS episodes is the one where the vampires summon their own ghosts

# ? Jan 11, 2023 05:09

I Am Just a Box: Jul 20, 2011; I belong here. I contain only inanimate objects. Nothing is amiss.

worm girl posted:

I believe in most editions it is considered to be a thing that shouldn't happen (because vampires arent human, because they don't have human souls anymore, because they died when they got embraced, nobody knows for sure) but still occasionally does, usually through magical bullshit.

It's definitely not because of anything to do with souls, because in Chronicles, things without souls can leave ghosts. Dogs can leave ghosts, buildings can leave ghosts. Geist 2e specifies that you can even have multiple ghosts of the same person, if that person has been through several near-death experiences.

Night Horrors: Immortal Sinners for 1e has the ghost of a long-dead vampire in the Sightless Mother, whose writeup doesn't at any point refer to the existence of a vampire's ghost as something that needed some special genesis.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 05:24

Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

Thanks for the feedback everyone. After a week of work, I'm back at writing, I only have a single neighborhood left to finish up before I start writing up the timeline and create the questionnaire my players use to supplement their backgrounds and gain bonus XP for character creation. Had a lot of fun telling them about the neighborhood their werewolf pack controls and how their old character's names are spoken of with fear by the vampires on the side their new characters are going to be on.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 16:37

Nessus: Dec 22, 2003; After a Speaker vote, you may be entitled to a valuable coupon or voucher!

I Am Just a Box posted:

It's definitely not because of anything to do with souls, because in Chronicles, things without souls can leave ghosts. Dogs can leave ghosts, buildings can leave ghosts. Geist 2e specifies that you can even have multiple ghosts of the same person, if that person has been through several near-death experiences.

Night Horrors: Immortal Sinners for 1e has the ghost of a long-dead vampire in the Sightless Mother, whose writeup doesn't at any point refer to the existence of a vampire's ghost as something that needed some special genesis.

NWOD says dogs don�t have souls? Disturbing

# ? Jan 11, 2023 17:01

Nessus: Dec 22, 2003; After a Speaker vote, you may be entitled to a valuable coupon or voucher!

Is that why it�s a World of Darkness? No dog souls?

# ? Jan 11, 2023 17:02

Kurieg: Jul 19, 2012; RIP Lutri: 5/19/20-4/2/20

All dogs do not go to heaven because they do not have souls

# ? Jan 11, 2023 17:13

Wittgen: Oct 13, 2012; We have decided to decline your offer of a butt kicking.

Animals having souls is pretty contentious. Aquinas contended that they did not and their existence ended with death. This was backed officially by Pius IX in the 1800s. He apparently hated animals because he tried to stop the opening of an Italian chapter of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Pope John Paul II, a guy who loved dogs and actively participated in covering up acts of sexual abuse by clergy, declared in 1990 that animals had souls and were as near to god as men are. The next pope, Benedict, contradicted that and supported the no dogs go to heaven position. Now Francis is more of a doggos in heaven guy.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 17:13

Tuxedo Catfish: Mar 17, 2007; You've got guts! Come to my village, I'll buy you lunch.

"Soul" in the nWoD describes something much closer to a weird supernatural organ that helps regulate (but not produce) consciousness than anything like the Christian theological concept (or even a vague Cartesian dualist concept). It's like a spleen but for ethics and personal drive rather than blood cells. And also wizard stuff if you happen to be a wizard.

Ghosts, if I remember correctly, have literally nothing to do with the Soul and are rather just a reflection of things that people remembered in life, projected into a semi-real existence of their own by the trauma of dying.

Speculatively, the fact that this happens to things that humans remember and reflects our memories and attachments instead of just becoming a weird copy of the Spirit World is probably related to the fact that there are no "humanity spirits;" all the self-referential stuff we do that should theoretically generate Essence and gradually become a part the Shadow ecosystem gets shunted to the Underworld instead. Maybe.

There are also a number of vague hooks suggesting that the Underworld was a) created artificially at some point by unknown entities and b) has been abandoned and its functions gradually failing for a very long time.

Tuxedo Catfish fucked around with this message at 17:57 on Jan 11, 2023

# ? Jan 11, 2023 17:50

Nessus: Dec 22, 2003; After a Speaker vote, you may be entitled to a valuable coupon or voucher!

Kurieg posted:

All dogs do not go to heaven because they do not have souls

All Noddist dogs go to heaven

Cainite Heresy dogs can ask their pastor

# ? Jan 11, 2023 18:13

Ferrinus: Jun 19, 2003; i'm finding this quite easy, i guess in part because i'm a fast type but also because i have a coherent mental model of the world

I think you can effectively get ghosts of cars, buildings, etc. if those things last long enough to be remembered and then get destroyed so there may well be dog ghosts around. Of course, those ghosts are no more continuations of the same being as their living selves than a human ghost is.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 18:20

Dawgstar: Jul 15, 2017

Nessus posted:

All Noddist dogs go to heaven

Cainite Heresy dogs can ask their pastor

And there are no Bahari dogs because they have better sense. :smuggo:

# ? Jan 11, 2023 18:48

Dave Brookshaw: Jun 27, 2012; No Regrets

1) Ghost dogs predate Werewolf: The Forsaken 1e - they're in Ghost Stories, one of the very first nWoD books.

2) Ghosts are not souls.

3) Hollow Mekhet are indeed haunted by themselves.

4) If you want vampires to leave ghosts when they're embraced, go nuts.

EDIT

5) The Underworld isn't artificial - it's being steadily invaded and colonised by humans. Cthonian Rights! Preserve the Neverborn!

(But seriously, it's the *Astral* - or at least the Temenos - that's consistently nudge-winked as being an artificial creation. At some point Humanity's soul got walled off from the rest of the universe.)

Dave Brookshaw fucked around with this message at 18:54 on Jan 11, 2023

# ? Jan 11, 2023 18:52

TheCenturion: May 3, 2013; HI I LIKE TO GIVE ADVICE ON RELATIONSHIPS

TL;DR: it's your game, do whatever the hell you want. I'm pretty sure this is explicitly laid out as the golden rule, rule zero, or similar, but I'm too lazy to walk downstairs and pull V:TR off of the shelf.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 18:58

GimpInBlack: Sep 27, 2012; That's right, kids, take lots of drugs, leave the universe behind, and pilot Enlightenment Voltron out into the cosmos to meet Alien Jesus.

Dave Brookshaw posted:

5) The Underworld isn't artificial - it's being steadily invaded and colonised by humans. Cthonian Rights! Preserve the Neverborn!

However, its current state of "lovely place of leaky caves" as opposed to the ocean seen in Neolithic Mage is probably the result of a successful Catabasis at some point near the dawn of recorded history.

# ? Jan 11, 2023 19:34

Drakyn: Dec 26, 2012

Nessus posted:

All Noddist dogs live in death

# ? Jan 11, 2023 21:26

Chernobyl Peace Prize: May 7, 2007; Or later, later's fine.
But now would be good.

Ferrinus posted:

I think you can effectively get ghosts of cars, buildings, etc. if those things last long enough to be remembered and then get destroyed so there may well be dog ghosts around. Of course, those ghosts are no more continuations of the same being as their living selves than a human ghost is.

Yeah, Geist 2e has ghost dogs, ghost cars, ghost limbs, etc. all as things written and statted

# ? Jan 12, 2023 02:16

Dave Brookshaw: Jun 27, 2012; No Regrets

I am more proud of the mental leap I had to "phantom limb syndrome" when creating dopplegangers for Geist 2e than I am of the entirity of Deviant: The Renegades.

# ? Jan 12, 2023 12:59

Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

Here's the batch of neighborhood writeups I did yesterday. Old Town was where their werewolf pack, Renewal, was based out of the first time we used this city. Fort Tulane is where their new vampires characters will be. One of my players is going heavy on Filipino vampire myths and wants to be able to eat shadows down the road, so one of the things I'm going to be playing with is the more mystical side of the Ordo Dracul having a form of blood magic that allows them to feed off spirits if they have a certain set of coils and an auspex devotion. This will be contrasted with the Circle of the Crone community I wrote about in ascending heights that has some cruac rituals that are more about placating and helping spirits.

The BioGen ruins in Japeth's Swamp is the site of the giant battle I ran in their own game, where they combined their gifts to create a Gator-nado.

quote:

Fort Tulane:

Alignment -Invictus
Violence � Low Risk
Factions � Invictus, Ordo Dracul
Notable Places- Sangre La Gentleman's Club, The Fort, BG Court, Rumgrad Park, Royce Plaza, The Rack

The beating heart of Santa Sangre, Fort Tulane is usually just called �Downtown� or �The Fort�. The entire neighborhood takes its name from the old, sturdy, stone pirate fort that houses the city government. While the inside has been�extensivly remodled to meet modern needs, the outside of the fort has been pain stakingly maintained by a team of historians from Santa Sangre Community College. Five main roads branch out from a huge traffic circle around the Fort, start driving on any major road inside of Santa Sangre and you will end up at the Fort. There are any number of conspiracy theories surrounding this unique traffic configuration, but no one really puts any stock in them.
The rest of downtown consists of sky scrapers, some residential, but most buisness oriented. Biotech is the driving force of the city and three major corporations, BioGen, Genetix, and Jacob-Grene, have their home offices in Fort Tulane. Outside of the normal buissness you expect to see in a major city, Santa Sangre also houses a number of national level debt collection agencies. These companies buy up old debt and do everything they can to collect, harassing phone calls being the least of their tactics. Both Texas law and local ordinances shield these companies from most prosecution.
Fort Tulane boasts a number of amenities, George �Spiceyboy� Kowalski has his five star Mexican fusion restaurant in town, reservations being a hot commodity amongst those who fancy themselves the elite. The actual elite prefer the much more subdued and exclusive Salvadore's Bistro, where the menu changes every month but reservations are impossible to get in less than two months. The Blackwell theater isn't nationally known, but does put on some of the best productions in the region. The actors frequently put on free plays during the summer at Rumgrad Park. The Park itself is only a few blocks northwest from The Fort, it has a large sunken stone theater area, a small hedge maze and plenty of open spaces for activites.

The two sects that form the bulk of Santa Sangre's Westside vampires, the Invictus and Ordo Dracul have their bases of operation here. Aside from the Rack, feeding in Fort Tulane is restricted to assigned territories. The individual vampire granted that territory can allow others to feed at their discretion, but are still responsible for clean ups and maintaining the Masquerade. Even after a devastating civil war, the restriction on new embraces by the new regime and the focus on solidifying their grasp on their territory has actually reduced feeding accidents, but with less than fifty vampires currently residing in Fort Tulane it's unclear if the reduction in unintentional deaths is because of increased discipline or reduced predators.

Sangre La Gentleman's Club- Just outside of the rack, this high class strip club and the three surrounding blocks are the assigned territory of your coterie. The club is three levels, a basement, and a hidden sub basement and was the personal lair of the previous regime's deava primogen. Melody O'Hare was staked out on the roof of the club during the civil war. The strange thing is that no one claimed responsibility for her death. None of your sires know who did it. The Carthaians never claimed her death as a feather in their cap either.

The Fort- The center of Santa Sangre's mortal government is off limits to all vampires outside the Prince and Primogen. After the debacle of the fall of BioGen and the cratering of the real estate market in the city, the only vampires allowed to influence city politics are the Prince and Primogen, who currently only exercise soft control, keeping themselves at arms length from the mortal politicians. This is compounded by the presence of Councilperson Alverson, the werewolf and their allies is incredibly adept at sniffing out direct supernatural influence and has the resources to combat that directly. Bribery by way of campaign donations and other more mundane methods of influence is just part of the game and much more likely to slip by unnoticed or, at least, uncombated.

BG Court- This set of three buildings in downtown Santa Sangre and the small park that they surround, used to be the national headquarters of BioGen, a cutting edge medical research corporation. BioGen was a front for a tribe of werewolves allied with the old regime, the Ivory Claws. Those werewolves were killed or run off in the war and when information concerning the unethical research the company was doing coupled with proof of financial malfeasance slipped to the IRS, BioGen went bankrupt. Equipment was sold off but the property still sits vacant. A handful of other corporations have looked at some or all of the buildings but no one has bought them. Teresa Aceveda, one of the few remaining vampires in Santa Sangre that was part of BioGen wonders if maybe some of the old experiments in the hidden levels weren't properly terminated and are now wandering the buildings.

Rumgrad Park- While the Ordo Dracul did invest heavily in their partnership with the Ivory Claws and BioGen, the sect had a variety of ideas as to how to perfect the vampiric form. Santa Sangre is a city heavy with spirits and while vampires are not naturally attuned to the spirit world, with research and practice, they can learn to recognize spiritual influence. It is whispered that the kogaion, the head of the Ordo and some of the other higher ranking members have discovered how to feed off of spirits. All of this research is conducted below the park in a naturally formed set of caverns. These caverns are accessible only to the Ordo or those in the company of trusted, high ranked Ordo members, and opened through a series of motions and incantations in specially marked areas. Joseph Greggs is the current Kogaion despite being younger than either Teresa Aceveda or Oscar Oscuro. Joseph is a savant, having mastered not just a number of coils, but also a form of blood magic, normally the province of the Circle of the Crone.

Royce Plaza- This area of Fort Tulane is a favorite of tourists. The Santa Sangre Museum of Art, Red Annie's Pirate Museum, the Museum of Medical Progress, and the Fort Aquarium are all situated on or around the Plaza. The Museum of Art and Red Annie's are open late, ensuring a steady supply of foot traffic. Plus the Invictus meets out of the Museum of Art which boasts a floor of conference rooms and offices that are available to rent out. Like many other buildings in the city, the vampires lair beneath it. A private stairwell leads down from the basement into the secure wing where the business of running the city really gets done. While the museum employs it's own security staff, the basement is patrolled by Secure-U Platinum agents and no one without the proper passphrase is allowed anywhere near the hidden stairwell. All of the agents assigned are trusted ghouls of Invictus masters, despite Secure-U being an Invictus venture, and the Platinum agents being informed of supernatural reality, the Invictus takes its security seriously, especially considering the coup that brought them into power.

The Rack: While feeding is restricted in most of Fort Tulane, the Rack has open feeding rights. The main strip for Santa Sangre night life, there are a number of clubs, bars, theaters, and stores that are open until 4am providing plenty of feeding opportunities. The Masquerade is strictly enforced on the strip, with the Prince offering a bounty on any vampire who breaks the rules that can be proved in a trial before the Prince and Primogen. Depending on the severity of the breech, the penalty can be a tithe, blood bonding, exile, or final death for the worst offenses.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Japeth's Swamp:
Alignment -No Man's Land, Unaligned werewolves
Violence � High Risk, Certain Death in wolf territory
Factions � Unaligned Werewolves, spirits
Notable Places- Abandoned BioGen Facility

Almost completely undeveloped, the swamps are home to very few humans even though at almost 10 square miles, it covers more land than the rest of Old Santa Sangre or all of New Santa Sangre. Those that do live there are off grid, there's no power lines, no internet, very few access roads. Boats, hydrofoils, and jet skies are the main source of travel. Only a mad person would even think of swimming in the dark water of the swamps as alligators, alligator gar, snapping turtles, and water snakes make the murky depths their home. Recently, there have been reports of anjumara, the South American Wolf Fish being pulled from the swamp. How this species made it to Santa Sangre from the Amazon is a mystery, if it's even true.
Wildlife isn't the only threat, though. There's at least one survivalist compound hidden in the swamp and, while small compared to the swamps of Louisiana or Florida, Japeth possesses a primordial aura that attracts spirits of the natural world. There is also a group of werewolves who are not aligned with the Carthians or the wolves of the Renewal tribe that are hostile to any intruder.

While entering any of the No Man's Land neighborhoods is dangerous, leaving the minimal amount of development done in Japeth's Swamp and moving into the actual swampland will lead to a confrontation with multiple giant, angry, wolf-monsters. They are fast, they are strong, they heal from any wound, and their teeth and claws leave damage that takes days for all but the strongest kindred to heal, assuming they're able to escape with their unlives. Even if the werewolves don't appear, curious vampires will find the very swamp itself turning against them. There is no reason to go here and easier ways to end your existence.

Abandoned BioGen Facility- Ten years ago this was a state of the art research facility patrolled by dozens of guards equipped with military grade weapons and swamp buggies. Now it's been totally reclaimed by nature. Whatever disaster destroyed the facility left few walls standing, and those that were have been pulled down by creeping vines and covered in vegetation. If there is anything of value in the ruins, the Facility is close enough to werewolf territory that it's not worth finding out.

Old Town:

Alignment -Carthian
Violence � High Risk
Factions � Renewal
Notable Places- The Squat, Santa Sangre Community College, Sal's Pizza

If Fort Tulane is the beating heart of Santa Sangre, Old Town is its soul. Old Town is poor, there's some middle class sections near the fisheries of Yellowfin, and the entertainment of�Dockside, but the thriving port trade that used to support those families has all concentrated across the bay in Aristaville and the fisheries are doing all they can to stay solvent. Old Town is almost as poor as rear end End, but the residents make all the difference. It started with The Squat, an unofficial homeless shelter, The Squat is a place of refuge for anyone so long as violence stays on the outside. Nearby free clinics provide needle exchanges, drug counseling, and first aid on a rotating schedule, Planned Parenthood makes sure there's a supply of condoms and STD info handouts, and someone from a women's shelter is nearly always on hand to help those in trouble.
This attitude has spread throughout the neighborhood. There are community gardens, a few gangs of punks with power tools have made a name for themselves repairing homes and even starting to build a free wifi network with the (unofficial) help of Santa Sangre's Community College's IT students. SSCC itself has its main campus in Old Town. There's a large and active LGBT+ community in Santa Sangre more or less centered on club Girth, Wind, and Fire.

In the last decade the efforts of the werewolf tribe Renewal and their close relationship with Snaggletooth, the leader of the Carthians has transformed the neighborhood as well as Yellowfin into an anarchist collective. Councilperson Alvi Alverson, one of the werewolves of Renewal has used their position on city council to drastically shrink police presence under the guise of cutting cost and protecting the economic center of the city, those officers being reassigned to Fort Tulane and Aristaville. A small police force comprised of officers Alverson has personally vetted, all residents of the neighborhood remains to deal with major crimes,which have become increasingly rare. Petty crime and minor violence are taken care of by the neighborhood, restitution is the preferred outcome, with counseling sessions designed to foster empathy repeat offenders are uncommon. The program has worked so well that SSCC's sociology and law departments are studying it. Alverson has also been able to get national funds sent to the city for use in social programs, like providing homes for the unhoused, and a cludged together form of UBI. All in all, things have improved for Old Town, but if Alverson is ever voted out, or something happens to the werewolves of Renewal, all that progress will be scoured away.

The Squat- The center of Old Town and the lair of the Renewal werewolves. While not as murderous as the werewolves of Japeth's Swamp, these creatures are killers of unparalleled pedigre. Alverson openly carries a rapier as part of their outrageous personal style and has, at least twice, challenged another councilperson to a dual after being insulted, a practice which is still legal under city law. Renewal, as they call themselves destroyed plenty of vampires during the war, but their focus was mainly on the Ivory Claw werewolves. But their ferocity and lethality were so impressive that the names of Hrodvinter, Fearbringer, Wordsmith, and Alverson are still whispered with fear.

Santa Sangre Community College- The implosion of BioGen and a contraction in the biotech market quashed SSCC's ability to create a satellite campus in Fort Tulane. SSCC is known through the region for its folklore department and more than one supernatural creature has made the trip to The Hole in order to find a rare text or esoteric information. The loss of access to this trove of information is still a sore spot with vampires of the Ordo Dracul and Joseph Greggs has been trying to work out a deal with Renewal that would allow his sectmates safe passage to the school.

Sal's Pizza- Voted the best pizza in all Texas by Pizza Connoisseur Magazine, Sal's Pizza has risen to national fame thanks to their glowing write up and review by a popular food youtuber. Sal's has a second location in Fort Tulane and is in talks to franchise nationally.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scoundrel's Island:
Alignment -Mixed
Violence � Variable depending on area
Factions � Carthian, Invictus
Notable Places- Secure-U, The Blue Bonnet

For the wealthy elite who want more privacy than Fort Tulane or Carmalita can provide, there's Scoundrel's Island. There's some light industrial parks opposite Aristaville, the Northeast end of the island has some high end hotels and a small strip for wealthier tourists who would rather not spend time down in Dockside and ports for yachts and sports boats, but the majority of the island is a fenced in fortress, off limits to all but residents and those on a very exclusive guest list. Most travel to and from the Island is by helicopter and every major building in Fort Tulane has at least one helipad to accommodate. Surprisingly, while many of the wealthy have boats, very few use them to commute into the city core.
Police presence is minimal as the Island complex is patrolled by the private security firm, Secure-U. The guards are mostly ex-military and are not at all hesitant about using force to keep out undesirables most of these mercenaries are ranked gold, which denotes their excellent combat skills, but a few, usually squad leaders are Platinum ranked, which means they also have knowledge of the supernatural. Any crime that does occur which requires police intervention is handled by a special unit of the SSPD created with the assistance of neighborhood leaders and Secure-U captains.

When the war ended, the island was divided into three. The northside with the hotels and tourist area went to the Carthians. The southside, with the HQ of Secure-U went to the Invictus. The residential middle of the island is a no man's land. Unofficially, the residential area is incredibly wealthy and patrolled by Secure-U agents, meaning that Invictus vampires have access if they desire it.

Secure-U- A private security contractor, Secure-U was the personal army of the dead Prince Vincente Rivera, it has since been claimed by Prince Diego Guerra. Employing mainily ex-military, especially those who have been dishonerably discharged, Secure-U knows the ability to freely inflict violence on their targets and the generous paycheck keeps them loyal. Agents that have proved their loyalty above and beyond the ability to cash a paycheck are promoted to the coveted Platinum status, Platinum agents are brought up to speed on the truth of the Night, valuable ones are ghouled.

The Blue Bonnet- The premier hotel in Santa Sangre, the Blue Bonnet is all inclusive and expensive. Despite being on the Carthian side of the island, the Blue Bonnet employs Secure-U agents for security. Invictus aligned vampires could try to exploit that to gain access to the wealthy tourists, but the risk is high. On their part, few of the Carthians stalk this part of their territory, mainly deava or venture. If there's any part of Carthian territory that's vulnerable to take over, it would be their part of Scoundrel's Island.

# ? Jan 12, 2023 13:37

Ghost Leviathan: Mar 2, 2017; Exploration is ill-advised.

Ghosts of inanimate objects is a funny topic for someone currently in a drunken nostalgia mood. What does the ghost of a car get up to?

# ? Jan 12, 2023 16:06

TheCenturion: May 3, 2013; HI I LIKE TO GIVE ADVICE ON RELATIONSHIPS

Ghost Leviathan posted:

Ghosts of inanimate objects is a funny topic for someone currently in a drunken nostalgia mood. What does the ghost of a car get up to?

I'm not sure about everything it gets up to, but I do know that when it gets up to 88 miles per hour, you're going to see some serious poo poo.

In all honesty, I'd kind of play it like a cross between a horse and a loyal family dog. It loved it's owners. It loved carrying around their baby. There were so many happy memories, and emotions, that happened in and around that car. It was their first 'big' purchase together. They drove it away from their wedding, complete with 'just married' sign and cans on strings. It drove them to the hospital when she went into labour. It drove them home with their precious little baby.

And it was driving them the night when a drunk driver smashed into them, killing the whole family. And now, like a loyal pet, it carries the ghost of the baby around, for all eternity.

And sometimes, just sometimes, while the ghost of the baby is asleep, the ghost of the car 'parks' outside of a local bar, and watches while somebody stumbles out, fumbling for their keys, and drunkenly tries to get into their car, and quietly revs it's ghost engine, and feels something, a feeling that, if could be spoken aloud, would say 'no more victims'...........

HEADLINE: Drink Driver Declared Dead At Scene Of Accident

Another motor vehicle accident occured today on the straightaway between County Road 9 and 10. "The driver died on impact," said traffic investigator Jane Smith. "He was clearly intoxicated, well past the legal limit. He must have lost control of the vehicle, which left the road and crashed into the tree. It was a clear night, with no other traffic, and nothing else to explain the accident." This is the eighth fatality on this stretch of road in the last ten years, starting with the tragic deaths of the Dunsford family, struck by a drunk driver, though curiously, the seven subsequent accidents have all been single-vehicle accidents, with a drunk driver. Police remind the public to not drink and drive, and to be careful while driving at night.

TheCenturion fucked around with this message at 16:22 on Jan 12, 2023

# ? Jan 12, 2023 16:15

Soonmot: Dec 19, 2002; Entrapta fucking loves robots; Grimey Drawer

/\/\/\That's very atmospheric!

# ? Jan 12, 2023 16:54

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Jun 5, 2024 04:25

Nissin Cup Nudist: Sep 3, 2011; Sleep with one eye open

We're off to Gritty Gritty land

Dawgstar posted:

https://twitter.com/TheOnyxPath/status/1611482785629327378

I picked this up as reading material, seems fun enough

Free is always a good price

# ? Jan 12, 2023 19:17

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Traditional Games > World/Chronicles of Darkness: you turning werewolves into wereterriers

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