Due to the fact that this as written, could get ridiculous really quick, we’ve house ruled parts of this power to make it seem realistic for a power of it's level.

The cost stays the same as written in the book, the same with the transformation timing as well as the lack-of-ability-to-move during this time as well.

The abilities granted by this power have changed slightly:
   - Form: As per the book.
   - Spraying Venom: As per the book.
   - Amplification of Dominate: We’ve changed this section to read as the following:

“The most profound aspect of the Body of the Gorgon, however, is doubtless its ability to amplify the powers of Dominate through a great and terrible mystic radiance. On her turn, a vampire transmogrified by the Body of the Gorgon can spend one Vitae to activate the Command or Mesmerize powers of Dominate against one target that is viewing her, reflexively. This reflexive use of Dominate puts the onus on subjects to look away from the Gorgon, rather than tasking her with achieving eye contact. The Gorgon must issue a single instruction to the individual, though the victim can contest the action on his own, as usual.

Onlookers must be able to see the Gorgon directly. Reflections and broadcasts do not carry her power, but simple filters like sunglasses offer no protection. Characters wishing to look away from a Gorgon using the Body of the Gorgon must spend a willpower point and then succeed on a Resolve roll, which allows them to look away from the Gorgon. However, if they decide to look once again at the Gorgon using this power, they are once again enraptured (or horrified, as it may be) and must re-roll once again. At the Storyteller’s discretion, substantial visual interference between the onlooker and the Gorgon such as smoke or a waterfall can grant as much as a +5 bonus to the onlooker’s contested roll to resist these powers.”

Due to the online nature of our game, all uses of Animalism should be brought to the attention of a Storyteller.

With this mystic power, a vampire can open his perceptions to the psychic auras that surround all sentient creatures. Numerous and often-shifting hues and patterns compose these auras, and it can take many years before a vampire becomes truly proficient at reading them correctly with any degree of regularity. Although the strongest emotions predominate, almost every individual has more than one color to his aura at any given time, and an observer can see any number of streaks or flashes of these other colors.

“Psychic colors” change with the subject’s mental or emotional state, creating an ever-moving pattern that is as unique to each person as a fingerprint. As a rule, the more powerful the emotions, the more intense the colors, but even this guideline is betrayed by any number of mitigating factors, depending on circumstance. All the same, practice makes perfect; a true master aura-perceiver learns to understand the significance of each whorl and eddy.

Due to the peculiar nature of such creatures’ auras, this power can be used as a means of detecting other supernatural entities. Vampire auras, for example, tend to be extremely pale, regardless of the colors. Werewolf auras are quite the contrary, nearly frantic in their intensity. Mage auras sparkle with power. Ghostly auras flicker like guttering candles.

Cost: —
Dice Pool: Intelligence + Empathy + Auspex – subject’s Composure (highest, if applicable) – Mods
Action: Instant (Note that though this is an instant action, it takes more than just a fleeting glance to see the detail in an aura. A character must scrutinize her subject’s aura for two full turns to glean information from it, though only the single, immediate roll is necessary to determine if she can read it successfully. More on this below.)

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The character gleans utterly misleading and wholly inaccurate information.
Failure: The character can distinguish no information at all. The character may not attempt to use Aura Perception on that character(s) for the rest of the scene.
Success: The character perceives the appropriate colors granted by the type of roll made.
Exceptional Success: As per a normal success, but with the understanding that you gain one level above what you subtracted as a Mod for information.

Note that a failure indicates that no useful information is perceived, while a dramatic failure indicates a false or misleading reading.

Modifiers
—	The shade of the person's primary nature: Vampire, mortal, etc. Ghoul does not apply to this (check the aura colors chart).
-1	Each person beyond the first that the individual wishes to perceive with Aura Perception.
-1	The primary color. Obvious in your face stuff. Probably doesn't change over the course of a scene.
-2	Color patterns, including information revealing large shifts in mood. Going from easy going to hate. Might change over a course of a scene if reason happens.
-3	Subtle shifts in the mixtures of color and pattern. Subtle shifts in mood. Going from easy going to mild distaste. Likely changes multiple times over the course of a scene.

Aura Perception, Success and Colors
Aura Perception is not meant to be an end-all-be-all power. Therefore, we ask that players give colors accordingly, and only 2 rounds after the roll was made (in real time that’s 5-6 minutes of being scrutinized in-character). Please don’t respond to an Aura Perception check right away and just with “vampire, irritable” etc, take some time and use the color chart we’ve given here. We ask that all players make sure that this sort of thing is enforced; it will add a lot to the mysteriousness of the power and not make it so... "overseeing".

Click here for the House Ruled Aura Perception’s Color Chart

Aura Perception and Lying
An Auspex user who observes someone in the act of lying may recognize that the subject speaks falsely. The Auspex user may use the successes gained on their Aura Perception check against the individual as modifiers on a Sense Deception check.

Aura Perception and Initiative
An Auspex user who wishes to attempt to get the drop on her foes may utilize Aura Perception for an attempt at it. This initiative bonus depends on who is present. If the combative situation only lies between the Auspex user and the victim, a regular use of Aura Perception is sufficient, with successes gained on the roll adding to an initiative modifier. In a larger combat, the Auspex user may call for the highest Composure in the group and make an Intelligence + Empathy + Auspex – Highest Group Composure – Appropriate Number of People. Successes gained on such a roll are added 2 rounds later, as appropriately dictated by this power, as initiative modifiers.

Uses should always be brought to the attention of a Storyteller so that they may assign any modifiers.

Uses of this should probably be brought to a ST's attention if either of the players involved feel unsure about what should be said.

For detection of thoughts probed, not implanted, the detection rolls has been altered to the following: Intelligence + Composure as normal, but you must get more successes than the telepath achieved on the probing roll, which you then recognize as "an intruder", but not necessarily the person in question - you don't get that.

Finally, it's understood that for extracting information/thoughts, you gain one piece/thought per success on the roll. Supernatural subjects may not be "ridden" with Telepathy.

When learning a Coil of the Dragon, either from pc-mentor or npc-mentor, a character must make an extended roll for a specific number of successes before the Coil can be purchased.

Roll: Intelligence + Occult
Action: Extended; 1 roll per day (Still costs 1 Hour of Downtime Action)

Successes Chart:
Level	Successes
1	50
2	60
3	70
4	80
5	90
6	100
7	110
8	120
9	130
10	140
11	150
12	160
13	170
14	180
15	190
16	200
17	210
18	220
19	230
20	240

Possible Modifiers: Occult Specialty: Coils of the Dragon (+1); Occult Library: Coils of the Dragon (+2); Gain Access to Rare Occult Tomes (Occult Allies 3 use, per Coil, not Tier) (+2); Ordo Status (only when being taught by a PC Mentor and use their status) Use normal status bonus rules; Have access to low-level university resources (University Allies 1 use) (+1 one roll, per week); Have unlimited access to all university facilities (University Allies 5) (+2, may stack with other University Allies use)

Crucible Ritual, the merit, will allow for 5 less successes on each tier for each Crucible utilized.

To learn in a single Coil a level which you do not know, it will require one level of a singular Mentor merit. Explanation forthcoming: Let's say your character has Coil of Blood 2, Coil of Banes 1. You speak with your fellow Dragons in character and you determine that no one in the game knows Blood 3 and 4, which are two levels you wish to learn. In order to have permission to purchase those with XP, you will have to buy Mentor 1 for Coil of Blood. Later on, your character wishes to expand on his level of Banes, possibly up to 4 in time. Again, he is unable to find anyone in-game that is able to teach him the upper levels so he will now have to purchase Mentor up to 2 for Coil of Blood and Coil of Banes. If he wished to simply learn from another Dracul member who agrees to teach him the levels they know and he wishes no more than that, there is no necessity to buying the Mentor merit for that since it occurs and is purchased through IC-interaction.

Coils of the Dragon cost 7X New Level, but they are purchased like individual disciplines (because White Wolf is crazy to think up a 20 Level Discipline).

Always should be brought to a ST's attention when you invoke this power.

Always should be brought to a ST's attention when you invoke this power.

For usage on PC characters, this should always be brought to the attention of a ST. It is unnecessary to do so on a feeding roll.

We have changed this power to count off it's granted willpower from right to left on the willpower chart.

Mirrored sunglasses do not protect against Dominate. Please don't try this or we'll laugh at you.

It is unfair to a dominate user for your character to simply say "I wasn't looking". Please don't attempt to cheese the system. If you feel that you have been cheesed on, please speak to a ST immediately who will handle the situation. Remember, as a Dominate user, you must roleplay getting eye-contact no matter what (unless it's not required because of any level of Viniculum you have over someone), it's unfair to the person you are attempting to dominate if you don't.

This power is by the book, however there has been additions and clarifications to the power's ability. For starters, Dominate 2 may not be utilized in combat. Secondly, Dominate 2 may not be used to force others to do direct harm. A couple of examples of direct harm are: "Kill Josh", "Defend me from all attackers", "Walk in and punch Josh in the face".

This power is by the book, but it bears mentioning that a Storyteller must assign a success number to achieve. Thus, the character should make the initial Dominate 3 roll to see if it pacifies the subject for the term and then see a Storyteller for the successes to reach on their extended roll.

This power makes the user seem exponentially more charismatic and magnetic than he normally is. The force of his personality issues forth in waves, drawing people to him like moths to a flame. Perhaps the greatest use for Awe is its ability to facilitate public speaking or debate. Whatever the vampire says, people are likely to lend serious credence to his position and views, and even the staunchest opponents gladly hear him out. Awe can often turn the tide in a tense negotiation, tipping the scales from “potentially” to “definitely.” As with other Majesty powers, Awe ceases to be useful when more pressing matters come to the fore. Personal safety always takes precedence, and any serious commotion pulls even the most rapt listener from his reverie of attention. Those subjected to the character’s stature likely remember how good they felt around him, and tailor future reactions accordingly.

Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Presence + Expression + Majesty vs Composure + Blood Potency
Action: Instant; contested and reflexive

Roleplaying Assistance: Any nearby onlooker is a potential target. Targets of Awe should pay attention to the user, listen closely to what he says and laugh at his jokes for the duration of the conversation in which Awe was successfully used against them. For the rest of the night, they should pay some special attention to the Kindred but need not fawn over him.

Awe is considered, similar to the level 5 power of Soverignty to be "always on" during scenes in which it is invoked. When a Kindred encounters Awe, both characters test against each other with the appropriate roll. Notably, this means that potentially, the Kindred who has awed may wind up with different modifiers if more characters or individuals enter the scene in question.

Example of In-Game Play: Linda activates Awe while there is just one Kindred in the room. Her roll against the Kindred suffers no penalty and play resumes as normal. Two more Kindred enter the scene shortly afterwards, encountering Linda's Awe. This time, when she rolls against those two Kindred she has a -2 penalty (because there is now more than two people). Each roll is good for that particular Kindred. Four successes gained against Bob and two successes gained against Fred does not mean that Fred is subjected to four successes.

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The victim in question is not awed at all by the Kindred and may not be targeted for Awe for the next week.
Failure: The character’s supernatural charisma fails to take hold. The Kindred may not target these subjects with Awe again until the next scene.
Success: The character succeeds in dazzling his intended audience with his overwhelming charisma. For the duration of the power, any social rolls he engages in with the Awed subject gain a bonus equal to the number of successes rolled to activate the power. This bonus applies only to mundane social rolls — say to intimidate, seduce or persuade the target. Disciplines and other supernatural abilities that use Social skills in their dice pools gain no benefit from Awe. Once successfully Awed, a target is immune to further attempts from the same Kindred for the rest of the evening. The user must Awe whoever is present (see the modifiers table, below). He cannot single out an individual subject in a crowd, but must simply “turn on the charm” for all. If a crowd of observers includes persons who are immune to the Kindred’s use of Awe, these people still count toward the size of the crowd (for purposes of the modifiers). The power simply has no effect on them.
Exceptional Success: Exceptional success in and of itself by number of successes is it's own benefit.

Modifier Situation
— Character attempts to Awe one person
-1 Character attempts to Awe two people
-2 Character attempts to Awe six people
-3 Character attempts to Awe 20 people
-4 Character attempts to Awe a vast number of people in the vampire’s immediate vicinity (an auditorium, a mob)

The allure and reassurance of a Kindred with this power is enough to make others forego caution and share their innermost feelings and secrets. A few complimentary or compassionate words or a heartfelt look from the vampire can break down a person’s prudence and fear, inspiring a desire to share deep feelings or dark secrets in an upwelling of affection or release.

Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Persuasion + Majesty versus subject’s Composure + Blood Potency
Action: Contested; resistance is reflexive

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The vampire’s manipulative efforts are obvious for the intended subject to see. No more of the vampire’s attempts at Revelation on the same subject work for the remainder of the night.
Failure: The character loses or ties the contested roll. He may try again.
Success: The vampire wins the contested draw and the subject bares his soul. One major fact is revealed per success gained. Starting with the most recent secrets.
Exceptional Success: No Willpower can be spent to make a Composure roll to stop.

A target must be engaged in some kind of voluntary social contact with the vampire for this Discipline to be effective. While it might cause an evasive target to speak more plainly about a certain subject, it cannot wring a confession out of a target who’s deliberately avoiding conversation or staying silent.

A successful Manipulation + Socialize roll may be required for the vampire to steer the confession to a matter of interest. If the roll fails, the vampire must endure everything that the subject has to say.

Should the confession go on for more than a single turn, and the subject turns to particularly deep, dark or dangerous secrets, a Willpower point may be spent and a Composure roll made for the subject to break the spell for a turn (see p. 129). The subject remembers what he confessed after the effects of the power have passed. He undoubtedly can’t explain his lack of discretion, and he might do anything in his power to compensate for his “error in judgment.”

Modifier Situation
+3 The subject is a thrall to the Kindred, under a full Vinculum to her.
+3 The subject is already under the influence of Entrancement.
+2 The subject is already under the influence of Awe.
+2 The subject is under the second stage of a partial Vinculum to the Kindred.
+2 Power is turned on a vampire with whom the user has a blood tie (see p. 162)
+1 The subject is affected by the first stage of a partial Vinculum to the Kindred.
-1 The subject is an enemy.
-2 The Revelation user has inflicted violence upon the subject in the scene.
-2 The Revelation user has made rebuffed efforts to steer the conversation towards a confession.
-3 The Revelation user has made no efforts to steer the conversation towards a confession.
-4 The Revelation user has made threats to make the Kindred tell his secrets.
-5 The Revelation user has outright threatened use of Revelation on the Kindred.

This power now costs 1 Vitae.

Uses should always be brought to the attention of a Storyteller.

Summon we’re reverting back to a book resist, except for removing this one section: “If a Willpower point is spent and a Composure + Blood Potency roll is made for a subject to resist this power, as explained on p. 129, any success defies a summons for a whole night, not just a turn or a scene.” and adding this as Failure: “Failure: The character loses or ties the contested roll. The subject is aware that something supernaturally attempted to compel them, but is unaware as to what it was and who caused it. The summoner knows his summon has failed on the target and may try again the next scene.”

Uses should always be brought to the attention of a Storyteller.

This power is a single-target only power, now (in the first printing of the Vampire the Requiem the power was an area of effect power, but in the second printing it's listed as a single-target. This was left out of the eratta by White Wolf).

Additionally, if violence by the Nightmare user is offered while the subject is under the effects of an exceptional success, the subject is considered instead to be under the effects of a normal success, and flees the Nightmare users presence until the end of the scene.

We have added a roll required to "step": Wits + Occult + Obtenebration.

This first power of Obfuscate allows the vampire to conceal small items, either in her grasp or on her person. If she is skilled enough, even a thorough search fails to turn up a hidden object.

Cost: —
Dice Pool: Wits + Larceny + Obfuscate
Action: Instant

Roll Results
Failure: The attempt fails.
Success: The character can hide a single object from sight, unless someone is actively searching for that specific item. Indeed, “specific” is very literal here. A character looking for “an Obfuscated book” does not find it, though she does if she’s looking for “the Ordo Dracul Kogaion’s handwritten and leather-bound copy of 17th-century rituals” and has seen it before.
Exceptional Success: Even if the searcher knows exactly what they're looking for, they will be unable to find it through mundane means (ie. without Auspex).

The player must declare which specific item is concealed and the power must be invoked separately for each item.

If the roll succeeds, the item goes undetected. Perhaps a careful search such as a thorough pat-down or close examination reveals it, along with a Wits + Composure roll, successes from which must exceed those rolled for the activation of the power. As with all Obfuscate abilities, a character with Auspex might be able to see through Touch of Shadow, though he would still have to find the object normally if it were inside a pocket or otherwise physically concealed from view as well. Multiple uses of this Discipline do not add to the number of successes required to see through this power with Auspex. Only the most recent use of the Discipline applies.

Once the character does anything to draw attention to the object — such as deliberately showing it to someone or using it to attack or threaten another character — Touch of Shadow immediately ends. If someone successfully detects the item, he can point it out to others. A Wits + Composure roll is made for each such person, and successes achieved must exceed those rolled for the activation of the power. If an onlooker’s successes aren’t high enough, he still doesn’t recognize the item, even when it’s pointed out.

Note that this power affects only the item in question — it is not intended to hide other items as a byproduct. A character could not, for example, conceal a mailbox and then hide behind it or conceal a computer and hide a stake beneath it. The mailbox or computer would indeed be concealed but the character or stake would not.

Once invoked, Touch of Shadow lasts for a scene or until ended prematurely. Any rolls for Touch of Shadow should be done immediately upon joining a new scene - before your character even walks in.

Touch of Shadow cannot be used on well-traveled areas such as the main entrance to a location, a connecting hallway that links a number of rooms throughout the play area, or the only entrance to a room that a character has just entered in the same scene. In other words, you can’t lure a target into a room, use Touch of Shadow on the door behind you and thus trap the target in the room, because their mind knows they had to enter somehow and refuses to believe the illusion.

Modifier Situation
+2 A tiny item, one easily concealed in the palm of a hand.
+1 An item that can be hidden in a pants pocket.
— An item that can be squeezed into a pants pocket or easily hidden in a jacket pocket.
-1 An item that can only barely be squeezed into a large jacket pocket.
-2 An item that can be concealed under a jacket without too obvious a bulge.
-3 An item too large to be naturally hidden, but still small enough to be carried .
-4 An item as large as the vampire herself or just a bit bigger, such as a motorcycle, door or dead (or torpored) body.
-5 An item bigger than the vampire herself, such as a car or large shipping crate, but smaller than fi ve times the vampire’s Size.

A Note on Hidden Objects
Touch of Shadow can provoke some pretty bizarre arguments in a game session. Should it become a question, members should remember that it does not make anything invisible in the sense of becoming transparent. Using Touch of Shadow on a door does not mean that people will walk into it thinking the doorway is open, nor do they imagine they can see into the room beyond. Rather, it makes things easy to overlook. A door that has Touch of Shadow used on it doesn’t literally vanish, people just fail to notice it. Likewise, using Touch of Shadow on a coat and then wearing the coat doesn’t conceal what else you’re wearing or carrying, nor does it render you invisible by proxy.

You may not run full speed or use Celerity while using this power unless you want to break it, of course. Nor may you attempt to whisper whilst Obfuscated to another individual and remain Obfuscated - you'd break your Obfuscate.

Walking into a bar while Obfuscated has a roll:
A successful Wits + Athletics - 1 check must be made for your character to be able to move in with a NPC mortal into a bar or club through a doorway. If you fail the check, your character is bumped into by the door or some unsuspecting mortal NPC.

A -2 or -3 penalty would be for self closing doors and security doors and should be brought to the attention of a StoryTeller so that they can give you the appropriate negative modifier for the situation.

This power preys on the natural tendency of the mind to quickly categorize people based on very few superfi cial details, allowing the Kindred to project a powerful subconscious suggestion that makes everyone he meets believe they are looking at a member of a profession or social group of the vampire’s choice. Vaguely defined identities such as “doctor” or “club kid” are easy to assume with this power, but more specific roles like “chief resident of neurosurgery” or “ultra-hip Goth scene queen” require a great deal more effort to enact. Likewise, the features of a vampire using this power become generalized as well, to the point of being essentially unrecognizable to those that know her. She retains the impression of any notable beauty or ugliness she might possess, but her overall appearance becomes so thoroughly generic that a positive identification is impossible.

This new role is projected so strongly that targets actively try to accept the vampire’s identity so long as it doesn’t contradict any hard facts they know. For example, if the vampire using a “doctor” role is confronted by a veteran hospital security guard, the guard won’t believe it if the vampire tells him has worked there for years (since the guard knows otherwise), but he will be naturally inclined to buy the disguise if the vampire tells him that he is a new resident or a visiting physician. Likewise, a vampire who assumes a “gang member” role and runs into a local set won’t be able to convince them he’s a member of their particular crew, but he’d probably be able to pass himself off as a member from another crew.

Indeed, the suggestion created by this power is actually strong enough that it allows the the vampire to use some small props to reinforce her identity — for example, if she’s impersonating a police officer and a mortal asks to see her identification, assuming the power is used successfully he would look at her regular driver’s license and see a police badge, because that’s what he’s expecting to see. However, the prop used must be at least roughly similar to what the target is expecting — it doesn’t conjure a fake badge out of thin air, for example, nor would it allow the vampire to hold up a small stuffed animal and claim it was a police badge. Likewise, a vampire could pass off a replica or toy gun as the real thing while impersonating a police officer, but not a banana or a stick.

Lastly, with considerable effort a vampire may attempt to make minor alterations to her features as part of assuming a role, rather than simply “blurring” them into more generic ones. She may only change simple features like hair or eye color, skin tone, hairstyle, and perhaps some slight voice modifications. She cannot appear to be of the opposite gender, mimic hideous Nosferatu features (unless she is already somewhat disfigured herself), display a significant shift in apparent age, or make any other major body changes. She also cannot appear to radically alter her body type, so a six foot vampire cannot appear to be a small child.

Note: While the vampire can change her appearance, she cannot actually attempt to impersonate a specific individual or voice, even if she actually resembles a target already. The power ultimately relies on the tendency of individuals to make generalized assumptions about other people in order to function. Convincingly imitating specific individuals is therefore completely against the power’s nature. She may end up looking or sounding vaguely similar to a person, but no one with even casual knowledge of that person will be fooled, nor will witnesses ever point to the original person as being the same individual they encountered if they met the character in disguise.

Cost: —
Roll: Wits + Subterfuge + Obfuscate versus subject’s Resolve + Blood Potency to activate in front of another individual
Action: Instant and Contested; resistance is reflexive. The character activates The Familiar Stranger as an instant action; other characters coming in contact may make reflexive rolls see through the illusion as per Clash of Wills.

Roll Results
Failure: The vampire loses or ties the contested action. The character’s apparent identity does not change, and the vampire is aware of the failed attempt. Onlookers see the vampire for who she is.
Success: The vampire wins the contested action and is recognized as her chosen role for the duration of the scene. Mortal targets will do their best to accept the vampire’s identity, provided the vampire doesn’t make a major faux pas, do something wholly inappropriate for their role (such as a priest beating someone up) or claim something that directly contradicts facts the targets are well aware of. (“Hold on a second, ‘Father,’ there’s no Catholic church on 8th street — who are you, anyway?”) Kindred and other supernatural creatures see what the vampire desires, though they do not necessarily buy the role any more than that. Most likely, supernaturals will simply perceive a ‘generic’ individual and give no special attention to him.
Exceptional Success: Five or more successes are rolled for the Discipline user. The vampire wins the contested action and is accepted as someone else for as long as she wishes, rather than for the scene.

A character can only adopt one role at a time. A character may switch roles if he desires, but cannot do so in front of witnesses; she must somehow leave sight before she can change her appearance again.

Once fooled, an onlooker cannot attempt to pierce the vampire’s disguise again unless he does something that would betray his identity, in which case the subject performs a standard Clash of Wills test.

Note that a character cannot use this power as a shortcut to higher Presence by choosing a role like “supermodel.” She is still considered to be limited by her own base Presence in terms of how striking her overall appearance can be, though vampires with high natural Presence may choose to lower their effective rating if they do not wish to attract undue attention. So if a Kindred is attempting to pass as a supermodel but only has an average Presence, onlookers might think that she’s a model trying to go incognito, or perhaps that they’ve caught her on an “off day.” Conversely, she might appear superficially beautiful to the eye, but up close there’s something flawed about her looks or mannerisms that betrays the vampire’s true Presence level underneath.

Modifier Situation
+2 Character is adopting a role that is well known to him (a vampire with medical training passing as a doctor, a veteran scenester imitating a typical local club patron).
+2 Power is turned on a vampire with whom the user has a blood tie (see p. 228).
-1 Character displays an emotion or undertakes an action not entirely appropriate to the circumstances.
-3 Character tries to assume a more specific role, such as trying to appear as a “homicide detective” instead of just a generic “police officer.”
-3 Character makes slight changes to his appearance, such as a different hairstyle and eye color, or a slight change to skin tone.

Legends abound of vampires who are able to withstand even the most brutal punishment to their unliving forms. While all Kindred possess a certain degree of the toughness of which these tales speak, those with the Discipline of Resilience are commensurately more stalwart. Vampires with several dots of Resilience are capable of walking through a hail of bullets, shrugging off even the most punishing blows, and even resisting the deadly claws and fangs of supernatural foes. Cost: 1 Vitae per scene to provide “downgrading” benefits; additional Health levels are permanent once bought.

Each dot of Resilience permanently increases the character’s Stamina by one . This bonus also increases the character’s Health (a character with Resilience can thus surpass his normal Attribute maximum for Stamina). Additionally, once invoked Resilience also “downgrades” a number of aggravated damage points per scene equal to a Kindred’s Resilience dots. This damage becomes lethal instead. Aggravated wounds suffered in excess of the character’s Resilience dots remain aggravated, however. This downgrade doesn’t apply to any aggravated wounds that the vampire already possesses, just to newly acquired ones suffered while Resilience is active.

Michael is engaged in combat with a witch-hunter, who clubs him with a flaming torch. The torch inflicts five points of aggravated damage — but Michael’s Resilience of 4 downgrades that to four points of lethal damage, with one point of aggravated damage remaining.

Also, if a character suffers damage that upgrades her Health chart, Resilience does not downgrade it. For example, if a character with seven Health dots and a single dot of Resilience suffers nine points of lethal damage, that ninth point stays aggravated. The other eight points are recorded normally as lethal (seven for the Health dots plus one for the Resilience), but the ninth stays aggravated as it upgrades the leftmost box on the character’s Health chart.

Action: Instant

Many rituals and sorceries require extended actions to accumulate successes. During downtimes and outside of scenes, use the normal time constraints for extended actions. During a scene, gaining a success on an extended action for any type of sorcery or ritual requires a full turn outside of combat, and within combat with the exception of specific storyteller indicated rituals which are considered "combat ready" all rituals take 3 combat rounds per roll to initiate.

Ritual usage should always be brought to the attention of a Storyteller.

Cost: Uses of Crúac always cost at least one Vitae. Unless the text for a specific power (known as a ritual) specifies otherwise, assume that the cost is one Vitae. Vitae plays a very important role in the use of Crúac — it literally calls upon the power inherent in the Blood to fuel supernatural effects. Use of Crúac requires that the Vitae be “spent” in a visible or otherwise signifi cant manner. For example, when a Vitae is spent for a character to activate a ritual, he likely has to cut himself with a dagger and bleed on the ground, activating the magic with the spilled Vitae (or through some other direct appeal to the power of the Blood). Unless noted otherwise, any use of Crúac breaks Obfuscate. If a character is already under the effects of Crúac, the same ritual can’t be used on her again for added effect.

Roleplaying Casting a Ritual: Crúac is not the sanitized version of the Old Ways that most mortals think of when they think of “pagan” practices. Whether wild and ecstatic or grim and vengeful, Crúac rituals are not very subtle, and the primal power and raw emotions on display are often as unsettling as they are intriguing for onlookers to behold. (This is a largely unintended but not entirely undesirable side effect, as far as the Circle of the Crone is concerned.) Ritualists frequently chant in a variety of old tongues, employ items of ancient ritual significance such as wands or prepared animal skins, and invoke the many different names of the divine beings Crúac pays homage to in its many forms. Ritual bloodletting over sacred designs or to create mystical patterns is also highly common.

Roleplaying Casting a Ritual: Like Crúac, performing a Theban Sorcery ritual is generally not a subtle process. Unlike Crúac’s intensely primal rites, however, the practice of Theban Sorcery itself is much more controlled and precise. While individual casters have styles that diverge widely from each other, Theban Sorcery rituals tend to resemble dark, quasi-religious ceremonies on the whole. Solemn chanting, candle arrangements, mystic inscriptions and readings from ancient texts in classical languages are common themes. This is not to say that Theban Sorcery rituals are plodding, monotonous affairs — simply that what Crúac achieves through a more spontaneous ecstatic communion, Theban Sorcery achieves through rigid ritual invocation and force of will.