Vampire: HeroQuest conversion

[soviet]

I used to play a fair bit of Vampire and Werewolf when I was at university, and though my tastes in rules systems have changed considerably since then, I still think the setting itself has a lot to offer. I thought it might be interesting to see what Vampire: The Masquerade would look like under a more narr-supportive system such as HeroQuest.

So, here it is - a more or less complete Vampire: HeroQuest conversion. Now, I was always much more of a Werewolf fan than a Vampire fan, and I haven't kept up with newer editions (in fact the only Vampire book I own is the Dark Ages corebook), so if some of the details are a bit outdated then that's why. I've also missed out a few of the smaller bloodlines (Giovanni, Ravnos, others I'm forgetting) for lack of inspiration, information, or both. Any comments, criticisms, and corrections are welcome.

Vampires have four keywords - Former Life, Faction, Clan, and Disciplines.

1. Former Life

Your character's Former Life keyword tells us who he was before the Embrace. It could be a profession, a place of origin, a period in history, or anything else that characterises his origins. As the possibilities here are effectively endless, a freeform approach is probably best. Decide on a name that sums up this former life in some way - Hotshot Lawyer, Angry Drop-Out, Chinese Immigrant, Medieval Priest, etc - and either write it up as a full keyword or use it as a broad concept to improvise from.

2. Faction

Your character's Faction keyword is essentially a Vampire species keyword with one of three different ideological spins. The lot of a Vampire is in many ways a tragic one, what with being Cursed by God and everything, so this keyword also comes with some Flaws to add a bit of spice to proceedings.

Anarch / Independent

Abilities: Create Blood Bond, Hunt Prey, I Am My Own Master, Identify Own Kind, Live Forever, Make Own Rules, Resist Authority, Shrug Off Injury.
Personality Traits: Fear Other Factions, Predatory, Territorial, Value Freedom.
Relationships: to anarch movement, to coterie, to prince, to sire. 
Flaws: Rotschreck, The Beast, The Hunger, The Mark Of Caine.

The Camarilla

Abilities: Create Blood Bond, Hunt Prey, I Am Not A Monster, Identify Own Kind, Live Forever, Preserve The Masquerade, Respect The Traditions, Shrug Off Injury.
Personality Traits: Hate The Sabbat, Predatory, Territorial, Value Order.
Relationships: to camarilla hierarchy, to coterie, to prince, to sire. 
Flaws: Rotschreck, The Beast, The Hunger, The Mark Of Caine.

The Sabbat

Abilities: Cause Terror, Create Blood Bond, Follow The Code Of Milan, Hunt Prey, I Am The Hunter In The Night, Identify Own Kind, Live Forever, Shrug Off Injury.
Personality Traits: Hate The Camarilla, Predatory, Territorial, Value Power.
Relationships: to coterie, to prince, to sabbat leadership, to sire. 
Flaws: Rotschreck, The Beast, The Hunger, The Mark Of Caine.

3. Clan

Your character's Clan keyword represents the unique gifts and hierarchies of the bloodline he has been brought into. Most of the common clans are represented here, but if you want to play a Caitiff or some obscure bloodline you will have to create the keyword yourself.

Assamite

Abilities: Attack Without Warning, Commit Diablerie, Conceal True Motive, Dread Reputation, Follow The Teachings Of Haqim, Know The Murderous Arts, Negotiate Blood Contract, Stealthy.
Personality Traits: Disciplined, Fanatical, Hate Infidels, Honourable.
Relationships: to apprentice, to clan elders, to current employer, to current target.
Flaw: Blood Curse.

Brujah

Abilities: Affinity For Mortals, Build A Finer World, Do Something Now, Fight!, Inspire Loyalty, Never Give Up, Remember Lessons Of Old Carthage, Solve Problem With Violence.
Personality Traits: Aggressive, Passionate, Proud, Stubborn.
Relationships: to clan elders, to counter-culture, to lost cause, to pressure group.
Flaw: Hair Trigger Temper.

Follower Of Set

Abilities: Corrupt Innocent, Create Web Of Deceit, Exploit Weakness, Hide In Darkness, Learn Secret, Manipulate Events, Occult Lore, Worship Set.
Personality Traits: Cunning, Patient, Scheming, Untrustworthy.
Relationships: to blackmailed pawn, to clan elders, to cultists, to underworld.
Flaw: Feel The Sun's Holy Wrath.

Gangrel

Abilities: Act On Instinct, Befriend Animal, Defend Territory, Fight Tooth And Claw, Follow Trail, Ignore Protocol, Know The Wild Places, Pass Without Trace.
Personality Traits: Direct, Fierce, Solitary, Uncomfortable In Civilisation.
Relationships: to animal, to clan elders, to garou, to rural folk.
Flaw: Mark Of The Beast.

Lasombra

Abilities: Avoid Repercussions, Betray Ally, Know Kindred Politics, Noble Bearing, Plot From The Shadows, Spread Disinformation, The Art Of Diplomacy, The Art Of War.
Personality Traits: Arrogant, Elitist, Power Hungry, Untrustworthy.
Relationships: to church institutions, to clan elder, to co-conspirators, to wronged former ally.
Flaw: Cast No Reflection.

Malkavian

Abilities: Escape Bonds, Know Conspiracy Theory, Look Harmless, Malkavian Madness Network, Play The Fool, See The Truth, Strength Through Insanity, Weirdness Magnet.
Personality Traits: Insightful, Painfully Honest, Strangely Charismatic, Unpredictable.
Relationships: to clan elders, to former asylum, to lunatic fringe, to tolerant normals.
Flaw: Touched By Madness.

Nosferatu

Abilities: Eavesdrop On Conversation, Endure Burden, Find Safe Haven, Hide In Shadows, Know Secrets, Run From Trouble, Stalk Through Ruins, Terrify Stranger.
Personality Traits: Gentle, Hate The Beautiful People, Self-Pitying, Stoic.
Relationships: to clan elders, to ghouled animal, to homeless mortal, to network of contacts.
Flaw: Monstrously Deformed.

Toreador

Abilities: Above Mere Politics, Find Deeper Meaning, Inspire Greatness, Know Art History, Make Dramatic Gesture, Preserve Culture, See Potential, Seek Perfection.
Personality Traits: Creative, Emotional, Pretentious, Self Indulgent.
Relationships: to clan elders, to media, to muse, to young fashionable artists.
Flaw: Easily Distracted.

Tremere

Abilities: Anticipate Problem, Cunning Plan, Know Place In Hierarchy, Occult Lore, Perform Arcane Ritual, Seize Power, Sense Opportunity, Unfazed By Hostility.
Personality Traits: Controlling, Curious, Paranoid, Secretive.
Relationships: to apprentice, to clan elders, to gargoyle, to mage.
Flaw: Oppressive Clan Hierarchy.

Tzimisce

Abilities: Command Subordinate, Defend Territory, Exploit Superstition, Invent Cruel Punishment, Noble Bearing, Rule Through Fear, Unsettling Appearance, Wreak Vengeance.
Personality Traits: Arrogant, Brutal, Merciless, Transhumanist.   
Relationships: to clan elders, to fleshcrafted monster, to ghoul servants, to prisoners.
Flaw: Bound To The Soil Of My Homeland.

Ventrue

Abilities: Find Precedent, Forge Alliance, Know Proper Etiquette, Natural Leader, Network Of Influence, Noblesse Oblige, Proud Lineage, Status Is Everything. 
Personality Traits: Ambitious, Conservative, Dutiful, Proud.
Relationships: to clan elders, to corporate allies, to mentor, to politician.
Flaw: Restrictive Feeding Habits.

4. Disciplines.

Your character's Disciplines are the occult powers he is able to draw on by virtue of his ancient bloodline. Choose any 3 disciplines as affinities and any 3 powers as feats, OR choose one discipline as a keyword and up to 8 powers as derived abilities. All disciplines count as concentrated magic (of the same kind) and you should ignore the rules for inherently difficult magic and the natural magic resistance of 14.

Animalism

Sample Powers: Calm The Beast Within, Feral Speech, Summon Beasts, Supreme Predator.

Auspex

Sample Powers: Heightened Senses, Psychometric Flash, Remote Viewing, Soulsight.

Celerity

Sample Powers: Lightning Reflexes, Outrun Foe, Strike First, Uncanny Dodge.

Dementation

Sample Powers: Cause Hallucination, Intensify Feeling, Mass Confusion, Shatter Mind. 

Dominate

Sample Powers: Alter Memory, Break Will, Subtle Manipulation, Word Of Command.

Fortitude

Sample Powers: Feel No Pain, Go Without, Heal Quickly, Withstand Impact.

Obfuscate

Sample Powers: Cloak Of Shadows, Conceal Thoughts, Mask Of A Thousand Faces, Remain Unseen.

Obtenebration

Sample Powers: Become Insubstantial, Cloud Of Darkness, Manipulate Shadows, Tendril Of The Night.

Potence

Sample Powers: Crushing Grip, Impressive Leap, Lift Heavy Object, Unstoppable Punch.

Presence

Sample Powers: Awesome Presence, Dread Gaze, Inspirational Leadership, Sway Crowd.

Protean

Sample Powers: Grow Talons, Meld Into The Earth, Turn Into Bat, Turn Into Wolf. 

Quietus

Sample Powers: Aura Of Silent Footfalls, Blood Poison, Concentrate Blood, Debilitating Touch.

Serpentis

Sample Powers: Hypnotic Gaze, Speak With Forked Tongue, Summon Snakes, Turn Into Giant Cobra.

Thaumaturgy

Sample Powers: Blood Oath Ritual, Devil's Touch, Summon Flame, Ward Versus Mortals.

Vicissitude

Sample Powers: Assume Monstrous Form, Deform Victim, Grow Body Weaponry, Malleable Visage.   

5. Other Abilities

Choose additional abilities based on whichever of the 3 chargen methods you prefer - a list of 10 abilities, a 100 word description, or just made up during play itself.

6. Add Numbers

The keyword ratings are really up to you. To make Vampires a bit more impressive than your average mortal I would probably suggest something like 17 for Former Life and Other Abilities and 10m for Faction, Clan, and Disciplines.

7. Special Rules

I'm a firm believer in the elegant simplicity of the HQ system; the normal rules for framing contests, applying improv modifiers, and narrating outcomes are all much more effective tools than any manner of special rules and contest types. So I'm telling you you don't need to come up with any funky mechanics to get this to work.

In particular, note that the difference between aggravated damage and normal damage can be represented by applying modifiers to the Shrug Off Injury ability (or whichever ability you end up opposing with), blood points can be represented by contests involving The Hunger, and frenzy tests would just use The Beast. I wouldn't get too hung up about generation - if anyone has an unusually high or low generation they should take it as an ability or a flaw, and diablerie can be looked on as an excuse to spend lots of HP on improvements without incurring the additional 'unrelated to play' costs. I would treat The Mark Of Caine as a general humanity barometer, applying contest consequences to it as wound penalties or augments as appropriate.

Mark Humphreys

[sebastianz]

Hi, Mark.

That's a really great conversion. Four keywords for vampires seems to be spot on. One alternative would be to make the sect (faction) a sort of religious keyword as part of the clan keyword. Like common religions in HQ. After all the sects are communities. This also allows to incorporate a sort of hierarchy, structuring the sects after the modell of specialized religions with ancilla (communal worshipper), elder (initiate), and primogen (devotee) or something similar for the sabbat.

The faction keywords sound good to me. Though "I am my own master" and "Make own rules" under anarchs seems a bit redundant. I am not sure about The Beast and Mark of Cain. I think one of it is unnecessary. You mention that Mark of Cain should be something like humanity but isn't that covered already by the Beast. The stronger the beast is the less human a vampire is. So I think Mark of Cain can be dropped.
The Beast and The Hunger can be used to augment, right? Than players have to choose between a strong/ powerful character and loss of humanity. Actual transgressions can be represented with additional flaws. I think this is close to the themes of vampire.

The clan keywords are very evocative. Very good. But I think disciplines should be part of the clans (as affinities). This ties in to the idea of the Blood linking one member of a clan to the next. If a player wants another discipline he can always take one at chargen.

That's just a few thoughts.

Sebastian.

[Mike Holmes]

Yeah, looks very good. Makes me want to play a Tremere once more. I might try to graft a wizardry keyword on to one. :-)

Anyhow, the one thing I'd do differently is to elevate the keywords. I feel that experience, real long-term experience, is best represented even in "normal mortals" with higher keyword levels. Really competent humans I start in the 2 mastery range. As such, I'd probably start the lowest generation vampires at high one mastery at least - maybe 15W or a bit more. Then I'd add further levels to represent generation and age. Do it to taste, but perhaps one point to all keywords per 20 years of age, and 3 points per generation? Or break it down - start with 15W, and add 1 per 10 years and 10 per generation, no more than half of which can go on any one keyword? Something like that as a guideline.

Meaning that, yes, if you have an 6th generation vampire with 500 years behind him, he might have 110 extra keyword levels to add. If he stacks on his "magic" (discipline), he would have a 10W4 keyword. Which I don't think is out of range at all. Such a vampire seems at "hero" level and moving on to "demigod" level.

Mike

[soviet]

Hi sebastianz,

The faction keywords sound good to me. Though "I am my own master" and "Make own rules" under anarchs seems a bit redundant.

Yeah, good catch. I just struggled to think of a third Anarch-specific ability, especially without any books for inspiration. I don't generally think it matters if some keyword abilities are kind of similar, as presumably that aspect of the keyword's character is worth highlighting (and they can always augment each other in any event), but in this case the line between them is probably too thin. Any ideas for a replacement?

I am not sure about The Beast and Mark of Cain. I think one of it is unnecessary. You mention that Mark of Cain should be something like humanity but isn't that covered already by the Beast. The stronger the beast is the less human a vampire is. So I think Mark of Cain can be dropped.

I think you are very probably right there. So in broad terms The Beast represents rage and damnation (the dark side of the force, if you like), The Hunger represents the day-to-day necessities of being a vampire, and Rotscheck represents the vulnerability and fear of fire, sun, etc. Works for me.

The Beast and The Hunger can be used to augment, right? Than players have to choose between a strong/ powerful character and loss of humanity. Actual transgressions can be represented with additional flaws. I think this is close to the themes of vampire.

Exactly right. I did this conversion purely as an experiment, I have little intention of ever using it in an actual game. But IMHO HQ does seem able to bring out the themes of the setting in a much more obvious and characterful way than the storyteller system did.

Thanks,

Mark

[sebastianz]

Hi, Mark.

Hi sebastianz

Just Sebastian will do fine. ;)

Any ideas for a replacement?

Not before, but now that you ask, I think "Make Trouble" or "Cause Unrest" could work. After all, that's what anarchs do. For independents "Stay Neutral" is an option.

By the way, I think it's correct you left out bloodpoints. HQ has better ways to represent that.
Now we wait for you Werewolf and Mage conversions.

Sebastian.

[Mike Holmes]

Hmm. First, I agree with Mark that "redundant" abilities are a good idea. As they're not quite 100% the same, they represent a slightly wider field of representation. And where they can both augment, that's another bonus in that direction. I actually recommend this sort of method in my "Improvising Keyword" article.

As for blood points...the mechanics monkey in me wants to use the essence tapping rules for this (see the section on essential landscape). That would pretty much rock, I think.

Narrator: "You get a complete victory, and get the +20 for the essence drained. But the victim is dry and dead now..."

Mike

[soviet]

Sebastian: Thanks for those. I think I like Make Trouble the best - Anarchs make trouble 'cause that's just what Anarchs do, and independents make trouble sort of by accident when they try to fit into kindred society, or when kindred society tries to make them fit.

Mike: Hmm. (Goes to read the essential landscapes section again). Interesting.

I'm not normally a fan of all the extra magic crunch in HQ, but it also occurred to me that Heroforming might be a good way to deal with diablerie, especially for those who like to stat out their bad guys ahead of time (I do, but I know you don't for instance Mike). Certainly I like the idea of the diablerised victim hanging round in some fashion, haunting their murderer and even haunting the player himself by lurking right there on his character sheet.

Mark

[Mike Holmes]

I don't see the connection between stating out characters before hand and heroforming. That is, I use heroforming all the time, and, like any other ability level I need, I just make it up on the spot. For instance, I was running Otherworld for Clinton at Origins, and he wanted to heroform. So I just determined the heroform's abilites on the spot (actually I think I let Clinton more or less). "Co-incidentally" they matched several of Clintons' character's currently listed abilities. Imagine that.

Interestingly, the one sort of character that I do sorta "pre-stat" are mythic characters. This is pretty much contrary to all common wisdom that people will give you. It looks like I'm power-gaming or something. And maybe I sorta am. But I like it because it gives scale to the world to know what the power level of certain beings are. I tried to ask folks on the rules list recently what they thought about this, and some of them actually responded that the rules, despite being scalable to handle these things, should not be applied to myths. I can speculate as to the reasons. But I feel pretty contrary to that notion.

Anyhow, the upshot is that I probably would have the toughest vampires "statted out" if only in that I'd give them "benchmark" resistances and such.

And then watch as the neonates overcome the Antediluvians. I had a group of characters who started out at only a bit tougher than starting end up binding some six mastery spirits. :)

Mike