Rough outline for my VtR chronicle

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I don't think any of my players are on here -- if they are, however, they
should back off now. They'd just be spoiling their own fun!


Chronicle Name: the Land of Flowers
Game Setting: Miami, Florida.
Time Frame: 10 years; 2004 to 2014
Theme: Where does a Vampire fit into the world?
Mood: Not Enough Time, Revelation

Overall Plot Synopsis:
The characters start as simple, unassuming mortals who are largely
unaware of the larger mysteries and secrets of the World of Darkness.
Together, they manage to draw the attention of one of the Kindred into their
lives ­ which causes a good bit of pain, horror, and ultimately
results in them discovering the true secret of the their existence and the
truth of monsters in the dark.

Even as the character¹s lives collapse around them, they find
themselves caught up in a dangerous cat-and-mouse game for their very
survival. They have no choice but to defend themselves, and hopefully even
fight back. In the end, they either manage to destroy their tormentor ­ or
one of them falls under his fangs, and perishes. Regardless, the activities
of the characters during this period manage to attract the attention of the
other Kindred in the city.

Slowly, one by one, the characters are taken into the Night by
their new sires.

The plot then focuses on the night existences of these new
monsters, as they come to term with what they have become and try to find
out just how they fit into this new world that they never knew existed ­
trying to prevent themselves from being monsters like the one that tormented
them or the ones that created them, and perhaps trying to maintain their old
existences (a doomed quest).

Any attempt at normalcy is doomed by the character¹s peers and
Elders, any attempt at a simple life is ruined by the things they learn of
their world and the very nature of their new existence, and any attempt at
peace and sanity is opposed by the Beast and the nature of their new state.

Maybe, given time and peace, they could find some equilibrium and
understanding of their new nature.

The society of the damned does not allow them that time to find a
new balance. The Prince of the City, Anesto Gilan, is falling into a
lengthy voluntary torpor for to still his powerful blood. While he makes
preparations to keep the city in the hands of his childer during this torpor
other forces prepare to use this lengthy sleep to seize power for
themselves.

Key among these figures includes a fanatical Unbound figure who was
once a follower of Maxwell Noran and his child Jameson Riley. Eager to
destroy the false Prince, this figure begins a plan over 50 years in the
making into place to destabilize and destroy the city.

Unknown to him, however, he is little more than a pawn in the plans
of Inez Rivaldi ­ who has waited far longer for the time when she can take
her rightful place. Utilizing the discord and chaos caused by her unwitting
unaligned tool she maneuvers herself more power over the city and takes over
more and more power from the childe of Goran that is serving as Prince in
his sire¹s stead.
 
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<snip>
> Inez maintains a fortress-haven in one of those mansions herself. The
house
> is large, imposing, sealed almost totally. It is nearly impossible to
break
> in, and even exiting the Haven is significantly difficult. Guests are
> rarely invited within her actual haven, and those that have state that
it¹s
> dour and somewhat dilapidated exterior belies it¹s impressive and opulent
> interior. Indeed, Inez spends enough time within her haven that she
desires
> to surround herself in the utmost luxury. A good bit of her money goes
into
> interior decoration.
>
You know, all it would take is one industrial heavy lift helicopter, a
gasoline tank rigged with sprayers, and a torch to take this vampire out
with that kind of haven. You might want to invest in an underground escape
tunnel and/or airlock-sealed concrete sub-basement bunker in case of fire.
 
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On Sun, 05 Sep 2004 06:16:15 GMT, "Kellendros" <cox911@yahoo.com>
wrote:

><snip>
>> Inez maintains a fortress-haven in one of those mansions herself. The house
>> is large, imposing, sealed almost totally. It is nearly impossible to break
>> in, and even exiting the Haven is significantly difficult. Guests are
>> rarely invited within her actual haven, and those that have state that it¹s
>> dour and somewhat dilapidated exterior belies it¹s impressive and opulent
>> interior. Indeed, Inez spends enough time within her haven that she desires
>> to surround herself in the utmost luxury. A good bit of her money goes into
>> interior decoration.
>>
>You know, all it would take is one industrial heavy lift helicopter, a
>gasoline tank rigged with sprayers, and a torch to take this vampire out
>with that kind of haven. You might want to invest in an underground escape
>tunnel and/or airlock-sealed concrete sub-basement bunker in case of fire.

'All it would take is one industrial heavy lift helicopter'....

And how easily accessible is an industrial heavy lift helicopter? And
how would it attack a house without anyone paying attention? And
what's the character in question and those who ally with her supposed
to do whilst an industrial helicopter attacks the place? Raise arched
eyebrows and pass the scones?

If you posit one side being able to get hold of outlandish equipment,
then you can assume the other can also access something similar.

Besides, a JCB will knock the walls down and are much easier to get
hold of - but it'd be bloody obvious.

C
 
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On 9/6/04 2:11 PM, in article chi95l$7ok$1$8300dec7@news.demon.co.uk,
"Certic" <PJS@winwaed.demon.co.uk> wrote:

> Somehow I sense the brooding atmosphere of dark mystery is being lost
> here...

Yeah, it does seem that way doesn't it? I think it was the SAM-wielding
ghouls that did it for me.

On the other hand, we're not exactly starting a more topical discussion
relevant to the situation at hand, either...




Brandon,
 
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> And given that she lives in a semi-secluded area

I'd note that what I wrote notes that she lives in the same basic area as a
number of wealthy Miami'ians. It's not exactly spelled out, but neither is
the idea that she lives in a secluded area for that matter😀 It pretty much
just notes that she forbids anyone feeding off "the rich folk that live in
mansions in her domain," and then notes that "she also lives in one of those
mansions".

Just as another note against this general tactic, I imagine that most of the
Vampires that actually know where her Haven actually IS (which mansion, in
effect) are of an age where they either wouldn't think of this tactic or
would consider it gauche and lacking style. I doubt that every young
neonate in the town without a reason to know otherwise knows where she
spends her nights:)

Though it could certainly be discovered with adequate research.



Brandon,
 
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>>>I'd note that what I wrote notes that she lives in the same basic area as
a number of wealthy Miami'ians. It's not exactly spelled out, but neither is
the idea that she lives in a secluded area for that matter 😀 It pretty much
just notes that she forbids anyone feeding off "the rich folk that live in
mansions in her domain," and then notes that "she also lives in one of those
mansions".<<<

S'why I hazarded "semi-" there 😛 Usually, though not always, mansions in
"rich" areas = great big sprawling yards, which tend to isolate by the
surface area taken up by each estate; houses are further apart etc... plus
in Miami rich probably = waterfront, which might isolate as well but
defiantly gives better access from the ocean, boat or aerial.

>>>Just as another note against this general tactic, I imagine that most of
the Vampires that actually know where her Haven actually IS (which mansion,
in effect) are of an age where they either wouldn't think of this tactic or
would consider it gauche and lacking style. I doubt that every young
neonate in the town without a reason to know otherwise knows where she
spends her nights:)<<<

There will always be some inhuman (I'm assuming properly Virtued & Viced,
Low Humanitied & high Blood Potencied-even though I have no *real* idea how
these mechanics work in the new VtR, just scraps here & there, so I'm
*assuming*) psycho out there who doesn't care about *how* his enemies die,
so long as they die in the most expedient, least resource stretching manner.
Plus there's always the chance of crazy mortal hunters 😉 (or Werewolves
depending on how they end up being presented.)

It might *seem* crude/gauche/simplistic, but really, if you were a smart old
vampire that had all of eternity to look forward to, would you overlook the
obvious? I mean, I'm no genius, & I figured out a fairly easy way to take
this place down, assuming there are no countermeasures in place to deal with
the possibility. The fact that it has all the style of blunt force trauma
with a sledgehammer doesn't make it any less effective; it's pragmatic &
efficient (assuming it works). The *real* danger is setting it up in such a
way that if it *didn't* work, it couldn't be traced back to you.

Plus, you should *never* put it past players to try a crazy scheme; either
because they're so devious they came up with it, or they're so stupid they
think it'll work. 😛
 
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>>>Somehow I sense the brooding atmosphere of dark mystery is being lost
here...<<<

Atmosphere is great, but it should never supercede the obvious, even if said
obvious doesn't contribute to said atmosphere. Otherwise you'll have players
doing crazy things you never expected them to because they noticed, or, they
'll be asking questions like "Why the hell hasn't someone just...?" Which
for me at least, blows any mood out of the water because I'll be too busy
picking the inconstancies out of the setting to notice the mood anymore.

"The Prince is being hunted by his enemies and he fears they will attack him
at any time."

"Ahhh... then WTF is he doing going to regular appearances at Elysium
still?"

"Well, his Ghoul guards & normal security will give him plenty of time to
withdraw or deal with the assault as necessary."

"Ahhh... isn't the Elysium in the Stromwell building?"

"Yeah..."

"And the Prince is arriving in his limo out front & walking in, not coming
in some back way in the allies?"

"Well of course not, he doesn't want to appear cowed by them."

"There's 30' of tiered steps leading up the front of the Stromwell building
and there's a park across the street."

"So?"

"The high steps prevent his rear-most guards from properly screening him &
shielding his back when he's walking up them..."

"So?"

"Say it with me; sni-per rif-le. .50 Cal Barret sniper rifle retails for
5400$ though mail order, high-powered night-scope 1800$. FMJ round... 18$?
The look on the Ghouls' faces when you blow the Prince's head clean off &
send him to final death? Priceless."

Mind you, should the Prince be widely known for his prescient abilities
because of his powerful Auspex, or that he fears no normal blade because the
ages have given him Flesh of Marble & superhuman stamina, I can let it
slide; atmosphere supports the otherwise glaring (to me at least)
inconsistencies of the atmosphere that to me prevent suspension of disbelief
& emersion into said atmosphere.

From the Top 100 Things I'd Do If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord list:

#12- One of my advisors will be an average five-year-old child. Any flaws in
my plan that he is able to spot will be corrected before implementation.

#60- My five-year-old child advisor will also be asked to decipher any code
I am thinking of using. If he breaks the code in under 30 seconds, it will
not be used. Note: this also applies to passwords.

#74- When I create a multimedia presentation of my plan designed so that my
five-year-old advisor can easily understand the details, I will not label
the disk "Project Overlord" and leave it lying on top of my desk.

The list might be comedy, but I tend to notice things like this (the whole
list) in games, & it puts me off when I do if it doesn't make sense by other
factors.

The setting was cool, the mood tight. But after I read it, my first thought
was; "why hasn't someone tried to burn this chick out? Or house down, as the
case may be."

Mind you; maybe *that's* another part of the mystery; do some research
(because hey, it's never a bad idea to know how you could kill the Prince if
you really need to) and find out; "Yeah, it's been tried. Didn't work... no
one knows why, but that place just won't burn..."

Which would be cool.
 
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Kellendros <cox911@yahoo.com> wrote:
:>>>Somehow I sense the brooding atmosphere of dark mystery is being lost
: here...<<<
: "Say it with me; sni-per rif-le. .50 Cal Barret sniper rifle retails for
: 5400$ though mail order, high-powered night-scope 1800$. FMJ round... 18$?
: The look on the Ghouls' faces when you blow the Prince's head clean off &
: send him to final death? Priceless."

Theory: "Rules define reality"

As this discussion most obviously follows the theme more easily
associated with the 2nd and rev edition V:tM, do tell me if it's even
remotely possible to actually kill a vampire with a heavy caliber sniper
bullet. That is, forget about GM overrules about "yeah, he died" and
imagine yourself really rolling.

//T
 
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Kellendros,

It does strike me that you're trying to impose a set of genre
assumptions onto the wrong genre.

They can fit into a vampire game, but they probably do not fit into the
kind of vampire game that Brandon seems to want to run. I don't think
Brandon wants a Clancy-esque thriller here.

--
Elizabeth D. Brooks | kali.magdalene@comcast.net | US2002021724
Listowner: Aberrants_Worldwide, Fading_Suns_Games, TrinityRPG
AeonAdventure | "Dobby likes us!" -- Smeagol
-- http://www.theonering.net/scrapbook/view/6856
 
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This is more or less the case -- I put that weakness in there so that the
character's might be able to take advantage of it and that it might end up
being a nifty character hook. However, my exploit of choice was "some
ghouls with torches" as opposed to a helicopter fireship.

On the other hand, I certainly don't mind Kellendros' comments. He's given
me some stuff to think upon, even if not stuff that's completely 100%
relevant to my game, and that is useful.


On 9/7/04 7:50 AM, in article 413DA10F.4EBC7A07@comcast.net, "Julie
d'Aubigny" <kali.magdalene@comcast.net> wrote:

>
> Kellendros,
>
> It does strike me that you're trying to impose a set of genre
> assumptions onto the wrong genre.
>
> They can fit into a vampire game, but they probably do not fit into the
> kind of vampire game that Brandon seems to want to run. I don't think
> Brandon wants a Clancy-esque thriller here.