Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never can willingly abandon it. They may be distressed in the midst of all their power; but they will never look to anything but power for their relief.

　— Edmund Burke, A letter to a member of the National Assembly

　A chronicle involving elder characters is, in many respects, similar to the dramas played among the lesser Kindred. By the same token, the process of elder character creation is essentially the same as that established in Vampire: The Masquerade. The only true differences here are that characters start out at a relatively exalted level, and that the process takes a bit more time.

　An elder character is not the tabula rasa, the blank slate, that is a starting neonate. She is already firmly enmeshed in the complex web of enmities, alliances and neutralities of vampiric society. An elder's past inexorably chains her to the world of the Kindred, and no amount of struggle may free her.

　In addition, there are also some Backgrounds, Merits and Flaws unique to elder characters, unavailable to their less-powerful brethren.

Character Creation

　He is a self-made man, and he worships his creator.

　— attributed to John Bright, speaking of Disraeli

　The player should decide approximately how old her elder character is and the original social milieu of the character. Players should consult with their Storyteller about the relative age and Generation of their characters, if there is a specific power level and scope for the chronicle.

　The character's prelude is conducted as described in Vampire, though the Storyteller should remember that most elder preludes will take place in a far distant time, and thus may well have a different flavor from those of most infant Kindred. Such preludes will likely also be longer than normal, for most elders already have a vast amount of experience as Kindred before they are truly considered "elders." The Storyteller and player should work together as they move through the early years of the character's unlife to the present day.

　This type of prelude is a very good opportunity for the Storyteller to inject information about recurring enmities, loves, problems, etc. that have surfaced throughout the vampire's long existence. Plot and character devices such as long-standing grudges, secrets and early pledges to aid another Kindred may all be woven into this extended prelude.




Elder Chronicles

　The Storyteller may choose from many types of elder chronicles. The exact nature of each depends upon the interests of both the Storyteller and her players. Several types of elder chronicles are listed below. Regardless of which she uses, the Storyteller should be certain to inform her players of whatever latitude they have in creating their elders.

　For instance, if the Storyteller plans to create a chronicle around a clash between the characters and the creme de lacreme of the Black Hand, she may wish to automatically start the characters at 8th Generation instead of 10th. However, if the characters are just entering the inner circles of Elysium, she may insist that none have more than two dots in the Age Background. Then again, the Storyteller may take each player aside and tell him to be certain his character has a jilted paramour (see Flaws) in his background. If the paramour in question is the same for all the characters, she might now be on a mission to destroy or control her former lovers. There are many possibilities when the characters have such a vast amount of history and power at their disposal.

Sample Chronicles


Global Crisis

　This chronicle involves the sordid world of Kindred and kine high finance. It is the World of Darkness' game of political and financial risk, with perhaps all eternity at stake. It is rumored that the site of the First City has been found, and that the Kindred who controls the small Middle-Eastern country in which it lies may have the bodies of several Antediluvians.


Pasion Undying

　Diablerie begins to strike closer and closer as a sudden wave of elder deaths begins. Clues are left that indicate one or more of the characters may be on the list of those to be destroyed. Who or what is drinking the elders of the Camarilla dry, and will the characters be able to avoid the same fate?


Time After Time

　This is a sweeping chronicle covering at least several centuries. The characters begin as "young" elders, freshly introduced to the upper echelons of Elysium society. The characters are brought together during a crisis that threatens their newfound positions among the Kindred elders. After successfully defeating the threat, they turn to their own devices. A century or more later the characters meet again, endangered by another crisis.

　This pattern repeats itself over the years until the chronicle reaches its climax in today's tumultuous world, with the characters finally confronting their ages-old enemy. Note that over the course of their separations the players and Storyteller must determine some of the important events in the lives of their characters. The Storyteller may also wish to advance the characters according to the method given in the Maturation section.

Memoris

　During elder character creation, players should create a journal, diary or some other form of memoirs for their characters, even if they are only Pretenders (see below). Although players are encouraged to spend as much effort and imagination as they desire on this, it is most important to establish a number of basic facts about an elder's position in the politics and power plays of Kindred and kine alike.

　The simplest and quickest way is to draw up a two- to three-page timeline, outlining when and where the character has been involved in significant events throughout his existence. Of course, a player should feel free to create far more elaborate memoirs written from the perspective of the elder character, and to go into great detail about the events the character has witnessed and the people he has seduced, destroyed or perhaps saved.

　Players and Storytellers alike may also wish to research both the history and mood of the cultures in which elder characters have participated. Although such detail is by no means necessary, it can add immeasurably to the richness of the character.

　Although players may touch upon whatever subjects they wish within their character's memoirs, they should be certain to answer at least some of the questions and subjects given below. These will give the Storyteller important information about the characters' roles in the important events of their existences, both mortal and immortal. The players should first find out whether the Storyteller wishes them to address any additional issues (for example, the characters should have been in Berlin some time after WWII, but prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall).

　The players should show the complete memoirs to the Storyteller and consult with her to determine the exact nature of various relationships, identities, etc. In addition, the Storyteller might want to add several incidents to the memoirs (either before or after the player initially writes them). Even just a briefly sketched timeline and short consultation can add immensely to the roleplaying possibilities for elder characters. Even Pretenders value what little history they have been involved in, as they are very often convinced that whatever they take a role in must be of world-shaking proportions.

　When and where were you born?
　What important events did you participate in as a mortal?
　Who were your mortal family, friends and enemies?
　When were you reborn as Kindred, and who was your sire?
　What important places in the world have you visited, and when?
　What historical events, both Kindred and kine, have you witnessed or participated in?
　What historical figures or events have you influenced or been influenced by?
　What salons, courts and social circles, both Kindred and kine, have you participated in?
　What are/were your entanglements?
　Enemies - who and why? Are they still existing? Destroyed?
　Allies - who and why? Are they still existing? Destroyed?
　Political influence/involvement - what and where?
　Prestation - who, how and when? Explain current and past incidents of Prestation, both by you and for you, and any current outstanding Prestation balances (see Prestation Merit/Flaw, below).
　When and where have you gone into torpor (if at all)?
　Who, if anyone, knows any of your secrets?
　Whose secrets do you know?
　What political powers, Kindred and kine, do you currently control or influence?
　lf you have childer, when and why were they sired?
　Were your childer lawfully sired?
　Who are your childer and what is the state of your relationship with them?

　The answers to these and any other questions need not be extensive, but they should provide enough information that both player and Storyteller understand where the character stands in the worlds of Kindred and Kine alike. Unless an elder vampire utterly isolates herself from all other beings, it is impossible for her to avoid entirely the tangled politics of the two (or more) worlds in which she resides. Even such vampiric hermits often find themselves slowly drawn lack into these worlds. Although lesser Kindred may be able to avoid such responsibilities to some extent, elders, like members of kine royalty, find it almost impossibly difficult to maintain an unremarked or unremarkable existence.

　Elders still must at least appear to obey the rules of Kindred society. The decisions of the Justicars still apply, and even elders should ask for permission to sire childer. Likewise, the character's clan will normally keep tabs on her, perhaps not asking anything of her for a century or more but never forgetting her responsibility to them. Then there are always the lurking diabolist youngsters and ancillae, waiting for a moment of weakness in which they can destroy an elder and harvest her power.

Character Concept

　When creating an elder character, her Nature, Demeanor and clan are all determined as outlined in Vampire, as are Attributes, Abilities and Backgrounds. However, the elder character may initially purchase at least five dots in any of her Abilities; vampires with the Elder Generation Background (see below) may have even fewer restrictions.

　Elder characters require more preparation at the start of their creation, for they have existed as Kindred for at least a mortal's lifetime, and quite often many such spans of time. They have seen more than is possible for the brief-lived humans of their acquaintance, and though they may not have grown wise with the many years, they have undoubtedly grown in some manner.

　Seeing the world rush on around them while they remain unchanged, watching generations of their families born and die in the space of an eye-blink, awaking from torpor to utterly alien surroundings, while all the time making their way in the murky world of Kindred politics is an existence that forms complex characters. When several players each create such fully fleshed, multi-dimensional personalities, mantled in the world's history, the roleplaying potential in the situation is extraordinarily rich.


Choosing Attributes

　This works as in Vampire, save that a player assigns 10 dots to the character's Attribute category, seven to her secondary one and five to the tertiary one. The character also starts with one dot in each Attribute.

　The older a character is and the more experience she has, the greater the number of freebie points the player can expend during character creation. By taking the Age Background found in this book, vampires can receive additional points; refer to that Background for more information.

　Note: If a character has a starting Attribute, Ability or Advantage of 6 or higher after spending all freebie points, she must take a Derangement for each such Trait.


Choosing Abilities

　Once again, choosing Abilities is handled as usual except for the larger number of points available, depending on the character's Generation. See Vampire for more information on Trait maximums by Generation. Thus, a player with a character of 10th Generation can choose up to five dots in a starting Ability, while a player with a 7th-Generation elder could choose up to six. An elder character gets 20 dots for his primary category, 12 for the secondary and eight for the tertiary one.


Choosing Advantages

　The base points that players may use for elder characters' Disciplines, Backgrounds and Virtues are listed below. Advantages are chosen as normal with the following exceptions:

　Disciplines: Elder characters may start with up to their Trait maximum in any Discipline. Elders get 10 dots to divide up as they wish, though at least five must go into clan-specific Disciplines.

　Backgrounds: Elder Backgrounds (Age, Generation and Elder Status) cost four points per dot. Elders have 15 points to assign to their Backgrounds. All elders must take at least one dot in Age unless the character is a Pretender. For purposes of character generation, elder vampires start at 10th Generation, instead of the normal 13th.

　Virtues: Note that elder characters receive seven dots to spend on Virtues, though they do start with one dot in each. Freebie points can, of course, be spent on additional dots here, but note that Virtues cost elder characters 4 freebie points per dot due to the difficulty of maintaining these throughout the long, jaded nights of their existences.


Choosing other Traits

　Willpower: Base Willpower is determined normally, equaling the character's Courage rating.

　Humanity: It is extraordinarily difficult for elder vampires to hold on to their Humanity: the endless years, the peer pressure and politics, and the seduction of great power all combine to make this a particularly fragile quality among elder Kindred. Elder characters must spend five freebie points per dot of Humanity.

　Elders do start with Humanity equal to Conscience +Self-Control, but note that taking the Age Background reduces the character's initial rating.

　Freebie Points: Players start with at least 20 freebie points to spend on their elder characters. However, dots in the Age Background significantly increase the number of freebie points available.

　Blood Pool: Players roll two 10-sided dice to determine the character's initial Blood Pool (any dots exceeding the character's maximum Blood Pool are discarded).

Elder Merits and Flaws

　Merits and Flaws provide personality and story hooks which Storyteller and players alike may use to give characters and chronicles greater depth. Players may use freebie points to purchase Merits, while taking on Flaws gives additional freebie points. The number of freebie points gained or spent are equal to the value of the particular Merit or Flaw, and may not total more than 10.



Elder Merits


Childe, Loyal (3 pt Merit)

　Your childe's loyalty goes beyond any Blood Bond, being born of true affection and admiration. She would do almost anything to aid you, and you trust her as you do no other among the Kindred. You would be grief-stricken should anything happen to her.


Enlightened (1-7 pt Merit)

　You have taken at least the first few steps on the steep and complex road to Golconda. Although you have by no means achieved this exalted state of being, you are more aware of the proper approach than the vast majority of your kind will ever be. Much of your time is spent in the quest for further information on Golconda and on attempting to progress towards this distant goal.

　You are already capable of controlling yourself far better than most Kindred and have a number of dice equal to your rating in this Merit that you may add to your rolls to resist Frenzy. These dice may only be used on yourself. You must have a Humanity of 8 or higher to have this Merit.


Holdings (1-5 pt Merit)

　You own a number of properties that have been in your possession for years. These have all been modified to provide you with protection, numerous places to rest and emergency escape routes. Although such holdings are often ancient castles, museums and the like, they can also be specially prepared apartment complexes, mountain lodges, old churches, etc. For every point taken in this Merit you have two such holdings, which can be almost anywhere in the world.


Mummy Companion (5 pt Merit)

　You have one of the world's few mummies as a companion or close associate. Your relationship is one of relative equality, with neither of you able to dominate the other, and you find this most refreshing. Although it would not be condemned by the Kindred, you both take pains to keep the association secret. Other powerful elders might wish to take advantage of your companion and the benefits he occasionally provides you. Other Kindred may even attempt to destroy the mummy or turn him against you rather than allow you access to his great stores of information and abilities.


Paramour (3-5 pt Merit)

　You have had a long-term (minimum of 75 years) relationship with a fellow Kindred. Although you may have had your disagreements over the many years, you are generally loyal to each other. You know most, if not all, of your paramour's secrets, and your paramour knows as much about you. You have both come to each other's aid several times over the years, and you would be aggrieved were anything to happen to your love. The cost of this Merit depends on the relative power and position of your paramour in Kindred society (3 for an ancilla, 4 for another elder of equal power, 5 for a more powerful elder).




Paranoia, Limited (2 pt Merit)

　You know that there are many vampires, hunters, Garou and the like who would love to destroy you. You go out of your way to prepare contingency plans, vary your movement patterns and habits, and otherwise make yourself a difficult target. As a result, you are less likely to be attacked unawares (-1 difficulty to spotting ambushes and the like).


Patience (3 pt Merit)

　You have learned the wisdom of patience in all things. Passions may burn brightly; but as they say, revenge is served best cold. Often, with enough patience, new avenues of endeavor open, enemies grow careless and favors shift. Those who wait and watch are in a position to take full advantage of the vagaries of time. Due to your mastery of patience all Frenzy rolls are made with a -1 difficulty modifier.


Powerful Childe (1-5 pt Merit)

　You have a childe in a position of power within vampiric society. This childe is loyal, and often serves as both an information font and protection. Although she sometimes asks favors of you, you are most definitely in control of the relationship, as it is right for a sire to be. The cost of this Merit depends upon the power and position of the childe (1 for leading anarch, 2 for an Archon, 3 for a primogen, etc., determined in conjunction with the Storyteller).This Merit must be taken separately for each such childe. Having this childe Blood Bond to you costs an extra two points.


Prestation Gifts: (2-6 pt Merit)

　One or more Kindred currently owe a boon to you. You may have gifted them with favors or material items sometime in the distant past, or just last week, but they now owe you a debt. This grants you an advantage in your dealings with these Kindred (-1 to the difficulty level of any checks to influence them). Although you would not give up your current position lightly, you may also call in this debt (or debts) should you require aid. Such aid must be commensurate with the initial value of your gift of Prestation. The number of points in Prestation Gift must be determined by both the player and Storyteller, based on the number and magnitude of the debts owed you, and the importance of the Kindred who owe them. The exact nature of this Merit should be worked into the elder character's journal or memoirs.

Elder Flaws


Bastard Childer (2 pt Flaw)

　You have sired one or more childer without the permission of the local prince or Justicar. Under Kindred law, both you and your childer may be subject to a Blood Hunt should other vampires discover your secret. This Flaw is cumulative, and must be taken once per bastard sired.


Childe, Vengeful (2 pt Flaw)

　You have sired a childe who has grown to loathe you. Not only does your childe not aid you in your dealings with other Kindred, he actively works toward your detriment. At times you feel your childe would commit diablerie upon you if given half a chance, and you could be right.


Death Wish (1-5 pt Flaw)

　You have an unconscious wish to die the True Death. The search for blood, the politics and pain, the constant knowledge of all eternity looming ahead of you, and perhaps your own cowardice, all have their effect on you. Although you never deliberately do anything to harm yourself, you do tend to hinder yourself at awkward times. At any time during a story, the Storyteller may ask you to reroll a successful Skill check. The least successful of the two rolls is the actual result of your action. The Storyteller may do this a number of times per story equal to the number of points taken in this Flaw.


Diabolist, Known (5 pt Flaw)

　You have committed diablerie at least once to achieve your current position of power. Although not all members of elder Kindred society know of your terrible flaw, at least some elders of import are aware of it. You are certain word of your proscribed behavior is slowly making its way through society. Other elders could easily discover this at any time and, at the very least, most of society knows that you are to be shunned. Adding to the danger, there is always the possibility of a Blood Hunt despite your elder status. If they haven't already, certain elders can be expected to use their information to force you to back their causes. You receive a +3 difficulty modifier on any Social roll involving elder Kindred who know your secret.


Diabolist, Secret (2 pt Flaw)

　You have committed diablerie at least once to achieve your current position of power, but no one yet knows your secret. Should the information ever be revealed, other elders may well refuse you aid, shun you or, even worse, turn against you, perhaps even calling a Blood Hunt. It is imperative you keep this information hidden. Should your secret ever be revealed you will receive a +3 difficulty modifier to any Social roll involving elder Kindred.


Emotional Isolation (1 pt Flaw)

　You have seen too many friends and family, Kindred and kine alike, swept away on the river of time and cast into oblivion. The pain of seeing so many die while you continued to exist was horrible to bear, so horrible that you have now isolated yourself emotionally from all others. You often come across as cold and utterly without feeling, but what is that to you? You are now safe from pain. Due to your total emotional isolation, you receive a +1 difficulty modifier to any Social skill rolls involving emotions and cannot spend experience points on the Empathy Talent.




Ennui (2 pt Flaw)

　You are world-weary. You have seen enough to know that nothing is ever truly new: the same events and so-called passions are merely replayed again and again, with only the faces and names shifting as the many, many years go by. You rarely pay attention to those around you, assuming you know all there is to know of them once you have determined what part they play on the world stage (+1 difficulty to Perception rolls involving people you know). Due to your belief in the predictability of others, you also receive +1 to the difficulty level of the first action taken following a surprise (such as an ambush).


Matricide/Patricide (4 pt Flaw)

　You have committed diablerie upon your own sire. If this information becomes known among other elder vampires you will be shunned, or perhaps even put to the sun. You are most certainly an easy target for blackmail, and you must always be alert to the signs of other Kindred searching for information about your sire and his untimely demise (or "disappearance").


Paramour, Jilted (1-3 pt Flaw)

　You had a long-term relationship (minimum 50 years) with a fellow Kindred. Although the relationship proved useful and pleasant while it lasted, you grew weary of your former paramour and ended the long-term tryst. Unfortunately, your former paramour did not take the ending of the affair well, and has apparently developed a strong antipathy for you. You both know many of other’s secrets and this has caused a stalemate thus far, but you are concerned that your ex-paramour may interfere in your affairs at some time in the future. The cost of this Flaw depends on the relative power and position of your ex-paramour in Kindred society (1 for an ancilla,2 for another elder, 3 for a more powerful elder).


Paranoia, Extreme (3 pt Flaw)

　You are certain that the world is full of creatures and people who wish to see you destroyed. However, you do not worry overmuch about those individuals who loathe you from a distance. It is the ones you let get near you, the ones who profess some caring towards you, who are the real danger. Of course, not all your associates and so-called friends are actually your enemies (at least they probably all aren't). However, you know that no one ever does anything they don't believe to be for their own benefit. You are constantly alert for signs that one or more of your acquaintances are actually seeking to commit diablerie upon you, stake you, or worse. Whenever someone you know performs an act that appears selfless, you must make a successful Self-Control roll to resist branding them a traitorous, implacable enemy bent on your destruction (and taking appropriate actions against such a monster!). The Storyteller may also decide that your companions' actions are suspiciously altruistic and necessitate such a roll.


Poverty (1 pt Flaw)

　You are very poor for an elder vampire. Either you never bothered to save anything over the years, or you throw away any accumulated wealth for your own, obscure reasons. You may not take any Resources.


Prestation Debt (1-5 pt Flaw)

　You currently owe a boon to one or more other Kindred. This debt could have been incurred far in the past, or only last week, but the Kindred to whom you owe the debt is still extant. As such, she has gained some Status over you, and you are at a slight disadvantage in any dealings you have with her. lt is also conceivable that your debt could be called in, and that you could be asked to perform some service or favor for any such vampire to whom you are indebted.

　The number of points in Prestation Debt must be determined by both the player and Storyteller. The number and magnitude of such debts and to whom they are owed deter-mine the rating of the Flaw. You also receive a +1 to the difficulty level of any checks made when attempting to influence such Kindred. The exact nature of this Flaw should be worked into the elder character's memoirs.


Recently Arisen (3 pt Flaw)

　You have been lying in a state of torpor until very recently. The years have left you in their wake and the world has been remade in your absence. The culture shock is very jarring, and you still find it difficult to make your way in this strange new environment. Only the general flow of Kindred politics and society remains reasonably familiar; the rest of the world is gibberish. You receive a +2 to the difficulty level of rolls involving technology and to social interactions with everyone save other elder Kindred.


Routine (2 pt Flaw)

　Through the ages you have settled into somewhat of a routine. You tend to go to the same places at the same time of year, and to proceed from haven to haven in a regular order. lf others studied your behavior closely, they might be able to take advantage of it to do you harm. The Storyteller may lower the difficulty level for anyone attempting to surprise the character from 1-3 points depending on the specific nature of the situation.

Elder Backgrounds

　The following Backgrounds are available only to elder characters or add levels to existing ones. Generation limits to Traits (7th Generation for six dots, 6th Generation for seven, etc.) still apply.


Age

　You have survived for many, many years as a vampire. You have seen much of the ever-changing, never-changing dance of politics and pain that forms the worlds of both Kindred and kine alike. This Background does not necessarily reflect your actual age, however. Instead, it reflects the number of years you have been conscious throughout your long existence. If you have fallen into torpor, time passes you by, as does the experience and knowledge you could have gained by participating in the events of that period. Players are free to determine how many times their characters have fallen into torpor, and for how long each time. This enables players to create characters born in truly ancient times.

　Every dot in this Background gains a number of freebie points to use in character creation but also costs Humanity. This can be repurchased, but elders must spend five Freebies per extra point of Humanity. Amounts given reflect cumulative totals. Note that each dot in Age grants slightly less of an experience advantage then the one before (reflected in freebie points), reflecting the difficulty an elder has in gaining new abilities as she becomes more and more set in her ways. Additionally, the older a vampire, the harder it is for her to learn new Traits. This is reflected in the optional system on character development below. Storytellers have the final say in deciding how old characters in their chronicles may be, and should feel free to limit elders to one or two dots in this Background.

　● 51-200 years active: +30 Freebie points, -1 Humanity.
　●● 201-350 years active: +55 Freebie points, -2 Humanity.
　●●● 351-500 years active: +75 Freebie points, -3 Humanity.
　●●●● 501-750 years active: +90 Freebie points, -4 Humanity.
　●●●●● 751-1,000 years active: +100 Freebie points, -5 Humanity.


Elder Status

　You are well known among the elders who are the backbone of Kindred society. Even among the jaded elite you have carved out a name for yourself, whether in the halls of Elysium or the political arena. This Trait reflects a combination of factors including your sire's Status, your pedigree, your own actions and how well you have managed to keep the attention of other elder Kindred.

　The more Elder Status you have, the more willing other elders are to treat you as an equal, or even to defer to your judgment and tastes. Elder Status is sometimes used with Social Traits when dealing with other elders, and it reflects your prestige in such instances. Elders without this Trait are often considered minor nobles in the eternal court that is Kindred society: Pretenders almost never have any dots in Elder Status.

　Younger Kindred are almost always unaware of the subtle nuances of unseen power plays and alliances that makeup Elder Status and are thus unaffected by it, instead recognizing you’re your general Status among Kindred (see Vampire). Thus it is possible for an elder to be seen as of little importance by most Kindred infants, but to actually have tremendous influence among the elders of the vampiric community.

　● Known: A recognized player
　●● Respected: Connected to many powerful elders
　●●● High Status: Other elders often come to you for aid and advice.
　●●●● Powerful: You have the power to command respect and fear from even the most noted of other elders.
　●●●●● Luminary: Your name echoes through the halls of Elysiums the world over.


Elder Generation

　Elder characters begin as 10th Generation. Only by taking this Background can they start as more powerful, lower-Generation vampires. Characters cannot take more than five levels of this Background.

　However, the blood of more ancient vampires is highly sought by those Kindred willing to commit the sin of diablerie. Characters of lower Generation are inevitably targeted by such types (or other beings equally interested) for the promise of greater power for themselves. Thus, characters with this Background have at least one enemy after their blood. This, of course, does not preclude other enemies interested in destroying the character for other reasons!

　● 9th Generation: One minor enemy.
　●● 8th Generation: Two minor enemies.
　●●● 7th Generation: One major enemy.
　●●●● 6th Generation: Two major enemies.
　●●●●● 5th Generation: Two major enemies and several minor enemies.


lnfluence

　When a vampire has more than five dots in Influence, he has a reach far beyond just one country. He has the ear, or perhaps control, of some of the most influential people in the global political circus. Although other Kindred may think it ridiculous that he spends so much time on mortal affairs, he devotes a great deal of his efforts to maintaining his position as the power behind one or more thrones. He knows the importance of controlling the flighty affairs of the kine at key moments in history and does not plan to be caught unawares at any such moment.

　When a character wishes to influence a country's political decisions, the player must roll Manipulation + Influence. The difficulty depends on the extent of the character's control over the country's leaders and on the amount of effort the character wishes to exert. A botch indicates the character's efforts in that country have backfired, her minions are jailed, dead, or otherwise destroyed, and she may even be in danger himself! After such a botch the character's Influence rating may drop accordingly.

　●●●●●● You can influence the affairs of one country.
　●●●●●●● You can influence the affairs of two countries.
　●●●●●●●● You can influence the affairs of one continent.
　●●●●●●●●● You have influence over everything except Asia.
　●●●●●●●●●● You have influence over the entire world.


Resources

　Certain elders have gone beyond concern over their own wealth and now concentrate on the power their wealth brings. While one human may become a billionaire during her lifetime, a vampire may have control over hundreds of billions (or even trillions!) of dollars, though they do not necessarily belong to her. More than five dots in this Background represent that degree of wealth. A character with this sort of control can have any possessions or amounts of money she desires.

　When attempting to change the direction of world commerce in an area in which a character has influence, make a Manipulation + Resources roll. The difficulty is determined by the Storyteller, depending upon the extent of the desired change, tenacity and skill of your opponents, etc. A botch indicates the character has put her influence over that section of the global economy at risk, either through corporate takeovers, the collapse of the industry, or any other major disaster. Her Global Resources level may drop accordingly.

　●●●●●● You have influence in one global industry (steel, banking, airlines, etc.).
　●●●●●●● You have influence in two global industries.
　●●●●●●●● You have influence in every industry in one country as well as two global industries.
　●●●●●●●●● You have influence in every industry outside of Asia.
　●●●●●●●●●● You have influence in every industry.


Military Force

　When a vampire reaches elder status, he has a chance to gain control of human institutions that prevail through force. This includes local police, troopers, FBl, street gangs, crime bosses, biker packs and bands of thrill-seeking young people. Direct control of human mobs is always frightening to elder vampires, who remember the Inquisition as if it were only yesterday. As a result, they often band together to curtail such aspirations in their fellows. This makes attaining and maintaining a large Military Force very difficult. Usually an elder can only keep a small force before his rivals close in to stop his power grab.

　The player must define who a character's forces are and where they train. They could be a subset of the U.S. military, or any of the groups listed above. At Level Six and above, the Military Force will usually require some sort of government sponsorship. Storytellers should feel free to let the character control more mortals with less combat training than is specified for that level. For instance, with two dots a character might control a 40-person mob.

　● 15-person mob, generally unorganized and untrained: student rebels, street gang
　●● 25-person team, generally with some combat training: police, crime family
　●●● 40-person platoon, all combat trained: SWAT team, army reserves
　●●●● 75-person troop, all veterans: mercenary soldiers, terrorist unit
　●●●●● 100-person company, elite troops: special forces company, intelligence unit
　●●●●●● Several companies with a mix of weapons: mechanized infantry, air assault group
　●●●●●●● Military division: thousands of trained soldiers
　●●●●●●●● One branch: a country's entire army, navy, air force or similar body
　●●●●●●●●● One country: all the Military Force in that country
　●●●●●●●●●● Forces all over the world

Optional System: Character Development

　Although the great age and experience of elder vampires grants them wisdom, powers and knowledge unavailable to the neonates who scurry as frenetically as the kine across the face of the earth, this experience is hard-won. As patterns of thought and behavior become more and more atrophied with time, learning new concepts and abilities becomes harder and harder for even members of the Kindred. The great leaps made so easily in youth are much more difficult for beings who mark their existence in centuries and who are not as affected by the activities of a single month or year.

　Thus, the more ancient a vampire becomes, the harder she finds it to advance her skills and abilities. The chart below outlines the experience cost of gaining new powers for vampires, from neonates to Methuselahs. The dots represent the number of points the elder has put into the Age Background. The only Trait which does not change its cost is Willpower, which always requires its current rating in experience to increase.



Maturation

　In some cases the Storyteller and players my with to conduct a chronicle lasting centuries or even millennia. Each story in such a chronicle could take place during a crucial period of a different era in history. Another variation could be a chronicle based on the politics of a given empire or powerful dynasty, such as the Roman Empire or the Czars of Russia.

　In such long-running chronicles, players may wish to have their characters begin as neonates and progress gradually to elder status. Below are two different methods of incorporating character maturation into a chronicle or series of chronicles. As always, the Storyteller is free to come up with other ways to handle this.


Continual Progress

　This is the method that most players and Storytellers already use in their chronicles. Simply by existing for a long period of game time, the characters gain experience, lose Humanity and perhaps even change Generation, becoming more powerful with the years. This is a natural maturation process and, given the short, intense bursts of activity (and thus experience) that are a part of most Vampire stories. It tends to yield quite powerful characters in a very short period of time.

　In these chronicles, maturation of abilities comes quite swiftly, yet the characters do not gain much in the way of wisdom from experience. Torpor may be used to allow time to pass, but a vampire in torpor does not gain the benefits of true Age. Thus, only through long chronicles, with a story taking place once every few years or even once a decade, do characters have any chance of becoming elders.




Leaps in Time

　Storytellers conducting chronicles that take place over an extended period can take advantage of a technique often used by the creators of television shows, films and novels. After the characters complete a given story, the Storyteller determines how much time passes between the end of this story and the beginning of the next. The intervening time may be as long as a millennium or more, although most Storytellers will probably want to stick to a century or two.

　The Storyteller should inform the players of approximately how much time passes in the interim. He should then take each player aside to conduct an interlude - a second prelude of sorts. This is actually a form of strategy session in which the player and Storyteller determine the key events that occur in the character's unlife during "down time." The Storyteller is free to invoke caveats such as "in 1653 you must find yourseIf in Calais, France" or "at some point during down time you went into torpor for approximately 50 years."Any caveats invoked by the Storyteller should be to set up new storylines; they should not be used to mess with someone's character just for the hell of it.

　During this interlude the player and Storyteller should work together to determine the new Abilities，Derangements, Contacts, etc. the character develops. The amount of time that passes with the character out of torpor determines how many new experience points the player has to spend. The Maturation Chart below should be considered a general guideline as to the experience a character receives over a given amount of time spent active during an interlude. It is up to the Storyteller to determine the exact number of experience points available.

　The experience cost of Traits depends upon the characte's age (see the Elder Experience chart above). For purposes of spending maturation freebie points, a character is considered to be in whatever Age category he belongs to at the beginning of the interlude.