Necroes

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@Cu Chulainn Oh no. Didn't you see the edit in the opener? @pugbutter helped convince me that you should all start as basic fledglings, no bonus exp.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter@Cu Chulainn

Keep in mind you two; You're starting out as fledglings this time around. You'll have been kindred for a couple years, max; Likely still connected to your human side, and without a great deal of power. From the sounds of it, you two are aiming for 'what my character will become' as opposed to 'what my character starts as.'

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter When it comes to tremere, I'm perfectly okay with you becoming overpowered. That said, you have to survive long enough to get there, while remembering you're in a city filled with vampires infinitely more capable of ending you instantly than your magic could ever protect you against.

When it comes to dice rolls, it's going to be a very in-the-moment kind of decision. Using your example, if you're actively trying to distract someone to slide something into their pocket (yea, I know why you're asking) then that would be dexterity + subterfuge. If they're already distracted, and you just need to take advantage of that without causing a scene, then you're looking at composure + larceny. Something more revolved around taking advantage of timing to, say, drop it into a bag while no one is looking could be wits + dexterity.

Essentially; Make your character flavorful, and don't go fishing for min-maxed skill combinations. If you do, that's fine, but don't expect to just be able to rely on those to constantly get you what you want. It's my job as story teller to insure the rolls I'm calling for are the ones that best fit the circumstance, and the game provides me with a large canvas to make that happen. Personally, I'm a big fan of odd attribute-skill combinations for rolls.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter Getting a bit excited, but I'm not going to tell you to not start brewing a character. That said, I'm going to have to say 'no' to that one. Tremere are notoriously busted, and while I'll allow you to play one, I'm not going to do you any favors in making the process easier. Especially as the closet equivalent to what you're asking me would be for me to let another player give up two advantages for a level 1 discipline power, which would also be a 'no,' even with the trade deficit.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter Went ahead and put in the opener that you're offering PDFs.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@Cu Chulainn Much like with experience, likely I will have to do this on a scene-by-scene basis. While this may cause problems, we can adjust it on the fly as needed. Since actual stains, humanity rolls, willpower, and the like are all done on a fairly arbitrary (based on game sessions) rate to begin with, I think this will work out fine.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@Dark Cloud While the game system is actually extremely easy to learn, I'm really not sure how I could teach it to you without the source material to work from. There are a number of free apps you could download that would let you make a character, but all the information it provides would mean nothing to you without reference. Unfortunately, this is just one of those games where the rulebook is less of a tutorial for the game, and more of the controller.

I'd love to have you take part, but I feel it would be somewhat irresponsible of me to do so. Something akin to letting someone play tennis without a racket, or paintball without ammunition. I'm sure it could be done, but I'm just not sure how, without massively handicapping you.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter I actually have an idea in mind for folks who want to play as a bit older, even though you'll be starting as fledglings. No, I'm not letting people start at different levels; no offence to your group, but that's just asking for trouble.

@Dark CloudIf you were interested, you would make three and we could look at getting things started. If not, that's fine, too.

For anyone wondering: This game could very well hit lulls in activity, with bursts of extreme excitement. A small cast of players in a relatively complex setting, along with myself having a day job, means that I wouldn't be surprised if we saw months with a handful of posts-even an entire week without any posts at all-only to be followed by a burst of multiple posts a day. A lot of what will happen in this game will likely be behind the scenes, and while a small group will make it easier for me to organize all that, DM-loading will very much be a thing that happens. So, if anyone is worried they won't have time to post in a TTRPG at a hyper-regular rate, that should not be a concern.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter Not at all. You're perfectly welcome to join as a player. It seems like you have a firm grasp of the rules, and I could use that kind of mindset around to proffer advice where appropriate. Not that I'd take all of it, of course, but it's still nice to have the option.

That said, I feel like it would not be within the spirit of the game if I, as the storyteller, did not perceive slights against me as a player loudly declaring their masochistic desires. I'll admit, I hadn't thought the mind games would start in the interest check thread, but I'll be damned if I'm not excited about it. Welcome aboard, @pugbutter! It's good to have you.

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition Interest Check - Still Recruiting! Ignore post count.

@pugbutter You went a very long way to pointing out that I typed 'is' instead of 'isn't.' My wording was terrible, I wrote this at fairly late in the day for me. I admit that, you have my apologies for the confusion.

Now to answer the questions you asked:

While we cannot do a proper 'per session' experience gain, I have a number of ideas for how to distribute experience. Of course, this is somewhat open for debate from my players, depending on how they feel about it. We could do a somewhat even distribution, where all players receive experience per scene. That mechanic already exist within the game, and as long as I don't feel like the players are abusing it, I think it could work. Another option I have in mind would be more lump-sum experience gain, where players receive a fairly large chunk of experience at the end of each story arc. That option would be much more staggered and lurching, but I think still workable.

I'd considered the companion errata, but I won't lie, I've never played with it myself. One of the reasons I'm limiting this game, at least at the beginning, to the core rulebook is because my experience with the game as a whole is through a limited play group. My LGS is where I've mostly played this, and I'd be lying if I said it was the primary game of choice there. Thus, my actual experience with anything not in the core rulebook is basically non-existent.

And, strictly speaking, it's possible to be both a neonate And a thin-blood. It just means that your character being a thin-blood is more of a dark secret from their past, than actually relevant to the game's mechanics. Thin-bloods can commit diablerie and 'ascend' (for lack of a better term) to full vampire status, gaining a generation of 13 and a clan in the process. However, if a player wanted to play as a thin-blood proper, then I had planned to let them start with the bonus 15 exp but not the higher generation level.

If that shatters everyone's perception too greatly, though, I could just make you all start as fledglings. Hadn't planned on it, but far be it for me as the storyteller to not enable my players to be as pathetic and worthless as they want to be. Fairly easy fix from a story telling perspective, now that I think about it. Makes a few sticking points just go away.

So, actually, @pugbutter. Everyone will be starting as fledglings now! I like your thinking. Any more oddly specific questions about my poor spelling?