Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Traditions
  • Clans and Disciplines
• What is Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS?
• What's in the Box?
• Overview
  • The Campaign
    • Prologues (Solo Play)
    • Chapters
    • Optional Chapters
    • Additional Clan Chapters (Solo Play)
    • Setting Up a Chapter
    • Difficulty Modifiers and Number of Players
• Choose Your Character
  • Characters
    • Brujah — Thomas Chartrand
    • Gangrel — Aren Konway
    • Malkavian — Harold Beaulieu
    • Nosferatu — Lucianna Ricci
    • Toreador — Nico Miller
    • Tremere — Jade Linh-Duplessis
    • Ventrue — Samuel Armstrong
    • Caitiff — Gabe Tremblay
  • Create Your Own Character (by choosing the Caitiff)
  • Additional Clans
    • Banu Haqim — Aaron Wissal
    • Hecata — Aurora Rosselini
    • Lasombra — Edward Harvey
    • Ministry — Melissa Santos
  • Character Board
  • Character Sheet
  • Disciplines List
  • Experience Points (XP)
  • Finalizing Your Character
• Set-Up
  • Before Starting a Chapter
  • Item Cards
  • Feeding Events
  • Choosing a Chapter
  • Starting a Chapter
  • Ending a Chapter
  • NPC and Allies
  • Tokens
  • Main Tracker
  • Other Trackers
• Gameplay
  • Skill Checks
  • Conditions
  • Main Sequence
  • Dialogue, Investigation, Event, and Combat
  • Chapter Setup Example
  • Chapter Playthrough Example
• Dialogue in Detail
• Investigation in Detail
• Combat in Detail
  • Initiative, Hold Initiative, and Active Hand
  • NPC Combat Deck, Combat Cards and Positioning
  • Targeting
  • Step-By-Step Combat
  • Allies and Summons in Combat
  • Bosses in Combat
• Stealth Mode
  • Line of Sight, STEALTH Checks and STEALTH Token
  • STEALTH Examples
• Glossary
• Troubleshooting and Common Sense
• Credits

Traditions

Vampires are typically organized into sects that share common interests. The Camarilla is one of the oldest and largest sects, a true pillar of Kindred society that endures still to this day. The Traditions form the legal backbone of Camarilla society, although in modern nights, the Prince fulfills the Elder role outlined in the Traditions. Most Camarilla culture springs from these Traditions. Presentation is outlined in the Tradition of Hospitality, the blood hunt in the Tradition of Destruction, and the parceling of land in the Tradition of Domain.

1st Tradition — THE MASQUERADE Thou shalt not reveal thy true nature to those not of the Blood. Doing such shall renounce thy claims of Blood.

2nd Tradition — THE DOMAIN Thy domain is thine own concern. All others owe thee respect while in it. None may challenge thy word while in thy domain.

3rd Tradition — THE PROGENY Thou shalt only sire another with the permission of thine elder. If thou createst another without thine elder's leave, both thou and thy progeny shall be slain.

4th Tradition — THE ACCOUNTING Those thou create are thine own childer. Until thy progeny shall be released, thou shall command them in all things. Their sins are thine to endure.

5th Tradition — THE HOSPITALITY Honor one another's domain. When thou comest to a foreign city, thou shall present thyself to the one who ruleth there. Without the word of acceptance, thou art nothing.

6th Tradition — THE DESTRUCTION Thou art forbidden to destroy another of thy kind. The right of destruction belongeth only to thine elder. Only the eldest among thee shall call the blood hunt.

Clans and Disciplines

In the early days of the Kindred, their numbers were limited. These first few vampires, called Antediluvians, are said to be the founders of the original clans. A clan is akin to an extended family of Kindred. While members of a clan do not necessarily share loyalties or values, each vampire can trace their lineage back to one of these thirteen ancestors. Furthermore, each clan possesses a special suite of supernatural abilities passed down from generation to generation through the Blood. These powers are called Disciplines. While it is theoretically possible for a vampire to learn Disciplines from any clan, vampires generally have an easier time developing powers inherited through their own bloodline.

What is Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS?

Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS is a cooperative board game set in the World of Darkness. It's a thrilling adventure wherein tactical combat, branching dialogue, and investigation mechanisms will impact your journey as a player.

This role-playing game bridges narrative board games and tabletop RPGs. The result is what we call an "RPG in a box" Campaign experience.

The plot takes place in Montreal more than ten years after the events of the Second Inquisition and the fall of the Sabbat, a sect of vampires that rejects the Traditions of the Camarilla and their notions of staving off the Beast. Members of the Sabbat believe in accepting their vampiric natures and rejecting the humanity they have left in order to become true monsters.

After three centuries of complete domination over Montreal and most of Canada, the Sabbat has fallen. Agents of FIRSTLIGHT, part of the so-called Second Inquisition, a decentralized group of government agencies, religious organizations, and other human groups such as vigilantes and self-proclaimed vampire hunters, conducted an all-out purge of the known vampires of Montreal with the help of US Black Ops forces. This event is referred to as the Night of Ashes in the vampire world.

The Night of Ashes was a terrible event for the Sabbat. The strike wiped out almost all vampires in Montreal in one fell swoop. This was a horrendous coup for the Sabbat capital of dark faith.

In modern nights, Montreal has mostly been taken over by the Camarilla, a well-organized neofeudal vampire sect observing the Masquerade principles and Traditions (see p.4). Tonight, they're mainly represented by the following clans: Banu Haqim, Malkavian, Nosferatu, Toreador, Tremere, and Ventrue, with the recent addition of the Lasombra clan on a case-by-case basis.

Montreal is also home to small groups of Anarch vampires. The Anarchs are a sect of disorganized, rebellious, free, and dangerous Kindred. They oppose the Camarilla, even if they still honor the Masquerade principle. Although they're not currently at war, tensions regularly rise between the two sects. Anarch vampires can be of any clan, but the most common are the Gangrel, the Ministry, and the Brujah.

Standing apart from the rest are the Hecata, a clan who owes loyalty only to themselves and the secretive Aziani Council. Not officially belonging to any sect, they might nonetheless ally themselves with any who may further their goals, for as long as it suits them.

Each player will embody one of the game's playable characters so they can explore the dark, hidden secrets of Montreal.

All playable characters are neonates — young vampires less than a century old who are still finding their place in the newly restructured city. Their story is about to begin, with players choosing how their characters act, talk, and evolve. Your decisions will impact both your experience and the story.

What's in the Box?

• 1 Rulebook
• 1 Storybook
• 64 Chapter Booklets
• 1 Feeding Events Booklet
• 5 Sealed envelopes
• 12 Character miniatures (8 main + 4 additional)
• 12 Character Boards (8 main + 4 additional)
• 12 Character Sheets (8 main + 4 additional)
• 150 Character Combat cards
• 176 Discipline cards (134 main + 42 additional)
• 98 Item cards
• 107 NPC + Boss cards
• 76 NPC + Boss Combat cards
• 12 Summon State cards
• 28 Humanity cards
• 203 Effect cards
• 164 NPC and Ally standees + 16 plastic stands
• 8 Standees storage bags
• 40 Tracker covers
• 10 Trackers
• 16 Tracker cubes
• 1 Main tracker
• 1 Initiative tracker
• 24 Double-sided Chapter tiles
• 30 Silver Boon tokens
• 5 Gold Boon tokens
• 66 Effect tokens
• 41 Initiative tokens
• 31 Terrain tokens
• 4 Clue tokens
• 12 Investigation success tokens
• 20 Summon tokens
• 15 Dice (10 black and 5 red)
• 1 Sand timer

Overview

Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS is a co-op game in which you play as a coterie, or group, of vampires. The game will refer to the coterie by default. If you play with only one character, as a solo experience, you can also have Allies (see Ally, p.28).

Note: It is possible to play the game solo, without being accompanied by an Ally. However, this will make the game more difficult. Even if you choose not to be accompanied by an Ally, the game will refer to the coterie at all times.

Component overview: Rulebook, Storybook, Feeding Events Booklet, envelopes, player's miniatures, Investigation tokens, sand timer, main tracker, tracker cubes, NPC standee, Chapter tiles, NPC State cards, NPC Combat deck, Summon State cards, Ally State cards, Humanity cards, Effect cards, Item cards, Chapter Booklet, initiative tracker and tokens, terrain tokens, action tokens, dice, effect tokens, boons, item cards, Character Board, Combat cards, Discipline cards, Character Sheet, Summon token.

The Campaign

The Campaign is divided into multiple Chapters, each of which presents players with an objective. To complete a Chapter, the coterie must achieve the objective, which is indicated on the Chapter's corresponding introduction page in the Storybook; or reach an alternative ending, if prompted. When the coterie succeeds in their objective, you will be prompted to read the conclusion to the Chapter on the back of the introduction page. However, if the coterie fails to achieve their objective, you must discard everything you earned during that Chapter (see p.26), then start it over until the coterie manages to reach their goal.

Throughout the game, players can choose which tactics to use to achieve the Chapters' objectives. Your choices and their consequences will ripple throughout the story and impact your adventure, determining which paths your characters can take later on. As this is a cooperative board game, players are encouraged to discuss their options and reach a common decision as to which actions to take.

You will also encounter many NPCs (Non-Playable Characters) throughout the game. Each NPC has their own backstory and motivations. Some will attack you, while others will talk to you or even become your Allies.

The Storybook includes the following:

• 8 Prologues for the Main Characters
• 1 Campaign Introduction and 3 Interludes
• 41 Main Chapters
• 8 Side Quests
• 2 Masquerade Breach Side Quests
• 8 Additional Clan Chapters
• Alex's inventory
• 1 Map for Feeding Events

Prologues (Solo Play)

All Prologues are meant to be played solo. While they are considered optional, players are strongly encouraged to play them, as the Prologues serve as:

• An introduction to the World of Darkness
• An introduction to your character's backstory
• An anchor to the main story
• A way to learn certain gameplay mechanics (tutorials)

Chapters

All Chapters are connected by an overarching story, and can be altered by the choices you make over the course of the game. Chapters should be played in the order presented in the Storybook. Each Chapter takes roughly 30 minutes per player.

Optional Chapters

Once they become available through the main story, optional Chapters can be played at any point between main Chapters. Some must be played solo, while others can be played as a group. The Storybook will indicate which Chapters must be played solo or as a specific character. Any Chapters that do not display these indicators can be played with a full coterie. Optional Chapters offer the following advantages:

• Additional Item cards
• Additional Combat cards
• Additional Storylines and further insight into the plot

Additional Clan Chapters (Solo Play)

These characters belong to the Banu Haqim, Hecata, Lasombra, and Ministry clans.

They become available to play at various points during the main campaign. Each comes with their own two part Chapters. These Chapters are optional and you do not have to play them if you do not intend to play a character belonging to these additional clans.

Setting Up a Chapter

1. To set up a Chapter, open the Storybook to the corresponding page and read the introduction at the top of the page.
2. Read the setup section at the bottom of the page; then set all the indicated elements on your gaming table (tile, tokens, NPC standees, etc.) accordingly.
3. You can now use the corresponding Chapter Booklet to play through the Chapter.

Example: If you're about to play Chapter 17, take the Chapter Booklet 17.

Difficulty Modifiers and Number of Players

The maximum number of players in any given Chapter is 4. This includes both player characters and coterie Allies, but not Chapter Allies (see Allies, p.28).

Depending on the number of players and Allies present at the beginning of a Chapter, NPCs' and Allies' Damage trackers, Attack levels, Initiative, and Resistance levels will vary (see NPC State card, p.27).

Players can also customize their experience by choosing optional difficulty modifiers for Chapters containing Combat sequences. These modifiers must be announced prior to beginning a Chapter. You cannot mix Easy and Hard modifiers together.

Easy Modifiers

• PACIFIST: All NPCs have -1 Resistance level.
• UNPREPARED: All NPCs have -1 Attack level.
• WEAK: All NPCs' Damage trackers are adjusted for 1 & 2 players.

Players can select multiple Easy modifiers, thereby simplifying the Combat mechanics.

Hard Modifiers

• LOUD: All NPCs have +1 Initiative when starting Combat.
• PREPARED: All NPCs have a Damage tracker corresponding to 4 players (This modifier is only available if less than 4 players, including coterie Allies, are present for the Chapter.)
• STRONG: All NPCs have +1 Attack level.
• TOUGH: All NPCs have +1 Resistance level.
• AGILE: All NPCs have +1 Movement.

Players can select multiple Hard modifiers, thereby increasing the difficulty of the Combat sequence. Depending on the number of Hard modifiers selected, the coterie receives the following rewards upon successful completion of a Chapter featuring at least one Combat sequence:

Hard modifiers selected	Reward
1	1 Boon
2	2 Boons
3	1 XP (for each player)
4+	1 XP (for each player) + 2 Boons

Hard modifier rewards are not cumulative.

Choose Your Character

Characters

Every character (vampire) begins their adventure with a preset Character Sheet and Board. Some vampires are initially built for Combat, while others excel in Dialogue or Investigation. It's important to remember that nothing is set in stone; your character will continue to evolve as the Campaign progresses.

As a player, you will decide how your character develops throughout the Campaign by choosing how to distribute your hard-earned experience points (XP), which can be gained by completing a Chapter or succeeding in a particular action. Players can then use this XP to increase their character's Attributes, Skills, or Disciplines.

When you choose a character, they will be yours for the whole Campaign. However, you may be able to select another character at specified moments during the Campaign. While playing, place your Character Sheet to the right of your Character Board.

Note: To ensure you choose the right character for you (especially if it's your first time playing the Campaign), we strongly recommend you play through each character's Prologue. This will allow you to discover certain gameplay mechanics and the characters' backstories, and serves as the main introduction to the story. Prologues begin on p.1 in the Storybook.

Main Clans

While all vampires are unique creatures with their own personalities and backstories, most belong to clans that share a common legacy and heritage, as well as a set of special Disciplines.

Each character also has their own set of flaws — weaknesses that will guide your decisions throughout the Campaign.

Brujah — Thomas Chartrand

As a teenager, Thomas Chartrand often found himself in trouble with the law. He rarely passed a week without spending at least one night in a cell for some transgression or another, be it picking fights or leading protests. As he got older — and, some would argue, wiser — Thomas found his calling as a leader in the workforce. His pragmatic views and Skills at mediating disputes between unions and management even led him to a seat at the Trade Union Center. While meeting with co-conspirators from the FLQ militant separatist group, Thomas was lured out of a bar during a rather rowdy night and Embraced.

To protect his new fledgling, Thomas's sire brought him far away from the then-Sabbat-choked Montreal, so that he could come to terms with his new unlife and position within the vastly different power structure of the Camarilla.

As a member of the Brujah clan — the instigators and founders of the Anarch Movement — he despises all forms of abuse, namely those he sees the Camarilla perpetrating (and particularly the Ventrue). His years of negotiations came in handy upon his return to Montreal, where he now acts as the speaker for the Anarchs when treating with the Camarilla.

Disciplines: Potence, Celerity, Presence Flaw — Rage: Hunger caps at 4.

Gangrel — Aren Konway

Aren Konway was born and raised in Kahnawá:ke, south of Montreal. Headstrong and unwilling to back down from any challenge, Aren got herself into more trouble than she can remember while growing up. Through her mother, she also gained a profound respect for the Mohawk traditions.

When Aren was in her early twenties, the Oka Crisis began, and Aren was on the front lines, defending the land and the people she grew up with. When the army forced the defenders to abandon their barricades, Aren went home, defeated — but instead of a warm home full of life, she found her house had been broken into. Scared, Aren sought shelter at a different house, that of her brother's. One evening, a man entered, dressed in a Canadian Army uniform, holding her brother's lifeless body.

That was the last straw. Aren jumped on the man, determined to make him pay for what he had done there, in that house; and for everything he represented. Unfortunately, the soldier proved to be more than human, and more than Aren could handle. Yet despite it all, she fought tooth and nail to the bitter end — and that may well be what saved her.

Unbeknownst to Aren, her fight was being observed by one Yuma McKenzie, a Gangrel vampire. To this night, Aren wonders why the man was spying on her — but she nonetheless remains grateful for his Embrace.

Now gifted with supernatural resilience and some wicked claws to boot, Aren embodies everything the Gangrel aspire to be. Fierce, bold, and strong, she takes her clan's motto to heart. In the vampire world, only the strong survive, and Aren is determined to be strong — and to stop at nothing in finding her brother's killer.

Disciplines: Protean - Feral, Fortitude, Animalism Flaw — Feral: -1 mental die for every 2 Hunger points (rounded down, maximum 2 dice penalty).

Malkavian — Harold Beaulieu

Growing up, Harold Beaulieu kept to himself, finding solace in puzzles and neo-noir movies from the '40s. His life as a psychologist was mostly uneventful until his Embrace, which exacerbated his already troublesome anxiety — but also bestowed upon him an insight beyond the reach of humans. Chosen to become a son of Malkav, his passion for logic and gift for analysis make him a great investigator.

In part to his heritage as a Malkavian, a clan many Kindred still see as mentally unstable, the Kindred community of Montreal often look down on Harold, perceiving him as a fragile vampire one word away from becoming a mess. However, unbeknownst to them, Harold's skills and vampiric powers give him an edge over the other members of the Camarilla. Whether through visions or his incredible deductive skills, Harold is extremely in tune with his environment — and with others' emotions. He can discern the true motives behind a Kindred's actions with little effort, and he always stays one step ahead. Of course, no one knows about this — not even his sire, Lydia. After all, in the Camarilla, it is always preferable to keep your cards to yourself and only use them at the most opportune moment.

Disciplines: Dominate - Dementation, Auspex, Obfuscate Flaw — Anxiety: -1 social die for every 2 Hunger points (rounded down, maximum 2 dice penalty).

Nosferatu — Lucianna Ricci

A renowned opera singer during the cultural revolution of the '60s, Lucianna Ricci was poised to become the voice of the artistic renewal of her generation when, walking home from an especially triumphant performance in Montreal, she heard the pleas of a beggar hidden in a nearby dark alcove. She ignored them, but the dark figure followed, relentless and persistent. Exhausted by the disgusting nature of the city and its people, Lucianna confronted the man in a singularly vitriolic and cruel manner.

Irony in punishment was ever a vice of Lucianna's sire, and as his fangs sank into her neck, he made her part of the ugliness she so despised. The curse of the Nosferatu took her beauty and her voice. Yet she remained resilient and willful, adapting and eventually thriving in her new existence — though mirrors were forevermore a painful reminder of what she had become.

Shying away from the brutal Sabbat-choked Montreal of that era, Lucianna found new purpose among the Camarilla as an informant from behind enemy lines. Her luxurious past was replaced by a solitary existence in abandoned corners of the sewers. Her mastery of the burgeoning metro system and unparalleled knowledge of the expanding Montreal underground shielded her from the sun, the Sabbat, and unsuspecting citizens who gawked at her hideous visage.

After hiding during the Night of Ashes, Lucianna was relieved to see a growing Camarilla presence in her city. Though she kept a constant eye out for Sabbat survivors, she was still shocked to discover a Priest of the fallen sect lurking around her sewers — and even more shocked when he savagely lunged at her...

Disciplines: Obfuscate, Potence, Animalism Flaw — Hideous Presence: Must take the level 1 Obfuscate card Mask of a Thousand Faces. You must use this Discipline to participate in a Dialogue sequence.

Toreador — Nico Miller

Nico Miller was meant to be a Toreador. During their living years, Nico was a talented artist who specialized in both painting and sculpture. Although they lived off their art, they weren't particularly famous, and could barely afford the essentials.

It was during this time that Nico's close friend Philippe Ducharme told them a secret: he was a vampire. For years afterward, Nico begged Philippe to Embrace them, hoping to see how the vampiric condition would alter their art, and what kind of perspective immortality would give them. Hesitant at first, Philippe made Nico wait so they could both think over the decision — but eventually relented and Embraced them one night during a retro party.

Nico has an eye for beauty, but they don't share the superficiality and vanity all too common in the Toreador. Gifted with a sharp mind and a good heart as well as a strong loyalty to those they care about, even after their Embrace, Nico has remained on good terms with their mortal friends. The recent disappearance of Philippe and their other vampire acquaintances has affected Nico deeply, and they now strive to seek justice for their associates and discover who is responsible for their disappearance.

Disciplines: Presence, Auspex, Celerity Flaw — Aesthetically Sensitive: In Chapters marked by this symbol*, Nico feels uncomfortable and suffers a -1 die penalty for all their Skill checks.

*This symbol is mentioned in the "Setup" section of the Storybook page corresponding to the Chapter.

Tremere — Jade Linh-Duplessis

Jade is a young woman of Chinese and Quebecer descent. While alive, she was a brilliant student of medicine at McGill University, well on her way to her master's. Jade specialized in microbiology — more specifically in hematology and blood disorders. Her research gave her the opportunity to speak at the Annual Hematology Convention in Atlanta, Georgia. Her ambition and studious persona saw her sought after by both the Ventrue and the Tremere clans of Montreal. The Tremere got to her first, preying on her thirst for knowledge to drive her to Blood Sorcery. The Montreal Chantry, as the local Tremere call themselves, could not be happier to count Jade among their number. She took to Blood magic like a fish to water, vindicating the Montreal Chantry in their choice of recruit.

Using her prior knowledge of hematology combined with her newly acquired knowledge of Blood resonance, Jade has begun studying the link between vampiric powers and the emotional state of their prey. Montreal's Sheriff, Caleb, has also taken an interest in Jade, and often calls upon her to deal with important matters where the Traditions have been broken. Her ambition will prove invaluable to the coterie and the city.

Disciplines: Blood Sorcery - Thaumaturgy, Auspex, Dominate - Compel Flaw — Usurper's Blood: Unable to perform Blood Surge (see p.36).

Ventrue — Samuel Armstrong

Samuel Armstrong is a direct descendant of the Prince of Vancouver. Before being made into a vampire, Samuel was a rich lawyer, a job he kept as a cover even after his Embrace. Seeing the opportunity as a way to increase his dignitas, Samuel volunteered to move from Vancouver to Montreal to act as a mediator at the court of Martin Hilkers. To Samuel's dismay, over the years he's spent in town, he's learned how poorly the Prince is managing his domain. Unwilling to be lumped with Hilkers in the eyes of local Kindred, Samuel has begun to show the community just how a true Ventrue ought to act, taking a more active hand in the issues arising from Hilkers's mismanagement. He now spends his nights putting out the metaphorical fires that burn across Montreal. Thanks to his diplomacy and natural leadership skills, even the Anarchs are forced to admit Samuel is "not like the other Ventrue around here." His tireless efforts have made him the person to see when a problem emerges, sometimes even before an Elysium is called. He knows he is treading a dangerous line — but to Samuel, the reputation of his entire bloodline is at stake, and he will not sit back while an incompetent upstart ruins it for everyone.

Disciplines: Presence, Dominate - Compel, Fortitude Flaw — High Standards: Cannot reduce Hunger via an animal.

Recommended for experienced players! There are clanless vampires. They are referred to as Caitiff. Abandoned after the Embrace, they are left to fend for themselves. They have no clan and are like a blank page, yours to appropriate.

Caitiff — Gabe Tremblay

Gabriel is a Caitiff, which means he has no inherent clan, nor any of the characteristics associated with one. As if that weren't enough, he's amnesic and can't recall much about his past. All he knows is that he was Embraced back when the Sabbat were in charge.

Normally, Caitiff are looked down on, viewed with pity or outright rejected by other Kindred. However, Gabe's good looks and jaded attitude saw him taken in by Betty, the Toreador Harpy — luckily or unluckily for him, since Betty knows about everyone and everything. Even though her social vivacity means she never shuts up, Gabriel is happy to use her for his own protection, and to help him navigate Kindred society in the hope of uncovering his past.

Disciplines: Choose your own set of 3 Disciplines (no restrictions) Flaw — Lack of Lineage: Discipline's XP cost increased (see grid on Character Sheet).

Create Your Own Character (by choosing the Caitiff)

While every other playable character has a past, a personality, and a preset Character Sheet, Gabe Tremblay is a Caitiff. In the World of Darkness, Caitiff are often perceived as low-class — but this condition confers them a certain amount of freedom. Playing a Caitiff gives players the opportunity to create a Character Sheet from scratch.

To create your own character, distribute the following points as you see fit:

• One Attribute at 3, two Attributes at 2 (while respecting the Attribute/Skill restriction — see p.19)
• 60 XP to spend on Skill levels (any combination)
• Two level 1 Disciplines

Example: You are playing Gabe Tremblay. You decide to put 3 points in Gabe's MENTAL Attribute and 2 points each in his SOCIAL and PHYSICAL Attributes. Following the XP rules on p.22, you spend 18 XP to increase Gabe Tremblay's SEARCH Skill level from 0 to 3 (3+6+9 XP). You spend 9 XP to increase Gabe's PERSUASION Skill level to 2 (3+6 XP). You now have 33 XP left, which you spend according to the same rules until you have no XP left.

Note: You must spend all 60 XP when creating a Caitiff.

Derived stats (as shown on the Character Sheet):

• Damage tracker: PHYSICAL Attribute x2
• Willpower tracker: SOCIAL Attribute + MENTAL Attribute
• Humanity level: 7
• Active Hand: PHYSICAL Attribute + MENTAL Attribute

Additional Clans

The World of Darkness is home to many vampire clans, some of which are rare and scattered. Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS offers the opportunity to incarnate four of these less common clans.

These characters appear at given moments over the course of the main Campaign. You will not see any of these characters' unique choices until you reach the moment in the Campaign when these characters are introduced.

Banu Haqim — Aaron Wissal

Aaron Wissal is an enigmatic figure by design. Very little is known about him — even down to his name, which is likely fake. Rumors heard through previous employers and people claiming to know him say he might have been a Buddhist monk Embraced after a violent raid against his home. Others say he willingly sought the Embrace to help him avenge a past slight. Aaron won't confirm or deny these rumors about him, content to let people wonder.

Blessed with an ambiguous physique and unremarkable features, a renowned hit man in Kindred circles, Aaron is hard to pinpoint in a crowd or pick out from a police lineup — something he has often used to his advantage. Mercenary-minded, Aaron is quiet to the point of being unnerving, and takes advantage of this when the jobs he's assigned necessitate intimidation. He sees his jobs as no more distasteful or pleasant than any day job. His only concern is completing them methodically and efficiently, and he is loath to leave anything to chance.

Having had issues connecting with mortals and even more so with other Kindred, Aaron feels a kinship with the city of Montreal instead. Its bright, lamppost-filled streets, the smells of late-night restaurants spilling onto the sidewalks, the thick, sweaty atmosphere of summer festivals…Aaron has traveled the breadth of the world for odd jobs, but had he any choice in the matter, the City of a Hundred Steeples is where he would rather lurk, kill, and feed.

Disciplines: Blood Sorcery - Quietus, Celerity, Obfuscate Flaw — Blood Cursed: When Aaron enters Frenzy, all characters and NPCs within 2 HEXES of him take 2 unpreventable damage. Characters in this area also increase their Hunger by 1.

Hecata — Aurora Rosselini

"Ancora Tra Noi." "Circus of Vanishing Children." "Winter of the Faceless." Only the most devout horror film enthusiasts still talk about these obscure cult classics. And to know any of these titles is to also know Aurora Rosselini, the lead actress and often tragic protagonist. Born in Montefalco, Aurora has been pushed in front of cameras from a very young age. Her pale complexion, strangely calm voice, and mature demeanor charmed audiences and made her perfect for the ever-popular Giallo films, horror thrillers that became part of her brand when she caught the eye of Hollywood producers, and it brought her into the limelight.

The strangely eerie aura that accompanied Aurora worked well for the newly crowned "scream queen," and there is no doubt she would have ascended to stardom if not for the strange misfortunes that seemed to befall the productions she was associated with: fires. Unexplained disappearances. Baffling distortions of an otherwise perfect shot. While shooting They Always Watch, the male lead suddenly started speaking in tongues, and his body bent in unnatural ways as he started killing the crew one by one. The movie was never released, of course, but should someone watch the last scene filmed, they would see a mortally wounded Aurora gasping for help, and a tall gaunt woman snapping the neck of the frenzied actor before whisking her out of frame and out of the limelight forever.

Although national newspapers claimed otherwise, Aurora's story did not end that night. Spared a painful death, she felt only undying gratitude and love for Charlotte Milliner, her savior. For years, she learned of the Kindred and the Hecata, and of the strange phenomena that had plagued her all her life — as well as how to no longer be victim to them, and instead bend them to her will.

But when she moved with her sire to New Orleans, they found that the vengeful spirit who had possessed Aurora's co-star — a spirit called the Surgeon — was well intent on finishing the job, and on making Aurora's last scream his to enjoy...

Disciplines: Oblivion - Necromancy, Auspex, Fortitude Flaw — Painful Kiss: Start with 5 Humanity. When feeding on an NPC during a Chapter, roll a red die. On a skull, lose 1 Humanity.

Lasombra — Edward Harvey

Edward Harvey grew up on the streets of New York, but his sharp mind and ruthless ambition secured him a place studying law at Harvard. His tuition fees were paid by his well-connected friends, and after he graduated, he worked for the mob, helping to launder money and legitimize their business interests. Unafraid to get his hands dirty, he enthusiastically participated in blackmail, extortion, and worse.

Edward had few friends, but stayed close to what little remained of his family, who were unaware of the lines he had crossed and the secrets he kept. That all changed when he was approached by a sadistic Lasombra from Chicago, who had been watching his colorful career. After explaining his true nature, the vampire made him a one-time offer: immortality, in exchange for the lives of Edward's sister and her daughter. Edward resisted at first, but the seed was planted in the dark recesses of his mind. Over the next few months, the Lasombra ruined Edward's life from the shadows, eventually forcing him to accept the offer.

For years following his Embrace, Edward's sire tormented him — all in the twisted hope that it would make Edward more resilient and ruthless. The torture escalated until the childe dispatched his sire — or so Edward thought.

Now free of his maker, Edward Harvey made his way to New York, intent on picking up where he was forced to leave off. To his dismay, Edward returned to the Big Apple only to find his sire entrenched in the New York underworld. Unable to overthrow his diabolical sire a second time, Edward took Lady Van Burrace up on her offer to migrate to Montreal as her agent. Here, he would be free to build his network, his army, and his power, and get back at his sire once and for all.

Disciplines: Oblivion - Obtenebration, Potence, Dominate - Compel Flaw — Ruthless: Start with 5 Humanity. Before playing your first Chapter, take the Glitch #80 Effect card.

Ministry — Melissa Santos

Melissa Santos once stood for freedom. Her unshakable faith in the responsibility the press had toward the people of a country was evident even from an early age. In high school, she pioneered an editorial-free newspaper to condemn her school's corrupt administration, almost getting herself kicked out despite her valedictorian grades. As soon as she graduated and went on to university, she plunged deeper into local and national politics, investigating the biggest crime lords in the area. Her blog, and her list of enemies, kept growing daily, with every new fact she brought to light about the moral turpitude, corruption, and profiteering in which her government was involved.

While looking into the FARCs, a group of drug lords and terrorists, Melissa ended up drawing their attention. While she was getting groceries at a local market, she was kidnapped by armed men in broad daylight, the witnesses too terrified to help.

Brought deep into their camp in the Amazonian jungle, they asked her to dismantle her blog and stop investigating their organization. Melissa refused. Each day they asked. Each day she refused. Each day, her treatment got worse.

One night, instead of her usual tormentors, a "priest" was brought in. Young and strangely handsome, his methods were curious and cruel. One night indulging all her needs, the other dosing her with strong psychedelics, covering her in spiders, or listening empathically to her life story. Through her unwavering willpower, she endured it all. Unwittingly learning from the man's methods, she started to sway her jailors to her side, listening and connecting with them with the same intensity and feigned benevolence he did.

It took months, but through these underhanded new methods, Melissa managed to make "friends" with some of the FARCs assigned to guard her, and finally managed to manipulate them into giving her an opening to escape. She ran through the wilds for three days and three nights before collapsing, exhausted. Having followed her, the priest, impressed by her unshakable faith and silver tongue, sank his fangs into her neck in the middle of the deforested waste of the Amazonian rainforest.

From her sire, Melissa learned about the Ministry and their purpose: to expose lies and lift the veil from the eyes of the blind, show people their true nature through the nine Gates of their own desires, and destabilize the powers that be. Although Melissa didn't subscribe to the entirety of her sire's beliefs, their views aligned enough that she wasn't opposed to him. They spent the next months hunting her former captors, the priest offering his new childe the gift of vengeance to seal their relationship in blood and divine retribution.

Disciplines: Protean - Serpentis, Presence, Obfuscate Flaw — Enemy of the Light: Take 1 unpreventable damage when you begin your turn on a HEX adjacent to a Fire token.

Character Board

Your Character Board features your character's Damage, Willpower, and Hunger trackers. The size of the first two of these trackers is determined by a character's Attribute levels.

• Damage tracker: PHYSICAL Attribute x 2 (e.g., PHYSICAL Attribute = 3; Damage tracker = 6)
• Willpower tracker: SOCIAL + MENTAL Attributes (e.g., SOCIAL Attribute = 3 and MENTAL Attribute = 2; Willpower tracker = 5)
• Hunger tracker: All characters except Thomas Chartrand have 5 Hunger points available.

When one of your trackers is empty, remove the cube from the tracker. Only put it on the tracker once you have increased it by 1. For example, when starting most Chapters, there shouldn't be any cubes on the Damage and Willpower trackers, and one cube in the first slot of your Hunger tracker (since Hunger begins at 1).

Your character's Attribute levels will increase during the Campaign, as will the available points in their Damage and Willpower trackers. Use the tracker covers to hide the points to which you don't yet have access.

Example: If you have 6 available points on your Damage tracker (3 in PHYSICAL), use 4 tracker covers to hide the 4 remaining points on the right side of the tracker. The same principle applies for your Willpower tracker.

Damage

A character can take two types of Damage: "regular" Damage, and Unpreventable Damage. You can use Resistance tokens to reduce the regular Damage you take (called preventing Damage), but you can never reduce Unpreventable Damage with Resistance tokens.

Note: Throughout the game, "regular" Damage is simply called Damage, or Dmg for short, while Unpreventable Damage will be abbreviated as UDmg.

To track your character's Damage, move the red cube from left to right on their Damage tracker.

Example: During Combat, Aren Konway sustains 4 points of Damage from an enemy. She survives the Combat round with 2 Damage points left.

A character's Damage tracker automatically resets at the beginning of a new Chapter. A character can also recover from the Damage they've taken by using the vampiric ability MEND DAMAGE (see p.36). When your Damage tracker is full and you take one more Damage, you fall into Torpor (see p.35).

You can increase the points available in a character's Damage tracker by using experience points (XP) to increase their PHYSICAL Attribute.

Damage Tracker

The Damage tracker represents how much Damage your character can sustain before entering Torpor. If a character is sent into Torpor, they must be removed from the tile and can no longer interact with the Chapter.

To calculate the maximum Damage a character can take before entering Torpor, multiply their PHYSICAL Attribute by 2.

Example: Aren Konway starts with a PHYSICAL Attribute of 3. Therefore, she can take 6 points of Damage (PHYSICAL Attribute of 3 x 2) before entering Torpor.

Willpower Tracker

Willpower represents your character's ability to concentrate on a specific task in order to get their way. After making a Skill check, you can use 1 Willpower point to re-roll up to 3 Black Dice in an effort to increase your number of successes.

To calculate a character's maximum Willpower, add their MENTAL + SOCIAL Attribute values.

Note: A player can use a number of Willpower points up to their maximum Willpower in one turn.

Example: Samuel starts with a SOCIAL Attribute of 3 and a MENTAL Attribute of 2, for a total of 5 Willpower points. While attempting to use the PERSUASION Skill against a Vampire NPC during a Dialogue, Samuel requires 4 successes to convince his interlocutor. He has 3 points in his PERSUASION Skill, and thus has 3 automatic successes. Unfortunately, after rolling 3 Dice (thanks to his SOCIAL Attribute level of 3), he does not obtain any additional successes (bad luck!). Samuel then spends 1 Willpower point to re-roll the 3 Black Dice associated with his 3 SOCIAL Attribute points, increasing his Willpower tracker from 0 to 1. This time, he obtains 2 additional successes, giving him a total of 5 successes. He thus passes the check.

A character's Willpower points reset at the beginning of a new Chapter. You can increase a character's available Willpower points by using experience points (XP) to increase their MENTAL or SOCIAL Attribute levels. If you spend a point of Willpower while your character's Willpower tracker is filled, your character falls into a state of Fatigue. (For the rules on Fatigue, see p.35.)

Hunger Tracker

Hunger represents the Beast. The Beast is an egoistic, power mongering, and sadistic force that inhabits all vampires. It urges you to kill, dominate, and control your surroundings.

When attempting to accomplish a task, swap 1 Black Die for 1 Red Die for each Hunger point you have.

Note: You may not re-roll a Red Die with Willpower.

If your Hunger would give you more Dice to roll than you normally would, for instance if you would normally have 3 Black Dice, but are at Hunger 4, you roll 4 Red Dice.

Players start each Chapter with 1 Hunger point (before Feeding Events — see p.24).

If a character is at their maximum Hunger level and gains another Hunger point (by failing a Rouse check or through a prompt), the character enters Frenzy (see p.35 for the rules on Frenzy).

Some Events and Dialogues will vary depending on your Hunger level. Be careful, the higher your Hunger, the worse the consequences!

Character Sheet

Your Character Sheet contains information about your character's Attributes, Skills, and Disciplines, and serves as a place to record the experience points (XP) you gain over the course of the Campaign.

Attributes

Attributes represent the innate abilities a character uses when attempting to accomplish a specific PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, or MENTAL task:

• PHYSICAL: Represents a character's general physical ability (strength, dexterity, or stamina) when making a PHYSICAL Skill check (e.g., PHYSICAL Attribute + BRAWL Skill during a Combat).
• SOCIAL: Represents a character's general social ability (charisma, manipulation, or composure) when making a SOCIAL Skill check (e.g., SOCIAL Attribute + PERSUASION Skill during a Dialogue).
• MENTAL: Represents a character's general mental ability (intelligence, wits, and resolve) when making a MENTAL Skill check (e.g., MENTAL Attribute + SEARCH Skill during an Investigation).

During a Skill check (see p.34), a player rolls a number of Dice equal to their character's Attribute level.

Skills

Skills are areas of expertise. A character's Skill level in a certain area determines how many automatic successes they receive when attempting to accomplish a specific PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, or MENTAL check. The number of automatic successes they receive equals the number of check marks they have in the relevant Skill.

All Skills are divided according to the Attribute to which they belong (PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, or MENTAL):

PHYSICAL Skills:

• ATHLETICS: Your ability to perform feats of strength and agility.
• BRAWL: Your ability to fight and dodge.
• WEAPONS: Your ability to fight with weapons (Melee and Ranged).
• STEALTH: Your ability to sneak, ambush, and stay undetected.

SOCIAL Skills:

• PERSUASION: Your ability to convince others through charm or reason.
• INSIGHT: Your ability to understand what motivates others.
• SUBTERFUGE: Your ability to lie, be deceitful, or be crafty.
• INTIMIDATION: Your ability to use fear, coercion, or threats to convince others.

MENTAL Skills:

• SEARCH: Your ability to look, find evidence, and discover clues.
• AWARENESS: How perceptive you are of your environment.
• OCCULT: Your knowledge of the supernatural world.
• TECHNOLOGY: Your ability to hack computers, alarms, and phones, and to use modern tools.

Attribute/Skills Restriction Rule

A character's Skill level may not exceed (but may equal) the character's corresponding Attribute level. For example, a character with a SOCIAL Attribute of 2 may not have 3 points in the PERSUASION Skill.

Disciplines

Disciplines are the unique sets of vampiric powers found in each clan. To use a Discipline power, vampires must use part of the Vampiric blood (or "Blood") contained in their body. This Blood use brings them closer to becoming starved of blood, which grants the Beast inside them more control.

To reflect this, you must make a Rouse check every time you use a Discipline power. (For more information on Rouse checks, see p.35.)

Each Character Sheet also records: Character name and clan, Character flaw, Attributes, Skills, Disciplines, XP, and an XP cost reminder.

Disciplines List

• ANIMALISM: Communicate with and manipulate animals and the Beast within each Kindred.
• AUSPEX: Gain supernatural senses and understanding of your environment.
• DOMINATE - COMPEL: Force your victim to obey you.
• DOMINATE - DEMENTATION: Use your mental abilities to attack the minds of others.
• PRESENCE: Supernatural charm and persuasion.
• POTENCE: Supernatural strength.
• CELERITY: Supernatural speed.
• PROTEAN - FERAL: Infuse your body with wolflike abilities.
• PROTEAN - SERPENTIS: Infuse your body with serpentlike abilities.
• OBFUSCATE: Mask your appearance and avoid detection.
• FORTITUDE: Supernatural resilience of the body and mind.
• BLOOD SORCERY - THAUMATURGY: Perform rituals and use magical abilities.
• BLOOD SORCERY - QUIETUS: Use Blood magic to improve your Combat abilities.
• OBLIVION - OBTENEBRATION: Call upon the shadows to assist you in Combat.
• OBLIVION - NECROMANCY: Call upon the dead to do your bidding.

Note: Read the various Discipline cards to discover what each Discipline does in more detail.

Experience Points (XP)

Over the course of the game, you will collect experience points (XP), which you can use to increase your character's Attribute, Discipline and Skill levels. Make a note of any XP you collect at the bottom of your Character Sheet, as you will be able to transfer these points to a different character if you decide to switch characters over the course of the Campaign.

Whenever XP is gained, it is gained by all members of the coterie whether or not they participated in the Chapter.

Note: After the Prologues, changing characters is permanent; if you change characters, you cannot switch back to your previous character later in the Campaign. Only XP is transferred between characters, so you must discard your character Effect, Item, and Humanity cards when changing characters. Coterie Effect cards remain.

Your new character has access to all the Combat cards their levels in Skills and Disciplines allow, including the Hollow cards if they were earned during the Campaign.

Taking Notes

As you play through each Chapter, in addition to XP, you will collect clues, Boons, information regarding specific characters, and more. You can use the back of your Character Sheet to keep track of all of this important information. We also strongly recommend recording all the Feeding Events you complete, since each event can be completed only once.

Finalizing Your Character

Once you have chosen your clan or created a Caitiff, you must select a Humanity card, assemble your Combat deck, and choose your Discipline power cards.

Humanity Cards

Humanity is a measure of how close a vampire is to the human they once were. It is their last protection against the Beast within — the part of them that constantly craves power, blood, and control. As a vampire ages, the Beast gnaws away at their Humanity, tearing it to shreds as the decades pass.

Characters lose Humanity by committing terrible deeds such as murder, diablerie, and other immoral acts. Altruistic actions can help minimize Humanity loss, but characters can never regain lost Humanity.

Unless otherwise noted, a character begins the game with a Humanity of 7.

At the start of the game, you must select a Humanity card corresponding to your current Humanity rating. When you lose Humanity, discard this card and replace it with one corresponding to your new Humanity rating. Some ratings confer benefits, which are detailed at the bottom of the card.

Combat Deck

Your Combat deck consists of all the Combat cards to which your character has access, depending on their level in the ATHLETICS, BRAWL, STEALTH, and WEAPONS Skills; or their levels in certain Disciplines. Every character, regardless of skill level, has access to a basic Combat deck that includes the cards listed in the table below.

Character Combat Base Deck:

• BRAWL: Punch, Low Kick, Guard, Bite
• WEAPON: Slash, Spray

When creating your character, ignore any Hollow Combat cards, or Combat cards linked to alternate forms (wolf and snake). These cards may become available later on during the Campaign, if your character meets their prerequisites.

Many additional Combat cards will become available as they are unlocked during the Campaign. As you improve your character and increase their levels in the ATHLETICS, BRAWL, STEALTH, and WEAPON Skills, or certain Disciplines, add any newly available cards to your Combat deck.

Example: Lucianna Ricci begins the game with 2 levels in BRAWL. In addition to the base Combat deck, she receives the HIGH KICK, UPPERCUT, and HOOK Combat cards for her first level in BRAWL, and the IPPON Combat card for her second level in BRAWL. When Lucianna's BRAWL Skill reaches level 3, add the ARM BAR and SKULL CRUSHER Combat cards to her Combat deck.

Note: Not every level in a skill will unlock a new Combat card. For example, reaching level 3 in ATHLETICS will not, but reaching level 4 will.

Some Combat cards also bestow an additional Effect. These Effects occur after the card has been used to attack or defend.

Active Hand

At the beginning of a Combat, each player selects their active hand (see p.44) from their character's base Combat deck and the cards corresponding to their ATHLETICS, BRAWL, WEAPONS, and STEALTH Skill levels.

Discipline Power Cards

Consider your character's Disciplines and their respective levels, and select the Discipline power cards that correspond to your character's level in each Discipline.

You may only select 1 Discipline power card for each level your character has in a Discipline.

Example: If you are playing Samuel Armstrong, you begin a Campaign with the Discipline card CLOUD MEMORY (DOMINATE - COMPEL - level 1), and your choice between the AWE and DREAD GAZE (PRESENCE - level 1) cards.

As your character progresses throughout the Campaign, they'll be able to increase their Discipline level and unlock higher-level Discipline power cards.

When you increase a Discipline level, the new power card that you gain does not replace any that you already had. It is added to the Discipline power cards you already possess.

Power Restriction

When a character increases their Discipline level, they must select 1 new Discipline power card. Sometimes, the player will have to choose between two different Discipline power cards. They must choose only one, and cannot change it for the remainder of the Campaign.

Types of Discipline Power Cards

There are two types of Discipline power cards: active and immediate.

• An immediate Discipline power card takes effect immediately after it is played, and its effect stops after this single use.
• An active Discipline power remains active for the duration noted on the card, or until the player decides to use another active Discipline power — whichever comes first. Sometimes, an event may call for an active Discipline power to end.

Immediate Discipline powers can be used even while an active Discipline power is already in play.

Set-Up

Before Starting a Chapter

Before starting a Chapter (except a Prologue), you can do each of the following, in order:

• Spend XP to level your character's Attributes, Skills, and Disciplines
• Use Boons to buy Item cards from Alex's inventory
• Set your Hunger to 1 unless you complete a Feeding Event
• Choose your Items for the Chapter
• Choose your coterie Allies, if any

When you are ready to begin the Chapter, read the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook. There, you will find:

• The Chapter's narrative introduction
• Instructions on how to set up the Chapter (which tile to use, which NPCs are involved and where to set them, etc.)
• The coterie's goal for the Chapter (e.g., Find out what the ghoul is doing)
• The first action you must perform to begin playing (e.g., READ EVENT E.1)

Spending XP

At the beginning of a Chapter, you can use the XP you've earned to increase your character's Attribute, Skill, and Discipline levels.

Refer to the tables below when increasing your character's levels:

XP Cost per Attribute point:

Level	1	2	3	4	5
XP Cost	4	8	12	16	20

XP Cost per Skill point:

Level	1	2	3	4	5
XP Cost	3	6	9	12	15

XP Cost per Discipline point:

Level	1	2	3
XP Cost	5	10	15

Attribute/Skill Restriction Rule

A character's Skill level may not exceed (but may equal) the character's corresponding Attribute level. For example, a character with a SOCIAL Attribute of 2 may not have 3 points in the PERSUASION Skill.

Incremental Increase Rule

You can increase your character's Skill, Attribute, and Discipline levels only one level at a time.

Example: If your character has 2 levels in the SEARCH Skill and you wish to reach level 4, you must first spend 9 XP to reach level 3. You must then spend an additional 12 XP to reach level 4.

XP advice: Always keep a record of your total XP in the XP section on your Character Sheet.

XP gained during the Campaign belongs to you, the player, and is transferred to any new character you choose to play. You can transfer the XP you've already gained to this new character. This also applies to any additional characters who might appear later on in the Campaign.

Note: XP is attributed to a player, not to a specific character. All XP gained is shared amongst all players, including those gained during a Prologue.

Trading Boons

Boons serve as currency in the form of favors, commodities, and eternal debts among vampires. During the Campaign, characters will find, earn, and spend Boons.

After the Prologues and between Chapters, players can trade Boons for specific Items with the NPC Alex Simard, whose inventory can be found on p.168 in the Storybook. In some Chapters, you may be asked to trade Boons to open new avenues of Dialogue or Investigation.

Boons belong to the coterie as a whole. You must collectively decide how to spend them.

Silver Boons have a value of 1 Boon while gold ones are worth 5. Whenever you have 5 Boons, replace your current silver coins for one gold coin so that you always have Boon coins available in the game box. If you need to, you can break up 1 gold coin into 5 silver ones (such as when buying equipment from Alex).

Item Cards

Item cards can feature weapons, tools, and accessories. You can collect Items by talking to various NPCs, investigating areas, earning them by playing Chapters throughout the Campaign, using Boons to buy them from the NPC Alex Simard between Chapters (before setting up the next Chapter), or obtaining them as rewards. Items serve multiple purposes, like enhancing your Skills, providing blood to reduce your Hunger, or serving as weapons in Combat. Many Items are considered high-value finds.

Items are shared within the coterie, but can only be used by 1 player at a time, but never by Allies.

Example: When a character acquires an Item through a Dialogue or an Investigation, the character keeps the Item until the end of the Chapter, unless they want to trade it to another player. Once a Chapter ends, the Item belongs to the coterie, which decides as a group who takes what Item for the next Chapter.

When you begin a Chapter, determine which Items you'd like to take (maximum 3 Items per player) and which player gets them.

Example: The coterie has the "BLOOD BAG," "KITCHEN KNIFE," "HANDGUN," and "SPECIAL UMBRELLA" Items. Before the Chapter begins, distribute them as you see fit regardless of who originally acquired them. One character may end up with the "HANDGUN" and the "BLOOD BAG" while the other two have the "KITCHEN KNIFE" and "SPECIAL UMBRELLA," respectively. Alternatively, one character could take up to 3 Items, and leave just 1 Item to be given to one of the two other players.

As one of your actions during a sequence, players can trade an Item with a player whose character is located on a HEX adjacent to their own character. Both players must agree to the trade for it to take effect.

Example: You have the "KITCHEN KNIFE" Item, but your character does not have any points in the WEAPONS Skill. Another player character in your coterie does, however. They can take and use the "KITCHEN KNIFE," even if they weren't the one to obtain the Item originally.

Items found during a Chapter do not count as part of your 3 allotted Items. You will, however, have to decide which 3 Items you would like your character to keep at the start of the next Chapter.

If an instruction tells you to take an Item card during a Chapter and there are no more Item cards of this Item (such as having bought all copies of it at Alex's), disregard the instruction and keep playing.

Trade restriction rule: Item cards cannot be traded during a Dialogue, Event, or Investigation sequence. During Combat, you can use your action to trade an Item with an adjacent character.

Certain Items must be discarded after use. When discarding an Item, place it back in the game box. To use this Item again in the future, you will have to acquire it again, whether by purchasing it or by finding it again during a Chapter.

Example: The "SET OF KEYS" Item card has a note which says, "Discard at the end of the Chapter." The "HANDGUN" Item card, however, does not. The player must return the "SET OF KEYS" Item card to the game box once the Chapter ends, whereas they can keep the "HANDGUN" Item card over multiple Chapters.

Item cards may not be traded for Boons. Once acquired, Items may not be sold.

Note: Even though your character has two hands, you can only use one Weapon Item card at any given time.

Note: Weapon Item cards must be used in conjunction with a WEAPONS combat card for their effect to take place. You cannot, for instance, combine the "KITCHEN KNIFE" with the "UPPERCUT" Combat card, as it is not a WEAPONS combat card. Weapons can only be used in combat and do not apply their effects outside of it.

Each Item card shows: a card number or nature, the Item name, its effect, and its duration (if any).

Feeding Events

As a group, the coterie can decide to engage in a Feeding Event before every new Chapter, unless otherwise indicated. This hunting session offers characters a collective opportunity to quench their blood thirst between Chapters. If successful, this lowers each character's Hunger level to 0 (or more if your Humanity is low). Sometimes, a Feeding Event can also result in a character gaining specific rewards or penalties.

Humans cannot recall being fed on by Kindred — due in part to the fact that a vampire's Kiss — as vampires refer to biting to feed — imparts a feeling of euphoria and calm, unless the vampire is a member of the Hecata clan. This subdues the prey while the vampire is busy draining them of their blood, and ensures the mortal will not suddenly become aware of the existence of Kindred. This way, vampires can hunt without needing to kill, and humans are none the wiser.

Like the Chapters of the main Campaign, Feeding Events are a group activity in which all players participate together.

Initiating a Feeding Event

To begin a Feeding Event, first look at the map of Montreal on p.164-165 of the Storybook. Your coterie's Status (see p.31) will determine which districts are available to you. You can only choose a district with a level equal to or lower than your current Status. All level 0 districts are always available, regardless of your Status. Once you have chosen a district, choose your Feeding Event from the available list.

You can only play a Feeding Event once. Every time you complete a Feeding Event, note it somewhere so you remember. If you have already completed every Feeding Events available to your Status rank, you must start the next Chapter without initiating a Feeding Event.

Resolving a Feeding Event

Read the introductory narrative in the Feeding Events Booklet. This narrative will offer you a choice between two approaches to feeding, each based on one of the 3 Attributes (PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, and MENTAL). As a group, choose between the two options offered.

Note: Certain choices may grant some characters bonus Dice; however, that does not mean this choice will be easier than the other. Choose at your own risk! Example: +1 Die if Samuel Armstrong is in the coterie.

Once your choice is made, each player rolls a number of Black Dice equal to their character's level in the chosen Attribute. Tally the number of successes each player rolls, then turn the page and consult the table to find the appropriate Difficulty for your check. If the number of successes you rolled is equal to or greater than the Difficulty listed in the table, the coterie succeeds. Read the success paragraph. If you roll fewer successes than the listed Difficulty, read the failure paragraph.

Example: If you chose a PHYSICAL approach to feeding, each player must roll a number of Dice equal to the number of points their character has in their PHYSICAL Attribute. If the sum of all the successes rolled is equal to or greater than the check's Difficulty, the group succeeds. Otherwise, you fail.

Note: You can use Willpower during a Feeding Event, but before turning the page to see how many successes you need. This is by design; it represents the risks you take choosing, stalking, and attacking your prey. You do not recover any Willpower you spend during a Feeding Event when you start a Chapter.

Note: You cannot use the Blood (i.e., use Disciplines or perform a BLOOD SURGE) or use item cards during a Feeding Event.

If the Feeding Event rewards you with an Effect card or an Item card, choose a player to take it, unless otherwise stated. You can now begin the next Chapter.

Choosing a Chapter

Choose a Chapter from the choices offered in the conclusion of the previous Chapter. Unless stated otherwise, you can choose to play an optional Side Quest ("Ancient Paths," "The Hollow," and "Obscure Past") at any point between main Chapters, once they become available.

You may play a character's Prologue at any time during the Campaign. But, to ensure the most immersive experience, we recommend playing the Chapters of additional clan characters only as they are unlocked throughout the Campaign.

Note: When playing a side quest, all Chapters for that side quest must be completed before resuming the main Campaign, unless stated otherwise (such as in "The Hollow"). For example, you finish reading "Interlude" n°1 and decide to start "Ancient Paths". You must complete "Ancient Paths" n°1 and n°2 before returning to the main Campaign.

Starting a Chapter

1. To set up a Chapter, open the Storybook to the page corresponding to the Chapter you intend to play and read the introduction at the top of the page. Then read the setup section at the bottom of the page.
2. Set all the indicated elements on your gaming table (tile, tokens, NPC standees, etc.).
3. Finally, select the corresponding Chapter Booklet.

Example: If you're about to play Chapter 17, take the Chapter 17 Booklet.

Note: Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS is designed to be played more than once. Sometimes, you might unlock new Chapters by making different choices — leading to new gameplay tactics, dialogue options, and surprising events. In this way, each new Campaign offers a different gaming experience.

Storybook (Chapter's Introduction Page)

Each Chapter starts with a narrative introduction found in the Storybook. This establishes the Chapter's setting and provides context, informing players what their characters are currently doing, what their goal is, and where to start.

Example: The introduction to Chapter 1 discusses the coterie's Investigation into the disappearance of other vampires. Their objective is to deal with the Sabbat Priest. The setup section indicates which NPCs are present and which are Dialogue NPCs in this Chapter, as well as where they should be set on the tile; and shows where to set terrain tokens. The conclusion summarizes the clues the coterie has uncovered and informs players where they should go next.

Players should only read the conclusion on the back of the introduction page if their characters achieve their goal for the Chapter, since this text explains the aftermath of the events that occurred during the Chapter, as well as the characters' next steps. You can always read previous Chapters' conclusions to refresh your memory of past events. However, we strongly suggest you avoid reading any unplayed Chapters' introductions, as this could spoil the story and alter your experience of the game.

Each introduction page (recto) shows: the Chapter number and title, the narrative introduction, the narrative conclusion, the objective (what you are supposed to achieve during this Chapter), the reward (XP, cards, and Boons), the first action players must take at the start of the Chapter, which Chapter(s) can be played next, and the initial Chapter setup (where to set NPCs, Action tokens, and Investigation Area tokens on the tile).

Chapter Tile

At the beginning of most Chapters, players must set up a Chapter tile depicting the location where the Chapter will take place. Most of these locations are set in the city of Montreal, where the Campaign occurs, allowing players to discover iconic landmarks, intimate havens, and underground areas that anchor your characters in the story and offer advanced gameplay challenges. Some Chapters may see player characters visit more than one location, and therefore feature multiple tiles. Boards featuring Chapter tiles are printed on both sides, so that each board features two tiles. When you set up a Chapter, select the tile corresponding to the Chapter you're about to play, as indicated in the setup section of the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook.

Example: You are about to play the second Chapter, "A Ghoul at the Flour Mill." To begin the Chapter, take tile #9 from the game box and set it up as indicated on the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook.

Each tile is divided into several hexagons referred to as HEXES. Most HEXES are drawn in dashed lines, but certain HEXES have solid borders, denoting walls that block Lines of Sight. No character, including NPCs, can Move through these solid borders.

Note: Sometimes, you will be asked to change the setup during a Chapter. When this happens, only the new, or moved, elements will be shown. If an element is not shown (such as a difficult terrain token), it remains where it was.

Chapter Booklet

Each Chapter has its own Chapter Booklet, which contains all the possible Dialogues, Investigations, and Events found in the Chapter. Keep the Chapter Booklet handy as you play, as you will refer to it often.

• Dialogue (D): NPCs available for Dialogue are listed in the setup section of the introduction page. To begin a Dialogue sequence, your character must be on a HEX adjacent to the NPC to whom you wish to speak. Note: You can only speak to one NPC at a time. When beginning a Dialogue with an NPC, you will usually refer to Dialogue page D.1 for said NPC, then follow the instructions to complete the Dialogue sequence. More information on Dialogues can be found on p.41. Note: Some NPCs do not have Dialogue options, and are therefore not present in the Chapter Booklet's Dialogue section.
• Investigation (IN): When beginning an Investigation, your character must be on a HEX adjacent to the Investigation Area token of your choice. Investigation Areas are numbered 1 to 4. Make sure to refer to the corresponding page in the Investigation section of the Booklet. More information on Investigations can be found on p.42. Note: Investigation Areas can be explored in any order. Players are not obligated to start with the Investigation Area labeled #1.
• Event (E): Events provide narrative context that will make your gameplay experience more immersive, and may occasionally introduce additional NPCs. Various situations can trigger Events. When this occurs, follow the instructions on the page in the Chapter that triggered the Event. More information on Events can be found on p.37.

Overview of a Booklet Page

Pages in the chapter booklets are divided into two parts: Narrative (top) and Choices (bottom). The narrative part describes what is happening around you, what NPC's say or do, and sometimes your character's inner thoughts.

The choice part presents you with one or several avenues you may choose to continue the story. When you are given multiple choices of pages to read in the booklet, you are free to pick whichever choice the characters involved in that sequence qualify for.

Example: You are given two choices, one that requires a Skill check, and another that requires Samuel Armstrong be involved in the sequence. Since Samuel, who is in your coterie, but not currently involved in the sequence, you cannot choose the second option.

You may also see options that require you to have X+ or X- of an Attribute, Discipline level, Status, etc. You qualify for this choice if you have the amount written or more (in the case of X+), or the amount written and less (for X-).

Example: You encounter a choice that says: "IF YOU HAVE ANIMALISM LEVEL 2+, READ PAGE D.13". You can go to page D.13 if you have Animalism level 2 or 3, but not if your current Animalism level is 1 or 0.

If an option for which you qualify states that YOU MUST..., then stop reading immediately and follow the instruction. This is often used when an event would unexpectedly occur as a result of an action you took, a character you chose, or more.

Note: Sometimes, the YOU MUST choice appears in the Narrative part of the page. As with choices, stop reading and immediately follow the instruction if you qualify for them. Example: In a dialogue you are currently involved in, you are given three choices on a page. The first one reads: IF YOU HAVE CLUE TOKEN #1, YOU MUST READ PAGE D.3. The others are regular choices that would lead you to pages D.4 and D.5 respectively. Having found Clue Token #1 earlier in the Chapter, you cannot choose any other options and must read page D.3.

Note: You may be asked to set up Round trackers during the game. When you do so, the booklet will mention what to do when the Round tracker reaches 0. Whatever the instruction is (such as reading a specific page), treat it as a YOU MUST. It takes precedence over any other.

Ending a Chapter

A Chapter can end in one of two ways: success or failure. A Chapter is a success when the characters have accomplished the goal established on the introduction page in the Storybook. An Event or Dialogue page will indicate when the Chapter is finished by instructing you to read the conclusion on the back of the introduction page in the Storybook.

Some choices in Events and Dialogues can lead to a Chapter's failure. When this happens, you cannot move on to the next Chapter, and must replay the current Chapter again if you wish to progress in the Campaign. A Chapter also fails if every player character has been sent into Torpor or Frenzy.

When a Chapter ends, discard all your Clue tokens and Investigation success tokens unless otherwise indicated, and discard any appropriate items and Effect cards. If it fails, you must also discard all Effect and Item cards you earned while playing that Chapter.

NPC and Allies

NPC State Cards

Several Non-Playable Characters (NPCs) you encounter during the Campaign will have an NPC State card. When you set up an NPC's State card during the Chapter's setup, place it face down, so that only the NPC's name, Movement, Line of Sight (LoS), and attitude (Aggressive or Neutral) are visible.

Note: State card numbers may differ from standee numbers as some standees are often used to represent different NPCs.

Note: An NPC without a State card cannot be fought.

An NPC's Initiative, Attack, Resistance, and Damage tracker values will depend on the number of players (see p.10).

When setting up an enemy's Damage tracker, place the tracker on the pip appropriate for the amount of players (leftmost by default). Move the tracker right as the enemy takes Damage. When the tracker reaches the skull icon, it is Defeated and the NPC is removed from the tile.

Each NPC State card shows: the card number, NPC name, type & Combat deck, Movement, Line of Sight, attitude (Aggressive or Neutral), Initiative level, Attack level (amount of Damage delivered per Attack), Resistance (amount of Damage absorbed per Attack), the Damage tracker (the amount of Damage sustained by an NPC, adjusted for the number of players), and any SPECIAL Attacks (with their targeting and effect).

NPC's Attitude

An NPC's attitude indicates how they are likely to react to the players' actions. This allows, at a glance, to know whether or not it would be better to avoid them: Aggressive or Neutral.

Flip an NPC's State card face up if:

• Combat begins.
• You use the AUSPEX Discipline power "SCRY THE SOUL" on that NPC.
• You are instructed to do so during an Event.

NPC Combat Deck

All NPCs with a State card also have an associated Combat deck. This deck includes various Combat techniques based on the NPC's abilities and nature. The list of NPC Combat decks is as follows:

• Animal
• Human
• Ghoul
• Authority
• Vampire
• Boss

NPC Combat decks are composed of 3 types of cards:

• Attack: The NPC Attacks, attempting to inflict Damage to player character(s) or Allies.
• Defense: The NPC focuses on its Defense, and does not Attack during this Combat round.
• Special (1&2): The NPC uses a SPECIAL Attack, as described on their State card.

Choose the deck corresponding to the NPC you encounter during gameplay.

Example: In Chapter 1, you encounter the "STREET MUSCLE" and "OLD VAGRANT" Ghoul NPCs. You will use the same Combat deck for both — in this case, the GHOUL Combat deck.

Ally State Cards

There are two types of Allies: Chapter Allies and coterie Allies.

Chapter Allies:

• Are introduced throughout Chapters
• Remain in play only for the duration of the Chapter in which they are introduced
• Do not confer any Passive Effect to the coterie
• Do not count as players for the purposes of applying difficulty modifiers and determining NPC statistics
• May increase the amount of coterie members beyond 4
• Cannot use Item cards and are unaffected by Effect cards

Coterie Allies:

• Represent the 12 playable characters
• Offer a Passive Effect to every other player involved in the Chapter, as long as the Ally is present in the Chapter and is not in Torpor
• Can be selected at the start of a Chapter
• Are only set on the tile when Combat begins, and do not appear on the tile otherwise
• Begin at level 1 and flip to level 2 after the Campaign's second Interlude
• Cannot be selected as an Ally if a player is already playing that character
• Count as players for the purposes of applying difficulty modifiers and determining NPC statistics
• Are never involved in Dialogue or Investigation sequences, but still apply their Passive Effect
• Cannot use Item cards and are unaffected by Effect cards

An Ally State card shows: card type and level, the Ally's name, Movement, Line of Sight, Initiative level, Attack level, Resistance, abilities, a passive effect, and a Damage tracker (the amount of Damage an Ally can sustain, adjusted to the number of players).

When Combat begins, set your Allies on a HEX adjacent to your character. An Ally's Initiative, Attack, Resistance, and Damage tracker values depend on the number of players (see p.10).

Example: A coterie is composed of a maximum of 4 characters plus any Chapter Allies you might have. When playing a single-player game, you can add up to 3 coterie Allies to aid you. When playing with 2 players, you can add up to 2 coterie Allies to the group. When playing with 3 players, you can only add 1 coterie Ally. You may not add coterie Allies when playing with 4 players.

Summon State Cards

Some Disciplines may allow you to call Summons in Combat. Most of them use Summon State cards, showing Initiative, Attack, Resistance, and a Damage tracker (the amount of Damage a Summon can sustain).

In some cases, Summons can also be enemies.

Miniatures and Standees

Each character has its own miniature or standee. This miniature's position on the tile represents the character's location and the direction it is facing, as indicated by the arrow on its base. This also determines the direction of their Line of Sight.

Each NPC has its own dedicated standee. To set up an NPC standee, place the standee on a plastic base and set it on the tile as indicated in the Chapter Booklet or Storybook. This standee's position on the tile represents the NPC's location and direction. The arrow on the base indicates the direction the NPC faces, and therefore, its Line of Sight. You must turn the NPCs' standees so they face the direction indicated by the arrow.

If a red droplet icon accompanies an NPC's image in the setup section of the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook, they are a prey NPC, and you can attempt to feed on them during the Chapter. Use a red base for their standee. Keep in mind that if you fail in an attempt to feed on a prey NPC, or if you use supernatural powers in their Line of Sight, they will flee, and could cause a Masquerade Breach (see p.31).

Boss Combat Deck

Bosses are special types of enemies you will encounter during the Campaign. When Combat begins, shuffle the shared Boss deck (3 Special 1 + 3 Special 2 cards) and the Boss's unique deck. When Combat ends, remove the Boss's cards from the shared deck.

Tokens

Terrain Tokens

Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS uses tokens as indicators — for example, to show an area is searchable, or to indicate Difficult Terrain is present on a specific HEX. Refer to the introduction page's setup section in the Storybook to set tokens on the appropriate HEXES.

Note: New tokens may be added to the tile during a Chapter, following an Event trigger.

The list of tokens is as follows:

• Difficult Terrain: It costs 2 Movement to move on a Difficult Terrain token, and it costs 1 to move off of it. You can end your turn on a Difficult Terrain token. This token doesn't block Line of Sight (LoS) but Ranged Attacks can't reach a target behind a Difficult Terrain token. This token may be placed in a HEX already occupied by a character.

Example: In one setup, a wall of Difficult Terrain blocks a Ranged Attack between an NPC and a character standing behind it in a straight line — neither can target the other with a Ranged Attack. Without such an obstruction in the way, the NPC and character can target each other with Ranged Attacks.

• Investigation Area: Investigation Area tokens are numbered from 1 to 4. Each token matches a specific Investigation page in the Chapter Booklet, and represents an area a character may examine. When investigating an area, refer to the appropriate number in the Chapter Booklet. Once you are done investigating an area, you will be asked to remove that token from the tile. If there are more than one player adjacent to an Investigation token when it is activated, they can all choose to be included in the sequence that follows. This token blocks Movement and Line of Sight.
• Action: Action tokens are numbered from 1 to 4. They correspond to a specific Event in the Chapter Booklet. An Action token blocks Movement and Line of Sight the same way a wall does. You can trigger Action tokens when you move on a HEX adjacent to it. If there are more than one player adjacent to an Action token when it is activated, they can all choose to be included in the sequence that follows.
• Fire: If a character (player, Ally or NPC) steps on a HEX containing a Fire token or begins their turn there, they immediately take 2 Unpreventable Damage. Characters stop taking Damage if they begin their turn on a HEX that isn't on fire. This token doesn't block Movement or Line of Sight. This token may be placed in a HEX already occupied by a character.

Note: Damage from Fire tokens is cumulative. If you step through 3 HEXES covered in Fire tokens, you would take 6 Damage. Similarly, if you move into a HEX containing a Fire token and end your turn there, you will take an additional 2 Damage at the start of your next turn unless the Fire token is removed before then.

• Arms of Ahriman: A character (player, Ally or NPC) who begins their turn on a HEX adjacent to this token takes 1 Unpreventable Damage. These tokens block Movement and Line of Sight. At the beginning of every round, set 1 Fire token adjacent to the last Fire token placed, in the direction of the closest character or NPC.

Note: If the closest character is already on a Fire token, the next nearest character is targeted. If all characters are already on a Fire token, the players choose where to set the token.

Investigation Tokens

In specific Chapters, Investigation Area tokens indicate places that can be examined. During this Investigation, you will gather evidence represented by clue tokens, as well as gain Investigation success tokens for accurate deductions or other choices you have made.

The list of Investigation tokens is as follows:

• Clue: Clue tokens are numbered from 1 to 4. They offer important insight and simplify the Investigation by offering players access to more accurate guesses or — in some instances — track player actions.
• Investigation Success: Investigation success tokens are used to track the progress the coterie has made over the course of a Chapter. They may help or hinder, according to the situation.

Effect Tokens

During a Chapter, several Effects can affect both player characters and NPCs. Effect tokens represent these Effects. When their character is under an Effect, players must take the corresponding token and place it on their Character Board, discarding the token at the end of Combat unless otherwise specified. If an NPC receives an Effect token, place it on their State card and leave it there as long as it remains active.

The list of Effect tokens is as follows:

• Poisoned (PSN): Unless all Damage from an attack is prevented, the affected character takes 1 additional Damage. Discard this token when you MEND DAMAGE; or in the case of an NPC, when they are Defeated. Poisoned tokens are cumulative.
• Bleeding (BLD): The affected character takes 1 Unpreventable Damage at the end of each of their active turns. Discard this token when the character plays a Defense card. Bleeding tokens are cumulative.
• Stunned (STN): The affected character cannot attack, defend themselves, or move. Players can still use the Blood (MEND DAMAGE, perform a BLOOD SURGE, or use a Discipline). Discard this token at the end of the character's active turn.
• Resistance (RES): Prevent 1 incoming Damage per token. Discard after use. Players can choose not to use the token when attacked and to keep it. Players must discard any unused Resistance tokens at the end of the Combat round to gain +1 Initiative (max). Resistance tokens are cumulative.
• Immobilized (IMM): The affected character cannot Move during their active turn. Discard this token at the end of their turn.
• Slowed (SLW): Reduces an affected character's Movement by 1. Slowed tokens are cumulative. At the end of the character's active turn, discard all their Slowed tokens.
• Stealth: A player can use an action to initiate STEALTH mode. As long as you are in STEALTH mode, this token remains on your Character Board. If an NPC spots you, discard the token (see STEALTH, p.50).
• Blood Surge: Add +1 to your Initiative, +1 to an Attribute of your choice, and +1 to your Movement, until the start of your next turn. Discard this token at the start of your next turn.

Effect Cards

During the Campaign, your character or coterie may be given an Effect card. Effect cards' bonuses and penalties apply until they are discarded. Some cards can be discarded quickly, while others are retained from one Chapter to the next.

There are two types of Effect cards: coterie and character. Coterie Effect cards belong to the whole coterie and affect all members, while Character Effect cards belong to only one character. When players are given a Character Effect card, it goes to the player who made the check that earned this reward. If a card is given without any checks, choose a character from those involved in that sequence. They are the ones to whom the Effect card goes.

If an Effect card would lower your Dice pool to 0 or less, you automatically fail your check despite having automatic successes from Skills. If this occurs during a Dialogue, you must choose the failure option. In an Investigation, it counts as scoring 0 successes; and in Combat, you automatically miss.

If you already have an Effect card and are given the same card again, keep your current card and do not take another.

Allies are unaffected by, and cannot gain, Effect cards.

Each Effect card shows: an effect number, effect name, its target (character or coterie), a flavor description, the applied effect, and the duration of the effect.

Effect cards also apply in combat.

Example: For instance, a card giving you a -1 Die to your next BRAWL check would apply to the next BRAWL check you make as part of an attack, or the next one you are asked to make in the Booklet.

Main Tracker

The Main tracker is a game component that tracks three game elements: the coterie's Status rank, Masquerade Breaches, and Rounds.

Status Tracker

The Status tracker measures your coterie's reputation among other Kindred in the city, and may increase or decrease over the course of the Campaign. Vampires will react to your high or low Status in many ways. Your Status rank will also help you unlock additional Dialogue branches, or districts where you can participate in Feeding Events.

Your coterie begins the Campaign with a Status rank of 0.

Masquerade Breach Tracker

Almost every Kindred shares the same interest in concealing their true nature, since revealing it could prompt the Inquisition's return and lead to another Night of Ashes. However, revealing one's condition occasionally proves unavoidable, which is why the Camarilla possesses a rigid structure and ways of "erasing" proof of supernatural activity.

The Masquerade Breach tracker measures your coterie's level of discretion with regard to their vampiric condition. The use of any supernatural abilities in front of humans may attract unwanted attention and prompt NPCs to flee, causing what is known as a Masquerade Breach. Only NPCs on which you can feed during the Main sequence, called prey, will flee if they witness supernatural abilities. Prey NPCs are identified by a red drop icon accompanying their images in the setup section of a Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook. You can also identify prey by their red base.

A prey NPC who witnesses a Masquerade Breach will attempt to flee the tile via the shortest route possible, Moving 3 HEXES per round. To flee successfully, the NPC must Move off the tile through a HEX without a solid border.

If the prey NPC is an animal and not a human, they do not cause a Masquerade Breach when they successfully flee, and are simply removed from the tile.

Which Actions Lead to Prey NPCs Fleeing?

• Using a Discipline during the Main sequence (see p.35-36) in Line of Sight of a prey NPC.

Note: Using a Discipline when prompted during a Dialogue or Investigation does not alarm any witness, but using one without being prompted by the Booklet does. For example, using PREMONITION to peek at a future page. The NPC begins to flee as soon as the Dialogue sequence is over.

• Feeding on an NPC while in Line of Sight of a prey NPC.
• Failing an attempt to feed on a prey NPC.

Note: You can only feed on NPCs who have a red base, unless a prompt in a Booklet allows you to do so on a different NPC.

Fleeing NPC

When fleeing, an NPC always takes their turn immediately after the player who caused the NPC to flee, Moving toward the nearest tile exit (as denoted by a hexagon without a thick outline) each round.

If the NPC does not have a State card, its Movement each round is 3 HEXES. The NPC has successfully fled when it has left the tile during a round.

Example: During a Chapter's Main sequence, Thomas Chartrand uses POTENCE in front of a prey NPC, causing them to flee. Thomas's base Initiative is 3. The NPC Moves on Initiative 3, after Thomas's turn. If Thomas improves his Initiative (by performing a BLOOD SURGE, for example), the NPC's Initiative changes so that the NPC continues to act immediately after Thomas.

How to Prevent an NPC from Fleeing

During their turn, a player can try to capture a fleeing NPC to avoid the Masquerade Breach. To do so, a player must move their character on a HEX adjacent to the fleeing NPC and perform one of the following three actions:

• Use the "DOMINATE - COMPEL: Cloud Memory" Discipline to make the NPC forget what they just saw. You must make a Rouse check to activate this power (see p.35). This will not cause another NPC witness to flee, even if you use it while in their Line of Sight.
• Kill the Witness and lose 1 Humanity. You only need to mention that you are killing them and remove them from the tile. No other actions are necessary.
• If Samuel Armstrong is in play as an Ally, use his Passive Effect.

Note: An Ally's Passive Effect is unavailable when that Ally is played as a character (see p.28).

If players fail to capture an NPC before it flees the tile or the Chapter ends, increase the Masquerade Breach tracker by 1.

In certain Dialogues and Events, some choices may lead to a Masquerade Breach. When this occurs, follow the instructions indicated in the Chapter Booklet.

When you complete a Chapter or Feeding Event in which you increased the Masquerade Breach tracker, do the following depending on where the Masquerade Breach tracker is at:

Masquerade Breach tracker	Effect
1 point	Open envelope #01
2 points	Play the Side quest "Masquerade Breach #2"
3 points	Play the Side quest "Masquerade Breach #3"
4 points	Open envelope #02. Good luck!

Note: Masquerade Breach levels are cumulative, and never decrease during the Campaign! Be careful, and remain discreet.

Round/Authority Tracker

When activated by an Event, Dialogue, or Investigation, the round or authority tracker tracks the number of rounds that have elapsed. A round has passed after each player and NPC has played their turn. When instructed, place a cube on the indicated spot on the tracker and move the cube one space to the left after each round, unless instructed otherwise. Follow the instructions indicated in the Booklet for each trackable Event.

• Use the red cube when instructed to activate a round tracker.
• Use the black cube when instructed to activate an Authority tracker.

Note: Several elements can be tracked simultaneously. Be careful, and don't forget to move the cubes on the tracker after each round, or when prompted.

Other Trackers

Sand Timer

In some situations, players will have to use the sand timer to make a decision promptly. Flip the timer and choose an option within the allotted time.

Initiative Tracker

The Initiative tracker helps players track who plays first during a Combat sequence (see p.37).

Place the Initiative tracker next to the Chapter tile. Place your characters' Initiative tokens on the left side of the Initiative tracker. When Combat begins, make sure to place your Allies' and any NPCs' tokens on the left side of the Initiative tracker as well.

Unlike player characters' and Allies' Initiative tokens, enemy NPCs' Initiative tokens aren't unique. Instead, they are tokens numbered from 1 to 9. Each of these tokens comes in pairs of the same number, and players decide which pair of Initiative tokens an NPC gets. When Combat begins, place one token on the NPC's State card, and place the other token in the pair on the left side of the Initiative tracker. During Combat, use the token on the NPC's State card to identify its Initiative token and vice versa.

Example: Combat begins between your coterie and a ghoul. First, flip the ghoul's State card, then choose a pair of NPC Initiative tokens — for example, number "1." You place the first "1" token on the ghoul's State card and the second "1" token on the left of the Initiative tracker.

Initiative order goes down from highest to lowest, which means that characters and NPCs with an Initiative of 6 will go first, while those with an Initiative of 0 will go last.

Player characters' and NPCs' Initiative may vary during Combat. If an NPC and a player character both have the same Initiative, the player character always goes first. Allies count as player characters when breaking Initiative ties. If 2 players have the same Initiative, it is up to them to determine whose character goes first.

If 2 NPCs have the same Initiative, the NPC with the highest Attack value goes first. If there is still a tie, the NPC with the highest Resistance value goes first. If there is still a tie, the players decide which NPC goes first.

Gameplay

The game consists of 3 types of sequences: Main, Combat, and Narrative (which includes Dialogue, Investigation and Event sequences). The Main sequence is played in rounds, with each player taking a turn one by one in order of Initiative.

When one or more players are involved in a Narrative sequence, they must complete it before moving on to another sequence. Uninvolved players must wait until the sequence is completed before proceeding with their turns.

If a player initiates a Combat sequence, all players are involved in the Combat.

Example: If you begin a Dialogue with an NPC, you must complete the whole Dialogue sequence with said NPC (by reaching the "RESUME PLAYING" instruction in the Chapter Booklet) before any other player can take their turn.

Skill Checks

Throughout the game, players must make various Skill checks to determine their character's level of success when attempting a task — whether it's punching an enemy, influencing someone, or searching for evidence at a crime scene. When making a Skill check, players count the points their character has in the relevant Skill as automatic successes, then roll a number of Dice equal to their character's relevant Attribute value to complete the success count. You must roll these Dice even if you have enough automatic successes to pass the Skill check without doing so, since your Hunger may still increase by rolling Red Dice. If your Hunger is 0, however, you may skip rolling your Dice.

If you would be reduced to a Dice pool of 0 Dice or fewer (e.g., due to the Fatigued state, an Effect card, etc.) when attempting a Skill check, you automatically fail, even if you would otherwise have enough automatic successes to pass the check without rolling.

Example: Harold Beaulieu is investigating an area. The Investigation page asks for a MENTAL + SEARCH check Difficulty 4. Harold would need to roll 3 Dice, because his MENTAL Attribute has a value of 3. He rolls 2 successes. He must then add these successes to his SEARCH Skill level, which is 3. This gives him a total of 5 successes, which is higher than the given Difficulty, so his Skill check is successful.

Difficulty

A Skill check's Difficulty is the number of successes the character attempting the check must accumulate in order to succeed.

• Dialogue Skill checks have a predetermined Difficulty that is noted on the Dialogue page whenever a player is prompted to make a Skill check.
• Investigation Skill checks have no predetermined Difficulty. Instead, a player tallies their successes. Investigations have many outcomes. The number of successes obtained will bring you to one of these many outcomes.
• Combat Skill checks have no predetermined Difficulty. Instead, the number of successes a player accumulates determines the amount of Damage they inflict on an NPC, or the number of Resistance tokens they take.
• STEALTH checks have variable Difficulty based on a character's distance from an NPC and their Line of Sight (LoS).
• Events may include Skill checks. In these cases, the Difficulty will always be mentioned in the Event itself.

Rolling Dice

Red Dice represent the Beast within each vampire.

Swap 1 Black Die for 1 Red Die for each Hunger level your character has. You may not use Willpower points to re-roll a Red Die.

Example: Your character's Hunger level increases to 2. You attempt a Skill check and roll an Attribute (e.g., 3 Dice). Two of your Dice are now red due to your character's Hunger level, and the third remains black.

Dice symbols:

• One Ankh symbol: Represents 1 success.
• One Ankh with a double fang symbol: Represents 2 successes.
• Plain, with no Ankh: Represents 0 successes.
• Skull symbol (Red Die only): Counts as 0 successes, but increases your Hunger by 1 if there are more Skulls than the total amount of successes during a Skill check (Attribute + automatic successes).

Rouse Check

A Rouse check is a single Red Die roll.

• If you succeed (1 Ankh or an Ankh with double fangs), your character's Hunger level does not change.
• If you fail (no Ankh), your character's Hunger increases by 1 point.
• If you roll a Skull, your character's Hunger increases by 2 points.

Using the Blood (to use a Discipline, perform a BLOOD SURGE or MEND DAMAGE) requires a Rouse check. The Rouse check only affects your character's Hunger level, and is rolled after you use the Blood in any way.

Note: For each Hunger level your character has, swap 1 Black Die for 1 Red Die when performing a Skill check. You cannot use Willpower points to re-roll a Red Die.

Frenzy

If your character's Hunger level is increased when their Hunger tracker is already full, they become Frenzied and can no longer participate in the Chapter. Remove them from the tile. Frenzy only affects your character.

Note: Blood bags are expensive but useful Items that can stop the effects of Frenzy.

Frenzied characters exit Frenzy when the Chapter ends.

When you fall into Frenzy during a Chapter, and cannot empty your Damage tracker at the end of it (because of an instruction in the Chapter's conclusion), you nonetheless come back at the start of the following Chapter with an empty Hunger tracker. (Your two other trackers remain at the level they were when you left.)

A character entering Frenzy during a Dialogue, Event, or Investigation sequence follows the same rules as one falling into Torpor in order to know when they should be removed from the tile.

Conditions

Torpor

When your character's Damage tracker is full and they take another point of Damage, they fall into Torpor, a state of physical and mental inactivity. The character can no longer participate in the Chapter, and must be removed from the tile.

If a character falls into Torpor during a Dialogue, Event, or Investigation sequence, finish the sequence first, unless there are other characters involved in that same dialogue. That character is then removed from the tile. If there are other characters involved in the sequence, simply remove the Torpored character from the sequence and continue on with the others. The only exception to this is during a character's unique branching path (introduced by the instruction "IF YOU ARE..."). In that case, finish the path, which is often only the next page, before removing the character. This is to avoid damaging the narrative by having incongruent speakers. When playing solo, you fail the chapter the moment you fall into torpor, regardless of the sequence.

A Chapter fails when all the player characters are in Torpor, even if a coterie Ally or Chapter Ally is still standing. When you successfully complete a Chapter, characters in Torpor will come out of it before the following Chapter.

When an Ally falls into Torpor, they are removed from the tile and will not return until the next Chapter. Their passive Effect no longer applies while they are in Torpor.

When you fall into Torpor during a Chapter, and cannot empty your Damage tracker at the end of it (because of an instruction in the Chapter's conclusion), you nonetheless come back at the start of the following Chapter with an empty Damage tracker. (Your two other trackers remain at the level they were when you left.)

Fatigue

When your character's Willpower tracker is filled and you spend or lose another point of Willpower, the character becomes Fatigued. When your character is Fatigued, you cannot spend Willpower points, and you must remove 2 Dice from your Skill checks. If this reduces your Dice pool to 0, you automatically fail the Skill check, even if you would otherwise have enough automatic successes to succeed.

Fatigue goes away as soon as you regain at least 1 Willpower.

Main Sequence

The Main sequence is all the time characters spend on a tile during a Chapter outside of Dialogue, Investigation, or Combat sequences.

During the Main sequence, player characters typically Move from HEX to HEX and engage in preparatory actions. During this sequence, players can perform the following actions once, in any order, on their turn:

• MOVE: Up to 3 HEXES.
• USE THE BLOOD: MEND DAMAGE, BLOOD SURGE, or use a Discipline (see below).
• PERFORM ONE ACTION:
  • Use an Item;
  • Give an Item to, or take an Item from, a player on an adjacent HEX;
  • Feed on a prey NPC;
  • Capture a fleeing NPC (see p.32);
  • Trigger a Dialogue sequence with an adjacent Dialogue NPC;
  • Trigger the Investigation sequence of an adjacent Investigation Area;
  • Trigger an adjacent Action token;
  • Declare STEALTH mode.
• DO NOTHING

Movement

A character's Movement — the number of HEXES through which a character can Move during their turn — is 3. Several modifiers can affect Movement, such as terrain tokens, Items, BLOOD SURGE, and certain Disciplines. A player character can move through a HEX occupied by another player character or Ally, but may not end their turn on that same HEX.

When the coterie splits up to initiate multiple sequences, the first player to initiate a sequence must complete it before the others may begin theirs. This means that while you are investigating an area, the other players will have to wait their turn before initiating a Dialogue or even Moving, as the Main sequence is also paused.

If you are instructed to set an NPC on a different HEX and another character already happens to be on that HEX, displace the latter character's miniature or standee by 1 HEX in any direction. Then set the NPC where it should be as indicated by the setup image.

When Action or Investigation Area tokens, NPCs, or player characters would occupy the same HEX because of an instruction, follow these steps in order:

• First, set the tokens on the tile.
• Secondly, set the NPCs on the tile. If they would share the same HEX as a token, place them on the closest valid HEX.
• Finally, set the characters on the tile. If they would share the same HEX as a token or NPC, set them on the closest valid HEX.

If the NPC should be set on top of an Action or Investigation Area token, set the NPC on an adjacent HEX instead. The same goes for a character that should be set on a HEX already occupied by an Action or Investigation Area token or an NPC.

Teleporting, Pushing, and Other Forms of Movement

Certain Disciplines and Combat cards, and even the abilities of some NPCs, will introduce different forms of Movement.

• Push: Move the target token or miniature away from the NPC or character by the given number of HEXES. This Movement stops prematurely if a HEX is blocked by a wall, NPC, character or a terrain token that blocks Movement.
• Teleport: Set the token on the appropriate HEX, unless that HEX is occupied by a Difficult Terrain token, an NPC, or a character. When teleporting, an NPC ignores Difficult Terrain, walls, and Fire. If the teleporting NPC ends their Movement on a HEX occupied by a Fire token, they suffer the effect of the token, per the relevant rules (see Fire tokens, p.29).

Stunned and Immobilized tokens prevent teleportation, but do not prevent a character or NPC from being Pushed by a Combat card or Discipline.

Using the Blood

Using a Discipline, choosing to MEND DAMAGE, or performing a BLOOD SURGE calls on the Beast within and requires the use of the Blood.

A character may only use the Blood once per turn.

Note: Using the Blood always requires a Rouse check (see p.35).

• MEND DAMAGE: Mend up to 2 points of Damage on your Damage tracker.
• BLOOD SURGE: Add +1 to your Initiative, +1 Die to all Skill checks based on the Attribute of your choice, and +1 to your Movement, until the start of your next turn.
• Discipline: Use one of your available Disciplines (see p.19-20-21).

Note: The Blood's properties take effect before the Rouse check result is applied. Only one active Discipline power is permitted at a time.

Feeding (during the Main Sequence)

Only blood satisfies the Beast, and only blood can decrease a character's Hunger. To feed on an NPC, set your character on a HEX adjacent to said NPC and declare your intent to feed. During the Chapter's Main sequence, you can only feed on prey NPCs, which have a red base for their standee and are labeled with a blood drop icon in the setup section of the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook. In Combat, you can feed on an NPC with your "BITE" Combat card even if they are not a prey NPC.

To feed outside a Combat sequence, make one of the following Skill checks:

• PHYSICAL + BRAWL
• SOCIAL + SUBTERFUGE

The Difficulty of either Skill check is always set at [5 – your character's Hunger level].

Example: Aren Konway has a Hunger level of 4 and wishes to feed on an NPC. The player rolls PHYSICAL + BRAWL Difficulty 1 (5 - her level 4 Hunger) and obtains 2 successes from the Dice +3 automatic successes thanks to Aren's BRAWL Skill level. The player character passes the check and can feed on the NPC.

Outside of Combat, feeding on different living beings provides different levels of Hunger recovery:

• Prey Animals (rats, dogs, etc.): Recover 1 Hunger point. The animal dies. Remove its standee from the tile.
• Prey Humans: Recover up to 2 Hunger points. Remove the NPC's standee from the tile.

Note: You can only feed on prey NPCs (those with a blood drop icon in the setup).

If you fail your feeding attempt, the following occurs:

• If the NPC is a prey Animal, remove its standee from the tile.
• If the NPC is a prey Human, they flee (see p.31-32).

Note: Players can also drink blood during: Feeding Events (before a new Chapter); Combat by using the "BITE" Combat card; specific Events and Dialogues; by using Items such as a blood bag.

Stealth Mode

During the Main sequence, a character may attempt to sneak about unseen by entering STEALTH mode. STEALTH mode is a type of Movement a character can make during their turn in the Main sequence. When entering a Dialogue, Investigation, or Combat sequence, or launching a sequence from an Action token, all the characters involved in the new sequence exit STEALTH mode.

You can find more information about STEALTH mode on p.50.

Dialogue, Investigation, Event, and Combat

Dialogue Sequence

A Dialogue sequence begins when a player sets their character's miniature on a HEX adjacent to a Dialogue NPC and declares the beginning of the Dialogue. (Use the Chapter's Table of Contents as a guide to know which NPCs are Dialogue NPCs, or refer to the setup section of the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook.) When a Dialogue begins, turn to the page in the Chapter Booklet that corresponds to the beginning of the Dialogue for the NPC you wish to talk to (usually page D.1). Other players adjacent to that same NPC may decide to be involved in the sequence too, even if they already took their turn. If you had not played your turn yet and are involved in a Dialogue sequence, you may play your turn once that sequence has ended and you return to the Main sequence. If the Dialogue leads immediately to a Combat (without going through a RESUME PLAYING instruction), you will be able to play your turn once the Combat has ended.

During a Dialogue sequence, players can perform the following actions, in no particular order:

• Select one of the available choices, for which you meet the requirements, listed on the current Dialogue page in the Chapter Booklet.
• Use the Blood (MEND DAMAGE, perform a BLOOD SURGE, or use a Discipline (see p.36)).
• Use Willpower points (see p.18).

During a Dialogue sequence, players cannot begin another sequence. They must complete the entire Dialogue sequence first (see p.41).

Investigation Sequence

An Investigation sequence begins when players explore an Investigation Area (see p.42). During an Investigation sequence, players cannot begin a different sequence. They must complete the Investigation of the area (represented by a token numbered 1 to 4 on the tile - see p.29). Other players adjacent to that same token may decide to be involved in the sequence too, even if they already took their turn. If you have not played your turn yet and are involved in an Investigation sequence, you may play your turn once that sequence has ended and you return to the Main sequence. If the Investigation leads immediately to a Combat (without going through a RESUME PLAYING instruction), you will be able to play your turn once the Combat has ended.

During an Investigation sequence, players can perform the following actions (in no particular order):

• Select one of the available choices, for which you meet the requirements, listed at the bottom of the current page in the Chapter Booklet.
• Use the Blood (MEND DAMAGE, perform a BLOOD SURGE, or use a Discipline (see p.36)).
• Use Willpower points (see p.18).

Event Sequence

Events represent moments of change within a Chapter. They inform the plot, offer gameplay instructions, and contextualize the story, making it more immersive. They may reveal a new NPC, set up a Combat, initiate round tracking, etc.

Events will occur throughout the whole Campaign. When an Event occurs, follow the instructions indicated on the corresponding Event page.

While an Event is happening, players cannot perform other types of actions, nor leave an Event sequence in which they are involved before completing it. The Event page will let you know when to resume playing. Sometimes, Events will lead directly to a Combat, Dialogue, or Investigation sequence.

If you have not played your turn yet and are involved in an Event sequence, you may play your turn once that sequence has ended and you return to the Main sequence. If the Event leads immediately to a Combat (without going through a RESUME PLAYING instruction), you will be able to play your turn once the Combat has ended.

Certain Events may be triggered via Action tokens found on the tile. In that case, like a Dialogue or Investigation, only the characters adjacent to the Action token may be involved in the sequence (unless the Booklet says otherwise).

Combat Sequence

The Combat sequence begins if it is triggered by an Event or a Dialogue in the Chapter Booklet.

During a Combat sequence, players cannot begin another sequence. All players are considered participants in a Combat sequence, even if they are far away from each other on the tile. Players must complete the Combat to end the sequence.

When Combat begins, every NPC with a State card takes part in the Combat. Flip the NPCs' State cards and set their Initiative tokens next to the Initiative tracker.

Choose which pair of numbered Initiative tokens each NPC gets. Place one on the Initiative tracker and the other on the NPC's State card (see p.27).

At the beginning of a Combat sequence, players must perform the following actions in this exact order:

1. Establish their active hand (see p.44).
2. Set their character's Initiative by setting their Initiative token next to the Initiative tracker (see p.33).
3. When the Initiative tracker reaches their Initiative token, do any of the following in any order:
   • Move (up to 3 HEXES).
   • Use the Blood (MEND DAMAGE, perform a BLOOD SURGE, or use a Discipline (see p.36)).
   • Perform an action: use an Item, give an Item to or take an Item from a character on an adjacent HEX, or use a Combat card (see p.45).
   • Do nothing and end your turn.

Note: You can build a new active hand at the start of each Combat sequence, even if multiple Combats occur during the same Chapter.

Chapter Setup Example

Here's a handy list of what to do when setting up a Chapter:

1. Open the Storybook to the Chapter's introduction page.
2. Set the Chapter's corresponding tile on the table.
3. Select the tokens required for that Chapter (Difficult Terrain, Investigation Area, Action) and set them on the tile according to the image shown in the Storybook.
4. Set any NPCs present at the start of the Chapter on the tile according to the image. If a blood drop icon accompanies an NPC's image, use a red base for their standee. Finally, turn the NPCs' standees so that they face the directions indicated by the arrows as shown in the Storybook.
5. Set your characters in the starting area on the tile.
6. Place the Main tracker and the Initiative tracker on the table near the tile.
7. Place the Initiative tokens of every character present in the Chapter to the left of the Initiative tracker.
8. Read the Chapter's introduction page in the Storybook to dive into the story.
9. Familiarize yourself with the Chapter Objective (this is what you need to do to successfully end the Chapter!) and follow the First Action prompt to begin the Chapter. (Usually, this will lead you to read an Event page, but it varies.)
10. Select the corresponding Chapter Booklet from the game box. This Booklet contains every Dialogue, Event, and Investigation that can take place during the Chapter.

Chapter Playthrough Example

Once you've completed the Chapter's setup, it's time to sit down and play. In this section, we will use the game's first Chapter, "Dark Omen at the Park," as an example.

1. The instruction on the Chapter's introduction page says, "READ EVENT E.1 TO E.8 ACCORDING TO WHICH CHARACTER IS IN THE COTERIE."

Note: For the purpose of this example, let's say you play as Lucianna the Nosferatu and Aren the Gangrel. You would read page E.1 (Nosferatu) and E.3 (Gangrel).

2. At the bottom of page E.3, an instruction tells you to "Read 'Yuma McKenzie' Dialogue page D.1."
3. Refer to the Table of Contents and find on which page Yuma's Dialogue begins. Turn the Booklet to that page. (When you begin a Dialogue sequence, which almost always starts with reading the relevant NPC's D.1 Dialogue page, the game freezes, and only the characters involved in the Dialogue may act. You can find more information about Dialogue sequences on p.41.)
4. Page D.1 presents four options, one of which is only available if someone in the Dialogue is playing Aren. Two of the options require a Skill check. (You can find more information on Skill checks on p.34.) Finally, one option has no requirements.
5. Choose among the options available to you, and keep following the instructions in the Chapter Booklet as you navigate the Dialogue. At some point, such as on page D.11, the instructions will state that the Dialogue sequence has ended. When this happens, the game enters the Main sequence.
6. During the Main sequence, each player in turn may move their character across the tile and begin other sequences. (You can find more information on the Main sequence and Movement on p.35.)
7. In Chapter 1, players can interact with 4 NPCs and 1 Investigation Area.
8. For this example, let's say you want to speak with the Park Warden first. To do so, you would need to move your character to a HEX adjacent to the warden and initiate a Dialogue sequence.

Note: Chapters are not linear — you can speak to any NPC and begin any Investigation sequences in any order you choose.

Note: Remember, the Main sequence pauses until the Dialogue is complete. If you want to include other coterie members in the Dialogue, you will have to wait until each of their characters is also on a HEX adjacent to the NPC before initiating the Dialogue sequence.

9. When the Dialogue sequence begins, use the Table of Contents in the Chapter Booklet to locate the Park Warden's D.1 page. As with Yuma, follow the prompts and instructions in the Chapter Booklet until you reach the end of the Dialogue.

Note: Early in this Dialogue, players are offered a special option that they can choose if one of the characters participating in the Dialogue has the ANIMALISM Discipline. You can only choose this option if you have at least 1 level in the required Discipline.

10. Once the Dialogue has ended, you may be surprised to see that the Warden leaves you with a set of keys. This is represented by an Item card, which you must now retrieve from the game box. Items are useful tools in many Chapters, and Items acquired during a Chapter can often unlock special branches in Narrative sequences in that same Chapter, or in later Chapters. (You can find more information about Items on p.23.)
11. With the Park Warden Dialogue completed, let's say the coterie now splits up. You decide to investigate the tepee represented by the token shown earlier, while the other coterie members decide to speak to the other NPCs on the tile.
12. When the coterie splits up to initiate multiple sequences, the first player to initiate a sequence must complete it before the others may begin theirs. This means that while you investigate the tepee, the other players will have to wait for their turn before initiating a Dialogue or even Moving, as the Main sequence also pauses.
13. When you reach a HEX adjacent to Investigation Area #1 token, consult the Chapter Booklet's Table of Contents to locate the page on which the related Investigation sequence begins. Much like earlier, with the Dialogues, the first page of an Investigation Area contains a full-page illustration of what your character is investigating.
14. During an Investigation, as opposed to a Dialogue, you are not presented with choices, but with a challenge. In this case, as you search the tepee, you must make a MENTAL + SEARCH check and tally up your successes. The number of successes you get will determine which story branch you must follow. You can find more information about Investigation sequences on p.42.
15. Assuming you rolled high enough, you will find an Item in the tepee. As with the keys, you must take that Item's associated Item card from the game box.
16. After the Investigation sequence ends, the other players similarly begin and complete their Dialogue sequences, going through the same steps as with Yuma and the Warden earlier. Once the coterie has spoken to every other NPC, they decide to approach the mysterious vampire in the lower right corner of the tile.
17. If there are any humans left on the tile, you would have to remove them, or risk a Masquerade Breach. Good thing your coterie spoke with everyone and got them away from here before surrounding the Priest! Go to page E.16 in the Chapter Booklet. (Events are always located last in the Booklet, after the Dialogues and Investigations.) This leads you to E.22 which leads you to E.24 and Combat begins! (You can find more information on Combat sequences on p.44.)
18. The Chapter Booklet tells you what to do if you win — in this case, you must read page E.25. If you lose any Combat, you fail the Chapter unless otherwise specified. In that case, you must start the Chapter over again, losing all Items, Effects, Boons, and experience points (XP) you gained during that Chapter. However, let's assume you are victorious, read page E.25.
19. The last prompt in a Chapter will always instruct you to read the Chapter's conclusion in the Storybook. This conclusion, which is located on the back of the page you used to set up the Chapter, explains how your actions have furthered the plot, and grants you rewards for successfully completing the Chapter.

Note: If a Chapter proves too challenging for the coterie, you can always lower the difficulty by choosing some of the Easy modifiers on p.10.

20. Add the XP you gained during the Chapter to your total XP on your Character Sheet. Keep a record of your total XP at all times.
21. You can now move on to the next Chapter!

Dialogue in Detail

Throughout the Campaign, characters will need to engage in conversations with various NPCs and speak on behalf of their coterie. Dialogue sequences use an interactive branching mechanism, with each Dialogue page providing options that offer players various paths through the conversation. Choices you make during a Dialogue will have repercussions in the current Chapter and/or future Chapters.

Initiating Dialogue

Dialogue NPCs are listed in the Chapter Booklet's Dialogue section of the Table of Contents. Those immediately available at the start of a Chapter are indicated on the introduction page's setup section. Others may become available at various points throughout the Chapter.

To begin a Dialogue, move your character to a HEX adjacent to a Dialogue NPC, identified by a speech bubble icon, and open the Chapter Booklet to the corresponding Dialogue page (always page D.1 of the chosen NPC), then read the page and follow the steps indicated. In some cases, a Dialogue sequence will be launched by an event. If multiple players want to engage in a Dialogue with an NPC, each player must set their character on a HEX adjacent to that NPC before starting the Dialogue sequence. In the case of a Dialogue launched by an event, the booklet will tell you if the launched Dialogue involves one or several players (by default, only the player who was involved in that event sequence). Players can be involved in a Dialogue if they wish, even if it is not their turn, as long as they are involved in the Dialogue (by being adjacent to that NPC, or by being explicitly told in the booklet). When this occurs, all players involved in the Dialogue must make the decisions relevant to that Dialogue. Players who hadn't taken their turn yet, but were involved in the Dialogue may play their turn afterwards. In case of any disagreements, the player whose character has the highest SOCIAL Attribute has the final say.

Once you've made a choice during a Dialogue, you cannot undo it.

Note: Some Passive Ally Effects can affect the Dialogue.

Dialogue Skill Checks

When prompted, a Skill check is performed by 1 character only.

Unless a specific character is forced to make a check, any character involved in the Dialogue can make the check. Players can alternate making Skill checks when participating in the same Dialogue. If a single player has initiated the Dialogue, only they will make the Skill checks for the entire Dialogue.

Note: Even a successful Skill check can lead to an unfortunate ending. You can intimidate a Brujah on their own territory...but is it a good idea? Don't make choices simply because you have the right Skill to succeed at them. Choose the wisest option, and pay attention. If necessary, you can also use Willpower points to re-roll up to 3 Black Dice.

Using Blood in Dialogue

During a Dialogue sequence, each player involved in the Dialogue can use the Blood once per page, by performing a BLOOD SURGE or using Disciplines. The bonuses last only for the page they are currently on.

Using Disciplines in Dialogue

When a Dialogue option requires access to a specific Discipline, you can only choose that option if you meet the Discipline level requirements. Most of the time, you will need to make a Rouse check on the following page.

Multiple Characters in a Dialogue

When using Disciplines and making Skill checks in a Dialogue, the results on the page that follows only apply to the character that has made the check or used the Discipline. When a choice is only available to a specific character, only that character suffers any consequences or gains any bonuses listed on the page that follows, unless otherwise specified. However, if the page that follows presents a choice, the entire coterie can weigh in on that choice. In the case where a choice that does not require a Skill check or a Discipline leads to a consequence (such as gaining an Effect card), the coterie must choose one character among those involved in the sequence to suffer that consequence.

To help you remember this, the following table lists the consequences that affect only the character who used a Discipline or made a Skill check, and those that affect the whole coterie regardless of who made a Skill check or used a Discipline.

Affects one player	Affects the entire coterie
Making a Rouse check	Gaining or losing Status
Gaining or discarding an Effect card	Breaching the Masquerade
Gaining or discarding an Item card	Gaining XP
Increasing or decreasing Hunger	Making a new Skill check
Taking or mending Damage	Gaining or losing Boons
Gaining or losing Willpower	Choosing a new Dialogue branch
Gaining or losing Humanity
Being removed from the tile

End of Dialogue

During a Dialogue, players cannot perform other types of actions. You cannot exit a Dialogue sequence in which you are involved before that sequence ends. You must reach the "RESUME PLAYING" instruction (or a designated Event page) to end a Dialogue.

Example: If one player has entered a Dialogue with an NPC, they must complete the Dialogue before other players can resume playing. A Combat and a Dialogue cannot be played simultaneously. Each sequence must be played separately and completed before moving on to the next.

Unless specifically told by an instruction that an NPC can no longer be interacted with, you can always launch a Dialogue with them provided that your character is adjacent to them.

Each Dialogue page shows: the page number and title, a narrative description, and the choices available.

Investigation in Detail

The goal of an Investigation is to solve a mystery by using the player characters' Skills and the players' own deductive reasoning.

Initiating an Investigation

To begin an Investigation, the coterie must choose an Investigation Area to examine. Move your character to a HEX adjacent to an Investigation Area token and flip to the corresponding page in the Chapter Booklet. As with Dialogue sequences, only characters on a HEX adjacent to an Investigation Area token can participate in that Investigation.

The first page of an Investigation sequence describes the scene. This description contains information that will help you make more informed choices later, so make sure to keep it in mind.

Next, one player must make a Skill check based on the Attribute + Skill required for that Investigation. Based on the number of successes, different choices and options will be available.

Note: You can also use Willpower points during an Investigation sequence to re-roll up to 3 Black Dice during a check.

Each Investigation Area page shows: the name of the area, its area number, a description, and the Investigation Area token.

Guess (G)

After rolling the initial Skill check, a description of your analysis will be presented on the corresponding page. All players involved in the Investigation Area must decide together on a hypothesis for that specific Investigation based on their intuition and knowledge and read the corresponding Guess page. If players disagree, the player whose character has the highest MENTAL Attribute has the final say.

Depending on the accuracy of the answer, players may be rewarded with Investigation success tokens, a numbered clue token, or a combination of both.

Once a player has investigated an area, that area's Investigation Area token is typically removed from the tile. This concludes the Investigation sequence.

Clue Tokens

Players can obtain clue tokens while exploring an Investigation Area, during a Dialogue, or an Event. When indicated, clue tokens can open new branches and offer a shortcut to efficiently solve an Investigation. Clue tokens belong to the entire coterie, regardless of which character found them.

Investigation Success Tokens

Investigation success tokens represent the ideas and hints characters compile during an Investigation. They are shared by the coterie, and unlock better branching options during the Final Deduction phase of a given Chapter's Investigation sequence. Gathering more Investigation success tokens will increase your odds of making an accurate Final Deduction.

Example: You decide to split the coterie to cover ground more quickly. A player gains 3 Investigation success tokens in their Investigation Area. If another player gains only 1 token in a separate Investigation Area, the coterie has a total of 4 Investigation success tokens available for the Final Deduction.

End of Investigation

While an Investigation is happening, players cannot perform other types of actions. To complete an Investigation, you must reach the "RESUME PLAYING" prompt, or a designated Event page. You cannot leave an Investigation sequence in which you are involved before completing it.

Final Deduction (FD)

When given the option to do so, players can make a Final Deduction. Making a Final Deduction requires you to use your intuition as a player.

Depending on the number of Investigation success tokens collected, different hypotheses will become available.

All players are involved in Final Deduction sequences. Choosing a hypothesis requires consultation between players. To pick a hypothesis, the whole coterie must reach a unanimous decision.

Based on the players' decision during a Final Deduction, the coterie may receive rewards, or find themselves in a bad spot. Keep your clue tokens until the end of the Chapter.

Combat in Detail

There may be times during the Campaign when a character must engage in Combat situations. This section will provide you with all the instructions necessary to conduct a successful Combat sequence.

How Combat Begins

A Combat sequence begins for all members of the coterie when a Dialogue or an Event page prompts the beginning of Combat.

How Combat Ends

A Combat sequence ends when one of the following conditions is met:

• All enemy NPCs' Damage trackers are full and they are removed from the tile
• Every player character is in Torpor
• An Event calls for the end of the Combat

Initiative, Hold Initiative, and Active Hand

Initiative

A player character's Initiative corresponds to their PHYSICAL Attribute value, while an NPC's State card displays their Initiative value. Depending on the number of players, the latter value may vary. A character's Initiative value can never exceed 6, nor be lower than 0.

NPCs' Initiative tokens come in pairs that share numbers from 1 to 9. When Combat begins, choose one pair of tokens per NPC involved in the Combat sequence and place one of the tokens on the NPC's State card and the other token in the pair on the left side of the Initiative tracker. This NPC's Initiative is represented on the Initiative tracker by the token of the same number as the one on its State card. Now place each player's Initiative tokens on the left side of the Initiative tracker, stacking tokens that share the same Initiative tracker value.

Note: If Combat begins while you are in STEALTH mode, you gain +2 Initiative.

A character's active turn begins when the Initiative tracker reaches their Initiative token. If an NPC and a character both have the same Initiative, the player character always goes first. Allies count as players when breaking Initiative ties. If two players have the same Initiative, they determine who goes first. Initiative goes in descending order, with characters with the highest Initiative acting first.

After a character has taken their turn and their active turn is over, move their token to the Initiative tracker's right side.

A Combat round is complete when all Initiative tokens have been moved to the right side of the Initiative tracker. To begin a new round, place all tokens in the same locations on the left side of the Initiative tracker.

Modifiers to Initiative remain in effect until the end of Combat, unless otherwise specified. If a player's or NPC's Initiative value changes during Combat (due to Skill or Effect cards), move their corresponding token on the Initiative tracker and place it next to the newly updated value.

Note: Modifiers to Initiative remain in effect until the end of Combat, unless stated otherwise.

Hold Initiative

Before performing an action during their active turn, a player can choose to hold their Initiative, lowering their Initiative value to play after any characters, Allies, or NPCs with a higher Initiative value. To hold your Initiative, move your character's Initiative token to any lower number on the Initiative tracker. This becomes your new Initiative value for the remainder of the Combat sequence, unless your Initiative is further altered by Effects from cards, for instance. You can only hold your Initiative once per Combat round.

Active Hand

When Combat begins, you must create an active hand of Combat cards for this particular Combat. Select a number of cards equal to your character's PHYSICAL + MENTAL Attribute values (see p.19), as noted on your Character Sheet. You can select your choice of cards from all the character Combat cards to which you have access.

Example: You are playing Aren Konway (Gangrel). She has a PHYSICAL Attribute of 3 and a MENTAL Attribute of 2. Your active hand consists of 5 cards.

You can spend 1 Willpower point to return all of your used Combat cards to your active hand.

If your active hand is empty because you have played all of your Combat cards, take all of your discarded Combat cards back into your hand without spending a Willpower point.

NPC Combat Deck, Combat Cards and Positioning

NPC Combat Deck

When beginning Combat with an NPC, use the appropriate deck as indicated on the NPC's State card.

Each NPC type has its own Combat deck composed of its own Combat cards. If multiple NPCs are of the same type, they use the same Combat deck. Combat decks are:

• Animal
• Human
• Ghoul
• Authority
• Vampire
• Boss

The NPC Combat deck must be shuffled at the beginning of Combat and once more when all the Combat cards have been used and discarded.

Note: If an NPC has only one SPECIAL Attack on their State card and they draw a "SPECIAL 2" Combat card, they will use their "SPECIAL 1" Attack instead.

Player Combat Cards

At the beginning of a Combat round, players must select one card from their active hand. This will provide the player with the Attack, Mix, or Defense values mentioned below:

• Attack: Provides bonus Dice to an Attack, but provides no Defense value.
• Defense: Provides bonus Dice to Defense, but provides no Attack value.
• Mix: Provides Attack or Defense values.
• Special: An NPC-specific Combat card. Only NPCs can use these cards.

Example: A player with no Resistance tokens receives the full amount of Damage from an NPC's Attack.

You cannot play Combat cards against Allies unless instructed otherwise.

Additional Effects

When a Combat card has additional Effects on it, they take place when the card is used (see p.46). For Effects affecting an enemy, these take place only if the attack deals at least 1 Damage. For Effects affecting your character, they take effect immediately, even if the attack does not deal Damage. The same goes for defense cards that do not prevent all Damage.

Example: You have chosen the "GUARD" Combat card for the round. Once your turn comes, you gain a +1 to your Initiative. If you had chosen "LOW-KICK" instead, you would give your opponent a Slowed token only if you deal at least 1 Damage to them on your turn.

For NPCs, however, the Effect must be applied as soon as the card is revealed (so, if it is a Defense card, when the NPC is attacked or at the beginning of their active turn).

Mix Cards Bonus

A Mix card can be used to give your character a bonus to an Attack OR Defense. The additional Dice bonus from a Mix Combat card can only be applied to the chosen action (Defense OR Attack). If you use a Mix card to defend against an Attack, you must discard it right after and cannot also use it to Attack. Similarly, if you use a Mix card to Attack, you must discard it afterwards and cannot use it to defend that round.

Example: The "PUNCH" Combat card provides +1 die to Defense, but none to Attack. If it is used to attack, the attacking player gets no bonus die from playing the card, but would gain an extra die if the card was used to defend.

Added Effects granted by Mix Combat cards only apply in certain situations. If the Effect affects only your character, then it applies only when using the card to defend. If the Effect should affect an enemy, apply it to them only if you deal at least 1 Damage, like with an Attack card.

Positioning

There are two ways to use a Combat card. The first requires you to be on a HEX adjacent to your target. Most NPC Combat cards work this way. The second is only possible if you have a Ranged Weapon Item card and a Combat card that can be combined with the item (this is stated on the Combat card itself). In that case, you can target any character in your Line of Sight (LoS), and you do not need to be adjacent to them. If your target is outside that range, or your Line of Sight is blocked, you cannot Attack them with a Ranged Weapon. Some NPC Combat cards work this way; it is stated on their Combat card when they do so.

Note: Lines of Sight are blocked by walls, Action tokens, Investigation Area tokens, Difficult Terrain tokens, other characters, and NPCs in a straight line of HEXES.

For an NPC to use a Combat card, they must be on a HEX adjacent to their target. Some NPC Combat cards may alter this rule.

Players and Allies cannot Move through a HEX occupied by an enemy NPC. Players and Allies can Move through a HEX occupied by a player or an Ally, but cannot end their Movement there. NPCs can Move through HEX occupied by other NPCs (except Allies), but cannot end their Movement there. NPCs cannot Move through HEX occupied by players.

Example: An enemy NPC cannot Move through a HEX occupied by an NPC allied with the coterie. Similarly, an Ally cannot Move through a HEX occupied by an enemy NPC, despite both being considered NPCs in the rules.

When an NPC Attacks, rotate its standee so that the arrow faces the target. On a player's active turn, they can rotate their miniature as often as they like. Once the player's active turn is over, the miniature can no longer be rotated.

Attack bonus: When attacking an NPC from behind (opposite direction of the arrow on the standee), add +1 Damage to the total Damage inflicted before applying Resistance.

Since Allies are under the players' control, players can decide if they Move to Attack from behind. Enemy NPCs will always Attack according to their targeting. If the target of their Attack happens to be facing the opposite way, the NPC will Attack them from behind. NPCs do not circle around characters to Attack from behind.

Targeting

NPCs

Every NPC State card lists a default target for that NPC's attacks (see p.27). Combat cards or the SPECIAL Attacks of an NPC will sometimes change this targeting. An NPC's target always belongs to one of the following categories: All, Closest, Self, Most Injured, Least Injured, Highest Initiative, Lowest Initiative.

In the case of ties in targeting, the NPC will target the Ally or character with the highest Initiative on the tracker. In the Event that this also results in a tie, the coterie gets to decide which character becomes the target.

In case an NPC does not have enough Movement to reach their target (or they are not in the NPC's Line of Sight), the NPC will discard their Combat card to get a +2 bonus to their Movement during their active turn and move towards their target (either specified on the Combat card or the NPC's State card).

In the rare case where an NPC physically has no means to reach their original target (e.g., completely surrounded by other characters), the NPC will target the closest character instead.

Player Characters

When using any attack other than a Ranged Weapon attack, the character must target an adjacent NPC.

A character's Line of Sight is used to make Ranged Weapon based attacks. These attacks can only be made if the target is within a character's Line of Sight of 3 HEXES (this can be modified by certain Items) and this Line of Sight is not blocked.

Note: A Line of Sight is considered blocked if you cannot draw a straight line between your HEX and your target's HEX.

Step-By-Step Combat

Beginning a Combat Round

At the beginning of a Combat round, each player individually selects a Combat card and places it face down on the table. Players may announce which type of cards (Attack, Defense, or Mix) they are playing.

Next, players draw the top card of each NPC's Combat deck and place them face down on the table, next to the associated NPC's State card.

Next, players and NPCs take their active turns in order of Initiative.

Note: NPCs of the same type share the same deck, but not the same cards. Example: All ghouls share the GHOUL deck. Despite this, the player must draw one card per ghoul at the beginning of each new round, as they do not share the same cards.

Players' Active Turn

During your active turn, you may perform the following actions once, in any order:

• MOVE: Up to 3 HEXES (see p.35)
• USE THE BLOOD: (MEND DAMAGE, perform a BLOOD SURGE, or use a Discipline - see p.36)
• PERFORM ONE ACTION:
  • Use a Combat card (Attack, Defense, or Mix — see p.45). Note: When using a Combat card, you can spend a Willpower point to re-roll up to 3 Black Dice as many times as you want.
  • Use an Item card.
  • Give an Item to, or take an Item from, an adjacent player.
  • Discard your Combat card to increase your Movement by 2 HEXES.
• SPEND 1 WILLPOWER TO REGAIN ALL OF YOUR DISCARDED COMBAT CARDS
• DO NOTHING AND END YOUR TURN

If you choose to use your Combat card, flip it face up.

Note: You can use a Defense card before your active turn in response to an attack made against you. Afterward, discard the card. You cannot play another Combat card until your next active turn.

If you played a Defense (or Mix) card as a reaction to an NPC's attack before your active turn, you can still perform other actions during your active turn (Movement, use the Blood, Willpower).

Note: You cannot split your Movement before and after your action. You don't have to perform every Combat action on every active turn (thereby allowing you to do nothing if you wish).

Example 1: You are 3 HEXES away from an NPC. You Move closer to the target in order to attack them. You then decide to use your "PUNCH" Combat card. You could use the Blood, but decide not to, thus ending your active turn.

Example 2: You decide to use the Blood to MEND DAMAGE you received last round. You then choose to use your "UPPERCUT" Combat card against an NPC. You roll the Dice, but roll 0 successes. You also use a Willpower point to re-roll all 3 of your Black Dice. You roll 2 successes, thereby making your attack successful. Finally, you decide to Move away from the NPC.

Example 3: You decide to do nothing during this active turn.

How to Attack

1. When playing an Attack card or a Mix card (as an Attack), begin by tallying your automatic successes from your Skill points. This is the same Skill you are using to make the attack.

Note: The BRAWL Skill requires BRAWL cards, the WEAPONS Skill requires WEAPONS cards, etc.

2. Next, roll a number of Dice equal to your PHYSICAL Attribute level plus any bonus Dice conferred by the card you used.
3. Add your automatic successes from your Skill to the number of successes you've gotten from your Dice roll. This is the Damage value of your Attack.
4. Subtract your target's Resistance from your Damage value. If the NPC had any Resistance tokens (such as those given by a Combat card), reduce your Damage by the amount of tokens and discard them. The amount left is the total Damage you inflict on your target.

Use this formula to determine the Damage an NPC receives:

Damage dealt = (Successes rolled + Skill automatic successes) – (NPC Resistance + Resistance tokens)

5. Place the used Attack or Mix card(s) in the discard pile.

Note: If you attack an NPC before their turn, you must briefly reveal the NPC's Combat card to see if it is a defensive card since it may change the final Damage result. If so, it is immediately played. A Resistance token is discarded for each point of Damage that exceeds base Resistance. NPCs discard their remaining Resistance tokens at the end of the round.

Example: Player 1 attacks the "OLD VAGRANT" NPC, dealing 2 Damage. Flipping the NPC's Combat card over, Player 1 sees that the NPC is using the "GUARD" Combat card, which grants the NPC +1 Resistance token. Player 1's attack is reduced by the NPC's Resistance (2) + the bonus Resistance token conferred by the NPC's Combat card. Since Player 1 only dealt 2 Damage, this is not enough to bypass the NPC's base Resistance, the OLD VAGRANT keeps his Resistance token. Player 2 attacks the same NPC, dealing 4 Damage. After subtracting the NPC's base Resistance (2), the attack deals 2 Damage. This is further lowered by the OLD VAGRANT's Resistance token (1). The attack thus deals only 1 point of Damage to their target, and the Resistance token is discarded.

Players may also recover all discarded Combat cards by spending 1 Willpower point, regardless of how many cards have been discarded. This can be done at any time during the Combat sequence. When you have no cards left in your active hand, you recover all of your discarded cards without needing to spend a Willpower point.

Example: You played the "BITE" Combat card during your last active turn and the "HOOK" Combat card during this active turn. You want to get them back before the next Combat round so you can use the "BITE" Combat card again. You therefore spend 1 Willpower point and retrieve all your discarded cards.

How to Defend Yourself

1. When playing a Defense card (or a Mix card as a Defense), begin by tallying your automatic successes from your Skill points. This is the same Skill mentioned on the card.
2. Next, roll a number of Dice equal to your PHYSICAL Attribute level plus any bonus Dice conferred by the card you used.
3. Add your automatic successes from your Skill to the number of successes you got from your Dice roll. This is the number of Resistance tokens you gain.
4. You can spend Resistance tokens to reduce the Damage received. For each Resistance token spent, prevent 1 Damage.

Note: You can use Defense Combat cards to defend yourself against Ranged Attacks, even if such an attack comes from outside your Line of Sight.

5. If you have any Resistance tokens left at the end of the Combat round, discard them and gain a +1 Initiative. The bonus is always +1, no matter how many Resistance tokens you have discarded.

Note: You may choose not to use all your Resistance tokens against a single attack, and even keep some until the end of the round to gain +1 to your Initiative.

NPCs' Active Turn

An NPC can only Move to reach its target. The NPC will Move before attempting to attack, and will use the quickest path. If the NPC cannot reach its target, it will discard its Combat card to gain +2 Movement and try to reach its target.

Next, discard the Combat card and place it in the appropriate NPC's Combat discard pile. Once the NPC has played all of their Combat cards, shuffle the discarded cards to form a new deck.

If an NPC's Combat card gains Resistance tokens during their active turn, they remain until the end of the round, or when the NPC is dealt Damage beyond their base Resistance.

How NPCs Attack

1. When an NPC plays an Attack card or makes a SPECIAL Attack, tally the Damage by adding their Attack Attribute to the card's bonus.
2. If the targeted player uses a Defense card, refer to the section above, "How to defend yourself," to calculate their character's Resistance.

If the targeted character has not played a Defense card, that character takes the full Damage, as calculated in step 1.

Use this formula to determine the Damage an NPC deals:

Damage dealt = (Attack level + Combat card bonus) – (Resistance tokens spent by the player)

3. Place the used Combat card in the NPC's discard pile. NPCs regain their Combat cards only once they have run out of cards in their Combat deck.

How NPCs Defend Themselves

Note: NPCs always apply their base Resistance against every attack, even if they do not play a Defense card.

1. When an NPC plays a Defense card, they do not move, and they gain a number of Resistance tokens as indicated on the card.
2. Reduce the Damage received by the NPC by an amount equal to their Resistance. Reduce this amount further by the amount of Resistance tokens the NPC has and discard them. An NPC's base Resistance applies to every attack made against the NPC.

Use this formula to determine the Damage an NPC takes:

Damage taken = (Player successes rolled + Skill automatic successes) – (NPC Resistance + Resistance tokens)

3. Place the used Combat card in the NPC's discard pile. NPCs regain their Combat cards only once they have run out of cards in their Combat deck.
4. If the NPC's Damage tracker is full, remove its standee from the tile.

Allies and Summons in Combat

Like enemies, Allies have their own Attack, Resistance, Initiative, Movement, and Line of Sight values on their State card. They differ from enemies in two aspects, however:

• Allies are controlled by the players in Combat. This means you control where to move them, which ability they use and who their target is.
• Allies' Attack, Resistance, and Initiative are not dependent on the amount of players at the table.

Allies do not use a Combat deck. They each have two abilities and can use one of them on their turn in Combat. All Damage inflicted by Allies is Unpreventable Damage, which means it cannot be reduced by an enemy's Resistance nor can Resistance tokens be spent to lower that Damage.

Allies who grant a Passive Effect to other players continue to grant their Effect during Combat, as long as they are not in Torpor.

When an Ally falls into Torpor, they are removed from the tile and will not return until the next Chapter.

Allies' Active Turns

During an Ally's active turn, players choose where to move them, who their target is and which of the Ally's two abilities to use during the turn. If there are no targets within the range of the Ally's abilities, or if the chosen target is too far, you can decide to forgo the Ally's ability use for the turn to move them 2 HEXES more this turn, similarly to how enemies will discard their Combat card to move further.

How Allies Attack

1. When attacking with an Ally, begin by deciding which ability to use and which target to use it on. Add the ability's Damage bonus to the Ally's base Attack value. This is the amount of Damage the Ally deals to its target. (Remember that any Damage dealt by the Ally is Unpreventable Damage.)
2. If the targeted NPC has any Resistance tokens, they cannot use them to mitigate the Damage they are dealt by your Ally. If the NPC had not taken a turn yet, there is no need to look at their Combat card, as the Ally's Damage cannot be prevented.

Use this formula to determine the Damage dealt by an Ally:

Damage dealt = (Ally Attack level + Ally ability bonus)

How Allies Defend Themselves

If you choose to use an Ally's defensive ability (if they have one), give that Ally a number of Resistance tokens equal to the ability's Defense bonus. When the Ally is attacked, reduce the Damage dealt to them by their Resistance level first. Then, you may choose to use that Ally's Resistance tokens (if they have any) to further reduce the Damage. You can choose not to use any Resistance tokens, but remember that they are discarded at the end of the round.

Use this formula to determine the Damage an Ally takes:

Damage taken = (NPC's Attack level + NPC Combat card bonus) – (Ally's base Resistance + Resistance tokens used, if any)

Example: Your Ally has a Resistance value of 2. On their turn, you choose to use that Ally's defensive ability, which, for the purposes of this example, grants 1 Resistance token. On the enemy's turn, they attack your Ally and deal 3 Damage. That amount is immediately reduced to 1 (Damage dealt – Base Resistance value). You choose not to use your Ally's Resistance token, keeping it for later. Your Ally then takes 1 Damage. Should another enemy attack your Ally before the end of the round and deal 3 Damage, you could use the Resistance token you did not discard before to cancel all Damage dealt by the attack (3 Damage dealt – Base Resistance of 2 – 1 spent Resistance token). Remember to discard any Resistance tokens used to mitigate Damage after they are used.

Note: Like players, if an Ally is attacked before their turn, and they have a defensive ability, you may use the defensive ability immediately to grant that Ally bonus Resistance tokens. However, doing so means that your Ally will not be able to use any ability on their turn, having used it already, and will only be able to move.

Summons

Summons are weaker than Allies, but excel at directing attacks away from the coterie. Summons are often called to fight via the use of a Discipline card, but can also be used against you by enemies. Judicious use of Summons can turn the tide of combat in your favor!

Summons function just like Allies, except that they use a Summon State card instead of a State card. Refer to a Summon's Attack value on its card to know how much Unpreventable Damage it deals. Summons only have one type of Attack, and they can only Damage an enemy on a HEX adjacent to them. Summons do not have defensive abilities and only use their base Resistance value to reduce Damage.

When a Summon dies, remove its token from the tile. You can summon it again on your next active turn.

Summons play on their Initiative, regardless of the summoner's Initiative. If a Summon's Initiative is higher than its summoner, it does not get to play immediately, but only on the next round. Summons have a Movement of 3, whether they are summoned by a player or set on the tile by an instruction in the booklet.

Some examples of Summon tokens: Wraith, Rat Famulus, Arms of Ahriman, Decrepit Risen Dead.

Arms of Ahriman

The Arms of Ahriman are special Summons. They cannot be targeted by characters (players, Allies, NPCs), nor do they move. They do not have a Summon State card. When a player or NPC (except Bosses) starts their turn adjacent to them, the Arms of Ahriman deals 1 Unpreventable Damage.

Bosses in Combat

Bosses are a special type of NPC that are only encountered in Combat. Bosses are identified by the BOSS tag on their State card.

Boss Combat Deck

A Boss uses both shared Boss cards (consisting of 3 SPECIAL 1 and 3 SPECIAL 2 cards) and personal Combat cards — usually 4, though this number can vary. When beginning Combat with a Boss, shuffle the shared Boss cards with that specific Boss's Combat cards to create a new deck. The Boss will use Combat cards from that new deck throughout the Combat sequence. At the end of the Combat sequence, separate the cards so that the shared Boss cards are ready for the next Boss.

Phases

Most Bosses have 2 phases. Their Attack and Resistance levels and SPECIAL Attacks can vary from one phase to another. Each side of a Boss's State card shows a different phase. When beginning Combat with a Boss with 2 phases, place their State card with their "Phase I" face up. When you completely fill the Damage tracker of a Boss's first phase, read the Event page listed at the end of the Damage tracker, where a Skull symbol would normally be. The Boss is Defeated when the Damage tracker of its second phase is completely filled.

Thresholds

Bosses have thresholds on their Damage tracker that requires you to read a specific page in the Booklet when the Boss's tracker reaches that level. Ignore any Damage dealt to the boss that would exceed this threshold.

If the Boss regains enough health to lower its tracker past a threshold that had already been triggered, it does not trigger again when it takes enough Damage to bring it to, or past, the previously triggered threshold.

Passive

Some Bosses have a Passive Effect, as indicated on their State card. These Effects work similarly to a coterie Ally's Passive Effect. A Boss's Passive Effect remains active until the Boss is Defeated.

Boss Immunities

Bosses are immune to Stunned tokens. They may also be immune to certain Effects. The Chapter Booklet will detail the Effects to which any given Boss is immune.

Stealth Mode

During the Main sequence, characters may attempt to Move discreetly through an area without being noticed. When they do so, they enter STEALTH mode.

Note: When Combat begins while your character is in STEALTH mode, your character gains a +2 bonus to their Initiative.

Line of Sight, STEALTH Checks and STEALTH Token

Line of Sight (LoS)

Each NPC has a Line of Sight (LoS) — the area within which they can see others. The default Line of Sight is always a triangle 3 HEXES long on each side that extends outward from the character in the direction they're facing. An NPC's Line of Sight value is indicated on the NPC's State card. If an NPC has no State card, their default Line of Sight value is 3. An NPC's Line of Sight extends for a number of HEXES equal to the NPC's Line of Sight value, but does not go through walls, characters, Action tokens, Investigation Area tokens, Difficult Terrain tokens, or NPCs. In addition to this triangle, the NPC's Line of Sight extends to every HEX immediately adjacent to them.

Note: For brevity, Line of Sight will often be abbreviated as LoS, especially on game cards.

Note: The direction an NPC is facing is indicated by the arrow on their base.

Even inside a character's Line of Sight, another character is hidden if a straight line drawn between the centers of the HEXES on which the characters stand crosses a wall, a Difficult Terrain token, an Investigation Area token, an Action token, or another character of any kind.

STEALTH Checks

To make a successful STEALTH check, a player must first declare STEALTH mode while their character is outside the Lines of Sight of all NPCs present on the tile. They must then attempt to Move discreetly through the Line of Sight of the NPC of their choice. Once their character enters an NPC's Line of Sight, they must pass a STEALTH check with a score equal to or exceeding the value of STEALTH check's Difficulty, which is determined by the NPC's Line of Sight + the proximity modifier.

When making a STEALTH check, a player counts their character's STEALTH Skill points as automatic successes, then rolls a number of Dice equal to the character's PHYSICAL Attribute level. They then add the successes they received thanks to this roll to the automatic successes conferred by their character's STEALTH Skill level to calculate the character's final STEALTH score.

When a player character Moves through an NPC's Line of Sight, the player character must pass only one STEALTH check: the one of the greatest Difficulty value on their path to avoid detection.

If the character passes the STEALTH check, the NPC does not detect the character. If the character fails the STEALTH check, the NPC detects the character. The Booklet will tell you which page to read when that happens. Before reading it, apply one of the following options:

• If the NPC has a State card and an Aggressive attitude, the NPC receives +1 to their Initiative.
• If the NPC has a State card and a Neutral attitude, the NPC gains +1 Resistance token.
• If the NPC does not have a State card, the character simply loses their STEALTH token.

If an NPC's Movement would put your character in their Line of Sight, you may make an immediate STEALTH check to hide. If your character is already in STEALTH mode, you must make a new STEALTH check to remain hidden from view.

If Combat begins and you are in STEALTH mode and have not been detected, discard your STEALTH token and gain +2 Initiative.

You must make a STEALTH check for each NPC whose Line of Sight you are in, or Move through, during a round.

If you begin your turn with a STEALTH token while in an NPC's Line of Sight, you must make a STEALTH check to remain hidden whether you move or not during your turn.

Proximity Modifier

The closer a character in STEALTH mode is to an NPC, the greater the chance they'll be detected. This chance is represented by a proximity modifier determined by the NPC's Line of Sight value. The HEXES closest to the NPC have a proximity modifier equal to the NPC's Line of Sight value. As the distance between characters increases, the proximity modifier decreases by 1 for each HEX the distance increases.

As previously noted, an NPC's Line of Sight forms a triangle of HEXES in front of the NPC. The HEXES on each side of the NPC have a proximity modifier of 0, and the ones behind the NPC have a proximity modifier of -1.

Example: If an NPC has a Line of Sight of 4, the HEXES directly adjacent to them in the direction they are facing have a proximity modifier of +4, the ones beyond those a +3, and the ones beyond those a +2. The farthest HEXES still within the NPC's Line of Sight have a proximity modifier of +1.

You must make a STEALTH check for each NPC whose Line of Sight you are in, or move through, this round.

STEALTH Token

When your character enters STEALTH mode, place a STEALTH token on your Character Board. Keep it there as long as your character is in STEALTH mode. When you are detected, discard your STEALTH token.

When entering a Dialogue, Investigation, or Combat sequence, or launching a sequence from an Action token, all the characters involved in the new sequence exit STEALTH mode.

Note: To enter STEALTH mode you must be out of the Line of Sight of any NPC.

STEALTH Examples

In these examples, an Aggressive NPC with a Line of Sight of 3 is standing on a HEX.

Example #1: Your character has entered STEALTH mode and is trying to Move through the NPC's Line of Sight. To remain undetected, you must make a STEALTH check. The proximity modifier of the HEX your character is crossing is +1. Since the NPC's Line of Sight is 3, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 4 (meaning you need 4 successes to pass the Skill check).

Example #2: Your character is trying to Move across 2 HEXES, both of which are in the NPC's Line of Sight. To remain undetected, you must make a STEALTH check. The HEX with the highest proximity modifier your character will encounter has a value of +2. Since the NPC's Line of Sight is 4, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 6 (meaning you need 6 successes to pass the Skill check).

Example #3: Your character has succeeded in their previous STEALTH check and stopped within the NPC's Line of Sight. You decide your character will Move out of the NPC's Line of Sight by crossing 2 HEXES closest to the NPC. To remain undetected, you must make another STEALTH check. The proximity modifier of the HEXES your character is crossing is +3. Since the NPC's Line of Sight is 3, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 6 (meaning you need 6 successes to pass the Skill check).

Example #4: You have ended your last turn in the Line of Sight of the Warden. During the warden's turn, you made another STEALTH check and succeeded. Now that it is your turn, you decide to move out of the NPC's Line of Sight. You must make a new PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 6 (the Warden's Line of Sight value (3) + the proximity modifier (3)) to remain hidden while moving.

Note: Even if you choose not to move but wish to remain hidden, you must make a Difficulty 6 STEALTH check.

Example #5: Your character is Moving through 2 NPCs' Lines of Sight. To remain undetected, you must make 2 STEALTH checks: 1 for each NPC. The HEX with the highest proximity modifier your character will encounter while passing the first NPC has a value of +2, and the proximity modifier of the HEX your character will cross while passing the second NPC is +1. Since both NPCs' Line of Sight is 3, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 5 when you cross the first NPC's Line of Sight, and a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 4 when you cross the second NPC's Line of Sight — meaning you need 5 successes to pass the first STEALTH check, and 4 successes to pass the second STEALTH check.

Example #6: Your character is Moving through 2 NPCs' Lines of Sight. To remain undetected, you must make 2 STEALTH checks: 1 for each NPC. The HEX with the highest proximity modifier your character will encounter while passing the first NPC has a value of +2. Since the first NPC's Line of Sight is 3, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 5 (meaning you need 5 successes to pass the first STEALTH check). For the second STEALTH check, the proximity modifier of the HEX your character is crossing is +1. Since the first NPC's Line of Sight is 3, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 4 (meaning you need 4 successes to pass the second STEALTH check).

Note: Even if 2 NPCs' Lines of Sight overlap, you must treat their proximity modifiers separately. Do not add them together.

If you fail either STEALTH check, the NPC whose Line of Sight you are crossing will react according to its attitude — an Aggressive NPC will begin Combat with +1 to their Initiative, while a Neutral NPC will gain +1 Resistance token.

Example #7: Your character is Moving behind an NPC. To remain undetected, you must make a STEALTH check. The proximity modifier of the HEX your character is crossing is -1. Since the NPC's Line of Sight is 3, you must make a PHYSICAL + STEALTH check with a Difficulty of 2 (meaning you need 2 successes to pass the STEALTH check).

Example #8: Your character is hidden from an NPC's Line of Sight, because you can't draw a straight line between your character and the NPC without crossing a Difficult Terrain token. However, if your character Moves 1 HEX down, then you would enter the NPC's Line of Sight, because you could draw a straight line between your character and the NPC without crossing any token or wall.

Glossary

Action Token: Generic token that represents an object or area a character can interact with.

Active Hand: Combat cards the player holds during Combat, for use in attacking and defending.

Ally: An NPC that is on the characters' side and will help them in the event of a fight. Allies are split between two categories: those present only for one Chapter, and those that remain for the whole story.

Anarch: A vampire who opposes the tyranny of Elders and operates outside the secret society of the Camarilla.

Arms of Ahriman: Shadowy tendrils created and controlled by certain vampires through use of the OBLIVION Discipline.

Attack Bonus: +1 Damage added to the total Damage inflicted before applying Resistance when attacking an NPC from behind (as indicated by the direction of the arrow on the NPC's standee).

Attack Card: Combat card that adds a bonus to a character's die roll to injure an opponent.

Attitude: An NPC's general behavior toward the player characters.

Attribute: Overall gauge of a character's potential in an area (PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, or MENTAL). In-game, each level of Attribute represents 1 die that the player must roll during relevant Skill checks.

The Beast: The inchoate drives and urges that threaten to turn a vampire into a mindless, ravening monster.

The Blood: The supernatural, semi-sentient Blood of a vampire, as opposed to mortal or animal blood.

Blood Hunt: A punishment sentencing a vampire to Final Death at the fangs of their peers.

Blood Surge: The act of using vampiric Blood to enhance a vampire's Attributes.

Boons: Intangible favors gifted among vampires. They are used both as currency and leverage.

Boss Phase: Part of a Combat sequence against a Boss-type enemy. Each phase brings additional challenges.

Caitiff: A vampire of unknown clan, or no clan at all.

The Camarilla: A sect of vampires devoted primarily to maintaining the Traditions, particularly that of the Masquerade.

Chapter: A gameplay experience that presents a narrative. Each Chapter leads to another, forming the overarching main story of Vampire: The Masquerade - CHAPTERS.

Character Board: A game component used to track Hunger, Willpower, and Damage. The Character Sheet goes next to the Character Board.

Character Sheet: A sheet of paper detailing a character's name, clan, flaw, Attributes, Skills, Disciplines, and experience (XP), as well as a reference for spending XP.

Childe: A vampire created through the Embrace; a childe is the progeny of their sire. This term is often used derogatorily to indicate inexperience. Plural: childer.

Clan: A group of vampires who share common characteristics passed on through the Blood. There are thirteen known clans.

Coterie: A small group of Kindred united by the need for support, and sometimes by common interests.

DMG / UDMG: Abbreviations for Damage and Unpreventable Damage, respectively.

Damage Tracker: A game component found on Character Boards and NPC State cards, used to determine how close a character is to Torpor or an NPC is to defeat.

Diablerie: The consumption of another Kindred's Blood to the point of the victim's Final Death. Vampires may gain tremendous power through this abhorrent practice.

Dialogue Sequence: An interval in the game during which one or more characters speak with NPCs. A Chapter's Dialogues can be found in the Chapter Booklet's Dialogue section.

Defense Card: Combat card that adds a bonus to a character's die roll to defend themself from harm.

Difficulty: The minimum number of successes a character must obtain to succeed at a Skill check.

Discipline: A group of related vampiric powers. Each level a character has in a Discipline unlocks new Discipline power cards for the character.

Discipline Power Card: A card detailing a specific vampiric power.

Domitor: A ghoul's vampiric master, who gives the ghoul their Blood and issues commands.

Effect Card: A card that modifies a character's Attribute, Skill, or other aspect.

Elder: A vampire who has experienced two or more centuries of unlife.

Elysium: A place where vampires may gather without fear of harm. Court functions in an Elysium are kept strictly apart from mortals and surrounded by secrecy, but the building that houses an Elysium could be a public museum, gallery, or club.

The Embrace: The act of transforming a mortal into a vampire, during which a vampire drains the victim and replaces that victim's blood with a bit of their own Blood.

Experience Points (XP): In-game currency used to increase a character's Attribute, Skill, and Discipline levels.

Feeding: The in-game act of decreasing a player character's Hunger by draining the blood of a prey NPC, or through use of the BITE Combat card.

Feeding Event: A mini-event set between Chapters of the main story during which player characters can hunt a mortal and gain rewards.

Final Death: The end of a vampire's existence, marked by their passage from undeath into true death.

Frenzy: A state vampires enter when they lose their self-control and abandon themselves to the Beast.

Generation: The number of "steps" between a vampire and the mythical Caine, the first vampire; how far descended from him a given vampire is.

Ghoul: A minion created by giving a bit of vampiric vitæ to a mortal without first draining the mortal of their blood (which would create a vampire instead).

Haven: A vampire's "home" or base, where they find sanctuary from the sun.

HEX: A delimited hexagonal space on a game tile that can be occupied by a character, NPC, or token.

Humanity: A vampire's attachment to their former life and the values and morals of humankind, which prevent them from becoming ravenous beasts. As their humanity is lost, a vampire becomes more monstrous.

Humanity Card: Cards used to track a character's remaining Humanity. Each card bears the current amount as well as any bonuses or penalties associated with it.

Hunger: The urge to feed. For vampires, Hunger replaces all other drives with its own powerful call. In the game, Hunger is tracked on the Character Board, and represents the number of times you can fail a Rouse check before succumbing to Frenzy and being removed from the Chapter.

Initiative: A character's Initiative corresponds to their PHYSICAL Attribute value.

Initiative Tracker: A game component that tracks the order in which player characters and NPCs act during Combat.

Investigation Area Token: A generic token that represents an object or area a character can investigate. During a Chapter, any Investigation Area tokens in that Chapter are linked to a page in the Chapter Booklet.

Investigation Sequence: A moment in the game when one or more characters interact with an Investigation Area. A Chapter's Investigation sequences can be found in the Chapter Booklet's Investigation section.

Item Card: A card detailing the effects of an Item found in the game, as well as how to use it.

Kindred: The Camarilla term for a single vampire, or vampires as a whole. According to rumor, this term came about in the 15th or 16th century, after the Anarch Revolt.

Kine: A largely contemptuous term for mortals. The phrase "Kindred and kine" refers to the world at large, or everything.

The Kiss: The vampiric act of drinking blood from another being, especially a mortal. The Kiss causes feelings of ecstasy in the victim.

Line of Sight (LoS): An area within which an NPC can detect a character in STEALTH mode, or in which characters and NPCs may make Ranged Attacks.

Lupine: A werewolf, the natural and mortal enemy of the vampire race. Plural: lupines.

Main Tracker: A game component used to record the player characters' Status rank, the number of Masquerade Breaches they have caused, and the number of rounds that have elapsed since an event (often the beginning of a Chapter) or before the arrival of the authorities.

The Masquerade: The habit (or Tradition) of hiding the existence of vampires from humanity. Designed to protect vampires from destruction at the hands of mankind, the Masquerade was adopted after the Inquisition claimed many Kindred unlives.

Mend Damage: The act of using vampiric Blood to repair wounds dealt to a vampire.

Miniature: Plastic figurine representing a player character or NPC.

Mix Card: A Combat card that adds a bonus to a character's die roll to either injure an opponent in Combat, or prevent injury by an opponent.

Movement: The number of HEXES a character can cross in a turn. (By default, up to 3 HEXES.)

Neonate: A young Kindred, recently Embraced.

NPC: A Non-Player Character; any being encountered in the game that is not played by a player.

Prey NPC: An NPC that cannot be interacted with during Chapters except for the purpose of feeding. Prey NPCs' standees use a red base.

Prince: A vampire who has claimed a given expanse or domain — generally a city — as their own, and supports that claim against all others. The term can refer to a Kindred of either sex.

Resistance: An NPC Attribute that indicates how many points of Damage the NPC can ignore out of each attack made against them.

Rouse Check: A roll of a single die to determine if a character's Hunger increases or not.

The Sabbat: A sect of vampires that rejects humanity, embracing their monstrous nature. They are currently believed to be engaged in the Gehenna War, having left or been driven out of their holdings in the West.

The Second Inquisition: A term used among vampires to refer to the recent coordinated efforts of intelligence agencies to Combat Kindred as if they were a terrorist threat. Few individual agents understand what they are fighting, and the interagency collaboration codenamed FIRSTLIGHT places enormous importance on keeping their operations secret and disguised as ordinary antiterrorist action.

Sect: A group of vampires (arguably) united under a common philosophy. The two most widely known sects currently populating the night are the Camarilla and the Anarch Movement.

Sire: A vampire's begetter; the Kindred who created them.

Skill: An area in which a character displays exceptional aptitude. In-game, each level a character has in a Skill grants them 1 automatic success during Skill checks.

Skill Check: An in-game event that requires a die roll to determine a character's success or failure in achieving a certain goal.

Standee: A cardboard illustration of an NPC that can be clipped to a plastic base for use on a game tile.

State Card: The NPCs' equivalent to a Character Board.

Status: A measure of how well received and perceived the player characters are in vampiric society.

Summon: A special type of NPC whose Attributes are written on a small card instead of a State card. A Summon never rolls Dice; when necessary, it simply uses the numbers written on this card.

Thin-Blood: A vampire of the 14th or 15th generation (and possibly more) who does not experience the curse of Caine in the same way as other Kindred.

Token: A round, square, or hexagon-shaped cardboard piece featuring an image of what the token represents (see p.29).

Torpor: A state of paralysis into which a vampire falls either due to loss of Blood or being staked through the heart. When a character enters Torpor, they are removed from the current Chapter playthrough, but can return to play at the beginning of the following Chapter.

Tradition: The set of laws that govern vampires in Camarilla-held cities. Apart from the Masquerade, the Anarchs rarely respect them.

Use the Blood: To perform one of a group of in-game actions that require vampiric Blood.

Troubleshooting and Common Sense

In Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS, you might encounter situations wherein rules from the Rulebook contradict the rules found in certain game components. There also might be moments wherein rules simply do not account for your unique situation. Here's how these situations should be resolved:

• SPECIFIC SUPERSEDES GENERAL: Instructions found in other game components always supersede the rules in this Rulebook (specific rules > general rules).
• USE "COMMON SENSE": If in doubt, don't hesitate to discuss the situation and resolve it in whichever way makes sense to the majority of players at your table.
• VISIT OUR ONLINE TOOLS: If you cannot find a suitable answer to your question, we invite you to visit www.vampirethemasquerade-chapters.com. Our website offers numerous resources to simplify your information search.

Credits

A game designed and directed by Gary Paitre and Thomas Filippi. Invited game designers: Brian Neff, Noah Cohen, Jon Gilmour. Main illustrations by Marc Simonetti, Sergey Vasnev, Dominik Mayer, Ruslan Igorevish, Erling Saevarsson, Kim Van Deun, Emilis Emka, Krzysztof Bieniawski. Art direction by Marie-Michèle Ayotte.

Published by FLYOS GAMES inc. Vampire: The Masquerade — CHAPTERS. Vampire: The Masquerade is published under license from Paradox Interactive AB.

Vampire: The Masquerade – CHAPTERS is also playable through a free companion app, delivering the complete narrative experience without using the storybook or booklets, available on web, iOS, and Android at app.vampirethemasqueradechapters.com.