Character Creation

At the start of the campaign, Bavaria - and vampire society as a whole - is a series of fiefs held together by a mixture of personal power and connections between individual rulers rather than an overarching authority such as the Camarilla. Much like the feudalism of mortal Bavaria, powerful elders either have massive influence over, or outright control of, most of Bavaria. They then delegate it to subordinates to administer on their behalf, who in turn delegate some of it to their subordinates.

As the game will take place over a sweeping expanse of time and one of the themes of the game will be the toll that immortality can take on a character, Torpor will feature as both an obstacle and a benefit. It is worth noting that Torpor is an issue for characters rather than players; see the Torpor rules for what to do if your character is in Torpor when a session is taking place. 

The anticipated game experience for the four character “levels” is set out below. We are not forbidding characters from deviating from their expected place in the hierarchy; however characters who wish to make their own place - be it an elder who wants to live in another’s fief without offering assurances of support or a neonate who wants to be Prince of a town - will need to seize and hold that place themselves.

  • Characters at this level are likely to be Princes, (un)trusted close advisors to them, or hold some other large powerbase, and to possess significant power as a vampire.

    The downside of this is that characters must hold onto that power. This makes them potential threats to equally powerful vampires who have survived by not assuming the best; attempts to personally intervene in or investigate certain matters might also be assumed to be devious political strategies by other elders, or seen as opportunities to seize territory/power while your character is distracted.

    Challenges are therefore likely to consistently include at least the city vs city level and a reasonable amount of managing both the fief and the vampires within. For example if plague is spreading across a neighbouring province and inaction will let it infect yours, how will you choose to handle it?

    Balancing the need to voluntarily enter Torpor to ease the burdens of immortality, against not losing a grip on power, will also be a central part of the game at this level.

  • Characters at this level are likely to have established themselves as useful administrators, enforcers, or other subordinates to an elder.

    They might hold significant influence over the church throughout a particular Prince's domains, or handle the running of a particular city or region. The downside of this is that sponsors have expectations, and other vampires would love to take over a cushy role.

    Challenges are therefore likely to be at least at the city level. Using the above example, if plague has broken out in the poor quarter and the Prince has given you the “honour” of protecting the city's blood supply, what steps will you take and who will you need to use or crush to achieve them?

    As ancillae will not be suffering quite as greatly from the tolls of immortality as an Elder, the balancing act between voluntary Torpor and retaining personal control will be less critical at this level.

  • Characters at this level are likely to have made themselves useful enough to an ancilla (or even elder) that they are trusted with some small responsibilities. They might administer a single business or toll road, keep a supervisory eye on part of the local human population or act as a messenger between domains.

    They will likely be assumed to be insignificant by major political players, meaning that they can investigate and deal with problems without drawing as much attention as an Ancilla or Elder would. The downside of course is that neonates lack both the long-established relationships and the raw power of older vampires, so are easy to replace if they aren't useful enough.

    Challenges at this level are likely to mostly be at the personal level. If dealing with plague means that the Neonate’s haven needed to be burned down to contain the spread, there’s not much you can do about it except rebuild.

    While it is not impossible that neonates might start to suffer with the tolls of vampirism, both the need to voluntarily enter Torpor and the length of any Torpor are likely to be very low at this level.

  • For some reason, rather than interacting closely with Bavarian vampire society themselves or sending a vampiric associate, your character's master has granted them a degree of autonomy that is rare for a ghoul.

    The advantages are that your character is still mortal, so may act during the daytime and interact with other humans with little effort, and yet they carry the implied authority of a vampire who potentially wields great political and personal power. The disadvantages are also that your character is still mortal, so is likely to be weaker and more fragile than a neonate. Knowing that your Domitor will be annoyed by somebody removing your head from your body is small comfort after the fact, after all.

    Challenges could be at any level depending on why your character's master has granted them this role, but will centre around using the advantages ghouls have over vampires in certain circumstances and the delicate application of your master's name to gain your goals.

    As ghouls remain mortal, they will suffer immortality’s toll less than vampires but equally will not be able to take advantage of the bolstering effects of Torpor, so will have to rely more heavily on personal sources of meaning.

    PC Ghouls will be bound to an NPC Domitor rather than another player character.

  • The starting point for any character should be the concept which will guide the rest of the character generation process. This should be between one and three paragraphs which give a short summary of the elements which make the character who and what they are today, events which have shaped them, the fundamental traits which make up their personality, and anything else of note.

    In order to assist in developing your concept, below are a set of questions which we will ask everyone to complete as part of character generation. These questions can be useful to prompt you to consider important elements of your character’s life, even if you already have a clear idea in mind.

    Natural Life

    • How old was your character before they entered kindred society?

    • What job or role did they hold before entering kindred society?

    • Which part of the world is your character from originally?

    Aptitudes

    • Why is your character very good at certain things?

    • Why is your character very bad at certain things?

    • Why does your character have their merits and flaws?

    • How did your character come to possess their backgrounds?

    • What are your character’s greatest successes and failures?

    Personality and People

    • Why is your character a bad person and what is the most selfish thing they have ever done

    • Why is your character a good person, and what is the most selfless thing they have done?

    • What qualities most define your character? Their skill? Their sense of humour? Etc.

    • What drives your character, why do they continue to exist?

    • What is your character’s darkest secret?

    • Who are the most important people in your character’s life?

    Unnatural Life

    • What face does your character show to Mortal society? What do humans know of them?

    • How widely travelled is your character and where do they consider home to be?

    Kindred Only

    • Describe your character’s relationship with their Sire.

    • Why did your character’s Sire embrace them, or at least why do they think they were chosen for the embrace?

    • What is your character’s relationship with their Vampiric condition? Do they revel in it? Despair about it? Has this evolved or changed through their existence?

    • How does the Beast make your character’s life better?

    Ghouls Only

    • Describe your character’s relationship with their Domitor

    • Why did your character’s Domitor pick them to be their Ghoul? Or at least, why does your character think they were chosen?

    • What is your character’s relationship with their nature as a Ghoul? Do they enjoy it? Despair of becoming less human?

    • Does your character seek the Embrace, to become a Vampire themselves? Do you seek it as a player?

  • At the core of every character there is a duality, and in a time such as the middle ages such a duality may be the key to a person’s survival. Modern liberalism, free speech and human rights are far off dreams for many in a world where you could be judged guilty of a multitude of crimes simply for how you are perceived.

    In these dark days it may be wise to hide away one’s true self, their nature, and instead present themselves to the world quite differently, their demeanour. Whether to hide weakness, wrongfoot political opponents or remain a wolf in sheep’s clothing, it is a rare individual who would bare their soul to all.

    Each character has a Nature and Demeanour chosen from the following list of Archetypes, or another that the player proposes. These are chosen to provide some guidance for you as a player on how you wish to play your character and will also be used as guidance for the ST team to style how they write for you. There are no specific mechanics associated with Nature and Demeanour, they are solely chosen for narrative support.

    If you cannot find an archetype that suits your nature or demeanour, propose a new one with a description to the ST team and we will review and incorporate if it is distinct from those below and appropriate to the setting.

  • Architect: You love physical and social structures, and abhor anyone who works outside the system.

    Artist: You focus on inspiration, emotion, and the creative drive. You exist for your art.

    Autocrat: Stability requires order. Bring it about.

    Barbarian: Civilisation is a joke; honour or strength is everything.

    Bully: You’re proud of your superiority, and everyone knows it. They’d best let you have your way.

    Caregiver: You shelter the weak, tutor the ignorant, and go out of your way for others.

    Celebrant: Something fills you with joy; and you cannot hide that pleasure.

    Child-Like: You are young (18+), naive, unsophisticated or rely on others to take care of you.

    Competitor: You love a challenge. Victory’s only worthwhile if there is a risk involved.

    Con Artist: You’re a swindler, a liar, and a cheat. Sometimes, it’s a living — and sometimes, it’s an art.

    Conformist: You keep a careful eye on society and work to fit in. Whatever the group wants, you want.

    Cultured: You are refined and accept only the finest. You belong with the elite.

    Curious: You’re inquisitive, even to your own detriment, and can’t walk away from an unsolved puzzle.

    Curmudgeon: Doubt, criticism, and scorn are your weapons. Nothing annoys you so much as trust.

    Defender: The meek must be protected from the wicked by the strong.

    Enigma: You’re quirky, strange, and often misunderstood. You just don’t relate well to others.

    Fanatic: You have a cause that inspires you. Nothing is more important.

    Fighter: You’re used to difficulty, and you like to face it head-on. Combat is always an option.

    Freak: You like to shock and disgust others, breaking down their comfortable assumptions.

    Free Spirit: You’re uncontrollable and unpredictable, and that’s how you like it. You hate rules.

    Gallant: Grace is all that counts; romance is your ideal, and God’s will (or the Devil’s) is your pleasure.

    Innovator: There is always a better way to do something. Your task is to bring it about.

    Introvert: You’re inwardly focused. Thoughtful, shy, and reserved, you prefer to stay quiet.

    Jester: There is too much pain in the world to ensure without laughter. You make a mockery of sadness.

    Judge: You uphold a standard of behaviour; those who don’t conform are punished or cast out.

    Know-It-All: You’re a scholar, a brain, and you like to show it. Others should admire your smarts.

    Leader: You have drive, energy, and ideas. You want to be in command.

    Loner: You can’t work within the system. You expect rejection and prefer to work alone.

    Loose Cannon: Energetic and over-eager, you’re prone to go off half-cocked.

    Martyr: You prove your worth by suffering, and work to gain sympathy from others.

    Mediator: With a natural talent for solving disputes, you’re at your best when negotiating.

    Mercenary: Your loyalty can be bought and sold; you’ll do anything, for the right price.

    Monster: God has demanded that you play the beast; who are you to argue?

    Penitent: Your sins can only be forgiven after you prove your true worth.

    Protector: Defending the things you love is the core of your existence; you hold the line.

    Rationalist: Reason and logic guide you. You reject decisions based on emotion.

    Rebel: You’re sick of being ordered around! Hide your feelings well and work for the time of change.

    Rogue: To hell with rules, to hell with everyone! Life (or unlife) is yours to plunder.

    Royalty: You are a noble, inherently better than others, and you feel the responsibilities of your station.

    Survivor: You’ll do anything, no matter how debased or who you must betray, to stay alive.

    Teacher: You delight in educating others and expect to be seen as an authority in your field.

    Toady: You attach yourself to powerful personalities and syphon advantage from their victories.

    Traditionalist: You adhere to rote and routine, preferring the predictable over anything new.

    Trickster: You’re a deceiver, a mischievous figure, and you prefer to win through cunning.

    Troublemaker: You love to fight authority, inciting rebellion and encouraging defiance.

    Type-A Personality: Capable, but self-critical, you demand perfection from yourself and others.

    Tyrant: The only way to get things done is to do them your way! All other paths are folly.

    Unflappable: You’re always calm and cool whether facing difficulties or experiencing victory. When you actually feel excitement, you obsess — until that, too, fades away.

    Untrustworthy: Everyone’s out for themselves in the end. Why hide it?

Below are the steps that a player should take in order to create a character using the Tenebrae system. Expand each section to find out more.

There are a few differences for ghoul characters which you can read about here, however broadly the system is the same.

1 - Core Concept and Personality

2 - Mechanical Crunch

Each character has a pool of build points which can be used to generate their character. These points can be spent as the player wishes, as long as the ST team approves the final character build. The number of build points characters have is based on whether they are a Ghoul/Neonate (60), Ancilla (75) or Elder (100).

Other than Attributes, which are based on a combination of age and generation, this pool of points is used to buy all of the component parts of the character’s sheet, including Skills, Disciplines, Merits and Flaws, and Backgrounds. It is not divided in any pre-determined way, so for example a character could be skill-heavy but Discipline-light, or fairly even across the board.

  • The attribute dots that a character will have to distribute between their Physical, Mental and Social attributes are based on their Age and Generation, which are both backgrounds. We recommend that, now armed with this knowledge, you consider those backgrounds first.

    The table of attribute dots can be found here.

  • Backgrounds cover a variety of features that help to flesh out your character beyond their immediate personal stats.

    A full list of backgrounds and what they mean can be found here.

    For character generation, the cost in points is as follows:

    Age - 3 points per level.
    Ancilla gain one level for free, Elders gain two levels. Only Elders and Ghouls can purchase more levels.

    Generation - 5 points per level.
    Ancilla gain one level for free, Elders gain two levels for free. Ghouls gain two levels for free to represent their Domitor’s generation.

    Allies - 1 point per level

    Assets - 2 points per level

    Influence - 2 points per level

    Resources - 2 points per level

    Status - 2 points per level

    Thralls - 2 points per level

  • Now that you have determined your character’s age and generation, you can assign your attribute dots between the three categories of Physical, Mental and Social. There are no ‘free’ dots assumed, so you will need to put at least one dot in each.

    Each attribute also comes with a specialism as covered on the page that describes attributes, so make sure to choose those as well.

  • There is a full list of skills on this page, describing what each one does.

    Basic skills cost 1 point each to buy.

    Multi-field skills cost the same, but you get free secondaries and tertiaries too, so be sure to consider those if you take a multi-field skill to 3 or 5.

    In addition, it is 1 point to upgrade a tertiary to a secondary, and 1 point to upgrade a secondary to a primary.

    If you’re not sure what this all means, please read the explanation on the skills page!

  • The description of how our Discipline system works can be found here.

    Buying levels in a Discipline costs 2 points per level if the Discipline is in-clan, and 3 if it is out-of-clan.

    Keywords for Disciplines cost the same as levels.

    Masterwords for Disciplines cost 3 points for in-clan and 4 for out-of-clan.

    Ritual Disciplines - you get some free rituals when you buy ritual disciplines, ritual levels equal to twice your discipline rating. For example if you buy Necromancy at 3, you would get 6 levels worth of rituals to divide as you wish. You could have 6 first level rituals, or 3 firsts and a third, etc.

    Extra rituals cost:

    • 1 point for a level 1 or 2 ritual,

    • 2 points for a level 3 or 4 ritual

    • 3 points for a level 5 ritual

  • The rules around merits and flaws can be found here, along with lists and point values for all the merits and flaws we currently use.

  • Explanation of our Road system can be found here.

    Starting on a Road other than Humanity costs 2 points, if done in Character Generation.

    It is also expected that your character has a good level of skill relating to the path they are on, if it differs from Humanity.

    Starting on a path that is not Humanity requires 3 ranks of skill in the following:

    Beast - Survival

    Bones - Academics

    Dark Mother - Occult

    Heaven - Lore (Theology)

    Kings - Leadership

    Metamorphosis - Lore (Vampire)

    Service - Seneschal

    Sin - Empathy