Frenzy and Rötschreck

Both Frenzy and Rötschreck are instances where the Beast takes control of the Cainite. Both are incited by danger or other direct threats. As the Beast is a monomaniacal animalistic predator, it can perceive intimidation, insults, and similar social attacks as a threat.

If the response is something that can be killed or destroyed, then it will incite a Frenzy, a state where the only thing the Cainite wants to do is kill or destroy the Threat as quickly as possible. This can include starvation or hunger. If the response is something that cannot be destroyed, then it will incite Rötschreck, a state where the Beast will flee from the threat in a blind panic, seeking nothing more than to put itself far from the source of danger or fear. 

Mechanics

Mechanically, the two states are resisted the same way, by a Test made using the character’s Resolve, with the difficulty required being related to the severity and breadth of the inciting incident. Only one success is required to resist as standard, clan flaws and such may adjust this. 

If this check is a Frenzy check, the character may instead attempt to embrace the Frenzy or ‘Ride the Wave’, using their conscious mind to guide it rather than deny it. To do this they must highlight a suitable Tenet from their Road to the Storyteller Team, and succeed in the above test exactly as if they were trying to resist. Instead of a standard Frenzy they may control it as described in the Riding the Wave section below.

The following things can incite Frenzy:

  • The taste, scent or sight of Blood (beyond vampiric social norms eg. drinking from goblets), when the character is at anything other than Full Hunger

  • Being repeatedly harassed or humiliated

  • Being threatened, either directly or indirectly

  • Anything that could cause incandescent anger in the character

  • Being woken during daylight hours

The following things can incite Rötschreck:

  • Sunlight

  • Fire

  • Anything that induces pure primal terror

Failure to Resist

If the character fails their check, they succumb to their Beast, flying either into a blind rage or a terrified panic. Normally verbal communication beyond taunts, screams, bestial roars or other primal sounds is impossible unless the character is either Riding the Wave, or gains control of themselves once more.

In Frenzy, if this was caused by hunger, the Beast will attempt to drain the first creature it can catch, with no restraint or concerns for the safety of the prey or themselves. The Cainite can only come out of frenzy once their hunger level is brought up to half or better. 

If incited by insult or threats, it will seek to subdue, humiliate or destroy its harasser and anyone between them. In cases where there is no one direct target, the beast will attack the nearest thing it views as a threat. Once the threat has been dealt with or the frenzying character has been placed into Torpor, the Cainite can come out of Frenzy. 

In Rötschreck, the Beast will attempt to flee as swiftly as possible, with no logic or planning. It will simply seek to put as much distance between itself and the threat as swiftly as possible using the most obvious route available. Once the Cainite is sufficiently far away that they cannot see or do not feel threatened by the threat, they may come out of Rötschreck.

Resisting Frenzy

If the character resists, they do not succumb to Frenzy or Rötschreck. They may act normally, and ignore the provocation or threat as if it were not present unless it increases in severity. If it does increase in severity, they must check again.

Riding the Wave

Should the character choose to embrace their Frenzy, they gain limited control over the fury, being able to direct it with the conscious mind rather than lash out in an undirected fury. The character may choose its targets and precisely how they render this threat, so long as the beast gets its share of blood and circuses. 

Benefits of Frenzy

Characters in Frenzy gain the following benefits:

  • Immunity to Rötschreck and the negative effects of their Tolls

  • Ability to ignore any penalties from their existing wounds

  • Resistance (though not immunity) to mind-affecting Disciplines.