Eternal Dream Productions: Dark Ages Elder Guide (Based off of the MES Point System)
This guide is a working document and not finished or finalized in any section.
The proper portrayal of an Elder vampire is one of the most contentious topics of debate between Stor torytel ytelllers ers and and VtM play player ers s at lar large. ge. In canon anon mater ateria iall, fol folklor klore, e, and and var various ious medi edia sour source ces, s, the the Elder der vamp vampir ire e is a mast master er mani manipu pula lato torr whos whose e mach machin inat atio ions ns span span time time and and dist distan ance ce,, capt captur urin ing g nume numero rous us othe others rs in their web. Quantifying “a good Elder” is a nearly impossible undertaking, but through a series of conv conver ersa sati tion ons s with with play player ers s and and Stor Storyt ytel elle lers rs over over the the year years s a numb number er of comm common on vari variab able les s have have emer emerge ged; d; it is from these sources that this document has been created. The purpose of this document is to esta establ blis ish h a fram framew ewor ork k for for play playin ing g Elde Elderr char charac acte ters rs in the the Dark Dark Ages Ages Sett Settin ing. g. This This docu docume ment nt puts puts fort forth ha numb number er of expe expect ctat atio ions ns for for play play in broa broad d term terms s and, and, more more spec specif ific ical ally ly,, a pers persis iste tent nt Poin Pointt Syst System em weig weight hted ed towards desirable qualities.
Requirements for All Elder Status Characters In thi this Chron hroniicle, cle, Vampi ampire res s with elde elderr stat status us are are a cat categor egory y of vam vampir pires that that are are over over 300 300 year years s old old and and of the 8th generation or better. No vampire embraced under 300 years of age will be considered a true Elde Elderr rega regard rdle less ss of thei theirr Gene Genera rati tion on.. The The Stor Storyt ytel elli ling ng Staf Stafff will will not not be appr approv ovin ing g any any 6th 6th gen gen that that are are less than 300 years since embrace at character creation. 7th and 8th Generation characters can acquire the “Elder status” with approval and 6th Generation char charac acte terrs are are requ requiired red to have have “El “Elder der stat status us”” in order to be approved for play. As with any Approval, play playin ing g an Elde Elderr is a priv privil ileg ege. e. The The Poin Pointt Syst System em deta detail iled ed belo below w is inte intend nded ed to main mainta tain in a base baseli line ne qual qualit ity y aspe aspect ct of Elde Elderr play play.. Viol Violat atin ing g the the expe expect ctat atio ions ns in this this docu docume ment nt,, to incl includ ude e fail failin ing g to adhe adhere re to the the list listed ed expe expect ctat atiions, ons, will resu resullt in the the play player er bei being warne arned d and and pote potent ntia iallly cul culmina minatting ing in the rem removal oval of the the PC from play.
Elder Categories Elders are grouped into four types: Lumi Lumina nary ry (6th (6th Gene Genera rati tion on)( )(Mi Mini nimu mum m of 300 300 year years s old) old) - Near Nearly ly all all Lumi Lumina nary ry Elde Elders rs exis existe ted d befo before re the the Sects were formed and each is a fearsome creature in its own right. These vampires are seen as pure pure-b -blo lood oded ed refl reflec ecti tion ons s of the the anci ancien entt foun founde ders rs,, with with extr extrem emel ely y thic thick k and and pote potent nt vita vitae. e. They They shou should ld act act pri primari arily throu hrough gh agen agentts and and paw pawns. ns. When hen they hey take take dire direct ct per persona sonall acti action on it shou shoulld be som somethi ething ng of significance or have serious implications for all involved. Master Master (7th (7th Genera Generatio tion)n)- Thes These e frig fright hten enin ingl gly y pote potent nt vamp vampir ires es are are para parago gons ns of thei theirr clan clans. s. Thei Theirr vita vitae e is powe powerf rful ul and and exce exceed edin ingl gly y pure pure.. They They are are the the Elde Elders rs who who visu visual ally ly impl implem emen entt the the long long-t -ter erm m plan plans s of thei their r Lum Luminar inary y Sire Sire and and are are more more pron prone e to take ake more ore dir direct ect acti ction than han thei theirr sir sires. es. How However ever,, they they also also hav have the their own own agen agenda da and and their heir own own pow power base base.. Somet ometiimes thei heir plan plans s can can be at the behe behes st of the the Lum Luminar inary y (like Sauron and Saruman) or they can be working to undermine their Sire. Regardless they are dangerous rivals and allies.
Pretender (8th Generation) - A vampiric Pretender Elder is a powerful creature, with blood just thick enough to support one of her kind’s most potent powers — but only one. At this stage, a vampire’s blood still retains a certain flexibility. Pretender Elders are the ones most likely to take direct action. They are usually seen implementing ideas and leading from the front when things need to get done. Even still, they would rather work through lieutenants and underlings to make the world move to their whim. Out of all the Elders, those of the 8th Generation have to be the most guarded, as the Ancillae below them are often jockeying for their position and the Master Elders above them are working to ensure they remain in place (or if they become a viable threat, are removed). ALT ID ELDER - If you use ALT for Elder Status you will be held to the same guidelines and expectations.
Dark Ages Elder Expectations
Elder status(Note: 6th gen’s are required to follow) With age, a vampire becomes more cunning, more deadly, more feared, more hated, more resented, and more powerful. As the blood congeals and the skin turns to parchment, the heart, mind, and soul begin to rot, driving the Elder to seek further luxurious escapes of cruelty and deception. To all other vampires Elders demonstrate what happens after a tragedy. As centuries-old blood-sucking monsters, Elders cannot and should not pretend to be living humans for they are inherently the corruption of time and the foulness of aged blood. One is only an Elder through age. As such, all Elders recall similar events of the past and are generally resistant to change. The ways of all Elders are similar, which breeds both a sense of familiarity and contempt, as Elders grow older and colder together. In the end, true Elders should be fear incarnate and full of power, hatred, jealousy, lies, spite, and intrigue. The following are in-character expectations for all Elder PCs:
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2 Player Vassals - An Elder candidate must have at least two public Vassals which must be other PC’s. These can be either Sworn or Blood oath but all parties must be in agreement in order to grant the player wishing to have Elder status. Note: Only two of these Vassals are required, A player may have any number of Vassals and only two are required to be public(IE: Everyone knows who your Public Vassals are.) Mechanical: An Elder candidate must have been influencing the city of Constantinople for at least 300 years and have at least a minimum of 3 dots in the Generation Background. How you do this is determined by the player, but generally a short backstory will suffice. Note: If you have 5 dots in Generation you must have the Elder Status. The Point System (Borrowed from MES): Each elder Candidate will be required to meet the minimum threshold in order to be considered. (See below) ALWAYS Honor the Boon System. ALWAYS publically respect Elysium Clan Stereotypes - Each Clan additionally has some of its own stereotypes concerning their Elders. Note: This is entirely up to the player but we strive for consistency and creativity. You should feel free to create interesting and unique “Quirks” about your elder but please follow each clans stereotypes and stay consistent. Stated Focus - Elder PCs should have one “focus” that they are willing to risk their lives for. It should be something that falls in line with the archetypes of that PC’s Clan. This represents the biggest drive behind the Elder’s existence and could even be considered an obsession. This focus may change once during the course of play, but it is not something that would happen casually. It should be representative of a life-shattering event and be role-played accordingly.
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Scandals - Elder PCs should immediately attempt to distance themselves publicly from any scandal that arises. If an Elder’s descendent or minion is involved in a scandal the Elder should punish that person once the scandal has blown over; in extreme cases, that may mean cutting off their own childer or other close allies.
The Point System An Elder Character is required to meet an Elder Creation Point Threshold. Each Elder Generation is assigned a specific point threshold. The breakdown is as follows:
GENERATION
ELDER POINT THRESHOLD
8th
4
7th
6
6th
8
Elder Characters who wish to have elder status must choose from the below menu of items, and from the item menu for their character’s. Some items have a positive value and some have a negative value. Items with a positive value count toward the Elder Point Threshold goal. Items with a negative value detract from the Elder Point Threshold goal. Any item that is not listed has no effect on the Elder Point Threshold goal. If a character sheet is rewritten after the initial approval, it must always conform to the Threshold requirement, even if items that were previously added to it were removed. This must be clearly stated as a change. UNIVERSAL POINT THRESHOLD ITEMS FOR ALL ELDERS
VALUE
Skill: Firearms(Crossbows) at any level at character creation
-1
Skill: Carriages(Drive) at any level at character creation
-1
Skill: Science at level 3 or higher at character creation
-1
Background: Fame, negative per level
-1
Merit: Daredevil
-1
Merit: Efficient Learner
-1
Merit: Light Sleeper
-1
Merit: Unbondable
-2
Flaw: Curiosity
-2
Flaw: Foreigner -3
Social Primary Character
+1
Mental Primary Character
+1
Skill: Animal Ken at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Athletics at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Crafts at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Leadership at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Linguistics at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Lore at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Melee at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Occult at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Skill: Survival at level 3 or higher at character creation
+1
Background: Influence at level 3 at character creation
+1
Background: Resources at level 3 at character creation
+1
Background: Retainers - Possessing more than 3 Retainers at character creation
+1
Merit: House Founder
+1
Merit: Loremaster
+1
Flaw: Cursed (Only counted once, even if PC takes Cursed multiple times)
+1
Flaw: Dark Secret
+1
Flaw: Illiterate
+1
Flaw: Methuselah’s Thirst
+1
Flaw: Notoriety
+1
Flaw: Overconfident
+1
Flaw: Archaic
+2
Flaw: Dull
+2
Flaw: Hunted
+2
Having more than 2 Vassal PC’s.
+2
At least one Minor Boon owed to two different Elder player characters from a different clan.
+2
