Lasombra Jealousy is the provenance of fools and pretenders.
The Lasombra are leaders and prophets, kings and caliphs, generals and holy men. They are scrupulous in deciding who merits the Embrace, and ruthless in destroying those of the clan who prove unworthy. The only threat to the power of clan Lasombra is, perhaps, clan Lasombra itself. No longer as actively involved in clan affairs, Montano, Lasombra’s eldest childe, rules distantly rules distantly from the Castle of Shadows in Sicily. It is there that he guards his sire’s slumber, which is said to be troubled with dark dreams of shadows and the Abyss. Religious sentiment sentiment runs deep; perhaps it is because of the clan’s deep connection to connection to darkness, but many of the clan walk the Road of Heaven. This deeply-held fervor fuels conflict within the clan and turns their attention inward. In Iberia, the Shadow Reconquista rages – a a war between Christian and Muslim Cainites dividing the clan. The ripples extend far outside Iberia, involving even distant partisans. Christian Lasombra within the Church funnel resources toward Christians forces, while Muslim Lasombra seek alliances with other clans, especially the Assamites. They also try to convince their Jewish clanmates to stand with them, as they will surely face worse treatment should the Christians seize power in Iberia. For Christian Lasombra, the schism without is mirrored by the schism within. Within the ranks of the Church lurks the Cainite Heresy, a heretical cult dominated by Lasombra priests and bishops. The Cainite Heresy believes that Cainites, having been marked by God, are akin to angelic beings, and the Curse of Caine marks Cainites as holy beings. Of course, even non-Christian Lasombra find this view to be blasphemy and take every chance to expunge such teachings they can. Sobriquet: Sobriquet: Magisters Appearance: The Clan of Shadows is diverse, with its membership evenly split among those of Spanish, Italian, Jewish, North African, or Arabian origin. Most Lasombra dress in the finest clothes that money can buy, be it precious silks from China, rich French brocades, or the lush woven fabrics of Arabia. Even those in the Church, which nominally eschews wealth and its trappings, are often of sufficiently high rank that some sartorial extravagance is to be expected.
Haven and Prey: Some Lasombra born to wealth and power choose to remain in their family holdings, masquerading as their own heirs in order to retain control over what is theirs. This allows them plenty of opportunities to feed, as large numbers of family, servants, and retainers are needed to maintain such estates. Others, not wanting the troubles that come with concealing their true nature among such large numbers of mortals, establish solitary, lavishly appointed havens, sacrificing the convenient availability of prey for secrecy and security. Some members of the Cainite Heresy feed on their congregants, passing it off as a sacred rite. But this practice is best kept secret, as it is sure to draw the ire of Christian Lasombra with more orthodox religious convictions.
Character Creation The Embrace: Lasombra frequently choose their childer from among the wealthy, powerful, or politically elite. However, Magisters will just as frequently embrace someone of low status but high ambition and intellect. Mere accidents of birth cannot determine someone’s strength of character or their ability to lead. Clan Disciplines: Dominate, Obtenebration, Potence Weaknesses: Lasombra cannot be seen in any sort of reflective surface, which makes it difficult to conceal their supernatural nature from mortals. Additionally, members of the Clan of Shadows cannot abide the presence of bright light; they take an additional level of aggravated damage from any exposure to sunlight.
Attributes Abilities Disciplines Backgrounds Lores Virtues Max Merits bought with Flaws Starting Status (free) Freebies
Neonate 7/5/3 13/9/5 4 5 4 7 7 1 75
Ancillae 7/5/3 13/9/5 4 5 4 7 7 2 175
Only one max dot per category in attributes and abilities at creation. Only one discipline or primary path of Blood Sorcery, Thaumaturgy and Necromancy can have max dots at creation. Only one dot in one advance discipline is allowed at creation. Out of Clan Disciplines can be taken at character creation with Freebie points and only with Storyteller permission. Celerity, Fortitude and Potence does not need Storyteller permission, nor does it count toward the max in the other out of clan disciplines chart.
Starting out of clan Disciplines Age Max number of Disciplines allowed Max dots in each Discipline Max number of Physical Disciplines allowed Max dots in Celerity, Fortitude or Potence
Neonate
Ancilla
2
3
3 2
4 2
3
5
Before buying the domain background consult with the storyteller.
Freebie Point cost Trait Cost
(Per Dot)
Attributes Ability Discipline Blood Sorcery Path Blood Sorcery Ritual Backgrounds Lores Virtue Area of Expertise Road Willpower
5 2 7 4 Ritual Level 1 1 2 1 2 1
Organization: Within the clan exists an organization known as the Amici Noctis “the Friends of Night”. Membership is by invitation only, and invitations are only extended to those who have truly proven their value to the clan. The Amici Noctis preside over the Courts of Blood. Any member of the clan may petition to the Courts of Blood for the right of Amaranth against someone they see as unworthy to be Lasombra. By officially sanctioning the Amaranth, the Amici Noctis maintains strict control of its use. Any Lasombra performing the Amaranth without permission faces summary destruction. The Amici Noctis is most powerful in central Europe. Montano famously dislikes the Friends of Night and has barred them from Sicily and the Castle of Shadows. In the Iberian Peninsula, the Shadow Reconquista hampers the power of the Amici Noctis. Officially, the Amici Noctis has declared neutrality on any issue relating to the Shadow Reconquista. In practice, this is because they have no power to impose order on the chaos in Iberia. Stereotypes
High Clans: A useless distinction drawn by equally useless people. The Lasombra hold power because we value excellence, not birth. That we are counted as High and not Low says more about them than it does about us. Low Clans: Let the other High Clans spurn them. Only a fool shuns a useful tool or an invaluable ally. Assamites: We share more with the Children of Haqim than we do with most other Clans. Let others be blinded by prejudice. They are honorable and worthy allies. Ventrue: The Scions have always confused power and station, much to their detriment. Let them chase after high office; it only makes them easier to manipulate.
Followers of Set: Let them try to bring back the worship of their dead god. Time moves ever forward, and those who try to stand against progress will get trampled every time. Tzimisce: Godless heathens, the lot of them. They have been offered the chance to turn away from their pagan ways, but have refused. While we cannot deny their power, we cannot trust them either.
Aura of Command (3 point Merit) Whether you are good at barking orders or simply have a commanding tone, people tend to do what you tell them to do. You are not so much a natural leader as a born commander. When using the Leadership skill to get others to obey you, the difficulty is reduced by two Pelagic Harmony (3 Point Merit)
Lasombra-Specific Merits and Flaws
Weather Sense (1 Point Merit) This acumen is very much prized among seafaring Lasombra. A few sires manage to pass on its intricacies to their childer. You subconsciously sense impending bad weather. The Storyteller makes a Perception + Survival roll (difficulty 7) on your behalf to give up to several hours' notice of storms and other weather problems before they manifest. Eyes of Shadow (1-4 point Merit) There is something about your eyes that makes you look dark and dangerous. Making eye contact with you is like staring into the Abyss. It may not be obvious why, but anyone you talk to gets a chill when they meet your gaze. The difficulty for any Intimidation roll is reduced by the number of points in this Merit (to a minimum of 2). Faint Reflection (2 Point Merit) Those with this talent can actually appear in mirrors, albeit in extremely pale, ghostly guises. Objects moving behind a Lasombra casting a faint reflection will be clearly seen through her form. However, often even a faint reflection is enough to allay the suspicions of those who notice. Call of the Sea (2 point Merit) There is something about the sea that makes you feel at home. You are in tune with the tides and rhythm of the ocean. When on a boat in the ocean or on a river, you may add a die to all your dice pools except for Disciplines. Controllable Night Sight (2 point Merit) Your night vision is extraordinarily good, even for a vampire. The deepest shadows are like looking into a welllit room for you. However, in normal light or bright conditions, you have to switch back to less-sensitive vision, or the weakest light quickly blinds you. While your night sight is active, you suffer no penalties for the dark and can see perfectly well. Should you use it in well-lit conditions; you suffer a penalty inversely proportional to the usual penalties for darkness.
Being close to the sea calms you and reinforces your self-control. All Willpower rolls made while you're on or within sight of the sea have their difficulties lowered by one. Strength of Shadows (4 Point Merit) Allows the Lasombra who possesses this Merit to strengthen the shadows he calls so that even daylight will not immediately dispel them. The Strengthened shadows dissipate after four hours in the sun, but it certainly does provide a nasty surprise to enemies when, even after sunrise, shadows hound them. Instrument of God (5-point Merit) Your self-confidence comes not from a belief in your own abilities, but due to a direct manifesto from the Lord. You have a divine purpose and He works through you, even though your goals may seem anything but holy. Whether it is because of you powerful will or an actual connection to the divine, you gain three additional dice to resist the powers of True Faith when they are used against you. Poseidon's Call (1 Point Flaw) Your self-control varies with the weather. Make rolls to resist frenzy at -1 difficulty in completely calm weather, but +1 difficulty on rough seas, +2 in thunderstorms and +3 in hurricanes. Uncontrollable Night Sight (2 Point Flaw) Your night vision is good, but you can’t turn it off. While you can see easily into the deepest shadows, any light is almost blinding to you. You suffer penalties the brighter the area you are in is lit, inversely proportional to the standard penalties for darkness. Even just standing in a welllit room is uncomfortable to you. Pelagic Compulsion (2 Point Flaw) You become increasingly agitated when on land. Raise the difficulty of all Willpower rolls when you've been away from the sea for more than 24 hours by one. Death's Reflection (3 point Flaw)
You cast a reflection normally, which would cancel out the clan weakness - except that your reflection always shows the state that you'd be in if you were dead. Any Lasombra more than a few decades old looks in reflection like an ambling skeleton. Younger vampires appear as rotting corpses. Image Obsession (1-5 Point Flaw) As Lasombra cannot see their appearance, those with this Flaw find themselves hypnotized by the vagaries of their own appearance. The compulsive behavior may be small at first (1 point), manifesting itself as a repeated questioning of others as to their looks. ("Does my hair look alright? Really?"), to obsessive behaviors such as brushing hair, adjusting clothes and the like. The symptoms occasionally run the gamut to full-fledged mania (5 points), wherein the afflicted Lasombra are constantly attended by ghoul’s intent on grooming them and can speak of little save their appearance. Enmity of Shadows (4 Point Flaw) Very few unlucky Lasombra are afflicted with this Flaw, in which the shadows that they summon may well turn and attack him without provocation (a Lasombra with this Flaw must make a Willpower roll (difficulty 6) each time he uses an Obtenebration power of Level 3 or above. a s uccess indicates that the power functions normally; with a failure the summoned shadows attack their putative master.)
Dominate ••••• •
Implanted Opinion
Dominate usually focuses on giving the target specific orders. Using this power, a vampire can instill a feeling, opinion, or even a personality trait the victim will believe is their own. He might be told he loves modern art, hates his new neighbors, or that aliens are looking to abduct him. He can be given new political or religious beliefs, suddenly becoming a dedicated liberal or a born-again Christian (although in the latter case he don’t gain real faith; he just decides to follow the tenets of a faith). He might even be given bigoted views, making him racist or sexist, or he may be cured of such opinions. Unlike Conditioning, the vampire has little connection to the target, and can use him as an agent to steer policies to her design without needing to explain her plans. System: When attempting to implant a new belief, opinion, or following, the vampire makes a Charisma + Leadership roll at a difficulty equal to the target’ s current Willpower. The
Storyteller may insist on a certain number of successes, depending on how contrary to the subject’s original beliefs the new opinion is. Once instilled, the new belief is very hard to remove. If the subject remains for months in an environment conducive to their old opinion, he may be granted Willpower rolls for the old beliefs to reassert themselves.
••••• •
Memory Block This variant of The Forgetful Mind allows the vampire to stop a dominated subject talking about or revealing specific information without forgetting it. When questioned about the memory or detail, the victim will evade the question without even noticing she is doing it. If pressed, she will discover he cannot say out loud or even write down the blocked information. This is very useful when a servant needs to possess classified data, but the vampire wants to be certain she cannot reveal it, even under torture. Successes 1 2 3 4 5
Result One hour One day One week One month One year
System: As with The Forgetful Mind, the vampire makes a Wits + Subterfuge roll (difficulty equal to the target’s current Willpower). If successful, the memory is locked for a duration dependent on the amount of successes. Another vampire can unlock it with Dominate by making a Wits + Empathy roll. The subject of this power may make a Willpower roll (at a difficulty equal to the original vampire’s Dominate rating) if he tries to answer a specific question about the blocked memory.
Obtenebration ••••• • Shadow Perspective Using this ability, the vampire can potentially observe anything done near the shadows. She shifts her perception from the shadows she is standing in to a nearby shadow. She can choose to shift any or all of her senses across to that area as if she were actually standing there. Should she move all her senses, it will be as if she is standing in the other shadow, but she would not even feel an attack made on her own body.
System: The vampire must be in line of sight to the shadow she wishes to shift her perception to, and spend a blood point for each sense she moves. She may only shift her sensory perceptions (touch, taste, sight, smell, or hearing), and cannot affect the area with any other powers she cannot already use from where she is currently standing. However, by shifting sight she can change her options for any line-ofsight effects. She must stand in shadow for the power to work, and there must be shadow at the area she shifts her perceptions to. She may attempt to shift perception to an area she cannot see but knows very well. If she does so, she must also make a Perception + Awareness roll (difficulty 9) to succeed. If there are no shadows at the area in question, the power will not work, but the blood points are still spent.
Combination Disciplines Armor of the Abyss (Obtenebration •••, Fortitude •••) When the vampire calls on this power, strands of darkness weave around him and solidify into a dark suit of armor. The vampire is completely encased in shadow, but able to see out of it as if it wasn’t there. System: This power is invoked in much the same way as Arms of the Abyss (V20, p. 189), by spending a blood point and making a Manipulation + Occult roll (difficulty 7). If successful, the strands of shadow encase the vampire instead of reaching out. This cloak of shadow fully protects the vampire but does not encumber him in any way, conferring no penalty. It grants him an armor rating equal to his Fortitude and lasts for 3 rounds (or ten minutes) for each success gained on the activation roll. This power costs 18 experience points to learn. Empower Minion (Dominate •••, Potence •••) Using this ability, the vampire can pass his immortal strength on to those who serve him. No matter how far apart they are, the bond of command allows the vampire to channel his Potence to his servant to assist her in doing his will. System: Any allies currently under the control of the vampire’s Dominate power may act with a portion of the vampire’s Potence. The vampire must spend one blood point per point of Potence for each thrall he wishes to empower, up to a maximum of three dots of Potence per thrall (the vampire can spend blood over successive turns, as long as the Dominate power is in effect). If the target already has
Potence, the controller’s Potence level replaces it instead of adding to it. This power costs 18 experience points to learn. Fear of the Dark (Presence ••, Obtenebration ••) With a mixture of Dominate and Shadowplay, the vampire using this ability can inspire a terrible fear of the shadows in his target. Those caught in this effect find their paranoia runs rampant, as fearful shapes seems to form in the shadows around them in the corner of their eye. System: The vampire invokes Shadow Play, and then makes a Manipulation + Intimidation roll, (difficulty 6). For each success, the vampire may force one person (mortal or supernatural) in the immediate vicinity to see frightening shapes within the shadows around them. If the target fails a Courage check at difficulty 8, she runs in terror. This power costs 12 experience points to learn. Mind Strike (Dominate ••, Potence ••) By focusing his mental power, the vampire can channel their Potence into a powerful mental attack that does real damage to the victim. He simply meets his victim’s gaze and delivers a strike into her very mind. System: This power costs a Willpower point to use and requires eye contact. The vampire makes a Manipulation + Intimidation roll (without any bonus from Shadow Play against a difficulty of the victim’s current Willpower. The amount of successes are added to the vampire’s Potence rating and become bashing damage to the victim. Normal soak rolls apply. As with many Dominate powers, targets of a lower Generation are immune to its use. This power costs 12 experience points to learn. Shadow Mark (Dominate •••, Obtenebration ••••• •) Shadowstep only allows the vampire to move between shadows. However, with this power he can mark those he Dominates and use any shadow they are standing in instead. System: This power allows the vampire attempting Shadowstep to step to one of his Dominated minions instead of another shadowy area. The minion must be standing in shadow himself or the power will not work, but otherwise distance is no object: the vampire simply appears out of the nearby shadow. There is no additional roll or expenditure when making such a Shadowstep, although the difficulty is one level higher. This power costs 27 experience points to learn. Shroud of Absence
(Obfuscate •••, Obtenebration •••) This variant of Shroud of Night creates not just an area of shadow, but also an area no one looks at. It is effectively a cloak of invisibility, an area any bystander will simply ignore. To look inside the cloak of deception requires a powerful act of will.
System: The use of this power requires a blood point and a roll of Manipulation + Subterfuge (difficulty 7). If successful, an area about ten feet/3 meters across within the vampire’s line of sight is cloaked. The cloaked area can be moved at a normal walking pace and lasts for an hour for each success. Anyone wishing to look into the cloaked area must make a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) and score more successes than the vampire did to create the area. If she succeeds, she can see through the cloak as if it wasn’t there. This power costs 18 experience points to learn.
