Merits and Flaws

[Tami]

The following Merits and Flaws are meant for use with ghoul characters only. Some duplicate certain Merits or Flaws found in The Vampire Players Guide; in all cases, this book is assumed to take precedence. Ghouls are not subject to all the limitations or prerequisites Kindred may be, and the rules governing ghouls should be appropriately different.

[Tami]

Pale Aura (1 pt. Merit)
Due to some quirk of fate or your reaction to the Blood, your aura is naturally pale. Vampires reading your aura via Auspex assume you to be Kindred unless they have strong reason to suspect otherwise. This Merit can be of great use if you wish to impersonate a vampire, but can also cause some very dangerous misunderstandings.

Blood Flaw Immunity (3 pt. Merit)
For some reason, you are resistant to the bloodline flaws of any vampire from whom you drink. You can guzzle Nosferatu vitae until your stomach bursts, and your complexion won't suffer a whit.

Benevolent Domitor (3 pt. Merit)
You must purchase the Domitor Background to buy this Merit. For whatever reason, your domitor is actually rather fond of you. Perhaps your service has been exemplary, or perhaps you simply remind him of someone in his past -- given the alien nature of the vampire mind, you may never know for sure. Your domitor treats you with some measure of compassion and does not casually endanger your life. Of course, he still expects you to give your life for his if need be, but until that night, the two of you are something akin to friends.

Kinfolk (4 pt. Merit or 4 pt. Flaw)
Whether you know it or not, you are kin to a werewolf tribe. You carry the blood of the Garou in your veins, and your own children may be Garou.

For ghouls, being Kinfolk can be an advantage or a hindrance. If purchased as a Merit, then you are still on amicable terms with your relatives (Garou 'and Kinfolk alike). Although they will never allow you to bring any vampire "friends" into their territory (and may well use lethal means to enforce their privacy ), they have an interest in your well-being and give you aid so long as this doesn't compromise their principles. Of course, your kin do not want you to be a ghoul forever, as they would like you to return to their society and raise a family of your own. Typically, only independent ghouls may purchase Kinfolk as a Merit.

However, it's more likely that the Garou consider a ghoul Kinfolk to be a serious threat. If bought as a Flaw, then your extended family believes you may compromise their security. They seek either to remove you entirely from your diet and/or domitor's influence, or to kill you as a favor to your corrupted soul. This Flaw earns you dangerous enemies, one from whom your domitor (if any) is very unlikely to intercede and rescue you. This Flaw is more appropriate for vassal ghouls, as no werewolf would agree to let one of their precious Kin be sworn to a vampire. Revenants cannot be Kinfolk, either as a Merit or as a Flaw.

Supernatural Companion (4 pt. Merit)
You are allied with a supenatural being, but not a vampire. This may be a werewolf comrade, the ghost of a relative, or even a friendly mage. You may ask for her help in times of need, but she may not always be able to help. She may also require your help at inconvenient times (such is the cost of friendship). It is highly improbable that your allegiance is looked on favorably by her kind, and any Kindred who discovered your relationship would almost certainly disapprove. The Storyteller will create your companion, be it werewolf, wraith, mage or something else entirely, and won't reveal her full capabilities.

(Note: This Merit supersedes those of Werewolf Companion and Spirit Mentor in The Vampire Players Guide.)

True Gypsy (5 pt. Merit)
The blood of the Rom runs true in your veins. Perhaps you have a Ravnos domitor who chose you for your potential, or perhaps you simply acquired a taste for Kindred blood in your travels. You may purchase Blood Affinities, or other Gypsy only abilities from World of Darkness: Gypsies. Your relatives may or may not approve, depending on the whys and wherefores of your ghouling.
Revenants may not purchase this Merit under any circumstances.

Unbondable (6 pt. Merit)
You cannot be Blood Bound to a vampire, no matter how often you drink from his veins. This Merit is obviously very useful for one whose powers depend on vitae, and its cost is accordingly high for ghoul characters.

Vicissitude Modifications (Variable pt. Merit)
Although you may not be talented at the Tzimisce forms of fleshcrafting and boneshaping, at some point you have been... modified into a more warlike form. Generally speaking, you're a szlachra, and most modifications necessitate the pur- chase of the Flaw: Monstrous (The Vampire Players Guide, p. 19). As a role, the Tzimisce make sufficient cosmetic alterations to rain the looks of all their battle-ghouls, even those whose modifications are not in and of themselves hideous.

These modifications are permanent unless shaped away by further Vicissitude. Although dangerous, any weaponry causes normal danamage only; despite its horrid appearance, your arsenal is still only mortal flesh and bone. You may purchase as many modifications as you can afford, but your social abilities are probably doomed.


Circular Vision (1 pt.):One of your eyes has been moved to the back of your head, granting you the ability to see at a wider angle. This is a difficult operation and can be performed only by masters of medicine and Vicissitude. In addition, your depth perception is poor at any angle, and you suffer a two-die penalty to any rolls that involve gauging distance, including use of missile weapons. You must take the Monstrous Flaw.

Fangs (1 pt.): Your teeth have been lengthened and sharpened; your smile may resemble a shark's or cat's, or may be unlike anything found in nature. You may use the Bite maneuver, but lose two dice from any Manipulation Dice Pools that do not involve intimidation or causing fear.

Digestive Modifications (2pts.): You are able to digest any organic material that you can break up and swallow. Your Stamina is treated as two points higher for purposes of resisting ingested poisons.

Spurs (2 pts.): Long bone spurs protrude from your forearms, back and/or legs. You may slash with these for Str + 2 damage; however, they are hard to conceal, and you must subtract three dice from any Social Dice Pools save those involving intimidation.

Carapace (3 pts): You are covered with bony or horny plates that protect you from attack. You may add two soak dice to your pool, but you must take the Monstrous Flaw.

Patagia (4 pts.): Your bones have been hollowed, and flaps of skin (from yourself or another hapless soul) have been grafted onto your arms, giving you the appearance of a human pterodactyl. You may use these flaps to glide, though you may not actually fly. While gliding, you may not use your arms. Furthermore, you subtract one from all soak pools to resist strikes from fists and blunt weapons, or any other forths of concussive damage ( your bones are hollow). You must take the Monstrous Flaw.

Note: Ghouls may never heal Vicissitude modifications, not even with vampire blood. In this respect they are as helpless as mortals. The exceptions are ghouls who themselves possess Vicis- situde, though a lowly Zantosa may well find herself helpless to repair the mutilation inflicted by a seventh-generation Tzimisce (to repair Vicissitude alterations, a ghoul must have a level of Vicissi- tude superior to that of the vampire who inflicted the mutilation).

Virulent Strike (1 pt. Merit)
Through strange Thaumaturgical sorcery, unknown ritu- als or even an odd quirk of your ghoul physiognomy, you have been imbued with the power of the supernatural. You can cause aggravated damage to supernatural creatures by striking them, biting them, raking them with bonecrafted spurs whatever. This is considered standard Brawl damage against mortals, and should normally apply to only one attack form (bite, bone claws, etc.). You should work with the Storyteller to find an explanation for this Merit, and the Storyteller may disallow this Merit entirely if she so chooses.

Artificially Aged (2 pt. Revenant Flaw)
You have been fleshcrafted to look like an adult, although true maturity is still some time in your future. Although you can pass as older than you actually feel, you have difficulty dealing with complex situations. Your difficulty to resist frenzy is only one less than that of a vampire (or one more than normal, in the case of Bratovitches); tantrums come easily to you. You must also subtract one die from all Social Dice Pools that involve subtlety or sophistication.

Domitor Pariah (2 pt. Flaw)
You are Bound to a vampire who, for whatever reason, is unwelcome among or even hated by the other Kindred of the chronicle area. Without Cainite allies, she finds herself relying on her human and ghoul associates to get by. You will likely find yourself given additional responsibilities, which may present opportunities for you to further ingratiate yourself with the master. However, if other Kindred discover whom you serve, your life might well be in danger. The Storyteller will determine why your domitor is so despised; you are welcome to offer suggestions, but the Storyteller is under no obligation to tell you the cause of such antipathy. You might not even know that your beloved liege is hated at all; after all, who could dislike such a wonderful creature as she... ?

Romantic Notions (2 plk Flaw)
You believe your entire existence as a ghoul to be head and shoulders above your previous life. You feel that your domitor needs you, and that every feeding is nothing short of an act of purest love. Revenants with this Flaw want nothing more than to serve the glorious ideals of the Sabbat, and leap to indulge any Sabbat vampire's whim.

Your Willpower is considered to be two points lower when the object of your romanticism attempts to use Dominate or Presence on you. For a vassal, the domitor triggers this penalty; for revenants, any vampire known to be Sabbat may easily influence a ghoul with this Flaw. Independents may not take this Flaw unless the Storyteller approves a common sort of vampire whom the ghoul idolizes, and with whom the ghoul puts herself at a disadvantage in dealings, due to her romanticized ideas.

Vitae sink (3pt. Flaw)
For whatever reason, you metabolize vitae more quickly than other ghouls do. You must be fed every two weeks, rather than every month, or lose all supernatural traits and revert to a human once more. Few ghouls with this Flaw last beyond their natural life spans; at this rate, missed feedings do happen ....