NWOD vs oWOD

This page is for comparing and contrasting the original World of Darkness system and setting with the current version. I will write my understanding of things here, but feel free to ask questions or correct mistakes I make. I have recently downloaded the 20th Edition pdf, but have not finished reading it yet. This might cause me to update things as I find what may or may not have changed.

Clans

In nWOD, there are only five base clans. There are rules for a player to develop a bloodline (though I have never read or used them), which is kind of like a sub-clan. In oWOD there are 6 Camarilla, 2 Sabbat and 4 independent clans. Bloodlines and minor clans also exist.

Clans vs Covenants

In oWOD, there is no concept of a covenant on a macro scale. The players may be a coterie, and this could be considered a mini-covenant to some degree, but there is no greater concept. Outside the bonds of friendship or coterie, Kindred are bound mostly by their clan loyalty.

In nWOD there are both clans and covenants. Clan is like family: where you come from; while covenant is like friends: what do you believe and who do you associate with? This is one area where nWOD definitely got it right, and I believe is a significant improvement over the original. The idea of covenants adds an extra layer of intrigue which brings much richness to the table.

Blood Potency vs Generation

In oWOD, Kindred had a generation which measured the strength of the blood by placing you in a hierarchy relative to Caine, fabled to be the original vampire. At low levels, the blood is inherently powerful even in Kindred which might be newly created neonates. This has both good and bad aspects. Kindred are able to mechanically reduce their generation through diabalerie, which allows their blood to act as if one generation closer to Caine. There was no real limiting factor on increased blood power, it was just a ladder a player could choose to climb if they wished.

In nWOD, Kindred have blood potency, which is a completely abstract measure of how powerful the blood coursing through ones veins has become. As the blood becomes more potent, the character is able to do more things more effectively with blood points, but when it gets too powerful they can no longer feed on mortals, which makes things much more difficult and in most cases leads to falling into torpor. This does a good job of keeping the power levels much more manageable.

Both of these ideas have strong merit.

The Camarilla

In oWOD there is a Camarilla, which is like a meta-organization of Kindred the world over, and each city has its representatives from the clans which act as a sort of ruling body. There is communication between cities, and potentially directives could come down from higher organizations. There were Justicars who traveled between cities meting out Camarilla justice. The city was a unit within a whole.

They have done away with the concept of Camarilla in nWOD. Each city is an organization unto itself. Whether or not cities cooperate is decided on a city by city basis. A Kindred could conceivably flee a blood hunt in Seattle and end up in Portland, where no one knows of his crime. Of course, the Prince of Seattle might just dial up the Prince of Portland, but you never know, maybe s/he wont.

These are both good ideas.

Character Generation

In nWOD each character uses a Kindred overlay which determines how many dots you get in characteristics, skills etc. There are no merits and flaws in the sense that oWOD uses them. Some of the 'merits' in nWOD are nearly useless.

The original system was significantly better in this regard. Each character did begin with an overlay, but at the end they were given freebie points that could be used to increase dots in any part of the character. Characters could also get bonus points for taking flaws. This led to much greater diversity between characters.

System

The dice resolution is very similar between the two systems, yet both manage to have strengths and weaknesses which are fixed/caused by the other system. The oWOD system often led to large dice pools, and difficulty numbers could be varied. There were sometimes opposed rolls, with a defender subtracting successes from an attacker. More successes to hit increased damage.

The nWOD system is smoother and more streamlined, with smaller dice pools and simpler resolution. The difficulty is fixed (7 or 8, cant remember).