View source for Crimson Dusk - Animalism

=Animalism=
A vampire’s Beast is not just a facet of his predatory nature,
but a predator in and of itself — and it’s at the top of the food
chain. A vampire can slip the leash of his Beast just a little
to overpower weaker animals, forcing his will on them. Most
Animalism powers affect predators and scavenging animals. In
a city, the Kindred can call on feral cats and dogs, pigeons and
crows, foxes, and more rats than anyone wants to think about.
Rural vampires can summon bats, wolves, mountain lions, and
even bears — any animal that feasts on the flesh of another.

==Feral Whispers==
Cost: 5

A vampire can only command those who can understand him. So it is with beasts as well as men. A vampire
using Feral Whispers overpowers the animal’s instinctive
reactions and forces it to understand. He can ask questions of
a creature and it must respond as best it can, and with a further
slight nudge, he can compel it to obey him. A canny vampire
can use magpies and crows to spy on his victims from above,
or command a gangster’s mastiffs to savage their owner.
The vampire talks to the animal, either using human words
or, much more frequently, by making animal sounds of his
own. He can command groups of animals, such as a flock of
birds or a swarm of rats, as long as he is close enough that the
animals can all hear her, and he can see all of them.

Activation Cost: None
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Animal Ken + Animalism Mastery
Action: Instant
Duration: Scene, command can persist up to a night.

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The animal misunderstands the vampire’s
command, giving false information when the vampire asks, or
obeying a twisted version of the vampire’s command.

Failure: The animals fear the Beast, fleeing from a superior
predator.

Success: The vampire can communicate with an animal,
asking it what it has perceived. Most animals can remember
what has happened over the last night. Animals relate what they
have encountered through the lens of their own perceptions —
dogs answer in terms of smell and hearing, while birds relate
what they could see. The vampire can also give the victim a
simple command, equivalent to what the animal could do on
its own, such as “attack him,” “follow her then return here,”
“chew through these cables.” The command doesn’t normally
persist for more than a night, but the vampire can add simple
contingencies such as forcing the beast to go to ground if
noticed, or to return once the command is complete.

Exceptional Success: The animal is exceptionally obedient to the
vampire, improvising to follow the spirit of the Kindred’s command.

==Raise the Familiar==
Cost: 10

True beasts cannot be Embraced. They have never had the
necessary Humanity. With this power, though, the vampire
can complete the process halfway. By feeding a drained animal
some of his Vitae, a vampire can infuse it with a fragment of the
Kindred’s twilight life. It looks as it did when it died, though
if appropriate, it might gain retractable fangs like a vampire.
But the fangs are a lie — its true tragedy is that it cannot
transubstantiate blood into Vitae. If it was wounded in death,
it retains signs of the injuries, but its body functions fully. A
coyote crushed by an SUV has a tire track running across it
but no crushed bones, and a crow with a busted wing has bone
jutting out of the wound but can still fly.

It doesn’t act like a normal animal — it doesn’t hunt for
food, nor is it spooked by loud noises. It sleeps throughout the
day, but becomes active at night. A human observing such an
animal might be able to tell something’s wrong, but only the
most grievous wounds usually make them take the time to look.

Activation Cost: 1 Vitae
Requirement: Feed 1 Vitae to the corpse (included in cost)
Dice Pool: None
Action: Instant
Duration: (Blood Potency * animal’s Stamina) nights

The vampire feeds one point of Vitae to the animal’s corpse.
The animal returns to a semblance of life for a number of
nights equal to (Blood Potency * animal’s Stamina). Once he
has raised a beast, a vampire can feed it more Vitae; each point
ensures the animal’s continued existence as though the vampire
had just raised it.

The raised creature gains a semblance of intelligence and
a certain low cunning, enough to follow complex orders that
most animals could not understand, and to interpret the spirit
of commands rather than the letter. Treat the familiar as having
one dot of Intelligence.

Infused with Vitae, the familiar takes bashing damage from
attacks like a vampire, and does not fall unconscious or bleed
out. The animal does not decompose.

The Vitae burning within the animal’s dead veins forges
a sympathetic link between it and the vampire. The vampire
can use Feral Whispers on his familiar at any time, over any
distance, communicating silently or issuing commands at
any range. Though he must still roll to see if his familiar
interpreted his command, the animal does not resist.

==Obedience==
Cost: 10

Having mastered the ability to commune with beasts, the
Kindred’s connection with his own feral nature now allows
him to command them as well. No longer need he beg,
threaten or cajole animals into doing his will. He demands,
and they obey as best they can.

The vampire must make eye contact, as with Feral Whispers,
and convey to an animal precisely what he wants it to
do. The animal obeys to the best of its ability, but its nature
and intelligence might cause it to interpret its orders in unusual
ways. Once it has received an order, the animal carries
it out, assuming it can be completed before the following sunrise.
At dawn, the compulsion ceases, regardless of whether
the task is complete or not.

It is extremely difficult to order an animal to do anything
blatantly against its nature (such as ordering a sparrow to attack
someone) or obviously self-destructive (such as forcing a
guard dog to lie down in front of a moving truck).

A vampire can give single orders to only one animal at a
time, but he may have as many animals currently under his
control as circumstances allow, as long as he can give each
one its orders individually.

Cost:—
Dice Pool: Presence + Animal Ken + Animalism Mastery – animal’s Composure
Action: Instant

Obedience also requires a contested roll if the animal is
already under the control of another Kindred with this power
(in which case Obedience successes achieved must exceed
those rolled for the original vampire).

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: Dramatic failure indicates that the animal
either attacks the character or does the exact opposite of
what he commands it to do. In addition, that animal is immune
to any further use of Animalism by that character until
the next sunset.

Failure: Failure indicates that the character cannot command
or communicate with the animal.
Success: Success indicates that the animal obeys the
character’s orders to the best of its abilities.

Exceptional Success: Exceptional success indicates that the
animal develops a strong, if temporary, affection for the character.
It attempts to please and to anticipate orders, even when
not actively following a specific command.

Suggested Modifiers
Modifier Situation
+1 The animal is a predatory mammal (wolf, cat,
insectivorous bat).
+1 The character has already successfully used Feral
Whispers on the animal he now attempts to
command with Obedience.
— The animal is another sort of mammal, a predatory
bird or a large reptile (rat, owl, alligator).
-1 The animal is another sort of bird or a small reptile
(pigeon, snake).
-1 The order is contradictory to the animal’s nature
or set of inherent abilities.
-1 The animal is a ghoul.
-3 The animal is an insect or fish.
-3 The order is blatantly suicidal.

==Summon the Hunt==
Cost: 15

The vampire infuses some of his Vitae with the essence of his
prey, making it irresistible to other predators and scavenging beasts.
Wherever he spills his blood — on the ground, over an object, or
even splashing it on another person — the animals he calls will try
to consume it. His blood only loses potency once the summoned
animals destroy whatever he poured it over or once the sun rises, at
which point the Vitae burns away as though it were never present.
He can focus his Beast’s call on one kind of creature, for example
summoning just birds or rats. Prey animals in the affected area
rightly shy away, afraid of the power of a vampire’s Beast.

Activation Cost: 2 Vitae
Requirement: Spill 1 Vitae upon the target (included in cost).
Dice Pool: Presence + Animal Ken + Animalism Mastery
Action: Instant
Duration: One night, or until the item marked with blood
is destroyed.

Roll Results

Dramatic Failure: The animals follow the Beast’s call, but
lash out against the vampire in fear.

Failure: Animals within the Discipline’s range feel their
normal fear of the Kindred and stay well away.

Success: The vampire chooses when spilling the Vitae whether
to summon all predators and scavengers, or whether to restrict
himself to one kind of animal. All animals that match her
request within (successes) city blocks in the city, or (successes
* 100) yards (successes * 90 meters) in the country respond to
his call. Once they taste the spilled Vitae, the vampire can
imprint a command as though he had used Feral Whispers
on the animal. All animals receive the same command, but it
persists even while the vampire slumbers; the animals follow
his command for one night per success.

Exceptional Success: Animals that taste the vampire’s blood
follow his command with single-minded zeal. They do not stop
to eat or sleep, deriving sustenance from the taste of Vitae alone.

==Call of the Wild==
Cost: 15

The Kindred is so fully in tune with his own Beast that he
can call out in a feral voice — howling, hissing, cawing or the
like — that beckons all creatures of a specific type. Any animal
of that sort within a given area is compelled to respond,
immediately moving toward the Kindred at its fastest possible
speed, via the most direct route it can find. Only animals that
can hear the call are summoned, so creatures that have been
deafened or that are insulated from the sound by thick walls
or other barriers do not respond. Additionally, only natural
animals respond to this call — no hell hounds or gargoyles
(see p. 225-256), for example, answer it.
Animals that respond to the Kindred’s call are not automatically
under his control, but they are more easily subjected
to other Animalism powers.

Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Presence + Animal Ken + Animalism Mastery
Action: Instant

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: All animals of the type called within
100 yards immediately turn hostile toward the character and
are immune to any further uses of Animalism by that character
until the next sunset.

Failure: On a failure, no animals appear.

Success: The area of the call is 100 yards for every success
rolled. That is, a single success when summoning rats calls all
rats within 100 yards. The Storyteller determines how many
animals respond based on the environment. Hundreds or thousands
of rats might appear in an inner city, while no hawks or
coyotes would.

Exceptional Success: As per a normal success. In the previous
example of the rat summoner, if the player achieved
seven successes, all rats within 700 yards would heed the call.

Suggested Modifiers
The Storyteller may impose bonuses or penalties to the call
based on weather, barriers or other ambient noise, as he feels
is appropriate. A heavy wind might cut down the distance
the sound can travel, for instance, imposing a -2 penalty.
Animals responding to Call of the Wild are easier for the
beckoning character to influence with other uses of Animalism.
Any further use of Animalism on these specific creatures
receives a bonus equal to the number of successes on the roll
to invoke this power. This bonus lasts for the remainder of
the scene.

==Feral Infection==
Cost: 20

The vampire floods the area with his predatory aura, infecting
everything around him with the ravings of her Beast. The scent
of his blood inspires rage in animals, and can drive men mad,
especially those who have recently touched his blood. Other
Kindred witnessing the effects of Feral Infection recognize the
Beast unchained, likening the victims’ actions to their own
moments of frenzy. The vampire using this Discipline can exert
a measure of control over his victims’ madness, focusing his
own Beast against some victim he wants to crush, or a goal
he wants to conquer.

Activation Cost: 2 Vitae
Requirement: Spill 1 Vitae upon the ground (included in
cost).
Dice Pool: Presence + Intimidation + Animalism Mastery
Action: Instant
Duration: Scene

Roll Results

Dramatic Failure: The vampire loses hold of his Beast, and
it smashes past him. He is provoked to frenzy, though with a
–2 die modifier on the roll to resist.

Failure: Affected animals display odd behavior — chasing
their tails, or attacking their own limbs — but nothing drives
them into a rage.

Success: Any animal that can smell the vampire’s blood
enters a state of feral rage. It lashes out, attacking the nearest
victim without a thought for its own safety. Once the victim
is unconscious or dead, the animal feeds on his flesh. If the
vampire wishes, he can direct the mob of frenzied creatures
towards a single target or goal. He can’t give complex
instructions or a direct command, but can point out targets to
attack or the direction to move.

Humans and supernatural creatures must make a reflexive
(Resolve + Composure – vampire’s successes) roll to resist the
vampire’s predatory Aura. If the victim has touched or imbibed
the vampire’s blood within the last night, they suffer a –3
die penalty. A failed roll puts the victim under the vampire’s
command. Vampires and werewolves frenzy, their victims
dictated by the Kindred who provoked them. Humans and
other supernatural creatures fall into an atavistic state where
they must attack the target, or move towards it if they can’t
reach it. If the vampire does not set a command, his victims
turn upon one another. A supernatural creature can spend a
point of Willpower to ignore the vampire’s commands, though
he remains frenzied.

Exceptional Success: Unleashing his Beast sates it
temporarily. The vampire gains the Sated Condition (p. 305, Blood and Smoke).

==Subsume the Lesser Spirit==
Cost: 20

By locking eyes with an animal, a vampire may psychically
enter the creature’s body and possess it as though it
were his own. Some Kindred believe that doing so actually
transfers the vampire’s soul into the beast, though other,
less mystically minded Kindred disagree. Regardless, the
animal’s own mind and instincts are completely subsumed,
allowing the Kindred free reign to take whatever actions
he chooses in the creature’s body. The vampire’s own body
falls into a torpor-like state and appears for all intents and
purposes to be a corpse. Until the character returns, his
body cannot be awakened by any means (though Kindred
urban legends tell of ghosts possessing such bodies and
wreaking havoc). Also, it is whispered among certain circles
that some vampires, addicted to the sensations of life they
experience while riding an animal, remain too long in that
form and forget their true nature.

Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Animal Ken + Animalism Mastery versus animal’s Composure
Action: Contested

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: The character fails to bond with the animal;
the animal grows hostile and is immune to any further
uses of Animalism by that character until the next sunset.

Failure: The character loses or ties the contested action
and fails to bond with the animal.

Success: The character wins the contested action and occupies
the animal’s body. He can use Animalism but no other
Disciplines while doing so.

Exceptional Success: The character wins the contested
action with five or more successes and occupies the animal’s
body, and can also use Auspex and Majesty while doing so.

If the roll made for the character wins the contested roll
and gets successes in excess of the animal’s Composure dots,
the character is in total control and his mind remains clear. If
his roll succeeds but garners a number of successes equal to or
lower than the animal’s Composure dots, a Willpower point
must be spent for the character to take any actions contrary
to the animal’s instincts. Otherwise, bestial urges and impulses
cloud the vampire’s mind.

Additionally, if the player wins the contested roll but gets a
number of successes equal to or lower than the animal’s Composure,
his character’s consciousness is so closely intertwined
with the beast’s that he maintains some bestial behaviors even
after returning to his own form. Until the player spends a total
of three Willpower points specifically to overcome this
effect — the points can’t, say, be spent to gain three extra
dice in unrelated rolls — the character continues to think
and feel in an animalistic manner. This effect has no “hard”
mechanical applications, but it should be roleplayed. If the
character doesn’t indulge in animalistic activity, the Storyteller
should feel free to either dock the character future experience
points or spend Willpower automatically for the character
when a particularly bestial response is appropriate but
not displayed.

While possessing an animal, a character can travel as far
from his own body as he wishes and is unharmed by daylight,
but he must still force himself to stay awake during the day
(see Humanity on p. 184). The vampire may choose to end
the possession and return to his body at any time, regardless
of distance. This occurs automatically if the vampire fails to
remain awake. Any injuries inflicted on the animal also affect
the vampire’s body. If the animal dies while the vampire
is still present, the Kindred falls into torpor immediately.
Some believe that the soul attempts to find its way back to
its own body during this time. If the Kindred’s physical form
is destroyed, his psyche remains trapped in the animal until
he finally fails to remain awake, at which point his spirit is
lost to oblivion and is unrecoverable.

It is possible, though uncommon, for a vampire to neglect
his physical body long enough for it to starve into
torpor while he’s “out”. If a vampire’s dormant body slips
or is forced into torpor, the vampire’s spirit automatically
returns to its body.

Suggested Modifiers
Modifier Situation
+1 The animal is a predatory mammal (wolf, cat,
insectivorous bat).
+1 The character has already successfully used Feral
Whispers on the animal he now attempts to possess.
+1 The character is able to assume the same animal
form via the Protean Discipline as the creature he
tries to possess.
— The animal is another sort of mammal, a predatory
bird or a large reptile (rat, owl, alligator).
-1 The animal is another sort of bird or a small
reptile (pigeon, snake).
-1 The animal is a ghoul.
-3 The animal is an insect or fish.

==Lord of the Land==
Cost: 25

The vampire marks his territory with Vitae, in much the
same way that animals use urine or feces. He must encircle his
territory in a ring of Vitae, claiming it as his own — assuming he
has driven off any prior residents. When encircling the territory,
he must walk the whole border. Some Kindred open wounds
on their hands and arms and walk at a stately pace, dripping
a slow stream of thick blood behind them. Others run wild,
smearing blood and bodily fluids on surfaces like a feral beast.
Once he has established his territory, the vampire is privy to
everything that happens within it. He can command animals,
summon or banish people, and provoke other vampires to leave
his lair. Most vampires establish their territory in small places,
like a brownstone or small public garden. A powerful vampire
might claim a whole public park or castle, but he must make
sure that nothing interrupts his claim — more than one vampire
has discovered that his territory is already claimed by an angry
pack of werewolves halfway through claiming it.

Cost: 3-9 Vitae and 1 Willpower
Requirement: The vampire must walk a circuit around his new
territory while marking it with Vitae. Three Vitae is enough to
secure a small house or garden, six can secure a city block, while
nine is enough to claim a castle. She must make sure that the
area contains no other vampires; many Kindred prefer to evict
all supernatural denizens. While the Discipline will still function
if her territory contains werewolves or other monsters, they will
suffer the effects — and will deduce that the vampire is to blame.
Dice Pool: None
Action: Instant
Duration: One week per dot of Blood Potency, longer if the
vampire remains in his territory.

The vampire marks his territory. It remains empowered for at
least one week per dot of Blood Potency, though the effects of
this Discipline only end when the vampire leaves his territory
after the duration. Rumors speak of ancient vampires lying in
torpor whose territories remain active to this day.
A vampire’s territory scares off most creatures. Animals
and wild beasts won’t enter, and will fight to escape if forced
inside, unless otherwise affected by the vampire’s powers.
Humans and supernatural creatures, including other vampires,
must succeed at a reflexive Composure + Blood Potency roll
to enter — or to stay in the area once it is created. Unless they
roll an exceptional success, the feeling of overwhelming dread
inflicts a –3 die penalty on all actions. For Kindred, simply
being in another vampire’s territory is provocation to frenzy,
and rolls to resist suffer a –2 die penalty. If a vampire explicitly
invites someone into his territory — or uses Feral Whispers or
Summon the Hunt in the case of animals — they do not suffer
these penalties. Ghoul animals are also exempt.
When the vampire is within his territory, he can feel when a
person or animal crosses into his territory; if an invader is a vampire,
he knows his general Blood Potency. He always has a rough idea of
where everyone is within his domain, and only supernatural means
such as Disciplines can cut through his awareness — triggering a
Clash of Wills. As the undisputed master of his territory, a frenzying
creature cannot attack the vampire, nor may they spend Willpower
to resist his commands delivered through Feral Infection. Any
commands given by Feral Whispers last indefinitely, or until the
animal leaves the vampire’s territory. Finally, the vampire can snatch
the senses of any animal he has raised with Raise the Familiar within
his territory, and use that animal to deliver commands using Feral
Whispers to other creatures.

==Leashing the Beast==
Cost: 25

The vampire’s connection with the Beast is so powerful that
he can manipulate not only the lesser creatures around him,
but his own Beast and that of other Kindred.

This is not overt control, as with Obedience or the Dominate
Discipline. Rather, the Kindred learns to rouse the Beast’s
instincts, inspiring it — and thus the vampire within whom it
lurks— to behave in a certain manner. Of course, communing
with the Beast is dangerous even under the best of circumstances,
and a few unfortunate Kindred have been destroyed by their
own failed attempts to manipulate others’ Beasts.

The subject must be a vampire and must be within the
character’s line of sight. If the character makes himself the
subject, he need not be able to see, so he can do so even in
complete darkness or when otherwise blinded. The player
must decide to invoke a rage frenzy or Rötschreck, or to alleviate
either of them.

Cost: 1 Vitae
Dice Pool: Manipulation + Empathy + Animalism Mastery versus Composure + Blood Potency (to affect another); Manipulation + Empathy + Animalism Mastery(to affect oneself)
Action: Instant (to affect oneself) or Contested; resistance is reflexive (to affect another)

Roll Results
Dramatic Failure: Used on another, the character’s power
rebounds and a Willpower point must be spent or he enters
either frenzy or Rötschreck, whichever he attempted to influence.
Additionally, the subject is immune to any further
Leashing the Beast attempts by the character until the next
sunset. When the power is used on the character’s self, the
opposite kind of frenzy sought is invoked (Rötschreck when
rage frenzy was intended).

Failure: The character fails the instant action, or loses or
ties the contested action and the power fails.

Success: The instant action inspires or calms rage frenzy or
Rötschreck in the character himself. Or, the character gets
the most successes and manipulates another’s Beast. Frenzy or
Rötschreck rules apply as normal for the remainder of the scene
if either is induced.

Exceptional Success: The character fulfills the instant action
or wins the contested roll with five or more successes,
and the subject is immediately forced into (or out of) frenzy
or Rötschreck. If the subject is forced into frenzy or
Rötschreck, he or she remains in that state for the remainder
of the scene, regardless of surrounding events or circumstances.
Additionally, Willpower cannot be spent to end the
frenzy prematurely. If the subject is brought out of frenzy or
Rötschreck, he or she is not subject to frenzy or Rötschreck
for the remainder of the scene, regardless of surrounding
events or circumstances.

Suggested Modifiers
If the character knows another’s Virtue and/or Vice, such
knowledge grants a +1 bonus, though he must cajole the Beast
by specifically focusing on those aspects of the subject’s personality.
These bonuses are not cumulative. Knowing a
character’s Virtue and Vice nets only a +1 bonus, not a +2.
If this power is turned on a vampire with whom the user
has a blood tie (see p. 162, Vampire: the Requiem), a +2 bonus is gained.
If the character is already in frenzy and uses this power to
calm himself, a -2 penalty applies.