Mind's Eye Theatre - Vampire The Requiem.pdf - RoseRed

healing wounds • discipline chapter one: use society • blood of the addiction
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thing! — for another fi x. The Kindred exploit such addiction, but doing so carries its own
risks. Obsession can take many strange forms. Ghouls might preemptively punish themselves
for imaginary infractions, to show “the master” the depth of their loyalty. Two ghouls might
become insanely jealous of each other, and do their best to sabotage each other without disobeying
their domitor’s plans in the process. A ghoul might think that his master speaks in
his mind, telling him to do things. Others suffer even stranger varieties of insanity.
Addicted Kindred have been known to wound themselves to lap at their own blood. Vitae
addicts also often turn to diablerie in their search for an even greater rush. The connection
between Vitae addiction and diablerie is so strong that many Kindred simply assume that a
known Vitae addict is also a diablerist and blame him for any unexplained disappearances
of local Kindred. If no one has disappeared, the Prince and Primogen might still order the
Vitae addict to be chained and driven into torpor. Twenty-fi ve years of torpor — long enough
for a vampire’s Blood Potency to drop by one — cures Vitae addiction… or at least the physical
craving. The memory of pleasure can start the cycle all over again, but at least the character’s
test pool to resist Vitae is reset to the standard.
If a mortal or Kindred character can resist the lure of Vitae, a +1 bonus is gained to
subsequent attempts to deny the thirst. The character can beat her nascent addiction if
the player ever scores four successes on a single Resolve + Composure draw. It’s as if the
character never tasted Vitae at all. If she drinks vampire blood again, however, she feels the
thirst once more.
When a character falls short of complete addiction, the thirst for Vitae can fade with time,
as long as the character avoids temptation. For each year in which a character stays away from
any exposure to Kindred blood, one point is added to Resolve + Composure pools to avoid
temptation.
SPECIAL EXCEPTIONS
In certain special cases, Kindred can drink another vampire’s blood without risking
Vitae addiction. Most importantly, the Vitae consumed during the Embrace does not
provoke a further thirst for vampire blood. Compared to the shattering power of
the Embrace itself, the addictive qualities of Vitae are as a light breeze compared to
a hurricane.
Some rituals also require one vampire to drink another’s blood. Such blood rites
do not addict participants. In such cases, however, the Kindred use small quantities of
Vitae, and the ritual channels the blood’s power to a specifi c goal. The ordinary Vitaejunkie
just lets the power roll over him. It’s the difference between a doctor prescribing
an opiate and a fi end shooting up. The drug is the same, but the application, the
effects and the dangers are very different.
ELDERS, ADDICTION AND DIABLERIE
Vitae addiction does not seem to become a problem for vampires who are so old and potent
that mortal blood no longer sustains them. They must feed on other Kindred, but they do not
seem to suffer the derangements and lack of control of most Vitae addicts… unless they commit
diablerie. In that case, the elder risks diablerie addiction. (Indeed, merely drinking vampire
blood is different from the act of diablerie — described momentarily.) Diablerie addiction
works just like Vitae addiction, but a player must draw her character’s Resolve + Composure
for her to resist the urge to diablerize another vampire, even if the character knows her crime
could be discovered in a short time and bring her destruction. Few threats inspire as much
terror among the Kindred as the possibility of such a diablerie-crazed elder.