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

Suit Antagonists to the Chronicle
Antagonists need to be a vital part of the story in which they appear. They should help
tell that story, not work at cross-purposes to it. A story about back-room deals needs to have
a suitable back-room dealer as one of its antagonists. A chronicle that emphasizes the age
differences between different groups of Kindred should have an antagonist who’s notably
older (or younger) than the players’ characters. The antagonist is the vehicle by which a story’s
confl ict occurs, and confl ict is what makes the story exciting. Mismatching an antagonist with
the type of story only weakens the signifi cance of both.
Vary Antagonists’ Methods
Only a fool tries the same methodologies time after time, especially if they fail. Allow your
antagonists to learn from their mistakes. If the players’ characters soundly thwart your antagonists
in one scene, have those opponents wait in ambush the next time. Have them hire
additional muscle. Have the antagonists lead with a ruse, hoping the characters move to foil
it — and then have them make a well-prepared counter-move. These tactics need not apply
only in physical combats. An effective ruse can be a political feint made before Prince and
Primogen that the antagonist really wants to fail, but that tricks the characters into wasting
their efforts. An ambush can be a high-politics situation in which the antagonist reveals he
has more support than the characters thought, and he wins the vote.
Vampires are Rare
While enough Kindred exist to necessitate a society in which they operate, and to facilitate
the formation of various factions, not every antagonist in a Requiem chronicle needs to
be one of the undead. In fact, it’s generally better if they’re not. It takes a conscious act of
will to create a Kindred, so most sires have chosen childer who have something to offer the
world of the Damned. While your main antagonists are probably vampiric, there’s little need
for a gun-wielding thug to be Kindred. “Extras” probably shouldn’t be Kindred. Rare is the
vampire who has so many Willpower dots to spare that he surrounds himself with undead
cannon fodder. Ghouls, vampire-hunters, mortal vigilantes and regular people who are in
the wrong place at the wrong time can all run afoul of vampires, as can other supernatural
creatures with whom the Kindred share the shadows. The more the condition of vampirism
remains mysterious and rare, the more special players feel as their characters are members of
that exclusive culture. No one should ever be “just another vampire.”
The Value of Undeath
Antagonists want to improve their lot in unlife. That’s why they’re antagonists. Their efforts
to do so intrude upon the protagonists’ own desires. Such being the case, not every confl ict
with an antagonist should result in a showdown to the death. Vampires almost certainly
want to survive until another night — they potentially have forever in front of them. Likewise,
minions don’t necessarily put their lives or unlives on the line for the master. Even the most
devoted ghoul who is willing to die for his regnant knows the difference between dying when
it wouldn’t help the situation, and dying in an effort of helpful sacrifi ce. Attackers can make
tactical retreats. Political enemies can withdraw from the arena for a while to secretly cultivate
infl uence and return to threaten the characters again. Generic guardians and other extras
probably aren’t paid well enough to take a bullet for some cruel or aloof employer.
Do the Math
Make sure that you take the protagonists’ abilities into account when assigning traits to
antagonists. Antagonists shouldn’t necessarily mop the fl oor when they come in confl ict with
the players’ characters, but neither should they be pushovers. It’s fi ne for an antagonist to
exceed the characters’ abilities (as challenge makes for interesting stories), but she shouldn’t
be unassailable on all fronts. In her realm of expertise, a good antagonist is probably more
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mind’s chapter eye four: theatre: storytelling requiem