Post by Galen on Sept 12, 2013 12:27:56 GMT -8
((Please post questions regarding this thread here: www.vampst.proboards.com/thread/15690/demons-discussion-thread))
Hey all,
So due to a large amount of questions on exactly how to deal with the Demons that have been floating around Staff has come up with several methods for dealing with such creatures in the sphere of Vampire. The following systems and rules sets are going to be used for on a temporary basis and review by the player base as a whole. After a month of play test and discussion we will be having a player vote on October 5th to see if we want to keep them on a more permanent basis for this game. Most of what has been created has been taken straight from Demon the Fallen with modifications to fit into our game. While this thread will be locked I will start a discussion thread on the Vampire OOC boards to discuss these different methods.
At current there are no in game ways to deal with Demon the Fallen demons. While there already exist several for spirits, or demons in the classical sense (evil spirits), Demon the Fallen was never covered or given a method for resolution, so there rules apply specifically to these sorts of demons and have no reflection on the others and visa versa (You cannot use conventional spirit powers to affect Demon the Fallen demons). We as a staff feel that players should have ways of dealing with these kinds of demons and be able to include them in their own stories (Infernalism has always been something heavily dealt with in Canon much in the same manner as Wraiths) if they so desire, though this will always be a dangerous task.
In 1999 the barriers were stripped down around Hell allowing for several of these creatures to escape and wander the earth after possessing mortal hosts. Canon runs that this hole was never resealed and that demons can escape at any time. As a staff we feel that sort of Canon is fitting in a Demon the Fallen game, not so much in a Vampire the Masquerade game and as such will be running that Demons must be summoned forth from Hell and cannot simply walk out. (See Summoning later in this thread) This means two things; one that characters may attempt to pull a Demon from Hell for whatever reason, and two that once a Demon has been sent back to Hell he will need someone to pull him back out (This adds a little more finality to getting rid of Demons that is not covered in the Demon the Fallen book.)
So, first lets cover a few rules regarding Demons specifically so that everyone knows what we are dealing with.
Rules for Demons:
The Pull of the Abyss-
Demons are innately bound to hell, a place they were sent when the war in Heaven was lost and they were all punished for their 'betrayal'. As such, Hell is constantly tugging at them and if they lack an anchor to hold them to this world they will get sucked back, trapped once again.
Any Demon outside of its host body or outside of a summoning circle will feel the immediate and ever present pull of Hell. Each turn the demon will have to make a Willpower roll. The difficulty for these rolls starts at difficulty 4, and increases by 1 for each additional turn the demon is free roaming. Each turn counts as three minutes. If at anytime it fails one of these rolls it is immediately sucked back into Hell. A demon freed of its mortal host body may travel at a speed of 5+Willpower in miles each turn to attempt to find a new host, is invisible to normal sight and may not interact or be interacted with in any way.
Each turn after making it's Willpower test, the Storytellers must make a standard WoD check. If the demon tests up twice it is able to find a suitable human host or object during that time. At which time it may attempt to possess the new human host making a Willpower roll at Difficulty 9. On a botch on either of these rolls, the Demon loses a permanent dot of Willpower and may not make any other attempts to possess that person. Each attempt to possess an individual counts as a turn, but is made before the pull of Hell test.
Having been stripped of its host, the demon automatically loses a point of permanent Faith and gains a point of permanent Torment.
Objects may also be possessed in this manner, though they are equally difficult to find and equally difficult to possess. Using the same system for finding mortals, a Demon may attempt to instead find an object with which to possess and make the attempt at Willpower (difficulty 9) as per possessing a mortal. It will be Storyteller discretion as to whether the Demon has found a new mortal host or instead an object. Demons much prefer mortal hosts though and will only inhabit objects if left with no alternative (this is a generalization) and as such Demons inhabiting objects should be a very uncommon occurrence.
Possession-
There are certain qualities that must exist in a mortal host for them to even be susceptible to being possessed. Demon the Fallen lists them in more detail, but I will give a brief example of each so that the player base as a whole has a firmer understanding.
Fresh Meat - "Demons may possess mortals whose spirits have been eroded by despair, anger, addiction - mortals who have lost the essential spark of humanity that sets them apart from every other living thing." (DtF pg 81) In game terms these are mortals who've through circumstance or desire have allowed their Humanity rating to slip to 2 or below.
The Soulless - The brain-dead, comatose, or in a vegetative state. Though these people are not lacking a soul technically speaking, its tether has become so weakened it is much easier for a Demon to possess them.
The Insane - Mental instability makes it more difficult for a mortal to exert its Will in opposition to the Demon and thus allows them to be targeted for possession.
Free Will - And then there are the ones who are willing to flat out sell their bodies and souls to Demons in exchange for power. Some are just willing to give it all up.
Possessed mortals in ECC can never become ghouls and ghouls may never become Possessed by Demons. While Canonically this is not true, we believe this should never be the case in this Vampire the Masquerade game.
(More coming in a few minutes...)
Hey all,
So due to a large amount of questions on exactly how to deal with the Demons that have been floating around Staff has come up with several methods for dealing with such creatures in the sphere of Vampire. The following systems and rules sets are going to be used for on a temporary basis and review by the player base as a whole. After a month of play test and discussion we will be having a player vote on October 5th to see if we want to keep them on a more permanent basis for this game. Most of what has been created has been taken straight from Demon the Fallen with modifications to fit into our game. While this thread will be locked I will start a discussion thread on the Vampire OOC boards to discuss these different methods.
At current there are no in game ways to deal with Demon the Fallen demons. While there already exist several for spirits, or demons in the classical sense (evil spirits), Demon the Fallen was never covered or given a method for resolution, so there rules apply specifically to these sorts of demons and have no reflection on the others and visa versa (You cannot use conventional spirit powers to affect Demon the Fallen demons). We as a staff feel that players should have ways of dealing with these kinds of demons and be able to include them in their own stories (Infernalism has always been something heavily dealt with in Canon much in the same manner as Wraiths) if they so desire, though this will always be a dangerous task.
In 1999 the barriers were stripped down around Hell allowing for several of these creatures to escape and wander the earth after possessing mortal hosts. Canon runs that this hole was never resealed and that demons can escape at any time. As a staff we feel that sort of Canon is fitting in a Demon the Fallen game, not so much in a Vampire the Masquerade game and as such will be running that Demons must be summoned forth from Hell and cannot simply walk out. (See Summoning later in this thread) This means two things; one that characters may attempt to pull a Demon from Hell for whatever reason, and two that once a Demon has been sent back to Hell he will need someone to pull him back out (This adds a little more finality to getting rid of Demons that is not covered in the Demon the Fallen book.)
So, first lets cover a few rules regarding Demons specifically so that everyone knows what we are dealing with.
Rules for Demons:
The Pull of the Abyss-
Demons are innately bound to hell, a place they were sent when the war in Heaven was lost and they were all punished for their 'betrayal'. As such, Hell is constantly tugging at them and if they lack an anchor to hold them to this world they will get sucked back, trapped once again.
Any Demon outside of its host body or outside of a summoning circle will feel the immediate and ever present pull of Hell. Each turn the demon will have to make a Willpower roll. The difficulty for these rolls starts at difficulty 4, and increases by 1 for each additional turn the demon is free roaming. Each turn counts as three minutes. If at anytime it fails one of these rolls it is immediately sucked back into Hell. A demon freed of its mortal host body may travel at a speed of 5+Willpower in miles each turn to attempt to find a new host, is invisible to normal sight and may not interact or be interacted with in any way.
Each turn after making it's Willpower test, the Storytellers must make a standard WoD check. If the demon tests up twice it is able to find a suitable human host or object during that time. At which time it may attempt to possess the new human host making a Willpower roll at Difficulty 9. On a botch on either of these rolls, the Demon loses a permanent dot of Willpower and may not make any other attempts to possess that person. Each attempt to possess an individual counts as a turn, but is made before the pull of Hell test.
Having been stripped of its host, the demon automatically loses a point of permanent Faith and gains a point of permanent Torment.
Objects may also be possessed in this manner, though they are equally difficult to find and equally difficult to possess. Using the same system for finding mortals, a Demon may attempt to instead find an object with which to possess and make the attempt at Willpower (difficulty 9) as per possessing a mortal. It will be Storyteller discretion as to whether the Demon has found a new mortal host or instead an object. Demons much prefer mortal hosts though and will only inhabit objects if left with no alternative (this is a generalization) and as such Demons inhabiting objects should be a very uncommon occurrence.
Possession-
There are certain qualities that must exist in a mortal host for them to even be susceptible to being possessed. Demon the Fallen lists them in more detail, but I will give a brief example of each so that the player base as a whole has a firmer understanding.
Fresh Meat - "Demons may possess mortals whose spirits have been eroded by despair, anger, addiction - mortals who have lost the essential spark of humanity that sets them apart from every other living thing." (DtF pg 81) In game terms these are mortals who've through circumstance or desire have allowed their Humanity rating to slip to 2 or below.
The Soulless - The brain-dead, comatose, or in a vegetative state. Though these people are not lacking a soul technically speaking, its tether has become so weakened it is much easier for a Demon to possess them.
The Insane - Mental instability makes it more difficult for a mortal to exert its Will in opposition to the Demon and thus allows them to be targeted for possession.
Free Will - And then there are the ones who are willing to flat out sell their bodies and souls to Demons in exchange for power. Some are just willing to give it all up.
Possessed mortals in ECC can never become ghouls and ghouls may never become Possessed by Demons. While Canonically this is not true, we believe this should never be the case in this Vampire the Masquerade game.
(More coming in a few minutes...)