25 Years of Vampire: The Masquerade

Latest Episodes:

Veil of Night - Episode 152 Jan 24, 2020

Show notes

Veil of Night is a sourcebook for Vampire: the Dark Ages that provides a detailed history of the Middle East during the Dark Ages. We dig deep into the material this week to talk about how the Muslim world intersects with the World of Darkness, as well as the origins of the Ashirra, the Banu Haquim, and more modern lore of Vampire: the Masquerade.
Veil of Night was written by Chris Hartford, Ellen Kiley, James Kiley, Michael Lee, Sarah Roark, Lucien Soulban, and Adam Tinworth and published April 16th, 2001 by White Wolf Studios.

This week, we are proud to announce our newest sponsor, By Night Studios! Check out their upcoming Vampire: the Masquerade LARP event, “Blood and Betrayal: Redemption.”
Be sure to use promo code: MET25 for 10% off tickets to the event and help our show! Help us make this their biggest event ever!
By Night Studios

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Libellus Sanguinis 4 - Episode 151 Jan 17, 2020

Show notes

Welcome back, Cainites! We’re Sliding back into the Dark Ages review cycle this week and looking at Libellus Sanguinis 4: Thieves in the Night.

First, we address some of the feedback we received from our Chicago by Night review and give some nods to folks we forgot last week.
This edition of Libelus Sanguinis gives a complete look at three more of the clans from Vampire: the Dark Ages. First, we explore the oft-reviled and mistrusted Ravnos. We are treated with a deeper explanation of the clan’s origins, dark compulsions, and unique discipline of Chimerstry. Next, we dig into the mud and muck to explore the horrific and twisted Nosferatu. Finally, we gaze into the fractured, demented history and origins of the Malkavian clan.
Libellus Sanguinis 4: Thieves in the Night was written by Deird'Re M. Brooks, Joshua Mosqueira Asheim, and Lucien Soulban and published on Feb. 5th, 2001 by White Wolf publishing.

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Chicago by Night 5th Edition - Episode 150 Jan 10, 2020

Show notes

Welp, we’re back from holiday full of colds and cough drops to bring you a new review! We figured, in honor of 2020, the New Year, yada yada, and etc., we’d dive into a review of the upcoming Chicago by Night 5th edition coming soon from Onyx Path Publishing. The Chicago by Night project was launched on Kickstarter back on October 30th of 2018 and funded in 30 days. We are now poised to finally have physical copies in hand very soon, with (we assume) general sales of the book to begin shortly thereafter. After nearly a year sitting on this book, waiting to do a general front-to-back review, it’s time to dig in!

Just to clarify, this is not the “5th Edition” of Chicago by Night. This is Chicago by Night for the 5th edition of Vampire: the Masquerade. You can purchase the first edition here and the second edition here. Additionally, there is a three volume set that collects the entire Chicago Chronicles that you can purchase here, here, and here to get you up to date on all things Chicago in the World of Darkness.
Chicago by Night was written by Jiba Molei Anderson, John Burke, Matthew Dawkins, Jose Garcia, Klara Horskjær Herbøl, Kira Magrann, Crystal Mazur, Juhana Pettersson, Lauren Roy, Myranda Sarro, Malcolm Sheppard, Chris Spivey, Mike Tomasek, Allen Turner, Rachelle Udell, Eddy Webb and Meredith Gerber for Onyx Path Publishing and is scheduled for a Feb. 1st, 2020 release.

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Teach Me How: NPC Characters - Episode 149 Jan 03, 2020

Show notes

Welcome once again to our holiday special edition bonanza extravaganza! In this episode, we talk about creating and playing believable and unique NPC characters. Characterization for an entire game can be difficult and overwhelming, but also one of the most rewarding aspects of storytelling.
There are TONS of resources out there for creating characters - both for gaming and for general fiction. Below are a bunch of Vampire: the Masquerade character resources that may help guide you in right direction:
Who’s Who Among Vampires: Children of the Inquisition is one of the early examples of character-specific sourcebooks for Vampire: the Masquerade. It contains 13 elders who’ve experienced the great jyhad through the ages. It is a great example of the early years of vampire characterization.

Storytellers Handbook: Yeah, it’s old. Yeah, it’s also dated. However, it is still an excellent resource for the timeless art of storytelling and characterization, which is all THIS actually is.

Encyclopaedia Vampirica is another book full of characters, concepts, and ideas specifically for vampire games.

This is by no means and exhaustive list of books that’ll help you with NPC/SPC concepts and characterization. For sure, you should get out there and do some exploration on your own time!

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Teach Me How: Feeding Scenes - Episode 148 Dec 27, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Teach Me How!, Nate and Bob talk about strategies and processes for running a meaningful feeding scene in Vampire: the Masquerade. While any of the ideas and concepts we speak about in this podcast can (and do) apply to V5, we don’t explicitly talk about the feeding styles found in the updated game. Sorry. At the time of this recording, we just didn’t have the depth of knowledge to talk about humors and predator styles.
However, if you want to story-tell the ACT of feeding so that it impacts your game and players, this is the Teach Me How! for you.

While every Corebook in the Vampire: the Masquerade line talks about feeding and running scenes for such, there’s no specific Vampire sourcebook dedicated to the act. Vampire: the Masquerade 5th edition (V5) has done a great job at shifting focus back to the act of feeding from mortals. If vampires don’t drink blood, are they even vampires?
One book that I think can really help to influence a storyteller looking to run feeding scenes is Ghouls: Fatal Addiction. This book talks about the aforementioned ghouls - those that serve the denizens of the night. This book details the odd supernatural bonds of the blood, the addiction that can come with it, and how feeding can impact a human life.
Another book we strongly suggest to any new player or storyteller is Book of the Kindred; an anthology of fiction dedicated to telling the stories of Vampire. This book may be a bit rudimentary for some advanced players but it’s worth going through to get a feel for the world. It’s over 20 years old, but it’s a great primer for Vampire: the Masquerade.

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Teach Me How! Elders - Episode 147 Dec 20, 2019

Show notes

Welcome the episode three of the “Teach Me How!” podcast. In this episode, Bob and Nate talk about HOW to play an elder. From inception to application, we give you strategies and books that you'll be able to utilize for portraying an elder.
An elder, for the uninitiated, is any vampire who has seen three or more centuries of unlife in the Vampire: the Masquerade World of Darkness. These creatures tend to be cold and monstrous, as well as selfish and covetous. They are some of the more challenging characters to play in the World of Darkness game setting.
Again, we wish to thank you over the holidays and we hope you enjoy these little hidden gems. You may notice some issue with the audio on these episodes. That’s because they are older than our current recordings. This episode was originally recorded April 15th, 2018.
Here are some further references that may help you play an elder vampire in the World of Darkness:
Elysium: The Elder Wars is the first and possibly only book dedicated to the idea, concept, and creation of the elder as a playable character. It’s an invaluable resource for anyone looking to play or run an elder chronicle, even though most of the actual rules and “crunch” are not applicable to a modern edition of the game.
Counsel of Primogen is another exceptional resource for playing the political games of elder kindred. While this book is not specifically about elders, it remains a solid reference for those that play elder games.
There are tons of other sourcebooks and novels that explore the machinations and melancholy of the elders. We also suggest reading books such as Prince’s Primer, The Beast Within, Book of the Kindred, and any edition of the Chicago by Night city book (there’s basically one for every version of the game.)

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Teach Me How! The Camarilla - Episode 146 Dec 13, 2019

Show notes

Welcome to episode two of the “Teach Me How!” podcast. In this episode, we try make sense of the madness that is the Camarilla and make a serious effort to distill it into a somewhat easy-to-follow podcast. Thank you for your continued support! Feel free to leave comments with ideas for other Teach Me How episodes we could explore in the future.
Below is a list of additional resources on the august organization known as the Camarilla:
Vampire: the Masquerade 1st Edition, Vampire: the Masquerade 2nd Edition, Vampire: the Masquerade Revised Edition, Vampire: the Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition, and Vampire: the Masquerade 5th Edition all present a variant on the Camarilla as the primary playable sect of the game. Vampire: the Masquerade is BY DEFAULT a Camarilla game. Therefore, all of the different versions of the game present a Camarilla slightly different than the last, but fairly succinctly explore playability.
The Camarilla Guide is the revised edition companion exploring the history, culture, and hierarchy of the sect. This is the definitive guide to the Camarilla.
Camarilla (Vampire: the Masquerade 5th Edition) brings the august sect into the modern era. Light on stats and heavy on story, this book explores a World of Darkness of tonight.
There are a ton of books that dive deeper into the minutiae of the Camarilla. In fact, most of the sourcebooks through nearly 30 years of Vampire: the Masquerade touch on the particulars of the Camarilla. Check out Archons and Templars, Elysium, Midnight Siege, Chicago by Night, and more!

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Teach Me How! The Sabbat - Episode 145 Dec 06, 2019

Show notes

Hello all! Thanks for sticking with us over the long holiday. This week, we bring you a very special episode of our Teach Me How! podcast. These podcasts were created especially for our Patreon backers and it’s our attempt at giving back some our knowledge and experience to the community! Now, here they are for you, for the holidays!
Word of warning, these first episodes are a little rough around the edges. Thank you for your patience while while listening.
In this first episode, we talk about the much-maligned and oft-misunderstood Sabbat. The Sabbat are a sect of vampires that disregard the rule of the elders and their puppet masters, the Antediluvians.
For more info about the Sabbat, check out these books:
The Players Guide to the Sabbat: This is the first sourcebook for the Sabbat. Prior to this book, the Sabbat were strictly for use as NPC’s. This book is a great, classic look at the foundations of the sect and its inhumanity.
Storytellers Handbook to the Sabbat: This second sourcebook was released as a companion to the original Players Guide to the Sabbat. This book includes new bloodlines, concepts and strategies for roleplaying and staging a Sabbat Chronicle.
Guide to the Sabbat: This revised edition guide explores the rites, rituals, goals, history, etc., as told by their members and enemies. This is the definitive guide to the Sabbat.
Tzimisce and Lasombra clanbooks: The Tzimisce and Lasombra form the core of the sect. As such, their clanbooks are important reading for any Sabbat chronicle.
Obviously, this is not an exhaustive list of reading on the Sword of Caine. City books like Montreal and Mexico City by Night are great resources as well. Check out some of our older podcasts for more info!

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House of Tremere - Episode 144 Nov 29, 2019

Show notes

Happy Thanksgiving (or black Friday :p) to our American listeners, and happy just another day to everyone else in the world! In this episode, we bring you our final review of the year. We open the dusty tomes and climb high into the eldritch mountains to explore a twisted and treacherous cabal of vampires who stole their immortality from the ancient masters of the land: The Tremere. Now, from their hidden Chantry in the Carpathians, they grapple with their new condition and war against their Cainite rivals - both from without and within…House of Tremere details the the origins of the aforementioned clan, from a house of Mages desperate to keep their immortality, to the year 1197. This book also details their legendary, ignoble chantry, Ceoris. House of Tremere was written by Robin Laws and published November of 2000 by White Wolf Publishing.

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Wind From the East - Episode 143 Nov 22, 2019

Show notes

In this episode, we take a look at the Vampire: the Dark Ages sourcebook, “Wind From the East.” This book explores the Mongols of the Golden Horde, and the Cainites places within it. It covers the entire period of Mongol expansion into the west, the Wan Kuei of the Black Tortoise Court, two new bloodlines, and much more.
This book was written by James Kiley and published on August 16th, 2000 for White Wolf Publishing.

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