The Successful Conclusion of the Dark Before Dawn One Shot

The Ordo Dracul are a lively bunch!

On Saturday, 5th December, we finally completed our main event of 2014 with an occult mystery set in Adelaide and involving a dozen different vampires who all expected a different event, location and even era.  There were folk in lab coats, police uniforms and masquerade ball gowns, and each vampire was shocked and confused at the location they found themselves within.

After the initial confusion, the vampires quickly realised that the location held many clues in the artwork, alchemical solutions and even spirit-possessed shrines that populated the location.  They also found a warning, or perhaps a threat, written on both the chalkboard and even projected onto a screen at various points.

Four possessing spirits of darkness would be released into the venue to possess one of the vampires every hour and twenty, give or take.  These spirits would have vital information they would be compelled to provide to the vampires in their own way but they would also be vicious threats if allowed to linger too long.  Should the vampires fail to root them out and exorcise them, they will find themselves quickly overwhelmed as each additional one is released to possess another vampire.

The vampires were informed that they had been provided with several exorcismal techniques which lurked within the hall but each technique could only be used on one person and if the wrong person were chosen, that technique would cease to work on the actual possessing entity in play at the time.  In other words, if you used a classic chant to exorcise one fellow when it turns out that the fellow next to him is the one possessed, that other fellow would now be immune.

The unafflicted vampires performed admirably under pressure, though the first possession turned to be a very tricky beast indeed, but as their own secrets began to come to light they started to turn their attention back to the greater question: Why had they been brought here?  Who was the person who had done this to them?

Things finally came to a head when a mysterious stranger arrived with a choice for those present.  Will they allow the ghostly figure to remain within the machine (the same ghostly figure that had brought them all to the strange metaphysical hall) or would they allow an ancient deity to regain control of the city.  A few picked the ghostly figure, still fewer picked the deity.  Most chose to walk their own path and refused to choose at all.

In the end, the ancient occultist, Yzador, of the Circle of the Crone made a final deal with the angelic messenger that was, in truth, an abjuration in disguise and she was banished from the realm.

The doors to the outside world finally opened and the vampires were allowed to leave.  Many did so in silent contemplation, a great contrast to the chaos and confusion that had reigned for hours earlier.

(Many of the players have chosen to reprise their roles for the campaign LARP that begins in January.  If you would be interested in an occult mystery game following the tales of the pseudo scientific Ordo Dracul and pagan occultist Circle of the Crone in a city damaged by a plague of sentient shadowy entities, leave a comment below or contact me via email at laraqua_sandgate@hotmail.com)

Dark Before Dawn: One Shot Rules Differences

FOR THOSE WHO KNOW THE BLOOD & SMOKE or VAMPIRE: REQUIEM RULES

(If you don't know those rules, the following may not make much sense to you)

After long consideration, we've decided to simplify the rules to make it friendlier to newer players and to reflect the type of game that a one shot best affords.  Simplifying the rules wherever possible can only help new players come to grips with the setting and storyline.  If we later branch out into an ongoing campaign we can utilise the full rules but for the needs of this particular game some have been trimmed.

Therefore for the upcoming event we have removed the ability to apply conditions through Lashing out with the Beast.  This is because it can be a pretty big role play challenge to portray those conditions for an entire night AND because it's another set of innate abilities and rules that add extra complexity to an already complex game.  You will still find something called Lashing out with the Beast under Resistances and that's because you can use it to throw off certain disciplines.  We will be including your biggest dice pool for this resistance but that is it's *only* use at present.

Instead of a skill list showing each character's ranking in 27 different skills (many of which are meaningless in a single location game), we are introducing several specialty skills that have an explicit impact on the game.  In other words, rather than the catch-all crafts, there will be the Repair Skill.  If you have this Skill, you can make broken items work again which can grant you access to other sections of the building or turn on machines.  You don't need to roll for this.  It simply works or doesn't work. 

There also other skills, like languages, which automatically give you access to additional information held on Out of Character skill cards that you will find beside the object.  If you have the Skill, you can turn it over and read the information.  If you don't have the skill, even if you are an academic or occultist character, it is assumed to reflect a gap in your knowledge.

There will be no listed mental or social attributes because we are using skills a little differently.  They do exist and are included in the dice pools for various abilities and powers but have been tucked behind the GM screen.

Since rituals take a lot longer to perform in Blood & Smoke they are more appropriate to pre-game preparations and therefore I have only included rituals that can be pre-cast.  I haven't included a list of rituals that haven't been pre-cast because there's little point - few players would be interested in roleplaying 15 minutes of prayer or ecstatic dancing.  Without such dedication, there's really no point in having them all there at this stage.  NOTE: If any player does declare their interest in such a lengthy ordeal for access to additional powers, I will be happy to make an exception.

We haven't listed any status because that would change in each era and is too difficult to keep track of.  Instead we have relative status, such as Mid Rank Invictus or Low Rank Mekhet.  While this can still change between eras, it reflects a more fluid system than the usual 1 - 5 rank.  It's also only listed on your character booklet which makes it more of a guideline for how you should behave rather than how other people will treat you.  Naturally if you have a rank to back it up, such as sheriff or prince, you will gain that position's authority.

"The Dark Before Dawn" Vampire: the Requiem LARP

I am pleased to announce that our first LARP event will occur next month on Saturday, 6th December.  This introductory session follows the investigations of a group of Adelaide courtiers who find themselves trapped in a strange location out of time and must find their own way out.  Strangely there is little agreement on the current date - some swear it's the late 1920s or early 1930s, others that it's 1944, some think it's 1966 or 1988, with a few thinking the date is as late as 2014!

What can this mean?  Why are they all here?  And why are some of those long thought destroyed still up and walking around as if nothing has ever happened to them?

- Piece together the mystery using handouts, artefacts and scraps of knowledge gleaned from your character's skills (represented via skill cards).

- Manipulate rival courtiers, gather allies and spread truths and lies to pave your way to freedom.

- Avoid the growing miasma that slowly removes chunks of the room from beyond your reach as you solve puzzles, unlock devices and repair or break the cages that bind.

- And finally defeat supernatural adversaries by will or by strength as you try to survive through to the end with little more than your wits, some vampiric powers and very few weapons.

This Vampire: the Requiem game uses modified Blood & Smoke rules but don't worry if you've never played a dice-based roleplaying game before.  An easy to understand character booklet and a number of well-trained Game Masters and Assistant Game Masters will help you win through as will a simplified skill system.

You can purchase tickets and learn a bit more about the event over on Eventbrite.

Starting Plots of a Potential Vampire Season

A game of occult mystery and investigation....

While the goals which become important will depend on player interests and character actions, I thought it might still be nice for potential players to know the sort of game they can expect, which can also guide them in character creation.  The last thing anyone wants is to wind up at a LARP with nothing to do.  So here are some potential goals for the twelve month vampire season.

Likely Plots for the First Season

Goals may include:

• Escape to the Ordo Dracul Chapter House with no casualties.
• Reinforce Chapter House defences and build new ones, where possible.
• Determine that no Kindred within the court are possessed by a Strix.
• Embrace new members of the Ordo Dracul or send messages to other cities for reinforcements.
• Locate any surviving courtiers from the other covenants.
• Transport resources (i.e. library dots) from other havens to the shared havens.
• Determine who among the Ordo Dracul will be prince, sheriff and temporary harpy.
• Determine mentor - student arrangements as necessary coils become all important.
• Determine access to resources, including declaration of what rooms are used for what.
• The true harpy will be revealed as the one other Kindred are willing to record their boons with.
• Obtain relics that might provide protection against the perils of the city.
• Send out foray teams to determine what said perils may actually be.
• Throw off an assault on the Chapter House.
• Locate valuable humans to ghoul to fulfil functions not yet met.
• Determine the rights and responsibilities of non-OD (without exiling their players from the game).
• Entrap a shadow entity and research banes upon it.

12 Months of Vampire: the Requiem

You're not safe in the shadows...

In 2011, I ran a two-year Vampire: the Requiem campaign called "The Dark Before Dawn".  I am now considering re-launching it with a one-shot that will lead to a twelve-month campaign with the option for further seasons should it remain popular.  This campaign will focus on the unlives of the Ordo Dracul and those few vampires who survived the shadow-ridden purge of the 2014 "praxis seizure" struck the vampire court a hideous blow and unleashed an onslaught of strange light-sensitive entities into Adelaide.  To make matters worse, the rules behind being a Kindred within Adelaide have changed (i.e. the God Machine rules are now in effect).

The campaign will be set shortly after that point where the local Kindred have to start picking up the pieces, having retreated to the Ordo Dracul stronghold on Quarantine Island.  All new characters need to be members of the Ordo Dracul though players of existing characters from the earlier campaign can retain their characters so long as they're willing to be under Ordo Dracul administration.  All non-Ordo Dracul NPCs will be cut off from the rest of the court until rediscovered and then will likely continue focusing on their own business.

The game will be set firmly in the occult mystery genre though there will still be political positions and benefits to encourage a reasonable amount of politics within the game.  Bear in mind, though, that in such dangerous times there will likely be PC-generated backlash against those who play the political game too overtly viciously (though a lot can be done with subtlety) and the Ordo Dracul punish those who kill their covenant-members without going through proper procedures.

If you have never played Vampire: the Requiem before or simply haven't read that deeply into the Ordo Dracul before, don't worry.  Presuming we have enough interest for this to go ahead, there will be a pre-game workshop where we will determine the basics of the covenant together, including the shared haven, character ties, boons, etc.

Feel free to register your interest or discuss possible character concepts on facebook.com/groups/Thedarkbeforedawn

A Whimsical Tale of Cunning and Derring-Do

Whimsy, colour and costuming can be oh so much fun...

We're currently considering another LARP in a different style to the vampire LARP you can see over on the Current Game Schedule Page in the bar above.  Where The Dark Before Dawn is a game of horrifying intrigue, this game will be playful and adventurous.  Where The Dark Before Dawn is a game using the admittedly complex Vampire: the Requiem rules (with simplified rules on the character sheet, but still), this game will give players only a couple skills or abilities to use.  Where The Dark Before Dawn is a carefully plotted game with cunningly defined connections and antagonisms between the characters, in this game of whimsy the players will draw their character goals from one of six hats.

While much of this game of whimsy is still in the very early developmental stages, I can tell you this.  Each player will be placed in a faction determined by their costuming in this Changeling-esque game with humans in regular streetwear; spring courtiers in vintage (1920s - 1950s); summer courtiers in medieval wear; winter courtiers in gothic or emo clothing; and autumn courtiers in steampunk wear.  Each hat is tied to one faction and each hat will have themed goals on slips of paper within it.

This should make for a suitably fun, chaotic and entertaining game for all involved.

National ABC Radio Presentation on LARP in Adelaide

All journeys start with a single step forward....

I will be speaking on ABC National Radio about LARPs in general and this LARP organisation in particular at 2.45PM today.  It's a great opportunity to let people know more about this little known hobby and the wide range of different genres and styles that are possible within it.  After all, LARPs can range from murder mysteries to social experiments, historical re-enactments to fantasy games with boffer combat, social experiments to political contests between fictional groups.

LARPs can give people the opportunity to get active when they're staged outdoors, especially with boffer combat.  They let people sneak a peek behind another person's eyes as they live a few hours as somebody else and experiment with a different personality, different choices, and different ways of being treated.  They can be intellectual exercises involving mysteries and puzzles.  They can also be a fun way to pass the time with friends, giving people the opportunity to dress up in classy or intriguing outfits and strut their stuff as both actor and audience in their own imaginary play.

It will be great to get the chance to tell people about what LARP can be and hopefully attract a few more people to our hobby.