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Welcome to Detroit: Broken Traditions [Vampire: Blood and Smoke]

18:55, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

Detroit: Broken Traditions [Vampire: Blood and Smoke]







Detroit, once known as the Paris of the Midwest, had become a hallow shell of its former glory.  While the elite maintain their lives of privilege within the skyscrapers of downtown, the death of US manufacturing has turned much of the city proper into a ghost town.  Whole subdivisions have been abandoned, given over to vagrants and criminal gangs, or just emptied completely, while the lower classes struggle to get by in those few neighborhoods that remain.  The call for change is on every lip, except for those few who maintain their viselike grip on the rapidly decaying structures of power. Protests and riots are frequent sights on the streets, as vital city resources like police and fire are increasingly diverted to smaller and smaller subsections of the once mighty giant of a city.

What happens above, so below, and the political tension of the Auto City played out in their own way in the Dance Macabre.  With the entrenched systems of control failing, the Carthian Movement has risen to prominence, overthrowing the Invictus in 2006 and establishing themselves as the dominant political force in the city with their own de facto Prince.  Led by the raw animal magnetism of their leader, Marissa Young, the Movement has managed to maintain their choke hold on the Masquerade despite the First Estate's frequent, and often violent, protests.  The Covenants are at each other's throats, and all it would take is a little fire for the whole powder keg to burn.

Set in the God Machine Chronicle, this is a darker and grittier reimagining of the City of the Straits.  Utilizing the latest rule set of the Blood and Smoke edition of Vampire the Requiem 2nd Edition (as well as the supplemental material provided by Onyx Path http://theonyxpath.com/category/worlds/worldofdarkness/vampiretherequiem/) players will create a character and enter into the boiling political tension that is the Dance Macabre.  Play will be largely sandbox style, with multiple stories happening at once that players will uncover more of piece by piece.  As a result of this, solo play will be strongly discouraged.  PvP will be permitted, up to an including final death, though it will generally be considered good form to give a heads up OOC before you start unleashing your wrath upon the other players.  This is doubly true for use of mental Disciplines against other PCs.  As all players will all be able to look at each other's backstories, differences between OOC knowledge and IC knowledge will be strictly enforced.

It will almost exclusively be a Vampire game, neglecting to use most of the other White Wolf systems, though Spirits, Ghosts, and Hunters may make an appearance as antagonists for the PCs.  All players will be playing mid tier Kindred, and none of the most important positions such as Prince, Primogen, or Scourge will be available to players at character creation.   The game will center largely on the formation of coteries, small bands of player characters with similar political objectives.  These coteries will form alliances, win advantages for their Covenants, steal members from each other, and generally compete to emerge as the dominant force within their own Dance, all the while striving to unravel the greater mysteries threatening themselves and the Masquerade.

Themes:

Coteries:  Heavy emphasis will be placed on the formation of small coteries, usually two to five player characters strong, with dedicated objectives decided by the group.

Overpopulation:  In 1995, the city of Detroit held over a million people.  Now it holds less than 700,000.  This massive decline in the numbers of Kine means the city now faces an overabundance of Kindred.  Embracing new Vampires is banned except under special circumstances, and the Sellout Prince will be less upset than in traditional games if a scuffle leads to the Final Death of a Vampire or three.

Territory:  Turf will matter in this game, and there will be consequences for feeding more than once in the same grounds.  This will make territory a big deal, and poaching an even bigger one.  Take a look at the Game Map to get a feel for the City's territorial lines.

Intrigue:  There will always be multiple mysteries for the PCs to unlock, and a whole host of rumors and red herrings to be investigated.  Curiosity will be rewarded heavily.

Consequences:  Your character's actions will have consequences in this game, some immediate, some long term.  This will include Masquerade breaches, PvP, Status, and the use of mental Disciplines.  Players who use their powers and merits subtly will largely avoid these, while those who are crude will reap what they sow.

IC vs OOC:  There will be no private threads in this game, and even your character's backstory will be public knowledge.  Not metagaming with this information will be key to a fun experience for everyone.  I want everyone to know the story as it unfolds, but not to be acting outside of what their character might know.  This means that knowledge skills will be important.