Path of Dansing

By Matthew McFarland (cmouch@uoft02.utoledo.edu)

Description

The Path of Dansing was created by an elder Tremere whose true name has long been lost. He simply calls himself Danser, and his primary source of inspiration has been the dances that various cultures have created, particularly the frenzied dances of Mardi Gras. At present, the only vampires who know the path are his Childer, but there's no reason he wouldn't take on an apprentice.

* Danser's Grace

The Thaumaturgist may magically increase his own grace and agility, as if moving to music.

System: Roll Dexterity + Athletics(difficulty 7). Success adds 1 to the vampire's Dexterity for the remainder of the scene. Dexterity cannot be raised over the maximum allowed by generation in the manner.

** Danser's Pulse

At this level, the vampire can not only move to the imaginary music around him, but predict how other's will move.

System: Roll Perception + Alertness (difficulty 8). Success indicates the vampire wins initiative for that turn. Failure means the player must roll for initiative as normal, while a botch means the vampire can take no action that turn.

*** Danser's Frenzy

The vampire can now enter a controlled frenzy, losing herself completely in the music around her.

System: The vampire must spend a Blood Point and roll Stamina + Athletics(difficulty of her own Self Control + 3). Success indicates that for the duration of combat, the vampire takes no wound penalties, gains +2 dice to hit and +1 to damage(hand-to-hand or melee attacks only), and gains +3 dice to a declared dodge.

**** Danser's Vision

The Thaumturgist may enter a trance-like dance. This dance begins slowly and deliberately, and builds in speed and intensity until it crescendoes into a whirlwind of movement and chaos. While in the dance, the vampire must keep her mind focused on one topic or situation. When the dance is finished, she will have additional insight about said topic.

System: The player must roll Stamina + Athletics(diff. 7) to begin the dance, Perception + Occult(diff. 8) to see the visions, and Willpower(diff. 6) to keep herself focused. If she fails this Willpower roll, the visions may be colorful, interesting, or even horrific, but they'll be useless for the matter at hand. If she rolls more successes on the second roll than on the third, her visions will be useful, but some elements will seem off-kilter or non-sequiturial. The information gained is completely up the the Storytellar.

***** Danse du Mort

Finally, the vampire learns to force the danse on another. By concentrating on a target, she may force said target into a dance that will only be completed when the danser falls dead.

System: Roll Charisma + Intimidation (difficulty of opponent's Willpower). This roll is opposed with a Willpower roll (difficulty 7). If the vampire scores more successes than the target, she begins dansing. A human will lose one Health Level per turn, whereas a vampire will lose one Blood Point. The danser must be physically stopped and immobilized for a full turn to break the spell. Humans will dance until they fall dead; vampires until they fall to 0 Blood. At this point they roll Humanity (difficulty 6). If successful, they stay conscious (but should feed soon). If the roll is failed, the vampire falls into torpor.