Blood Sorcery

Blood Sorcery is the Discipline of treating Vitae as a substance to be studied, commanded, and weaponized. Where other Disciplines channel the Blood instinctively, Blood Sorcery treats it as raw material to be distilled, refined, and bent to purpose. The Tremere call it Thaumaturgy and insist they invented it. The Banu Haqim call it Quietus and insist they had it first. Neither Clan is interested in settling the argument politely.

The Discipline operates on two tracks. Powers are the fast magic: immediate applications of blood manipulation that work like any other Discipline. Rituals are the slow magic: deliberate workings that require time, components, and knowledge you can't figure out on your own. Your Blood Potency determines both which Powers you can learn and which Rituals you can perform as normal.

Powers are acquired by spending XP like any other Discipline. Having a dedicated teacher or mentor guiding your sorcerous development shaves 1 XP off the cost of learning a new Power (minimum 1). Rituals cannot be self-taught; you need a teacher, grimoire, or other source of instruction. Learning a Ritual costs no XP but takes a number of fully-focused nights of study and practice equal to twice the Ritual's level + 1. At character creation, you know 1 Ritual per Blood Potency level, each from a different tier (BP 2 = one level 1 and one level 2).

Blood Potency Resistance: Using any Blood Sorcery Power against a target with higher Blood Potency than yours imposes Disadvantage on your roll. If the target's BP is 5 or higher and yours is not, the attempt fails outright. Almost every Power works on unprepared mortals automatically, as they have tragically little control over their own fluids.

Masquerade risk varies wildly; some Powers are practically invisible, others are the reason the Inquisition started writing things down. The threat level is determined per Power and Ritual, and also by the Storyteller. You never know who's watching.

A Taste for Blood (Discipline Perk)¶

Your blood is both a diagnostic instrument and an extension of your will.

When you reach out to physically command spilled blood, it obeys like a very wet puppet on invisible strings. You can move, shape, suspend, sculpt, clean, moisten, dry, freeze, and direct any blood or Vitae that exists outside a living or unliving body within Close Range, up to a few buckets' worth at a time. Slide it under doors, write messages on walls, clean a crime scene, form it into symbols. This requires no roll and no Hunger Check, and counts as a Free Action during combat. You cannot weaponize blood this way (that requires more advanced Powers), and you cannot affect blood still inside a creature's body.

When you taste a drop of blood while Discerning Vibes or Catching the Scent, you gain access to the following additional questions, which cost Hold as normal:

What type of creature does this blood belong to?
What is the blood's Resonance, and how intense is it?
What is the subject's Blood Potency relative to mine?
Has this blood been altered, tampered with, enchanted, or poisoned?

On a 12+, if you have either Advanced Move, you may also ask:

Have they ever committed Diablerie?
Are they currently Blood Bound, and if so, to whom?
What specific Clan or supernatural bloodline do they belong to?

A single drop is all you need. Not enough to trigger a Blood Bond, but enough to make other Kindred feel weird watching you do it.

Level 1¶

Corrosive Vitae (Passive)¶

When your sizzling Vitae splashes onto any inanimate object, gain +1 Hunger as it eats through matter like strong acid through paper. Over the next few minutes, your Vitae dissolves organic material, corrodes soft metals, and pits harder alloys. A palmful is enough to eat through a padlock, a set of handcuffs, or a wooden door. More blood means more destruction, but also more Hunger; each application costs an additional +1.

Reinforced steel, titanium, and similarly hard metals resist the corrosion, scarring and pitting without fully dissolving. Your Vitae has no effect on living or unliving flesh. The process is too slow for combat but excellent for getting into places you weren't invited or ruining somebody's most prized possessions.

Transitive Bond (Passive)¶

When you store your precious Vitae in a container or give it to a Ghoul, make a Hunger Check to ensure your Vitae retains its Blood Bonding properties after it leaves your body. That stored (or Ghoul-borne) blood now acts as a proxy: anyone who drinks it progresses a Blood Bond with you as if they'd drunk directly from you.

Your Ghoul doesn't need to know they're a delivery mechanism, and probably shouldn't.

Pierce the Flesh¶

When you open a wound on yourself and crystallize your Vitae into razor-sharp projectiles, take 1 Superficial Harm (Ignore-Armor) and make a Hunger Check. A number of gleaming blood daggers equal to twice your Blood Potency materialize in the air around you, hovering menacingly until directed. They last until the end of the scene or until used.

You can hurl a single 1-Harm dagger at any target within Far Range as a Free Action without rolling, dealing Superficial Harm to supernatural creatures or Aggravated Harm to mortals.

When you fling a volley of every remaining dagger at once, roll +Blood and describe how sick it looks. All daggers are consumed after a volley, hit or miss.

On a 12+, roll 1d6 per dagger to determine how much Harm they deal, distributed however you like among any number of targets within Far Range.

On a 10+, each dagger deals its usual 1-Harm, distributed among targets as above.

On a 7–9, the result is the same as 10+, but the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

Several daggers veer wide and hit someone or something you weren't aiming for
The conjuration costs more than expected; gain an extra +1 Hunger
If unprepared mortals are present, they will flee in terror at once; the Masquerade Clock advances
One dagger catches you on the way out; take 1 more Superficial Harm

On a 6-, the blood doesn't cooperate. The daggers dissolve mid-flight, spraying crystallized shrapnel in every direction. Take Superficial Harm equal to your Blood Potency, and anyone within Close Range is wearing the evidence. If mortals are present, the Masquerade Clock advances. If vampires are present, you may be laughed out of the room.

Natural Ritualist (Passive)¶

When you acquire this Power, you speed-learn 2 Rituals from any level you can access. You still need a teacher or source for each Ritual, but once you've seen it done or skimmed the grimoire, the knowledge clicks into place in a single night rather than the standard multi-night study. Some people read the manual cover to cover. You watch someone do it once and figure out the rest.

This Power can be taken multiple times: once each time your Blood Potency increases, each time granting 2 more Rituals. If taken at character creation, these Rituals are in addition to your starting allotment, and it's up to you to decide how you came by the knowledge. Rituals acquired from this Power follow all normal Ritual rules once learned.

Level 2¶

Extinguish Vitae¶

When you twist your fingers to curdle the blood of a vampire you can see within Far Range, make a Hunger Check and roll +Blood.

On a 12+, the target gains +2 Hunger and the process is completely undetectable, even to Auspex users. On a 10+, the target gains +2 Hunger. On a 7–9, the target gains +1 Hunger, and the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The target feels you digging around in there and knows exactly who just tampered with their body
Your own Vitae rebels in sympathy; you gain +1 Hunger
Your gesture isn't as subtle as you thought; someone else in the room notices you concentrating
The target's Beast stirs from the provocation; they must Stay Chill immediately or possibly Frenzy

On a 6-, your command rebounds. You gain +2 Hunger instead, and the target feels someone tried to tamper with their Vitae. They don't necessarily know it was you, but they sure are looking.

Blood's Curse¶

When you lock eyes with another vampire and speak a blood hex to amplify their curse, make a Hunger Check and roll +Blood.

On a 12+, if the target has a Clan, they suffer their Variant Bane in addition to their normal one for the rest of the night; if Clanless, choose two Folkloric Banes of any severity for them to suffer instead. On a 10+, choose a Folkloric Bane worth +2 XP or less and impose it on the target for the rest of the night.

On a 7–9, as 10+, but the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The target feels the curse settle and knows who cast it
Your own Bane flares in sympathy; its penalties increase by 1 until the curse fades
The curse is loud; any vampire with Blood Sorcery access in the area senses it
The Bane manifests unpredictably; the Storyteller picks which one from the eligible list

On a 6-, the curse rebounds. You gain the Bane you tried to impose for the rest of the night. Enjoy!

Scour Secrets¶

When you make an incision on yourself and spill blood across documents or surfaces, reading their contents through your Vitae, make a Hunger Check and roll +Wits. Your blood washes over the material faster than any eye could scan it, then recedes, leaving telltale dark red stains on everything it touched.

On a 12+, Hold 3 and take +2 Forward when acting directly on the information. On a 10+, Hold 2 and take +1 Forward instead. On a 7–9, Hold 1, and the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The search took longer than you realized; hours have passed (and you're now a confirmed nerd)
The stains are extra conspicuous, absolutely everywhere, and clearly not from papercuts
Your blood absorbed something unpleasant along with the information; take −1 Forward
The material was supernaturally warded or encoded; your answers are annoyingly incomplete

Spend Hold 1-for-1 to ask the Storyteller:

What is the most important thing hidden in this material?
Where is [specific topic or item] referenced?
Who created, handled, or last interacted with this?
What is being deliberately concealed or omitted?
What language, code, or cipher is this, and what does it say?

On a 6-, your blood finds nothing useful, or finds exactly what someone planted for you. The Storyteller decides. Either way, the stains are impossible to hide. You've tried everything, but they just won't come out.

Level 3¶

Scorpion's Touch¶

(Requires: Corrosive Vitae)

When you score your skin and coat your fangs or a bladed weapon in toxic Vitae, make a Hunger Check and roll +Blood. The venom lasts for 1 scene. You can coat additional weapons at 1 Hunger Check each, and you can spit a mouthful at any target within Close Range as a Free Action for 1 Superficial Harm.

On a 10+, for the rest of the scene, whenever you Dirty Your Claws with a coated weapon or your fangs, the target takes an additional 3 Superficial Harm from the toxin. Mortals who take any Harm from the poison collapse unconscious in the most dramatic way your Storyteller can conceive.

On a 7–9, as 10+, but the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The venom is thin; the additional Harm dealt is reduced to 1
Your blood sizzles visibly on the blade; anyone looking can tell something is wrong with it
The toxin stings your own hands; take −1 Forward (and wear gloves next time)
The venom's potency fades after your first successful hit

On a 6-, the transmutation goes sideways and your blood turns toxic against you. Take 2 Superficial Harm as it burns through your own tissue. I just told you to wear gloves. Please be more careful next time.

Blood of Potency¶

When you clench your fists and thicken the Vitae coursing through your undead veins, make a number of Hunger Checks equal to the Blood Potency you're trying to reach. Your BP increases to the target level until the end of the scene. To extend the boost to a full night, make twice that number of Hunger Checks instead.

You gain every benefit and every cost of the higher BP: more HP, less XP, stronger Blood Surges, tighter Feeding restrictions, and worse Bane consequences. If the Hunger Checks push you to 5 Hunger and you Frenzy, the temporary BP boost still takes effect. Good luck with that.

Ripples of the Heart¶

When you press your fingers into a pool of blood and twist its emotional resonance, make a Hunger Check and roll +Blood. The blood can be yours, a mortal's, or a Kindred's you're currently Feeding from.

On a 12+, you get both options below. On a 10+, choose one:

Shift the blood's Resonance to any of the four Humors at the intensity of your choosing
Implant any Compulsion you know of (including a specific Clan Compulsion) into the blood

The next Kindred who Feeds from the altered source inherits the effect. Altered blood persists in a mortal for 1 night, in a container until consumed, and in a Kindred until they next Feed or reach 5 Hunger.

On a 7–9, as 10+, but the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The Resonance shift is imprecise; the Storyteller adjusts the Humor or intensity
The implanted Compulsion is recognizable as artificial to anyone with Blood Sorcery access
The alteration leaves a faint aftertaste that a perceptive drinker might notice before committing
Your own blood's Resonance shifts in response; the Storyteller picks the new Humor

On a 6-, the alteration rebounds. Your own Compulsion triggers immediately regardless of context, or your blood's Resonance shifts to something the Storyteller finds amusing. The target blood is unchanged.

Level 4¶

Theft of Vitae¶

When you beckon toward a mortal you can see and command their blood to leap from their body into your open mouth, make a Hunger Check and roll +Blood. An arterial wound opens on the target in your preferred drinking location and a stream of blood arcs through the air toward you. You can do nothing else while Feeding this way except move, though you must maintain line of sight, and the process takes 3 full turns (15 seconds) to complete. The wound seals itself when the consumption ends, leaving no trace. A target wearing full-body protection (hazmat suit, sealed armor) merely bleeds ecstatically into their own outfit.

Against supernatural creatures whose BP is half yours (rounded down) or lower, the Power works identically. If line of sight is broken at any time while you use this Power, the stream of blood splashes to the ground and you slake Hunger equal to how many turns you were able to hold it for; no other effects occur.

On a 12+, slake 4 Hunger and take +2 Forward. The target is subdued as if experiencing the Kiss for the duration. On a 10+, slake 3 Hunger. On a 7–9, slake 2 Hunger, and the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The blood stream is spectacular and clearly visible to everyone in the area; if mortals are present, the Masquerade Clock advances
The target thrashes instead of going limp; they take 2 Superficial Harm from the wound
You can't stop cleanly; the Feeding continues for 1 additional turn whether you want it to or not
Someone else's blood in the area responds to your call and contaminates the stream (gross)

On a 6-, the wound opens but the blood goes everywhere except your mouth. The target takes 3 Superficial Harm from the rupture, you gain nothing but a dry cleaning bill, and the crime scene writes itself. If mortals are present, the Masquerade Clock advances by 2 segments. It still looked cool, at least.

Marionette¶

When you seize control of the blood inside a mortal's body and puppet them like they deserve, make a Hunger Check, roll +Blood, and mark 2 Stains. You must have previously tasted the target's blood (even a single drop will suffice). The target maintains awareness and can still speak, but cannot resist your control of their limbs.

Against supernatural creatures whose BP is half yours (rounded down) or lower, the Power works identically, though the target can spend a turn fighting for control at the cost of 1 Aggravated Harm as their blood shreds them from within. Sorry, but that's your blood right now.

On a 12+, you have full control over their actions for the rest of the scene. You use your own Blood stat for all the puppet's physical actions. On a 10+, you maintain full control for 3 turns. On a 7–9, you grab control for 1 turn, and the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The puppet screams and begs for assistance; if Mortals can hear, the Masquerade Clock advances
Maintaining control demands all your focus; you can't move, speak, or take any other action
The target's body fights back; they take 1 Superficial Harm per turn of control
Your visceral connection broadcasts your location to anyone with Blood Sorcery or Auspex access

You must maintain concentration throughout. Movement and Free Actions on your end are fine, but doing anything that requires a roll severs the connection immediately. Regardless of how this Power ends, the target vomits blood for a turn afterwards, and their whole body aches for weeks.

On a 6-, the blood rejects your command. The target feels you inside them and knows exactly who tried. If the target is a vampire, they gain +2 Forward on their next roll against you, because now shit is personal.

Blood Aegis¶

When you open your veins and command your Vitae to form a hovering shield of liquid crimson, gain +1 Hunger. You gain 5 Temporary HP. The quivering crimson barrier moves on its own to intercept incoming attacks, spattering beautifully on impact.

You can push additional Vitae into the shield at 1 Hunger Check per reinforcement, each restoring 5 Temporary HP, up to a maximum pool equal to 3 × your Blood Potency. The Aegis lasts for 1 scene or until all Temporary HP is depleted. Once the shield breaks, inert blood splatters across the floor. Somebody's going to have to clean that up. Probably you, but preferably a freaky little Ghoul.

Fulminating Vitae¶

When you bleed into a small sealed container and magically prime your Vitae to detonate on contact, gain +2 Hunger. The container (a vial, jar, bottle, flask, water balloon, thermos, Christmas ornament, or whatever else fits in one hand) begins to visibly seethe and strain against its seal. It remains armed and dangerous until dawn, and can be thrown by you or someone else at a target within Far Range by Dirtying Your Claws, with the following replacing the usual effects:

On a 12+, the vermilion explosion deals Aggravated Harm equal to 4 + your Blood stat to every Kindred within Close Range of wherever the container breaks. Mortals in the blast take Superficial Harm instead since the Vitae mixes into their injuries and partially heals them while it shreds them; isn't that nice?

On a 10+, the Harm is 2 + your Blood stat. On a 7–9, the Harm is reduced to your Blood stat only, and the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The container is unstable and detonates early; you take 1 Aggravated Harm from the backsplash
The boom is bigger than intended; targets within Far Range of the bomb take half Harm too
Seeing so much red splash everywhere hits everyone where it hurts; all vampiric onlookers (even you) must make a Hunger Check immediately

On a 6-, the container detonates in the hand. Take Aggravated Harm equal to your Blood stat. Anyone within Close Range also takes half that and is legally entitled to call you "Blooderfingers" forevermore.

Anyone who takes Harm from the explosion also counts as having tasted your Vitae for purposes of Blood Bonds and A Taste for Blood.

Level 5¶

Baal's Caress¶

(Requires: Scorpion's Touch)

When you transmute your Vitae into a lethally aggressive neurotoxin that kills on contact, make a Hunger Check and roll +Blood. This Power uses the same delivery methods as Scorpion's Touch (coat weapons, fangs, or spit), but the venom is significantly more deadly.

On a 10+, for the rest of the scene, your envenomed attacks deal an additional 5 Aggravated Harm to everyone, Kindred and mortal alike. Mortals who take any Harm from it die in seconds and experience horrible agony in their final moments. Kindred who take Aggravated Harm from Baal's Caress must Stay Chill when they next attempt to sleep; on a 6-, they enter indefinite Torpor.

On a 7–9, as 10+, but the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The venom's lethality is obvious; anyone who sees what it does to the first victim can immediately try to Slip Away if it makes sense for them to do so
Your own blood burns badly; take 2 Aggravated Harm from generating the deadly neurotoxin
The venom volatilizes in the air; everyone within Close Range must Stay Chill from the fumes or take 1 Aggravated Harm, and you need to apologize right now

On a 6-, the toxin eats through your own body before you can apply it. Take 3 Aggravated Harm and mark 1 Stain. Your blood remembers what you tried to make it do, and it holds a grudge.

Cauldron of Blood¶

When you press your palm against a creature's skin and boil the blood inside their body, gain +1 Hunger, mark 1 Stain, and roll +Blood. In combat, landing the touch requires you to successfully Dirty Your Claws.

On a 12+, the target takes Aggravated Harm equal to 5 + your Blood stat. Mortals die screaming and steaming. Kindred who somehow survive immediately enter Frenzy, but their Beast is terrified of you and they will rapidly flee as soon as they are able. The Frenzy ends when they can no longer sense you or any members of your Coterie, when they reach 0 Hunger again, or until you rip out their spine to punish their cowardice.

On a 10+, the target takes Aggravated Harm equal to 2 + your Blood stat. Same Hunger effect on surviving Kindred. On a 7–9, the Harm is equal to your Blood stat only, and the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

The process is agonizingly loud; the screams are audible out to Distant Range
Your hand fuses briefly to the target's skin; you can't let go until the end of your next turn
The boiling blood sprays back on you; take 2 Superficial Harm and buy a new top
Every vampire except you within Far Range smells cooking Vitae and must Stay Chill or swarm the target and attempt to Feed (this might actually be what you were going for, but yikes, man)

On a 6-, your own blood heats up instead, but you get it under control before you explode. Take Aggravated Harm equal to your Blood stat and mark an additional Stain. You chose to do something truly awful, and even your Beast is disgusted.

Reclamation of Vitae¶

When you close your eyes and command the Vitae you gave to your Ghouls to return, mark 1 Stain per Ghoul targeted. Distance is irrelevant. The blood rips itself free and finds its way back to you through means that would give a physicist nightmares.

For each Ghoul targeted, slake 2 Hunger and gain +1 Ongoing (maximum of +5) to all Discipline rolls until the end of the scene. The Ghoul takes 5 Aggravated Harm as their body ages rapidly and catastrophically. If they somehow survive, the Blood Bond is severed and they are no longer a Ghoul.

No roll is required. The Vitae is yours and it always was. The only question is whether you can unlive with what you just did.

Blood Sorcery Rituals¶

Blood Sorcery Rituals are the long-standing traditions and passed-down knowledge of generations of Kindred from several Clans and bloodlines. The Tremere and Banu Haqim are the most decorated and battle-tested practitioners, and are proud to pass on the teachings from Sire to Progeny as well as share it amongst trusted peers. These secrets are heavily guarded, though, and most Rituals require finding a teacher or a dusty old tome, sourcing components and reagents, and dedicating your nights to study instead of earning XP (or going out clubbing with your Coterie — just stay home, nerd).

Many Rituals don't involve rolls, but some do. Each will tell you what it needs, what it does, and how you pay for it. You must gather the ingredients, spend the time, get hungrier, and if all goes well, the effect takes hold. A few Rituals defer their roll to the moment of activation, meaning you won't know if your work paid off until it matters most. For details on how to learn Rituals, see the Discipline General Rules.

Level 1¶

Lesser Ward¶

Requirements: your Vitae, sympathetic ingredients keyed to the Trespasser type (see below), an object no larger than a door, 1+ nights of careful inscription

You trace a glyph onto an object using your Vitae mixed with ingredients chosen to repel a specific type of creature, referred to as a Trespasser. Once the glyph dries, it is invisible. The Ward doesn't react to incidental contact; it fires only when a Trespasser touches, grasps, or attempts to cross the Warded object. A Warded sword won't trigger when swung at a Trespasser, but it will when a Trespasser tries to pick it up.

Each night of inscription costs +1 Hunger. You can spend up to 3 nights inscribing a single Ward, and every night you put in makes it hit harder. One night is a quick scrawl for cheap, reliable protection. Three nights is meticulous layered work that'll really leave a mark. You can key a single Ward to multiple Trespasser types by combining ingredients, but each additional type costs an extra +1 Hunger during inscription.

Which creatures you can Ward against depends upon your Blood Potency:

BP 0–1: Mortals, Ghouls, mundane animals
BP 2–3: All of the above, plus Spirits, Frenzying vampires, and supernatural beasts
BP 4+: All of the above, plus composed Kindred, Werewolves, and other major supernatural entities

The ingredients you use determine the specific Trespasser type. Mix your Vitae with:

Iron filings for Ghouls
Salt and brick dust for Spirits, Spectres, and Wraiths
Bone meal or animal fur for beasts and supernatural animals
Silver dust for Werewolves, Lupines, and other such shapeshifters
Ash from a fire you kindled yourself for Kindred and other vampires
- Note: There is no known method of Warding against Devorari (yet)
Consecrated or desecrated water for the infernal or the devout, respectively

When a Trespasser touches the Warded object, you roll +Blood, wherever you happen to be. You don't need to be present, conscious, or aware that the Ward might be triggered, but you can always feel it when it fires. This roll represents the care and power woven into the Ward's design.

On a 10+, the Trespasser takes Aggravated Harm equal to the number of nights you spent inscribing (maximum 3 per Trespasser, regardless of Blood Potency). They recoil violently and cannot willingly approach the Warded object again until the next dawn without first Staying Chill with a Forward penalty equal to your Blood stat to steel themselves.

On a 7–9, the Trespasser takes half that Harm (rounded up) and recoils. The Ward holds, but it's been rattled; the next time it activates, you roll +Blood with Disadvantage.

On a 6-, the Ward fizzles. The Trespasser feels a sharp, unpleasant tingle and nothing more. The glyph burns away. Back to the drawing board.

If it doesn't fizzle, each Ward you place lasts until the Warded object is physically destroyed, you remove it over the course of a scene (no roll required), or another Blood Sorcerer deliberately unravels it. Sense the Unseen can detect a Ward before it's triggered. Gloves and clothing offer no protection; the Ward reacts to what a creature is, not what it's wearing (with precious few exceptions).

Blood Walk¶

Requirements: a silver cup, a sample of the subject's blood (at least a mouthful), 1 scene

You pour your own Vitae into the cup alongside the subject's blood, gain +1 Hunger, and spend a scene murmuring incantations over the mingling fluids. The two bloods swirl together and separate in patterns only you (and whoever taught you this Ritual) can read.

This Ritual expands on your A Taste for Blood Perk, reaching deeper than a casual lick ever could. Upon completion, you automatically learn:

The subject's Sire (name and general identity, if the subject knows it in their blood)
The subject's exact Blood Potency (a number, not just "stronger" or "weaker"; note that this is meta-information, and your character would likely not use such measurements)

If you want to push further, roll +Blood.

On a 10+, you also learn whether the subject has ever committed Diablerie, whether they are currently Blood Bound and to whom, and the approximate age of the blood itself.

On a 7–9, you learn one of the above (your choice), and the blood clouds with resentment; the subject feels a sudden but distant unease, as though someone just read their diary or walked over their gravestone (which you might have done earlier).

On a 6-, the deeper read fails. The blood rejects you; take −1 Forward as the mingled Vitae crawls back up your throat. You still get the baseline information (Sire and BP), but you puke a little and it gets everywhere.

If the subject is not a vampire, the Ritual still works, but yields less: what type of creature they are, whether they're a Ghoul and if so, to whom. The silver cup is stained permanently and can never be used for any other purpose besides decoration (melting one down destroys the object). Many Blood Sorcerers have a whole shelf full of them. Lovely little tchotchkes.

Craft Bloodstone¶

Requirements: a pebble of iron or a small magnet, a liter of blood from any source in a silver bowl, 3 consecutive nights

You spill your Vitae into the bowl each night, gaining +1 Hunger each time (3 total), and chant over the mixture as the pebble slowly absorbs every drop. By the third dawn, the liquid in the bowl is translucent and the stone pulses faintly when you hold it.

From that point on, you always know the direction and approximate distance to the Bloodstone. Close enough to find it in a city, not precise enough to pinpoint a room. The connection lasts for one week or until the stone is destroyed.

You can maintain a number of active Bloodstones equal to your Resolve stat at any given time. Hand one to someone you want to track, hide one in a rival's car or coat pocket, bury one in your Haven as a compass home, or just stick it to something you don't want to lose. They look like ordinary pebbles unless examined with Sense the Unseen or A Taste for Blood.

Wake with Evening's Freshness¶

Requirements: burnt bones and feathers of a rooster, your Vitae, a circle drawn around your resting place, 1 scene

You mix the ashes with your Vitae, gain +1 Hunger, and trace a circle around wherever you intend to sleep for the day. Then you rest as normal (some light grimoire reading before bed is optional but recommended). This Ritual can only be cast on yourself, and the circle vanishes when you awaken. Do not roll anything yet.

When genuine danger appears while you slumber (intruders, fire, structural collapse, a stake aimed at your chest), roll +Resolve with Advantage.

On a 10+, you wake instantly, fully alert, and are granted a free Blood Surge for that scene. You act as though it were night until the threat is dispatched (assuming you don't go outside or open the curtains), incurring no penalties from insufficient slumber or the horrible migraines that vampires usually get when they stay up all day.

On a 7–9, you wake, but the Storyteller chooses 1 complication:

You're groggy for 1 full turn before the fog clears; all your rolls have Disadvantage until then
The alertness fades quickly; you have one scene before daytime lethargy drags you back under
You wake violently and must Stay Chill immediately or your Beast decides what happens next

On a 6-, the Ritual fails silently. You don't awaken. Sweet dreams! Sorry about whatever you missed.

Bind the Accusing Tongue¶

Requirements: a picture, effigy, or image of the target, a lock of the target's hair, a black silken cord, 1 scene

You wind the cord around the hair and image while repeating the incantation, gain +1 Hunger, and tie a knot to seal it. As long as the cord remains wound and the knot holds, the target cannot speak, write, or otherwise directly communicate anything negative or harmful about you (not even via internet comments).

Whenever the target attempts to say something damaging about you, they must Stay Chill. On a 6-, the words die in their throat. They might stammer, change the subject, vomit, or simply go blank and space out. They know something is wrong but can't articulate what it is.

If they successfully Stay Chill, the target forces the words out through sheer willpower, but the effort costs them; they take −1 Ongoing to +Resolve rolls until the end of the scene from the strain of fighting the compulsion.

The Ritual lasts until the cord is unwound or destroyed, or until the target successfully Stays Chill against it a number of times equal to your Blood Potency. After that, the binding frays and breaks. Supernatural creatures with Blood Sorcery or Auspex access who examine the target closely may notice the telltale residue of blood magic clinging to their jaw and throat.

Revealing the Crimson Trail¶

Requirements: a sewing needle with an eye, your Vitae, the gumption to stab yourself in the eye, 1 scene

You ritually prepare the sewing needle by carefully pricking your own eyeball with it, gain +1 Hunger and take 1 Superficial Harm, and then peer through its eye. For the rest of the scene, you can see any spilled blood in the area with perfect clarity, no matter how old, diluted, scrubbed, or chemically treated it is. Dried bloodstains glow a deep arterial red. Cleaned-up crime scenes light up like neon. A single drop on a carpet from six months ago is as visible as a fresh puddle.

The sewing needle must remain in your hand, and you must keep looking through its eye. Your depth perception is shot while you're doing this (take −1 Ongoing to anything requiring spatial awareness), but the forensic payoff is extraordinary. Seeing blood through the needle doesn't tell you anything about it; you still need to physically taste a sample to trigger A Taste for Blood, but finding every trace of blood in a room makes choosing which sample to taste a much more informed decision. Is it worth it? Up to you.

Blood Missive¶

Requirements: varies by method (see below), 1 scene

This Ritual encodes messages into blood. Two different preparation methods produce two different results. Both have seen a resurgence since certain mortals started monitoring digital communications.

The Vessel Method requires a drop of mercury, your Vitae (at least a mouthful), a ceremonially prepared bowl, and a moderately intelligent messenger. You whisper a message (up to about a minute's worth of speech) to the mercury, mix it into your Vitae in the bowl, and gain +1 Hunger. A messenger (mortal, Ghoul, Familiar, or even a willing vampire) must then consume the blood to carry the message in their body.

The first person to Feed from the messenger who is either the intended recipient or has A Taste for Blood receives the message mentally, clear as a phone call with good reception. Anyone else who drinks from them must successfully roll +Wits (7+) to decipher the message. On a 6-, they hear only garbled whispers. You designate the intended recipients when you prepare the bowl (you must have tasted their blood at some point). The message persists in the messenger for about a month before souring.

The Mirror Method requires a mirror or reflective surface you can reach and sufficient human blood to write in. You designate a type of person in your mind (Kindred of a certain bloodline, mortal police officers, members of a specific Coterie, anyone wearing a tan suit, etc.) and write a message on the mirror using human blood as ink. Roll a Hunger Check; if you fail, you might take a sip from the forbidden paint can. The message vanishes from your mirror and appears on another reflective surface you've seen before and can mentally picture. It remains invisible until one of your designated type passes by, at which point the message blooms across the surface in your handwriting.

Each casting produces enough charges for the message to appear once per designated individual, up to your Blood Potency in total appearances, after which the message fades for good. The message clears itself from the surface as soon as it's been read.

Douse the Fear¶

Requirements: a Holy object (Bible, Quran, Torah, prayer beads, crucifix, or similar), a source of flame, 1 scene

You expose the Holy object to the flame just enough to scorch it (don't fully destroy it, you might need that later), mix the soot with a drop of your Vitae, and swallow the residue. Gain +1 Hunger. The desecration tastes like burning paper and moral compromise. Yum.

For the rest of the night, take +2 Forward whenever you Stay Chill to resist fear-based Frenzy caused by fire or sunlight/UV exposure.

If you're the type who burns other people's sacred objects regularly, maybe think about that during your next Remorse Check.

Crimson Woad¶

Requirements: whiskey, animal blood, wild mushrooms, rosemary, a stone mortar and pestle, 1 scene

You grind the ingredients together while humming a discordant, droning tune (or any alt-J song), pour in a mouthful of your own Vitae, and gain +1 Hunger. Then you paint the resulting paste onto your skin in aggressive spiraling patterns that glow faintly before sinking into your flesh.

For the next full night and day, you carry the fortification of ancient war-spirits under your skin. Any Harm that would put you into Torpor instead reduces you to 1 HP, and you gain +1 Forward whenever you Stay Chill against fear-based Frenzy of any kind. The symbols are invisible to mortal eyes but visible to anyone using Sense the Unseen or similar supernatural perception.

This Ritual hails from old pagan Gangrel traditions. Academic Blood Sorcerers find it embarrassing. Gangrel find that hilarious.

Clinging of the Insect¶

Requirements: a living spider, a vial of your Vitae, strong stomach, 1 scene

You crush a spider into the vial of your Vitae, mix it thoroughly, optionally season to taste, and drink the whole thing in one go. Gain +1 Hunger.

For the rest of the scene (or the rest of the night on a particularly good batch; the Storyteller decides based on ingredients and spider quality), you can cling to walls and ceilings with both hands and feet. You cannot climb one-handed or fight while clinging; you need all four limbs (or more, if applicable) to maintain your grip. Falling from a great height while the Ritual is active is probably your own fault and the Storyteller is not required to feel bad about it.

This Ritual can only be performed on yourself. Others gain nothing from drinking the mixture except a legitimate grievance against you. They asked for a Bloody Mary, not whatever that crap was.

Seal the Brand¶

Requirements: molten silver, a tattoo, scar, brand, piercing, or other body modification on the target, 1 uninterrupted scene

You pour molten silver over the target's body modification before it has the chance to seal itself. The target takes 1 Superficial Harm from the silver (heals normally). No Hunger cost, but someone has to melt the silver, which means dealing with fire, a crucible, and a willingness to handle molten metal.

The body modification is now permanent. It will never fade, shift, or heal away during slumber. It's part of the target's undying body forever, plus it looks extra cool and metallic. This is the only known way to give a vampire a lasting tattoo, scar, piercing, or other body alteration. It cannot be removed by any means short of physically cutting it out. Please consult a professional before attempting this portion of the procedure.

Blood to Water¶

Requirements: purified water (natural spring or mechanically filtered), your Vitae, 1 scene

You smear your Vitae across your hands, pour the purified water through your fingers, and splash it across the area. Gain +1 Hunger. All spilled blood exposed to the air within Close Range transmutes into water, leaving no forensic traces behind. Your own spilled Vitae is not exempt.

This does not affect blood inside a living or unliving body, only blood that's already been spilled. The resulting water is slightly pink for a few seconds before clearing entirely when the Ritual completes. Pair this with some bleach and a mop, and you've got a Masquerade violation turned into a custodial problem.

Enrich the Blood¶

Requirements: a half-full vial of the target mortal's blood, 5 or more liters of unprocessed human blood no more than 3 hours old, 1 uninterrupted scene

You slowly pour the unprocessed blood into the vial while maintaining unbroken focus. The vial never fills, absorbing everything you pour in. When the last drop is added, you can give the concentrated blood vial back to the target mortal (or Ghoul), who must drink it to gain the benefits of this Ritual. No Hunger cost.

For the next week, the target's blood is supernaturally rich. Any Kindred who Feeds from them slakes 1 additional Hunger per Feed. The mortal's blood becomes thick and dark, prone to clotting, nosebleeds, and an assortment of medical complications that no doctor will be able to explain unless they're also versed in Blood Sorcery. Regardless, it's wise to keep the mortal well clear of hematologists.

A second casting of this Ritual on the same non-Ghoul mortal outright kills them, even after it has run its course. Their blood becomes too thick to circulate. There is no Staying Chill against one's own blood, no possible resistance, and no warning beyond the first week's symptoms. Whether you tell the mortal what you're doing to them is between you and your Humanity.

Beelzebeatit¶

Requirements: vinegar or strong alcohol, a counterclockwise walk around the perimeter of the area, 1 scene

You sprinkle the vinegar or alcohol on the floor while turning counterclockwise, visually tracing the boundary of the space you want cleared. No Hunger cost.

For the rest of the scene, living creatures of animal intelligence and below vacate the area within Far Range in a hurry. Insects scatter, rats flee, birds take to the wing, stray cats vanish, and every other critter just skedaddles ASAP. A directed or controlled animal (such as a Familiar or a beast under Animalism compulsion) can return to the area, but won't do so of its own free will unless enraged or tempted by food.

This is a low-level precaution against Animalism surveillance and a decent way to make sure nobody's Familiar is eavesdropping on your meetings. If you're wondering about the name, blame the Sabbat.

Coax the Garden¶

Requirements: human blood (a mouthful or so), poppy seeds, an area with living plant life, 1 scene

You cast the mixture of blood and poppy seeds onto the earth and the surrounding flora comes alive. Gain +1 Hunger. Vines reach, roots shift, branches swing, grass tangles around ankles. The animated plant life covers everything within Close Range.

Anyone caught in the area (other than you) must Stay Chill. On a 6-, they are immediately entangled. Entangled creatures can't use their Movement and take 1 Superficial Harm at the beginning of each of their turns (every 5 seconds) as thorns, branches, and roots dig in. Escaping requires a full turn spent doing nothing else, plus a successful +Blood roll (7+). The plants aren't smart; they grab at anything that moves, which means allies are just as vulnerable as enemies.

The effect lasts until the end of the scene or until you dismiss it by snapping a single twig with intention. The plants return to normal afterward, though they look rough and will need careful attention. If you cast this on somebody's flower garden, you owe them an apology and a landscaper.

Level 2¶

Truth of Blood¶

Requirements: a pint or more of blood from the subject, a vessel large enough to dip your finger in, your Vitae, 1 uninterrupted scene

You mix your Vitae with the subject's blood in the vessel, gain +1 Hunger, and immerse a finger in the swirling mixture. The mixture reacts to truth and falsehood: it warms for honesty and chills for deception.

While your finger remains submerged, you can ask the subject questions or request they make statements, and the blood tells you whether each answer/statement is true (as far as the subject knows). You can test a number of these up to twice your Blood Potency per casting. The mixture bubbles and seethes throughout the process, and turns to ash at the end of the scene whether you use all your questions or not.

This Ritual cannot pierce The Forgetful Mind, Cloud Memory, or other memory-altering Powers. If the subject's memories have been tampered with, the blood reads the false memory as truth. You might notice the subject's uncertainty or the fog of a magical blank, but you won't recover the original memory this way.

The subject does not need to be present (or even alive) for this Ritual to work, only the blood is required. This makes Truth of Blood especially valuable when a body is unavailable, when you need verified answers from someone still living, or when you'd rather not tip off the subject that you're investigating them. The blood can only confirm or deny statements the subject had knowledge of when the blood was extracted.

Illuminate the Trail of Prey¶

Requirements: a white satin ribbon, your Vitae, knowledge of the target's face, 1 scene

You soak the ribbon in your Vitae, gain +1 Hunger, and set it alight. Despite being wet, the ribbon catches fire and burns fiercely like a dynamite fuse, consuming itself in seconds in red flame. When the last thread turns to ash, the Ritual takes effect.

For the rest of the night, you can see the previous path of a single person you know by face, glowing faintly on every surface they touched or walked upon over the last full night and day. The trail is visible only to you. It works even in crowded streets, through buildings, across rooftops. You gain +1 Ongoing to Catch the Scent rolls while actively following the trail.

The trail cannot be faked, obscured by mundane means, or hidden by cleaning. Obfuscate and similar Powers that were active when the target walked the path suppress the trail along those segments, leaving visible gaps. Reading the gaps is, of course, its own kind of information.

Soporific Touch¶

Requirements: a small amount of hashish or similar narcotic substance, your Vitae, 1 scene

You mix the narcotic with your Vitae and rub the mixture between your fingers while whispering the incantation. Gain +1 Hunger. The narcotic Vitae coats your hand, invisible and odorless but slightly warm to the touch. Ooh, tingly!

The preparation retains its potency until it makes contact with exposed skin, or until the end of the scene (whichever comes first). When you touch a target's bare skin with the prepared hand, the narcotic floods their system. For the rest of the scene, the target has Disadvantage on all Stay Chill rolls against social and mental Discipline Powers (Dominate, Presence, Melpominee, and similar). Mundane persuasion, interrogation, and coercion also find the target pliable and cooperative, though not entirely defenseless.

This Ritual affects unprepared mortals automatically. Against supernatural creatures or mortals with some degree of anti-interrogation training, the target can Stay Chill to resist the effect entirely; on a 6-, the narcotic takes hold as described. On a 7+, they shake off the fog but feel the attempt and a lightened version of the mundane effects of the narcotic, which tends to make social situations worse rather than better.

You can prepare only one dose per casting. The affected hand must be the one that touches the target; transferring the narcotic to a weapon, object, or another person's hand destroys its potency. This Ritual is also known as Ishtar's Touch in certain circles, though calling it that within earshot of a Banu Haqim is considered either very brave or very stupid.

Communicate with Kindred Sire¶

Requirements: an object previously possessed by your Sire, a silver bowl filled with clear water, your Vitae, 1 uninterrupted scene

You submerge your Sire's object in the bowl, let your Vitae drip into the water, and gain +1 Hunger. Then you concentrate on your last memory of your Sire and wait, potentially for a while, depending on where your Sire is. The water clouds, clears, and clouds again as the connection forms. The Skype call sound is optional but recommended.

For the rest of the scene, you share a two-way silent mental link with your Sire, regardless of distance. You can communicate in thoughts, images, and impressions (not full telepathy; think texting, not a phone call). The connection is fragile, however. Any major disturbance on either end (combat, Frenzy, a sudden loud noise, someone jostling the bowl, your Coterie's RV hitting a deer, etc.) severs it immediately. Your Sire can choose to ignore or reject the link, in which case the bowl's water turns black and the scene is wasted.

This Ritual only works on your Sire. It cannot connect to Grandsires, other Kindred, or anyone you weren't personally Embraced by. If your Sire has met Final Death, the water boils when you attempt the Ritual. That's how some Kindred find out. Rough stuff.

The Shroud of Silence¶

Requirements: varies by method (see below), 1 scene

This Ritual creates an area of impenetrable supernatural silence. Two preparation methods exist, each producing a different effect. The silence is absolute: no sound enters, exits, or carries within the affected area. Voices die on the lips. Gunshots produce muzzle flash and recoil but no bang. Music stops existing, much to the dismay of any nearby Daughters of Cacophony. It's a strange feeling for those affected, but useful for discreet operations, and incredible for drowning out daytime construction sounds when you're trying to slumber.

The Room Method requires: a length of woven cloth (silk is traditional), a golden ring large enough to pass the cloth through, and your Vitae. Thread the cloth through the ring, daub each end in Vitae, gain +1 Hunger, and tie it to a door handle or thread it through a keyhole.

The room on the other side of that door falls silent indefinitely until the cloth is removed. Anyone can dispel the silence by removing the cloth from its position; the effect ends immediately.

The Talisman Method requires: the paw of a cat or other silent predator, a corpse-wax candle, a white rose, and your Vitae (plus the intended holder's Vitae if it's someone else). Whisper the Ritual, cut your palm, and clench the paw in your fist. Burn the rose in the candle, then quench the flame with the bloody paw. Gain +1 Hunger.

The holder can activate the talisman as a Free Action by pressing it against their bare skin, creating a sphere of silence within Hand Range centered on them. The silence moves with the holder and lasts for a number of scenes equal to your Blood Potency, or until the talisman is dropped or removed from their skin (whichever comes first). The talisman crumbles to dust after its uses have been expended. This version of the Ritual is favored by assassins and vuvuzela enthusiasts alike.

Eyes of Babel¶

Requirements: a fresh eye and tongue from a living or recently-dead person, your Vitae, strong stomach, 1 scene

You pluck the eye and tongue fresh from the subject (mark 1 Stain if they're still alive and this act doesn't align with your Convictions), mix them with a splash of your Vitae, and swallow the lot. Gain +1 Hunger. The Ritual dissolves the ingredients supernaturally; they won't sit in your stomach like normal food.

For the next week, you can read, write, speak, and understand every language the organ donor knew at the same fluency they possessed. If they spoke fluent Farsi and broken Italian, so do you. The languages fade at the end of the week as the donor's knowledge unravels.

The donor does not need to be alive for the Ritual to work, but the ingredients must be fresh: harvested no more than a scene before consumption. Preserved or frozen samples don't work. The donor loses nothing they wouldn't have already lost by virtue of being the kind of person a vampire is harvesting organs from.

Depths of Nightmare¶

Requirements: target's hair, melted wax, natron (soda ash, available from any chemical supplier), your Vitae, 1 scene

You mix your Vitae into the melted wax, gain +1 Hunger, roll the target's hair in the mixture, and shape the bloody wax into a crude humanoid figure. After inscribing glyphs or runes onto its surface, you soak the figurine in a bowl of water mixed with natron. The doll hardens, and the curse takes root.

For a number of nights equal to your Blood Potency, the target suffers the worst nightmares of their existence. Mortals thrash and scream and fall from their beds, while Kindred experience distorted visions of their slumber that leave them shaken and drained in their caskets and crannies. Each time the target wakes from cursed sleep, they take −1 Forward to their first roll as residual dread clings to them.

If a mortal target has a preexisting anxiety disorder or trauma history, this Ritual is gratuitously cruel and should probably cost a Stain at the Storyteller's discretion. If the Ritual is interrupted or the ingredients are impure, the curse misfires: the target dreams of you specifically, which tends to create problems if they know who you are. If you managed to get some of their hair, they probably do.

Calling the Aura's Remnants¶

Requirements: a human corpse or the remains of a destroyed vampire, your Vitae, 1 scene

You kneel near the corpse, spill your Vitae across its chest, and gain +1 Hunger. The blood seeps into the body and the psychic residue of the deceased stirs to life. An echo of the person imprinted in their remains (notably, this is not a ghost nor Spirit). The echo speaks, answers questions, and behaves as the deceased did in life, drawing on memories up to the exact moment of death.

The echo persists for 1 scene and cannot leave Close Range of the corpse. It has no will, no emotions, and no awareness that it's dead; it simply responds as the person would have. This is not communication with the dead in the Oblivion sense. Sense the Unseen won't detect it. It's a blood-powered playback, and it can't tell you anything the deceased didn't know.

If the corpse has been significantly damaged (burned, dismembered, decomposed beyond recognition), the echo is fragmented. It speaks in sentence fragments, loses track of questions, and can't maintain a topic for more than a few seconds. The Storyteller decides what "too damaged" means, but as a rule of thumb, if you can't tell it used to be a person, the echo will struggle.

Calix Secretus¶

Requirements: a hand-sized mundane object, your Vitae, 1 uninterrupted scene

You drench the object in your Vitae and speak the words of the Ritual. The object absorbs the blood completely, leaving no trace. Gain +2 Hunger (this Ritual hurts). Select one command word while casting.

When you speak the command word while touching the object, it releases all stored blood at once, like a water balloon being popped inside a tube sock. The released Vitae slakes 1 Hunger when consumed. If given to a Ghoul of yours, it satisfies their monthly requirement. The stored blood retains all properties of your Vitae for purposes of Blood Bonds, A Taste for Blood, and other Rituals that require a blood sample.

You can only have a number of active Calix objects equal to your Resolve stat. The object looks and feels completely normal until the command word is spoken. A Taste for Blood and Sense the Unseen can detect the stored blood within. If the object is physically destroyed, the blood spills out and is wasted. Shame.

Useful for emergency snacks, dead drops, insurance against Blood Bond blackmail, or gifting a very confused mortal a paperweight that's secretly full of vampire juice.

As Fog on Water¶

Requirements: a piece of wood from a watercraft (a ship, boat, canoe, raft, rowboat, or other vessel), a body of water, your Vitae, 1 scene

You submerge the piece of wood in the body of water you intend to cross, spill your Vitae over it, and gain +1 Hunger. The wood dissolves. When you step onto the water's surface, it holds you as though you were weightless. Fog rises from each footstep in thin, ghostly wisps.

You can walk across the surface of any connected body of water for the rest of the night. The water feels solid underfoot but gives slightly, like packed snow. You can stop, stand, even sit or lie down. You cannot run without risk, however; sudden, panicked movement breaks the surface tension and drops you in. Ending the effect is voluntary, but once ended, it cannot be reactivated until you cast the Ritual again.

Other people cannot benefit from this Ritual. If you're carrying someone, the combined weight exceeds the effect's tolerance and you both go in unless at least one of you uses Weight of the Feather. The fog is visible and the whole thing appears incredibly supernatural, so maybe don't do this where mortals are watching. You look extremely cool, though.

Craftmaster¶

Requirements: blood of a skilled mortal or supernatural creature, a representative object of their expertise (an instrument for music, a needle for tailoring, a page from a book for scholarship, a playing card for sleight of hand, a chisel for sculpting, etc.), vulture bones, a fire, 1 scene

You char the vulture bones in a fire, place the representative object in a bowl over the flames, and pour the skilled subject's blood into the bowl. As the bones crack and burn, you drink the blood from the bowl. Make a Hunger Check. The taste carries fragments of muscle memory, procedural knowledge, and years of practice that you absolutely did not earn.

For the rest of the night, you possess a specific mundane expertise that the blood donor had: surgery, lockpicking, antiquarian appraisal, equestrian dressage, piano performance, automobile repair, forensic accounting, or whatever the representative object symbolizes. You gain +1 Ongoing to any roll where this expertise is directly relevant. You can narrate knowledge and skill you don't actually have. The expertise fades at dawn, leaving behind faint phantom impressions that linger for a night or two (you keep humming songs you've never heard, or your hands reach for tools you've never used).

The blood donor doesn't lose their skill. The subject doesn't even need to be alive for this to work, provided the blood was drawn while they still had a pulse. You can only benefit from one Craftmaster casting at a time; a second casting overwrites the first. No preternatural polymaths permitted.

Viscera Garden¶

Requirements: a plot of open land (at least the size of a small garden bed), a day-old human or animal corpse, your Vitae, seeds or cuttings of your preferred plants, 1 uninterrupted night

You dig a shallow pit, tear open your wrist, pour Vitae into the corpse, gain +1 Hunger, eviscerate the remains, and bury the whole mess with your chosen plant material on top. Speak the Ritual's closing words and pack the earth down.

By the next nightfall, the corpse will have disintegrated into blood-scented smoke, leaving no forensic trace whatsoever. The plants above it grow unnaturally fast and hardy, producing blooms and fruit regardless of season. Maintaining the garden costs +1 Hunger once per month, poured directly onto the soil. Miss a feeding and the plants wither and die within days.

Plants from a Viscera Garden have two unusual properties. First, Kindred can actually ingest them without immediately expelling them. The produce tastes like nothing a living person would recognize, but it stays down, and can make for a great change of pace from the usual fare. Second, mortals who consume produce from the garden become unusually susceptible to vampiric social influence; they have Disadvantage on Stay Chill rolls against social Discipline Powers until the next dawn.

Ideal for impressing a date, disposing of evidence, confusing botanists, and supplying your Coterie's resident ex-florist with a spooky but surprisingly productive hobby.

Unseen Underground¶

Requirements: a live rat, the rat's eyes (removed), a shadowed or unlit location, 1 scene

You drain the rat dry of blood, pluck out its eyes, and toss them into the nearest dark corner while speaking the Ritual's words. Make a Hunger Check. The shadows ripple and accept the offering.

For the rest of the scene, you are completely invisible and silent as long as you remain underground. Subway tunnels, basements, below-ground parking garages, sewer systems, wine cellars, bomb shelters, and anywhere with a ceiling of earth between you and the sky. The invisibility is total; you cast no shadow, leave no footprints or fingerprints, and make no bodily sound (all smells remain, unfortunately). You can interact with and thus hide small objects, though such objects become visible again once you release them.

The Ritual ends instantly if any part of your body crosses above ground level, even briefly. Stairwells are fine as long as you stay below the threshold. The effect also ends if you attack someone, because the shadows expect peace along with the quiet. This Ritual can only be performed on yourself. Anyone else just gets a rat snack.

Dark Heart of the Wood¶

Requirements: the heart of a large ruminant (deer, cow, elk, goat, or similar), common fungus, fresh moss, an acorn or pinecone, your Vitae, a clear plot of open land under open sky, 1 uninterrupted scene

You grind your Vitae with the fungus and moss, stuff the heart with the mixture and the seed, and bury it all in the center of the clearing. Gain +1 Hunger. Speak the Ritual's closing words and step back.

A large stag made of earth, moss, and living wood rises from the burial site. Regardless of what animal contributed the heart, the construct always takes the form of a stag, antlered and watchful, known as a Dark Hart. It obeys your verbal commands and is significantly more intelligent than a natural animal. It can parse complex instructions, scout locations, and report back through simple body language and a limited telepathic impression (single images or sensations, not words). Anyone with Feral Whispers can speak directly to it and receive verbal answers, so your Storyteller will need to produce a suitable voice for it.

The Dark Hart perceives hidden and supernatural creatures as though it had Sense the Unseen. In combat, it deals 2 Aggravated Harm on a charge (piercing, from the antlers). It has 7 HP, takes Harm like a Kindred (Superficial and Aggravated), but cannot heal. Sunlight does not affect it. It lasts for 1 night and crumbles to mulch at dawn.

This Ritual comes from old Gangrel forest traditions and looks nothing like what most people picture when they hear "Blood Sorcery." The Dark Hart is beautiful in a way that makes many other more allegedly civilized Kindred uncomfortable, and it smells of petrichor and sweet wood rot.

Enhance Dyscrasia¶

Requirements: an object of personal significance to the target mortal (matched to their Blood Resonance), a taste of the target's blood, 1 scene

You taste the target mortal's blood, hold the significant object, and concentrate on the Resonance you sensed. Gain +1 Hunger. The object warms in your hands before cooling. Return the object to the target (they must carry or wear it) and the Ritual takes effect.

For the next 3 nights, the target's Blood Resonance intensifies and becomes shareable. Normally, a mortal's Resonance benefits only the first to Feed from them before it replenishes. Under this Ritual, anyone who Feeds from the target and slakes at least 1 Hunger gains the full Resonance benefit. The mortal is, for all practical purposes, a walking Humorous fountain.

The mortal feels no different but may notice unusual attention from Kindred who suddenly find their company highly desirable. The object must remain in the target's possession for the duration; if lost or taken, the Ritual fades immediately. The mortal's health is unaffected, though being fed on repeatedly by enthusiastic vampires certainly could be.