Feeding and Resonance
Feeding is the engine of the vampire's night. It restores control, creates danger, and reveals what the character is becoming.
The hunt
When a character hunts, define the approach: stalking, seduction, coercion, cultivating a herd, or taking blood by force. Roll an appropriate pool against a difficulty from 1 to 5. Success finds a viable vessel and reduces Hunger by 1; extra successes may reduce it by another 1, reveal useful information, or secure a safer feeding opportunity. Failure creates a complication, delays the feeding, or attracts attention. A bestial failure turns the hunt into a loss-of-control scene.
The Storyteller may waive the roll when the character has a prepared Herd, a secure scene, or a willing vessel. Feeding should still have a cost when the vessel is important, the Masquerade is at risk, or the character chooses predation over restraint.
Resonance
A vessel's dominant emotional pattern creates Resonance:
| Resonance | Emotional field | Common influence |
|---|---|---|
| Choleric | anger, drive, aggression | Physical action and confrontation |
| Melancholic | grief, fear, obsession | Insight, endurance, occult perception |
| Phlegmatic | calm, patience, apathy | Control, defense, composure |
| Sanguine | desire, joy, ambition | Social force, creativity, performance |
Record a specific emotion rather than only the category. Resonance may suggest a bonus die in a fitting scene, but it should not become a permanent modifier.
Dyscrasia
A dyscrasia forms when Resonance is unusually concentrated. The Storyteller may award one after a meaningful hunt, a deliberate search for an emotional state, or a successful Auspex investigation. Record the name, Resonance, emotion, effect, shelf life, and whether it is spent on the character sheet.
A dyscrasia grants one narrow benefit: one extra die, a one-point difficulty reduction, one waived Rouse check, one focused emotional question, or brief fictional permission. After a mechanical benefit, make a Rouse check unless the dyscrasia says otherwise. Mark it spent. It normally expires when spent, at the next dawn, when the character feeds again, or when its defining emotion is resolved.
Feeding consequences
A feeding can leave a vessel euphoric, traumatized, addicted, injured, dead, or convinced that the vampire is someone important. Choose the consequence based on method and Hunger. A restrained feeding creates a relationship; a desperate feeding creates evidence. If the character kills, causes a serious violation, or exposes the supernatural, consider a Humanity consequence and a Masquerade problem.