The following Backgrounds are available only to elder characters or add levels to existing ones. Generation limits to Traits (7th Generation for six dots, 6th Generation for seven, etc.) still apply.
Age
You have survived for many, many years as a vampire.
You have seen much of the ever-changing, never-changing
dance of politics and pain that forms the worlds of both
Kindred and kine alike. This Background does not necessarily
reflect your actual age, however. Instead, it reflects the
number of years you have been conscious throughout your
long existence. If you have fallen into torpor, time passes you
by, as does the experience and knowledge you could have
gained by participating in the events of that period. Players
are free to determine how many times their characters have
fallen into torpor, and for how long each time. This enables
players to create characters born in truly ancient times.
Every dot in this Background gains a number of freebie points to use in character creation but also costs Humanity. This can be repurchased, but elders must spend five Freebies per extra point of Humanity. Amounts given reflect cumulative totals. Note that each dot in Age grants slightly less of an experience advantage then the one before (reflected in freebie points), reflecting the difficulty an elder has in gaining new abilities as she becomes more and more set in her ways. Additionally, the older a vampire, the harder it is for her to learn new Traits. This is reflected in the optional system on character development below. Storytellers have the final say in deciding how old characters in their chronicles may be, and should feel free to limit elders to one or two dots in this Background.
* 51-200 years active: +30 Freebie points,-1 Humanity.
** 201-350 years active: +55 Freebie points, -2 Humanity.
*** 351-500 years active: +75 Freebie points, -3 Humanity.
**** 501-750 years active: +90 Freebie points, -4 Humanity.
***** 751-1,000 years active: + 100 Freebie points, -5 Humanity.
Elder Status
You are well known among the elders who are the
backbone of Kindred society. Even among the jaded elite you
have carved out a name for yourself, whether in the halls of
Elysium or the political arena. This Trait reflects a combination
of factors including your sire's Status, your pedigree, your
own actions and how well you have managed to keep the
attention of other elder Kindred.
The more Elder Status you have, the more willing other elders are to treat you as an equal, or even to defer to your judgment and tastes. Elder Status is sometimes used with Social Traits when dealing with other elders, and it reflects your prestige in such instances. Elders without this Trait are often considered manor nobles in the eternal court that is Kindred society: Pretenders almost never have any dots in Elder Status.
Younger Kindred are almost always unaware of the subtle nuances of unseen power plays and alliances that make up Elder Status and are thus unaffected by it, instead recognizing only your general Status among Kindred (see Vampire ). Thus it is possible for an elder to be seen as of little importance by most Kindred infants, but to actually have tremendous influence among the elders of the vampiric community.
* Known: A recognized player Elder Generation
** Respected: Connected to many powerful elders
*** High Status: Other elders often come to you for aid and advice.
**** Powerful: You have the power to command respect
and fear from even the most noted of other elders.
***** Luminary: Your name echoes through the halls of
Elyslums the world over.
Elder characters begin as 10th Generation. Only by
taking this Background can they start as more powerful,
lower-Generation vampires. Characters cannot take more
than five levels of this Background.
However, the blood of more ancient vampires is highly sought by those Kindred willing to commit the sin of diablerie. Characters of lower Generation are inevitably targeted by such types (or other beings equally interested) for the promise of greater power for themselves. Thus, characters with this Background have at least one enemy after their blood. This, of course, does not preclude other enemies interested in destroying the character for other reasons!
* 9th Generation: One minor enemy.
** 8th Generation: Two minor enemies.
*** 7th Generation: One major enemy.
**** 6th Generation: Two major enemies.
***** 5th Generation: Two major enemies and several minor enemies.
Influence When a vampire has more than five dots in Influence, he has a reach far beyond just one country. He has the ear, or perhaps control, of some of the most influential people in the global political circus. Although other Kindred may think it ridiculous that he spends so much time on mortal affairs, he devotes a great deal of his efforts to maintaining his position as the power behind one or more thrones. He knows the importance of controlling the flighty affairs of the kine at key moments in history and does not plan to be caught unawares at any such moment.
When a character wishes to influence a country's political decisions, the player must roll Manipulation + Influence. The difficulty depends on the extent of the character's control over the country's leaders and on the amount of effort the character wishes to exert. A botch indicates the character's efforts in that country have backfired, her minions are jailed, dead, or otherwise destroyed, and she may even be in danger himself! After such a botch the character's Influence rating may drop accordingly.
****** You can influence the affairs of one country.
******* You can influence the affairs of two countries.
******** You can influence the affairs of one continent.
********* You have influence over everything except Asia.
********** You have lnfluence over the entire world.
Resources
Certain eldera have gone beyond concern over their
own wealth and now concentrate on the power their wealth
brings. While one human may become a billionaire during
her lifetime, a vampire may have control over hundreds of
billions (or even trillionsl) of dollars, though they do not
necessarily belong to her. More than five dots in this Background
represent that degree of wealth. A character with this
sort of control can have any possessions or amounts of money
she desires.
When attempting to change the direction of world commerce in an area in which a character has influence, make a Manipulation + Resources roll. The difficulty is determined by the Storyteller, depending upon the extent of the desired change, tenacity and skill of your opponents, etc. A botch indicates the character has put her influence over that section of the global economy at risk, either through corporate takeovers, the collapse of the industry, or any other major disaster. Her Global Resources level may drop accordingly.
****** You have influence in one global industry (steel, banking, airlines, etc.).
******* You have influence in two global industries.
******** You have influence in every industry in one country as well as two global industries.
********* You have influence in every industry outside of Asia.
********** You have influence in every industry.
Military Force
When a vampire reaches elder status, he has a chance to
gain control of human institutions that prevail through force.
This includes local police, troopers, FBI, street gangs, crime
bosses, biker packs and bands of thrill-seeking young people.
Direct control of human mobs is always frightening to elder
vampires, who remember the Inquisition as if it were only
yesterday. As a result, they often band together to curtail such
aspirations in their fellows. This makes attaining and maintaining
a large Military Force very difficult. Usually an elder
can only keep a small force before his rivals close in to stop his
power grab.
The player must define who a character's forces are where they train. They could be a subset of the U.S. military, or any of the groups listed above. At Level Six and above, the Military Force will usually require some sort of government sponsorship. Storytellers should feel free to let the character control more mortals with less combat training than is specified for that level. For instance, with two dots a character might control a 40-person mob.
* 15-person mob, generally unorganized and
untrained: student rebels, street gang
** 25-person team, generally with some combat training: police, crime family
*** 40-person platoon, all combat trained:
SWAT team, army reserves
**** 75-person troop, all veterans: mercenary
soldiers, terrorist unit
***** 100-person company, elite troops: special
forces company, intelligence unit
****** Several companies with a mix of weapons:
mechanized infantry, air assault group
******* Military division: thousands of trained
soldiers
******** One branch: a country's entire army, navy,
air force or similar body
********* One country: all the Military Force in that
country
********** Forces all over the world