Post by darien on Oct 8, 2016 14:01:09 GMT -6
Alright, I had proposed doing an old-school, metaplot-free campaign of Vampire: The Masquerade using the original First Edition rules from 1991 before, but never got into too much detail on what the game would entail or how developed the setting would be. Well, now that's all changed.
So, today I shall present the newest idea for a game of mine titled West Coast Chronicles, a sandbox campaign and a period piece set explicitly at an unspecified point in 1992-1993. It is a sandbox game that is vast in scope set in the fictional state of San Andreas (based on California with elements of Nevada and Arizona), using the map and the locations of the infamous 2004 video game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas". However, this is not a direct GTA/VTM crossover by any stretch of the imagination. No characters or factions from GTA will appear, instead there will be original characters and NPC's. I'm mainly using the map of GTA: San Andreas for scale and I like the detailed locations of the game and thought it would make a good setting for a modern sandbox campaign. The entire state is open and available to players and you can make your haven in any of the three major cities of San Andreas: Los Santos (based on Los Angeles), San Fierro (based on San Francisco), and Las Venturas (based on Las Vegas). Or if you've got the courage and are willing to push your luck, you can try to carve out an undead existence in the rural forests, prairies, and deserts of San Andreas.
For details on the locations of San Andreas and the map we will be using for reference, this is a good page to check out....
www.grandtheftwiki.com/San_Andreas_in_GTA_III_Era
As for the details of the campaign proper, here are the facts.
1. West Coast Chronicles is based on Vampire in its earliest incarnation before the metaplot took over and the game redefined itself. So, expect a lot of the Early Installment Weirdness associated with Vampire 1E such as the lack of metaplot, the setting ostensibly being tied to Ars Magica, and Lupines and Magi being portrayed in the manner they were presented in the Antagonists section of the VTM 1E corebook rather than how they ended up when Werewolf: The Apocalypse and Mage: The Ascension came out. I may also establish a Lovecraft/Cthulhu Mythos tie-in later on in the campaign.
2. As stated before, we are NOT using or recognizing the metaplot in any way. So, Gangrel are still Camarilla, the Ravnos are a full clan, and basically Revised Edition never happened at all. It also helps that the setting of West Coast Chronicles predates most of the canonical metaplot events anyway. But if I ever do a sequel set in present times, then expect to ignore and throw out any Revised Edition materials.
3. Kuei-Jin (the mysterious undead beings of East Asia introduced in late 2e/early Revised) do NOT exist in this campaign. East Asia's cities are dominated by regular vampires. It may seem strange to make such a declaration given that the game takes place in a fictional state located in the Western United States, but bear in mind that the West Coast has a large East Asian and Asian-American population, so there is some cultural crossover. Getting rid of the pesky Kuei-Jin makes things more uniform, mechanically simpler, and helps with that early era atmosphere. Plus, early VTM 1e books implied East Asia had Cainite vampires but they were culturally different from the main Western Kindred.
4. We are going for that original Gothic-Punk atmosphere established in the early 1e books, so expect a lot of that type of imagery in-game.
5. However, despite the game being Gothic-Punk, I do not intend to run this as a "Personal Horror" game where the players constantly whine and mope and angst about their condition. No "Woe is me, I'm a monster!" garbage or anything like that. If you want to pursue that theme as an individual player, more power to you, but as a Storyteller, I will not beat players over the head with pretentious angst. This ain't your daddy's Vampire: The Masquerade!
6. This will be a fairly dark campaign, so expect a lot of strong language and violence.
7. For players, we will only be using the materials found in the 1E corebook. As a GM/Storyteller, I may use other 1E supplements such as the Players Guide, Storytellers Guide, The Hunters Hunted, and the Players Guide to the Sabbat, but only in an NPC reference capacity.
8. Players are assumed to begin the game either as Anarchs or with Anarch sympathies. However, you can sell out to the Camarilla establishment or even join the mysterious and frightening Sabbat if you wish to do so later on.
9. The following clans are eligible for play. Other clans may be used solely as NPC's. Caitiff are playable on a case-by-case basis.
Brujah
Gangrel
Malkavian
Nosferatu
Toreador
Tremere
Ventrue
10. Remember that this is a period piece set in the very early 1990s, around the time VTM 1E was in publication. So keep that in mind with regards to technology. The average person on the street would not have easy access to cell phones or the internet, and neither would have the capabilities they have today.
So, who all is interested. Once I get three to four people involved, I can start play.
So, today I shall present the newest idea for a game of mine titled West Coast Chronicles, a sandbox campaign and a period piece set explicitly at an unspecified point in 1992-1993. It is a sandbox game that is vast in scope set in the fictional state of San Andreas (based on California with elements of Nevada and Arizona), using the map and the locations of the infamous 2004 video game "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas". However, this is not a direct GTA/VTM crossover by any stretch of the imagination. No characters or factions from GTA will appear, instead there will be original characters and NPC's. I'm mainly using the map of GTA: San Andreas for scale and I like the detailed locations of the game and thought it would make a good setting for a modern sandbox campaign. The entire state is open and available to players and you can make your haven in any of the three major cities of San Andreas: Los Santos (based on Los Angeles), San Fierro (based on San Francisco), and Las Venturas (based on Las Vegas). Or if you've got the courage and are willing to push your luck, you can try to carve out an undead existence in the rural forests, prairies, and deserts of San Andreas.
For details on the locations of San Andreas and the map we will be using for reference, this is a good page to check out....
www.grandtheftwiki.com/San_Andreas_in_GTA_III_Era
As for the details of the campaign proper, here are the facts.
1. West Coast Chronicles is based on Vampire in its earliest incarnation before the metaplot took over and the game redefined itself. So, expect a lot of the Early Installment Weirdness associated with Vampire 1E such as the lack of metaplot, the setting ostensibly being tied to Ars Magica, and Lupines and Magi being portrayed in the manner they were presented in the Antagonists section of the VTM 1E corebook rather than how they ended up when Werewolf: The Apocalypse and Mage: The Ascension came out. I may also establish a Lovecraft/Cthulhu Mythos tie-in later on in the campaign.
2. As stated before, we are NOT using or recognizing the metaplot in any way. So, Gangrel are still Camarilla, the Ravnos are a full clan, and basically Revised Edition never happened at all. It also helps that the setting of West Coast Chronicles predates most of the canonical metaplot events anyway. But if I ever do a sequel set in present times, then expect to ignore and throw out any Revised Edition materials.
3. Kuei-Jin (the mysterious undead beings of East Asia introduced in late 2e/early Revised) do NOT exist in this campaign. East Asia's cities are dominated by regular vampires. It may seem strange to make such a declaration given that the game takes place in a fictional state located in the Western United States, but bear in mind that the West Coast has a large East Asian and Asian-American population, so there is some cultural crossover. Getting rid of the pesky Kuei-Jin makes things more uniform, mechanically simpler, and helps with that early era atmosphere. Plus, early VTM 1e books implied East Asia had Cainite vampires but they were culturally different from the main Western Kindred.
4. We are going for that original Gothic-Punk atmosphere established in the early 1e books, so expect a lot of that type of imagery in-game.
5. However, despite the game being Gothic-Punk, I do not intend to run this as a "Personal Horror" game where the players constantly whine and mope and angst about their condition. No "Woe is me, I'm a monster!" garbage or anything like that. If you want to pursue that theme as an individual player, more power to you, but as a Storyteller, I will not beat players over the head with pretentious angst. This ain't your daddy's Vampire: The Masquerade!
6. This will be a fairly dark campaign, so expect a lot of strong language and violence.
7. For players, we will only be using the materials found in the 1E corebook. As a GM/Storyteller, I may use other 1E supplements such as the Players Guide, Storytellers Guide, The Hunters Hunted, and the Players Guide to the Sabbat, but only in an NPC reference capacity.
8. Players are assumed to begin the game either as Anarchs or with Anarch sympathies. However, you can sell out to the Camarilla establishment or even join the mysterious and frightening Sabbat if you wish to do so later on.
9. The following clans are eligible for play. Other clans may be used solely as NPC's. Caitiff are playable on a case-by-case basis.
Brujah
Gangrel
Malkavian
Nosferatu
Toreador
Tremere
Ventrue
10. Remember that this is a period piece set in the very early 1990s, around the time VTM 1E was in publication. So keep that in mind with regards to technology. The average person on the street would not have easy access to cell phones or the internet, and neither would have the capabilities they have today.
So, who all is interested. Once I get three to four people involved, I can start play.