feed, the signs of aging begin to show: hair turns gray, skin wrinkles, bones ache. When he resumes feeding, his body’s aches and pains may subside, but his new age will remain in stasis. Ghouls who have survived 250 years or more depend upon vitae to survive. A single missed feeding of the Blood is fatal, and their bodies will turn to dust. The same is not true for revenants, however, for their bodies naturally produce vitae and their natural lifespan is approximately 300 years. Any additional blood they drink from a vampire will cease their aging process, just as it would a ghoul. Missed feedings, however, will have varying effects on their bodies, as they are a product of magic and biology. Elder revenants and ghouls gain additional blood points in their systems, reflecting the physiological changes vitae has taken on their bodies. For each century of life, elder revenants gain one extra point in their Blood Pool. Elder ghouls, who are not revenants, gain one extra blood point for every two centuries they have been a ghoul. This effect is not cumulative, however, so elder revenants who also feed on the Blood do not gain additional blood points.
Healing Ghouls and revenants may heal by spending blood points from their Blood Pool, just as vampires do. Provided they have enough blood points, they can make an attempt to heal from their injuries, even if they are severe. For example, they might try to regenerate limbs or cure themselves of physical ailments. Ghouls and revenants, despite the vitae that flows in their veins, are technically mortal. However, the Blood does impact their physiology, and this is reflected in the damage they take. Revenants take bashing damage normally, but may soak lethal damage with Stamina (+Fortitude) as a vampire might. Ghouls may as well, after their third sip of the Blood. Aggravated damage, however, affects both of them as if they were mortal. At the Storyteller’s discretion, elder ghouls may gain an edge in combat due to the vampiric blood that has saturated and altered their physiology for many years. When involved in combat, elder ghouls and older revenants may soak bashing damage as a vampire might with Stamina (+Fortitude). After the soak roll, any bashing damage applied is halved (round down). Should a ghoul or revenant lose an organ or limb, the player will need to make a regeneration attempt. The player must spend a Willpower point, and the appropriate number of blood points (one for a finger or eye, two for a foot or forearm, three for an entire limb). Then, the
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player must make a Stamina roll (difficulty 8). If the roll fails or is botched, the ghoul may never re-grow the limb. Elder ghouls, however, find that regeneration is easier for them. For each century of age, the difficulty of the roll decreases by one. Thus, a three-hundred-year-old ghoul who has lost a hand would require the player to make a Stamina roll with a difficulty of 5 in addition to spending a Willpower point.
Frenzy Ghouls and revenants have a Beast, just like vampires do. However, both are mortal — which means they are prone to frenzy more often. The situations that ignite a ghoul’s ability to frenzy varies widely and is based on a variety of factors. For example, some ghouls might wrestle with their Beast after being ordered to dismember a corpse, while others might be enraged if their master is attacked. Though there are endless possibilities for a ghoul to frenzy, a character’s Nature, age, Humanity, and Clan (or family) weakness can shape a scene. Brujah ghouls, for example, suffer from the Short Fuse Flaw which reflects the Clan’s short temper, and have a harder time avoiding frenzy. Other Flaws, such as the Light Sensitive Flaw (p. 135), may also trigger a character’s ability to frenzy as well. Despite the fact that ghouls and revenants may encounter more opportunities to frenzy, the difficulty to resist is typically decreased at the Storyteller’s discretion due to their mortality. To do so, the player must make a Self-Control (or Instinct) roll. The number of successes required to stave off frenzy is also up to the Storyteller, as the circumstances in each scene will vary widely. Each success grants the character a reprieve from frenzy for one turn, up to a maximum of five successes.
Clan Weaknesses In addition to its addictive properties, the Blood carries Clanrelated weaknesses that affect ghouls and revenants differently. All revenants suffer from a curse that is omnipresent in the blood of their family. These weaknesses are tied to their genetics. However, revenants may also gain a Clan-associated weakness, and are at risk of suffering this additional curse if they are Bound. In order for the Clan weakness to manifest, the revenant must drink from vampires belonging to the same Clan once a month for a period of five months. Should this extend to twelve months, the Clan weakness does not become permanent, as all revenants already suffer from their own family weakness. However, the Clan weakness will remain for as long as that revenant primarily drinks from that single Clan.
CHAPTER TWO: GHOULDOM, BLOOD BONDS, AND SYSTEMS