How to be relevant in V:tM?

[Kazyan]

A group I've been playing with for over a year now is breaking into Vampire: the Masquerade. We had a character introduction mini-session already, and I fear that I'll be partly ignored and trodden on unless I learn how to play this particularly social RPG better, and fast. Here's why:

1) Being socially inept and generally straightforward as a player, I get the feeling that my Setite's Manipulation score of 4 (and other social skills) will be useless in my hands. I couldn't figure out what to do with it. It's very easy to dump social skills in-game if you're good with words out-of-game, but it doesn't really work the other way around.

2) My character does not have a clear contribution to the cotiere that the Prince shoved us into. We have a typical Brujah, a similar but more murder-rific Gangrel who will probably die within three sessions, a techno-wizard Tremere, a techno-apprentice Tremere with Resources 5, a Toreador party face, and a Tzimisce Antitribu who owns a hospital--which will be our blood battery--and Resources 5. (Also, the Tzimisce's player always knows just what to say and do to put people in difficult positions.) And then there's my clueless-about-her-clan Setite, whose dots are spread out all over the place and can only really do Athletics well. Which, which cinematic, is not useful. As usual for when new systems, I just put points in stuff that seemed to fit the character.

Does anyone have any tips on playing this game well? I don't expect to learn expert social skills from the internet--just some ideas as to how to not play the game wrong.

[LibraryOgre]

Posting your exact build will help, because there's a lot of ways this can go... depending on your abilities and your talents.

You say you've got a high manipulation, but not a lot of personal skill with charisma skills... consider leaning heavily on intimidation and veiled threats. You don't SAY what you're going to do, but you imply that it could be any number of things, and they had better tell you what you want to know.

Blood-bond some humans in useful positions... gang leaders or cops, something to give you muscle. Heck, do both. Once they're blood-bound, they're a lot more useful, because they'll do what you say. With a bit of blood, they've also got Potence 1, and can beat the crap out of people even easier.

And, if all else fails, talk to your ST and see if you can't shift around some points.

[Kazyan]

Exact build? Okay. Character sheet is here. We were allotted two extra background points, our Haven is shared by everyone in the cotiere that isn't already rich (so it has two Security dots from the Brujah), and the homebrew discipline is a "sea serpent" themed corruption of Serpentis; her sire didn't know Serpentis and her Embrace didn't go as planned. It's somewhat like the respective levels of Protean for now, but the higher levels are as of yet undefined. Not really important.

[LibraryOgre]

Some interesting stuff to work with. Do you have a strong concept for right now? Because she looks like a girl, not even out of high school. Good student (Academics 2), student athlete, and an amateur freerunner. She's got some resources and some streetwise, so she might be street with a big inheritance (either from her Sire or someone in the real world), or she might be a slumming rich kid.

Fast and a little tough, but not strong. Pretty and manipulative, but not charismatic. Not particular smart, perceptive, or quick-witted. Not fallen too far in humanity, better than average willpower, but not by much. Two dots in Not-Quite-Protean means "Sees in the dark" and "magic claws"; Presence means others can be in Awe of you, and want you to like them. She's also an enigma who seems like the Eye of the Storm... relatively calm, even among the hubbub.

Things you'll want to define are your retainers, and how they help you.

So, what do you do? Leverage Streetwise+Manipulation to start building a circle of power among mortals... your Athletics suggests you might have some freerunners who look up to you, and giving them a taste of Potence (by ghouling them) and Awe (from your Presence) is going to make you popular. Combine that with your touch of Leadership and knack for investigation and you might start gathering information... you've got money to pay for informant, can choose a few lieutenants to ghoul/blood bond, and you can build a decent information network. It's usually a Nosferatu specialty, but you're well set up for it.

Start getting dirt. Tons of it. Don't just concentrate on vampires, though know them, too, but also look to mortals and how they move. Remember that anyone you ghoul will be physically stronger than you (even 1 Strength + Potence 1 beats Strength 2 almost every time), so make sure you keep them well Awed. YOU ARE NOT STRONG. Not just physically, but in terms of Kindred power, you are practically a Caitiff. Your clan is small, poorly regarded, and not around. So, get information, sell it to others, and try to leverage it to your advantage.

[Kazyan]

*copies every suggestion into notes*

Thank you very much! I'll see what I can do with your ideas.

[sktarq]

Does anyone have any tips on playing this game well? I don't expect to learn expert social skills from the internet--just some ideas as to how to not play the game wrong.

One thing to focus on is saying what you try you want a manipulation to do. "I ask about his sire in way to see how he feels about him without showing my position about him" rather than figuring out how to do that in you own words.
You may be asked to roll more often than would seem strictly necessary to compensate for the fact you are using you characters's skill instead of your own but it will cover those mental blank spaces. . . to help this always keep a sires of goals in mind-what you want from people

also have you thought about making her part of the goth/alt type crowd with unconventional looks and streetwise?

[Pilo]

You might want to invest in Dodge (3), Alertness (2) and politics (1).

In vampires, there is 2 kinds of powers, the character itself and the backgroud.

Both seems weak. However, feeling weak at creation is not uncommon.

As you are a good looking manipulative adolescent, you should try to get some political power over your campus.
Throws parties at some place, ask your rich friends to pay for it, pretexting wanting fun.
Take control over the president of the students by seduction and then, you can organise some protest, and doing so manage to get the cops busy, or send them ruining a party of an other vampire by crashing the place.

Allies, contacts and influence are background you should try to look for, join a secret society to get contact in upper society.

[Kesnit]

I'm going to go against the other commenters and make a different type of recommendation...

Once you decide what you want your PC to do, talk to the ST. The game may be about vampires clawing their way to the top, but the game is a bunch of people sitting around RP-ing. So go to the ST and ask that things your PC can do be included. There is a huge difference between "I should be the star of this game!" (bad) and "you know, I have lots of contacts with mortals and skills in getting information. How about a plot hook that ties into that."

Also, as others have said, if you feel your character could do something social, tell the ST what you are going to to and ask for a roll.

[Sith_Happens]

you should try to get some political power over your campus.

Something tells me she doesn't go to school any more, what with it being in the daytime and all.

[LibraryOgre]

I'm going to go against the other commenters and make a different type of recommendation...

Once you decide what you want your PC to do, talk to the ST.

I don't think this is necessarily against the other commentators, but certainly complementary... I think most of our advice was organized towards "What can this character mechanically do", but talking to your ST and making sure that your strengths, as you see them, have a place to shine (or, since this is Vampire, perhaps we should say "sparkle" ), is a good place to go, as well.

[Sith_Happens]

(or, since this is Vampire, perhaps we should say "sparkle" )

[A_Man]

Yeah, talking to your storyteller is an automatic action, honestly. But mechanically, from what I can see from your character, the best option would definietly be an information gatherer. You're a little girl, with a lot of manipulation to draw away suspicion, and you have a dot in presence so you could use awe.

And yes, ghouling people is remarkably useful. Anyone, be it a lowly janitor or a criminal thug, just to give you 'ears' everywhere possible. Your claws from Nagahi can be used in dire circumstances, or when you prepare (adding strength and dex from blood is always available) for a major fight.

[Bulhakov]

My first thought was that your party seems to be missing a stealth expert...
... and obfucate is your clan discipline.
Low levels of obfuscate will go well with the free running / info gathering angle, while when you hit lvl 3 you can get those high social stats to shine.

As mentioned by the previous posters get some ghouls and think of stuff you can get them to do, especially during daytime (talk with your ST about the options). Some ideas for useful ghouls:
- a freerunner/catburglar that can stake out a location or do some light thieving for you
- a hacker or cop that can provide you with typical information from computer databases (phone records, vehicle registrations, known addresses/associates, etc.) (though your "techno-tremere" guys might already cover this angle)
- a rich clubowner/stockbroker that can work on your long term financial stability, can be occasionally milked for cash and make use of some inside trading information you're bound to acquire at some point

[Drogorn]

Spike the beer with blood? Then do it again next party.

[LibraryOgre]

Spike the beer with blood? Then do it again next party.

This plan requires a LOT of blood, and is gonna skunk the beer.

[Sith_Happens]

This plan requires a LOT of blood, and is gonna skunk the beer.

How concentrated does the blood need to be anyways? Is a drop per glass enough (and if so does the victim need to finish the glass)?

[comicshorse]

To blood bond someone requires a point of Vitae each time, a point is generally reckoned to be a pint

[Arsamit]

My favourite way to bloodbond people is to give 2 point of vitae to a mortal, wipe its mind and place it near the one to bloodbond when he is about to hunt/low on blood/and actually every time i can

Its a matter of time that he drinks twice... the third step is the easiest as he would be actually in love with you.

Or you can go the extra mile and do that 3 times... not very difficult

Dominate and ofuscation FTW

If you are setite i would take the adictive blood merit (if i recall the name right) i also loved the one that gives a sect or cult :P

[BrainFreeze]

You are a Setite, this could just be how I play them but whatever. Your number one discipline ability is not even a discipline. You can get things done, how you do this does not matter there is no red tape..blue tape, camarilla rules or sabbat rules. Help people out...did a party member kill a human and needs help to clean it up? You can take care of that...in fact it works better if they just leave it to you, you've got this. Keep how you help people out a bit mystical though, people don't need to know how a body disappears, just that it is gone. You want to know how everyone else does things, no one should know how you do things.

Barter in secrets and favors, while the nosferatu usually are the winners in the realm of secrets the setites are no slouches either, do everything you can to assist the other people you are playing with to show how much of a team player you are. Assist the NPCs in the game also, preferable in 1 on 1 sessions with the Gm or through passing notes to the GM though, the other players should not guess that you may be working against them! Let the other players think you are just there to make their unlives easier in any way possible, if things start to fall apart have 4-5 escape plans. You should have bolt holes that no one else knows about.