Vampire V : Paris by Night...

[TinyMushroom]

Even though the factions were a bit of a distraction, I have to say I like it. It really added depth, and I think it made the game more enjoyable. The events were fun too!

[PirateMonk]

Having little idea what was going on was kind of boring, but I might have been able to avoid that if I had organized more.

[Helgraf]

Originally Posted by billtodamax

Yay! Many thanks to Helgraf to running this game, as enjoyable and chaotic as always.

The roles of the remaining players would be appreciated.

Alright - at end of game, this is where everyone stood (or lay, for the dead) - and I really wish I could remember how to do tables here.

The Roster of the Living

Player.............. - Role (Notes) - Secondary (if any) - Faction - Tokens remaining
Alarra.............. - SC Vampire (WB) - None............. - University - 1
banjo1985........ - Clouseau (H3).... - None............. - Masqued.. - 3
billtodamax....... - Parisian (LC)...... - None............. - University - 2
calar............... - Parisian ............ - Blood Magus... - Nobles.... - 2
Fin................. - Parisian (H1)....... - Resurrectionist - Created... - 1
Istari .............. - Parisian (LC) (IA) - None............. - University - 0
mangosta71..... - Parisian............. - None............. - University - 0
Murska............ - Parisian............. - Farspeaker..... - Created (Ch) - 0
otakuryoga....... - Parisian (IA)...... - None............. - Gypsies... - 0
Penguinator...... - SC Parisian........ - None............. - Nobles.... - 2
PirateMonk....... - Parisian (LC)...... - None............. - Nobles.... - 1
Ramsus............ - Parisian (LC)...... - None............. - Created (No) - 0
TinyMushroom... - Parisian............ - None............. - Nobles.... - 1

The Rolls of the Dead

Player.............. - Role (Notes) - Secondary (if any) - Faction - Died When

IXI_FatTony_IXI - Parisian............ - Spy - Gypsies - L1
Alber............... - Parisian............ - Rabble Rouser - University - A2
Eternis............. - Vampire (LC)..... - None - None - A2
The_JJ............. - Parisian............ - None - None - A2
Urien............... - Parisian (LC) ..... - None - None - A3
Eldritch_Knight.. - Feuder............. - None - None - L3
Lady Tialait....... - Doppleganger.... - None - None - N3
Lex-Kat............ - Parisian............ - None - Gypsies - L4
Khal................. - Poirot (LC)........ - None - Gypsies - A5
Fleeing_Coward.. - Parisian............ - Phantom - Masqued - L6
ThePhantom...... - Parisian............ - None - None - N6
D_Lord............. - Vampire............ - Farspeaker - Nobles - A8
Diva De............ - Parisian............ - None - Gypsies - A8
Joxer_t'_Mighty.. - Parisian............ - None - Masqued - A8
Lindon.............. - Dracula (CovA).. - None - None - L8
cd4.................. - Van Helsing....... - None - Inquisition - N8
bladescape........ - Vampire (CovA). - Bounty Hunter - Inquisition - L9
Lamech............. - Parisian............ - Illusionist - Created (Ch) - N9
TsukikoJ............ - Feuder(CovA, LC)- None - Gypsies - N9
erikun............... - Parisian (IB)...... - None - Inquisition - A10
super dark33...... - Nosferatu (CovA) - None - Gypsies - L10
Matthias2207..... - Parisian (LC)..... - None - Gypsies - A11
Mustiado........... - Parisian............ - Master Politician - Nobles - A11
Lord_Loss.......... - Abm Drac (CovA)- None - Nobles - L11
Larspcus2.......... - Parisian (LC, IB) - None - Gypsies - L12
TigerFang.......... - Parisian............ - None - Masqued - N13
Gray_Mage........ - Parisian (LC)...... - None - Gypsies - N13
Zar_Peter.......... - Parisian (IA)...... - None - Masqued - L14
Elder_Tsofu........ - Parisian (M1)..... - None - None - L15
Reinholdt........... - Parisian (IA)...... - None - University - N15
The_Grimmace.... - Beast............... - None - No Faction - N16

Key to the Notes
H# - Injury Level # - Injuries carry increasing chance with each successive level that actions taken simply will not be carried out - votes will be uncounted for the lynch, actions will fail. Injury level 4 equals death from accumulated injuries.

M# - Insanity level # - Insanity carries an increasing chance by level that your normal action will be randomly changed - lynch vote will change to a random other bandwagon; abilities will mistarget or operate differently, et cetera. Level 4 insanity results in suicide.

WB - Wolf Blooded - If a vampire killed an infected they had the option to drink its blood. If they did and succeeded, they gained this condition which gave them resistance to lycanthrope-generated abilities.

LC - Lost Child - This player was unknowingly a Lost Child of Rom - the Gypsy faction goal was to try and recruit (and ideally keep alive) several members of this list.

IA - Infected, Type A - Player was infected by the actions of the Lycanthrope (who later became the Abomination). Took part in the Full Moon event unknowingly.

IB - Infected, Type B - A victim of the Full Moon event. Counted as Infected, but secretly had no loyalty to the Lycanthrope.

CovA - Vampiric Coven A (see main rules for coven details).

[Helgraf]

My thoughts on things in the game:

Factions

I'm not sure I got the difficulty for the faction victories correct. I will probably adjust the numbers and terms involved for the next go around.

The Gypsies and the Inquisition had a rough time of it; partially because I required living players (or in the Inquisition's case, roles to stay dead to count). I may have to change their condition to just recruited, not kept alive for the Gypsies, and slain once for the Inquisition so that resurrection effects don't hose their faction again.

The Church, in theory, had a well-achievable victory condition, but they had the -absolute- worst luck recruiting of any faction, period; I think they managed to have three people in the faction at most; two of which started the game in it.

The rules for how the University gains support need to be modified - as currently calculated, it's actually very easy for them to make their faction goal.

The Created I think I got just about right; I wanted to make it difficult for them, and they only just pulled it out on the last night.

Events
Alright, I was -mostly- pleased with how the events unfolded, though yes, the contest was a severe fubar on my part in not specifying whether non-original works were acceptable. There weren't quite as many people 'thinking outside the box' this playthrough, which disappointed me a little, but did make resolution easier.

NPCs
I pretty much dropped the ball on this one due to complexity. Originally, L'Emperuer, Renfield, and Adelheid were going to feature in events more prominently (and would be, if anyone attempted, vulnerable to actions taken); much like they did in Vampire IV, and like in that game would have had an impact on additional item and favor generation. Thankfully, this part of the game is easiest to sweep under the rug if needs be.

Items and Tokens
The favor tokens will probably be retained for the next play, though they may be named something else their rules will remain largely the same.

There were fewer items given out in this iteration of Vampire, which reduced the overall chaos level - we had far fewer days and nights with no kills, though we did have one long stretch with no vampire kills because the Star-Crossed wasn't submitting kill attempts and the Beast had been jailed and -couldn't-.

Lovers
I think this version worked surprisingly well though I'll need to clean up the SC rules just a little bit to remind them that they still need to work for their side as a whole (eg, SC Vamp must send a kill request in each night regardless, SC Villager, if they have a secondary role, must use its power).

Time and Responsibility
I think I'm going to need a full co-administrator for future iterations of Vampire. I've been resisting this because, well, honestly, I'm more secretive about this game. Which doesn't make things easier for someone working with me, and I really need to step back from. So yes, for Vampire VI (no working title yet) I will be asking for a co-admin to run with me; and I will have to prepare events in advance so my co-admin will know how they work for when they come up. (I can crib a few that worked well or that are faction related and modify, but that still leaves some to be designed.) Hopefully this will allow me to keep the next iteration on a more timely basis so that people don't lose interest or think the game has died.

[PirateMonk]

The Roster of the Living

Player	Role (Notes)	Secondary (if any)	Faction	Tokens remaining
Alarra	SC Vampire (WB)	None	University	1
banjo1985	Clouseau (H3)	None	Masqued	3
billtodamax	Parisian (LC)	None	University	2
calar	Parisian	Blood Magus	Nobles	2
Fin	Parisian (H1)	Resurrectionist	Created	1
Istari	Parisian (LC) (IA)	None	University	0
mangosta71	Parisian	None	University	0
Murska	Parisian	Farspeaker	Created (Ch)	0
otakuryoga	Parisian (IA)	None	Gypsies	0
Penguinator	SC Parisian	None	Nobles	2
PirateMonk	Parisian (LC)	None	Nobles	1
Ramsus	Parisian (LC)	None	Created (No)	0
TinyMushroom	Parisian	None	Nobles	1

The Rolls of the Dead

Player	Role (Notes)	Secondary (if any)	Faction	Died When
IXI_FatTony_IXI	Parisian	Spy	Gypsies	L1
Alber	Parisian	Rabble Rouser	University	A2
Eternis	Vampire (LC)	None	None	A2
The_JJ	Parisian	None	None	A2
Urien	Parisian (LC)	None	None	A3
Eldritch_Knight	Feuder	None	None	L3
Lady Tialait	Doppleganger	None	None	N3
Lex-Kat	Parisian	None	Gypsies	L4
Khal	Poirot (LC)	None	Gypsies	A5
Fleeing_Coward	Parisian	Phantom	Masqued	L6
ThePhantom	Parisian	None	None	N6
D_Lord	Vampire	Farspeaker	Nobles	A8
Diva De	Parisian	None	Gypsies	A8
Joxer_t'_Mighty	Parisian	None	Masqued	A8
Lindon	Dracula (CovA)	None	None	L8
cd4	Van Helsing	None	Inquisition	N8
bladescape	Vampire (CovA)	Bounty Hunter	Inquisition	L9
Lamech	Parisian	Illusionist	Created (Ch)	N9
TsukikoJ	Feuder(CovA, LC)	None	Gypsies	N9
erikun	Parisian (IB)	None	Inquisition	A10
super dark33	Nosferatu (CovA)	None	Gypsies	L10
Matthias2207	Parisian (LC)	None	Gypsies	A11
Mustiado	Parisian	Master Politician	Nobles	A11
Lord_Loss	Abm Drac (CovA)	None	Nobles	L11
Larspcus2	Parisian (LC, IB)	None	Gypsies	L12
TigerFang	Parisian	None	Masqued	N13
Gray_Mage	Parisian (LC)	None	Gypsies	N13
Zar_Peter	Parisian (IA)	None	Masqued	L14
Elder_Tsofu	Parisian (M1)	None	None	L15
Reinholdt	Parisian (IA)	None	University	N15
The_Grimmace	Beast	None	No Faction	N16

[super dark33]

Well, i would have enjoyd it if the abomination wouldent have to kill the vampires as it ruined the game for me. if he would only win with us then it would work much better.

Also: first Devil+seer role game! WOOOO!

[Alarra]

Originally Posted by Helgraf

Lovers
I think this version worked surprisingly well though I'll need to clean up the SC rules just a little bit to remind them that they still need to work for their side as a whole (eg, SC Vamp must send a kill request in each night regardless, SC Villager, if they have a secondary role, must use its power).

I agree. Because frankly even though I was a 'vampire'... I didn't work or act like a vampire at all in the game.

[super dark33]

Originally Posted by Alarra

I agree. Because frankly even though I was a 'vampire'... I didn't work or act like a vampire at all in the game.

Thats what i didnt like.
Im sure that all CoVa would say so.

[Murska]

Heh. Created Church. I'm an abomination to my faith!

Oh well, big deal. It's my faith to dictate as I will.

[Helgraf]

Note to self: I need to clarify how coven formation works a little bit - there's been a rule in effect the whole time that is not explicitly stated in the ruleset that the vamps have always figured out in prior playthroughs of Vampire that they seemed to miss this time around.

Other Notes
While I will certainly continue to follow this thread for a while to give more players the chance to comment, I can safely say there will be a Vampire VI; it may be the first time in the series where instead of adding an entirely new element, that I simply make refinements to the current model to see if they offset some of the issues experienced this go about.

I will be seeking a co-admin to help run it. This installation has proven to me that I can't do it alone - or even with someone to grab the narrations. I just need a narrative framework/period to set it in so events appropriate to said framework can be constructed and the admin rulebook can be created so whomever helps me with this beast knows all the secrets from the get-go.

This game took nearly 6 months to complete - most of which was my fault for not getting the phases ended on time (or even close to on time on several occasions). For this, I offer my humble apologies to all of my players and my thanks that most of you stuck it out until the end. You all deserved better, and God willing, I'll deliver better next time.

If you have ideas for an appropriate time period/semi-historical setting, feel free to suggest them. I -prefer- to keep the game non-modern, but that is not a strict requirement - after all, in the end, I want to put together an experience that will appeal to you, the players as well.

Originally Posted by Helgraf

Lovers
I think this version worked surprisingly well though I'll need to clean up the SC rules just a little bit to remind them that they still need to work for their side as a whole (eg, SC Vamp must send a kill request in each night regardless, SC Villager, if they have a secondary role, must use its power).

Originally Posted by Alarra

I agree. Because frankly even though I was a 'vampire'... I didn't work or act like a vampire at all in the game.

Actually, I think I need to ride on team Vamp a little harder overall. There were a lot of nights where many vamps (before the massive die-off) simply weren't submitting night kills.

Perhaps put in a sort of night auto-lynch provision wherein if you don't vote for the night kill at least every other night, you go into torpor (die) because you didn't keep up with your feeding. This would, of course, also apply to the SC Vampire.

I may need to change a few of the secondary roles - some of them made little or no use of their powers throughout the game; there's little point in having a secondary role/role ability if it's going to sit there unused.

[Ramsus]

I was the High Magistrate before I died in case anyone was wondering where that role vanished to. As far as rarely ever putting my ability to good use... well, I came close to having to a few times but, overall it didn't end up seeing much use not, I think, as any part of bad balancing but, mostly just good luck that people I was allied with weren't too into trying to murder each other nor was anyone gunning especially for me.

[mangosta71]

Originally Posted by Helgraf

Perhaps put in a sort of night auto-lynch provision wherein if you don't vote for the night kill at least every other night, you go into torpor (die) because you didn't keep up with your feeding. This would, of course, also apply to the SC Vampire.

Instead of them going into torpor, what if they went into a feeding frenzy? Ie, they go after someone at random if they don't send in a night kill.

If you're looking for another historical era that has a bit of political intrigue for your next setting, would 1917 Moscow or 1933 Berlin be acceptable? Or perhaps 1605 or 1648 London?

[super dark33]

I would love help with narrative stuff! managing isnt my deal, and without breaking your head trying to write narrations, im sure you could manage well.

[Lamech]

Hey did I actually manage to confuse any scries?