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Vampire: the Masquerade
Children of the Night (Vampire: The Masquerade Novels) by White Wolf Games Studio (1-Apr-1999) Paperback
What are we?The Damned childer of caine?The grotesque lords of humanity? The pitiful wretches of eternal hell? We are vampires, and that is enough. I am a vampire, and that is far more than enough. I am that which must be feared, worshipped and adored. The world is mine -- now and forever.No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What is a claim of power for ones who defy death? Call your damnable hunt. We shall see whom I drag screaming to hell with me.The masters of the undead in the Final Nights.
Paperback
First published April 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 19, 2015
Ah, for the days of yore, when metaplot was king and gamers of a certain type pored over every single supplement released to find the new tidbit of information. I'm not being that sarcastic--Portfolio Of A Dragon: Dunkelzahn's Secrets is one of the best gaming supplements ever made--but there's a very difficult line to walk between being a supplement that's enjoyable for people who read it without ever playing, and one that's actually useful at the table. Children of the Night, sadly, falls more on the former end than the latter.
Don't get me wrong. If you're at all interested in Vampire's metaplot, it's a great read. I remember a lot of discussion coming from tidbits dropped in the biographies of the vampires found in here, including one of my favorite parts: the theory that Jalan-Aajiv, one of the Seraphim of the Black Hand, and Karsh, the so-called "Warlord of the Camarilla," are actually the same person. Both of them fought for the Turks against Byzantium, but the real giveaway is that their statistics are identical. Or Mahatma, Monitor of Istanbul, who's listed of unknown clan with a sire named "Laodice." But if you look at his Disciplines (including Auspex, Fortitude, and Mortis), and realize that Laodicea and Cappadocius are both in Asia Minor, along with the note that Mahatma never shows his true appearance, you can tell what clan he is. And that's just two. There are probably a load of other mysteries I'm missing because I only got into Vampire with the revised corebook and haven't really read any of the earlier material, so all the references to Chicago went over my head.
The problem is, though...how much of this is going to come up. Are the PCs ever going to meet a justicar, much less someone like Al-Ashrad, head of the sorcerer caste for the Children of Haqim, or Rebekah, Monitor of Chicago? It's interesting reading about them, and with my love for flowery prose, the fact that Al-Ashrad's biography starts with:
And there are some vampires that the PCs might actually encounter in here, true. I liked César Holfield, the thin-blooded Caitiff who's pretty apathetic about being a vampire and doesn't understand that his crescent-moon-shaped birthmark means that Noddists everywhere are hunting him down with an indescribable fury. And Leila Monroe, the Sabbat priscus who's determined to take Los Angeles for the Sabbat no matter how many anarchs and Camarilla and 鬼人 stand in her way, would be pretty important in a Southern California-based Sabbat game. Some of the Camarilla archons, like Lithrac or Theo Bell, aren't so powerful that they would totally overshadow the game if they rolled into town while still providing evidence of the Camarilla's might. It's not totally designed for reading rather than in-play use.
I didn't mention the third category of joke references, which are thankfully brief. The two I remember are Jayne Jonestown the vampire musician--you can probably tell who that's based on--and the one that I actually forgive White Wolf for including. El Diablo Verde, the vampire luchador. I mean, look at this:
Unfortunately, between the jokes and the metaplot, the number of readily-usable characters is pretty low, which is why Children of the Night only gets three stars from me. It's not false advertising, because the back says it's about the movers and shakers among the Clans and the sects, and unless you're running an elders game, those are definitely the kind of people that the PCs are never going to meet. I would have liked more down-to-earth characters that are more immediately useful.
Don't get me wrong. If you're at all interested in Vampire's metaplot, it's a great read. I remember a lot of discussion coming from tidbits dropped in the biographies of the vampires found in here, including one of my favorite parts: the theory that Jalan-Aajiv, one of the Seraphim of the Black Hand, and Karsh, the so-called "Warlord of the Camarilla," are actually the same person. Both of them fought for the Turks against Byzantium, but the real giveaway is that their statistics are identical. Or Mahatma, Monitor of Istanbul, who's listed of unknown clan with a sire named "Laodice." But if you look at his Disciplines (including Auspex, Fortitude, and Mortis), and realize that Laodicea and Cappadocius are both in Asia Minor, along with the note that Mahatma never shows his true appearance, you can tell what clan he is. And that's just two. There are probably a load of other mysteries I'm missing because I only got into Vampire with the revised corebook and haven't really read any of the earlier material, so all the references to Chicago went over my head.
The problem is, though...how much of this is going to come up. Are the PCs ever going to meet a justicar, much less someone like Al-Ashrad, head of the sorcerer caste for the Children of Haqim, or Rebekah, Monitor of Chicago? It's interesting reading about them, and with my love for flowery prose, the fact that Al-Ashrad's biography starts with:
All honor to al-Ashrad, he who watched the breaking of the Curse that the devil-touched Tremere laid upon the Blood. He who performed the Ritual of Creation, which kept the Children of Haqim strong through the many nights of their disgrace. He who forged the Fang of Kali and strung the Bow of the Sun. He who chains the storms and strikes down devils with his hand of iron. All honor to al-Ashrad, the greatest magician in the world!is a point hugely in its favor, as is the way Elimelech's Embrace date is just given as Ruth 1:3. But in the games I've played in, the PCs are lucky if they ever get to talk to the Prince of the city they're in, much less Sabbat Seraphim or Justicars or Inconnu monitors. They're fun to read about but they don't help me actually run the game.
And there are some vampires that the PCs might actually encounter in here, true. I liked César Holfield, the thin-blooded Caitiff who's pretty apathetic about being a vampire and doesn't understand that his crescent-moon-shaped birthmark means that Noddists everywhere are hunting him down with an indescribable fury. And Leila Monroe, the Sabbat priscus who's determined to take Los Angeles for the Sabbat no matter how many anarchs and Camarilla and 鬼人 stand in her way, would be pretty important in a Southern California-based Sabbat game. Some of the Camarilla archons, like Lithrac or Theo Bell, aren't so powerful that they would totally overshadow the game if they rolled into town while still providing evidence of the Camarilla's might. It's not totally designed for reading rather than in-play use.
I didn't mention the third category of joke references, which are thankfully brief. The two I remember are Jayne Jonestown the vampire musician--you can probably tell who that's based on--and the one that I actually forgive White Wolf for including. El Diablo Verde, the vampire luchador. I mean, look at this:
None can withstand the might of El Diablo Verde. His execution of the awe-inspiring 450° Corkscrew Diablo-canrana™, a feat of athleticism seemingly impossible for a combatant his size, routinely brings the bloodthirsty crowd to its feet. His Chupacabra Helldriver™, while seemingly simple, is one of the most effective finishing maneuvers in the sport. His crippling Javelín de Infierno™, a tope suicida/ spinebuster combination, has sent mortals to the grave and weaker Kindred into agonized torpor. And when El Diablo Verde locks on the debilitating Calamar Gigante Clutch™… well, whatcha gonna do when the Largest Arms in the World of Darkness® run wild on you?All trademarks in the original. One of the common complaints about Vampire is that it always ends up as Superheroes with Fangs, which is not inherently a problem but is certainly at odds with the way the material is presented. However, El Diablo Verde and the idea of a wrestling federation filled with vampires and werewolves and changelings fits perfectly into that kind of World of Darkness, where shadow tentacles throw cars and people use Celerity to play wicked guitar riffs.
Unfortunately, between the jokes and the metaplot, the number of readily-usable characters is pretty low, which is why Children of the Night only gets three stars from me. It's not false advertising, because the back says it's about the movers and shakers among the Clans and the sects, and unless you're running an elders game, those are definitely the kind of people that the PCs are never going to meet. I would have liked more down-to-earth characters that are more immediately useful.
June 17, 2019
Pretty interesting compilation of some horrible monsters.
October 13, 2020
This book is only really applicable if you are trying to be Beckett and do a genealogical chart of the Kindred.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews