The Invictus, A Sourcebook for Vampire - A Requiem (White Wolf Game Studio) by Kraig Blackwelder

by Kraig Blackwelder

An Invincible Legacy Patterning itself after the glory of Rome's Kindred society and the ages of kings that followed, the Invictus stands as a model covenant, one immune to the passage of time. But how well do ancient ways mesh with the Damned of the modern world? On whose backs is the Ivory Tower's foundation built? A Covenant Guide for The Requiem * Details the history, hierarchy, and goals of the Invictus (one of Vampire's core factions), and serves as an invaluable guide to the world of the Kindred from the covenant's unique viewpoint. * Features new bloodlines and powers unique to the Invictus, making the book a sure draw to the players. * Provides settings, antagonists, and story seeds for Storytellers. * Invaluable for running political and intrigue chronicles, as the Invictus is the covenant of Princes and power-schemers.

Genres: Role Playing Games, Gaming, Vampires

Hardcover

First published October 31, 2005

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

The vampires of White Wolf's World of Darkness are consummate predators. Predators - generally speaking - don't often suffer the company of other predators, particularly those that compete for the same food source, and rarely willingly when it does happen. One of the few things that encourages vampires to interact with each other is affiliation within a covenant. Such affiliations tend - by the very nature of their members - to be relatively loose ties, but they are not fleeting; vampires in the World of Darkness take a very dim view of those who willingly sever their connection to their covenant-mates. In The Invictus, White Wolf takes a look at the feudalistic covenant envied by many and hated by most - even by some of those within.

Of the major covenants, the Invictus is perhaps the most often noticed. The First Estate, as they are sometimes called, recruit others by showing their power and wealth; they maintain those two attributes by creating a feudal system of governance, demanding absolute loyalty from all within the covenant. As such, the Invictus is less popular with younger vampires; feudalism isn't a natural state for most of the modern world, and those who crossed over in more recent nights tend to have less affinity - and less patience - for the very slow rate of upward mobility to be found within the covenant's membership. Power is concentrated at the top, among those judged worthy by virtue of having survived ages and amassed an impressive array of powers and wealth. Invictus elders like to think of their covenant as a "Meritocracy;" as long as they have control, they can believe anything they like.

The Invictus is also a covenant that encourages a larger degree of patronage than most, in a sense fostering younger Kindred until they are old enough to stand on their own, and Kindred of any clan are welcome to join. Were it not intensely frowned upon, a vampire could be fostered under mentors within the Invictus then jump to another covenant - say the Lancaea Sanctum, or even become an unbound vampire. Such a thing is severely (and sometimes fatally) discouraged. Formal to the extreme, Invictus elders know that there is proper etiquette and ritual to be observed in nearly everything; the role of Mentor is far more than symbolic, for there is much a novice Invictus must learn. Fortunately, she has an eternity spreading out ahead of her in which to acquire the knowledge she must have.

The rest of this review may be found at Flames Rising.com .