Vampire: the Masquerade is White Wolf’s game of dark, moody intrigue and gothic-punk creatures of the night. In the role of an accursed vampire, this setting invites the player to explore themes of morality and depravity, the presence or absence of humanity, the sensual allure of horror and the slimming hope of salvation. Set against a backdrop of bleak urbanity — a considerably darker reflection of our own existence — Vampire evokes both a sense of alienation from the basic human condition and a sense of belonging. Whether it’s played low-life or high-society, this game asks: what tools of politics, treachery, persuasion and supernatural power will you use to thrive as a modern-day predator? The night-world is steeped in danger, a terrible and beautiful place of bloodthirsty parasites, manipulators and deceivers in an endless dance of intrigue.

Even without the looming specter of the Jyhad, the ever-present threats between Camarilla, Sabbat and Autarkis factions and the possible return of the Antediluvians in the coming nights of Gehenna, the vampire is beholden to social contracts with their fellow monsters at the risk of dire consequences should they be breached. In addition to nightly survival, the vampire exists in a world where one’s peers in the aristocracy of the dead aspire to legions of doting followers, vast riches and supremacy of influence over the mortal world that forms their feeding grounds. Of the four World of Darkness games represented on TowersMUX, Vampire: the Masquerade is the most mercilessly competitive within itself and possibly the most existentially heavy — it takes a pessimistic point of view and populates it with selfish, narcissistic characters who may or may not ultimately be concerned with anything but taking full advantage of how bad the world is getting. It may well be that vampire society will ultimately self-consume before they ever find answers to the larger looming threats, whether they acknowledge these threats or dismiss them as myths.

What Should I Expect From The Vampire Sphere?

The mortal world in many ways defines vampiric existence. Whether you’re a Toreador with your finger on the pulse of the nightclub scene, a Ventrue working the strings of politics and money, or a Brujah deep in the nightly fray of the streets and back alleys, the vampire is fundamentally a predator and parasite, and mortals are both their prey and resource. Ultimately, vampires interact with and depend on the continued existence of a world that doesn’t really need them — in fact, that world is slowly leaving them behind. Over time, a vampire will need to do some horrible and inhuman things just to survive and keep hold of the things that make the unlife worth living. But also over time, the more successful one is as a vampire, the harder a time one has retaining those qualities of humanity that make existence meaningful. The struggle to stay in tune with mortal existence means the vampire is slowly becoming something a little remote from humanity at large, and from one’s own humanity as well.

Vampire players should expect a fundamentally tragic sphere, one in which the monster’s participation is really not optional — a vampire who isn’t willing to do horrible things will eventually either starve, be marginalized or effectively eliminated by a rival who’s more willing to do so. Our vision of Vampire: The Masquerade is of a London where vampires are nightly seeking ways to indirectly get a leg up on other vampires, all members of an extended family that at least have the potential to be around forever. Vampiric existence is distinctly fraught, and how you navigate these tensions will make all the difference.