Creating that special Vampire: The Masquerade feeling

[Thrawn4]

Hello everyone.

I am going to start a VtM campaign soon and have already prepared the general plotline, but I am more accustomed to DM a fantasy setting and need some tips for creating this special VtM atmosphere. I had a VtM campaign before but it kind of deteriorated to the superheroes at night pitfall and I would rather develop some atmosphere like in the videogames (especially bloodlines).
During the next campaign, I intend to keep the focus on the street setting (as in less powerful individuals) and personal drama /incentives and moral decisions, so I will hopefully the mentioned pitfall. Still, I am not sure whether that is enough to create a great atmosphere and I would love to hear your thoughts on the following ideas as well as further suggestions.

- Use of music from great vampire movies (e. g. Interview with the vampire, Let the right one in...)
- Offering some kind of red drink
- candles

Still, I am kind of stuck especially on how to create a modern crapsack setting.

[Alejandro]

If I sat down and there were 'blood' red drinks and candles, I wouldn't be able to take anything seriously after that point.

[zlefin]

while i haven't played too much vampire so these are only ideas.

Maybe something film noir-ish? I'd look through some film-noir and mob films for inspiration. i don't remember if the godfather has music with enough length for good atmosphere.
I'd avoid vampire specific stuff; that just feels off, i'd stick to more basics.
Shoddy flickering lighting is common in such settings; though it may be unpleasant to play under.

[Driderman]

It depends a lot on what type of Vampire you play.

Usually, the musical background for the vampire games I play is more something along the line of the grungy goth-electro-punk music of the 80's,90's and 00's: The Cure, the soundtracks for The Crow movies (1 & 2), Rob Zombie, Tiamat, Paradise Lost, Psyclon Nine, Lacuna Coil, A Perfect Circle, Tool and others in that vein.
Ambience is good, but don't over do it. Unless you're playing Live-action, I'd forego the red wine, but setting the mood with candles and such can be fine. Just don't make it look like you're holding a seance or somesuch, less is more usually :)

N.B: Proper lighting to play in is better than setting the mood and getting a headache after a couple of hours due to shoddy lighting!

[Kesnit]

If you want to keep it from becoming "superheros by night," set up some powerful NPC's (Prince, clan Primarchs, etc) to keep the PCs in their place. You don't have to do much with them; just have them there as a threat hanging over the player's heads.

Minimize combat (unless your whole party are combat focused). Vampire is a political game, so focus on the politics of the city. Not to say you should completely ignore combat, just that you should not plan a combat every session.

[aberratio ictus]

One thing our group has realized works very well to set atmosphere and to keep to personal drama and moral descisions instead of "superheroes at night" -

start them out as humans. Seriously, do that. If you haven't already told them to create their characters, tell them to build a human and not bother thinking of clans. That's not their choice.

If you start people as vampires, they're, well, vampires, no matter how much backstory they create for their characters.
Though if you allow them to live in the shoes of their human characters for some sessions, live their daily lives and, in the end, experience being hunted first hand, being killed and changed first hand, the introduction into vampire society first hand, everything will make an extremely different - and more intense - impression on them.

[neonchameleon]

Hello everyone.

I am going to start a VtM campaign soon and have already prepared the general plotline, but I am more accustomed to DM a fantasy setting and need some tips for creating this special VtM atmosphere. I had a VtM campaign before but it kind of deteriorated to the superheroes at night pitfall and I would rather develop some atmosphere like in the videogames (especially bloodlines).
During the next campaign, I intend to keep the focus on the street setting (as in less powerful individuals) and personal drama /incentives and moral decisions, so I will hopefully the mentioned pitfall. Still, I am not sure whether that is enough to create a great atmosphere and I would love to hear your thoughts on the following ideas as well as further suggestions.

- Use of music from great vampire movies (e. g. Interview with the vampire, Let the right one in...)
- Offering some kind of red drink
- candles

Still, I am kind of stuck especially on how to create a modern crapsack setting.

Less is more. Darken the room a bit and have music on in the background will be plenty. Blood red wine is simply giggle-worthy.

Modern crapsack - a bit of futility, a bit of evocative description, and open with the Prince gunned down by ordinary mortals with guns, showing no one is invulnerable. The replacement then starts a reign of terror both for revenge and to consolidate his position.

[Surfnerd]

During the time my group was playing VtM, the Storytellers parents were on drug induced hiatus, the power was out and the house was a decrepit mess. It wasn't hard to invoke the mood when you are huddled around candles, bundled against the cold and hoping the batteries don't run out on the boombox.

On the music note, definitely the Crow soundtrack, the very minimum the first movie. I think we listened to a lot of switchblade symphony back then also. Which I don't think I've listened to since then, so if that turns out to be terrible, sorry:smallredface:

[Hyooz]

One thing that can be hard to generate, but I've found is a real key to V:tM is creating a pervasive feeling of there always being a bigger fish. No matter what they accomplish, what territory they take over or butts they kiss, they're still somebody's lackey. They can still be stomped out like a spent cigarette, replaced, or made entirely powerless by the people above them.

And that's their friends.

[Thrawn4]

Thanks already for your suggestions. As I never understood how to quote several people in the same post, I will just adress some points without quotes.

Candles and red wine: I was afraid that this might be to much. Guess I will just light some candles for the atmosphere without refraining from normal light and skip the wine entirely. Although I am not sure whether candles really suit the urban atmoshpere - probably depends on the situation.

grungy goth-electro-punk music: Again, might depend on the situation. While I feel that this music creates the right mood I find songs with lyrics distracting when roleplaying. I could imagine it in some scenes, however, e. g. discos. Thanks for all the suggestions again.

start as humans + introduce powerful npcs: Good to know that i did something right :smallsmile:
The first two adventures in this campaign will be played as normal humans that try to find the assailant which attacked one of their friends. In the end they will find that their enemy is a doctor who researches blood diseases. Unfortunately he is also a Malkavian and about to kill them. The players have to survive a few attacks until the other vampires in the city notice them and turn them (incidentally, the players can only choose which clan they don't want to play - I am going to allocate their new father/mother based on the players decision). But the powerful prince is not going to indulge the players (he is actually annoyed by it) lust for vengeance and therefor they have to find allies and means to prove the doctor's risky research.

crapsack world: Probably still the most difficult part for me. Drug abuse is going to be a topic in the campaign as well, but maybe I can also go for futile dreams and a happier past.

Important issue I forgot: humanity
The way I see it, humanity is the one saving grace that new vampires have, but occasionally it can be effective to ignore one's conscience. Should I focus on the precious remainder of humanity which is also a burden and therefore threatened by one's own desires, or should I render human and inhuman behaviour as equal ways without any benefits for one?

[neonchameleon]

Hello everyone.

I am going to start a VtM campaign soon and have already prepared the general plotline, but I am more accustomed to DM a fantasy setting and need some tips for creating this special VtM atmosphere. I had a VtM campaign before but it kind of deteriorated to the superheroes at night pitfall and I would rather develop some atmosphere like in the videogames (especially bloodlines).

I should probably bring up that VtM is probably not the best system to run a game of VtM in. As I said on the other thread, I'd try Monsterhearts or Smallville depending which atmosphere I wanted.

[The Glyphstone]

There's also the VtM Translation Guide, for running Masquerade's clans and setting under the NWoD Requiem ruleset.

[Driderman]

Both rulesets are pretty bad. The most important thing about the Storyteller system is to remember that, like the Pirate Code, "it's more like guidelines".

[Thrawn4]

The V:tM system might not be perfect, but I never encountered any serious flaws (except celerity). Also, I love the setting so there is a very slim chance for nWOD. Still, I am curious. What is better in the new system except the balance in crossovers?

[comicshorse]

The V:tM system might not be perfect, but I never encountered any serious flaws (except celerity). Also, I love the setting so there is a very slim chance for nWOD. Still, I am curious. What is better in the new system except the balance in crossovers?

Combat is now one roll rather than four

[Driderman]

Combat roll reduction is, arguably, the nWoD setting's only mayor improvement over the old setting, but it's nothing you can't fix with a few, simple house rules instead of switching systems.

[The Glyphstone]

The V:tM system might not be perfect, but I never encountered any serious flaws (except celerity). Also, I love the setting so there is a very slim chance for nWOD. Still, I am curious. What is better in the new system except the balance in crossovers?

That's why the Translation Guide is so nice - it lets you keep the Old setting under the New mechanics, giving you the best of both worlds.

[Renatus]

It depends a lot on what type of Vampire you play.

Usually, the musical background for the vampire games I play is more something along the line of the grungy goth-electro-punk music of the 80's,90's and 00's: The Cure, the soundtracks for The Crow movies (1 & 2), Rob Zombie, Tiamat, Paradise Lost, Psyclon Nine, Lacuna Coil, A Perfect Circle, Tool and others in that vein.
!
Yeah no, just no. The cure is the only goth band listed there.

First and foremost, there is of course the most cliche perfect for VtM song of all time "Bela Lugosi's dead" by Bauhaus, it's a great song but like I said cliche as all heck in terms of VtM.

White wolf has actually released an official soundtrack, known as "Music from the Succubus club".

Switchblade symphony as mentioned before is good. Then there's the Damned, Sunshine Blind.

Gotta put special note for anything by Daniel Ash, more specifically the band Tones on Tail... If you've played Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines, check out their song "burning Skies" you'll recognize Daniel Ashes's signature playing that went into Vesuvius's music.

If you want a more modern electronic sound for a club though gothic rock might not work so theres Dark Wave there's the german band Blutengel(Blood Angel), along with blutengel's associated acts, Gary Numan, Leandra.

If you're looking for something that definitely works as ambient background music though, you can't go wrong with Dead Can Dance....just a warning though, it is powerful stuff, it might bring you to tears.

[Ichneumon]

I've played and DM'd a lot of VtM games. Maybe it was just my group, but we never liked/used much props or stuff (like music, candles or stuff like that). I think that the key to getting it right is really in what happens in the game: the setting, the mood & theme. I think that what is key to World of Darkness games are the feelings of desperation, hopelessness, fear, secrecy, treachery and the unknown. Even if you manage to make a difference, it's just one tiny light in a far greater pool of darkness.

I think you can best portray these themes (or any theme really) in the way NPCs act and speak, in the way you describe the environment etc.

[Driderman]

Yeah no, just no. The cure is the only goth band listed there.

First and foremost, there is of course the most cliche perfect for VtM song of all time "Bela Lugosi's dead" by Bauhaus, it's a great song but like I said cliche as all heck in terms of VtM.

White wolf has actually released an official soundtrack, known as "Music from the Succubus club".

Switchblade symphony as mentioned before is good. Then there's the Damned, Sunshine Blind.

Gotta put special note for anything by Daniel Ash, more specifically the band Tones on Tail... If you've played Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines, check out their song "burning Skies" you'll recognize Daniel Ashes's signature playing that went into Vesuvius's music.

If you want a more modern electronic sound for a club though gothic rock might not work so theres Dark Wave there's the german band Blutengel(Blood Angel), along with blutengel's associated acts, Gary Numan, Leandra.

If you're looking for something that definitely works as ambient background music though, you can't go wrong with Dead Can Dance....just a warning though, it is powerful stuff, it might bring you to tears.

Considering Tiamat is on the soundtrack for Vampire Bloodlines as well, along with Lacuna Coil, I consider it proper "Vampire" music :)
Of course, taste may vary but for the street-level, goth-punk feel I'm partial to those bands (among others). I listened to the Music From the Succubus Club once and although it was decent, I felt it fell rather short of the mark.
In the end though, each campaign has its own unique musical tapestry (even if its just a complete lack of music), I was just making suggestions, not decrees.