Renegade Game Studios Takes Over World of Darkness

Renegade Game Studio is taking over the World of Darkness! They will be publishing books produced in-house by owner Paradox, starting in December with the free (digital) Vampire: The Masquerade Companion, which has rules for playing humans and ghouls, as well as the clans Tzimisce, Ravnos, and Salubri.

Modiphius took over the line in December 2018; there's no mention of whether that is continuing. Renegade Game Studios, which brought us Kids on Bikes, recently announced that it was producing D&D 5E-powered lines for various Hasbro properties, including Power Rangers, and possibly Transformers, G.I. Joe, and My Little Pony.

The new World of Darkness books are to be produced in-house at Paradox, under the leadership of Justin Achilli, from White Wolf. They won't only be making RPGs -- they're also creating video games, comics, and more.

The Vampire Companion is coming free in December.

The Vampire: The Masquerade Companion book brings three highly-anticipated Vampire clans into V5, and gives Storytellers more tools to enhance their chronicles, including:

• Three vampire clans: Tzimisce, Ravnos, Salubri
• Discipline powers representing each of the new clans
• Expanded rules and roleplaying information for ghouls and mortals
• Details on each clan’s view on vampire coteries
• New Merits for players characters
• Rules errata to Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition

 

[macd21]

So, the short answer is you can’t. San Francisco by Night was a sourcebook for Kindred of the East and both that Nights of Prophesy were fairly late releases in any case. You’d have to cut it more that just a couple of covers to support what you claimed.

I have my core books in front of me as I type, by the way.

Good for you?

So do you want to address the war between the Camarilla and the Sabbat? The swarms of shovel heads rampaging through the streets? The Kuei Jin invasion? The Assamite Civil War? I can’t be bothered getting quotes for these setting elements, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t happen. When the background fluff and novels spend so much time detailing the battles of superpowered immortals battling in streets, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a lot of people played it as superpowered immortals battling in the streets.

Not that I think 5ed is doing any better. Whatever the mechanics, the new background fluff starts with special forces and drone strikes hitting the Vampires of London and Vienna.

 

[TrippyHippy]

Good for you?

So do you want to address the war between the Camarilla and the Sabbat? The swarms of shovel heads rampaging through the streets? The Kuei Jin invasion? The Assamite Civil War? I can’t be bothered getting quotes for these setting elements, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t happen. When the background fluff and novels spend so much time detailing the battles of superpowered immortals battling in streets, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a lot of people played it as superpowered immortals battling in the streets.

Not that I think 5ed is doing any better. Whatever the mechanics, the new background fluff starts with special forces and drone strikes hitting the Vampires of London and Vienna.

Well, if you want to shift the goal posts, sure.

The Camarilla vs Sabbat conflict was actually only made a core theme after the 2nd edition of the game had been released. The Players’ Guide to the Sabbat, which came out about 1992/3, attempted to make what had been a peripheral bogeyman group playable (as they did with all groups in the WoD), introducing the final Clans to make up the mystical 13 and introducing alternative moral ‘Paths’ to replace Humanity. The core books, however, were still based on the central notion of young ‘Anarchs’ up against the Elders of the Camarilla - so the Sabbat were still supplemental, but becoming increasingly references and detailed as an alternative (and hostile) group to the Camarilla.

Vampire: The Masquerade essentially suffered from its success in that it released a huge amount of supplements for World of Darkness games (something like 50 a year) for a range of games and spinoffs that were meant to be consistent and coherent to a combined setting, but actually weren’t. Some were good and others were not, and what was canonical or not also became confusing. By the time that White Wolf decided they wanted to do a Revised edition of all the core games, which was really done more for financial reasons, they also decided they needed to consolidate the setting details. Vampire Revised included all the 13 Clans for the first time, naturally dividing them into Sects, which immediately put the Camarilla at odds against the Sabbat and essentially made it a core theme of the game by doing so.

The Kuei-Jin were a spin-off in the form of Kindred of the East, which was part of a general drive in all the main game lines to create Eastern-based games. The Assamites (now Banu Haqim) are a Clan of historical warriors/assassins, and while there are plenty of political conflicts throughout the game, this doesn’t equate to making the game all about playing superpowered immortals fighting in the streets. The conflicts are usually political in nature.

The background fluff and novels do not spend much time about superpowered immortals battling in the streets. Like.... at all, frankly! Yes, they do have scenarios that depict physical conflict - including in 5E where The Second Inquisition is detailed as major antagonists for vampires in the 21st Century. But the tone is that of a gritty thriller, not superheroes. The mechanics in 5E make this absolutely clear.

Indeed, one of the advantages of gaming these days, is that there are ready exemplars of what most games are about by simply watching or listening to podcasts or actual play videos. If you want to see how the game developers and writers actually intend Vampire: the Masquerade to be played, go and watch LA by Night or listen to Red Moon Roleplaying.

 

[macd21]

How am I shifting goal posts?

None of what you posted refutes the contention that VtM was a game about superheroes with fangs wielding katanas while wearing trench coats. Sure, the core books didn't outright focus on it. But - as you said - the Camarilla vs the Sabbat became a core theme. The fact that the Sabbat were initially supplemental is irrelevant to the impact they had on people's perception of the setting. Likewise the Kuei Jin. And while the game may have initially focused on the Anarchs vs the Elders, that didn't mean they weren't Katana wielding Anarchs wearing trench coats (though I'll grant you, it was more often katana wielding Anarchs wearing leather jackets). The 'political' conflicts in the game usually ended up with superpowered immortals battling each other in the streets (or the sewers, or rooftops, or boardrooms).

Nights of prophecy literally has a picture of a vampire in a trenchcoat with a katana, fighting in the street. That didn't come out of nowhere. It was a reflection of what the game had become, regardless of what the writers may have initially intended. People playing it that way weren't playing some parody of VtM, they were playing the game that was depicted in the background and the fluff, and that was supported by the system.

 

[TrippyHippy]

How am I shifting goal posts?

None of what you posted refutes the contention that VtM was a game about superheroes with fangs wielding katanas while wearing trench coats. Sure, the core books didn't outright focus on it. But - as you said - the Camarilla vs the Sabbat became a core theme. The fact that the Sabbat were initially supplemental is irrelevant to the impact they had on people's perception of the setting. Likewise the Kuei Jin. And while the game may have initially focused on the Anarchs vs the Elders, that didn't mean they weren't Katana wielding Anarchs wearing trench coats (though I'll grant you, it was more often katana wielding Anarchs wearing leather jackets). The 'political' conflicts in the game usually ended up with superpowered immortals battling each other in the streets (or the sewers, or rooftops, or boardrooms).

Nights of prophecy literally has a picture of a vampire in a trenchcoat with a katana, fighting in the street. That didn't come out of nowhere. It was a reflection of what the game had become, regardless of what the writers may have initially intended. People playing it that way weren't playing some parody of VtM, they were playing the game that was depicted in the background and the fluff, and that was supported by the system.

Everything in my post refutes that contention, and you aren’t addressing the point that you cannot back up anything you say with actual quotes or examples. That is why you are shifting the posts towards discussing various conflicts in the game. The game was not written with examples of play that suggests you are playing superheroes with fangs, with katanas or otherwise regardless of what conflicts existed.

Like I say, a couple of covers in late supplements after the hundreds that were published and thousands of art pieces used (not all of which were appropriate) does not establish that the text of the game illustrates that the game was about playing superheroes. The fact that you chose a Kindred of the East book in order to find an picture of a katana being used is not winning your case here - it was not a typical depiction of the game, and more to do with showing ‘Eastern’ tropes - do a simple Google image search for ‘Vampire: The Masquerade’ and you’ll see a better representation of the game. It was not written at all in the ‘fluff' of the game either. If you argue it was - then give quotes and examples.

In fact, the Storyteller system didn’t itself lend itself towards playing that type of game either. The dice-pool based combat was not good at simulating high octane violence - it was too slow and clunky by half.

The Camarilla vs Sabbat conflict only became ‘core' when Revised came out, because that was the first time the Sabbat were detailed in the core rules. Likewise, the Keui Jin were never core. In V5, the Camarilla vs Anarchs is now core, with the Lasombra and Tzmische now being associated with the Camarilla and Anarch groups, respectively. The Sabbat still exist in reduced numbers, but aren’t in the core of the game in any meaningful way currently, although there is a future Sabbat book mooted.

 

[macd21]

Everything in my post refutes that contention, and you aren’t addressing the point that you cannot back up anything you say with actual quotes or examples. That is why you are shifting the posts towards discussing various conflicts in the game. The game was not written with examples of play that suggests you are playing superheroes with fangs, with katanas or otherwise regardless of what conflicts existed.

Like I say, a couple of covers in late supplements after the hundreds that were published and thousands of art pieces used (not all of which were appropriate) does not establish that the text of the game illustrates that the game was about playing superheroes. The fact that you chose a Kindred of the East book in order to find an picture of a katana being used is not winning your case here - it was not a typical depiction of the game, and more to do with showing ‘Eastern’ tropes - do a simple Google image search for ‘Vampire: The Masquerade’ and you’ll see a better representation of the game. It was not written at all in the ‘fluff' of the game either. If you argue it was - then give quotes and examples.

In fact, the Storyteller system didn’t itself lend itself towards playing that type of game either. The dice-pool based combat was not good at simulating high octane violence - it was too slow and clunky by half.

The Camarilla vs Sabbat conflict only became ‘core' when Revised came out, because that was the first time the Sabbat were detailed in the core rules. Likewise, the Keui Jin were never core. In V5, the Camarilla vs Anarchs is now core, with the Lasombra and Tzmische now being associated with the Camarilla and Anarch groups, respectively. The Sabbat still exist in reduced numbers, but aren’t in the core of the game in any meaningful way currently, although there is a future Sabbat book mooted.

I’m not providing quotes because I’m not digging out the books, not because they’re not there. I’ve provided plenty of examples, you’re just ignoring them. Nights of Prophecy isn’t a KoE book, it was a VtM book, one intended to catch players up on metaplot elements of the setting. And when I do a Google image search for VtM I get stuff like this:

Spoiler

Sure, she's wielding a machine gun instead of a katana, but that's not any better. Most of the other images I got were of trench coat (or occasionally leather jacket) wearing bad asses who look ready to cut you up.

The ST system wasn’t great, but it was better at katanas and trench costs than it was just about anything else. It certainly wasn’t well suited to a game of social intrigue and the struggle to retain one’s humanity. In fact VtM has long been the poster child for the argument 'why system matters,' because the system pushes people towards superheroes with fangs instead of what the writers initially wanted for the game.

The Camarilla vs Sabbat only became core when Revised came out, but the conflict was still there before that, and it wasn't the only conflict in the game - like I said, Anarchs vs Elders isn't any better. The Sabbat conflict became core because people were already playing the game that way. And it doesn't really matter whether a conflict was included in the core or not - the overall impression of the game isn't created by the core alone. And the examples I've given above are just a sample. There was the arrival of the Hunters, the epic battle that was the destruction of Ravnos, the fall of the Tremere, etc etc.

I'll grant you that this wasn't the game the designers wanted to create when they released 1ed. But it's the game people saw. When the metaplot is all about epic struggles between powerful undead superbeings, when that's what the supplements cover, and when that's what the rules promote, that's what people end up playing.

 

[TrippyHippy]

I’m not providing quotes because I’m not digging out the books, not because they’re not there. I’ve provided plenty of examples, you’re just ignoring them. Nights of Prophecy isn’t a KoE book, it was a VtM book, one intended to catch players up on metaplot elements of the setting. And when I do a Google image search for VtM I get stuff like this:

Spoiler

View attachment 130641

Sure, she's wielding a machine gun instead of a katana, but that's not any better. Most of the other images I got were of trench coat (or occasionally leather jacket) wearing bad asses who look ready to cut you up.

The ST system wasn’t great, but it was better at katanas and trench costs than it was just about anything else. It certainly wasn’t well suited to a game of social intrigue and the struggle to retain one’s humanity. In fact VtM has long been the poster child for the argument 'why system matters,' because the system pushes people towards superheroes with fangs instead of what the writers initially wanted for the game.

The Camarilla vs Sabbat only became core when Revised came out, but the conflict was still there before that, and it wasn't the only conflict in the game - like I said, Anarchs vs Elders isn't any better. The Sabbat conflict became core because people were already playing the game that way. And it doesn't really matter whether a conflict was included in the core or not - the overall impression of the game isn't created by the core alone. And the examples I've given above are just a sample. There was the arrival of the Hunters, the epic battle that was the destruction of Ravnos, the fall of the Tremere, etc etc.

I'll grant you that this wasn't the game the designers wanted to create when they released 1ed. But it's the game people saw. When the metaplot is all about epic struggles between powerful undead superbeings, when that's what the supplements cover, and when that's what the rules promote, that's what people end up playing.

The reason why you are not providing quotes is because you can’t provide any that support your contention - no other reason.

The image you found (out of one suspects were thousands), doesn’t even come from any of the books - it was an image that comes from White Wolf games, not used in V5, and was highlighted in a promotional article. She isn’t using a katana, but looks like she was modeled from Seline in Underworld. There were several other images in that article - why didn’t you source them?: Vampire: The Masquerade’s latest edition is trying to deal with sex and power in 2018

There are plenty of conflicts sourced in the game, but again, this is different to claiming that the game was about superhuman street battles - Camarilla vs Sabbat was a political conflict first and foremost, and so were all the others you cite. You are not speaking for all ‘people' when you claim you know what they ‘saw’. Your own perception is your own - and it is evidently selective. The rules do not ‘promote' playing superheroes either - they were just loose in their original development (but became much more efficacious in the most recent edition).

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

It's curious because the future videogame don't respect the spirit of the franchise too much.


Disclaimer: no members of the deep state were hurt by the second inquisition for the production of this trailer. (despise our best efforts and intentions, but we are working hardly to fix this soon).

I have bought some books of WoD, mainly Mage: the Ascension, and V:tM isn't my favorite title. When I can I am buying some titles of the Spanish translations of WoD 20A by Nosolorol. And I don't mind the crunch. If I want cruch then I buy D&D (I bought some Pathfinder titles also, but the candence of translations by Devir was veeeeeeeeeeeeeery slow). I neither worry about the metaplot, but the background, the lore, the factions. I don't have to spend money when I can read lots of fandom wikis about supernatural romance titles.

V:tM was designed to be a "Falcon Crest* with fangs" (*a soap opera from the 80's) but lots of players would rather to be superhumans with humans, and if they spend their money to buy the books, then they are totally free to do what they want. And many Storytellers/Game Masters aren't ready to create complex stories about conspirances and intrigues in the court. You can't ask your Game Master to writte a plot as Game of Thrones. Even profesional authors can't with that level.

I am a collector, not a player, and my point of view is WoD can't be a Jurasic Park for gothic horror monsters, because it would be like a ecosystem with too many predators and not enough preys. Monsters can't live hidden among the humans without these to be controlled by the supernatural factions.

And 2021 society isn't 1995. It is not only about last-tech, new materials as graphene, internet, mobile apps, remote-control drones but other social changes are happening now. For example you can't play Werewolve: the Apocalypse and being totally muted about pollution in China and Russia by fault of no-Western companies. Today you ask a Chinese, a Sourth-Korean and a Japanese about how a reboot of Kindred of East should be, and their points of view woul be very different, with their own predjudices against their neighbours countries, or even against compatriots from different regions. Today a WoD storyteller would writte about children prisoners in underground secret tunnels under New York to farm blood, or worse things, because they have read in internet about.... the last conspirancy theories.

My suggestion is a fictional counterpart world where players could enjoy more creative freedom without worry about to be enough politically correct.

 

[MGibster]

V:tM was designed to be a "Falcon Crest* with fangs" (*a soap opera from the 80's) but lots of players would rather to be superhumans with humans, and if they spend their money to buy the books, then they are totally free to do what they want. And many Storytellers/Game Masters aren't ready to create complex stories about conspirances and intrigues in the court. You can't ask your Game Master to writte a plot as Game of Thrones. Even profesional authors can't with that level.

Admittedly, my Vampire games in the 1990s were of the trench coat and katana variety. We were all used to playing D&D and couldn't shake that particular mentality.

I am a collector, not a player, and my point of view is WoD can't be a Jurasic Park for gothic horror monsters, because it would be like a ecosystem with too many predators and not enough preys. Monsters can't live hidden among the humans without these to be controlled by the supernatural factions.

This is a problem for all settings with a robust supernatural ecosystem that remains hidden to mundane humans. It's just one of those things you can either accept or not.

 

[MGibster]

With all this talk of katanas and trench coats I can't help but think you guys are missing out on something very vital. Desert Eagles! You were supposed to be armed with a katana and a .50 caliber Desert Eagle. Or possibly dual wield Desert Eagles.

 

[TrippyHippy]

Admittedly, my Vampire games in the 1990s were of the trench coat and katana variety. We were all used to playing D&D and couldn't shake that particular mentality.

That is the honest answer.