Flaws
Vampire the Masquerade (Revised)
Modern Days

Merits and flaws are divided into four categories: physical, mental, social and supernatural. The physical category describes merits or flaws that deal with a character's physical makeup or abilities, while the mental category addresses intellectual abilities or patterns of behavior. The social category comprises relationships and individual status in Kindred or mortal society, while supernatural merits and flaws concern the paranormal abilities of vampires and the way they interact with the physical world.

Physical  Back to Top
Hard of Hearing (1-pt Flaw)
Your hearing is defective.  The difficulties of any die rolls involving the use of hearing are increased by two.

Short (1-pt Flaw)
You are well below average height – four and a half feet tall or less.  You have difficulty reaching or manipulating objects designed for normal adult size, and your running speed is one-half that of a normally proportioned human.

Smell of the Grave (1-pt Flaw)
You exude an odor of dampness and newly turned earth, which no amount of scents or perfumes will cover.  Mortals in your immediate presence become uncomfortable, so the difficulties of all Social rolls to affect mortals increase by one.

Bad Sight (1- or 3-pt Flaw)
Your sight is defective. The difficulties of any die rolls involving the use of your eyesight are increased by two. As a one point Flaw, this condition can be corrected with glasses or contacts; as a three-point Flaw, the condition is too severe to be corrected.

14th Generation (2-pt Flaw)
You were created five or fewer years ago by a member of the 13th generation.  Though you have 10 blood points in your body, only eight of them may be used to heal wounds, power Disciplines, raise Attributes, etc.  Obviously, taking this Flaw precludes you from taking the Generation Background, and you may not start with Status, either.  You are likely a clanless Caitiff, for your blood is probably too thin to pass down the distinguishing characteristics of a clan.  Most 14th-generation vampires should also take the Thin Blood Flaw.

Disfigured (2-pt Flaw)
A hideous disfigurement makes your appearance disturbing and memorable. The difficulties of all die rolls relating to social interaction are increased by two. You may not have an Appearance rating greater than 2.

Infectious Bite (2-pt Flaw)
You lack the enzymes that allow most Kindred to seal the wounds caused by their feeding. You may not automatically lick the wounds of your feeding closed. In fact, your bites have a one in five chance of becoming infected and causing the mortal victims to become seriously ill. The precise nature of the infection is determined by the Storyteller.

One Eye (2-pt Flaw)
You have only one eye – which eye is missing is up to you. The difficulties of all Perception rolls involving eyesight are increased by two, and the difficulties of all die rolls requiring depth perception are increased by one (this includes ranged combat).

Child (3-pt Flaw)
You were a small child (between five and 10 years old) at the time of your Embrace, leaving your Physical Attributes underdeveloped and making it difficult to interact with some aspects of mortal society. You may not have more than two dots in Strength or Stamina, except when raising Physical Attributes with blood points, and the difficulties of all die rolls when attempting to direct or lead mortal adults are increased by two. Characters with this Flaw must also purchase the Short Flaw.

Deformity (3-pt Flaw)
You have some kind of deformity – a misshapen limb, hunchback, clubfoot, etc. – which affects your physical abilities and interactions with others. A hunchback, for instance, would lower a character’s Dexterity by two dots and increase the difficulty of die rolls relating to social skills by one. It is the responsibility of the Storyteller to determine the specific effects of the deformity chosen.

Lame (3-pt Flaw)
Your legs are damaged, which prevents you from running or walking easily. You are forced to walk with a cane or possibly leg braces, and have a pronounced limp to your stride. Your walking speed is one-quarter that of a normal human, and running is impossible.

Monstrous (3-pt Flaw)
Your physical form was twisted during the Embrace, and now reflects the Beast that rages inside you. Characters with this Flaw appear to be savage monsters and have Appearance ratings of zero. Even Nosferatu have difficulty interacting with such individuals.

Permanent Wound (3-pt Flaw)
You suffered injuries during your Embrace which your transformation somehow failed to repair. At the beginning of each night, you rise from sleep at the Wounded health level, though this may be healed by spending blood points.

Slow Healing (3-pt Flaw)
You have difficulty healing wounds. It requires two blood points to heal one health level of normal damage, and you heal one health level of aggravated damage every five days (plus the usual five blood points and Willpower expenditure).

Addiction (3-pt Flaw)
You suffer from an addiction to a substance, which must now be present in the blood you drink. This can be alcohol, nicotine, hard drugs or simply adrenaline. This substance always impairs you in some fashion (see “Poisons and Drugs, p. 231, for particulars).

Deaf (4-pt Flaw)
You cannot hear. While you may ignore some applications of Dominate, you may not listen to electronic or vocal media, and the difficulties of many Alertness rolls are increased by three.

Disease Carrier (4-pt Flaw)
Your blood carries a lethal and highly contagious disease. The disease can be anything from rabies to HIV, and Kindred who drink your blood have a 10 percent chance of becoming a carrier as well. You must spend an extra blood point each night on awakening, or you will begin manifesting symptoms of the disease (increased chance to frenzy from rabies, reduced soak rolls for HIV, etc.).

Mute (4-pt Flaw)
You cannot speak. You may communicate with the Storyteller and describe your actions but cannot talk to player or Storyteller characters unless everyone concerned uses Linguistics dots to purchase a commonly understood sign language or you write down what you wish to say.

Thin-Blood (4-pt Flaw)
Your blood is thin, weak and does not sustain you well. All blood point costs are doubled (e.g., using blood-related Disciplines or healing damage), and you are unable to create a blood bond. Furthermore, efforts to sire other vampires succeed only 20% of the time.

Flesh of the Corpse (5-pt Flaw)
Your flesh does not fully regenerate itself once it is damaged. While you are able to heal yourself to the point of regaining full functionality, your skin still retains the cuts, tears, bullet holes, etc., which you have incurred. Depending on the nature of the damage, this Flaw will make social dealings exceedingly difficult.

Blind (6-pt Flaw )
You cannot see. Characters can compensate for the loss of vision by becoming more sensitive to other sensory input, but visual cues and images are lost to them. Actions involving hand-eye coordination are very difficult to perform, especially under stressful conditions. Difficulties of all Dexterity-based rolls are increased by two. Oddly, vampires with Level Two Auspex (Aura Perception) area still able to use this ability, though the information is interpreted via the other senses.



Mental  Back to Top
Deep Sleeper (1-pt Flaw)
When you sleep, it is very difficult for you to awaken. The difficulty of any die roll to awaken during the day is increased by two.

Nightmares (1-pt Flaw)
You experience horrendous nightmares every time you sleep, and memories of them haunt you during your waking hours. Upon awakening, you must make a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) or lose a die on all actions for that night. A botched Willpower roll indicates that, even when awake, you still believe that you are locked in a nightmare.

Prey Exclusion (1-pt Flaw)
You refuse to hunt a certain class of prey. You might refuse to feed upon drug dealers, or policemen, or accountants, or rich people – if you accidentally feed upon such an individual, you automatically frenzy and must make a roll to prevent Humanity loss (difficulty 7). Witnessing other Kindred feeding on the object of your exclusion might also provoke a frenzy, at the Storyteller’s discretion. Ventrue, owing to the limitations imposed on their feeding by their clan weakness, may not take this Flaw.

Shy (1-pt Flaw)
You are distinctly ill at ease when dealing with people and try to avoid social situations whenever possible. Difficulties for all rolls involving social interaction with strangers are increased by two. If the character becomes the center of attention in a large group, difficulties are increased by three.

Soft Hearted (1-pt Flaw)
You cannot stand to watch others suffer. You avoid any situation that involves causing someone physical or emotional pain, unless you make a Willpower roll (difficulty 8). You must have a Humanity rating of 7 or above to take this Flaw.

Speech Impediment (1-pt Flaw)
You have a stammer or other speech impediment that hampers verbal communication. The difficulties of all die rolls involving verbal communication. The difficulties of all die rolls involving verbal communication are increased by two. You must roleplay this Flaw whenever possible.

Amnesia (2-pt Flaw)
You are unable to remember anything about your past, yourself or your family, though your past might well come back to haunt you. Your origins and the circumstances behind your amnesia are for the Storyteller to determine, and she is encouraged to make it as interesting as possible.

Lunacy (2-pt Flaw)
You are affected by the phases of the moon, increasing your chances to frenzy. Under the crescent moon, difficulties to avoid frenzy increases by one. Under the half or gibbous moon, difficulties rise by two. When the moon is full, difficulties increase by three.

Phobia (2-pt Flaw)
You have an overpowering fear of something. Spiders, snakes, crowds and heights are examples of common phobias. You must make a Courage roll every times you encounter the object of your fear. The difficulty of the roll is determined by the Storyteller, and if you fail the roll you must retreat from the object.

Short Fuse (2-pt Flaw)
You are easily angered. Difficulties to avoid frenzy are two greater. Brujah vampires cannot take this Flaw, as they already suffer from a similar malady.

Territorial (2-pt Flaw)
You are extremely territorial, staking out a particular area as your hunting ground and reacting aggressively to trespassers. If another vampire enters your territory uninvited, you must make a frenzy roll. If you fail, you immediately attack the interloper and continue attacking until the intruder is dead or has left your hunting grounds. You are reluctant to leave your territory except in desperate circumstances.

Vengeful (2-pt Flaw)
You have a score to settle, incurred either during your mortal days or after the Embrace. You are obsessed with taking your revenge on an individual or group, and it is your overriding priority in any situation where you encounter the object of your revenge. You may temporarily resist your need for vengeance by spending a Willpower point.

Weak-Willed (3-pt Flaw)
You are highly susceptible to Dominate and intimidation by others; Dominate attempts automatically affect you unless the Discipline wielder is of higher generation, and your difficulties to resist Social abilities such as Intimidation or Leadership, as well as mind-altering spells or magic, are increased by two. Your Willpower Trait may never rise above 4.

Conspicuous Consumption (4-pt Flaw)
It is not enough for you to draw nourishment from the blood of mortals – you believe you must also consume your victim’s heart, liver and other blood-rich tissue. Of course, this will necessitate the deaths of all your victims (unless you are extremely creative), which might lead to numerous problems with the Masquerade and maintaining Humanity. Characters with this Flaw must additionally purchase the Eat Food Merit.



Social  Back to Top
Sire’s Resentment (1-pt Flaw)
Your sire dislikes you and wishes you ill. Given the smallest opportunity, she will actively seek to do you harm. Your sire’s allies also work against you, and many elders may resent you.

Enemy (1- to 5-pt Flaw)
You have an enemy, or perhaps a group of enemies, who seek to harm you. The power of the enemy depends upon how many points the player wishes to spend (five points indicates the wrath of a Methuselah, archmage or other potent supernatural foe).

Hunted (4-pt Flaw)
You are pursued by a fanatical witch-hunter who believes (perhaps correctly) that you are a danger to humanity. All those with whom you associate, be they mortal or Kindred, may be hunted as well.

Probationary Sect Member (4-pt Flaw)
You are a defector. You turned traitor to the Camarilla, Sabbat, Followers of Set or other vampiric order, and you still have much to prove before you are accepted by the Kindred you have defected to. Elders, ancillae and even neonates treat you with distrust and even hostility, and your reputation might even sully those whom you regularly associate with.



Super Natural  Back to Top
Cast No Reflection (1-pt Flaw)
You actually cast no reflection, just like the vampires of legend. This can have a very detrimental effect when trying to pass as a human. Vampires of Clan Lasombra automatically have this Flaw (and you may be mistaken for one of them if you possess this).

Repulsed by Garlic (1-pt Flaw)
You cannot abide garlic, and the smallest whiff of its scent will drive you from a room unless you make a successful Willpower roll (difficulty based on the strength of the odor).

Touch of Frost (1-pt Flaw)
Plants wither as you approach and die at your touch. Your touch leeches heat from living beings, as though you are made of ice.

Cursed (1- to 5-pt Flaw)
You are the recipient of a supernatural curse. The strength and pervasiveness of the curse depend upon how many points you wish to incur. Examples follow:

• If you pass on a secret you were entrusted with, your betrayal will come back to harm you in some way. (1 pt)
• You stutter uncontrollably when you try to describe what you have seen or heard (2 pts)
• Tools break or malfunction when you try to use them. (3 pts)
• You are doomed to make enemies of those whom you most love or admire. (4 pts)
• Every one of your accomplishments or triumphs will eventually become soiled or fail in some way. (5 pts)