Flaws
Guide to the Camarrila
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
Twitch (1-pt Flaw)
You have some sort of repetitive motion that you make in times of stress, and it’s a dead giveaway as to your identity. Examples include a nervous cough, constantly wringing your hands, cracking your knuckles and so on. It costs one Willpower to refrain from engaging in your twitch.

Dulled Bite (2-pt Flaw)
For some reason your fangs never developed fully – they may not have manifested at all. When feeding, you need to find some other method of making the blood flow. Failing that, you must achieve double the normal number of successes in order to make your bite penetrate properly. A number of Caitiff and high-generation vampires often manifest this Flaw.

Open Wound (2- or 4-pt Flaw)
You have one or more wounds that refuse to heal, and which constantly drip blood. This slow leakage costs you an extra blood point per evening (marked off just before dawn), in addition to drawing attention to you. If the wound is visible, you are at +1 difficulty for all Social-based rolls. For two points, the Flaw is simply unsightly and has the basic effect mentioned above; for four points the seeping wound is serious or disfiguring and includes the effects of the Flaw Permanent Wound.

Glowing Eyes (3-pt Flaw)
You have the stereotypical glowing eyes of vampire legend, which gives you a –1 difficulty on Intimidation rolls when you’re dealing with mortals. However, the tradeoffs are many; you are a walking tear in the Masquerade and must constantly disguise your condition (no, contacts don’t cut it); the glow impairs your vision and
puts you at +1 difficulty on all sight-based rolls (including the use of ranged weapons); and the radiance emanating from your eye sockets makes it difficult to hide (+2 difficulty to Stealth rolls) in the dark.

Permanent Fangs (3-pt Flaw)
Your fangs do not retract, making it impossible for you to hide your true nature. While some mortals may think you’ve had your teeth filed or are wearing prosthetics, sooner or later you’re going to run into someone who knows what you truly are. You are a constant threat to the Masquerade, and other Kindred may take steps to prevent a breach from ever occurring. You are also limited to an Appearnace rating of 3 at most.



Mental Back to Top
Impatient (1-pt Flaw)
You have no patience for standing around and waiting. You want to do things now, and the Devil take the hindmost. Every time you are forced to wait around instead of acting, a Self-Control roll is required to see if you go haring off on your own instead.

Unconvinced (1-pt Flaw)
You fail to see the need for the Masquerade, and have gone on record as saying so. Taking your stand has made you suspect in the eyes of your elders, and may have attracted the Sabbat’s attention as well.

Stereotype (2-pt Flaw)
You buy heavily into all of the vampire legendry you’ve read and heard. You wear a cape, speak with an accent and otherwise act in a cartoonish fashion. Such behavior is embarrassing in the extreme to other Kindred, who are likely to ostracize or mock you (+2 difficulty to Social rolls with other vampires who don’t share your habits). Also, you stand out to hunters, and run the risk of violating the Masquerade every time you take to the streets.

Thirst for Innocence (2-pt Flaw)
The sight of innocence – of any sort – arouses in you a terrible bloodlust. Roll Self-Control, or else frenzy and attack the source of your hunger.

Victim of the Masquerade (2-pt Flaw)
The Camarilla’s propaganda machine did too good a job on you. Even after your Embrace you refused to believe you were a vampire. You remain convinced that there is some logical explanation for your condition, and spend as much times as you can searching for it. You also have problems feeding, and may insist on trying to eat regular food. None of these habits makes you particularly pleasant company for other Kindred. This Flaw must be roleplayed at all times.

Guilt-Wracked (4-pt Flaw)
You simply cannot come to grips with the fact that you must drink blood to survive. You suffer horrible guilt over each time you feed (roll Conscience, difficulty 8, or else frenzy every time you feed) and try to avoid doing so as much as possible. This means that you rarely have much blood in your system, leaving you vulnerable to both attacks and hunger-based frenzies.



Social Back to Top
Botched Presentation (1-pt Flaw)
When your sire presented you to the prince of the city, you flubbed it. Now you’re convinced His Majesty hates you (whether he does or not). You need to succeed on a Willpower roll (difficulty 7) just to stand in front of the prince or one of his duly
authorized representatives without running, blubbering or otherwise making a fool of yourself.

Expendable (1-pt Flaw)
Someone in power doesn’t want you around. Maybe she wants territory you possess, or is jealous of the attention you’re getting from a prize mortal retainer – the details are irrelevant. What does matter is that she has the power to maneuver you into dangerous situations “for the good of the Camarilla,” and has no compunctions about doing so.

Incomplete Understanding (1-pt Flaw )
The whole matter has been explained to you, but you’re still not quite sure how this whole Camarilla/Masquerade thing works. Your Imperfect understanding of the rules and regulations of your new existence means that sooner or later, you’re going to make a mistake. It’s only a matter of time…

New Arrival (1-pt Flaw)
You’ve just arrived in your new city of residence, and have done so without knowing anyone in the place. Existing factions may try to recruit or eliminate you, while the harpies size you up and take your measure. Meanwhile, your ignorance of the city’s current events, history and politics (not to mention the personality quirks of the vampires already in place) may cause you to make a serious blunder.

New Kid (1-pt Flaw)
You’re the latest Embracee in the city, and everyone knows it. That automatically puts you at the bottom of the social totem pole. Other neonates take every opportunity to demonstrate your inferiority to you, proving that the dynamics of the schoolyard are alive and well in the Camarilla. Even if someone else is added to the ranks of the unloving, you’re still regarded as something as a bit of a geek by your peers – a distinction that can have dangerous consequences if bullets start flying. All Social-related rolls are at +1 difficulty when you are dealing with other neonates.

Recruitment Target (1-pt Flaw)
The Sabbat wants you, and they want you bad. Every effort is being made to recruit you, willing or no, and the press gangs usually show up at the worst possible time.

Sympathizer (1-pt Flaw)
You have publicly expressed sympathy for some of the Sabbat’s goals and policies. Your outspoken views on the subject have made you suspect in the eyes of the city’s hierarchy, and you may be suspected of (or arrested for) treason.

Bound (2-pt Flaw)
You are blood bound to another vampire. Your regnant may not necessarily treat you badly, but the fact remains that your will is not entirely your own. The knowledge gnaws at you, even as you find yourself lost in devotion to your vampiric master.

Catspaw (2-pt Flaw)
You’ve done dirty work for someone high up in the city’s hierarchy in the past – the sheriff, the primogen or even the prince. However, instead of granting you favor, your deeds have made you an embarrassment or a liability. For the moment, your former employer’s concern is to keep you quiet. In the long term, it’s to get rid of you.

Escaped Target (2-pt Flaw)
The flip side of Rival Sires, Escaped Target means that you had targeted a mortal for the Embrace, but someone else got there first. You cannot stand the humiliation of being cheated of your prize, and fly into a rage (+2 difficulty to avoid frenzy) whenever you see the one who got away. This hatred may lead you into other irrational behaviors, like Embracing enemies of the neonate, creating unauthorized childer or even trying to kill your rival. Furthermore, your petty and irrational behavior is well-known and quite noticeable, and as a result you are at +1 difficulty on all Charisma rolls until the situation is resolved.

Failure (2-pt Flaw)
You once held a title in the city, but failed catastrophically in your duties. Now you are branded incompetent, excluded from circles of power and responsibility and generally ostracized by those on their way up. Your exclusion may make you a target for recruitment by the Sabbat (or so the whispers run, making you even more distrusted). Conversely, the consequences of your error – a breach of the Masquerade, an unauthorized Embrace, a lawbreaker allowed to escape – might come back to haunt you.

Masquerade Breaker (2-pt Flaw)
In your first nights as a member of the Kindred, you accidentally broke the Masquerade – and were spotted doing so. Someone else covered for your mistake, but holds the favor over you. Now you exist in fear that your error will be revealed. In the meantime, your “savior” takes pitiless advantage of you.

Old Flame (2-pt Flaw)
Someone you once cared deeply for is now with the enemy. He still attempts to play on your sympathies “for old times’ sake” while working against you. Unless you
succeed on a contested Manipulation + Expression roll against your former friend, you do not act against him unless the situation becomes life-threatening.

Rival Sires (2-pt Flaw)
Not one, but two vampires wanted to gift you with the Embrace. One succeeded, one failed – and she’s not happy about that failure. Either you, your actual sire or both of you have become the target of the failed suitor’s ire. Regardless, your persecutor is at +2 difficulty to refrain from frenzy in your presence. In addition, she may well be working actively to discredit or destroy you.

Uppity (2-pt Flaw)
You are proud of your new status and clan – so proud that you’ve shot your mouth off to other Kindred and made some enemies. Wiser vampires laugh at you and chalk your rudeness up to youth, but others regard you as arrogant and insulting. These enemies will take action to embarrass or harm you. Furthermore, you are at +2 difficulty on all Social rolls against any vampires you have alienated through your yammering – and you may not know who they are.
At Storyteller discretion, you may also be required to make a Willpower roll (difficulty 6) to keep your mouth shut any time the opportunity presents itself for you to brag about your lineage, your clan or your status.

Disgrace to the Blood (3-pt Flaw)
Your sire regards the fact that he Embraced you to be a titanic mistake, and has let everyone know it. You are mocked in Elysium, taunted by your peers and actively despised by the one who should be giving you guidance. Any request or petition you make is likely to be looked down upon by friends of your sire, and your achievements are likely to be discounted.

Former Prince (3-pt Flaw)
Once, you head near-absolute power in a city, but those nights are gone now. Perhaps you stepped down, perhaps you were deposed, or perhaps your city fell to the Sabbat; it matters little in your reduced state. What does matter is that the prince in the city where you now dwell is aware of your prior employment, and has concerns that you might be trying to make a comeback. The machinery of the Camarilla in the
city where you now make your home is subtly stacked against you, and if the prince sees an opportunity to get rid of you he just might take it.

Hunted Like a Dog (3-pt Flaw)
Another sect or groups of vampires – be it an independent clan or the Sabbat as a whole – has decided that you’re a target for extermination, and pursues you relentlessly. On the bright side, the enemies of your enemy may well wish to help you out, potentially garnering you allies in this one instance.

Narc (3-pt Flaw)
You are known to be a snitch, an informer firmly planted in the sheriff’s pocket. Those on whom you might yet inform loathe you as a result, feeding you misinformation when they can in an attempt to discredit you. Given the opportunity, they might do you mischief. Regardless, your reputation as a full-fledged weasel precededs you, putting you at +1 difficulty on all Social rolls against those who don’t agree with your politics.

Sleeping With the Enemy (3-pt Flaw)
You have some sort of intimate connection with a member of an opposing sect or inimical clan. You may have a lover, a childe, a friend or a contact working the other side of the fence, but regardless of politics you retain a friendly (or more than friendly) relationship with your putative foe. Your close ties to someone on the other side would be regarded as treason by your superiors within the Camarilla, and if you are discovered the penalty will surely be death.

Clan Enmity (4-pt Flaw)
One clan in particular wants you dead. You have offended the entire clan, from elders to neonates, and as a result every member of that bloodline wants your head on a plate. The effects of the Flaw may manifest as anything from very public snubs and insults to actual attempts on your existence. You are also at +2 difficulty on all Social rolls relating to members of the clan in question.

Loathsome Regnant (4-pt Flaw)
Not only are you blood bound, but you are also in thrall to a vampire who mistreats you hideously. Perhaps you are publicly abused or humiliated; perhaps your master forces you to commit unspeakable acts for him. In any case, existence under the bond is a never-ending nightmare, with your regnant serving to conduct the symphony of malice.

Overextended (4-pt Flaw)
You’ve got your fingers in too many pies, and people are starting to notice. You have too many ghouls, too many retainers and too many influences, which means that a lot of people have a vested interest in trimming back your operations. These enemies take every opportunity to reduce your power and influence, and if that means lying, cheating or killing, so be it. Furthermore, your enemies block every attempt you make to move into new areas of control. You’re boxed in, and the box is getting smaller.

Blood Hunted (4- to 6-pt Flaw)
You have been made the target of a blood hunt, and for you to return to your home city is death. For four points, this Flaw means that only your home city is off-limits to you. For six, it means that the entire Camarilla is howling for your vitae.

Laughingstock (5-pt Flaw)
Somehow you’ve drawn the scorn of the local harpies, who make you their favorite and reflexive target. You are at a +2 difficulty on all Social rolls in Elysium and a +1 anywhere else in the city. In addition, you are at +2 difficulty to use Intimidation or any Dominate powers on anyone who has heard the stories mocking you.

Red List (7-pt Flaw)
You are either being considered for or are already on the dreaded Red List, the registry of those vampires the Camarilla most wants extinguished. Any Camarilla vampire will either attack you on sight or, more likely, call in for a great deal of help.



Supernatural Back to Top
Cold Breeze (1-pt Flaw)
A chill wind follows you everywhere you go. While it may make for dramatic entrances, this effect also discomfits mortals (+1 difficulty on all appropriate Social rolls) and also endangers the Masquerade. Cold winds sweeping through executive offices or crowded nightclubs can raise all sorts of questions.

Beacon of the Unholy (2-pt Flaw)
You radiate palpable evil. Clergy and devout mortals know instinctively that there is something horribly wrong with you, and react accordingly. Churches and other places of worship are barred to you as well.

Deathsight (2-pt Flaw)
Everything appears rotted and decayed to you. The world appears to you as a corpse; mortals look diseased or skeletal, buildings seem decrepit, and your fellow Kindred seem to be walking, moldering cadavers. You are at –2 difficulty to resist all rolls based on Appearance, but by the same token you are at +2 difficulty on all Perception-based rolls. In addition, you find social interaction difficult and are at +1 difficulty on all Social-based rolls.

Lord of the Flies (2-pt Flaw)
Buzzing harbingers of decay swirl around you everywhere. Their constant presence makes it difficult for you to interact socially (+1 difficulty when appropriate) and nearly impossible to sneak up on someone or hide effectively. The buzzing of the flies inevitably gives you away – all Stealth rolls are at +2 difficulty.