Page 210 - Hunter - The Vigil

Hunters are human. They are mortal beings, given over to the foi-
bles and frailties of that condition. But that doesn’t stop hunters from
being different. A soldier experiences things in war that separates him
from those who have not, just as a fi refi ghter rushing into a burning
building or a detective driven to track down an elusive serial kill
have some spark within them that marks them as unique. Hunters
are similar. They’re human, but choosing the Vigil is about choos-
ing the madness of truth, the danger of the hunt. As such, hunter
characters are given over to systems unique to their calling. This
chapter explores and defi nes those special systems.

Practical

Experience

It’s frightening and brutal, but it’s true — the raison d’être of a
hunter is to confront the horrors and mysteries of the World of Dark-
ness. Hunter characters earn experience points as described on pp.
216–217 of the World of Darkness Rulebook — for the learning
curve, for roleplaying, for facing danger and so on. Those experience
points can be used to purchase anything on the character sheet (with one
exception, discussed presently). But for killing monsters, for fulfi lling their
chosen task and keeping the Vigil, they earn Practical Experience.
Practical Experience is not doled out exclusively at the end of a
chapter or a story, the way normal experience points are. Instead, in any
scene in which hunters face a supernatural creature, they have a chance
to receive Practical Experience. The scene doesn’t have to be explicitly
combat oriented. A scene of tense discussion and exchanged threats can
also net a cell some Practical Experience, as would a scene of direct inves-
tigation, such as following a creature back to its lair. The scene does have
to be a confrontation, or at least contain the very real possibility of one.
It’s possible, if unlikely, that a cell of hunters develops a rapport with, for
example, a vampire looking to cure his condition, or a werewolf who has
taken a vow never to harm a human. In such an instance, scenes with
these characters — scenes with no risk — do not give the cell a chance
for Practical Experience.
At the end of the scene, the Storyteller compiles a pool of Practical
Experience points. The base number in the pool is equal to the number
of hunters involved in the scene (including any Storyteller-controlled
hunters). From there, the Storyteller makes the following adjustments:
+1 for every exceptional success roll when acting directly against
+1 for every exceptional success roll when acting directly against
a monster (opposed Social rolls, Stealth rolls and, of course, at-
a monster (opposed Social rolls, Stealth rolls and, of course, at-
tack rolls count; refl exive resistance rolls do not)
tack rolls count; refl exive resistance rolls do not)
+1 for every dramatic failure rolled during the scene, regardless
of what kind of roll it was. Dramatic failures resulting from failed
risk rolls (see p. 66) count toward this total. Hunters can learn
just as much from dangerous failure as from success — maybe
“Oh man, you fuckin’
even more. The trick, of course, is surviving these failures. “Oh man, you fuckin’
trashed the fucker. You
trashed the fucker. You
+1 if the monster(s) displayed powers or abilities that were a)
+1 if the monster(s) displayed powers or abilities that were a)
scrambled his sorry self,
supernatural in nature and b) new to at least half of the group
supernatural in nature and b) new to at least half of the group scrambled his sorry self,
look at that, you did, you

nal arbiter of whether
(rounding up). The Storyteller is the final arbiter of whether look at that, you did, you
(rounding up). The Storyteller is the fi
laid him out like fuckin’
this bonus applies, and the players are encouraged to keep notes
this bonus applies, and the players are encouraged to keep notes laid him out like fuckin’
Shredded Wheat.”
on what their characters witness to make this judgment easier.
on what their characters witness to make this judgment easier. Shredded Wheat.”
— Tim O’Brien,
— Tim O’Brien,
+1 if the cell used a Tactic successfully.
“The Things They Carried”
“The Things They Carried”