Page 277 - Hunter - The Vigil

S
:
T
O
O
T
T
E
A
E
T
P
R
V
E
R
I
N
L
L
G
C CHAPTER FIVE: STORYTELLING
H
G
L
Y
Y
R
R
E
L
T
T
STORY HOOK: THE VIGIL AS VIRUS
The Vigil is, in its own way, contagious. A cell chases a rabid “thing”
into an alley. It takes most of the cell members down, but a vagrant
hiding behind a dumpster sees it all and he goes and tells his friends,
and they band together, deciding they need to watch their backs and the
streets. Months later, they track the “thing” to the edge of a rooftop,
and Blacktooth Billy buries a rusted crowbar in its head and it tumbles
off the roof, crashes onto the hood of a delivery truck and then bounds
off, leaving a trail of bubbling blood. The delivery driver and his new
hire sit, wide eyed, and they talk about it, and they know something must
be done, and now they’re on the Vigil, too. Hunters beget hunters. The
Vigil stirs itself. Try playing a game that carries the chain of events
from character to character, seeing how the Vigil evolves and shifts when
carried by hunters with different perspectives. Some hunters may die.
Others are born out of the tragedy. Like a phoenix, the Vigil always rises
again from the ashes, a wrathful bird of fi re.

prey rather than being part of a task force formed to shoot first This is also fertile ground for great Storytelling. A
and shut up later, without ever asking any questions. chronicle focusing on the trials of establishing an orga-
And, of course, a clear conscience is a powerful lure. No nization from the ground up might make for some killer
longer spending time with other people who are growing in- gameplay, including winning other cells from across the
creasingly inhuman through the Endowments is something tiers as allies, and maneuvering around any rivals left be-
that many descending hunters will relish. In cases where hind in the old company. Added to this the founder(s)’
they’ve left extremely altered cells, they might even hunt constant need to keep hunting and prove they know what
their former allies, believing they’ve gone too far. they’re doing, and a Storyteller has been handed a potent
Something that shouldn’t be overlooked is the urge to not mix of possibilities.
only do things a character’s own way, but to set up an organiza- The easiest model to apply against your new Endow-
tion founded on those principles the character follows, and based ment is to use the one followed by Advanced Armory, Relics
around the methods he uses to hunt. A great many hunters who and Thaumatechnology: each item/ritual/ability is assigned a
descend the tiers do so not because of nay real displeasure with number of dots equal to its potency, and each can be bought as

their current lot in life, but because they’re experienced, they a separate Merit. Alternatively, you may instead find the more
know their stuff, and they’re confident they can found an organi- complex systems of Benedictions, Castigations and Elixirs to

zation that will do things better than the others. your liking for mimicking.
Dr ead P o w e r s
Dread Powers
Monsters have a diabolical array of powers with which to
control, harm and torment mortals. What follows is a series Agonize (• to •••••)
of powers that can, as the Storyteller requires, be given to any Cost: 1 Willpower
creature found in your Hunter: The Vigil game. Throughout, Action: Instant
certain “types” of creatures might be noted as having inclina- Dice Pool: Presence + Intimidation + Agonize - target’s
tions toward some Dread Powers over others, but the Storytell- Stamina

er remains final arbiter over whether a monster has access to a Effect: The monster spends Willpower and concentrates.

certain Dread Power. It helps to mix and match, to keep hunter The target is wreathed in hellish flames, or bathed in elec-
characters never feeling comfortable in their knowledge. tricity or bombarded by a deafening chorus of screams and
Note that when dealing with non-corporeal entities (ghosts, demonic roars. However it manifests, the victim is in agony
bodiless demons, other spirits), use of these Dread Powers neces- for as long as the creature concentrates. The monster must
sitates replacing the Attribute roll with the entity’s Power, and maintain line of sight with the target, and cannot do anything
the Skill roll with the entity’s Finesse. In addition, such non- but move up to its Speed whilst concentrating. If concentra-
corporeal adversaries spend Essence, not Willpower. tion is broken, or line of sight is blocked, the power ends and

276
6
27