1: The diablerist immobilizes the victim (via Hold, Clinch, Tackle, Dread Gaze, Staking, Torpor, Vicissitude straitjackets, chains, etc), the victim complies and allows the diablerist to bite her (possibly through use of Dominate powers, Quell the Beast, Presence powers, roleplay, etc), or the diablerist has some means of making bite attacks without first immobilizing the victim (Shape of the Beast, Vicissitude mods, Tongue of the Asp, Form of the Cobra, etc).

2: On the turn following the successful immobilization (or not, as case may be), the diablerist administers the Kiss by using the Bite maneuver targeting an unarmored location on the victim. This is usually a Dex + Brawl roll made at base Difficulty 7 (increased based on the size of the unarmored location; ref: Targeting, V20 p.274). Proceed with defensive actions, carry-over, starting damage, and soak as you would if you were using the normal Bite maneuver, but the victim takes no damage from the attack. Instead, if the victim fails to soak all damage, the diablerist's fangs have broken the victim's skin, instantly subjecting her to the Kiss. The victim must make a Self-Control/Instinct roll at Difficulty 8 or surrender to the power of the Kiss, ceasing to struggle in body and mind (ref: the Kiss, V20 p.269).

3: The diablerist drains the victim of all remaining blood points, making tests for Vicissitude infection and increasing the level of blood bond as necessary. The diablerist can drink 3 points of blood per turn (note that there are merits, Vicissitude mods, and Thaumaturgy powers that allow vampires to exceed this limit).

4: The diablerist rolls Strength in an extended check at Diff 9, each success deals 1 level of unsoakable Agg to the victim. During this process, all attacks directed against the diablerist are made at Difficulty 2 (plus other benefits for attacking from behind, etc, as appropriate). Note that if the victim successfully resisted the Kiss and is not otherwise immobilized, he may continue to struggle at this stage, and should now roll to resist Frenzy at Difficulty 8 (remember that Virtue dice pools are capped by blood pool). If the diablerist failed to immobilize the victim, the victim can and should take full advantage of how easy it is to rape a diablerist while they're diablerizing you.

5: The diablerie is complete when the victim runs out of health levels, thereby meeting final death.

6: The diablerist and victim both roll their permanent Willpower scores in a resisted roll against a difficulty of each others' Conscience/Conviction + Self-control/Instinct. If the diablerist scores more successes than the victim, he successfully subjugates the pillaged soul and crushes it utterly. If the victim scores more successes than the diablerist, he may choose to force one or more Flaws that he has onto his killer permanently. The point value for these Flaws cannot total more than the successes that the victim scored over the diablerist. Any successes not spent to give the diablerist Flaws instead give the diablerist soul shards equal to the successes remaining (the victim’s player has no control over what the soul shards will do, since not enough of his character remains for him to direct its actions). If the diablerist botches or the victim scores more net successes than the diablerist’s permanent Willpower score, the victim’s soul transfers whole, unplundered, and proceeds to kick the shit out of the previous resident. The victim’s body is destroyed, but he has completely devoured the diablerist’s soul, thereby gaining total control over the body. If this occurs, the process is identical, save that the victim is the one holding the diablerist’s sheet in the end. All that the victim transfers from his body is the single discipline dot and the drop in generation (if appropriate).

7: The Storyteller determines if the victim was of lower generation than the diablerist, thus lowering the diablerist's generation in turn. To determine the number of generations the diablerist drops, divide the negative difference in generation by two and round up. This is the only immediately accessible reward for diablerie.

8: The diablerist rolls Self-Control/Instinct versus Difficulty (10 - diablerist's Path rating) to avoid losing control. In game terms, the diablerist writhes helplessly in ecstasy for about ten minutes, making noises appropriate to riding out a hurricane of orgasms. In system terms, the character's beast becomes addicted to diablerie.

9: The storyteller takes the sheet of the victim to the next ST meeting, where the free discipline dot that the diablerist receives is determined from the discipline subset that the victim has and the diablerist lacks. The diablerist develops the new dot over the week following the diablerie.

What discipline dot a diablerist receives is determined by a simple system. Examine the diablerist’s sheet and the victim’s sheet, comparing their relative areas of discipline concentration among the five categories of disciplines. What? You don’t know about the five basic categories of disciplines!? What are Sires teaching childer these days!?

So, there are five basic categories of discipline, these being Social, Sensory, Physical, Shapechanging, and Mystical. And because the world is complex, few disciplines really fit entirely into one category based on their effects, this is why they are sorted instead by the source and intended purpose. Just as I can use a claw hammer for killing folks and pounding nails doesn't make it less a tool and more a weapon; the proper place for a claw hammer is still a tool box rather than an armory.

Social disciplines give the vampire power over the world by allowing her to manipulate the actions of creatures in its environment. The Social disciplines are


Sensory disciplines give the vampire power over the world by allowing her to manipulate the perceptions and senses of herself or those around her. The Sensory disciplines are:


Physical disciplines give the vampire power over the world by imbuing her body with energy. The Physical disciplines are:


Shapechanging disciplines give the vampire power over the world by allowing her to manipulate her form and the forms of others. The Shapechanging disciplines are:


Mystical disciplines give the vampire power over the world by manipulating the supernatural forces themselves to effect changes on her environment. The Mystical discplines are:


You might observe that the neat categorical division of the disciplines into these five groups isn't entirely axiomatic, and I expect you’re thinking something like “but Auspex has a Mystical element!” or “Obtenebration is totally a Shapechanging discipline!” Well, I’ll address these concerns momentarily: You’re wrong.

Yes. You are wrong and I am right. In fact, the division of disciplines into Social, Sensory, Physical, Shapchanging and Mystical is perfect. Mother-fucking perfect. I defy anyone to come up with a discipline that doesn't fit this simple system.

Anyway, here’s how diablerists get a discipline dot. You count up all of the dots that the victim has in each category and compare it to the dots that the diablerist has. The dot that transfers comes from the highest category of the victim that matches the lowest category of the diablerist.

A Lasombra with Potence 4, Obtenebration 3, Celerity 1, Dominate 1 and Auspex 1 has successfully diablerized a Todeador with Celerity 5, Presence 2, Auspex 2, Vicissitude 3, Potence 2, Fortitude 2. The Lasombra has Social 1, Sensory 1, Physical 5, Shapechanging 0, Mystical 3. The Toreador had Social 2, Sensory 2, Physical 9, Shapechanging 3, Mystical 0. The biggest difference between the Lasombra and Toreador’s discipline totals is the Physical category, which the Toreador has four more dots of than the Lasombra, meaning that the Lasombra will learn a Physical discipline. Since the Lasombra has as many or more dots of Potence, he will learn either Celerity or Fortitude. Now we consider relative pressures again. The difference between their Celerity rating is 4 dots, while the difference between their Fortitude rating is only 2 dots. The Lasombra will learn Fortitude.

“But Jamie” you whine “why invent this crazy-complex system to do this simple thing?” Well, here’s why: this system will do this every time. The discipline you receive from your vanquished foe is one that reflects him. Whenever you use that discipline, your character is thinking of that guy he ate for it, even if you aren’t. The Toreador in the example above is a warrior, and it shows clearly in his discipline selection. How would the Lasombra receiving Presence 1 after his equivalent of a major boss battle be rewarding to anyone? It’s inappropriate in every way that matters. Inappropriate dramatically, it’s the equivalent to opening your hard-won treasure chest to find a nothing but a used whoopee-cushion. It’s inappropriate thematically, since the warrior-spirit of the Toreador wouldn’t go to the trouble of dragging over a dot of Presence (that he only ever picked up for Dread Gaze anyway). “But Jamie” you moan “why didn’t you just make it so that the guy’s highest discipline would transfer?” Well, here’s why.

The same Lasombra has caught and diablerized a Caitiff. The Lasombra now has Potence 4, Obtenebration 3, Celerity 2, Dominate 1, Auspex 1, Vicissitude 1. The Caitiff has Auspex 2, Animalism 1, Dominate 2, Fortitude 2, Celerity 3, Potence 1, Thaumaturgy 3, Vicissitude 2, Protean 2, Obtenebration 1, Thanatosis 1, Obfuscate 2. The caitiff has Social 3, Sensory 4, Physical 5, Shapechanging 5, Mystical 4. Comparing the two, we see that the highest difference is that of the caitiff’s Shapechanging 5 to the Lasombra’s Shapechanging 1. In that category, the highest difference is Protean 2 to Protean 0, so the Lasombra gains a dot of Protean.

In this case, the highest discipline system would give the Lasombra another dot of celerity. While it is obvious that the Caitiff could fight at need, it is apparent that his true interest was in the acquisition of exotic disciplines. It is therefore entirely appropriate that the transferred dot be Protean, as that more accurately represents who the deceased actually was.

Note that just because Thaumaturgy and Kuldunism are counted in the category tally doesn't mean that they can be acquired through diablerie. They can't. They are counted though, since they indicate how attached the victim was to the various aspects of his life, and therefore what his soul would transfer to the new host.

Death by diablerie is final death by non-fire/sunlight Aggravated damage. This means that the victim leaves remains based on their age.

0 - 1 year A fully-fleshed decomposing corpse which must be disposed of or otherwise dealt with to avoid awkward questions (especially if it had Vicissitude modifications).

2 - 10 years Remains are mostly skeletal, but are still identifiable as the corpse of the victim to anyone who knew the victim's features well.

11 - 30 years Remains are completely skeletal, and decay of bone seating and structure means that only forensic techniques can determine the victim's identity.

30 - 50 years Bone structure is now incredibly brittle. Large sections of the skull have deteriorated completely, meaning that only forensic facial reconstruction can determine the victim's identity.

50 - 80 years Only someone familiar with human remains could be sure that this skull-less handful of bones was once Homo Sapiens.

80+ years Upon completion of diablerie, the victim's corpse falls to dust. Only chemical analysis of the remains could ascertain that they are even of organic origin.

Forever after failing the Self-Control/Instinct roll in Step 7, the character is addicted to diablerie. Whenever the character has the opportunity to commit diablerie she must roll Willpower at Difficulty 10. Failure means that the diablerist should proceed to seek to diablerize the victim by the end of the scene. The diablerist need only beat her addiction back once in a given scene, and may spend a point of Willpower to automatically succeed the check.

In this case the "opportunity to commit diablerie" is defined as the character having both a victim and an advantage.

A "victim" is any true vampire that the diablerist has neither a Vinculum score of 4 or higher nor a blood bond to. You won't eat the people that the beast sees as being on your side, since they'll help you get diableries. Everyone else is fair game, from Cardinals to street Panders. The beast doesn't care about politics, and it is always blind to relative power levels and consequences.

An "advantage" is any situation that favors the diablerist over the victim. For example, having your entire pack with you while the victim has only two of their pack with them is an advantage in numbers. If you are Obfuscated, that is an advantage. If you're already in war-form and your victim is not, that is an advantage. If you're wearing armor and your victim is in pajamas, that's an advantage. If they're pointing a gun at your head and you have Fortitude 5, they obviously underestimate your abilities, and that is an advantage. The beast has no care or caution for what it can't see. It doesn't consider the possibility that the victim might have the rest of his pack hidden in the area; it doesn't care that your unarmored foe might have Fortitude while you do not.

Black Veins last for six months in the diablerist's aura, regardless of the relative generations involved, and their durations stack. If you eat two vampires, you will have black lines for 12 months. If you eat one, wait three months, then eat another one, you will have the lines for another 9 months. If you have If you have six or more diableries counting down (more than 30 months of black lines), reading anything in your aura besides diableries grows difficult (-1 success from Aura Scan attempts). If you have 12 or more diableries counting down (more than 66 months of black lines), reading your aura becomes very difficult (-2 successes). Once you reach 50 total diableries, you are considered to have the first level (-1) permanently. Once you have committed 100 diableries, the second (-2) becomes permanent.

It is possible for vampires of any Path or Road to detect a diablerist within one month of the occurrence (unlike the black veins, this duration doesn't stack). A vampire who comes in contact with a diablerist may attempt a Perception roll (not modified by Auspex, Acute Sense, or the like) to sense diablerie. The Difficulty for this check is 12 - the sensing vampire's Path/Road rating. How the different paths interpret this information varies, but it is usually sensed below the level of conscious thought. A vampire on Humanity would feel strangely wary of a diablerist, sensing that he feels to that guy as he imagines humans feel about to him. Here are a few examples of how path followers might react to a sensed diablerist.

Road of the Beast: "predator. Rival? Pack?"

Road of Heaven: "surely a blasphemer in the sight of god"

Road of Humanity: "that guy is creepy and dangerous"

Path of Blood: "this one is a degenerate, his blood should be reclaimed"

Path of Bone: "an odd feeling of displaced souls"

Path of Caine: "an individual worthy of my attention"

Path of Cathari: "this is someone who is no stranger to pleasure"

Path of Honorable Accord: "keep an eye on him, his thirst for power will drive him beyond the bounds of honor."

Path of Lilith: "a fool who lacks understanding for the true way of things"

Path of Metamorphosis: "more than he appears"

Path of Night: "the darkness peeks between his cracks"

Path of Paradox: "two birds, I think, and in my hand, a stone"

Path of Power and the Inner Voice: "competition."

Path of Typhon: "something hidden here"

Path of Orion: "there can be only one"

Path of Revelations: "weakness beneath, it lusts for power"

Path of Entelechy: "killer"

Path of the Scorched Heart: "fools like that endanger us all"

Path of Self-Focus: "interesting"

Path of Sharia El-Sama: "murderer"

A soul shard is a fragment of the victim’s soul that stuck in the diablerist’s throat on the way down, as it were. It is worth noting that they are not understood and people rarely talk about them, and therefore gaming the system to adjust to dealing with them will require you to explain how you understand the intricacies of soul shards. I promise you: you don't. They are bits of shattered will and personality that retain memories only of their time exerting control and only awaken upon touching only the most central of their previous goals. As its last act of defiance, a soul shard can “burn” itself to force the diablerist’s actions for a short time. When this occurs, the Soul shard thinks it has taken over permanently and does not act to destroy itself unless that is what the victim would naturally do. There is nothing a diablerist can do to resist a soul shard’s takeover, as they have already escaped his defenses of Willpower (see step 6). The domination of a soul shard over its host lasts for a scene. Soul shards have a smaller ability to pressure the diablerist into obeying them. Once a day for each soul shard imbedded in the victim, the shards may choose to enforce an action or disagree with an action being taken if it aligns with the soul shard's nature, like the Beast does when a character is at Path rating 4 or lower. The diablerist must follow through with this action or spend as many willpower as the soul shards he has implanted to resist. All soul shards work in unison for these acts, and multiple soul shards from different people add to the effect.

• Soul shards do not have access to the diablerist’s mind or memory, but they do have access to all sensory information and have memories of their own.
• It is impossible to communicate with a soul shard before it exerts control.
• When a soul shard speaks, it may choose whether to use the voice it had in life or the diablerist’s voice.
• During the turn that they control the diablerist, Soul shards have Willpower 10 and all Virtues at 5. All other traits they take from the diablerist’s sheet, and have full access to his disciplines and blood pool.
• Soul shards are completely unaffected by the following: wound penalties, Dominate, Presence, Frenzy, Rotschreck, mental Flaws, Derangements, and mental or emotional clan weaknesses.
• Soul shards never need to spend or make Willpower rolls to accomplish a feat, because the drive to ruin their killer is so overwhelming. They cannot spend Willpower to gain additional successes.
• If the primary soul vacates the body for any reason or length of time, the soul shards will instantly pounce to seize the body. If soul shards from multiple sources are present, each has a share of time controlling the body appropriate to the ratio of remaining shards. The shards’ goal is now to keep their captured body.

It is possible to spot soul shards in the mind of a subject that you are using Telepathy to read the memories of, provided you score 5 successes on the roll. This also allows you to enumerate them. Identifying who the soul shards belonged to requires 7 successes on the roll.

There are few ways to deal with soul shards.

• Unburdening the Bestial Soul (Obeah 5), in which soul shards are considered a demon. This is not an easy undertaking, and realize that a soul shard during this time is treated as if it is exerting control. Willpower 10, Virtues 5.