Spooky Tales and Scary Places - A Preview
about 4 years ago – Sat, Feb 22, 2020 at 06:59:15 AM

Hello Hunters!

Before I dig into a quick preview of Bygones, I want to express my appreciation for the quick fiction pieces that we've shared so far from author Cassandra Khaw. Each one has given me a bunch of ideas and got my imagination engine running and thinking of different Hunter chronicles. Which is exactly what they're supposed to do. In the final book, these pieces will be used to introduce each chapter, and I think that's the perfect home for them.

Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition developer Monica Valentinelli  is continuing her conversations with writing team on this book that have been posted to FlamesRising.com. This time, she chats with Cassandra Khaw, who wrote the fiction and designed monsters for the game. Cassandra is a scriptwriter in Ubisoft Montreal. Her work can be found in F&SF, Lightspeed, Tor.com, Strange Horizons. She has also contributed to titles like Sunless Skies, Fallen London, Wasteland 3, and She Remembered Caterpillars, which won the German Game Award for Best Children’s Game. Hammers on Bone, her first novella, was nominated for the Locus Award and the British Fantasy Award. Food of the Gods was nominated for the Locus Awards.

Check it out here <Link>

Bygones and Strange Places

In the Chronicles of Darkness, some physical objects may radiate with a supernatural taint. This type of object, called a Bygone, is a rare and unusual find.

In Hunter, a Bygone may be found in a mysterious place, and is further defined as an object of a reasonable (and manageable) size that possesses strange abilities. An eerie crypt is not a Bygone, for example, but an urn found inside might be. Bygones fall into one of three types: temporary, semi-permanent, or true.

Temporary Bygones

A temporary Bygone is an object of manageable size that contains supernatural power but isn’t irrevocably tainted by it. They are considered temporary Bygones because despite appearances they are still dangerous and should be handled with care. Temporary Bygones may be spelled or hexed to inflict a Condition when opened, tampered with, or broken.

Ghosts and spirits inhabiting objects act as their source of supernatural power. A ghost that possesses a porcelain doll technically creates a temporary Bygone; when the doll is destroyed, however, the ghost remains and must be dealt with. After the ghost is exorcised or moves on, the doll reverts to its (hopefully) less-frightening state. Other temporary Bygones include lockets, amulets, poison rings, urns, etc.

Some temporary Bygones may eventually shift into semi-permanent Bygones with the passage of time depending on their power source. When one does so, anyone who comes near the item begins to experience strange side effects, and it’s no longer safe to handle without training.

Temporary Bygones may be discovered in nests and tainted places. On rare occasions, a sentient place may create a temporary Bygone, as another monster might, to lure the unsuspecting to come near.

Semi-Permanent Bygones

A semi-permanent Bygone is an object that inflicts a variety of strange and unusual effects. Mechanically, these effects are represented by Tilts and Conditions that are activated by touch or by proximity to the object. Thematically, the object may whisper or sing to the owner, begging to be used. The source of this Bygone’s power is variable and can be caused by witches, warlocks, or demons creating cursed objects that inflict two opposing effects. A Hand of Glory, for example, promises to grant the user who lights its grisly wick wondrous powers — but at what cost? An auctioneer might gain the Connections Condition, for example, but suffer the Shaken Condition at the same time, so they’re too afraid to socialize and use the hand’s “gift.”

Semi-permanent Bygones are found in undiscovered or locations lost to time. Sometimes, other monsters live near a Bygone of this type because they are unwittingly drawn to its supernatural power. Often, however, this type of Bygone may be responsible for a variety of unusual behaviors told through the guise of an urban legend. In this way, a mysterious place may not be that strange after all; a Bygone may be to blame.

True Bygones

Lastly, a true Bygone is a legendary object drenched in supernatural power. For Hunter’s purposes, storied relics that bestow Endowments to tier-three hunters may be considered true Bygones. This type of Bygone is usually one of a kind, shrouded in myth, and incredibly powerful — even warded. Often, true Bygones are priceless, ancient relics or mechanisms that have been lost to the ages. Those who know they exist may become obsessed with finding them to unlock their secrets, not knowing their mysterious source of divine or infernal power. Some true Bygones are terrifying relics that have been soaked with the blood of 1,000 martyrs, while others are rumored to be blessed by the gods. No one knows for sure.

Unlike other types, true Bygones require years, if not decades, of study to piece together how they work, how they can be safely stored, and how they’re best used to mitigate any unwanted side effects. Their very existence is a lure, however, and true Bygones can be stolen and possibly destroyed with concerted effort. Most hunters would be reticent to set fire to a true Bygone because as far as mythic relics go, no one can be certain what would happen if such an attempt were made. Examples of rumored-but-unconfirmed Bygones include: Hades’ Helm of Darkness, the Monkey King’s staff, the Book of Thoth, and Dagda’s staff.

True Bygones are a once-in-a-lifetime find and require considerable time and resources to discover. If semi-permanent Bygones are rare, true Bygones are even rarer. Often, these mythical relics defy the laws of physics because they each go against the natural order in their own way. As far as the Chronicles of Darkness are concerned, Bygones that bestow blessings are not of this world. True Bygones are also more than a legend; to find one is to fulfill a collector’s wildest dreams.

Of course, hunters who do manage to track a true Bygone down are in over their heads. Raw, supernatural power is not to be trifled with, and most hunters know better than to fidget and experiment with the unknown.

TO BE CONTINUED...

We'll learn more about Bygones, Nests, Tainted Places and more in our backers-only preview of Chapter Six: Mysterious Places coming near the almost-end-of-the-month on February 28! Join in and check it out! We've got more sections of the manuscript for backers to read over, and more previews to check out as we move forward!

Don't forget to share your excitement and enthusiasm in your social circles and on social media! Let's keep lighting candles and turning our Kickstarter Cell into a Kickstarter Compact! 

And more fiction coming tomorrow... It's a scary one.

#CassandraKhawScaredMe

#HunterTheVigil

#HTV2E

Teamwork & Tactics Preview
about 4 years ago – Fri, Feb 21, 2020 at 09:00:24 AM

Hello Hunters!

Let's talk a tiny bit about teamwork!

This whole kickstarter process is a function of teamwork! Together, we're funding this project and gathering more backers to our cause. Increasing the support allows Onyx Path to expand the project into new areas, add additional opportunities, and we all get to celebrate as we hit new milestones.

And we've recently hit another! That's right, our SEVENTH Stretch Goal has been slain!

Acheived! - At $73,000 in funding - New Add-On Reward: Records of the Lucifuge —We’ll create a PDF bundle of first-edition titles that can be added to any reward tier for only $3. 

For +$3, add this bundle of PDFs from the previous edition of Hunter: The Vigil, Records of the Lucifuge can provide inspiration and ideas for your Hunter: The Vigil game. This bundle includes the following titles:

•  Mortal Remains [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF
•  Block by Block [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF
•  Tooth and Nail [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF

And now, we're hunting our next target...

At $77,000 in funding - Digital Wallpaper: An awesome digital wallpaper for your computer desktop featuring art from Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition. All backers will have this automatically added to their rewards list.

So, working together, we can achieve more than we can individually. Just like in Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition. Which brings me to today's preview...

Tactics

A hunter alone may not have what it takes to deal with a situation, no matter how well-prepared or trained he may be, but with several highly trained professionals working together, there is little they can’t get done. Tactics are not just teamwork actions professionals can use, but instead represent self-contained group activities that require coordinated training and specialized instruction.

Only hunters can use Tactics, as learning them requires the cell to work together regularly to perfect the technique. They allow hunters to accomplish larger-scale goals using different dice pools by leaning on each other’s strengths. Each Tactic is unique. Some have prerequisites that shape the dice pools and what the outcome might be. Others only function in specific situations, or may fail, even when successful, depending on the monster. Any hunter may choose to participate in any Tactic, but only hunters can. Many Tactics are designed for use in desperate or otherwise-impossible situations to save the day. A cell tracked a venom-spitting humanoid back to its lair and wants to corner the monster. A group found a nest of slimy, oozing eggs and plans to burn them. Tactics allow hunters to face the darkness because they’re putting their faith in a leader and upholding the Code together.

• Risking Willpower: To perform a Tactic, the primary actor must risk a Willpower point on its outcome, and they do so before anyone makes any rolls. Once the Tactic begins, the group must follow it through to its end, even if it goes horribly awry in the middle. Enacting the Tactic takes up both benefits of risking Willpower for the primary actor. All usual roll results for risking Willpower apply. Secondary actors may risk Willpower normally on their rolls if they wish.

• Participants: For a Tactic to work, multiple hunters are required. However, sometimes the number of players isn’t enough. Storytellers are encouraged to be flexible during gameplay when a cell comes up short. Should more characters be required, consider adding Storyteller characters as secondary actors to round out the difference. Then, let the players roll dice for any additional secondary actors to complete the Tactic.

• Multiple Moving Parts: The secondary actors in a Tactic each perform their own actions, meaning they roll their own dice pools based on what they are doing rather than the same dice pool as the primary actor.

• Initiative: If a Tactic takes place during an action scene, all participants must delay their actions to the lowest Initiative among them so they can all act at the same time.

• Time and Place: Tactics aren’t supernatural powers and don’t automatically function if the situation doesn’t allow it. For instance, Controlled Immolation doesn’t work if the target is immune to fire, or if the environment is soaked in gasoline, and the primary actor requires a method to set the fire in the first place. Hunters work to set up situations that make their best options viable. If the characters enact a Tactic and discover through doing so that it was never possible to begin with — e.g. they didn’t know the monster was immune to fire or the place was soaked with gasoline until after they used Controlled Immolation — the Tactic automatically fails.

Tactics Overview

The following is a view of what you will find in every Tactic description.

Requirements: Some Tactics have basic requirements the participants must meet to perform without penalty, such as a minimum number of dots in a particular Skill or Merit, or a type of Specialty. A participant without these requirements suffers a −1 for each dot or Specialty that falls short, in addition to suffering from any untrained penalties, on their roll.

In some cases, the requirements include a required action or presence of a circumstance, such as “target must be injured” or “during an investigation for Clues.”

Action: Each Tactic specifies the type of action it uses; some Tactics may give options.

Dice Pools: Each Tactic includes a list of its dice pools for the primary and secondary actors, with a note in parentheses to indicate which roll goes with which action. Numbers in the parentheses after a listed pool for secondary actors denote the minimum and maximum number of participants for that pool. For instance, Dexterity + Firearms (1/2) means that one participant must use Firearms for the Tactic to work, but more than two using Firearms won’t contribute any dice to the primary actor’s roll.

Occasionally, an optional dice pool is included for secondary actors whose successes don’t contribute dice to the primary actor’s pool; instead, they grant the Tactic some other benefit, noted under the roll results. These optional pools include (ND) in parentheses after the listed roll, meaning “no dice.”

Primary Actor Roll Results: The roll results given for each Tactic generally affect the primary actor only. Secondary actors abide by the usual roll results for teamwork, given above, unless otherwise noted.

Sweep

Sneaking into monster lairs to find human hostages or steal powerful tomes from vampiric scholars is risky business. A cell needs to sweep the perimeter and meticulously check room by room to make sure no nasty surprises await them, both swiftly and thoroughly.

Secondary actors ensure access to every nook and cranny of the area, kicking down doors or picking locks, and uncover any hidden passages or cubbyholes where a monster could be lying in wait. Then, the primary actor does a final sweep to make sure the area is clear — and if it isn’t, to clear it out by any means necessary or make sure everyone escapes with their limbs intact.

Action: Instant or Contested

Dice Pools: Primary: Wits + Composure. If one or more foes lie in wait in the area, each one contests the roll with Wits + Stealth + Potency. Secondary: Strength + Athletics or Dexterity + Larceny (opening portals, 1/5); Wits + Investigation or Survival (spotting hiding places/traps, 0/5)

Roll Results

Success: If the area is clear, the characters confirm this and need fear no ambushes or traps for the rest of the scene; the primary actor gains a +2 equipment bonus to any rolls to investigate the area. If not, the characters avoid any trap they come across, find anyone hidden in the area, and gain +2 to Initiative, Speed, and Defense for the first turn of any action scene that ensues.

Exceptional Success: As success, but the dice bonuses are +3 instead.

Failure: The characters find nothing of note.

Dramatic Failure: The characters miss something crucial — a trapdoor with zombies behind it, a monster behind a curtain, a trap they spring in their haste, or a prisoner they mistake for an enemy. Every foe present gets a surprise attack or other immediate advantage, such as grabbing an allied Storyteller character to use as a hostage or escaping without the possibility of pursuit. If a trap is present, the primary actor springs it and falls prey to its effects. If a prisoner or other ally is present, the primary actor makes an attack against them, ignoring Defense.

Capture

Hunters may wish to capture a monster rather than kill it, for any number of reasons. It’s dangerous, but worth the risk — hunters can force a captive monster to provide information or perform services, use it as a hostage or lab specimen, or harvest it for parts.

The secondary actors corner the target and wrestle it to the ground, so the primary actor can secure it with rope, chains, a metal box, or whatever else is on hand.

Action: Contested

Dice Pools: Primary: Dexterity + Survival or Crafts vs. Dexterity or Strength + Athletics, or Brawl + Potency. Secondary: Wits + Athletics (cornering, 1/3), Strength + Brawl (wrestling, 1/3)

Roll Results

Success: The target suffers the Immobilized Tilt and takes a penalty equal to the number of participants to attempts to break free.

Exceptional Success:The target cannot attempt to break free at all for the rest of the current scene.

Failure: The target evades capture.

Dramatic Failure:The target breaks free, ruining whatever the characters tried to capture it with, and makes a reflexive attack on the nearest hunter, who loses Defense. Alternatively, the target fools the participants into thinking it’s restrained, and may break out at any time.

To read more about Teamwork and Tactics, and SO MUCH MORE, check out our backers-only manuscript preview on February 24th! It's a big one, with multiple chapters coming all at once! So, join in and let's hunt some Stretch Goals!

#HTV2E

#TeamworkMakesTheDreamWork

#StretchGoals

BACKERS ONLY - Compact & Conspiracy Preview G - Nine Stars & VASCU
about 4 years ago – Fri, Feb 21, 2020 at 02:52:21 AM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

Nine Stars Preview
about 4 years ago – Thu, Feb 20, 2020 at 08:35:11 AM

Hello Hunters!

A quick preview today! We've finished the Compacts and Conspiracies featured in Chapter 2 of the Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition core rulebook. But, any good Hunter will always have some hidden surprises. And, in this book, Monica's included an additional Compact and Conspiracy in Chapter 7 - The Slasher Chronicle!

Nine Stars, appearing as part of Chapter Seven's Slasher Chronicle, is a brand new concept inspired by true crime movies set in Hong Kong. Nine Stars may be used outside of the Slasher chronicle in regular gameplay, however the Storyteller will have to make an adjustment to their view of the enemy and their motivation to hunt in a setting where slashers are not the primary antagonist.

It probably goes without saying, since we've been hearing about the ongoing writing and development of this game for a few years now, but Nine Stars was conceived and written before the coronavirus and protests in Hong Kong, and reflects the world of the Chronicles of Darkness rather than being a part of any metaphor for events in our real world.

Nine Stars

Quote: “We will not let slashers destroy the people of Hong Kong.”

Like a rising tide, slashers crawl from the margins in ever-greater numbers, indulging their monstrous appetites upon Hong Kong’s unwitting populace. Blood pools in the gutters of Hong Kong. The city’s lights are ever bright, bathing its streets in a neon glow through the deepest hours of night, throwing the shadows into even starker contrast. The growing epidemic throws officers of the Hong Kong Police Force face to face with relentless killers, weird phenomena, and stomach-churning crime scenes caused by the supernatural. In this roiling crucible of horror and carnage, Nine Stars is forged.

Nine Stars is a recently formed compact founded out of necessity following the plague of slashers terrorizing Hong Kong. The compact is almost entirely embedded within the city’s police force, drawn from among officers who have witnessed a slasher’s anomalous capabilities or experienced the terrifying wake of a rampage — but held their nerve and asked the questions no one else dared to. It’s convenient for the administration to treat slashers as nothing more than serial killers, brushed under the carpet of the yearly violent-crime figures, but Nine Stars members know how dire the situation truly is. They know the supernatural is real.

The compact principally values investigative skill in its members, backed up by a selfless dedication to duty. Members know that, at any point, they could be fired for taking the law into their own hands and disobeying orders. Ultimately, Nine Stars often prioritizes saving victims over killing slashers, and many members join the compact because they want to save the city from the supernatural. Other hunters believe that the sooner an individual slasher can be studied, predicted, and brought to a halt, the lower the cost in innocent lives will be. The compact craves a greater understanding of the slasher epidemic; discovering the cause might let them strike at the root of the problem, rather than always chasing after the gore-spattered symptoms.

Strung out across the departments of the Hong Kong Police Force as an informal network, members share information and evidence, use their leverage to promote other compact agents, and shift cases featuring supernatural or anomalous elements onto the laps of their own people. Agents are well-equipped, highly motivated, and backed by colleagues willing to cover up their trails and make problematic paperwork go away. They are often skeptical of outsiders, however, and don’t always treat visiting hunters as allies until they’ve proven they can be trusted. Members worry they have more to lose because their careers are a tangled mess of pursuing justice while upholding the Vigil.

The closest Nine Stars has to a leader is Chief Superintendent Annie Kin-Lau, one of its founding members. She’s a tough-as-nails hunter who’s willing to go toe to toe with any slasher, but also has the political instincts the compact needs to survive. Under Kin-Lau’s oversight, Nine Stars has gone from a last-ditch effort to wielding considerable power behind the scenes. Now, though, Nine Stars risks becoming a victim of its own success; it’s drawn the attention of the Complaints and Internal Investigations Branch. After all, from the outside Nine Stars looks like any other conspiratorial network of supposedly crooked cops. Rules, when broken, tend to draw interest and hunters need to balance the weight of the Code against the demands of being a police officer.

#SlasherChronicle

#KeepTheVigil

#HTV2E

Cells to Compacts to... Conspiracies? STRETCH GOALS
about 4 years ago – Wed, Feb 19, 2020 at 12:38:39 PM

Hello Hunters,

Let's just jump right in... Another Stretch Goal Slain! Early this morning we achieved our $70,000 funding target and added our SIXTH Stretch Goal accomplishment to this campaign. And we're not quite halfway through our time together yet! Still so much more to see, and so many more possible goals!

Let's recap!

As we increase the overall funding and support for the project, we’re able to add additional resources to the project, expand the rewards listed, and add in new offers and opportunities. Each Stretch Goal will have a target that, once reached, will add a project to the reward list. We will continue to build on this list when we achieve these targets during the campaign. Whenever we achieve a stretch goal, the image will be updated to reflect the achievement 

ACHIEVED! - At $40,000 in funding - Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition Storyteller Screen — We’ll create a Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition Storyteller Screen, which can be added on to any reward tier containing a hardcover book for only +$20. 

ACHEIVED! - At $55,000 in funding - Tending the Flame: Cells — Help us fund a Player’s Companion for Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition. This PDF supplement would feature a chapter Cells, giving players narrative and systems’ support to successfully hunt at Tier One, as well as tips for navigating hunter society. All backers receiving the Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition PDF will automatically have the Player’s Companion PDF added to their rewards list.

ACHIEVED - At $60,000 in funding - New Add-On Reward: The Ascending Ones' Archive — We’ll create a PDF bundle of first-edition titles that can be added to any reward tier for only $3.

ACHIEVED! - At $63,000 in funding - Kickstarter Backer T-Shirt — Hosted on the Redbubble store for a limited time, a Hunter: The Vigil-themed shirt will be priced at a discount. All backers will be notified when the shirt becomes available.

ACHIEVED! - At $66,000 in funding - New Add-On Reward: Malleus Maleficarum's Scrolls — We’ll create a PDF bundle of first-edition titles that can be added to any reward tier for only $3.

ACHIEVED! - At $70,000 in funding - Tending the Flame: Compacts — Help us fund a second chapter for the Player’s Companion for Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition. This chapter on Compacts would offer eight expanded compact write-ups with an emphasis on their current members and activities.

Congratulations! Expanding Tending the Flame, the Hunter Player's Companion, is one of the key projects for our Stretch Goals! And adding this second section that'll focus on Tier Two play is a massive achievement! I know Monica has a ton of ideas for this section, and was hopeful we'd be able to add a bunch of great things to the companion.

But, we're not out of the woods yet! There are more monsters than ever before, and more Stretch Goal targets lurking in the shadows!

NEW STRETCH GOALS

There's clearly a third section begging to be added to Tending the Flame... We can definitely use more Conspiracies and the Endowments that come with them! But, that's a big, big word count to add, and means we'll need a big, big funding target to get there! I think we can help ourselves, though, but adding in a few intermediate Stretch Goal targets to carry us along the way...

At $73,000 in funding - New Add-On Reward: Records of the Lucifuge —We’ll create a PDF bundle of first-edition titles that can be added to any reward tier for only $3. This PDF bundle will include:

•  Mortal Remains [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF
•  Block by Block [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF
•  Tooth and Nail [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF

At $77,000 in funding - Digital Wallpaper: An awesome digital wallpaper for your computer desktop featuring art from Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition. All backers will have this automatically added to their rewards list.

AT $92,000 in funding - Tending the Flame: Conspiracies — Help us fund a third chapter for the Player’s Companion for Hunter: The Vigil Second Edition. This chapter on Compacts would offer eight expanded conspiracy write-ups with hints of their long-term plans and goal, as well as their Endowments.

Well, there we have it! Our next three Stretch Goals! I know that it's a pretty big jump to add the Conspiracies section to Tending the Flame, but that's indicative of how much awesomeness it could unleash! Also, they're called Stretch Goals because sometimes we really have to stretch to reach them...

Oh, hey! How about another Stretch Goal that we could maybe add in along the way? Something a little different than another funding target...

At 1692 backers - New Add-On Reward: The Council of Bones' Transcripts —We’ll create a PDF bundle of first-edition titles that can be added to any reward tier for only $3. This PDF bundle will include:

•  Witchfinders [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF
•  Spearfinger [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF
•  Dark Eras: Doubting Souls [Hunter: The Vigil 1E] PDF

Suggested during the very first days of the campaign (thanks Ninjar!), a backer count-based goal: If our backer count hits 1692, we'll add The Council of Bones' Transcripts as an Add On option for this campaign. With this add on, you'll have ideas and inspiration to take your Hunter game right back to 1692 and the terrible time of the Salem Witch Trials; a reminder that those who keep the Vigil may walk that fine line between being a monster hunter and becoming the monster themselves.

Alright, Hunters! Enjoy your moments of victory and your sixth Stretch Goal achievement! Celebrate tonight, for tomorrow the hunt continues...

#KeepTheVigil

#LightACandle

#HunterTheVigil

#HTV2E