Lasombra Disciplines
Obtenebration is said to further damn the vampire who uses it, who removes himself further from God's grace and into the dark pull of the Abyss. For this reason, the user is shunned by animals and humans alike. Proficient users may manifest physical changes: Eyes become pools of utter darkness, shadows move of their own accord in her presence, and from time to time, spontaneous Obtenebration effects may manifest.
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The unnatural darkness summoned by Obtenebration is extremely frightening to mortals, animals, and even other Cainites unaccustomed to its use. The exact nature of this Discipline is unknown even among its greatest masters, and it has been a subject of religious, philosophical, and metaphysical debate among vampires for millennia. The Shadow Crusade believes that Obtenebration stems from the Iryi Azaneal, who gave [Lasombra] parts of its qlippothic powers in order to manifest in this world.
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Its greatest scholars are the followers of the Path of Night and practitioners of Abyss Mysticism, which draws on knowledge of this Discipline in its rituals. While fairly common within the Sabbat, Obtenebration is virtually nonexistent among Camarilla vampires and anyone seen using it would be regarded with extreme suspicion.
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[1]
Shadow Play: Move and shape the natural shadows around you
[2]
Shroud of Night: Blanket an area in a cloud of unnatural shadow that obscures light, sound, and heat
[3]
Arms of the Abyss: Summon black tentacles from the shadows to assist you
[4]
Black Metamorphosis: Encase your body in nightmarish armor and grow black tentacles from your sides
Nightshades: Create temporary objects made of shadow
[5]
Tenebrous Form: Transform into pure shadow that can only be harmed by fire, sunlight, or magic
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Advanced Powers
[6]
Aegis of Shadows: Cover yourself in powerful shadow armor
Eyes of the Night: See without light, even through supernatural darkness
Shadowstep: Teleport from shadow to shadow
Shadow Parasite: Grow a black tentacle within a target until it kills them
Shadow Perspective: Move senses to a nearby shadow
The Darkness Within: Cover a target in a horrid shadow that drains them of blood
[7]
Darksight: Watch and listen through any shadow in the world
Fortify Against Ahura Mazda: Your shadows summoned through Obtenebration become resistant to sunlight
Shadow Lair: Pause mid-step when using Shadowstep
Shadow Twin: Animate your shadow into a weaker duplicate of yourself
[8]
Dark Hunter: Create a shadow duplicate of yourself that hunts a specific target
Inner Darkness: Draw the shadow into yourself to gain great power
Night Shades: Summon shades to act as your servants
Oubliette: Lock one person in an Abyssal prison
Shadow Watchtower: Merge with a shadow, becoming invulnerable to everything except sunlight
[9]
Ahriman's Demesne: Blanket an area in a darkness that devours everything it touches
Enter the Abyss: Enter and leave the Abyss at any time, allowing you to teleport from shadow to shadow around the world
Tchernabog: Temporarily blot out the sun in your area
[10]
Banishment: Send someone to the Abyss for an extended period of time
Dominate's aspect of the curse of vampirism is that it devaluates the basics of true friendship or intimacy. Dominate also dulls the empathy of the user, and one must take care not to become accustomed to being surrounded by sycophants at all times. Some become incapable of understanding why anyone would not agree with them, follow their commands or do whatever they can to serve them.
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While undeniably powerful, its use almost always adheres to two important restrictions: the user must meet the eyes of the target and must speak in language that is clearly heard and understood by the target. Furthermore, this Discipline cannot be used upon Cainites of lower generation and cannot force someone to be self-destructive or defy their Nature. Using Dominate is often considered very heavy-handed, hardly appropriate within what passes for polite vampiric society, but it is also favored by those of age and status as an efficient means of asserting their authority.
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[1]
Command: Give a simple one-word order that a target must obey
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[2]
Mesmerize: By holding a target with your gaze you can implant false thoughts or hypnotic suggestions in a target's mind
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[3]
The Forgetful Mind: Rewrite the memories of a target
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[4]
Conditioning: Over time make a target a slave to your will alone
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[5]
Possession: Transfer your mind into a mortal body and control their actions
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Advanced Powers
[6]
Autonomic Mastery: Start, stop, or otherwise control a target's bodily functions
Chain the Psyche: Attempting to circumvent your Dominate commands fills the target with incapacitating pain
Command Obedience: You no longer require eye contact for Dominate, relying on skin contact or your voice
Fealty: Enforce oaths a target makes to you so they cannot be broken
Implanted Opinion: Implant a feeling, opinion, or even a personality trait the victim will believe is their own
Loyalty: It becomes very difficult for other vampires to override your Dominate commands with their own
Memory Block: Leave a target unable to talk about a memory even while able to remember it
Obedience: The vampire may use any Dominate power without eye contact. Touching their skin, or even clothing, is sufficient.
Oberon's Grail: Erase entire nights of a target's memory
Rationalize: Those you Dominate refuse to believe their actions are not their own
Tranquility: Ease a vampire out of frenzy
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[7]
Chain of Command: Should a target be made unable to obey one of your Dominate command the effect will be passed to one who can
Repression of the Obvious: Learn a thought the target is repressing and make them blurt it out
Mass Manipulation: You can use Dominate on small groups at once
Still the Mortal Flesh: Shut down the body functions of a target
Strings of the Marionette: Force a vampire to obey your commands even when staked or in torpor
Tyrant's Gaze: Reduce the Attributes of a target with a look
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[8]
Carry the Master's Voice: Make it so you can issue Dominate commands through a thrall
Far Mastery: You can issue Dominate commands to someone you know anywhere in the world if you know their location
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[9]
Best Intentions: Make a target always act with your best intentions in mind
Speak Through the Blood: Guide the actions of your vampiric descendents over the years
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[10]
Puppet Master: Override a target's mind completely and make them think and act as you. This power may only be attempted once per year on a given victim.
Vampires that master the Potence Discipline possess physical strength beyond mortal bounds. This Discipline is responsible for the legends of vampires possessing the strength of 10 men. Potence allows vampires to leap great distances, lift massive weights and strike opponents with terrifying force.
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Even the lowest ranks of this power gift the Kindred with physical might beyond mortal bounds. More powerful immortals have been known to leap so far they seem to be flying, throw or toss cars aside like tin cans, and punch through concrete as if it were cardboard. In the Dark Ages, vampire nobles have been known to break open fortress gates with their bare hands and cut war horses in two with one stroke of a greatsword.
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Members of Clans Brujah, Lasombra, Giovanni, and Nosferatu are naturally gifted with this Discipline, although almost every clan finds some use for it, and members of other Clans often make a point to find someone who can teach them the awesome power of Potence. Each dot grants an automatic success on any rolls involving Strength, and does not require activation. It is also a fairly common discipline among ghouls.
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Potence's aspect in the curse of vampirism is that a vampire slowly unlearns to be gentle. Those who rely too much on Potence begin to show complete disregard for what they perceive as the weakness of others, putting all their strength in any physical action, regardless how mundane it is.
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There are no individual powers for Potence until level 6. At that point characters may choose to gain additional automatic successes to Strength or choose a unique power. Included below are the official powers described in supplements for Vampire: The Masquerade and Dark Ages: Vampire. Sources are described below in the order they were printed.
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Advanced Powers
[1]
Imprint: The Kindred squeezes so hard they leave imprints in solid steel.
Master of the Forge: The Kindred creates exceptional metalwork tools and weapons.
Relentless Pursuit: The Kindred makes extraordinary leaps through the air.
The Fist of Caine: The Kindred makes brawling attacks from a few yards away.
The Gentle Rebuke: The Kindred telekinetically knocks someone away without harming them.
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[2]
Earthshock: The Kindred sends shockwaves through the Earth.
Fist of the Titans: The Kindred attacks or throws someone away telekinetically.
Immovable Object: Spend a Willpower point while standing on a solid service to become absolutely immovable.
The Forger's Hammer: The Kindred creates weapons that do extra damage.
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[3]
Aftershock: Delay damage from attacks for up to 24 hours.
Flick: The Kindred makes a simple motion that sends a target flying away.
Lend the Supernatural Vigor: The Kindred grants their incredible strength to another.
Touch of Pain: The Kindred puts the full force of their strength against one person or object.
[4]
Might of the Heroes: The Kindred performs physical feats of mythic proportion.