There are 30 Abilities in total: 10 talents, skills, and Knowledges. Each Ability encompasses a broad range of uses, though others (Academics, Crafts, Expression, Law, Occult, Performance, Science, and Technology) might require a specialty even if it isn’t at 4 or higher to illustrate what area they focus in.
Not everyone is good at the same things in the same way. A skilled marksman might be proficient with rifles while another pistols. An academic might have studied European history while someone else focused on linguistics. To portray this, all characters with ratings of 4 or higher in either Attributes or Abilities can choose Specialties for those traits.
A specialty is a specific subcategory of the Attribute or Ability. Someone with a dexterity rating of 4 might be good at sprinting, while a character with Crafts 5 might be an impressive painter. Whenever a roll is made, and the action would fall under the chosen specialty, any die that rolls a 10 is counted as 2 successes rather than 1.
All of the specialties listed below are examples, others can be made up so long as they aren’t too broad.
Novice: You’re no mindless drone.
Practiced: Habitual eavesdropper.
Competent: You keep a sharp eye on your surroundings.
Expert: Whether from paranoia or good sense, you are rarely caught off-guard.
Master: Your senses are on par with those of a wild animal.
Posessed by: Hunters, Bodyguards, Security Personnel, Journalists, Burglars
Specialties: Noises, Eavesdropping, Fine Details, Hidden Weapons, Crowds, Forests, Animals
Novice: You had an active childhood.
Practiced: High-school athlete.
Competent: Talented lifelong amateur.
Expert: Professional athlete.
Master: Olympic medalist.
Posessed by: Athletes, Hobbyists, Park Rangers, Jocks, Kids
Specialties: Swimming, Rock Climbing, Acrobatics, Dancing, Parkour, specific sports
Characters with Awareness sometimes get hunches, chills, or sudden flashes of inspiration when they are near supernatural creatures, objects, or events. This insight is purely subconscious, and knowing that something’s wrong doesn’t mean that the character knows what it is. To get more specific information, the Kindred will need to use Occult or a particular power – Awareness only makes the vampire more receptive to the presence of the unusual.
A vampire can use Awareness deliberately if he suspects that something is supernatural, but more often the Storyteller can ask for an Awareness roll to determine whether a vampire notices a strange event that’s not immediately visible.
Novice: Once in a while, you get the feeling that something isn’t right.
Practiced: You sometimes get strange vibes from a particular direction or vague area (like a building).
Competent: You can walk into a room and know that something unusual is going on within.
Expert: If you concentrate, you can sense whether a someone in a group of people or a collection of objects is supernatural.
Master: You instinctually know if something or someone is mundane or supernatural.
Posessed by: Psychics, New Agers, Mystics, Paranormal Researchers
Specialties: Ghostly Activity, Mystical Objects, Someone’s In My Head, Debunking
Novice: You were picked on as a kid.
Practiced: You’ve participated in the occasional barroom tussle.
Competent: You’ve fought regularly and routinely, and generally walked away in better shape than your opponents.
Expert: You could be a serious contender on the MMA circuit.
Master: Somewhere on the Internet, there’s a video of you taking down three men in four seconds.
Posessed by: Military, Police, Roughnecks, Thugs
Specialties: Dirty Fighting, Strikes, Throws, Submission Holds, specific martial arts or combat styles
Novice: You lend the occasional shoulder to cry on.
Practiced: You can sometimes literally feel someone else’s suffering.
Competent: You have a keen insight into other people’s motivations.
Expert: It’s almost impossible to lie to you.
Master: The human soul conceals no mysteries from you.
Posessed by: Social Workers, Parents, Actors, Psychologists, Detectives, Seducers, Mediums, Best Friends
Specialties: Emotions, Insight, Motives, Gaining Trust
Novice: Your talent has matured past crude poetry on notebook paper.
Practiced: You could lead a college debate team.
Competent: You could be a successful writer.
Expert: Your work is Pulitzer material.
Master: Steve Jobs asks you for input on his next mobile device.
Posessed by: Actors, Writers, Poets, Politicians, Journalists, Web Personalities, Rabble-Rousers
Specialties: Acting, Poetry, Fiction, Impromptu, Conversation, Social Media
Novice: Shady teenager.
Practiced: Skinhead thug.
Competent: Drill sergeant.
Expert: Your air of authority cows casual passersby.
Master: You can frighten off vicious animals.
Posessed by: Bullies, Anonymous, Military Officers, Bouncers, Gangsters, Sabbat
Specialties: Veiled Threats, Pulling Rank, Physical Coercion, Blackmail, Internet
Novice: Captain of your Little League team.
Practiced: Student body president.
Competent: An effective CEO.
Expert: Presidential material.
Master: You could be beloved dictator of a nation.
Posessed by: Politicians, Princes, Managers, Executives, Military Officers, Police
Specialties: Oratory, Compelling, Friendly, Open, Noble, Military, Multimedia
Novice: You know who’s holding.
Practiced: You’re accorded respect on the street.
Competent: You could head your own gang.
Expert: You have little to fear in even the worst neighborhoods.
Master: If you haven’t heard it, it hasn’t been said.
Posessed by: Criminals, Homeless People, Reporters, Clubgoers, Savvy Detectives, Neonates
Specialties: Fencing, Illegal Drugs, Illegal Weapons, Free Wifi, Gangs, Being On the Guest List, Local Slang
Novice: You tell the occasional white lie.
Practiced: Vampire.
Competent: Criminal lawyer.
Expert: Deep-cover agent.
Master: You’re the very last person anyone would suspect.
Posessed by: Politicians, Lawyers, Vampires, Teenagers, Con Men, Pick-up Artists
Specialties: Seduction, Impeccable Lies, Feigning Mortality, the Long Con
Novice: You can get a domesticated horse to let you pet it.
Practiced: You can housebreak a puppy.
Competent: You could train a seeing-eye dog.
Expert: Circus trainer.
Master: You can tame wild beasts without benefit of supernatural powers.
Posessed by: Farmers, Animal Trainers, Zookeepers, Veterinarians, Pet Owners, Domitors
Specialties: Dogs, Attack Training, Big Cats, Horses, Farm Animals, Falconry
Novice: High school wood shop.
Practiced: You’re starting to develop your own style.
Competent: You could start your own shop.
Expert: You wrote instruction manuals on your field of specialization.
Master: Your craftsmanship and insight is virtually without peer.
Posessed by: Mechanics, Artisans, Artists, Designers, Inventors, Back-to-the-Land Types
Specialties: Pottery, Sewing, Home Repair, Carpentry, Appraisal, Carburetors
Novice: You know how to work as automatic transmission.
Practiced: You can drive a stick shift.
Competent: Professional trucker.
Expert: NASCAR daredevil or tank pilot.
Master: Whether it’s a Fiat or a Ferrari, you can make it sing.
Posessed by: Cabbies, Truckers, Race Car Drivers, Automotive Show Hosts, Rebels
Specialties: Off-Road, Motorcycles, High Speed, Heavy Traffic, Avoiding Traffic Cops
Novice: You know when to keep your mouth shut.
Practiced: You’ve been to a black-tie event or two.
Competent: You know your way around even obscure silverware.
Expert: Her Majesty would consider you charming.
Master: If the right people came to dinner, you could end wars — or start them.
Posessed by: Diplomats, Travelers, High Society, Executives, Kindred of Status
Specialties: At Elysium, Business, High Society, Sabbat Protocol
Novice: You had a BB gun as a kid.
Practiced: You while away the occasional hour at the gun club.
Competent: You’ve survived a firefight or two.
Expert: You could pick off people for a living.
Master: You’ve been practicing since the debut of the Winchester.
Posessed by: Anarchs, Neonates, Policemen, Military Personnel, Survivalists, Hunters
Specialties: Fast-Draw, Gunsmithing, Pistols, Marksmanship, Revolvers, Shotguns
Novice: You can pick a simple lock.
Practiced: You could run a shell game hustle on the corner.
Competent: You can open a standard locked window from the outside.
Expert: You can “retool” a passport or ID card.
Master: You could get into (or out of…) a multinational bank’s central vault.
Posessed by: Burglars, Security Consultants, Policemen, Car Thieves, Street Magicians
Specialties: Safecracking, Misdirection, Lockpicking, Hotwiring, Pickpocketing
Novice: You know the right way to hold a knife.
Practiced: You may have been in the occasional street fight.
Competent: You could make a college fencing team.
Expert: You could keep order in the Prince’s court.
Master: Your enemies would rather face a SWAT team than your blade.
Posessed by: Assassins, Gang Members, Martial Artists, Police, Duelists
Specialties: Knives, Swords, Improvised Weaponry, Riposte, Disarms
Novice: You could sing in the church choir.
Practiced: Your Internet videos have over a hundred thousand views.
Competent: You almost always have a gig booked.
Expert: You have the talent to be a national sensation.
Master: You are a virtuoso without peer.
Posessed by: Musicians, College Students, Actors, Ballerinas, Mimes
Specialties: Dancing, Singing, Rock and Roll, Acting, Guitar Solos, Drunken Karaoke
Novice: You can hide in a darkened room.
Practiced: You can shadow someone from streetlight to streetlight.
Competent: You have little difficulty finding prey from evening to evening.
Expert: You can move quietly over dry leaves.
Master: Nosferatu elder
Posessed by: Burglars, Assassins, Kindred, Spies, Reporters, Commandos
Specialties: Hiding, Silent Movement, Shadowing, Crowds
Novice: You can survive a night spent outside.
Practiced: You’ve “roughed it” on a regular basis.
Competent: You can separate poison or spoilage from edible forage.
Expert: You could live for months in the challenging environment of your choice.
Master: You could get dropped naked into the Andes and do all right for yourself.
Posessed by: Scouts, Soldiers, Outdoors Enthusiasts, Survivalists, Hunters
Specialties: Tracking, Woodlands, Jungle, Street Life, Hunting, Urban Exploration
If you don’t have any dots in a Knowledge, you cannot even attempt a roll involving it unless the Storyteller gives explicit permission (such as where common trivia is concerned). If you don’t know Spanish, you can’t try holding a conversation en español on your wits alone.
Student: You’re aware that 1066 isn’t a Beverly Hills area code.
College: You can quote from the classics, identify major cultural movements, and expound on the difference between Ming and Moghul.
Masters: You could get a paper published in a scholarly journal.
Doctorate: Professor emeritus
Scholar: Scholars worldwide acknowledge you as one of the foremost experts of your time.
Posessed by: Professors, Literati, Topical Bloggers, Elders
Specialties: Poststructuralism, Impressionist Painting, Imperial Rome, Color Theory, Linguistics
Student: You can navigate touch-screen and traditional point-and-click GUIs.
College: You know your way around various applications and the Internet.
Masters: You know what to do with a text command prompt.
Doctorate: You can make a very comfortable living as a consultant.
Scholar: You have all the SDKs and comprehend data structures for a stunning variety of programming languages.
Posessed by: Hackers, Office Workers, Programmers, Data Processors, Students
Specialties: “The YouTubes,” Computer Languages, Internet, Database Administration, HCI, Viruses, specific devices and programs
Student: You’ve taken a few business classes.
College: You have some practical experience and can keep your books fairly neat.
Masters: You’d make a fine stockbroker.
Doctorate: Corporations follow your financial lead.
Scholar: You could turn a $20 bill into a fortune.
Posessed by: Executives, Upper Class, Stockbrokers, Accountants, Fences, Drug Dealers, Smugglers
Specialties: Stock Market, Laundering, Appraisal, Foreign Currencies, Accounting, Fencing, Corporations, Federal Bailouts
Student: You can parse a broad Web search for clues.
College: Police officer.
Masters: Private detective.
Doctorate: Federal agent.
Scholar: Sherlock Holmes.
Posessed by: Detectives, Mystery Buffs, Policemen, Stalkers
Specialties: Forensics, Shadowing, Search, Discolorations, Database Research
Student: You’ve paid a traffic ticket and know whether to plead guilty, not guilty, or nolo contendere next time.
College: You’re either studying for or just passed the bar exam.
Masters: You can make a living of the practice, and probably do.
Doctorate: If you’re not partner yet, you will be soon.
Scholar: You could find the loopholes in the Devil’s contracts.
Posessed by: Detectives, Mystery Buffs, Policemen, Stalkers
Specialties: Forensics, Shadowing, Search, Discolorations, Database Research
Student: You’ve taken a CPR course.
College: Premed or paramedic.
Masters: General practitioner.
Doctorate: You can perform transplants.
Scholar: You are respected by the world’s medical community as a pioneer.
Posessed by: Med Students, Doctors, Lifeguards, Parents, Paramedics, Tzimisce
Specialties: Organ Transplants, Emergency Care, Poison Treatments, Pathology, Pharmaceuticals, the Kindred Condition
Student: You’ve got a blog about the eerie and the disturbing.
College: There seems to be some unsettling truth to some of the rumors you’ve heard.
Masters: You’ve heard a lot and actually seen a little for yourself.
Doctorate: You can recognize blatantly false sources and make educated guesses about the rest.
Scholar: You know most of the basic truths about the hidden world.
Posessed by: Occultists, The Superstitious, New Agers, Tremere
Specialties: Kindred Lore, Rituals, Infernalism, Witches, Noddist Lore
Student: Activist; you can pay a speeding ticket online.
College: Political science major; you know how to file a request for information.
Masters: Campaign manager or talk-radio host; the clerk will help you navigate the forms you need to complete and tell you who needs the duplicates.
Doctorate: Senator; “We’re not supposed to show this to anyone without press credentials, so don’t quote me.”
Scholar: You could choose the next President of the United States. “Sure, here are the keys to the file morgue. Turn off the light when you leave.”
Posessed by: Activists, Politicians, Lawyers, vampires of all sorts
Specialties: City, State, Federal, Bureaucracy, Dogma, Radical, Camarilla
Student: You know most of the high-school basics.
College: You’re familiar with the major theories.
Masters: You could teach high-school science.
Doctorate: You’re fully capable of advancing the knowledge in your field.
Scholar: Your Nobel Prize is waiting for you.
Posessed by: Scientists, Students, Researchers, Teachers, Engineers, Technicians, Pilots
Specialties: Chemistry, Biology, Geology, Physics, Astronomy
Student: You can perform simple modifications or repairs.
College: You could make your living in assembly or repair.
Masters: You can design new technologies from a set of objective requirements.
Doctorate: For you, it’s not, “Can this be done?” but “How can this be done?”
Scholar: A visionary in the field; you shape how people interact with their world through devices.
Posessed by: Engineers, Scientists, Defense Contractors, the Cable Guy
Specialties: Telecom, Computers, Security, Communications, Improvised Solutions, Industrial Espionage