Feeding
The blood is everything. It’s life. It’s food. It’s power. It’s closeness. It stands to reason that feeding is an all-important act for Kindred. Ask a dozen Kindred how they feed, you’ll get five dozen answers.
While most vampires learn numerous feeding practices from their sires, every Kindred develops her own methods and tricks. With different skill sets, social circles, and Disciplines at her disposal, her best meal ticket is the one she finds herself.
The Assault, The Kiss
Vampires have two traditional avenues of feeding. They can feed aggressively, or subtly. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Normally, a vampire’s fangs retract, only looking barely sharper than normal canines. At will, a vampire can unsheathe them to bite, and to feed. When feeding violently, a vampire’s fangs act as 0L weapons that use the Brawl Skill. That is to say, on a successful attack, they cause lethal damage equal to their successes, even to Kindred. As well, the attacker also takes one Vitae (which causes an additional point of lethal damage to mortals). The drawback is that a bite must be performed as a Damage move as part of a grapple (see p. 177). A mortal bitten violently gains the Scarred Condition (see p. 305). While still grappling and after a violent bite, the vampire gains access to the Feed move.
When feeding non-violently, the vampire’s fangs cause an enticing, invigorating sensation that distracts the victim, to draw attention away from the reality of the feeding. Many Kindred use this method as part of a seduction. A mortal bitten subtly gains the Swooning Condition (see p. 306). The bonuses and penalties for Swooning apply to the vampire’s Discipline rolls. With a subtle bite, the vampire can take one Vitae per turn, and may lick the wound afterwards, leaving no trace of her feeding.
At Storyteller discretion, particularly dramatic feedings can cause Persistent Conditions. For this reason, many vampire hunters have the Scarred or Swooning Conditions. On the other hand, so do many devoted blood dolls.
In reference to the effects of a bite, the word “mortal” applies to humans,
Trusted, warlocks, and other things that are mostly human. Vampires, werewolves, mummies, fairies, and other things far removed from humanity are not normally subject to the Assault and the Kiss. The bite is pleasurable or unsettling; just not mechanically so.
If the vampire knows she’s feeding from something not human, and knows that it is otherwise immune to the benefits of her bite, she may spend a point of Willpower to give them the Scarred or Swooning Conditions as normal. Kindred are aware of this effect, and see its use as abhorrent and degrading. Kindred who rely on it with their own kind often end up ostracized or worse.
Blood Supply
Feeding Scenes
With Dice
Without Dice
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