The Inside Scoop on Gaming

This is gonna sound kind of funny coming from me, but I didn't like Vampire when it first came out.

I mean, I bought a copy, but that was mostly to piss off this idiot I knew who was looking forward to it. And, after flipping through it, I put it down and sold it to a friend, and went along with my merry Champions life.

Of course, once I went off to University, found a new group, and actually tried the game, I changed my mind on that. Loved it. Loved Werewolf bought Mage, loved Wraith and Changeling.

Of course, that doesn't mean there aren't any flaws in Vampire. The game has it's little catches here and there. Which is why White Wolf is releasing a revised edition of Vampire's Second Edition.

I must plead that my review is done from a laser print of the book, and is therefore not of the finished product. The ubiquitous See Page XX's still litter it, and there's probably a typo or two yet to be weeded out before the final product.

However, I must say I like what I see.

The book is a vast improvement over the second edition printed in 1993.

And, while some people will complain that it's just a cash grab from White Wolf, I feel those people really need to take a look at this book.

I mean, if we look at it objectively, that game was made the same year Mage 1st edition was printed. To say White Wolf has come far in the past five years is to make a hell of an understatement.

The rules have been stripped and put back together. Two of the most noticeable changes have been to botching & splitting actions.

The Rule of 1 now states that ones remove a success, but you only botch if you don't score any successes, even one cancelled by a one. So, even if you fail on a roll, it's much harder to actually botch.

As for splitting dice pools, it's MUCH better. No longer will 6 pool characters split it up into three actions of two dice each. Ohhhh, no. You now get your full die pool for each action. Sounds easy, eh? Well, there's a catch. You lose a die for each action you're attempting (So he'd have three dice for each), minus one for each action after the first (so the second would have two, and the third one). A bit better. Of course, large dice pools are still disgusting, but that's just the way it is.

The background has been updated significantly, too. The Assamites are no longer bound by the blood curse of the Tremere. All Malkavians have the discipline of Dementation. An entire Sabbat bloodline has been wiped out. And the political dynamics of the American Kindred are beginning to be upset, with the Sabbat stepping up their offensives against the Camarilla, and the Anarchs beginning to feel the pressure from the Cathayans.

Flavour text now abounds, in each skill description and peppered throughout the rules. The world of Vampire now shines with loads of history and descriptions of the current situation, liberally seasoned with fishhooks to draw the players into a GM's plots.

The content of the book has been pumped up to be an all-inclusive main rulebook. There are sections on all 13 clans, Camarilla, Sabbat, and non-aligned, including their disciplines; Merits and Flaws are now part of the main book; and the Antagonists section is filled with interesting tidbits on what the various vampire hunters of the World of Darkness have been up to.

The revised Vampire: The Masquerade is a grand improvement on the original and second editions. The development team has done a great job of taking information from existing books and putting all the relevant information into the main book.

It's handy for people looking to get all the core rules for Vampire in one place after years of new supplements, and for new players.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Vampire: The Masquerade Revised Edition
Author: Justin Achilli Et Al Category: game Company/Publisher: White Wolf Cost: $28.00 Page count: 308 Capsule Review by Justin Mohareb on 09/03/98. Genre tags: none	This is gonna sound kind of funny coming from me, but I didn't like Vampire when it first came out. I mean, I bought a copy, but that was mostly to piss off this idiot I knew who was looking forward to it. And, after flipping through it, I put it down and sold it to a friend, and went along with my merry Champions life. Of course, once I went off to University, found a new group, and actually tried the game, I changed my mind on that. Loved it. Loved Werewolf bought Mage, loved Wraith and Changeling. Of course, that doesn't mean there aren't any flaws in Vampire. The game has it's little catches here and there. Which is why White Wolf is releasing a revised edition of Vampire's Second Edition. I must plead that my review is done from a laser print of the book, and is therefore not of the finished product. The ubiquitous See Page XX's still litter it, and there's probably a typo or two yet to be weeded out before the final product. However, I must say I like what I see. The book is a vast improvement over the second edition printed in 1993. And, while some people will complain that it's just a cash grab from White Wolf, I feel those people really need to take a look at this book. I mean, if we look at it objectively, that game was made the same year Mage 1st edition was printed. To say White Wolf has come far in the past five years is to make a hell of an understatement. The rules have been stripped and put back together. Two of the most noticeable changes have been to botching & splitting actions. The Rule of 1 now states that ones remove a success, but you only botch if you don't score any successes, even one cancelled by a one. So, even if you fail on a roll, it's much harder to actually botch. As for splitting dice pools, it's MUCH better. No longer will 6 pool characters split it up into three actions of two dice each. Ohhhh, no. You now get your full die pool for each action. Sounds easy, eh? Well, there's a catch. You lose a die for each action you're attempting (So he'd have three dice for each), minus one for each action after the first (so the second would have two, and the third one). A bit better. Of course, large dice pools are still disgusting, but that's just the way it is. The background has been updated significantly, too. The Assamites are no longer bound by the blood curse of the Tremere. All Malkavians have the discipline of Dementation. An entire Sabbat bloodline has been wiped out. And the political dynamics of the American Kindred are beginning to be upset, with the Sabbat stepping up their offensives against the Camarilla, and the Anarchs beginning to feel the pressure from the Cathayans. Flavour text now abounds, in each skill description and peppered throughout the rules. The world of Vampire now shines with loads of history and descriptions of the current situation, liberally seasoned with fishhooks to draw the players into a GM's plots. The content of the book has been pumped up to be an all-inclusive main rulebook. There are sections on all 13 clans, Camarilla, Sabbat, and non-aligned, including their disciplines; Merits and Flaws are now part of the main book; and the Antagonists section is filled with interesting tidbits on what the various vampire hunters of the World of Darkness have been up to. The revised Vampire: The Masquerade is a grand improvement on the original and second editions. The development team has done a great job of taking information from existing books and putting all the relevant information into the main book. It's handy for people looking to get all the core rules for Vampire in one place after years of new supplements, and for new players. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Vampire: The Masquerade Revised Edition