Clanbook: Ventrue
By Andrew Greenberg
1994, 68 pages
The
most striking thing about Clanbook:
Ventrue is the art. Just flipping
through the book, I was drawn into the images of warrior kings and family
crests. Each piece of art is perfectly
chosen to fit the mood of the book and the clan from the 18th
century style portraits to the depictions of bas relief from ancient churches. Not only is the art striking but it exemplifies
how Clan Ventrue thinks of itself. They
are the leaders and kings of the Camarilla and the Kindred. It is their destiny to lead the other clans
through the centuries.
Beyond
the art, the most surprising aspect of the book was the lack of any
mechanics. There are no disciplines,
merits, flaws, or new skills. Instead,
the entire book is focused on telling the history of the clan through
narratives written by various Ventrue with each writer denoted by his own
font. Also, an organizational history is
given to show how the Ventrue have adapted themselves from the democratic
Senate structure used during the Roman Empire to the modern Directorate based
on the corporate boardroom. Each
organization is equally detailed and shows how the Ventrue have evolved to meet
the struggles of each passing era.
 |
| Prince La Croix from Vampire Bloodlines |
The
organization structures are really useful for parties that have multiple
Ventrue characters or in cities heavily dominated by the clan. Setting up a Directorate for a large city
would be an interesting task, especially when a Brujah punk or Nosferatu sewer
rat has to enter a corporate boardroom, completely out of their element. As with Clanbook: Toreador, the Directorate isn’t as useful
in small cities because there aren’t enough Ventrue to need an
organization.
Clanbook: Ventrue also introduces a new twist to the
old World of Darkness: The Secret
Masters. I hadn’t heard of this group before,
but apparently it is a powerful and ancient society that has controlled the
flow of history since the beginnings of the world. The Antediluvians are a part of this group
but not the only ones, powerful mages and spirits are involved as well, at least
according to the Ventrue.
Honestly,
I’m not sure what to the think of the Secret Masters. I haven’t seen reference to them in any other
book, so they remain a complete mystery.
Nevertheless, they add an element of paranoia as even the kings of
Kindred society are look over their shoulders.
Of course, the Secret Masters could be any group such as the Inconnu or
the True Black Hand, both of which are powerful enough to be manipulating
events from behind the scenes. Or it
could all just be a figment of the Ventrue’s imagination. Or it could be a trick played on them by a
crafty Malkavian who is still snickering to himself as the great Ventrue run
around looking for who is pulling their strings.
The
Templates section which provides character ideas is wonderful. From the Anarch Wannabe, who defies her clan,
to the Corporate Executive, who is a perfect fit for the Ventrue and looking to
rise in the organization, each template provides a wealth of character ideas
for either the PC or the Storyteller who needs an idea for a Ventrue. These Templates represent both the
stereotypical Ventrue and the rebel along with a few twists on those themes,
such as the Counselor who is a sneaky, passive-aggressive manipulator.
Clanbook: Ventrue also offers one of the best crossover
story ideas in the game. In the final
section “Distinguished Ventrue” Stephen Workman’s character history is included. Stephen Workman controlled part of the
computer industry in California’s Silicone Valley. When a group of Ventrue Elders decided to
confront this upstart ancillae, they met some unexpected resistance as they
tried to push out Stephen. Glasswalkers
and Technocracy Mages were also heavily involved in the computer industry and
didn’t enjoy having Vampires try to take control of their businesses. Things escalated and Elder Ventrue learned
that sometimes even the Ventrue can’t control everything. I love how this character history uses Mages
and Lupines as antagonists in a Vampire story.
Rather than focusing on combat, Stephen and his rivals, Kindred, Mage,
Lupine and otherwise, are battling through proxy corporations and never meet
eye to eye.
Clanbook: Ventrue is an excellent read for anyone wants
to run a Ventrue PC or for a Storyteller looking for a few good ideas on how to challenge players who
run vast corporate empires. However, if
you are interested in mechanics or crunch, this book has none, so maybe you
should steer clear. The extra depth for
Ventrue character is much appreciated, but some crunch would be appreciated to
round out the book and make it more useful.
For
those of you who are running V20 games, this book is as useful now as it was then
because you don’t have to worry about converting anything over.
Clanbook: Ventrue can be purchased on DriveThruRPG as a
PDF only. The original printing can be
found on Amazon.com.
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