Status Traits

Why is status a thing?

"A beast I am, lest a beast I become."

 

"Wanna know what I'm buying, Ringo?"
"What?"
"Your life. I'm giving you that money so I don't have to kill your ass."

Vampire society evolved the status system to let vampires release their Beast in a subtle fashion, rather than lose control to it. In addition to the general perception of Status Rating, Credit Rating (Camarilla) and vaulderie (Sabbat), it has adopted these more specific codes of social standing.

General concepts

For the purpose of these rules, 'weeks' begin on (IC time) Monday at noon Pacific. All changes to traits should go through +request.

"Accepted" is not governed by these status trait rules, instead it is a prerequisite for them.

• The Camarilla calls this "Acknowledged". You must speak with your Primogen and be formally introduced to the local Prince.
• The Sabbat calls this "Committed". You must survive Creation Rites.
• The Anarch Movement calls this "Initiated". You must prove your loyalty in combat with others of your sect.
• All status trait effects are limited to one sect (unless Alternate Identity is involved), and sometimes also by domain and/or other things.
• You automatically know the status traits of all Accepted members.
• Each week, you can inquire into N such members (N = your Leadership) and learn where / how / why / by whom it was awarded.

Monikers are also not status traits, instead they grant positive or negative status traits as a side effect.

• These traits may be spent/removed as usual, but return (as if Abiding) until/unless the moniker is also removed.
• These are unrelated to the Anarch trait Moniker.

Positive These have passive effects, and can also be 'spent' once per week. A trait's passive effects apply as long as you still have the trait and haven't spent it earlier in the same week. If you have the same passive trait multiple times, its passive effects don't stack with each other. If you spend an Abiding or Innate trait, it comes back in effect next week. If you spend a Fleeting trait, you lose it. If you spend the same trait multiple times, its spent effects do stack with each other. Negative These have censure (social expectation) and punishment (applied if you violate censure and an officer finds out). Negative traits remain until either removed by someone able to do so, or a duration was specified and it expires.

Abiding These depend on what position(s) you hold, and are always positive. If you gain a position, you gain its traits at the start of the next week. If you hold multiple positions, you only gain traits from one of them; the rest are effectively spent without effect. You can switch which one, which takes effect at the start of the next week. If you lose a position, you lose its traits before they can be spent, and those from your other position(s) remain spent without effect until the start of the next week. Innate These depend on who/what you are, and are sometimes negative. Fleeting These depend on what you do or someone else does, and are always positive. You're limited to a certain number of these at a time, normally 5. If you gain another, you lose one of your choice (the new one or an existing one) before it can be spent.

Offices and Abiding traits

Camarilla Office Abiding traits Prince Authority, Sovereign; Commander, unless petty A petty prince is one with less than four or more than eight primogen. (BNS pages 375, 377) Seneschal Noble; Authority, while Imperator is absent Primogen Noble May spend to vote for or against removing the Prince (Prince removed if votes-for exceed votes-against by 4+ at end of week) Whip Noble, while their primogen is absent Harpy, Court Harpy Guardian, Noble, Prominent Assistant Harpy Guardian, at their own gatherings, while Court Harpy is absent Keeper of Elysium Enforcer, Guardian Sheriff Enforcer, Privileged Scourge Enforcer Age (BNS page 22) Abiding traits Elder (8th or stronger) Confirmed, Established, Privileged Ancilla (9th or 10th) Confirmed

Sabbat Office Abiding traits Archbishop Authority, Glorious, Ordained Bishop Blessed or Enforcer (may switch at start of new week); Ordained, at their own gatherings, if given a Blood Bath upon taking office, while Archbishop is absent Templar, Paladin Enforcer Ductus Blessed (within pack) Priest Ordained (within pack) May spend to award Scholar Anarch Office Abiding traits Baron Authority, Mandate Constable Enforcer, Warrant Architect Enforcer Ambassador Established

• Imperial Praxis equivalents: (local) Imperator ~ Prince, Duke ~ Seneschal.
• Elder and Ancilla also depend on how long you've ICly been active. (Will probably be tied to OOC time since approval and/or lifetime XP, details TBD.) Increasing Generation in the present day does not qualify you for them.
• NPC only, details omitted for brevity: Inner Circle, (global) Imperator, Justicar, Archon, Alastor; Regent, Cardinal, Prisci; Ascendant, Ominous, Sacrosanct.

Specific Abiding traits

Trait	How you get it	Passive	Spent
Authority	Prince; Seneschal, while Prince is absent	Award Courageous, Defender, Honorable, or Loyal. A person can only hold one Authority-granted trait per grantor at a time.	Issue or remove Warned or Forsaken.
Commander	Prince, unless petty	Give orders to anyone without Authority. If they disobey, then for the rest of that week and the next week, their Fleeting traits are ignored and they can't gain more. Award Enforcer to up to three people for rest of week.	Award Courageous or Loyal to up to three people (need not be the same for all of them).
Enforcer	Keeper of Elysium, Sheriff, Scourge	Carry weapons to any gathering, including Elysium. Award Defender to up to two people for rest of week.	Issue Warned to someone you legitimately believe has broken the law.
Established	Elder	Anyone who clearly insults, threatens or attacks you in the presence of another becomes Warned, unless they have Authority, Commander, or Triumphant.	Award Favored.
Prominent	Harpy / Court Harpy	Award Courteous or Honorable. A person can only hold one Prominent-granted trait per grantor at a time.	Order someone to leave a non-combat scene. If they don't, they become Disgraced.
Confirmed	Elder or ancilla	May approach officers without formal introduction and without social penalty.	Order a ghoul or other servant of the faction, unless it directly contradicts their domitor/etc's orders. If they refuse, you can kill them without reprisal. Can't be spent during combat.
Guardian	Harpy, Keeper of Elysium; Assistant Harpy, at their own gatherings, while Court Harpy not present	Issue Warned to anyone who behaves inappropriately within your jurisdiction or does not respect the authority of your proclamations.	Issue Disgraced Harpy does so by issuing the moniker Boonbreaker (more detail at BNS 397-398). Keeper does so by issuing the moniker Profane.
Noble	Seneschal, Primogen, Harpy / Court Harpy; Whip, while your primogen is absent	Award Loyal or Acclaimed. A person can only hold one Noble-granted trait per grantor at a time.	Issue Vulgar to someone who caused significant offense.
Privileged	Elder, Sheriff	Others can't openly accuse you of lying unless they have Authority, Commander, Privileged, or Triumphant.	Issue Vulgar.
Sovereign	Prince	Award Enforcer, Courteous, or Loyal. A person can only hold one Sovereign-granted trait per grantor at a time. Others can't openly contradict you unless they have Authority or Privileged.	Award Sanctioned, or initiate a blood hunt for as long as you retain your position (target is effectively Forsaken within your domain).

• Imperial Praxis: Sheriff awarding Defender is two per fief, implicitly renewed weekly for standing deputies.

Specific Innate traits

• TBD: Architect, Primus Inter Pares

Specific Fleeting traits

Trait	How you get it	Passive	Spent
Courteous	Patron with Prominent	Others setting off Awareness can't frame you for it with Subterfuge.	Apologize for a political or etiquette gaffe you made within the past five minutes. It still happened, but can't be held against you.
Courageous	Patron with Authority or Commander	You gain +1 success on one combat action per scene if following directives of someone with Authority or Commander.	You or another person gains +1 success on one combat action unless breaking the law.
Defender	Patron with Authority or Enforcer	Carry weapons to any gathering, including Elysium.	Auto-succeed on a check to resist frenzy.
Favored	Patron with Established	Anyone who openly attacks you becomes Warned unless they have Authority, Commander, or Triumphant.	Negate a negative trait before it's applied. That person can't issue you negative traits for rest of week.
Honorable	Patron with Authority or Prominent	Anyone who openly accuses you of lying must spend a positive trait (any type, without its usual effect) to do so.	Negate all current/future orders to leave the current scene.
Loyal	Patron with Authority, Commander, or Noble, or Prestigious Sire merit	If you would otherwise become Warned, it's negated and you lose Loyal instead.	Acquire one piece of equipment or information (e.g. another person's location) from NPCs (typically ghouls or low-level vampires) within five minutes, if they can do so relatively easily.
Praised	Openly insulting someone with Disgraced	No passive effect.	Demand a trivial boon from someone who doesn't already owe you any boons.
Triumphant	Killing someone with Forsaken (helping is insufficient)	VIP treatment. Feed anywhere.	Negate the effects of all of your or another person's negative traits for an hour, even if they would otherwise prevent you from using status traits.
Victorious	Winning a symbel	For rest of week in which you gained it, others who can spend to give you positive traits can do so without spending.	Regain another trait that you just spent, or remove Warned from yourself or another within same jurisdiction where you gained Victorious.
Acclaimed	Patron with Noble	Extend passive effects of one of your unspent traits to one other person for one hour as long as they remain within ten feet of you.	Ask an officer to share her views or offer advice (publically or privately as you wish) on a subject relevant to the domain (personal gain is explicitly OK as long as it's still relevant).
Gallant	Patron with Social Nobility merit (BNS page 405).	No passive effect.	Apologize for a political or etiquette gaffe you made within the past five minutes. It still happened, but can't be held against you.
Sanctioned	Patron with Sovereign	No passive effect.	You're allowed by the Authority of the domain to break one specific law without punishment.

Ban	Cap	How you get it
Lesser	3	Non-pillar clan Path of Enlightenment No boons Were Sabbat within past 10 years
Greater	1	Caitiff Diablerie Joined within past year

Specific Negative traits

Trait	How you get it	Censure	Punishment
Warned	Issued by someone with Authority or Enforcer Violating Established or Favored	Duration: Rest of week and entirely of next week. If already Warned, then the existing one is instead extended by two weeks. Can't initiate public conversation with an officer. Can't contradict an officer. Officers may impose alternate restrictions (e.g. severed finger with order not to regrow it, or other visible mark) if it's not a significant handicap or forcing them into danger.	Can avoid punishment by offering minor boon to the officer. Gain Disgraced as well.
Disgraced	Violating Warned or Prominent Imposed by moniker Boonbreaker or Profane Caught associating with or assisting Bloodhunted within relevant domain	Can't carry weapons or actively use powers in the presence of an officer without their explicit permission. Can't feed within any faction domain. Can't spend or gain positive traits. Boons owed to you need not be repaid.	Can avoid punishment by offering major boon to the officer. Gain Forsaken as well.
Forsaken	Violating Disgraced Issued by someone with Authority Imposed by moniker Bloodhunted	Ejected from your faction and its protection. Killing you is allowed (but not necessarily ordered). Another with Authority may let you visit or live in their domain, but can only remove Forsaken by spending.
Vulgar	Issued by someone with Noble or Privileged	All your fleeting traits are spent without effect (but return at end of week) and you can't gain more until then.	If issued Vulgar again, gain Warned as well.

Specific Monikers

Moniker	How you get it	Trait granted
Boonbreaker	Harpy	Disgraced
Profane	Keeper	Disgraced
Bloodhunted	Prince, Seneschal	Forsaken

Symbels

Symbels allow gambling with status traits.

• Outcome must be reasonably uncertain, otherwise everyone loses (ST discretion).
• Must be disclosed to a group of people, but not necessarily all participants.

Duels Two people bet one of their traits each, and agree on the terms of the duel, e.g. Accomplish something first Accomplish something best within a period of time Who arbitrates if they disagree on the outcome If you don't have a trait to bet, then you can't participate in a duel. While the duel is in progress, the bet traits can't be spent, but still provide their passive effects. When the duel is won: The winner regains the full use of their bet trait, and also gains <span class="fleeting"Victorious. The loser's bet trait is spent without effect. If the duel ends without a winner, neither one gains or loses anything. Examples of duels: Whose childer is more competent, based on giving them tasks for an hour. The childer need not be told that it's a symbel duel (though they may guess). The childer don't gain or lose anything from it (directly, though the winner may choose to reward their childe somehow, while the loser may choose to punish theirs). A game of chess. Ordering their ghouls to fight to the death, or fighting each other directly to first blood or torpor.

Ordeals One person (the host) bets one of their traits and announces a goal. Host arbitrates if outcome is disputed. If you don't have a trait to bet, then you can't host an ordeal, but you can particpate in one. While the ordeal is in progress, the bet trait can't be spent, but still provides its passive effects. When the ordeal is won: The winner gains Victorious. The host's bet trait is spent without effect. The host can't win their own ordeal, but can compete to raise the bar for others. If the ordeal ends without a winner, no one gains or loses anything. Examples of ordeals: Present the prettiest piece of art before midnight. (Obvious bias, while allowed, may be penalized by the harpies.) Abduct and present the most mortal servants of the enemy faction within three hours.

References

These rules are adapted from BNS MET Vampire pages 310-318 (general), 370-380 and 400-403 (Camarilla), 416-420 and 446-449 (Sabbat), 472-474 and 481-484 (Anarch), 317-318 (symbels), and the BNS FAQ.