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Blood Dark Thirst $4.00
Average Rating:4.1 / 5
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Daniel N. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/14/2018 14:40:08

I have been sitting on this system for a while as I tend to buy everything Venger creates mostly for inspiration in other games/systems. After running Alpha Blue for the first time a few weeks ago, I fell in love with the simplicity of the mechanics and this game is more or less the same. everything makes sense, not too much "crunch" but enough stuff to mess with to really create the "feel" of vampires. You are F@cking killing machine in this and it's fun as hell to watch the players tear through "normal humans" like nothing and have epic battles when they encounter something that can match them. I went a bit off script in my game and placed the vampire PCs in a space ship, more or less as "saviors" for the human crew vs some bad a$$ aliens.

The rules have no info on such things directly, but it's super easy to create any type of scenario. While I didn't get to play with the social aspects of the game much, I feel that is also a strength here. All in all a fun and simple game.

I will say the way Venger writes is very open ended so if you prefer a game with hard/fast (and very clear) rules, this might not be ideal for you, but if you want a toolbox to do awesome vampires, I cannot recommend it enough. All 4 of my players said they'd enthusiastically play again and 1 already is writing a scenario to run for us.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Thilo G. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 10/09/2018 04:34:20

An Endzeitgeist.com review

Blood Dark Thirst clocks in at 24 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page kort’thalis glyph, 1 page editorial, leaving us with 21 pages of content, so let’s take a look!

Okay, the first thing you’ll note upon opening this pdf, is that it’s gorgeous: The layout by Glynn Seall, with its blood tint and splotches, is glorious. There are no less than 7 (!!) full-page artworks within, all adhering to a mostly black-white- and-tones-of-red aesthetic. This is easily one of Kort’thalis Publishing’s most beautiful books; perhaps even the most beautiful one.

This may not be a surprise to anyone, but I’ll state it nonetheless: Blood Dark Thirst is another rules-lite modification of Venger’s VSd6-system, which is also employed in Alpha Blue, The Outer Presence and Crimson Dragon Slayer. This means you roll 2d6 for most tasks, with advantages and disadvantages reducing or increasing the numbers rolled. 0d6 means rolling 2d6 twice and taking the lesser result. The system then is about interpreting what happens. 1 is a critical failure, 6 a critical success – “Yes, and”… or “No, and…” are the key words here. 2 is a failure, 5 a success, and 3 and 4 are partial failure and success, respectively. These are the base rules; they’re very simple and easy to grasp, can be explained in less than a minute, and is all you need to know to play.

Character creation is similarly painless: You choose three things your character is good at, and thus gets a 3d6 pool; 2 that you’re bad at (1d6) – there is a 20.entry table to randomize these, should you choose to go that route. These are not all equally helpful. Investigation/Perception and Awareness/Alertness are two entries, for example, that could have used specifying for what they’re used respectively. The character gets three flaws (d20 table provided) and picks a quirk that sets him apart. Then you pick your birth, the age when you were turned and mannerisms. A d30 table with a column of male and female names is provided.

The game does have a couple of more crunchy bits, though: Each character starts with 6 humanity, looking human; evil acts decrease humanity, at a maximum rate of 1 per night, and humanity 1 means you look like a monster. Vampires can hold up to 6 points of blood, and only one may be spent per round. Rising at dusk actually costs 1 point of blood, so yeah, you will need to feed. A human has 6 blood; 3 may be drained sans medical attention. Often. Also due to blood being the resource to heal. A vampire begins play with 25 Health. Humans regain 1d6 per day, vampires need to spend one point of blood to regain the same amount. Vampires do not die unless decapitated or consumed by fire, so yes, you can be revived! This is important to keep the combat system in check.

Who describes first acts first, which isn’t a system of initiative I enjoy –iit results in competitive shooting matches by the players, but that’s just my preference. Damage incurred is based on the attack dice pool size, and damage explodes – 6s are rolled again, results added together. Damage can carry over to others when killing NPCs.

Vampires can have up to 6 Willpower, and up to 3 may be spent per scene/encounter, but only 1 per round. New characters begin with 0 Willpower and earn Willpower by roleplaying flaws. Willpower may be spent to resist supernatural effects, resisting bloodlust/frenzy, making a new vampire or adding 3d6 to the dice pool. Frenzy? A vampire down to 3 Blood rolls an additional red d6; less blood means you roll more red d6s. If one of them comes up as a “1”, you enter bloodlust. Here’s the thing: there is power in bloodlust: If the red die comes up 6, the vampire may take the critical success result, provided he is roleplaying the flaw or immediately feeds.

Now, as far as vampire abilities are concerned, the vampires all get the ability to influence minds, have better speed and attacks and more devastating attacks – however, all of these require the expenditure of, bingo, blood. 20 more sample powers, with another one gained every level. Sounds like Vampire: The Masquerade/Requiem? Well, kinda. But not really – the pdf has Vengerized the vampire, taking a cue from vampsploitation movies: Vampires are not living or undead, but rather bloodthirsty demons; they are monstrous and not necessarily noble; there are no bloodlines, though sunlight, religious symbols, stakes, fire, etc. are all covered as traditional weaknesses. Vampires do not have to be invited in, can cross water, etc. – many prohibitions that would impede gameplay have been designated as false. And yes, they can have sex. This is from the man whoo brought us Alpha Blue, after all. ;)

Vampires can form bloodbonds, which may enthrall or affect the relationships. Vampiric slaves for blood and a d6 table to establish the grip on the victim is provided. Similarly, a d6 table to determine whether you were seen, and a general list of 6 NPC challenge levels is provided. Leveling is simple and governed by completed story-arcs, here designated as campaigns.

The pdf also provides an introductory scenario of sorts that features a handout-ish letter; beyond that, a few words summarize a sketch to develop; this is supported by a d20 table of occurrences in the city, and a d6-table of information about the city’s ruler.

The game comes with a nice, impressive character-sheet.

Conclusion:

Editing and formatting are very good on a formal and rules-language level. This is probably Venger's best-organized and most concisely presented VSd6-game. Layout is, as noted before, full-color and gorgeous, and the artworks are similarly amazing, particularly considering the low price point. I have never seen such an inexpensive game look so good before. The pdf comes fully bookmarked, and a second, more printer-friendly version is included in the deal.

Okay, I’ll freely admit it. I was not particularly excited about this one. I loved VtM’s lore, disliked VtR and frankly didn’t expect to see this game work; Venger tends to gravitate towards a beer & pretzels style of gaming, and looking at the page-count, I expected this to be too rudimentary. It’s not. The frenzy-dice-mechanic adds tremendously to the engine’s usual iterations and just FITS. The focus on being a blood-sucking demon, coupled with the really high turn around of blood points and unreliable victim-grabbing also means that just remaining fed can be a struggle, evoking a grimy vampsploitation “blood-by-the-buckets” feeling that distinguishes this from VtM et al, in spite of the thematic overlaps. This actually manages to feel differently from the game that inspired it and the other Vsd6-games; it is, mechanically, by far my favorite of the bunch.

That being said, Blood Dark Thirst suffers from a single downside that prevents it from being the crowning jewel in Venger’s games. The length. BDT is super-short, and ultimately, more than his other games, it would have deserved to be significantly expanded. If this had different bloodlines, more powers, perhaps a couple of magic items and the like, it could have been my favorite super-rules-lite game. As presented, this is a basic toolkit, and it delivers what it promises for a fair price point. At the same time, the adventure-sketch could have used further pages, and the game, as a whole, would have benefitted from more room to shine. Frankly, I found myself wishing that, at one point Venger may get back to this and expand it to twice, thrice the size. Blood Dark Thirst is a fun, promising game for those looking for a rules-lite, savage vampire game. (As an aside: In such an expansion, different pool sizes for Willpower, Humanity and Blood could allow for a wide variety of game-styles and extended campaign play…just sayin’…)

I really enjoyed this game; apart from it’s limited scope and length, there is nothing I really disliked or found problematic here. Thus, my final rating will clock in at 4.5 stars, though I can’t round up for this one. Here’s raising a blood-filled chalice to hoping that our thirst for an expanded version will one day be quenched!

Endzeitgeist out.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Tim B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 12/08/2017 18:12:25

A neuronphaser.com review

Summary

Blood Dark Thirst in a nutshell is Vampire: The Masquerade as distilled through author Venger's propensity for an extra layer of darkness or weirdness (these are blood suckers who are possessed by demons!), and a major streamlining of system and theme. This isn't a game that sells itself on its lavishly developed setting or the complex machinations of vampiric clans or houses, but instead boils everything down to the personal traits that create such beautiful conflict in the modern vampire mythos. For those seeking a quick and dark way to tell vampire stories of personal horror, you can't go wrong. For those looking for more -- more details, more traits, more than just "how does my vampire overcome or succumb to his bloodlust -- this isn't for you. And that's just fine.

Content 4/5

Blood Dark Thirst (BDT for short in this review) is a full RPG in the usual style of Venger's other games: evocative, complete, and succinct all in one package. Somewhat like Crimson Dragon Slayer, BDT is an OSR-style clone of another game, but this time it's a game nominally set in the modern world: Vampire: The Masquerade. Only that BDT stays true to Venger's style, because it's not just vampires, it's demon-possessed vampires!

The game itself borrows the thematic ideas of Vampire: The Masquerade's earliest editions -- that of personal horror -- and spins them in the usual easy-to-start, fast-to-play style that makes all Kort'thalis Publishing games great, rules-lite pick-up games or introductions for new players and groups that like a gonzo style. Though we'll touch on some of the short cuts that make this game so fast, it's important to note that the themes tend towards slightly longer-term play than Crimson Dragon Slayer or Alpha Blue might suggest, and we find most of the mechanics in BDT work well for this, which is a nice surprise in such a sleek, rules-lite system. But that's all vague; let's get to the specifics!

Player Characters

The players characters are folks possessed by blood-drinking demons, so they are vampires, but the hunger that drives them is clearly motivated by another force that lives within them. These characters will have a number of special abilities thanks to their demonic possession, but all of this centers around a careful balance of the blood that sustains them (they gotta feed often), the humanity that allows them to move among humans in order to hunt without being caught (it's inevitable that they'll lose this humanity over time), and their force of will, pushing them to continue on in this endless internal conflict (their willpower allows them to resist base urges, the domination of stronger vampires, or to create new vampires to help them survive).

Narrative & Mechanical Traits. Characters are built from several narrative traits: things they are good at, things they are bad at, and several personality flaws that suggest dark urges they may give into. Then the more mechanical traits are determined: Blood, Humanity, Willpower, and Health are generally equal for all vampires at the start, but can vary wildly as vampires grow older, and even throughout the night if the vampire gets involved in a lot of conflict.

Levels & Supernatural Abilities. Vampires get "levels" that are gauge of age, experience, and power. As they go up in level, they get more Health and also begin to unlock new supernatural abilities from their vampiric nature (or demonic possession, really). All vampires start with incredible strength, reflexes, and the ability to influence the minds of the weaker-willed, and as they level they pick up abilities such as seeing the memories of those they drink blood from, communicating with the dead, moving without a trace, telepathy, and more. All of these are thematic to some version of the vampire mythos, and some are more blatantly supernatural (or even demonic) than others.

Gameplay

BDT uses the VSd6 system. If you're character is especially good at something, they roll 3d6 (sometimes more, if you have special items or powers). If they are average, they roll 2d6. If they suck, they roll 1d6. When you roll dice, you simply look at the highest die rolled, and that's your result: a 1 is terrible, 2 and 3 are generally bad, 4 is okay, 5 and 6 tend to rock. When it comes to dealing damage, multiple 6s mean that you deal more of it. Simple.

As mentioned above, a character has narrative traits that tell you what they are good at and bad at, which determines whether you're rolling more or less d6s. Supernatural abilities sometimes allow you to gain new things you're good at, or increase the benefits of the results of a good roll. For example, you rarely roll more dice, but if you succeed at some supernatural strength attack, you might multiply the damage dealt by 3.

That said, the bulk of the mechanics revolve around the major trait drivers of the characters: Blood, Humanity, Willpower (and to a lesser extent, Health).

  • Waking up at dusk, activating supernatural powers, healing Health points, and turning a mortal into a vampire all cost Blood to use, and since you only have 6, they go fast.
  • Evil acts cost you a Humanity -- no more than one per night -- and low Humanity causes your appearance to become less and less human, veering towards downright demonic at the lowest levels. Especially good acts can be awarded with your Humanity increasing, but the system seems to suggest that these must be pretty serious, virtuous deeds.
  • Willpower can be spent to resist supernatural influence, resist going into a frenzy, turning a mortal into a vampire, or adding 3d6 to your dice pool. Like Blood, you only have 6 points, and you can regain 1 of them (once per scene) by roleplaying your flaws.

There's a section on vampire weaknesses that speak to legends and myth, telling you which ones are "real" and which ones aren't. Rules for the blood bond (gaining mental domination over those that drink your blood), hunting for, grappling and feeding from humans without being seen, and combat round out the book. Notably, seizing a victim and remaining sneaky have random tables based on the VSd6 success table, so they act as great springboards for mixing up the results of hunting. Of course, if you feed on a willing victim, you can ignore them, too!

The Black Envelope

An introductory scenario, "The Black Envelope" is included to provide a quick jumping off point that will force the players together over a shared threat. The scenario is incredibly lightly detailed, instead relying on tables to determine some possible encounters and/or final setting for what's likely to be the climactic encounter, as well as some information (rumors? truths?) about the subject of the players' consternation: the most powerful vampire in the city!

It's the kind of scenario that Kort'thalis is known for: evocative but very loosely detailed. It'll require an experienced GM and either lots of improv or a not-so-small amount of prep to breathe life into the scenario. But let me stress how good it is: SPOILER the head vampire of the city drops a note at each player's home during the day (so, probably not personally delivered) that basically says, "Get out of my city or you're dead." For those familiar with Vampire: The Masquerade, we're literally starting with the players under a Blood Hunt. END SPOILER

Form 5/5

Blood Dark Thirst is a 25-page PDF (including cover page, one page of credits, and a one page character sheet). The layout includes two columns and there is both a full-color version with a cool "bloody parchment" style background that doesn't interfere with legibility, and there's a background-less, printer-friendly version.

There is full-page artwork that breaks up several sections, which really means this is a much smaller document than 25 pages in terms of words, but the artwork throughout is supremely evocative: remember, these aren't just vampires, they are demon-possessed vampires! And that character sheet! It is gorgeous and laid out beautifully: it has everything you'll ever need for a character, plus evocative flourishes in the form of symbols for tracking traits like Humanity and Willpower, as well as background artwork that veers from sensual to horrific. This truly evokes what playing in a world of demonic vampires is all about!

For more reviews, RPG advice, house rules, resources, and more, head over to neuronphaser.com!



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Niles C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/16/2017 18:40:38

Caveat: I don't like V:tM or V:tR or WoD or anything related. When Venger said he was going to write an OSR heartbreaker based on them I came up with a very involved arguement that involved waves and cycles to show that the Storyteller games couldn't be Old School until 6e D&D comes out.

Turns out I was wrong.

BDT works as well its own thing and, if you're less lazy and burnt out than me, would be a perfect stand alone game for as much material as you can squeeze out of it. To me it does seem to expect a basic knowledge of the WoD stuff, if only to deliberately ignore it. You can get workable characters out of it in about 15 minutes if you're distaractably watching YouTube videos. If you have no intention of running it directly then there's plenty of ideas to drop into your other OSR games.

My only real complaint is that it feels unfinished. Like I've only got a third of a final game here. Hey Venger, if you ever do expansions for Werewolves and Sorcerers then let me know. Meanwhile I'll be over here not publishing my own osr style paranormal/occult heartbreakers. With blackjack and hookers. (Although I'm struggling with the blackjack based task resolution system. And the hookers are expensive.)



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Thomas G. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/20/2017 17:15:03

Being someone who has always wanted a simplified VtM, when I saw Blood Dark Thirst, I was intrigued. Already a fan of Venger's different take on RPGs, I bought this PDF right away!

Firstly, I will go over what I like about this product. It really does a good job making the Vampire RPG concept much easier than what I have played before. The tedium of having to look up which abilities to add to what attributes in order to know what to roll to accomplish whatever I'm trying to do... is gone! The rolls that are made for skills and attacks are simple and intuitive. An awful lot of the fat has been trimmed here. Also, I could care less about Vampire politics and factions and endless metaplot. It appears that Venger feels the same, as this game seems to focus much more on being a vampire and doing vampire things. The world and plot are firmly in the grips of the Gamemaster. I do like the similarities to White Wolf's systems where they do appear, such as Blood Points, Willpower and Blood Bonds. It feels familiar but simplified. Mostly in a good way. This game is also easily house ruled for whatever one might not care for or wish to add in.

Now I'll go over what I am not all that fond of. I know that the system purposely keeps things simple but there is one area where I don't feel that shines. Powers. As has been mentioned by a previous reviewer, just an extra line or two on how some of them work would be great. Yes, I can sit down and take the extra time to house rule the powers that are extremely vague or have no system associated with them but it really feels like this particular section is unfinished. I'd also love to see more of them and perhaps Kort'thalis might release more in a future supplement. Another complaint of mine is the very low Blood Point cap. Six just doesn't feel like enough when you consider you must spend one just to wake up. Then there are all of the other uses for them that a character is going to need to be spending them on, like powers and healing. Add to that the fact that you begin having to worry about frenzying when you are down to 3 and that makes for an awful lot of feeding, at least with my group. I also didn't notice any ability to earn more through leveling. That's one I will house rule and it won't be hard in the least but I felt it was worth the mention. Finally, the lack of a character sheet is a bummer. It's a small bummer but a bummer none-the-less. Even in a super, extremely rules lite game like Blood Dark Thirst, I think a character sheet should be included with the core rules book.

So do I feel that this game is worth the $4 price tag? Absolutely! Venger has written the start of one of the RPGs that I've always wanted! It does have what I feel are flaws but nothing that I consider fatal. I do hope that there are more supplements for this game and that powers are expanded upon but if not, I can add to it myself. I just wish I didn't have to.

In closing, if you are a fan of VTM or VTR but really just want a simple system that allows you to make customized vampires and play them, then this might be the game for you. Just know that you might need to do a little extra work to make it feel 100% playable.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
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Creator Reply:
Good news! An official Blood Dark Thirst character sheet is not only coming, but will be added to this PDF. So, everyone who's already downloaded it will soon have the latest version (with character sheet) at their disposal. Glynn Seal (the guy who did the awesome layout) is working on it as we speak. The PDF update will probably occur early next week...
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Gerald W. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/19/2017 17:27:48

Okay, so received my copy of Blood Dark Thirst and printed out the Print Friendly version. It's not a huge book, only 12 double-sided pages, for a 24 page count, so it won't kill your printer or break the bank if you have to have it printed out elsewhere.

First, the fonts used print clear and dark. That's important, because if you have older eyes it helps you to read easier. This is often a peeve I run into with new products. Light print and small fonts make game material frustrating for older customers. Thankfully, the folks at Kort'thalis take this into account. Thank you.

I'm a newbie to the system, so I read the rules through as a first time player just learning the ropes. It didn't take long, the rules are pretty straight forward, and not complicated. If you're an experienced tabletop rpg player, then you'll be able to play with a minimum of setup. If you're a newblood (pun intended), you'll still be able to play the game, but it'll take a bit more prep work on your behalf. Not to worry though, the system is solid and laid out well, so you'll do fine.

You'll need one 20-sided die, and three 6-sided (normal) dice. If you don't have a twenty sider, you can find dice apps readily enough for your phone or online. Or simply use take a deck of cards, pull out two suits of cards from Ace (1) to 10, and shuffle them together. One suit will stand for 1-10, while the other suit represents 11-20. Replace and reshuffle the cards after each draw.

The art is amazing. It evokes the imagery of the game, both sensual and sinful. The quality of the artwork reflects the quality of the production value. Kort'thalis takes pride in their work. The customer is getting value for their dollar.

And best of all, the VsD6 is similar to the other Kort'thalis game products, so you learn one, you'll be able to play them all. Or if you play other OSR products, you can add Blood Dark Thirst as a ready drop-in resource to your games without fuss. As either a stand alone game, or an added game resource, you can't fail with this title.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Justin I. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/16/2017 17:09:10

The high priest of Cthulhu, Venger Satanis, has another fantastic stand alone game that comes a warmer color. I was provided with a review copy.

Blood Dark Thirst is a new rules light game of vampiric awesomeness. System-wise it uses the V6 system that all of Venger's other games use, which is really cool because his other horror releases, particularly The Outer Presence, A Green Jewel They Must Possess, and His Flesh Becomes My Key, can serve as good inspiration for Blood Dark Thirst adventures. I already have some ideas for a certain green jewel.

Character creation is really simple, but makes a lot of sense. You pick some things you're good at and some things you're bad at. If you're good at something you roll 3 dice, if you're bad at something you get 1. For everything else, 2 is the standard. You also pick three flaws which come into play during certain instances. Other than that you flesh out who you are, how you act, and when you were turned.

Actions play out just like they do in Alpha Blue and Venger's other games. The difference here is that you're a vampire which comes with cool powers, immunities, and unfortunately drawbacks. The powers are pretty interesting. All vampires get the classic strong/fast/charming abilities, but then you get unique powers every level. My favourite is the aptly named Subspecies which lets you make little demons like Radu from the movie of the same name. Other vampiric rules you might expect from a vamp game (such as vampiric slaves and blood bonds) are here too.

The pdf ends with a short outline introductory scenario. The party all reside in the same rundown house (which I imagine is a lot like the house in What We Do In the Shadows). They find a note from a high ranking vampire in the city telling them to get the fuck out. Is it real? Is it a prank? Do they flee? Do they kill the bastard before they can have him killed? That's up to you and your group.

The artwork is appropriate and appealing. I have a thing for blasphemy, so I love the monstrous nun on the cover.

If you can't tell, I really like Blood Dark Thirst and I think you will too. Do you want to play a game that lets you relive your glory days of classic Vampire: The Masquerade but without all of the overdone metaplot? Never played a vampire game, but have always wanted to be Michael or David from The Lost Boys? This is the game for you.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Kai P. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/15/2017 08:17:25

Blood Dark Thirst weighs in at 22 pages (if you do not count the cover and the artpage at the „inside” of the cover). Reading it in order to get ready to roll may thereby be done quickly. What else does this title offer?

First of all, it offers really good artwork! While I for one doubt that a 22-pager has to have 7 pages that are artwork only, this artwork is up to the cover illustration in regard to quality, and summons a gritty-sleezy-cheesy vampire vibe. Good stuff in that department, really!

After a small introduction (that does not overstay its welcome), p.3 to p.19 give GM and player all the rules of B-D-T (together with some random tables for character creation, for those who HAVE to have them). The products -is- rules light, it does not even have an attribute or skill set but follows a rather free-form approach where every player picks three things the characters is good at, two things the PC is bad at... and thats it! On to the vampire-stuff (which is the real focus of the game)! The rule system is easy to understand and easy to run with. Of course, that means that it is not a nuanced affair where things besides the characters general aptitude make to much of a difference. It is all about the number of d6 that the character may roll for a task (most of the time: one, two or three). If the overall circumstances are beneficial, a D6 is added. If they are obstructive, a D6 is removed from the pool. While this approach speeds things up greatly and makes sure that the rules may be explained quickly, I would have loved to see a bit of info about weapons in combat here. While the author does declare that this title is not about heroes with gear (and offers a quick rule for armor), a(nother) two-line optional rule about weapons in combat would have rounded.

The rules for the supernatural aspects of the (demon-based, mind you!) vampires were clearly inspired by the “Vampire” product lines of WhiteWolf (and now: Onyx Path Publishing). Blood points are used to measure the amount of the red stuff (optionally called “ichor” here) that a vampire robs from humans and used to fuel supernatural powers and the vampires existence, a humanity stat goes up and down in response to the good and evil acts of the character (evil characters are easier to identify as a vampire and have problems to animate themselves during the day), willpower is gained by adhering to once character (flaws) and may be spend to fend off mind-control or to boost ones own dice pools for important actions...

In fact, the rules read and feel like a complete adaption of the mentioned “Vampire”-rules to Venger Nas Satanis own VSd6 system. The line between “being inspired” and “being a copy-cat” seems thin to me here.

The available supernatural powers make-up the “vamp-thing” of a character, and these are as rules-light as the rest of the system. In some cases, that works very well but in others, I would have liked a -tad- more information about how to handle a given power in the game. To name a few: Allure, Dread and Evaporate Blood would have gained a lot clarity if just one more sentence with a rules statement would have been added to them (like it it is the case with Acidic Blood and Resilience). A good GM should still be handle this on the fly with a few house rules, so.

What I personally like the most here is Venger Nas Satanis slighty different take on “blood bounds”,as they no longer are a surefire-way to enslave another vampire: things just -might- end up not as “yes-master”-ish as the donor of the ichor thinks they will...

The advertisement text for the title says that “a brief introductory scenario is provided”, and that is a statement I could not disagree more with. This “scenario” is made up of a plot hook (“you get a LEAVE OR GET KILLED” letter by another vampire of the city), a prop (said letter), a d6 table with six facts about Lyrean (said antagonist), and a random d20 encounter table for the “scenario”. AND THAT´S IT. All in all, this covers the pages 19 and 21, but only 50% or 75% of each page is actually content, the rest is “filler”. The random encounter table (titled “What is going on in the city tonight”) includes the one and only hint to the antagonists whereabouts [“Lyrean Du Kane´s stronghold in the ware-house district”]. To me, that is not a scenario but a plot idea and a random events table (...and how exactly is the stronghold meant to be a random event?).

All in all, you get a nice, quick-and-dirty “Vampire”-rules adaption to an easy-to-learn, fast-to-play d6 based rules system, and the title is thereby true to the first statement of its advertisement [All the bloodsucking, none of the baggage! ]. The artwork is GOOD, the layout is nice and clear, the rules would have profited from one more explanation here or there, but all in all the system is “solid” and ready for a ride. It is not what I call original, so, and thereby I stick to a 3/5. If you are looking for a system that will support your Halloween-Horror-Quicky, do not hesitate and make the purchase. The same is true if you look for something nice and easy that you may build upon.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Gary A. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/14/2017 07:24:23

Venger always produces fantastically over the top gonzo settings and games. BDT is no exception. This game uses the same rules that he created for Alpha Blue. Its a rules light system that is elegant and fast. BDT takes on Vampire. Its not another skin of VotM. Its a game that focuses on what being a vampire is... a demon. Anyhow this is a fantastic buy for the price. Well worth it. I plan on running this. You should too.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Blood Dark Thirst
Publisher: Kortthalis Publishing
by Chance P. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/12/2017 19:50:52

Explanation: Although Blood Dark Thirst is meant as a homage/heartbreaker of first edition Vampire: the Requiem, I've never actually played it or read it all of the way through, so this review is unbiased by how well it fufills this role.

System: As mentioned above, this new iteration of Blood Dark Thirst uses the VSd6 system. What this means is that for every action you roll a certain number of dice based on how skilled you are and the highest number is your score, with multiple 6s only counting for attacks. You are skilled at three things, which you roll 3d6 for, you are bad at one thing, which you roll 1d6 for, and for everything else you roll 2d6. If the challenge is fairly easy, you add a die, and if it's hard, you subtract a die. If you should have 0d6, you simply roll 2d6 and take the lowest.

Character Creation In addition to picking three skills and one weakness, you also pick three (out of 20) personality flaws, such as pacifist, insecure, and greedy, a name, gender, and age, and supernatural powers. All vampires have three base supernatural powers but there is also another lengthy list of powers that you will pick as you level up, ranging from changing into wolves and bats to telepathy.

Humanity and Health: One of the best parts of this system, Humanity and Health are how you track your vampire's physical and mental state. Humanity ranges from 1 to 6, with 6 being perfectly human to 6 being a horrific beast. Every time you do something especially inhuman, you lose a point of Humanity, but you can only lose one point of Humanity per night. This means that if you go on a nonstop killing rampage, you only lose one point, which in my opinion can lead to nice roleplaying as it becomes one instance of your inner beast taking over. Health starts at 25 and goes up by 1d6 every level. Vampires can regenerate 1d6 Health by spending a point of blood and Humans regenerate 1d6 Health nightly.

Combat: Combat with this system, from what I read, tends towards the cinematic. Whoever describes their action first goes first and you roll a certain number of dice based on how strong your attack is. Then, based on the result of that roll (taking the highest number again), you roll a certain number of damage dice to subtract from your enemy's hit points. It's really quite simplified and I enjoy the mechanical purity. Damage does explode, which, when you're already dealing a lot of damage, could be unbalancing but it can represent the bestial instinct of the vampire taking over. Also, all vampires essentially have cleave, so if they deal more damage than they need to, it carries onto another victim.

Blood, Willpower, and Bloodlust: Points of blood and Willpower both range from 1-6, allowing you to track it handily on a d6, although it is recommended to use tokens. Points of blood are similar to mana, allowing you to use supernatural powers and heal yourself, while Willpower represents a vampire's restraint. You can only spend one point of blood per turn and one Willpower per round and three Willpower per scene. Bloodlust isn't a number but rather comes into play when you're running low on blood. When you have a low blood, you roll additional dice when doing something. When they come up as 1s, you go into a frenzy, and if they are 6s, you have a critical success. The duality of this, in my mind, allows for players to consider whether or not they want to risk running low on blood.

Weaknesses and Truths and Falsehoods: As an addendum of sorts, Venger provides a basic list of ways that the vampires can be killed, as they are essentially immortal otherwise, and debunks some 'facts' from classic films and stories. I can definitely see this being useful to a GM.

Etc.: In addition to the mechanical side, Venger also provides information for blood bonds, or binding one vampire to another, mortal slaves, a few random tables, and a basis for a starting adventure. Because of the more free-form nature of this system, and the random tables provided, having the adventure as an introduction and set of bullet points is actually a boon rather than a bane. It lets the GM decide how he wants to run this adventure, while still having a list of things to fall back on.

Layout: The layout is by Glynn Seal of MonkeyBlood Design, who has done artwork for a variety of Kort'thalis Publishing products as well as recently running a successful Kickstarter for his Midderlands setting. The background of the page is stylized to be blood stained and despite this, the actual text and content is still easy to read, at least for me. All in all, the layout looks especially good to me and the actual content really benefits from it.

Artwork: The artwork is from a variety of different artists and features a variety of different artists, and unlike the WotC Star Wars Roleplaying Game, this isn't jarring at all to me. Every piece showcases a different aspect of the popular culture surrounding vampires and someone's different interpretation thereof. Plus, one of the pieces, by Maxime Taccarde/Priest of Terror, actually did a piece with his own blood from what I can tell! That's the best possible (and most metal) art style to include in a vampire roleplaying game and I have to give credit to both Venger and the artist for including this.

In Conclusion: This is definitely a more free form and brutal vampire RPG than most, with a definite focus on animal instinct versus reason. It seems somewhat alike to Daniel Bayn's Wushu in mechanical and suggested style while staying far, far away from Twilight vampires. The artwork and layout definitely add to the already thematic mechanics and I definitely felt inspired just reading this.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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