Auspex

• Heightened Senses

  Level 11 Blood, Standard Action

  Focus: Perception

  Focus

  A Perception-focused character sharpens her senses by spending a simple action, rather than a standard action.

  You can extend your physical senses beyond human norms. Eyesight and hearing can sharpen to twice mortal limits, while touch, smell, and taste become acute enough to discern even the smallest details with ease. A character can sharpen any or all of her senses, as desired.

  System

  Heightened Senses is always active. A character’s heightened vision allows her to see clearly, even in total darkness, and to understand sounds too quiet for normal people to hear. When a character with Heightened Senses comes within two steps of an individual hidden by supernatural concealment, such as Obfuscate, the character with Heightened Senses automatically realizes that someone is nearby, although she does not know who or precisely where to find that someone. Heightened Senses provides only a vague warning that something is out of place. When something blinds you, your hearing can provide adequate compensation for the loss of vision. Normally, characters who cannot see while in combat must use the Fighting Blind combat maneuver. So long as your character’s hearing is unimpaired, you may fight without needing the Fighting Blind combat maneuver.

  If you spend 1 point of Blood and take a standard action, your character sharpens her senses even further. If you do so, you will automatically notice any mundanely hidden objects within line of sight, and you may make an opposed challenge using the Auspex test pool to discern the details of any person or object hidden with supernatural powers, as well as illusionary objects, or objects or people disguised by supernatural powers. If you pierce a supernatural power in this way, you ignore uses of the same power generated by the same user for the next five minutes. If you possess more dots of Auspex than the target possesses of the power she’s using to generate the concealment (or illusion), the effects of piercing a power persist for an hour instead of five minutes.

  Exceptional success

  If you score an exceptional success when trying to see through supernatural concealment, you will automatically pierce any supernatural concealment (or illusion) created by the same individual for the next hour.

• Aura Perception

  Level 21 Blood, Standard Action

  Focus: Perception

  Focus

  If your target is within three steps, your character spends no Blood to activate Aura Perception, whether the target is willing or not. If the target is unwilling, you must still make an opposed challenge to use this power.

  By carefully studying a subject, you can pick out the glowing aura that surrounds all living creatures. The interplay of colors in an aura provides insight into the subject’s emotions, motives, and nature. With practice, you can learn to read these colors.

  On a normal evening, an individual aura might be comprised of many shifting hues; strong emotions predominate, while momentary impressions or hidden motivations fl ash past in streaks and swirls. The colors change in sympathy with the subject’s emotional state, blending into new tones in a constantly changing pattern. The stronger the emotions involved, the more intense an aura’s hues become.

  System

  Spend 1 point of Blood and expend a standard action to make an opposed challenge against your target. If you succeed, your character can read the details of a target’s aura. Typically, this scrutiny is visual, but any appropriate physical sense may be used.

  If you are successful, you can discern your target’s creature type (vampire, ghoul, vampire possessing a mortal, and so forth), general mood, any immediate violent tendencies, and whether or not the target has diablerized within the past year. This power does not allow the user to read minds or to discern the truth.

  If you fail the opposed challenge, your target’s aura is too murky to make out clearly. Details are vague, and no particular color or pattern seems dominant. The Blood cost to activate Aura Perception is waived if the target relents to the challenge.

  Exceptional success

  For the next hour, you continue to perceive the target’s aura without further Blood expenditure or challenges. If her mood shifts or she becomes aggressive, you’ll have advanced warning. Mechanically, if your target starts a combat, you may take your simple action before she can take any action. This forewarning does not give you an additional action, but allows you to take your simple action early.

• Spirit's Touch

  Level 31 Blood, Standard Action

  Focus: Perception

  Focus

  When you activate Spirit’s Touch, you may ask three questions instead of one.

  Living creatures leave behind traces of thoughts and emotions like a rippled wake of water. With this power, a character can read the psychic impressions on recently handled objects or locations that have strong emotional events tied to them. A touch and a moment of concentration can unlock a flood of images and sensations, possibly giving insight into the past.

  Note that you can only use this power on objects or places, and not on people, vampires, animals, or other living creatures. The visions received by the use of this power are seldom clear or detailed, and register more like a “psychic snapshot.” Still, a clever vampire can learn a great deal from a glimpse. Although most visions will reveal the last person to handle the item or be present in a location, a long-time owner may leave a stronger impression, and a long-ago trauma may overwhelm more recent events that transpire at a location.

  To get a psychic impression, you must physically hold an item (or touch parts of a location) with your bare skin. As you do so, you enter a shallow trance and glean information from the spiritual residue on the object. You are only marginally aware of your surroundings while using Spirit’s Touch, although a loud noise or jarring physical sensation will break the trance in an instant.

  System

  Spend 1 point of Blood and use your standard action to touch an object. You can then ask the Storyteller one of the following questions, plus an additional question for every five minutes your character concentrates on the object or location:

  • Show me the last person who handled the object. › Your character receives a vision of the last person to use the object. The vision generally shows the last significant individual, not simply the most recent person who touched the item.

  • How did the individual die? › This question may only be asked when Spirit’s Touch is used on a dead body (or part of a dead body). Your character receives a vision of the last few moments of the target’s life.

  • When (or how) was the object last used? › Your character gains an image of the item’s most recent use and target (a knife stabbing, with the victim’s appearance; binoculars looking down, seeing the Prince’s car; etc.). If the object was recently involved in an emotional event, such as a murder or a robbery, your character gets a brief glimpse of the emotion, and how it relates to the item.

  • Are there any strong emotions attached to this object? › If someone loves or hates the object, or if any deep emotions are relevant to the object’s use, your character will receive such information. This information may be quite old, depending on the object’s nature and associations. Some objects or locations have particularly strong emotional connections. Your Storyteller may elect to provide one or more answers for free when a character uses Spirit’s Touch on such an emotionally charged target. Characters using any level of Obfuscate who handle an object or visit a location do not leave psychic impressions.

  For the purposes of this power, corpses (including the corpses of supernatural creatures and the ashes of vampires) count as objects and may be targeted by Spirit’s Touch. Vampires who have not met Final Death do not count as corpses.

  Exceptional success

  None.

• Telepathy

  Level 41 Blood, Standard Action

  Focus: Wits

  Focus

  You can maintain Telepathy with up to three willing targets, allowing you to carry on a conversation with all participants at the same time. Participants may talk to you or to each other through this telepathic contact. You must spend 1 Blood per target. To bring new individuals into a link, spend the Blood required. You may eject someone from the link without breaking your communication with any others involved.

  Since the ancient days, mortal man has longed to hear the secrets sheltered in another person’s mind, to speak and receive communication from the soul as well as the lips. Telepathy is the pure communication of thoughts, feelings, and desires, and those who can perform such a feat are powerful, indeed. By projecting your senses outward, you can pierce the minds of others, drawing forth their very thoughts. You can link your consciousness to another mind, sending or receiving concepts in the flicker-flash of thought.

  System

  To activate Telepathy upon a willing target, simply spend 1 point of Blood. No challenge is required, and the target can be located anywhere within the same city (or 50-mile radius of your character’s location). This application of Telepathy specifically does not require line of sight. Telepathy allows the character and her target to send and receive mental messages and simple images.

  If you attempt to use Telepathy on an unwilling target, spend 1 point of Blood and make an opposed challenge against the target, who must be in line of sight. If you succeed, your character can send one image or a brief message (something you could say in less than 10 seconds) to the target.

  Alternately, your character may pull one image or specific piece of information out of the mind of an unwilling target. The information you gain in this way must answer one of the following questions (your choice): • What are you currently thinking about? • What does that person or thing you just described look like? • Where is the person or object you were just talking about located? • Do you like or dislike the person you’re currently talking to? • What are you planning to do in the next few minutes? • Is there another entity or consciousness within this body?

  If a willing character becomes unwilling during a telepathic session, the character using Telepathy must immediately spend 1 point of Blood and succeed in an opposed challenge or be ejected from the now-unwilling character’s mind.

  When communicating with a willing target, a single use of Telepathy lasts for an hour, but you can only mentally communicate with one person at a time. If you activate Telepathy on a second target, the first contact immediately ends. An individual cannot utilize other powers (such as the Dominate powers of Command, Mesmerism, or Forgetful Mind) in conjunction with Telepathy.

  The telepath has the option to make herself known when communicating. Otherwise, the target can determine the identity of the telepath by succeeding in an opposed Awareness challenge.

  Exceptional success

  You can ask two of the above questions (rather than one) with each successful challenge when pulling information out of a target’s mind.

• Psychic Projection

  Level 51 Blood, Standard Action

  Focus: Wits

  Focus

  In addition to Auspex, you may utilize the first 2 dots of any Mental or Social in-clan discipline you possess. This is an exception to the rule against using other disciplines while in Psychic Projection. Your character uses these powers normally when targeting others in the psychic plane. If your character manifests, she can also use these disciplines on targets in the material world while she is manifested. Potence, Celerity, and Fortitude cannot ever be used while in Psychic Projection, nor can powers that require touch, unless used against other Psychically Projected individuals.

  No longer confined to the physical plane, you can project your senses and awareness outside of your body. Thus untethered, your consciousness roams various planes of thought, allowing you to view the world as though you were an incorporeal spirit. Without the concerns of mass and matter, you easily pass through any physical barrier and move at the speed of thought to any place under the gaze of the moon.

  System

  To activate Psychic Projection, you must spend 1 point of Blood and expend a standard action meditating. This expenditure allows the character to project her awareness outside of her physical form. While a character is in Psychic Projection, her body lies in a torpor-like state. If her body is damaged, the Psychic Projection automatically ends, and the individual’s consciousness returns instantly to her physical form.

  A character’s Psychic Projection is an idealized version of her normal appearance. While this image may be clothed in golden robes, shine with a halo of silver light, or have shaggy fur, it’s always recognizable as your character. A psychic form travels at roughly 50 miles per hour and can pass through solid objects, but cannot interact with the physical world in any way. The only powers you can use while in Psychic Projection are the first 4 dots of Auspex; you cannot use other disciplines, elder powers of Auspex, or techniques (even those based on Auspex) while in this state.

  A psychic form is invisible to those without Heightened Senses or similar supernatural abilities. You can spend 1 Blood to manifest (your torporous body expends this Blood), making your psychic form visible, as though materially present for one turn. While the character is still intangible and cannot physically interact, a manifested psychic form can be seen and heard normally and can be targeted by Mental and Social powers by those in the material world.

  Individuals with Heightened Senses or similar supernatural abilities can see the vague outline of an individual in Psychic Projection even when that individual has not manifested, but the observer cannot make out details, see gestures, or hear the projected character’s voice unless she manifests. Two individuals who are both in Psychic Projection can interact with one another normally, and may even engage in combat through punching or other unarmed Physical attacks. A successful blow from another psychic individual doesn’t inflict damage; it instead costs the victim 1 Willpower.

  If the victim runs out of Willpower, her Psychic Projection immediately ends and cannot be reactivated for 10 minutes. Remember that only the first 4 dots of Auspex can be used in Psychic Projection; a character cannot use other powers (even against other projecting individuals) and possesses no equipment other than simple clothing while in this state.

• Clairvoyance

  Level 61 Blood

  Your mastery of supernatural sight allows you to cast your mind out and view faraway events, locations, or individuals as though you are standing in their presence. This power has inspired legends and myths, conveying the sense that no matter where you hide — you cannot escape a vampire.

  System

  To activate Clairvoyance, spend 1 Blood and expend a standard action. Your perceptions split, allowing you to focus on a familiar person, place, or object without losing the ability to perceive your current surroundings.

  If you use Clairvoyance on a supernatural creature, or on an object in the possession of a supernatural creature, you must make an opposed challenge against your target, or the individual controlling the object, using the Auspex test pool. If successful, you can see, hear, and otherwise sense the area around your target as though you are in its presence. If you observe a location with which you are familiar, no challenge is required, and your Clairvoyance automatically succeeds.

  Your Clairvoyance lasts for five minutes for each dot you possess of the Investigation skill. If you use Clairvoyance to spy on a character who is in multiple places at the same time, or a character whose physical form has been split into more than one piece, you must choose which location you would like to perceive when you activate Clairvoyance. Thereafter, if you choose to perceive the alternate location, you must activate Clairvoyance again. For example, if you use Clairvoyance to spy on a target using Possession or Psychic Projection, you may choose to spy on the target’s native body or on the location of her sentience. Similarly, if you choose to spy on a character whose heart has been removed, you may choose to perceive the body’s surroundings or the area where the target’s heart is located.

  You can only utilize other Auspex powers, not elder powers or techniques, through Clairvoyance, so long as you can fulfill the other requirements of those powers. A character can use Heightened Senses to smell a candle through Clairvoyance, but cannot touch the wax to activate Spirit’s Touch. Because you are not physically present, your Heightened Senses cannot forewarn you about the proximity of Obfuscated individuals or illusions. You can still spend 1 Blood to sharpen your senses, in the hope of detecting such effects.

  If your target is hidden by a power that grants invisibility, such as Unseen Presence, you must overcome the target’s Obfuscate in order to use Clairvoyance on that individual. Make a challenge using your Mental attribute + Investigation versus the target’s Mental attribute + Willpower, or Mental attribute + Stealth (the target’s choice). A character cannot have multiple applications of Clairvoyance active at the same time.

• Fog of War

  Level 61+ Blood

  War is hell and few can gaze upon it without flinching. By use of this power you can see the terrain of a battlefield, along with the placement of allies and enemies. You perceive this information in shadowy, dream-like detail: a top-down view of the battlefield, rich with symbolism. This information is invaluable from a tactical standpoint. It also lets you chronicle the details of a battle with great precision.

  System

  Spend Blood and a simple action to activate this power. Fog of War lasts for 10 minutes per point of Blood spent to fuel this power. By activating the power, you gain a hazy top-down view of a battlefield at which you are present. The area perceived will appear superimposed over your normal vision. The area can vary in size, covering the entire space involved in the current combat scenario, whether that is a small room with only a couple of combatants or an area that is miles across and populated by opposing armies. You can only activate this power when you have already detected enemies nearby and a battle must be imminent or have already begun. This power does not work across the Shroud or other mystical realms, even if the battlefield extends to those areas.

  While this power is active, you automatically know the numbers and locations of enemy forces, even seeing through intervening barriers such as walls or ceilings. This power does not extend your field of vision for the purpose of activating other disciplines or powers. Enemies perceived through the use of this power appear distorted and shrouded in symbolism although you can identify those with whom you have familiarity. You also know exactly when and where new foes enter the battle or if current ones leave. If any enemies are obscured by supernatural concealment, you still know their total number, but this power does not reveal their locations. If you choose, you may share the tactical information gleaned through your battlefield perspective, either verbally or through powers such as Telepathy; however, you must actively communicate such knowledge and other parties cannot passively share your vision, even telepathically.

  In addition, if this power is used to observe any challenge within your normal line of sight, you are able to recognize the nature of the challenge, including any powers used, as long as you possess the appropriate knowledge or Lore skill specialization. You also understand the nature of the outcome, including damage dealt. When observing a challenge, once per turn you may choose to offer a participant of your choice the opportunity to spend your Willpower instead of her own to perform a retest. This retest is handled like any other Willpower retest, except you pay the cost instead of the selected participant. In addition, this retest successfully works in tandem with any other defensive powers your recipient may possess, such as Dancer’s Grace, and any effects that apply to your spending of Willpower in challenges, such as Supreme Resolve or Duty of Kings. This power does not override effects that forbid the target from making a Willpower retest or increase its cost.

• Psychic Assault

  Level 61 Blood

  Test pool: : The vampire wielding Auspex uses her Mental attribute + Investigation versus the target’s Mental attribute + Willpower.

  Most uses of the Sight are subtle, gathering information or passing thoughts in a gentle and inconspicuous manner. Psychic Assault is none of these things. A vampire who masters this power has the capacity to attack another individual using the strength of her mental acuity, hammering on her unfortunate subject with an incomprehensible barrage of will and thought.

  System

  Spend 1 Blood and expend a standard action to attack your opponent’s mind with Psychic Assault. Make an opposed challenge against your opponent, using the Auspex test pool. If you succeed, your victim takes 4 points of normal damage. The damage dealt by Psychic Assault cannot be reduced or negated by armor or supernatural resistances, such as Fortitude. A character attacked by a Psychic Assault immediately knows where the attack originated and from which individual in that location (if more than one person is in the area). You can repeatedly activate Psychic Assault against the same target; this is an exception to the rule that prohibits a character from using a power on the same target immediately after failing. If you fail a Psychic Assault against an opponent, you can try again against that same opponent (or someone else) on the next turn.

  Exceptional success

  Your Psychic Assault deals 5 points of normal damage, instead of 4.

• Psychic Drain

  Level 61 Blood

  Legends speak of psychic vampires who feed on the energy of their targets, devouring it as hungrily as vitae, leaving their targets empty shells of their former selves. With this ability, you can harvest the will of your victims and use it to fuel your supernatural powers. Some vampires who possess Psychic Drain claim that, immediately upon using the power, they taste the blood of their prey.

  System

  Spend 1 point of Blood and a standard action to attack your opponent’s mind. Make an opposed challenge against your target using the Auspex test pool. If you succeed, your victim loses 2 points of Willpower; however, her Willpower cannot be reduced below zero. For the remainder of the turn, you may spend the points of Willpower you removed from your opponent as if they were your own, though they do not count toward your defensive pools. If you do not use these Willpower points before the turn expires, you lose them at the end of the turn. A character attacked by a Psychic Drain immediately knows where the attack originated from and who the attacker was if there is more than one individual in that location. You can use Psychic Drain on subsequent actions against the same target even if you lose the opposed challenge; this is an exception to the rule that prohibits a character from using a power on the same target immediately after failing.

  Exceptional success

  The Willpower points you gain from Psychic Drain are lost at the end of the scene instead of at the end of the turn. In addition, your target may not regain Willpower for the next hour.

• Collective Cognizance

  Level 7

  Your mastery of Auspex allows you to perceive the twisting paths of thought and memory that are laid before you like a roadmap, enabling you to influence others subtly and without drawing their attention.

  System

  Once purchased this power is always active. So long as your target is within your line of sight, you no longer need your target’s Gaze and Focus to use other powers on them. This power cannot be used with elder powers or luminary powers.

  In addition, other characters are not immediately aware when you fail a Mental or Social challenge, nor can they attempt to notice the successful use of your powers with the Awareness skill. Further, you may elect to use your Subterfuge skill to make it seem as though another character of your choosing within three steps of you used the power you activated so long as the Social or Mental power is not obvious, such as Dread Gaze. You may use the Subterfuge skill benefit granted by this power any number of times per night. This is an exception to the rule governing maximum uses of the Subterfuge skill.

• Mirror Reflexes

  Level 73 Blood

  By invoking your supernaturally enhanced awareness you can anticipate your opponents’ moves and subconsciously track them even if they are no longer in your line of sight. In addition, you can anticipate attacks before they are launched enabling you to perform seemingly uncanny defensive actions based not on your physical capabilities but on the superiority of your mind.

  System

  You may activate this power at any time, even outside your initiative order. Spend 3 points of Blood and designate a number of targets that are within your line of sight up to your dots in the Awareness skill. For the duration of the combat — including rounds that you do not have an action — whenever you engage in an opposed Physical challenge against the designated targets and you spend one or more points of Willpower to retest, you immediately regain a single point of Willpower. Once Mirror Reflexes is activated, you do not need to maintain line of sight against your designated targets to benefit from this power.

Source book: MET - VTM - Core Book