When Darkness Falls

Rules Updates (Issue 7)

NEW ITEMS FOR THE FIGHT AGAINST EVIL

PROTECTIVE VEST
Adds to Armour Score as follows:
Ranged Attack: +2 Close Combat Attack: +4
The downside is that movement is reduced by 1"

VISA
A Character may use this item only once, to exchange all items for new ones drawn from the pile. This does not include magic items!

NEW EVENTS WITH WHICH TO PLAGUE YOUR CHARACTERS

GARBAGE
Any Creature or Item within 2" of a waste skip is removed from play. They may attempt to save by rolling under their Run Score using a d12. Otherwise they return after d6 turns, having explained to the refuse operatives that contrary to popular belief they are not a waste product.

LOVE BUG
Each Character within 3" of another of the opposite sex must roll over their Attack score using a d12, Characters with the Hot Date skill lose -1 from their dice for each level. Failure means they move Base to Base with their loved one and neither can perform any actions this turn, except to defend themselves from close combat attacks, they are too busy snogging!

MONTEZUMAS REVENGE (UK: Ghandi's revenge)
Each Character must roll 2d6. If they roll a double, they must run to the nearest building and stay there for the rest of the turn after they enter it. This is what comes of eating exotic cuisine in dubious restaurants.

OPTIONAL RULES ADDITION: AUCTION

Any gamer who took part in our 'Buffy: Ascension Day' game at Wargamer and COGS Halloween will have noticed some differences in the way that we played them from the general rules. In short we introduced an 'auction system' at the start of each turn. Some background is necessary to explain why this was the case.
In this game we used 4 teams of two. Championing the forces of Good were Team 1: Buffy and Angel, Team 2: Oz and Willow. Emerging from the shadows of darkness were Team 3: The Mayor and Faith and Team 4: Spike and Drusilla. All of the teams had goals but certain balances were required. The Monster roster included most of the Characters from the series both good and evil. Team 1 and 2 were expected to work together because of the larger numbers of evil Creatures around while Team 3 and 4 were encouraged by the score system to work against and use each other, a system that worked well. Because of the difficulty of using magic in the Buffy world, spells were very restrictive if relatively powerful and players had to acquire 'Ritual' Cards in order to cast the spells. We actually created a deck of cards, Creatures, Rituals, Events and Spells, decked out with four different coloured backs. Basically, all of these cards were shuffled together as one deck (we actually used 3 with equal ratios of each card). The top card of the deck must be an event. After this has been put into effect, cards are drawn by each team until the next event card is uncovered, then this part of the turn stops. Players may keep any spells or rituals safe for later use, but the key to the game is the Creature bidding game.

REVEALING THE CARDS
Players may find they have drawn a number of Characers, these are not revealed but kept face down until the player wishes to reveal them. We ruled that any team could hold up to 5 Creature cards without revealing them. Any team wishing to reveal Creatures must do this in the next phase, the Auction.
Example: Team 1 might find themselves with 3 cards, Hell hounds, Zombies and Giles. They could keep them face down provided the number held did not exceed 5, when they would be forced to declare them at auction. There are two choices when revealing a Creature. You can bid to have them ejected from the game or brought into play. Team 1 would not want the Hell Hounds or Zombies in play because they would be intrinsically opposed to them as they are from the forces of darkness, conversely Giles would be extremely useful.
When a Creature is revealed, the Team declares its choice. If no other team opposes this, the choice is allowed to go through and that is that. If another team opposes, then the following rules are applied. The revealing team must roll a d6 or d12 (if you wish to add an edge) and add their best Intelligence score. Any opposing team does the same. If the revealing team scores the highest or equal highest, their choice is allowed. If any opposing team gets higher their choice is made. If two or more opposing teams score equal highest, this is seen as confusion and the revealing team still gets their way.
Obviously if the teams were allowed free bids, the Auction phase would never stop. So, for each bid made, an action must be lost by the Character using Intelligence belonging to the opposing player. The revealing player does not have to pay this. The obvious tactic therefore is to reveal the Creatures you most want to control after other bids have been made.

MONSTER UPDATES

THE RISE OF GIMBULL. (Based on the Character from the forthcoming Battle Pit game created by Steve Holmes)
When Doctor Fibus began his Cybernetic empire, funded through providing eternal life for the wealthy. He took on a young student, well-educated and passionate about engineering but lacking enough moral fibre that working with illegally acquired cadavers did not worry him. Gimbull may have lacked a conscience, but he sure as hell had ambition. Like Fibus, he shunned the scientific establishment, preferring to see the work as a mission for the future security of mankind. Of course the availability of rich pickings helped immensely. Perhaps it was inevitable that with two such incredible and warped minds working so closely together, there would one day be a fallout. There was... Gimbull saw many of his own inventions being patented by Fibus and eventually realized that he was being badly underpaid and worse, not getting the credit he was due. This came to a head shortly after the notorious 'Burgerbar Massacre' when an animatronic was dispatched to fetch their 'Triple king specials' one Saturday lunchtime. Unfortunately, the Automaton had been given the wrong programming and when asked if it wanted extra fries proceeded to decapitate everybody who was wearing an apron. Fibus waqs declared Public Enemy No1 by the FBI and Gimbull failed to even appear on the list of America's most wanted, despite the fact that he had personally created and built the machines. They went their separate ways.

GIMBULL, INVENTOR OF MECHANICAL DEATH
Gimbull now works from a hidden laboratory deep in the arid deserts of New Mexico. His specialty lies in the field of Cybernetic assassination and combat. It is suspected that he provides units for illegal hard-core fighting arenas throughout the world. One of his achievements was in the field of gyroscopic momentum, which allowed him to create flying spheres that could carry varied onboard technical equipment and weaponry. After the Burger bar incident, Gimbull inserted a microscopic chip into the back of his head, directly linked to the neural pathways. This ensures that he cannot be attacked by any creature with a Cybernetic programming unit.
Associates: None, except his business contacts and his beloved machines.
Grudges: The Scientific Establishment, the FBI and Fast Food Restaurants.
Skills/Powers: Control A/R, Repair A/R, Enhance A/R, A/R Immunity.
Special: Gimbulls chip works with any A/R, but not when Fibus is on the table.
Note: Gimbull does not carry weapons but usually has a Cybernetic bodyguard.

GIMBULLS DEATH SPHERES
Each Sphere is around three feet in diameter and appears as a solid silver ball. They are programmed so that any equipment or weaponry will slide/unfold into place only when required for use. Two forms of sphere are detailed here, both equipped for combat (or more certainly murder and mayhem).
All Spheres are subject to programming as per the main rules p25.
Skills: Cause Panic, Immune to Psychology

TERMINATOR SPHERE: A favourite with both fans of illegal hard-core fighting and mob enforcers. The Terminator is the Swiss Army Knife of Spheres. At the start of any turn where the Terminator is within movement range of an opponent roll a d6 to decide which weaponry/defences it will use.

1	Rotary saw*	Range: 1" Modifier: 0 Damage: 2d6/Decapitate
2	Burst	The Sphere gains an extra move action and any successful hit automatically bashes the opponent. Roll again on this chart if an attack is given.
3	Shield	The Sphere extends a titanium shield giving it an Armour score of 10 this Turn.
4	Pump Cannon	Range: 8" Modifier: +1 Damage: 1d6+1 (2 Shots per Action)
5	Flame Nozzles	Range: 3" radius, all Creatures within take 1d6 damage (no armour roll)
6	Self-destruct	The Terminator explodes, causing 2d6 Damage to all Creatures in 5" radius.

*Due to it being Diamond-edged, no armour is effective against this weapon.

SPIKEBALL SPHERE: Nicknamed the William Tell Overture by some fight critics. At the start of any turn where the Spikeball is within Movement range of an opponent roll a d6 twice to decide how many and what type of bolts are loaded to fire.
First roll decides on the number of bolts.
Second roll: 1-3 Normal Bolts, 4 Silver Bolts, 5 Blessed Bolts, 6 Explosive Bolts.
The Spikeball will unleash these at any Creature within range. Any number of the available bolts may be fired as one action or over a number of actions. Any bolts unused are assumed to be reabsorbed into the sphere at the end of the turn. All Creatures in range must be fired at, unless otherwise directed or the Spikeball runs out of bolts.
Spike-Bolt Range: 5" Modifier: 0 Damage: As below

	Vampyres	Living Dead	Lycanthropes	Visitations
Normal: 1d6 +1	N	N	½	N
Silver: 1d6+1	½	N	D	N
Blessed: 1d6+1	D	D	½	D
High Explosive: 2d6+2	Y	Y	Y	N

Y= Takes Normal Damage N= No Damage ½= Creature takes half-damage
D= Successful attack causes instant death/destruction

	Att	Def	Arm	Act	Int	Move/Run	Hits	Dam
Gimbull	5	0	1	3	10	4/8	6	1
Death Spheres	9	4	4	3	0	3d6	8	Special

New Skills:
A/R Immunity: This Creature cannot be attacked or targeted by any Artificial Lifeform as per the main rules.

SPOTLIGHT: THE GREAT VAMPIRE CLANS by Dave Wise

CLAN MacDEATH

And so it was written and so the sentence was carried out, fully and without mediation or compassion. As the last of the Clan were driven towards the mountains of Kilkennie, the Laird, Gordon McDe'ath, indeed sent out a desperate plea for help to the other clans. These clans turned their backs on the MacDe'aths, happy to see two potential enemies tear each other apart, confident that in the aftermath they would seize the vacant lands. One creature did respond however, the Master Vampyre High Yundii. Looking for a home following a slum reclamation project in Whitby, he had drifted north. Facing the end of his line, Gordon acceded to the Vampyres heavy demands. In the dead of night, the clan were spirited away to areas not yet seen by any living man, hidden by forest, protected by treacherous bogland. The Clan prospered, but at a heavy price. High Yundii had demanded the gift of every firstborn child on attaining sixteen years. They would be taken and never seen again. To ensure Gordons undisputed loyalty, the Vampyre tricked him into marrying the beauteous Helena. On their wedding night the Laird, made feeble with whisky and ale, fell victim to her true form, a Greater Vampyre created from his own stock. As a Vampyre Gordon became immortal, but subject to the whim of his master.
A century passed with High Yundii demanding more and more in the way of luxury. Gordons patience snapped when he was ordered to install a new-fangled contraption for his masters convenience, a flushing toilet and worst of all an English flushing toilet. Using his highland cunning, a strong piece of elastic and a very sharp stake, he added certain refinements to the seat. One haggis curry washed down with plenty of lager and High Yundii was vaporised!

CURRENT STATUS
Gordon MacDe'ath is the undisputed Laird of a clan whose population has decreased as time has moved on. Therefore, Gordon has had to look elsewhere to replenish both his people and a substantial private army. Long ago, the family castle became a tourist attraction with many gruesome reminders of the good old days, including the infamous English flushing toilet. This has led to the influx of many foreign visitors eager to relive the past. The Laird and his clan are spurious in their selection of victims. Access to the clan lands and castle is by means of a treacherous mountain road with a 500' drop into Loch Gowan. Entire coaches have been known to 'vanish' there. Potential victims are not killed but become members of the Clan either as Vampyres or Cultists. This has had the rather unusual side effect that many clan members speak with foreign accents and can trace their ancestry to groups of American, German and Japanese tourists. English tourists are regarded as off limits as their blood "adds too much water to the whisky".

THE CLAN McDE'ATH

The Clan Hierarchy
All Clan Members have the following skills as well as those listed
Glasgee Kiss Combat
All Vampyres have the following skills as well as those listed
Cause Fear, Bite, Regeneration and Vampyre Vulnerability

The Characters
Gordon McDe'ath: The undisputed Laird of the Clan, Gordon is a Master Vampyre and follows the normal rules for these creatures. He is also a strapping Scotsman around 6' in height. He carries a Claymore at all times.
Skills: Gaze 4, Throw, Gaseous Form, Willpower, Raise Dead, Arcane Knowledge

Helena McDe'ath: The Lady Helena is a Greater Vampyre and really quite stunning. Her diminutive stature hides a real vicious streak and a lust for hunks. When deciding on a victim, she will inevitably choose a character with the highest Attack score. Unless absolutely necessary, she will not fight, choosing instead to let her pet Diablo deal with unwanted nuisances. There are few double-glazing salesmen left in this remote area.
Skills: Gaze 3, Throw, Gaseous Form, Raise Dead, Arcane Knowledge

Diablo: A Vampyre Dog devoted to the Lady Helena. Its sole aim in life is her protection even over that of the Laird and its own life. With skin as black as night, piercing red eyes and fangs that drip with blood, Diablo is not the cuddly, curled up in front of the fire sort of pet.
Skills: Blood Feast, Obey Vampyre (Lady Helena)

Pierre La Porte: Head Cook and Haggis boiler. He used to work for the Caballeri family back in New York (For details of this family see the main rules). Pierre's obsession with his own culinary abilities made him unaware that he was working for a Were rat 'family'. During a backpacking holiday in Scotland, he got lost and came upon Kilkennie castle. He was escorted to the Laird for the traditional tourist welcome and due to his rather poor English and the Gordon's thick accent ended up cooking a traditional Haggis dish. So impressed was the Laird that he turned Pierre into a Vampyre Disciple and gave him an extended contract. When his former boss found this out, he literally tore out his whiskers and took out a slightly different contract on Pierre's life.
Skills: As a Vampyre Disciple, but with the added skills of a Chef Character.

Hamish 'Suzuki' McVitie: Head of the KKK. Formerly a Car worker with a major Japanese manufacturer, Suzuki was part of a group of Japanese tourists kidnapped from their tour bus in the late sixties. Whilst many of his companions were at first reluctant to become part of the Laird's extended family, Suzuki enjoyed the change of lifestyle and soon mastered the art of sword fighting. He has only recently taken up the offer of Vampyrehood and even married into the Clan.
Skills: As a Vampyre Disciple, but with KKK and 6th Sense skills.

The KKK (Kilted Karaoke Kamikazes): The basic skills and descriptions are in the Main Rules p29, but here is a little bit more concerning their organization.
There are basically two forms of KKK, human and vampyre.
The Human KKK are as described in the book.
Vampyre KKKs use the Vampyre Acolyte statistics, with KKK skills. Appearance wise, they prefer garb of darker colours, refusing to wear kilts due their paler knees. They also eschew false beards due to the way the thick hair gets caught in their teeth. Weapon wise, they tend to carry just the one Claymore and an automatic pistol.
All KKKs are raging nutters. After a serious bout of drinking and eating Pierre's Haggis a la Chili sauce, they have been known to play Russian Roulette using the Laird's outhouse!

SPECIAL ITEMS
The English Flushing Toilet or the Lairds outhouse.
Those who displease the Laird are never killed directly. Instead, they will be invited to use Gordons own personal outhouse. The toilet has three settings, safe, risky and lethal. On safe, the toilet is the same as any normal Vampye owned toilet. On lethal, a large wooden spike is cocked and triggered by seat pressure. Creatures may dodge the spike by rolling under their Action score using a d12. Otherwise damage is automatic, 3d6 plus an unusual walk (half movement) for the rest of the Characters life. Due to the setting of the Spike, Vampyes that do not dodge are vapourised! On risky, the Spike will only fire if a 6 is rolled.

THE CULT OF BAST

"Her form is both beautiful and terrible to behold. She seduces her victims and enslaves them to her will. It is said that that women are killed and resurrected as vampyres while men are regarded as just so much vittles to be discarded when her appetite has been sated. You would think therefore that this all female cult would have no use for men, being immortal, yet those who are strong enough may be chosen to be infected with lycanthropy, to act as her protectors on this world. Her dread guard of Cat weres. Creatures bound to her by an oath of blood."

Lady Victoria Taylor was born of a matriarchal family long practised in the art of witchcraft. When her mother was killed during a botched up summoning, Victoria became the head of the family. She sought to consolidate and extend their already overwhelming influence by seeking out the dark magicks of the newly discovered ancients. In 1936 she took a steamboat to the Egypt and set about discovering the tomb of the court magician, Maseteles, whom it was rumoured guided the very victories of Ramses III. After much use of conjuration and evocation together with the torture of a couple of local dignitaries, the tomb was discovered. Victoria searched for and found his books which revealed the very secret of turning ordinary soldiers into bestial warriors. There was a price to pay however, her entire expedition contracted a form of virulent disease which overcame and killed them all within 3 days. Victoria was forced to seek out a local group of Vampyres and allow herself to be created as one. Her first act as a vampyre was to use Maseteles tome to recreate Humphrey, her cat as a vampyre-were.

Current Situation
Victoria's family seat is Breckin Manor, an estate in a heavily wooded area around halfway between Leeds and Doncaster. Her wealth built up over a number of years through sound investments, donations and the government 'back to work' plan is used to fund many projects aiding the promotion of feminism and women's rights. Due to the fact that most of her management team are Vampyres, board meetings tend to be held during the night, out of coffin hours.

The Clan Organisation
Lady Victoria remains very firmly in Charge as the Matriarch of the Cult as a stunningly beautiful if slightly pale 26 year old. She is always found with Humphrey on her lap, a precaution against assassination attempts by rival clans.

Her second in command is Nikita, a Greater vampyre of almost equal beauty, but with a streak of sadistic cruelty that involves her personally with any jobs that Victoria considers distasteful such as torturing would-be assassins and disposing of those working against the Cult. Nikita always dresses sexily, a deliberate ploy to unsettle the often male opposition and carries a dart gun (treat as an automatic pistol) with universal tranquilisers, i.e. they will work equally well on Vampyres and Lycanthropes as well as humans.

The Amazons are Victoria's military arm. They are headed by Giana, a female Were Tigress. She carries both an ornate sword and an Automatic pistol for use in her human form. As well as her innate skills as a Were Tigress, Giana possesses the 6th Sense skill. In human form, she has the stats and skills of a Marine, together with the 6th Sense skill. Giana and Nikita do not like each other and it is only the fear of Victoria's wrath that prevents them tearing each other apart. As it is they continually plot against each other and it is only a matter of time before this compromises the Cult.

The Amazons
These warrior women come in three forms,
The Sisters of the Tiger: Were Tigresses (Human form as Marine)
The Sisters of the Night: Vampyre Acolytes
The Sisters of Murphy: Human Warriors (Use Marine character stats)

The Sisters of the Night while supposedly headed by Giana, have given their fealty to Nikita. A fact well suspected by Giana who distrusts them and avoids being in their line of fire. They make good assassins and reconnaissance teams.
The Sisters of the Tiger will often begin a battle in human form and end it as Tigresses. Their clothing and weaponry takes account of this, so they lose neither during the change.
Weaponry:
The Sisters of the Tiger: Katana swords (which are sheathed if they take Tiger form).
The Sisters of the Night: Swords and Knives.
The Sisters of Murphy: Katana swords and Automatic Pistols.
Heavier weapons are available if the situation demands it.