Advantages and Flaws (Fifth Edition)

These are the Merits and Flaws available in Vampire: The Masquerade 5th edition. Unless otherwise stated, those without a dot rating usually vary between 1-5 dots.

Merits

Merits describe advantages and gifts inherent to the character. Although something could happen in the course of play to change them – especially once weird inexplicable magic gets unleashed – characters’ Merits remain fairly constant over the course of the story. These also include flaws that are inherent to the character.

Archaic

For Ancilla or older.

• Flaw: Archaic: You are stuck in the past and cannot use modern technology
• Flaw: Living in the Past: You have one or more outdated convictions.

Bonding

These merits and Flaws describe how your character responds to the Blood Bond.

• Flaw: Bondslave: You bond at the first drink of Vitae.
• Flaw: Bond Junkie: The Bond feels sweeter to you, and its harder for you to resist its effects.
• Flaw: Long Bond: The Bond takes more time to decay.
• Bond Resistance: Its easier for you to resist against the effects of a Blood Bond.
• Short Bond: The Bond decays quicker for you.
• Unbondable: You cannot be Blood Bound.

Feeding

These merits and flaws relate to how your character slakes his hunger.

• Flaw: Farmer: You feed exclusively from animals.
• Flaw: Organovore: You slake hunger only from eating human flesh.
• Flaw: Methuselah's Thirst: Your hunger can only be fully slaked by the blood of supernatural creatures.
• Flaw: Prey Exclusion: You refuse to feed from a certain type of prey.
• Blood Hound: You can smell the resonance on your prey without tasting it.
• Iron Gullet: You can feed from rancid, bagged and processed blood.

Ghoul

These merits and flaws are suited to ghouls, though some may be kept after the Embrace.

• Flaw: Baneful Blood: You suffer your domitior's Bane.
• Flaw: Crone’s Curse: When you partook of your domitor’s vitae, you aged rapidly.
• Flaw: Distressing Fangs: The Blood gave you sharpened teeth, which distresses mortals.
• Blood Empathy: You share a closer bond to your domitor than most ghouls, able to sense their emotional and psychological state.
• Unseemly Aura: You have the aura of a Kindred.

Linguistics

Each dot in this merit allows you to fluently speak, read and write besides their birth language and potentially their secondary language.

• Flaw: Illiterate: You cannot read or write.

Looks

These merits and flaws describe the Vampire's appearance, and its effect on Social rolls. All Nosferatu automatically have the Repulsive flaw.

• Flaw: Repulsive
• Flaw: Ugly
• Beautiful
• Stunning

Mythic

These merits and flaws relate to magical curses, peculiarities of the blood and other mystical effects.

• Flaw: Stake Bait: Being staked bring final death to the vampire
• Flaw: Folkloric Bane: You take aggravated damage from one folkloric bane, like ultraviolet light, silver or holy water.
• Flaw: Folkloric Block: You must recoil or spend a willpower when faced with one Folkloric Block, like white animals, running water, garlic, etc.
• Flaw: Stigmata: You bleed from hands, feet, and forehead when your hunger becomes intense.
• Eat food: You can eat food, though it provides no nourishment and must be expelled before daysleep.

Psychological

These merits and flaws relate to psychological quirks of the character.

• Flaw: Living on the Edge: You suffer a compulsion to always partake of new experiences.
• Flaw: Weak-Willed: Your will is weak and you struggle assert your own personality when confronted with the will of another.

Substance Use

You have an addiction to a substance besides blood, usually bringing you penalties when lacking access to it.

• Flaw: Hopeless Addiction
• Flaw: Addiction
• High-Functioning Addict

Backgrounds

Backgrounds are external Traits, that describe advantages of relationship, circumstance, and opportunity: material possessions, social networks, and the like.

• Allies: A mortal or group mortals that are loyal and trustworthy to you, and will help when needed.
  • Flaw: Enemy: Mortals that seek to harm you

• Contacts: Someone who supplies you with information, services or goods in a particular field.

• Fame: How well known you are, usually among mortals but can apply amongst Kindred as well.
  • Flaw: Infamy: You are famous, for doing something horrible or reprehensible in the eyes of mortal or Kindred society.
  • Flaw: Dark Secret: You have a secret which you must hide

• Influence: You have pull in the mortal community, whether through wealth, prestige, political office, blackmail, or supernatural manipulation
  • Flaw: Despised: One group or region of the city lives only to thwart you and your faction.
  • Flaw: Disliked: You are generally disliked.

• Haven: A place you have to sleep, which isn't dependent on other Backgrounds.
  • Flaw: Compromised: Your haven has been raided once before.
  • Flaw: Creepy: Your haven looks like the den of a serial killer, which in fairness is probably exactly what it is.
  • Flaw: Haunted: Your haven has a supernatural manifestation in it that you do not control or really even understand.
  • Holy Ground: Your haven exists in a place of significance to your cult.
  • Hidden Armory: This Merit adds a stand of arms to your haven’s supply.
  • Cell: Your haven has a dedicated, locked place to store two prisoners.
  • Watchmen: You have either private security or criminal thugs guarding your haven.
  • Laboratory: Your haven has an equipped laboratory with a dedicated industrial sink, gas jet, reinforced floor, etc.
  • Library: Your Haven has a dedicated library on the occult, Cainite legends, city history, vampire lore, or the like.
  • Location: Your haven nestles in one of the most fashionable or otherwise exclusive areas of the city, in the Rack, on a small island, or otherwise in a prime spot.
  • Luxury: High-definition flat screens, designer furniture, objets d’art, or other expensive detail.
  • Postern: Your Haven has a rear exit, secret tunnel, grating in the cellar leading into the sewers, or other unobtrusive way out.
  • Security System: Your haven has a better-than-average security system.
  • Surgery: Your haven has one room equipped as a field surgery or better.
  • Warding: Your haven possesses some kind of magical ward barring supernatural forces.
  • Shrine: You keep a shrine in your haven.

• Herd: A group of mortals you can feed from without issues.
  • Flaw: Obvious Predator: You exude a predatory demeanor, and cannot maintain a herd.

• Mask: The strength of your fake identity, if you have one.
  • Flaw: Known Blankbody: You can easily be recognized by the Second Inquisition.
  • Flaw: Known Corpse: People know you recently died.
  • Zeroed: Your real record has been purged and you officially don't exist.
  • Cobbler: You can procure new masks.

• Mawla: A vampire or group of vampires that help you, offers information, guidance or aid.
  • Flaw: Adversary: A fellow Cainite who generally wishes you (or more likely your sire, lineage, or mentor) ill.

• Resources: This Background describes your Resources. These benefits are not necessarily financial in nature and are rarely completely liquid, but you can often sell them to gain money.
  • Flaw: Destitute: You have no money.

• Retainers: You have one or more loyal and steadfast servants or assistants.
  • Flaw: Stalkers: You have a tendency to attract people who become a tad too smitten with you for your own good.

• Status: You have something of a reputation and standing (earned or unearned) within a specified local community of Kindred, probably Camarilla or Anarch.
  • Flaw: Shunned: You’re completely loathed by this sect
  • Flaw: Suspect: You’re not good with this sect at all.

Coterie Backgrounds

While not necessarily tied to Coteries, these background are usually held by them, representing their shared Domain.

• Chasse: This Trait describes how well stocked, vulnerable, and rich the domain is as a hunting ground.

• Lien: This Trait describes how well integrated the coterie is into their domain.

• Portillon: This Trait describes how secure the domain is against intrusion or disruption.

Loresheets

Loresheets are a special type of Advantage that connects your character straight into the metaplot of Vampire. Each player may choose a Loresheet and select dots in it just like any other Advantage. Each level is discrete and must be bought separately, like wise, higher levels do not grant you the benefits of the lower ones. A character can only take advantages from one standard Loresheet, and one Bloodline loresheet at character creation. Whether "Descendant of" count as a Bloodline is up to the Storyteller.

List of Loresheets

Anarch

• Salvador García
• Agata Starek
• Hesha Ruhadze
• The Church of Set
• Descendant of Xaviar (Gangrel only)
• Descendant of Tyler (Brujah only)
• Ruins of Carthage
• Blood Plagued
• Anarch Revolt

Camarilla

• Carmelita Neillson
• Fatima al-Faqadi
• Fiorenza Savona
• Pure Ventrue Lineage (Ventrue only)
• The Cult of Mithras 
• The Pyramid (Tremere only)
• Victoria Ash

Chicago By Night

• Annabelle
• Ballard Industries
• Blacksite 24
• The Blue Velvet
• The Book of Nod
• Capone Gang
• The Cobweb (Malkavian only)
• Cultivar
• Cult of Shalim
• Descendant of Lodin (Ventrue only)
• Descendant of Montano (Lasombra only)
• Fires and Floods and Devil's Night
• Firstlight
• Wauneka
• Kevin Jackson
• Kindred Iconography
• The Labyrinth
• Lupine Expert
• Nathaniel Bordruff
• The Painted Lady
• Revenant Family: Ducheski (Tremere only)
• The Society of St. Leopold

Chicago Folios

• Archons
• The Convention of Chicago
• Descendant of Menele (Brujah only)
• Goblin Roads
• Justicar Lucinde
• Khalid al-Rashid
• Kindred Dueling
• Malkavian Family (Malkavian only)
• Occult Artifacts (Tremere and Banu Haqim only)
• The Pony Express
• Sheriff Damien
• The Wolf Pack

Children of the Blood

• The Ashfinders (Thin-Blooded only)
• Amaranthan
• Cleopatras (Nosferatu only)
• Meneleans
• The One True Way
• Starfall Ranch (Malkavian only)

Bloodlines

• Little Siblings (Hecata only)
• Grudge Masters (Hecata only)

Corebook

• The Bahari
• Theo Bell
• Cainite Heresy
• Carna
• The Circulatory System
• Convention of Thorns
• The First Inquisition
• Golconda
• Descendant of Hardestadt (Ventrue only)
• Descendant of Helena (Toreador only)
• Sect War Veteran
• The Trinity
• Jeanette/Therese Voerman
• The Week of Nightmares
• Rudi
• Descendant of Tyler (Brujah only)
• Descendant of Zelios (Nosferatu only)
• Descendant of Vasantasena (Malkavian only)
• High Clan
• Low Clan
• Ambrus Maropis
• Carmelita Neillson
• Fiorenza Savona
• Descendant of Karl Schrekt (Tremere only)
• Descendant of Xaviar (Gangrel only)

Cults of the Blood Gods

• Calling the Family Reunion (Hecata only)
• Child of the Angel Michael (Unavailable to Nosferatu)
• Servitor of Irad
• The Promise of 1528

Bloodlines

• Bankers of Dunsirn (Hecata only)
• Children of Tenochtitlan (Hecata only)
• Descendants of the Baron (Hecata only)
• Flesh-Eaters (Hecata only)
• Harbingers of Ashur (Hecata only)
• La Famiglia Giovanni (Hecata only)
• The Criminal Puttanesca (Hecata only)
• The Gorgons (Hecata only)

Fall of London

• Agent of Justicar Parr
• Court of Shadows
• Hunt Club
• London Under London (Nosferatu only)
• Operation Antigen
• Oskar Anasov

Forbidden Religions

• 1444 Chamber (Hecata only)
• Blood Asceticism
• Gehenna Cults
• Plagues of Gehenna
• Praepositor (Tremere only)
• Spear of Orthia (Ventrue only)

Let the Streets Run Red

• The Anubi
• Eletria
• Kindred Social Media Influencer
• Juggler
• Lost Secrets of the Milwaukee Chantry
• Mark Decker
• Maxwell
• The Milwaukee "Null Zone"
• Modius

Trails of Ash and Bone

• The Ruby Throat
• Descendant of Roger de Camden (Hecata only)
• Relics of the Veil

Winter's Teeth No. 1

• Wolves in Sheep's Clothing
• The Nictuku

Cults

These merits and flaws, introduced in Children of the Blood, relate to several cults, and many straddle the lines between Merit and Background. The merits below are general ones that work for all cults, while others are specific.

• Flaw: Excommunicated: Once, you belonged. Something you did caused the leadership to cast you out and make you persona non grata among your peers. They’ve stripped your access to the cult’s support systems and resources.
• Flaw: Faithless: You don’t actually believe any of the cult’s doctrines. You’re only in it for the benefits, but true progress and power require a degree of commitment and you’re not willing to subject yourself to indoctrination.
• Apocryphal Texts: You possess the writings of one of your church’s founders or prominent figures. While they’re not official canon, the revelations within make you a sought-after expert. But the texts aren’t merely apocryphal, they’re also considered dangerous by your cult’s leaders.
• Inspired Artist: You channel your divine fervor into art. You’re a painter, a singer, a poet, a sculptor, and your creations inspire all who experience it.
• Travelling Preacher: You spread your cult’s message wherever you go, despite the risks Kindred take when they travel. You’ve mapped out safe routes, established good places to go to ground along the way, and learned where surveillance systems falter.
• Chasse:
  • Flaw: Disputed Domain: Your cult’s domain overlaps with a rival organization’s territory, causing frequent tension and conflicts over resources.
  • Built-in Flock: The cult maintains a front that attracts mortals.
• Lien:
  • Flaw: Visibility: Someone’s got it in their heads that the cult’s bad news.
  • Community Outreach: The cult performs acts of community service and has earned the residents’ goodwill.
• Portillion:
  • Flaw: Shared Vulnerabilities : Despite your coterie’s precautions, the cult’s own security is lax — a weakness your foes can exploit to get to you.
  • Networked: You share access to the cult’s security precautions. If they have security cameras around their temple, you can log in to the live feed.

Ashfinders

• Flaw: Ashe Addiction: The need to relive other Kindred’s memories and wield their power is a constant clamour in your mind.
• Streamer: You’re a social media sensation, with a follower count in the hundreds of thousands — minimum — hanging on your every post. They take your advice, purchase the products you hawk, and rally to any cause you point them towards.
• Memories of the Fallen: Partaking of Ashe grants the user memories of the Kindred who died to make the drug

Bahari

• Gardener: As a faithful Ba’ham, you lead a Garden of your own. You guide new initiates, lead rituals, and direct those who walk in your Garden to carry out the Dark Mother’s will.
• Dark Mother’s Song: Your words make the listener’s pain and grief resonate like a struck harp, giving you an edge when converting others to the Bahari Faith.

Church of Caine

• Flaw: Schism (Lasombra): One of your great-grandsires was among the members of the Night Clan participating in purging the Church of Caine several centuries ago.
• Fire Resistant: You’ve participated in the Sacrament of Firewalking several times. As a result, your body is able to withstand exposure to flames outside of the ritual setting.

Church of Set

• Flaw: False Alarms: Your danger sense is not only always on, it’s in constant overdrive ... and it’s not always right
• Fixer: With little more than a brief conversation, you know what people want. Even when — especially when — it’s something they ought not have. You procure questionable goods for your clients. If word of such acquisitions got out, they’d be ruined.
• Go to Ground: The Church of Set teaches its members to be mobile, ready to slip away into the shadows if persecutors come calling
• Vigilant: You always know when you are being watched, barring supernatural concealment.

Cult of Shalim

• Flaw: Empty: People try to extricate themselves from your presence quickly, making it hard to have more than superficial conversations with them.
• Insidious Whispers: You have a talent to make other Kindred question their sense of self and their convictions.
• Gematria: You understand the coded system the Cult uses and can encrypt or decrypt messages using it.
• Vigilant: You always know when you are being watched, barring supernatural concealment.

Mithraic Mysteries

• Flaw: Failed Initiate: You faltered while taking one (or several) of the Seven Steps, and your Pater has assigned a guide to ensure your future success.
• Bull-Slayer: Like Mithras, when you set your sights on a target, you pursue it until it falls
• Bargainer: You are better at making deals.
• Chasse: Mithraeum: Your coterie’s domain overlaps with the local Mithraeum.

Nephilim

• Flaw: Yearning: Your master is gone from your life and you struggle to break from the path she set for you.
• Archangel’s Grace: Your training makes your movements lithe and assured, every gesture an art form in itself.