Guide to Coteries [BUNDLE] - This bundle is a unique opportunity to create unique coteries and packs!With a total of fifteen beautifully illustrated
The bundle is now available. All four volumes + the DLC with extra Embrace situations, Clans and Bloodlines options.
Our Guide to Coteries project for Halloween with @sarenhale has been the most amazing thing ever, and I can’t be thankful enough!
The FIFTEEN characters we created together in a coop, unique, and organic way are just top notch, and you guys should really meet them.
But here’s a tumblr exclusive of the process under the read me ;)
How did we do it? Well, this is how it happened. First, I poked Saren about “yo, wanna draw shit?” and Saren was like “yo, ya sure, whachu thinking about fam?”.
Then I came up with core group concepts, with individual roles.
Here’s the “core” write up for The Alleycats (Vol.2), which is, like, the trashchildren we both love :p
The Gang: this coterie is composed of brutes and problem solvers of all sorts. They're the whip or armed enforcers of the sheriff. They can also make very interesting sabbat packs, but here let's do it as if they were chosen to have been embraced. Here are the characters: The armory (dex + tactical weapons), the bouncer (strength brawl, the kind that bursts out kneecaps), the survivalist (bladed weapons or gangrel claws), the Yakuza (kind of leader-type, charisma intimidation, extortion and some brains)
They were renamed “The Alleycats”, and if you recognize them, the “armory” became Nour, the Bouncer is Fynn, the Survivalist is Pat, and the “Yakuza” ended up being Ana (I removed the actual organized crime relation for sensitivity reasons, I had sang too much Karaoke in Karumocho :’)). Notice that I kept my descriptions genderless, so as to allow Saren to create out of pure inspiration. I’m not even sure I assigned each portrait to each concept as Saren had imagined actually :p
So, after those were sent over, Saren drew portraits for the group’s mood, and when I saw them, I assigned to each portrait to a character concept (reworking it if needed to match the feel of the portrait), a name and a background. Saren confirmed whether they liked the feel I got from the portraits. “Does she look like an Erin?” kind of questions. Once we both agreed, we put them out together.
After expanding the palette from each set of portraits, I hunted down nice frames to make each group feel unique with its own layout visual identity, picked the right filler art, and boom, each book has its theme, mood, ambiance, characters. That’s why I posted, on each product, the back cover! To give you a little more feel of each group. Because of this unique palette, I could create extra characters (fillable sheets with portraits, names and core concepts) in PWYW DLCs in case your group of players needs some extra sheets. Had lots of fun matching the color scheme for each! And digging into other artist portraits to make characters that could fit in each coterie...
Then I filled their character sheets, worked on embrace situations (based on my Guide to Siring), chose a bunch of suitable clans to give options, and then created relationship options for characters to form a coherent group that’s multidimensional in how each character is linked to each other. Believable groups of PCs and NPCs are the best, and it’s always better if there’s agency!
These groups are easy to use to introduce new players to VTM 20th edition. I MIGHT update them to the V5 system, but sadly I can’t put that on the Vault. Yet.
Another note: I managed to make the sheets fillable thanks to Mr Gone’s previous works; I completely butchered his sheets with his permission to do so, and he was nice enough to let me ask him questions every now and then.
Anyway, wanna check the individual books? Click on my website :)
https://secretsmasquerade.wixsite.com/portfolio
Btw, each Volume has a secret Nossie hidden in it! Did you find it? The bundle also has a special one! But it’s up for a limited time ;)
