MALKAVIAN DERANGEMENTS

The information below is edited in part, with portions found in: Clanbook: Malkavian - Revised Edition.; and Players Guide to the Low Clans, White Wolf

ROLEPLAYING INSANITY

Just a few thought-starters and tips so that the person behind the keyboard has a frame of reference and doesn't drive himself crazy in an attempt to play crazy. The Malkavian character must still be functional in roleplay. Of course, when you’re roleplaying a character, particularly a vampire, realism has to take a back seat to drama and story. Choosing and roleplaying a derangement shouldn’t be a choice that depends on “what is most likely” — it should depend on what’s most appropriate. 

First off, there are plenty of mental disorders that are just plain unplayable; delirium, dementia, catatonia and the like don’t allow much room for a functional character. (What’s more, from a story perspective, the sire would be likely to deem such a creation a failure and start over — after disposing of the botched material, of course.) 

Psychosexual disorders can be inappropriate, both because it’s all too easy for such a derangement to be too disturbing to fellow players, and because Malkavians, like most vampires, don’t have much desire for sex as we know it. (Of course, some troupes might be perfectly fine with such derangements in play — if so, more power to you.) 

Finally, some disorders just aren’t sufficiently gripping. A phobia of the number 13 or of trees is technically fine, but it just doesn’t really go well with a horror story. Naturally, few Malkavians think of themselves as “mad,” just as few elders of any clan — no matter how cruel — think of themselves as “evil.” Many clan members do recognize they are somehow far removed from what all of humanity, and most of Kindred society besides, considers “normal.” However, they ascribe this to possessing a certain…understanding about the world and all it holds, not to a disease or infirmity. 

It’s important to understand that a Malkavian’s reality is contextual: This is the heart of their insanity. You can’t codify a schizophrenic’s delusion as a matter of faith or belief; he doesn’t believe that he absolutely must pull the eyes from his victims to prevent them from controlling him, he knows that to be a fact.  Within the context of a Malkavian’s derangements, reality works differently. 

Reality is different for them, because they see it through a fractured lens. As a result, it’s good to avoid words like “belief,” both in character and out of it. Try to avoid saying things like “My Malkavian believes that the world is the rotting corpse of God,” even out of character — instead, phrase it in terms like “My Malkavian sees the rot of the world, and he knows that the whole planet is God’s corpse.” Even a little change in wording like this will do wonders for conveying your character’s utter conviction to your fellow players. Of course, it might also help things not to discuss your derangement with other players unless absolutely necessary. Let them piece it out over the course of play. 

There is one thing to bear in mind about this approach, though — if you don’t tell your fellow players what your character’s madness is, it’s doubly important that you talk it over with your Storyteller, to make sure that you aren’t going to be causing undue conflicts between players. Conflict between characters is fine — but you don’t want to drag in a derangement that makes other players uncomfortable, because that kills the spirit of the game. 

Another thing to keep in mind is the time frame of a Malkavian’s former life. Vampires who predate Freud and Jung might behave in patterns appropriate to modern psychology — but they’re as likely to manifest signs of “possession.” Truly young neonates, brought up by dysfunctional parents and Embraced in the high-speed, technoshock world of the 21st century, might be even crazier than their elders. Hannibal Lecter would be out of place in a Poe story; it’s similarly disorienting to have characters running around whose derangements are at odds with the flavor of their times. 

Pop culture references are also mood-wreckers. It’s theoretically possible that a schizophrenic Malkavian might believe he’s a character in a bad detective novel, or that he’s a Jedi Knight — but if you drag one of these guys into the game, not only is nobody going to take your character seriously, but they might not even take you seriously. I mean, come on…a Jedi? Finally, it can’t be stressed enough that a little bit of research and inspirational reading goes a long way. 

By this we don’t mean watching The Matrix and deciding that your character’s going to emulate Lawrence Fishburne, complete with a schizophrenic delusion about all of humanity being living batteries for robots or some fool thing like that. Read an introductory-level psych textbook, or Catch-22. Go to a surrealist art show, or browse through an art history book — a lot of artists were at least slightly cracked. Read some philosophy; many philosophical doctrines (particularly Nietzsche and Descartes) make damn good schizophrenic derangements with just a little modification and a whole lot of belief. Theology offers similar inspiration. Anyone can portray someone who believes something unusual. The trick is making the personality match the derangement so that your fellow players honestly, truly believe that a person like your Malkavian could exist.

DERANGEMENTS

Derangements are behaviors that are created when the mind is forced to confront intolerable or conflicting feelings, such as overwhelming terror, PTSD, or profound guilt. When the mind is faced with impressions or emotions that it cannot reconcile, it attempts to ease the inner conflict by stimulating behavior such as megalomania, bulimia, or hysteria to provide an outlet for the tension and stress that the conflict generates.

Vampires or mortals receive derangements under conditions of intense terror, guilt, or anxiety - or if such conditions are inflicted on them. Other examples of derangement-inducing events include killing a loved one while in a frenzy, being buried alive as part of a Sabbat ritual, or seeing hundreds of years of careful scheming dashed in an instant of bad luck. Generally, any experience that causes intense and unpleasant emotion or thoroughly violates a character’s beliefs or ethics is severe enough to cause a derangement. The Storyteller determines which derangement a character receives, working with the player to choose (or create) one appropriate to the character’s personality and the circumstances of the event that caused the disorder. 

It must be noted that people who are “crazy” are neither funny nor arbitrary in their actions. Insanity is frightening to those who are watching someone rage against unseen presences or hoard rotten meat to feed to the monsters that live next door; even something as harmless-sounding as talking to an invisible rabbit can become disturbing to observers. 

The insane, however, are only responding to a pattern known to them, stimuli that they perceive in their own minds. To their skewed perceptions, what’s happening to them is perfectly normal. Your vampire’s derangement is therefor a reason, whether he’s a Malkavian who resided at Bedlam before his Embrace or a Ventrue pack member who escaped from five months of torture at the hands of an Inquisitor. What stimuli is his insanity inflicting on him, and how is he reacting to what’s happening? The player should work with his Storyteller to create a pattern of provocations for his derangement, and then decide how his character reacts to such provocation. 

Derangements are a challenge to roleplay, without question, but a little time and care can result in an experience that is dramatic for all involved. Below is a partial list of suggestions, but it is by no means all-inclusive.

Bipolar Disorder: 

Bipolar individuals suffer from severe mood swings, sometimes resulting from extreme trauma or anxiety. Victims may be upbeat and confident one moment, then uncontrollably lethargic and pessimistic the next. Kindred with this derangement are constantly on a hair trigger, never knowing when the next mood swing will strike. 

Whenever the vampire fails a task, the Storyteller has the option of secretly making a Willpower roll (difficulty 80) for the character. If the character fails the roll, she lapses into depression. Additionally, the vampire will go into depression whenever one of her rolls is botched, or if her Energy/Blood level ever drops below 2 points. The Storyteller should roll a die to determine how many scenes the character remains depressed, keeping the number a secret. 

Upon emerging from the depressive state, the character is energetic, relentlessly upbeat and active (obsessively so) for a number of scenes proportionate to the time spent in depression. When a vampire is in this manic state, the difficulty of all rolls to resist frenzy is raised by one.

Extreme Gullibility Disorder (EGD):

This social disorder makes a person unable to detect or understand lies and deception. The person will always believe something is true, no matter how outlandish. It is a manifestation of an undeveloped social intelligence that makes the afflicted person easy to trick or manipulate into an ill-advised course of action. EGD is hallmarked by debilitating credulity, which is described as a tendency to believe something, usually a highly questionable statement or claim, despite scanty evidence. Other symptoms are inappropriate social displays, frequently changing religions, giving away money or personal belongings simply because someone asks, etc. EGD makes such people socially vulnerable and easy to be led astray.

Even when the person has very good reason not to believe a certain person or a statement, they can easily be convinced to do so. EGD is characterized by not just a willingness to believe unbelievable statements or facts, but a desire to do so. Someone afflicted with EGD, dislikes disagreeing with anyone and does not understand the concept of deception.

Fugue: 

Victims suffering from fugue experience “blackouts” and loss of memory. When subjected to stress, the individual begins a specific, rigid set of behaviors to remove the stressful symptoms. This differs from multiple personalities, as the individual in the grip of a fugue has no separate personality, but is on a form of “autopilot” similar to sleepwalking. 

Kindred suffering from this derangement require a Willpower roll when subjected to extreme stress or pressure (difficulty 80). If the roll fails, the player must roleplay her character’s trancelike state; otherwise, control of the character passes to the Storyteller for a number of scenes determined by the roll of a die. During this period, the Storyteller may have the character act as she sees fit to remove the source of the stress. At the end of the fugue, the character “regains consciousness” with no memory of her actions.

Digenes Sundrome (Hoarding):

Diogenes Syndrome is characterized by “the overwhelming desire to collect seemingly random items, to which an emotional attachment is then formed.” Sufferers of Diogenes Syndrome often neglect themselves and their personal needs, exhibit apathy towards others, and are anti-social. They usually have trouble feeling ashamed or showing shame for their hoarding actions. They will continue to hoard even when these items fill their house, making it impossible to even move within it.

Hoarding can include everything, or specific items. Some hoarders collect animals, such as cats. Others hoard items they buy online or a collection turns into a hoarding situation, such as dolls, action figures, clothing or anything that becomes obsessive and extreme.

Hoarders will neglect their other responsibilities, such as paying bills, extreme self-neglect, cleaning their home, washing their clothes, skipping work, etc. They do not feel they need any help and do not recognize these "collections" as a mental disorder.                                         

Hysteria: 

A person in the grip of hysteria is unable to control her emotions, suffering severe mood swings and violent fits when subjected to stress or anxiety. Hysterical Kindred must make frenzy checks whenever subjected to stress or pressure. The difficulties of these rolls are normally 60, increasing to 80 if the stress is sudden or especially severe. Additionally, any action that results in a botch causes the vampire to frenzy automatically.

Kleptomania:

Kleptomania is an uncommon yet compulsive mental health condition where the afflicted subject feels an overpowering, irresistible urge to steal things. The sensation of pleasure one feels when giving in to this compulsion ensures that the subject will continue to indulge in this activity.

This form of mental illness can take a few different forms. Some Kleptomaniacs are compelled to steal anything and everything that presents itself as an opportunity. Others may have a more niche affliction, where they only feel pleasure when stealing a certain type of thing, such as office supplies, candy, women's underwear, and such. This differs slightly from the mental illness of Hoarding in that the Kleptomaniac does not necessarily desire to keep what they steal. They only desire to steal it.

People who have this disorder know that stealing is wrong and could get them into trouble, but they can’t stop themselves. People who have kleptomania don’t steal because of a lack of willpower, self-control or a character flaw. Instead, this is a medical condition where a person doesn’t have the ability to resist the impulse to steal. It’s common for people with kleptomania to feel guilt, shame or intense anxiety in stealing. Many try to compensate for this by returning items, donating them to charity, or going back and paying for the items after the fact.

SPECIAL NOTES:

• There is no Willpower roll to resist. When presented with the opportunity, the Kleptomaniac will attempt to steal.
• Kleptomania is not planned. The urge only occurs when the opportunity presents itself.

Koothrappali Syndrome:

This psychiatric affliction manifests as an inability to speak or interact with members of the opposite sex. This can range from mild forms where the subject attempts to communicate with a member of the opposite sex, but either cannot utter a sound or they stutter so badly that their speech is incomprehensible. This form of psychosis typically does not include a vampire's Sire nor his immediate family. It can, however, have an opposite effect if the subject is Gay or Lesbian, rendering them unable to speak to other males or females outside of their immediate family units. 

SPECIAL NOTES:

• Those afflicted have a -30 Mod vs willpower to attempt to speak with members of the opposite sex. This roll must be successfully made each and every time the Vampire attempts to speak.
• When forced to attempt to speak with members of the opposite sex, if the vampire fails any of their Willpower rolls, they will immediately Fox Frenzy.
• Fortunately for suffers of this syndrome, the drinking of highly-intoxicated or strong drug-laced blood can temporarily free them of their symptoms, though this usually only lasts for six turns after consumption.
• Rune Amulets, though very rare and difficult to acquire, have been know to also alleviate these symptoms. These Amulets, while highly effective in removing all the symptoms, have a few significant challenges. 
  • First, they can only be made by Telyavelic Tremere, or Wayland Apex Kinfolk and Garou Theurges. 
  • Second, the wearing of such an amulet causes pain and immediate Health Point damage. 
  • Once worn, the Vampire's Health Points are immediately cut in half and the Vampire cannot heal for more than half of his/her/their Health Points for a full 24 hours after the Amulet is removed. 
  • Also, the Vampire will be in a constant state of low-level pain every minute the Amulet is worn. Should the Vampire be attacked and their Health points go below 5, the Vampire will instantly fall into Torpor.

Megalomania: 

Individuals with this derangement are obsessed with accumulating power and wealth, salving their insecurities by becoming the most potent individuals in their environment. Such individuals are invariably arrogant and supremely sure of their abilities, convinced of their own inherent superiority. The means of achieving their status can take many forms, from devious conspiracies to outright brutality. 

Any individual of equal to or higher status than the victim is perceived to be “competition.” Kindred with this derangement constantly struggle to rise to the height of power and influence, by whatever means necessary. 

In a megalomaniac’s view, there are only two classes of people: those who are weaker, and those who do not deserve the power they have and must be made weaker. This belief extends to everyone around the vampire, including members of her own coterie. 

SPECIAL NOTES: 

• This derangement lends an extra +10 Modifier to all of the victim’s Willpower rolls, due to her towering sense of superiority. 
• If a megalomaniacal vampire is presented with a realistic chance to diablerize a more potent Kindred, she will be sorely tempted. A Willpower roll (DIF 40) is needed for the vampire to avoid taking “what is rightfully hers.”

Multiple Personalities: 

The trauma that spawns this derangement fractures the victim’s personality into one or more additional personas, allowing the victim to deny her trauma or any actions the trauma causes by placing the blame on“ someone else.” 

Each personality is created to respond to certain emotional stimuli — an abused person might develop a tough-as-nails survivor personality, create a “protector,” or even become a murderer in order to deny the abuse she is suffering. 

In most cases none of the personalities are aware of the others. Typically, they come and go through the victim’s mind in response to specific situations, stimuli or conditions.

When a vampire suffers this derangement, the DOD Admins and the player must agree upon how many and what kind of personalities develop, and the situations that trigger their dominance in the victim. Each personality should be relevant to the trauma that causes it. The Player should write a Notecard detailing the trauma and describe each of the personalities.

Not only is each personality distinct, but in the case of Kindred, the different personalities might believe themselves to be from different Clans and sires. Kindred with multiple personalities can manifest different Abilities and even Virtues for each of their personalities, but it is the responsibility of the DOD Admins to determine the specific details.

Obsessive-Compulsive: 

The trauma, guilt, or inner conflict that causes this derangement forces the individual to focus nearly all of her attention and energy onto a single repetitive behavior or action. Obsession relates to an individual’s desire to control her environment — keeping clean, keeping an area quiet and peaceful, or keeping undesirable individuals from an area, for example. 

A compulsion is an action or set of actions that an individual is driven to perform to soothe her anxieties: for example, placing objects in an exact order, or feeding from a mortal in a precise, ritualistic fashion. Vampires with an obsessive-compulsive derangement must determine a set of specific actions or behaviors, as described above, and follow them to the exclusion of all else. 

SPECIAL NOTES:

• The difficulty of any attempt to coerce or Dominate a vampire into ceasing her behavior is penalized by a -15 Mod.  
• If a vampire is forcibly prevented from adhering to her derangement, she automatically frenzies.

Paranoia: 

The victim of paranoia believes that her misery and insecurity stem from external persecution and hostility. Paranoid individuals obsess about their persecution complexes, often creating vast and intricate conspiracy theories to explain who is tormenting them and why.

Anyone or anything perceived to be “one of them” is often subjected to violence. 

SPECIAL NOTES:

Kindred who suffer from paranoia have difficulty with social interaction. The difficulties of all Rolls involving interaction are:

• -5 for friends, sire, progeny, and those they are already familiar with.
• -10 for strangers
• -15 for those they dislike, distrust or anyone they perceive to be threatening them. 
• Whenever a vampire with this derangement feeds on a mortal, a Willpower roll is needed (difficulty 60, or 90 if she drains the mortal to the point of death).
  
  If the roll succeeds, she is tormented by the “memories” of the person whose soul she has partially consumed, but is still able to function normally. If the roll fails, then the images in her mind are so strong that it is akin to having a second personality inside her, an angry and reproachful personality that seeks to cause harm to the vampire and her associates.

They are distrustful and suspicious of everyone, even their own blood-bound progeny. The slightest hint of suspicious behavior is enough to provoke a frenzy roll, with the difficulty relative to the degree of the behavior. 

This paranoia may even extend to complex and rigorous feeding practices, to keep “them” from contaminating the vampire’s food supply. 

Sanguinary Animism: This derangement is unique to the Kindred, a response to vampires’ deep-seated guilt regarding the act of feeding on the blood of mortals. Kindred with this derangement believe that they do not merely consume victims’ blood, but their souls as well, which are then made a part of the vampire’s consciousness. 

In the hours after feeding, the vampire hears the voice of her victim inside her head and feels a tirade of “memories” from the victim’s mind — all created by the vampire’s subconscious. In extreme cases, this sense of possession can drive a Kindred to carry out actions on behalf of her victims. Diablerie would be particularly unwise for an animist. 

The player must roleplay this state as if the mind of her victim in control. During the moments just before dawn, control reverts to the vampire.

Phobias:

All Phobias cause a devastating effect on the Vampire and typically behave in the same way. A phobia is when the afflicted person has an intense or overpowering fear that causes acute anxiety in certain situations or when they encounter certain objects. Unlike most fears, the effects of phobias are more severe and debilitating and exhibit the following symptoms. 

• Intense or overwhelming fear.
• Panic or feeling the need to escape.
• Feeling like you’re in immediate danger.
• Feelings of disconnection from your own body (depersonalization) or the world around you (derealization).

In the most severe cases, people with phobias critically limit their lives to avoid encountering what they fear. Pretty much anything can manifest as a Phobia. A few more common Phobias include:

• Agoraphobia - Fear of public spaces and crowds.
• Arachnophobia - Fear of spiders
• Astraphobia - Fear of thunder and lightning
• Algophobia - Fear of pain
• Acrophobia - Fear of heights
• Aquaphobia - Fear of water
• Hemophobia - Fear of blood
• Claustrophobia - Fear of enclosed spaces
• Nyctophobia - Fear of the dark
• Coulrophobia - Fear of clowns
• Pyrophobia - Fear of Fire
• For more information on Phobias, CLICK HERE.

SPECIAL NOTES:

• No matter what kind of Phobia characters have, they will suffer a -30 vs Willpower when faced with the thing they fear. 
• If the Vampire makes his/her/their Willpower roll, they will have successfully conquered their fear, for the moment, and be able to conduct themselves without succumbing to their fears. 
• If they fail their Willpower roll, they will succumb to their fears and not be compelled to approach the thing, or situation, they fear under any circumstances. 
• If they Botch their Willpower roll (roll a natural 0-10) they will immediately Fox Frenzy.
• Special Rune Amulets can help alleviate the symptoms of Phobias, but not entirely. Rune Amulets can only be made by Telyavelic Tremere, or Wayland Apex Kinfolk and Garou Theurges. These Amulets only reduce the Mod to a -20 and require 10 points of Energy/Blood every time the Vampire rolls to resist their Phobia.

Schizophrenia: 

Conflicting, unresolvable sets of feelings and impulses can cause a victim to develop schizophrenia, which manifests as a withdrawal from reality, violent changes in behavior, and hallucinations. Roleplaying this derangement requires careful thought, because the player must determine a general set of behaviors relevant to the trauma that caused the derangement. 

The hallucinations, bizarre behavior, and unseen voices stem from a terrible inner conflict that the individual cannot resolve. The player needs to establish a firm idea of what that conflict is and then rationalize what kind of behavior this conflict will cause.

SPECIAL NOTES:

• Kindred with this derangement are unpredictable and dangerous. In situations that trigger a vampire’s inner conflict, the difficulties of all rolls to resist or direct frenzy are increased by a -10 Modifier.

Deterioration: 

(As a significant trauma for developing psychosis.) A vampire who is staked or otherwise paralyzed continues to spend Energy/Blood points at the rate of one point per night. If the vampire is further deprived of blood, the decaying process that unlife has held at bay begins again. 

A vampire with no blood begins consuming all excess moisture within his body at a rate of one to five Health Points per day. As the process continues, the vampire begins to resemble a mummified corpse. At first the vampire appears merely emaciated, but as the body is completely dehydrated, the meat and ligaments, along with the mostly useless organs within the body, begin to wither.

By the seventh day, when the character has reached Incapacitated on the Health chart, the character’s eyes shrivel within his skull, the tendons and ligaments within the body draw painfully tight, the gums recede from the teeth, and the lips draw back in a death rictus.

At this point, the character enters torpor. Once in torpor, the character cannot rise unless supplied with enough blood to bring him back to 1 Health Point on the Health chart. A vampire emerging from this state is ravenous to the point of insanity, and will attack whatever source of blood is closest, regardless of any emotional ties.

Leaving a vampire staked until he reaches this near death state, then reviving him with just enough blood to prolong the agony, is a favorite method of torture for both mortal hunters and the Sabbat. Most vampires undergoing this form of torture suffer permanent mental damage as a result.