Melpominee

 

Named for the Greek Muse of Tragedy, Melpominee is a unique discipline of the Daughters of Cacophony. It explores the power of the voice, shaking the very soul of those nearby and allowing the vampire to perform sonic feats otherwise impossible.

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This Discipline can actually be used against deaf individuals, but the effect cannot be encoded into musical mediums of any sort. A vampire cannot have a higher rating in Melpominee than their Performance rating.

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Please note that at least one point in Music Ability (Singing) is a requirement to master Melpominee. If an unknowing Kindred with no musical ability attempts to learn Melpominee, he must first make a roll of Manipulation + Wits at a difficulty level of 8. If he succeeds, then he gains one level of Music Ability and may learn the Discipline. If he fails, he cannot grasp the nuances of Melpominee and must buy a point in Music Ability before attempting again.

 

If he botches, he is given a permanent Derangement related to music (constantly hearing music) and may never learn Melpominee until that Derangement is bought off and one level of Music Ability (singing) is purchased.

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• The Missing Voice

A vampire with this power may "throw" her voice anywhere within her line of sight, even carrying on two different conversations simultaneously (one with her Missing Voice and one with her actual, physical one). Treacherous Daughters impersonate other individuals' voices in order to mislead her listeners, and less devious members can use their two voices simultaneously to perform hauntingly beautiful "duets" or eerie one actress plays.

System: This power functions automatically as long as the character wills it. However, using The Missing Voice while performing any action other than speech or singing incurs a penalty of two dice on that action due to the disruption of the character's concentration.

 

•• Phantom Speaker

With this power, the vampire may project her voice to any one individual with whom she has more than passing familiarity. The only distance limitation is that it must be night wherever in the world the listener is.

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She can talk, sing or make whatever other noises she wants. The sounds are totaly inaudible to anyone and everyone but the intended subject, unless an eavesdropper has Auspex 3 or higher (and has reason to be listening for such things). She cannot hear the sounds herself, or the subject's responses, unless she happens to be within earshot. The use of Phantom Speaker has been rumored to be responsible for several documented cases of "paranoid schizophrenia."

System: The player rolls Wits + Music (difficulty 7) and spends a blood point. Each success allows one turn of speech; three or more successes allow speech for an entire scene.

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••• Madrigal

The Kindred may imbue her audience with the emotions she expresses in her song, rousing them to passion or delging them with seemingly bottomless despair. Princes on good terms with Daughters of Cacophony sometimes have one of the songstresses croon before they make an appearance, bolstering their fellow Kindred with a sense of loyalty.

System: The player rolls Charisma + Music (difficulty 7). Each success instills the chosen emotion in a fifth of the Kindred's audience (more than five successes have no additional effect). The Storyteller decides precisely which members of the audience are affected. Characters may resist this power for the duration of the whole scene with the expenditure of a Willpower point, but only if they have reason to believe that they are being controlled by outside individuals.

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•••• Siren's Beckoning

This is the Power that Kindred fear the most. It reaches deep into it's victims' helpless souls to twist their psyches. It causes temporary insanity in it's victims. Malkavians and kindred that are in Golconda are immune to Siren's Beckoning; the former are too warped to be further affected, and the latter are way too centered. Siren's Beckoning can affect only one victim at a time.

System: Siren's Beckoning requires an extended and resisted roll. The player rolls Manipulation + Music (difficulty of the target's willpower); the victim resists by rolling Willpower (difficulty of the singer's Appearance + Music). When the siren singer accumulates five more successes than her victim at any point, the hapless soul acquires a new derangement (or Psychological Flaw) of Storyteller's choice. This derangement normally lasts for one night per success over five. With a total of 20 net successes, the Daughter can make it permanent.

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••••• Virtuosa

Although many low-level MelpomineÈ powers allow a vampire to affect only one target at a time, those who have mastered this level of the Discipline may entertain a wider audience, as it were. System: She may use Phantom Speaker or Siren's Beckoning on a number of targets equal to her Stamina + Music. The player must spend one blood point for every five targets beyond the first to be affected in such a manner.