Powers and Combat

 
 

The above power tree shows a glimpse of the combat abilities, focusing specifically on the supernatural strength and supernatural speed branches of the vampire bailiwick. 

Supernatural Predators

Combat in Shadow’s Kiss sets out to achieve several goals:

  • Be strategic.  Terrain, location, and tactics should matter.
  • Give you time to think.  What’s your next move?
  • Allow traps and ambushes.  Slayers in particular, but also sneaky vampires, may win a fight by laying down the right tripewires or explosives.
  • Make magic risky.  Casting a spell is a multi-round action that requires protection from attack.
  • Allow parlay, hypnosis, and mind control to flip enemies.
  • Make you feel like a badass, supernatural predator.

 

The Power Combo Tree shows how you can do follow-on attacks or actions after an initial successful hit.  “Energy” refers to power pips gained each rounds, and “blood” is a statistic you gradually deplete and which is regained by feeding on prey or blood donations from your blood dolls.

 

You’ll notice “instant kill” powers on this chart.  Those only apply to “mook” level adversaries, and won’t work on lieutenant, boss, epic, or player opponents.

 

Preterstrength gives you the ability to lift opponents into the air, choke them, knock them off their feet, or throw them at other opponents (or stationary objects).  Preterspeed lets you move like a blur (“Denn die Todten reiten Schnell,” for the dead travel fast).  Combined with Preterstrength, it unlocks a knockdown.

 

Finally, all vampires come with Vampiric Instincts (“I always have my weapons with me” – Spike).  This is a basic set of claw and tooth attacks, plus the ability to drain blood in combat (not useful against zombies, mummies, or others whose blood is curdled or toxic.  Drinking embalming fluid will cause you modest damage).