Mortals Plus- A World/Chronicles of Darkness Campaign Concept

The World and Chronicles of Darkness setting is filled with possibilities and potentials. From vampires and werewolves, to mages and changelings, to Prometheans, Sin Eaters, and hunters, you could play through dozens and dozens of chronicles before you ever heard the same note repeated.

However, whether you're an old hand for these games looking for some way to spice things up, or you're a newer player looking for a gentler introduction to this setting for yourself and your table, I'd like to suggest something that I call a Mortals+ Chronicle.

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The Support Staff For The Supernatural

While each of the different spheres of the World or Chronicles of Darkness are unique in their own ways, there are a lot of design similarities between the games so that they can be played together as part of the same setting. And one of the big similarities shared by a majority of these supernatural creatures is that they have a slot reserved for mortals who have been let in on the secret, and who usually have some vestige of power of their own as a result.

Yes, Master... I see.

This tradition goes all the way back to the original edition of Vampire: The Masquerade and the idea of ghouls. These characters are mortals who are blood bound to a vampire, and they act as that vampire's agents in the mortal world, much like we see Renfield act in the classic novel Dracula. This role was carried forward with kinfolk in Werewolf: The Apocalypse, allowing for extended families of these shapechangers to provide backup and support, and to avoid/ignore the madness that viewing a werewolf usually brought on. Other examples include ensorcelled mortals for Changeling: The Lost, familiars in Mage: The Awakening, and so on. While not every game in the setting has these roles, it is uncommon for this kind of character to be absent.

They are the characters that a Mortals+ chronicle revolves around.

Normally these enhanced mortals are just thought of as sidekicks to the supernatural creatures of a given game. They're the aides de camp who help with planning, who open the doors, or who handle tasks that are too mundane for the monsters to whom they are bound to bother with. But the chronicle can take on an interesting twist when you shift that narrative, and see these stories from the perspective of these mortal characters.

The first benefit is that this allows you to focus on your character as a person, and figuring out who they are. You then need to ask what brought them under the shadow, and into the truth of the setting. Were they a lost kinfolk who was rediscovered when they saw a garou change forms, and didn't freak out? Were they a private eye tracking down a serial killer, only to find a vampire who offered them a choice between servitude or death? Was this person a student of the occult who stumbled onto a cabal of genuine mages who decided they were too useful to do away with? Or did they make a deal with someone that sounded too good to be true, only to find out they now work for a changeling?

But is it the worst bargain you've ever made?

This idea works best for Storytellers and players who want to stay at a boots-on-the-ground level of the game. Additionally, when you play an enhanced mortal, it gives you a taste of power (usually, anyway), and it gives the Storyteller a simple way of dispatching missions to the PCs. You can complicate this somewhat by giving the PCs different sponsors (say you each serve a different vampire, or you're all connected to different werewolf tribes), but that is a choice that's up to you as the ST.

Another aspect of a Mortals+ game is that, much like the Faces of Death Chronicle idea I shared a while back, there's a chance for players to be upgraded to a full supernatural template. Perhaps the ghouls prove themselves through their service, and their masters embrace them (or they betray their masters, and are embraced by another who promised them power for that betrayal). Your kinfolk might have their first change, your familiars might awaken, and it's possible that your ensorcelled mortals might be dragged away to Arcadia, only to have to claw their way back to the real world as a full changeling. Maybe this is something some characters want, maybe it's something they're forced to endure (because the player wants it to happen, even if the character doesn't), but it can provide an interesting way to continue the chronicle even when the PCs are all upgraded to a full, supernatural sheet.

Or, if you opt not to go that route, they can always make for ideal hunters, since they have a working knowledge of at least one supernatural community, how to navigate it, and how to disrupt it!

Recommended Reading on Enhanced Mortals

I've written up a lot of supplements about characters who fit into the Mortals+ mold. I've listed them below for folks who want to check them out for inspiration, or simply to fill your own World/Chronicles of Darkness game with a more organic cast!

- New World Nights: 100 Ghouls For The American Camarilla (Vampire: The Masquerade)

- New World Shadows: 100 American Ghouls For The Sabbat (Vampire: The Masquerade)

- Children of The Night: 100 Animal Ghouls (Vampire: Requiem or Masquerade)

- 100 Garou Kinfolk Bundle (15 Werewolf: The Apocalypse supplements in one bundle!)

- 100 Ensorcelled Mortals (Changeling: The Lost)

For those who want to see me expand this list of 19 supplements to other games, please consider leaving comments below, sharing the supplements around to help them find fresh eyes, and if you do get copies for yourself, leave a rating and a review to help the project maintain momentum!

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