Sins of the Blood

Rating:
Summary: Learn more about Kindred -and Cainite- Society!
Review: "Even the Damned have taboos", reads the back side of the book.
One of the greatest is Amaranth, also known as Diablerie.
"Sins of the blood" covers many topics that hadn't been covered before in the Revised edition. Some info from "Dirty Secrets of the Black Hand" re-appears here, like the weird Path of Enlightenment of the True Brujah, and the infamous "Ritual of the Bitter Rose", that gives the Diablerie a very interesting edge, since it permits a whole coterie (or pack) to benefit from one single Amaranth victim.
The book also covers interesting information on Autarkis, and what happens to you if you switch sects; it deals with cults and gives you an idea of how you(r vampire character :)) can start one, and get loads of moronic cultists, to do all the unpleasantness for you!

This book is very interesting. I'm not very sure if the people that buy sourcebooks only "for the extra dots" will like it (well, maybe the Thaumaturgy paths and rituals might make it a good buy for them). On the other hand, for the people who look for background information, it is a very interesting buy. It isn't as essential as, say, the Vampire Storytellers Handbook, but it looks nice on the shelf and it can add many good ideas to your ongoing chronicle.
So, if you like to portray "deviants", either as Player Character or as Storyteller Character, in your chronicle, this can be a good add-on to your VtM collection. But tread lightly... the powers-that-be frown on unusual behavior, and those things they don't understand, they want them Finally Dead...

Rating:
Summary: Learn more about Kindred -and Cainite- Society!
Review: "Even the Damned have taboos", reads the back side of the book.
One of the greatest is Amaranth, also known as Diablerie.
"Sins of the blood" covers many topics that hadn't been covered before in the Revised edition. Some info from "Dirty Secrets of the Black Hand" re-appears here, like the weird Path of Enlightenment of the True Brujah, and the infamous "Ritual of the Bitter Rose", that gives the Diablerie a very interesting edge, since it permits a whole coterie (or pack) to benefit from one single Amaranth victim.
The book also covers interesting information on Autarkis, and what happens to you if you switch sects; it deals with cults and gives you an idea of how you(r vampire character :)) can start one, and get loads of moronic cultists, to do all the unpleasantness for you!

This book is very interesting. I'm not very sure if the people that buy sourcebooks only "for the extra dots" will like it (well, maybe the Thaumaturgy paths and rituals might make it a good buy for them). On the other hand, for the people who look for background information, it is a very interesting buy. It isn't as essential as, say, the Vampire Storytellers Handbook, but it looks nice on the shelf and it can add many good ideas to your ongoing chronicle.
So, if you like to portray "deviants", either as Player Character or as Storyteller Character, in your chronicle, this can be a good add-on to your VtM collection. But tread lightly... the powers-that-be frown on unusual behavior, and those things they don't understand, they want them Finally Dead...