Chronicles of Darkness VSS

Extinction is the rule. Survival is the exception.” – Carl Sagan

Venue Style Sheet Timeline Storyteller Notes

Venue Style Sheet

VSS Boundaries: King County
VST Name: Greg B.

City Type: Compact Hierarchy
Templates Allowed: All

Theme: What Does It Mean To Survive?
Mood: Desperation

Setting: MES CoD-X Chronicles of Darkness 2.0, The God Machine Chronicle.

City Description
The Emerald City. A city of duality, of bleeding edge technology built upon the historic. While the occasional grabs for specific resources left marks of minor skirmishes among city’s history, there was never any major conflicts among the factions until Christmas season 2012.

The call went out, and many answered.

Among the Beasts, many were led by whispers believed to be from the Dark Mother to fight the Unchained, the main hold out: the Apex Primordial of the city.

Among the Forsaken, never numerous even on the edges, the leadership directed all to take up arms. Most heeded the call to protect Gaia and went with hope in their hearts.

Among the Lost, most stayed with the exception of the Summer Court. All but the lowest of the Summer Courtiers went, either the challenge to great an enticement to pass, or inspired by the nobility of purpose conveyed by the King.

Among the Mages, a lone cabal remained, with the mission of protecting the city until the others returned.

Among the Vampires, caught up in their own games of politics and intrigue, few, if any, left. The standout wasa lineage of Hollow Mekhet, who believed an answer to their condition could be found among the works of the Nephilim.

Only one soul returned with a warning of the chaos that was about to hit. Appearing in the mirrors and reflective glass all over the city to be seen by any in possession of the unseen sense merit or a supernatural being the shadow of the Hollow lineage progenitor sent a warning, “DECEIVED!” and then the 10 Second War struck.

The most populous at the time, and the hardest hit, were the Vampires, caught completely unaware and unconcerned. The VII and Strix made short work of the survivors, rendering them all but extinct. Next were the Changelings. The sudden disappearance of so many left hollows, havens, and hedge gates undefended and open to the corruption of Dark Shallows; only the strength of the current Summer Queen, Maka Albright, prevented the complete collapse of the Freehold, though its territory was greatly reduced. The cabal of mages that stayed behind quickly became the strongest hold out, having been prepared and highly capable, yet the tactics used to survive slowly wore down the groups Wisdom, and one night they disappeared, the event marked by a metaphysical explosion on Mercer Island. With most of the Forsaken gone to war, the last few have kept a low profile, focusing what little power they have on protecting the loci just north of Mirrormont. For the remaining Beasts, a partner pair of heros took out many of the remaining Children, but recently seemed to have moved on.

In the mundane world Seattle seems as if it came out of the chaos affecting the world post the 10 Second War no worse for wear: a bastion of progressive ideology. The fact is, that progressiveness is only for those that can afford it. The City Council pays lip service to ideas like rent control and social safety net programs but while these initiatives are debated and move forward with all the speed of a slug uphill in the cold, others barely even make into print before being passed forcing locals out of their homes in districts like Pioneer Square, Beacon Hill, and Capitol Hill all under the cover of a historic revival push but the homeless are slowly moved out, those arrested for criminal activity find themselves convinced with an efficiency only seen on TV.

The only cracks seen over the years is the a few corruption scandals and multiple ongoing lawsuits about housing rights and renter rights. No fewer than a dozen officials have been from their positions, this has included everything from City Councils of Seattle, even Board of Education members, but the latest and ongoing is over the Port Commissioner, Janelle Zarkova. The embattled commissioner is fighting charges of campaign finance violations taken from a PAC put together by a Union of Longshoremen.

Venue Details
Action (combat and challenges): 3
Character Development (personal dilemmas and choices): 4
Darkness (corruption, fear and horror): 3
Death (Player Characters) (how often it is present): 2
Drama (ceremony and grand story): 4
Intrigue (politics and negotiation): 3
Manners (social etiquette and peer pressure): 4
Mystery (enigmas and investigation): 4