Advanced Tremere Rituals

Ward Versus Kindred

Time Required: Two hours.
Duration: Permanent.
Components: Kindred Blood.
Availability: Tremere (Common)
Prerequisites: Thaumaturgy: Primary Path - Advanced, Ability: Occult - 3.

"This ritual performs exactly like the Ward Versus Ghouls, except that Kindred blood is used to cast it and it affects vampires of all sorts."

Blood Contract

Time Required: Three days.
Duration: Permanent or until the one meets the criteria for contractual completion.
Components: The contract must be signed in the Blood of both parties. Availability: Tremere (Uncommon) Prerequisites: Thaumaturgy: Primary Path - Advanced, Ability: Occult - 3.

"This ritual creates an unbreakable bond between the two parties of a contract. The contract must be written in the caster's blood and takes about three days to complete. The ritual is finished when both parties sign the agreement in their own blood, after which they are compelled to abide by the terms as stated. The only way out is to complete one's part of the bargain or burn the contract."

Mechanics: To initially create a Blood Contract the Thaumaturgist must enchant a parchment, over the span of three days, and legibly inscribe it’s written contents in the Thaumaturgists own blood. During the process of enchantment, the Thaumaturgist designates a specific number of individuals, minimally one, needed to sign the Blood Contract. Until the specified number of individuals signs the Blood Contract it remains inactive.

The name, or names, signed on the Blood Contract do not affect its viability, the Blood by which the name, or names, is signed does. For a Contract to be valid the signer, or signers, must sign in their own blood. If any one of the individuals signing the Contract does not sign in her own Blood the Contract becomes active but is non-binding. Thus, the Contract turns to ash — reference the select ways in which a Contract can be destroyed below for more details.

Blood Contracts can be utilized to restrict or compel the actions of those that sign them. The nature of Blood Contracts dictates that those who sign the Contracts are "compelled to abide by the terms" of the Blood Contract. Thus, the signers cannot unwillingly or unknowingly breach any portion of the Contract by delusion, trickery or other such means.

If the individual who is contractually bound unwittingly attempts to break any clause in the contract she feels a sense of "impending doom." If she ignores the sense of "impending doom" and wishes to continue with her course of action she must expend 3 Willpower Traits and succeed in a Difficult Test. If she is successful in breaching the Blood Contract, in the aforementioned manner, she then takes 2 Aggravated Wounds every action, approximately every 3 seconds, until she is completely and utterly destroyed. Note Aegis will not save someone that breaks a Blood Contract. In fact, as long as the Contract is in tact it will continue to deal its deadly damage to those who are in abeyance of its contractual agreements.

There are, in fact, only a select few ways out of a Blood Contract and they are as follows: A Blood Contract’s power will fade once the "…completion of one’s part of the bargain…" is achieved, such as the acquisition of an item or the completion of a specified task. The next way out of a Blood Contract is to have the actual Contract physically destroyed by "…burning) the contract." Note no other means of physical destruction is possible. The Contract cannot, for example, be torn asunder and will not deteriorate over the centuries. Also, the Blood Contract will be destroyed if the Contract was, when originally drafted, signed by multiple individuals, which is not a requirement, and only one individual remains due to the others meeting Final Death or having met the final criteria which follows. Lastly, if the individual having signed the Contract’s physical form meets with Final Death — but they survive on as a wraith or in some other manner — the bond of the Blood Contract is broken. Not bloody likely, and just about impossible. Overall, once a Blood Contract is non-binding the Contract turns to ash and the Thaumaturgical Aura surrounding it dissipates.

Note, regarding the Discipline of Dominate, because "The command cannot be blatantly suicidal or self-destructive…" attempts to Dominate someone, who is bound by a Blood Contract, into breaking or signing said Contract will fail outright.

It should also be noted, to players and Storytellers alike, that it is a VERY bad idea to leave any of the clauses in a Blood Contract AT ALL ambiguous. Clauses for the most part should be black and white in their interpretations; this cuts down on endless amounts of strife over interpretations of the clauses. Thus, things like "One must follow the Oath of the Tremere", something that is purposefully riddled with inconsistencies and contradictory phrases, should NOT be included in a Blood Contract. Specific clauses out of the Oath, on the other hand, which have black and white interpretations such as "I shall obey those the House sees fit to name my superiors…", are commonly found in Blood Contracts. Also, such sweeping statements like "One must follow the Traditions of the Camarilla" are highly unadvisable. Why this is highly unadvisable is, for example, if a Prince removes her "acknowledgement" from a Kindred within her Domain, whose contract bears the aforementioned restriction, the individual is in abeyance of the 5^th Tradition of Hospitality, which brings a more literally deadly meaning to "Without the word of acceptance, thou art nothing." Also, the contracted individual may not even disagree on any level with a Prince without breaking the 2^nd Tradition of Domain, for "None may challenge thy word while within thy domain." So overall, it is suggested that one does not elude to any other ‘laws’ or ‘codes’ from within a Blood Contract — instead writing them out in detail to avoid any potential problems or contradictions.

Lastly, Write up the contract out of game on a real piece of paper. If you do not, the contract is not worth the paper it’s not written on.

History: Transcript of the Council of Seven’s dictates on Blood Contracts.

From the written records of the Versailles Tribunal of the year seventeen hundred and eleven.

Presiding over the Tribunal, Lord of the 6^th Circle Malcolm Xavier

"Although magi are allowed great latitude in the treatment of their apprentices, apprentice Antoinette Gallaudet’s appeal for the formation of this Tribunal has been deemed justified by the evidence presented to the Council of Seven. Her unblemished record of excellent service to the Tremere clearly contraindicates the need for such restrictive measures as the Blood Contract placed upon her by her Regent. And thus, the Council of Seven has ruled that one of our original addendums to the Peripheral Code, concerning Blood Bonds, sets the precedence for this issue. To refresh the Tribunal’s memory, the addendum concerning Blood Bonds is as follows - ‘Loyalty to House and Clan Tremere, and to the Pyramid, is paramount. Therefore, we conclude that Bonds of the Blood to individuals within the Clan, without express written permission directly from the Council of Seven, are strictly forbidden. Any Tremere found responsible for one Tremere being Blood Bond to another shall be considered to suffer the penalty of our harshest punishment, that of the Final Death.’ "

"It is the Council of Seven’s wishes that the aforementioned addendum be the model for which we handle the utilization of Blood Contracts. The addendum proposed and ratified by the Council, concerning Blood Contracts, is as follows - ‘Loyalty to House and Clan Tremere, and to the Pyramid, is paramount. Therefore, we conclude that Bonds due to Blood Contracts to other individuals within the Clan are to be highly discouraged. Any Tremere found responsible for one Tremere being Blood Contracted to another, without sufficient reason and express written permission from one’s direct superior in the Pyramid, shall suffer the appropriate punitive measures from a properly constituted body of magi.’ Furthermore, the Council has defined ‘sufficient reason’ to encompass the following - ‘Blood Contracts are appropriate punishments for Tremere who have shown the need for such restrictive measures for crimes proven by a properly constituted Tribunal. But, Blood Contracts should by no means be utilized as a generic means of control over Tremere.’ As the Oath states, ‘I shall treat my apprentices with the care and respect that they earn,’ this too applies to Blood Contracts, apprentices shall not earn punitive measures without first showing lack of care and disrespect requiring the restrictions of a Blood Contract. But remember, ‘Sunt pueri pueri, pueri puerilia tractant’ - ‘Children are children, and do childish things.’

"Note that these restrictions only reflect the utilization of Blood Contracts on members of House and Clan Tremere and in no way restrict this most useful of tools from aiding us in dealing with other individuals and Clans."

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