The V5 System of rolls has been designed with flexibility and thus there are over 270 combinations of dice pools. We are not going to list every single one of these as examples as the list would be overwhelming, instead we will give examples of some dice pools in the game and how they can be used. In situations, the ST can use what works to further the drama and narrative, or even to help create a real-world effect.
Dice are more likely during plot nights, but not everything will be a roll. If it is something your character is really good at, the ST might count it as an auto success. Dice will be used more frequently when there is randomness involved, it is something your character is not very good at, it is likely for your hunger to be a distraction, and of course for combat. Dice might also be used to represent "degrees of success" where additional information or success could be more rewarding than a simple yes or no result.
The ST might ask how you want to approach a challenge and will tell you what to roll. You may always suggest a different dice pool based on a different approach method which may or may not affect the difficulty. ST has the final say, so respect their call.
The universal die number for a success is 6. The difficulty set for a roll is the number of successes you need for that roll to be successful. Example: if a difficulty is set for 2, this means you need at least 2 die to roll a 6 or higher to succeed at the test.
Modifications
- Specialties will add +1 die to your dice pool if applicable.
- Some active Disciplines may add additional dice to specific challenges.
- Teamwork can also add additional dice to your dice pool. The character with the highest dice pool will make the roll, adding +1 die for each person helping who has at least 1 dot in the ability being used.
- Appropriate tools or pre-planning may at times grant a bonus to your dice pool.
- Merits and flaws can further modify dice pools.
Examples
- You are at a fancy party and want to conduct yourself flawlessly in a certain action. This would be Dexterity and Etiquette (difficulty of 4). Perhaps instead you are wanting your speech or toast to be wonderful within that social circle and its social rules, that would be a different roll of Charisma and Etiquette OR Manipulation and Etiquette depending on how your character was going about said situation. The decision is left to the ST.
- You are miles from home, and the sun is going to rise. You need to find a safe place to rest for the day, roll Wits and Survival (Difficulty of 4). Regardless of the roll you might still find shelter, but you could gain damage from the Sun before you do for each success you failed by.
- You are trying to distract someone with your left hand while getting out a knife with your right. This would a roll of Dexterity and Subterfuge, but the difficulty would be half of the bodyguards Wits and Awareness or it could be a contested roll should the ST decide it that way in the situation.
- You want to try and cow a gang leader into submission with your gaze and he is trying to do the same to you. This would be a basic contested roll of Charisma and Intimidation.
- You only have a few minutes and you need to reinforce the door to your haven. You need it to be durable! Roll Wits and Crafts (Difficulty 3). Each success may add a difficulty against breaking in.
- You are singing a lovely song and want to make sure you look great doing it instead of the words being important. Roll a Charisma and Performance (difficulty 3) to have your fans adore you.
- You are trying to stay still in some bushes while guards talk for an extended period of time. Roll Stamina and Stealth. Each success lets you stay there for an hour.
- It is foolish to threaten people in Elysium openly, but you could throw in some veiled threats. Roll Manipulation and Intimidation (Difficulty 4) to get your point across.
- There is a sudden obstacle in the road while you are chasing another car. Roll Wits and Drive (difficulty 5) to swerve out of the way in time.
- Can you distract some guard dogs so you can get into a place without being noticed? Roll Manipulation and Animal Ken (Difficulty of 3 and your Bane Severity)
- Were you just threatened?? Roll Wits and Intimidation (Difficulty of whichever is greater of the other person's Manipulation or Etiquette) to help you figure out a comment that was made.
- You try to get a mob's attention by stabbing a knife through a person's hand and into the bar beneath. Roll Strength and Melee (difficulty 3).
- You are trying to jump from one moving car to another! Roll Wits and Drive to pull along side the other car, difficulty the other driver's Wits and Drive. Then roll Dexterity and Athletics to jump!
- There is a new gang in town and you want information on them! Roll Charisma and Streetwise to see what other people are saying. The more successes you get, the more information you could receive... but you still have to do the legwork.
- You want to identify the types of alarms being used in a place. Roll Intelligence and Larceny. The more successes the more information you may get.
- Whose story will the Prince believe! This is a basic contest of Manipulation and Persuasion.
- You are trying to read an occult book without losing things in translation. Roll Intelligence and Occult difficulty 6.
- You have been running a long way and trying to outdistance the people chasing you. Roll a contested roll of Stamina and Athletics to outlast them.
Attributes and Their Uses
Strength: This is how much you can lift, how hard you can hit something, or push your body to exert.
Dexterity: This is your agility and grace, how well you can dodge something, and your fine motor skills.
Stamina: This is your ability to resist physical harm or lets you push through events with effort.
Charisma: This is your natural charm and sex appeal. It does not depend on good looks, that is a separate merit.
Manipulation: This is your ability to make people think in your point of view, lie, or passing as another way then yourself all together.
Composure: This is your ability to stay calm, take control of your emotions and put other people at ease even when you are anxious yourself.
Intelligence: This is your ability to reason, research and your mental ability to use logic.
Wits: This is your ability to think quickly and react with information.
Resolve: This is what gives your character focus and determination. It measures mental fortitude and concentration.
Abilities and Their Uses
Athletics: Allows you to outpace someone, leap out of the way, climb and swim. Athletics can be used in place of any Physical combat skill, but they will never inflict hits on their opponent no matter how good they are.
Brawl: Allows you to kick, hit, and claw at your opponent. As long as there is no weapon in hand, it is considered brawling.
Craft: This includes a large amount of topics, including artistry, creation of things, carpentry for building your haven etc. Each skill is a separate use of Crafts.
Drive: Anyone can learn to drive a car, this ability is how well you drive fast, safely in hazardous times, off-road situations, speeding, racing, etc.
Firearms: This skill is how to use guns, ranging from pistols to assault rifles. It also includes trigger-operated weapons like crossbows and shoulder-fired rocket-propelled grenades. Finally it includes how to take care off your weapons and un-jamming them or reloading quickly.
Larceny: This is the skill that is used for stealing, break and entering, safe-cracking, hot-wiring, deactivating alarms, planting bugs etc. Ventrue call this "Security".
Melee: Any handheld weapon like knives, chains, baseball bats etc. A stake is also considered a melee weapon.
Stealth: This skill allows you to sneak around, shadow a target, spy on people, and blend into crowds.
Survival: This is the skill used to survive in the wilds, adverse conditions, navigate the stars, establish a temporary haven, and notice signs of werewolves.
Animal Ken: This allows you to befriend, pacify and cow animals. You can predict how an animal will act, train domesticated animals, or even try to calm enraged ones down. Without this skill, animals pointedly avoid or grow aggressive around vampires.
Etiquette: This is the skill to identify and react to social situations, set new protocols into place and please people to your good graces.
Insight: This ability allows you to read people's body language, not subtle expressions and tones, and to see if someone is telling the truth. It also can allow you to understand motives behind other people's actions.
Intimidation: This is the ability to bully, threaten, and strongarm other individuals.
Leadership: Your ability to lead a crowd, command, boost morale, or even cause a riot.
Performance: This ability covers a bunch of arts, including dance, instruments, comedy, poetry etc. Each use of this skill is separated by a specialty.
Persuasion: Convincing others, play with emotions, and motivate others to do as you say.
Streetwise: The ability of streetwise is to be able to use the language of the streets, negotiate between societies that live on the streets and the underworld. This allows you to use and understand graffiti, slang and gang signs.
Subterfuge: This is the ability to lie, make good excuse and to spin a yarn. It also includes intrigue, secrets and double-dealing. Subterfuge is also used for seduction and intimate behaviours.
Academics: This is your characters higher education and ability to research fields outside of Occult. This skill has specialties attached to it to better explain where your character's education specialized in.
Awareness: This ability handles perceptions. Finding objects, spot an enemy before they strike, sense lingering perfume in an area etc.
Finance: This allows you to use the markets, invest well and know when to sell. It also can let you track, trace and assess the wealth of other people. You can appraise art, property, and other non-criminal items.
Investigation: This allows you to spot clues, interpret clues, and trace missing persons. You can unravel cases of mundane and mysterious means.
Medicine: This ability lets you fix broken people, diagnose causes of death or sickness and allows you to use medical equipment. It also lets you prescribe drugs and stop rapid blood loss. Characters with Medicine can heal Aggravated damage in mortals.
Occult: This holds the knowledge of the mystical and includes rites of many cultures and secret societies, such as the Freemasons and the Rosicrucians, and real mages. You can recognize sigils and folk-magic.
Politics: This covers diplomacy and the act of bureaucracy in both the Kindred and Human world. This can allow you to know the inside scoop on where sects are dominant, who is at war with who, and where the bodies are buried.
Science: This covers a bunch of things, including science of the mortal and Kindred worlds. Each level roughly matches a level of Academics and gains a specialty to match.
Technology: This ability is the use of computers, smart phones, computer systems etc. It also can include electrical systems of a building and turbines of a power plant.