Turning a human into a vampire is a complex process that can’t be done accidentally. In this setting, vampire physiology is a bit different from typical pop culture representation. A huge success at the time, V:TM puts the players in the shoes of newborn vampires discovering the joys of (un)life. Mark Rein-Hagen, who already conceived Ars Magica, White Wolf’s first success a few years prior, raised some good questions: what if the character’s nemesis wasn’t a powerful dragon or some other monster but rather, simply himself? What if the setting focused on internal conflict rather than classic power fantasy? Those questions would end up being at the core of his next game: Vampire – The Masquerade. At the dawn of the 1990s, pen-and-paper RPGs were trying to reinvent themselves by going off the beaten track.
