Road

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In Vampire: The Dark Ages (and Dark Ages: Vampire) Roads are philosophies that serve as artificial codes of honor and morality. Their primary purpose is to suppress or control the Beast. As with many other aspects of the game, the Roads show signs of being influenced by the Roman Catholic Church of the Dark Medieval. They are equivalent in many ways to the Paths of Enlightenment found in Vampire: The Masquerade.

Contents 1 Basics 2 Roleplaying Aspect 3 The Revised Edition Roads 3.1 Primary Roads 3.2 Minor Roads 4 First Edition Roads 4.1 Rulebook Roads 4.2 Roads in other books

[edit] Basics

Every character is given a Road during character creation. While the Road of Humanity is one of the most widely practiced philosophies, it is not nearly as universal as the Humanity trait in Vampire: The Masquerade. Every Road has ten ranks, with 10 being near-perfectly attuned to the path and 1 being barely in control. These ratings tend to vary throughout a character's unlife. Each Road has a different Hierarchy of Sins, which lists what actions mandate a degeneration role for a character with a given path rating.

In addition, Dark Ages: Vampire added optional Paths to each Road which allowed a character to focus on a particular aspect of the Road's beliefs. Each Path adds an additional set of Sins to the Road it stems from.

[edit] Roleplaying Aspect

The Roads are treated as more than just a statistic or even a philosophy. While there are not as strictly organized as some other groups, such as the Sects of V:TM, individuals known as Ashen Priests supervise the growth and maintenance of their Roads. The Priests are responsible for instructing initiates to the Road, conducting rituals, overseeing festivals and researching ancient writings on their Road and the Beast. Essentially, they share the duties of their mortal equivalents in the Church.

One of the most interesting aspects of the Roads is their diversity. While several (Viae Humanitatis, Caeli and Regalis, for example) are easy for mortal players to relate to, others offer a wide range of very inhuman thought processes for characters to embrace. Some clans, such as the Cappadocians are united by a favored Road as much as their Disciplines and blood.

[edit] The Revised Edition Roads

[edit] Primary Roads

There are five primary Roads listed in chapter three of the Dark Ages: Vampire Rulebook. Each of these Roads has four Paths associated with it.

• The Road of the Beast (Via Bestiae), which embraces the Beast.
• The Road of Heaven (Via Caeli), which teaches that vampires are a apart of God's plan and must act accordingly.
• The Road of Humanity (Via Humanitatis), which teaches that vampires are akin to humans in mind and soul.
• The Road of Kings (Via Regalis), which focuses on the aquisition of power.
• The Road of Sin (Via Peccati), which teaches that vampires should give into their nature as damned beings.

[edit] Minor Roads

Six clan-specific Roads are filled out in more detail in the Dark Ages Storyteller Companion. They are:

• The Road of Blood (Via Sanguinus) of the Assamites.
• The Road of Bones (Via Ossium) of the Cappadocians.
• The Road of Metamorphosis (Via Mutantionis) of the Tzimisce.
• The Road of Night (Via Noctis) of the Lasombra.
• The Road of Paradox (Via Paradoxi) of the Ravnos.
• The Road of the Serpent (Via Serpentis) of the Followers of Set.

[edit] First Edition Roads

[edit] Rulebook Roads

The following were given as Roads in Vampire: The Dark Ages. Many of them were used or reincorperated as Paths under Revised Edition rules.

• The Road of the Beast, which became a primary Road in Revised.
• The Road of Blood, which remained as a minor Road for the Assamites.
• The Road of Chivalry, which became a Path on the Road of Kings.
• The Road of the Devil (Via Diabolis), which was reworked in Revised to become the Road of Sin.
• The Road of Heaven, which became a primary Road in Revised.
• The Road of Humanity, which became a primary Road in Revised.
• The Road of Paradox, which remained as a minor Road for the Ravnos.
• The Road of Typhon, which became the minor Road of the Serpent for the Setites.

[edit] Roads in other books

Veil of Night gives information on the Islamic Roads:

• Road of the Nomad (Tariq el-Bedouin)
• Road of War (Tariq el-Harb)
• Road of Heaven (Tariq el-Sama') (similar to the Western version)
• Road of the Devil (Tariq el-Shaitan) (similar to the Western version)
• Road of Community (Tariq el-Umma)

Clanbook: Baali adds:

• The Road of Hives (Via Hyron) of the Baali.

House of Tremere adds:

• The Road of Service (Via Servilis) of the Gargolyes.

Wind From the East adds:

• The Road of the Yasa (Via Yasaq) of the Anda.