Obfuscate
Night-dwellers, predators by nature and keepers of the Masquerade, vampires are inherently (and necessarily) creatures of secrecy and stealth. From hiding minute objects to the ability to appear as someone else to the power to fade from sight entirely, the Discipline of Obfuscate grants the Kindred uncanny powers of concealment, stealth and deception.
Obfuscate clouds the mind in practice. For example, a character hiding an object by using this Discipline doesn’t actually make the object disappear, nor does someone using the Discipline to hide himself truly vanish. Rather, the mind sees “around” the Obfuscated object, refusing to acknowledge it, even if that requires a bit of filling in mental blanks. To continue the example, if a character Obfuscated a large sheet of plywood and tried to hide behind it herself, those looking at the plywood would, indeed, see the character lurking behind it but not see the plywood itself.
The shroud of Obfuscate is very difficult to penetrate. Few Kindred or other supernatural creatures can see through it, and only under the rarest of circumstances do mortals have any hope. Because they operate on a less conscious and mostly instinctual level, however, animals often perceive a vampire’s presence — and react with appropriate fear or hostility — even if they cannot detect him with their normal senses. Similarly, children, the mentally ill and others who see the world in ways not quite normal might pierce the deception at the Storyteller’s discretion.
Some Kindred with Auspex are able to see through Obfuscate, or at least sense the presence of a supernatural deception. Refer to the “Clash of Wills” sidebar on p. 119 for details.
It’s important to note that Obfuscate affects the viewer’s mind, rather than making any true physical change to the vampire. Thus, the Discipline is not effective at cloaking a character from mechanical devices. Photographs, video cameras and the like record the normal blurred image that all vampires leave in such media, not the assumed appearance. Obfuscate does affect any individual currently using the recording device, however, so someone videotaping an Obfuscated vampire sees the illusion when looking through the lens, discovering the truth only later when he reviews the tape itself.
Unless stated otherwise, Obfuscate powers require very little concentration to maintain once invoked, and they last for the duration of a scene.
Obfuscate clouds the mind in practice. For example, a character hiding an object by using this Discipline doesn’t actually make the object disappear, nor does someone using the Discipline to hide himself truly vanish. Rather, the mind sees “around” the Obfuscated object, refusing to acknowledge it, even if that requires a bit of filling in mental blanks. To continue the example, if a character Obfuscated a large sheet of plywood and tried to hide behind it herself, those looking at the plywood would, indeed, see the character lurking behind it but not see the plywood itself.
The shroud of Obfuscate is very difficult to penetrate. Few Kindred or other supernatural creatures can see through it, and only under the rarest of circumstances do mortals have any hope. Because they operate on a less conscious and mostly instinctual level, however, animals often perceive a vampire’s presence — and react with appropriate fear or hostility — even if they cannot detect him with their normal senses. Similarly, children, the mentally ill and others who see the world in ways not quite normal might pierce the deception at the Storyteller’s discretion.
Some Kindred with Auspex are able to see through Obfuscate, or at least sense the presence of a supernatural deception. Refer to the “Clash of Wills” sidebar on p. 119 for details.
It’s important to note that Obfuscate affects the viewer’s mind, rather than making any true physical change to the vampire. Thus, the Discipline is not effective at cloaking a character from mechanical devices. Photographs, video cameras and the like record the normal blurred image that all vampires leave in such media, not the assumed appearance. Obfuscate does affect any individual currently using the recording device, however, so someone videotaping an Obfuscated vampire sees the illusion when looking through the lens, discovering the truth only later when he reviews the tape itself.
Unless stated otherwise, Obfuscate powers require very little concentration to maintain once invoked, and they last for the duration of a scene.
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