Strangle Wire
The term “strangle wire” isn’t entirely appropriate, because this weapon (generally consisting of a thin metal wire connected by two handles or ball-grips) isn’t used to strangle but to damage the critical parts of a victim’s neck and throat. The wire bites deep into the neck and can damage the trachea or sever the carotid or jugular arteries. Some call it a “garrote,” though that’s not precisely accurate, either, as garrotes were Spanish execution tools that involved a spiked metal collar, placed around a victim’s neck and then tightened until it crushed the vertebrae or esophagus. Whatever one wants to call a strangle wire, it’s a particularly brutal tool used by assassins, serial killers and murderous cultists all around the world. Moreover, the strangle wire is an almost silent weapon, as the only sound tends to be some panicked thrashing followed by the soggy gurgling of the target’s final breaths.
Attacking with a strangle wire first requires the wielder to succeed on a grappling roll. The following round, the attacker can apply the wire to the subject’s neck with a successful Strength + Weaponry roll (–3 for a targeted attack, but the victim’s Defense is not subtracted from the attacker’s roll). However, if the attacker makes a successful surprise attack from behind, and the opponent fails her Wits + Composure roll to notice the ambush, the attacker can grapple directly with the Strength + Weaponry roll. The opponent’s Defense is not applied.
The victim may attempt to break the hold every subsequent turn (per the grappling rules, pp. 157–159, the World of Darkness Rulebook). Every turn after the first, the victim takes a cumulative –1 penalty to the escape roll, as the blood flowing to her brain diminishes (maximum –5 penalty). Once the victim takes damage equal to her Stamina, she passes out. She can fight unconsciousness by succeeding on a reflexive Stamina roll. A single success allows her to stay conscious until the following turn, when she must succeed again on another Stamina roll.
This works only on living creatures. Vampires suffer the damage, but do not require oxygen to remain conscious. Werewolves or other living supernatural entities cannot preternaturally heal any of the damage caused by strangulation until they manage to once again take air into their lungs.
Attacking with a strangle wire first requires the wielder to succeed on a grappling roll. The following round, the attacker can apply the wire to the subject’s neck with a successful Strength + Weaponry roll (–3 for a targeted attack, but the victim’s Defense is not subtracted from the attacker’s roll). However, if the attacker makes a successful surprise attack from behind, and the opponent fails her Wits + Composure roll to notice the ambush, the attacker can grapple directly with the Strength + Weaponry roll. The opponent’s Defense is not applied.
The victim may attempt to break the hold every subsequent turn (per the grappling rules, pp. 157–159, the World of Darkness Rulebook). Every turn after the first, the victim takes a cumulative –1 penalty to the escape roll, as the blood flowing to her brain diminishes (maximum –5 penalty). Once the victim takes damage equal to her Stamina, she passes out. She can fight unconsciousness by succeeding on a reflexive Stamina roll. A single success allows her to stay conscious until the following turn, when she must succeed again on another Stamina roll.
This works only on living creatures. Vampires suffer the damage, but do not require oxygen to remain conscious. Werewolves or other living supernatural entities cannot preternaturally heal any of the damage caused by strangulation until they manage to once again take air into their lungs.
Item type
Weapon, Melee
Size: 1/P
Durability: 2
Cost: n/a
Notes: Grappling aid