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Infamous sire (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition)

Flaws

Definition

Infamous Sire is the mirror of Prestigious Sire. The vampire who made you is known by name, and the name is poison: a diablerist, a traitor to the sect, a Masquerade breach that cost other Kindred their domains, an elder whose executions are still resented a century later. You pay for a decision you did not make. Introductions stall, favors are refused, and when something goes wrong in the domain your lineage is the first thing raised. Whether you defend your sire, disown them, or hunt them yourself is the interesting question, and most tables get a whole character arc out of it.

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How it works

**Effect**: Penalties on Social rolls with Kindred who know the connection, and outright refusal from some. Court positions, patronage, and elder introductions may be closed to you. **Reach**: The flaw bites where your sire's story is remembered. In a distant domain it may be unknown, until an old Kindred arrives who was there. **Benefit**: Grants creation experience points or story leverage, like every flaw on the RPG Stack sheet. **Interaction**: It cannot be held alongside the Prestigious Sire merit, and it makes the Status background much harder to build, since Status is granted by the same Kindred who distrust you.

Tips

**Character concepts**: Ashamed childe, defiant loyalist, a neonate who never met their sire, a childe embraced specifically to inherit the blame. **When to take**: Take it in political chronicles where the penalty costs you something, and only if you want lineage to be a live topic. In a street-level Anarch game it may barely come up.

Frequently asked questions

What if I never met my sire?

The flaw still applies. Kindred society judges the Blood, and your ignorance of your sire is not a defense anyone in a court is obliged to accept.

Can I clear my sire's name?

Sometimes. If the infamy rests on a specific accusation, proving it false is a full story arc, and the Storyteller can remove the flaw at the end of it.

Does destroying my sire help?

It can, especially if you do it publicly on the sect's behalf. It can also confirm every suspicion about your line, so read the room before you try it.

Further Reading

Prestigious Sire (Merit)Status (Background)All VTM5e Flaws
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