Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition predator type
Extortionist
Extortionist is a predator type in Vampire V5: Takes blood as payment for protection or services, real or invented.
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Overview
The Extortionist forces their victims to bleed for them, taking vitae as payment for security, surveillance, or other services. Sometimes the protection is real; just as often it is a fiction engineered to make the arrangement feel acceptable to the victim. Extortionists are shakedown artists, dirty fixers, and predators who dress coercion up as a transaction. This predator type rewards characters who feed through pressure and intimidation, building a web of frightened 'clients.' It carries real risk: a victim who escapes the arrangement, or the authorities, may come looking for payback.
How it works
Bonus Specialty: Intimidation (Coercion) or Larceny (Security) Bonus Discipline: Dominate or Potence (1 free dot) Bonus Backgrounds: Distribute three dots between Contacts and Resources Flaw: Enemy (two dots: the police, or a victim who escaped your extortion and wants revenge) Feeding Pool: Strength or Manipulation + Intimidation Feeding Style: Coercion both subtle and painfully obvious, taking blood as the price of 'protection'
Tips and playstyle
Best For: Coercive, controlling characters, fixers, and clans that lean on Dominate or raw force. Synergies: Works well with Ventrue and Lasombra (Dominate and command) or Brujah (Potence and menace). Invest in Intimidation, and use Dominate to keep victims compliant and quiet. Character Concepts: Protection racketeer, crooked fixer, loan shark, corrupt official, gang enforcer.
Frequently asked questions
How does an Extortionist feed?
They take blood as payment for protection or services, using a pool of Strength or Manipulation + Intimidation. The 'service' may be genuine or an invented pretext to make the victim accept the arrangement.
What do I gain as an Extortionist?
A specialty in Intimidation (Coercion) or Larceny (Security), one dot of Dominate or Potence, and three dots split between Contacts and Resources. You also take a two-dot Enemy Flaw.
What is the downside of this predator type?
The two-dot Enemy Flaw: the police, or a victim who broke free of your extortion, is now hunting you. Coercive feeding leaves angry people in your wake.
Which clans suit the Extortionist?
Clans built around Dominate or intimidation shine here, especially Ventrue, Lasombra, and Brujah, but any vampire willing to feed through pressure can take it.