Fortitude

Fortitude

Fortitude
Clans	Akunanse, Canda Bhanu, Cappadocians, Gangrel, Gangrel Antitribu, Ishtarri, Kinyonyi, Nhang, Penanggalan, Pishtaco, Ravnos, Ravnos Antitribu, Salubri, Salubri Antitribu, Unhudo, U'tlun'ta, Ventrue, Ventrue Antitribu
Bloodlines	Anda, Anubi, Apollinaire, Blood Brothers, Caitiff, Cuetlachtli, Danava, Daughters of Cacophony, Dunsirns, Gaki, Gargoyles, Les Gens Libres, Harbingers of Skulls, Impundulu, Kin-Slayers, Lamiae, Mariners, Matasuntha, Mayarap, Mla Watu, Nahualli, Nepheshim, Nkulu Zao, Panders, Pisanobs, Putanesca, Rosselini, Samedi, Sotoha, Sta-Au
Sects	Anarchs, Ashirra, Camarilla, Cradle of Civilization, Drowned Legacies, Independents, Jati, Laibon, Quiet Nations, Sabbat, Shining Kingdoms, Teteoh
Rituals	None
Combination Disciplines	Fortitude Combination Disciplines
Rarity	Common

Fortitude represents a vampire's ability to survive dangers and hardships that would utterly destroy anyone and anything else; Fortitude allows them to keep going even with flesh hanging off their frame, to shrug away injuries and exhaustion that should bring them to their knees, and to come back even from the very brink of death if necessary. Many Kindred make a point of trying to learn some Fortitude, even if it is not one of the favored powers of their clan, simply because they know it will prolong their lives, and those who do have it enjoy the luxury of being able to walk away from even the most terrible calamities, dusting themselves as they go.

Fortitude can generally only be overcome in battle by other vampires that have equivalent or greater Potence, or by other supernatural creatures with similar powers.

Basic Powers

Endurance

Although you can't strictly avoid being hurt by anything that would normally harm you, you can mitigate the effects of that hurt; all normal wounds feel only about as bad as a serious bruise, and you are not slowed down or hampered by them until knocked out. This does not include actual decapitation - having an arm lopped off will still cause you all the usual problems of suddenly trying to function with one less limb than you had a moment ago.

Unswayable Mind

Your mind is almost as resilient as your body, making you more resistant to outside manipulation. You may use this power any time someone attempts to manipulate your thoughts or emotions, either naturally or with powers such as Dominate or Thaumaturgy; there is no guarantee that they will fail, but you certainly make it more difficult for them to succeed.

Mettle

You can now take more damage than any other Kindred; if the injuries you suffer would exactly render another vampire torpid, you will still be conscious and able to soldier on (although probably not very comfortable, all things considered). You feel much less pain than most Kindred as well, although you may counteract this by using the Auspex power of Heightened Senses.

Intermediate Powers

Defy Bane

Once in a while, you can ignore extreme damage from the most dangerous sources, such as fire or sunlight, treating it as if you had merely been attacked by a normal weapon or fist. This requires spending Willpower, so although it can downgrade aggravated damage, it can only be used so often before you become exhausted.

Fortify the Inner Facade

You may construct mental defenses against supernatural powers, making it impossible to use Telepathy and other similar Auspex powers to eavesdrop on your thoughts. This power only lasts for a scene and only applies to a single person trying to read your thoughts at a time, but you can use it reflexively as soon as someone might try to breach your mind. Some elder vampires with especially powerful Auspex may be able to override this power, but this is rare.

Resilience

The most terrible types of damage that can afflict a Kindred - sunlight and fire - are lessened for you, allowing you to suffer only as much pain and suffering as you would for less heinous injuries such as those from weapons or crushing. This can only help save you from small amounts of damage; if you choose to stand outside in broad daylight or become trapped in a burning building, you still suffer from the majority of the damage as any other Kindred would, and can only downgrade a little bit of it to make less life-threatening wounds. This power does not protect you from the danger of Frenzy when confronted with fire.

Draught of Endurance

You may create a potion from your own blood that grants basic Fortitude powers to anyone who drinks it. These powers remain for one night and are dispelled by the rising sun (and, as usual, any vampire drinking your blood will become bloodbound, while any mortal doing so may become a ghoul).

Resistance

You now simply take less damage than anyone else when wounded; blades bounce off your skin, blows hurt the person punching you rather than yourself, and only the most determined assaults can make a dent. You suffer only half the injury and pain of any disaster that strikes you, making you able to get up out of the wreckage of a car crash and walk away while others might have been killed on impact. You still do suffer pain and injuries when appropriate, but it is about as difficult to hurt you as it would be to damage a solid steel structure.

Advanced Powers

Aegis

You are so indestructible now that you can quite literally ignore death itself. If you would be killed by something, you may use this power to rise up out of your own ashes a moment later, unscathed. This power is intensely exhausting to use, and cannot be used more than once in a very great while, making it hoarded jealously and generally brought into play only in moments of extreme emergency.

Flesh of Marble

You have such impregnable skin that you can literally ignore some attempted injuries as if nothing were happening. The first time you would take damage in a scene, you simply don't - blows bounce off you, acid fails to make an impression, and even supernatural powers fail to leave a real mark. This power cannot prevent damage from sunlight, but everything else is fair game.

Prowess of Pain

You simply refuse to feel pain, no matter how injured; being hurt doesn't slow you down or cause you any difficulty in continuing to perform physical tasks (as long as your body parts are still attached and functional, anyway).

Elder Powers

Adamantine

You may become so physically solid that attempts to hurt you actually destroy things that strike you. Weapons break or dull against your skin, and whenever you suffer impact from falling or running into things, you damage surfaces rather than being hurt yourself.

Alabastard

Anyone who physically strikes you suffers pain as if they had struck solid stone, thoroughly discouraging attackers. This power does not actually deal damage to anyone, but it causes severe enough pain to prevent most people from wanting to try again after their first attempt. Other vampires with high-level Fortitude may be able to ignore this power.

Arm of Prometheus

You may concentrate all your powers of resistance into a single one of your limbs, rendering it completely invulnerable to all injury and pain for the next ten minutes. It cannot be harmed by anything, up to and including fire, sunlight, and the vacuum of space. While you are doing this, the rest of your body is less defended than usual, however, dropping down to one level below your usual maximum Fortitude.

Armored Flesh

You are so indestructible that you literally cannot be hurt outside of combat with other supernatural creatures; natural disasters, accidents, and other sources of injury simply do not affect you, allowing you to rise back up out of the rubble as if nothing happened. This does not give you any additional strength, so you can still be immobilized by debris or knocked over by impacts.

Important Things to Keep in Mind

It can be easy to forget that Fortitude still requires you to use blood to fuel its powers, so pay attention to making sure that your character is appropriately exhausted if they've been through the wringer recently.