The additional Influence rules here expand upon the systems presented in the various books. They are intended to add a level of scenes to maintain their tenuous grip on the mundane world.

For the Storyteller, it is important to maintain the flavor of Influences when using them in a game. Being descriptive when reporting the results of Influence endeavors to the players is critical. Otherwise the interactions of Influences in a city will degrade into a sub-game of number-crunching, in which no story is being told at all. Much of the burden of this task falls upon the shoulders of the players themselves. When a player wishes to perform an endeavor, the Storyteller should have her give him a write-up of the activity, complete with a description of exactly how her Influences are going about executing the desired task. Examples of descriptive use of Influence are given with each new endeavor type.

You cannot manage more Influence than the sum of your permanent Physical, Social and Mental Traits. This limit counts against all of your total Influence — your combined levels cannot exceed this total. After all, there are only so many things you can do in a day.

When you exercise Influence, you expend temporary Influence Traits. The tables for various Influence areas detail what you can do with a specific number of Traits. Performing an endeavor requires a number of Traits equal to the level of the action. Therefore, with high levels of Influence, you can perform many small actions or a few significant ones. To perform the new Influence endeavors presented here (such as Attack, Grow and Watch), you must spend Traits just as you would for endeavors on the traditional charts. Certain levels of Influence gift you with items, money or aides. Unlike the Resources Background, money and equipment garnered with Influence does not come automatically each month. If you want a steady income from Influence, you must direct your Influence in that direction continually, and this income does not come with any associated trappings of wealth. (You’d have to buy a house and car separately, for instance.) Aides garnered with Influence generally help for only one specific task, and they usually have the equivalent of only one level of Ability in their area of skill. For more competent and readily available help, take the Allies Background. Most cities have only a set amount of Influence in various areas. For instance, Atlanta has a great deal of Transportation Influence, while Hollywood would have a lot of High Society and Media Influence. A Rust-Belt city in which manufacturing and heavy industry has all but disappeared would have very little to no Industry Influence. Storytellers should map out the total amount of each type of Influence to be had in the city setting. Once all of the Influence of a given type is used up, the only way to get more is to use existing Influence to grow that area of society (making new projects or sponsoring investment) or to destroy someone else’s Influence and free up those resources. Also, each city may have different reflections of the Influences listed here. A city with a thriving independent film community is going to have a different picture of Media or High Society Influence than a city in which the arts are being literally starved out due to budget cuts.

You can manage various government agencies and bureaus. By dealing with social programs and public servants, you can spin red tape, bypass rules and regulations or twist bureaucratic regimentation to your advantage. Bureaucracy is useful in operating or shutting down businesses, faking or acquiring permits and identification papers and manipulating public utilities and facilities. Government clerks at the city and county level, utility workers, road crews, surveyors and other civil servants are potential contacts or allies.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Trace utility bills
• * 2 Fake a birth certificate or driver’s license; Disconnect a single small residence’s utilities; Close a small road or park; Get public aid ($250)
• * 3 Fake a death certificate, passport or green card; Close a public school for a single day; Shut down a minor business on a violation
• * 4 Initiate a phone tap; Fake land deeds; Initiate a department-wide investigation
• * 5 Start, stop or alter a city-wide program or policy; Shut down a big business on a violation; Rezone areas; Obliterate records of a person on a city or county level

Although the modern church has arguably less control over temporal society than it did in the Middle Ages, church policies still exert considerable influence over the direction of politics and communities. Knowing the appropriate people gives a character insight into many mainstream religions, such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Shinto or Buddhism. (Fringe or alternative groups, such as Scientology, are the purview of the Occult Influence.) When you exercise Church Influence, you can change religious policy, affect the assignment of clergy and access a variety of lore and resources. Contacts and allies affected by Church Influence would include ministers, priests, bishops, Church-sponsored witch-hunters, holy orders and various attendees and assistants.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Identify most secular members of a given faith in the local area; Pass as a member of the clergy; Peruse general church records (baptism, marriage, burial, etc.)
• * 2 Identify higher church members; Track regular church members; Suspend lay members
• * 3 Open or close a single church; Find the average church-associated hunter; Dip into the collection plate ($250); Access private information and archives of a church
• * 4 Discredit or suspend high-level church members; Manipulate regional branches of the church
• * 5 Organize major protests; Access ancient church lore and knowledge

Manipulating markets, stock reports and investments is a hobby of many, especially those who use their knowledge to keep their wealth hidden. Although your actual available money is a function of your Resources, you can use Finance Influence to start or smother businesses, crush or support banking institutions and alter credit records. Clearly, such power over money is not to be trifled with. Fortunes are made and destroyed with this sort of power.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Learn about major transactions and financial events; Raise capital ($1,000); Learn about general economic trends; Learn real motivations for many financial actions of others
• * 2 Trace an unsecured small account; Raise capital to purchase a small business (single, small store)
• * 3 Purchase a large business (a few small branches or a single large store or service)
• * 4 Manipulate local banking (delay deposits, alter credit ratings); Ruin a small business
• * 5 Manipulate an aspect of city-wide banking (shut off ATMs, arrange a bank “holiday”); Ruin a large business; Purchase a major company

Some creatures rely on connections in the medical community to acquire blood. Necromancers and practitioners of arcane arts may also require body parts or medical data to further their studies. These sorts of research and development fall under the purview of Health Influence. Coroners, doctors, lab workers, therapists, pharmacists and specialists are just a few of the folks found in this field.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Access a person’s health records; Fake vaccination records and the like; Use public functions of health centers at your leisure; Get a single Blood Trait of mortal blood
• * 2 Access some medical research records; Have minor lab work done; Get a copy of a coroner’s report; Instigate minor quarantines
• * 3 Corrupt results of tests or inspections; Alter medical records
• * 4 Acquire a cadaver; Completely rewrite medical records; Abuse grants for personal use ($250); Have minor medical research performed on a subject; Institute large-scale quarantines; Shut down businesses for “health code violations”
• * 5 Commission special research projects; Have people institutionalized or released

The glitterati at the top of society move in circles of wealth and elegance. Many people find such positions alluring, and they indulge in the passions of the famous and wealthy. Access to famous actors, celebrities and the idle rich grants a certain sway over fashion trends. Combined with Fame, a modicum of High Society Influence turns a character into a debonair darling of the most exclusive social circles. Among these circles, one finds dilettantes, artists of any stripe, old money families, models, rock stars, sports figures and jet-setters.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Learn what is trendy; Obtain hard-to-get tickets for shows; Learn about concerts, shows or plays well before they are made public
• * 2 Track most celebrities and luminaries; Be a local voice in the entertainment field; “Borrow” idle cash from rich friends ($1,000)
• * 3 Crush promising careers; Hobnob well above your station
• * 4 Minor celebrity status
• * 5 Get a brief appearance on a talk show that’s not about to be canceled; Ruin a new club, gallery, festival or other posh gathering

The grinding wheels of labor fuel the economies and markets of the world. Machines, factories and blue-collar workers line up in endless drudgery, churning out the staples of everyday living. Industry Influence sways the formation of unions, the movements of work projects, locations for factories and the product of manufacturing concerns. Union workers, foremen, engineers, construction workers, manual laborers and all manner of blue-collar workers exist among these ranks.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Learn about industrial projects and movements
• * 2 Have minor projects performed; Dip into union funds or embezzle petty cash ($500); Arrange small accidents or sabotage
• * 3 Organize minor strikes; Appropriate machinery for a short time
• * 4 Close down a small plant; Revitalize a small plant
• * 5 Manipulate large local industry

Since many of the operations that supernatural characters tend to undertake are at least marginally illegal, a good amount of sway over judges and lawyers is indispensable. Those who dabble in Legal Influence often pull strings in the courts to make sure their questionable practices go unpunished. Of course, a little Legal Influence is also excellent for harassing an enemy’s assets. Such Influence ranges from law schools and firms, to lawyers, judges, district attorneys, clerks and public defenders.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Get free representation for minor cases;
• * 2 Avoid bail for some charges; Have minor charges dropped
• * 3 Manipulate legal procedures (minor wills and contracts, court dates); Access public or court funds ($250); Get representation in most court cases
• * 4 Issue subpoenas; Tie up court cases; Have most legal charges dropped; Cancel or arrange parole
• * 5 Close down all but the most serious investigations; Have deportation proceedings carried out against someone

Directing media attention away from one’s activities is a key component of survival for some supernatural creatures. Putting specific emphasis on certain events can put an enemy in an uncomfortable spotlight or discredit a rival. With Media, you can crush or alter news stories, control the operations of news stations and reporters and sway public opinion, with DJs, editors of all varieties, reporters, cameramen, photographers and broadcasters at your disposal. At the Storyteller’s discretion, Media Influence may also allow access to the more technical areas of television, radio or movies.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Learn about breaking stories early; Submit small articles (within reason)
• * 2 Suppress small articles or reports; Get hold of investigative reporting information
• * 3 Initiate news investigations and reports; Obtain project funding and squander it ($250);
• * 4 Ground stories and projects
• * 5 Broadcast fake stories (local only); Kill small local articles or reports completely

The hidden world of the supernatural teems with secrets, conspiracies and unusual factions. Obviously, most supernatural creatures are aware that strange things exist out there by dint of their very existence, but acquiring hard knowledge of such things is a function of Abilities. By using Occult Influence, you can dig up information to improve your knowledge, get inside the occult community and find rare components for magical rituals. Cult leaders, alternative religious groups, charlatans, occultists and New Agers can be found here.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Contact and make use of common occult groups and their practices; Know some of the more visible occult figures
• * 2 Know and contact some of the more obscure occult figures; Access resources for most rituals and rites
• * 3 Know the general vicinity of certain supernatural entities and (possibly) contact them; Access vital or rare material components; Milk impressionable wannabes for bucks ($250); Access occult tomes and writings; Research a common Basic ritual or rite
• * 4 Research a common Intermediate ritual or rite
• * 5 Access minor magic items; Unearth a common Advanced ritual or rite

“To protect and serve” is the motto of the police, but these days, many people have cause to wonder who is being protected and served. That said, Police Influence can be very handy in protecting one’s holdings or raiding the assets of another. Police of all ranks, detectives, clerical staff, dispatchers, prison guards, special divisions (such as SWAT or homicide) and local highway patrol officers make up these ranks.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Learn police procedures; Hear police information and rumors; Avoid traffic tickets
• * 2 Have license plates checked; Avoid minor violations (first conviction); Get “inside information”
• * 3 Get copies of an investigation report; Have police hassle, detain or harass someone; Find bureau secrets
• * 4 Access confiscated weapons or contraband; Have some serious charges dropped; Start an investigation; Obtain money, either from the evidence room or as an appropriation ($1,000)
• * 5 Institute major investigations; Arrange sting operations; Instigate bureau investigations; Have officers fired

Altering party platforms, controlling local elections, changing appointed offices and calling in favors all fall under the purview of Political Influence. Well timed blackmail, bribery, spin-doctoring and sundry other tricks are the stock in trade on both sides of this fence. Some of the likely contacts and allies include pollsters, lobbyists, activists, party members, spin-doctors and politicians from rural zoning committees to the mayors of major cities or representatives in Congress.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Minor lobbying; Identify the real platforms of politicians and their parties; Be in the know
• * 2 Meet small-time politicians; Garner inside information on processes, laws and the like; Use a slush fund or fund-raiser ($1,000)
• * 3 Sway or alter political projects (local parks, renovations, small construction)
• * 4 Enact minor legislation; Dash careers of minor politicians
• * 5 Get your candidate into a minor office; Enact encompassing legislature

Ignored and often spat upon by their “betters,” those in the dark alleys and slums have created their own culture to deal with life and any outsiders who might underside of the city to find the homeless, gang members of all sorts, street buskers, petty criminals, prostitutes, residents of the slums or barrios and fringe elements of so-called “deviant” cultures.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Open an ear for the word on the street; Identify most gangs and know their turf and habits
• * 2 Live mostly without fear on the underside of society; Keep a contact or two in most aspects of street life; Access small-time contraband
• * 3 Get insight into other areas of Influence; Arrange some services from street people or gangs; Obtain pistols or uncommon melee weapons
• * 4 Mobilize groups of homeless; Panhandle or hold a “collection” ($250); Get hold of a shotgun, rifle or SMG; Have a word in almost all aspects of gang operations
• * 5 Control a single medium-sized gang; Arrange impressive protests by street people

Most supernatural creatures make their homes in defensible parts of cities. Traveling across the wilderness is difficult without this Influence, with the problems of marauding werewolves and other supernatural threats. Getting access to special supplies and services can also take a measure of Transportation. All these things can be controlled with a bit of sway over truckers, harbors, railroads, airports, taxis, border guards, pilots and untold hundreds, as well as more mundane aspects like shipping and travel arrangements.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Know what goes where, when and why; Travel locally quickly and freely
• * 2 Track an unwary target if he uses public transportation; Arrange passage that is safe (or at least concealed) from mundane threats (robbery, terrorism, sunlight, etc.)
• * 3 Seriously hamper an individual’s ability to travel; Avoid most supernatural dangers when traveling
• * 4 Shut down one form of transportation (bus lines, ships, planes, trains, etc.) temporarily; Route money your way ($500)
• * 5 Reroute major modes of travel; Smuggle with impunity

The world of crime offers lucrative possibilities to strong-willed or subtle leaders. Anyone talented or simply vicious enough to do so can traffic in guns, money, drugs and vice. Underworld Influence lets you reap the benefits of all manner of illegal dealings, and its ranks are filled with drug-dealers, bookies, hit-men, fences and criminal gangs.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Locate minor contraband (knives, small-time drugs, petty gambling, scalped tickets)
• * 2 Obtain pistols, serious drugs, stolen cars; Hire muscle to rough someone up; Fence stolen loot; Prove that crime pays (and score $1,000)
• * 3 Obtain a rifle, shotgun or SMG; Arrange a minor “hit”; Meet someone in “the Family”
• * 4 Make white-collar crime connections
• * 5 Arrange gangland assassinations; Hire a demolition man or firebug; Supply local drug needs

Institutions of learning and research are the purview of the University Influence. Access to the halls of learning can grant any number of resources, from ancient languages to research assistance to many impressionable young minds. School boards, students from kindergarten through college, graduate students, professors, teachers, deans, Greek orders and a variety of staff fill the ivy-covered buildings.

• Cost Effect
• * 1 Know layout and policy of local schools; Have access to low-level university resources; Obtain records, up to the high school level
• * 2 Know a contact or two with useful knowledge or Abilities; Have minor access to facilities; Fake high school records; Obtain college records
• * 3 Call in faculty favors; Cancel a class; Fix grades; Discredit a student
• * 4 Organize student protests and rallies; Discredit faculty members
• * 5 Falsify an undergraduate degree

Influence Endeavors and Modifiers