Venue Name: Family Values
Genre: LARP World of Darkness (Mafia)

Contacts:
VST : Josh Rebmann
AVST : Michael Ervin
AVST : Josh Tourangeau

Place/Time:
Powers Hall on the campus of Central Michigan University.

Directions from South:

From I-69:
Take I-69 north to M-27 north. Take the first Mount Pleasant exit which is a left-hand exit. This will turn into Mission Road. Take it down three lights to Preston and turn left. Take Preston down to the third stop sign (Washington) and turn right. At the first stop sign, Powers Hall will be on your right and parking will be just beyond it on the same side.

From I-75:
Take I-75 north to US-10 West (exit 162). Take US-10 to the Business 10 exit from Midland, which is a left hand exit. Follow Business 10 through Midland to M-20. Turn left where indicated for M-20 and follow M-20 into Mount Pleasant, where it will become Pickard Road. At the fifth light in Mount Pleasant, turn left. This is Mission. Take Mission down to Bellows (the fourth light) and turn right. Take Bellows down to the third stop sign (Washington) and turn left. Go down to the stop sign and Powers will be across the intersection on the left. Turn left into the parking lot. The entrance to the hall faces this parking lot.

Directions from North:

From M-27:
Take M-27 south to the Mount Pleasant exit which turns into Mission Road. Take Mission down to Bellows (the fifth light) and turn right. Take Bellows down to the third stop sign (Washington) and turn left. Go down to the stop sign and Powers will be across the intersection on the left. Turn left into the parking lot. The entrance to the hall faces this parking lot.

Directions from East:

Follow the same directions as from I-75. Get on US-10 west and follow directions as above.

Directions from West:

From M-20: Take M-20 East into Mount Pleasant and turn right on Washington and follow it to campus. At the second stop sign, Powers will be across the intersection on your left.

There is a $1.00 site fee (players traveling from out of state will have this fee waived).

Domain Name: Mt. Pleasant by Night
Domain Number: MI.015.D
Lead Venue Storyteller: Joshua Rebmann
Storyteller Contact: wodvst@gmail.com

Games hosted on the First and the Third Friday of the month. If the VST is not able to make the Friday game or will be leaving early because of work, he will make sure the ST staff knows in advance.

Part 3: Description of Venue

Description

Isabella County was formed in 1831 from parent counties, Saginaw and Midland. The county is located close to the geographic center of the lower peninsula of Michigan. While primarily rural in nature, Isabella County is also noted for its oil and gas production and the manufacturing of machinery for industry, food service and wood products. Mt. Pleasant is the county seat and also the home of Central Michigan University and the Clarke Historical Library, the second largest genealogy and historical library in the state. Central Michigan University was opened in 1893 as the Central Normal School and Business Institute. The school was operated by the city of Mt. Pleasant until 1895 when it was taken over by the State of Michigan and became Central Michigan Normal School. CMU became a four year institution in 1918 and a university in 1959. The county also encompasses the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Reservation, home of the Soaring Eagle Casino.

While Mt Pleasant has faced many great challenges over the years, the city always seems to overcome; however, the affect upon its community, is not the same. Competition has drawn many a young mover and shaker to the growing resources of Mt Pleasant. Many residents seek personal power and gain. Sadly, many of these mortals have no idea that it is in fact that unknown forces have truly ruled and shaped not only this city, but its community, ever since its inception.

Mount Pleasant, a city dedicated to Native American heritage and culture, agriculture, education, and the discovery and production of oil.

During the time of the prohibition the families controlled New York, Chicago, and Detroit. Northern Michigan and Canada was used as holdouts for Smuggling Alcohol, guns, drugs and the like to the larger cities. This among other things brought with it large quantities of money and criminal activities to Northern Michigan. Mount Pleasant was a quickly growing city and perfectly suited for the families interests. Vincent Fabiano seized the opportunity moving the first of the families here and set himself up as Don of Central Michigan. For years the family prospered and lived in Mount Pleasant.

Then in 1967 the Irish Mafia moved in to the area headed by William Connolly. For a few years the families fought over territory and power, that seemed like it would destroy the family's interests. An agreement was reached and peace between the Fabiano and the Connolly's lead to the formation of the current crime syndicate. After a few more years Don Vincent Fabiano retired leaving the control of the families to me, Anthony Fabiano. The families continued to prosper under my leadership and my fathers tutelage. Yet things are not the same now as they were in my fathers time. The power and strength of the families has grown, yet this power brings with it deceit, betrayal, and a distancing from the traditional ways of the family.

From 1985 till 1997 the ties within the families weakened to the point where factions began to form. Fighting within the families threatened to tear the syndicate apart. It is strange that the thing that saved the syndicate was the same thing that threatened to destroy all that the families had done.

This was the influx of the Russians in 1997, headed by Anton Lebedev. They moved into the area slowly and took advantage of the infighting within the syndicate. Over the next few years they had gained enough power to become a threat, but luckily the families took note of their movements before it became too late. America had its Cold War with Russia, and now the families had theirs. For two years the Russians fought with the syndicate, resulting in a stalemate of sorts. Again an agreement was reached in 2000, and the Lebedev family joined the Syndicate. Now the year is 2006 and the Syndicate is rebuilding the power that it has lost. Tradition brings with it routine that keeps the peace.

The families meet over a meal while the heads of the families discuss business. This has kept the syndicate together, yet the family lines have begun to bleed. While infighting is expected and can be controlled, how do you combat the inbreeding? What was once used to build peace now threatens to disrupt the family lines that maintain that peace. Beyond our own internal problems there are many things going on in this city that are beyond the family�s control. Gangs have begun infiltrating our territories, as well as others who seem to have a vast control over the inner workings of this city. Yet the families are growing and the Syndicate will become strong with this new generation. Among them there must be one who will take over for me as I did for my father. The years have been kind to me, yet now in the twilight of my life it is time to find one who will lead the family into this new millennium.

Part 4: Storytelling Mechanics

Venue Geographical Boundaries:
Venue Geographical Boundaries: This venue covers all mortal activities in the Mortal venue (including PC-types typically associated with the Mortal venue) in the following places, based on the Geographical Boundaries as stated by the U.S.G.S. (United States Geological Service). This Domain covers the following counties in the state of Michigan: Gratiot, Isabella, Clare, and Midland.

Proxy rules:
Although proxy play is permitted by the Camarilla rules supplement, proxy characters are discouraged within the first six months of this venue. This is due to the nature of Mortal World of Darkness. In Mortal, mortal generally do not often travel to far away to any place, without significant travel arrangements. Characters are expected to find what they need in their own Domain, or arrange to create what they need as per the rules of Mortal Venue. Mount Pleasant is vast and full of resources, so there should be little reason for proxies in the first six months.
All proxies to the Mt. Pleasant by Night Mortal venue must be received by the Storyteller in writing or by email no less than 48 hours in advance, and must contain all standard information, as detailed in the Camarilla World of Darkness Addendum and the Camarilla Mortal Venue Addendum. Any character or items requiring Regional or higher approval require prior approval from the Presiding Storyteller of the game to participate. Players who have not received prior approval may not be allowed to participate with those characters or they may participate only without their High-level approval items.
If you know you are attending game and do not want to have your approval documentation with you, please email the character and any approvals 48 hours before the game to the VST at wodvst@gmail.com.
Players who proxy into "Family Values" must accept all terms of the VSS. Visiting players must provide a copy of the character for the ST staff to hold on to for the night. These sheets will not be kept by the storytelling staff and will be returned upon the end of game. This is a mandatory rule. Visiting players who do not have a extra copy of their sheet will be required to fill out a new sheet with their information on it and hand it over to the ST. Outside plots will not intrude upon this game unless they receive prior approval from the Domains of both the city they come from and the Domain of Mount Pleasant.

Request of proxy play should include at a minimum:
- Character sheet and XP log
- PC's reasons and motivations to be here
- PC's personality and attitude
- PC's actions in possible situations
- PC's travel arrangements to and from the area
- PC's security measures

The Mount Pleasant storytelling staff reserves the right to pursue any character from the Mount Pleasant game including visitors, who attempt to flee back to their home Domain or a different Domain while other characters or forces are in pursuit during a game night. These scenes will be limited solely to the pursuit of the fleeing characters and will not involve any characters or influences from that Domain. If the scene becomes embroiled in the other domain�s conflicts, the scene will be frozen and all other characters involved frozen until the DST of that Domain is contacted and both Domains agree on a course of action.

Canada:
Since we share a close accessible open border with Canada, any scenes that involve crossing the border in pursuit will be frozen until the NST of Canada is contacted and we get full permission to run the scene. This includes the character fleeing and all those involved in the pursuit. If the character is not being actively pursued or the players pursing will not continue the pursuit, the character may flee to Canada without a freezing of the scene. That character however is considered out of play until they cross back over the border.
Once a pursuing character decides to pursue that character into Canada the scene will be frozen. No scenes will be run in Canada or from Canada unless the permission is granted from their NST and characters involved may be turned over to the ST Staff of Canada depending on their request. These characters will be handed over without hesitation to their Staff and all ST’s involved will be notified. Players from Mount Pleasant are discouraged from crossing the Border during game. Players send their characters to Canada during game at their own risk. Please note: This does not in any way include traveling to games in Canada or vise versa. We encourage our members to attend the games in Canada and we welcome our neighbors from Canada to attend our games. The rule above is only when characters travel to Canada during a Mount Pleasant game.

Travel risks:
Travel in the surrounding areas is not without it's risks: In general, travel is subject to the usual daytime or night time hazards of the World of Darkness. All PC's traveling into and out of the area are assumed to have taken general precautions to preserve their lives and avoid problems with the thing that lurk in the shadows, exposure to the bizarre, etc. Keep in mind that mortal in the World of Darkness do not travel on a whim and must take excessive precautions. It is expected that you have made such arrangements, and will be able to answer preparation questions fully if they are asked by the Storyteller staff of Mount Pleasant. As this is a heavily policed area due to the presence of so many Police Departments, including Government agencies, please be aware that the possibilities of delay is highly probable, since so much precaution must be taken to enter the Domain without being discovered. While other travel risks may arise due to in-game circumstances, we will make attempts to publish any additional information before the game on the appropriate lists. Characters normally travel through the area in a wide variety of transports, including automobile, small plane/jet, train, and bus as appropriate.

Experience award guidelines:
Experience award guidelines:
1. We follow the Experience Trait award guidelines in the Camarilla World of Darkness Addendum section 8.1.
2. Each character who participates for at least 90 minutes receives an automatic award of 2 Experience Traits. Characters that play for a period longer than this shall receive 3 Experience Traits.
3. Players may earn up to a total of 3 Experience Traits per month by providing downtime reports, game Summaries, and meeting with other players. (not over cap of 10)

Players from Mount Pleasant who wish to obtain extra experience must fill out a monthly Downtime Report (DTR) and send it to the Venue Storyteller and by the last day of the month. DTR's should include player name, membership number, character name. If a player wishes to get all 3 of the downtime XP points, it must also contain not only what the player has been doing in local downtime, but also a summary of character activity on a Regional and National/International IC mailing lists, as well as IRC (Do not send logs). We play in a global game and participation in the game outside of our Domain enhances the game for all members of the club. It should be noted that the average downtime will receive 1xp while only the exceptional downtime (all of the above elements and a clear element of a lot of hard work and thought behind it) will receive 4xp. Note this award cannot exceed the player's monthly cap.

Check In:
All players must sign in, and have their characters checked by one of the ST’s conducting sign in. If you are not willing to show a character sheet, you may not play, that character. The Presiding Storyteller reserves the right to disallow ANY character to participate if that character presents a direct contradiction to the theme & mood of the game, or is otherwise incompatible with the game and/or setting. Such determinations are made by the VST. When signing in players must have a character sheet and exp log, signed by their home venue ST or the ARST for Solitary Members. Proof of Member class, and Camarilla card or Photo Id.

Players without proof of member class will be allowed to play either a new MC 1 character, or have their appropriate Coordinator vouch for them, once. After this a signed proof of member class will be required, or a print out from membership verification from the Camarilla Web Page. This will hold true for character sheets without the appropriate ST’s signature. A one-week grace period will be provided. Exceptions will be made to this for players who are from areas without a domain, and who do not have access to the next level of ST on an easy basis. One of the ST signing in, with be able to check in the sheet and sign it, at ST discretion. Any out of Chapter players, who wish to have in chapter influence, must
purchase separate influences, and have them approved by the VST or AVST, or grow them in standard cross-domain manners, with ADST/DST approval.

Special Notes:
Avatar characters (characters directly based on the player) are not allowed. These types of characters violate the code of conduct and will not be allowed in this venue.

All characters who consider this Domain their "home" (including those who are not part of the Domain, but are still primarily based here) are under the authority of the VST Mortals for purposes of IC rewards and penalties, including but not limited to, the awarding and loss of status. This is regardless of the home Chapter, Domain, or Region of the player. Characters proxied to this game are also under this same restriction during their proxy time. Players who play in this game must agree to this restriction.

Chronicle takes precedence over individual characters (If Timmy wants blow something up just because that is his derangement, the answer will be NO). The presiding storyteller over any given scene has wide latitude to make spot rulings and judgment calls (like what constitutes dangerous territory/situations, for Summons) and even alter in minor ways certain powers will work (see ST for more details). This is not intended to allow extreme modifications of discipline or abilities, and such minor rulings should be consistent. Players are encouraged not to argue with a storyteller during the scene, but are welcome to appeal any decision. Abuses or misuses of this clause will be dealt with as appropriate, this is for the benefit of the story, not for abuse of the rules. As always everything within is subject to storyteller's discretion, this is a game designed to be fun and enjoyable and we will endeavor to make it so.

Player Advisory:
The mortal inhabits a dark and often downright evil world. From time to time, the Storytellers in this venue will use adult themes, vivid descriptions, and contentious social issues to bring the World of Darkness to life. For those familiar with the White Wolf tabletop material, some plot elements or themes could be considered "Black Dog" material. Such themes and issues may include racism, sexism, foul/dirty language, bigotry, prejudice, sexual assault, and extreme violence. If, at any time, a player feels uncomfortable with a scene, the player should immediately inform the Storyteller. The Storyteller will either tone down scene so that the player is once again comfortable participating in it, or will excuse the player from the scene without penalty in or out of character, adjusting continuity as necessary. The goal of our games is to have a good time, bringing the World of Darkness to life as much as possible, but keeping the sensibilities and comfort of all players in mind, so that all can participate.

Meta-gaming, including threatening player/characters before entering play, will not be tolerated. Any questions of meta-gaming shall go through the Lead ST present and the matter will be investigated and/or acted upon. Accusations of meta-gaming or continued reference to such after the storyteller has been spoken to shall be referenced to the coordinator staff to take action upon as if the accuser was a problem player. The ST staff will aggressively pursue meta-gamers.

The World of Darkness is a world of horror and corruption. There are shadowed beings making backroom treaties to spread their corruption and control of this area. While the other venues consist of dark heroes who protect this world in their own twisted way, this game is different. The Mortal game itself is a game of the underdog fighting against the corruption of man, and that which goes bump in the night. In this venue you are still the underdog, as a mortal you possess no supernatural powers, since you are "only human". Yet this time you do not fight against the corruption of man nor do you fight that which lives in darkness and comes from myth and legend. Family Values is a game that delves into the horrors and corruption that come from humanity itself. This is a socio-political game that explores the corrupt and dark denizens of humanity. While in other games you portray the hero fighting against that which brings corruption. In this venue you are a part of an organized crime syndicate, not to fight for humanity but in order to control it.

Beholden to tradition, threatened by ethics and forced by their nature to remain outside the society that sustains him, the modern mobster is every bit as compelling a character as the most monstrous creature of the night. (OWOD Mafia).

Mt. Pleasant by Night is a part of White Wolf's Camarilla fan club. All images, logos, etc., © White Wolf, Inc., are used with permission.

Ever-present disclaimer: This site is for a series of live-action role-playing games. We only pretend to be vampires.