Jefferson by Night

Intrigue
Life is full of paranoia and danger, and unlife is even more so. Politics among the Kindred twist and turn like a web woven by thousands of spiders, and each spider has their own unique vision. And each spider has fangs poised at your neck. Players in the political game will smile in an opponent’s face while sharpening the stake destined for their heart. The theme of intrigue puts the characters right in the center of all these machinations and brings the innate distrust, fear and suspicion into sharp focus.

Power
Power is a corrupting force. Sabbat vampires, being powerful creatures, are always at risk from the temptations that arise out of a wish to be in control of something. Cainites are corrupted through their adherence to ideas that are no longer relevant to their existence — for instance, failing to recognize that they are no longer human — or conversely, by using this fact to further their own gain at all costs, without any thought to how their actions affect the whole of the Sabbat. Sabbat vampires play politics, an activity fraught with compromise and shaky alliances. How does the Cainite traverse the halls of Sabbat power without having some of its inherent taint rub off on her? Storytellers can play all sorts of power games. Stand the characters as allies of a political up-and-comer. Make her a formidable upstart, one who has risen through deeds and Monomacy. Put the Status Quo faction soundly in her way; make other factions think she is useful to their causes. Make it evident that her problems are the characters’ problems. Then, make it evident that she is using the pack for her own ends; that she cares about it and its ideas as much as she cares about kine.

Ambition
Mortal concerns pale when a human receives the Embrace, but immortal ambitions can make for an acceptable substitute. The desire to rise in generation, in status, in power or in rank can drive a vampire to commit acts both unspeakable and superhuman. A sense of ambition can drive your players' characters to greater and greater heights of achievement - or can lead them to crushing weights of failure.

Paranoia
Running with the Sabbat is rife with danger. Enemies lurk everywhere, and many situations are fraught with tension. Remember this tension and display it in your chronicle by showing the knife in the hands of an enemy or friend(literally or figuratively) that’s poised for the small of your players’ characters’ backs.

Fear
Fear is what the Sabbat is about. Use it to motivate the troupe by playing on their character’s fears, then contrast it with the fear they evoke in their prey. Fear of the infernal, fear of reprisal for mistakes, fear of Gehenna — all of these concepts are good mood motivators.