Kindred Feeding

Immortality has costs, not least of which is feeding. For young Kindred it is often a gory business because refining ones hunting skills takes time and practice. Younger Kindred are also the most prone to hunger frenzies, to the detriment of the humans around them. Yet, though feeding can be brutal, it can also be sensual, a heady dose of iron-rich bliss.

Thirst
The voracious, agonizing feeling of hunger is typically the first of a waking new Kindred's experiences. In time they find it to be a near constant companion because the feeling, while it can be slacked, never fully ebbs unless one consumes the heart's blood of a person - drinking them dry. This is of course a murderous thing to do, and it leads to bodies. Bodies which can be traced if one isn't careful.

Mechanics


 * A Human body has 10 points of blood.
 * 1 Pint of Blood = 1 point of Vitae
 * Resisting Hunger Frenzy = Composure + Resolve with difficulty determined by the level of hunger

The Kiss
When feeding from a compliant vessel, feeding is luxuriant for both hunter and prey. The person on whom the Kindred is feeding experiences a warm, divine sort of ecstasy as their life is drained away, and the Kindred shares in that bliss. When the Kindred is done, they can simply lick the wound to heal it, hiding any obvious sign of their predation. However, the moment the targeted person becomes resistant, the ease of the feeding is destroyed, causing it to become excruciating for the vessel, particularly if the feeding devolves to or is initiated by frenzy.

Resonance
However, no matter the nature of the feeding, the mood and temperament of the vessel flavors the sensation for the Kindred. Drinking deeply or feeding from a person in a moment of crisis or other extreme emotion heightens those sensations for the Kindred, flavoring with something known as Resonance. Superficially Resonance offers a sort of flavoring to the blood; the Kindred gets a basic sense of their prey's emotions, perhaps even superficial thoughts. At deeper levels, the Kindred will experience the purest, most exquisite distillations of emotion along with the target's memories. The variation this can cause often leads Kindred to adapt a particular feeding preference or feeding style (see below), as Resonance can boost certain Kindred abilities.

There are many theories regarding the nature and cause of Resonance as well as its effects. The classic ideology regarding the humors of the blood is the most popular, and blood sorcerers and alchemists alike often swear by some version of it. While the details of it are debatable, it is fair to say that feeding from sources awash in emotion can lend an edge to Kindred abilities that align with the feeling. Having fed from a source Resonant with a discipline or other Kindred ability can decrease the difficulty for that power when rolling, but the Kindred must have ingested a significant enough amount for the effect to be possible.

Feeding Styles
Over time, Kindred can develop a preference for one kind of Resonance over another. It is also possible to hone one's feeding habits specifically around a strategy intended to create the desires emotional state that leads to the a Kindred's desired Resonance. If one wishes to do so, they can either homebrew a feeding style merit around the sort of prey and Resonance they want, or more easily, adapt one based off of the feeding styles suggesting in V5. Feeding style merits scale as 1, 3, and 5 dot options as befits the benefits arranged in the merit.

Amounts and Restrictions
The amount of blood a Kindred can hold is dependent upon their Blood Potency. Likewise, BP determines the potential sources from which a Kindred can feed in order to be satiated.

Source: House Rules, VtR 2.0, and V5