Post by Iota on Jun 5, 2010 9:45:00 GMT -5
The art of giving and granting favors - Boons
The world of vampires has a currency just like any other, but vampires are not generally that impressed with cold hard cash. They deal in something a bit more complicated, boons.
A boon is like a debt. You do someone a favor, and if they acknowledge that you helped them out, they now owe you a boon. Sounds pretty simple, but nothing in the world of darkness is ever simple when you take everything into account.
Also understand that a boon isn’t owed just when you take it upon yourself to declare it. If someone saves your existence by choice, and others see him do so, if you don’t acknowledge the boon, the court may destroy you. If a vampire becomes known as untrustworthy or an oath breaker, the harpies may allow others to ignore their debt to him later. (And it becomes very hard to trade in boons in any event.)
One thing to remember is that boons must be paid off because the social order demands it. If a Prince doesn’t enforce boons, then the people who owe him boons might not have to pay him off, and he isn’t going to tolerate that.
Boons fall into three categories: minor, major, and life boons. A simple request made in Elysium could very well be interpreted in the sense of boons. Failing to honor a boon can result in a drop in status.
Boons can also be traded like currency, you may have originally been indebted to Bob, the Brujah, Bob may trade that debt to someone else in order to pay off his own. In any case it can get very difficult to keep track of. Generally, harpies will keep track of boons, and they have a special knack for listening and marking favors asked and granted. Sometimes younger kindred do not even realize when they've accidentally placed themselves into the debt of another.
The world of vampires has a currency just like any other, but vampires are not generally that impressed with cold hard cash. They deal in something a bit more complicated, boons.
A boon is like a debt. You do someone a favor, and if they acknowledge that you helped them out, they now owe you a boon. Sounds pretty simple, but nothing in the world of darkness is ever simple when you take everything into account.
Also understand that a boon isn’t owed just when you take it upon yourself to declare it. If someone saves your existence by choice, and others see him do so, if you don’t acknowledge the boon, the court may destroy you. If a vampire becomes known as untrustworthy or an oath breaker, the harpies may allow others to ignore their debt to him later. (And it becomes very hard to trade in boons in any event.)
One thing to remember is that boons must be paid off because the social order demands it. If a Prince doesn’t enforce boons, then the people who owe him boons might not have to pay him off, and he isn’t going to tolerate that.
Boons fall into three categories: minor, major, and life boons. A simple request made in Elysium could very well be interpreted in the sense of boons. Failing to honor a boon can result in a drop in status.
Boons can also be traded like currency, you may have originally been indebted to Bob, the Brujah, Bob may trade that debt to someone else in order to pay off his own. In any case it can get very difficult to keep track of. Generally, harpies will keep track of boons, and they have a special knack for listening and marking favors asked and granted. Sometimes younger kindred do not even realize when they've accidentally placed themselves into the debt of another.
