{"id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","type":"power","system":"discipline","line":"vampire","name":"Dominate","sources":[{"source":"V20","page":159,"folio":151}],"entries":["Dominate is one of the most dreaded of Disciplines. It is a vampire’s ability to influence another person’s thoughts and actions through her own force of will. Dominate requires that the vampire capture her victim’s gaze (see p. 152); as such, it may be used against only one subject at a time. Further, commands must be issued verbally, although simple orders may be made with signs — for example, a pointed finger and forceful expression to indicate “Go!” However, the subject won’t comply if he can’t understand the vampire, no matter how powerful the Kindred’s will is.","Perhaps unsurprisingly, vampires to which Dominate comes naturally tend to be from willful, domineering Clans. {@clan The Giovanni|LotC}, {@clan Lasombra|V20}, {@clan Tremere|V20}, and {@clan Ventrue|V20} all consider an iron will to be a boon, and are eager to impose that iron will on any who would move against them.","Eye Contact","Many myths and stories exist about a vampire’s mystical ability to put people under her spell by looking deeply into her victim’s eyes. The persistence of such stories through the ages isn’t surprising, since a number of Kindred Disciplines powers (most notably Dominate) require eye contact in order to work. Other vampires, learning of this requirement, have attempted everything from wearing mirrored sunglasses to gouging out their own eyes in order to prevent an elder from exerting his will upon them.","But Kindred are not so easily thwarted.","The need for eye contact stems from the aggressor Kindred’s need to see his victim’s soul, and the eyes are the traditionally known as the windows to the soul. While the vampire needs to capture his target’s attention, the target’s eyes need not be present for such a power to work (although the arts of {@clan The Tzimisce|LotC|the Tzimisce} make this somewhat challenging at times) — they only need to find the soul of his victim laid bare.","A target trying to avoid eye contact can make a Willpower roll against a difficulty equal to Dominate user’s {@attribute Manipulation|V20} + {@system Intimidation|V20} (or other appropriate combination for other Disciplines or specific situations, at the Storyteller’s discretion). The difficulty may be reduced for mitigating factors: -1 in the case of the target obscuring his eyes slightly (such as closing her eyes or wearing dark sunglasses) up to a -3 for the eyes being completely unseen (such as with a thick blindfold or having her eyes torn out). Ultimately, however, it is up to the Storyteller to decide whether eye contact is established in a particular case."],"powers":["vampire/power/discipline_power/chain-the-psyche","vampire/power/discipline_power/command","vampire/power/discipline_power/conditioning","vampire/power/discipline_power/far-mastery","vampire/power/discipline_power/loyalty","vampire/power/discipline_power/mass-manipulation","vampire/power/discipline_power/mesmerize","vampire/power/discipline_power/obedience","vampire/power/discipline_power/possession","vampire/power/discipline_power/speak-through-the-blood","vampire/power/discipline_power/still-the-mortal-flesh","vampire/power/discipline_power/the-forgetful-mind"],"_qa":{"flags":[],"parser":"section_entries","confidence":0.9,"extracted":"2026-10-15","job":"v20-disciplines"},"level":null,"_links":{"self":"/api/v1/records/vampire/power/discipline/dominate","html":"/records/vampire/power/discipline/dominate","parent":null,"children":"/api/v1/records/vampire/power/discipline/dominate/children","sources":[{"abbr":"V20","page":159,"folio":159,"title":"Vampire: The Masquerade 20th Anniversary Edition"}]},"_db":{"title":"Dominate","props":[],"parent_id":null,"level":null,"category":null,"summary":"Dominate is one of the most dreaded of Disciplines. It is a vampire’s ability to influence another person’s thoughts and actions through her own force of will. Dominate requires that the vampire capture her victim’s","tags":[],"children":[{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/command","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Command","title":"Command","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":1,"category":null,"summary":"The vampire locks eyes with the subject and speaks a one-word command, which the subject must be obey instantly. The order must be clear and straightforward: run, agree, fall, yawn, jump, laugh, surrender, stop, scream,","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/mesmerize","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Mesmerize","title":"Mesmerize","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":2,"category":null,"summary":"With this power, a vampire can verbally implant a false thought or hypnotic suggestion in the subject’s subconscious mind. Both Kindred and target must be free from distraction, since Mesmerize requires intense","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/the-forgetful-mind","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"The Forgetful Mind","title":"The Forgetful Mind","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":3,"category":null,"summary":"After capturing the subject’s gaze, the vampire delves into the subject’s memories, stealing or re-creating them at his whim. The Forgetful Mind does not allow for telepathic contact; the Kindred operates much like a","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/conditioning","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Conditioning","title":"Conditioning","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":4,"category":null,"summary":"Through sustained manipulation, the vampire can make a subject more pliant to the Kindred’s will. Over time, the victim becomes increasingly susceptible to the vampire’s influence while simultaneously growing more","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/possession","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Possession","title":"Possession","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":5,"category":null,"summary":"At this level of Dominate, the force of the Kindred’s psyche is such that it can utterly supplant the mind of a mortal subject. Speaking isn’t required, but the vampire must capture the victim’s gaze. During the psychic","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/chain-the-psyche","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Chain the Psyche","title":"Chain the Psyche","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":6,"category":null,"summary":"Not content with merely commanding their subjects, some elders apply this power to ensure obedience from recalcitrant victims. Chain the Psyche is a Dominate technique that inflicts incapacitating pain on a target who","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/loyalty","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Loyalty","title":"Loyalty","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":6,"category":null,"summary":"With this power in effect, the elder’s Dominate is so strong that other vampires find it almost impossible to break with their own commands. Despite the name, Loyalty instills no special feelings in the victim — the","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/obedience","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Obedience","title":"Obedience","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":6,"category":null,"summary":"While most Kindred must employ Dominate through eye contact, some powerful elders may command loyalty with the lightest brush of a hand. System: The character can employ all Dominate powers through touch instead of eye","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/mass-manipulation","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Mass Manipulation","title":"Mass Manipulation","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":7,"category":null,"summary":"A truly skilled elder may command small crowds through the use of this power. By manipulating the strongest minds within a given group, a gathering may be directed to the vampire’s will. System: The player declares that","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/still-the-mortal-flesh","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Still the Mortal Flesh","title":"Still the Mortal Flesh","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":7,"category":null,"summary":"Despite its name, this power may be employed on vampires as well as mortals, and it has left more than one unfortunate victim writhing in agony — or unable to do even that. A vampire who has developed this power is able","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/far-mastery","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Far Mastery","title":"Far Mastery","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":8,"category":null,"summary":"This refinement of Obedience (though the character need not have learned Obedience first) allows the use of Dominate on any subject that the vampire is familiar with, at any time, over any distance. If the elder knows","sources":"V20"},{"id":"vampire/power/discipline_power/speak-through-the-blood","type":"power","system":"discipline_power","line":"vampire","name":"Speak Through the Blood","title":"Speak Through the Blood","parent_id":"vampire/power/discipline/dominate","level":9,"category":null,"summary":"The power structures of Methuselahs extend across continents and centuries. This power allows such ancients to wield control over their descendants, even those far outside their geographic spheres of influence. Speak","sources":"V20"}]}}