V6 Alpha Playtest is out!

Huh? Has there been something wrong with 5? It needed some fixes?

The FAQ has a good very broad summary of the core mechanic changes. Here is the part of the FAQ that I thought worth reading, though there are more questions on there:

What’s Drama?

Storytellers now have a resource called “Drama” that they can spend to complicate the PCs’ circumstances or introduce new twists into the Story.

What’s Quickening?

Quickening is a new mechanic that rewards players for rolling well, giving them a resource they can spend to improve their chances in future situations.

Will I be able to use my V5 dice at the table?

No, V6 uses a different system to count successes and failures, so we use regular D10 dice. We’ve also made changes to the Hunger system, so the Hunger dice are not relevant to V6.

Where did my Health and Blood Points go?

Health and Blood Points have been combined into a single resource called Vitae.

What’s the Humanity Scale?

The Humanity tracker has been updated to the Humanity Scale, which tracks the inner struggle between your monstrous and humane sides, as they constantly press their urges onto you.

How does physical and social conflict work now?

Physical and social conflict share a unified procedure, making both equally important and supported by the rules.

How will the Discipline powers change?

Each Discipline will have multiple powers, and many Discipline powers now scale with you, growing in power as you gain dots. The alpha playtest shows off many of these new powers, and the final book will include powers for each Discipline up to 5 dots.

How many clans will be in the final book?

There will be 14 clans total in the book; the alpha playtest includes 7 so far (Brujah, Gangrel, Lasombra, Ministry, Nosferatu, Toreador, and Ventrue).

Can I play as the different stages of Vampirism?

Yes, the final book will include rules for playing a ghoul, a duskborn, a neonate, an ancilla, a caitiff, or an elder.

What about playing as Sabbat or other sects?

In V6 you will be able to align with the Camarilla, the Anarchs, the Sabbat, Independents or The Unbound.

Is there a release date yet?

No, not yet. We are still in the alpha phase of development and want to ensure we can polish the material and implement the valuable feedback we’re receiving before we announce specifics like a release date or cost.

Putting the Sabbat back in the core books seems like a serious nod to classic fans of the franchise. I’m curious about “independents” and “unbound”. How do these differ from each other? And isn’t the point of the Anarchs supposed to be independence?

I haven’t seen what the actual core mechanic is yet, but I really liked the dice pool system (in theory; I’ve not actually played the game to have firsthand experience). I hope the basic sense of forming a dice pool and having some chance for equivalents to Messy Criticals and Bestial Failures are still represented.

I tried “buying” the whole bundle at DTRPG but I can’t see anything added to Roll20 nor Demiplane.

Anyone else experiencing this? Maybe it just takes some time?

I do have the proper accounts linked.