Repression of the Obvious
- Dominate 7
The vampire can look at another sentient being and force the thought that the target is most directly repressing at the moment to the surface. It could be a simple idea like, "I really have to go to the bathroom, but this guy's rantings are too interesting to leave now." Or "I'd love to strangle that scrawny Malkavian fool!" If the target has a great secret that consumes him, that will overpower any lesser, momentary thought. But, if the secret is not something that he obsesses about, it will only come to mind if the Malkavian first brings up the subject in conversation or somehow puts the target in mind of it.
With three successes, the Malkavian can make the target blurt the repressed idea out loud. Great fun during dinner parties or tense trials.
As usual, the manic idiots who wrote the first Malkavian book didn't finish their thought. (Oh, did that come out as too judgmental?) Make the roll Manipulation + Subterfuge at a difficulty of the victim's willpower. One or two success bring the secret to the forefront of the character's mind, but the Malkavian still must use Steal Secrets or some other method to discover it. The benefit is that the user of this power does not need eye contact or touch, or even a spoken word to force the secret out.-Jamie