Category:World of Darkness

World of Darkness is a franchise of tabletop roleplaying games, created in 1991 and originally owned by White Wolf Publishing. In 2006, ownership passed to CCP Games, and in 2016, it was acquired by Paradox Interactive. The franchise centers on a dark, gritty interpretation of the real world, framed as an urban-gothic setting where various supernatural entities operate unseen, usually linked by a complex metaplot rooted in extensive lore, drawing inspiration from other horror RPGs like Call of Cthulhu.

Despite its critical acclaim for its writing, artwork, and modern-day setting, sales decline led White Wolf to end the franchise in 2004 with the Time of Judgment storyline, which concluded the narrative of its game lines. Following this, the franchise was rebooted as Chronicles of Darkness (or New World of Darkness), which emphasized player freedom and removed the overarching metaplot, presenting story ideas as optional rather than central to the setting.

The franchise features several game lines, but the first and most popular, often referred to as "The Big Three," are:

• Vampire: The Masquerade: The inaugural and most renowned installment, focusing on vampires, their struggles with humanity, and their efforts to remain hidden through the "Masquerade," a centuries-old campaign to conceal their existence from both humans and other supernatural beings.
• Werewolf: The Apocalypse: This installment explores the world of magic and spirits, centered on the Garou, a race of people born from wolves or humans. The Garou are engaged in an eternal battle to save Gaia, the spirit of the Earth, from the corrupting influence of the Wyrm, a force of decay threatening both the material and spiritual worlds.
• Mage: The Ascension: A gnostic setting where the spirit world is central. It features individuals who have "awakened" from the ordinary physical reality to a more complex world where belief and perception shape existence. The Technocracy, a dominant faction among the Awakened, has imposed a science-based status quo, suppressing traditional magic and forcing magicians to limit their powers.