It's been a while since the last Storyteller's Guide for Vampire. Since then things have changed a bit, and Vampire has reached it's third edition.Though opinions on third edition vary, I like it, some don't, most agreed that the old storytellers guide was well past it's sell by date. The vampire product range has expanded considerably in the last few years, so it is only fitting that such a core book should be revised.

The book is set into seven chapters, each dealing with a different aspect of running a game of Vampire: The Masquerade. The first chapter is a vampire FAQ. Here we get answers to all those niggling little questions like, "do vampires leave finger prints?" and "how many vampires are there?". Some of these answers prove useful, others fall into the category of, it's your own damn world why don't you make it up.

Chapter two deals with the vampires themselves. We get a nice little essay on why clans are not fraternities, some good points here on why the members of a certain clan should by no means work together. It's a look at clans internal problems, which is nice. We also get three bloodlines the Baali, True Brujah and Nagaraja. These are interesting, and definitely better used by the storyteller. The new bloodlines get revised versions of their disciplines to play with, and many will be thankful that the discipline Temporis has been sorted out quite well (Screwing around with time now comes with a nasty cost,and the more ridiculous powers have been removed). This chapter also gives details on running games based around elders, and problems to bear in mind when doing this. There also some ideas about detailing NPCs.

Chapter three is an in depth look at how to run a vampire game and get teh most out of it. It's full of tools and techniques for creating interesting stories and making sure that the game flows. There are details on how to keep track of kindred interactions, the differences in running long term and short term games. If you've never run vampire before this chapter would be a godsend, it really is a very comprehensive look at how to make sure you and your players have fun and create an interesting story.

Chapter four continues in the same vein as chapter three, only focusing more on the players and the way the group should be handled. This chapter also includes on of the most forthright, or bitchy depending on your point of view, sections on players I've ever read. One of the nicest parts of this chapter is that it reminds you that you are storyteller because it's fun, don't put up with your players screwing your game up if it stops you having fun.

The next chapter deals with alternative settings, from Prehistory to modern day and some alternative timelines. Most of this material is nothing an imaginative storyteller couldn't have come up with. Still, it doesn't take up too much space and is enough to get some ideas from. Chapter six deals with integrating the rest of the world of darkness into vampire, should you need it. There are details on rules integration and so forth. As well as the sensible advice that the game may be diluted if you bring in too much weird shit.

The final chapter revises the controversial Dirty Secrets of the Black hand. No one book seemed to cause more disagreement in players and storytellers than that old tome. Fortunately the revised background has toned down some of the more silly parts of the old book, as well as practically destroying the sects organization. It certainly sorted out most of my problems with this bit of background, and putting it in a storyteller book is a good idea too.

Overall: Though some bits of this book were of little use to me, I've run vampire an awful lot, most of it was sensible advice about how to run a vampire game the way it was intended. It's definitely worth buying for any inexperienced storyteller, and probably worth it for those who run games already, especially if they like and use the revised edition. Even referees of other games could do well to read some of the more generic sections, if only to help avoid some of the pitfalls of storytelling.