Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansongfeatures a number of dangers and challenges for its protagonists to overcome. One such challenge is Galeb’s capture and torture at the hands of Stanford, leader of the Second Inquisition in Boston, and this guide will explain how to frustrate Stanford and survive the encounter.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansongis a narrative RPG developed by Big Bad Wolf and published by Nacon. Set in the World of Darkness version of Boston, players take on the role of three vampires at the Boston court in the aftermath of a disastrous massacre. With the unlives of the entire court in the balance, these three must uncover the truth behind the massacre and face off against the Second Inquisition, while dealing with the intrigue and politics of the vampire court.
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Stanford’s Torture
After capturing Galeb, Stanford reveals himself in the interrogation room, wielding an array of torture devices chosen especially for vampires. Stanford possesses True Faith,a rare trait in the World of Darkness, which allows him to resist Vampiric manipulation with the strength of his belief and conviction.
It also allows him to burn Vampires with symbols of his faith, such as the cross. This means that attempting to use dominate on him is futile.
An optional Deduction check will help Galeb identify that Stanford definitely knows more than he’s letting on. Telling the truth when asked to identify himself will save Galeb an unnecessary branding with a hot iron, and Stanford clearly already knows who he is anyway.
Next, Stanford asks what Galeb came to do. Answering truthfully can avoid torture here, at the cost of raising Stanford’s defenses later on. It would be better to either say nothing and endure the torture using Fortitude (resulting in torture) or take the intimidation option to dodge the torture entirely (though this requires an intimidation rank of 4.)
Stanford’s next question is about Galeb'’s accomplices, and there are several ways to handle this.Players who met with Father Joseph and gained his aidcan choose to sell him out here to dodge another round of torture or use Fortitude again to withstand the torture while remaining silent.
Stanford’s final question is potentially the most dangerous for the rest of vampire society. He wants to knowwhere Boston’s Camarilla is based, which would mean leading an army of well-equipped vampire hunters right to the Prince’s doorstep.
A Persuasion skill of at least 4 will allow Galeb to convincingly fake an address, while a Fortitude of at least 3 will allow him to tough it out and keep the location a secret. Failing this, the only way out is giving up the address, which could be disastrous.
Make it through this confrontation without tipping Stanford off to Galeb’s goals or the location of the Camarilla for best results.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansongis available for PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.
