The vampire, drawing from the primal urge to feed in it's heart, denies it by wielding an intermediary weapon. That urge, denied of it's sustenance, empowers the vampire to unforeseen heights as it's body desperately strains for it's meal.
A vampire who fights with melee weapons is far more dangerous than a vampire who fights with their fangs alone. The latter fights to feed and sustain itself, while the former fights simply to kill.
It is the use of this technique that divides the garden-variety vampire from the true beasts.
You gain the following benefits as long as your attacks are against an opponent with blood in their body and you are engaged in combat with melee weapons.
+2 dice to all rolls with melee weapons. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using melee weapons.
You also gain the following effects:
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with melee ninja weapons.
+2 dice to all rolls with melee ninja weapons. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using melee ninja weapons.
You also gain the following effects:
Whenever the gift user successfully dismembers a living target with a melee weapon, a blurry effect strongly reminiscent of a coronal loop is briefly emitted from the dismembering cut in the direction of that weapon's swing. The parts of this phenomena that are close to the target's skin faintly glow an uneasy red instead of remaining colorless and clear.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with daggers.
+2 dice to all rolls with daggers. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using daggers.
Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Nightmares.
You also gain the following effects:
A shadow seems to follow you, and when you strike, it is as though another hand guides your own.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with melee weapons.
+2 dice to all rolls with melee weapons. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using melee weapons.
Possession of this Power grants the following Trauma at all times: Antichrist: You believe you are the chosen agent of Lucifer, sent to gather the broken and the damned and shatter the false kingdoms of Man. Roll self control whenever you must act in a way or believe a thing that contradicts this delusion.
You also gain the following effects:
Your grip is unnaturally tight around your weapons, death-gripping them until you're finished or it breaks.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with melee weapons.
+2 dice to all rolls with melee weapons. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using melee weapons.
You also gain the following effects:
Zephyren collects blades almost obsessively, perhaps because they are some of the least detectable weapons. Or, he does it instinctively because a bird is never complete without its talons. In result, he's also the most proficient with blades.
On weapon usage:
People have guns (even in Canada, they're just quieter about it), but Zephyren legally cannot own one, and traveling with those can be such a pain for those with licenses anyway. He very much prefers a quieter option too. Also, blades are far more versatile (he wants to toss a bunch of vegetables in the air one day and try to slice them all). Never bring a knife to a gun fight? Think again.
On blade proficiency:
Fighting isn't the only thing Zephyren uses blades for. If anything he's rarely had to fight outside contracts; he mostly uses knives in the kitchen, and since he has been cooking from a very young age, there's no surprise that this is what he's the most comfortable with. In any video games, he predominantly uses a knife or sword. Don't ask how he's gotten through Resident Evil; let's just say he had to face a lot of corpses up close.
On bird talons:
Thankfully Zephyren has never been attacked by a bird, but from what he's read, talons can be really sharp. They have to grip onto things after all, even if it means they'd puncture their target.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with knives and daggers.
+2 dice to all rolls with knives and daggers. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using knives and daggers.
You also gain the following effects:
The ninja is a master of a wide variety of martial weapons. They kill quickly and quietly.
You gain the following benefits as long as you are engaged in combat with melee ninja weapons.
+2 dice to all rolls with melee ninja weapons. You may Defend against firearm attacks from any range using melee ninja weapons.
You also gain the following effects: