White Wolf Online

TFV - Enemies and Factions
Preview for Hunter: The Vigil
Posted: 2008-07-25

TFV has a firmly-set procedure for dealing with most ENEs: report, observe, assess, report again, neutralize or call for back-up.

Having said that, few agents stick closely to procedure when in the field. A snarling shapeshifting beast who's just realized he's being observed isn't going to wait until the agents have assessed, reported, and taken action. TFV's strict cell-based structure might technically require approval up the chain of command before breaking out the Advanced Armory, but often agents are blasé about exploiting the seemingly limitless budget. Having said that, agents who get too blasé have been known to end up in an offshore prison facility, wearing an orange jumpsuit and not knowing their own names.

TFV possesses big guns, but has to balance their use of astonishing gear with the knowledge that they can't allow the public to know they exist, let alone the other conspiracies out there.

Hunters
You investigated suspicious packages for the US Postal Service. After a while, packages started coming your way that defied explanation. You kept your head, went above your superiors' heads and when the monsters came, got out alive. The next thing you knew, you'd been recruited by TFV. The SWAT gear’s heavy, but it works. The gun isn’t a gun at all, it… makes this sound. You’re in deep. Holy shit.

You're a veteran of Special Forces. One time in Kabul, you saw things that they frankly hadn't trained you for. You dealt with it, though, and kept the details from your CO. Somehow, TFV knew about it, though. You were back in the US within a week and working in the field in the mainland US in a black suit and tie. It’s good to be home.

You worked for the EPA, investigating health risks. You found some truly bizarre substances out there (like the greasy mold that grew in strange mandalas), all weird enough for TFV to give you a job, just so you could sign the piece of paper that said you weren't going to tell.

You were an agent of the FBI. And you knew all about UFOs. You didn't stick your nose in too much — not like that idiot in your office with his “the truth is out there” bullshit — but you kept a secret file. One day, it got deleted from your computer. The next day, you'd been transferred.

Departments
TFV divides itself into special units and departments, many of whom work closely in the field with ordinary agents. Although departments such as Containment and R&D have essentially closed membership (which beggars the question: how do they recruit?) field agents can apply to join any of the following:

Project TWILIGHT concerns itself with the doings of ENEs classified as P (Para-human) and S (social), the ones who are near-human or post-human and who seem to operate in covens, cults, conspiracies or other underground societies. They're mostly field agents. They recognize that taking down one SP/ENE won't necessarily resolve the threat posed by their respective conspiracies, and dedicate themselves to information gathering and more circumspect activities. Some go deep cover.

Agents attached to Operation FORT dedicate themselves to understanding extra-terrestrial and extra-dimensional phenomena. They're interested in aliens, but they also investigate fairies, demons, ghosts and alien entities which evidently hail from some other-dimensional source. They're the least scientific of TFV's agents, drawing a lot of their methodology from folklore and religion. They're often nearly as cranky as the civilians who bang on about conspiracies.

Operation ADAMSKI gets its name from a notorious hoaxer who convinced many that he was in regular contact with beings from Venus. ADAMSKI operatives work in the field, and it's their job to hide the existence of ENEs by disseminating disinformation among people who are, frankly, cranks. They distribute crudely faked photographs and footage of alien autopsies and UFO sightings to people whom they know will spread these stories around as gospel.

Status
Status in VALKYRIE is an odd, uncertain thing, just like it is in any other government organization. Nepotism and convenience play just as much a part in advancement through the ranks as merit.

• As a new recruit, you now have a small chip implanted in your shoulder or thigh enabling you to operate VALKYRIE's hypertech arsenal. You don't get access to the best equipment and backup, you don't get told why you're doing what you're doing, and you seem to get the worst jobs. Still, you have the option of spending Merit dots on TFV's Advanced Armory.

••• You've worked your way up through the ranks, either through efficiency or through simply having the right friends in the organization. You can call for a small amount of back-up for a difficult job, equivalent to two dots in Allies (TFV Backup). You need to show results for it. Status can go down as well as up.

••••• You're probably too valuable to go into the field much these days, but when you do, you get the best kit, the best vehicles and the best back-up. You can call on important government agencies if you get into trouble, equivalent to three dots of Contacts, each assigned to one federal agency. Also, you know who shot JFK, and who was really in that car with Diana and Dodi.