The World of Darkness is a term used by White Wolf to describe the setting for their Storyteller rules system. The setting encompasses source material for Vampire, Werewolf, Mage, Wraith, Changeling, Mummy, and Highlander.
See the relevant games descriptions.
Lots. Theoretically you could buy any sourcebook for one system, and use it as material for another, within the Storyteller range. Obviously though, they are more use when played with the game they were intended for.
White Wolf have put a truly massive amount of effort into describing the world as we might know it. They have taken historical events, religeous doctrines, and folk legends, blending them together to form a plausible world history, with powerful figures in the background working towards sometimes obscure personal objectives, and orchestrating sometimes long-term plots.
Atmosphere is everything to these guys. The words "gothic-punk" are often used to describe it. Everything has a sinister undertone. There's a little more smog out there, there are a few more government conspiracies, and even the over-60s knitting circle has a deformed mutant chained up in the cellar. Watch The Crow, Batman, or assorted Manga for more of an idea.
The trick here is knowing when to stop buying White Wolf products, and start using your brain a bit. It's all too easy to be drawn into their World of Darkness completely, buying lots of sourcebooks, and waiting avidly for the next wonderful revelation. The plain fact, however, is that you don't really need any of it. Don't use these sourcebooks as a substitute for your own imagination. Buy some, by all means - they're generally worth the money, but they're best used as idea-fodder, rather than taking them literally. Besides, you don't want your players going out and reading up on all the darkest secrets of your campaign world, do you?
B.J.Zanzibar's
World of Darkness" - Stuff on all the main World of Darkness
systems.
Southern UK Masquerade
- Mainly live-action stuff for Vampire, but also including a World of Darkness
timeline.
The Outlanders
Homepage - add-ons for the World of Darkness. Now sadly for Netscape 2 only.
Lori's World of Darkness
corner - Mainly Vampire stuff.
The Faln - a gothic world of fallen
angels. Not strictly World of Darkness, but may provide ideas.
Storyteller FTP site
- Possibly worth rooting around in.
Crossover FAQ -
Questions concerning what to do when using characters from more than one game system.
White Wolf's web site - The company's own web site. Parts of
it are still "under construction" at the moment, but it's worth keeping an eye on for the
forthcomming developments, and a comprehensive product listing. Lousy colour scheme though.
The Great Minds Project - A significant
collection of source material, including campaign timelines, sample NPCs, and descriptions of
various World of Darkness cities, in various time periods.
WolfMail - This is the official email contact at White Wolf.
Contact the author of this page: Daemonic