Humanity is a measure of how closely a vampire clings to the morality and values of mortal life, and consequently how well they are able to resist the urges of the Beast.
Since every Kindred was a human before their Embrace, their most natural response in resisting the Beast's feral, predatory nature is to cling to their humanity. This is generally represented by the strength of their Conscience and Self-Control, virtues common to Kindred and mortals alike.
A Kindred's humanity has a direct effect on the strength of the vampiric curse; those who lose ground to the Beast and lose their humanity find it more difficult to interact with mortals, to be active during daylight hours, and to awaken from long periods of torpor.
Humanity is universally adopted by the vampires of the Camarilla, but even among the Sabbat it is the "natural" and most common way of dealing with the Beast. Some vampires however reject the mores of mortal existence and adopt an alien Path of Enlightenment, in which they learn or construct a wholly different standard of morality. These often incorporate different virtues – conviction instead of conscience, and instinct instead of self-control – and establish a very different relationship with the Beast. Replacing the morality of one's human life is a daunting task, not to be taken lightly, and generally impossible without the support of one who already follows the alternate path.
The practice of assuming a Path of Enlightenment was much more common in the Dark Medieval, when every vampire had to choose a "Road", a quasi-religious path to harmony with or control over the Beast. Humanity was one of these Roads, known then as the Via Humanitatis ("Road of Humanity"). Though less common than today, the Road of Humanity was still the most natural Road to follow.
A vampire's Humanity rating reflects how much of a character’s mortal nature remains despite the curse of Caine. It influences how well a character may deny her vampiric state, as well as how effectively she may pass for mortal.
Rating
Moral Standards
10: Saintly: You have blush of life active at all times.
9: Compassionate: Blush of life last a 3 full nights.
8: Caring: Blush of life last 1 full night.
7: Normal: Blush of life last 5 hours.
6: Distant: Blush of lift cost 2 blood and last 5 hours.
5: Removed: Blush of life cost 2 blood and last 2 hours.
4: Unfeeling: Blush of life cost 3 blood and last an hour.
3: Cold: You can not use blush of life.
2: Bestial: You no longer pass as human very easy, You look more monstrous.
1: Horrific: You no longer pass as human, and your fangs can no longer be retracted.
0: Wight: The beast has won, you no longer have any control.
Rating Moral Guideline.
The following are acts that will call for a humanity roll. Roll Conscience dc your humanity, A success you fell bad for what you did but louse no humanity, A failure you have no remorse for what you did and louse a humanity. A Botch you revel in what you did and louse two humanity.
10 Selfish thoughts.
9 Minor selfish acts.
8 Injury to another (accidental or otherwise).
7 Theft.
6 Accidental violation (drinking a vessel dry out of starvation).
5 Intentional property damage.
4 Impassioned violation (manslaughter, killing a vessel in Frenzy).
3 Planned violation (outright murder, savored exsanguination).
2 Casual violation (thoughtless killing, feeding past satiation).
1 Utter perversion or heinous acts.
A Humanity of 0 indicates no moral values. Such a creature only knows to sleep, feed, and kill. The vampire becomes a wight.
Vampires who enter torpor due to wounds must rest for a period depending on their Humanity or Path rating:
Rating
Length of Torpor
10, One day
9, Three days
8, One week
7, Two weeks
6, One month
5, One year
4, One decade
3, Five decades
2, One century
1, Five centuries
0, Millennium or more
Following this period of rest, the player may spend a blood point and make an attempt to Awakening. If the vampire has no blood in his body, he may not rise until he is fed; the vampire may try to awaken for as long as he has vitae on his system. If the vampire rises successfully, he is considered Crippled and should either spend blood or hunt immediately to regain his full strength.
Another can attempt to awaken the vampire early, the wounds must be healed first, and blood must be fed to them. It is up to the story teller if it works and what else may have to be done.