Keeping your Retainer devoted is accomplished by payment, Dominate or Presence or by blood. If you choose to use your blood, thus creating a ghoul. Retainers and Ghouls are not characters used for roleplay. They are a servant or assistant for your vampire. A specialist to do actions your Character does not do.

Mechanically speaking, the Retainers background covers the number of Ghouls any given PC may have, to a total of 5, or, alternatively, they may invest multiple points in this background into one Ghoul, creating a far more impressive servant.

The rules for this are as follows:

• A Player Character must spend the first dot of the Retainers background on a Ghoul itself; whether this is animal or human is at the discretion of the PC.
• Any subsequent dots in the Retainers background may be used to do one of the following, they may either:
  • Invest another dot(s) of the background into an existing Ghoul (each additional dot invested will add 10 Freebie Points to that Ghoul).
    
  • Add an additional Ghoul to their retinue (at the normal cost of 1 dot).
    

Step One: Character Concept Choose concept, Nature, and Demeanor. Then, choose whether or not your character is an human retainer or ghoul.

Step Two: Select Attributes Prioritize the three categories: Physical, Social, Mental(6/4/3). Your character automatically has one dot in each Attribute.

Step Three: Select Abilities Prioritize the three categories: Talents, Skills, Knowledges (11/7/4).

Step Four: Select Advantages

• Backgrounds: 5 dots (Max 3 dots in any one Background. Max 10 dots into Freebies)
• Virtues: 5 dots (start with 1 dot in each)

If a ghoul:

• Disciplines: 1 dot Potence, 1 dot from Master's in-clan

Step Five: Finishing Touches

• Calculate and record Humanity. Add Conscience and Self-Control.
• Record Willpower, which is equal to Courage, and Blood Pool (only if a ghoul)
• Spend Freebie points (21).

Freebie Points
Attribute 5 per dot
Ability 2 per dot
Discipline 10 per dot
Background 1 per dot
Virtue 2 per dot
Humanity 1 per dot
Willpower 1 per dot

Contingencies
This all said, there is one very important thing to keep in mind when you are creating, and further running your Ghouls. All sheets must be submitted to the responsible Vampire STs, before any final posting to the Ghouls section of your PC Sheet.

Additionally, if it is discovered that you are abusing the Retainer rules as listed above, you will immediately lose access to all Ghouls you have acquired thus far, and will be prohibited from acquiring any new Retainers for a period of time that the Vampire STs see fit.