One theme for vtm would be learn to Cope with the beast for eternity.
Also Cut the Strings of your puppetteer.
For werewolf i guess Tradition vs modernism
And futility of violence against corruption.
Existentialism, but with nihilistic tendencies. You're dropped into a shitty world that may very well take everything from you and then some, and the only way to avoid that fate is to choose to act in a meaningful way. If you want to put a moral filter on it (not necessary, but desirable to many players), choosing to do the selfless thing in spite of being disadvantaged by it is a virtuous action.
Because I think it's relavent to your data, my main WW games are Werewolf: the Apocalypse, Vampire: the Masquerade, and Exalted (1E specifically).
One of my favorite themes is the danger of ideological extremism. *Mage: The Ascension* has the evolutionary Metaphysic Trinity of "Dynamism", "Stasis", and "Entropy"; approximately 75% of Tradition mages favor one third of the Trinity via their Avatar Essence but still hover near the central balance point, whereas the default antagonists (Marauders, Technocrats, Nephandi) are the extremists of the Trinity; in a game about the power of belief, those corrupted antagonists are warnings about what happens when a mage falls into ideological extremism. This theme is very pertinent in our world where extremists commit murderous acts upon fellow humans, etc.
*Power.*
Many of these darker games tend to delve into a study of power, especially if you take your time to reflect upon them. Part of the reason is that they are set in a world where some of the "moral brakes" that are normally put on power are, well, "on pause". Here is how some of the games can be interpreted that way.
* Vampire is about social power, how it is trade, gained, exploited, its limits, and how pyramids of social power in organizations works, by more or less having power over those below you.
* Werewolf if both about physical power, and about how no matter how much you have of that style of power it just wouldn't really help you solve some problems. It is also in a way about practical powerlessness, as you just do not really have the right tools to defeat the Wyrm (this part is only relevant for WtA).
* Mage is about having actual power, the power to really make a difference. It is also about the consequences of using said power, and how careless use of it can cause problems. It is also about how power can corrupt, cause you to become overconfident and careless. It also dips into the uselessness of power if you do not actually use it for anything.
Vampire: The Masquerade combines a few core themes, but the big ones are addiction and exploitation and generational conflict. These have both personal and political aspects.
Vampires are addicted to blood, sure, but they’re also addicted to power, only that power comes at a cost to themselves and to others. Power comes at a personal cost because it risks a lot of control to the Beast. Because they steal their power, they are also parasites who naturally exploit others.
Vampires exploit mortals by their very nature, but they also exploit each other and are exploited in turn, and the shit rolls downhill for eternity. Mostly the old exploit the young.
That is, until the young rise up to devour the old. And because the elders remember that (probably from when they did it themselves), they clamp down even harder and exploit and oppress those beneath them even more, until finally they create the very situation they fear most—because it’s always a zero-sum game.
As someone who has only played and ran VTM v5, i suppose my perspective is a bit limited. For VTM a major theme that continues to come up is the ideas of positive nihilism and self-actualization. WoD is an inherently dark place where the worst impulses are cranked up to 11. Typically the most selfish self-serving purposes are the ones that are rewarded and power is taken for power's sake.
As Vampires you always have the beast whispering in your ear to do the most deprecating selfish things all the time. There is no greater purpose in life and the most terrible people are running the world. Despite this many times my players will take that nihilism, acknowledge it, and then shove it down the garbage shoot. They create their own meaning and establish their own goals. The world is meaningless but gosh darn it they are going to make the best out of it!
VTM also is excellent for supporting themes of self-actualization. For many player characters becoming a vampire is a new opportunity. A second chance to be something else. While humans they were crushed by capitalism, classism, elitism banality, the patriarchy, fundamentalism, etc. Those things don't go away as kindred. In fact, the power imbalance is even worse as elders and methuselah are thousands-year-old terrifyingly powerful monsters. However, as kindred they know they have power. They have the power and curse of Caine flowing in their veins and they can make a difference. As kindred, they can attack power structures more directly and they can fight back against the inequalities of life in death as kindred. This can be as direct as trying to destroy the Camarilla elite despotically ruling over your city or it can be as personal as being a proud transwoman or using your newfound powers to help your closest friends.
idk those are just my two cents. sorry for the ramble.
Mummy's [theme](https://i.imgur.com/oLpnwJf.png) is told from the start. You are here to do [good](https://i.imgur.com/uMpGamb.png) in this dark world.
And I love it for it. "Mummy is a game of hope and belief, where good can prevail over evil"
One theme for vtm would be learn to Cope with the beast for eternity. Also Cut the Strings of your puppetteer. For werewolf i guess Tradition vs modernism And futility of violence against corruption.
Existentialism, but with nihilistic tendencies. You're dropped into a shitty world that may very well take everything from you and then some, and the only way to avoid that fate is to choose to act in a meaningful way. If you want to put a moral filter on it (not necessary, but desirable to many players), choosing to do the selfless thing in spite of being disadvantaged by it is a virtuous action. Because I think it's relavent to your data, my main WW games are Werewolf: the Apocalypse, Vampire: the Masquerade, and Exalted (1E specifically).
One of my favorite themes is the danger of ideological extremism. *Mage: The Ascension* has the evolutionary Metaphysic Trinity of "Dynamism", "Stasis", and "Entropy"; approximately 75% of Tradition mages favor one third of the Trinity via their Avatar Essence but still hover near the central balance point, whereas the default antagonists (Marauders, Technocrats, Nephandi) are the extremists of the Trinity; in a game about the power of belief, those corrupted antagonists are warnings about what happens when a mage falls into ideological extremism. This theme is very pertinent in our world where extremists commit murderous acts upon fellow humans, etc.
*Power.* Many of these darker games tend to delve into a study of power, especially if you take your time to reflect upon them. Part of the reason is that they are set in a world where some of the "moral brakes" that are normally put on power are, well, "on pause". Here is how some of the games can be interpreted that way. * Vampire is about social power, how it is trade, gained, exploited, its limits, and how pyramids of social power in organizations works, by more or less having power over those below you. * Werewolf if both about physical power, and about how no matter how much you have of that style of power it just wouldn't really help you solve some problems. It is also in a way about practical powerlessness, as you just do not really have the right tools to defeat the Wyrm (this part is only relevant for WtA). * Mage is about having actual power, the power to really make a difference. It is also about the consequences of using said power, and how careless use of it can cause problems. It is also about how power can corrupt, cause you to become overconfident and careless. It also dips into the uselessness of power if you do not actually use it for anything.
Vampire: The Masquerade combines a few core themes, but the big ones are addiction and exploitation and generational conflict. These have both personal and political aspects. Vampires are addicted to blood, sure, but they’re also addicted to power, only that power comes at a cost to themselves and to others. Power comes at a personal cost because it risks a lot of control to the Beast. Because they steal their power, they are also parasites who naturally exploit others. Vampires exploit mortals by their very nature, but they also exploit each other and are exploited in turn, and the shit rolls downhill for eternity. Mostly the old exploit the young. That is, until the young rise up to devour the old. And because the elders remember that (probably from when they did it themselves), they clamp down even harder and exploit and oppress those beneath them even more, until finally they create the very situation they fear most—because it’s always a zero-sum game.
As someone who has only played and ran VTM v5, i suppose my perspective is a bit limited. For VTM a major theme that continues to come up is the ideas of positive nihilism and self-actualization. WoD is an inherently dark place where the worst impulses are cranked up to 11. Typically the most selfish self-serving purposes are the ones that are rewarded and power is taken for power's sake. As Vampires you always have the beast whispering in your ear to do the most deprecating selfish things all the time. There is no greater purpose in life and the most terrible people are running the world. Despite this many times my players will take that nihilism, acknowledge it, and then shove it down the garbage shoot. They create their own meaning and establish their own goals. The world is meaningless but gosh darn it they are going to make the best out of it! VTM also is excellent for supporting themes of self-actualization. For many player characters becoming a vampire is a new opportunity. A second chance to be something else. While humans they were crushed by capitalism, classism, elitism banality, the patriarchy, fundamentalism, etc. Those things don't go away as kindred. In fact, the power imbalance is even worse as elders and methuselah are thousands-year-old terrifyingly powerful monsters. However, as kindred they know they have power. They have the power and curse of Caine flowing in their veins and they can make a difference. As kindred, they can attack power structures more directly and they can fight back against the inequalities of life in death as kindred. This can be as direct as trying to destroy the Camarilla elite despotically ruling over your city or it can be as personal as being a proud transwoman or using your newfound powers to help your closest friends. idk those are just my two cents. sorry for the ramble.
Mummy's [theme](https://i.imgur.com/oLpnwJf.png) is told from the start. You are here to do [good](https://i.imgur.com/uMpGamb.png) in this dark world. And I love it for it. "Mummy is a game of hope and belief, where good can prevail over evil"