The Guide to the Bloodlines Version 1.0 Revised 12-18-02 A Net Sourcebook for / Compiled By Reverend John “Zanziber” Rogers [email protected] fghop¹ja.ëìq¤ Legal Stuff This book is an entirely unofficial use of the Vampire: The Masquerade and A World of Darkness gaming materials published by White Wolf Game Studios and not intended as an official or profit making venture in any way, shape or form. Although the use of these concepts, rules, etc., is unauthorized, no infringement is intended. This book is not affiliated with White Wolf Games Studios in any way and should not be viewed as such. This book is freely available for viewing and personal use, but are, under no circumstances whatsoever, to be sold for profit. Guide to the Bloodlines 1 Credits and Thanks Sanguinus Curae – For the use of their message forums as the primary headquarters for this project. Mant’s Lair – For the wonderful character sheets and much of the material they have on their server that’s included within. Lady Mox’s WoD Graphics – For the font’s and many of the pictures found in this book. B.J. Zanzibar’s World of Darkness – For many of the Bloodline books and material, as well as being one of the best sources for information on the World of Darkness on the web. We will miss you, Abe. Brom – For painting the cover that provides us with a look at the Red Death. Every author who helped make this book everything it is and can be. Guide to the Bloodlines 2 Introduction I wanted to provide the most complete source for information on the various different Bloodlines within the World of Darkness. I have also added sections on both the Caitiff and Panders, as they are easily classified as Bloodlines as well. This book is not an original piece of work. It is the compilation of many resources posted all over the Internet. I have done editing where it has been needed, but the articles contained within are still the sole property of their original authors. There is also some material I have found on the Internet that may have been taken directly from various WW books. The materials I was able to clearly define as from a WW book is labeled as such. I do not intend to infringe on any copyrights that White Wolf holds on the World of Darkness or Vampire: The Masquerade. There are several “dead” or “dying” Bloodlines contained within. I provide these for the Storyteller’s out there who wish to include them into their stories. Perhaps in you chronicle the Children of Osiris are still Kindred fighting against the Followers of Set. Perhaps the Niktuku are a bigger threat than just a scant handful. Maybe the Blood Brothers are prospering through the rituals of the Tzimisce since the deaths of the Tremere antitribu. [Scary thought, isn’t it?] Guide to the Bloodlines 3 Table of Contents Foreword Page 5 Ahrimanes Page 7 Baali Page 15 Blood Brothers Page 35 Children of Osiris Page 38 Daughters of Cacophony Page 42 Gargoyles Page 51 Harbingers of Skulls Page 61 Kiasyd Page 64 Nagaraja Page 74 Salubri / Salubri antitribu Page 80 / 81 Samedi Page 100 True Brujah Page 119 Caitiff Page 120 Panders Page 124 Niktuku Page 126 Children of the Dreadful Night Page 130 Abominations Page 131 Disciplines of the Bloodlines Page 135 Guide to the Bloodlines 4 Foreword Bloodlines of the Final Nights Independent Bloodlines Several bloodlines swear allegiance to no sect, preferring to fence-sit or pursue private affairs away from the treachery of the Kindred population at large. The Samedi and the Daughters of Cacophony are the most truly neutral of these groups; both have members who claim allegiance to the Camarilla or the Sabbat, but no majority commitment has been made in either direction, The Gargoyles are nominally independent as well, though a proportionally greater number of these grotesque creatures serve the Camarilla, either through blood bonds or on their own terms. The Salubri, either pitiful remnants of a once-great clan or soul-stealing abominations according to one’s viewpoint, eke out a pathetic existence in the cracks of Kindred society, although one Salubri brood has claimed a significant population boom after joining the Sabbat sometime in the past decade. Several other clan-based bloodlines hold their independence. The most prominent of these, as bloodline prominence goes, are the so- called True Brujah, some inscrutable line of Tzimisce and the aquatic Gangrel subset known as the Mariners. These lines have always held themselves apart from sect affiliation, regardless of their parent clans’ allegiances. One final bloodline worth mentioning is the Baali. Though no longer as prominent as they may have been in ages past, this dedicated family of infernalists still creeps through the shadows of the Kindred world. Their exact numbers and agendas are unknown, but the few Kindred who know of them assume them to be continually undermining Cainite and mortal society alike in unending service to their dark masters. Camarilla Bloodlines In an odd turn of events for a sect that claims to represent all Kindred, few bloodlines claim Camarilla allegiance. The only one of any note is the Lasombra antitribu, who see the Camarilla as their best source of allies and support in their eternal vendetta against their parent clan. Persistent rumors imply that a sizeable faction of one of the independent clans has petitioned the Inner Circle for Camarilla membership, but none can say with any certainty which of the sectless this is. Speculation implies the Giovanni or the Ravnos, while the gossip of undead tongues suggests the Assamites or even a rogue cult of Setites. Sabbat Bloodlines If one includes the political bloodlines in the equation, more distinct non-clan lines claim Sabbat membership than hold to any other allegiance (or lack thereof). The Assamites, Brujah, Gangrel, Malkavians, Nosferatu, Ravnos, Salubri, Setites (in the form of the Serpents of the Light), Toreador and Ventrue all have antitribu bloodlines within the Sabbat, though the majority of these differ more in outlook than in sanguine manifestations. The freakish Blood Brothers, the malevolent Harbingers of Skulls and the enigmatic Kiasyd all claim Sabbat allegiance as well, though this is a matter of creator-designed loyalty in the former case and convenience in the latter two. Extinguished Lines The Final Nights have been no kinder to the lesser lines than they have to the great clans. At least three bloodlines have vanished from the face of the earth in the past few years, and every Cainite who knows of their disappearance wonders who will fall next. The Ahrimanes were an Appalachian-based Gangrel offshoot composed entirely of female mystics and warriors. They were nominally loyal to the Sabbat, but only due to political legacies. This line originated with a rebellious Gangrel antitribu who attempted to break her Vinculum with Native American shamanic rituals. Her efforts succeeded partially, destroying her bonds of loyalty but leaving her with infertile vitae and a predilection for contact with the spirit world (Auspex) in place of her former resilience (Fortitude). She retreated to the wilderness to assess the changes she had wrought upon herself. Through painful experiments, she managed to refine the process she had used to free herself, and like-minded female Gangrel began to join her in self-imposed exile. The Ahrimanes were never a numerous line, both because of their progenitor’s elite feminist attitudes and because the ritual of “freedom” rendered them unable to Embrace. Gangrel antitribu in the Appalachian area respected the domains of the Ahrimanes out of convenience until mid- 1998. Sometime during that summer, the bloodline simply disappeared; a nomadic pack investigating the sudden silence found the Ahrimanes’ West Virginia enclave deserted. Since then, no member of the bloodline has been definitely identified as active in Sabbat territory, though occasional tales of their presence arise in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida. Late in the 18th century, a small band of Tremere, led by the elder Goratrix, defected to the Sabbat, establishing a chantry in the Sabbat-held catacombs beneath Mexico City. They became known as the Tremere antitribu, though they always referred to themselves as House Goratrix. For nearly three centuries, the Tremere antitribu were the Sabbat’s foremost thaumaturges, creating unholy creatures such as the Blood Brothers and martial paths of unprecedented power. Unfortunately for House Goratrix, something (just what that “something” might have been is still a matter of speculation) went horribly wrong one night. No eyewitnesses to the actual event have come forward as of yet, but evidence suggests that the Tremere antitribu, while meeting in their central chantry for an Guide to the Bloodlines 5 annual auctoritas ritus, were immolated en masse by a conflagration so sudden that they were unable to so much as move before the flames consumed them. Tzimisce forensic thaumaturges are still attempting to properly identify all of the remains found at the site, but preliminary evidence suggests that the entire bloodline was present and perished in the incident — with the exception of Goratrix, the head of the line. Scattered rumors persist that one or more lesser Tremere antitribu were out of the chantry on house business when the event occurred, but none have come forward understandably as of this night. The Nagaraja were an Indian bloodline of dubious origin and odious personal habits. They were relatively unknown outside their direct spheres of influence and never numbered more than several dozen. Their demise went largely unnoticed in the greater chaos surrounding them. In earlier nights, occasional rumors from Egypt spoke of a mysterious line known as the Followers of Osiris, Over the past decade, the Osirians’ opposition to the Setites allegedly grew into an outright war.