#clanbook: nosferatu

[st-guliks-fnord]

Clanbook: Nosferatu is hilarious

[gorbalsvampire]

Hey so obviously the clanbooks help flesh out the clans, but which clans do you think benefit the most from their clanbooks? Not necessarily powers, but the flavor. The details.

So this one took me a while, because I had to go back and look at the Revised edition clanbooks and refresh my memory on them. I'm mostly a Revised goblin, although Cappadocians never had a Revised clanbook so I dipped my toes into second there.

Also, for a Clanbook to be good, it has to be helpful in playing the clan, and more interested in that than delivering metaplot. This is why Clanbook Giovanni, though dear to my heart, is Not A Good One, because it's so mired up in shuttering Wraith: the Oblivion and the associated plot events. This is why Clanbook Cappadocian is bad, because it is shot through with "here to go" foreshadowing of the clan's downfall and doesn't do enough on establishing what they did in Cainite society at the height of their power.

Brujah: almost no mechanics, almost all history and perspectives. The Brujah suffer from an identity crisis - rootless between the classical era and the twentieth century, their history really feels like the history of the Anarch tendency, and their customs the heart of the movement as it is tonight. But for sheer detail - giving itself the breathing room to talk about how the Brujah work within their sects and contexts - I think this is one of the good ones despite its lack of substance. Telling that Justin wrote it.

Gangrel: this one locks arms with the Ravnos and walks down history together, embedding two underdeveloped clans in each other. The Gangrel come off better, because they're not starting from "[insert slur here] vampires" as a concept, and because the narrative voice of their book is curious and intelligent and refuses to take anything at face value. The core concept of the Gangrel is "Wolverine with fangs" - I'm being reductive, but "brooding animalistic outsider, bad team player, best there is at snikting all the bubs" - the point is that dragging Gangrel into a coterie with anyone else and making them functional involves dragging them away from what their "clan culture" is all about.

Weirdly, I think this Clanbook does more for the Sabbat Gangrel, simply by running through the Paths and showing how the Gangrel can integrate with them. Bloodlines are mostly stupid, mechanical impact for animal flaws reifies the clan curse in a good way (kinda similar to the contemporary Malkavians). There's a lot here but none of it makes me want to play a Gangrel, for some reason. I suspect it's that the core fantasy isn't really one that interests me, and if I'm going to play that hard against type, I'd rather start from a different base altogether.

Lasombra: the throughline of Lasombra history delivered through a series of in-character lectures is a neat device, foregrounding the contradictions better than usual. Likewise, the detailed depiction of Lasombra Embrace and education protocol and internal factions builds explicitly and confidently on the corebook's limited vision and their role within the Sabbat. The dot by dot breakdown on Obtenebration teaches you how to play one systemically and how to ST around this overtly supernatural Discipline and more of the books need to do that. One of the better suites of premade characters, too (and the Student of the Abyss is a dead ringer for my first girlfriend). It's been a long time but I think this is the book that made me like the Lasombra as a clan rather than a power set and story function.

Also:

Sabbat are not wholly their own masters. No vampire stands altogether free to choose his behavior, thanks to the Beast and the fundamental requirements of vampiric survival. The Sabbat makes matters worse with its beliefs and practices, which repeatedly push participants into acts that erode conscience (and Conscience). When you play a Sabbat vampire, you take on a distinct set of challenges. It’s not necessarily more “adult” or “sophisticated” than any other sort of vampire, nor is it automatically more “juvenile” or “indulgent.” Sabbat exist within tighter boundaries than most independent or Camarilla vampires. Not everything you’d like to have your character do, or that he would plausibly want to do, is actually within reach.

Because some of us really do need telling.

Malkavian: for sheer style, for refuting the kookiness and fae nonsense and artsy layout of the second edition volume, for actually being substantively useful in playing the clan, this one makes the grade. Has one of the best metaplot beats with the antitribu's grand justification for mass Embrace and thinning the blood. New Derangements, better than the ones in the core book if I'm honest, especially the specifically vampiric ones that move away from "playing something straight out of the DSM."

I'm going to mention powers again here though - I wish the Revised devs had caught on to the idea of alternative powers at lower level, as some of this stuff (like Babble) shouldn't have "be seventh generation, i.e. not a starting PC, i.e. probably having done a diablerie to 'level up'" as their prerequisite. Weakest part. Also, I love the Moirai. Favourite brood. Probably sold me on my love of brood coteries.

Nosferatu: I like that a Nosferatu calls out Kindred history on its Eurocentrism! And much like the Gangrel, this book gives you some hooks to hang your clan weakness on - Merits and Flaws that reify aspects of the Nosferatu aesthetic. I don't think these are all necessary, but they are cool. A similar breakdown of Discipline usage to the Lasombra, again showing and telling how to Nosferatu as well as what is Nosferatu. That's the distinction with the good Clanbooks, I think - they remain focused on playability and using these ideas rather than just telling you about cool shit. I want to play a Nosferatu after I've read this book.

Dishonourable mention: Tremere. The Tremere Clanbook doubles down on a central bugaboo with the clan - if their hierarchy is sevens and sevens and sevens all the way down, your city should be crawling with Tremere. To have all these internal agendas and subfactions represented in a meaningful way - same. I'm aware of Grician bias, I hate the 1:100,000 "rule" with the force and fire of a thousand suns, but this book really needed to show you how one or two isolated Tremere work and it fails to deliver.

Tzimisce: I don't like how overcooked this clan is, with its Koldunic Sorcery and its Old Clan and its revenant families and its two different versions of "your signature discipline is a disease" that are both high concept shit far removed from Playing Your Lil' Guy - but that material undeniably exists and if you want to refer to it... well, isn't half of it in the Sabbat guide? I don't know where I stand on this one, but Tzimisce fans generally want as much as possible to chew on and there's More In Here.

Ventrue: Much like the Brujah and the anarchs, a lot of what the Ventrue have going on under the hood can be read "as above, so below" with the Camarilla as a sect. To know one is to half understand the other. The Ventrue codify the unwritten social rules of their sect, or rather their sect unknowingly imitates the code that organises the Ventrue.

The difference, as ever, is that the conservative and hierarchical side of the coin is much easier to detail than "imagine your way out of authoritarianism", and as such Clanbook: Ventrue has a great deal more direct, didactic, actionable material in it than the broad and vague concepts of the Rabble. Titles, organisation, spheres of influence, clear lines through the medieval to the corporate: read this one.

There is more to the Ventrue than you ever imagined - so much that they almost fall into the same hole as the Tremere do, but they don't have the hard number for the brain to latch onto and worry at. Even now, I'm describing this very good and self contained Clanbook by comparison to its peers - that's how the Ventrue get away with it.

I'm not just saying this to blow smoke up @biomechanicaltomato's ass, either. It's genuinely one of the best books; I think only Lasombra and perhaps Gangrel and Nosferatu are on the same level, and in very different ways.

[faneth]

[queerasfact]

This week we're talking queerness in TTRPGs! In 1993, Clanbook: Nosferatu, a supplement for the roleplay game Vampire: The Masquerade included this guy, "The Equalizer", a canonically gay vampire who has devoted his 'life' to protecting the oppressed members of society.

Learn more

[chiss-ticism]

Have I ever mentioned how smitten I am with the dichotomy between Saulot "I stayed by Caine's side until the the very end" and [Ventrue] "Caine's chosen grandchilder, advisor and enforcer of his will"? Because there had to be some overlap there. Even if there aren't any (as far as I know) explicit references to them being friends, (other than the fact [Lasombra], Set, [Tzimisce], and Nosferatu were the only named Antediluvians that disliked him on a personal level in Clanbook: Ventrue) they at the very least had to be mildly acquainted with one another you know?

For a long while, [Ventrue] served at Caine’s side, helping him rule over Kindred and kine in the gilded First City. As befit their baser natures, the others of the Third Generation grew jealous of [Ventrue] and his position, particularly the over-ambitious and cunning [Lasombra]. The dark one (as Caine himself called him then) could not abide even theoretical subservience to one such as [Ventrue]. Others resented [Ventrue’s]position as well: the foreign Set, the occult [Tzimisce], the vain [Nosferatu]. For the most part, though, the remaining founders respected [Ventrue] and Caine’s decision to elevate him above the rest. After all, no one disputed Caine’s wisdom openly in those nights. - Clanbook: Ventrue, p. 12.

Of his most loyal Grandchilder, they had to have had some kind of connection - even if it wasn't anywhere nearly as strong as the Saulot/Malkav/Set triumvirate was. One sought to serve Caine and his descendants by looking outward and one, per the Dark Father's personal request, sought to serve by protecting what was within.

Maybe. Maybe they just didn't have all that much in common, now that I think about it. For Saulot, the choice to stand by the Dark Father was just that - a choice. When he was ready to up-and-leave, he was free to do so.

But there had to be an immense amount of pressure for [Ventrue] to simply buckle up his Jesus sandals and Do What He Had To Do for his brothers and sisters because his Grandsire chose him specifically to aid him in such an arduous task. How is one supposed to say no to that? To balk at such an opportunity? Caine's aged wisdom was, at the time, undisputed and he was allegedly very good at the job hefted upon him. Who was he to go against that? Do you think that Ventrue lamented Saulot's wandering? The fact that he had that choice? That he was left to guide his wayward siblings alone? Did he not care and shouldered the burden on his lonesome?

[bloodpotency]

I'm going to rank my favourite 5E clans and explain why under this cut

1. Tzimisce

Simply excellent all around. Interesting powers, interesting clan history, fun social-political dynamics to explore and a debilitating enough clan bane to come up with ways it might affect a person psychologically over time. A lot of my tzimisce characters explore the idea of "home" and belonging as well as the horrifying nature of having your brain rot from the inside not just from the beast but from even more innocuous toxic thought patterns like claiming ownership of friends. It must be so challenging to be a tzimisce and remain human, which is wonderful for storytelling and character studies. My only regret with this clan as a DM is that I'm committed to them seeming rare in my setting so there aren't many characters I can write.

2. Ventrue

They are, imo, the funniest clan. All I need to do is show you LaCroix and you understand. Though I can understand also why people think they are annoying for the reasons I find them hilarious. Let me pitch you this: my beloved Ventrue OC, Thomas, is a loser tech bro boyfailure who is entitled to everything and is regularly punished. He was sired illegally, swept under the rug and forced to associate with anarchs cuz no one else will take him. I never understood the beauty of misfortune comedy before I was introduced to Ventrue. It's all about the narrative framing.

3. Lasombra

Similar to Ventrue (obviously) but they have sexy evil Eldritch darkness powers. What's not to love. I recently read through the clanbook in its entirety with my partner and the way they are all so comically villain-like in how they conduct clan business it rivals the Tremere clan. I love their drama and their aesthetic. Their only ding is that you have to ignore a lot of awkwardly handled racism (to show how evil they are!) from the canon leader characters. I'll have to read Chicago by night soon and hope it handles it fine.

4. Nosferatu

You can't go wrong with a bunch of fucked up looking monster dudes. Nosferatu get a ton of points for how creative you can be with their character design, similar to tzimisce. I also really love how they are probably among the least-toxic clans to be a part of, so it's just as easy to write wholesome character dynamics as it is to write messed up ones. As a DM, they are also great utility characters that can write you out of a lot of corners. Need information? They literally just collect it for fun and profit. It's free world building and plot hook real estate.

5. Malkavian

Now listen... I know Malkavians have the obvious drawback of being frequently portrayed as mean-spirited caricatures of mentally ill people. However... If you are mentally ill yourself, writing one that is a respectful exploration of your struggles is really cathartic. Beyond that, though, my favorite part of the Malkavian experience is the cosmic horror element. I love how their antideluvian is some unknowable incorporeal being that connects all of them. I love unknowable mind breaking horror! And I love their utility as well. If your player is a Malkavian attuned to the cobweb, you can just speak to them as the Storyteller for free basically. It's great fun.

6. Tremere

Wizards.

...

Clan lore is good too. The rigid structure of the clan is good for making a world with a Chantry nearby feel larger and more powerful. Also I guess it's pretty fun that they can do real magic.

7. Toreador

They're kinda mid to me. I don't dislike them but a lot of what makes them unique in WOD is just normal typical vampire fluff in other media. They're seductive, romantic, artistic, yeah whatever. These things gotta be subverted or executed flawlessly for me to be invested so Toreador neither wins nor loses. It doesn't help that their 2/3 of their 5E disciplines are ones I find kinda boring in practice (Celerity, Auspex).

8. Hecata

Carried almost entirely by how funny I find the Giovanni clan, stands low-mid tier Hecata clan. It's sad how much this clan/clans got butchered in 5E. It suffers most clearly from WOD's desire to not "retcon" things in Vampire. Clan lore is non-existent because they tried to just mash a bunch of clans together and pretend like it makes sense and created what sounds like the most boring traits of all of them to be the default. Points for potential, and the ability to carry on playing as if you are simply one of the original clans that made up this one.

9. Gangrel

Even though by all means I should be into Gangrel, they still end up being kinda mid for me. They fulfill a similar niche that either Tzimisce, Nosferatu or actual werewolves could fill just as easily. There's nothing wrong with them, the things I see in them are just done better by other clans in my opinion. They become forgettable to me and I'm gonna have to will myself to make some more cuz it would make sense for my home game!

10. The Ministry

I think they could be very interesting. I think it's silly and goofy that one of their clan traits is "wants to make you evil", that's good for comedy. And the vibe they have is good. I love a good cult, I love snakes... But I don't know if I find the whole Followers of Set thing to be compelling unless I missed some lore about how Set has adapted in the modern world. Maybe it could be cool if Set was the Wyrm or whatever. The Ministry is good for plot devices but I don't know how interesting they are as characters otherwise.

11. Brujah

I admit I'm biased on this one. I think it's kinda sad that in "modern" day, the time period most vtm games are run, Brujah are just stock angry countercultural guys. They're set up to be protagonists of a story against corrupt leaders and...nothing else. The clan doesn't give you much to work with. Strong fast and sexy guys with their three disciplines and basically zero clan structure (I miss VTM Redemption philosopher Brujah) does aesthetic). Every good Brujah character is good because of their writing and gets no shortcuts from being Brujah.

12. Ravnos

The last two clans get like. Negative points for the racism baggage they were born with all the way back in the earlier editions. I think Ravnos has a bit more interesting clan lore (what with their antediluvian wiping them out in recent-ish canon memory) but it takes a lot of conscious effort to make a character that isn't an uncomfortable appropriation of nomadic culture stereotypes.

13. Banu Haqim

It's difficult to ignore how their clan bane used to be THAT... And the whole fact that their clan lore, to this day in 5E continues to struggle to untangle itself from islamic extremist stereotyping. Saying "oh the extremists are just the evil faction of this clan now!" doesn't really cut the level of how bad and uncomfortable and disrespectful this clan was. I am not equipped to write a character of this clan that does not exist entirely separate from its lore. You get no favors from Banu Haqim.

My thoughts on caitiff and thin bloods are separate, and I can't really put them on a numbered list due to how they feel like separate entities entirely in vampire. Might make a separate post?

Thanks for reading! Remember all the above content is just my opinion and I am a DM who makes ocs, I haven't actually been a player in this game as of me writing this. I'm sure it shows lol

[gnarledbite]

// I'm back~ 8 days is... a bit too long, I'm ready to he home, but it was fun!

Also got plenty of reading done, 4 books including the Nosferatu clanbook ♡ (and with that came plenty of headcanon material)

[salubri-apologist]

Could you post the nosferatu section of the salubri clanbook? I'm curious as to what it says ':3c

Absolutely!

Cw: describes them as lepers

[creativebiter]

TW: Firearms

The Acteius bloodline from NMD's Better Feared: Nosferatu clanbook is so freaking cool, I'm gonna make a character who plugs an IV into her arm to 3D print ghost guns with her vitae.

[world-within-eyes]

Some kind of Nosferatu moodboard. It was inspired by Scandal section in the clanbook, but happened to be more general

[lightflayer]

the nosferatu clanbook is so cute idk i think nossies rule (certified CofD post)

[dykeferatu]

i fucking-

[malkavian-suggest]

This isn’t a suggestion but you all must embrace the madness and know that Rasputin lives and he is Malkavian and he serves the nosferatu Baba Yaga.

[faneth]

bites into your arm (very painfully) and explains with full mouth (of your arm) the entire lore of the clan nosferatu in vtm

[its-sixxers]

Get to Know Me Meme

tagged for 2 different variations on this meme so stickin ‘em in one post! :) not taggin anyone specifically (totally against the rules of the meme but u know what im a rebel) but if u wanna do thing do it

first one i was tagged by @spiffingtea

Name: Tara!

Gender: Female

Height: 5'7″

Sexuality: Bi

Favorite animal: Rabbits. I love ‘em. Plan to get one tattoo’d on me one day.

Dogs or Cats:  Por que no los dos?

Current time: Noon.

Dream job: Art Director

When I made this blog: January 2020, just before shit hit the fan.

Why I made this blog: I finally said fuck it I’m getting back into fandom and just shamelessly embracing my cringier side. It’s been nice and real good for my mental health, honestly.

Reason for URL: Variations on ‘Six” have been my online handle since like 2012 and at this point I cannot stop

Followers: A little over 1k rn, I need to organize a giveaway for it at some point. >>

second one I was tagged by @bigmoodquotes!

Last Song: Burial Society by Have A Nice Life

Last Movie: Interview with the Vampire, I think!

Currently Watching: Binging through What We Do in the Shadows again.

Currently Reading: Working through VTM’s Guide to the Anarchs sourcebook and also the Nosferatu clanbook. :D (its vampire season ok)

Currently Craving: Pickled beets. Don’t ask me why.

[hd-cookie]

For various reasons, last night I read the entire Salubri Clanbook and have been looking through the clan relation sections of the V20: The Dark Ages.

I think creating a Healer Salubri in a partnership with someone from another clan would be interesting. Like with Nosferatu, who would be able to hide the Salubri and get wind of Tremere presence with their information network. Or perhaps a cast out Tremere, and the two use one another as a means to an ends with irony. Or maybe a protective Brujah who is indebted to the Salubri after they saved their life? And I can’t help but think how these would translate into modern-day as well...

Overall, it’s Vampire OC hours.