Vampire Clans: Blood is Thicker than Water

Written by James

A clan is your vampire character’s extended supernatural family, literally his or her bloodline. At the time your character is Embraced (the term Kindred use for their transformation from human to vampire), the Sire performs a type of blood transfusion, replacing your character’s blood with his or her own.

When this happens, your character is imbued with the traits of the Sire’s clan.

Limitations Within The Chronicle

Since each new Kindred is dependent on the Sire’s clan, you may be limited to the clan you can choose for any given chronicle or story. If the game is primarily Kindred, you’ll have a wider choice, but in a game such as Escaping Reality, the clan pickings are slim simply because there aren’t many Kindred in the story.

Sometimes, getting the right clan for your character is just a matter of discussing with Storytellers. Most can figure out a way to get you what you want. It’s as easy as throwing a hungry, irresponsible vampire from a nearby city into the game for a moment.

In most cases, though, the creation of Childer (a Sire’s offspring) is very serious business to vampires. If the local Prince finds out one was made without his permission, you can guarantee the Sire is toast and his Childer may be too. Of course, that makes for great plot and a wicked jump-start for your new vampire.

The Clans

Here are the five clans for Kindred:

Daeva: This clan is the most passionate of the bunch. They are the artists and musicians and stir the souls of their prey with hedonistic tendencies. Their nickname is Succubi, and with good reason. The Daeva are drawn to beauty, but this passion becomes hollow and meaningless as they age. Deep down inside, they feel nothing. In time, a Daeva comes to realize this passion is nothing but an illusion. All they know is this burning need and eventually this desire to feel leads them down a long dark path littered with depravity.

Gangrel: Humans may fear vampires, but even the Kindred have their fears and chief among them are the Gangrel. The Gangrel (or Savages as they are called among the Kindred) are closer to the wild, unforgiving Beast that lurks within every Kindred. They are the rebels and the hell raisers. They are the ones who refuse to stay down when the odds are stacked against them.

The Gangrel have a more introspective side, too. Out of all the clans, the Gangrel truly understand their condition and won’t waste time on theories when first hand experimentation will do. They will push their abilities to the limit in order to master them.

Mekhet: Clan Mekhet are the assassins of the Kindred world. They deal in stealth, wisdom and the dark mysteries of the ages. They are not the brutes the Gangrel are, a Mekhet prides himself on his finesse. Where a Savage might use his claws with reckless abandon and blood lust, a Shadow will dole out death with grace and precision.

Nosferatu: The “Haunts” are the outcasts of the Kindred. In their true form they are the most hidous creatures in the world of the supernatural, so much so that even other vampires shun them. To those outside the Nosferatu clan, the Haunts appear extremely organized and tightly knit, they will always present a united front. But on the inside of the clan, they can be as ruthless as any other as they jockey for rank and position.

The Nosferatu don’t blend well with society. Period. There is always something highly disturbing about them and the only places you’ll find them are in the sewers, back alleys and places where mortals and Kindred fear to tread.

Ventrue: Here we have the self proclaimed royalty of the Kindred. The one thing about a Ventrue is they don’t like to lose. The “Lords” are the ones who set themselves up in positions of power within a city or town. They run the show, and if they don’t, you can bet they will soon.

Childer are carefully chosen and must have some level of social status or power already. If you thought the mortal world had some serious glass ceilings, just try to break through that of the Ventrue.

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