***Awakening*** The onset of vampiric ways and needs. This involves many changes, which are both physical and mental.
***Barrens, The*** The areas of a city that are devoid of life-graveyards, abandoned buildings and parks.
***Beast, The*** The drives and urges which prompt a vampire to become entirely a beast, forsaking all humanity.
***Becoming, The*** The moment one becomes a vampire; the metamorphosis from mortal to Kindred. Also called "The Change".
***Blood Drinker*** Anyone who drinks blood, whatever the reason being.
***Blood Fetishist*** One that is attracted to the sight, the taste, or the smell of blood in an erotic manner. Generally there is no physical need for the blood and large amounts are not needed.
***Blood Junkie*** A defamatory word used to describe one who has the physical need to consume blood.
***Blood Kindred*** The relationship between vampires of the same lineage and clan.
***Blood Oath*** The most potent bond which can exist between vampires; the receiving of blood in an acknowledgement of mastery. This grants a mystical power over the one who is bound.
***Blood*** The vampire's heritage. That which makes a vampire a vampire, or simply the actual blood of the vampire.
***Bloodletting*** Since most teeth are not made for biting ones neck (and this is medically seen as very risky) it's required to find other ways of getting blood. Usually this is made through cutting.
***Bloodplay*** Blood is used in sexual play.
***Blood-Vampire*** Blood vampires have a strong craving for blood or a vampire whose only source of energy is blood. In some theories blood vampirism is – from an evolutionary point of view – a very early stage of vampirism. At a later time of his life a vampire is able to learn a more subtle form of feeding. In contrary to this some blood vampires claim to be the only true kind of vampire.
***Book of Nod*** The "sacred" book of the Kindred, tracing the race's origins and early history. It has never been published in its entirety, although fragments are known to exist in various languages.
***Brood*** A group of vampires gathered around a leader (usually their sire). A brood may in time become a clan.
***Caitiff*** A vampire with no clan.
***Camarilla, The*** A global sect of vampires in which all Kindred may hold membership. Its rule is far from absolute, and it serves as a debating chamber more than a government.
***Chi*** Also called prana, psychic energy, pranic energy, etc. The life force that is part of all living things.
***Childe*** A derogatory term for young, inexperienced, or foolish vampires.
***Clan*** A group of vampires who share certain mystic and physical characteristics.
***Classical Vampirism*** A term that describes the type of vampire very similar to those known from Stoker's writings. Usually a classical vampire has been turned by an older vampire. Some theories divide them into two categories: A category ONE vampire has a very extended life span of more than 150 years. A category TWO vampire has a normal life span like any human.
***Diablerie*** The cannibalistic behavior of common among Kindred, involving the consumption of the blood of another vampire. The elders do so out of need, whereas the anarchs do so out of desire for power.
***Donor*** One that shares their blood with another without requesting any thing in return or without an obligation of any kind.
***Elder*** A vampire who is 300 years of age or older.
***Elysium*** The name given for the places where the elders meet and gather, commonly operas, theaters or other public places of culture.
***Embrace, The*** The act of transforming a mortal into a vampire by draining the mortal's blood and replacing it with a small amount of the vampires own.
***Feeding*** The act of consuming or drinking blood from another being or animal.
***Fledgling*** A young, newly created vampire. Vide, Neonate, Whelp.
***Gehenna*** The end of the Third Cycle; the impending Armageddon when Antediluvians shall awaken and devour all vampires.
***Generation*** The number of steps between a vampire and the mythical Cane.
***Ghoul*** A servant created by allowing a mortal to drink Kindred blood without the draining that would give rise to a progeny.
***Haematomania*** A strong psychological craving for blood.
***Haematophilia*** An erotic attraction to the taste, sight, or smell of blood.
***Haven*** The home of a vampire or the place where it sleeps during the day.
***Human*** Sometimes this term is used to distinguish vampires from "humans". Some vampires see themselves as human others strictly deny this. More a philosophical problem than anything else.
***Hunger, The*** As with mortals and other animals, the drive to feed.
***Hunter*** Whether just legend or frightening truth, a hunter seeks to harm or even kill a vampire. Some act out of religious motives others just hunt for sport. These are seriously disturbed individuals who are on some sort of holy, satanic or other hate crusade.
***Immortal*** A term often used to describe a vampire. If looked up in a dictionary it actually means, imperishable, or deathless. In using this term to refer to a vampire, it is to suggest that they do not age as humans do, are immune to disease and/or injury, and that they are godlike or above "humans" or "mortals". Vampires are not immortal.
***Inconnu*** A sect of vampires, mostly Methuselah’s, who have removed themselves from both mortal and Kindred affairs. They state that they have nothing to do with the Jihad.
***Inheritor*** A classification for vampires, who are born that way and have inherited this "illness" from one of their ancestors. Most European vampires are inheritors.
***Jihad, The*** The secret war being waged between the few surviving vampires of the third generation.
***Kindred*** A vampire. Many elders consider even this term to be vulgar, and prefer to use a more poetic word such as Cainite.
***Kiss*** To take the blood of a mortal, or the act of taking blood in general.
***Latent Vampire*** One who is "naturally" a vampire, but the vampiric tendencies have not begun yet.
***Life, The*** A euphemistic term for mortal blood taken as sustenance. Many Kindred regard this term as "prissy".
***Lupine*** A werewolf, the mortal enemy of the vampires.
***Lush*** A vampire who habitually feeds upon prey who are under the influence of drink or drugs in order to experience the sensations thereof.
***Man, The*** The element of humanity which remains in a vampire, and which strives against the base urgings of the Beast.
***Masquerade, The*** The effort begun after the end of the great wars to hide Kindred society from the mortal world.
***Mentor*** One who awakened the vampiric tendencies in another and taught or guided the awakened vampire.
***Mortal*** Term used to describe those who are not vampires. Though this term suggests that vampires are immortal when in fact, they are not.
***Of the Blood*** A term used to describe someone pretending or saying that they are a vampire, when in fact they are not.
***Prince*** A vampire who has established a claim to ruler-ship over a city, and is able to support that claim. The feminine form is still prince.
***Psychic Attack*** A term used for an attack by an psi-vampire. Any uninvited draining of one's vital energy. One is said to have experienced a Psi-vamp attack when a psi-vampire has targeted and successfully fed from you, without your consent. Another view is that psychic vampire attacks ONLY take the form of such draining by the use of the psyche.
***Psychic vampire*** One that “drains" life force, instead of blood from others. Although, some psi vampires do consume blood as a way of draining energy.
***Real Vampire*** One who has a physical thirst or need for blood. This is not an erotic need and larger amounts of blood be needed by real vampires than needed by blood fetishists. Real vampires have increased sensitivities; heightened emotional states and feelings, and maybe the possibility of a extended life span. This Does Not include being able to fly, command others at will, heal ones self, change shapes or into other forms, or being able to perform superhuman feats.
***Renfield Syndrome*** Named for the fly-eating maniac in Dracula, a mental disorder where the afflicted seeks to increase his/her own power by accumulating lives. It has four stages: Stage one, where the person starts out eating insects; Stage two, where he graduates to larger organisms, such as birds, as did Renfield, often feeding the bugs to the birds, then consuming the birds; Stage three, he is compelled to seek after larger "lives", killing larger animals and drinking their blood to receive power; Stage four, where he desires after human's blood, possibly being a danger to others or themselves.
***Riddle, The*** The essential dilemma of a vampire's existence- to prevent the occurrence of greater atrocities, one must commit evil deeds of a lesser nature.
***Rouge*** A vampire who feeds upon other vampires, either out of need or perversion.
***RPGer/Role-Player*** One who engages in role-playing games like VtM and others. Sometimes RPGers are also lifestylers, others distinguish between their 'human' life and their role and have nothing to do with Vampires.
***Sabbat, The*** A sect of vampires controlling much of the eastern North America. They are violent and bestial, reveling in needless cruelty.
***Sanguinarian*** One who has a physical thirst, craving, or need for blood, that is not an erotic need and much larger amounts are needed than are needed by other blood drinkers. Sanguinarians do not get the benefits from pranic energy, or they are not able to feed psychically like psi vampires.
***Sect*** General name for one of the three primary groups among the Kindred- the Camarilla, Sabbat or Inconnu.
***Seeker*** One who is looking for a vampire, or for the knowledge of a vampire wanting to become one themselves.
***Sexual Vampirism*** A relatively rare variety of vampirism that feeds primarily from sexual energy.
***Signature*** Term used to describe the unique aura or energy structure that each individual has.
***Sire*** The parent-creator of a vampire, used both as the female and male form.
***Source*** It is a neutral expression for a donor or victim, who is the person where the vampire gets the blood or energy.
***Supplier*** Someone who deals in (mostly) blood and/or brokers between source and vampire.
***The Thirst*** Desire, need, longing,or craving to drink blood, an intense thirsting sensation. Close resemblance to an addiction, and is extremely difficult to deal with.
***To Turn*** To make someone a vampire.
***Turned *** If one has been "turned", they have been made into a blood consuming vampire or a psychic energy vampire.
***Vamping*** Experiencing an extremely intense onset of the thirst. This brings out a change in the manner, breathing and heart rate, as their body prepares to satisfy the thirst.
***Vampire Lifestyler*** One who includes fictional vampire ways in their life, most times taking on a vampiric appearance and including themselves into role-play "covens" or "clans" Some may be real vampires in such a way that they crave blood, yet, others are blood fetishists.
***Vampire*** A term with many meanings, easier explained by looking at the definitions of particular kinds of vampires, for example... Sanguinarians.
***Vampiric Community*** Persons whom identify with or have been named as a "vampire". This includes Vampire lifestylers, blood drinkers, and psi-vampires.
***Vessel*** A potential or past source of blood, typically a human.
