THE CAMARILLA VAMPIRE CLANS
Once, vampires walked openly among mortals.
They did not flaunt their nature, but they did not hide it either.
The Camarilla is the invention of a treaty founded after the Dark Ages that was a result of the Inquisition and Burning Times that destroyed many of the Kindred.
The Camarilla is a political and social body
to which Brujah, Gangrel, Malkavian, Nosferatu,
Toreador, Tremere and Ventru belong.
Formed 600 years ago in Europe, it is based on a system of laws to hide vampiric existence from the eyes of mortals; these laws are known as The Traditions, the system of hiding their existence is called the Masquerade.
The Path of Humanity is the basis of the Camarilla, one of the central points where they differ with the Sabbat.
THE TRADITIONS
The Masquerade - Thou shall not reveal thy true nature to those not of the blood. Doing such shall renounce thy claims of blood.
The Domain - Thy domain is thine own concern.
All others owe thee respect while in it. None may challenge.
The Progeny - Thou shall only Sire another with the permission of thine elder. If thou createst another without thine Elder's leave, both thou and thy progeny shall be slain.
The Accounting - Those thou create are thine own children. Untill thy Progeny shall be Released,
thou shall command them in all things. Their sins are thine to endure.
Hospitality - Honor one another's domain.
When thou comest to a foreign city, thou shall present thyself to the one who ruleth there. Without the word of acceptance, thou art nothing.
Destruction - Thou art forbidden to destroy another of thy kind. The right of destruction belongeth only to thine elder. Only the eldest among thee shall call the Blood Hunt.
HIERARCHY
The Camrilla is very hierarchical, very structured, it's a question of local versus overall jurisdiction.
The Prince is the ruler of a city, usually the oldest or most powerful vampire in the area. All owe him/her respect and deference, for he/she is the law and the face of the Camarilla. The Prince is ideally supported by the Primogen Council.
Primogen Council, is a group of the eldest or most powerful vampires, one from each Clan. I say ideally because there is a strange power balance between the Prince and the Primogen council, one that varies from city to city. In some, the Prince is in command, with the Primogen Council as de facto servants enforcing him/her will. In other places, the Council acts like a board of directors, with the Prince as their enforcer. In any circumstance, the Primogen are usually the heads of their Clans as well,
and therefore responsible for those members as well.
They are also due a certain amount of respect for their position. Other offices have been created to aide the Prince's grip on the city.
The Keeper of Elysium, is charged with the enforcement of the Masquerade, and also aiding the Prince in such matters.
Regent or Seneschal is charged with ruling the city while the Prince is out of town.
But all of these titles are optional, things left on the books until needed. When the Prince needs help maintaining order, the Camarilla has provided recourses for help.
The seven Justicars, one for each clan. These ancient and powerful kindred are not bound by the Traditions (except The Masquerade) and charged with one thing: defending the Camarilla from all threats,
internal and external. The Justicars cannot do it alone, so they have a number of Kindred helping them, Archorns.
Archon, while not as powerful as their Justicars, still hold more status than most vampires, and can freely travel, as well as being partially free from Kindred law (not as much as the Justicars.)
Archons act as enforcers as well as point men,
scouting out an area to see if further help is needed.
The Inner Circle, a council of seven vampires (one from each clan),rules the entire Camarilla. They make decisions from their seat in Europe. These are the only people that the Justicars need answer to. They are the ones that make the grand policy decisions, and rule from their old castles in seclusion.
So the Camarilla system works as the Prince decides to run it. Most kinderd never deal with the Camarilla outside their city.
THE CLANS
THE BRUJAH-Primarily members of the Camarilla, though many are of the Sabbat. They are rebellious and headstrong. The fight for freedom runs in their veins, making them more likely to frenzy than other Kindred. The Brujah known today are not the original clan, though. Early in Kindred history, they rebelled and replaced their clan's founder.
Clan Brujah is largely composed of rebels, both with and without causes. Individualistic, outspoken and turbulent, Brujah hold social change near to their undead hearts, and the clan's ranks contain some of the most violent of the Camarilla Kindred. Most other vampires perceive the Brujah as nothing more than punks and miscreants, but the truth of the matter is that genuine passion lies behind their polemics.
THE GANGREL-When one thinks of a vampire turning into a wolf, bat, or mist, one tends to be thinking of a Gangrel. Animalistic wanderers that rarely take part in politics, the Gangrel are the only clan that can peacefully communicate with werewolves on a regular basis. Gangrel often fight the most strongly against the Beast because the frailty in their blood condemns them to become more animal-like with every frenzy, either physically or mentally.
Of all vampires, the Gangrel are perhaps closest to their inner nature. These nomadic loners spurn the constraints of society, preferring the comfort of the wilderness. How they avoid the wrath of the werewolves is unknown; perhaps it has something to do with the fact that the Gangrel are themselves shape shifters. When a mortal speaks of a vampire changing into a wolf or a bat, she is probably speaking of a Gangrel.
THE MALKAVIANS-Insane tricksters and wild geniuses, Clan Malkavian is bound only by one thing, their insanity. While it would be nice to assume that all Malkavians are no better than the doped up loons locked away in institutions, the reality is far more frightening. While they may be insane, they suffer from a wide variety of psychological disorders (or gifts of Malkav, if you ask them). Anything from extreme paranoia (think Conspiracy Theory), to homicidal detachment (Hannibal Lecter?), to Multiple Personality Disorder can be found in this clan. Their insanity unifies them in a strange unspoken net called the Malkavian Madness Network, and these "Kooks" or "Freaks" or what ever you might call them have a good standing with the Fey, the faerie kin.
Even other Damned fear the Malkavians. The cursed blood of their clan has polluted their minds, with the result that every last Malkavian across the world is incurably insane. What's worse, a Malkavians madness can take nearly any form, from overpowering homicidal tendencies to near-catatonia. In many cases, there's no way to tell a Malkavian apart from the "sane" members of other clans. Those few whose psychoses are immediately obvious are among the most terrifying vampires to stalk the streets.
THE NOSFERATU-Like the film, vampires of Clan Nosferatu are hideous, but more so than Hollywood vampires of that day. Think more along the lines of From Dusk Till Dawn and you'll have something close. Generally picked from the outcasts of society, the Nosferatu are a very tightly knit clan. They barter information and have a distinct hatred for Clan Toreador. Nosferatu are rarely seen, but they are there, hiding in the sewers, or even disguised as an ordinary human. Whatever you need to know, somewhere, some Nosferatu probably knows.
Caine's childer are called "The Damned," and no vampires embody this more fully than the wretches of Clan Nosferatu. While other vampires still look human and may travel in mortal society, Nosferatu are twisted and deformed by the curse of vampirism. Other Kindred speak shudderingly of Caine placing a mark upon the entire clan for the monstrous deeds of its Antediluvian founder. As such, Nosferatu find themselves loathed and ostracized by the other Children of Caine, who consider them disgusting and interact with them only when they must.
THE TOREADOR-Artisans, bohemians, "society's elite", and manipulators, the Toreador love beauty in all its forms. Clan Toreador has two "types" of members: Artistes and Poseurs. Artistes are just that, Artists. Whether they're painters, sculptors, musicians, poets, martial artists or doctors, it doesn't matter. If they create "art", they are considered an Artiste. Poseurs, though, are the beautiful themselves. Models, elite, or people part of the "scene", Poseurs are the society of the clan.
The Toreador are called many things - "degenerates," "artistes," "poseurs" and "hedonists" being but a few. But any such lumped categorization does the clan a disservice. Depending on the individual and her mood, Toreador are alternately elegant and flamboyant, brilliant and ludicrous, visionary and dissipated. Perhaps the only truism that can be applied to the clan is its members' aesthetic zeal. Whatever a Toreador does, she does with passion. Whatever a Toreador is, she is with passion.
THE TREMERE-Wizards one and all, the rigid Clan Tremere is one of the youngest clans, and easily the least trusted. Their powers of magic have proved invaluable to the clans, and have given them the edge to become the superpower the sect is today. Ruthless and creative, all Tremere are partially blood bound to the clan's founders, their "Council of Seven" based out of Vienna. The Tzimisce and the Tremere have a long history of hatred with one another, and with the Tzimisces holding power, the renegade warlocks are just fine with avoiding their power games to focus on their inhuman studies.
Whether dreaded, mistrusted, feared or reviled, the insular vampires of Clan Tremere are anything but ignored. Those who have heard of the clan's doings are typically suspicious of the Tremere, and with good reason - for the Warlocks are aptly named. Through their own artifice, they have mastered a form of vampiric sorcery, complete with rituals and spells that is as potent - if not more so - than any other power of the Blood. Paired with the clan's rigid hierarchy and the smouldering ambition so common among Warlocks, this power is an unsettling thing indeed to those who know what the Tremere are capable of doing.
THE VENTRUE-The Aristocracy of the Kindred, Ventrue lead with an iron fist. Rivals of the Lasombra, the Ventrue are among the most powerful kindred in the world, politically. Many Princes are Ventrue, and those who are not, seek other positions of power. Medical institutions, organized religion, law enforcement, Ventrue seek to control them all. Lasombras dislike for the clan attempts to keep them out of many positions of power, but they will not deny a worthy the respect he deserves, even if he is a Ventrue.
The Kindred of Clan Ventrue have a reputation for being honourable, genteel and of impeccable taste. From time out of mind, Ventrue has been the clan of leadership, enforcing the ancient traditions and seeking to shape the destiny of the Kindred. In nights of old, Ventrue were chosen from nobles, merchant princes or other wielders of power. In modern times the clan recruits from wealthy "old money" families, ruthless corporate climbers, and politicians. Whatever their origin, Ventrue vampires preserve stability and maintain order for the Camarilla. Other Kindred often mistake this for arrogance or avarice, but to the Ventrue, their shepherd's role is more burden than honour.
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