Masquerade Cam/Anarch Setting
Many of us have played Masquerade for years. Rehashing the same metaplot items and NPCs
doesn’t hold the same draw that it once did. With that in mind, we’d like to present a setting
which utilizes the same setting elements, but with a few chronicle specific tweaks. Do not
anticipate that the previous chronicle metaplot items will take place later, as we will strive to
provide a new story for our players.
Setting: Camarilla Ascendant
The Camarilla is uncompromising in its attitude when dealing with the rest of world. Those who
seek to deal with the Camarilla have learned to either fall in line or hide their true ambitions
carefully. Camarilla cities view independants with a suspicion and caution born of this new
paradigm, they are treated as outsiders until proven to their local courts and found in line with the
Camarilla's policies. Domains which tolerate independents, regardless of their views, are looked
upon with scrutiny. What remains of independent and Anarch territories are viewed with a radical
distrust and sometimes hostility, depending on city to city, praxis to praxis.
History: While history is largely the same, the death of one of the Inner Circle in the early 1700s,
and the discovery of Kementiri posing as the Ventrue Justicar causes a dramatic cultural shift in
the way that Independents and Sabbat are dealt with. The timeline will have minimal modification
on a global scale prior to 1995. Those modifications will be primarily the addition of chronicle
specific prominent characters as well as a few events to create a causal relationship between
the originating events and the modern setting.
Metaplot elements you’re probably wondering about:
1) Assamite Schism has not happened and the Curse remains unbroken.
2) Dementation has begun to return to the Malkavian clan, but Dominate Malkavians are equally
prominent at this time.
3) The Gangrel have not left the Camarilla.
4) The Week of Nightmares has not happened, and Ravnos are as prominent as any other
independent clan.
Brujah
A clan that was high and is now low, the Brujah are the agents of change. While
some accuse the Brujah of starting the New Anarch Movement so that they may still be of
higher standing than some Kindred, the Brujah know that the ways of the past will fall before
the forces of modernity. The Brujah are positioning themselves to capitalize on that change,
involving themselves with mortal affairs and pushing progress in the name of capitalism,
communism, and Camarilla. Playing a Brujah means you want to be a part of a fallen clan
and show off your ability to work with the people (mortal and Kindred alike)
Gangrel
With the Camarilla, there are those who are complacent. The Gangrel are not among them. The
Sabbat and their ilk still hide in the rural areas. The Lupines still stalk the woods. They do so not
with impunity but with trepidation ­ trepidation that they will be discovered by the loyal members
of Clan Gangrel. In the wild parts of the world that remain, the Gangrel of the Camarilla roam.
They encounter the fiercest opposition to the Ivory Tower ­ and they must be equally fierce in
their defense of it. Playing a Gangrel means you want to be tough enough to deal with the threats
to the Camarilla and show off your ability to harmonize between the rugged frontier and the elite
urban centers.
Malkavian
Clan Malkavian offers the Camarilla a better understanding of the thoughts of their
enemies than any other. Unfortunately, Clan Malkavian also offers insight into the minds of
their allies. Perhaps even more unfortunate, Clan Malkavian offers insight into their own
mind. The Malkavians are both the watchdogs and the psychic soldiers of the Camarilla.
The majority of the clan uses the Dominate discipline, conducting the business of the
Camarilla as loyal psychologists, empaths, and predictors of behavior ­ by dictating that
behavior. A portion of the clan uses the Dementation discipline, no less zealous in their
support of the Camarilla but using novel approaches to the clan’s traditional role of seers,
oracles, and prophets. Clan Malkavian isn’t on the brink of civil war ­ yet ­ but if the
shattered mirror cannot accept itself it will only splinter further. Playing a Malkavian means
you want to understand what makes other characters tick and show off your ability to make
them conform to the standards the “Camarilla” expects of them.
Nosferatu
If the Malkavians know what people are thinking, the Nosferatu know what people
are doing. Their accumulation of knowledge and data is vital to the goings on of the
Camarilla. By pooling and sharing their knowledge, the Nosferatu wield tremendous political
power ­ they literally know where the bodies are buried. Knowledge is power and the
Nosferatu know more than anybody else. They use this power for the benefit of their prince,
or for the benefit of the Kindred they believe should be Prince. They serve from the
shadows, however ­ very few Nosferatu enjoy the spotlight (something for which the other
clans are revoltingly thankful for). Playing a Nosferatu means you want to understand
secrets and show off your ability to capitalize on the secrets of the people you play with.
Toreador
Without purpose, the endless nights offer nothing but ennui. The Toreador are the
soul of the Camarilla, providing what zest for existence that can be provided after centuries
of undying existence. The Toreador are known for giving Kindred a chance to gather and
have a reason to keep on gathering. While the Ventrue play politics and the Tremere bury
themselves in books, the Toreador keep society together. Playing a Toreador means you
want to give others a reason to come to games and show off your own reasons for unliving
Tremere
Every single enemy of the Camarilla possesses a different ability with blood magic.
Only the Tremere are able to determine whether or not the use of blood magic is deviant
and dangerous for the greater good of the Camarilla. The Tremere are afforded wide
latitude by the Inner Circle to root out and destroy seditious Thaumaturgy. Respected by
their allies and feared by their foes, the Tremere are the occult specialists of the night. They
are organized by the Pyramid which guides their research and their ability to vivisect the
magics of their enemies. Playing a Tremere means you want to govern blood magic and
show off your problem solving skills.
Ventrue
Clan Ventrue is the glue that holds the Camarilla together. Because of their diligent
diplomacy and aggressive posturing, the Ventrue in many ways are the Camarilla. These
nights, the Ventrue are the primary diplomats and governors of the sect. They work together
to ensure stability, and they work against each other for the privilege of being recognized as
the best of the best of the best. In our game, the Ventrue are going to be organized by
elders and the players will be tasked with supporting each other’s interests and generating
plot for the other clans. Playing a Ventrue means you want to get other people involved and
show off your ability to organize other people.
Caitiff
Technically, the Caitiff are Kindred and are accorded the base level of respect that
any other member of the Camarilla gets by default. No one speaks for them, no one
supports them, and they are not organized. Their thin blood means they are not powerful,
their lack of clan means they are not loved, and their membership in the Camarilla means
they are vulnerable to the same parlor games and deadly prestation as anyone else.
Playing a Caitiff means you want to be a part of the oppressed masses and struggle to find your
place in society.
Independants:
Assamites:
The Mountain largely leaves the Assamite clan outside of Alamut to its work giving them free
reign. Assamites who are found to adhere to the worship of Haqim or who seek to undermine the
Curse under which the clan labors are not tolerated within Camarilla cities. Assamites taking
contracts on members of the Camarilla in violation of the Law of Destruction lead quickly to
death if discovered. Those of the clan within Camarilla cities are watched carefully and often
questioned about their loyalty to the Mountain. Those who pass this review usually find work for
the Prince as bodyguards (and unspoken assassins).
Followers of Set:
The Followers of Set are largely disorganized in modern nights. After struggling for thousands of
years to raise their antediluvian, their focus on such is not as fervent as it once was. Those who
are found to worship of their antediluvian are not welcome in any but the most permissive
Camarilla cities. Those who are discovered to be following a Path of Enlightenment which
encourages the corruption of the Ivory Tower are not dealt with kindly. The Camarilla views the
Setites as the dredges of society, bringing vice and corruption wherever they are. Just the same
though, some Princes are willing to accept their kind on occasion as a means of dragging down
their rivals, and gathering information from yet another source. Powerful elders of the clan still
exist hidden away, their focus unchanged by the passage of time.
Giovanni:
The Promise still exists and the Giovanni are not permitted to join the Camarilla, but the shift in
the Camarilla’s perspective has modified what this means. In modern nights, a member of the
Giovanni is required to follow the Traditions like any other person while in a Camarilla domain.
Some Princes are very restrictive about what this means, going so far as attempting to restrict
the use of Necromancy in their domains or banning Giovanni from their domains. Other Princes
simply accept payment for their presence in the city as well as assistance with Necromancy as
is required.
Ravnos:
The Ravnos were never particularly structured as a clan and that remains true today. The
Camarilla doesn’t trust them due to the way they cause chaos wherever they go. They find
sanctuary where they can be enough use to be accepted. Some Princes take them in simply as
a means of being able to blame them later for anything that goes wrong.
Antagonists:
The Sabbat:
The Camarilla continues to war with the Sabbat as ever. When they are able to identify one of
the Sabbat’s leadership, they do what they can to eliminate such monsters. As such, in modern
nights the Sabbat is predominantly made up of Loyalists who prefer not to let numerous people
far away telling them how the world works. While the other factions of the Sabbat still exist, they
are more likely to organize in the shadows in these nights; particularly the elders who draw most
of the Camarilla’s attention.
Anarchs:
The Second Anarch Revolt removed whatever tolerance that the Camarilla had for those who
describe themselves as Anarchs. In modern nights they rally around the Status Perfectus as
their guiding document, attempting to form collectives of their own in the parts of the world where
the Camarilla still does not bother to go. The overt rejection of the Treaty of Thorns by these
Anarchs has given a bad name to anyone else who would claim such an association. The
Camarilla treats such kindred as open subversives who seek to undermine and destroy their
society.