General World of Darkness Discussion Thread QQ Edition

[Skitzyfrenic]

Let me guess, if she wasn't a Baali this would have been higher, if not 5 five stars.

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Yes.

So you saying it's Baali propaganda? Time to destroy every copy of it and leave the author to "greet the sun" to atone for their sins.

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100%

It's a vile Masquerade breach that makes the Baali look good. Thus it must be destroyed and the author unmade.

 

[Bommel]

A potential fun idea for a story is someone getting The Gamer powers in a World of Darkness setting (can be an OC native from the setting, or some Insert character), which is especially fun if it follows the canon of The Gamer where the powers are bestowed by Gaia, who is a pretty big background figure in the WoD setting (mostly in Werewolf).

All of the WoD Changing Breeds were each created to aid Gaia with some specific a specific purpose, including all of the Werewolves in the setting, who are Gaia's warriors.

A possible thematic explenation is that the Gamer powers represent evolution, as The Gamer power is an adaptive ability, so powers grow, improve and adapt to whatever challenge the user faces as long as they survive.
Anything that worked against them once will not be as effective the second time around, especially when with The gamer gaining Resitances against any and all possible damage types, and improves both physically and mentally more and more over time.

The magic they use could be a lot more similar to the magic used in the WoD setting, but that would still include summoning a whole bunch of stuff or making pacts with spirits or elementals, just like in The Gamer webcomic (the spirits especially are closely tied to the Werewolves of the setting, so a lot can be done with them).
What kind of magic they learn also depends on from who they can learn and what they encounter, so unless they encounter some actual Awakened Mages, they're not going to be overpowered spellcasters early on, but that might be interesting to learn, ally, or fight them later on (and Mages or the Technocrasy can individually be any one of those).

Something that could be an interesting addicion is removing the actual dungeon creatons where hey train and grind their levels, so they actually have to fight against actual monsters such as vampires to grow in power, which adds a lot more risk.

Some other supernatural groups that it might be interesting for them to interact or fight with are:

• The Vampires (mostly just to fight)
• The Fae and Changelings (they're very interesting and often require a lot more intelligence and creative thinking than just directly fighting them because they're so crazy powerful)
• The Princesses from Princess: The Hopeful (one of the very few factions who's trying to improve the WoD world and prevent it from becoming so too bleak to care about anymore)
• Mummies (they're the other faction that's pretty much fully good, though working together with them is really difficult as they can only be awake for a very limited amount of time and only to accomplish missions for the Judge they serve)
• And of course, the Hunters (possibly as a faction they first ally with against other supernatural predators to get to know the ropes before moving on to stronger monsers, and the possibliity to interact with the cast of Hunter: The Parenting is also fantastic).

 

[shadowdice]

One of my favourite World of Darkness stories has just ended. Ocean City Nights, you will forever have a place in my heart. But now I'm craving for more. So now the question is, does anyone here have any recommendations for more World of Darkness stories, especially novels?

I've tried to get into the Clan Book series, starting with Clan Toreador, and it was just a slog to get through that I gave up half way.

I've had my eye on the Dark Ages novels for a while now, and also the Victorian Age trilogy, but I don't want to waste money if they end up crap like last time. Has anyone here read them before, and if so would you recommend them? Thoughts?

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I read the first book of the victorian age trilogy and found it interesting, you get to see Mithras's height of power and vampiric plots through human eyes for a lot of chapters

 

[heralding_bubble]

Figured might as well post the ExWoD/ExCofD stuff here as well since it's half WoD/CofD

Exalted vs World of Darkness, original release
Exalted vs World of Darkness Companion supplement
Exalted vs World of Darkness Revised 1.1c combining original and companion with revisions
Character Sheets
Black Vault WIP collage (July 2023)

Exalted x Chronicles of Darkness, old, unfinished, probably a dead project

 

[vighzs]

A potential fun idea for a story is someone getting The Gamer powers in a World of Darkness setting (can be an OC native from the setting, or some Insert character), which is especially fun if it follows the canon of The Gamer where the powers are bestowed by Gaia, who is a pretty big background figure in the WoD setting (mostly in Werewolf).

Something that could be an interesting addicion is removing the actual dungeon creatons where hey train and grind their levels, so they actually have to fight against actual monsters such as vampires to grow in power, which adds a lot more risk.

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Yeah that is an interesting premise, the only "Gamer" WoD fic I know if is Sera's "Vampire The Masquerade Vicky" chapters in "Seras's dumpster of random snippets." on Space Battles, where the protagonist can access hwe Vampire Stat sheet from WoD.

And yeah, WoD doesn't really need gamer dungeons considering all the bullshit available for growth. Including all the pocket dimensions, shit in the Umbra and places where the laws of reality became suggestions for one reason or another.

One of my favourite World of Darkness stories has just ended. Ocean City Nights, you will forever have a place in my heart. But now I'm craving for more. So now the question is, does anyone here have any recommendations for more World of Darkness stories, especially novels?

I've tried to get into the Clan Book series, starting with Clan Toreador, and it was just a slog to get through that I gave up half way.

I've had my eye on the Dark Ages novels for a while now, and also the Victorian Age trilogy, but I don't want to waste money if they end up crap like last time. Has anyone here read them before, and if so would you recommend them? Thoughts?

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Yeah, sad it ended but I am content as it ended on a great note and did not drag things out.

Did not read it yet, but I did not hear negatives things about it if that helps.

On the topic of requesting recommendations, is there a book/supplement be it fan or official that focuses on WoD during WW1/WW2?

 

[heralding_bubble]

Yeah that is an interesting premise, the only "Gamer" WoD fic I know if is Sera's "Vampire The Masquerade Vicky" chapters in "Seras's dumpster of random snippets." on Space Battles, where the protagonist can access hwe Vampire Stat sheet from WoD.

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There's also Title: The Placeholder, directly inspired by Seras' fic.

 

[SGB]

Yeah that is an interesting premise, the only "Gamer" WoD fic I know if is Sera's "Vampire The Masquerade Vicky" chapters in "Seras's dumpster of random snippets." on Space Battles, where the protagonist can access hwe Vampire Stat sheet from WoD.

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The discipline seras made was pretty neat. Blood/shadow stuff. Pseudo-obtenebration via using vitae to literally ghoul your own shadow by imbuing it with your blood the way you can turn humans into ghouls.

 

[Gereh]

A potential fun idea for a story is someone getting The Gamer powers in a World of Darkness setting (can be an OC native from the setting, or some Insert character)

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Now for the real question if you become "The Gamer" would the sudden realization and understanding of how the world works cause you to awaken as a Mage?

Now that I think about it an Awakening can shape how you see the reality so it is not impossible that you awake as a Mage and your new reality becomes that of a game. Like you can see all your stats and when you train or study an exp bar goes up until you hit the next threshold and you skill "levels up". You could make a story about that and leave in ambivalent if the Mc is a "real" gamer or if he is a Mage with a weird Awakening.

 

[Bommel]

Now for the real question if you become "The Gamer" would the sudden realization and understanding of how the world works cause you to awaken as a Mage?

Now that I think about it an Awakening can shape how you see the reality so it is not impossible that you awake as a Mage and your new reality becomes that of a game. Like you can see all your stats and when you train or study an exp bar goes up until you hit the next threshold and you skill "levels up". You could make a story about that and leave in ambivalent if the Mc is a "real" gamer or if he is a Mage with a weird Awakening.

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Personally I would see this version of the Gamer powerset more like a blessing/bestowed power from Gaia, which could be the first steps to an Awakening.
Awakenings are an event it's true, but there are often some steps that build towards it (pretty much completely without the person realizing that it's happening themselves), with the final big push causing them to Awaken.
Then there's the whole thing where when they first Awaken, they become almost godlike for a few moments, and then become driven to achieve those hights of power again.
Anyway, getting a blessing that makes the protagonist's personal reality a game is a few steps away from realizing that all of reality is just a table top role play game.

Then there's also the complication that an Awakening is different for every single mage, which is why they can be incredibly subbern, because they're all convinced that the glimps at true reality they saw was the absolute truth, even if all of them can be a little true or fully true at the same time.

 

[Ragura]

The Gamer powerset would also work really well as a Marauder - he could have gone Quixote from reading too many Gamer fics

 

[LeftWaiting]

A potential fun idea for a story is someone getting The Gamer powers in a World of Darkness setting (can be an OC native from the setting, or some Insert character), which is especially fun if it follows the canon of The Gamer where the powers are bestowed by Gaia, who is a pretty big background figure in the WoD setting (mostly in Werewolf).

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And of course, someone has already made the inevitable Worm crossover, albeit of Chronicles instead of World;

https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/for-your-entertainment-worm-chronicles-of-darkness.1156141/

 

[shadowdice]

Having looked at storyteller's vault, are the VTM Rome fan books any good? I know kindred of the east anniversary is well regarded

 

[Wwind]

A potential fun idea for a story is someone getting The Gamer powers in a World of Darkness setting (can be an OC native from the setting, or some Insert character), which is especially fun if it follows the canon of The Gamer where the powers are bestowed by Gaia, who is a pretty big background figure in the WoD setting (mostly in Werewolf).

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nice idea, but absolutely not. Doesn't fit the aesthetic.

But... why do you need/want Gaia? there are plenty of other, more Pattern aligned figures that would make a far better patron. Like the Weaver (or one of it's major spirits), Mikaboshi, the Cockroach, even a sufficiently powerful mage. Of course a low Quiet marauder would be a perfect fit.

What kind of magic they learn also depends on from who they can learn and what they encounter, so unless they encounter some actual Awakened Mages, they're not going to be overpowered spellcasters early on, but that might be interesting to learn, ally, or fight them later on (and Mages or the Technocrasy can individually be any one of those).

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I think you meant Ascension mages? Awakening ones don't have technocracy.
Also if you bring in Mages in major way, not only would they not like the marauder option, but also you would risk kicked out of reality for being too "loud".

Something that could be an interesting addicion is removing the actual dungeon creatons where hey train and grind their levels, so they actually have to fight against actual monsters such as vampires to grow in power, which adds a lot more risk.

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there are plenty of Hellholes near major cities if they want to fight all sorts of nasties. There is also Labyrinth that you can access from dark umbra. But either of those makes mortal peril for nearly anyone. Probably stick to wild undead and petty banes in Penumbra.

• The Fae and Changelings (they're very interesting and often require a lot more intelligence and creative thinking than just directly fighting them because they're so crazy powerful)

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Fae are less OP then you think, but very stealthy and chaotic. I don't think something as orderly as korean rpgs would be a good option.

• The Princesses from Princess: The Hopeful (one of the very few factions who's trying to improve the WoD world and prevent it from becoming so too bleak to care about anymore)

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ew.

Yeah that is an interesting premise, the only "Gamer" WoD fic I know if is Sera's "Vampire The Masquerade Vicky" chapters in "Seras's dumpster of random snippets." on Space Battles, where the protagonist can access hwe Vampire Stat sheet from WoD.

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there is also Mage X DxD crossover where mage is using WoD RPG rules. And another one WoD x Harry Potter crossover where they have Harry Potter SI using Sorcerer paths and WoD system. I think the Harry Potter one was being translated into English.

Now that I think about it an Awakening can shape how you see the reality so it is not impossible that you awake as a Mage and your new reality becomes that of a game. Like you can see all your stats and when you train or study an exp bar goes up until you hit the next threshold and you skill "levels up". You could make a story about that and leave in ambivalent if the Mc is a "real" gamer or if he is a Mage with a weird Awakening.

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Sounds like a "Standard" marauder. I think there is a whole squad running on gamer logic going around.

And of course, someone has already made the inevitable Worm crossover, albeit of Chronicles instead of World;

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another ew. what is with Worm popularity?
Even going with Wildbow, he has other staff. Like Pact, Pale, etc. I did read Pact and it is quite solid.

 

[Skitzyfrenic]

But... why do you need/want Gaia?

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I'm going to go out on a limb and say it was because Gaia, IIRC, was the one to grant the power in the OG The Gamer Manwha.

I can't read minds, but that's my guess.

 

[Bommel]

there is also Mage X DxD crossover where mage is using WoD RPG rules. And another one WoD x Harry Potter crossover where they have Harry Potter SI using Sorcerer paths and WoD system. I think the Harry Potter one was being translated into English.

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Please post some links, or even names of the stories, because they sound fun.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say it was because Gaia, IIRC, was the one to grant the power in the OG The Gamer Manwha.

I can't read minds, but that's my guess.

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Correct.
I thought it would be a bit more interesting if some of the actual lore/story of The Gamer webcomic was intergrated into a crossover story, instead of just copying the Gamer powers and nothing else, as it feels more creative and makes the character more involved and part of the world of whatever the story is set in.

For anyone else, here's a link to Gaia's page on The Gamer webcomic wiki to get some info on that version of Gaia if anyone's interested.

 

[heralding_bubble]

And another one WoD x Harry Potter crossover where they have Harry Potter SI using Sorcerer paths and WoD system. I think the Harry Potter one was being translated into English.

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Please post some links, or even names of the stories, because they sound fun.

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This one is probably Indomitable

 

[Notsae66]

Now for the real question if you become "The Gamer" would the sudden realization and understanding of how the world works cause you to awaken as a Mage?

Now that I think about it an Awakening can shape how you see the reality so it is not impossible that you awake as a Mage and your new reality becomes that of a game. Like you can see all your stats and when you train or study an exp bar goes up until you hit the next threshold and you skill "levels up". You could make a story about that and leave in ambivalent if the Mc is a "real" gamer or if he is a Mage with a weird Awakening.

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Oh yeah, the most likely explanation for someone with Gamer powers in WoD is them just being a Mage who's paradigm is believing the world is actually a hyper complex video game and they are the protagonist (or one of them). While using an out of context power is always fun for fanfics, you could have a totally explicable gamer as just a slightly more insane than usual mage.

there are plenty of Hellholes near major cities if they want to fight all sorts of nasties. There is also Labyrinth that you can access from dark umbra. But either of those makes mortal peril for nearly anyone. Probably stick to wild undead and petty banes in Penumbra.

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You could literally grab a small piece of the labyrinth (or a hell), isolate and slightly modify it, and turn that intoba "dungeon," if you wanted, though I really wouldn't think it would be a good idea. An in-context Mage Gamer probably couldn't doem such a thing, and an out of context gamer with an omnipotent system wouldn't really need to bother unless it was just to save resources or make their powers make sense somewhat.

 

[Imperator Sol]

Rejoice, mortals.

The same mind that brought us Ocean City Nights has released a new story set in the World of Darkness, and it has a strong start so far.

Richmond by Night.

 

[shadowdice]

The lupus werewolf who likes people talk reminded me that Metis could have mental derangements

Instead of a malk or deranged Gangrel that think they are a werewolf a deranged Métis is adopted by a Malkavian that decides to go "one of us" after the metis was abandoned

Coterie: Why do you have a werewolf baby

Malk: the baby was in the dumpster so it is free

Years later

Métis: I was a dumpster baby and that is how I got my moms and dads

Brutalized hunters that came in for a vampire fight: Oooooooowww

 

[Wwind]

Please post some links, or even names of the stories, because they sound fun.

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It was quite some time ago. one of them is indeed Indomitable.
The other one I can't quite remember. But it was quite fun. The MC wasn't even combat specced or something, his most useful abilities were Charisma 6 and Arcane 5.

You could literally grab a small piece of the labyrinth (or a hell), isolate and slightly modify it, and turn that intoba "dungeon," if you wanted, though I really wouldn't think it would be a good idea. An in-context Mage Gamer probably couldn't doem such a thing, and an out of context gamer with an omnipotent system wouldn't really need to bother unless it was just to save resources or make their powers make sense somewhat.

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OOC you could do whatever the writer wants. but it's no fun.
IC mage could do it, especially a marauder, but it makes no sense. Like why would you need to cut it off and then remake it? just use as is.
Do you mean to make the experience... safe-ish? In that case go to the Battlefield umbral realm. If you die there - you respawn. Still hurts a lot, usually too hardcore for most of mages. But that's what juvenile werewolves do for combat training.
P.S. Hellhole is not a proper hell. It is a very nasty and polluted umbral area near/in cities where all sorts of banes, petty demons and such hang out. Though may be linked to Malfeas in the deepest part.

 

[shadowdice]

I have made in-universe summaries of the book of nod (and part of the revelations of the dark mother)

Part of me just thinks it would be funny for an SI to write and publish those amongst vampires before Beckett/Aristotle and Rachel published theirs with both eventually finding out that someone referenced them and their research in their own Decades before they assembled theirs.

Beckett reading a description of Llith that compares her attempt to get more power out of god after fucking him to a woman trying to get a guy she just slept with to pay for her car and closing the book while looking out the window, thinking over how the description of God and 'post nut clarity' is technically accurate. "I understand the feeling the King James Only movement has about the use of language."

 

[Maragas]

I have made in-universe summaries of the book of nod (and part of the revelations of the dark mother)

Part of me just thinks it would be funny for an SI to write and publish those amongst vampires before Beckett/Aristotle and Rachel published theirs with both eventually finding out that someone referenced them and their research in their own Decades before they assembled theirs.

Beckett reading a description of Llith that compares her attempt to get more power out of god after fucking him to a woman trying to get a guy she just slept with to pay for her car and closing the book while looking out the window, thinking over how the description of God and 'post nut clarity' is technically accurate. "I understand the feeling the King James Only movement has about the use of language."

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It would be a fun read.

 

[shadowdice]

Book of Nod, Urban Vampire Edition

Spoiler: Introduction, Caine Sells Himself For Magic, Rohypnol

Intro To Vampirism

To start out the history of Vampire Lore whether you use the name Kindred or the more generally accurate Cainite, let me explain what a lot of people need to understand. Both words are used to describe the fact that We are family. We are not convergent evolution where for some reason a bunch of different people got cursed or used weird magic to obtain power and all got pale fanged monsters that burn in sunlight, have roughly similar powers, and can get the abilities of each other by drinking the guy next to you dry. We are not the weird everything evolves into crabs equivalent of magic. Now, some wizards did drink potions after obtaining the blood of a vampire which turned them into undead. Weirdly, this happened at least twice and a vampire did the same thing to become a semi-fairy. But even those guys got it from having some pre-existing vampire juice.

All vampires, whether we like it or not, are Tribes of Caine. Yes the one from the Bible not Command and Conquer. The Bible itself is not necessarily correct, there is some vampire lore in how we were involved in some acts of the New Testament and a Toreador might have been rubber stamping what got into the collected text we have now. But there is a guy, whose name has been corrupted into Caine and a few other similar sounding words that our relatives deep in Sub-Saharan Africa and far north in Scandinavia both apply to their understanding of our ancient Blood Donor.

All vampires are descended from him. Which is why we have words like Cainite and Kindred. The Clans and Bloodlines as we call them now used to be called Tribes with the Thirteen acknowledged Clans all tying themselves to one of thirteen known descendants of Caine. Most people call them the Third Generation but at least some of them did commit the Forbidden Sip which could have worked to get them more power or not because a lot of the rules on how stuff works now might not have been the same back then. Also the fact that a lot of people are going to lie to make themselves sound better. The Ravnos say their founder was a Second Generation possible son of Caine and was the bestest boy ever who Caine loved more than everybody else. There are the Setites who keep saying that No their guy is totally a God don't you know and is totally the First Generation and everyone else just stole power from him so you should convert to their religion where wetheycan tear out your heart, keep it in a jar, and kill you when their high priests get upset. The Assamites say that Haqim is an uber badass who was immune to all of Caine's powers as a mortal no less, called him out on lies, and decapitates his King and Queen when they were turned into vampires and drank their blood For Some Reason to obtain their abilities and grant himself the Embrace.

Which isn't how that works and means he is a crazy Diablerist who presumed with little evidence that 'hey if I kill my bosses and drink their blood I'll be like them right?' and tried it. Don't say that to an Assamite's face though since they might behead you. Or in earshot, a lot of them have Auspex.

There is Also Brujah who have technically two founders. Illyes or Troile the Elder whose name was probably not that and the name almost certainly got put on there sometime after the rise of Greece, and Troile the Younger who we are just going to call Troile. The generally accepted story is that Illyes was a cold fish scholar with time powers who embraced the probably hot young redheaded girl Troile the Younger. Now Troile could have been a dude as well or switch between them with ancient magic but I am just going to stick with Redheaded Musclegirl Woman or possible Femboy Twunk. Troile for reasons that many people argue over, ate Illyes and became acknowledged as the head of the Clan by Caine. Possibly because Big Daddy Caine decided that he liked muscled redhead tomboys.

The Tremere are technically a Tzimisce Bloodline as they are one of those groups of wizards that became vampires. Their founder, Tremere, seemed to have the philosophy of Every Hole Is A Goal with how often he pounded his students whether they be pretty slave boys he bought or girls with burn scars from experiments, ate Saulot. Similarly, Augustus Giovanni ate Cappadocius. Members of the original Clans for both will still call them Bloodlines.

Getting into this. Antitribu is a term for Against the Tribe or technically the founder. This is a Political term, which is common for vampires. Sabbat Members are technically all Antitribu even if they might be the majority of the clan such as the Tzimisce or Lasombra. Additionally, The Nosferatu are all Antitribu if we use this definition because almost all the ones we know and talk to are descendants of Baba Yaga. Yes that one, and no I am not going to say her name anymore because she is an ancient prehistorical witch who can summon dragons. She was made by her Antediluvian because she was already a horrifically powerful witch and he wanted her power. She took issue with that for partly religious reasons and avoided the Blood Bond he put the rest of his children under which resulted in an eternal war between her descendants and the Nictuku, those vampires that serve their founder.

Okay, you get all of that. Now, let us get into Big Daddy Caine's book of monumental mistakes and advice for how his Grandkids should act. At least it is written like it was him as the main perspective, this has passed from Sire to Childe to weird guy in the desert finding a historical artifact like me.

The Chronicles of Caine, Lilith, and Learning Magic Really Badly

Big Daddy Caine describes this passage as dreaming, speaking, and singing. Which might fit the Bible with how Naamah and Jubal were musicians. Caine liked his happy times as a farmer that dealt with plants while his little brother Abel cared for animals and helped them give birth. Some ominous foreshadowing if you know Genesis comes as Big Daddy Caine says he loved being a big brother because his little bro was the brightest, sweetest, strongest person he knew who he loved dearly and shared his joy with.

Their Father, maybe Adam maybe God wanted them to sacrifice what they loved the most to Big G. Caine grabbed his brightest fruits and Abel killed the best animal he had. Both went to their Father's altar and set them on fire. Big G liked the smell of grilling meat more than grilled fruit while Caine got told off and cursed.

Caine, being an observant guy, looked at the bleeding smoking meat Abel put out, cried, prayed, and when their Father said they were going to make another sacrifice, decided 'Hey wait, if God wants blood then I should give him blood since clearly the problem was that I grilled some great plants, which, you know, don't have blood. Blood is the secret magic sauce'

Caine wasn't the guy who raised animals though. He did have a brother and when Abel was asking why he didn't bring 'the first part of his joy' over to the altar, Caine cried with love and used his garden implements to bash Abel's brains in at the altar for him to burn.

Naturally, he got cursed by either Adam or God and got cast out to the Land of Nod where he was scared, alone, hungry, cold, and cried until Creeper Aunty Lilith came to him in the night saying she could make it all better because she had all kinds of shelter.

Caine apparently wasn't told about Creeper Cthulhu Fucking Homewrecker Aunty Lilith and did not realize it was a bad thing that was about to happen when Lilith gave him food, hugs, and kisses on his blood tears because they were about to get into some extreme torture porn.

Our Great Granddady is still an observant guy though and asked Lilith how she was able to make food, a house, and clothes out in the apocalyptic wasteland of darkness and terror. Her answer was that she was Awake and can control the Threads of reality to obtain Power. These words tend to be used by Mages but we don't know if she is a mage or whoever wrote this used those terms because they fit best.

Caine, being an observant guy who got thrown around by people before, asked if Lilith could Wake him up and teach him how to do all of this so he could have his own House instead of being her live in fucktoy.

Lilith did not entirely want to do this since Caine was already cursed enough that it might mess up her attempts. Caine, really not liking being a useless fucktoy whose only tool was his penis, pointed out that he was weak, defenseless, would die without what Lilith gives him, and was basically a slave.

Now, Because Caine knew the art of the Honeydick, he knew that Lilith was a lonely MILFy Hag who really wanted company and would help him out even if she wanted to keep total control because she was invested in this relationship.

So, Lilith filled a bowl with her blood for Caine to drink in the hopes it would Awaken him.

That did not work the way she wanted because he passed out with his mind in a Deep Abyss that might be another dimension, maybe the underworld, maybe somewhere else, and had visions of Michael, Raphael, and Uriel all offering him forgiveness from God, Abel, and God again which was rejected each time with each angel cursing him for saying Fuck No I Know What I Did and it is my own grace, forgiveness, and mercy that I'm going to keep on living even if I'm going to be cursed for all eternity.

The angels decided to take him up on that offer and mega cursed him to the point he cried blood again where he drank it from a cup he somehow had before Gabriel said 'hey, God still loves you bro and there is a road of Mercy called Golconda that you and your kids can follow to be in the Light.' Now the word being used, Golconda, is probably a later invention but we are dealing with Caine and Angels that can see the actual future so they could be using a word that wasn't around yet with the expectation that it will be a great joke when Saulot or other vampires walk around and find a city by that name.

Caine woke up next to Lilith, decided that this was obviously the Awakening she talked about, and learned he had powers now. These powers were Disciplines. Celerity, Potence, and Fortitude were the first ones he figured out after having been terrified and frail in the Land of Nod. Lilith taught him Obfuscate, Dominate which leads to worrying implications on how she had control over him before, and Presence.

This was not enough awesome powers so Caine figured out how to shapeshift, which is probably Protean instead of Viccisitude, Animalism, and Auspex.

It is from here that we get what I like to call Cardinal or Core 9 Disciplines.

Lilith said he should not make any more powers because Caine was at his limits and any other powers would "Threaten his very essence." Again, this is some very dark foreshadowing for clans like the Lasombra, Tzimisce, Cappadocius, Setites and even Salubri as those guys go heavy on their new power. Also you could argue the OG Brujah.

Lilith Dominated or used something similar to make Caine follow her rules but the fact that she used those powers pissed off Big Daddy Caine who once he was alone, did make a new power, opening himself to infinite possibilities where he saw what got him in trouble in the first place. The Path of Blood which would open all sorts of new abilities. Now the phrase used is "From which all other paths would grow." Which is kind of correct as the Lasombra, Setites, and Tzimisce all go deep into blood mysticism so it could be that they created their special disciplines through Thaumaturgy. The term Path of Blood is what the Tremere call their base blood magic but others have their own versions of the same powers.

Caine used Thaumaturgy to destroy Lilith's hold on him before he Obfuscated out of Nod to find a place Lilith and her demons coulnd't get to him. And unfortunately, I have no idea if that is actual demons, monsters she made, or the various kids she made with demons. Because Lilith did a lot of fucking around.

Caine's Story of Rohypnol Roofies

Zillah had the sweetest blood, the softest skin, and the clearest eyes. A lot of this stuff also creepily mirrors Abel but ignoring that terrifying thought. She was the only one of Caine's children he desired but she ignored his attempts to seduce her no matter if he gave her perfumes, pets, art, or parties. Caine was so frustrated in having to rediscover the art of romance that which Adam never had to deal with that he tore his hair out and wandered into the forest where he found an old hag we call the Crone singing to the moon.

They commiserated over not having what they want with Caine going 'What can you do.' But the Crone, being an old hag, saw what Caine wanted, smiled her old witchy smile, and told Caine that she'd tell him the secrets of the Moon if he drank her blood and came back later. He found her sleeping on the stone the next night and insulted her to wake her back up but she said she was Dreaming up visions for him so he should drink her again and come the next night with a clay bowl and a knife for him. Caine, missing his normal observant nature, did not question why this sounds so similar to what Lilith did with him.

So, he drank her until she passed out.

Caine, not having learned to not trust strange women he finds in forests, came back with a bowl and knife, did not insult her awake for the third meeting, and she smiled her witchy smile claiming she had what he sought, telling him to mix berries and herbs in the bowl with her blood.

Caine, somehow not remembering how he got into this whole undeath problem, followed this because she claimed it would make Zillah fall in love with him despite Caine already knowing blood magic now and none of this stuff being related to her as far as anyone can tell.

Because Caine, like many people, was deeply, madly, incomprehensibly obsessed with the woman his heart was set on. And when Caine did drink he paused, realized what was just happened, and realized that he was now in an NTR Hentai only instead of a fat old bastard fucking a hot wife, he was the hot wife being molested by a fat old female bastard. Meaning, he was the slave of a creepy mysterious old witch he found in the wilderness. Again. And it wasn't a hot one.

Oh, he tried to use his powers to rend the woman's flesh and bones apart but he was controlled by what may have been the First Blood Bond and was incapable of breaking it as she commanded him to desire her old, dried, pruny skin before having him Embrace her.

Capital E Embrace it seems and it is from this that the Blood Bond seems to be in place as she promised that it was now that the Blood would create those ties between people. Complete with it needing to be on three separate nights.

Now, how does this work? Well this seems to have been a powerful curse. When Caine put the Clan Curses on the Antediluvians, they had already sired with their childer being cursed in turn. So a great and powerful change in the Blood seems to be able to change even those who have already been created by their parent.

The Crone promised to make even more potions for Caine, bidding him to go to the city for Zillah while she waited in evil places.

A year and a day passed before Caine devised a way to break his service. This old bitch would force him to give up his blood for her alchemical experiments and claim members of the Third Generation for her evil plans. But, she thought her hold was complete and Caine waited, refusing to drink her blood as he tried to weaken its hold on him. Remember, he was the first Blood Sorcerer and if people in the present can break blood bonds, the creator of our Sorcery should be able to.

Caine, being a sneaky fucker, came to the Crone saying that his kids were trying to kill him and how the prophecy of the angel Auriel was clearly true. The Crone didn't want her blood supply and dick to turn to ash, so she found a gopher tree and made a stake out of it before telling him he could immobilize a vampire by driving it through their heart.

He promptly staked the bitch.

But she laughed while the stake penetrated her withered tits, hating him while Caine kissed her brittle lips before he left her for the sun. Don't ask why he did that. Maybe the Blood Bond still had a hold or he had a particularly sick sense of humor. Not uncommon with us.

He also committed a great Sin amongst us vampires. Waiting For The Sun instead of decapitating the ancient evil witch and scattering the ashes himself. Because you never know when someone has a servant that will be able to drag your body to a save place or rip the stake out. But this was may have been the first real Vampire attempted homicide and Caine already was cursed because of one murder within the family so I can understand him being careful with this.

Spoiler: Things Never Change, Big Daddy's Advice, and Wisdom

First City, AKA Things Never Change

Now, the first Vampire was Caine. Caine sacrificed his brother out of love and was cast out for it (Yes that is the reason stated multiple times in the Book of Nod, ancient cultures are weird. So are modernish ones, look at cultures that burn widows in pyres or kill a woman to give a dead son a ghost bride), cursed with both immortality and bloodlust. He is our grandsire, our Patriarch, and Father of us as a species just as humans are the Children of Seth.

He spent an unknown amount of time in the Land of Nod, suffering alone until Humanity began to forget him. He returned to civilization, still Marked but with much of the knowledge of his crime unknown. His power was so great that humanity worshipped him and he further mastered the ability to control them as he was made King of the Great City.

But, Caine still has all the traits of a Human. We have the Beast but that is not all we are and he felt alone. Even moreso now that he was the one in charge with none to stand with him. The term used in the original Book of Nod is that he called up demons, but the term itself could have been in the more Grecian sense. Auspex allows powerful users to communicate with spirits which may have taught him how to give the Embrace.

Uriel, not liking this, came to him in the night to warn him that his adopted Children would bear the same curses as him. To be hated by the sun, drink blood, and walk in the Land of Nod. He would bear witness to the same heartbreak as his father, seeing his children have the same jealousy as himself and plot and murder one another.

The warning didn't change Caine's loneliness, so he went to Enoch or some say Enosh, most loved of the children of Seth whether it be by Humanity of Caine himself. Enoch begged to be made Caine's son and Caine Embraced him despite Uriel's prophecy. Caine named the First City after his son who became as lonely as Caine eventually had, and so Caine listened to Enoch's requests to be given a brother and sister who would be Irad who was apparently the best warrior and general while Zillah was embraced for Caine's lust for her.

It is said Caine lusted for her Blood. If this is because it was magical in some way, tasted wonderful as some exceptional humans are, or just a flowery term for Kindred sexual desire is ambiguous. All of these could be true at the same time and the does apply given the whole Crone booty call issue.

Caine's first brood learned how to Embrace others and rapidly made children of their own. Which is a very bad idea when it comes to the fact that Caine knows how this could go even without magical murder powers involved. He outlawed the Embrace but just like us in modern times, the Second Generation would continue whenever they believed they could get away with it.

The First City expanded into a kingdom where Caine became more involved with humans. What caused this is ambiguous as it could be the demands of vampires for blood, the needs of the humans, luxuries,or the fact that this is in the time period where the Garou Werewolves had the Impergium. Also known as Werewolves slaughtering humans out of the believe that they should cull the population. As you can expect, Caine might not have been happy about that. Though neither would mages. Or Ghosts. Or Fairies when you consider their interests.

Basically, pre-history should have everyone be pissed off at the Werewolves and I have some good ideas on why Irad might embrace childer outside of any internal enemies he had.

But Caine grew closer to humans. The term used is Knew Them which tends to have a very different connotation in Biblical texts. Which, well, Blood Magic can get your parts hard again if just trying to Rouse the Blood fails.

Unfortunately, Caine's kids roamed around indulging in their vices at the very least, possibly creating the Baali back then at worst when they weren't just trying to kill each other through violence or politics along with abusing the humans enough that Caine felt sad about it. which means Caine became very close to humans or the Second Generation were at a level of brutality that the man who invented Murder said 'woah, that's messed up.'

He read omens, used auspex, or did rituals that told him that the Flood Would happen to wash away civilization. Caine decided against warning anyone of what was to come and was so depressed by the flood that he exiled himself away from both Humanity and Kindred. The Second Generation and Antediluvians found him fused with the Earth, because Protean was invented by him, and he told them to fuck off because all of this was his fault for trying to exist amongst humans.

Essentially, he voluntarily went into Torpor while the Antediluvians decided to hunt down the humans to rule over them. The Second and Third Generation made their broods once again to try to mimic the achievements of Caine, but failed as they fell into infighting. Terms like we are used in this which could be the claim of an Antediluvian or a more generalized we for Kindred. Either way, members of the Third Generation killed their Sires, or Fourth Generation did so to the Third.

This story puts the creation of the Second City as after the slaying of the second generation. Thirteen Clans joined together in this city though there are likely more than thirteen third generation that were made.

It is likely that by this point or during the rise of the Second City that the Clans got their monikers. Kingship Clan Ventrue, Beast Clan Gangrel, Moon Clan Malkavian, Hidden Clan Nosferatu which is rather odd as this would either mean the original was there with the Nictuku who apparently had the title first or the divide happened with his rebel children in the city, Wanderer Clan Ravnos, Rose Clan Toreador, Night Clan Lasombra, Shaper Clan Tzimisce, Snake Clan Setites, Death Clan Cappadocians, Healer Clan Salubri, Hunter Clan Assamite, and Learned Clan Brujah.

Our Antediluvian ancestors set themselves up as a pantheon of gods in a city they designed for themselves, making more childer while forbidding them from Embracing out of fear of Uriel's warnings. But like with the Second Generation under Caine, the Fourth Generation spread vitae to benefit themselves. Illegal embraces saw both sire and childe killed if the Third Generation learned of it. Same as now. And as you'd expect, people either escaped or hid their children.

Caine knew all of this because duh Auspex and even if not he had Animalism and could probably possess even Antediluvians if he very well pleased. So he cursed the clans with Banes for killing his children. And being one of the first men to live, a vicious dick to people he disliked, and having had the time to sit down and think about his ironic punishments, Caine screwed them hard.

Malkav apparently desecrated an image of Caine and was driven made. Nosferatu's proclivities were so heinous Caine found it foul enough to make it so his evil would always be on his face. Others have the way they got their curses listen in other stories, but it is generally agreed that Everyone got a curse of some sort.

The term we is used again in saying the Second Generation was mourned by everyone, which brings the question of who is the writer. "And we mourned them all, as we were of a kind, and all the families of Caine."

Afterwards, the Second City died out a slow withering death that the Antediluvians did not recognize until it was too late. Troile diablerized Illyes which might have actually occurred earlier and probably did, but war destroyed what was left of the city along with countless broods. Scattered, everyone made Broods to war and plot against one another in attempts to rule over the earth. With more Kindred came more conflict as Elders hid behind proxies and Neonates rebelled, killed them or were controlled, and repeated the cycle with new cities. Mortals were used to wage war on each other for every reason under the sun as Kindred began to pose as gods or hide in the shadows like we do now.

But this has happened before, and the last time, Caine wanted to be left alone, watching until he decided to come down and Judge Everyone.

And he will do it again with every vampire fearing just where and when Gehenna comes in what we call The Last City

Words of Wisdom from Great Granddaddy Caine and the other Grandparents

Now okay, we've gone over the outline of vampire history starting with the first vampire down to our Apocalyptic visions.

Got it? Good. Great Granddaddy Caine also wrote down the law based on his experiences as an old man desperately beating his kids over the head and ass with ancient cuneiform tablets with the hope he could print his warnings on either their skin or burn it into their brains.

These being

• Don't Embrace people when I tell you not to.
• Make ghouls, ghouls are useful.
• Be fucking specific in who you embrace
• Treat them well like a sibling because they will be your family
• If you fuck them up your kids will want to fuck you up, even Angels understand that and they don't have kids the normal way. That'll end your immortality.
• Parents are stronger than their kids in almost all respects
• Listen to me i.e Caine to have truth, peace, and power.
• If you fuck up, the person who made you can end you. Even Caine is worried about what Adam could have done to him.
• If your Childe diablerizes your kids or brothers, how loosely we are using that term is unknown, kill him. Fuck the kid and kill him. He outright calls it the Serpent's way and it is hard to tell if he is talking about Set and his religion of evil or outright Lucifer.
• Don't embrace the unworthy,
• Don't embrace people as punishment looking at you Nosferatu,
• Don't embrace kids you freaks, people who are embraced should add to the family.
• Don't embrace the diseased since they tend to be stuck looking diseased or otherwise suffering
• Don't embrace the insane, looking at you Malkav because that will mess with the blood.
• Don't have more Kindred around than Sethites. Even a three to one human to vampire ratio is pushing it.
• Sires need to teach their Childer the Laws, Traditions, Rites, and Customs
• Don't embrace the Werewolves and don't drink their blood. THIS IS A FORBIDDEN SIP.
• Don't embrace the Mages, listen to what they say but always be ready in case they try to fuck with you even if they are useful.
• Don't drink Fairy blood it will drive you crazy and definitely don't embrace them because you will die.
• Don't embrace for love, it doesn't work out, he has personal experience.
• We are supposed to look after the Sethites, because they are the kids of Caine's younger brother.
• Guide the humans so they'll serve you
• Have humans around to serve you in the daytime and protect your haven because they can put out fires, feed you, and deal with all the logistics for stuff like entertainment, clothing, and comfort.
• He even says yes it is okay to literally fuck humans instead of just fuck them over
• Listen to the advice of humans, he repeats this, listen to the advice of humans you idiot
• Yes they will try to worship you as a god, but don't do that, looking at you Set. Also Michael. And Cappadocius.
• Don't set yourself up as a god because God will fuck you up. This may be a reference to true faith.
• He brings receipts in the form of Ashtareth, Baal, and Tammauz, known Mesopotamian gods which were apparently Kindred. Second or Third generation, I don't know.
• God will actively give humans weapons if you do this shit. So, expect more true faith and weird powers around if you do this.
• Guide the humans, cull them if necessary to clean them of blood and keep them free from disease. So this seems to be, you know, take care of their health and remove the sick and maybe genetically bad, not the full force genocide runs of slaughtering cities the werewolves did.

And yet more Caine trying to bash in common sense into brains. I will make this clear, CAINE REPEATS HIMSELF BECAUSE HE KNOWS PEOPLE WON'T LISTEN TO HIM

• Make ghouls, ghouls are useful.
• If the ghoul commits a crime against a Kindred the Domitor will pay the price as if they did it. AKA Be careful with your ghouls because you will be judged on what they do.
• Account for the ghouls, don't have secret agents because this will lead to infighting. We see this happen all the time.
• Know when a ghoul is blood bonded, do it with skilled people because they will be Wise and should be taken care of. Free ghouls might make you feel better but it leads to problems.
• Caine reminds us that Caine loves his family and that He Will Break the chains if he very well pleases. If this is Blood Bonds, well that is probable. Auspex and Blood Magic would let him foil plots he wants to destroy.
• Don't fuck with Angels
• Don't fuck with demons, looking at you Tiamat, Troile, Ur-Shulgi, Baali, Hey Sabbat and Assamites, look at Mexico City.
• Yes make animal ghouls and breed them, which might be a reference to like revenant horses, but don't think your Beast is as controllable as they are.
• Don't mess with Werecreatures and possessed animals. He cannot emphasize this enough.
• Invite your ghouls into your house and don't let people Embrace them until appropriate
• Remember the ghouls are useful in the daytime. He cannot stop repeating this.
• Reward your ghouls
• Give them many of the same joys you have with clothes, music, and blood
• Protect your ghouls
• If someone's ghoul is killed dogpile the one who did it and beat the shit out of them if it was without provocation, looking at you people who frenzy and kill the messengers
• Seriously just don't mess with the were-creatures and avoid them. HE TELLS YOU THIS LIKE FIVE TIMES
• Don't mess with the werecreature's sacred ground and territory
• Their teeth and claws will fuck you up. If you don't listen to the previous warnings because it is him, have self-preservation at the very least
• He repeates, don't mess with the fairies.
• Yes they are pretty but they are dangerous.
• They did help Caine when he was a human and were his friends then, which could be when he was wondering before meeting Lilith or back when Abel was alive.
• They are a lot like us but they tend to not explain things well so just listen to what they say and try and figure out what they mean. They are like his parents.
• Don't mess with mages they are like Lilith and his parents.
• Mages may try to drag you into their messes and ideals but they want to do weird ascension stuff that will cast off physical bodies and their methods are likely to kill you
• Ghosts are real and Caine has been to the underworld.
• They are close to vampires and Caine still hears Abel's screams
• Listen to the ghosts but don't fall to their temptations when they try to manipulate them. Ghosts have an equivalent to the Beast that is actively trying to kill them.
• In all honesty, help ghosts move on instead of binding them to your will. Aka What the Giovanni do. Don't be a Giovanni
• Caine was imprisoned by Lilith and freed himself so he has strong opinions on this.
• Don't diablerize your sire
• Listen to your elders. He has repeated this multiple times.
• Don't mess with each other's land or territory
• Don't call yourselves gods, the angels and God will take objection to that. Looking at you Mithras
• LISTEN TO YOUR SIRE
• TEACH YOUR KIDS YOU FUCKUPS
• Do not embrace for love, he repeats, it is a bad idea
• Don't eat the werecreatures, the fairies, the diseased, the insane, the drunk you fuckups
• Protect your ghouls and servants. He repeats himself
• Give Hospitality to other kindred,
• Give the best hospitality to your Elders even if it means not having your favorite bed and things,
• Put a roof over the siblings of your progeny and some blood, which might be their friends. He suggests animal blood.
• Don't Forget You Are Caine's Family.

Grandparental guidance. Take these with more salt than Granddaddy Caine.

Brujah, Troile

• Elders can be wrong
• Repeat her lessons to others, this comes after the fact that she says Elders can be wrong
• Cause emotions in people. This might be her saying be nice or she could be saying to be a troll
• Make the Night yours, so seize the night. We can't exactly grab the day.

Toreador, Arikel

• Beauty can be found in the calm and reveal the truth
• Love can bring you calm
• Make art
• Money is not the be all
• Hunting is good not just sitting around surrounded by blood.
• Find happiness and follow your passions.

Nosferatu, Absimiliard

• Go out in the dark and make it yours
• Feed on evil people
• Beauty is on the inside

Ventrue also known as Ventru

• Rule by right not by power
• Make laws and make tools for the people and keep that covenant
• Respect those who fight and be prepared for betrayal
• Be brave

Saulot

• You are going to die
• You are the best part of Caine and will bear his sins
• Heal future generations

More Reminders

Don't eat kindred. Members of the third Generation tried it on Caine. It didn't work out.

Caine loves you and you are the ones who suffer with him but he will punish you when you fuck up like his father taught him.

We also have Proverbs. It is ambiguous who made these but they are likely from various sources.

• Toreador do not give straight answers
• If the Gangrel decide to run away haul ass
• Nosferatu tend to die first in political wars
• Do not eat the firefighters, construction workers, and undertakers. Help them, bless them, do not eat. THIS IS FORBIDDEN SIP. Bless those who deal with our natural enemies.
• Don't let people see you eat. Especially priests, poets, or regular people.
• Be honorable and don't insult the Ventrue to their face because they will hold a grudge
• Just outlive the people you hate, they've probably made other enemies
• Vengeance feels best when it is soon though
• The humans have tax men and laws, deal with it. Don't evade taxes, they will notice.
• Even if you lose a fight you can win the war
• Make sure your kids don't diablerize.
• Never SIP three times from the same person in a row. You know, Kindred.
• Don't bargain with demons and the darkness, they want everything
• Do not let the beast control you, ride it.
• Poets and singers will make art about vampires so avoid them
• Hide yourself, don't be open about being a vampire.
• When religions are looking for you, hide
• Be gentle when you feed on women, be extra fucking careful if you feed on a child, be careful with animals because they could be shifters and they have less nutrients than others, share kindred blood to share powers, feast on Werecreatures
  • I have that last part so people can't say I removed parts. DON'T DO IT. THIS IS FORBIDDEN SIP.
• Your duty is to protect the weak and fight the strong

Spoiler: Prophecies of Suspicious Origin, and Daddy's Repeated Advice

Prophecies

The Book of Nod does have many prophecies. These are supposedly sourced from the First City as prophecies proclaimed by Saulot when he was intentionally depriving himself of blood. Many of them are hard to parse such as "Lasombra's dreams-come true on the day when the moon runs as blood and the run rises black in the sky, that is the day of the Damned, when Caine's children rise again." An irritating part of prophecy is how metaphorical they can be and interpreting them.

A lot of it can be the fact that I think an Antediluvian would have a hard time comprehending what a nuclear bomb when they were in over ten thousand BC and trying to explain it to someone who didn't see what they themselves would practically think of as as magic.

Here, Caine's children could mean the Second Generation, vampires in general, or perhaps the Third Generation but that does not make much sense as the prophecy mentions Grandsires who will rise with "So too, our grandsires will rise from the ground. They will break their fast on the first part of us, they will consume us whole." And if First part is oldest then that will be bad for the Elders.

Caine also calls his children, which could be the antediluvians or us in general to a meeting place in the "First City" where he will cast judgement upon all of us, destroying those who have earned destruction, and those who diablerized their sires will be granted Caine's blood for the ironic punishment of it burning them from the inside out while Lilith and he fight while Hell erupts and the sky tears apart.

Which, well, if Heaven gets involved we are probably all doomed. Hell, debatable since I'm pretty sure most demons hate each other.

The Changelings will leave the earth while the Werecreatures fight each other and the Antediluvians which survived up to this point try to make empires in the wasteland in which the Last City, called Gehenna will see a horrible nightmarish rule where all goodness is tainted by a Father of Darkness which seems to be separate from the Dark Father term often used for Caine. This being's power comes from the Nether Realms which could be the Abyss like Lasombra, Underworld like Cappadocius, or you know, actual Hell.

An important figure in the prophecies of Gehenna is the Last Daughter of Eve. She is almost universally agreed upon as someone who exists in the Gehenna narratives though not necessarily one who is seen as important outside of being a sign. At least a few view her as a sort of Messianic Figure.

"When the snows consume the Earth and the Sun gutters like a candle in the wind then, and only then will there be born a woman, the Last Daughter of Eve, and in her there will be decided the fate of all. And you will not know this woman, except by the Mark of the Moon on her, and she will face treachery, hatred, and pain but in her is the last hope."

The exact meaning of the term Last Daughter of Eve is lost to most and it is far easier to draw ideas on what Mark of the Moon is. Some say it means she would be a Malkavian as they are often called the Clan of the Moon, or that she'd be related to werewolves, a Seer whether mortal or Thin Blood, or that it has to do with the astrological signs of her birth and/or Embrace as we often consider it a sort of birth. Many take it as a very literal Birthmark that they'd need to find on the body or perhaps in the Daughter's Aura.

If the term Daughter is literal also comes into question with some scholars believing it is a translation error caused by the use of the term Eve. Other Elders take a more metaphorical approach with their views on the position of the receiver in sex as being womanly. The Signs of Gehenna prophecy refers to a woman who weeps that many believe to be this Daughter of Eve.

We also have Lucifer's Days of Fire where he interprets it as a general time and phenomena of human fertility rates tanking. Yes, Lucifer says that.

Because may I remind you, The Devil Exists. Because God hates us and Lucifer hasn't offed himself to remove him from our misery.

We also have the more general Time of Thin Blood prophecy

"The Time of Thin Blood will come, which will mark vampires that cannot Beget. You will know them by the Clanless, who will come to rule. You will know them by the Wild Ones, who will hunt us even in the strongest city, you will know them by the awakening of some of the eldest, the Crone will awaken and consume all. You will know these times, for a black hand will rise up and choke all those who opposite it, and those who eat the heart's blood will flourish and the Kindred will crowd each to be his own, and Vitae will be rare as diamonds."

Interestingly, many interpret Wild Ones as werewolves. An oddity as it is generally used for the Fey. The drop in their appearance may be why this has happened, or it is a translation error. This has gone through enough languages that there might be more linguistic drift than there is difference in the Blood over time. Eldest generally is viewed to be our own Elders and Methuselahs. Crone is a hotly debated as plenty in Europe like to point to Baba Yaga as the Nosferatu refer to her as such while others make reference to The Crone who once assaulted Caine. Yet more point to Lilith though many of those believe her to be the same as Old Lady McBadtouch. Louhi is another who can fit the bill given her, well, everything to do with being a mad Malkavian who wants to permanently eclipse the sun.

MANY people like to claim the Black Hand is the Sabbat but that is more likely to be a result of that part of the Book of Nod being widespread enough that a cult dedicated to their interpretation of Caine would use the name for their black ops. A Lost Tribe of Assamites that claim to have found the petrified remains of Zillah used the same name for themselves. They are largely Sabbat as well. Similarly to the Moon Mark of the Last Daughters of Eve, their mark includes a moon mark on a handprint.

Of course, it could also be rather literal what with the Assamites growing darker in age and there being Ur-Shulgi. But it could be a simple referral to someone being evil.

Overall, it refers to a time where the Clanless become numerous to the point that either individuals come to power or they organize to claim it at the same time that there are vampires who perhaps cannot Sire. Along with you know, apocalyptic results from competition between what seems to be every generation of vampire as diablerie flourishes and we undergo a general famine.

The Signs of Gehenna prophecy makes reference to Clanless vampires on the run along with Sires who abandon or throw out their Childer. Their sacrifice of their children will bring a curse upon this Sires who shall be hunted down. This prophecy is particularly sympathetic to the Clanless, emphasizing that they are not told of the traditions nor given the hospitality Caine demanded we give, accusing the Sires for having left them to suffer. In this the Sires are their own undoing as they give the Clanless reason and right to undo their makers, aligning with Brujah's Childer which could be literal or in the sense of those who commit Diablerie to kill them.

Interestingly, this prophecy calls them Lilith's get which I personally take offense to. Yet the prophecy ends with the urge that despite the writer's wariness, the Clanless must be adopted and pitied even if you should watch us for evil intent.

More of Granddaddy Caine's Advice

On Love

Caine's counsel on Love is that Love is a gift from God and a gift of Life. Our curse by Uriel is that we will eat ashes and drink blood. Our bite takes Life and any love we obtain from a mortal without using disciplines is a soothing sweetness that would satisfy even the worst of us. But, we are predators and they know it so seeking love from the Children of Seth will see us experience their hate.

On Werecreatures

There will be a time when the Garou will begin to die out, but they will thrash and attempt to kill us all even as disease chokes out their bodies. It is the Gangrel who will have the keys to protecting us, tricking them, and making it possible to find peace.

On the Thin Bloods

Eventually, God's curse will end the Lineage of Caine and the lines will have Vampires who cannot Embrace. That is when Gehenna approaches.

On the Dark Father.

Paraphrasing, this is more of a prophecy that talks about how the heads of three Princes will see the dawn from a pillar of white and the north will see an ancient hunger appear to consume her children. An Elder Darkness below a city and surprise the Elders and its children.

I am not sure on the interpretation outside of how my first thoughts are of the Lasombra or evils from outside our world. The actual phrasing in the original text irritates me in how it phrases things. First talking of an Elder Darkness, then the Elder, its children. I get further annoyed by this line. The Dark Father, Bastard of Caine will drink blood sacrificed to it…you will know the time has come to lay claim to your Clan's safety, to fight the Dark Father."

Almost every single time we hear the term Dark Father, it is in reference to Caine. Here however, this is a Bastard of Caine. One may consider it to be a Second or Third Generation vampire but I want to blame this on the extended game of telephone.

This section is also a bit odd as the others are framed as if it was Caine talking or a conversation between him and another.

General Acknowledgements

There is a notable angle in the Book of Nod in regard to Ghouls and their placement in Kindred Society. Our knowledge of the First City is of a very strict society in what is not quite a Caste system but most certainly a Class System. Caine is on top with the Second Generation and Third Generation his children and grandchildren below him in tiers. One would think vampires are automatically above everyone else but Jabal, Master of Servants, was placed equal to the Third Generation.

In the Bible, Jabal or Yabal is known as a descendant of Caine. We do have some Lamechs and Tubalcains running around today amongst the Elders and Methuselahs but they do not seem to have been around for the flood. Naamah is known more as Nahemah the sister of Malkav. These might have been descendants of Enoch from his time as a human. Within the Old Testament, Jabal is known as an inventor of agricultural technology for both plants and livestock, combining the roles Cain and Abel once held.

As Caine is seemingly still cursed to be incapable of farming, I can easily see Caine having favored a particularly ingenious farmer. Though Jabal is more often compared to Abel which complicates matters heavily on just why our ancestor would like him so much. Perhaps as a replacement or resemblance if it is not driven by pride in the craft or himself.

Below the lot of them are Ghouls and other Servants presumably including the equivalent of Blood Dolls. Laborers come afterwards. It is generally accepted that slavery was practiced in this era as all societies did, but the depictions made in even the most ancient tablets lack any real visible sign of coercion. Not that necessary when Presence and Dominate exist though.

The Blood Feasts practiced by the Sabbat likely originate from the artworks we can find of the First City. Descriptions by the Antediluvians themselves make claim that Caine had condemned criminals executed via lunch. Cooks in the ancient city would feed the criminals special meals that would alter their blood chemistry or inject potions to alter the taste. There were also feeding slaves or well, Blood Dolls separate from the criminals adorned with jewelry to feed on. They wore veils which are generally a sign of leisure, beauty, or having been kept out of the sun due to how ancient societies liked them pale. Which probably made Kindred quite attractive to humans of the era.

None of this says the society was free of course. Humans were subject to eugenics programs where they were bred for specific traits. Generally in regard to the form of labor or art they were meant to fulfill. This was done in what many commonly call the temple of Lilith despite being neither a temple nor dedicated to any person. The name is likely due to people conflating it with Ishtar and the practices of sacred prostitutes, but it was mating observed by Vampires that could use auspex to tell if conception occurred.

I'm honestly surprised we don't call it the Temple of Arikel, Malkav, or even Cappadocius given the Antediluvians we believed to have mastered Auspex.

So yeah, Arikel was a massive shipper who picked out humans she thought would make cute or useful babies no matter if they knew each other or not.

Enoch was also a highly atheist city with the closest they had to religious gatherings outside of services to the vampires being Caine doomposting about about how evil kindred were and how both his children, grandchildren, and the citizens would go to hell.

I can kind of understand why so many Antediluvians have Devil Complexes.

Despite that, Caine is generally viewed as being a proficient King. Which is rather obvious when you can see the past, present, and future to know who committed what crime, for what reason, and tell people when to plant crops, harvest them, and how to avoid disease. I'm honestly unsure if the humans understood what was going on when a seemingly all knowing King with supernatural powers built a society around him but also says "I am totally not a god, do not worship me, reminder I am not a god. We are all going to hell you and me included."

Much of the Book of Nod, whether it is sections that claim to be transcriptions of Caine's demands, an Antediluvian, or an Elder, take approaches which if not humane can at least be attributed to enlightened self interest. Don't shit where you eat seems to have been a lesson sires attempt to teach their childer to little effect since the earliest days. Other sections are warnings or prophecies people seem to actively try to claim are occurring. Such as in the Dark Ages and Inquisition when Elders claimed it was clearly the time of Gehenna, rapidly embraced Childer, and threw them to the wolves, making dispossessed and often Clanless vampires that banded together to assault them.

To those who believe in a cyclical Gehenna I could instead point out the Millennarian believes that often sprouted amongst humans, with generations of them insisting that the Book of Revelation was occurring NOW and the end times were right around the corner. Vampire psychology is not that different from humans when it comes to threat assessment and ego.

I do love that Caine repeatedly screams at people not to drink werewolves, not to drink from each others three times, and not to diablerize people. Just, constantly saying it. Followed by his grandkids giving contradictory advice because they refuse to listen.