| Contents |
| History • Strongholds • Advantages and Weaknesses • The Akunanse in DC • Akunanse Characters |
| Akunanse | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pseudonyms | Spiders; Weavers |
| Sect | Laibon |
| Disciplines | Abombwe Animalism Fortitude |
| Bloodlines | Bonsam |
| Rarity | Uncommon |
The Akunanse are the most well-known of the African clans outside of their home continent, but while this often causes European vampires to assume that they are also the most widespread and powerful clan, the truth is that they are fairly small and widely dispersed, preferring to have a small presence all over Africa rather than a concentrated home in only one kingdom. Interested in learning the knowledge that makes the universe tick, they are frequent travelers and storytellers with a unique connection to not only their local people but the local landscape itself.
Among other members of the Laibon, the Akunanse are prized as master storytellers and teachers thanks to their travels and dedication to learning new lore; no matter where they are or what they're doing, an Akunanse probably knows something that their rapt audience does not.
History
Like most members of the Laibon, the Akunanse are uninterested in subscribing to the dusty vampire lore of the European clans. Instead, they claim descent from Anansi, the spider-god of west Africa, who was likewise said to have traveled and told stories (as well as playing pranks) all over the continent. The Akunanse consider it their duty to continue to learn, share, tell stories, and occasionally purvey a little humor in his honor, although unlike most clans who claim descent from gods, they do not expect him to spend time with them (or at least, not in a way they recognize) on the mortal earth.
The Akunanse traveled extensively during the Middle Ages, during which time they came occasionally into contact with the European clans (and became known to them as the main face of the Laibon sect), but more often spent their nights in the great cities of the African kingdoms; the sparkling cities of Wagadu, Malinke, and the Songhai Empire were known as places where one might visit to hear an Akunanse storyteller at the top of their craft, and they were often in demand even among outsider clans and dignitaries.
The already scattered Akunanse weren't hit as badly by the European colonizations of the eighteenth and nineteenth century, but they still mourned the loss of the great kingdoms and federations, and have become distinctly warier of European vampires than they were in centuries gone by. It is unusual to see an Akunanse anywhere but in Africa, and those who do travel are usually doing so in order to advance the Laibon's cause or protect it from interlopers via political dealings.
Strongholds
Although in modern nights they tend to be anywhere and everywhere in Africa that they find something interesting, the ancient home base of the Akunanse is indisputably in Bamako, the capital city of modern Mali. In ancient times, the city was a jewel in the Empire of Ghana's crown, and the Akunanse were among its glittering offerings. With modern-looking offices situated in ancient buildings, the Akunanse keep their ancestral territory without anyone really noticing that they never stopped, no matter how much the world changes around them.
Notably, the Akunanse consider the two bridges over the Niger, the Pont des Martyrs and the King Fahd Bridge, to be their territory as well; while they're no longer the only way to enter the area, they still provide a useful choke point for the Akunanse to monitor to make sure they don't have large numbers of interlopers suddenly arriving in their territory.
Advantages and Weaknesses
Advantages
The Akunanse are curiously good at being at peace with their Beasts; outsiders find their ability to face disaster, distress, and even the dreaded fire and sunlight with aplomb baffling, bordering on magical. In truth, the Akunanse do use Abombwe to harness and control their Beast, but they are also at an advantage when they do so; it is already harder for any Akunanse to enter Frenzy unexpectedly than it is for other vampires, and when they do, they typically find themselves coming out of the fugue more quickly than most can manage (assuming that whatever triggered them is gone, of course).
Disadvantages
If you ask the Akunanse, they would tell you that they don't have a disadvantage, only another gift: all Akunanse begin to take on the characteristics that local folklore expects of them after residing in an area for more than a handful of years. The exact amount of time before effects begin to show varies from vampire to vampire, but they all find that they slowly begin to change to become what the local humans would expect: Akunanse living among the Ashanti may find themselves gaining the food obsession of the fabled obayifo, while those who reside among the Akan may start to gain the telltale red hair and iron teeth of the Sasabonsam.
While the Akunanse are prone to viewing this as a gift, allowing them as it does to experience different points of view and remain aligned with whatever culture they currently spend time with, there's no denying that it often causes problems. Akunanse who have transformed too much usually start to have difficulty passing as alive among humans, and in some cases have to become complete recluses; worse, they cannot un-transform, so any features they gain are there to stay unless they move to another location and begin to pick up that culture's criteria instead. Other vampires often assume that this accounts for a lot of the clan's famous wanderlust, as moving from place to place prevents the transformations from beginning and allows for new transformations if an older one is causing problems.
The Akunanse in DC
There are currently no Akunanse residing in Washington, DC.
Akunanse Characters
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