The Beast

The Beast is the term used by some supernatural creatures to refer to the inner predator that drives their instincts and pushes them toward violent and animalistic behavior. Not every type of being has a Beast, but those who do find a considerable amount of their lives consumed with learning to recognize, control, and avoid theirs.

The Beast in Vampires

To a vampire, the Beast is their inner predator, the one that awakened with them the moment they rose from the grave and has never given a shred of ground since. The Beast wants only feed and feed and feed on blood, glutting itself until it begins again the next time hunger arrives, and as a result it is constantly agitating against a vampire's humanity, trying to erode it to the point that they will no longer resist killing and feeding without concern for conscience.

The Beast, as a generality, has only instinctual reactions and understands concepts only instinctually; this is why, when a vampire enters frenzy, they become impossible to reason with, as the Beast is ascendent and doesn't care about most concepts more complicated than whether or not it can eat the person standing next to it. Each type of frenzy corresponds to one of the only three known motivators for the Beast: anger, hunger, or fear. The Beast is generally as cunning as most intelligent animals, but it does not think like a human being and may make shocking decisions that would normally be prevented by ethics or even common sense.

While rumors persist about those who can actually control their Beasts perfectly by achieving Golconda, no real information has ever surfaced to guide any would-be Beast-wranglers to follow after.

The Beast in Vampire Philosophy

Different vampiric philosophies view the Beast in different ways; some vampires attempt to embrace their Beasts via one of the morality paths, reasoning that if they understand and become one with it more, they may be able to control it. Others go in the opposite direction, scrupulously refusing to indulge the Beast's instincts no matter what in an attempt to keep it from damaging their humanity. Many sects have specific philosophical relationships to their Beasts as well.

Most members of the Camarilla, Anarchs, and Ashirra consider the Beast a separate entity they must share their bodies with, an enemy to be constantly battling against, while most members of the Sabbat agree but consider the Beast a more highly-evolved life-form than humans and relish the chance to fulfill its whims. This fundamental disagreement mirrors the continuing war between the Camarilla and Sabbat over whether to give in to their darker urges or cling to their humanity for as long as possible, as well as highlighting how closely the Ashirra tends to align with the Camarilla since the Blood Curse. The Quiet Nations also tend to view the Beast as its own entity, a spirit that harasses the undead for their condition and is a constant reminder to control their predatory urges.

The Laibon and the Shining Kingdoms instead consider the Beast to be a theoretical idea, a way of measuring how close to the abyss they are and a call to work hard to maintain a sense of self outside of their hunger; while they may mention the "Beast" as an idea, they find the European tendency to refer to it as if it were an independent being quaint. Similarly, members of the Jati consider the Beast to represent their personal failings and sins and the weight of both, viewing outbursts from the Beast as important warnings that they may have misbehaved too much recently and periods of calm as a sign that they are successfully reining in their worse passions.

The Drowned Legacies and Teteoh consider the Beast to be an intimately connected part of their souls and an important source of their supernatural powers; like many of the ancient indigenous religions they once presided over, they see the Beast as the animal half of themself, an inborn part of every person that is not to be starved or fought but embraced and learned from, and believe that anyone who does not make an effort to do so is in effect robbing themself of half their potential power.

Independents are not unified, and as a result have no unified view on the Beast, with different philosophical approaches and folktales passed around among various different clans and bloodlines. Some lean more in one direction than others - for example, the Ravnos who broke from the Jati may still adhere as a majority to their concept of the Beast, whereas the Akunanse consider their Beasts a part of their being to be manipulated with Abombwe, at odds with other Laibon clans. Of course, members of any sect can also disagree with the party line, although this is more common among younger vampires who have no historical context to draw from.

Members of the Cradle of Civilization don't believe in the concept of the Beast at all. To them, vampires are hungry monsters, and there's no reason to pretend that they have some separate part of their being to blame for it.

The Beast in Mortals

Theoretically, every mortal has a Beast; it's just sleeping, kept fully at bay by their overwhelming amount of humanity except in truly dire circumstances (it is this Beast that roars to life whenever a mortal becomes a vampire or shapeshifter). Most mortals never have to experience a frenzy or worry about their tempers, but there is variation all the way down the scale, and those suffering from major rage or personality disorders may be experiencing a bit more of the Beast than humans were ever meant to.

In spite of this, human philosophy has long struggled with the idea of an "inner beast", those instinctive desires and responses that humanity has not been able to fully grow out of in spite of millennia of adaptation. While most mortals have no idea that the concept is taken literally by some beings on earth, they would be likely to recognize the concepts if they were ever exposed to them.

The Beast in Ghouls

Due to being infused with the vitae of vampires, ghouls, revenants, and vozhd actually do have active Beasts, albeit smaller, weaker, and less angry ones than their undead masters. A ghoul's Beast is just as likely to push a ghoul toward its instinctive goals as it is a vampire, but this often manifests differently, as a ghoul's instinctive desires do not (usually) include drinking blood. Instead, those who fail to fight their Beasts are likely to descend into hedonism and instant gratification, reaching for food, sex, and comfort whenever offered and prone to fits of violent outbursts and lashing out against others perceived to be a threat to them.

Ghouls can suffer from all the problems of having a Beast, including the constant stress of fighting it, the potential loss of their humanity, and the danger of being forced into frenzy; most ghouls are unlikely to frenzy as often as their masters, but are also unlikely to avoid ever doing so in moments of great stress or danger. Most vampires encourage their ghouls to fight against their nascent but still active Beasts, since unstable servants who may desert in a moment of panic are not particularly useful to them.

The Beast in Shapeshifters

All shapeshifters are intimately familiar with the concept of the Beast; for them, the idea of a separate but linked part of the self that is an animal with all of an animal's instincts and wisdom is second nature, aligning as it does with the form they can shift into. As a result, they are much less likely to consider the Beast an antagonist than most beings that possess one; the Beast is simply their other half, and being animalistic and concerned with survival is a benefit, not a problem. Most shapeshifters think of their animal form specifically as their Beast, as they almost invariably transform when entering a frenzy, and therefore consider it to be as intimately known and carefully controlled as their body itself.

Of course, the Beast is still unconcerned with philosophy and complex social ideas, so even among shapeshifters it can be difficult to master and control. Shapeshifters overwhelmed by rage are recognized to have let their Beast get the better of them, whether they fully transform or not, and many shapeshifters refer to the Beast and their own personal "rage" interchangeably, making little distinction between the emotion and the idea.

Interestingly, shapeshifters who were born animals rather than humans may as a result think of themselves as the Beasts, with their human form the odd shape they sometimes have to transform into in order to get things done. In these cases, it is especially clear that the concept of the Beast is more neutral and accepted among shapeshifters than any other kind of supernatural being.

The Beast to Others

For the most part, beings who do not have a Beast are unlikely to understand the concept, let alone have any real insight into what living with one is like. Most beings, upon encountering someone whose Beast is visible or active, simply assume that that person happens to be very animalistic and dangerous as part of their personality (which can be understandably disheartening for those who are doing their best to control their Beasts and thus make their own decisions).

Some Mages understand the concept and are even able to interact with it, but they tend to do so on the theory that the Beast is not a separate being but rather simply a condition of undead life that may be able to be corrected (or worsened) with magical intervention. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Hunters have an almost exclusive concept of the Beast; to them, all supernatural monsters are the Beast and they are uninterested in arguments about any hallmarks of humanity they may also still have attached. Fairies and Demons both find the concept of an animal self perfectly natural, but are often confused by the idea of it being considered "separate" from the rest of the self or something to be resisted instead of encouraged.

Ghosts are perhaps the supernatural being best equipped to understand the Beast, as some of them may have had a Beast in life and even those who do not can recognize the parallels to their own Shadows. Mummies also sometimes recognize the Beast as a part of a vampire's soul, similar to their own manifold-part soul, although they would be disconcerted to realize how aggressive it is against the rest of a creature's being. Kuei-Jin, when they rarely interact with a dangerous supernatural being long enough to learn about it, tend to assume that the Beast is an overly dramatic way that Westerners describe an overactive P'o.