Toreador

Toreador
Pseudonyms	Artisans; Degenerates; Roses; Vanitas
Sect	Anarchs Camarilla
Disciplines	Auspex Celerity Presence
Bloodlines	Daughters of Cacophony Nephilim Volgirre
Rarity	Common

Clan Toreador is one of the oldest and most intricate of all the European clans. It is a haven for artists and socialites; its members are chosen from the ranks of the most talented artists and most beautiful mortals to be found in every age, making any gathering of the clan a dazzling collection of bejeweled butterflies and entrancing courtiers. A few Toreador are Embraced purely on the strength of their stunning beauty, but it is seldom that one of the clan does not have a talent worth immortalizing through the ages. As one of the founding members of the Camarilla, they are dedicated to its laws and traditions (although, like all vampires, they're not above breaking the rules when there's an advantage in it). Almost all Toreador are concerned with the social connections and web-like politics that make up vampiric life; if there's something juicy to know about, they'll know it.

History

The Toreador claim to be descended from Arikel, a painter and sculptor who was so supernaturally talented that she created a massive mural that depicted all of vampire history - past, present, and inevitable future. Infuriated by the implication that his creations could be destroyed or that time could undo vampire society (although exactly what the mural depicted has been lost to the ages), she was cursed by the vampiric founder Caine to become obsessed with her art and that of all others, giving rise to the Toreador clan weakness.

Clan Toreador rose to prominence in ancient Greece, where their larger-than-life romantic squabbles and dramatic clashes were frequently immortalized by mortals as stories about the gods (for example, the story of Tantalus is believed to refer to an ancient vampire being punished for his sins, and tales of Apollo pursuing beautiful maids are generally understood to refer to some beautiful predator of times gone by). The Mycenean civilization was an important support for the clan, but their inevitable romantic dramas destabilized it badly enough that it was eventually conquered by the mainland Greeks.

The Toreador then dispersed across the ancient world, most of them gravitating toward the large empires of Rome and Istanbul for their plentiful support of flourishing new arts and sciences. When it became clear that the struggle between Rome and Carthage, which behind the scenes was largely motivated by Ventrue and Brujah squabbling, was tipping in Rome's favor, the Toreador threw their weight behind them as well, not only ensuring the rise of the Roman Empire but also making themselves a force to be reckoned with within it. When Rome in turn began to crumble, the Toreador moved to Constantinople, where their patronage helped many now-world-famous foundational artists before the Crusades finally destroyed their work.

By the Middle Ages, the Clan had begun to take over France as their new base of operations, specifically Paris, and were instrumental in the development of the chivalric codes and moral roads that would eventually become the modern Morality Paths, largely due to their love affair with romantic stories and epic poetry. The Toreador elder Rafael de Corazon was one of the founding members of the Camarilla (and according to the clan, the one without whom the idea would never have gotten off the ground), and the clan has been one of the political powerhouses of the sect ever since.

Strongholds

Clan Toreador's traditional power bases are usually in cities with the greatest tradition of arts and culture, and they have beloved galleries and major operations in such cities as Prague, Istanbul, Seattle, and Cairo, but the jewel of Toreador culture is Paris. In reality a single Domain encompassing all of France, not only the city humans know as Paris, it is ruled by the elder François Villon and is an example of what Toreador sometimes refer to as the Dream: a city where art is paramount, the social dance is unrivaled, and the finer things of life are always available for those who know where to look.

Versailles is especially beloved by the Toreador, who treat it as a sort of historical museum and living exhibit. While it is not used as a base of operations due to Villon refusing any requests to enter it that might endanger the safety of the art and history within, it is still the site of some of the clan's most important political meetings.

Advantages and Weaknesses

Advantages

Because of their relations and environment being steeped so strongly in culture and high society, Toreador are exceptionally good at all things social. Even if they are not normally particularly good at the Academics, Crafts, Expression, Performance, or Subterfuge skills, they can make credible enough social moves with them so that they seldom embarrass themselves. (Except when it comes to the judgment of other Toreador, of course.) Toreador are also easily loved and impressive to normal mortals, so they always have at least a small Herd, effectively ensuring that they have a little more blood at all times as a result of being more easily able to feed whenever necessary.

Disadvantages

Toreador are not just art lovers; they're mesmerized by all things artistically impressive. If they witness any credible piece of art or artistic performance, they are distracted and unable to function properly while they want to focus all their attention on the display before them. If a Toreador is confronted by a truly impressive artistic piece or performance (usually this means it was created by another Toreador, although exceptionally talented mortals and members of other clans can also occasionally achieve true greatness), they enter a trance-like state, oblivious to everything around them except for the beautiful art. They cannot function normally during this time and have no memory of anything but the art once the performance ends or the artwork is removed from their presence.

A few elders are able to fight off the influence of a piece for brief periods of time, but even they must put forth considerable effort of will to do so, and most who cannot indulge in the art in peace at the moment will get as far away from it as possible to avoid slipping back into a mesmerized fugue.

The Toreador in DC

If you ask any of the Toreador, it was their clan that originally invented Washington, DC; it was Toreador visionaries and servants who traveled from France to design the city's layout and silently back the mortals pushing to create it as a new center of civilization in the New World. Unfortunately, the advent of the French Revolution caused so many complications for them that their plan to remake North America into a Toreador paradise was stalled, and by the time they could turn their attention back to DC, other clans (particularly the Ventrue) had already staked claims of their own. After centuries of bitter attempts to regain power in the city, the Toreador are more than a little disgruntled that the Prince is still of another clan - and a Lasombra, at that, as if any further insult needed to be added to their injury.

Toreador Player Characters

Angelique Stravinsky	Chas Voyager	Chason Wells

Circe	Cyro	Cyrus Cassidy	Evelyn Summerfield	Jack Hammer	Jacque Beaumont

Jason Blackthorn	Jean Claude Danut	Lesya Pervuchina	Lily McLeod	Maeve Glaistig	Michelle Blackthorn	Morrigan Wolfe
Octavius Sage	Paige Black	Richard Montague	Rosalina de Leon	Selene Sinclair	Shane O'Reilly	Spencer Nichols
Talia Villanova	Tatsuya Yukimura	Titus Marcius	Vanessa Keasley	Virgil Brooks	William September	Zhora Jones

See Also

Daughters of Cacophony
Nephilim
Toreador Antitribu
Volgirre

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