Nosferatu

Clan Nosferatu
Nicknames: The Horrors, The Masks
Disciplines: Animalism, Obfuscate, Potence
Sect: Camarilla
Status: OPEN for new characters

The Nosferatu are a secretive and insular bunch, which is no wonder - other Kindred swing between pitying them and avoiding them with utter revulsion, and neither reaction is all that much fun for the Nosferatu themselves. Nosferatu blood is tainted with a hideous degeneracy that always wreaks horrific physical changes in those Embraced into the clan; this might manifest itself as twisted, unrecognizable changes to their faces, skin conditions such as boils, scales, or necrotic flesh, painful swelling and warping of their skeletons and teeth, and a wide variety of hideous smells and slimy residues. Quite aside from the suffering that Nosferatu must weather as a result of these disabilities, they are widely ridiculed and shunned by most of "polite" Kindred society, even though they are founding members of the Camarilla and contributing members in all Kindred circles and politics. In particular, their underground connections and ability to go where others can't (or, often, won't) makes them information peddlers without equal; almost no secret is safe from a truly determined Nosferatu, and their great stores of knowledge are almost always available to others for a price.

Clan Advantage and Weakness

Advantages: Nosferatu are somewhat more "safe" from the depredations of the Sabbat and Anarchs than other Camarilla clans; since they are known as the go-to clan for information-trading, no sect is willing to risk offending or assaulting them unnecessarily, lest they not be able to reach out for information when they need it (or even worse, find that the Nosferatu have sold their own dearest secrets to their enemies in revenge).

Nosferatu traditionally control all the sewer territories beneath any city, and DC is no exception. Only the Nosferatu truly know the ins and outs of the tunnels and sewers beneath DC, and only they can act as guides for other Kindred who might want to venture below the streets. They may automatically escape into the sewers whenever they're near any grate, manhole, runoff pipe, or other entrance beneath the streets, allowing them to duck out of danger unless pursued by very determined foes.

Disadvantages: All Nosferatu suffer from massive social stigma as a result of their appearance; they cannot allure, charm, or otherwise try to socially challenge anyone else, since their repulsiveness automatically torpedoes any attempt they make at normal interaction. The physical features caused by their blood can never be cured by any means, up to and including magic, and while the flesh-crafting powers of Vicissitude can alter them temporarily, they revert to their normal appearance the next evening.

The Nosferatu in DC

Washington DC is a powerhouse of a city for the Nosferatu. All the secrets hidden in the halls of the powerful and courts of the justice system are known to the Kindred who lurk in the sewers below; every famous secret, every government cover-up, every classified file is at their fingertips, making them rulers of commerce and a nexus point for the information trade all over the country. The local Nosferatu know every danger that threatens the city, although they may not always tell others unless properly compensated, and even the other races that live on the fringes of mortal society are not totally unknown to the underground Kindred.

The Nosferatu of DC, even though they are majority Camarilla aligned, are on cordial terms for business purposes with a host of other dangerous factions: the vampires of the Sabbat, the local Garou, the Mages that use the city as a base, and even a few of the more loosely moralistic Hunters, although they take care never to give out any information to any of them that could be used to endanger the clan. The Prince of the city is aware of the Nosferatu connections to various enemies of the city, but looks the other way; information that comes from those connections can be useful even to him, and besides, there wouldn't be much chance of preventing the Nosferatu from their activities short of purging the city of the entire clan (and even then, it would be hard to ensure that none remained).

Bloodlines

There are no known Nosferatu bloodlines. The potency of their blood overwhelms all attempts to specialize their powers.

Notable Nosferatu

Arlen, Primogen of DC