Clan Tzimisce
Nicknames: The Dragons, The Fiends
Disciplines: Animalism, Auspex, Vicissitude
Sect: Sabbat
Status: RESTRICTED for new characters

No other clan quite embodies the classical Western image of the Dracula-like vampire like the Tzimisce. From their crumbling ancestral strongholds in old Romania and Moldova to their terrible shapeshifting powers and macabre sense of humor to their armies of misshapen servants, they take each old stereotype about Kindred-kind and amplify it a thousandfold. Some other Kindred suspect that they do this just to be contrary, intentionally cultivating an image of horror and inhumanity to allow them to keep their secrets and frighten outsiders away, but the Tzimisce themselves find this theory amusing. They aren't pandering to anyone's "tastes" when it comes to their activities; they simply are what they are, and aren't interested in hiding it from anyone.

The Tzimisce are, with the Lasombra, the founding clan of the Sabbat, and are almost exclusively found in its ranks (although a few of the most old and unfriendly among them stay holed up in the old country and don't involve themselves in politics). As the pre-eminent predators that they are, they believe strongly in the Sabbat tenet that mortals should be theirs to rule, use, and abuse as they see fit, and they use every opportunity to continue their blood experiments and solidify their power over both mortal and Kindred alike in pursuit of that goal.

Clan Advantage and Weakness

Advantages: Most Tzimisce are attended by their faithful retainers, the szlachta, which are Ghouls that have been deformed and reshaped by the Vicissitude Discipline into whatever form is most useful to their owner. All Tzimisce begin with at least one szlachta, which can be in any reasonable form that they could have created with the Vicissitude powers they have. Szlachta are almost always obvious breaches of the Masquerade; most Tzimisce don't care about this much, but even they might keep them under wraps anywhere that their existence might attract the hostile attention of Camarilla Kindred, Garou, or Hunters.

Disadvantages: The Tzimisce are closely tied to their homelands, so much so that they can barely function outside them; they must rest each day in at least two handsful of their native soil (the soil of wherever it was that they were Embraced) or suffer from increasing exhaustion and hallucinations as the distance from their homeland begins to affect them. Some Tzimisce sew linings of their required earth into their clothing or find a way to carry it with them at all times, while others opt for the traditional coffin-full-of dirt and simply make sure to return home each night.

The Tzimisce in DC

Since Prince Vitel's scourge of DC's Sabbat population, there are no known official residents within city limits, although various Sabbat packs including Tzimisce members occasionally make forays into town in search of information or tactical advantage. There are rumors that a few Tzimisce might be undercover among the Camarilla vampires, fleshcrafted so that they are undetectable... but these are of course only rumors.

Bloodlines

The Dracul are a bloodline of Tzimisce, although not a younger one; also called "Old Clan Tzimisce" by younger Kindred, they are the most ancient and reclusive of the clan, who refused to join the Sabbat when it first rose to power and were never infected by the powers of Vicissitude. They possess the Dominate Discipline instead, and most of them remain hidden in their ancestral fortresses in eastern Europe, living in shrouded old castles and rambling forts that they have held against all comers for century upon century. Even other Tzimisce are likely to go their entire lives without encountering one of the Dracul, who do not leave home or entertain visitors except under supremely unlikely circumstances, but those who do typically come away with the feeling that the Old Clan has nothing but contempt for their "lesser" brethren.

A few of the Dracul demonstrate a curious form of sorcery that even the Tremere are unable to fully understand or replicate; they use Koldunic Sorcery to call upon natural spirits in their environment and bend them to do their bidding. Some Kindred scholars theorize that this ancient power's ability to tap into the energies of the very land around a Tzimisce might be related to their inability to leave their native soil for very long.

Notable Tzimisce

None at the moment.