Sabbat

Sabbat The Spread of Vampiric Disease There is a good chance that a vampiric disease could reach epidemic proportions within the Sabbat. It could be easily passed through the Vaulderie. It would not take long before one vampire spread it to several packs, and possibly to all Sabbat in the area. Within the Sabbat's history, there have been two instances of epidemics, both within the last 50 years. The first happened in the 1950s, while the second was only a couple of years later. About one-third of the sect was destroyed by the epidemic before a means was found to contain the spread of the disease. Today, all Sabbat are wary of disease, even those to which they are immune, since some maintain small herds. The Sabbat actively uses Thaumaturgy and modem medicine to test for disease. In fact, many Sabbat vampires fear disease so greatly that they commission a checkup every so often from a vampire skilled in medicine. If a Sabbat vampire is diagnosed as having contracted a disease affecting only humans, he may be quarantined or just not allowed to drink directly from a vessel. If a Sabbat is infected with a disease that affects vampires, he is put to the stake and then burned. Players should see the threat of disease as a very real one. Be careful not to let the characters get any diseases they cannot get cured, unless you are interested in taking the tragedy of Vampire to a whole new level. Aside from having to deal with certain doom, inflicting disease on all the vessels from whom characters drink can be a hard situation with which to cope. Keep in mind that vampiric diseases are serious matters, and should not be ailments that can be treated with little-known, but easy -to-find, rituals or medicines. Storytellers Guide to the Sabbat participate in the Vaulderie. This sponsor, or owner, is held accountable for all the ghoul's actions. Also, the ghoul's flesh and bone is sometimes altered through Vicissitude, making it impossible for the ghoul to resume a normal life as a mortal. When hunting humans for blood or sport, Sabbat will not hesitate to kill their prey. They love to drink victims to death and will even drink them dry when they do not need any blood. However, they usually kill only in cities they do not control. They know killing on a regular basis in their own cities would lead to trouble. Allies of the Sabbat We have no eternal allies and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are the eternal and the perpetual, and these interests it is our duty to follow. Henry John Temple, Speech in the House of Commons The Sabbat refuses to depend on others. However, the sect has a small number of allies it can call upon in times of great need. Among these are: a wizard society, a tribe of Lupines, three Native American shamanistic societies and a voodoo cult. These are the extent of Sabbat alliances. At one time, the Sabbat had an alliance with the werewolves of the Southern Appalachians, but failed to support the werewolves in their own time of need. The Sabbat will aid its allies only if it is in its best interest to keep said allies. The Sabbat believes in the importance of being independent, but it is not stupid. If an ally will be useful in the future and the risk on the Sabbat's part is not too great, it will aid the ally. Wizard Society: Little is known about the relationship between the Tzimisce and a special society of magi, except that both groups worked together in combating the growing power of the Tremere before the creation of the Sabbat. They occasionally aid each other when the need is great enough. Bone Gnawers: This tribe of Lupines has been known to aid certain packs within the Sabbat. The Lupines work with the packs to drive out and destroy both vampire and Lupine enemies of the Sabbat in some areas. Little else is known about the Sabbat's connection to the Bone Gnawers. Native American Shamanistic Societies: The nomadic Gangrel antitribu maintain contact with a few small groups of Native Americans which provide safe havens and information. In return, the Gangrel antitribu participate in mystic rites and act as advisors to the Amerinds. The first of the societies is the Eyes of the Sun. This society numbers only 20 members, all skilled to some degree in the magical arts. The members come from many Native American nations but share similar interests in the occult. The second society is called the Penumbra of the Gray Squirrels. This group also numbers about 20. The society is an ally not only to the nomadic Sabbat Gangrel, but also to a number of Lupine tribes. This may seem odd, considering how the Gangrel antitribu occasionally hunt werewolves, but the Penumbra of the Gray Squirrels does not think so. It will not support any ally that is at war with another of its allies. The Penumbra of the Gray Squirrels seems to share some special connection with the land; this connection bestows mysterious and unexplained abilities upon its members. The third group is the Path Finders. It numbers less than 10. It seeks supernatural enlightenment and has formed alliances with many supernatural powers. The group provides no support to the Sabbat Gangrel other than information. In return, the Sabbat Gangrel provide the Path Finders with protection. That is the extent of the relationship; however, the considerable power of the Path Finders, both individually and as a group, makes this connection one of the Sabbat's more prized. Voodoo Cult: The Sabbat has established some connections to a voodoo cult in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The cult provides the Sabbat with food, recruits and information. The cult has long been the enemy of the Followers of Set and supports the Sabbat's attempts to disrupt their occupation of the West Indies. The cult was once associated with Ezuli, but the Sabbat managed to infiltrate the cult and manipulate its members. Through the support of other powerful ongans (priests), the Sabbat has rooted itself lightly in the dark soil of Haiti. The Achilles' Heels of the Sabbat You saw his weaknesses, and he will never forgive you. Johann Friedrich von Schiller, Welhelm Tell The Sabbat is strong in a number of ways, but all is not perfect in the sect. It is easy to overestimate the power of the Sabbat. If it were as powerful as it appears, it would easily destroy the Camarilla. The Sabbat has several weaknesses which should be acknowledged. Storytellers Guide to the Sabbat First among these is the relative size of the Sabbat. The Sabbat is roughly one-third the size of the Camarilla. Even with the mass creation of vampire expendables, the Sabbat would be at a disadvantage if it were attacked on all fronts by the enemy. Luckily for the Sabbat, it has not been thus attacked since the Sabbat-Camarilla Wars of the 1400 and 1500s. The Sabbat was almost the size of the Camarilla when its internal civil war broke out. After the conflict was over, the Sabbat was reduced to one-fifth the size it is today. The past century has seen its rebirth as a sect, but it has grown slowly due to the nature of Sabbat activity; i.e., the Crusades, Jyhad and War Parties. The mortality among Sabbat members is extremely high. Another major weakness of the Sabbat is its lack of mortal influence. The Sabbat is certainly rich and capable in v ampire-related matters, but the leaders of the sect have long neglected involvement in mortal affairs. They see themselves above such mundane concerns. However, the Sabbat does have enough influence to stay out of trouble with mortal authorities, mainly through intimidation tactics. The Sabbat has some influence in big business, but this is also woefully inadequate for a sect of its size. The Giovanni clan is far superior to the Sabbat in controlling corporations and the Followers of Set have greater control of the drug trafficking industry. The Sabbat is currently devoting a fair share of its resources toward reducing its own financial vulnerability. Additionally, the Sabbat will not count on any outside assistance. It has a small number of allies, but refuses to call upon them except when things really get bad. The main reason for the Sabbat's refusal to accept outside aid is mistrust, but lack of respect also plays a role. The Sabbat considers mortals to be inferior beings, and to require their assistance would show weakness. Because of this, the Sabbat disdains the aid of mortals and often refuses to accept them as retainers. The Sabbat has a small number of human ghouls, but they are kept on short leashes and disciplined harshly. The Sabbat also has an image problem. Other vampires see Sabbat members as monsters in the night who drink the blood of children and kill their own without a second's hesitation. While some Sabbat are like this, the majority are not much worse than the Giovanni or Minions of Set. The Sabbat does not fully understand how far the negative influence of its image reaches. Most Sabbat are blinded by the fact that they consider themselves saviors of the vampire race, not destroyers of it. This causes all Sabbat vampires to suffer tremendously in dealings with nonSabbat Kindred. Sabbat propaganda thus has limited effectiveness. Most Camarilla Kindred are quickly brainwashed not to trust, or even listen to, Sabbat vampires. Sabbat ideology has gotten the sect in trouble a number of times. The Masquerade, according to Sabbat doctrine, is a ploy developed by the Antediluvians to keep the young weak. Sabbat vampires refuse to play the Masquerade - at least they won't admit to playing it. They prefer secrecy through loyalty and the use of power to protect themselves. This combination has proved ineffective on occasion, forcing the Sabbat leaders to use their power to cover up the messes. An example would be that, while Sabbat are more likely to kill their victims for blood only in enemy cities, they do occasionally get carried away while at home. This has led to an enormous amount of missing persons cases. Sabbat methods are effective, but obviously less subtle than Camarilla methods. The Sabbat has no real power in the Old World. The Camarilla and the Inconnu control Europe. The Sabbat has a small number of followers dispersed throughout Europe, especially in the Scandinavian countries, but they are not trusted by the American Sabbat. The exception to this is the United Kingdom. The Sabbat there maintain good relations to both the European and American Sabbat. Without power in Europe, the Sabbat has a far slimmer chance of destroying the Antediluvians before they return, if indeed there really is such a thing as Gehenna. One final problem the Sabbat has is the spread of vampiric disease. Since Sabbat often drink their packmates' blood, they often infect one another with diseases which affect either the vampires themselves or any mortals from whom they drink. The Lasombra Antitribu There are some non-Sabbat Lasombra left in the world, despite what many in the Sabbat think. The Lasombra leaders of the Sabbat call these non-Sabbat Lasombra the Lasombra antitribu. The remnants of the clan have scattered and maintain no real connection to one another. Most of them exist in Southern Europe and Northern Africa. They fear efforts by the Sabbat to finish extinguishing all members of the clan outside the sect. The Sabbat has no plans to do so, though if the location of a Lasombra antitribu were to be revealed, a War Party would be called immediately. However, these non-Sabbat pose no real threat to Sabbat security. Even though Lasombra antitribu are few in number, the Sabbat Lasombra would like to make the other clans believe even fewer exist than really do. The Lasombra tout themselves as the clan that purged itself and fed upon all its elders, and the truth about how many actually escaped destruction would prove a terrible stain on its reputation. The Tzimisces of the Old Country The Tzimisce is a clan of rich heritage. It exists mainly in the United States now, but the clan originally prowled Eastern Europe. The Tzimisce, at one time, was the largest of all the clans in Europe, but things have changed. The Tzimisces who remained free of the Sabbat and within the dark old lands of Eastern Europe are few. Most of them are extremely old Kindred. They have substantial power, both in the mortal world and the world of the undead. The only fear they have is a fear of change. They are certainly rich and, even with war and other turmoil in the mortal world, are seldom touched by mortal affairs. Most Tzimisces have at least one or two human servants to handle their affairs, but some have dozens. Most live in the same large castles they have lived in for centuries. They are masters of the surrounding territory, and some even condition the locals into providing victims. They seldom sire new vampires. They fear almost all youthful vampires because of their betrayal by their own young many centuries ago. They seldom take great risks, for they value their existence too much. A small group of ancient Tzimisces has formed an alliance called the Oradea League. If one of the 12 members is attacked or injured by other vampires, the others in the league are pledged to come to her aid. This has proven sufficient to ward off the wise enemies of the Tzimisce. Others of the "Old Clan," as the Sabbat call the Tzimisces