MET LARP SRD

“Well, sheriff, I’m not sure what happened to those teenagers neither, but you know how those out of town folks tend to get into all kinds of trouble. And there’s no need to poke around my barn – you’ve been there a hundred times at least. Now you take care now – Mama says hi, and she’ll see y’all at midnight mass . . . .” — Jack J. Bratovitch, Tzimisce Bratovitch and former suspect in the Haig County Massacre 

Disciplines: Animalism, Potence, Vicissitude Rarity: Uncommon

The Tzimisce pride themselves on breeding revenant families, though sometimes even their own twisted experiments get away from them. The Bratovitch are a perfect example of Tzimsce experimentation gone horribly awry. Elder Tzimisce only grudgingly admit their role in creating the Bratovitch, a revenant family which has managed to “earn’ the Embrace in large enough numbers to coalesce into its own bloodline. These twisted, often horrific, and crass vampires make some of the most fervent Loyalists in the Sabbat look highbrow. Often regarded as freaks of circumstance, the Bratovitch are no strangers to cannibalism, squalor, violence, and other vices often spurred on by their merciless tempers.

As a revenant family, the Bratovitch existed well before the first Anarch Revolt as terrifying hunters of Lupines and other denizens of the night. To assist in their hunts, the Bratovitch prided themselves on mastering the creation of hellhounds; ghastly and horrific creatures with vicious jaws, knotted muscle covered only by a seemingly thin layer of taunt flesh, and other vile modifications. They are the stuff of nightmares, with no concept of mercy or restraint; but to the Bratovitch, they are creations of art that would make a Toreador weep tears of blood. In modern nights, most Bratovitch keep several hellhounds as guardians of person and property with simple instructions – protect and destroy any who trespass.

At the start of the Anarch Revolt, the Bratovitch fought to protect their ancestral masters, but then betrayed the elder Tzimisce when the tide of war turned against the clan. After the Convention of Thorns, the Bratovitch chose to throw their lot in with the newly formed Sabbat sect, joining younger Tzimisce who were determined to throw off the shackles of the ancients. It was a fitting choice as the newly formed sect welcomed the bloodthirsty Bratovitch and their hellhounds, giving them free reign to hunt their enemies.

Quietly some Tzimisce hoped that, with the Embrace of the Bratovitch family, the bloodline would temper itself and focus on survival instead of bloodshed. Instead, the twisted legacy of the family became more profound, manifesting itself as insatiable rage and bloodlust fueled by horrific feats of strength and the ability to rend and sculpt flesh. The Tzimisce downplayed the difference in blood for some time, but with the introduction of the Beast and the insular nature of the family line, the Bratovitch more clearly defined themselves as their own entity.

In modern nights, nearly all Bratovitch are members of the Sabbat sect, as other sects tend to reject their inhumane nature. It is not surprising, however, that with the inclusion of the Order of Saint Blaise, even the Sabbat are beginning to find the bloodline’s tendencies towards violence and depravity to be dangerous and unnerving.

Roleplaying Notes: The Bratovitch are monsters among monsters. While most are reclusive, Bratovitch neonates are frequently forced to interact with other vampires, keeping their broods up to speed on what is going on in the outside world. These neonates are frequently the only members of the bloodline with a shadow of Humanity left in them; any others would send sane people fleeing for their lives (assuming they could outrun the hellhounds). Bratovitch Embrace solely from the family, and most Bratovitch revenants rarely encounter other human beings. To play a Bratovitch vampire is to play to the nature of the Beast, as the temper of the family is notorious to the point that  Brujah antitribu pause at the rage of a Bratovitch on a bender. Instead of seeing it as a weakness, the Bratovitch use this rage to their advantage, focusing it to fuel their horrific acts and terrifying feats of strength.

Organization 

The Bratovitch frequently organize themselves in extended family units or communes, with the most powerful of them acting as the head of the brood. These familial units frequently operate as Sabbat packs and often share strong Viniculums to each other. In the rare instance that a member of the family is not a member of the Sabbat, they instead opt for several mutual blood bonds. One thing remains common: they put family and violence first.

Alternative Weakness

The Bratovitch are monsters at their very core, spurred on by hot tempers and lacking a concept of self-control. For the purposes of determining the need to test for frenzy or powers that interact with Beast traits (such as Quell the Beast), they are always considered to have 1 Beast trait higher than their current total. For example, a Bratovitch with 2 Beast traits must test for frenzy as if she had 3 Beast traits. As this is a penalty and not an actual Beast trait, it cannot be reduced or eliminated by powers or effects such as spending time with someone who has the Animal Ken skill. This penalty has no effect on Morality loss; a Bratovitch who accumulates 4 Beast traits is not considered to have 5 through this penalty. Instead, she will lose a point of Morality when she normally accumulates a  5th Beast trait.