Brujah (High Clan)

[Tami]

Brujah



The Brujah are the ultimate scholar-warriors, always striving towards perfection of mind and body. The Elders of the clan can recall the golden Age, and speak wistfully of lost Carthage. It is the ultimate goal of the Brujah to bring about a better place, one where vampires of all sorts can exist peacefully and prosperously.

Unfortunately, no wound stings worse than the dream denied. The death of Carthage seems to have only increased the rancor, and the other clans’ refusal to move beyond status quo leaves a bitter taste in their mouths. So the fight. They fight the venture for destroying Carthage, they fight the Lasombra for encouraging Status Quo, they fight the Tremere for slaying Saulot – the list seems eternal. The Brujah are nothing if not the lovers of a cause.

Currently, the Brujah are becoming a clan divided. They cannot agree among themselves how to best bring about change, or indeed what goal they should pursue. Some favor creating a society where humans and Cainties peacefully co-exist; others wish to remain in the shadows, egalitarian among themselves but superior to mortals. In addition, clan members are now embracing many Men-as-arms as the are thinkers and philosophers, preparing for the battles they say are coming. The clan that believes in harmony is splintering under the weight of its own change.

Although the clan’s infrastructure is suffering through a state of decay, Brujah will rally to one another’s side when the need is there. Most Sires treat their Childer with more respect than is demonstrated in other clans. The Brujah are traditionally suspicious of outsiders, but if their favor is won, they can be most doggedly loyal (and stubborn) friends one can have.

Sobriquet: Zealots

Appearance: For the most part, Brujah are fit and have the bearing of eagles. They prefer Embracing neonates that are near perfection in body and mind, but the current age is forcing them to lower their standards somewhat. Brujah identify strongly with mortal, and neonates prefer dressing as they did in life (Or at least looking as normal as possible.)

Haven: Brujah live where they choose, but most prefer to live near people. Many maintain their mortal residence (if any), and on rare occasions, two will share an accommodation in a city.

Background: Brujah look for thinkers and those frequently dissatisfied with society as they know it. A craftsman may be unlettered, but will be considered if he can express his thoughts reasonably well. Martial candidates for the Embrace are considered for their thinking ability, strategy and planning, not just how well they swing a sword. The Brujah prize egalitarianism and will choose whomever they deem worthy, whether man or woman, serf or noble.

Character Creation: Brujah tend to come from intellectual or man-at arms concepts, but can be of practically any background. Spain is the current seat of Brujah power, and many neonates come from there. They usually have aggressive or dynamic Natures and Demeanors. Physical and mental Attributes are usually primary, as are Talents and knowledges. Brujah tend to have Allies, retainers and herd as their backgrounds. Most follow the roads oh Humanity or heaven.

Clan Disciplines: Celerity, Potence, presence

Weakness: Although they consistently deny it, the Brujah are far and away the clan most susceptible to frenzy. Most take no pride in this flaw of their blood, and many become hostile to the point of frenzy if the subject is raised. The difficulty for a Brujah’s frenzy roll is always two higher than the listed number.

Organizations: Brujah tend to their own affairs for the most part, but can call on their clanfolk in of need. Occasionally, the Brujah of a region will gather for a council, sharing news and attempting to settle on a specific common purpose. These council rarely end with much accomplished, saves more promises of loyalty and camaraderie.

Quote: You fools! There are greater things in existence, and they are within your reach! We can change the world if you but stand with us. Wake up before you die!

[Tami]

Brujah

The Brujah are warriors ? but always for a cause. The fierce heat of passion burns within their cold, dead breast and it drives them to champion causes they believe can set the world to rights. When Caine slew his brother, he threw the world from its intended course. The horror it has become must be corrected, and the Brujah intend to do just that. Each member of the clan has her own vision of the way the world is supposed to be, and she strives to make that vision become a reality through argument, manipulation and force of arms.

In the earliest night, passion was not a trait of the Brujah. Indeed, the founder of the clan, Troile, was actually Embraced for his cold wisdom. His ability to asses the virtues of an idea without emotional involvement was valued by his sire and grandsire. However, in his long years banished from the sun, he grew ever more remote from both the humans of the First City and his own Childer. What few emotions he had left atrophied completely. As he developed theories, his experiments to test them became ever more cruel. He would use and sacrifice the living and the Damned just to satisfy an idle whim.

One of his childer, whose name is lost to time, could no longer stand by and watch this cruelty. He dreamed of a world in which the humans and the Cainites had at least and understanding. Even then he thought genuine peace was too much to ask. He tried to convince his sire to abandon his ruthless behavior. Troile?s arrogant dismissal of the childe?s arguments drove the childe to the very edge of frenzy, and he threw himself at his sire. Long out of practice in hand-to-hand combat, Troile eventually fell beneath his childe?s fists and fangs. Once he had tasted his sire?s blood, the childe was unable to stop himself drinking. Within minutes, Troile was no more.

From a shadow stepped Caine himself, his face clouded with fury. ?Never before has one of my progeny drunk the soul of another. I curse you ever to aspire to your sire?s wisdom, but be prey to the very fury which led you to this diabolic act.?

The childe took his sire?s name and position among the third generation. He assumed Caine?s curse, but always strove towards his own vision of a better world. His passion seemed to spread like wildfire through the line of his childer, and at first he rejoiced in their crusading zeal as they worked to make the world a better place.

In the city of Carthage, Troile (the younger) and his Childer worked to establish what they had dreamed on in earlier times: a society in which mortal and Cainites coexisted for their mutual benefit. But again and again he saw those of his clan start to repeat his mistakes and give in to their anger. In despair, he left the city and was never seen again. Carthage fell far from that ideal, until even some of the demon-worshipping Baali were welcomed within it walls. Soon, the other clans acted under the guidance of the Roman venture to destroy the abomination.

The Brujah have fought to improve the world ever since but the failure of their grand experiment has made their blood boil even hotter. As the centuries pass, the world seems to fall ever further from what it should be. As kine philosophies, religions and ideas multiply, proliferate and die, the clan becomes more divided as to what should be done to make the world right ? and even as to what the right should be. Many of the younger members of the clan no longer heed the wisdom of their elders. Their blood calls them to do something now, not watch and observe for a few centuries until the patterns of society become apparent to them. The elders merely shake their heads and recall the misjudged dreams of their youth.

Some Brujah follow the great new philosophies and religions of the past, while others adopt new faiths and ideal with equal vigor and convince themselves that the salvation of the fallen world lies there. Some even jump from idea to idea in search of the one that fires their imagination and drives them towards a better world. All of them pursue their ideals with a vigor and commitment that would put a hardened crusader to shame.

Sobriquet: Zealots

Appearance: The Brujah have always chosen the best of humanity for their childer, so most of them are strong, well built and imposing. However, they tend toward the ideal of fitness, rather than transitory notions of beauty. The women are striking, rather than beautiful, for example. The clan’s adoption of, and commitment to, mortal philosophies and ideas keeps the Brujah in touch with mortal fashions, and most dress in ways that match the local area. Most tend to be extremely neat in their dress, as if perfection in attires could help their quest for perfection in the world.

Haven and Prey: Almost without exception, the Brujah choose to live amid the bustle of humanity, usually in a city or busy town. They pick paces where exceptional thinkers or believers make their homes. Often a sire and childe haven together, with the sire subjecting the fledgling to long periods of tuition and physical training. In recent years, small groups of young Cainites with similar beliefs have set up communal havens. Most Brujah prey on the dull, the weak, the ignorant or those who choose to take a stand against the idea the vampires espouses. The dullards should perform some small service, even if they can’t see the truth.

The Embrace: The Brujah look for three qualities in recruits: commitment to a cause, the intelligence to comprehend that cause and a passion needed to make it a reality. Most choose there childer from the upper echelons of society, assuming that the most capable can be found in their number. A small but significant number of the clan, however, were low-born in life but showed enough drive, belief and spirit to attract the attention of an undying zealot.

Character Creation: The majority of the clan take either mental or physical attribute as their primary choice, Social attributes almost always fall a poor third. Their demeanors are often cold and aloof, but all have natures that are passionate, even aggressive. Most have a decent balance of martial skills and knowledges. The newly Embraced sometimes have Talants as their primary groups, as their sires plan to mold the development of promising childer so that they come to espouse the correct ideal. Most of the clan can be found charging along the Road of Humanity, the Road of Heaven or even the Road of Kings.

Clan Disciplines: Celerity, Potence, Presence

Weaknesses: Thanks to Caine’s Curse upon the first diablerist, the fury of the clan’s founder runs through the veins of all Brujah. Their tempers are always close to the surface, which makes them even more prone to frenzy than other Cainites. The difficulty of a Brujah’s role to resist frenzy is always two higher than the listed number.

Organization: The Brujah have found so many different ways ideas to espouse the Dark Medieval world that they find it increasingly hard to work together. Often a sire and her fledgling stay together for some years, with the childe acting as an apprentice to his sire. The childe usually finds his own cause and sets off alone to pursue it wherever he thinks is best, rather than wait to be formally released. In some cities, groups of Brujah gather every few years for grand councils in which each puts forward his or her view of the world and the clans role within it. Sometimes they achieve great things at these councils, and a great and passionate speaker wins over many of her fellows to a particular cause. More often than not, though, they become week-long exercises in circular debates and all out conflict.

Quote: With the wisdom of a few more years behind you, you will be able to see why what you propose is wrong. I truly believe that that my way of addressing this challenge will achieve the best results for us all.


(Revised core book)