Vampire The Masquerade V5 - Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
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A SOURCEBOOK FOR VAMPIRE: VAMPIRE: THE MASQUE RADE
A Sourcebook for for
Vampire: The Masquerade
Sabbat: The Black
Hand
LE GA L A ND CR E DITS W R I T T E N B Y Justin
Achilli, Alan Alexander, Khaldoun Khelil, and Karim Muammar Stephanie Cohen A RT DI R EC TO R : Tomas Arfert COVER ART: Mark Kelly I NTER I O R AR T AND I LLUS TR ATI O N : Tomas Arfert, Krzysztof Bieniawski, Emilis Emka, Mirko Failoni, Flyos Games (Vampire: (Vampire: The Masquerade – Chapters ), ), Mark Kelly, Ronja Melin, Anders Muammar, pexels.com (Gabby K, Kaique Rocha, Ivan Siarbolin, David Skyrius), Roena I. Rosenberger, Marc Simonetti, Sally Thordarson, Drew Tucker, Kim Van Deun, Sergey Vasnev, Martyna Zych EDITING, DIVERSITY READING, AND INDEXING:
GR AP HI C DES I GN A ND LAYO UT: To Tomas mas Arfert A rfert P R O O F R EADI NG: Jason
Carl, Brian Holland O R I GI NAL S ABBAT CO NCEP T, DES I GN, AND DEV E LO P M ENT: Steven C. Brown and Andrew Greenberg WO R LD O F DA R KNE S S BR A ND M A NA GE M E NT BR AND M ANAGER : Sean
Greaney B R A N D C R E A T I V E L E A D : Justin Achilli BR AND AR T DI R ECTO R : Tomas Arfert BR AND EDI TO R : Karim Muammar B R A N D C O M M U N I T Y D E V E L O P E R: Martyna “Outstar” Zych B R A N D M A R K E T I N G M A N A GE GE R : Jason Jason Carl PA R A DO X LIC E NS ING BUS I NES S DEV ELO P ER : Dhaunae De Vir
R E NE GA DE GA M E S TUDIO S
Scott Gaeta Sara Erickson
P R E S IDE NT & P U BL IS HE R :
Robyn Gaeta DIR E C T O R O F O P E R A T IO NS : Leisha Cummins D IREC TOR, STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS : Erika Conway C O NT R O L L E R :
SALES AND MARKETING PROGRAM MANAGER : Matt
Holland
Dan Bojanowski Le S E NIO R P R O DU C E R O F R O L E P L A Y ING GA M E S : Elisa Teague A S S O C IA T E P R O DU C E R O F R O L E P L A Y ING GA M E S : Trivia Fox
S E NIO R P R O DU C E R O F BO A R D & C A R D GA M E S :
A S S O C IA T E P R O DU C E R O F BO A R D & C A R D GA M E S : Jimmy Jimmy
Matt Hyra Dan Blanchett & T.C. Petty III C R E A T IV E L E A D O F BO A R D & C A R D GA M E S : Anita Osburn & Jeanne Torres V IDE O P R O DU C T IO N M A NA GE R : Desiree Love C U S T O M E R S E R V IC E : Jenni Jenni Jan ikowski F INA NC E C L E R K : Minnie Nelson E V E NT M A NA GE R : Chris Whitpan C R E A T IV E P R O DU C T IO N L E A D : Gordon Tucker C R E A T IV E P R O DU C T IO N : Noelle Lopez S E NIO R GA M E DE S IGNE R :
V IC E P R E S IDE NT S A L E S & M A R K E T ING :
GAME DESIGNERS:
S E NIO R
© 2021 Paradox Interactive® AB. Vampire: The Masquerade® – are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Paradox Interactive AB in Europe, the U.S., and other countries. © 2021 Renegade Game Studios. All Rights Reserved. Visit the World of Dark ness online at www.worldofd www.worldofdarkness.com arkness.com
ome of you call me the Martyr of Caine Caine.. It is one of the many appellations I have worn in my thousand years as one o ne of the undead. I hope those one thousand years convince you of my bona fides. My position position is not an empty appeal to my own authority a uthority.. My voice is the voice of one who has seen firsthand firsth and the tumult of ages. ages. I myself lit fires and drank blood blood in Silches Silchester ter when the Anarchs rebelled. I myself touched the faces of the Eldest Eldest, have worn shackles shackles in its Cathedral.rebelled.
S
The world isis ever-changing ever-changing,, and the Damned Damned must change change with itit.. The Sabbat Sabbat must must change with it. Centuries ago, our tools were blood and fire. Tonight, many of us continue to wage war with those same weapons. weapons. And the mortal world once took to ok up fire against us in return. Tonight T onight,, we have had had our backs backs broken by our sires sires and grandsires grandsires,, our hearts pierced by mortal hunters — hunters h unters who themselves know that wooden stakes stakes and torches, while while still effective, give way to more effective tools. Swarms of death-spitting homunculi that hover in the sk skyy. Weapons that outpace the rending of life that even the hoary koldun can coax from the ground. The mortals have have once again taken taken up fire. fire. Our sires sires and grandsires grandsires likewise likewise roar their their fire against against us. us. You have have read the the Book. Book. You know the signs signs.. Our blood and fire do d o not hold back the night. night. From our vantage vantage,, fire is inadequate to even illuminate the night for any true duration. Our dominion will not be realize realizedd by calling upon the same blood and fire we wielded against superstitious peasants as they shuddered on their crofts. Our dominion will not be realize realizedd by seizing domain and reclining on its throne, like a pasha, like a Camarilla crow. We shall realize realize our dominion not by lingering upon what we are, but by heeding what we must become. Thiss Damned form Thi form — this this Cainite Cainite form — is but a chrysalis chrysalis.. It is mutable, mutable, mere flesh flesh,, mere clay. clay. We have left our mortal clay behind behind,, but our o ur journey does not end with these these vile bodies. We must, then, ourselves become the night. We must become. For such is the will of Caine.
TA BLE OF CO CON N TE NT NTS S
Introduction
How to use this Book Storyteller Style Theme and Mood Build Your Own Medieval Death Cult Themes and Goals Styles of Play
Chapter One: Setting FireSupremacy of the Blood The Righteous Beyond Mortal Power and Liability A Church Militant Shattered Domains Endless Conflict Forging Loyalty Legacy of Brutality Feeding the Beast
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church Church Paths of Enlightenment The Last Bridge Over the Abyss The Path of Caine Ethics In Chronicles Disciplines The Path of Cathari Ethics In Chronicles Disciplines
6
The Path of Death and the Soul Ethics In Chronicles Disciplines The Path of Power and the Inner Voice Ethics In Chronicles Disciplines 15 The Path of the Sun 15 Ethics 16 In Chronicles 16 Disciplines 17 Forsaken Paths 17 Path of the Beast 18 Path of Honorable Accord 18 Path of Lilith 19 Walking the Path 19 Path Realities Sabbat Titles 7 7 7 8 10 10
31 32 32 32 33 34 34 34 35 37 37 37 38 38 38 38 39 49 50
55 PackPacks Patterns Sabbat 60 Running in Packs 62 23 Sabbat Advantages 75 24 Predator Types 78 27 The Killing Time: Antagonists 81 28 Servants and Pawns 95 28 Allies and Mentors 96 28 The Gifts of Caine: Disciplines 97 29 The Ritae 114 30 Ritae: Keys to the Dominion of Caine 115 30 Ritae in Game 130 30
23
Chapter Three: Burn Brightly
Story Elements: Chronicle Structures Blood and Fire 144 Hearts and Minds Anatomy of a Death Cult 144 Image Is Everything Stoking Revolution 145 Infiltration and Espionage Strange Bedfellows 145 Story Elements: Narrative Structures 147 Antitribu Rising Action Banu Haqim 150 Open Conflict Brujah 151 Temptation Caitff / Gangrel 152 The Enemy of My Enemy Hecata 153 Lasombra / Malkavian 154 Story Element: Conflict Triangles Rival Sects Ministry 155 Nosferatu / Ravnos 156 Playing With Fire: Salubri / Toreador 157 The Second Inquisition Tremere 158 Thematic Element: Inhumanities Tzimisce / Ventrue 159 Thematic Element: Thin-blood 160 The Pack Hunts as One 162 Setting Element: Sabbat Havens Catechism: Sabbat Objectives Ideological Enmity 162 Communal Havens Storytelling Technique: Chapter Four: 164 Paranoia and Red Herrings The Gehenna War A Brief and Dirty History of the Sabbat 164 Thematic Element: the Antediluvians Enemy Unknown Blood and Fire 164 Anarchs Revolt Stolen Blood 165 From the Ashes of the Revolt 166 Sabbat Cronicles Enlightenment in Blood 166 Faith, Gore, and Sex The Beginning of the End of the World 167 SITREP: The Gehenna War 168 Weapons of War An Empire Mexico City of Blood Brazil: Civil War Russia and the Baltics The Maghreb and Alamut The Domain Next Door
Chapter Five: Storyteller Resources Setting Element: Sabbat Domains Surge Accord Entente Crusade
168 Loresheets 170 Safe PackPlay Map 171 Safe Play Worksheet 173 175 176 178
178 179 180 180 181
182 182 183 184 185 188 188 189 190 191 193 193 193 193 194 195 195 195 196 197 197 198 198 198 199 200 205 209 212 232 233
Introduction
NT T RODU DUCT CTIION I N We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell. ― OSCAR WILDE
o sect evokes such fear at its mention, mention, such revulsion at its its ideologies, as does the Sabbat. The self-styled Sword of Caine wages a war — a war of ages, a holy war, a Gehenna War — against the legendary progenitors of the clans, the Antediluvians. Citing the Book the Book of Nod the Sabbat seeks to avenge the ancient betrayal of Caine by his wayward childer, seeking nothing less than the destruction of the Antediluvians and the subjugation of the mortal world to a brutal hierarchy with vampires at its apex. Other sects regard the Sabbat as heretical at best and apocalyptic at worst. Some outright deny the existence of Antediluvians, proclaiming them myth, allegory, or centuries dead. Others regard them as torpid, far-distant, or irrelevant in the modern nights. That’s exactly what drives the fear other sects have of the Sabbat: Not only do they prosecute a fanatical agenda, they do so with little regard for themselves, and with the convictions of an era long past, a time of Long Night.
N
,
6
Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
As a result, Storytellers Storytel lers have en enormous ormous leeway to present localized versions of the Sabbat that emphasize their own distinct themes. The Sabbat can appear in chronicles as redneck splatterpunk vampires marauding across remote Texas scrub, or as bloodthirsty sharks moving through the highlife/low-life social circles of European capitals, or as harbingers of monstrous morality in the vaults of the Ancients themselves. The Sabbat takes many forms and provides points of conict for innumerable stories. Except under certain circumstances, the Sabbat doesn’t claim domain as other Kindred consider the practice. Rather, the Sabbat S abbat remains ever-mobile, devouring what a domain has to oer like a swarm of locusts before chasing some cryptic secret or strange stimulus into the Gehenna War’s next theater. What is it chasing? Other Kindred can’t gure it out, entirely, and that disconnect means they have diculty relating to and comprehending Sabbat motives. This book takes a big-picture look at the Sword of Caine, but it’s important to note that a big picture doesn’t exist in an entire locality anywhere in the world. Which is to say, a complete, local microcosm of the full Sabbat isn’t present in any single domain in the world (unless you overrule that, as Storyteller). The Sword of Caine in one domain may literally be the shattered remains of a single inltrating pack, while a score of Black Hand vampires may vie with Camarilla courts and Anarch
How to Use this Book Here is the most important sentence in this book: The function of the Sabbat in Vampire: The Masquerade stories querade stories is to threaten the status quo. The presentation of the Sabbat for the Fifth Edition of Vampire Vampire is is as antagonists. The Sword of Caine is undeniably a monstrous evil that even the Kindred fear, a sect of vampire supremacists who set aside the perspectives of the still-living, believing themselves to be more than mortals. This manifests as deliberate eorts by the Sabbat to crush individual identity and reshape it to the sect’s own apocalyptic ends. Ultimately, Sabbat vampires don’t have have a choice in many ma ny of the actions they take. In giving themselves to the Beast, they’ve set aside that central riddle of the Kindred condicondi tion. One of the core ironies — or hypocrisies, if you will — of being Sabbat is that it attempts to overthrow oppression through fanatical servility to Caine. As members of the Black Hand, Cainites yield individuality, indi viduality, ambition, autonomy. autonomy. They aare re Blood Bound, indoctrinated, completely deindideindividuated, and instilled with hatreds to which they turn no critical thought. To be clear, there are no systems or suggestions included herein for portraying the Sabbat as a player’s character. This book includes Discipline powers, details for Sabbat rituals, information on the Paths of Enlightenment, etc., with the intention that Storytellers will use them to create compelling stories around opposing the Sabbat.
seditionists in another domain. The Sabbat exists to provide a scaling antagonist in any domain where you desire to set your chronicle.
Storyteller Style The Sabbat has endured a crippling collapse. From its abandonment by erstwhile leaders to the ravages of the Gehenna War to the fact that it makes a huge target of itself in the era of the Second Inquisition, the Sabbat has fractured, united only in its common
The theme of the Sabbat is desperation. Faced with a harrowing and self-destructive reality, the Sabbat seeks any functional method of its rejection, sink ing ever deeper into its own depravity as a way to ght back against the vampires’ reckoning. Sabbat desperation manifests in fanaticism, fundamenfundamentalism, violence, and monstrosity. The ultimate
hatred thego Antediluvians and thethem. extremes to which itofwill to defy and destroy
expression of ghting withfor rethe —Sabbat and re—is the a powerful symbol bothre to and
Theme and Mood
7
Introduction
Black Hand willingly chooses to dene itself as worse than the enemies it opposes. When faced with the rising of cannibalistic blood gods, the Sword of Caine seeks to strike down those blood gods… and replace them, dragging the world into a Hell of the sect’s making. The mood of the Sabbat is of alienation, of active inhumanity. The Sabbat turns its back on the very notion of Humanity, fanatically believing that the only way to truly realize the potential of the vampire is to give oneself wholly to the aspects of the Cainite condition that are unique to it. The Sword of Caine venerates the Beast, exults in the power of the Blood, and declares diablerie a sacsacrament. Sabbat vampires feel no compassion for mortals, and they certainly don’t pine for their bygone days of being mortal. In fact, Sabbat vampires don’t relate to mortals at all — and that also makes it profoundly dicult for them to relate to other vampires, as well. Cainites are entirely Other, true monsters, the vampires whom other vampires look over their shoulder and dread to see.
One might encounter a pack of Sabbat committing a grandiose diablerie in a baroque Cathedral of Flesh, or one might nd a pack reduced to its last two emaciated members desperately working Blood Sorcery in order to poison the frenzied elder about to drink them dry. The Sabbat in your domain might be all that remains after a gore-spattered raid by hunters in this era of the Second Inquisition, or it might be holed up in the cellar of a Buenos Aires veterinary clinic, trying to bring back a fallen pack mate from torpor. Remember,, there’s nothing preventing players Remember from knowing the information presented in this book. Where the mystery and personality emerge is in how you use the Black Hand as a storytelling tool. Challenge the status quo. If it helps, think of the Sabbat as something other than a sect entirely, a disparate mob of blood-war revolutionaries with regional strengths, activities, and methods of tearing down Ancient tyranny. ■
Build Your Your Own Ow n Medieval Death Cult
CONSENT AND RESPECTFUL PLAY
Vampire deals with mature themes and story ele-
The Sabbat has many faces but a single guiding philosophy. One of the most important things to consider about the Black Hand is i s that it’s not a monolith. It’s
ments that some may find uncomfortable or that
decentralized, even fragmented, to the same degree that the Anarchs are, and since it’s actively ghting the Gehenna War, Sabbat rates of nal death are even higher than those of other sects. What’s true of the Sabbat tonight, even locally, might not survive past the sunrise. The result is that the Sabbat is a “sect” only in that it has a common cause and a canon of specic rituals that unite it in packs. That aside, the Sabbat is extremely parochial. The nature of those packs, the responsibilities of the packs’ spiritual leaders, whether or not those leaders themselves have superisuperiors or if anyone pays them heed — all of these vary
sense of self, and relationships with authority and personal boundaries.
remind them of personal traumas. This can be especially true of the Sabbat, which deals overtly with violence, situations intended to harm the individual’s
It’s worth calling out that these are story elements and themes. They are specifically not a license to traumatize players or abuse the trust between players. While the characters in a chronicle in which the Sabbat plays a part may well experience dire circumstances, by no means should such situations or techniques be visited upon the participants of the game. For more information on consent and respectful play, see Appendix III of Vampire: The Masquerade , pp. 421-425.
radically by location and by manifestation.
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
e great loodgates of the wonder-world swung open... — HERMAN MELVILLE, MOBY DICK OR, THE WHALE
T
he Sabbat have have always threatened the status uo. ey cast aside all al l illusions of humanity and all al l pretence of deliberation. e vampires of the Sword of Caine will not waste another second suabbling over the corpse of a doomed world. is book builds on the ideas for the Fih Edition of Vampire: e presented in e Sabbat: e Black Hand for Masquerade as antagonists, but includes systems that allow them to be played as player play er characters. While the Sabbat Sabbat could be called hypocritical, hypocritical, this book prefers to present them as having powerful internal tensions. ey want personal reedom, but the powers they face are too great to ght alone. Only unied, f reedom, uni ed, devoted, and immune to subjugation can the Sabbat stand against the Antedi A ntediluvians or chains their pawns the Camarilla, Ca marilla, Ashirra a ndhad and Anarch movements. ToTo break the of thein blood bond the Black Hand to accept the limita tions of the Vaulderie, but there's power in their Packs and communal rituals as well. Individualism, Clan identity identity,, and personal ambition still exist in the Sabbat, but those have to be tempered against a gainst their culture of self-sacrice and wielded in service to the greater goal of defeating the Antediluvians. e Sab Sabbat is part death cult, part terror ter ror cell, and part revolutionary movement. movement. ese vampires seek utopia. ey want a world no longer controlled by a few callous ancients that are happy to see their children ground g round to dust and ash over pointless suabbles. e Sabbat can’t go back to sleep now that they’ve seen the truth. When the Antediluvians nally reveal themselves and claim their thrones, neither mortal nor Cainite will be spared. e Sabbat see this existential threat and have abandoned all half measures. What crime is too too great to commit commit in the face of of Gehenna? If it’s the end of the world, what are we waiting for?
9
Introduction
Themes and Goals e Sabbat in Va Vampire: mpire: e Masquerade explore themes that are now central to the entirety of the game. Never before so muchbeen of the Sabbat's philosoph philosophy, y, lore, andhas concerns concerns such an integral part o Vampire’s core game play. e Beckoning, Gehenna, and the nature natu re of the Antediluvians themselves are explored as story elements because the Black Hand has opened these wounds and a nd probed its its ngers into them them over and over over again. e Gehenna War is everywhere and in turn so is the Sword of Caine. Pieces of their ideals and story are now deeply embedded in the game's DNA.
sacrice everything to stand against them. While so-called Kindred ignore the warning signs and play their petty games, the Sabbat Sabbat seeks salvation. salvation. No price is too great for freedom and losing their humanity is only the rst cost they are willing to bear. While all Sabbat understand the importance of Caine and adhere to inhuman Paths of Enlightenment, it is ultimately their Pack they ght for on a nightly basis. eir brothers and sisters forged through blood and violence. Against the end e nd of the world no no one, kine or Cainite, Cainite, can stand stand alone. If the Sabbat are doomed to fail, then they’ll meet their end the same way they've faced everything everyt hing else. Together.
In short, you cannot escape the Sabbat. e vampires of the other Sects can no longer hide from what's coming, and in many ma ny ways the Second Inuisition is only a symptom of the greater doom over the t he horizon. A stopgap implemented by clueless mortals in hopes of eradicating e radicating the blank body plague, but it’s already too late. e virus is ancient and has deep roots. roots. e Antedilu vians are coming and bombs bombs and bullets are useless against them. e Sabbat: e Black Hand book for V5 tackles the uestion of what what it means means to win the Gehenna War. It asks what is an a n Antediluvian? and how can they be defeated? What secrets are the Sabbat searching for in the blood of elders that will arm them against monsters clad in the t he armor of aeons? In this guide gu ide for players players and Storytellers we build on that book but provide no answers to those uestions, but we give g ive you the tools needed to tackle those t hose uestions in play. What secrets will your Pack uncover uncover in the Final Final Nights and and will it all be in vain? If you emerge victorious what will you do with the power of a methuselah? Hope, loyalty loyalty,, faith, and camaraderie are not Vampire: mpire: e Masquerade, but common themes in Va they're arguably argua bly the guiding principles of the Sabbat. e vampires of the Black Hand Ha nd understand that they stand against gods. eir literal crea-
Styles of Play While the modern Black Hand is is fractured and no longer tries to maintain a rigid hierarchy, hierarchy, there are a few common modes of organization that can be helpful for players starting out as a Sabbat Pack: Te Nomads: e player characters are an estab lished Pack of Sabbat that travel where they are needed. ey may have a greater purpose given to them when they were formed or perhaps they are followers of one of the Seraphim or Warlords. ese Packs are oen composed of a mixture of Clans and Paths, and they are unconcerned with following orthodoxies such as calling each other Antitribu or avoiding avoiding non-Sabbat non-Sabbat vampires. vampires. e Pack Priest is a player character who is usually devout, but their survival and leadership skills are what their brethren truly value. ese Packs are a re oen concerned with discovering ancients and prying their secrets from f rom their veins. Nomadic Packs oen very large, some numbering as many as are oen 15 Cainites, but they have very high attrition rates. e core four or ve members of a Nomadic Pack remain fairly constant, but their shovel heads (vam pires mass Embraced Embraced as cannon-fodder) cannon-fodder) lead short and violent unlives. ough those that survive their early nights are uickly welcomed as true Sabbat.
tors come to devour them but they’re willing to
10
Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
Te Coven: e player characters are tied to a domain or territory that is usually u sually contested by another Sect. e Pack is usually dominated by one or two Paths and Clans, but not always. A Coven's purpose is usually dened by the circumstances circumstances of their territory terr itory and they can sometimes become embroiled in ‘politics’, such as supporting the overthrow of a nearby Prince or suabbling s uabbling over hunting grounds with other Packs. ese Sabbat oen go out of their way to pay lip service to orthodoxies, regardless regardless of their personal pe rsonal beliefs. Covens are also the most likely to strictly adhere to the Ritae as a mysti mystical cal calendar of holidays that guide their nightly unlives. If they follow a Sera Se ra phim it it is usually as a patron Saint Saint they praise and align with w ith spiritually and politically. politically. eir willing ness to uproot the Pack for them will be limited by the needs of their territory.
YOUR TABLE, YOUR SABBAT
The Sabbat are visceral and raw, and their stories often focus on the most gruesome aspects of being a vampire. Gore, violence, sadism, cruelty, madness, fanaticism, and terror are staples of a Black Hand game and your players should be aware of that. The Sabbat deals with mature themes and stories that can make some players uncomfortable or remind them of traumatic experiences. A Sabbat game should make use of s afety tools such as Lines and Veils, Session Ze ro, and the X Card. Understanding each player's limits and expectations can help create a game that challenges and terrifes players without crossing the line into harm.
As with all things, enthusiastic consent is key to running a successful and rewarding game. For detailed information on the above tools, con-
e Pack Priest is usually the most devout or politically connected player politically player character but somesometimes the eldest rules, especially since Covens are oen dominated by the childer of the eldest among them. Covens usually number around six or seven Cainites and they only mass Embrace shovel shovel heads when their territory is threatened threatened or if they have have to relocate. eir shovel heads are used to insulate insu late their core members from the vanguard vangu ard of battle and are oen le behind to cover their tracks.
sent, and respectful play see Safe Play on pg. 233 and the V5 Corebook pg. 421.
Te Removers: e player characters are special ists called upon by a Seraphim or other Sabbat
leader. ese from aby mix of Clansofand Paths, but arePacks oencome dominated members the Path of Caine and the Banu Haqim. ese Packs are temporary and formed for the sole purpose of accomplishing an objective. e Pack Priest is oen a highly accomp accomplished lished assassin with two or more dots of Status, or an elder NPC playe played d by the Storyteller. ese Packs are devout but pragmatic, doing whatever is necessary to accomplish their goals. ey are rarely larger than four or ve members but their ranks can swell to many times that if they need need to tactically mass Embrace shovel heads. ose that survive return to their original Packs if possible or or form a new Pack all together.
11
Introduction
Sabbat Lexicon Auctoritas Ritae: The recognized canon of the Sabbat, a set of high rituals prescribed for all Sabbat to heed
Sabbat: The Sabbat is a singular it when referring to the sect; its members are a plural they. they. But “Sabbat” can also refer to members — one can be a Sabbat of the Sabbat, not that such a phrase would be spoken frequently.
Black Hand, the: The Sabbat Brothers and Sisters in Caine: The Sabbat Cainite: A vampire; one of the progeny of Caine. Used among Sabbat to the exclusion of “Kindred,” which the Black Hand derides as a soft appellation
Shovelhead: A fledgling Sabbat vampire, generally Embraced Embraced en masse to serve as front-line fodder in an immediate conflict. May or may not have been dumped into a mass grave after af ter being clubbed over the head with an actual shovel.
Cold War: Intrigue, spycraft, and other
subtle movementsusually movements againstwaged the servants of the Antediluvians, to destabilize domains where non-Sabbat non-Sabbat sects claim dominance
Sword of Caine, the: The Sabbat Thin-blooded: Vampires of especially high generation, whose Blood carries little to no indication of their lineage. “The Time of Thin Blood,” when these vampires are present, is one of the omens of Gehenna presaged in the Book of Nod.
Gehenna War: The Eternal Struggle in its most urgent form, the resistance against the rising of the Antediluvians Antediluvians and their servitors ser vitors Hot War: Active fighting against the Antediluvians in the Gehenna War
Vaulderie: A Sabbat ritus that shatters Blood Bonds and reinforces loyalty among pack members
Ignoblis Ritae: The local or packpack-specific specific rites created by individual packs or domains to establish community or sanctify behavior
Vinculum: A specific type t ype of Blood Bond that exists among members of a pack, subverting singular Blood Bonds (plural: vincula)
Pack: A Sabbat coterie, almost always reinforced with the ritus of the Vaulderie Pack Priest: The spiritual and tactical leader of a Sabbat pack Path of Enlightenme Enlightenment: nt: A mental, emotional, and spiritual conditioning that supplants Humanity, usually with the intent of heightening the priorities of vampiric supremacy Ritae: Rituals forming the Sabbat catechism; singular ritus or rite
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
Sabbat Lexicon Bond, the: Also known as the Blood Bond or the chains. Refers to how Antediluvians and elders enslave their childer
Perfecti: A Cathari spiritual leader, not necesnecessarily a Priest. They fast, refuse earthly delights, and take on vision quests to see beyond the material world. Cathari usually treat them as saints
Book of Nod, the: Fragmentary text collected by Cainite scholars that tell the tale of Caine the first vampire and how he survived the land of Nod with Lilith’s aid
Revelations of the Dark Mother: A colRevelations lection of works that outline the beliefs of the Bahari, the followers of the Path of Lilith
Church of Caine, the: The heretical faith of the Ashirra and Camarilla that openly worships the Antediluvians, Antediluvians, calls Caine a myth my th and denounces Lilith as an infernal diablierist
Seraphim: Also known as Warlords. A leader of a Sabbat Host. These vampires have founded a cult of personality who follow their teachings or example. Most gained a following after victories in the Gehenna War. Only a few holdouts from the old order have been able to gain the same level of popularity or clout
Dark Mother, the: Lilith. The Bond Breaker and the Gift Giver Giver.. The Path of Lilith is small but growing in the Sabbat, and some of its teachings have been adopted by Sabbat Noddists
Takbir: A call of faith that is repeated in response by all present. In the Sabbat they include Praise Caine!, Death to the Antediluvians!, May the bonds be forever broken!, and Ahi hai Lilitu!
metaphorical joining Dark Union, the: The metaphorical of Caine and Lilith. When the Antediluvians are defeated and vampires openly rule
Uriel’s Promise: Golconda. Although once considered a heresy, the large number of Salubri Antitribu in the Sabbat and the Sect's fractured leadership has allowed some new thinking to flourish, especially among Cathari and Unifiers
Host: A loose alliance of Sabbat Packs that follow or aspire to follow one of the Seraphim Numinous Ritae: A set of secret rituals developed by the Sabbat S abbat to prosecute the Gehenna War and weaponize the Antediluvians secrets
Word, the: The collected holy texts of the Sabbat mostly passed down through oral tradition. Foremost among them is the Book of Nod, but many Priests also memorize pieces from the Revelations of the Dark Mother, the Oaxaca Diaries, the Erciyes Fragments, Fragments, and other texts text s
Oaxaca Diaries, the: A collection of notes from the Diet of Oaxaca, the last Sabbat synod sy nod before the Gehenna War. The text claims Antediluvianss cannot die and predicted that many diluvian mbra would rejoin their father as traitors Lasombra Laso
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Introduction
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Chapter One:
SETTING FIRE The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others. — CHINUA ACHEBE, T H IN G S FA L L A P A R T
F
rom its origins as a medieval death cult to its modern incarnation as a fanatical shock-force shockforce on the front lines li nes of the Gehenna War, War, the Sabbat is more than the bloody scourge the other sects describe it to be. To wit, few Kindred outside of Sabbat domains have even met a Sabbat Cainite, and the sect’s reputation is as much the propaganda of its rivals as it is an accurate summation. One will seldom see CamaCama rilla and Anarch rivals sweep previous grievances under the rug so quickly as when it is rumored that
The Righteous Supremac Supre macyy of the Blood The mindset that distinguishes the Sabbat from other sects to a stark degree is the belief that becoming a vampire fundamentally changes a person to such an extent that old notions of Humanity are
the Sabbat has an interest in the domain. At the same time, much of what what the other sects know about the Sabbat is entirely accurate. The savvy Kindred is able to distinguish the Sword of Caine’s own extreme ideology from the horror stories the other sects repeat to discourage their members from looking any deeper. For the Camarilla, steering Kindred away from the Black Hand is a matter of caution and safety. For the Anarchs, it’s a matter of realizing that Sabbat extremism is a form of control and an unrelenting oppression. For the Sabbat, however, it all comes down to unapologetically being a vampire.
no longer germane. From the Sabbat perspective, Humanity is at best a burden and at worst a prison, keeping vampires chained to bygone identity. It is a waste of the Blood to pretend that one is still mortal or must cling to human aectations. To the Sabbat way of thinking, the vampire is a creature above mere mortals, and must therefore rewrite their psyche with a purpose that allows the vampire to assume their supreme place. Indeed, “creature” is a word chosen deliberately — it implies that one is created, that becoming a vampire is apotheosis. Of course, whom that creator may be varies wildly among Sabbat, but the paramount message is that vampires fulll a higher purpose,
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Chapter One: Setting Fire
a calling, a metaphysical need, or a blood-soaked divine right. In practice, Cainites are eectively the creatures of their sires. What remains tonight of the Sabbat is a vicious echelon of remorseless vampires who see nothing wrong in creating hordes of lesser chattel to hurl at their enemies. Very often these lesser vampires create their own broods, the better to form their own cadres to be directed against those same foes. The result is a sect that Embraces with abandon, but with an extremely short time to nal death. Not all Sabbat meet their end so quickly, but the odds of survival grow increasingly poor the higher one’s generation is. And as to thin-blooded Sabbat — who knows how many of them t hem even exist? Or how many survive for any appreciable length of time?
ity to empathize with Humanity. Paragons of these Paths may be individually unnerving, repulsive, or wholly alien. The elusive elders of the sect liken these attempts to codify the moral elements of their undead existence to faiths or devotions, while at least one modern Sabbat edgling of philosophical bent has described them as operating systems. To outside perspectives, this reveals the monstrosity of the Sabbat, but to the Sabbat itself, itsel f, it’s at least being honest — it’s the “Kindred” who lurk within mortal cohorts or who pretend to grandiose schemes with mortal puppets who are the true atrocities, squandering the curse of Caine and wallowing among the kine.
Power and Liability Indeed, if the Camarilla is quick to exercise its connections as a way to solve problems, and the Anarchs rely on their own abilities, abilitie s, the Sabbat solves problems as a vampire “should.” Sabbat vampires use Disciplines. That is, if a Camarilla Kindred silences a Masquerade breach by calling in a favor to smother the story and an Anarch silences a Masquerade breach by browbeating the observer into silence, a Sabbat Cainite resolves the breach by driving witnesses mad with terror-inducing Presence or by tracking them with predatory Animalism and silencing them permanently. This lack of subtlety has had a side eect that the Black Hand willfully ignores: Hunters in this
Beyond Mortal Without a doubt, Sabbat followers of these ideologies, these Paths of Enlightenment, strike fear into mortals (and many Kindred…) in their lack of abil-
era of the Second Inquisition have the least trouble following the trail of the Sabbat, and have had the most success in reducing the sect’s ranks (at least in locales other than the front lines of the Gehenna War itself). Proud Sabbat try to spin this as a badge of honor, that the Camarilla and Anarchs deal with the era of the Second Inquisition by running and hiding rather than standing and ghting. That said, it’s hard to argue with how eective numerous vampire-hunting organizations have been in breaking the Sabbat’s domains and reducing its numbers.
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Soldiers in the G ehenna ehenna Wa r
And the Sabbat knows an additional secret that has so far eluded the other sects: The Gehenna War aects much more territory than what the Camarilla and Anarchs suspect. It isn’t conned to the cradle of civilization, where the original and most ancient vampires held sway. The intervening millennia have caused a great diaspora of peoples and the vampires who hide among them. Therefore, the Antediluvians have likewise traveled enormous distances, making the Gehenna War a worldwide theatre.
At the center of its conviction conviction is the Sabbat’s veneraveneration of whom the sect believes to be its Dark Father: Caine, the First Vampire. From Caine’s insidious childer spawned the clans as they are known tonight, and it is these hated Antediluvians against whom the Sabbat devotes its eorts. According to the various catechisms of the Black Hand, Caine’s original progeny betrayed the purity of the Dark Father’s Embrace in pursuit of their own degenerate desires. Their endless selsh rivalries became what is known as the Eternal Struggle, spawning centuries of conict, dooming countless vampires to Final Death in internecine struggles or
Shattered Domains In correlation, the Sabbat itself holds little domain in a conventional sense. Whereas it once claimed and contested territories like the Anarchs and Camarilla, tonight Sabbat domains often have a
forcing them to cower among mortals and masquerade as their masters. The Sabbat hates these Antediluvians, seeking to become closer to the Dark Father and destroy his despicable childer. To other sects, clans may be esteemed lineages or indicators of prowess — to the Sabbat, they are the by-blows of Antediluvian sin, and many Cainites describe themselves as antitribu, apostates against the very idea of clans, despite the aptitudes they may confer.
strange-feeling absence of Cainites in them. Since so many obey the Beckoning, domains of the Black Hand are often underpopulated, at least in terms of vampiric presence. This isn’ i sn’tt always the case, ca se, however, and no few domains experience huge surges and Mass Embraces as the front-line commanders of the Gehenna Crusade demand fresh conscripts to plunge into battle with the Antediluvians. It is again important to recognize the success the Second Inquisition has had in curtailing Sabbat inuence. Despite all of its Embraces, the Sabbat appears to be a very small sect, owing largely to its high rate
A Church Milit M ilitant ant No surprise, then, that perhaps more than the other sects, the Sabbat heeds the Beckoning, and indeed plunges itself headlong into the occulted conicts of the Gehenna War. Other Kindred may resist the Beckoning, but the Sabbat is drawn to it, and even those who do not themselves hear it follow enthralled sires and zealous pack leaders. Little news comes back from the war front, however, and even the deathless deathles s champions of the Sword of Caine surely nd themselves tested in its crucibles. What better way to martyr oneself and exult in the glories of Caine than to strike at the heart of the chthonic Third Generation itself?
of nal death. Among the massive Cainite casualties of the Gehenna War, the ruthless precision of the Second Inquisition, and the abhorrence other sects have for the Black Hand, the Sabbat’s enemies are many and its individual members’ nights are numbered from the moment of their Embrace.
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Chapter One: Setting Fire
Rebels in the Eterna Ete rnall Str Struggle uggle
ble conicts, but at the same time, it needs redoubts to which to fall back and enjoy what blood-streaked freedom it can say to have won for itself.
In centuries past, the Sabbat seemed to be at the forefront of the War of Ages, having formed after the vaunted diablerie of certain Antediluvians. Against Agai nst the ery backdrop of the original origi nal Anarch Revolt, the Sabbat hauled itself out of the ashes. It built around itself an identity of freedom from elder manipulations. In the intervening centuries, however,, the Sword of Caine however Cai ne has taken a monstrous path in order to ensure its own freedom. To hear the sect tell it, the Sabbat seeks to emancipate itself from the prison of living, to abandon the frail mortal coil and exult the Cainite condicondi tion. The reality is that the sect doesn’t do this in a
F orging Loyalt Loyalty y Ensuring loyalty among those cruelly invited into
manner that would uplift the world around it. To To a fervent Cainite, the best outcome would be a world of eternal night, with mortal thralls forced into servitude or herded like cattle to slake the thirsts of their undead lords.
quisition agencies, the Sabbat also press-gangs other vampires into its ranks. Whether abducting existing Kindred and dropping them onto the front lines of the Gehenna War, or performing hit-and-run raids that precisely target the favored feeding candidates and personal entourages of rival sects, the Sabbat is desperate for soldiers and resorts to any means necessary to bolster its ranks. Ironic, then, that t hat at the center of the t he Sabbat’s freedom and loyalty lies the Blood Bond. The Black Hand knows a special rite, the Vaulderie, that can destroy existing Blood Bonds, such as those to a domineering sire or a forlorn lover. But observing
the sect is no mean feat. To this end, the Sabbat employs a variety of rituals, individuality-breaking psychological techniques, and a host of horrors to force all Brothers and Sisters in Caine to rely upon one another. Rarely does one see an individual Sabbat, for the sect’s vampires run in “packs,” and their goals and souls are cultivated by spiritual leaders known as Pack Priests. And this is ever more reason for the other sects’ hatred of the Sabbat. With its own shrinking domains and perpetual surveillance by Second In-
Endless Confict This extreme outlook means that the Sabbat cannot help but forever nd itself at war — at war with the mortals from whom the other sects hide, at war with the Antediluvians and their ruinous Gehenna, at war with the other ot her sects for supremacy, and at war with itself over the survival of the sect. To the Black Hand, the world is conict, and the Sabbat is a righteous rebellion standing ercely against the forces that would keep it downtrodden. Born in an an era of medieval turmoil, the Sabbat ghts because ghting is all it knows and has known for the centuries it has existed. Tonight, the t he Gehenna War evolves. Even as parts of the Sabbat still ght for the tombs of their hated progenitors, others follow the trails of those who left for distant lands. As noted above, Sabbat domains are in a state of ux and the theatre of war expands. The Black Hand needs its warfront dodomains to continue providing grist for its innumera-
this rite forges a new Blood Bond in its place, among the vampires of the pack performing it, replacing one regnant with numerous others in mutuality.
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would fail, the Black Hand blackmails, misdirects, or tempts, but all toward a predetermined conclusion. Usually the enemy is some sort of ideological antagonist, such as the pawn of a hated Antediluvian or an adversary from a despised sect. Sometimes, though, the enemy is other Sabbat, perhaps a pack of glory-seeking shovelheads or a rival elder. The Sabbat has long abandoned subtler means of mitigating dierences between ostensible comrades. It is a dangerous release, this Sabbat willingness to entertain vampiric methods as a primary means of resolving conicts. Many nd it liberating, a way to ride the wave of frenzy and yoke themselves to the inexorable momentum of the Beast. In most
Rapturously Rapt urously Vio Violen lent t All of this th is adds up to a sect that is steeped in violence. A edgling Sabbat’s rst night may nd them bludgeoned with a shovel, hastily Embraced, and dumped into a mass grave. Those with the bestial drive to claw their way out of the charnel pit are generally considered to have earned the right to call themselves Sabbat — and are often quickly thrown into the Gehenna War, conscripted into crusade against one of the other sects, or sent into the wilds to cause what havoc they can among whatever border threat the Sabbat perceives as encroaching upon its domain. Not every Sabbat becomes one of the Damned like this, but certainly enough do that the story makes its way into the popular perception, especially among other sects.
cases, though, violence begets violence, and those who win their spoils amid blood and re usually see them crumcrumble away as the next conict sees them dragged into a muchdeserved
Legacy of Brutality The horric result is undeniable: The Black Hand luxuriates in cruelty. Given that it seeks to suborn human compassion, this cruelty can take many forms, such as the wanton destruction of a street gang unleashed or the consummate viciousness of a sculptor who works in the medium of pain. Methodology, frequency, and intensity may vary, but ultimately, every Sabbat sees their compassion and therefore Humanity broken under tides of incessant violence. Such is the legacy of the Beast;
hell.
such is the original sin of the Dark Father. Understanding is the rst step toward adopting a Path of Enlightenment.
Feeding tthe he Beast The Sabbat is a sect forever ghting something or someone, and that constant siege mentality shapes its’ members’ transition from mortal to Cainite. The Sabbat way is not usually one of esoteric ruses and centuries-spanning schemes. It prefers overt Disciplines and brutal force — Cainites prefer to dive into the maw of their foes, slashing and burning the whole way down. Where overt violence
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Chapter One: Setting Fire
Some Sabbat believe that the Black Hand itself can have no consistent, doctrinaire ideology, that the very nature of the Sabbat is a chaotic swarm of spiritual philosophies that by denition cannot become orthodox. Others insist that the Sabbat is itself an experiment in nding which of its Beastvenerating Paths is most eective, ecient, or shuddersome. Still others couldn’t care less, and heed
Cultic Legion More than any other sect, the Sabbat is driven by a common purpose. A far cry from the neofeudal exexceptionalism of the Camarilla and the revolutionary egalitarianism of the Anarchs, the Sabbat is united by its constant siege mentality against the despised
the pack as it incites them down a fundamentalist course of blood and re. Despite the multiplicity of Paths, though, a sense of oneness, of conformity — of shared desperation — nds a strident home. Most of the sect practices a body of prescribed — and profane — rituals, the better to reinforce trust and dependency. As well, various cults of personality persona lity emerge around hierophants of the Paths, so devoted are they to the righteousness of the sect itself. These harbingers of spiritual purity purit y represent the worst tendencies of the Sabbat: self-defeating violence in the name of a selfdeclared authority, all directed against a universally hated external externa l enemy. ■
Antediluvia ns. Whether compared to insatiably Antediluvians. hungry sharks or the Biblical Legion of Gerasene demons, the Sabbat acts with existential zeal toward its goal. It is no surprise to nd the Black Hand unifying in hatred of its myriad enemies, given its convictions. At least on the surface that appears to be the case. Dig deeper, though, and the sect reveals itself as a hive of conicting approaches. Fostered by the various Paths of Enlightenment, the sect’s common purpose meanders viciously among its numerous methodologies.
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y e t .. d y e d o p e n e t o h a d n ’ t r h b a r e b h e t t h t t u b b e e d d i s s t t u o o k k r a D D . e d . i e d r i g d o n g l o , l k s , i n k d r i d d e d l e l l s p i l f s o f l o s m e l l g s n g o y i n c l o e c T h e o t .. n o b b o n t n i b r i d n ’ t a r l d d a e d c o u l e c h e e h e x h a l e s e e e m e o m t o b e c a u s t t n b i n n n e x t s i d d u s e e t u r e t d l e n n i k l K K e e h T T ” ” b a r b a c k . . e b t t n T h e e e e r f e f f d i f e d T h e y ’ r e . T d o . e d w e w w h o w t h i t o i h e . d o t t ’ d e a t h b r e d o n ’ o b y d t o d t T h e y “ T e n d e d e t e p r e e p s h e s s e s m m i i e t t o r e y y l l n b e f o o o e b e e c e h h t t i n c s i f f o o , s e e e a s t , o n l e s o t l a a t w a s g w 4 4 0 i n g 0 2 2 e e c c S m o k i n . S i e . S S . . e m m s m o k e i i f s t t o f f o f n o h a d d a w n e h e d S h e h e . S t h e t c e h e r . t h S i n c m e t . S d ’ m I ’ d e v e r . e I o r e r ff o w h e r e , w n , h e r o o n h i i t o w n a a n o t k n s s d k y y a w h a d I I h b u u s s t t e e e r S t r h S 5 0 t h e 5 h e t h t t a t e a o n e l o g i n a l i g o r i e o h e t h , t e d , o s e c l o a c i a b e r i S i b o o m . e r o o r e s t o h a d . e s h e t h I h n I o t t o h a n t h n t r t a i n t a o n g e r c u r t l o t l e c h e t h i g h t d t n i e e n h i n d L i k k e e u u s s . . “ T “T h e y y c r o o a k e e d . . B B e t t t e e r r f f o o r r m m e e t t o o s s t a a y y b b e e n n u u n d d e r r d dh I c . L ” I b e . ? ” o b t o d t m e a n ? e d u m y o u o o y u p p o s e s s u t h t t eb e W h a t w e r e “ W y w e y h h t t e e r o o f e b b e e c a a l p p e h e t h n t i n e i b e t b g h t m i g o m w h o w w n o w k n r k e v e r n e u n Y o u , y y e a h ? ” v e i n s , e v h e t h m t o m r o f r t f i t e i a k e t a l t l l i l t i s t e a v e l e d l a n d e a p e o p l e e p c e s e d u c . s . . ’ . . e . d d o n ’ t y y e p a u s e g p h T T . . L o n g h h t r o o f d n a r b a c k h e r o b f h n o o f s n l o e ’ s r o l l l r T h e r e . T n t . i c a l r i h u n t t ’ h h e a t r t h A t d o n ’ y d ” A h e y e d . ” t h n . t e . . . p t ’ . p a h h d o n ’ t t y d a h w w T h e y “ T g g n i i r w o n d e , w n g , n i n m o r n t m e x t n e e n h e t h d t h e a d y h m y u m f u a f h a w i t h m w h e m t h s t .. i s w r i e w h e t h t t a t d a h a n d e k e L i k h e n ? ” ? L t h , t o ? a l o i t , o i d o b u ff ff a y d a b h e y n a t h o t d o d d o w n d w w e e o k a a H H “ “ t t . . s s e a a s s n u e a y p p h h r r f f e o o h h t k k o c A n p a a p e a s e e r s e v e r u e s h i s Y o u . Y d h e d e r . l e i l l g h t e k i a u g s k s l a d o g s y s d d h h e y l d t t , , w i l t t n e w u h h h o s e t t ’ t h n o e e t d d m m i i y y t t e t t h a T h h “ T t t , , o o i d d u u t s s s s ’ ’ g h i n g c h a e l M i c N o t h t M . N a t n g . r a i n O r e r i t e ? O s p a t t d s s h o w s ? e s a n d r e u r , a n d s , n a t u e n o u n s s o h o s e g g n n t h i i f t k c o f a a e o r c c o n e e e n o s o n o h h t t l l a l , a a p a r t , m a h e m t h g t i n g l i l l p u l , p o n , g o i n g p i l i t p s t J u s . J s . g o a t s H o w ? H h a t ? t h e t k e i k l i m l h e m t h l t o l r o c o n t r t c i t t t i e e l l c r a p s . ” t t s c s s t s u u j b u t y y t b e h h e f t t t l e , , e k k i L L “ . “ i t . o i d o o d t o d t n e d e a r n l e d d ’ l I ’ w I h o w t h w a s n ’ t t w T h a t v e s ? ” h e m s e l v t h o t o n t o . o . . t h h e y . . . ? ? W W h a t t l l e e t s s t t h h e m m h h o l d d o o n t o o . e . o t d o s m o k e g s i n g E x h a l i . E n . a g a i n e a p a u s e g p L o n g . s h i t . ” a s e a v e g i v y g h e y t h k t n k h i n t h t t d o n ’ t I d “ I
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Chapter One: Setting Fire
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Chapter Two:
OST TAT E S o f a A P OS CRUEL CHURCH Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest. – D E N IS D ID E ER ROT T,, P OÉ SI E S DI V E R SE S
I
n the Final Nights, the Sabbat seems at once an unpredictable hive of clashing orthodoxies and a terrible, relentless monoculture. The apocalyptic Gehenna War has crippled its former leadership structure and robbed it of its most potent elders. The most venerable and respected among the Lasombra – once extremely inuential in the sect, if not always its heart for centuries – have moved to abandon the Sabbat as a lost cause. c ause. Almost the entirety of the Black Hand’s former domains have been seized by rival sects, even as mortal hunters and agencies associated with the era
Paths of Enlightenment By codifying the Cainites’ relationships with their Beasts, Paths of Enlightenment dene the Sabbat, both as a sect and as individual members. Paths shape how Sabbat vampires interact with the world, how they ght the Gehenna G ehenna War War,, how they wield the gifts of Caine to forge the world into their preferred image.
of theturns. Second Inquisition harry the Swordthan of Caine at all Tonight, the Sabbat is smaller it has been since its foundation, ghting a desperate war against enemy sects, mortal hunters, and the Antediluvians Antediluvia ns themselves.. All of which means tonight’ tonig ht’ss Sabbat has nothing left to lose. This chapter includes a number of tools Storytellers can use to introduce the Sabbat into their troupe’s chronicles. From the Paths of EnlightenEnlig htenment to sect rites to Discipline powers and readyto-frenzy antagonists, if you’re looking to get your hands dirty, this is the chapter for you.
Sabbat packs form theofidea of pack Path observance. In the vastaround majority cases, members all follow the same Path, ministered by each pack’s Priest. This helps not only in focusing pack eorts, but in the cultic subjugation of the individual, which shapes the other sects’ perception of the Sabbat as a hive consciousness. Cainites primarily identify themselves by devotion to their Path. While other sects may elevate their clans as foundations of identity, points of pride, or proof of sectarian entitlement, the Sabbat has no use for such, and even subverts the very idea of clan. For more information i nformation on the Sabbat’s notions of antitribu, see p. 147.
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Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
The Last Bridge La st Bridge Over the Abyss Within Wi thin the Sabbat there are few crimes as grave grave
PTSD-like symptoms of hyper-vi hy per-vigilance, gilance, paranoia, and sudden swings in mood and energy. Most will be too far gone to reclaim reclaim any of their former self and without a Priest to guide them will likely succumb to the Beast. While Packs dominated by
as retaining your mortal identity identity.. e Black Hand has many Paths, but a common belief among them is that Cainites must leave behind their mortal life or they will become trapped between the gnawing hunger of the Beast and the false illusion of their old self. is dilemma is exploit ex ploited ed by the grasping g rasping elders of the Camarilla and the lost sheep of the Anarchs. ese so-called Kindred pretend pretend that a compromise between life and death is possible, but why compromise when when you can be free? Accept Accept that you have been perfected pe rfected by Caine’s blood. Learn from Mother Lilith and discard the chains of your mortal life. Take up the only strule that
Uniers and Noddists hunt down such runaways, ru naways, Cathari and other Sabbat assume that the lure of the Vaulderie and the pains of withdrawal will bring back the worthy. ose vampires outside the Sabbat who attempt to adopt a Path will be hard pressed to nd their way without the guiding hand of a Priest, the powpower of the Vaulderie or the time tested trials of the t he Ritae. While it is rumored that some ancient a ncient vamvam pire Sects also used Path Path of Enlightenments, their teachings and practitioners have likely all been lost to torpor, nal death, or the so-called Beckoning. Despite the Gehenna War, or perhaps because of it,
matters. e war against the Antediluvians. A ntediluvians. Pretending to be alive and wearing the rags of your old life will not save you when the elders scour the Earth. Only when the ancients are no more and the way prepared for the Sabbat's open rule will vampires be free. e rst step in the process of adopting adopting a Path of Enlightenment is the stripping of one’s Humanity. In the Sabbat this t his process is usually instigated instigated by the Creation Creation Rites, where ritual burial uses trauma to enrage the Beast and lowers a recruits capability to hold their moral center. Newly Embraced and psychologically fragile, they are goaded by their Sire and the Beast to commit horric crimes on the living and the dead. ey are then rewarded with the exhilarating rst drink from the t he Vaulderie Vaulderie chalice, binding them to their Pack and making them further susceptible to the teachings of their Priest; a Cainite well versed in sculpting monsters out of mortals. Every new crime is justied and praised by their new breth breth-ren until they nd a Path of Enlightenment to call cal l their own. It is the last la st bridge over the abyss. Only madness and wassail awaits those that cannot nd a Path before the last of their Humani Huma ni-ty is destroyed. e rare vampire who escapes their Pack before this process is complete suers from
the Sabbat not only retained its knowledge practice of has the Paths of Enlightenments Enligh tenments but hasand seemingly stripped its ranks of all a ll Humanity. System: Adopting a Sabbat Path of Enlightenment
requires a teacher. Trying Trying to learn lear n such a new mind m ind set from books or scanned scan ned PDFs PDFs would take several mortal life times, and a single misstep would likely result in wassail or nal death. Once the vampire’s Humanity has been eroded e roded to 6 or lower, they may take a new Conviction related to the Path of Enlightenment they are pursuing. If they already have 3 Convictions, Convictions, they may replace one of them with this t his new Conviction as long as they t hey no longer have a living Touchstone connected to the Conviction being replaced. Many Sabbat Packs force new recruits to murder or even Embrace their Touchstones Touchstones for the purpose pur pose of “making room” for a Path of Enlightenment to take root. Once a Cainite has their rst Path ConvicConvici (ee i (ee g. 4148) 4148) hey u ie i Tuche Rie (ee Rie (ee g. 26). 26). A Sbb wih e e Ph Cvici i cideed be wlkig h Ph of Enlightenment and this may give them access to Loresheets and other Advantages. Each Path has diering methods of scraping o a recruit’s mortal identity and the Sabbat’s Ritae
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Sabbatt Tenets Sabba Tenets
are designed to not only dehumanize but also to teach the basic tenets of the Sect, Noddism, and a nd veneration of of Caine. The Cei Rie Rie (ee g. 133) 133) eve llw vampire to take on a new Conviction when they
A Sabbat chronicle chronicle formulates Tenets Tenets (see V5 V5 Corebook pg. 172) in the same manner as any other vampire game, but requires requires the Storyteller and
are Embraced. In this way mortals who had few Convictions in life will oen become zealots of the Black Hand. Many adopt the Path followed by their Priest, but all Sabbat are a re free to choose any Path that serves ser ves the Sword of Caine. Once a Sabbat no longer has any Convictions tied to a mortal Touchstone, Touchstone, they are fully f ully committed to their Path. While they retain their current Humanity rating and gain Stains normally, they can no longer buy dots in Humanity. As long as they faithfully walk their Path, anytime they would lose their last Humanity dot they take one Aggravated Willpower Willpower damage instead. is triers
players to philosophies synthesize thethat synthesize goals of their Pindividual ack with the moral guide theirPack Paths of Enlightenment. While this means that a Pack composed of vampires all on the same Path will likely have fewer crises of of faith, it’s oen better if all players negotiate for Chronicle Tenets Tenets that align with the themes of the story they’re telling. In a Sabbat game the player character taking on the role of the Pack Priest should also take a leading role in advocating for Chronicle Tenets Tenets that will wil l provide dramatic boundaries for all of their Packmates, not just themselves. Pursuing a Path of Enlightenment means the destruction of a vampires’ mortal identity and the death of, or estrangement from, their mortal Touchstones. ough their t heir new Path Convictions mitigate the Stains they accrue, the perverse pas times of the Sabbat ensure they will regularly gain Stains. Without mortal Touchstones, the Sabbat instead rely on Touchstone Touchstone Ritae to guide their Convictions and cleanse themselves of the Stains they do incur. Some sample Tenet Tenet sets for a Sabbat chronicle are listed below:
their Compulsion. A Sabbat who has lled lled their Path Willpower track with Aravated damage becomes Impaired. If they take any Aravated Willpower damage while in this state state they lose their last Humanity dot and enter wassail. e last of their mortal identity is lost to the Beast.
NO PATH RATINGS In previous editions a Path rating replaced a vam-
pire's Humanity trait. Instead of creating a new
LAWS OF WAR
mechanic, this book retains V5's Humanity and Stain system. This means that playing a Path in V5 is
■
reected in a Chronicle’s Tenets Tenets and in a character’s
■
Convictions and Touchstones. While this means that
■
a Sabbat must still keep track of their Humanity, they gain certain advantages that mitigate the dan-
Never surrender No onekill gets le behind Never “civilians”
CODE OF THE JYHAD
gers of Degeneration. Humanity in a Sabbat game is
■
not a track of their morality, but a measure of how
■
much of their mortal and personal identity they’ve
■
retained. An Albigensian Tzimisce with a Humanity of 2 may not recall their mortal name, where they
Never deny the truth e guilty must be punished Always strule for freedom
CULTIST CUL TIST CREE D
grew up, or may have long forgotten their original
■
face. They've kept enough of their mortal self to
■
ward o the Beast and no more. The rest has been
■
sacriced in the service of the Sword.
25
Fangs before blood bags Never deny your beliefs Withoutt a cause you’re Withou re nothing
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
IN ENEMY TERRITORY ■ ■ ■
living Touchstone.
Never snitch Never use the enemies’ weapons Freedom requires sacrice
System: Once per Session, a Sabbat vampire may
make a Remorse roll (see V5 Corebook pg. 239) or remove one of their Stains when their Pack partici-
GOTH CLUB ■ ■ ■
pates in one of the vampire’s Touchstone Touchstone Ritae.
Always wear black (perfect your inhumanity) Love will tear us apart (never deny yoursel) Death is eeting (glory (glor y is forever)
PLAYING PRIESTS
In the Sabbat the role of Priest looms large. These Cainites are not just a Pack’s nominal leader but also
Touchstone Ritae
their spiritual guide and their link with what remains of the Sabbat hierarchy beyond their Pack. Such a
Instead of pairing their Path based Convictions with living Touchstones, Touchstones, Sabbat vampires pair them with specific Auctoritas Ritae Ri tae (see pg. 130). 130). Even Packs that are composed of vampires all on the same Path may have members with wildly dif ferent Convictions and Touchstone Ritae. ough most Sabbat revere the Vaulderie regardless of Path, a Cainite can never connect dierent Convictions to the same Touchstone Touchstone Ritae. is also means means that when these Ritae are disrupted or disrespected, Sabbat can gain Stains or Frenzy as if a Touchstone had been damaged or threatened. is reverence for the Ritae also extends to any implements i mplements the Pack requires to perform these Touchstone Ritae. e destruc-
meaningful role requires special consideration when a player takes it on. They should be cognizant of the power they wield not only over the other players but over the course of the game. A Priest leads most of the Pack’s ritae and will be called upon to prove their faith and devotion repeatedly. Signs of weakness could lead to a Monomacy challenge or even the disintegration of the bonds holding the Pack together. A player taking on the role of the Pack’s Priest should be aware of the unique challenges they are likely to face. They will be expected to lead and they will also be expected to counsel their Packmates when they have to deal with the psychological and spiritual turmoil that comes with walking one of the Sabbat’s inhumane Paths.
tion of such an item could result in the loss of
the Con viction associated with that Ritae if the implement is irreplaceable. is means that Sabbat Packs guard their Vaulderie chalices, Noddist text fragments and ritual weapons with great care. In all other ways Touchstone Ritae operate in place of a Sabbat vampire’s vampi re’s normal Touchstones. is is another reason that Sabbat Packs oen target the mortal Touchstones of their recruits, recr uits, to prevent them from regaining their Humanity if they nd the trials of their Path too great to bear. It is exceedingly rare for a vampire who has ha s successfully embarked on a Path to nd a way to return to Humanity but reconnecting with a Touchstone seems to be a necessary part of the process. What seems certain is that no vampire has ever been able to reclaim their Humanity without a
26
THE PATH OF CAINE Noddists, Devourers Devourers
20
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
he premise of the Path of Caine is to cultivate and rene the power inherent in the Blood so that individual vampires can realize their full potential. In the zealous parlance of the Path, anything one can do to “bring themselves closer to Caine” is deiform, which is a tacit reverence for the act of diablerie. The Blood is all to the Noddists, who rarely pass up a chance to partake of puissant vitae, whether it’s of profound resonance, potent generation, or some other, stranger property. propert y. Indeed, followers of this Path may become distracted by opportunities to lower their generation or bring greater potency to their Blood. Blood. A desired emulation of the First Vampire Vampire is what distinguishes this Path from other Sabbat ideology. In the parables of Caine, the Dark Father had mastered the Beast, not to deny it, but in an understanding that his Curse was the eternal conict
T
Parcel to rening one’s Blood is using it to further the Dark Father’s ends. Especially after availing themselves of potent vitae, Noddists often become eager to prove its value, and even overcondent. On the eld of battle or in the sepulcher of an elder, followers of this Path seek to challenge themselves and prove to others their newfound might. This has absolutely made the dierence in conicts at the forefront of the Gehenna War, but in less overt circumstances, Noddists may nd themselves overextended after the thrill of a heady feeding subsides. Only their righteousness prevents this Path’s Path ’s followers followers from being impulsive, as they seek to match the Dark Father’s ownership of his Beast. Notably,, Noddists Notably Noddi sts don’t suer sunk costs. If one particular approach isn’t yielding results, it’s time
between his lower and higher selves. The Beast is a servant, not to be feared, but to be respected and even nourished, for as the Beast grows in might, so grows the strength of the master required to direct it as desired.
to change tactics, and in many cases, that change of tactics may involve double-crossing an erstwhile ally in hopes of turning their failings faili ngs into personal gain. This makes the more fervent Noddists unpopular in the Sabbat, because if one always has to keep an eye on one’s allies to stop them from opportunistic diablerie, that makes it hard to ght the actual enemy. From the Path of Caine perspective, though, if you’re not part of the solution, you’re dinner.
Ethics ■
■
■
Lower one’s generation and concentrate the power of one’s Blood to become closer to Caine Cai ne and exult in the potency it yields. Partake of all blood, the better to understand the power contained in it and to build wisdom from Brookitsnonuances. failure from f rom one’s one’s leaders – be prepared to commit diablerie upon them if their shortcomings hold the pack back.
Disciplines Many followers of this Path have uncanny mastery of Blood SorSorcery, with a number of powers and rituals virtually virtua lly unknown outside the Sword of Caine. Animalism, Obfuscate, Potence, and Protean also see frequent use among the Noddists, because of their frightening eectiveness when hunting other undead.
In Chronicles Followers of the Path of Caine are relentless opponents, pursuing their adversaries to eliminate them but also to take the power that is inherently theirs. Noddists not only consume the heartsblood of fallen Cainite enemies, they take trophies to demonstrate their growing puissance.
2 8
THE PATH OF CATHARI Albigensians, Cathari, Albigensians, Cathari, Devils of the Flesh Flesh
22
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
he premise of the Path of Cathari is for its followers to heed the Beast as it drives them to luxuriate in what they are so they leave no atrocity unperformed. Its followers may come across as callow and hedonistic, indulging base urges, and surely, Cainites on this path do revel in their wicked nature. At its center, however, however, is a philosophy of a dualistic world in which vampires are one of its expressions of darkness. The Damned are, well, Damned, and it thus serves them to act like it. In the Sabbat, this Path has the most numerous followers of all of the Paths. It is the easiest for a vampire whose Humanity has been destroyed by shovelheading to adopt; it at once justies and encourages the horrors they have suered. Its higher echelons and spiritual epiphanies often elude these Cainites, however. For those who are true paragons of the Path, the philosophy proposes a hierarchy
T
holy places conducted in open mockery of any numnumber of faiths, Albigensians enjoy events profaning themselves and the mortals who ultimately suer in their wake. They will gleefully play to stereotypes of worldly evil, presenting themselves as covens of shrieking witches, lustful degenerates, Devil’s Night vandals, and so on. As a sect, the Sabbat has little reservation reser vation about using the Albigensians as fodder for its various violent ends. The Albigensians are generally aware of this, and don’t readily disagree with it – they can always make more, and whether they survive or meet nal death in any endeavor is already a matter of predestination. The Path’s Path ’s philosophy implies a place and a purpose to every vampire’s actions, making every base act or self-destructive impulse meaningful. And of course, a zealot assured of their place in Hell is terrifying to those who run afoul of
of sins as a s elaborate as any a ny Solomonic goety. Even Even though the ruck and run of the Albigensians may seem like caterwauling demons, every vileness serves a purpose, whether or not the individual purveyors of sin understand it. The Devils of the Flesh do not starve the Beast; they bathe it in excess.
them, making them eective shock troops against unsuspecting mortals unknowingly in the path of the Gehenna War. War. Away Aw ay from the war front, Albigensians are great tempters, dealers, and xers who relish the opportuopportu nity to debase the virtuous (or even the non-virtuous…). The Sabbat isn’t normally heavily invested in intricate schemes and webs of debts, but, ironically, the iniquitous Albigensians often have any number of mortals and even Kindred who owe them favors for various delights provided in the past. Followers of this Path may even give themselves the ush of life to better enjoy a eshly interlude, particularly
Ethics ■
■
■
Experience every vice being Damned aords, from instilling fear in others to performing acts of cruelty to ceding control to the Beast. One’ss role as a creature outside mortal moralOne’ moral-
if they can splash about in someone else’s misery afterward.
ity is predestined. it and fulll one’s purpose, and lead Accept others into damnation or destruction. Indulge every temptation; give oneself wholly to the wiles of the Beast.
Disciplines Many followers of this path excel at the t he physical Disciplines, the better to perform monstrous feats that set them apart from frail mortals. As well, due to their nature as hedonists, inltrators, and tempters, Cathari nd ample opportunity to use Auspex, Obfuscate, and Presence.
In Chronicles Followers of the Path of Cathari are not subtle (unless operating in a role of spying or inltration), and the ritae they host as well as the unlives they lead are punctuated by glorious vulgarity. From a hedonistic orgy where Cainites gorge on drugged vessels to blood-soaked rituals held in desecrated
30
THE PATH OF DEATH AND THE SOUL Necronomists, Reapers Reapers
24
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
he premise of the Path of Death and the Soul is to study, understand, and master death so that destroyed enemies remain dead. As the Sabbat understands it, the hated Antediluvians Antediluvia ns “have power over over life and death” death ” according to the Book the Book of Nod, Nod, raising the question of whether or not, should the Sabbat destroy one of the Third Generation, that vampire will stay dead. Those who follow this Path intend i ntend that they should do so, at whatever cost to themselves. In the GeGe henna War, they are often strategists and engineers; away from the war front, they research and develop new ways to express the gifts of Caine. The Path of Death and the Soul is likely the most esoteric or academic of the Sabbat Paths of Enlightenment, concerned as it is with outward manifestations of the Kindred condition. As such, it is also the most precarious of the Paths for actually
T
outcomes of their plans. They act with calculated precision, leaving as little to chance as possible, from knowing exactly who they’re sending into a conict to projecting how many Cainites a tiny domain may sustain three decades after claiming it. Interactions with them are detached, even chilling, as they consider how best to use the people talking to them – or how their deaths could be turned to a Necronomist’s advantage. Necronomists face the opposition on their own terms, choosing the theater of conict when they can, and avoiding it altogether as the preferred option. Much
managing one’s Beast, which the Necronomists handle by trying to keep the Beast at arm’s length, unlike other Sabbat. This makes them no less terrifying, of course – a Necronomist is perhaps most at ease when surrounded by mortals begging for their lives, because it means that, as a predator, he’s doing what he’s good at. Followers of the Path of Death and the Soul are also the most likely to have Embraced their childer traditionally, preferring a more discriminating choice of progeny than a Mass Embrace yields.
better to send followers of other Paths to do the dirty work, and shovelhead more replacements afterward. These Sabbat would rather destroy an enemy with a decisive ambush rather than an open battle. They certainly have no interest in a fair ght or any imagined honor among foes.
Ethics
Disciplines
■
■
■
Many followers of this path are especially adept at the binding and rebuking uses of Oblivion, as well as developing Ceremonies of their own. Auspex, Blood Sorcery, and Dominate also have a place in the Necronomists’ arsenal.
Leave no survivors at the conclusion of violent conict. Investigate the relics and remains of death – personal, historical, occult – in order to discern the details of how the conict ended and its existential outcomes. Hasten death’s arrival, from humblest insect to the much-lamented ower of human life.
In Chronicles Followers of the Path of Death and the Soul are systematic thinkers, and give great consideration to the
32
THE PATH OF POW PO W ER AND A ND THE INNER VOICE Unifers, Uhlans
26
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
T
he premise of the Path of Power and the Inner Voice is, unsurprisingly, the acquisition of might, by which they can impose their personal will upon the world around them. They seek to accumulate power and subjugate their lessers in a journey to become the apex predator. Indeed, even the Beast itself is held in subjugation by the most accomplished Uniers, like a snarling hound at the end of a master’s chain. That isn’t by accident. For the Uniers, the Beast is a tool, and knowing when to loose it or when to let it pull them is part of mastering it. More than the other Paths, Uniers court frenzy, trusting their ability to dominate the Beast, “riding the wave” at the edge of self-control and leaving someone else to clean up afterward. After all, what is the inchoincho ate rage of a frenzy if not one more weapon at the disposal of the Damned?
mum success. Priests walk a ne line in these packs, as they need to remain the pack’s authority at the same time they foster the thirst for might among the rest of the vampires in the pack. A well-disciplined pack is a single-minded entity, with each member anticipating the needs of their vicious fellows. A dysfunctional pack is a bunch of me-rst opportunists looking to fuck over everyone else in the pursuit of their own gain, heedless of the cost in blood or strategic advantage. Packs like these need new Priests, because they’ve probably murdered and committed diablerie upon the previous one.
Disciplines Many followers of this path focus on social or mental DisDis ciplines, the better to convince less willful individuals i ndividuals to perform as the Unier desires or to force them into complicompliance. They culticultivate their physical Disciplines as a close second, the better to prosecute the conicts in which they inevitably nd themselves. Dominate, Fortitude,
Ethics ■
■
■
Reward success and excoriate failure, including one’s own. The world around the Cainite exists to be exploited to their benet: The enlightened Cainite bends it to their will. Force those who are beneath one’s own position into servitude using all the means at one’s command.
In Chronicles
Potence, and PresPresence are hallmark Disciplines of the Uniers.
Followers of the Path of Power and the Inner I nner Voice are implacable foes, and whether they stand against individual enemies or structures that must be torn down, they are the most apt Sabbat at waging war and laying sieges. A pack of Uniers is a team of specialists, from front-line ghters to stalking elders to destabilizing rival domains with campaigns of terror and propaganda. Given its power-accumulating focus, this Path also lends itself to bullying, domineering priests and followers, as Cainites exert their will through force of personality. Uniers form extremely tight-knit packs that rely on the strength of the other Cainites for maxi-
34
THE PATH OF THE SUN Prometheans, Promethea ns, Kindling Kindling
28
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
hin-blooded Cainites don’t usually last long in the Sabbat. Either their vitae is too weak to see them through the Creation Rites (see p. 133) or the power differential they experience against again st more potent-blooded potent-blooded vampires puts them at a quickly fatal disadvantage, especially at the forefront of the Gehenna G ehenna War. That hasn’t stopped a certain – growing – subset of thin-blooded Sabbat from testing the limits of the curse of Caine, however. In the evolving orthoortho doxy of the Path of the Sun, thin-blooded Cainites (and Caiti) are the only vampires truly free from the taint of the Antediluvians. Noddist literature makes no small reference to the thin-blooded, plainly stating that, when thin-bloods are present, “in this time [...] Gehenna will soon be upon you.” And with the Gehenna War raging nightly, ni ghtly, few Sabbat would argue that event has yet to come.
T
potent-Blooded vampires in the long term, but potent-Blooded that’s not the point – the point is that thin-blooded followers of the Path see themselves as potentially on the cusp of being demigods, and the Path is as transformative as any of the more established Paths of Enlightenment. As yet, it has no codied tenets; the thin-bloods of the Sabbat are still dening what it means to be a harbinger of the Sabbat’s future rather than eidolons of its past. Some even forgo the Sabbat-venerated practice of diablerie, unwilling to sully themselves with the tainted blood of Antediluvian lineages, a radical new perspective for the Sword Swor d of Caine. While Priests of the more established Paths may deride the Path of the t he Sun as “not a real Path,” they would very likely be shocked to see the rate at which the Path has spread among those they consider lesser, the by-blows and collateral shovelhead dam-
It is the Time of Thin Blood. With no discernible clan lineage, thin-bloods endure none of the overt inuence of the Damned’s hated progenitors. As fervent early adopters of this emerging Path, they see themselves as the true heralds of the Sabbat, the “new dawn” of a “race of Cainites” who have inherited no mark of the Third Generation’ss treachery. Generation’ To that end, the traditional anathema a nathema of the undead, sunlight, has a diminished eect on thinblooded Cainites. Followers of this Path see it as part of their mandate to turn this to their advantage, as they are able to meet the Dark Father’s
age the Black Hand leaves in its wake. And not every adherent is a thin-blood: Some would be considered Caiti in other sects, while yet others are of more potent vitae who see the Path of the Sun as a way to violently atone for the foulness in their own sires’ Blood.
thaving hreats succumbed during hourstothat normally Its seefollowers Cainites as the daysleep. are often easily recognized by the burn-scars and disgurements they wear as badges of deance and suerance in Caine’s name. The Path of the Sun is an imperfect Path. It is very much unproven, more of an emergent outlook among those ghting at the forefront of the Gehenna War, and practiced almost exclusively among the very youngest Sabbat. Indeed, it has only very recently come into being with enough rigor for certain Priests to consider it an actual Path at all. Since the Beast is less inchoate among thinblooded Cainites, it likely won’t serve well for more
29
Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
fare as legion. They are eager to act against enemies during the forbidden hours of daylight, bundled up in hoodies, face masks, and other protection, and have been known to lure hunters into rivals’ havens before night comes. Followers of this Path are also likely to come into conict with other Sabbat, who denigrate the Path of the Sun as mindless bravado or even heresy. In response, they are relentless proselytizers, and seek to convert their fellow Sabbat – as well as on-theouts Anarchs and disillusioned Camarilla edglings who nd themselves pushed into the margins of their home domains.
Ethics The ethics of the Path of the Sun are evolving, changing nightly. Unlike the other, more established Paths, the Path of the Sun strays closer to being a quasi-religion than a true frame of mind. As it stands, the Paths’ ethics are inadequate to sustain a Cainite’s relationship with the Beast for an extended period of time, which is the second-greatest threat to the Path’s long-term viability. The rst threat, of course, is the fact that the nal death rate for thinblooded vampires in the Sabbat is critically high. ■ Let neither one’s mortal nor Cainite heritage limit one’s potential. ■ Destroy Cainites but never consume them, leaving oneself untainted. ■ Do not allow other would-be Prometheans to serve the polluted bloodlines of the Antediluvi-
Disciplines The Path of the Sun nds especially frequent use of the Alchemy with which the duskborn have anity.
ans.
In Chronicles Whether as inltrators, radicalizers, front-line fanatics, or daylight assassins, Path of the Sun Cainites are very much a sign of the times. Prometheans have a lot to prove, and may be found at the forefront in many ma ny Gehenna War theaters, willingly throwing themselves at threats beyond their individual capacity, to see how they
30
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
ten bring it into conict with the general Sabbat outlook on mortal society. Some Cainites believe that more than one tyrannical Camarilla Prince has followed the Path of Honorable Accord, as great g reat age puts great distance between them and a tenuous Humanity. This may be speculation, and surely some number of these anecdotal elders would have heard the Beckoning, forcing this Path further into the margins as an insuciently modern perspective, as it seems to be more philosophy than Path.
Forsaken Paths The Sabbat’s spiritual journey is a signicant, even dening aspect of sect membership. That said, not all of the Paths of Enlightenment followed tonight emerged contemporaneously. contemporaneously. Further, Furt her, not all Paths are equally functional or viable in the modern nights. Ideas never die, however, and for all the Paths that are inadequate to serve a Cainite’s needs, some remain in regional practice. Whether relics of nights past, colloquial traditions, or philosophical aberrations at odds with Sabbat dogma, some of the more marginal margi nal Paths haven’t haven’t vanished entirely. And not every Path follower is Sabbat….
Path of Lilith According to the Book the Book of Nod, Nod, Lilith oered Caine succor when he was cast out of the land of Nod. Followers of the Path of Lilith venerate “the Dark Mother,”” and some even impute to her the creation Mother, of vampires, or mingle the origin of the vampire
Path of the Beast
species to the shared parentage of Lilith and Caine. Veneration of Lilith often exalts her as a cultivator rather than a destroyer, but at the same time acknowledges that she is i s the “mother of monsters,” perhaps even spawning some of the other supernatural creatures with whom vampires share the night. Historically, followers of the Path of Lilith had often been accused of heresy in the Caine-centric Sabbat, but the long and a nd complicated relationship between the Path and the Black Hand persists to this night, where her cults can be found.
Followers of the Path of the Beast do not treat the Beast as a separate entity, but as their true selves. The Path of the Beast considers the mind a vestigial trait standing in the way of the Beast: The monster within replaces the conscious sense of self. Cainites who follow this Path tend to become powerful – and bestial – very quickly. It has fallen out of common practice due to its general inability to prevent Cainites from Wassail over the long term. Regional packs that follow it can still be found worldwide, both at the front of the Gehenna War and in especially violent domains.
Path of Honorable Accord Rumored to have been practiced even e ven before the foundation of the Sabbat, regional variations that amount to a “Path of Honorable Accord” emerge from any number of cultural traditions. It has been variously characterized as a spectrum including a bloody-minded chivalric perspective practiced by “paladins of Caine” to a rigid asceticism by which the Cainite forgoes any personal comforts to mortify themselves into oneness with the Beast. The Path has fallen out of common practice among the Black Hand because its precepts of-
3 8
Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
W Waa lk lking ing the Path We are now loosened from the gravity of identity’s id entity’s land. What will we do… what will we do without exile, and a long nigh. — MAHMOUD DARWISH, WHO AM I, WITHOUT EXIL E?
E
ach Path of Enlightenment has its own ethics, dogmas and docdoctrines, but how an individual Sabbat vampire is guided by those eleele ments is a deeply personal p ersonal matter. e Sword of Caine understands that the Paths are all that stand between a vampire and their Beast. ere is no standard or perfect p erfect method for how to reconstruct a vampire’s identity aer they’ve stripped away the human. So while all Devourers revere Caine, they will individually pursue the teachings of their Path in dierent ways. Some will loudly proclaim Caine as their literal Father in their takbirs, tak birs, while others see Caine as a multitude - a savior beyond gender or morality. No holy oce or orthodoxy snis for heretics among their ranks. A Sabbat vamvam pire answers only to their Pack, their Priest, and their personal pe rsonal convictions. e Beast settles the dierence, consuming those that fall by the wayside.
39
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
e suested Path Convictions and Touchstone Ritae below are examples but not exhaustive, ex haustive, some Sabbat will have very dierent interpretations of their Paths.
by most Bahari, who have long been persecuted by the Noddists and the heretical Church of Caine.
System: When System: When a Path follower’s Compulsion (see (see V5 Corebook pg. 208) is triered the player can V5 choose to trier their Path Compulsion in its place. Similarly, when a Path Path follower risks Fury or Hunger Frenzy some Paths require them to Ride the Wave in certain situations (see V5 Corebook pg. 219) instead of resisting. Lastly, Lastly, every Path has Advantages a character can buy if they t hey have a numnumber of Path Convictions equal to the cost of the Advantage. All Packmates get the benet of these Advantages, though some require a Path specic blood Resonance to activate.
white unless celebrating a High Holiday. Holiday. ey are Cainites of few words but can become very animatanimated when observing Ritae or when feeling Caine's presence. Devourer's speak of Caine with reverreverence and oen repeat a takbir whenever saying his name. ey oen keep dogs or wolves as retainers and prefer the company of animals to mortals.
Path of Caine
e Priesthood: e clergywithin thethe Path of Caine are seen as traditionalists t raditionalists wiofthin Sabbat and prefer to be called Father or Mother. Old fashfashioned Noddist will even insist on using Latin in the performance of the Ritae, a tradition that was born out of the mockery of the First Inquisition. Younger Y ounger Priests are more open to innovation and many have even adopted Bahari teachings into their sermons. ough this has had mixed responsrespons es, as some Bahari are wary of being co-opted into a belief structure that t hat has only recently shed its most patriarchal ways. Packs led by a Devourer are oen deeply invested in the Gehenna War and are always on the lookout for elder blood. ey are also the most likely to lead sedentary covens as a way to praise Caine the mason and the builder. While they are not obsessed with power, Priests on the Path of Caine are rarely replaced without a MonoMonomacy, a Ritae they revere above all others save the Vaulderie. V aulderie.
Roleplay: Noddists see vanity as a mortal weakness and tend to wear solid colors such as black, red, or
Nicknames: Devourers, Noddists Takbir: Praise Caine!, All praise to Caine!, Reclaim the blood!, Te throne awaits!, Dark father hear me!
Vampires on the Path of Caine consume the blood Vampires of the powerful to bring themselves closer to the Dark Father. ough they look to the Book B ook of Nod as a guide, they are not a scholarly creed but one of action. Devourers respect the Beast and the power of the blood above all things. ey go out of their way to hunt elder vampires, lupines and other other supernatural creatures. e elders and few ancilla who follow this Path oen dedicate themselves to delving into the deeper mysteries of ancient texts and reconciling the many myths that surround Caine and Lilith, but the majority of the Noddists within the Sabbat Sabbat are more interested interested in the here and now. ey see how the false Church of Caine Cai ne has perverted their teachings into the blind worworship of the Antediluvians and understand that only stolen blood will redeem them. Noddists have mixed understandings about Lilith’s role in the Book of Nod, but in the Sabbat they’ve adopted some of her teachings and accept her as Caine’s greatest teacher if not an equal. AtAttempts by Noddists to reconcile Caine and Lilith in a Dark Union have so far been bee n met with contempt
Touchstones Devourers oen connect Convictions to the Monomacy, Vaulderie, or War Party Ritae. R itae. :
Frenzy Devourers never resist Fury Frenzy, Frenz y, they Ride the Wa Wave ve and target the strongest enemy in hopes of absorbing their strength. :
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
Path Compulsion Voracious. e Devourer must feed immediately, and will subdue mortals or weaker vampires if necessary. If they fail to reduce their Hunger by 1 step by the Scene's end they suf fer a -2 penalty to all rolls for the rest of the night.
Enochians: Devourers are natural urban predators and can eortlessly make their way through the densest cities without being detected by modern surveillance. No roll is required unless the Pack is being actively hunted, in which case
:
their pursuer’s diculty is increased by 2.
Convictions: Devourers choose Convictions that uphold vampiric supremacy, devalue mortals, and seek to emulate a perfected vampiric existence with Caine as exemplar.
Strange Blood: e Pack has tasted the blood of a variety of monsters and it has changed them both physically and spiritually. Any attempt to discern their nature or scry their souls through Auspex, Blood Sorcery, or magic has ha s its diculty increased by 2.
Example Path Convictions ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Follow Caine’s Caine’s example in all al l things Never put a mortal before a Cainite Failure is not an option Faith requires action Reject the mortal world e strongest eat rst
Feast of Dreams: Whenever Dreams: Whenever a Packmate successfully commits Diablerie, the Diablerist and all Packmates present gain +1 Experience. e victims' presence lingers in the Pack's dreams for many daystheir aersins thebefore deed iscommitting done. If thethe Diablerist confesses DiaDiablerie they take one Aravated Willpower damage instead of losing a dot of Humanity, though their t heir Priest may inict the Status aw Suspect on them for the rest of the Story.
Path of of Caine Advantages Adva ntages Devourers look for portents and omens to guide them, especially in dreams. Some see this as an acknowledgement that the Land of Nod can be glimpsed in sleep, and that Cainite spirits leave their undead bodies to wander there during the daylight hours. Since the Dark Father was also the t he builder of Enoch, Enoch , the First City, they also tend to think of themselves as the natural natu ral predators of the modern world. e city is Caine’s gi to mortals
Lessons from Nod: All Nod: All Packmates can buy Blood Sorcery as if it was a Clan Discipline. Once per Story when the Pack Priest performs the Vaulderie, V aulderie, they can place a benecial Blood SorSorcery Ritual they know upon the entire Pack. CastCasting a Ritual of level 3 or higher in this way requires the entire Pack to have the proper Path Resonance.
and Noddists take whatever they want from those dwelling there without remorse or gratitude. Lastly the Devourers covet the taste of rare blood, the possession possessi on of ancient relics and mysti mysticc powers such as Blood Sorcery. Noddists credit Lilith as Caine's teacher and see Disciplines as tools to gain freedom from all laws, divine and mundane.
Path Resonance: Phlegmatic
Dream Warriors: e Pack can send short messages to each other through their dreams during the day sleep. Pack Priests can attempt to communicate with other Noddists or even trier a prophetic dream by gorging themselves on blood tinged with the proper Path Resonance.
We have deed our false family and yet, here we are brothers and sisters. We deny their poisoned blood and make mak e a Clan of shared sacr sacrifi ifice ce. When they think their triumph is at hand we shall stand st and together. Come the day of Gehenna we shall raise our voices as one and say… FATHERS! Look behind you! Have you forgotten your cast off children? c hildren? 41
We are the
flood you
will not survive.
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
Path of Cathari
even refraining from crimes against their HumanHuman ity are all acts of deprivation Albigensian Priests regularly use to spiritually purify themselves. e highest among these devout are known as the PerPerfecti, and Cathari oen seek these holy vampires
e followers of Cathari make up the t he majormajority of the Sabbat, and they exult in feeding the Beast’s cravings for blood, lust, and violence. To their enemies and detractors the Albigensians are hedonists on their way to wassail, but the t he Path’s deeper mysteries instill a respect for fate and their role as vampiric agents of a divine plan of corrupcorrup tion. It is their place to feast on the material world and tempt others unworthy of the spiritual world to do the same. Others call them Devils, but they see themselves as the angels of a lost demiurge. e Embrace was their fate and they constantly seek out new potential worthy to Embrace into their ranks. ese Cainites believe the Antediluvians wish to shatter shatter this preordained preordained cycle of fate by consuming all things profane and divine. is is a
out when they wish to progress on their Path or nd deeper meaning in their unlives. e clergy of the Cathari prefer informal titles unless they have attained the prestige of a Perfecti. ey usually reject all appellations other than Priest. In their Ritae they use whatever language is most common among their Packmates and prefer ritual implements that are overtly occult in nature such as goat heads, stone altars, pentagrams, blood chalices,, and curvy chalices curv y daers. Devils usually lead nomadic packs and see the Gehenna War as a chance to prove their devotion and to call Caine back from occultation so that t hat he may reshape the
perversion of the role Caine was chosen to perform and when he returns to his throne he shall reveal a new kingdom to his faithful children.
natural orderoforCathari shatterare theusually wheel of fate. Priests on the Path willing to step down in favor of a Packmate they see as worthy, but will plot and scheme to block the ascent of an unworthy rival.
Roleplay: Cathari prefer a ashy style that draws attention or shows o their material possessions. Diamond grills, designer clothes, and expensive cars are favorite accessories. ey are oen loud and talkative Cainites who depend on sharply honed social skills to draw in victims. ey rarely keep retainers and mortals don't survive their mismis treatment for long.
Touchstones: Cathari usually connect their Convictions to the Creation Rites, Blood Feast, or Vaulderie V aulderie Ritae. Frenzy: Devils only resist Hunger Frenzy when keeping up a mortal facade, otherwise they Ride the Wave (see V5 V5 Corebook pg. 219) and attack the most vulnerable targets to demoralize their foes.
Nicknames: Albigensians, Cathari, Nicknames: Albigensians, Cathari , Devils Takbir: Praise Caine!, e lesh is alse!, Our souls are eternal!, Turn the wheel!, Death to the alse alse athers!
Path Compulsion: Exhibitionist . e Albigensian exposes their vampiric nature for all to see in a grand display and demands attention, subservisubservi ence, and fear from all mortals present for the rest of the Scene. e Devil suers a -3 die penalty to any actions not involved in cowing a mortal audi au di-ence.
e Priesthood: e Priesthood: e spiritual leadership of the Cathari are paradoxically organized but eschew a formal hierarchy, instead deferring to members who have proven proven their spiritual spiritua l purity through acts a cts of devotion or contemplation. While Whi le followers of Cathari indulge all of their desires and see the sevsev en deadly sins as a weekend checklist, the Priests of their Path tend to an almost monastic asceticism. Fasting from blood, prolonged vows of silence, and
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
Path of Cathari Advantages
Convictions: Cathari prefer Convictions that indulge their vices, cast mortals as victims, and see the physical world as a place beyond redemption.
e Albigensians enjoy crossing lines and pushpush ing others beyond the edges of their own comfort. ey have a preternatural sense for what their enemies hold dear and few Sabbat can mimic the living as well as the Cathari.
Example Path Convictions ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Rules are meant to broken Indulge every temptation Seek out and test the worthy Punish the unworthy Never harm the spiritually pure or the innocent You Y ou can’t change fate, destiny is everything
Infectious Desires: e Pack's very presence
has an intoxicating and morally deleterious eect on mortals. While it is rare for humans to live long in the presence of a Cathari Pack, those that are exposed to them for prolonged periods nd their inhibitions quickly stripped away. Mortals nd their Desires beginning to match those of the Cathari over the course of a Scene and their blood Resonance will turn Sanguine. Angels of Destiny: Embracing Destiny: Embracing never causes
Stains or Humanity loss for your Pack. Cainites on Cathari can reduce their Stains by one if they Embrace a particularly perverse mortal.
Strike at the Heart: By observing a Cainite interact with a mortal, Packmates can sense if the mortal is a Touchstone. Cathari oen use this power to blackmail their enemies enem ies or sni out SabSabbat still clinging to their Humanity. Angels of Desire: All Desire: All Packmates can buy b uy Presence as if it was a Clan Discipline. Once per Story when the Pack Priest performs the Vaulderie they can place a benecial boon upon the entire Pack. As long as a Packmate has the proper Path Resonance they gain a +2 die bonus on any roll to resist Presence powers for the rest of the Session.
Party Animals: Packmates with the proper Path Resonance can use Blush of Life as if if they had a Humanity 8. While under the eects of Blush of Life they suer no penalties to their rolls when interacting with mortals (see V5 V5 Corebook pg. 237). Path Resonance: Sanguine
43
Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
Death and Path of Death the Soul
Touchstones: Reapers almost always connect their Touchstones: Reapers Convictions to the Creation Rites, Festival of the Dead, or Vaulderie Ritae.
In the Sabbat the Reapers R eapers have a reputation as cold
Frenzy: Reapers always attempt to resist Frenzy as
and their Ritae are oen reserved. Tey see Caine as a rebel and explorer unwilling to compromise or be held back by the limits of death. Tose on this Path seek the secrets of death and a nd undeath, not to better understand their own ow n condition but to conquer it. While Necronomists perform experiments and research research the mysteries of undeath, they see themselves more as artists than cold practitioners. practitioners. Tey are inspired by the restless dead and frefrequently welcome possession and communion with the spirit world. Reapers believe the Antediluvians have grown too powerful to succumb to traditional methods of destruction and that stories of their
they see the loss of control to the Beast as a tactical mistake, if not a weakness. Tey gain the standard bonus to rolls to resist Frenzy equal to one third of their Humanity rating (see V5 Corebook pg. 219). Path Compulsion: Compulsion: Necro-Curious. Te Reaper bebecomes obsessed with the spiritual and necromantic properties of something in their immediate vicin v icin-ity. If the target of their interest is a mortal morta l they may kill it and study it elsewhere, but otherwise they will investigate the location with obsessive interest. If they do not satisfy their curiosity by the end of the Scene they suer a -2 penalty to all rolls for the rest of the night.
demise are closing a great act. lie meant hide themthan until Gehenna’s It willtotake more stake, re, or sunlight to kill these blood gods and death itself must serve the Sword if they are to prevail.
Convictions: Reapers prefer Convictions that focus on the restless dead, deny existential dread, and devalue all living things.
Roleplay: Reapers prefer functional and dark clothing, but many take on a goth look as spirits seem drawn to that aesthetic. Reapers are quiet and even their takbirs tak birs are understated and matter of fact. Tey see emotions as a weakness of the livliving. Reapers prefer undead servants but are notorinotorious for eshcraing monstrous ghouls.
Example Path Convictions ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Never fear death Never leave a loose end Never deny your curiosity Never refuse the dead their due Never side with the living Never deny the inevitable
Nicknames: Necronomists, Reapers Takbir: Death is a doorway, Caine's blood conquers all, (quiet lyrical chant of) Undead, Undead, Undead.
Path of Death and the Soul Advanta Adva ntages ges
e Priesthood: Te Priesthood: Te clergy of Death and the Soul is almost non-existent outside of individual Pack Priests. Teir Ritae are oen marked by the symbology of death. Skulls, keys, and grave dirt are common implements and dead Packmates are ritually invited to celebrate the Ritae alongside their old comrades. Reapers are superb caretakers and will oen relinquish power without any hard feelings if approached respectfully.
Reapers are tied to the dead, and their rituals are the perfect play ground g round for malevolent spirits, ghosts, and the restless dead. Tough they Embrace their recruits with the Creation Rites, Reapers are creative experimenters and have found other ways to make use of this Ritae.
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
Zombie Rites: e Pack can use the CreaCrea-
Path of Power and the Inner Voice
tion Rites to raise savage undead from f rom recentlydeceased corpses. No more than two or three can be created per Session and they can be dicult to control. Oen Packs leave them behind to rampage
Cainites on the Path of Power and the Inner In ner Voice Voice are obsessed with the trappings of dominance and increasing their own power. Bending others to their will is a core tenet of the Path, but so is honorably serving those more powerful. Until they falter and the roles are reversed. ose new to this Path oen rely on raw power to subjugate others, but the greatest Uniers know that loyalty given freely is where true power and respect lies. ese distinctions are only a concern in regards to other Cainites of course. Whether a mortal is controlled through trust or by blood servitude is immaterial to them. Uniers believe that vampires are not only apex
as they make their way out of a domain. Use the Ubihed (ee g. 92) Wigh (ee V5 Cebk g. 375) f hei . Corpse Eaters: Everyone in the Pack with the proper Path Resonance can feed on blood from corpses as if they had the Iron Gullet (●●●) Feeding Merit. Baed or preserved blood from the living is still inedible though. Safe Passage: Reapers are keen strategists and some have maintained a strange web of alli all iances and ceaseres among other creatures inhabitinhabiting the World of Darkness. As long as they do not transgress, the Pack can pass unmolested u nmolested through the territory of lupines and other creatures that recognize treaties with the Sabbat.
predators, but the rightful rulers ru lers of the world. Mortals who resist resist or hunt hunt them are actively deny deny-ing their role in the natural order. ey recogrecognize Caine as their king not because he may have codi ed s pawned them, but because he created and codied this model of vampiric rule over mortals in the city of Enoch. When the Antediluvians rebelled against Caine and went into hiding, they also destroyed the First City and the dream of a Cainite utopia.
Deeply Haunted: e Packs’ haven and ritual sites always attract Spectres (see V5 V5 CoreCorebook pg. 377) that see them as allies. ese angry ghosts lash out at intruders intrude rs and make short work of any uninvited spirits entering their territory. If the right favors and observances obser vances are met, these Spectres could be tricked or compelled into performing other tasks for the Pack.
Roleplay: Uniers dress to convey their power and dominance. Symbols of authority such as canes, clubs, crowns, tiaras, and riding crops are oen
Shadow Souls: e Pack is infused with necromantic energy. All Packmates can buy ObliviOblivi on powers as if it was a Clan Discipline. Once per Story when the Pack Priest performs the Vaulderie they can place a benecial boon upon the entire Pack. As long as a Packmate has the proper Path Resonance they are resistant to Oblivion for the rest of the Session as any hostile Oblivion CeremoCeremo ny that targets or includes a Packmate in its eect automatically automatic ally fails.
part of theirwho wardrobe. Uniers are among few Sabbat prefer mortal retainers, butthe oe n oen make use of brands, b rands, tattoos, leashes, or collars to mark them as possessions. Nicknames: Uniers, Uhlans Takbir: Caine is king!, Te First City and the last!, All serve the Sword!, Te blood redeems!, Break the bonds!
Path Resonance: Melancholy
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Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
Priesthood: Uniers are organized but their e Priesthood: Uniers hierarchy has suered greatly since the start of the Gehenna War, as the mortal servants and ghoul families they depended upon have been scattered and devastated. Now Uniers are mostly limited
Convictions: Uniers choose Convictions that value domination, submission, and loyalty as virvirtues with vampires naturally ruling over mortals.
Example Path Convictions ■
to exerting control locally with few able to claim a title greater than Archbishop. Only Seraphim can gather Hosts as large as the Cardinals of old. Unier Priests believe in rank and insist that they be addressed add ressed as Teacher, Master, or Mistress, and those who have authority over other Packs are quick to lay claim to the title of Bishop as well. Unier Ritae make use of ghouls as props and assistants, and they prefer ostentatious implements such as silver chalices, stacks of money, and thrones to echo Caine's rule. Packs led by a Unier can resemble sedentary covens as they gather mortal pawns and inuence, but they have h ave no qualms about liquidating their assets and moving on when the Gehenna War calls. Uniers see mortals as useuse ful tools, but only glory and victory won in service to the Sword of Caine will see them reach the pinpinnacle of power. Priests on the Path of Power and the Inner Voice are never replaced without a power strule or Monomacy, though these conicts rarely result in a nal death as Uniers will submit when confronted by a worthy leader. leader.
■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Loyalty is earned Might makes right Always respect power e ends justify the means Never break your word to a Cainite Always reward success and punish failure
Path of Power Power and the t he Inner Voice V oice Advantages Advanta ges Followers Follow ers of the Path of Power and the Inner In ner Voice are always willing to use mortal pawns in pursuit of their objectives. ough the Uniers are some of the most inhumane vampires in the Sabbat they pride themselves on being able to dominate any situation and will use any tool necessary to do so. ey even see their own Beast as something that must be weaponized for use against their enemies and rivals. Vassals: Once per Session the Pack can call upon blackmailed mortals to provide them with cash, favors, or weapons as the criminal or police Contacts (●●) background.
Touchstones: Uniers prefer to connect their Touchstones: Uniers Convictions to the Blood Bath, Fire Dance, or Vaulderie V aulderie Ritae. Frenzy: Uniers never resist Fury Frenzy as they Frenzy: Uniers see the Beast as a powerful weapon and as a pure subconscious extension of their will. When frenzyfrenzying they Ride the t he Wave Wave (see V5 Corebook pg. 219) and seek out their enemies’ leaders.
Vile reats: When reats: When Uniers are drawn into a test of personality they do not rely on grace. Willpower damage inicted by Packmates in the t he rst round of Social Combat are Aravated if they have the proper Path Resonance. Also the Pack gains a mortal Retainer (●●) background.
Path Compulsion: Supremacy Supremacy.. e Unier is tired of waiting and serving others, they take what they deserve and demand obedience from their lessers. ey suer a -3 die penalty to any actions for the rest of the Scene that don’t involve seizing power or taking their rightful place.
Leashed and Unleashed: Uniers let their Beasts loose when needed. When a Packmate frenzies during combat they inict +1 Aravated health wound that round if they t hey have the proper Path Resonance. Also the Pack gains a mortal ReRe tainer (●●) background.
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
Victims on Tap: ap: All All Packmates can buy b uy Dominate as if it was a Clan Discipline. Also the Pack gains a Herd (●●) with a Choleric resonance.
dists attempts to co-opt their teachings as their own. e uneasy relationship between the two Paths has been papered over by the needs of the Gehenna War and the common enemy they both see in the false Church of Caine that has grown in
Conditioned into Submission: Mortals
serving the Pack have been abused into abject submission. ey are servile to a fault and won’t hesitate to sacrice themselves for their masters. ese mortals act as Allies (●●●) and will comcom ply with suicidal commands without without hesitation. hesitation. If called upon to sacrce themselves for the Pack, treat these mortals as a Broken Servant (see pg. 90)
the heart of the Ashirra and the Camarilla. Roleplay: Bahari are an eclectic and expressive creed that dress in modern styles. ey tend to anan swer questions with questions and can come o as evasive and overly fond of riddles. Lilins cultivate an air of mystery and wisdom, but usually prefer to let others exhaust themselves the mselves before providing their hard won answers on a problem. Unlike most Sabbat, Bahari treat both their mortal and animal retainers well but are quick to punish disloyalty and incompetence. Bahari oen use moths, owls, and a black crescent moon as their symbols.
Path Resonance: Choleric .
Nicknames: Bahari, Lilins
Path of Lilith
Takbir: Ahi hay Lilitu!, Takbir: Ahi Lilitu!, For the Dark Mother!, May our bonds never be reforged!, Our chains are forever broken!
Sometimes considered a forsaken Path, the Bahari are believed to be the only Path of Enlightenment to have more followers outside of the Sabbat then within it. Both mortals and immortals im mortals follow Lilith and call themselves Bahari, but those of the Sabbat tend to avoid their living sisters unless they have a great need. e Path of Lilith believes pain is the best teacher and the Dark Mother never spares her pupils from the truth regardless of the conseconse quences. Not all followers of this Path believe in
e Priesthood: e Priesthood: e Bahari are small in number but growing within the Sabbat, making their clergy a disjointed collage of Priests and scholars. e Bahari of the Black Hand are almost comcom pletely cut o from their non-Sabbat sisters and this split has created some suspicion between the two factions. While Bahari have traditionally taken a Path before Sect approach to their allegiances, the Gehenna War has meant that only the most committed Lilins have stayed in the Sabbat. e few Bahari leaders that have stayed within the Black Hand have dedicated themselves to spreading Lilith's teachings and preventing the absorption of their faith into Noddist dogma. Bahari Priests also do their best to warn the Sabbat about the danger presented by the so-called Church of Caine and their twisted devotion to the Antediluvians.
Gehenna or the Antediluvians, but those Lilins who do believe in them, see the Sabbat as the best b est chance of avoiding that dark fate. Within the Sabbat the Bahari have always had a contentious relationship with the Path of Caine, who in the past accused them the m of heresy for daring to view Lilith as Caine's equal. Now that the SabSab bat has splintered and no longer enforces e nforces orthoorthodoxy, the Bahari have re-emerged. From a seed of secretive devotees they've become the fastest growgrowing faction within the Black Hand in the modern nights. Bahari no longer fear being suppressed by Noddists. In fact Bahari are more wary of the NodNod-
Touchstones: Lilins almost always connect their Touchstones: Lilins Convictions to the Creation Rites, Fire Dance, or Vaulderie V aulderie Ritae.
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Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
Frenzy: Lilins only resist Hunger Frenzy if they’re attempting to hide their true nature, otherwise they Ride R ide the Wa Wave ve (see V5 Corebook pg. 219) and try to wound or cripple their enemies.
Cultists: Once per Session the Pack can call upon mortals dedicated to Lilith's cult, as AlAllies or Herd (●●●). Abusing this cult can draw the wrath of their other other supernatural allies. all ies.
Path Compulsion: Compulsion: Pain Seeker. e Lilin becomes obsessed with something dangerous in their imim mediate vicinity. is may be a bonre, a lupine, or even a weapon. Usually the Lilin wishes to be harmed by the object of their obsession, but in some cases controlling, stealing, or seducing it may satisfy them. If they do not satisfy their curiosity by the end of the Scene they will suer a -2 penalty to all rolls for the rest of the night.
of Monsters: All Monsters: All Packmates can Mother buy Protean as if it was a Clan Discipline. Also if they have the proper Path Resonance and have the Level 3 Protean power Shapechange (see V5 CoreCorebook pg. 270) they can opt to transform into a cat, an owl, or a snake.
Convictions: Bahari Convictions revere Lilith, the magic of creation, or the learning of painful leslessons.
Dance before the Flames: Bahari PackPackmates can turn up to three Aravated Health damage caused by re into Aravated Willpower damage once per Scene. Also all Packmates with the proper Path Resonance or on the Path of Lilith automatically resist Terror Terror Frenzy caused by re.
Example Path Convictions
Path Resonance: Sanguine
■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Follow Lilith’s example in all things Never give up your freedom Pain is the greatest teacher Rules are meant to broken Never fear the truth
LOST PATHS
Many Paths are no longer common within the Sabbat. Others have been absorbed or co-opted into the faith of others. The Path of Night favored by Lasombra is now a sub-Path of Cathari focused on terrorizing mortals. Other Forsaken Paths could also
Path of Lilith Advantages
survive as a subset of another. The Path of the Beast
Bahari see Lilith as not only the mother of vamvam pires, but as the patron of witches and supernatusupernatu-
Power and the Inner Voice. A Player could take Con-
and Honorable Accord share much in common with victions that focused on dominance and cruelty for
rals that haunt the dark. e lupines, mages, and fey creatures all seek Lilith's wisdom and Bahari feel a kinship with this sisterhood of the night.
the former and those focused on loyalty and honor for the latter. The Path of Blood is a sub-Path of
Lilith's Favor: Bahari and others who honor Lilith grant your Pack aid and safe passage through areas they control. is favor can be rescinded if your Pack is caught teaching Noddism or aiding aidi ng the Church of Caine.
Haqim blood addiction is a blessing to emulated.
Caine that exults in Diablerie and believes the Banu The Path of the Sun (see pg. 35) is unfinished
It is not yet y et coherent enough to provide the benefits of a Path and only Thin-bloods have been able to weather its contradictions so far. A vampire taking Convictions based on it wouldn't be able to take Ritae Touchstones, and would still need mortal
Moon Blooded: Members of your Pack can instantly sense when lupines or other shapechangshapechangers are near. Packmates are also immune i mmune to any of the usual usual drawbacks when drinking lupine blood.
Touchstones. Fully developing it into a true Path could be an interesting story for an ambitious Pack.
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Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
ers relate to the Sabbat. For mortals and vampires who preserve their Humanity, Sabbat vampires are impossible to relate to. One might as well attempt to empathize with a shark. To the Sabbat mind, though, empathizing with
Path Realities Adopting a Path The Priest Prie st responsible for the vampire’s understanding of their Path brings them into a group of Cainites also following that Path: the pack. Packs are devoted not only to one specic Path of Enlightenment, but also to some larger purpose, as mandated by a Bishop, Archbishop, or other leading gure. Some are soldiers in the Gehenna War, some are body-snatchers responsible for bolstering the sect’s ranks, some undermine the other sects’ claims to domain, and so on, according to the Sabbat’s interests in the region the pack calls its own. Whatever the case, the pack’s function is complemented complemen ted by its Path; the outlook shapes how
prey makes little sense. At best they’re cattle. At worst, they’re pretending to be cattle so they don’t accidentally feel the power they’ve been granted. Each Path has a distinct worldview and a sense for the vampire’s place in it. What they all have in common, though, is an understanding that the Beast resides within each vampire. Each Path, then, could be described as a way for each vampire to bind themselves to their Beast. It colors every aspect of the Cainite’s outlook, from the way they interact with each other to the way they see themselves, as well as the regard they have for anything “less” than a bloodthirsty childe of the Dark Father.
the pack undertakes its responsibilities. (Of course, for some packs, they are their own authority, and the devil take any Black Hand bigshot who tries to order them around. Or Sabbat inuence in the area has collapsed, leaving a pack without any leadership other than its own ambition.) Which is to say, the pack is the Path and the Path is the pack. Cainites who share packs are of like mind, even disturbingly so, as the sect’s reputation as a hive consciousness has grown. While this isn’t literally true, none could argue that pack unity isn’t the Sabbat’s greatest strength. Few who stumble into the domain of fanatical Albigensian would doubt their commitment to their foul purposes, for example. The Path of Enlightenment replaces HumanHumanity for the Sabbat. It shapes the way the Beast holds sway over the Cainite, unlike Humanity, which is a way of denying the Beast or keeping it in check. To the Sabbat way of thinking, the Beast is part of being a vampire, a relationship with oneself that must be cultivated, not subjugated. Every vampire upholding a Path of Enlightenment is a student of its ways and, for better or worse, tethered to the Beast. Where goes the Beast, goes the Cainite. To outside perspectives, this is an alien way of thinking, and this comes across in how oth-
Changing Paths It is possible, though exceedingly rare, for Sabbat to change their Path of Enlightenment after having been inculcated into one. The risk is obvious: The Cainite must again be broken down to the brink of wassail and then have one of the epiphanies of the new Path anchor them to self-control. sel f-control. It’s It’s a process few accomplished vampires would court, but for those who see more potential in another Path, changing the nature of one’s monstrosity may oer them a chance at apotheosis.
Leaving Paths The notion of leaving Paths entirely provokes revulsion from the Sabbat. After all, no True Sabbat would turn their back on the sect to adopt such a feeble attitude of cowering among mortals and pretending to hold their values dear. Does the wolf secretly yearn to live as a swine? Risible. Doing so is, not to put too ne a point on it, excruciating. Not only do all of the perils for changing Paths apply, apply, but the re-adoption of mortal mores often proves irreconcilable for Cainites, who have spent massive amounts of emotional and psychic
49
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eort to suborn them in the rst place. It is exceedingly likely that most attempts (of which there are likely an exceedingly small number in the rst place) simply fail, leaving the Cainite a wight or… worse. To be sure, the Sabbat has very little interest
true on pain of death in one Black Hand territory might be entirely unheard of in another. Even those concepts that are universal to the sect are subject to regional and individual interpretation, such as ritae and Paths of Enlightenment. Included in these
in “rehabilitating” Path members, as Paths are a dening characteristic of sect allegiance. Other sects are themselves often too paranoid about turncoats, deep-cover spies, hidden double-agents, and other perils of attempting to repatriate one-time Sabbat to place any faith in deprogramming. There’s no silver-bullet methodology or proven curriculum by which to make one’s one’s way back from the terrors ter rors of the Paths. Which isn’ i sn’tt to say it can’t happen, just that it’s a lonely and dangerous road. Those who do succeed are themselves anomalies, individual cases. Leaving a Path and returning to the morality of Human-
locational variations are the leadership structures and titles of the Sword of Caine. As with its membership, the Sabbat has hollowed out the middle of its hierarchy somewhat. It has a few high-ranking titles and literally no midtier titles that outrank its lowest tiers. Some of this is simply practical reality: In a sect as decentralized and fractious as the Sabbat, there’s no such thing as middle managers and there’s no real orthodoxy for a middle rank to sustain. The highest ranks decide what they will and the rank and le either ght those battles or they don’t. With the Black Hand’s small size and extremely high rate of nal death,
ity may happen with the assistance of a mentor or while seeking atonement through Golconda – but whatever form it takes, each journey is unique, and uncertain to succeed. Speculation among the Sword of Caine is rampant as regards the exodus of Lasombra from the sect. Some argue that many Lasombra upheld “Humanity-adjacent” Paths such as the Path of Honorable Accord, which weren’t really in line with Sabbat attitudes anyway, so their self-aggrandized “dark chivalries” didn’t actually have far to travel in order to realign with Humanity. Other Cainites, as with so many Sabbat perspectives, see the talons of the Antediluvians at work, suggesting that LasomLasombra leadership of the sect was a centuries-long ruse orchestrated by the Ancients to leave the Sword of Caine abandoned as the Gehenna War gained momentum. Surely such hysteria is ill-founded – surely – but desperate times yield desperate explanations from those casting about for something to believe in.
what happens on the war front is the shape of the sect. On overview, the sect consists of a number of elders, a remarkable paucity of ancillae, and a massive proportion of edglings among the shovelheads.
Regent The nature of many vampire institutions implies a top-down organization. From neofeudal Camarilla Princes to streetwise Anarch Barons, the individual gure evokes a supreme authority for that domain, or at least a no-bullshit, buck-stops-here attitude, even if the reality is much more nuanced. However, this is actually true of the hollowed-out hierarchy of the Sabbat, to an extent. Unlike the other major sects, the Black Hand has a single, sectwide leader, known as the Regent. In practice, it’s not that simple, because among the Damned what ever is? Indeed, it is currently unknown who the Regent of the Sabbat is, or where they may be found. In fact, many suspect that the Sabbat has no current Regent, that the guerrilla nature of the Gehenna War is best fought without wit hout a ponderous top-down hierarchy. Others opine that the absence of a single commanding gure illustrates the hive mentality of the Sword Sword of Caine, or that it’s not a
Sabbat Titles In the modern nights, the Sabbat has splintered, with conicts scattered worldwide and a decentralized approach to the Eternal Struggle. What is
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Sabbat The Black Hand Definitive Edition
unied sect ghting a deluded crusade but rather a confederation of wild-eyed, malevolent cults. Especially among young Sabbat, the lack of a Regent is all they’ve ever known – which argues that the Sabbat doesn’t need a Regent, Pope, Vizier, or anything
come almost schools of thought for Sabbat of those Paths, and not always simpatico domains for those of other perspectives. As with many Sabbat distinctions, the t he dierence between the roles can be quarreled over bloodily,
resembling such. Whatever the case, if there is a Regent tonight, no one’s telling who it is, and the Sabbat has plenty of momentum without them.
but a Bishop usually holds a single domain and an Archbishop holds multiple domains domains or one particularly important domain. In this sense, the role is conceptually similar to that of Prince or Baron: the most eminent Cainite in the domain who is regarded as its gurehead. Concomitant with the claim of the domain, of course, is the ability to hold it, and with no few external enemies and keen-eyed followers of various power-hungry Paths, those Cainites who have the ability to maintain praxis often prove to be terrifyingly competent.
Bishop op Archbishop and Bish Although the Sabbat cares little for the notion of domain the way other sects do, it nonetheless sees a value in maintaining various territories for the sake of recruitment and for strategic fallback points. As well, each city claimed and held is one that the toadtoadies of the other sects can’t have for their own, which is its own reward.
NOTABLE BISHOPS AND ARCHBISHOPS
Lucita de court. Aragón ofMadrid Night):isMadrid is a Camarilla Or,(Path rather, a contested domain that would otherwise be a Camarilla court but for the presence of Archbishop Lucita de Aragón, whose pack is said to be a hundred strong, and who still wears her living name in mockery of Camarilla pride and mortal fear. Complicating matmatters, certain noteworthy Kindred claim that Lucita has met the nal death – but if that’s true, who are her packmates following? The Path of Night appears to be a variant of the Path of Cathari, and Lucita its preeminent adherent.
Archbishops’ and Bishops’ responsibility is maintaining domainsprimary to best serve the Gehenna War eort. This takes a variety of forms, from providing materiel to maintaining knowledge repositories about what front-line ghters and scouts have found to providing safe haven for sabotage packs waging hit-and-run tactics on the war front or against rival domains. In this sense, domains claimed by Bishops and Archbishops may be “fall-back domains” or places where convocations of Necronomists research new rites to immobilize the pawns of the Antediluvians. For example, the fleshweld ghouls (see p. 93) were wer e developed in a Necronomist’s Carpathian Bishopric, and the one-time Archbishop of Mexico City assisted in the creation of what are tonight known as the Shackled (see p. 92). Some amount of spiritual leadership resides with Bishops and Archbishops, if i f not outright authority. Indeed, what Cainite culture exists in a city often takes on a timber informed by that Bishop or Archbishop’s Path. Authoritarian violence v iolence may characterize the domain of a Bishop who observes the Path of Power and the Inner I nner Voice Voice while a city’s sprawling cemeteries and opulent mausoleums may be points of macabre reverence for a Necronomist Archbishop. Unsurprisingly, these locales may be-
The Doctor (Path of Power and the Inner Voice): Once the Bishop of Atlanta, Julius Sutphen was one of the earliest Sabbat to rally to the Gehenna War. As part of a triumvirate of Bishops holding the domain of Belgrade, The Doctor is instrumental to moving Cainites through that domain to the war front using his medical credentials. Since taking up his title in Belgrade, he has also become regarded as a wise w ise voice among followers of the Path of Power and the Inner I nner Voice. Cicatriz (Path of Caine): The Caine): The Bishop of Tijuana is an accomplished commander in i n the Gehenna War, with an undead career of having personally discov-
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Chapter Two: Apostates of a Cruel Church
ered an elder’s tomb. Artifacts found in that grave have exposed the resting places of subsequent elders from the pre-Columbian era. Under Cicatriz’s leadership, the Tijuana domain has become renowned for its Monomacy duels, almost al most an “ocer’s school” from which Pack Priests emerge as exemplars of the Path of Caine, their Blood made more puissant by diablerie.
that pack follow the same Path of Enlightenment. A Priest serves as both the spiritual and tactical leader of individual Sabbat packs according to that Path’s precepts. They are the voice that brings the Beast to heel, the ociant of rites that bind the pack together, and the sergeant who ministers to the pack’s need for direction. Whether as a rebrand, inciting their packmates to feats of battleeld violence, or as a mentor, inspiring their packmates to rise and ght another night, the Priest’s duty is the cornerstone of the Sabbat. Priests appear in immense variety, often heavily inuenced by their locale, in how they perform their function. Some Priests take their titles literally, treating their Paths and guidance as a religious leader would. Some take on an aspect of witches, coaxing a shrieking coven against their foes. They may be hard-bitten veterans of undead war, know ing how critical a Path is to preventing one’s fellows from becoming ravening Wights. They may use
Pack Priest It often surprises outsiders to learn about the existential side of the Sabbat, to realize that the sect isn’t just about monstrosity and violence and brutality brutalit y against mortals. Certainly, this is true of the Sabbat, but the Black Hand has philosophical reasons for doing what it does, and methods for dealing with the Curse of Caine guided by devotion to the Paths of Enlightenment. Foremost in realizing this charge is the role of the Pack Priest. In most packs, all of the Cainites belonging to
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Tadarida (Path of Death and the Soul): A
holy icons or cultural symbols to motivate their packs, or they may rely on old-fashioned blood-andre oratory.
Necronomist who specializes in the eects of Cainite vitae on living tissue, Tadarida and her pack often join other Sabbat packs into both hot- and cold-war situations. Her pack usually precedes a
NOTABLE PRIESTS
Mokhtar Sahnoun (Path of Caine): Let the
more substantial assault, confounding rival vampires by killing, kidnapp k idnapping, ing, or making stranger things happen to ghouls in their employ. In particular, Tadarida’s pack possesses a blood agent that can cause seizures in ghouls and mastery of a Ceremony that can age a ghoul to a brittle husk in minutes.
other packs bellow and brawl – Mokhtar’s pack knows the value of logistics. With his sights set on the turbulent city of Marseille, Mokhtar has been quietly streaming a number of packs into the south of France. So far Mokhtar’s intention seems not to be a violent coup of praxis, but to deny Marseille as a point of ingress to non-Sabbat who would move through Western Europe. This is profoundly dangerous territory for Cainites, as France’s DGSE considers Marseille to have been purged of vampiric presence, but the city has too much strategic value for that to long be true, and Mokhtar’s pack may
Ballerino (Path of Cathari): Ballerino and his
troupe promise forbidden delectations to those who receive invitations to their pleasure-circus. Whether courting mortals, who mysteriously gain sexually transmitted diseases that pass through their blood to vampires who feed on them, or Kindred,
well have an insurmountable i nsurmountable rst-mover rst-mover advantage.
who surrender to a torpor borne of languor after a
83
night of sensual bliss, Ballerino’s pack masterfully ensnares its victims in traps of their own lust.
Some few members of the Sword of Caine are still known to use the following titles. Whether or not the now much more decentralized sect chooses to later appoint others to these titles, or if the Sabbat’s new purpose means the sect has shed them
True Sabbat, Brothers and Sisters in Caine
entirely remains as yet unknown.
The title of True Sabbat belongs to all Cainites who have served their packs in some capacity and been thereafter honored with the ritus acknowledging them as a member of the sect. It confers no actual rank, therefore, but its power is in the concept of belonging. True Sabbat are no longer probationary, and they’re denitely a cut above tomorrow night’s shovelheads, even if they are themselves last night’s shovelheads. As shredded Humanity inexorably falls away,, to be supplanted by a Path of Enlightenment, away Enlig htenment, having the camaraderie of one’s fellow accursed night-creatures is one of the inhuman “comforts” they come to appreciate. Monstrosity loves com-
CARDINALS
With the outbreak of the Gehenna War, those calling themselves Cardinals have ostensibly become the warlords of the Sword of Caine, counting among them various specialists from a number of dierent Paths and regional factions. A number of unconrmed Cainites have also assumed the title of Cardinal, and these may or may not have formally been accorded these roles by Sabbat luminaries. In fact, it is probable that the ranks of the Cardinals have yielded to a bloody junta, with the more sublime dutiespushes of the the titleDamned falling byinto theopen wayside as the war eort conict. Those few Cardinals who remain and are recognized occasionally organize regional congregations of their Paths of Enlightenment. These may take a number of forms, from “mobile domains” of Path fundamentalists to training camps hastily established on the periphery of a Methuselah’s supposed resting place, in preparation for a strike. Cardinal Scarab’ss pack marauding its way across Florida preScarab’
pany, and damnation positively revels in it.
Other Titles In nights prior, the Sabbat had a much more substantial hierarchy of very formalized roles. Since the Second Inquisition has been so eective against the sect, and since the Gehenna War demands so much Cainite attention, att ention, however, however, many Cainites Cain ites who had claimed these titles have gone missing leaving titles vacant and unlled.
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sents itself as a religious revival, for example, even though Cardinal Scarab herself has fewer than ten years under the night.
greatly fallen out of use, as the sect holds too few domains to recognize these titles sectwide anymore. Enterprising Sabbat occasionally claim this title for themselves, whether as a pack identity (“The Southside Templars”) or as a personal moniker (“Euryale,
PRISCUS
Every army needs its specialists and the Sabbat is no exception. While the majority of the sect is devoted to the war eort, the Prisci have emerged as a dierent aspect of the Black Hand. From spymasters organizing the inltration of other sects to reconnaissance experts sneaking past the front lines to inuential councilors with access to the Archbishops, the Prisci are often of ten the minds backing the arm wielding the Sword of Caine. On their own terms Prisci are accomplished Cainites, and the title broadly signies a recognized expertise. They may align themselves with a particular domain and advise its Bishops, or they may roam, bringing their
Death’s Paladin”). In almost every case, this is done by Sabbat who had been Embraced before the t he Beckoning and the Gehenna War, to demand respect and bolster a reputation of seniority. Such habits are inconsistently eective, especially among the droves of new Sabbat who don’t have any idea what a Paladin is supposed to be.
talents needed.and assets wherever they believe they are The Prisci are very often the primary sources of information and intelligence the sect gathers, and realize the sects’s hatred for the Antediluvians in indirect ways. It may be a Priscus’ eorts to form and supply a pack that discovers the crypt of a torpid elder beneath the Rio Negro outside Manaus or turns over a Camarilla fugitive to the wary Anarchs in Tangier, the better to keep the sects at each other’s throats. The Tarantella Stylites of Argentina, a pack of scouts and spies, are led by a Priscus whose name none can remember after meeting her, only her title. Prisci rarely have any specic responsibility or accountability, and typically no real geographical anchor, which sometimes results in the front-line soldiers ghting the Gehenna War having little respect for them. Truth be told, without the various specializations of the Prisci, the Sabbat would almost certainly be less eective, much more of a blunt instrument. While other positions of authority project a brutal Sabbat inuence outward, the Prisci claw information and other resources inward.
War,,became War however, which is itself a holy war, the distincdistiisnction one of little value. Tonight, ductus used almost as derisive parlance for a Pack Priest of little spiritual rigor, though a few veteran pack leaders still use it to present a connotation of rank or experience.
DUCTUS
The responsibilities of pack leadership were once split between the Pack Priest, who tended to the spiritual needs of the pack, and the ductus, who was its tactical leader. With the urgency of the Gehenna
Pack Patterns Members of successful Sabbat Packs fulll a variety of roles and responsibilities, each according to their skills, abilities, or place in the internal pecking order. While not formalized to the extent of sect titles, these roles share enough similarities across dierent Packs and Paths for a pattern to be established. The distribution of these roles varies signicantly, depending on pack size, its Path, and its function if part of a larger force. Small packs often have members who serve multiple roles, while the Priest usually enjoys their choice or has their hands full with Priestly duties. Packs that fail to take advantage of their members' anities are usually short-lived, torn asunder by conicting predilections, or disintegrating from sloppy logistics, but those that do emerge as welloiled infernal machines.
PALADIN OR TEMPLAR
At one time, these titles belonged to the personal retinues of esteemed Sabbat. Tonight, the title has
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Warrior
IN STORIES:
The Sabbat stereotype, the warrior gets shit done. For a sect perpetually at war, warriors are the backbone of whatever operation the Pack undertakes. While pack members in other roles can surely hold
Liaisons are ghters like all Sabbat, but if encountered alone will usually not resort to violence if they believe they can blu, fast talk, or seduce their way out of the situation. If they cannot gain the upper
their own in a ght, the warriors aim to triumph. Being so common, the warrior role also displays the most variety. Apart from the Path of Death and the Soul, where some Packs eschew direct conict or delegate violence to their creations, the Paths contribute to a cavalcade of savagery. savager y. From From crazed Cathari ravagers, to silent Noddist assassins, to posturing Uhlan brutes, each warrior brings a distinct type of viciousness to the fray. For most vampires outside the Sabbat, they are the rst and last thing they see of the sect.
hand they will stall for time or try to escape if no backup is available.
Scout Eective Packs often spend months or years carefully surveying their upcoming theater of operation. From mapping out the lines of opposition in a hostile domain to disentangling inuence networks to pinpointing enemy havens, the scout’s scout’s responsibility can see them lurking behind enemy lines for months at a time. Socially apt scouts may go undercover, posing as local Unbound or Anarchs, trading in gossip or
IN STORIES:
When encountered, warriorof roles arePack either on the warpathSabbat or set in as guards other members or their haven. In either case they ght as fanatics – and probably to the nal death, if there’s something to be gained by it.
just skirt ingstakeouts skirting the edges. Ot hers hunting stick to the shadows, on nightly ofOthers prime grounds, alert for any signs of Kindred activity, perched like gargoyles over points of interest. Those with a penchant for the arcane use more esoteric means, and scouts who also possess qualities of a liaison make for perfect radicalizers. While this role often ends up as the duty of those at the bottom rung of the pack, it nevertheless demands a certain amount of trustworthiness, as the Cainite is expected to operate without regular observance of the Vaulderie. This can result in scouts feeling alienated from their packs, and going rogue or abandoning their duties entirely. Sometimes these deserters end up as autarkis or even defect if anyone can be bothered to bring them in from the cold, as a s it were.
Liaison In the rare times that violence isn’t the answer, many packs have someone to fall back on to do the talking. This isn’t a role that just anyone can perform, as many Paths leave their adherents so detached from the world outside the Black Hand that t hat they have a hard time not simply brutalizing every stranger, let alone establishing rapport. Those Sabbat who do possess a gift for discourse can be ruthlessly procient in the social arena. Unhampered by notions of reciprocity or empathy, empathy, they are masterful manipulators and liars, able to play Kindred and mortal alike like the devil does the ddle. Cathari and Unier packs are most likely to have Cainites of this specialty among their ranks, with the former being expert tempters and the latter exhibiting commanding demeanors that leave little room for dissent.
IN STORIES:
Often young, scouts are eager to prove themselves, and they rarely have their Pack to fall back on. This makes them prone to taking on bigger foes than they can handle if the opportunity presents itself. Scouts don’t often run unless they can escape with something of value, as a scout who can’ ca n’tt scout is likely torn apart by an unappreciative pack.
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tracks, but redirect them toward the opposition. This role is less common among Devourers and Uniers, as both usually bully ghouls or as-yet-unas-yet-un proven recruits to deal with these inconveniences.
Inevitably, things get messy and it's someone’s someone’s job to take care of it. That’s the cleaner. Duties range from scrubbing the scene of a massacre before the mortal authorities arrive to hunting the victim of a botched feeding to their home (and burning it down for good measure) to rounding up witnesses to a Rite that got out of hand. Usually left to the youngest shovelheads of the pack, cleaner duty can also serve as hazing or as punishment. Some packs even e ven rotate the duty, and no few Cathari are known to make debased sport of it. Despite the ignominy of the task, packs blessed with a clever cleaner are not only able to cover their
IN STORIES:
If encountered, the cleaner has no time for this bullshit. If they risk being spotted by other vampires they are likely to lay low, cunningly waiting for an opportunity to pin the present mess on whomwhomever’s careless enough to step in it.
Scholar A rare few Sabbat vampires make themselves useful not through their ability to engage with others (living or dead) but their aptitude for research and learning. Depending on the goals of the Pack they
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can be dedicated strategists relaying information to and coordinating an assault on an Elysium gathering, translators holed up in reeking bunkers poring over pre-Akkadian architectural designs, or Blood Sorcerers on call for wardings in hostile territory. Rarely encountered on active duty, the scholar’s scholar ’s role has myriad incarnations, from de-facto leader to a ridiculed Poindexter savant. Some Necronomist Packs consist of nothing but scholars, though they usually share other roles as well. IN STORIES:
Kindred encountering Sabbat are more likely to run into the creations of scholars than the scholars themselves, either in the form of the rest of the pack acting on their intelligence or by falling into any number of traps or stratagems, supernatural or otherwise. If cornered, scholars tend to have machinations placeenemies that yield a quick death, taking asinmany as them they can withnal them.
Procurer From pimps and xers to smugglers and engineers, dedicated procurers are the closest thing the Sabbat has to logistics. Examples include honey-tongued Cathari dealers, snatch-and-grab Noddist plunderers, and despotic Unier gang lieutenants. Only the Reapers can aord to ignore this job, and they often rely on servants or creations for most of their needs. Since a procurer’s “goods” are just as likely to need to breathe as sit quietly on store shelves, many procurers are also adept at dealing with mortals, as most packs understand the value of a being behind a locked door before the screaming starts. IN STORIES:
Dealing with vessels and vendors, procurers are often in a position to make unlife dicult for Kindred wanting to minimize mortal involvement. If confronted, they have no problems sacricing erstwhile goods to gain the upper hand, and being streetwise by necessity, they’re usually one step ahead of anyone who decides to ignore collateral damage. ■
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Sabbat Packs
Arena A rena e Sabbat no longer concerns themselves with taking territory terr itory.. Any ground they hold is only kept as long as a s it’s advantageous and abandoned the moment the cost becomes too great. e Sword knows that their power lies in the stolen blood and unearthed secrets of the Antediluvians. It was a hard-learned hard-le arned lesson. A Sabbat Pack cultivates an Arena of inuence, a sometimes sometimes nebulous combination of their nomadic range, spiritual reputation, and mortal inuence. Unlike Domain, Arena is not a measure of how deeply they are embedded in a territory ter ritory but how much authority they hold over something important to the Sect. e focus of a Pack’s Arena is oen determined at the Pack’s founding and is abstracted by Pack Type. For example a Ritualist Pack might be considered an authority on Noddist prophecy. prophecy. is would be
e Sabbat are organized into Packs. ese are Co C oteries of vampires dedicated to a particular Path, ideology,, mission, or unlife ideology u nlife style. Packs are strictly composed of only Sabbat vampires and they are led by a Priest, a vampire that commands the respect of their brethren either through force, cunning, cun ning, or spiritual purity. To To run with a Pack, a vampire must accept not only the creed of the t he Sword of Caine, but the Vaulderie Vaulderie and all of the other Ritae revered by the Sect. e Pack is the most basic unit within the Sabbat, Sabbat, and given the Sect’s Sect’s occulted occulted leadership and cell-like structure, their Packmates may be the only Sabbat vampires they encounter on a nightly basis. Only Packs that have pledged themselves to a Seraphim’s Host nd themselves in regular contact with their scattered brethren.
Packsat aretheir composed of a ivors tight-led knitMany groupSabbat of veterans heart. Survivors Surv by a trusted tru sted Priest who have seen countless battles and tasted ancient blood. When necessary their numbers swell through wanton mass Embrace and the capricious use of the blood bond. A Pack of 5 Sabbat can uadruple in size in a matter of nights n ights with shovel shovel heads and ghouls added to to their vanguard. Most of these t hese recruits meet messy and uick deaths, but the nucleus of the Pack carries on. us the Sabbat survives surv ives despite tremendous losses. Veterans Veterans of the Gehenna War accumulate monstrous power within their dead veins. Oen Oe n the real danger faced by a Pack are in moments of internal crisis, when a Priest is destroyed or found lacking by their brethren. e Monomacy usually decides such tests of leadership cleanly, but sometimes Packs fall to scheming and faithlessness.
their Arena and others would defer to them on such matters unless they t hey proved false or incompetent. Unlike Status which marks an individual, a Pack’s Arena is a measure of collective respect and inuence. System: As with Domain, this is an abstraction System: As and each Arena trait is bought with Pack Dots. e three Arena traits are Rove, Clout, and Grasp. Most Pack Types Types reuire a certain level of an a n Arena trait to unlock the Pack’s feature.
In the Final Nights Sabbat Packs are nomadic by Rove nature, and even those that settle into sedentary covens do their best to keep a few escape routes primed. A Pack’s Pack’s Rove determines determines how far they can safely and uickly travel within a few nights. Alternate Havens, good feeding spots, hidden supply caches, negotiated safe passage, and secure vehicles are all aspects of a Pack’s Rove trait. trait. A Sabbat Pack never puts down deep roots, because their enemies are many and powerful. A Pack’s Rove is also an area they regularly regula rly monitor monitor with spies, mystical mystical surveillance, sur veillance, and allies when not on the move.
System: All Sabbat vampires start with one Pack System: All Dot that they can collectiv collectively ely use to buy Pack Advantages and Arena traits. Characters can also spend Advantage points on these Pack traits.
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System: Each dot of Rove increases the Diculty System: Each by 1 of any attempt to detect d etect the Pack or prevent them from reaching their destination when travtraveling. eir Rove level also represents rep resents how much distance the Pack can cover without needing to
the nature of their need. Clout also increases the Willpower damage inicted on Sabbat rivals during a social combat on a 1 for 1 basis (see V5 V5 Corebook pg. 305), though it does not stack with damage bonuses gained from
make additional Rove is rarely rolls, but could aid in arolls. Pack’s attempts toadded locate to other Sabbat or inltrate enemy domains. When a Pack hunts in their Rove area they always succeed at a cost (see V5 Corebook pg. 307), but the default hunting Diculty is 6 otherwise. Once outside the established area of their Rove, a Pack's Clout and Grasp traits still function normally but only when concerning the core purpose of their Arena.
the audience.
●
Grasp e Packs ability to bully mortals into doing their bidding or ignoring their crimes. Since dealing with mortals is seen as dishonorabl di shonorable, e, Sabbat Packs only sully themselves with mortal ties when their core mission and values are threatened in a way they cannot solve with overwhelming force. Grasp also determines how quickly the Pack can move its base of operations.
A small wild area a rea or few blocks, Downtown or Hidden Valley
●●
A landmark or large wilderness, wilder ness, Champs Elysee or Black Forest
●●●
A city or important highway, Budapest or I-95
●●●●
A very large major metropolitan area, Los Angeles or Seoul
●●●●●
A large territory or region, NeNe vada or Southern France
System: Each dot of Grasp gives Pack members a +1 die bonus on any attempt to subvert, undermine, or intimidate a mortal group threatening their Arena. For example, Ritualists Ritu alists might use their Grasp to keep police from patrolling around the warehouse where they perform their ritae, r itae, but it would have no use when hunting. Grasp also sets how long it takes ta kes to relocate and re-center a Pack's Rove. is oen entails setting up supply drops, false Havens, and bolt holes.
Clout
e Packs' reputation concerning their area of exex pertise and their ability abi lity to call upon large numbers numbe rs of Sabbat Sabbat and Sect allies for aid. Priests that lead Packs with a great deal of Clout have an easier time claiming titles such as Bishop or Archbishop because of the sway they hold over other Packs.
ree months per dot of Rove
●
One month per dot of Rove
●●
ree weeks per dot of Rove
●●●
Two weeks per dot of Rove
●●●●
One week per dot of Rove
●●●●●
ree days per dot of Rove
System: One dot of Clout gives the Pack a default System: One Diculty of 7 when calling upon other Sabbat Packs to aid them against the Sect’s enemies or in pursuit of their Arena. Each additional dot of Clout reduces this Diculty by 1. e type of roll required depends on how the Pack calls for aid and
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Running in Packs
The Pack Map As with Coteries in any other vampire vampire Chronicle, Chronicle, a Sabbat Pack should make use of the Relationship Map concept to draw and dene their group objectives, dynamics, assets, and aws (see V5 Core book 142). is Pack Map should list all al l the active Packmates, their positions within the Pack and any backgrounds and aws they share. is is a living document that the Pack can reference as they gain allies and enemies (see Pack Map pg. 132).
A Sabbat vampire is oen dened by their their Pack as much as by their Path of Enlightenment. When creating characters, Players should discuss what kind of Pack they are hoping to create and if any of them have a desire to play the Pack Priest or have some other designated role within the Pack (see Pickig Pie g. 70). While Pie i he ly formal role all Packs recognize internally, some have informal titles or positions that they expect ex pect Packmates to fulll by Pack tradition. tradition. For instance, many Packs consider regularly dealing with mortals to be lowly or dishonorable work, so the task of taking care of the Packs' Herd or Retainers is oen given to newer recruits or formalized as a punishment role with names like Rector, Dog Catcher, Flesh Wrangler, or Blood Mopper. When several Packs work work closely together together or share a common territory or Rove for a prolonged period of time, one of the Priests Priests claims the title title of Bishop or Archbishop. is declaration is then ceeed wih Bld Bh B h (ee g. 121/131) ule 121/131) ule disagreements arise between the Priests over who shall ascend to leadership. ese disagreements are oen settled bloodlessly, bloodlessly, but a Monomacy puts the matter to rest if two contenders are too evenly matched in prestige or bravado.
Non-Stop Disaster Cliqu Clique e JYHAD CELL PAC K
Fatima “Buzzsaw” Arslan--Twisted flesh
A Sabbat player can buy Backgrounds for their Pack
Mawla is a Salubri Priscus
as communal Resources that any Packmate can
that helps the pack out when they need to travel
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The Pack Priest can veto any Background purchase that goes against the Pack's focus. These dots are refunded back to the player, though a Priest should be careful not to alienate their Pack by denying them something they depend on. Flaws are taken by the Pack through consensus guided by their Priest with the Storyteller's approval. Just as with Backgrounds, Pack aws are communal. Pack aws grant dots that must be spent on the Pack.
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P < r i Laurent “Sis” Cassis e s t Keeps a ghoul
Pack Goals Let’s eat the Prince ■
access, but Merits cannot usually be bought this way.
Sabbat The Black Hand - Definitive Edition
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Eric “Eyes” Oldson --
PACK DOTS
shaping shovel head-> Darva “Doll” A x l > u l < e . - a o y r e d e u s y p i a t g e i m s s m o i h L e o t r p h l e < e d s c h e v t v i o e o a g w n h h i s t a a s y e C e g t h n n t c p t w a u g r b n h e i e s r d , a a t e e t r l h u s i s s r a a e b r l i t n f i e u s h b w s t d e , t l e r ’ r a n t n l o a s o f a i l C h c e C w s u < T t a i t t s b u s r o o p A -
n - a n o N -N o l s s d r l A O ” ” s w---Hard to kill, that’s useful-> e a y s z E z
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