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Antediluvians (World of Darkness)

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Antediluvians is a term used by White Wolf Publishing in their fictional role-playing game set in the World of Darkness, Vampire: The Masquerade, which is now owned and published by Onyx Path Publishing.

Contents

According to in-game legends, antediluvians are the vampires of the Third Generation. Supposedly, they were created by Cain's firstborn childer, Enoch, Irad, and Zillah. Game lore holds there to be thirteen of them, and their sins are to blame for God causing the Great Deluge.

From each of these vampires come the thirteen original clans: Assamites, Brujah, Cappadocians, Followers of Set, Gangrel, Lasombra, Malkavians, Nosferatu, Ravnos, Salubri, Toreador, Tzimisce, and Ventrue. The game's lore mentions that each clan's weaknesses comes from a curse Caine set upon the Antediluvian founders of the clan. Apocrypha of the Book of Nod implies that there may be other unknown antediluvians who never sired. There is one clan not mentioned: Clan Tremere. This clan, from in-game lore, was created by a magic user from the House of Hermès called Tremere. After fighting an antediluvian and draining him, he became Kindred (the name other Vampires call their kind, instead of the vulgar name of Vampire) and sired 5 others, who reside in Vienna. It is said that those who are chosen to be "Embraced" are given a chalice with the blood of all 7 Kindred Lords, so as to be loyal to Clan without reservation. There is a rumour that if one of Clan Tremere has failed or has done anything to threaten the Clan or any Kindred in the Clan, that they are "Summoned" to Vienna and a sentence is passed upon them. No one that has been Summoned has ever been heard from again, thus this rumour can not be denied nor confirmed.

Absimilliard

  • Nictuku: The nosferatu clanbook has it that Absimilliard blood-bound all of his childer except for one woman, embraced in a moment of passion, who managed to run away. All Nosferatu are said to be descended from her. Absimilliard's other descendants are the Nictuku: massively powerful and vastly hideous monsters who seek to destroy the Nosferatu by their founder's will. It is their existence that drives the Nosferatu to gather information.
  • Nosferatu
  • Nosferatu antitribu
  • Hajj: Amongst Arabian Kindred (Ashirra), the Hajj are the Nosferatu defenders of Islam and wardens of the Keening, a mystical cry heard only by Ashirra that permeates the Arabian peninsula. Led by the fifth-generation Tarique, their philosophical outlook is sufficiently different that is has separated them from their clan as a distinct bloodline, and they have very different disciplines including thaumaturgical powers that emulate True Faith.
  • Guruhi: Laibon legacy

    • Arikel (Ishtar)

    The in-game founder of the Toreador clan.

  • Toreador
  • Toreador antitribu
  • Daughters of Cacophony: Experimented on by Malkavian Dr. Reiner Stotschka
  • Ishtarri: Laibon legacy

    • Ashur /Pisanob / Sargon / Laodice (Cappadocius)

  • Cappadocians: Extinct, in-game founder of the Capadocians
  • Lamia: Extinct, Lamia herself was a descendant and high priestess of Lilith and started the game-bloodline "Lamia"
  • Giovanni: in-game founder of clan Giovanni Diablerized Cappadocius
  • Families
  • Ghiberti
  • Rosselini
  • Milliners
  • della Passaglia
  • Dunsirn
  • Putanesca
  • St. John
  • Beryn
  • Rothstein
  • Li Weng
  • Hidalgo
  • Premascine: Sired by the Giovanni family before the diablerie of Cappadocius
  • Pisanob
  • Harbingers of Skulls
  • Mla Watu: Laibon legacy

    • Churka / Dracian / Ravanna (Zapathasura)

  • Ravnos in-game founder of the Ravnos clan.
  • Ravnos antitribu
  • Jati
  • Brahman
  • Kshatriyas
  • Vaisyas
  • Chandalas
  • Sudras
  • Kinyonyi: Laibon legacy

    • Ennoia

  • Gangrel: Gangrel characters are closest to their inner beasts, often acting very animalistic in nature. These characters typically live in the wilderness and have a close affinity to animals, with the ability to change shape. Although one of the original Camarilla clans, these loners became disaffected and ultimately left the sect. Their historical ties to protecting Gypsies brings them into in-game conflicts with the Ravnos.
  • Country Gangrel antitribu
  • Ahrimanes: Founded in-game by a Gangrel antitribu called Muricia, this Sabbat bloodline was formed by her use of a thaumaturgical ritual that mutates a Gangrel's appearance and abilities. In particular these characters have a discipline that deals with spirits of nature, rather than being able to change shape. They are an artificial bloodline as they must be created through this ritual. All members are female.
  • Greek Gangrel
  • City Gangrel antitribu
  • Lhiannan: Extinct, resulted from "The Crone" infusing a woodland spirit into a vampire
  • Anda: Extinct, Mongolian in-game bloodline that practiced the Ma discipline
  • Mariners
  • Noiad
  • Akunanse: Laibon legacy
  • Laibon: Bloodline of the Akunanse that came to Europe during the Dark Ages cycle of books.

    • Haqim (Assam)

  • Assamites clan in-game
  • Castes
  • Warrior Caste
  • Vizier Caste
  • Sorcerer Caste
  • Assamite antitribu:
  • Shango: Laibon legacy

    • [Lasombra] (Possibly Named: Laza Omri Bara)

  • Lasombra
  • Kiasyd: This bloodline was originally created in-game over a thousand years before the Sabbat existed, through an experiment run by the Lasombra using the blood of faeries. The fifth-generation Lasombra, Marconius, was radically changed physically, growing very tall and thin with angular features and black eyeballs. These characters have the ability to use a form of faerie magic.
  • Lasombra antitribu
  • Xi Dundu: Laibon legacy

    • Malkav

  • Malkavians: All members of this World of Darkness clan are blessed and cursed with madness of a variety of forms. Other characters feel that on one hand this affords them some enlightenment that others cannot see, and on the other hand makes them unpredictable and potentially dangerous. Although these characters are generally members of the Camarilla, their goals are understandably obscure. Malkavian characters may also be Anarchs or Sabbat antitribue. Individual Malkavians are often ignored by other Kindred, thinking them to be harmless.
  • Malkavian antitribu: Created when the ability Dementation was added to the game and spread in 1997.

    • Saulot

  • Salubri: A group of healer and warrior characters.
  • Salubri antitribu
  • Wu Zao
  • Nkulu Zao: Laibon legacy
  • Baali: a character line with demonic ties and theme. However, as Gehenna offers many conflicting end-game scenarios (including a few where the Baali have their own 3rd generation founder) Saulot's creation of the Baali is not strict canon.
  • Azaneali: Sterile; sired in conjunction with Lasombra. Only twelve sired.

    • Sutekh

  • Followers of Set: an Egyptian-themed character clan.
  • Serpents of the Light
  • Tlacique
  • Children of Osiris: Extinct, Osiris himself was possibly of clan Lasombra, however as the sect did not embrace as a rule new members were drawn from all clans
  • Daitya

    • Ilyes / Brujah

  • True Brujah: In ancient times the founding character, Ilyes, was diablerised by his childe Troile, from whom all Brujah descend. The so-called True Brujah characters are the remaining hidden descendants of Ilyes, not Troile. They have a vast grasp of power of the movement of time. The massively long term planning of these characters within the Tal'mahe'Ra make them seem ineffectual in the short term though.
  • Brujah: Often highly politically motivated and philosophical, these characters are typically outspoken and rebellious. They are passionate and prone to short tempers, descending into frenzy more easily. Brujah characters are both skilled at rhetoric and fighting, both of which finds them a useful place within the Camarilla. Their slightly chaotic nature is tolerated by the sect.
  • Brujah antitribu
  • Osebo: Laibon legacy

    • [Tzimisce] True name: Ynosh (Possibly Named: Mekhet)

  • Old Clan Tzimisce: These descendants of the Tzimisce clan's in-character founder predate the formation of the Sabbat, and even the appearance of Vicissitude (the Old Clan instead have Dominate). They are key members of the Tal'mahe'Ra, and lead the Shadow Crusade, a war on everyone infected with Vicissitude. This war was later retconned. They are few in number, fiercely independent and remain very traditional.
  • Tzimisce
  • Blood Brothers: A character class that was artificially created via Thaumaturgy and Vicissitude by Tzimisce and Tremere antitribu
  • Naglopers: Laibon legacy
  • Tremere: Blood stolen from Clan Tzimisce and diablerized Saulot
  • Tremere antitribu: Extinct
  • Telaveyic Tremere: Extinct
  • Gargoyles: Artificially created via Thaumaturgy

    • Veddhartha

  • Ventrue
  • Ventrue antitribu

    • Other bloodlines

  • Caitiff / Pander: Clanless vampires
  • Nagaraja: A group of Euthanatos mages turned themselves into vampires without being embraced, creating this bloodline artificially. These characters wield necromantic powers, but are also cannibalistic and must consume raw human flesh rather than just blood to survive. They are secretive members of the Tal'mahe'Ra and often reside in the Underworld (the land of the Wraiths).
  • Samedi: Possibly created by the Cappadocians, these characters look like rotting corpses.

    • Note

  • Vampire: Gehenna, released to end the Old World of Darkness scenarios, reveals that many of those vampires may still be active, and some have evolved into entities far beyond mortal or vampiric conditions.
  • The name of the Tzimisce Antediluvian was never revealed in-game, but was hinted to be Mehket.
  • The Lasombra Antediluvian's name was revealed in Shadows, the second book in the Clan Lasombra Trilogy, by Bruce Baugh.

    • References

    Antediluvians (World of Darkness) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA