Alucinor
You probably haven’t seen me watching while you sleep, but you fear me when you’re awake. In those moments between slumber and awareness, when you’re paralyzed by all the hidden things around you, before they resolve into the mundane.
The rapacious, cannibalistic nature of Kindred lends them a nightmarish quality in fiction, but the Alucinor reside within those horrid dreams. This is not to say that they are nothing more than figments of imagination. Rather, the Alucinor have a powerful sensitivity to dreams and nightmares. While the potent psyche of the Beast allows some Kindred to invade the minds of mortals, the mind of a “Sandman” roams the dreams of other beings, collecting imagery and sometimes encroaching on mortal slumber with a restless, crawling sense of horror.
While evidence points to the foundation of the Alucinor sometime around A.D. 450, the bloodline has always remained small in numbers. For the most part, Sandmen have remained behind the scenes, using their curious oneiromancy to advise Princes or embarrass enemies. The most prominent, recent and known Alucinor appearance focused on one Ariadne Metaxas, a Greek Cypriot Mekhet, who created a stir in 1931 when she evidenced the unusual capabilities of the line. She was alleged to have sent dream-images to several of Paris’ established Kindred before she arrived at her first salon in the city, conveying a recognizable image of herself before they’d ever met. Ultimately, Metaxas proved to be little more than a social butterfly who’d attuned herself to the Blood after a series of haunting dreams. By 1935, she succumbed to increasingly traumatic nightmares. After becoming little more than a shattered husk of her former self, obsessed with the then-nascent writings of Carl Jung, she disappeared from the social scene. Sightings of Alucinor have remained uncommon since. Perhaps a dozen have made their way through American cities in the last decade.
Alucinor generally fall into one of two social categories: those whose obsession with dreams leads them into inward-focused detachment, and those who retain a keen insight into others’ psyches. The former rarely interact with other vampires, shunning contact because the fever- dreams of torporous Kindred often convey powerful, terrifying imagery. The latter tend to be hangers-on at courts, using their peculiar insights to play on the hidden fears and desires of the undead. More than one Alucinor has parlayed her visions into a useful advisory position, educating a Prince or elder about his enemies in exchange for protection and favors.
Even more so than most Mekhet, the Alucinor have a bent for prophecy. Their ability to interpret stolen dreams gives members of the line an edge in fathoming the hidden motives of mortals and Kindred. Overexposure to others’ dreams can cause problems, though. Alucinor suffer from occasional intrusions of dreams into their waking moments. Their own nightmares can also warp due to the influence of strong emotions from other sleepers, causing them to experience false memories. Much like Kindred who spend too much time in Torpor, Alucinor can be uncertain of what memories are fact and what are imagined. Sandmen who become highly attuned to dreams are often withdrawn and cryptic, given to conclusions based less on logic than on hallucinatory insight. Most fear Torpor and the inevitable nightmares that it portends.
On one recent occasion, an exclamatory Alucinor demanded audience at a Kindred gathering in order to give dire predictions based on the hidden tensions of the city’s political elite. His warnings proved at least partially correct. He suffered Final Death within a week when a particularly torrid nightmare gripped him and sent him sleepwalking during the day.
While evidence points to the foundation of the Alucinor sometime around A.D. 450, the bloodline has always remained small in numbers. For the most part, Sandmen have remained behind the scenes, using their curious oneiromancy to advise Princes or embarrass enemies. The most prominent, recent and known Alucinor appearance focused on one Ariadne Metaxas, a Greek Cypriot Mekhet, who created a stir in 1931 when she evidenced the unusual capabilities of the line. She was alleged to have sent dream-images to several of Paris’ established Kindred before she arrived at her first salon in the city, conveying a recognizable image of herself before they’d ever met. Ultimately, Metaxas proved to be little more than a social butterfly who’d attuned herself to the Blood after a series of haunting dreams. By 1935, she succumbed to increasingly traumatic nightmares. After becoming little more than a shattered husk of her former self, obsessed with the then-nascent writings of Carl Jung, she disappeared from the social scene. Sightings of Alucinor have remained uncommon since. Perhaps a dozen have made their way through American cities in the last decade.
Alucinor generally fall into one of two social categories: those whose obsession with dreams leads them into inward-focused detachment, and those who retain a keen insight into others’ psyches. The former rarely interact with other vampires, shunning contact because the fever- dreams of torporous Kindred often convey powerful, terrifying imagery. The latter tend to be hangers-on at courts, using their peculiar insights to play on the hidden fears and desires of the undead. More than one Alucinor has parlayed her visions into a useful advisory position, educating a Prince or elder about his enemies in exchange for protection and favors.
Even more so than most Mekhet, the Alucinor have a bent for prophecy. Their ability to interpret stolen dreams gives members of the line an edge in fathoming the hidden motives of mortals and Kindred. Overexposure to others’ dreams can cause problems, though. Alucinor suffer from occasional intrusions of dreams into their waking moments. Their own nightmares can also warp due to the influence of strong emotions from other sleepers, causing them to experience false memories. Much like Kindred who spend too much time in Torpor, Alucinor can be uncertain of what memories are fact and what are imagined. Sandmen who become highly attuned to dreams are often withdrawn and cryptic, given to conclusions based less on logic than on hallucinatory insight. Most fear Torpor and the inevitable nightmares that it portends.
On one recent occasion, an exclamatory Alucinor demanded audience at a Kindred gathering in order to give dire predictions based on the hidden tensions of the city’s political elite. His warnings proved at least partially correct. He suffered Final Death within a week when a particularly torrid nightmare gripped him and sent him sleepwalking during the day.
Culture
Culture and cultural heritage
Background: The Alucinor bloodline has no moratorium on membership; Mekhet become Sandmen by personal predilection rather than by some sort of initiation. Exact membership numbers are impossible to determine, as the Alucinor would never congregate as a whole. Rather, they tend to spring from Mekhet who have an attraction to symbolism. Those who give themselves over to fantasies, flights of fancy or twisted imaginings. Alucinor often quest for the cryptic meaning hidden in some form of art, whether by seeking the underpinnings of James Joyce’s writing, by searching for connections to reality in Salvador Dali’s paintings, or by whispering prayers to every Catholic Saint over a reliquary saved from destruction during the Dark Ages. These perlustrations through abstraction can lead to insight or madness. A vampire, whatever his reason to attune to the bloodline, tends to become consumed with symbolism to the point of losing functionality. For most would-be Alucinor, this is simply a journey into understanding a greater aspect of their own nature and subconscious urges.
When an Alucinor creates a new Kindred (a rare event), the convert is as likely as not to go his own way. Choices of progeny can range from the lures that attract normal vampires — utility, sensuality, camaraderie — to esoteric choices based on a moment of symbolism. Childer are not coerced into joining the lineage, although those who go out of their way to direct their blood in a different direction generally drift away from their sires. Outsider Mekhet who force themselves into alignment with the lineage may garner some degree of scorn or respect, depending on their approach. Those who don’t appreciate the significance of dream interpretation are often rebuffed, on the rare occasion of a bloodline meeting.
Legend aside, the Alucinor definitely predate the modern era. The effects of their Insomnium Discipline may contribute to medieval stories of succubi. (Indeed, The Lancea Sanctum is quick to caution that this possible influence reinforces the possibility of demonic influence in the bloodline.) During the Renaissance, when artists called upon Muses and dreams for inspiration, the Alucinor may have had a hand in some of the disturbing (and later surreal) art that came out of the period.
If there is a founder from ancient times, her actual identity remains shrouded. Ariadne Metaxas supposedly aligned herself to the lineage after several months of communion in dreams, chasing after a barely visible image of an androgynous figure. This figure, presumably the line’s progenitor, has never been met in person in the modern age — at least, as far as anyone knows. Alucinor who commit Diablerie reportedly suffer intense nightmares in which a shrouded figure beckons to them, accusingly or hungrily. It is even remotely possible that the first Alucinor has herself become nothing more than a roaming nightmare, limited to communion with her line through rare glimpses into their sleeping psyches.
Alucinor history in Kindred society primarily concerns the few who sell their services for political gain. This practice gives the Alucinor something of a mercenary reputation. As far as anyone knows, there has never been an Alucinor Prince, but there have been multiple Alucinor advisors to the throne.
When an Alucinor creates a new Kindred (a rare event), the convert is as likely as not to go his own way. Choices of progeny can range from the lures that attract normal vampires — utility, sensuality, camaraderie — to esoteric choices based on a moment of symbolism. Childer are not coerced into joining the lineage, although those who go out of their way to direct their blood in a different direction generally drift away from their sires. Outsider Mekhet who force themselves into alignment with the lineage may garner some degree of scorn or respect, depending on their approach. Those who don’t appreciate the significance of dream interpretation are often rebuffed, on the rare occasion of a bloodline meeting.
History
In spite of the Alucinor low profile until 1931, their history reaches back much further. Unreliable but recurring nightmares in the lineage suggest that the line founder was female, and she diablerized a much older vampire some time during the era of the Roman Empire. The imprint of the elder’s personality permanently twisted the psyche of the then-fledgling, leaving her sensitive to others’ strong emotions and personalities while she slept. A few Alucinor even speculate that the diablerized elder’s personality has fragmented and resides in every Alucinor, emerging during slumber to look for tiny pieces of dreams that remind it of its former self. Since the founder remains hidden away, the brood uses the name Alucinor from the Latin term for the world of dreams. No other proper name is known.Legend aside, the Alucinor definitely predate the modern era. The effects of their Insomnium Discipline may contribute to medieval stories of succubi. (Indeed, The Lancea Sanctum is quick to caution that this possible influence reinforces the possibility of demonic influence in the bloodline.) During the Renaissance, when artists called upon Muses and dreams for inspiration, the Alucinor may have had a hand in some of the disturbing (and later surreal) art that came out of the period.
If there is a founder from ancient times, her actual identity remains shrouded. Ariadne Metaxas supposedly aligned herself to the lineage after several months of communion in dreams, chasing after a barely visible image of an androgynous figure. This figure, presumably the line’s progenitor, has never been met in person in the modern age — at least, as far as anyone knows. Alucinor who commit Diablerie reportedly suffer intense nightmares in which a shrouded figure beckons to them, accusingly or hungrily. It is even remotely possible that the first Alucinor has herself become nothing more than a roaming nightmare, limited to communion with her line through rare glimpses into their sleeping psyches.
Alucinor history in Kindred society primarily concerns the few who sell their services for political gain. This practice gives the Alucinor something of a mercenary reputation. As far as anyone knows, there has never been an Alucinor Prince, but there have been multiple Alucinor advisors to the throne.
Society and Culture
The Alucinor lack a coherent organization of their own. They usually retain their mortal habits and dress for a time, those behaviors falling away until only bits and pieces are left and a line member cannot even remember why they were important. Each Alucinor’s outlook on society, mores and personal morality is therefore an unconscious amalgamation of her mortal experiences, her vampiric urges, and the jarring images that lurk in her dreams. The danger of running afoul of another Alucinor in dreams means that the Sandmen tend to give one another a wide berth.Common Dress code
Appearance: Although young line members tend to dress in a manner suited to the time of their Embrace, the toll of an existence half-dominated by fantasy and whimsy causes them to become eccentric over time. New Alucinor favor tasteful, relaxed clothes from the mortal world. Eventually, the pressures of nightmares cause these undead to develop a distracted air. They give up on following kine fashions, instead becoming stuck in the same styles they wore when they joined the bloodline. Some go so far as to eschew care for their appearance completely, becoming haggard and unkempt. Alucinor who delve deeply into Insomnium sometimes become so distanced from their physical states that they wear only tattered nightgowns, worn-out ensembles or threadbare antiques, perceiving the physical world as somehow less real than their own dreams. Sandmen who remain tied to Kindred politics favor the dark, forbidding attire more common to the Mekhet in general.
Art & Architecture
Haven: Young and old Alucinor alike prefer secure, secretive lairs where they can conduct their studies of psychology in seclusion. For Alucinor with a bent toward politics, this means a compound in the city, usually in an academic, upper-class location. A few Alucinor even take up residence as “permanent guests” with their patrons. Sandmen who eschew politics gravitate toward rural estates, where they can avoid dealing with other Kindred. Rustic Sandmen focus ever more deeply on peeling back layers of meaning from their odd visions. Alucinor are as likely as any other Kindred to have (or not have)
Major organizations
Covenant: Those Alucinor who focus on dream symbolism tend to avoid the social trappings of Kindred society and remain nominally unbound. Nevertheless, the Kindred need for social acclaim (or the pressure of politics) sometimes drives a Sandman into sporadic contact with certain others. The Ordo Dracul has the most contact with the Alucinor. The Order goes out of its way to puzzle out occult symbols in Alucinor dreams, while Sandmen appreciate the society’s focus on exploring the mysteries of the vampiric condition. Members of The Ordo Dracul suspect that Alucinor attunement to dreams may reflect a higher level of consciousness, and could be a stepping stone in the process of relieving the undead condition.
Some Princes of Carthian or Invictus bent seek the Alucinor out for their insights into the Kindred psyche, a role that the unscrupulous Sandman may even relish. Line members who don’t eschew society often fall into one of these camps, because resultant political Contacts are useful in night-to-night survival. The worldly focus of both covenants also helps to ground the Alucinor in affairs of the present.
At least one line member has taken his dreams as divine messages and sought out membership in The Lancea Sanctum. The Spear as a whole has not yet decided whether the Alucinor are touched by holy insight or haunted by demons. Nevertheless, a significant faction argues that Alucinor dreams may be a sign of divine inspiration, or possibly visions of Heaven and Hell, so they merit further investigation.
The Circle of the Crone sees Alucinor insight as a feminine aspect, but the bloodline itself is equally composed of males and females, and the Sandmen generally have no special interest in the philosophies of Acolytes in any case. Some Alucinor believe the Circle may have a means to control nightmares, and seek out that information, but Kindred occultism being as jealously guarded as it is, no remedies have been revealed.
Organization: There’s no organization to the Alucinor beyond their shared connection to dreams. Of course, Sandmen in reasonably close proximity become aware of one another quickly; use of the most basic Insomnium powers can let them sense the mélange of dreams that afflict any of their own kind. The Alucinor are probably one of the few bloodlines with a motive to actively discourage interaction with others of their blood. These vampires dislike being reminded of their particular burden, and tend to be embittered when forced into the company of others who represent their own shortcomings. Even Alucinor sires and childer tend to become estranged after a short time.
Some Princes of Carthian or Invictus bent seek the Alucinor out for their insights into the Kindred psyche, a role that the unscrupulous Sandman may even relish. Line members who don’t eschew society often fall into one of these camps, because resultant political Contacts are useful in night-to-night survival. The worldly focus of both covenants also helps to ground the Alucinor in affairs of the present.
At least one line member has taken his dreams as divine messages and sought out membership in The Lancea Sanctum. The Spear as a whole has not yet decided whether the Alucinor are touched by holy insight or haunted by demons. Nevertheless, a significant faction argues that Alucinor dreams may be a sign of divine inspiration, or possibly visions of Heaven and Hell, so they merit further investigation.
The Circle of the Crone sees Alucinor insight as a feminine aspect, but the bloodline itself is equally composed of males and females, and the Sandmen generally have no special interest in the philosophies of Acolytes in any case. Some Alucinor believe the Circle may have a means to control nightmares, and seek out that information, but Kindred occultism being as jealously guarded as it is, no remedies have been revealed.
Organization: There’s no organization to the Alucinor beyond their shared connection to dreams. Of course, Sandmen in reasonably close proximity become aware of one another quickly; use of the most basic Insomnium powers can let them sense the mélange of dreams that afflict any of their own kind. The Alucinor are probably one of the few bloodlines with a motive to actively discourage interaction with others of their blood. These vampires dislike being reminded of their particular burden, and tend to be embittered when forced into the company of others who represent their own shortcomings. Even Alucinor sires and childer tend to become estranged after a short time.
Nickname: Sandmen
Character Creation: Most Alucinor are startlingly insightful, although the practicality of their erudition is another matter. As questers seeking self-knowledge and understanding of symbols, line members usually have sharp, intuitive minds. Mental Attributes tend to be high, with Social Attributes well-rounded and Physical Attributes ranging from frail to average. Many Alucinor have a low Resolve, though, stemming from their inability to separate fact from fancy. The Alucinor also tend to rely on Mental and Social Skills, while Physical Skills atrophy to rudimentary levels. Alucinor who’ve been around for any length of time often invest a great deal of effort into supporting a proper Haven, so that they can remain closeted away in safety.
Bloodline Disciplines: Auspex, Celerity, Insomnium, Obfuscate
Weakness: As inheritors of Mekhet Blood, Alucinor bear the burden of their parent clan. Whenever Sandmen suffer damage from sunlight or fire, they take an additional point of aggravated damage from that source.
Yet, strange dreams and nightmares also trouble an Alucinor with every day of corpse-like rest. Over time, these visions intrude on the vampire’s waking hours. Sandmen sometimes have difficulty remembering whether a particular trauma was real or just a hallucination. An Alucinor never regains Willpower as a result of a day’s sleep. The vampire can also have difficulty distinguishing whether she is currently awake or asleep and dreaming. One scene per chapter (game session), the Storyteller may inject a piece of delusion into the Alucinor’s experiences, such as an overheard snatch of conversation that doesn’t seem real, or a brief glimpse of an event that may or may not actually happen. These hallucinations rarely last more than a few seconds and usually inject only a single object or phrase into the Alucinor’s mind. When they happen, however, all rolls made for the character suffer a –1 penalty for the remainder of the scene.
From time to time, Alucinor also experience bits of dreams creeping into their conscious moments as a side effect of the Insomnium Discipline, which can lead to even further confusion. Not even powers such as Auspex help alleviate this problem (the subject’s mind excels at tricking itself, after all).
Concepts: Dreamtime shaman, information broker, lunatic, political analyst, oracle, psychologist, sleep therapist, surrealist artist
Thanks to hallucinations brought on by waking dreams, Alucinor sometimes experience “events” that aren’t real, or misremember events in twisted ways. Ultimately, the burden is upon the player to portray the unique flaw of the bloodline, but players who insist on refusing to do so should certainly suffer its effects by Storyteller decree — and chronically. Alucinor can, after all, be victimized while asleep by the Insomnium powers of other Sandmen, or caused to misremember crucial facts. Since the Storyteller is the only arbiter on what any given character sees and hears, she can selectively edit a character’s experiences. Maybe a line member can puzzle out what’s true or false with enough reasoning and careful records, but who’s to say that some cherished memory isn’t anything more than a fantasy? This weakness could be handled as something like the Amnesia Flaw, but without any experience point rewards for portraying the trait.
Parent ethnicities
Bloodline Disciplines: Auspex, Celerity, Insomnium, Obfuscate
Weakness: As inheritors of Mekhet Blood, Alucinor bear the burden of their parent clan. Whenever Sandmen suffer damage from sunlight or fire, they take an additional point of aggravated damage from that source.
Yet, strange dreams and nightmares also trouble an Alucinor with every day of corpse-like rest. Over time, these visions intrude on the vampire’s waking hours. Sandmen sometimes have difficulty remembering whether a particular trauma was real or just a hallucination. An Alucinor never regains Willpower as a result of a day’s sleep. The vampire can also have difficulty distinguishing whether she is currently awake or asleep and dreaming. One scene per chapter (game session), the Storyteller may inject a piece of delusion into the Alucinor’s experiences, such as an overheard snatch of conversation that doesn’t seem real, or a brief glimpse of an event that may or may not actually happen. These hallucinations rarely last more than a few seconds and usually inject only a single object or phrase into the Alucinor’s mind. When they happen, however, all rolls made for the character suffer a –1 penalty for the remainder of the scene.
From time to time, Alucinor also experience bits of dreams creeping into their conscious moments as a side effect of the Insomnium Discipline, which can lead to even further confusion. Not even powers such as Auspex help alleviate this problem (the subject’s mind excels at tricking itself, after all).
Concepts: Dreamtime shaman, information broker, lunatic, political analyst, oracle, psychologist, sleep therapist, surrealist artist