Bulls
“If you want.”
The Bull family is a flesh-and-blood manifestation of the rights the Invictus has awarded itself over ghouls and kine. The Bulls are the property of a handful of Invictus amateur breeders fascinated with the influence they can exert over mortal blood in just a few centuries. Though all Bulls are so-called working dogs, they are as much a hobby for armchair Society biologists and naturalists. Many Bulls are born and raised, used and sent to their deaths with words of their importance and value to their masters, but the truth is that most Bulls are an academic diversion, an experiment for self-important monsters tinkering with breeder texts and human lives.
The origin of the Bull “family” — or breed, in Society terms — begins with an ancestral ghoul family called the Bartons. The Bartons were a mortal family turned thrall in the 1700s who served several landed and titled Invictus members in France, Belgium and Germany. The Bartons were a rather small and unremarkable ghoul line.
In the 19th century, a coterie of Society quasi-intellectuals operating in Paris got the idea to create a “breed of kine to serve us as a hunting hound serves them.” Unfortunately for the poor Bartons, these Invictus members were their regnants and masters. From 1820 to 1890, these Society thinkers went about mating pairs of the Bartons, and some outside kine, to produce a desired collection of conformation traits, based mostly on size and endurance.
The early nights did not go well. The Bartons were not only being inbred at an alarming and dangerous rate, producing a sickening number of deformed and stillborn children, but the already small Barton line was dying out in the process, due to communicable illnesses and suicides brought on by awful “kenneling” conditions. To make matters worse, their breeders revised the list of desired traits time and again, so that any specimen might manifest traits that had been desirable to the fickle eyes of the breeders a few years ago but were not anymore.
Over time, many of the Kindred breeders became bored with their lack of progress and abandoned the work. A handful kept up their efforts, however, through the 1890s and into the 20th century. Though no Bulls survive from that era, it seems that one or two were sent or brought to the Americas, either with a migrating regnant or as gifts to distant and unknown lords as “show ghouls.” In those nights, however, the breed was tough but not at all uniform. The Barton family essentially died out in those nights, scattered and deformed out of any resemblance to itself.
The name “Bull” was given not to a family itself, but to any ghoul of the period that was bred for brawling or sport as a part of this gruesome pastime. In time, however, it seems that multiple, independent fads of “fight breeding” took new root among Kindred in cities in New England and the American South as well as Mexico and South America. These scattered fads led to a variety of rare, local breeds of Bulls, most in some way descended from the original Bartons. The key to successfully manifesting conformation points lay in the mating of Bartondescended ghouls with thralls from other families and, sometimes, a dose of mortal blood or mystically empowered Vitae.
Although most Bull-breeders of those nights kept studbooks or registries of the pairings they worked with, a good deal of the information in those books has proven to be erroneous, misleading or confused by modern readers. A great many of the domains in which Bull-breeders once resided have since given up the fad. Thus, the breed characteristics of all the cousin families of Bulls have somewhat normalized as dominant characteristics go un-tampered with in new generations.
Bull populations have dwindled dramatically since the 1950s due to their violent and perilous work as guards and participants in pit fights. In many of the domains where the Bulls were once a common sight in Kindredcontrolled back rooms and underground fighting clubs, the Bulls have become nothing but fondly recalled tales or bizarre freaks in faded photographs. Most modern Kindred have probably never heard of the Bull families; few have ever seen a Bull in action.
The origin of the Bull “family” — or breed, in Society terms — begins with an ancestral ghoul family called the Bartons. The Bartons were a mortal family turned thrall in the 1700s who served several landed and titled Invictus members in France, Belgium and Germany. The Bartons were a rather small and unremarkable ghoul line.
In the 19th century, a coterie of Society quasi-intellectuals operating in Paris got the idea to create a “breed of kine to serve us as a hunting hound serves them.” Unfortunately for the poor Bartons, these Invictus members were their regnants and masters. From 1820 to 1890, these Society thinkers went about mating pairs of the Bartons, and some outside kine, to produce a desired collection of conformation traits, based mostly on size and endurance.
The early nights did not go well. The Bartons were not only being inbred at an alarming and dangerous rate, producing a sickening number of deformed and stillborn children, but the already small Barton line was dying out in the process, due to communicable illnesses and suicides brought on by awful “kenneling” conditions. To make matters worse, their breeders revised the list of desired traits time and again, so that any specimen might manifest traits that had been desirable to the fickle eyes of the breeders a few years ago but were not anymore.
Over time, many of the Kindred breeders became bored with their lack of progress and abandoned the work. A handful kept up their efforts, however, through the 1890s and into the 20th century. Though no Bulls survive from that era, it seems that one or two were sent or brought to the Americas, either with a migrating regnant or as gifts to distant and unknown lords as “show ghouls.” In those nights, however, the breed was tough but not at all uniform. The Barton family essentially died out in those nights, scattered and deformed out of any resemblance to itself.
The name “Bull” was given not to a family itself, but to any ghoul of the period that was bred for brawling or sport as a part of this gruesome pastime. In time, however, it seems that multiple, independent fads of “fight breeding” took new root among Kindred in cities in New England and the American South as well as Mexico and South America. These scattered fads led to a variety of rare, local breeds of Bulls, most in some way descended from the original Bartons. The key to successfully manifesting conformation points lay in the mating of Bartondescended ghouls with thralls from other families and, sometimes, a dose of mortal blood or mystically empowered Vitae.
Although most Bull-breeders of those nights kept studbooks or registries of the pairings they worked with, a good deal of the information in those books has proven to be erroneous, misleading or confused by modern readers. A great many of the domains in which Bull-breeders once resided have since given up the fad. Thus, the breed characteristics of all the cousin families of Bulls have somewhat normalized as dominant characteristics go un-tampered with in new generations.
Bull populations have dwindled dramatically since the 1950s due to their violent and perilous work as guards and participants in pit fights. In many of the domains where the Bulls were once a common sight in Kindredcontrolled back rooms and underground fighting clubs, the Bulls have become nothing but fondly recalled tales or bizarre freaks in faded photographs. Most modern Kindred have probably never heard of the Bull families; few have ever seen a Bull in action.
Naming Traditions
Other names
Nickname: Working Dogs, Heavyweights or Strongbacks. Also, rarely, Bartons
Culture
Art & Architecture
Havens: Though modern Bulls may even keep their own apartments and homes in some backwater domains, Heavyweights have historically been penned like dogs, where they cannot be tampered with by rivals and cannot participate in unwanted couplings. Public awareness of simple genetics and human medicine also makes it harder for Bulls to move around in public, particularly in groups. Where once a Bull might have been seen as a freakish carnie or grotesque foreigner by ignorant locals, tonight they’re more likely photographed, commented on in the media and pursued by medical students and unwanted weirdophiles. As a result, most Bulls are kept “at home,” in havens and private pens where they can’t be stumbled upon by outsiders.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
Appearance: Naturally, the isolation of Kindred breeders all over the world means that a Bull in one domain may bear little physical resemblance to a Bull of another generation — and may have little in common genetically with distant Bulls — but a few common characteristics can be found in virtually all Bulls, due in part to the splintered families’ common ancestries and due to a somewhat regular list of desired conformation points in later years. Generations of breeding experiments and tampering with the Working Dog blood has given these ghouls a look not unlike that of a pit bull: no necks, tiny slit-like eyes, smooth faces with squarish and sturdy snouts, tiny ears and wide, flat mouths. Most Bulls are virtually hairless, with large hands and squat legs. The original breeding stock — the Bartons — were Caucasian, but years of genetic and mystic tampering have left many, if not most, Bulls with a strangely alien look that doesn’t quite fit any single ethnicity and doesn’t sit well with most kine. It’s not uncommon for a Strongback to be pinkly pale or almost red, like the color of a welt.
Major organizations
Clans: The first genuine Working Dogs were the result of careless, misinformed experimentations by a coterie of Daeva and Ventrue vampires fascinated by what was, at the time, the new theory of evolution. It was the clash of the Daeva fascination with mortals and the Ventrue need to sculpt and control those beneath them that defined the existence of the ghouls from this family. The facts of the family’s history show this to be true, but the nature of the Working Dogs doesn’t point so obviously to Vitae and Succubi and Lords. Bulls inherited supernatural capacities for strength and fortitude from their vampiric breeders, but seemingly little else. Bulls are blunt brutes and weak-minded followers, for the most part — the vampires who created them may be glad to have them, but Kindred certainly cannot truly respect them.
Since those early nights, Strongbacks have come to serve Kindred of every clan. The relationship a Bull has with a regnant has less to do with common aspects of the blood and more to do with the needs of the vampire.
Covenants: Working Dogs originated with Kindred of the Invictus, and tonight it seems more Kindred of Quality keep Bulls than vampires from any other covenant, but this was not always the case. Bull-breeding as a hobby — and Bullblooding as a sport — spread more by individual interest than covenant custom or tradition. At one time, in some domains, Bulls were kept by a Kindred of every covenant and the Unbound. The trend of Bull-blooding popped up among American Carthians all along the Mississippi River in the 1920s, for example, who seemingly all independently learned of the practice from a handful of Bull-breeding nomads.
Organization: In those cities where Bulls are still found, they are typically kept in the employ of very few, associated vampires. Bulls are historically kept in “kennels” of mated pairs or siblings (sometimes called “pups,” regardless of age). Rarely does any Bull owner keep just one.
Modern Bulls live much longer lives than their fathers and grandfathers did. Nowadays, the existence of Bulls is as much for show as anything else. Most modern Bullmatches are not fought to the death unless the contest is being used to resolve some matter between the Bulls’ owners, whether financial, political or honorary.
In some domains, a Bull may be seen as a breach of the Masquerade waiting to happen. Keeping a Bull may require special permission from the Prince or other lord. Breeding Bulls is probably even more tightly regulated, if not forbidden altogether.
Since those early nights, Strongbacks have come to serve Kindred of every clan. The relationship a Bull has with a regnant has less to do with common aspects of the blood and more to do with the needs of the vampire.
Covenants: Working Dogs originated with Kindred of the Invictus, and tonight it seems more Kindred of Quality keep Bulls than vampires from any other covenant, but this was not always the case. Bull-breeding as a hobby — and Bullblooding as a sport — spread more by individual interest than covenant custom or tradition. At one time, in some domains, Bulls were kept by a Kindred of every covenant and the Unbound. The trend of Bull-blooding popped up among American Carthians all along the Mississippi River in the 1920s, for example, who seemingly all independently learned of the practice from a handful of Bull-breeding nomads.
Organization: In those cities where Bulls are still found, they are typically kept in the employ of very few, associated vampires. Bulls are historically kept in “kennels” of mated pairs or siblings (sometimes called “pups,” regardless of age). Rarely does any Bull owner keep just one.
Modern Bulls live much longer lives than their fathers and grandfathers did. Nowadays, the existence of Bulls is as much for show as anything else. Most modern Bullmatches are not fought to the death unless the contest is being used to resolve some matter between the Bulls’ owners, whether financial, political or honorary.
In some domains, a Bull may be seen as a breach of the Masquerade waiting to happen. Keeping a Bull may require special permission from the Prince or other lord. Breeding Bulls is probably even more tightly regulated, if not forbidden altogether.
Strengths: Working Dogs are abnormally large. All Bulls gain the Giant Merit for free. In addition, a Bull with two or more dots in Strength automatically gains the Strong Back Merit for free (See pp. 112–113 in the World of Darkness Rulebook). The specialized breeding that has gone into creating this ghoul family was designed to make Bulls difficult to fight by hand; all called shots intended to target a Bull’s heart, neck, eyes, mouth or ears suffer an additional –2 penalty, to a maximum penalty of –5. Physical Attributes are always primary for a Working Dog, while Mental Attributes are always tertiary. Bulls are unnaturally effective fighters, as well; they gain a free Specialty in the Brawl Skill, typically stemming from their raw, brute power.
Finally, a Bull may select either Resilience or Vigor as his initial Discipline, regardless of what clan made him.
Weaknesses: The human body wasn’t intended to support the girth of a Bull. All Bulls over 18 years of age develop problems in their hips, knees and ankles, stemming from their weight. All adult Bulls, therefore, effectively suffer the Lame Flaw (see p. 219 of the World of Darkness Rulebook), though a Bull gains no extra experience points when this Flaw comes into play. A Bull cannot gain a dot in Celerity until he has at least one dot in both Resilience and Vigor. Finally, a Bull’s Dexterity can never be higher than his Strength or his Stamina.
Concepts: Loyal bodyguard, unthinking thug, prudent escort, fearless man-at-arms, fearsome bouncer, cruel ruffian, gentle giant
Sometime early in the 20th century, the practice of pitting Bulls against one another in cage matches was stuck with the name “Bull-blooding,” and the name has never really been shaken. At the height of some domains’ Bull-blooding crazes, a single night might see a half-dozen matches between two, three or four Bulls. Some matches were fought to the death, some to submission or “defeat” (a term with many, often intentionally vague and crooked definitions). It was not uncommon for Kindred to wager breeding rights or even feeding rights in some domains.
Surely, in a few domains, Bull-blooding still goes on. Pairs of unarmed Strongbacks can sometimes be found fighting for tiny audiences in dry swimming pools or empty parking lots. Many more Bull-bloodings go on in large men’s rooms, seedy bathhouses and low-rent health clubs, where blood can be hosed away. Several Bull corpses, beaten into heaps of broken bone and meat, turned up in empty cargo containers from Philadelphia to Baltimore during the summer of 1987. Bull corpses are still sometimes found in spent quarries and abandoned industrial sites throughout the Americas.
Finally, a Bull may select either Resilience or Vigor as his initial Discipline, regardless of what clan made him.
Weaknesses: The human body wasn’t intended to support the girth of a Bull. All Bulls over 18 years of age develop problems in their hips, knees and ankles, stemming from their weight. All adult Bulls, therefore, effectively suffer the Lame Flaw (see p. 219 of the World of Darkness Rulebook), though a Bull gains no extra experience points when this Flaw comes into play. A Bull cannot gain a dot in Celerity until he has at least one dot in both Resilience and Vigor. Finally, a Bull’s Dexterity can never be higher than his Strength or his Stamina.
Concepts: Loyal bodyguard, unthinking thug, prudent escort, fearless man-at-arms, fearsome bouncer, cruel ruffian, gentle giant
Bull-Blooding
Sometime early in the 20th century, the practice of pitting Bulls against one another in cage matches was stuck with the name “Bull-blooding,” and the name has never really been shaken. At the height of some domains’ Bull-blooding crazes, a single night might see a half-dozen matches between two, three or four Bulls. Some matches were fought to the death, some to submission or “defeat” (a term with many, often intentionally vague and crooked definitions). It was not uncommon for Kindred to wager breeding rights or even feeding rights in some domains.Surely, in a few domains, Bull-blooding still goes on. Pairs of unarmed Strongbacks can sometimes be found fighting for tiny audiences in dry swimming pools or empty parking lots. Many more Bull-bloodings go on in large men’s rooms, seedy bathhouses and low-rent health clubs, where blood can be hosed away. Several Bull corpses, beaten into heaps of broken bone and meat, turned up in empty cargo containers from Philadelphia to Baltimore during the summer of 1987. Bull corpses are still sometimes found in spent quarries and abandoned industrial sites throughout the Americas.