Essentiaphagia
The founder of the Dragolescu bloodline, Ioan Dragolescu, was always fascinated by the spirits of the dead, even when he was mortal. After his Embrace and during his subsequent journey through unlife, Ioan developed what he called “the Essentiaphagia theory.” In his treatise, which he made available first to the Blue Hand in 1905 and then to The Ordo Dracul in 1913, he posits that Vitae is nourishing to Kindred not because blood contains some mysterious but vital chemical or alchemical ingredient, but because it is charged with the soul — the essentia — of the vessel. Animals, as creations of the Lord, carry enough of this essentia to nourish young Kindred, but God’s curse on vampires quickly develops a more serious appetite, barring them from feeding on lower beasts.
Since ghosts are beings of pure essentia, Dragolescu supposed it would be possible to feed on them directly, not only allowing a vampire to consume a more potent version of Vitae, but sidestepping many of the morale issues of feeding (since a ghosts cannot die again).
The biggest stumbling block for Dragolescu, of course, was that his theorized method of ghost-consumption, called Essentiaphagia, hinged on taking physical sustenance from an incorporeal source. The Blue Hand labored long and hard with this problem, but it wasn’t until Dragolescu spoke with an elder Dragon about the forbidden practice of Diablerie that he realized how he could change his theory into a practice. To teach his undead body how to drink an incorporeal soul, he would first consume a soul still housed in a physical body. This epiphany led to the Blue Hand Massacre. Shortly thereafter, Dragolescu began experimenting on ghosts more directly, in ways the covenant had never before seen.
The Essentiaphagia Discipline doesn’t require the practitioner to have ever committed Diablerie, or even to really understand Dragolescu’s complex and arcane theories, though members of the bloodline are usually encouraged to read his works while honing their abilities with this Discipline. Each level of the Discipline includes an excerpt from Dragolescu’s writings on the subject.
Since ghosts are beings of pure essentia, Dragolescu supposed it would be possible to feed on them directly, not only allowing a vampire to consume a more potent version of Vitae, but sidestepping many of the morale issues of feeding (since a ghosts cannot die again).
The biggest stumbling block for Dragolescu, of course, was that his theorized method of ghost-consumption, called Essentiaphagia, hinged on taking physical sustenance from an incorporeal source. The Blue Hand labored long and hard with this problem, but it wasn’t until Dragolescu spoke with an elder Dragon about the forbidden practice of Diablerie that he realized how he could change his theory into a practice. To teach his undead body how to drink an incorporeal soul, he would first consume a soul still housed in a physical body. This epiphany led to the Blue Hand Massacre. Shortly thereafter, Dragolescu began experimenting on ghosts more directly, in ways the covenant had never before seen.
The Essentiaphagia Discipline doesn’t require the practitioner to have ever committed Diablerie, or even to really understand Dragolescu’s complex and arcane theories, though members of the bloodline are usually encouraged to read his works while honing their abilities with this Discipline. Each level of the Discipline includes an excerpt from Dragolescu’s writings on the subject.
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