The Cockscomb Society
"They say that life is nasty, brutish and short. Good thing we're not alive, then, eh?"
The Nosferatu of the Cockscomb Society do not wallow in their pitiful visages or grotesque leanings, nor do they celebrate them. They think of these things as a bit of a handicap, perhaps, but not insurmountable. It’s a curse. Why welcome it?
They endeavor then to reject the trappings of Nosferatu tribalism: they don’t live underground, don’t reveling in being reviled, and most certainly do not accept a low rung on society’s ladder simply by dint of unfortunate breeding. Part of this involves keeping connected with the human world—they may have monstrous blood and a hissing Beast, but they were once mortals, by god. They have a human side that shan’t be repressed.
Some might say, though, that they get it wrong. They equate “Humanity” not with a spiritual quality but instead associate with human society: the acquisition of assets (money, property, items of status), the attendance of mortal events (dinners, dances, parties, balls), the mimicry of all things human (emotion, relationships, manners, body Language, slang). That’s not to say they don’t connect with the culture of the Damned—in fact, they strive for power in that way, as well, accepting that such a goal is still human even if it’s performed amidst unliving fiends.
They endeavor then to reject the trappings of Nosferatu tribalism: they don’t live underground, don’t reveling in being reviled, and most certainly do not accept a low rung on society’s ladder simply by dint of unfortunate breeding. Part of this involves keeping connected with the human world—they may have monstrous blood and a hissing Beast, but they were once mortals, by god. They have a human side that shan’t be repressed.
Some might say, though, that they get it wrong. They equate “Humanity” not with a spiritual quality but instead associate with human society: the acquisition of assets (money, property, items of status), the attendance of mortal events (dinners, dances, parties, balls), the mimicry of all things human (emotion, relationships, manners, body Language, slang). That’s not to say they don’t connect with the culture of the Damned—in fact, they strive for power in that way, as well, accepting that such a goal is still human even if it’s performed amidst unliving fiends.
Culture
Culture and cultural heritage
History and Culture: This “Society” got its start with Potter Woolsthorpe Wycombe in the late 19th century. Wycombe, a Nosferatu, was one of the few vampric members of a local hellfire club called “the Abbey.” He helped supply these taboo-smashing humans secure “assets” for their little soirees and “erotic gardens.” He brought them other vampires. The humans feasted and fucked. They used the captive Damned as toys and toilet paper, teaching the monsters that they did not know what it meant to be a monster. Wycombe did not involve himself in such activity except when it pleased him: he did it for money, and to destroy his enemies, not for any perverse thrill.
Then came the night that Wycombe came to realize what he had done, what he had become. Why the revelation, few know. He won’t say (and Wycombe is still out there, make no mistake of that). Some whisper he saw an angel. Other stranger stories tell of a night where Wycombe sat at a nook table across from his Beast. They supped cups of blood. And the Beast tried to get him to sell his soul to, well, the Devil. Wycombe apparently refused and resolved to put himself on a path to… not righteousness, not really, but a path to Humanity.
It didn’t work as perfectly as he had planned, though he and most members of the Cockscomb Society seem oblivious to that fact. First, their mimicry of Humanity is not actually an embrace of the human experience, it’s a hollow quest to appear human. Second, Wycombe’s origins in the hellfire club seem to haunt his brood: as noted, they cannot help but give in to languor, answering boredom with sin. Secret sin, of course: they do not publicize their deviations. That could ruin them.
Then came the night that Wycombe came to realize what he had done, what he had become. Why the revelation, few know. He won’t say (and Wycombe is still out there, make no mistake of that). Some whisper he saw an angel. Other stranger stories tell of a night where Wycombe sat at a nook table across from his Beast. They supped cups of blood. And the Beast tried to get him to sell his soul to, well, the Devil. Wycombe apparently refused and resolved to put himself on a path to… not righteousness, not really, but a path to Humanity.
It didn’t work as perfectly as he had planned, though he and most members of the Cockscomb Society seem oblivious to that fact. First, their mimicry of Humanity is not actually an embrace of the human experience, it’s a hollow quest to appear human. Second, Wycombe’s origins in the hellfire club seem to haunt his brood: as noted, they cannot help but give in to languor, answering boredom with sin. Secret sin, of course: they do not publicize their deviations. That could ruin them.
Major organizations
Reputation: Honestly, they have a pretty good reputation. Yes, they’re Nosferatu, but they seemed so well-mannered, so clean, so articulate. They aren’t brutes and oddities, not for the most part. Nicely tamed, they talk the talk, walk the walk. That doesn’t stop the sinister whispers, but few believe them. Stories of the Cockscomb Gents and Gals out there given over to potent ennui and thus giving in to great debauchery… well, it can’t be true, can it? All that blood and nudity? The gorging and regurgitating? The gross usury and rampant avarice? They seem so refined for Nosferatu. It’s probably just rumor.
Nickname: Gents, Gals (as in, “Ah, you’re a Cockscomb Gent! I see the black rooster on your lapel.”)
Bloodline Disciplines: Majesty, Nightmare, Obfuscate, Vigor
Weakness: They try to be human. They really do. Problem is, clinging to human ways is a false face for many, and worse, it gets just a tiny bit dull. Ennui is a grave issue for the Nosferatu of the Cockscomb Society, and actions in line with a character’s Vice are far likelier to thrill than those aligned with Virtue. As such, Haunts of this bloodline cannot gain Willpower back by fulfilling their Virtue.
Parent ethnicities
Weakness: They try to be human. They really do. Problem is, clinging to human ways is a false face for many, and worse, it gets just a tiny bit dull. Ennui is a grave issue for the Nosferatu of the Cockscomb Society, and actions in line with a character’s Vice are far likelier to thrill than those aligned with Virtue. As such, Haunts of this bloodline cannot gain Willpower back by fulfilling their Virtue.