The Ordo Dracul (OR-dough drah-KOOL)

The curse of vampirism is but an obstacle, a hurdle before achieving true power. Granted, it’s a daunting hurdle, and one that most Kindred are ill equipped to even see as surmountable. For those with the necessary devotion, tenacity and intelligence, the Ordo Dracul, the Order of the Dragon, can provide the means. The vampires of the Ordo Dracul run the gamut from dogged fundamentalists with just as much zeal as any fanatic to coldly secular theosophists simply seeking the means to destroy an enemy. The covenant as a whole welcomes both mentalities, for both have much to teach.
This faction claims an infamous founder — Vlad Tepes, Dracula himself. Dracula is noteworthy because he acknowledges no sire. According to Dracula’s account of becoming a vampire, God turned His back on him, and in order to punish him for his wicked acts, God cursed him with undeath. The most widely accepted story of Dracula’s origin is that God punished Vlad Tepes for his abuse of faith in mortal life. According to certain historical records, Tepes was appointed as a “defender of Christianity,” a charge he then used as a means of advancing his own political agendas and as an excuse for atrocities. In addition to all his crimes against Humanity, Dracula ultimately put his own desires before his holy oath, the act that Damned him.
The veracity of these statements remains unproven, of course, not the least obstacle to which is that Dracula himself hasn’t been seen in over a century. Legends of Dracula also ascribe to him strange circumstances. By knowledgeable members of Kindred society, he is suspected of siring a very few childer — but if Dracula wasn’t Embraced himself, what clan could he possibly be, and what does that make his get? By other accounts, he has never sired childer at all, or those he has sired are somehow “failed,” little more than hideous horrors doomed to slake their thirsts in a constant state of mindless rage.
Indeed, the organization that has grown up surrounding Dracula’s teachings is easily as enigmatic as its founder.

Overview

The Order’s roots are something of a matter of debate — even within the covenant itself. It is undoubtedly one of the youngest of the major Kindred factions. The Dragons, as they are fearfully (or hatefully) known, have records of apprenticeships as early as the 16th century. With the advent of the printing press, the covenant was better able to disseminate the vast amount of archaic and arcane writings that members require in order to learn and perform their transcendental studies. The covenant experienced a sudden jump in power and membership during the Industrial Revolution, then another in the late 19th century, then yet another in recent decades. It is believed that the covenant grew to power in Eastern Europe, its philosophies traveling with the development of transportation technology, but just as credible theories place the group’s origins in Victorian London and even early New York.
The Ordo Dracul reveres its founder, but in a very different way than, say, The Lancea Sanctum honors Longinus. The Dragons believe that the curse of vampirism can and should be surpassed, that the Embrace is a judgment that can be overturned and even exceeded. Nothing, nothing, is permanent, the Order argues, not even the lingering undeath that all Kindred experience. Of course, no known vampire has ever escaped the Requiem through the Order’s rites (at least not in a manner that others would find satisfactory; it’s quite possible to reduce oneself to a pile of ash or a torpid wretch through an ill-performed observance). Regardless, Kindred are perfectly willing to admit that such things take centuries, if not millennia. Some crucial piece of knowledge must yet be missing, and with the world growing smaller and more integrated as technology uncovers more of it, that knowledge won’t be long in coming.
In that regard, the Ordo Dracul is much more comfortable with the modern world than The Invictus is, though not nearly so comfortable as the Carthians are. Technology isn’t something to be feared, but another tool to be used, and since the covenant prizes mental evolution as much as spiritual progression, elders who wish to retain their standing must shake off the inertia of years and learn how to use a telephone or a scanner. Hidebound traditionalists aren’t overtly snubbed (after all, they might know something useful, and it doesn’t pay to burn bridges), but they do tend to be left alone in their havens to experience the Requiem and perform their Research in solitude.
The search for knowledge is a commonly stated goal of the Order, but it’s deliberately vague. Members of the Ordo Dracul are interested in knowledge, true, but that has more to do with the kind of personality the covenant attracts than with its actual goals. The Dragons seek information about the truth of the vampiric condition, and to that end, they enjoy talking to other Kindred about their experiences, their feelings upon receiving the Embrace, how their bodies have changed, and how their attitudes toward morals have progressed. (The Gangrel in particular interest the Order, and those Savages who join the covenant quickly become some of their most respected members.) The Dragons seek to establish patterns in God’s plan, in the curse of undeath and in any other facet of the Requiem that will lead them to the answer they seek — how to transcend the limits of vampirism.
The Ordo Dracul has a hierarchical structure unique to it, known internally as the Dragon’s Tongue. The Order involves numerous rites and initiations, the completion of which symbolizes the member’s passage from one “circle of mystery” or level of achievement to the next. Progression through the hierarchy seems to correspond to mastery of The Coils of the Dragon, but whether this is true or simply a non-member’s misunderstanding remains uncertain. This structure also serves to protect the covenant’s secrets. The Ordo Dracul is loath to let anyone, even low-ranking members, leave the faction. The higher one’s rank in the covenant, the more she has invested and accomplished and, thus, the more reluctant she will (theoretically) be to leave. Still, defections and renunciations do occur, and with more frequency than the Order would have outsiders believe.

Members

The Ordo Dracul doesn’t need to proselytize. While it welcomes new members, it isn’t as open as The Invictus because its strength depends on the intelligence of its Kindred, rather than on their loyalty. The Order isn’t out to overthrow the existing Status quo or to enforce it, nor does it mean to adhere to an ancient set of laws or to venerate a god. Its members seek simply to move beyond, and that attracts a certain class of vampire. Kindred who are dissatisfied with their lot but who attribute that dissatisfaction to a spiritual or mystical state rather than to a political or temporal one make good candidates for the Ordo Dracul. Vampires who believe in some sort of origin for the Kindred, but who lack the zealotry or dogma necessary to join The Lancea Sanctum do so as well. The most accomplished Dragons of the Order tend to come from those Kindred who are open-minded and realistic before the Embrace. They see what they have become and do not immediately accept that the Requiem is the ultimate end of their existence. These sorts of Dragons are the cream of the crop.
Most, however, join the covenant to cheat the curse of undeath, pure and simple. The lure of the group’s high rites draws all clans, and even members of The Lancea Sanctum have been known to leave their covenant, thus committing unthinkable blasphemy, to join the Ordo Dracul. The reverse is also true. Occasionally a member of the Order decides that the ceremonies she observes are sins against nature or a higher power and resolves never to call upon her hard-won knowledge again, passing the rest of her nights in quiet penance for her dabbling in forbidden mysteries. The Order has even noticed that certain specific areas of study induce this response more than others, and these texts and formulae offer a tempting target for young Dragons looking to make names for themselves.
The Ordo Dracul boasts members from all clans. The covenant hasn’t seen that any one widespread lineage has any particular advantage over another. Of course, a given bloodline might spawn members of the Order As One sire trains his childe in the ways of the covenant, and that childe does likewise, but on the whole, the Dragons look past clan when considering members. The decision process has more to do with temperament and intellectual ability. While not all or even most members of the Ordo Dracul are bookish or scholarly, the vast majority are literate and educated at least moderately well.
The hardest part about joining the covenant tends to be finding members who trust other Kindred enough to be willing to teach. That in mind, the first task a prospective Dragon has is to get a potential Mentor to notice her. Investigating the Ordo Dracul (which means asking questions of vampires who are experienced enough to know something about the covenant), experimenting with the vampiric form and with the various Disciplines, and trying the limits of the Requiem are good ways to go about gaining attention. If an entire coterie wishes to attempt to find a Mentor, its members’ chances improve dramatically. The Order approves of this approach for a number of reasons. Aside from the obvious advantage of having peers with which to trade ideas, a coterie can protect itself better than a lone vampire can, from both enemies and potentially disastrous mystical errors. Also, although the Order’s elders never mention it, a bit of healthy competition is ultimately good for the covenant, as it weeds out members who are only in it to cheat undeath for its own sake.
Once a prospective Dragon finds a Mentor, the apprenticeship period begins. This period never really ends. Because all members of the Ordo Dracul are meant to learn constantly, all members can teach constantly. The Order observes “graduation” ceremonies of the most elaborate kind. Indeed, it relishes the fact that even an elder might still be able to learn at the feet of a wiser and more powerful member of the Order (a fact that frightens the other covenants more than they’d ever admit).
Just as it performs graduation ceremonies, the Ordo Dracul also performs initiations as a covenant (though individual mentors might elect to test would-be pupils privately before fully introducing them). It becomes clear within the first few weeks of training whether a student has the right mettle to learn The Coils of the Dragon, which the Dragons regard as the first necessary step in joining the covenant. If the pupil cannot learn at least the basics of this esoteric body of ceremonies — and the reasons for doing so range from simple lack of intelligence to an unwillingness to surrender their souls to spiritual study — the Mentor simply stops the training. The pupil might continue to practice what she has already learned, but advancement without instruction is profoundly difficult.

Philosophy

The Ordo Dracul is as much a religious society as a secular one, but only insofar as the vampiric condition cannot be explained without the existence of God. According to members’ beliefs, Dracula was himself cursed by God, much as the Sanctified of The Lancea Sanctum claim that their progenitor was. The difference, of course, is that Dracula became a vampire long after many other vampires had already existed in the world. The Ordo Dracul doesn’t require the fanaticism of The Lancea Sanctum or the Acolytes, because its tenets do not demand it. The Dragons’ philosophies are as rigorously tested as any of their ceremonies, so they work their miracles without worship or reverence to a higher power. Respect, they feel, is enough.
To the uninitiated, the philosophy of the Ordo Dracul is a mire of theosophical and even neo-Victorian postulation. Some Kindred liken the order to a secret society such as the Masons or the Golden Dawn, and such speculation isn’t far from the truth. One cannot argue the facts, though — those who achieve rank in the Order certainly gain benefits and are able to perform acts that other vampires cannot.
The main tenets of the Order of the Dragon are as follows.
Nothing Is Permanent
Members of the Ordo Dracul know better than to consider themselves “immortal.” Vampires do indeed die, and without benefit of plotting enemies or slavering werewolves. All it takes is a fire burning out of control or a miscalculation in determining the exact time of sunrise, and centuries of unlife and experience can come to an end. But the Dragons don’t look at this fragility as a vulnerability. They regard their condition as mutable. After all, they reason, if God had truly wished for vampires never to change, He wouldn’t have made the means of their destruction so readily available, and He certainly wouldn’t have given any of them ability to change their forms. As such, the Order looks at sweeping change, even change that seems to harm more than it helps, as ultimately beneficial. A building burns, a plane crashes, the Prince of a city falls, covenants scheme, werewolves attack, and the Ordo Dracul simply reminds its members that nothing lasts forever. This isn’t a bleak, fatalistic lament so much as a challenge. “What can we take away from this change?” If nothing else, every change is a reminder that change is possible.
Change Must Have a Purpose
Central to transcending the vampiric condition is an understanding of why it is necessary to do so. The Order looks at the Requiem as a challenge more than a curse, but its members never forget or deny that it is a curse. In researching and realizing The Coils of the Dragon, and thus changing themselves on a fundamental, mystical level, the Dragons work toward their ultimate goal of leaving their vampiric shells behind.
This tenet has a broader application, as well. Every action has a reaction, and until a Dragon can understand the reactions that a given course causes, she is discouraged from taking action at all. This lesson is reflected most keenly in the Order’s spiritual power. The Coils of the Dragon distinguish members from their peers very quickly, providing a superb object lesson in the nature of causality. The more power you gain, the less power you understand. Young members of the covenant, eager for the benefits that the Coils can grant them and enthralled with the notion of going beyond the limits of their state, don’t usually understand that paradox. Many Ordo Dracul mentors regard it as the harshest, but most necessary lesson of the Requiem. If every action isn’t guided by purpose, it soon spirals into entropy and eventually destruction. The Order doesn’t believe in causing foolish chaos and then shirking responsibility for its actions by saying, “Change is good.”

Rituals and Observances

The most important relationship in the covenant is that of the Mentor and pupil. Rites and practices vary greatly among mentors. While one might keep lessons extremely informal, another might treat her pupils like novitiates in a monastery, forcing them to copy manuscripts or perform menial tasks for most of the night and instructing them in the ways of transcendence for only the last hour before sunrise.
The covenant as a whole does observe a few important rituals, however, and some individual teaching methods have become widespread enough to mention.
Honoring the Mentor
Not required, but certainly not discouraged, the practice of annually honoring one’s superior(s) among the Ordo Dracul hierarchy has become commonplace. Every covenant member who chooses to partake in this custom has a different method of showing reverence, and of course it very much depends on the Mentor in question. For some teachers, a gift (books, a favored type of vessel, an archeological find stolen from a museum) is best. For others, a demonstration of what the pupil has learned in the past year makes the best present. Coteries of Dragons who study under the same Mentor sometimes collaborate on a way to honor their teacher… but just as often they compete to decide who can elicit the most appreciation from her.

Schools of Methodology

Generally speaking, as long as a Dragon observes the Principia Draconis and adheres to the scientific method, the precise way in which she approaches the Great Work — as well as any Lesser Works she is engaged in — matters little. So long as she does not submit to demonic possession, a blood bond, or similar external control, she is free to rely on any methodology she prefers. It is results that count, not the means to those results. Consequently, if one character chooses to utilize a type of psychic Research that involves using semi-scientific devices to measure “mental force waves” and discover how to use noted variances to enhance the her use of the Coils, so long as the player has some conception — crackpot though it might be — of how this would produce useful results, the Storyteller should allow it in the game. If, on the other hand, the player is just spouting out a riff of pseudo-scientific and occult words with no real idea of how the character can actually put them to practical use, the player should be coaxed to think more carefully about her character’s chosen methodology. Think of a television series about a hospital emergency room, and how utterly ludicrous it would be if one of actors playing a surgeon had no working knowledge of medicine, even if only rudimentary. His character would sound silly sputtering out meaningless medical terms, and the entire show would devolve from one of high drama to pathetic comedy.
It should never be forgotten that the philosophy of the covenant embraces purposeful change, even radical change if necessary. A Dragon that has depended almost entirely on Mesmerism since joining the Ordo Dracul might suddenly choose to dive into Egyptian summoning rituals one evening, seemingly abandoning one methodology in favor of an entirely different one. This shift in gears is not always drastic, however. More common is the adoption of multiple, seemingly incongruous methods.
For example, a Dragon may use a gas centrifuge to combine various ethers and then an argon laser to superheat them in order to produce the essential alchemical salts she needs. These she mixes with quicksilver and ghoul’s Vitae while reciting a harsh verse in proto-German until the proper consistency results. This concoction is added to a larger mixture of fish oil to create a viscous flux that is finally poured into a large, handblown cauldron of leaded glass that will serve as the artificial womb for the fetus she intends to “Embrace” via verdigris-encrusted, copper tubing submerged in the flux.
Remember, to the Ordo Dracul, the manner in which the Great Work is achieved is secondary. If a method gets results, it is used, regardless of how bizarre, gruesome or incomprehensible it is to others.
The following are reasonably detailed presentations of the methodologies most frequently practiced by the Ordo Dracul as well as suggestions of how to use them in a chronicle in order to enhance the atmosphere and the story. Storytellers and players alike should be familiar with the methodology used by their respective characters.

Alchemy

Perhaps the most stereotypical and yet simultaneously appropriate scientific paradigm is the ancient practice known as alchemy. It was popularized in the late medieval and Renaissance periods when Geber, Avicenna and Bacon established themselves as renowned scientists, but the art is generally held to have much older origins. Its very name is derived from Arabic, which borrowed from Ancient Greek, which in turn may have adopted the term from dynastic Egypt (khemeia, “the preparation of the black ore”). The Egyptians were skilled metalworkers and were conversant with the principle of transmutation, separating precious metals using quicksilver. The chemicals that were produced as a consequence of the process were ascribed with miraculous powers; black powder oxides were thought to have come from the Underworld and were, therefore, the province of Osiris. Consequently, most unnatural metals, alloys, fluxes and powders were concluded to be magical and, used properly, could produce all sorts of benefits.
It wasn’t until the Hellenistic period that alchemy became a true science. During this time it was attributed to Hermes Trismegistus and was believed to be his contributions to science. The Alexandrian school, even after its usurpation by Arabs, continued to explore and codify alchemy, applying a real method to its application. Spain became enamored with the art, and it was from here that it was finally spread to Europe proper. From the 7th century until the 17th, alchemy flourished. It wasn’t until the advent of modern chemistry that it finally fell into general disuse and ultimately became regarded as a crude and erroneous primitive science that had no further contributions to make.
Few Dragons tonight can truthfully claim to have been around during alchemy’s heyday, but the Ordo Dracul never ceased using alchemy for its own pursuits. It mattered little that the kine had found a new methodology that seemed to offer them more practical benefits; many Dragons had achieved astonishing results using alchemical methods, and, in their eyes, it was foolish to thrown the baby out with the bathwater, as it were. Adopting the more rigid scientific method was a godsend, but there was no need to dismiss alchemy simply because it was not a new thing — rarely are Kindred so fickle. So long as alchemy could prove useful to the Great Work, it would continue to find its supporters in the covenant.

Basic Theory

Traditional alchemy sought three particular aims, depending on the alchemist. The common goal was the transformation of base metals into pure gold. A second and somewhat more esoteric goal was to combine or transform chemical substances in a way that produced the mestruum universale, or the Universal Solvent. This rarified substance was believed to possess near-miraculous properties that a knowledgeable alchemist could use to cure illness, perfect the human form, and even extend man’s years beyond the allotted lifetime, allowing near-immortality. Finally, the most spiritually inclined alchemists sought the so-called Elixir of Life. Not only would it make a man immortal, but it would also restore youth and Vigor to any who consumed it. Clearly, to the Dragons, there is much here worth investigating.
The basic principle of alchemy is that every natural substance can be classified according to certain key chemical properties, such as acidity, density, magnetic attraction, malleability and the manner in which it reacts to certain base elements, like fire, ether, carbon, etc. The alchemist studies the various properties and finds correspondences and opposites and then mingles or otherwise combines pairs until a noteworthy result is achieved. Heating or burning substances to free the “phlogiston” — a peculiar speculative substance that seeks to conceal itself in other substances — and reduce the substance to its baser components is especially important. The ultimate aim is to arrive at the most fundamental properties and, therefore, elements. The final element, the Universal Solvent, would be the foundation upon which these exist.
The Ordo Dracul, of course, has little concern for making gold or curing illness. Instead, its proponents believe that alchemy is well-suited to being put to their own quest for transformation and transcendence. Instead of studying metals, for the most part the Dragons examine and combine fluid and biological substances, especially those that can be found in vampires. Vitae is studied most, but even flesh, Bone and brain and other tissues are obtained and used for alchemical experiments. Those focusing on The Coil of the Beast believe that the Beast itself may be nothing more than a property of vampires, one that can be understood and controlled by a possible elixir or other additive. The hunger for blood is a sign that vampires lack something, and so the alchemists work to discover what this missing thing is in the hope of restoring it. The Coil of Banes is approached most often by studying the elements and examining how the various substances that make up the Kindred body react to them. Submitting a fang to low heat over an extended period is nothing unusual for such alchemists; sometimes it is the least interesting experiments that produce the greatest results.

Tools of the Trade

Kindred alchemists use many of the same things that a traditional alchemist might. First, they need laboratory space that is appropriate. It must not only be large enough for all their other paraphernalia, but it must be easily safeguarded against conflagration and similar disaster. Even if the Dragon is in no danger, small explosions can quickly bring curious neighbors and even the authorities to the door, jeopardizing the Masquerade or at least making further use of the facility impossible. The space will be mostly filled with long, broad tables and plenty of shelves for all the Equipment not being currently used. Sinks and safe places to dispose of possibly dangerous substances are necessary, as are burners or other apparatuses to produce flame. No Dragon in her right mind would use a gas burner, however — the chance of it accidentally leading to a major fire is too great. Instead, small furnaces or even bellowspowered burners are preferred. Every conceivable kind of glass and metal container fills out the place, with various contraptions to hold the beakers, vials, test tubes, flasks and other glassware in use. Books on alchemy, chemistry, mathematics, physics and the natural sciences are required, as are works on hematology and related biological and forensic matters. Finally, the alchemist will have different gloves, goggles and protective coats or robes on hand to complete the scene.

Playing an Alchemist

Alchemical Dragons are first and foremost archaic creatures. Their chosen field of study requires them to distance themselves from modern thinking, not only in a scientific sense, but in a much larger manner. Believing as they do that they can reduce all things to some fundamental and universal form that possesses magical properties forces them to see the world around them as a collection of composite Materials and objects. Even a woman with child is nothing more than the elements and substances that make up her flesh and blood. This clinical view is not merely one used when directly involved in an investigation, either. At all times the vampire finds herself thinking this way, wondering at the alchemical and natural forces at work beneath and behind all she surveys. To other Kindred, she frequently seems distracted, especially when an event occurs that embodies alchemical principles, such as a car backfiring, a fire igniting or even the ink on a piece of paper running down the page when raindrops soak it. These kinds of fundamental reactions are the alchemist’s bread and butter, and she is fascinated by such things. Alchemists are prone to giving off strange odors on account of the multifarious chemicals and odd substances they work with, and are usually unaware of this unless it is pointed out. It is not unusual for a Dragon employing alchemy to go out hunting only to find that mortals avoid her in a very obvious way; they can smell the strong odors and prefer not to be close to the character.
As with any scientist, alchemists are also in the habit of using terminology appropriate to their work in inappropriate situations, such as in conversation with a Harpy in Elysium. Rambling on about the wisdom of Eugenius Philalethes’ The Marrow of Alchemy and how one of the chief difficulties with his transcendental view of the congelation of the male and female seeds of base solvents is its reliance upon putrefaction of spirit as well as base elements is not about to win the alchemist an invitation to the next salon. This kind of eccentricity is common to most scientist types, but the particularly archaic nature of alchemy makes discussion of the subject that much more awkward for listeners.

Modern and Pseudo-Science

Those Dragons still young in years are most familiar with the modern science they grew up with. As a consequence, the school of modern scientists is the fastest growing in the covenant, though it has yet to win over significant numbers of the Ordo Dracul’s ancillae or elders. Those vampires remain wary about the complex fields of computer programming, genetic engineering, nuclear physics, and cutting-edge biology, to name only a smattering of possibilities. They may want to accept change on a philosophical level, but putting that principle to practice is often a much harder thing to do. Sure, there are alternatives that might offer new insights, but is the cost in time to master that new method worth the gain? Despite this reticence on the part of the covenant’s older members, modern science has become an invaluable tool that continues to prove its value to the Great Work.
Just as popular as the so-called hard sciences are an array of pseudo-scientific methodologies and fields of study that, while they have been for the most part debunked by the kine, have shown a surprising ability to produce useful results for the covenant. Not only that, but every vampire is capable of doing things that already smash through the barrier of acceptable science, so exploring phenomena and theories that don’t quite meet the standards of the Journal of Science, for example, is hardly unusual.
It is impossible to give any reasonable introduction to the nearly limitless array of subjects studied, but a brief rundown of some of the more common ones include: Torsion Fields and Etheric Mechanics, Geodesic Resonance, Savantism, Perpetual Motion and Free Energy, Cryptobiology and Exobiology, Tesla’s Electrostatic Coils, Kirlian Photography, Cryogenics and Reanimation, Levitation and Antigravity, Bioluminescence and Photoelectric Phenomena, Déjà Vu and Time Travel, Crystal and Pyramid Power, Spontaneous Combustion, Meme Transmission and Hive Mentality, Hollow Earth and Microtectonic Anomalies, Hemomagnetism and Biological Navigation, Teleportation and Matter Transmission, Junk DNA and Revolutionary Mutation, Aura and Shadow Phenomena, Fetal Instruction and Conditioning, Climatic and Lunar Biointerference, Antimatter and Dark Matter, Cross-Species Grafting and Breeding, Twin Phenomena and Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) and Harmonic Theory. Just about any unusual phenomenon or theory can become the focus of a Dragon’s studies. More importantly, if the pseudo-science can be applied to the study of the Coils and the Great Work, it is worth examination.

Basic Theory

For the hard sciences — biology, chemistry, physics, mechanics, electromagnetics, etc. — there are a vast number of theories and specific fields of study that have gained widespread acceptance. From Einstein’s general theory of relativity and Bohr’s model of the atom to Darwin’s theory of evolution and the Watson and Crick’s double-helix, these fundamentals form the basis for all modern science. Common to all, of course, is the scientific method itself, the very roadmap by which the Ordo Dracul pursues all its efforts, regardless of whether the Dragons do so according to established theory or so-called crackpot science. The scientific method consists of four basic steps: observation and description of phenomenon, formulation of a hypothesis, prediction of new phenomena based on the hypothesis and, finally, experimentation to discover whether the hypothesis was correct or not.
The greatest accusation heaped upon the modern scientists is that they are too skeptical and don’t allow for “extreme possibilities,” meaning they never devise hypotheses that step out of the bounds of the already accepted realm of science. This is where the Dragons diverge greatly from the kine. Pseudo-science is nothing more than daring to make traditionally unacceptable leaps of genius when fashioning a hypothesis. The Ordo Dracul’s “mad scientists” are not mad at all: they are simply more willing to take intellectual risks in the hopes of essentially leap-frogging over the much slower achievements of their less radical compatriots. As ever, if their efforts can produce results that have real application and advance the Great Work, the risk is fully justified and the method exonerated.
The particulars of the pseudo-scientific theories are too varied to summarize here. Storytellers are encouraged to visit a good bookstore or search the Internet for some of the topics mentioned above to get a much better understanding of the popular pseudo-sciences.

Tools of the Trade

Modern scientists and pseudo-scientists require extensive facilities, even more so than their arcane alchemical counterparts. Not only must they have modernized and more varied access to utilities such as electricity, water, gas and heat and cold generators, but they use far more and diverse Equipment. A Dragon studying gene therapy as a possible solution to transcendence will require tools that are highly specialized, very expensive and relatively difficult to obtain. Another Dragon, sure that controlled bursts of lightning will hasten the Great Work, may need to erect very large Tesla coils that demand god-awful amounts of electricity and are likely to raise the suspicions of neighbors when their hair begins to stand on end at odd times.
It is more than mere price and difficulty in arranging the proper space that is a challenge to Dragon scientists, however. The Equipment they employ requires regular and very special maintenance that even the most brilliant Dragon is highly unlikely to possess. The tools and knowledge needed by a gas-centrifuge technician or an MRI scanner are going to be very hard to come. It is more probable that the Dragon will do as most scientists do — hire outsiders to attend to her Equipment. This opens up a whole other can of worms, however. How well can the Ordo Dracul manage the regular intrusion of technicians in the chapter house without raising suspicions as to their activities and true nature? Even forcing the technicians into a Blood Addiction is iffy, as they probably are not independent contractors and could be fired or replaced by their employer with ease.
For this and a host of other reasons, many Dragons who engage in the modern and pseudo-sciences instead perform their work in academic or corporate facilities at times carefully arranged for their activity to go largely unnoticed. Bribes to security staff, Vitae-addicted student assistants and probably some kind of control over a key administrator or senior scientist can ensure a relative degree of privacy and provide the Dragon with the kinds of Equipment and Materials that would be almost impossible to have access to in her own Haven or chapter house.

Playing a Modern or Psudo-Scientist

Hard scientists are some of the most skeptical empiricists in the Ordo Dracul, but their ability to easily converse with and gain influence over kine scientists and researchers more than enough makes up for their curmudgeonly attitude with their fellow Dragons. Most were probably doctors, chemists, biologists and science professionals before their Embrace, and the ability to now devote eternity to their former pursuits is a godsend to most. Even as they strive to unlock the secrets of transcendence and an escape from their Kindred condition, many continue to explore the very subjects that interested them in life, whether that be astrophysics or neonatal chromosome manipulation. Oftentimes, they discover unexpected connections between these Lesser Works and the covenant’s primary focus of study, discoveries that vindicate all their efforts and provide a satisfying sense of accomplishment despite the tribulations of undeath.
Their pseudo-scientific partners are little different, though they are far less skeptical in a knee-jerk sense. Traditionally, they are more creative thinkers, far more willing to give “crackpot” ideas a chance, if only for the sake of entertainment. Many actually enjoy discoursing on wild theories and speculation for the sole purpose of aggravating their more staid peers, even if they have no real intellectual interest in the theories. They also tend to be a bit more eccentric than most Dragons — and that’s hard to do. The creativity needed to be able to think up the kinds of wild-eyed things that they regularly do is usually difficult to constrain to the realm of science alone. Some are also avant-garde artists, fiction writers, and political radicals on the side, and many appear flamboyant or outlandish in both demeanor and garb, an expression of their fringe personalities.

Mesmerism and Parapsychology

The idea that a substance could invisibly pull or directly influence another unrelated object across a distance was an astonishing thought for early rationalists, and it gave birth to fields of study that span the spectrum from spiritualism to modern science. The so-called magnetists of the 16th century accepted something called “animal magnetism,” which was essentially the belief that celestial objects produced emanations of a kind that directly influenced the human body and mind. The magnetists hoped to discover the underlying theory of these emanations in order to use them for Healing.
Continued interest led to Paracelsus’s milestone sympathetic systems of science, which concluded that a certain action in one thing could produce an affect in another seemingly unrelated thing. This thinking later resulted in Franz Mesmer’s understanding of a “universal fluid” that acted as a medium for this sympathy or animal magnetism, and ultimately to the idea that by manipulating this fluid people could be cured, made to perform certain actions or respond in nearly any fashion desired by the mesmerist. The existence of Dominate and Majesty lend tremendous (though mystic) credibility to Mesmer’s work even if it is given little shrift among modern scientists.
Parapsychology grew out of the observation that numerous strange phenomenon — clairvoyant visions, telepathic transmission, mental levitation, etc. — seemed to occur in tandem with certain changes in an individual who has a connection to the phenomenon, whether due to physical proximity or a sympathetic relationship. Taking the idea of animal magnetism one step further than the Mesmerists, parapsychologists concluded that the human mind is capable of causing direct changes to the environment by perhaps using Mesmer’s universal fluid as a conduit. The Dragons have plenty of evidence to support these ideas, with Auspex only one example. If by using the mind a Dragon can force change on the world around herself, then it is only a small step further to force similar changes upon her own form and so pave the way for complete transformation.

Basic Theory

A concept key to understanding both Mesmerism and parapsychology is that each recognizes the role of a certain force or emanation to bring about change, whereas modern psychologists dismiss the idea of mental forces and universal fluids as pure malarkey. For the Mesmerists, it is a matter of learning how external forces affect the mind. They rely heavily upon the sympathetic theory and seek relationships between the individual and those things she perceives, consciously or otherwise. By discovering these connections and being able to predict how they will affect a subject, the Mesmerist can figure out how to alter those forces to result in different changes in the subject. For example, if a Dragon concludes that lunar radiation seems to have an influence on the likelihood of a subject frenzying when presented with fire, the Dragon can schedule her own efforts to master the next Coil of Banes to coincide with the lunar cycle in order to take advantage of its influence. Parapsychologists focus on the forces the mind can generate, and how those forces can be turned to good use. First, they seek to discover all the things the mind is able to do with these forces, then they work to hone the mind so it can exercise these forces with skill. Once the mind is able to do this, it is then turned inward, and these same forces are applied to the Dragon’s own body to effect desired changes.

Tools of the Trade

Neither Mesmerists nor parapsychologists require much physical space for their work. So long as they have a subject (which could be themselves), one or more objects to study — either the source or the target of various forces — and the tools to measure any changes with, they have what they need. Generally, a place that is free of distractions is all that is important. It is exceedingly difficult to read slight changes to objects or a subject’s behavior or physiology if there are constant noises, vivid paintings on the walls, uncomfortable furniture or bothersome odors present. Mesmerists may need to observe celestial objects, weather phenomena and other things that affect the subject, so they might require special facilities or Equipment to do this, such as telescopes, barometers and Geiger counters.
Parapsychologists are usually equipped with the kinds of things associated with extra sensory Perception and television psychics: Rhine-Zener cards to test precognitive ability, spoons or other objects to bend or move telekinetically, microphones to record clairvoyant visions, flammable objects to combust pyrokinetically, etc. Rarely do these Dragons need access to specialized facilities or particularly rare or expensive Equipment, making it relatively easy for them to practice their interests nearly anywhere.

Playing a Mesmerist or Parapsychologist

Dragons who engage in Mesmeric and parapsychological methodologies tend to be far more outgoing than those who study the material sciences. Because there is far less need to spend time preparing complex Equipment and extensive pre- and post-experiment documentation, and because most tests are generally over in a short period of time, these scholars tend to have far more time on their hands for social activity, whether among their peers in the covenant or out among the rest of the Kindred. But their strong penchant for observing behavior and its relationship to the environment can make them seem somewhat preoccupied at times. Instead of going off on some mumbling discourse on electrical theory, however, they are the individuals who stand in the middle of the crowd and seem to fixate on someone else, staring uncomfortably and seemingly oblivious to their faux pas. They have a habit of carrying out impromptu experiments wherever they go, for it is difficult for them to not apply their hypotheses when there are so many ripe subjects all around them.
Another troublesome habit they share is their desire for an audience. A parapsychologist in Elysium may find some way to draw attention to herself so that she can demonstrate the power of the mind over matter, and a Mesmerist at the same event is going to find it hard to resist manipulating some aspect of her surroundings in order to determine what affect it has on those present.

Theosophy and Pseudo-Psychology

At the height of the Victorian period, Madame Blavatsky’s Theosophical Society was all the rage. In many ways, its teachings were an extension of much older Gnostic ideas — theosophy literally means “the wisdom of God.” The basic premise of the theosophists was that every religion was really only a localized fragment of a universal religion from which they all derived. This universal “wisdom religion” contained all truths about life and matter, and was selectively distributed to Humanity by Prometheus-like beings that transcended the mortal race and collectively were what monotheists refer to as God. According to Blavatsky and her followers, the mélange of Buddhist, Brahminist and Kabbalist philosophies that comprised theosophy taught that by virtue of a real physical, mental and spiritual transformation a person could transcend one state of existence and enter another. After a series of reincarnations, the theosophist could eventually ascend to a plane of pure spirituality and effectively join the corpus of the divine, achieving nirvana. Karma plays an important role also, for one is prohibited from spiritual progression so long As One still has sins to atone for, even ones from a previous existence. While some particulars of theosophy are overlooked or modified to better suit the Kindred condition, the fundamentals of theosophy are especially appropriate to the Ordo Dracul’s quest for transcendence. Consequently, even Dragons who focus more exclusively on other methodologies find enough in theosophy that is worth respecting.
The work of Kraepelin, Jung and Freud reinvigorated the study of mental illness and introduced the idea that even seemingly ordinary people could live better lives if various denied or subconscious mental problems were resolved. Alienists abounded by the early 20th century, and the fields of psychoanalysis and psychological profiling became famous for their ability to seemingly cure people and help authorities locate menaces to society. Behavioral studies took an interesting turn in the latter half of the century when various new “visionaries” announced that the now-acceptable practices and theories of psychology were horribly flawed. People like Hubbard introduced their own theories that attempted to replace the so-called “soft science” of psychology with something that would be able to stand toe-to-toe with the rigorous hard sciences. By positing the existence of things like engrams — quanta consisting of recorded memories and experiences — these pseudo-psychologists claimed that a person need only eliminate harmful engrams in order to literally achieve physical, mental and spiritual perfection; essentially a very technical form of theosophy. Once an individual is “clear” or perfect, she is supposedly capable of extraordinary things, such as using telepathy, suffering no disease, thinking faster and with more agility than a computer and even being able to heal and teleport. Again, as with theosophy, this idea of a transcendent “clear” state of existence fits nicely with the aims set down on paper by Vlad Tepes, despite its radically technical flavor.

Basic Theory

Theosophists and pseudo-psychologists alike agree that once a person is able to eliminate those things that trouble her, whether she is aware of their presence or not, she will be able to transcend and become something greater. For the theosophists, this is accomplished by ascribing to a variety of ideas that have their basis in Eastern mysticism, such as the aforementioned reincarnation, karma and nirvana. Most important of all are the three essential truths that theosophists proclaim.
First, the soul of man and Kindred is immortal in the truest sense, for it can never be destroyed or diminished. Diablerie, from their vantage point, is merely the theft of the physical vessel which carries the soul — the soul itself remains intact. Secondly, life exists within and without all beings, even if cannot be perceived, and it is eternal. The undead and even cadavers still possess the spark of life according to theosophists — it is merely very difficult to identify. And lastly, each person is her own final authority and is ultimately responsible only to herself. The Requiem is a karmic punishment that each Kindred deserves on account of some action she performed in one of her previous incarnations. To escape it requires paying the price or otherwise rectifying those sins.
The pseudo-psychologists take a slightly different approach. For them, there are no sins per se, but each false action taken is recognized as such by the Man within, and this guilt is stored subconsciously if not consciously. Also stored are the memories of horrible experiences, such as being abused or injured. The accumulation of these memories of guilt, fear and suffering eventually affects the mind and body in a perceivable way.
The Embrace is a particular type of event that amplifies the effects of these memories. Dragon pseudo-psychologists seek to discover the source of these memories, which many adherents believe exist in a kind of collective Kindred subconscious. They believe that, sometime long ago, the first vampires were actually perfect beings, having already transcended mortality. However, on account of some terrible actions or events — Did one of those progenitors kill another by immolation? Was one forced to drink blood to survive, perhaps his own? — their perfection was marred as they were saddled with powerful memories that eventually produced the terrible banes that all vampires suffer from tonight. If these can be removed, either from the individual Dragon or from this collective subconscious, the Kindred can be restored to the flawless state their progenitors had once achieved.

Tools of the Trade

The needs of the theosophist are minimal. She needs only to be able to meditate and be able to focus on personal transformation, radically altering her motivations, actions and personality to become more in-line with the state she hopes to achieve. She must also focus on her moral transgressions, using past-life regression and historical records to identify them if she is not already aware, and then seeking ways to rectify these errors. Meditation is a large part of this practice, and things like yoga and physical exercises that enhance the mental state are also popular. Out-of-body travel is also important, as is lucid dreaming and so-called vision quests, none of which require anything more than a little peace and quite. Pseudo-psychologists dispense with the mysticism and rely on frequent consultations and therapeutic sessions. They develop and use devices — usually small and easily portable — to measure changes in a subject, changes that indicate the presence or absence of the negative memories or engrams. They usually keep more orderly records than theosophists also, using all sorts of specialized terms to describe their observations and studies as technically as possible.

Playing a Theopohist or Pseudo-Psychologist

Theosophical Dragons are some of the most enigmatic individuals in the Academy. The influence of Eastern mysticism combined with their absolute belief in their own ultimate authority give the theosophists an aura of haughty invincibility that can rub others the wrong way, particularly non-Dragons. In areas where mysticism is not the cultural norm — in most of the Western world, for example — they are rarely understood, if for no other reason than their regular usage of words and concepts that have no basis in Western tradition. In the East, this is less of a problem, of course. However, no matter where they are, their hubris remains. There is no God above to judge them, help them, or hinder them; they are their own god in a sense. This kind of thinking empowers them to achieve all they can and to never blame others for their circumstances, sometimes making them excellent counselors and supporters. The flip side is that those of a religious bent are likely to see them as heretics and vile atheists who dare to suggest they are or will be gods themselves.
The pseudo-psychologists are much less haughty and actually are some of the most evangelical members of the Ordo Dracul. They reason that by helping others they can better eliminate their own problems. By eschewing mysticism in favor of the mien of modern science, they are also far more accessible. They may have their own Lexicon, but it is usually not too extensive and they tend to use layman’s terms whenever possible in order to not discomfit listeners. Pseudo-psychologists also believe strongly in the doctrine of never overburdening others with more than they are ready to understand and accept. Only when another Kindred has known a pseudo-psychologist for a long period of time and has become comfortable with her theories will greater secrets be revealed, in particular about transcendence. Trying to explain that to a neophyte is simply Jumping the gun.
Part psychiatrist and part Scientologist, this type of Dragon relies primarily on psychoanalysis and behavior modification techniques to understand her subjects and “cure” the mind of its illnesses and injuries. Hypnosis, memory regression, isolation therapy, dream analysis and unceasing observation are the tools employed for success. Some of these Kindred actually subject other vampires and, later even themselves, to Torpor in order to pursue a type of “lucid dreaming” that may unlock hidden thoughts or allow access to a consensual subconscious shared by all vampires. In their pursuit of the Great Work, they also regularly seek to confront their worst fears and better understand the patterns of their own minds. More so than the Mesmerists, the psychoanalysts prefer to approach their subjects in isolation, whether that be in the comfort of the subject’s Haven or locked in a cell in a secret basement with only the glaring eye of a camera for company; however, even the seemingly casual private conversation a Dragon has with his coterie’s Confessor may actually be a methodological examination and therapy session. Sometimes it is best to not let the subject know she is being used as a guinea pig.

Ritual Invocation and Spiritualism

The origins of ritual magic are lost to use, but invocations spoken with the intention to produce an immediate and profound physical result have been part of human culture since the earliest times. Ritual magic differs from religious invocation in that it does not ask a divine being for aid — at least not a being determined to be worthy of worship — but primarily relies on the will of the spell caster for its efficacy. Traditional occult methodology is all over the map, and there is no single accepted curriculum for the practicing sorcerer. One might choose to use the wisdom of Egyptian wizards to raise the dead, while another might rely upon Russian hearth incantations to curse a neighbor or protect herself from a violent storm. Although the Ordo Dracul’s ritualists would vehemently deny that most of what they do is essentially sorcery, their defense is really only a matter of semantics. A Dragon might claim that what she is doing when she utters an hour-long formula in a dialect of Sumerian in the middle of an elaborate, hand-drawn circle decorated with Hebraic and Indonesian characters is merely a complex procedure that takes advantage of her understanding of harmonics to produce certain desired vibrations in the blood.
Most observers, however, would probably not be able to differentiate it from traditional magic. To that, the Dragons say so what. It is of no concern to them that the ignorant cannot distinguish between exacting ritualistic procedures devised and performed with even greater result than the celebrated arts of Paracelsus, Agrippa, Dee and Gilles de Leval. The Ordo Dracul is quick to point out that prior to the development of their own systematic, occult methodologies, most self-proclaimed sorcerers relied entirely on the “hit or miss” approach; when the spell actually produced an effect, it was more due to chance than any actual understanding on the part of the one invoking its power.
Spiritualists differ sharply from the invocationers. Popularized in the mid-19th century, the investigation of phenomena attributed to ghosts, demons and otherworldly creatures is a familiar and useful venue for many Dragons. Slate-writing, fluid emanations, apparitions, levitation, aural phenomena and the manifestation of apports — objects that seem to appear out of thin air — are all subjects of study to Dragon spiritualists. From their point of view, these things are a strong indication that the unseen or spiritual has far more power over the physical than is readily apparent. They consult Ouija boards, hold séances and study all leads that suggest the presence or the influence of spiritual entities. This knowledge allows them to then exert the force of their own spiritual aspect over their physical form, mimicking the wraithly visitors they have observed. This kind of Research brings the Dragons to haunted locales, to graveyards and to places where records of the dead can be obtained. Not all spiritualists believe the unseen agents are ghosts, however. Many see them instead as astral beings or a type of creature that has never possessed a physical form. They do what they can to open lines of communication with these beings, hoping to learn more about what they might become upon completion of the Great Work.

Basic Theory

The practical rituals enacted by the Dragons (as opposed to those used for ceremonial purpose) are as thoroughly devised, tested, dissected and reworked as any other type of experimentation. Only the most foolish Dragon would simply intone an incantation from a musty grimoire and trust that it will produce the outcome described in the book. The identity of the original author must first be closely studied to understand how he came to construct the ritual, and for what purpose. The degree of his occult education must be known, as well as his other successes and, just as importantly, his failures. Each word, each letter, each glyph and each instruction has to be giving careful scrutiny to ensure that the Dragon who intends to exploit the ritual is fully aware of all possible dangers.
The Language of the ritual must be considered too. Was it penned in 13th century Mandarin for a special reason? Material components must also be subject to inquiry. If a flawed amethyst boiled in wormwood is called for, what are the implications? Once all this preparatory work is completed and all ritual components gathered and properly prepared and arranged, the Dragon recites the proper words and can expect the desired result. With the knowledge gained, the Dragons can use ritual invocations to change themselves in addition to using them for less august purposes, such as fending off intruders and safeguarding their persons.
Spiritualists theorize that the spirits of the dead are meant to travel beyond this realm of existence to another, more appropriate place. While the nature of this “final resting place” is regularly debated, what is agreed upon is that many of these spirits become trapped or otherwise impeded from reaching their final destination. The reasons for this are many, but typically include great emotional distress, tragic circumstances or spirits who in life were particularly ghastly people. By contacting these ghosts, mediums can not only discover the precise manner in which the living become ghosts, but they can also learn how to avoid this fate while at the same time seeking to move beyond undeath. Logic would argue that if life comes first, followed by undeath, then death must be next; but if this is so, how can one transcend? Spiritualist Dragons seek the answer to this apparent quandary by interviewing the dead or whatever the entities are that haunt the physical world yet are not entirely a part of it. They do so using objects and entreaties of significance to the summoned spirit in the hopes that it will serve as a beacon to draw them forth from their shadowy places. With every spirit called and interrogated, the Dragons get one step closer to understanding what comes next for them once they transcend.

Tools of the Trade

Occult sanctums usually cleave closely to the traditional image of the sorcerer’s workshop, with sturdy tables, large glyphs and arcane symbols scrawled all over the floor, and a bewildering assortment of herbs, powders, potions, braziers, knives and caged vermin cluttering the chamber. No other methodology demands such a vast array of unusual Equipment, and, because many things called for can be extremely hard to procure — the eye of a king murdered by his son, a sphere of pure gold inscribed with the 77 names of a certain demon, a chalice that has been used only once and specifically by a child who has been visited three times by a ghost — Dragon sorcerers spend a good portion of their Requiems attempting to locate and get a hold of the things they need for their next experiment. This can also lead to all sorts of problems with the kine, as obtaining seven mummies, for example, might require robbing museums or universities.
In addition to all the material components, spell-casters absolutely require the proper books, scrolls and other written works that contain the knowledge they hope to utilize and improve upon. In many cases only a few copies of a certain tome exists, necessitating either a laborious copying job or acquisition of the work. Books on traditional sorcery, witchcraft, necromancy, numerology, astrology and demonology are typical, but frequently a sorcerer will find usefulness in manuscripts about herbs, beasts, gems, swordsmithing and, of course, every conceivable Language and system of glyphs ever devised.
Spiritualists are somewhat more modern in that they most often require only a room or other space where they can work their summoning without interference. They often have bells, candles or other objects on hand to better indicate when the spirit called is present. More and more are using modern recording devices to capture the entity on film and digitally, not to prove the spirit was there, but to better analyze the summoning when it is over in order to learn more about the wraithly visitor.

Playing a Ritualist or Spiritualist

Dragon ritualists are best conceived as individuals who are willing to risk all, to push the limits of the unknown in order to not only gain knowledge, but gain the tools they need to make themselves more powerful in every sense. They all have invariably strong wills and stomachs, both of which are required to prepare and carry out the ritual effectively. Most have very strong personalities, and many are filled with more hubris than their theosophical brethren, convinced that by virtue of arts once-lost they can move the Ordo Dracul forward in a way that no other method can. If that takes 10 human sacrifices, if it means they must sacrifice a bit of their sanity to do so, if it means opening some doorway to the beyond in order to learn from the things that lurk there, so be it — such is the price of progress and power.
These characters are some of the most sinister in aspect, for despite all the precautions they take in readying their invocations, they are always aware that nearly anything can happen. They are mentally fortified and little surprises them; in fact, given what some have witnessed in pursuit of the Great Work, even the wrath of the Prince himself is almost inconsequential. This attitude goes a long way towards making others step aside when a sorcerer enters the room and yet also earns them enemies, Kindred who have no desire to suffer the presence of a “witch” any longer. It is worth noting that Dragon ritualists have a keen interest in Crúac and Theban Sorcery. When an opportunity presents itself to gain knowledge of these guarded magics, the ritualists do so without hesitation. They recognize the magics’ power and hope to be able to understand how they fit into their own conception of ritualism in order to use them in heretofore untested ways.
Mediums and other spiritualists are far less inimical. True, they have seen things from beyond and speak regularly to these entities, but they rarely seek anything more than information. Only the most foolish spiritualist desires to play master to these beings and force them to do her bidding. For the most part, spiritualists are relatively social creatures. Frequently, they farm out their services to Kindred and kine for monetary gain and what social and political influence they can earn. Some are outright frauds and perpetrate all sorts of hoaxes in order to profit by them, but most are honest and use this side-work as a way to only improve their own abilities and knowledge of the afterlife. They spend a significant amount of time reading histories, especially personal ones, in order to learn as much as they can about the spirits they speak, for the more they know the more they can ultimately discover.

Transcendental Camps

Every Dragon possesses her own conception of what she will become next, upon completing the Great Work. That idea often rests in large part on the religious and philosophical beliefs the individual first held as a mortal, and later after transcending that fragile state for the more enduring one of undeath. Still, to become a Dragon and, moreover, to have gone so far as to have succeeded in mastering the Coils requires a phenomenal degree of intellectual realignment and mental fortitude that forever alters the Dragon’s former beliefs.
Despite the many divergent theories that exist about transcendence, most Dragons seem to fall into one of several prominent camps. These are not formal organizations by any means, but they do differentiate the Dragons from one another in terms of how the see transcendence, and what they believe it will mean for themselves and for all Kindred.

Angelics

The Kindred are damned, the foul result of an unintended co-joining of mortal imperfection and immortal perfection. Sometimes referring to themselves as the Nephilim, these Dragons are convinced that they must eliminate the Stigmata of spiritual imperfection that is the source of their physical weaknesses and their psychological torment. For them, transcendence is about quite literally becoming semidivine creatures — angels — albeit not in a strictly biblical sense, but rather in a much more Gnostic one. Few believe they will become the kind of winged beings traditionally celebrated in religious, iconic imagery. Instead, they imagine they will become something certainly beyond their present state, something far more beatific to be sure, but still relatively similar to what they are now in form. In fact, most are convinced that their transformation will only bring them a single step closer to an even greater transcendence. Through further evolution, they can one night achieve the final goal of apotheosis: godhood.
The Angelics are not overly religious, despite their moniker. Their true dedication is to knowledge — gnosis — for that is the path to transcendence. Many seek their way by turning to Kabbalist, Gnostic and Sufi writings as well as even more elusive works. Others can find knowledge just as easily in the methodology they prefer, from pseudo-science to spiritualism. The key is to gain as much information as possible, for God is nothing more than a term used to represent the collection of all knowledge. Godhood is not so much about omnipotence, but omniscience.

Devourer Worms

Man’s ability to use tools and outsmart animals makes him superior to lower forms of life and justifies his consumption of those lesser creatures. A vampire’s ability to use Disciplines and defy death makes her a successful hunter of kine, and therefore worthy to subsist on their lifeblood. To the Devourer Worms, transcendence is nothing less than reaching the pinnacle of the food chain. Once achieved, no other creatures — living, dead or undead — no matter how ancient, intelligent or skilled in the hunt will be able to stand before them. Even the eldest Kindred, able to command all they survey, are naught but mewling prey to the Devourer Worms, predators the likes of which the earth has never seen. The camp takes its name from the mythical figure of Apophis, the great serpent that literally consumed the sun each day, bringing darkness to the world.
These Dragons understand the Beast — the ultimate predator — to be their better half. Its true nobility has been corrupted by lingering vestiges of human weakness, robbing the Kindred of their destiny: it is their goal to purge themselves of that corruption at all costs. They are not savage fools, however. On the contrary, they respect animal cunning and the understanding of when it is better to flee than fall into a bestial frenzy. Losing themselves to violence, while satisfying in many ways, is viewed as nothing more than chaotic idiocy. Beasts that revel in blood all the time are assured a very brief span of existence. Instead, they hone their perceptions, study their prey as much as possible — this includes the kine and Kindred — and perfect the art of the hunt. One night their need for study will be ended, and they can spend all their time slaking their thirst on whatever they desire.

Arahats

The concept of reincarnation is central to this school, which believes the Embrace is a type of karmic punishment for sins committed in past incarnations, including the most recent mortal one. This Oriental view holds that the Great Work represents the final stage of enlightenment, which can only be accomplished when karma deems that the “time served” by the reincarnated individual is completed. At that point, the Kindred enters nirvana, Golconda or some similar state and becomes a figure not unlike the Buddha. He stands outside the world of the living and undead, unaffected by either, but still of this world, and able to serve as a guide to the unenlightened. At the same time, the Arahat is omniscientand no secret remains hidden from him, not unlike the Angelics’ understanding of transcendence. Drawing heavily on Eastern thought, those who anticipate this destiny embrace Meditation and mastery over the inner self as much as the physical form.
Naturally, this particular viewpoint is embraced with the most fervor by Dragon theosophists and those of the Oriental Rite, but others also find the Arahat camp a good fit. Even a Dragon whose entire life and later Requiem has been spent engrossed in biomechanical engineering can suddenly recognize how all her work makes more sense when looked at from the Arahats’ perspective. Particularly moral and altruistic Dragons are also drawn to this idea of transcendence, especially if they have had any exposure to Eastern teachings. The Arahats should not be confused with pacifists at all, however. Many of them pursue the perfection of their physical form and excel at the martial arts — a significant number of the Axe Sworn ascribe to this camp’s beliefs. Achieving pure enlightenment is not about being good, but about becoming the best. How that is interpreted is up to the individual Dragon.

Liches

Animals have no control over the elements that constitute their world, and must obey its whims. The kine, on the other hand, are able to exert significant control over much of the earth, manufacturing things and interfering with natural processes with near impunity. However, despite their vaunted ability to master the world around them, they remain limited in the control they have over the minds and wills of others, relying on substitutes like bribery, blackmail and drugs to coerce their fellow man. The Kindred have no need of these things for their Disciplines permit them to directly exert their will on all creatures and to transform themselves as needed to overcome difficult challenges. The liches are convinced that transcendence is fundamentally about control. By transcending, a lich will finally gain complete and unassailable control over all beings and all things around her, as well as control over her own mind and body. No longer will she need ritual, blood or devices to empower himself and enable her to change all that he wishes to change. The only limitation for a lich will be imagination and desire.
To gain this degree of control — to transcend — requires first that the Dragon understand how things work. It is not enough to know about biology, physics, math, and chemistry, though they are important; the lich must also understand the hidden reality behind the perceivable world. The phenomenal world is but an illusion behind which the noumenal world lays bare the final truths of existence. A lich dedicates her Requiem, her Great Work, to discovering this backstage of reality and learning how to bend it to her purposes. Similar to puppetry, by changing the fabric of reality even in slight ways the lich can affect tremendous change in our illusory world. Those who cleave to this view believe that a number of others, including many mortals, have come close to discovering the truth, even if only glimpsing it briefly. The journals and notes of these various arcanists, visionaries, crackpots and wizards are of particular importance, for if read carefully they can be coaxed to give up their secrets.

Eleusinians

Mortality is an illusion that limits the potential of an individual, constricting her ability to perceive truths and act accordingly. Undeath is a place just beyond mortality in which the façade of life can be seen for what it truly is: a fleeting experience that deludes those too attached to it. Freed of life, the undead are able to act in ways that mortals cannot and gain a wisdom that is impossible to achieve when tied to the mortal shell. Even so, undeath is not true death, and so has its own limits — the hunger, frenzy and susceptibility to sunlight, for starters. This camp, which takes its name from a Greek mystery religion, is sure that only true death will free them from those lingering constraints and weaknesses. However, they also believe that unless they die in a very precise fashion, they will not fully transcend and will be instead be doomed to spend eternity as a mournful spirit forever denied rest. Therefore, the Eleusinians put their energy into discovering the perfect death, the one that will permit them to transcend the Kindred condition and become something better.
Euthanasia and necromancy are part and parcel of the Eleusinians quest. By putting others to death and then summoning back their spirits in order to learn of their fate, the Eleusinians move closer and closer to their goal of transcendence. Some do so using ancient methods — ritual knives, incantations, black candles rotting corpses; others use more modern techniques, causing subjects to flatline for a precise period of time and then reviving them using resuscitative Equipment. Sometimes more extreme means of reanimation are necessary, but one way or another, the Dragon is going to find out what happened to the subject at the moment of death. Eleusinians are notoriously in search of new subjects for their work, using any method that works to induce or force kine (and occasionally Kindred) to submit to their Research. Of course, in theory the Eleusinian will eventually have learned enough to euthanize herself — if any have done so yet, no one is talking.

Chthonians

There are more things in heaven and earth than man or Kindred have dreamed of, even when in the throes of the most feverish or hallucinogenic nightmares. Beyond the realm of the world we know, beyond this plane of existence or perhaps far out on the fringes of the universe, are things, alien entities that are of such a manner that to even gaze upon them, assuming that is even conceivable, would shatter the mind of all but the most ironwilled witness. Some of these beings are so dire that not only do they defy rational description, but to utter a single syllable of just one of their thousand names will render the speaker unconscious and can draw the thing’s attention — something only the truly mad would welcome. The Chthonians insist that upon transcending undeath they will join these cosmic horrors in whatever Luciferian realm they dwell. When that happens, the concerns of Kindred and kine will no longer be theirs, for to the things beyond, the accumulated bulk of Humanity is as a nest of ants to a mammoth — utterly beyond their notice.
The Chthonians spend much of their time poring over dark passages in certain profane texts that provide hints and clues as to the nature of these things. What is clear is that they possess intellects too alien for all but the simplest guesses as to their real purpose. So far, very little else is known, so the Chthonic Dragons consume their Requiems delving into what hoary secrets they can gain. They also dabble in drawing the attention of the things in the hope that they can discover more about what they will become when the Great Work is completed, using living and unliving sacrifices to bait these entities. A Master of the Sanguine Terror in Providence supposedly vanished one night after attempting to summon something he referred to as Ool Gaharsht, leaving behind a scene of such ghastliness that his Haven was put to the torch by the Prince in order that no other Kindred attempt to recreate his work again. Chthonians accept such risks, however. They are convinced of their destiny and find it impossible to not learn as much about it as they can.
In addition to these transcendental camps, there are a host of other suppositions bandied about by the Ordo Dracul. Not every Dragon cleaves to a particular camp, however. Many prefer to take a more agnostic approach. They believe that by transcending undeath they will simply improve their lot, and so they pursue that goal with all the Vigor of their more opinionated peers. For the most part, they are less concerned with what they will actually become when they have succeeded. In their eyes, escaping damnation is paramount — the details are of secondary concern.

Structure

Ordo Dracul: Titles and Offices

The Sworn of Dracula

Little is known of the Sworn — from the outside, they appear to be sub-factions or sub-covenants within the Ordo Dracul. A few Kindred suspect that the Sworn of Dracula number three distinct groups, each of which is associated with some higher branch of the Dragon’s Tongue. Most vampires outside the covenant don’t even know the names of the Sworn, though three distinct titles do seem to be consistent where the Order grows to any appreciable numbers: the Sworn of the Axe, the Sworn of the Mysteries and the Sworn of the Dying Light.

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When Dracula established the Ordo Dracul with his Rites of the Dragon, he recognized that the covenant would only endure if it were as carefully and strictly organized as the Dragons’ experiments were approached. Achievement in the Coils was the original litmus test for advancement in rank, but the covenant would require very different kinds of strengths that would complement, rather than confront one another. The Dragon’s Tongue calls for not only a distinction between members of the Order based on which Coils they pursue, but even more importantly it divides all those Dragons who have sworn a solemn, unbreakable oath to the covenant into three different branches. Each is given specific areas of authority as well as duties so that those Dragons best suited for one type of service to the Academy are put to that use and not wasted on occupations they are ill-fit to assume. Together, the three sub-orders would have authority over the greater Order of the Dragon, open to all Kindred. Ostensibly, each Academy is answerable only to Vlad Tepes himself, but given his failure to appear and utter pronouncements for more than a century, this is little more than a formality tonight, with the elders of the Sworn, as these Oathbound Dragons are known, effectively ruling the roost.
The Sworn of the Axe, the Sworn of the Dying Light and the Sworn of the Mysteries are each led by its ranking members. Within their sub-order’s sphere of influence, these elders are the final authority for the entire Academy. If the highest-ranking Sworn of the Axe declares that all Dragons must destroy a certain Mekhet Crone who is accused of stealing a certain manuscript from the Kogaion, a higher-ranking Sworn of the Mysteries has no right to countermand that order, for martial matters are the domain of the Axe. When something seems to fall within the sphere of two or even all three sub-orders, the highest-ranking Sworn has the final voice. Most importantly, regardless of rank, the Sworn always have higher standing than those who have not taken an oath. A Sworn Scribe may command an Adept despite the Scribe’s relatively low Status. However, as with just-commissioned military officers who go around barking orders to senior NCOs with 20-plus years under their belt, what goes around comes around, and one night their comeuppance will come due.

Culture

Coterie Members

Dragons are some of the rarest members of cosmopolitan coteries, yet at the same time, they are some of the most inquisitive Kindred when it comes to occult lore and the history and metaphysics of vampires. Indeed, they represent the one covenant that all the other covenants have substantial interests in learning more about, though each for their own reasons.
In general, the Ordo Dracul believes that its rites are the most important and powerful among all the covenants, as witnessed by the fact that their founder had himself turned into a vampire by its own accounts. The Dragons are also quite interested in gaining access to the knowledge of the other covenants, be it The Circle of the Crone’s strange rituals or the many passages of The Testament of Longinus possessed by The Lancea Sanctum. As such, many Dragons join cosmopolitan coteries in order to gain a greater knowledge of outside history and obscured secrets. Not all Dragons have ulterior motives, however. Some are dedicated scholars who are more than willing to share their findings with other knowledgeable types. In fact, scholarship is one of the main factors that brings Dragons into cosmopolitan coteries.
Being the two most conventionally spiritual covenants, The Circle of the Crone and The Lancea Sanctum are the ones that most consistently object to members joining with Dragons. The Acolytes see the Order’s beliefs and practices as artificial, contrary to their own naturalistic origin philosophies. The Lancea Sanctum worries about the sinful practices and beliefs of the Order’s members, wary of putting the individual before the Creator. That is not to say, however, that Acolytes or Sanctified Kindred never join with Dragons or that there is always an element of distrust. Those who do join a coterie with a Dragon are simply more likely to raise eyebrows among covenant superiors (and, in the case of members of The Lancea Sanctum, by the Inquisitors of that covenant).
Many of the reasons given thus far can be applied to explain why a member of The Lancea Sanctum might overlook the comparative heresy of a Dragon and join her in a coterie. Knowledge (and the search for it) is one of the key elements in bringing such philosophically divergent Kindred together, but a devout member of The Lancea Sanctum might also ally herself with a Dragon in hopes of converting him to her beliefs. This can give rise to many intense discussions and might, in the end, result in some genuine respect between the two Kindred — much like Aquinas discoursing with Averroës.
The Invictus and the Carthians have fewer reservations about the Dragons, though a number of Kindred in both covenants certainly resent what they see as flippant disregard for the vampiric condition espoused by the Ordo Dracul. In mixed-covenant coteries, Dragons are often scholars, lore-keepers, historians and linguistic experts. If they are part of a coterie that is not dedicated to scholarship, they tend to be in advisory positions rather than leading the coterie. They often consider themselves the philosophical leaders, though, manipulating the less knowledgeable and enlightened members of the coterie.
For their part, the Dragons have a pragmatic relationship with the concept of mixed-covenant coteries. It is obvious that such coteries provide not only insight into other covenants, but access to their lore, fresh perspectives on old problems and access to occult secrets. Yet it also exposes the Ordo Dracul’s secrets to members of other covenants. While this wouldn’t be a problem if the Dragons who joined such coteries were as secretive as the covenant leaders would prefer, the fact is that most of the Dragons who cooperate with others tend to be the kind of reciprocal scholars who are more than willing to share what they know with others if that can help solve problems. As such, exceptionally territorial leaders of the Order try to keep a sharp eye on Dragons who associate with member of other covenants. They might occasionally bring such a Kindred in for Interrogation, demand that the Kindred leave the coterie or threaten destruction if she does not comply. At other times, such elders might inflict physical or psychological punishments (often with the use of Disciplines) in order to teach fellow Dragons not to share covenant secrets.
Some might see this as Paranoia on the part of the Ordo Dracul’s leaders, but in truth, many are the Kindred who seek to ally themselves with a Dragon only in order to learn the covenant’s esoteric secrets. In such a situation, the other coterie members might dispose of their Dragon member when they believe they have learned all they can. If the Kindred in question becomes aware of this situation, it is usually too late to go to the covenant for help (as more xenophobic members are likely to rebuke the Kindred for revealing secrets), so the Dragon must continue to keep herself valuable to the coterie. This value can come in the form of providing more secrets and information, thus creating a dangerous downward spiral.

Nomads

Scholars of the Ordo Dracul crave any information they can obtain on the mysteries of vampiric existence. While some are content to remain in one city, speaking extensively with a handful of fellow creatures of the night, a driven few travel widely to learn all they can. Dragons overcome the tedium of endless nights by seeking any lore that may help them understand the supernatural world and transcend the curse of vampirism.
Such quests take nomads to the farthest corners of the Earth. Each time a rumor or revelation is proven to be a false lead, the nomad must pursue the next clue he finds to his own redemption and ascendance. For most, the road never ends, but it is a journey a true Dragon must still attempt.
Scholarship is an important goal to the Ordo Dracul, but it is by no means the only one. Dragons undertake quests for lost artifacts, search for occult tomes, map ley lines, investigate sites of supernatural power, and slay supernatural monsters that poison the land. Not every Dragon has the occult wisdom of a learned master of lore. Some wander so they can serve the elders of their covenant, often in exchange for promises of Status, power, or (more directly) a chance to learn The Coils of the Dragon.
For each Dragon who champions such quests, there’s also a need for bodyguards, couriers, messengers and drivers. Anyone seeking power can find it by seizing authority in a city, but far from the city lights, wisdom is cloaked in darkness.

The Ordo Dracul in Road Coteries

The very thought of vampires from different covenants traveling together may seem unusual to the casual scholar of Kindred society. Rest assured that such occurrences not only can happen, but in some cases, they should. The Ordo Dracul does not require its initiates to proselytize or evangelize. Dragons fight and bleed as other vampires do, struggling from night to night as they wait for some hint that will increase their occult knowledge or advance their quests. It is unlikely that a Dragon needs to hide his affiliations when he’s far from the judgment of Princes and covenants. Far more likely is the possibility that other vampires will approach the Dragons, no doubt out of some hope of escaping their eternal curse.
While the Ordo Dracul have many far-reaching crusades in their endless quest for knowledge, a Dragon that chooses to travel with a road coterie will learn more about the many permutations of vampirism than he will in a single city. Exploring the limitations of Kindred knowledge practically compels the scholar to seek out rarefied species of his own kind — including some so monstrous and bestial that they hide far from the cities of men.
Occult Scholars
Since Dragons are driven by a need to understand their own kind, most have expanded their areas of expertise to include a wide array of vampiric lore. If history has any credibility, the darkest corners of the Earth may hide its forgotten descendants: failed bloodlines that should have died out long ago. The mere rumor of one may motivate a Dragon to travel far from the safety of his Haven to study this curiosity. Some of these rarefied species carry lore from lost ages, mysteries that elders have forgotten in the suspire of the Requiem.
Couriers
Dragons must learn to change with the times, finding new ways to share the legend and lore they have uncovered. While any scholar would do well to master such basic tools as the telephone, computer and digital scanner, some lore is far too sensitive to be disseminated through electronic means. Any information that can be broadcast, transmitted or forwarded can be copied, and the Ordo Dracul preserves many secrets that outsiders are not meant to know. Some pages should not even be scanned in a copier, lest the light summon something that cannot be put down. Secrets do not always willingly lend themselves to being told.
Some of the most esoteric fragments of wisdom remain encrypted in priceless tomes. Such treasures cannot travel from one location to another without some variety of highly armed escort. A few are even constantly moved from one corner of the globe to another, for fear of attracting enemies who would pillage and exploit such sacred knowledge. It is rumored that even more valuable artifacts are transported this way, including some handled by the Sworn of the Axe or even reputedly by the mortal Vlad Tepes. The value of such items to anyone with Spirit’s Touch should be obvious: reading the auras of these treasures is almost like communing with Lord Dracula himself. A Dragon may be recruited at any time to carry this treasure or that one across a vast stretch of wilderness, perhaps as a test of his loyalty.
Some coteries spend decades Devoted to this specialized profession. Instead of a task for a single journey, they gain a reputation for transporting and guarding important cargo from one place to another. A few are assigned to protect minor artifacts as they travel, using them in the pursuit of occult knowledge. Out of a sense of duty, some of the Sworn of the Axe tie their Status and identity to the artifacts they accompany. Lesser Dragons may see this term of service as a demonstration of loyalty, on their way to bigger and better things.
Escorts
One of the most unfortunate facts of a Dragon’s existence is that younger vampires may continually approach him for the knowledge he possesses. Many of these petitioners have at least toyed with the idea of escaping their eternal curse, but only a few actually have the discipline and insight to pursue such scholarship. Once a vampire has been introduced at a court as an esteemed master of the Ordo Dracul, he becomes a beacon to ruthless vampires who would covet his knowledge.
Elders still have a tendency to write letters of introduction, and some insist on announcing to others that a particularly learned scholar is obviously in need of an initiate. Those who would escape the horrors of vampirism travel vast distances to find a Mentor who can instruct him in the Ordo’s secrets, creating fanatic petitioners who seek out knowledge and power.
When surrounded by such sycophants, the scholar is in desperate need of an entourage of escorts. In some cases, the scholar is the only Dragon in the coterie, surrounding by vampires from different covenants. One does not need to become an initiate of the Order to find occult secrets, but any coterie that values knowledge would do well to recruit a Dragon into its ranks.

History

The Ordo Dracul - A History

Lexicon
Lexicon, Ordo Dracul

Type

Religious, Organised Religion

Demonym

Dragons

Subsidiary Organizations

• Sworn of the Axe
• Sworn of the Dying Light
• Sworn of the Mysteries
• The Impaled
• The Sworn of the Ladder
• The Sworn of the Locust

Related Traditions

• Apocryphal Coils
• Blood Alchemy {Spoiling}
• Damascene Rite
• Oriental Rite
• Palatine Rite
• Philadelphian Rite
• The Coils of the Dragon
• Wallachian Rite
• Wyrm's Nest Rituals

Related Ranks & Titles

• Grand Wyrm

Related Professions

• Castellan
• Confessor
• Convener
• Guardian
• Kogaion
• The Devoted of Hermes
• The Dragon's Breath

Related Plots

• Mentors & Students

Related Texts
Rites of the Dragon

Concerning...

Golconda: Why bother with Golconda when transcendence can make one more than a vampire, instead of just enabling her to settle for what she is?

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Simple Oaths and Great Oaths

Among the Dragons, the taking of oaths is of tremendous importance. It is a promise to take on responsibilities, to safeguard secrets and to serve the Order. A Dragon who breaks her oath is more detestable than any other Kindred, a traitor whose word no longer has value and whose Requiem is best ended. For this reason, Dragons do not proclaim oaths lightly.
Two oaths are recognized by the covenant. Simple Oaths are usually unceremonious and take place between two Dragons. The mentor-protégé relationship, for example, is normally cemented by a Simple Oath, but Dragons just as frequently swear Simple Oaths to one another when partnering on some investigation or Lesser Work, when transacting business, and when borrowing and lending their most treasured possessions. Violation of a Simple Oath is a serious matter, but it rarely rises to a level of importance demanding a formal trial or other adjudication.
Great Oaths are usually between individual Dragons and the entire covenant, or less frequently the Academy, a coterie or another subset of the greater Ordo Dracul. Joining the ranks of the Sworn requires a Great Oath, and most involve elaborate ritual and are taken before more than one Dragon. An individual who breaks a Great Oath can be certain that her crime will be dealt with swiftly and formally. In some instances a Dragon may argue before a Juris Draconis that an oath she has made has been breached by the group she swore the oath to in the first place. If one’s coterie turns on her, the oath she took when joining the coterie may be ruled null and void, and any further obligations she had are absolved.
Great Oaths are almost always recorded in the Academy’s books, with signatures of the oathtaker, the administer of the oath, and at least three witnesses completing the record. The rolls also record all violations and the names of the oath-breakers, so that their sins will not be forgotten even through the Fog of Eternity.

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Good Weird and Bad Weird

Storytellers are cautioned to be careful how to introduce the methodologies of the Ordo Dracul in a chronicle. It is one thing to say that a certainDragon’s laboratory is filled with beakers and Tesla coils and hope this comes across as appropriately creepy and dark. It is quite another thing to make the players interpret the scene the same way. Consequently, while the Storyteller is imagining a nightmarish tableau that would make moviegoers shudder in their seats, the scene from Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein is rolling in the players’ heads. This kind of thing can ruin not only the scene in question, but the entire chronicle by turning the Ordo Dracul into an absurd caricature of itself.
The only real solution to this dilemma is to rely upon detailed descriptions of the Dragons, their chapter houses and the actual work they are involved with. Don’t just think visually, either. Relay to the players the sounds and smells their characters perceive, and don’t forget things like temperature and the humidity of the environs. Describe the sinister Equipment the Dragon utilizes, and add telltale clues as to the less-than-humane purposes that the machines, instruments and other devices are put to. Just a brief mention of a muffled moan, the intermittent sparking of raw wires, the acrid stink from a strange spill or the heaviness in the air can provide enough kind of color to the scene. The Dragons may do some weird things, but it is weird in the skin-crawling sense, not the comical.

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Methodology and Story

Storytellers should consider each character’s methodology not only as window dressing, but as a source of plot-hooks and story ideas. Consider a Dragon who uses the alchemical method. Alchemists are always seeking rare substances for their experiments, many of which can be quite dangerous to handle, let alone subject to rigorous alchemical testing. Because of the nature of the Great Work, Dragon alchemists are particularly looking to get their hands on all kinds of blood, vampire or otherwise, as well as tissue from the undead. Few students in the Ordo Dracul would be willing to offer up their own flesh for such investigations, and rarely are they compelled to do so. This means the alchemists will have to get their hands on other Kindred, either inducing them to make a small sacrifice in the name of science or forcing them to do so. A Dragon who believes that she needs the heart of a diablerist to further her work will be hard-pressed, but in the end will likely do whatever it takes to arrange a suitable donor.
Characters could be pressed into service either arranging such a scenario — it can’t be easy getting one vampire to commit Diablerie without the plan backfiring — or retrieving the heart when the deed is done; clearly, an even more complicated prospect. Storytellers can even inform an alchemist character that her own studies have come to a standstill, and, until she gets hold of a certain substance and successfully combines it with something she already has on hand, she will be unable to complete the work necessary for the second Coil she desperately desires. This turns the simple expenditure of Experience Points into an entire story that can alter the shape of the chronicle.
Catastrophes are another way to add some drama to a story. The work alchemists do is usually not as carefully controlled as, say, genetic Research. As a result, it is all too easy for a fire, an explosion, a biological hazard or something else entirely undesired to occur during an experiment. A disastrous chemical explosion can send the characters into a frenzy, causing them to wreck their laboratory, and years worth of work along with it. Even if the explosion occurs when they are away — a chemical mixture in a stoppered flask reacts unexpectedly — the laboratory can be destroyed, and mortal authorities will come to put out the fire and seek the cause of the blaze. Now the Masquerade is threatened, and the characters are left not only picking up the pieces of all their long work, but the Prince demands to see them and forbids them from further experiments. How they get around this insufferable proscription can make for an interesting chronicle indeed.

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The Digital Dragon

The computer is still mostly used as a Research tool by those Dragons familiar enough with the technology to employ it in their studies. Doing searches on the Internet, computing complex calculations and monitoring experiments is increasingly common in some Academies, especially among the covenant’s neonates. However, a very small but growing number of Dragons are actually putting computers to use in a much more radical fashion. These radicals wonder whether transcendence can be helped along by computer science in a very literal sense. They theorize that just as kine can hone things like hand-eye coordination and their ability to mentally organize and compute information — like knowing what words will produce the best results in a search engine — by using computers, the Kindred might be able to similarly produce intentional and transformative changes in their physiology and mental state.
This idea is still purely theoretical. To date, no Dragon has come forward and demonstrated a quantitative change that has taken place as a direct result of computer usage. Proponents are not about to give up, however. Instead, they are investing in software and hardware companies, gaining influence over developers and engineers and seeking to determine the most effective applications that might produce the desired outcome.
If nothing else, computer modeling enables Dragons to visualize pseudo-scientific concepts and decrypt ancient documents with much greater speed and efficiency. In some domains, Kogaions have specialized software creating theoretical patterns of ley line movement. The Great Work is an endeavor that depends on information, and computers are the most powerful informationhandling machines ever seen by even the most ancient Dragons.

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A Theosophical Lexicon

Devachan: The state of existence experienced by the ego when it is between incarnations. Ghosts exist in this place.
Ecstasis: A state of the mind and spirit that induces a physical trance and allows access to visions and precognitive knowledge.
Ego: The self or “I.” The ego consists of a lower and higher form.
Esoteric: Hidden or occluded.
Exoteric: Public or revealed.
Karma: The Law of Retribution that ensures a cosmic balance in all things.
Mahatma: A particularly enlightened theosophist.
Manas: The “mind,” Higher Ego, or Man. It is the manas which separate Humanity from the animals. It is the principle of sentient reincarnation.
Monad: The One or Unity; what is often called God. The monad is that part of every individual that ties him to the universe and leads him towards nirvana.
Nirvana: The place where the manas goes after an individual has achieved worldly perfection and then meets true death. Sometimes it is possible to reach nirvana while undead or even alive.
Samma Sambuddha: The spontaneous remembrance of all past incarnations.
Self: Every person has a Higher and Lower self, an Impersonal and divine and a Personal and animal self.

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The Journal of Hezekiah Ainsley

19 November
Soughte to burne ye essential Saltes accord’g to ye antient Liber Occulus, but Saturne is in Trine and am harde putte to it to make goode. That I remain desirous of ye Result I shal seeke again upon return from my traffick in Towne imploy’g ye other Chymical substances suggest’d by D.L., think’g it may prove more efficacious, especialy shoulde they first be infus’d by ye Emanations in ye Wyrm Neste discovr’d by M. on ye Equinox.
23 November
I rejoice ye Result and can now make ye partial Transformat’n in the Subject’s subtle Shape, yett awaite with fearfull Clarity ye Change in ye fundamental Acids, such as they are loth to burne in ye manner need’d for ye Pentagram of Borellus call’d for. I am dipos’d to doe as I did on Roodemas, bring’g together ye Primarie Oils and Vitae by ye olde Formula, but R. sayes ye Vibrations will be too weake to unlocke ye Gate and free me to speake the requir’d Words. Must acct. for ye Humours also, soe ye Worke is not spoil’d and tonight’s Findings can be putte to greater Purpose before ye nexte Invocat’n.

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That's Crazy Talk

The followers of both secret Oaths are fiercely curious about the fate of Dracula’s prodigy progeny, Anoushka. Unlike Mara, whose death is a matter of some firm record, Anoushka’s destruction is in doubt. The followers of the Ladder insist that not only did she not perish, she achieved an enlightened Golconda and even tonight walks the earth like a bodhisattva, aiding those Kindred who quest to transcend their natures. Alternately, there’s the story that she became human again, had a couple of kids and died in bed, surrounded by adoring grandchildren.
The followers of the Locust, as one might expect, tell different stories, the most common being that she went crazy, degenerated and was beat down like a piñata because she was always a sentimental, weak-ass bitch. But the other rumor, perhaps even more disturbing to the Ladder, is that Anoushka did survive and is active in the Kindred demi-monde.
Specifically, they speculate that Anoushka became The Unholy. Sure, it sounds crazy to think that a woman whose prime desire was to be a moral paragon might become the leather-clad reaper of the southwest United States, but the Locust-Sworn have come up with some disturbing parallels.

• The Unholy’s bestial hands and crow characteristics? Dracula’s children were always cursed by becoming more and more animalistic. The same thing explains The Unholy’s atavistic mindset.
• Both are short, dark, slight women.
• Both were known for their rapport and communication with animals (though granted, that’s not an uncommon ability).
• Most importantly: The Unholy has avoided the Torpor that seems to be inevitable for most other Kindred her age. Everyone wonders how she does it. If she were Anoushka, at one time the world’s foremost expert on cheating the Kindred curse — well, it suddenly seems more reasonable, doesn’t it?

Neutral

The Ordo Dracul

0

The Carthian Movement

0

Carthians: "Hiding something malignant."
Ordo Dracul: "Cannot comprehend the value of self."

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The Ordo Dracul, of all covenants, is the easiest for the members of The Carthian Movement to get along with. Viewed by most, perhaps erroneously, as nothing more than a secular, scholarly organization, its members are often respected for their perceived intellect and wisdom. Although a minuscule number of members (or former members) of the Order number among the adherents of The Carthian Movement, the two covenants often enjoy a relatively civil dialog. If there is anything about The Ordo Dracul that invokes the displeasure of the Carthians, it’s the Dragons’ tendency toward isolationism and esotericism. Their unwillingness to share information and their reticence in political maneuverings sometimes strikes the Movement as unnecessarily obstructive.
Alliances with The Ordo Dracul are almost always strict arrangements of trade: items and information that appeals to the Order are bought and sold in exchange for political support, territorial access and occasional harboring from oppressive forces. Formal alliance is not entirely uncommon, but it’s relatively common knowledge that any relationship with a member of The Ordo Dracul will go only so far as long as you remain outside their covenant.
Very, very few Kindred convert from The Ordo Dracul to The Carthian Movement wholeheartedly. Only those who are disappointed in the teachings of the Order, for one reason or another, are likely to join up. Even they are more likely to withdraw completely from vampire society, though, remaining members of their covenant without participating in its traditions, or becoming unaligned and disappearing from Kindred politics entirely.
Likewise, The Ordo Dracul is often allowed to function relatively unmolested under Carthian government. Members of the Order are more than willing to participate in votes or debates, so long as such things don’t take too much time away from the Dragons’ own pursuits; when politics does take too much time, the Dragons are all too happy to forfeit their positions, allowing The Carthian Movement to direct their choice. The Dragons’ occasional unwillingness to answer questions about the details of their Research can raise the ire of particularly domineering Carthians, but stubborn silence is usually the least of a repressive ruler’s worries.

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Many Dragons regard The Carthian Movement as the covenant with the most potential (aside from The Ordo Dracul itself, of course). After all, the Carthians embrace change with almost as much zeal as the Dragons, even if their attitudes toward change are a bit different. The Ordo Dracul sees change as a means to understanding and transcending the vampiric condition, whereas the Carthians’ understanding of the phenomenon of changes seems to the Ordo to stop with the platitude “change is good.” Change, argue the Dragons, isn’t good or evil in and of itself, but therein lies the main point of contention between the two covenants. The Ordo Dracul is a scientific and scholarly covenant, while The Carthian Movement is political. Therefore, their attitudes regarding when and how the Status quo must change are necessarily different.
When members of the two covenants figure this simple truth out, they can come to a frighteningly effective accord. After all, The Ordo Dracul is, by matter of practice, not much of a threat to The Carthian Movement. The Ordo Dracul doesn’t have a vested interest, as a covenant, in keeping those in power from falling (although of course those in power do have a vested interest in staying there). As such, The Ordo Dracul isn’t necessarily opposed to the Carthians’ methods of determining government. In cities where the Carthians hold power, The Ordo Dracul often outwardly supports the Movement’s rhetoric and participates in their “elections.” In cities where The Ordo Dracul holds praxis but where courting the favor of the Carthians is advantageous, the Dragons sometimes use elections or other somewhat democratic methods for determining their leaders. (These elections are often rigged, of course, but that’s not the point.) In other cities, the two covenants might agree on an oligarchy or a meritocracy. Both forms of government are similar to what The Ordo Dracul practices anyway, and in matters not pertaining to the covenant’s Research, the Dragons often don’t have a problem sharing temporal power.
Even The Ordo Dracul, not an ancient covenant as compared to The Lancea Sanctum, The Circle of the Crone or The Invictus, was fairly well established when The Carthian Movement began. That said, the Dragons do understand revolution. As students of change and history, they can point to many times when the only option for escaping an oppressive ruler’s thumb was open revolt and bloodshed. Most Dragons are intelligent enough to realize that the Carthians aren’t the true “underdogs” in Kindred society, however — they are simply a unified voice. Dragons who have made a study of the life of their founder, Vlad Tepes, note that he was something of political visionary himself. He killed off many of the nobles who preceded his principle reign and installed a new aristocracy, largely drawn from the ranks of the common folk. A Dragon taking the reins of power in a new city can win great support from The Carthian Movement by doing much the same thing.
One of the biggest points of contention between The Ordo Dracul and the Carthians is probably the former’s emphasis on manners and propriety. While not all Carthians are boors or loudmouthed rabble-rousers, enough of them Ignore decorum to irritate traditionalist and conservative Dragons.

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Neutral

The Ordo Dracul

0

The Invictus

0

Invictus: "Disciplined but deluded."
Ordo Dracul: "Strong outside hollow within."

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Like The Carthian Movement, The Invictus is concerned with more temporal matters than The Ordo Dracul. Unlike them, however, The Invictus is concerned with maintaining the Status quo, with blocking change. This, obviously, flies in the face of Dragon philosophy. The Invictus potentially holds the most power to change the world of any of the vampiric covenants. Their influence in matters corporate, legal andpolitical give them the ability, if they so desired, to alter the world so drastically that Kindred of other covenants would be scrambling to catch up. This amount of power is tantalizing and a bit frightening to The Ordo Dracul. Some young Dragons who discover how deep Invictus influence really goes in some cities sometimes wish that the First Estate would simply turn Kindred society on its ear so that the Order could study the effects.
In practice, the two covenants can work alongside one another with little problem. The Ordo Dracul doesn’t meddle in mortal affairs often, and The Invictus, while discomfited or intrigued by the notion of The Coils of the Dragon, is for the most part comfortable letting The Ordo Dracul have its privacy. (Better, anyway, to have the Dragons in their private parlors when the time comes for discussion on the philosophy of change). The Ordo Dracul respects The Invictus’ emphasis on traditionalism and propriety, and Dragons dwelling in Invictus cities often adopt some of the First Estate’s conventions of etiquette into their own observances. The Ordo Dracul especially favors the Recitation of Lineage, although the Dragons usually list mentors and students in place of sires and childer.
The Invictus don’t much care about Wyrm’s Nests, and so The Ordo Dracul doesn’t normally have to contend with competition from the covenant on a mystical level. In the unfortunate instance that a Wyrm’s Nest is also a desirable locale to The Invictus for some other reason, months of negotiation might ensure (meaning that The Ordo Dracul must sometimes violate The Invictus’ territory — Wyrm’s Nests don’t wait for diplomacy). On the other hand, the great value that Dragons place on Wyrm’s Nests can make them a prized property to The Invictus who wants something from the Order.
If The Ordo Dracul envies The Invictus anything, it’s their rapport with mortals. The First Estate is often better suited to dealing with mortal organizations than with individual people, of course, but the result is still impressive: The Invictus of many domains command great webs of temporal power, encompassing Kindred Regents and manipulators, ghoul agents and mortal dupes all across the world. The Dragon who wants access to mortal technologies, secure locations or protected artifacts may have to go through Invictus channels to get what she wants. Thus the Order works hard to not make an enemy of The Invictus on any grand scale in most domains.
The greatest point of contention between the two covenants is, of course, their completely contradictory philosophies regarding change. Some Dragons despise The Invictus on general principle, wondering how any Kindred, especially neonates, could be stupid enough to join the covenant knowing that the chances for advancement are so slim. Others note how the lofty seat of many Invictus leaders affords them an excellent vantage point the of Kindred and mortal worlds and how that magnificent position is wasted on stagnant elders desperately avoiding any change to their Requiems.

---

So near to the order of the Invictus and yet so far, The Ordo Dracul represents (in the eyes of fanatical Society Kindred) a serious failure on the part of the Invictus. To an extremist’s way of thinking, every single Dragon should have been an easy convert to the Invictus, but somewhere along the way, something went horribly awry. The First Estate was distracted when it should have been attentive.
The Invictus does not share the Dragons’ fascination with change or “redemption.” On the contrary, the Invictus is certain that Damnation is forever, and the best that can be done is to accrue as much power as possible to ease the weight of the ages. Kindred do not change and, ideally, neither should the cities they rule.
Many a member of the Invictus, however, those from European domains in particular, still entertains long-term intentions of annexing a local Ordo Dracul chapter. Invictus members may see The Coils of the Dragon as party tricks, heresies or secret weapons, but they’re exceedingly useful whatever they are. The Invictus could put them to good use.
In many domains, The Ordo Dracul is treated as a society adjacent to the Invictus — a secret investigative force or private social club, perhaps. In general, it seems that Society Kindred and Dragons find ways to coexist when they recognize that they are in pursuit of different goals. When the Inner Circle seeks to hoard information for itself or when the Dragons seek to dabble in political power, troubles arise. When Kindred are present that can negotiate fair shares or divisions of authority between the two covenants (a joint Invictus/Dragon coterie might bridge the gap), the Invictus and the Order can enjoy the kind of alliance normally associated with the First and Second Estates. (In some Invictus domains, the Order is known as the Secret Estate.)

Neutral

The Unaligned

0

The Ordo Dracul

0

Ordo Dracul: "Usually beneath notice. Usually."

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The Ordo Dracul draws a clear distinction between Kindred who simply Haven’t joined a covenant, either because they have not had the opportunity to do so or because they have not found one that suits their needs, and those who consciously choose to eschew Kindred society. The former are potential recruits, free of other covenant influences, considered on an individual basis. The latter may have a spark of determination and independence in the face of eternity that the Dragons find impressive.
Unaligned vampires often regard the vampiric condition As One of solitary predation. The Ordo Dracul doesn’t necessarily agree, but at least these Kindred are thinking about the vampiric condition at all. Many vampires, without the benefit of a sire’s or a covenant’s guidance, perish soon after the Embrace, either at the hands of other monsters or from meeting the sun in dogged refusal to accept what they have become. The Unaligned who endure, however, often have the ability to look into the face of their Curse, to examine it, to challenge it and question it — and that The Ordo Dracul finds impressive.
Of course, The Ordo Dracul is well aware that an unaligned Kindred who deliberately chooses his independence probably isn’t going to cope well with the strict rules of the covenant. If the Dragons offer membership to such a vampire, they make it very clear that they offer no special treatment, no allowances for showboating, “being a lone wolf,” “doing your own thing” or any of the other liberal claptrap from recent mortal generations. The Ordo Dracul was founded upon discipline and meticulous attention to detail. While this attitude drives many potential recruits away, some discover that the rigors of the covenant are just what they needed to find a place in the Danse Macabre.
These sorts of unaligned Kindred are subjected to the heaviest indoctrination the Order can muster, long before they are allowed to study the Coils. The Ordo Dracul makes it very clear that once a vampire becomes a Dragon, she should expect to remain a Dragon — quitting the covenant is tantamount to betrayal, The Ordo Dracul does not wish to risk even one lesson of one Coil being carelessly spread across the world by a wayward ex-Dragon.

---

Competitive

The Ordo Dracul

-25

The Circle of the Crone

-25

Circle of The Crone: "Distracted from true understanding."
Ordo Dracul: "Idolaters without enlightenment."

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Many Dragons find the Acolytes interesting, but not out of idle curiosity. Despite the facets of The Circle of the Crone that annoy or amuse some Dragons, the Circle’s abilities, philosophy and history make The Ordo Dracul unable to dismiss the potential power of the Acolytes.
The two covenants share some history, or more accurately, The Ordo Dracul takes some of its history from the Circle. According to the Rites of the Dragon, Vlad Tepes actually joined the Circle for a time (how long is a matter of debate) and learned at least some of the secrets of Crúac before deciding that that blood sorcery would not teach him what he sought to know. Even tonight, a sizeable number of Dragons begin their Requiems with the Circle before “converting” to The Ordo Dracul. Both covenants, after all, offer mystical paths to power, but The Circle of the Crone is deeply rooted in worship and the past while The Ordo Dracul is dedicated to scientific experimentation and the future.
The Circle of the Crone certainly looks askance at some of the Ordo’s assertions. Notably, most Acolytes do not know (or believe) that Dracula was ever part of their covenant, and certainly don’t believe that he was able to make any particular headway with Crúac. Some Acolytes do assert that one of Dracula’s childer joined the covenant and very nearly broke away from the Impaler’s tyranny, but Dracula seduced her back to his side. Many Acolytes also do not believe for a moment that Dracula became a vampire through direct divine intervention. (Privately, some Dragons who doubt their founder’s spontaneous Embrace buy into the Acolyte suggestion that a warrior of the Circle, probably a Gangrel, was responsible for Tepes’ Requiem). Some among the Circle even believe that Dracula was a blood-sorcerer of some stripe before his Embrace, and somehow managed to magically eradicate any trace of clan before ever siring his childer.
These two covenants do have some points of similarity, of course. Both seek to empower their members, if to different ends. Both recognize that suffering and tribulation can be a means to enlightenment, although the Circle focuses on this much more strongly than The Ordo Dracul. The Dragon faction called the Impaled, however, effectively straddles the divide between the Order and the Circle. While The Ordo Dracul agrees that creation is an act of power, the Order feels that virtually any act ofchange is also a demonstration of power. The ultimate goal of the Order, the transcendence of the Curse, has been seen as a noble pursuit by more than a few Acolytes — can’t the Great Work be considered an attempt to create a new state of existence? The pursuit of mystic secrets and the exploration of Kindred history are enough to bring some Circle and Order vampires together.
The Acolytes and the Dragons often share interests in Wyrm’s Nests, and this is probably their greatest practical point of conflict. The Dragons note, however, that because the Acolytes attach religious meaning to their classification of Wyrm’s Nests (while The Ordo Dracul classifies such places by utility), leaking informationabout a potentially perilous Nest to The Circle of the Crone provides a method of discerning how dangerous the area really is.

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Tentatively Neutral

The Ordo Dracul

-25

The Lancea Sanctum

-25

Lancea Sanctum: "Spiritually gone wrong."
Ordo Dracul: "Emphasize order instead of improvement."

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The Lancea Sanctum feels all Kindred should believe and behave as they do, so many Sanctified consider The Ordo Dracul to be among the greatest problems in Kindred society tonight. Strictly traditional Sanctified vampires — especially elder fundamentalists — may see the Dragons as heretics against the curse-lauding word of Longinus, but the “problem” of The Ordo Dracul is commonly regarded as something trickier than a simple adversarial relationship in modern nights. The quandary is this: the work of The Ordo Dracul, the Research into the vampiric condition, may be useful to The Lancea Sanctum even though its goals are directly opposed to those of the “Second Estate.” The Dragons have the advantage of a perspective straddling the scientific and the supernatural, which The Lancea Sanctum cannot adopt — even if it wanted to — without weakening its own spiritual position. The Dragons may uncover secret truths about the Kindred that could be of great use to The Lancea Sanctum using methods the holier covenant neither understands nor has an interest in learning. Is there a way for the work of the Dragons to be appreciated and put to Sanctified use without promoting or formally approving of their practices?
Absolutely. The Lancea Sanctum has a history of dealing with heretics from within (an Athenian neonate who circulated his own translation of the Testament on CD-ROM was brought in by his local Bishop to create flyers to attract neonate atheists to the group) and without (an anthropologist loyal to The Circle of the Crone was summoned to the Cardinal of Kansas City in 1951 to authenticate a Civil War-era ghoulskull), and, as a result, Sanctified leaders have experience separating the wheat from the chaff in acceptable and deviant belief systems. Those same skills can be put to use dealing with the Dragons and their Research. With methods that vary on a case-by-case basis, Sanctified theologians extract and exhibit useful bits of lore and wisdom from the works of Ordo Dracul scientist-philosophers while crushing cast-off Dragon conclusions underfoot. With one hand a Sanctified evangelist can raise up the words of a Dragon while Throwing out her meaning with the other hand. This gives The Lancea Sanctum an appearance of cultural flexibility and well-roundedness that appeals to outsiders and the membership alike. More than one Dragon has been converted or appeased in this way.
In some domains, especially those where the two covenants do not vie for temporal control, The Lancea Sanctum can treat The Ordo Dracul with the kind of polite pity individual Sanctified may practice in any domain: Sanctified Priests civilly engage Dragons in social situations or intellectual exchanges while quietly sighing for the loss of another errant Kindred to ignoble, heretical damnation. The Ordo Dracul can be respected for asking many of the right questions even while they are pitied for revering the wrong answers. The gallery of the operating theater was spotted with soft, red Sanctified robes the night of the first public vampire vivisection performed by Dragon physicians in Edinburgh, 1896; the Priests felt it proved the godly Resilience and superiority of vampires, while the Dragons thought it would suggest the Curse could be cured like an ailment. Academically minded followers of Longinus may even consider philosophical sparring with a well-reasoning Dragon, the two huddled and arguing over a rescued tome, a welcome exercise of his faith.
All of this presupposes that The Ordo Dracul behaves like a secular society with minor or moderate religious considerations. When the Dragons take on the attitude of a religious — even quasi-religious — institution, they risk becoming a tangible threat to any Sanctified Status quo. The Lancea Sanctum doesn’t tolerate competition for the faith of the Damned for long. So long as the Sanctified can conceivably regard (or appear to regard) the Dragons as misguided thinkers who have chosen secular pseudo-science over a Requiem of religion, the two covenants can coexist. So long as The Ordo Dracul maintains an insular presence in the domain and does not lure any of the flock from the shepherd, the Priests can go on treating them as lost sheep. So long as the followers of Dracula appear as a society of doubters rather than a religious alternative, the followers of Longinus can go on pitying them.

---

The Ordo Dracul has its difference with all of the other Kindred covenants, but the conflict is the most pronounced — and most often violent — with The Lancea Sanctum. The conflict doesn’t stem from the two covenants’ mystical practices. After all, the Theban Sorcery of The Lancea Sanctum is much more visible, pronounced and versatile than The Coils of the Dragon. Their respective methods don’t necessarily clash, either. While Kindred of The Ordo Dracul and The Lancea Sanctum might both seek certain types of Wyrm’s Nests, the practice isn’t nearly common enough among the Sanctified to be a widespread point of contention. The main conflict between the covenants is purely ideological, and has dogged the Damned for years. It is the classic conflict of reason versus faith.
Many powerful Dragons consider The Lancea Sanctum an object lesson in both what can be gained from practical application of occult insight, and everything that is wrong with organized religion. Putting value judgments on what God wants or what He expects of vampires, however, is the same as making assumptions without sufficient evidence. The dogma of The Lancea Sanctum makes the Great Work a sin, and so many Dragons avoid Sanctified temples like a group of church-labeled mortal sinners would avoid the church that branded them.
The Sanctified exalt the role of the Damned, while the Dragons seek to escape it. The Sanctified see the Curse on their figurehead as the embodiment of a divine mission, whereas the Dragons see their forefather’s Damnation as a divine prison. The Sanctified pursue the eternal refinement of a singular, mandated existence while the Dragons explore the possibilities of personal choice over a dozen lifetimes.
The conflict between the two covenants is virtually ever-present. It simply varies in degree. In one city, historians and scholars of The Lancea Sanctum might meet for debates with theosophists and theoreticians of the Ordo Dracul. In another, Guardians might hunt downand burn any Sanctified Kindred within the city limits.
The Lancea Sanctum believes that vampires are inherently superior to mortals, even in their Damnation. The Dragons, on the other hand, are well aware of the many advantages that living people possess over vampires. The simple mortal ability to see the daylight and the darkness is enough to make many Dragons sneer at Sanctified claims of superiority. The two covenants’ origin stories also produce a great deal of strife. To The Ordo Dracul, Longinus was a mythological figure, or at best a simple Kindred who managed to form a religion for vampires out of one for mortals. Dracula’s existence and mortal life, however, is a matter of historical fact, and his distant descendants still live in Romania tonight. When the Sanctified quote the Testiment of Longinus to godless Dragons, they might just as well be quoting a political tract.
Of course, covenants vary greatly from place to place, and The Lancea Sanctum isn’t at war with The Ordo Dracul by any means. The two covenants have a shared history, much like The Ordo Dracul and The Circle of the Crone. Supposedly, Dracula studied among the Sanctified for a time, just as he did with the Acolytes. Unlike The Circle of the Crone, which is often unwilling to accept this possibility, many Sanctified scholars feel that Dracula very well might have joined the covenant briefly, but certainly not long enough to learn, much less master, any facet of Theban Sorcery. The crisis of faith that drew the Impaler away from the Sanctified church continues to this night, but the Sanctified will continue to wait for those Dragons who find their faith again.
The Ordo Dracul doesn’t find that open conflict with any other group is conducive to its goals, and thus prefers to approach The Lancea Sanctum from a position of debate, discussion and ideological exchange rather than aggression or defensive Paranoia. The Sanctified, for their part, would rather try to convert the Dragons than destroy them, if possible, and so coteries with members of both covenants occasionally form in which the Sanctified Kindred attempts to convert The Ordo Dracul Kindred. This serves to sharpen the minds and beliefs of both vampires, and if one of them caves in and converts, then she wasn’t strong enough for her covenant anyway. The fact that The Ordo Dracul seems to lose more members in this fashion than The Lancea Sanctum is a cause for some concern to mentors and Kogaions, but it is an oddity rather than a crisis — the Order requires brilliance over sheer numbers. The Great Work will continue.

---

The dedication Dragons must have for their cause benefits the Sanctified by granting them an excuse to forego any messy pretenses of conversion. It’s a shame for a Requiem to be wasted, certainly, but a Dragon worth missing has consciously chosen his path to Hell; a Priest can therefore justify milder attempts at enlightenment, rather than wasting his time with heavy-handed proselytizing. The long silences that punctuate the spontaneous theological debates that unfold under the street’s orange sodium lamps are the sounds of a heathen slowly converting; with time and a gentle touch, even a Dragon can be led into church. This civil relationship allows the two covenants to cooperate, even in those domains where both sides are plainly faking their acceptance of the other. The Lancea Sanctum can thus benefit from the efforts of the bespectacled Dragon antiquarians who sift through museum catalogs (possibly rediscovering stolen relics of the vampire church) and the dusty Dragon explorers who dig up mystical sites (and may one night find trace of the Black Abbey).
In exchange, the Dragons may enjoy a degree of “protection” from the Sanctified, insofar as the absence of a conversion campaign by the Church of Longinus implies a level of acceptability — if even the fanatical paladins of Longinus aren’t smiting the Dragons, then vampires of other local covenants will appear as extremists if they do.
Strange alliances may form between the two covenants. Clever leaders use each covenant’s stereotypes to strengthen each order’s power base (assuming such power bases do not overlap). The Lancea Sanctum may choose to demonstrate its ruthless intolerance of heresy only on those Dragons who have recently left or lost favor with The Ordo Dracul, for example. The Dragons may send unsuitable or unwelcome would-be members toward a local Priest. Local leaders may tolerate a neonate with “secret” membership in both covenants as a conduit for unofficial communication, sending him off with a waxsealed account of Satanists in the city park or the dingy brass key to a seminary library. Such a pawn may then be granted to one covenant by the other as a sacrificial example of the price of disloyalty. In domains where The Lancea Sanctum and The Ordo Dracul are the religious underdogs, they may openly cooperate to slowly erode the ruling covenant’s membership over decades, as new vampires are Embraced.

Hostile

The Ordo Dracul

-100

Belial's Brood

-100

Despite the fearsome reputation of these Satanic outlaws, many Dragons find the riddle of Belial’s Brood fascinating. Is their philosophy so basic, so obvious that it acts as a sort of vampiro-sociological constant? In the absence of other covenants and other ideas, would all vampires assume themselves to be servants of the Devil? Or is their desire to commit mayhem and indulge theBeast simply so basic that if a group of enough weakwilled vampires come together, this is the path they inevitably take? The Lancea Sanctum, of course, is perfectly prepared to accept infernal forces at work — and so, after a fashion, is The Ordo Dracul.
The Ordo Dracul catalogs the supernatural strangeness in the World of Darkness as they search for the means to lift them out of their undead state. Along the way, they have discovered witches, ghosts, werewolves, the walking dead, horrors that mankind has forgotten and some no creature has ever known before. That demons exist isn’t something The Ordo Dracul disputes (though their information about, and even definition of, “demons” is admittedly inconsistent). It is possible, they admit, that while Belial’s Brood isn’t organized, there might still be a coordinating force behind their efforts.
Every so often, a Dragon makes a special study of Belial’s Brood, trying to pin down their origins and solve the riddle of their continued existence. One theory postulates that a particular demon (and demonologists among The Ordo Dracul have discovered scores of possible names and identities for this being) can escape Hell briefly through the frenzy of a vampire, and uses its brief time on Earth to find followers and Whip them into a whirlwind of blood and death, hoping to find true freedom through the carnage. Another theory speculates that a specific and rare type of Wyrm’s Nest — a gate to Hell, not to put too fine a point on it — occasionally opens and drives the nearby Kindred to acts of murder and madness. Despite some interesting and even well-supported ideas, however, The Ordo Dracul admits that it does not know the truth about the Brood, and isn’t likely to figure it out anytime soon. When a new “outbreak” of demonic activity occurs, though, an investigative coterie is soon to follow.

---

Although both The Ordo Dracul and Belial’s Brood believe in the continually transformative experience of undeath, the paths dictated by their respective covenants is quite different. While the Dragons seem to think that the Beast is an obstacle to this ongoing transformation, the Brood sees the Beast as the key to it. Forsworn see The Ordo Dracul as shy explorers similar to The Circle of the Crone, always making excuses for only sticking their toes into the pool. The Dragons hide behind scientific jargon and cerebral excuses to hide their failures. While they chip away at the edges of what they consider a curse, in essence defacing themselves, the Forsworn embrace the entirety of their vampiric nature. But in most cases, these covenants have little real knowledge of one another’s core philosophies.
Strangely enough, The Ordo Dracul has taken an increasing fascination with the Brood over the years. The number of Dragons who have approached the Brood seeking insight into the covenant’s beliefs is truly startling. Many Forsworn believe that the Dragons, ever power hungry, think they can simply learn the Brood’s powers and return to their passionless unlives untouched by the Pursuit. Considering the Brood’s strict edicts concerning the recruitment of new members, this is, on its face, a losing proposition. Belial’s Brood rejects any attempt to justify dual allegiances and treats those who attempt to play a double game quite harshly. If the Dragons truly wish to learn the secrets of Belial’s Brood, there is but one route that can be traveled — the Adversary’s path.
Of course, the Brood also realizes that there is no stopping the most dedicated amongst The Ordo Dracul from observing their rituals and abilities. But the Forsworn feel secure that the experiential nature of the Pursuit will keep their secrets safe from prying eyes. While other covenants often seek to directly challenge the Brood, The Ordo Dracul is a more insidious danger. Of theBrood’s factions, the Mercy Seat has a special fancy for The Ordo Dracul’s seemingly irrational fear of the Beast. Faustians delight in antagonizing the Dragon who dares snoop around their territory by laying puzzling traps of conscience. These Dragons and Wyrms hunger not for the Brood’s blood, but for its power. The Forsworn know that a Dragon’s tongue is forked and that any aid taken from The Ordo Dracul will come with an expectation of payment.

Forsworn–Dragon Partnerships

When the Forsworn must ally themselves with members of The Ordo Dracul, it is usually over the use of the one thing they truly have in common — the places of Resonance. The Ordo Dracul seems to believe that true dragons dwell within the earth, forming places of supernatural power. Whether these sites of power are the same as those known as Resonants by the Forsworn is not completely known. Sites that resonate with the spiritual energy of the Adversary are sacred to the Brood, and most factions are loathe to share or reveal such places to those outside the covenant. But in domains in which a place of Resonance has been discovered by Dragons, sometimes the Forsworn have no choice but to share the site if attempts to wrest it away have failed. Since the Dragons pride themselves on being able to unravel the secrets of their so-called Wyrm’s Nests, the Dragons often attempt to dangle their expertise in front of the Forsworn as an inducement to cooperation. While lone Forsworn hermits may attempt to juggle such arrangements in hopes of enlightening their “Allies” with the Adversary’s power, complete coveys are less likely to risk the Adversary’s wrath or jeopardize their Pursuit.

Hostile

The Ordo Dracul

-100

VII

-100

The Ordo Dracul occasionally suffers accusations of being associated with VII, due to their secret methods and occult bent. The Ordo Dracul responds to such accusations harshly and often violently. As with Belial’s Brood, The Ordo Dracul is no closer to understanding the VII than any other Kindred. In the case of the mysterious Kindred-slayers, however, The Ordo Dracul doesn’t wish to understand them. The Ordo Dracul has a long list of torture and execution methods made infamous by their founder,Vlad the Impaler, and each member of VII has a special regimen of pain awaiting her upon her capture by the Dragons.
It comes as a surprise to Kindred who know anything about The Ordo Dracul’s methods that the Dragons aren’t attempting to capture, interrogate (and, some mutter, imitate) members of VII. After all, the Kindred of VII have remained secret for years, and somehow manage to keep their methods and motives hidden from every other order of vampires in existence. Surely this band of murderers knows something The Ordo Dracul would be interested in examining in great depth?
Vampires who suggest this to the Dragons sometimes receive a surprising, icy glare in turn. All some chapters of Dragons want from VII is long, slow, bloody revenge.
Why this vitriol? VII has been responsible for the destruction of Kogaions across Europe and in parts of the United States. While this in itself is a tragedy, VII often doesn’t burn the records that the Kogaion keeps — sometimes they take the Order’s records, sometimes they leave them for the Prince’s Hounds to find. This means that for every exalted Dragon these monsters have slain, they may have the names and records of every Wyrm’s Nest and every Dragon in that Kogaion’s city (provided that the Kogaion in question didn’t memorize this information rather than writing it down). Granted, such information is alwayswritten in code or otherwise obscured, but this only postpones the threat of VII’s future discoveries. The greatest outrage is the knowledge and skill, lost forever to these barbarians.