The Southern Cities Alliance
In the 19th century, the Southern Cities Alliance was a benign, and somewhat naïve, force in the politics of the fractious and rapidly changing Kindred society of the Indian subcontinent. Founded by a combination of European Kindred scholars seeking the origins of vampirekind among the ancient cultures of the East, and Indian scholar-priests and warrior-princes willing to aid in that endeavor, it was a clearinghouse of ideas and experiments in cooperation between wildly disparate groups of Kindred, all of whom stood to gain something from its success — or, in some cases, its failure. The Alliance fell before it could achieve its full potential, assailed from without by the colonial ambitions of The Invictus and the religious manias of The Lancea Sanctum, betrayed from within by the venal lust for power of less-than-righteous brahmin and the inability of the kshatriya to govern their most volatile passions. Few, native or European, who survived its collapse escaped without scars, and for those who genuinely believed in its mission the loss was particularly cruel.
In the 21st century the reformed Southern Cities Alliance is something else entirely. Consisting primarily of the embittered Indian Kindred survivors of the original Alliance, assorted new native supporters, and a handful of sympathetic European Kindred, its goals are considerably less benign than the maintenance of Kindred history and the free exchange of cultures. Rather, at this point, the only culture the Alliance wishes to share with its ancient enemies involves knives, blood sorcery, and protracted, terrible vengeance to cleanse the stain of their previous defeat and defilement from the dharma of their castes, to lay to rest with honor the souls of their beloved dead.Given that this goal suits the purposes of many western Kindred with similar scores to settle against hereditary enemies, it is not entirely surprising that the Alliance has attracted their assistance. At present, the Alliance is in the process of gathering intelligence. The locations of their most hated enemies must be ascertained, the Resources those enemies possess that might allow evasion must be itemized, and their childer and retainers must be identified. The Rakshasa, experts in appearing to be what they are not, have inserted themselves into European and American courts to ferret out what the Alliance most desires to know, claiming to be refugees from a terrible conflict in their native land that almost destroyed them. The best lies do, after all, contain a certain element of truth — the Rakshasa were, after all, almost destroyed in just such a conflict. The blood sorcerers of the brahmin Mekhet and their warrior counterparts within the kshatriya caste have begun preparing the magics to be used in the Alliance’s planned first strikes. The Canda Bhanu fiercely evangelize to maintain the sense of outrage that drives the Alliance and its members, reminding the group of the horrors that befell them all — as though any could truly forget — speaking condemnation with the voices of the gods and demanding vengeance for those who will never speak again.
Meanwhile, within the Alliance, there are those who wish to use the situation to their own benefit. The kshatriya will inevitably bear the responsibility for executing the will of the Alliance — and also likely bear the brunt of any retaliation directed toward the Indian Kindred as a result. If the situation is manipulated properly, a clever vampire could stand to profit handsomely. The warrior Kindred of the East have never entirely recovered from the blows struck against them in the 19th century, either in terms of raw numbers or in the strength of the elders they lost to assassins’ fangs, a fact that has not escaped the attention of certain elements within the brahmin caste. These elements, desirous of bringing the kshatriya to heel then, continue to harbor that desire now, and are preparing a sacrifice: should the results of the Alliance’s activities threaten to overwhelm it, they are entirely ready to offer restitution from the blood of their kshatriya and seize the reins of power that fall from their ashen fingers. At that point they could sue for peace with the Europeans, and move forward into the future unencumbered by an increasingly insupportable warrior aristocracy. Naturally, they have refrained from discussing this contingency with the kshatriya themselves.
The Alliance possesses no one leader who guides all of their actions. Among the brahmin Kindred, several voices are strong within the Alliance’s counsels.
In the 21st century the reformed Southern Cities Alliance is something else entirely. Consisting primarily of the embittered Indian Kindred survivors of the original Alliance, assorted new native supporters, and a handful of sympathetic European Kindred, its goals are considerably less benign than the maintenance of Kindred history and the free exchange of cultures. Rather, at this point, the only culture the Alliance wishes to share with its ancient enemies involves knives, blood sorcery, and protracted, terrible vengeance to cleanse the stain of their previous defeat and defilement from the dharma of their castes, to lay to rest with honor the souls of their beloved dead.Given that this goal suits the purposes of many western Kindred with similar scores to settle against hereditary enemies, it is not entirely surprising that the Alliance has attracted their assistance. At present, the Alliance is in the process of gathering intelligence. The locations of their most hated enemies must be ascertained, the Resources those enemies possess that might allow evasion must be itemized, and their childer and retainers must be identified. The Rakshasa, experts in appearing to be what they are not, have inserted themselves into European and American courts to ferret out what the Alliance most desires to know, claiming to be refugees from a terrible conflict in their native land that almost destroyed them. The best lies do, after all, contain a certain element of truth — the Rakshasa were, after all, almost destroyed in just such a conflict. The blood sorcerers of the brahmin Mekhet and their warrior counterparts within the kshatriya caste have begun preparing the magics to be used in the Alliance’s planned first strikes. The Canda Bhanu fiercely evangelize to maintain the sense of outrage that drives the Alliance and its members, reminding the group of the horrors that befell them all — as though any could truly forget — speaking condemnation with the voices of the gods and demanding vengeance for those who will never speak again.
Meanwhile, within the Alliance, there are those who wish to use the situation to their own benefit. The kshatriya will inevitably bear the responsibility for executing the will of the Alliance — and also likely bear the brunt of any retaliation directed toward the Indian Kindred as a result. If the situation is manipulated properly, a clever vampire could stand to profit handsomely. The warrior Kindred of the East have never entirely recovered from the blows struck against them in the 19th century, either in terms of raw numbers or in the strength of the elders they lost to assassins’ fangs, a fact that has not escaped the attention of certain elements within the brahmin caste. These elements, desirous of bringing the kshatriya to heel then, continue to harbor that desire now, and are preparing a sacrifice: should the results of the Alliance’s activities threaten to overwhelm it, they are entirely ready to offer restitution from the blood of their kshatriya and seize the reins of power that fall from their ashen fingers. At that point they could sue for peace with the Europeans, and move forward into the future unencumbered by an increasingly insupportable warrior aristocracy. Naturally, they have refrained from discussing this contingency with the kshatriya themselves.
The Alliance possesses no one leader who guides all of their actions. Among the brahmin Kindred, several voices are strong within the Alliance’s counsels.
Structure
The Varnas of the I Kindred
The society of the Kindred of India is rigidly structured around the four Vedic castes, or varnas, and the functions and responsibilities those castes impose upon the vampires belonging to them. Often, Indian Kindred feel they owe greater loyalty to, and derive more of their identity from, adherence to their varna and its particular dharma than they do to the clan to which they belong, though both are densely entwined in their particular vampiric culture. Every clan is divided into bloodlines and every bloodline belongs to a varna — most clans, in fact, have more than one bloodline in a particular varna.
The brahmin bloodlines are:Amrita Bhaga (Daeva): Sensuous and elegant, this almost entirely female bloodline serves the gods of love and pleasure, often choosing to present themselves as avatars of the beneficent goddesses of art and music.
Abhi Jina (Gangrel): The most warlike of the brahmin bloodlines, they possess the greatest portion of the kshatriya bloodlines’ respect and have been known to take the part of the warrior caste in matters of intercaste conflict.
Hiranya Naga (Mekhet): The Golden Serpents of Sumeru are the mightiest blood sorcerers of the brahmin, and are widely held to be the most subtle and wise, as well.
Nri-chaksha (Nosferatu): Cruel and brilliant, this bloodline considers itself the true descendants of the demonking Ravana, contending with the Hiranya Naga for the honor of greatest sorcerers.
Canda Bhanu (Ventrue): Both righteous and treacherous, this bloodline exerts political and diplomatic influence both at home and abroad that far outstrips their relatively small numbers.
The kshatriya bloodlines are:
Amara Havana (Daeva): Proud, unyielding and fierce, the Amara Havana are one of the oldest and longestsurviving of the entire warrior caste, though many forces are attempting to end them once and for all.
Abhi Dhvana (Gangrel): A youthful offshoot of their clan’s brahmin lineage, this bloodline is only a few centuries old, having come into existence after the destruction of the clan’s elder kshatriya.
Ananta Naga (Mekhet): The most cunning of the kshatriya, this bloodline melds martial skill with sorcerous power unseen in others of their caste.
Rakshasa (Nosferatu): Widely viewed as the tamed attack dogs of the brahmin caste, this bloodline is no less fierce and deadly for the slurs against their honor.
Aja Dhrsta (Ventrue): Ancient and greatly diminished, this bloodline contains the tattered remnants of a oncegreat lineage ravaged by war and relentless internal struggles.
Bloodlines of the vaishya and shudra castes exist, though they are, by far, fewer in numbers and less socially significant among the Kindred than they are among mortals.
Type
Alliance, Generic
Notable Members