MANCATA

By Ole Peder Ekelund Giaver (deagol@everyday.no)

Description

It was in the days of Enoch, The First City,
that Caine grew restless and tired of the ways of his childer.
There was a great emptiness and sorrow in his heart.
Thus he set forth on a journey, to seek that which he missed so dearly.
After nine nights he reached a trail the local people called 'The Path of Lilith',
which they dared not thead.

For twelve nights, Caine wandered north along the Path.
On the thirteenth night, he reached a garden,
and was made welcome by those who dwelled there.
The garden was that of Lilith, the first wife of Adam,
but Caine didn't know that at that time.

Caine was allured by the seductress Lilith,
and dominated by her powerful person.
They became one, there in the garden of demons.
And thus our mother, Mancata, came to be.

Caine brought Mancata to The First City,
where she dwelled with the other three.
But Mancata feigned her alliance with the childer of Caine,

her loyalty was not to them, but to Lilith.
The first wife of Adam had planted her seed within Mancata's soul,
and Mancata knew her mission.

-- The Book of Nod, as told to Mancata initiates.

The Mancata is a clan of hatred: hatred towards the creation and the children of Eve. They believe that Lilith was unjustly treated by the Lord, in those first days and they want revenge. They are nihilists in the extreme, seeking to corrupt and pollute whatever they can. While their goals seem pointless and destructive to outsiders, they firmly believe that on the night of Gehenna, or Ragnarok, as some of them name it, there will be a new beginning, and The Garden of Lilith will emerge from myth.

They are devoted to their cause, and are extremely manipulative. They are said to have caused much horror and destruction throughout the ages. Many Kindred claim that the Mancata were largely responsible for the evil of Holocaust, but although many Mancata take pride in such rumours, it is highly unlikely that they are true. The racial theories and antisemitism that preceded the second world war was, however, fueled by the clan of Lilith. Some say that one of the German scientists that helped America perfect the nuclear bomb was a ghoul of the Mancata. Nonetheless, they are omnipresent during times of war, strife and pestilence. The Mancata is a very close-knit clan, holding dominance over all their members. There are, however two fractions: Those who call themselves only Mancata, and have the motivations listed above. These Kindred are entropists and the incarnation of hate and destruction.

The other fraction is a smaller one, and of lesser import. They call themselves the Daughters of Mancata, and count only females among their ranks. Their tradition is vastly different from that of their destructive brethren. Their motivation is promoting women's rights, and fighting for equality. They are not evil, as is (ultimately) the major fraction, but they are just as fanatic in their beliefs. This verse of The Book of Nod is read to them, after the last verse that the other Mancata hear:

Lilith was expelled by the Lord,
for He feared the ways of the woman.
Lilith was as strong as Adam, if his superior,
as they were born together in the same body.
This angered God, it was not how they had planned it to be.
Adam was created in the image of the Lord,
the female was to be his toy.

The Daughters, although fanatical, have brought about many good things, and have been an important benefactor to women throughout the ages. With their help, in the last few hundred years women have achieved many of the rights men have always taken for granted.

Nickname

(Mancata) Spooks, Demonseed
(The Daughters) C***s

Appearance

Mancata usually dress in whatever they used to wear as mortals, although some of them have the odd quirk off dressing like undertakers. The Daughters mostly wears traditional 'mens clothes'. There is one major flaw to the Mancata, though, passed on from the demon seed of Lilith. A mouth, and two serpentine eyes protrude from their stomaches three days after they become kindred. This face is infact a personification of the Beast, or sooner, their Shadows (as mentioned in Wraith). The face behaves in a way similar to the Shadows in Wraith, explained in detail below.

Haven

The Mancata tend to make their homes in either very luxurious and decadent places, or in places already craved by entropy and decay, like junkyards and slums.

Background

The Mancata come from a great variety of backgrounds, but their progeny are usually people who were already corrupted and evil as mortals. They never choose progeny with more than five in humanity. Childer of The Daughters are always female, and are often intellectuals and/or rebels as mortals, they can have any level of humanity.

Character Creation

The ST is advised not to use the Mancata as PCs, unless he wants a 'oh aren't we really, really evil' sort of campaign. They should be the bad guys. The Daughters might be fun to play or center a story around, though. The Mancata concept varies. Mental Attributes are primary, as are Knowledge Abilities. Influence and Mentor are common Background Traits.

Clan Disciplines

Path of Lilith, Dominate, Obfuscate

Weaknesses

Mancata can only have five or less in humanity (this does not count for the Daughters of Mancata). More importantly, the Beast and Shadow of their personality is incarnated as a demonic face with serpent eyes, protruding from their bellies. This face is a fraction of Lilith's avatar, passed through the blood of their sires, but the face is also an embodiment of the darkest horror of all: The evil of the human soul. It confronts the Mancata with things they would rather forget, and slowly corrupts them, causing them two lose one point of humanity with each passing decade, thereby slowly possessing the Mancata in question, and slowly driving out his soul, making him a slave of Lilith. The face whispers evil things to the Mancata, causing her to stray off her intended path and causing evil. When a Mancata botches a Virtue roll, the face takes control for a timespan determined by the Torpor table (V:tM2nd pg. 195). In a state of frenzy, the Mancata does not berserk like other Kindred, but sooner lose their wills to the entity of the face. The face also craves to be fed, and (roughly) half the times the Kindred feeds, she must feed through this mouth. Therefore, Mancata loose 2 blood points per night.

Organization

The Mancata are extremely close-knit, organizing themselves in a hierarchical fashion. The top position is claimed to be held by Mancata herself, guiding the clan from her Haven in Baghdad. If this is true, Mancata is the only second generation vampire in existence today, but more likely than not, the rumors are false. Below the fabled position of Mancata is the Circle of Seven, composed by seven Mancata elders, who hold sway over the rest of the clan. The Circle of Seven meets once every nine years, to discuss the present course of the clan, and the choices they shall make in the future. The last gathering was in 1987. Below the Circle are the five Shahs, Mancata leaders of the continents. The Shahs are required to perform the will of the Circle, and they all attend the 9 year gatherings. Below them are the Visirs, who lead the Mancata within a certain country, the Visirs of one continent gather once a year with the Shah they serve under. Below the Visirs are the Dukes, each controlling the Mancata of a certain city. There are no named Mancata ranks below the Duke, but each city is organized in subgroupings, and subgroupings within these. The Mancata live like parasites on the inside of vampire society, festering on the knowledge and evil of their fellow Cainites. There are not many Mancata left, as most of the clan was extinguished during the Inquisition. There is (roughly) one Mancata per 50 vampires. The Daughters are organized in a similar fashion, but separate themselves from the main branch, and are more open to the other Kindred.

Quote

(Mancata) "We shall wreak havoc on the children of Eve, spitting on their feeble hopes and desires, pissing on their rotten nature, until the night of Gehenna, when we shall triumphantly stand amidst the ruins, awaiting Lilith's Garden, and there shall be paradise on Earth for our kind."

(The Daughters) "Our sisters have won many battles in the recent time, but we must continue our strugle for equality. All men that think themselves superior to our mortal companions must, and shall, die at our hands. The Garden of Lilith shall be a place of tolerance and justice."

Mancata and the World

(Stereotypes for the Daughters are not included)

The Mundanes: The children of Eve are to be corrupted and fooled at all times. There is no pleasure more ecstatic than draining one of their children in front of the parent's eyes.

The Arcanum: Harmless mortal whelps.

The Inquisition: Stay away from them, and if not, divert them from their plans. They seek to destroy us, and nearly succeeded during the Middle Ages.

Assamites: Useful tools in our grand scheme. Do not rely upon their help, however. The price is often to high.

"They are one of our most frequent contractors, but Allah knows what they are trying to accomplish..."

Brujah: They are useful in their own little way, and an effective mean of wreaking havoc and destruction upon the blessed children.

"They're nice enough, once you get to know 'em. Try to get invited to one of their parties. It sure is a twisted experience!"

Followers of Set: Their true motivations are uncertain, and they are not easy to manipulate. We shall deal with them last.

"Avoid these loathsome devils; they cannot be manipulated, and the costs are too high."

Gangrel: These dogs are willing puppets, and there is no reason to fear them.

"They are contemptible demonspawns, and we will fight them by any means necessary."

Giovanni: In many aspects, they remind us of the Tremere, but they are not our servants in the same way, and one should take heed not to be entranced in their little games of power. It is Gehenna we seek.

"Avoid them."

Malkavian: These Kindred understand far more than they seem too.

"They are fanatical and twisted, but you should try to tell them a joke about Lilith sometime, and check out their faces!"

Nosferatu: These creatures are loathsome in their seemings, and their very nature so much embodies the beast. They are useful tools, as they can provide us with much information, if only the right price is offered. However, it is difficult to control these beasts, as they are closely knit, and do not mingle with outsiders.

"They're creepy as hell, and I wouldn't trust 'em a minute. Wonder what they're up to, though."

Ravnos: Easily manipulated, but beware of their ways. They are not always what they appear to be.

"Avoid them if you can... but they do have quite a few nice gadgets to steal though.

Salubri: If you should encounter one, use them as bait for our Tremere puppets.

"These vampires are evil and will never attain Golconda."

Toreador: These fools seek beauty in life. Wonder what they're gonna do when we remove all traces of beauty from the face of this earth?

"They are the harbingers of pollution and decay, seeking to destroy the fragile splendor of life and art."

Tremere: The warlocks are indeed our allies; yet they do not know it. Their powers are at our command, and we live inside their bellies, like worms, feasting on their power. They are the key to Gehenna.

"Their true motivations are uncertain, but they have helped us on occasion, and we owe them a great deal."

Ventrue: Being so indulged in the games of manipulation and power as they are, these Kindred make for easy pawns.

"They don't exist; it's an Elder rumour planted to distract us from our plans, and if they do, it is surely a machination by the Secret Masters."

The Sabbat: They seek the same goals as us, although their breaches of the Masquerade should not be tolerated.

"Noble kindred. They know how to use their freedom."

The Code of Mancata

The code of Mancata, to which all members of the clan abide to, has been unchanged from the dawn of the Roman Empire, and all progeny are forced to recite it. A Mancata who refuses is slain.

"I [initiate's name] of the [generation of vampire] of clan Mancata, swear on the skull of Caine, by the eternal moon and the stars, to sacrifice my unlife for the good of clan Mancata. I swear to avenge Lilith, the one who was cast out. My loyalty is to the noblest of blood, from now, and until the Night of Gehenna, when Her Garden shall rise from myth and dream, and all shall be good."