Blackhand

For most Vampires, the Black Hand exists as an unseen bogeyman, a horrid monster used to terrify childer as they lay in their coffins. Most vampires believe that they will never encounter one of these mad shadow warriors, assuming that if they do nothing to upset the Sabbat, the Black Hand will have no interest in them. Older vampires believe otherwise. They know the Black Hand has interests--and spies--everywhere. Any vampire could be one of these Sabbat leaders, and the Hand's existence is just one more reason to be paranoid of everything in the world. Truly old vampires know that there is even more reason to fear. When they were but childer, their own sires look over their shoulders and whispered legends of the Hand. They know that the Hand's secrets are deep and dark. The Black Hand does not share its secrets willingly. Should you read further, you will be tainted by what you read, and your view of the World of Darkness may never be the same.

You will belong to the Black Hand. Once you uncover its corruption, it will forever mar your neonate idealism and mark your soul.......The Black Hand is part of the Sabbat, which is composed of the most vicious and loyal vampires in existence. The Black Hand, referred to simply as the Hand, serves as the powerful army in the Sabbat's jyhad against the Camarilla, anarchs, Inconnu, and its many other enemies. The Hand brands its memebers' right palms with a black crescent moon, to forever remind them of their responsibilities. Much like its parent sect (the Sabbat), the Hand is steeped in political, rhetoric, millenarianism, and militarism. Like the Sabbat itself, it was designed for the destruction of all who would oppose it. It is rich in legend, doctrine, and tradition, and so secretive that most Sabbat know little of its ways. Of the thousands of Sabbat in the world, only around 300 are members of the Hand, and even low-level members know only what is necessary to get the job done. Positions within the Hand include raider, scout, covert agent, assassin, high-tech weapons and demolitions expert, Thaumaturgist and mission leader.

The dirtiest secret of the Black Hand is that the Black Hand is not just a part of the Sabbat. Indeed, it is a separate sect entirely. Shortly after the creation of the Sabbat, vampires secretly belonging to an ancient sect called the Tal'mahe'Ra allied with the Sabbat. Under the alias manus nigrum, or "Black Hand", the Tal'mahe'Ra served as an agent of murder, destruction, and chaos, and rained hell down upon the Sabbat's enemies. Since that time, the Tal'mahe'Ra has adopted the translation "Black Hand" as its own name, though many elders still prefer the old term. The members of the Tal'mahe'Ra have come to call the members of the Sabbat Hand the "False" Hand while they themselves remain in the "True" Hand. The Sabbat continue to act as a front for the True Hand. The Black Hand, despite its great power, is limited because it divides its attention between three worlds--the World of Darkness, the Underworld of the wraiths, and the Deep Umbra of the mages. The "Silent Agenda" is the name given to the preparations the Black Hand makes for the awakening of the Antediluvians. It is never openly discussed except in Enoch. Hand leaders from both the Camarilla and Sabbat occasionally meet in secret to discuss future manipulations. Together they keep the animosity between the Sabbat and the Camarilla at a maximum, preventing both sects from looking toward their real enemy.

True Brujah
Nagaraja
Old Clan Tzimisce

True Brujah

The True Brujah, nicknamed "Elois", claim to descend from Brujah himself and not from Troile, who supposedly committed diablerie upon her Antediluvian sire. The True Brujah resent the claiming of their sire's name by Troile and her bastard lineage. They long for the night when they will reclaim their heritage from the false Brujah. Until that night, they must falsely claim lineage to other clans or simply call themselves Brujah. Consequently, they rarely interact with each other or other vampires; instead, they spend much of their time gathering information and developing their powers. They continue to prepare for war against the false Brujah but, since they have been preparing this way for at leasat 5,000 years (and probably more), such a feat is unlikely. Even those who exist and work among the Brujah clan dress conservatively. The other ones occasionally dress in black leather, spikes and chains, but this is not condoned within the Black Hand unless doing otherwise would jeopardize their missions or Alternate Identities. Most prefer expensive, custom-fitted suits, usually in black.

They like large estates, mansions and other big, comfortable, isolated places where they can be alone. Their havens for their Alternate Identities are smaller city dwellings, often subterranean and well-guarded. True Brujah only select the brightest, bravest original thinkers. They prefer tgise seasoned with both education and experience, but they often Embrace the young who are mature for their years and quiet in their passions. Most are dilettantes, outsiders or professionals (mostly scholars) though they can have any concept. They can have any Nature and Demeanor except Conformist. The choices should reflect their strong and unique personal outlook on (un)life. Mental Attributes and Knowledge Abilities are usually primary. They often have higher than average ratings in Alternate Identity, Contacts and Resources. Their Clan Disciplines Potence, Presence, Temporis. Their preferred Paths are the Path of the Scorched, the Path of Self-Focus, some follow the Path of Power, some also take the Path of Inner Voice, and the Path of Lilith. The True Brujah view themselves as scholars and share professional respect for one another, though they often disagree on various issues.

Nagaraja

Long, long ago the mages of the Euthanatos Tradition experimented with the blood of the Kindred. Some of the most foolish actually managed to turn themselves into vampires without being directly Embraced. Their own manipulations of the blood, combined with their innate magickal natures, produced the Nagaraja, a bloodline of cannibals (Nickname: "Flesh Eaters"), Necromancers, and feared servants of the Black Hand. The Nagaraja are unlike other Kindred in that they must consume flesh, making them among the most reviled and "unnatural" of the bloodlines. They are masters of Oblivion, the nothingness of the Underworld. They are also masters of Necromancy--an art learned from the Euthanatos and Inauhaten the Mummy. The Nagaraja engage in many strange Thaumaturgical and Necromantic experiments. They are believed to be responsible for the creation of the Samedi, though they refuse to take the credit. Nagaraja prefer black, white, and blood-red clothing. They commonly dress in suits, and some favor leather. They wear hooded cloaks and carry about the needed items to work their Necromancy even while in the Living World. They carry sacrifice daggers, scalpels, and other medical (culinary) objects needed for removing the human flesh they must consume.

On Earth, the Nagaraja often "live" in places believed haunted, which are said to provide easier passage in and out of the Underworld. Most of the mortals who are chosen already have an intense interest in the study of death, but not in causing death for themselves or others. They often choose doctors, priests, cultists, philosophers, and parapsychologists. Most are dilettantes or professionals, but some are criminals and outsiders. They can have any Nature or Demeanor, though a Deviant Nature and Loner Demeanor are the most common. Mental Attributes and Knowledge Abilities are generally primary. Their preferred Backgrounds are Allies, Contacts, and Retainers. Their Clan Disciplines are Auspex, Necromancy, and Nihilistics. Their preferred paths are The Path of Death and the Soul, the Path of Self-Focus, the Path of Lilith, and the Path of the Scorched Heart. They almost never gather together, as each member is extremely secretive. Most have invented their own secret rituals, and they are only willing to share such knowledge with others as costly boons.

Old Clan Tzimisce

They are so ancient that even the oldest legends speak of only their childer. They are the Old Clan, the True Tzimisce, and all the Tzimisce of the Sabbat are their betrayers. Their childer abandoned the lineage of the Tzimisce and embraced the power of Vicissitude; their ways of anarchy brought ruin and death to both the innocent and the guilty of their clan. Despite their dislike of the "Tzimisce," the Old Clan Tzimisce are much like their childer. They are among the most macabre and evil beings in the world. They have a great love of knowledge, surpassed in the Black Hand only by the True Brujah. They dress much like other Tzimisce though often in even older clothing; Solid black, accented with white. The older members live in the old lands of Eastern Europe. They alwasy choose progeny between the ages of 30 and 40 who are both intelligent and well-educated. They spend a lot of time watching the childer before they Embrace them. Their Clan Disciplines are Animalism, Auspex, and Dominate. Like all other Tzimisce, their weakness if that they must surround themselves with at least two handfuls of dirt froma land important to them in life. If they do not do this, they will die. Their most preferred paths are the Path of Death and the Soul, or the Path of Caine. The Old Clan Tzimisce never meet except in dire emergencies