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However, this particular Sect is rife with intrigue and politicking. Kindred of Vampire: The Masqueradein the Camarilla usually follow the Sect with a personal agenda in mind. And fans eager to play a game like Sins Of The Sires may need to understand why the Camarilla, perhaps the most “formal” representation of an orderly vampiric society, isn’t as peaceful as it makes itself out to be.
10 Born Out Of Necessity
While it’s easy to assume that a Sect like the Camarilla was born out of a need for older vampires to lord over their children, the Sect was actually formed out of necessity. Due to the First Inquisition and the resulting Anarch Revolt posing danger towards Kindred territories in Europe, it was a fateful meeting in 1394 that created a unified front to group vampires together.
Despite resistance from the likes of the Brujah Tyler, the Camarilla was formed, and its Traditions sought to protect and hide Kindred society from the prying eyes of mortals. In this Convention of Thorns, Anarchs aren’t to be harmed unless they endangered the Masquerade, and the Assamites were forced to cease in their bloodlust through a Tremere curse.
9 The 500-Year War With The Sabbat
It’s actually around the formation of the Camarilla that its fiercest rival, the Sabbat, was formed. Beginning as anarchs, disgust on the part of the Lasombra and Tzimisce led them to storm out of the Convention of Thorns alongside other malcontents. Their fierce attacks on the local populace had them dubbed “the sabbat,” which they took as their name. Since then, much of the Sabbat had left Europe and went to the New World.
While the Camarilla slowly consolidated a lot of its power in Europe, the idea of seeking new territory for their vampire neonates became attractive as well. It’s thanks to the Sabbat civil wars that the Camarilla gained opportunities to “steal” some cities in America, while the War of 1812 had the Camarilla lose some of their holdings just the same. Conflicts within the Camarilla arose in major conflicts, too, especially in world war where the Inner Circle didn’t participate, unlike elders that sided with either Axis or Allied powers.
8 The Curious Case Of The Antediluvians, Gehenna
Given the age of most elders in the Camarilla, it’s explainable why a lot of them don’t believe in the Antediluvians and the idea of Gehenna - they simply haven’t been there while they existed. While elders and other Kindred may have been educated about Caine, the Camarilla makes it a point to suppress and punish any talk about the Antediluvians and Gehenna, to the point of not actively preparing for the conflict.
Some Sects like the Sabbat think that Antediluvians themselves might be pulling the strings behind the Camarilla, while it’s also explained that the Camarilla aren’t making any preparations as they believe the rising Antediluvians may favor the more orderly and elitist Camarilla.
7 Shifting Sides In The Modern Days, The Final Nights
While modern depictions of the Camarilla have “unofficial” differentiation between Clans as High Clans (Ventrue, Toreador, Tremere) and Low Clans (Brujah, Nosferatu, Malkavians, Gangrel), it’s not uncommon for modern Kindred to switch sides - sometimes, Clan-wide. For instance, not only did the Gangrel suddenly withdraw membership from the Camarilla, but Archon Theo Bell’s defection to the Anarchs motivated a lot of Brujah to follow suit - and sometimes even kill their respective Princes along the way.
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On the other end, the rise of and fear towards Banu Haqim elder Ur-Shulgi forced a mass defection of the independent Banu Haqim into the Camarilla. And Giangaleazzo, one of the signatories of the Sabbat’s Code of Milan, made a surprise defection from the Sect and into the Ivory Tower, bringing half of the Lasombra with him.
6 Paranoia In The Age Of Technology, Second Inquisition
When the NSA cracked the SchreckNet computer network, it revealed a “hidden world” of vampires to intelligence agencies, who then formed a united albeit secret front to combat the “blankbody” threat. Dubbed by Kindred as the Second Inquisition, these agencies stormed the Tremere’s central Vienna Chantry in 2008 and presumably destroyed not just it but also the Clan’s central leadership. This forced the Camarilla to not just dismantle SchreckNET but ban all online communication among Kindred.
On the other side of the world, a mysterious “Beckoning” is forcing elders to go into the Middle East, seemingly to “wage war” against the Sabbat. In retaliation, the Sabbat had begun “hunting” down Antediluvians, with the other Camarilla left in their cities mustering forces to defend the sleeping grounds of their Methuselahs should Sabbat think of them as Antediluvian burial grounds.
5 Traditions Over Anything Else
What perhaps makes the Camarilla distinct compared to other Sects is how they uphold their Traditions, as decided in the Convention of Thorns. Six Traditions exist, representing various aspects of “behavior” expected of vampires and other Camarilla members:
Masquerade: Most important is the First Tradition (Masquerade), which means hiding the existence of vampires. Domain: The Second Tradition (Domain) establishes a vampire’s rulership over their domain. Progeny: The Third Tradition (Progeny) implies a permission-first basis to Embrace others, Accounting: The Fourth Tradition (Accounting) puts the responsibility of one’s childer to themselves. Hospitality: The Fifth Tradition (Hospitality) enforces the Prince’s authority in a city. Destruction: The Sixth Tradition (Destruction) upholds that only elders can call for the destruction of another Kindred.
4 The Decrepit Ivory Tower
A lot of neonates and ancillae look at the Ivory Tower both with disdain and a sheer desire to rise within its ranks. This hatred is well-placed, considering that the systems of the Camarilla are in place precisely to make sure elders keep their power.
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Some of the Traditions enforce this power early on, with rules dictating not just how sires are in charge of their childer, but on who gets “permission” to have their childer live. Likewise, this system ensured that elders - technically the sires of a childer’s sire - “deserved” more respect than their peers, simply because of age.
3 A Global Organization, A Global Hierarchy
It’s the Camarilla’s obsession with upholding the Masquerade, the Traditions, and the ideals of “age” that their global hierarchy around the world was based on this very idea:
Inner Circle: Serving as the ruling voice of the Camarilla is the enigmatic Inner Circle, composed of members not even known by the most elite. Justicars, Archons: The Inner Circle’s public presence is represented by Justicars and their Archon assistants, essentially acting as the “law enforcement” of the global organization. Princes, Primogens: On a more local level, Camarilla cities are ruled by Princes, advised by their own Primogens, or Clan representatives. Harpy: A more optional official in a Camarilla city, a Harpy “dictates” the current trends in philosophy, politics, and style among Kindred. Keepers of the Elysium: Guardians and custodians of Elysiums or neutral territory where conflicts aren’t allowed. Seneschal: One of the Prince’s attendants, they serve as their second-in-command and acting replacement in their absence. Sheriff: Acting as the head of local enforcement, answering to the Prince. Scourge: Acting as “muscles” or errand-keepers of the Prince.
2 Prestations Means Favors Are Currencies
With a Sect that means “scratching one’s back,” it’s not surprising for the Camarilla to pay close attention to favors. Aside from the Masquerade, it’s Prestation that is perhaps one of the most preserved “traditions” majorly within the Camarilla, and sometimes within the other Sects. Simply put, Prestation refers to the exchange of favors between vampires, with neonates, ancillae, and elders playing a game of “exchange” so seriously that breaking one’s bond almost always means Final Death.
Prestation also meant that elders had a stockpile of favors waiting to be used, adding further to their power within the Camarilla and explaining why they work so hard to preserve the system. Due to the over-complicated nature of Prestation, Camarilla officials such as Harpies and Chancellors are often in charge of keeping track of them.
1 The Red List Keeps Track Of Grudges
The Camarilla takes the preservation of the Masquerade and its Traditions so much that detractors not only face Final Death via a Blood Hunt but make a special place out of extremely dangerous Kindred in the Red List. Kindred placed in the Red List are referred to as Anathema and are deemed severely dangerous or influential that only Archons, or the Camarilla’s specially-trained hunters - can hunt them down.
Most editions of the game have 13 names in the Red List, with some names requested to be put by specific Clans for special reasons. It’s said that two Justicars have to agree that a certain Kindred has committed a crime so monstrous that they defer to the judgment of the Inner Circle to deem said name an Anathema.
Vampire The Masquerade: Sins Of The Sires was released on March 24, 2022, for the PC.
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