City of Shadows Mux City of Shadows Mux

GALLOI

Parent Clan: Nosferatu Sobriquet: Messers; Madames Source: Bloodlines: The Legendary, p. 51; also, the Cockscomb Society, Nosferatu, p. 106 Disciplines: Majesty, Nightmare, Obfuscate, Vigor Revised by: Ganymede

Background

Love and fear: the two things that make the world go around. As masters of both, the Galloi see themselves as the saviors of a world in chaos, and their aim is to bring civilization and higher consciousness to those lost to their instinctual passions.

Originally a blood cult worshipping the Goddess Cybele, the Galloi has seen a transformation in recent nights. In a private Salon in the remnants of Paris, the Cockscomb Society decided to join forces with the Mother’s Army, and immediately found kinship with the French Galloi, whose abilities appealed to the ever-sophisticated degenerates. From there, they spread en force, the two lines mixing their herds and exploring what they believed to be a mixed history. In the end, the Gents and Gals came to the conclusion that they had descended from the same blood cult, and officially began calling themselves the same.

Able to charm and intimidate in equal measure, the Galloi are formidable leaders, most of whom remain close to the Mother’s Army, and no shortage of willing and able servants to protect their interests. They often appear like angelic, androgynous creatures at the epitome of their sexual beauty, enticing and frightening.

Bloodline Gift

The Messers and Madames are sophistication incarnate. They are horrid and beautiful. They repulse and attract. That sophistication makes them especially difficult to manipulate or goad into action. Their pools to resist or contest social rolls, including those related to disciplines, are raised by 2, as are their pools to resist another vampire’s attempt to lash out.

In addition, the Messers and Madames do not just feed off of blood: they feed off of a person’s soul. For every lethal damage caused from feeding, a target also temporary loses a point of Presence, Manipulation, or Composure, which could affect their Willpower pool. These lost points of social attributes heal as the lethal damage does, and are visible: victims often seem wizened and sunken after such attacks.

Bloodline Bane

As with the line’s gift, the Galloi do noticeable damage to those they feed from. Attempts to fix that through rituals or other supernatural means will automatically fail; the social attributes must be regained naturally. Further, the Galloi gain no Willpower from fulfilling their Mask; they only receive Willpower if they fulfill their Dirge. Finally, their preoccupation with beauty and elegance leaves them vulnerable to the insatiable appetite exhibited by the Daeva; they suffer from the Daeva Bane in addition to their own.

Bloodline Devotions

Blessing of the Magna Mater (Majesty *, Obfuscate *)

By spending 1 Vitae, the Galloi can imbue a target with the grace of beauty and entrancement. For a number of nights equal to the Galloi’s Blood Potency, the target gains 2 dice to any social roll.

As a “penalty,” the target also suffers from the Wanton Condition, which is resolved when the effect ends; the target gets no Beat this way. During this time, the target, if mortal, is especially fertile; if a man, any woman he has sex with will become pregnant, and, if a woman, she will become pregnant from the first man she has sex with.

This Devotion costs 1 Experience.

Direction of the Magnus Pater (Majesty **, Vigor **)

By spending 1 Vitae, the Galloi can disgorge a small, bloody idol from her mouth. She then tells the idol a simple, specific purpose; for example, to discover the location of a particular person. For a number of nights equal to the Galloi’s Blood Potency, anyone holding the idol gains a persistent Inspired Condition, with the object being the idol’s purpose. Every time the holder gains an exceptional success, he gains a Beat.

Once the time expires or the purpose fulfilled, the idol dissolved into ashes.

This Devotion costs 2 Experiences.

Enliven the Flesh (Majesty **, Nightmare **, Obfuscate **)

By spending 5 Vitae, the Galloi can create a blood bath – literally – in which a target may be completely covered (those who still have to breathe do so with the assistance of a mask or pipe). After so bathed for an hour, the target emerges with a renewed sense of vigor, and bearing the same ethereal beauty possessed by the Galloi. The Galloi herself may use this devotion on herself.

Cost: 5 Vitae Dice Roll: Stamina + Occult + Majesty Action: Instant

Record the successes on the activation roll. The target instantly gains the same number of dots in social attributes. These additional dots are lost as if they were healed as levels of lethal damage. After that, however, the target must lose a number of social attribute dots equal to the activation roll, which are lost at the same rate as if they were healed as levels of lethal damage. Once the requisite numbers of social attribute dots are lost, they gain thereafter be healed as if they were levels of lethal damage, until the target returns to normal.

This Devotion costs 3 Experiences.

The Greatest Lie (Majesty **, Obfuscate ****, Vigor **)

By spending at least 5 Vitae, the Galloi can create a blood bath in which a Kindred may be completely covered. After so bathed for an hour, the Kindred emerges with his Beast completely suppressed, to the point where the Kindred’s body believes itself to be alive again. His heart beats; his chest heaves with breathing; and he can eat solid food again without vomiting it up soon after. It is as close to life as the dead will ever get to.

Cost: At least 5 Vitae Dice Roll: Stamina + Occult + Obfuscate Action: Instant

For each point of Vitae spent, the target Kindred gains the Blush of Life, and more. He feels almost identical to how he felt when he was mortal: he hungers for food, thirsts for water, and so on. His body remains undead and difficult to damage, and he does not have to have a working heart or lungs, but he still feels pain, so losing a limb will likely be a traumatic event. And, yes, sex is great, and works as it should, except that he remains infertile.

Any attempts to detect or lash at the Kindred’s Beast fails. The Kindred cannot frenzy. He is considered to have a Blood Potency of 1 for the purpose of spending Vitae, which he can still do, and boost his physical statistics. The Kindred also has access to his disciplines, and can use them.

When the effect ends, the Kindred gains the Bestial, Competitive, or Wanton Condition, as he sees fit, and also gains the Humbled Condition. Resolving these Conditions does not grant a Beat.

This Devotion costs 4 Experiences.