The Blood Laws of Mithras
The Blood Laws versus the Traditions of the Camarilla: The Blood Laws are the Traditions of the Camarilla, but seen through the lens of Mithras' personal interpretation of them. Long before the formation of the Camarilla or the Sabbat, Prince Mithras gave a fixed set rulings on the Laws of Caine so that regardless of what corner of his domain a given Cainite might hail from, all of Mithras' subjects might know the law and the penalties for violating them. This led to a widespread acceptance of the Blood Laws without the requirement for interpretation or variation. With the passage of centuries and the expansion of the British Empire to all corners of the earth, the Blood Laws have gain general acceptance wherever English Kindred hold sway. The practical nature of the Blood Laws and their lack of interpretation on a local level has led to an astounding stability and civility in the undead subjects of the British Empire. While the Camarilla applauds the level of stability inherent in the Courts of Avalon, they nonetheless dispute Prince Mithras' interpretation of the Traditions. In places where the British Empire holds sway or along its borders, this disagreement has led to civil unrest among the members of the Camarilla who supposedly owe allegiance to their local prince, the justicars and the Inner Council, but continue to follow Mithras' legal code. The Camarilla therefore considers the Blood Laws archaic and takes every opportunity to dispute or undermine them; this activity has not gone unnoticed by his Majesty, who has begun to return the Camarilla's contempt. This state of affairs has led to a quiet political struggle between Prince Mithras and the Justicars, which has resulted in the presence of a full time Archon being resident in London. Regardless of the situation brewing in London, the Blood Laws continue to be applied wherever the Courts of Avalon hold sway, a situation that continues create difficulties for Camarilla princes and justicars alike. Below are the Blood Laws and their accepted penalties; the practical nature of these penalties has reduced the need for centralized enforcement, lessened the time and attention local rulers need to divert to violations of the Traditions, which in turn has led to swift and just punishments. All Kindred residents of London and the British Empire know their rights and what punishments will be meted out for what crimes; few contest these penalties and quite often, if the violation is minor, no official of the Prince need make an appearance to officiate.
The First Tradition: The Masquerade
Thou shall not reveal thy nature to those not of the Blood. Doing so shall renounce thy claims of Blood.
Penalties
Minor Infraction: Temporary lose of status or temporary banishment.
Medium Infraction: Forfeiture of all domain or banishment for life.
Major Infraction: The Blood Hunt or final death.
The Second Tradition: The Domain
Thy domain is thine own concern. All others owe thee respect while in it. None may challenge thy word while in thy domain.
Penalties
Minor Infraction: Payment of the Blood Tithe to the aggrieved party (the right to feed in the offenders domain for a certain period) or the first step towards a Blood Oath to the prince.
Medium Infraction: Forfeiture of some portion of domain to the prince or two steps towards a Blood Oath to the prince.
Major Infraction: Forfeiture of all personal domain or a full Blood Oath to the prince.
The Third Tradition: The Progeny
Thou shall sire another only with the permission of thine elder. If thou createst another without thine elder's leave, both thee and thy progeny shall be slain.
Penalties
Minor Infraction: The sire suffers loss of all status and the childe is banished for life.
Medium Infraction: Lifetime banishment for Sire & Childe, resulting in confiscation of all property by the prince.
Major Infraction: The Blood Hunt, resulting in confiscation of all property by the prince.
The Fourth Tradition: The Accounting
Those thou create are thine own childer. Until thy progeny shall be released, thou shall command them in all things. Their sins are thine to endure.
Penalties
Minor Infraction: Public humiliation of the Sire before Elysium resulting in a loss of status.
Medium Infraction: Confiscation of the Sire's domain by the Prince or loss of titles and thus status.
Major Infraction: Banishment of Sire and Childe from the domain, loss of all titles and status.
The Fifth Tradition: Hospitality
Honor one another's domain. When thou comest to a foreign city, thou shall present thyself to the one who ruleth there. Without the word of acceptance, thou art nothing.
Penalties
Minor Infraction: Payment of the Blood Tithe to the aggrieved party(the right to feed in the offenders domain for a certain period) or the first step towards a Blood Oath to the prince.
Medium Infraction: Forfeiture of some portion of domain to the prince or two steps towards a Blood Oath to the prince.
Major Infraction: Forfeiture of all personal domain or a full Blood Oath to the prince.
The Sixth Tradition: Destruction
Thou art forbidden to destroy another of thy kind. The right of destruction belongeth only to thine elder. Only the eldest among thee shall call the blood hunt.
Penalties
Minor Infraction: If the prince is merciful, the offender is banished for life; if not, the Blood Hunt.
Medium Infraction: The Blood Hunt.
Major Infraction: Outright final death, swift or lingering at the whim of the prince.
Imperial Edicts: In addition to the Traditions, every prince has a few personal rules that he or she is likely to push past the primogen and enforce with the aid of the sheriff or scourge. London is no exception to this rule of thumb, Prince Mithras has laid down a few personal laws for the Kindred of London specifically and for the greater Court of Avalon in general. These princely edicts have come about as the need for them has arisen, but have never been repealed. Some within the Court of Avalon think its time to repeal these edicts to reflect the circumstances of the current age, but as long as the shadow of Prince Mithras continues to encompass London, that will never happen.
Nex ut Giovanni Londinii: This edict came into being in 1514, shortly after the Giovanni assassination of Lord Roger de Camden, the Cappadocian seneschal and personal friend of Prince Mithras. This edict declares that the Giovanni clan as a whole are Persona Non Grata, that any member of the Giovanni found in London is subject to the Blood Hunt, and all Kindred present are free to drink their blood to the last drop.
Veneficus Lex: The Witch Law came into being shortly after the Great Fire of London in Autumn of 1666, when it was discovered that a rogue Thaumaturge that was experimenting with incendiary magics lost control of his experiment and the mystical fire spread throughout the City in a matter of hours. The fire burned for two days and consumed 13000 houses and 89 churches; it killed only six mortals, but destroyed twenty Kindred. The Veneficus Lex is based on the premise of 'Haud Veneficus , Haud Veneficus', meaning literally 'No Witch, No Magic'; this edict specifically forbids the learning or use of Thaumaturgy by any Cainite save the members of Clan Tremere. None were more surprised by this edict than the Tremere, who in all likelihood expected to be expelled from London; the Tremere rejoiced expecting that Mithras' latest edict would favor them by eliminating blood magic competitors, but the nature of the edict led many Kindred to believe Mithras was lumping anyone who practiced Thaumaturgy into the same bed with the Tremere. Technically, both interpretations proved accurate, but the Tremere were far too busy trying to evade the Witch-finder General and the anti-witch hysteria among both mortals and Kindred made the Tremere presence in London difficult until the mid 1700s.
