Sabbat
Contents
The Ties that Bind
The Auctoritas Ritae are a collection of thirteen rituals practiced by all members of the Sabbat. While the Ignobilis Ritae are optional to a point, Auctoritas Ritae are upheld in a manner similar to the theological commandments given by Moses to the Hebrews. They are held with zealous fever and generally observed on a very casual base.
Leaders to the Sword of Cain
Priscus
Priscus is a title held by a Sabbat vampire that acts as advisor to the local authority figures of the sect, with no formal role in the internal politics but great practical influence.
Overview
Masters of manipulation, prisci serve the Sabbat by advising Archbishops and Cardinals. The position of priscus is more honorary than functional - they possess great insight but little "official" power. Nevertheless, prisci move among powerful circles and often possess a respectable personal prowess as well. One does not earn a consultory position if he is weak or foolish. The Prisci also act as a board of directors for the Regent, similar to a Camarilla city's Primogen, advising the Regent and the Cardinals about the affairs of the sect.
Many prisci were lords or military strategists before becoming vampires, and their vast experience (tempered with the caginess required to attain the position in the first place) serves the sect well. Often, a siege’s success or failure rests on a bit of information, such as what defenses a given prince can muster, or which sympathetic vampires may be convinced to look the other way as the Sabbat roars into town. Such is the role of the priscus: to maximize the flaws of the others through proven strategies.
Although they report to the Cardinals, they serve the Regent directly. Most are elders or powerful ancillae. The most prestigious of the clan members generally hold the rank of Priscus. Most prisci belong to clans Lasombra, Tzimisce and Toreador antitribu, though no formal rules exist as to whether or not a member of a given clan may belong.
Duties
In Sabbat cities, they act similarly to the Primogen, but are never appointed by an Archbishop or Bishop. The prisci who attend to the Regent form the Consistory along with the Cardinals - no one with Status lower then 4 could ever see the Consistory to meet with them, unless they summoned that character for a specific purpose; Prisci rise to the rank over time and according to no specific criteria, and their responsibilities include:
- Advise the Regent, Cardinals and other authorities of the sect;
- Coordinate strategic operations of the sect;
The Prici
- -- Sascha Vykos -- Prici
Cardinals
Cardinal is a title held by a Sabbat vampire who oversees sect affairs in large geographical regions.
Overview
As the direct superiors of the Archbishops, Cardinals coordinate the Sabbat in their cities and direct them in the Jyhad. Further, it is their direct duty to bring any cities within their territory under the Sabbat’s sway. Most Sabbat see their Cardinals no more than once per year, if at all, as the duties of the office keep them in constant communication with Bishops, Archbishops, Prisci, and the Regent herself.
Cardinals are old, powerful and deadly, having spent many centuries or more amassing their personal and political power. Many young Sabbat wonder why vampires of this age oppose the Antediluvians at all, as they are closer to the ancients than young cainites like themselves. For whatever reason, cardinals support and guide the Sabbat in the great Jyhad with terrifying efficiency. DutiesEdit
Cardinals seldom answer to the Regent or the Prisci unless their activities have a detrimental effect on the Sabbat as a whole. They are responsible for all that happens within their regions, and for planning and delegating all Sabbat activities within their respective regions. There are 13 Cardinals, chosen by status within the sect and not by clan.[citation needed] The Cardinals duties include:
- To assist and advise the Regent;
- To handle all disputes that cannot be resolved by the Archbishops or Bishops;
- Authority to make/break alliances and declare enemies;
- To promote or demote those of a lesser rank;
- To remove the initiated status from a lower-ranked member of the Sabbat;
- Being members of the Consistory with full voting power;
The Cardinals
- -- Kyle Strathcona -- Cardinal of Canada and New France
ArchBiship
Archbishop is a title held by a Sabbat vampire who has claimed a given expanse of domain as his own, generally a city, and supports that claim against all others. The term can refer to a cainite of either sex.
Overview
With many of the same powers as a Camarilla Prince, the Archbishop is the closest analog the Sabbat has to that position. An Archbishop is different, though, in that the Sabbat is less concerned with enforcing the Traditions and more concerned with waging its holy war against the Antediluvians and everyone else. Thus, the Archbishop is part spiritual leader and part warlord, advancing the Sword of Caine’s agenda and establishing Cainite primacy.
This last is a difficult task to undertake, as it’s not simply a question of turning a Sabbat city into a living hell and declaring that vampires rule; the fundamentals of the Masquerade and the sheer weight of the mortal population means that is a war to be waged in stages. Too many Sabbat fail to understand this, especially among the young, and lose faith in their leadership because they’re too impatient to play out the long-game Jyhad. This subversion of ignorance is perhaps the Archbishop’s greatest challenge to overcome.
Sabbat Hierarchy
The Archbishops usually are the highest rank in a city hierarchy, served by bishops and Templars, but answering directly to the Cardinals, who coordinate them in their cities and direct them in the Jyhad. They serve their territory's Cardinal holding sway over a smaller region.
Such vampires usually rise through the ranks, serving lengthy tenures as priests or bishops of the sect. Each Cardinal has the power to appoint whomever he wishes to the position of Archbishop. Some accept bribes, but vampires who gain their positions in this manner often have difficulty to remain in office for long before Final Death catches up to them. Multiple Archbishops preside over these smaller domains, all contained within a single Cardinal's region.
Duties
The Archbishop's duties inside their respective territories include:
- Oversee all matters of within the pack structure and lead that clans;
- Assist and advise the Cardinals;
- May remove the initiated status from a lower-ranked member of the sect;
- May Appoint lower ranked Clergy;
The Archbishops
- -- Tatius Italus -- Archbishop of Sarajevo
Bishop
Bishop is a title held by a Sabbat vampire, who serves or advises an Archbishop, or a vampire who maintains Sabbat influence in a city with aid of others of equal status.
Overview
Bishops are those immediately below the Archbishop but above Priests in Sabbat domains, with the same high level duties but much narrower scope.
A Bishop may be in charge of a single aspect of Cainite unlife in the domain, or she may be a more general spiritual leader, inquisitor against diabolism, military general, or any other specific aspect of Sabbat agenda.
Those who are in the know liken bishops to the primogen of the Camarilla, and some Sabbat domains that have no Archbishop, are ruled by a council of Bishops instead.
Duties
Shrewd and savvy, the bishops administrate the nightly affairs of the Sabbat. Their duties include:
- Advise their Archbishops;
- Assist Archbishops in clan matters when necessary;
- May remove the initiated status from a lower-ranked member of the Sabbat;
- May promote or demote others of lower rank;
Noteworthy Bishops
- -- Qadim Malik -- Bishop of Dreams
Covens & Packs
- 25:17 -- The Black-Hand Pack of Montreal
- Bedlam -- A Young Nomadic Pack
- Bloodfoot -- A Native American Nomadic Pack
- Chalice of Osseous Delights -- A Tzimisce Nomadic Pack originally from Romania
- Children of the Æsir -- A Potential Pack of Norse Warriors
- Coven of the Mounds -- A pack of Scouts in St. Louis
- El Colgado -- A South American Pack of Sabbat Occultists (A now defunct pack, that has thrown in with Zarnovich's Circus)
- El Tribunal -- The Mexico City Pack of Mercy the Knight Inquisitor
- Fairuza's Pack -- A Young Pack from Rio de Janeiro and Sasha Vykos' former honor-guard. {Deceased: COD - Killed by the Final Reich and Brian O'Reilly in Berlin 2042}
- Fromage Gris -- A Coven originating in Montreal and currently active in France
- Great White -- A Young Pack from Australia
- Irmãs da Espada -- A Sabbat Pack from Rio de Janeiro
- La Mierda Salvaje de los Monos -- A Founded Coven of Mexico City
- Les Misérables -- The Remnants of an Old and Prominent Pack
- Les Orphelins -- A Brutal Pack of Sabbat Loyalists
- The Assanyì of the Rainbow Waters -- A Serpent of the Light Coven and late arrivals at the 2022 Litany of Blood
- The Coven of Librarians -- A Coven of Sabbat Scholars {This coven is missing and believed destroyed, though there is no evidence to support that suspicion.}
- The Coven of Widows -- The Cathari High-Priestesses of Montreal
- The Crimson Order of Uriel --
- The Fleur-de-Lys Coven - A Loyalist Coven from Montreal
- The Forsaken -- A Nomadic Pack from Chicago
- The Lost Angels - A Ultra-Conservative Coven from Montreal
- The Navigators -- A Loyalist Coven from Montreal
- The Orange Men -- A Black Hand Nomadic Pack originally from Montreal
- The Queens of Mercy -- The Preeminent Gay Coven of New France
- The Seven Angel of Punishment - A Salubri Antitribu pack and late arrivals to the 2022 Litany of Blood
- The Shepherds of Caine - The Ultra-Conservative Ultra-Religious Coven from Montreal
- The Wretched -- A Pack of Driven Metamorphosist
- Tribe -- A Young Pack from Detroit
- Storm Riders - Black Hand Coven of Nis, Serbia
- Voinitsi na Renesansa -- A Bulgarian Revolutionary Sabbat Pack
- Zarnovich's Circus -- A Sabbat Circus of Horrors (The circus swells as it travels east in search of one of its former members - the Malkavian infernalist Midget)
Rare Individualists
- Dominion Doktor Totentanz - Sabbat Dominion of Eastern Europe
- Morgan Hanover Erlich - Former Prince of Gabrovo Grad
Infamous Heretics
- Cedilia of the Tongue - Serpent of the Light Infernalist
Sabbat Controlled Cities
- -- Detroit
- -- Montreal
- -- Ottawa City
- -- Toronto
