Lore: Malkavian
This Lore represents knowledge of the social structure, traditions and myths of Clan Malkavian. It also represents how well a character might be able to recognize the names of famous Malkavians and know the trends of the Clan within given regions.
Generally Possessed By: Malkavians, Malkavian antitribu
Potential Specializations: Malkavian History, Malkavian Psychology, Malkavian Psychic Studies, Madness Network Studies
Sources Consulted for this List: The Book of Nod [WW2251], Chaining the Beast [WW2432], Children of the Night [WW2023], Clanbook: Malkavian [WW2053], Clanbook: Malkavian (Revised Edition) [WW2353], Encyclopedia Vampirica [WW2440], Fountains of Bright Crimson [WW2825], Giovanni Chronicles I: The Last Supper [WW2090], Giovanni Chronicles II: Blood and Fire [WW2091], Giovanni Chronicles III: The Sun Has Set [WW2096], The Kindred's Most Wanted [WW2230], Laws of the Night (Revised Edition) [WW5013], Libellus Sanguinis IV: Theives in the Night [WW2830], Players Guide to the High Clans [WW20007], Vampire: The Masquerade (Revised Edition) [WW2300] line
- The author of this page felt that several constructs in the 2nd Edition Clanbook, such as the "Malkavian Traditions" and the five stages of Malkavian development (Fool, Maniac, Madman, Lunatic, Fool), were a bit silly when contrasted with the Revised Edition material (which omits them). As such, they are largely not mentioned here.
Contents
Lore: Malkavian *
You know that the primary Malkavian Disciplines are Auspex, Dementation, and Obfuscate, and that Dementation is unique to their Clan. You have heard, however that some Malkavians possess Dominate as a Discipline, and know that until recently it was only the Malkavian antitribu in the Sabbat who practiced Dementation. (LotN [Rev]: 33; VtM [Rev]: 73)
You know that all Malkavians are permanently and incurably insane. You know that this insanity, however, is also said to provide insight and premonitions. (LotN [Rev]: 32-33; VtM [Rev]: 73)
You know that the blood of a Malkavian carries some of their curse and that ghouls and thralls of Malkavians often display some form of mental instability. (CbM [Rev]: 64-65)
You have heard of the Malkavian progenitor, Malkav, and know that he was reputed to be a great seer or prophet. (LotN [Rev]: 33; CbM: 17; CbM [Rev]: 12-13)
You know that Malkavians traditionally engage in the practice of "pranking", in which they play elaborate jokes on others. You know that not all of these pranks are particularly funny. (CbM [Rev]: 43)
You are aware that Malkavians have some rudimentary mechanic by which they can mysteriously gather seemingly without having communicated beforehand. (LotN [Rev]: 33; CbM [Rev]: 41-42, 58-59)
Lore: Malkavian **
You know that at some point in history all Malkavians practiced Dementation and that in 1997 it was was somehow spread from the antitribu back to the rest of the Clan, who apparently forwent it's use at the time of the Treaty of Thorns. You suspect that the Network might have played a role in this process of "reinfection". (CbM [Rev]: 27-29, 34)
You have heard that some Malkavians claim an indecribable sensation known as the calling leads Malkavians toward their childer. You have also heard that the type of madness that plagues a Malkavian is sometimes seemingly passed onto those whom they Embrace, and that broods of Malkavian childer tend to share similar insanities or sometimes even mass delusions. (PGttLC: 137; LS4: 87)
You have heard that Malkav's Sire is disputed, but that he is often attributed as being the brother of Set and Saulot (the Setite and Salubri Antediluvians). You further know that Malkav was apparently physically ripped to shreds during the battles that destroyed the Second Generation, and that his childer at the time were said to have collected his body and drunk of his scattered blood. Others claim that this is false, and that he left the Second City intact and travelled to the region of Petra or Jerusalem, where he is still said to slumber today. (CbM: 18; CbM [Rev]: 15, 17-18; FoBC: 5-7)
You know some parables common to Clan Malkavian such as "The Fable of Clever Grandsons", in which Malkav pleases Caine through a sacrifice of his ego, and "The Blind Bats and the Elephant" which is supposed to illustrate the Malkavian understanding of objective reality. (CbM: 19, 33)
You further know that historically the Clan is said to have strong ties to the region of Greece and Mesopotamia. (PGttLC: 37-39)
You know that the Malkavians were allied with Ventrue Rome during the Punic Wars and that the Clan incited and aided in the destruction of Brujah Carthage. (CbM [Rev]: 20-21; PGttLC: 37-39)
You have heard of the Malkavian Madness Network (Also known as the Cobweb, the Tapestry, the Greater Dreaming, the Weavery, Metatron etc...). You know that it is a sort of rudimentary psychic hive mind that connects all members of the Clan together, although it is not really organized, definite or predictable in any way. (CbM [Rev]: 41-42, 58-59)
You know that Malkavians tradition of "pranking" is intended to demonstrate to others the absurdity of the universe and/or to shatter their perceptions of it, in the hopes that they might come to a more enlightened view. (CbM [Rev]: 43-44)
You are familiar with the Reality Buster movement, which seeks to disrupt conventional perception through. The general modus operandi of the group is to employ Disciplines to evoke all manner of hallucinations, delusions and other sensations not in accordance with accepted "reality". (CbM [Rev]: 38)
You have heard of "The Gnawed," Malkavians who do not successfully make it through the Embrace and are rendered comatose or nun-functional through insanity. (CbM [Rev]: 39-40)
You know that Maris Streck is the current Malkavian Justicar of the Camarilla. (CotN: 43-44)
You have heard of the Plague-Bride, an ancient Methusaleh who was said to have been Malkav's consort, and who is said to still walk the earth and spread infection and madness where she goes. (CbM [Rev]: 15-16; PGttLC: 37)
You have heard of Nissiku (also known as the Clever Prince), and know that he was an ancient Malkavian from the region of Mesopotamia. You have heard that the Babylonian god Ea, or Enki is sometimes given the epithet of nissiku, meaning "far-sighted", and that rumors apparently endure that Nissiku is also related to the Lakota spider-God Iktomi, the anonymous prankster "Malk Content", and various other identities including: the Devil Hanse, the Fool-Eater and Old Man Hate. (CbM: 64; CbM [Rev]: 16-17; PGttLC: 37 )
You have heard the Eater, a being of Malkavian origin that apparently is capable of devouring the names of things and people, removing them from collective memory as a result. (CbM: 26; CbM [Rev]: 17; PGttLC: 37)
You have heard of Jane Pennington and the Ankou, two figures who seem to be connected to Clan Malkavian, but would be better called "apparitions" than Kindred. You know that "Crazy Jane" is said to appear in visions to young neonates in the throes of the Embrace and to assist in their transition (Some have linked her mannerisms to those of the Plague-Bride, and consider her a modern incarnation of the Methuselah). You know that the Ankou is a horrific figure that reassembles the Grim Reaper that is said to leave a trail of dead Malkavians in it's wake. (CbM: 8-10, 63; CbM [Rev]: 19, 100)
You have at least heard, in passing, of legendary Malkavians such as: the Dionysian, an ancient Greek Kindred with ties to the Bacchic cults of old and allegedly to the Fae; Unmada and his childe Vasantasena, two Indian Malkavians who were instrumental at the Convention of Thorns and in the foundation of the two Sects; and Tryphosa the Sybil, whose prophecies directly incited Rome to attack Carthage. (CbM: 18-19, 61-62; CbM [Rev]: 19-21, 26, 98-99; CotI: 29-33; PGttLC: 38)
Lore: Malkavian ***
You are aware that after joining the Camarilla, the Elders of Clan Malkavian saw fit to "dampen" the violence of their innate Discipline and chose to adopt Dominate in place of Dementation. You have heard that through some sort of manipulation of the Network, the Sabbat Malkavians managed to "reinfect" the main Clan with it in 1997. (CbM [Rev]: 27-29, 34)
You have heard the legend that Malkav was a notorious liar, and that through his deception of the other Antediluvians he nearly caused the death of Zillah, Caine's beloved. You have heard that Caine, in a rage, cursed him and his line, telling him that he should have an infinite number of "truths" to utter thereafter. (PGttLC: 37)
You have heard the parable regarding Malkav, Set and Saulot. In this story, Saulot goes on a journey to settle an argument between Set and Malkav over the origin of truth. Gifts are exchanged between the brothers. Saulot gives Set his sword, and in return is given Set's staff. To Malkav, he gives his crown, but Malkav, having nothing to give in return, bites his thumb and draws an eye on Saulot's forehead, hence giving the Salubri their characteristic third eye. (CbM [Rev]: 15)
You are aware of Tremere's diablerie of Saulot, and you know that Clan Malkavian nearly joined in the War of Omens along with the Gangrel and Tzimisce to destroy the Usurpers on account of the Malkavian kinship to the Salubri. (CbM [Rev]: 23-24; LS4: 100)
You have heard the various historical arguments as to whether Malkav was descended from Ynosh, Irad or Zillah, and are aware of legends from around the region of Nineveh that allude to one of the Second Generation beating it's childe for either saying or refusing to say something of import. You have furthermore heard that Malkav was one of the more active participants in the diablerie of the Second Generation. (CbM [Rev]: 13)
You have heard that Malkav's influence in the area of Jerusalem has helped to augment it's religious mystique, and that such incidents as the seemingly mindless butchery of the First Crusade, or the prevalence of Jerusalem Syndrome have been linked to the Antediluvian by Malkavian scholars. (FoBC: 5-7; 27-28)
You know that some elders of the Clan claim that Malkavians are behind a disproportionate amount of the baalim, or city-gods, of the Sumerian, Babylonian and Akkadian civilations, and that it is claimed that similar practices amongst other Clans were done in imitation of this phenomenon. (PGttLC: 37-39)
You are familiar with various theories regarding the Malkavian Madness Network, including that it is the Antediluvian's method of spying upon all of his children. You also have probably heard some of the debate as to whether or not Malkavian-sired Caitiff can experience the Network. (CbM [Rev]: 42, 58-59)
You are familiar (or at least as familiar as you can be) with the bizarre cosmological constructs that underpin the sentiments of the Reality Busters. You know that it is claimed that empirical reality has been cut off from the infinite possibility of true reality, due to various godlike creatures destroying their connection to the rest of the universe, and therefore disrupting the flow of potential which powers magical phenomena. You know that it is the aim of the Reality Busters to restore this connection as fully as they are able, and that there are frequent claims that the Fae also attempt to serve a similar function. (CbM: 17)
You've heard rumors that the "Gnawed" are often taken to the lairs of the Clan elders who can no longer subsist on simple human vitae, although you have no means of verifying this. (CbM [Rev]: 39-40, 52)
You've heard of the Malkavian Orders of Mystery, most notably the Ordo Aenigmatis, which seeks to understand Malkavian madness through riddles and symbolic enigmas, and the Ordo Ecstasis, which seeks ecstatic experience as a means of enlightenment. You know that these mystery cults are, as a rule, never spoken of outside of the Clan. (LS4: 89; PGttLC: 219)
You have heard that each Clan's traditional "coat of arms" was originally created by a mute Malkavian child named Pelinka during the Middle Ages. (CbM [Rev]: 27)
You have heard of the "Language of Babel", an argot of Malkvian origin consisting of codes and symbols decipherable only to their Clanmates allegedly. You hear that it is no longer in wide use. (LS4: 93, 112; PGttLC: 38, 82)
You've heard that the Malkavians once had strong roots in the Christian tradition, and that certain heretical and widely dismissed claims have been made that the Clan had some sort of direct connection to the personage of Jesus of Nazareth. (LS4: 95-100).
You know that Camilla Banes was the Malkavian representative amongst the founding members of the Camarilla, and that she sat on the original Inner Council. (GC1: 51-61; GC2 17-20; GC3 15-16)
You have heard stories of some Malkavians who have managed to transcend their bodies and "download" themselves onto the Network somehow. Although you have no idea how this is possible, you know it would account for stories regarding the Plague-Bride, Crazy Jane and the Ankou. (CbM: 8-10, 63; CbM [Rev]: 64, 100)
You know that the Plague-Bride, the Clever Prince and the "Eater" were held in archaic times as being the three foremost of the childer of Malkav, or the Coronati, and that they are said to be the three who first drank the blood of the sundered Malkav, eating the red clay of the earth wherever his blood had been spilled. (PGttLC: 37)
You are aware that the Malkavians have been credited with embracing such historical figures as: Olympias, Sennacherib and the personage behind the Roman goddess Cybele (CbM [Rev]: 19; KmW: 81-83)
You have heard that Rasputin was a Malkavian, although this is disputed by other Clans. (CbM: 60-61)
You have at least heard, in passing, of famous Malkavians such as: Anatole, the legendary prophet of Gehenna; Fabriza Contreraz, the influential Archbishop of Miami; Dr. Douglas Netchurch, the famous Kindred hematologist; and Alessio Rinaldi, the "Peacock" Prince of Ravenna. (CbM [Rev]: 96-100; CotN: 28-30)
Lore: Malkavian ****
You are aware that the Malkavian Discipline shift was not, in reality, a matter of choice, and that a massive conclave of Malkavians was held in the city of Domazlice, where six Methusaleh's (Addemar, the Black Hag, the Dionysian, the Plague-Bride, Tryposa and Unmada) caused a "block" to be placed in the minds of their brethren, psychically shutting them off from the powers of Dementation. You are aware that people in the know about this "prank" historically regard the Camarilla Malkavians as the technical antitribu of the Clan. You further know that, in spite of propaganda to the contrary, it is unlikely that Sabbat Malkavians were the true cause behind the "reawakening" in 1997. (CbM [Rev]: 27-30, 34)
You have heard some versions of the story of Malkav, in which he is driven mad after either sleeping with Lillith or after having her unveil to him certain forbidden "truths." You know that in these myths that feature Lillith, Malkav is said to have infected Set and Saulot with his madness as they tried to comfort him. (CbM [Rev]: 13; CtB: 47; PGttLC: 37)
You have heard legends relating that prior to Malkav's rending he was visited by an angel or angels of the Lord, who imparted unto him certain revelations that were meant to secure Caine's repentance, and that he then approached Caine and spoke to him. Caine, in rage, was said to have struck him down for this attempt and to have then cursed his descendants with insanity. (LS4: 101, 117)
You have heard that the Malkavian Madness Network is not just the device of Malkav or a part of the Clan curse but rather that it is Malkav himself, who exists now in shards throughout the minds of all his progeny. You know that the Coronati, by devouring Malkav's blood, allowed him to exist in them and in all they Embraced. You know that they are said to never meet, such as that should something attempt to kill them, all of the original fragments of Malkav will not fall at once. (CbM [Rev]: 12-13, 42, 58-59; PGttLC: 37)
You have heard in Jerusalem in the late 12th century, the waterways and fountains of the area were said to have turned red with blood, and that many elder Cainites report having had strange and terrible dreams at the time. You have heard scant reports that it was during this time that something was discovered beneath the city, and have heard rumors to the effect that Malkav was active at this point in history. (FoBC: 19; 27-28)
Even if you are not a member of one of the Orders of Mystery, you know of the rough ranks of progression through one of these groups. You know that the each order is led by a deacon, a Malkavian who claims to have been present at Malkav's original "rending", and that the majority of each order is made up of mystai who graduate from the entrant's rank of initiate after a year of study. You also have a fair amount of familiarity with the litany and practices of both the Ordo Aenigmatis and Ordo Ecstasis, and you've heard tell of the (hopefully) now defunct third order, the infernalist Ordo Maleficus. (LS4: 95-100; PGttLC: 219)
You know that some truly believed that the "Language of Babel" was, in fact, related to the biblical myth of its name, and that at the time that the tower of Babel fell, Duma, the archangel of silence, descended upon the earth and blessed seventy-seven members of the Clan such as that they would remember the first tongue. (LS4: 93, 112; PGttLC: 38)
You have heard of two nearly unknown and utterly minuscule bloodlines of Clan Malkavian: The Mnemosyne and the Jocastatians. You know that both groups are said to specialize in Noddist scholarship and to practice ritual diablerie, but you know little else. (CtB: 47)
You have heard of Elmolech, a demon bound into a human body by a gathering of Malkavians after it had tried to possess the body of Geniveive of Limoge, an elder of the Clan. You know that Elmolech has hence been cursed to wander the earth eternally, and that several Malkavians claim to have had brushes with it. (CbM [Rev]: 22)
You have heard of Adonijah, the Biblical son of David who allegedly had (and has) some manner of relation to Clan Malkavian and it's founder. You have heard all manner of contradictory rumors about this individual, but know that he is said to still be wandering the earth - albeit not as a Cainite. You have heard that he was entrusted with something extraordinarily precious. (FoBC: 23-25)
You've heard of the Book of Andreas, a lost religious text that makes the claim that Christ had a Cainite disciple in his company - a Malkavian named Andreas who was exhorted to seek Caine out and beg forgiveness, and thereby achieve redemption before God. You have heard that this sripture formed the basis for a highly heretical military-religious sect known as the Brotherhood of the Crooked Cross, which claimed to worship the divine trinity in the form of Caine the Father, Christ the Son, and Malkav the holy ghost. (LS4: 89, 93; PGttLC: 39).
You've heard of the obscure Biblia Negra, an Spanish translation of certain works set down by an Arab author. You are aware that it is said that the text has certain startling Noddist sentiments to it regarding the intentions of sixty seven beings of great power that sleep beneath the earth. You are aware that the original translator was a Malkavian, and that all known owners of the text have succumb to some form of insanity or paranoia. (LS4: 95).
You know that Camilla Banes was alleged to have been involved in some way with the Antediluvian of the "Clan of Death". (GC2 17-20; GC3 15-16)
You've heard of some of the fairly obscure Malkavians of note, such as: Lamdiel, a famous prophet of Jerusalem; "Le' Enfant Perdu," the former Prince of Antwerp; and Quentin King III and the six Knights of Boston, who rule over Boston and the surrounding areas and who all seem to share in the delusion that they are part of an Arthurian Romance. (CbM [Rev]: 19; LS4: 94)
Lore: Malkavian *****
You are aware of the contents of the legendary dialog between Caine and Malkav in which Malkav sought to redeem him. and you know that key to the argument was Caine's refusal to answer the question "Why?" when it was posed to him by Malkav - presumably in relation to his motivation for killing Abel. (LS4: 100; 117)
You have heard a story, Bahari in origin, that Malkav and Arikel (the Toreador Antediluvian) were the children of Lilith, and that they had a third sibling named Nahema, a woman called the Dark Muse or the Demon Queen of Madness. You know that after the deaths of these three, that Nahema was said to still speak to the blood of her siblings, and that it is her whispers that actually transmit the madness network. (CtB: 64)
You know that one of Malkav's childer, similar in power to the Coronati, was diablerized beneath Jerusalem, and that the Antediluvian was on the verge of potentially waking in 1197 AD as a result. You have heard that Malkav himself does not lie beneath the city, but rather that the riddle to his final resting place is somehow related to the Latin phrase "Et in Arcadia Ego," made famous by the painting 'Les Bergers d'Arcadie' by Nicholas Poussin - a notable puzzle piece in many conspiracy theories. You can suspect that this clue might be related to the ocassional brushes the Clan is said to have with the Fae. (FoBC: 27-28, 31)
You have heard that the pure blood of Malkav is said to have miraculous qualities, and that imbibing it can heal the injured and mad, even to the point where it may turn back wassail. (FoBC: 25 32)
You are aware of the ritual diablerie practiced by (presumably) all three of the Ordos in the event that initiates prove themselves unworthy. You also have made some connections between the three Coronati and the three orders of Madness. (LS4: 95-100; PGttLC: 219)
You are familiar with the Mnemosyne, and are aware that they possibly can claim some manner of connection with the Dionysian. You know that their interest in scholarship has some manner of mystic compulsion to it, and that they have a seeming rivalry with the Jocastatians. You have heard of Aristotle de Laurent, who is amongst the most prominent of their line and works with various Camarilla notables on issues of research. (CtB: 47; EV: 202; Nod: 6)
You are familiar with the Jocastatians, and are aware that they do, in fact, practice ritual diablerie upon their elders as a means of obtaining knowledge (not entirely dissimilar from acts ascribed to the Salubri). You know that several Jocastatians claim membership in the Sabbat. (CtB: 47; Nod: 182-183)
You have heard that Camilla Banes had contact with the Antediluvian Cappadocius and that certain prophecies she has made about him have proved eerily accurate. (GC4: 97)
Credit to the Author: http://www.unmasqued.com/lores_malkavian.php It's a great page!
