Nosferatu

**Nickname:** Sewer Rats

## Sect

Clan Nosferatu belongs at least nominally to the
Camarilla, though many of its members become Autarkis or support the
Anarchs rather than navigating the Ivory Tower's vicious social
labyrinth. Some even contend that the Nosferatu need the Camarilla,
because without they have no buyers in their economy of secrets.

 Those who doubt that the Embrace is a curse need look no further
than the Nosferatu. Following the Embrace, Nosferatu childer suffer an agonizing
transformation as, over the subsequent weeks, they warp from humans into
 hideous monsters. The horror of the physical devolution often produces
an accompanying psychological trauma. Unable to walk among the kine,
Nosferatu must dwell in subterranean sewers and catacombs forever after. As such, they
 skulk and keep to the shadows, and they often rouse the ire and mockery
 of other Kindred for their nightmarish appearances. Still others are so
 terrified or revolted by the Nosferatu that these warped Kindred have
little social interaction at all.

 To their credit, the Nosferatu come to possess many of the
whispered secrets of their reluctant fellows. The Sewer Rats enjoy a
grudging respect as the information-brokers of the Kindred, given their
supernatural acumen at stealth and the fact that many Kindred would
rather ignore them than acknowledge them. Savvy Nosferatu exploit this
for all it's worth, turning the hypocrisy of other vampires to their own
 profit.

 On the whole, the Nosferatu condition is lonely and alienating. How
 they react to the Curse of Caine varies with their outlook and mental
stamina, but it's hard to be an object of utter revulsion and not let it
 shape one's disposition toward one's "Kindred" in some way. Some of the
 Sewer Rats are cruel, as blighted on the inside as they are on the
outside, while others are tragic, wretched creatures who have been
cursed with eternal outsider status through no choice of their own.

## Appearance

Physical horror is the lot of the Nosferatu, and their unsettling
deformations are countless. No two Nosferatu share the exact same
malformation, and the Clan is a freakshow of snarled limbs, fanged
protrusions, hellish countenances, serpentine spines, ruined faces,
spasmodic appendages, and even features not usually seen on the mortal
stock from which the Nosferatu are drawn. The Sewer Rats often hide
these disfigurements under shapeless robes and rags, but some exult in
the discomfort their presence causes, and don't bother disguising them.
They may even emphasize them. A Nosferatu's Appearance stat is always at 0 and cannot be raised.

## Havens

Nosferatu Kindred often make their havens far from the scorn and spite
of other vampires. Whether they construct warrens in the sewers
suggested by their nickname or they sculpt a sprawling nightmare-nest in
 the spire of a condemned church, Sewer Rats value secrecy and distance
from rivals in their havens. Nosferatu of humbler means may well squat
in an abandoned tenement or a disused alley. So long as it's away from
other Kindred, it's a good haven.

## Background

The Sewer Rats mostly fit into one of two categories. Some Nosferatu
Embrace the damaged, flawed, outcast, or vile, feeling some degree of
kinship with them. Other Embrace spitefully, dragging the beautiful or
privileged into an immortal hell of disfigurement and monstrosity. Nosferatu choose their progeny from society castoffs: derelicts, the
mentally ill and the hopelessly antisocial. Occasionally, a vindictive
Nosferatu chooses beautiful, vain mortal whom they nickname a Cleopatra, then watch gleefully as the
Curse takes hold.

## Character Creation

Many Nosferatu come from loner and outsider concepts, Natures, and
Demeanors. They favor Physical and Mental Attributes over Social, and
they tend to be balanced in their regard for Talents, Skills, and
Knowledges. Nosferatu prefer to specialize rather than generalize in
Backgrounds, favoring those that carry favors and information like
Allies, Contacts, Mentor, and even a bit of Influence.

## Clan Weakness

As mentioned, Nosferatu are absolutely loath-some to look at. All
Nosferatu have Appearance ratings as zero - cross the automatic dot
right off the character sheet. Nor many they improve Appearance with
experience points. Most Social actions based on first impressions,
except intimidation and the like, fail automatically.

## Organization

Occasionally, a coterie of Nosferatu becomes a brood or cult, often
based around a remote warren. These can sprawl into vast "kingdoms" of
Sewer Rats, who often exist without the knowledge of a domain's Prince
or Archbishop. The Nosferatu are among the Kindred most likely to share a
 communal haven, if only for protection in numbers. As well, Nosferatu
share information with each other via networks -- whether digital,
personal, occult, or something less definable -- that defy the
comprehension of other Kindred.

## SchreckNET

A communicative network used exclusively by the Nosferatu clan to keep up on the down and dirty of Kindred business. The details and rolls for the net can be found here.