Malkavian

ℹ️️**Attention**This is AU content. Not canon

**Malkavians** are the brood of Malkav and one of the great vampiric clans. They are deranged vampires, afflicted with the insanity of their Antediluvian progenitor.

## Malkavian

### Nicknames

Kooks, Seers, Lunatics, Madmen, Cassandras, Children of Malkav, Clan of the Moon, Malks, Jesters, Jokers, Mockers

### Bane

Fractured Perspective or Unnatural Manifestations

## Overview

Malkavians are an enigmatic and deeply disturbed group of Cainites. Members of the clan have assumed the roles of seers and oracles among Kindred and kine, eerie figures bound by strange compulsions and the ability to perceive what others cannot. They are also notorious pranksters whose "jokes" range from silly to sadistic. Against all odds, however, the children of Malkav are among the oldest surviving vampiric lineages. They are one of the 13 original Cainite clans and can trace back their history to times preceding the biblical Deluge. They were also among the founders of the powerful Camarilla, and are widely known as one of its pillars in modern nights.

## History

The Malkavians always had a dangerous reputation due to their madness and their signature Dementation discipline, which can induce madness in others. With the Inquisition and the formation of the Camarilla, the clan faced possible extinction at the hands of other clans – the Malkavians were just too dangerous to continue existing. In order to prevent this, the elders of the clan *changed* the Clan in ways unknown and incomprehensible – the result was that the majority of Clan Malkavian discarded Dementation in favor of the Dominate discipline. More disturbingly, the majority of Malkavians, *even those present at the time of the change* are unaware that this happened. A small fragment of the clan preserved the Dementation discipline, defecting to the Sabbat and becoming *antitribu*.

This "Great Prank" means that almost all Malkavians are *antitribu*. While Sabbat Malkavians possessed the same mystical abilities as their ancestors, the violent environment of the Sabbat drove the *antitribu* even madder: all Malkavians have a mental disorder they cannot overcome, but Sabbat Malkavians have two.

This division was fixed in 1997, when for reasons unknown to anyone, the Dementation resurfaced within the Camarilla, although several "Domination" Malkavians remained unaffected, for some reason.

Beckett's Jyhad Diary states that the Jerusalem's penchant for religious mania has been attributed to the presence of the Malkav somewhere near the city. A creature of great power lies within a pit near the Valley of Hinnom, rumoured to be either the Antediluvian himself, one of his direct, his sister Malakai or one of the original Baali. As the Final Nights draw close, religious mania and hysteria becomes more widespread, believed by some to be connected to the creature that lies in the pit.

## Organization

On the surface, clan Malkavian is barely a clan. The majority of Malkavians are only marginally aware they *belong* to a clan; Sabbat Malkavians generally claim to be Panders. What connections Malkavians generally have are informal and generally paternal, sire-childe relationships being the most common, although Malkavian sires are prone to abandoning their childer.

Scratch the surface, however, and the Malkavians become a smörgåsbord of paranoid delights. Malkavians operate on their own timescale, and will gather spontaneously for incomprehensible events. Malkavians usually do not explain how they know these gatherings are occurring, and when they do the explanation is not necessarily worth anything. Scratch deep enough and it appears that the Malkavians are highly organized, so highly organized they do not even know they are, and instead they continue to pursue incomprehensible and arcane goals that even they are not aware are relevant.

This organization is generally termed the "cobweb", "Malkavian Time", or the "Madness Network" and is a form of shared consciousness unifying all Malkavians. The strength of the *voices* varies from Malkavian to Malkavian, however all of them are at least aware of its call and capable of interacting with it. Dead Malkavians' memories live on in the Cobweb, and it is implied heavily that Malkav himself *is* this network. The cobweb is only accessible by Malkavians, and they themselves only marginally understand it – most of them merely listen to the voices, but elders have demonstrated a powerful capacity to manipulate the rest of the clan through it. It is rumored that powerful Methuselahs partially exist within the Cobweb and can "download" themselves on their descendants if needed. The Cobweb also reacts to the presence of powerful Malkavians, like the Ankou.

## Culture

The possible origin of name 'Malkavian' is from "mala cavilla", Latin for "bad mockery".

Malkavians have traditionally fulfilled two roles in Vampire society: seers and jokers. As seers, the Malkavians have relied on advanced Auspex and the Cobweb (Madness Network) to provide information. Malkavians being Malkavians, this information is generally jaundiced, incomplete, filtered through cracked lenses or a total lie.

The joker role is somewhat more complex: Malkavians have a clan tradition of pranking. The exact purpose of these pranks is open to debate; they often appear intended to readjust the target's perceptions, but are also often sadistic.

In the Camarilla, Malkavians are tolerated; they are rarely princes but often are important primogen or otherwise figures of authority. Given their obvious insanity, princes traditionally give the Madmen a certain amount of latitude; in return, Malkavians are generally expected to demonstrate enough self-control to not break the Masquerade. This is not a benevolent arrangement but largely driven by fear on both sides: fundamentally, Malkavians are unknowable and the general attitude among Princes is that it is better to keep them quiet and happy, since unhappy Malkavians have a tendency towards introducing bizarre and inexplicable incidents to the equation. Conversely, Malkavians need the protection of the Camarilla, and have been modified as discussed above to make them more amenable to it.

Many Malkavians are gifted with insight into the world around them. Through their shared madness and the powers of Auspex and Dementation, many are able to glimpse little bits of the future or the past. True Oracles and Seers, however, go beyond these common talents. They are blessed (or cursed) with strong visions that come upon them without warning. No one knows for sure from where this connection originates. Some embrace their powers and attempt to channel them. Some try to shun the visions and get on as if nothing happened. Other unsensitive Malkavians use the picture of the prophet for their own advantage like mortal fortune-tellers, using vague prophecies to secure themselves safe places. Those with the true Sight, however, often suffer for it, as they receive visions they do not understand at first and then watch helplessly unfold before them. During the Dark Ages, the Malkavian Orders of Mystery, also known as Ordos, tried to channel the gift of prophecy to mimic the Methuselah-Oracles of Antiquity, but with the formation of the sects and the severing of Dementation, their practice fell out of use.

Despite their madness, most Malkavians are not anti-social. In a certain period of time during their unlives, they may experience the cravings of companionship. Often, such companionship can ground the Lunatic's madness, giving them a focus that solitary Malkavians often lack.

### Embraces

The Malkavians are one of the more intellectually focused of the Camarilla clans (with the Tremere arguably being the only clan as interested in cerebral pursuits). As a result, Malkavian candidates for the Embrace tend to be intelligent and more than a little... odd. While the Malkavian embrace *guarantees* insanity, they do tend to choose candidates who are already halfway there.

Lunatic childer do come from all economic and cultural strata however, though most have some sort of hard-luck story or black secret behind them that caused their sire to take note. Truly damaged Malkavians who are unaware of the meanings of their actions may not even be aware that they have sired childer, which makes for very difficult entry into Kindred society for these castoffs, many of whom end up among the Caitiff.

Those Malkavians whose derangement is so severe as to make them non-functional are called the Gnawed.

## Weaknesses

### Classic

Due to their inherent clan weakness every last one of them is irredeemably insane in some form or another. Among the Kindred, some attribute their insanity to a curse of the blood forced upon them by Caine himself, while the Lunatics themselves actually call it a special blessing, a gift of insight. The mortal mind collapses as it goes through the Malkavian Embrace, and the resulting vampire is a being forever changed by the experience. From the moment they are created, Malkavians begin to suffer from at least one derangement that can never be permanently overcome. Their insanity can be temporarily fought with Willpower, but madness is never far away and as a result their members are unpredictable at best.

### Fifth Edition

#### Banes

* **Fractured Perspective**: Afflicted by their lineage, these Malkavians are cursed with at least one type of mental derangement. Depending on their history and the state of their mind at death, they may experience delusions, visions of terrible clarity, or something entirely different.
* Variant — **Unnatural Manifestations**: These Malkavians have a way of rubbing off on mortals as deeply unsettling, even if they haven't exhibited any specific behavior to merit being treated as such. When using Discipline powers, the Malkavian takes on a sort of malign aura that inspires a vague sense of fear or unlikability in mortals. Social interactions with nearby mortals—save for Intimidation rolls—are penalized by an amount of dice equivalent to the Malkavian's Bane Severity for one scene. Nearby Kindred will also be aware of the aura and of their undead nature, but are not beholden to the same mental effects.

#### Compulsion

**Delusion**: Malkavian's extrasensory gifts running wild, the vampire experiences what might be truths or portents, but what others call figments of imagination, dredged up by Hunger. While still functional, the vampire’s mind and perceptions are skewed. They receive a two-dice penalty to rolls involving Dexterity, Manipulation, Composure, and Wits as well as on rolls to resist terror frenzy, for one scene.

## Notable Malkavian's

* Hidan
* Sasori
* Sasuke Uchiha
* Shizuma Hoshigaki
* Gaara
* Sakon and Ukon
* Deidara
* Ayako
* Sakura Haruno
* Himari
* Airi