Nines Rodriguez

Armando "Nines" Rodriguez is the Baron of Downtown/East Los Angeles.
Nines is portrayed by Luis Carazo.

## Biography

### Background

There is not much information about Nines Rodriguez's life prior to his embrace. In his first appearance in the video game Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines, Nines states that he learned the way of the world in the Great Depression, that he came to California to escape the Dust Bowl and both vastly shaped his world view. Nines was born in 1922 and was embraced in 1949, at 27 years old. He likely came to California sometime between 1930-1940. He most likely came from Oklahoma or Kansas, as these where the states that most of the Dust Bowl refugees who migrated to California came from. Like many Dust Bowl refugees, he came to California looking to be hired as a farm worker but faced squalid living conditions and harassment in refugee camps. Much of this discrimination would come from California residents, police and politicians as both a Dust Bowl refugee and a Latino man.4 His Embrace finally gave Nines the power he needed to fight back against oppression.[2]

Nines's embrace took place in 1949, when he was 27 years old. His exact generation is unknown but based on his age it is most likely he is 9th or 10th generation. In LA by Night "The Warning" (2x06), he states that only Isaac Abrams was there with Jeremy MacNeil from the beginning. This may be why many consider him a notable war hero of the '44 revolt, as he would have been fighting and accomplishing great feats in battle as a fledgling/neonate. While he may not have been there with Jeremy MacNeil at the very beginning of the revolt, Nines does seem to have known MacNeil on a very personal level. Nines has stated that he was hurt by MacNeil's seemingly giving up on the Anarch Free States and vanishing without a word. Regardless of MacNeil's reason for leaving, Nines has made it clear he resents him for disappearing and leaving the Anarch Movement in chaos. It was mentioned in Bloodlines by the infamous Smiling Jack that Nines was left sireless, though it is unclear whether Jack meant that Nines had been abandoned by his sire or if his sire had met their final death. MacNeil could very well be the sire of Nines, which could explain why Nines would feel so personally betrayed when MacNeil vanished and abandoned the Anarch Free States. Conversely, Nines's sire may have been someone else who either died or abandoned Nines and MacNeil stepped in to act as his mentor/adoptive sire. Regardless of who his sire is, Nines has established a reputation all his own.

Nines is a remarkable public speaker and often gives inspiring speeches and pep talks which he is somewhat embarrassed about and swears he is also a good listener. He is usually friendly, good natured and overall a rather humble person who seems to have a slight problem accepting people's compliments. Unlike many kindred he is seemingly honest and trusting of people who have earned his trust, despite hints that he has had multiple people close to him betray this trust in the past. An example of this is when Nines tells Victor that when they are talking it feels like talking with a brother sitting next to him, something he doesn’t feel all that often but adds "I’ve had that before. I’ve had it before. And then they all seem to just leave."

While he has stated in Bloodlines that he prefers to use guns in a fight, he is very skilled in hand to hand combat and has helped train multiple people including Annabelle and Mark Temple. He is seen as the top Brujah in LA, a legendary fighter and war hero whose feats include killing a werewolf while it was in Crinos form. The werewolf incident took place in October 2004 when the previous prince of LA, Sebastian LaCroix, attempted to kill him and the protagonist of Bloodlines by setting fire to Griffith Park. As he was attempting to reach the gondola station near the observatory to escape the fire, Nines was attacked and dragged deeper into the burning park by an enraged werewolf who may have assumed the fire was a Kindred attack on Griffith Park's Lupine population. In October 2004, Nines seems to be proud of the fact that he killed the werewolf. His friends and coterie mates, Damsel and Skelter, complain to the Bloodlines PC that Nines won't stop talking about the fight and Nines is shown to have taken the mangled werewolf head with him to the Lucky Star hotel room where he is holed up and recovering (both events are only seen in Bloodlines if the PC chooses to side with the Anarchs at the end). Despite this initial pride, Nines appears to have developed reservations about this incident. Nines doesn't seem to regret killing the werewolf but rather that at the time he did not even consider if there was any other options besides killing it. In the epilogue 4x09 he tells Victor that he only managed to kill the werewolf because it was young, "a pup," and if he could go back in time he would have tried to talk to the werewolf, like Victor had with Strikes a Chord, but if it ultimately came down to having to kill the werewolf in order for him to survive he'd do it again without regret.

Prior to becoming the Baron of Downtown, Nines was considered the unofficial Baron of Downtown in MacNeil's absence by many members of the Anarch Movement, despite his firm rejection of this position. Nines somewhat reluctantly became the official Baron of Downtown LA sometime after the events of October 2004. In 2x06, Nines explained that he only took the position of Baron because someone had to step up to protect the kindred in his coterie, who he views as his family. He gets very frustrated during the first meeting of the four Barons in "The Warning" (2x06) and at one point visibly struggles to maintain his cool. This was a result of first Victor Temple (who was slightly fanboying) asking why Nines doesn't just go end Vannevar Thomas and the Camarilla by himself and then Isaac Abrams trying to pressure him to become the next leader of the revolution, which is something Isaac apparently had tried to push Nines to do previously. He rejects Isaac's claim that all the Anarchs in LA would gladly fight for the Free States if he just says the word. This is possibly because he knows how people idolize him for his reputation, and doesn’t want blind followers fighting for him, but rather people who passionately believe in their joint mission. He firmly states that he has no desire to lead an army or have a herd of followers; and that he only took the position as Baron of Downtown because he could use it in combination with his reputation to protect those he cares for. He also indirectly states that he fears if he were to become the leader of the revolution it will change him for the worse and allow his beast to gain control over him. This fear of being corrupted by taking on leadership roles partly stems from his experiences with people in positions of power and leadership during the Great Depression. His views on how power changes people were only compounded after his embrace, as he first fought in the Second Anarch Revolt against the Camarilla's oppression then Jeremy MacNeil suddenly abandoned the Anarch Free States while other Barons such as Tara Kearney defected from the Anarch Movement to the Camarilla.

It can be assumed that Nines's style of being Baron is probably closer to how Victor runs the Valley compared to how Isaac runs Hollywood or Therese runs Santa Monica. He openly disagrees with Therese Voerman's method of being Baron which he views as her callously treating her coterie, including her own sister Jeanette Voerman, as shock troops and pawns to be sacrificed. The fact that in Who Can You Trust?" (1x08) Therese’s coterie willingly and enthusiastically followed Victoria Ash's order to kill all the humans (blood dolls) in her club because they had witnessed the public death of the kindred gangster Bobby Blaine while Nines’s coterie refused to participate in these killings and left speaks volumes to their difference styles of leadership. After the meeting in episode 2x06 Nines tells Victor he should let go of his anger over Abrams giving part of the Valley to Fiona, asking if Victor really cares that much about that chunk of land. True to his character, Nines feels what is important is “the people that are on that land” rather than the land itself, as boundaries get redrawn all the time.

Nines and his coterie's headquarters is a bar in downtown LA called The Last Round (founded sometime in the 1970s or 1980s) though the layout described in LA by Night is somewhat different to the bar's depiction in Bloodlines, with the LA by Night's version being larger to accommodate additional features including a small office on the second floor and pool tables. Though it is described as a run-down bar from a bygone era, it does appear to be thriving as it has avoided the gentrification of downtown. Nines even boasts of the bar's wide selection of high quality alcohol when offering Mark a drink.

He has a hobby of rebuilding classic motorcycles and had been teaching Annabelle how to ride prior to her meeting the Valkyries. He has a penchant for wearing jewelry, which he seems to have a wide selection though true to his nature tend to be of simpler designs. He is also often seen wearing blue shirts, which may just be a reference to his outfit in Bloodlines, but could also indicate that blue is his favorite color.

### Season One

"Who Can You Trust?" (1x08)

Nelli G noticed Nines and his coterie at The Succubus Club. She intended to speak to Nines but did not get a chance because her coterie was called on to destroy Bobby Blaine. Nines and his coterie stayed to watch the coterie fight Blaine but left quickly after Victoria Ash ordered the vampires to kill all the humans present.

### Season Two

"The Warning" (2x06)

Nines met with the other Barons of Los Angeles- Isaac Abrams, Baron of Hollywood; Victor Temple, Baron of The Valley; and Therese Voerman, Baron of Santa Monica. They discussed how to deal with Vannevar Thomas and the Camarilla presence in the city. He later follows Victor back to the club to meet with the Valley coterie.

"Innocent Monsters" (2x08)

"Embrace the Dark" (2x09)

Nines attended Annabelle's rally, giving her a pep talk before hand, where she encouraged the Anarchs of Los Angeles to unite against Camarilla rule. In this episode he is seen with black "war paint" on his face, similar to the face paint of the Valkyries.

### Season Three

"Hollywood Ending" (3x07)
While not directly seen in this episode, Kasey mentions in her phone call with Annabelle that Nines is housing her and Sycorax after they where ambushed in a retribution attack by Aurora. While it's never brought up, the fact the Nines was willing to house what remained of the Valkyries is significant as doing so put The Last Round coterie at risk if Aurora had decided she wanted to "finish the job". While there has only been limited interaction on screen between Nines and Kasey, there is some level of trust between the two as in the next episode she (presumably) left the still torpid Sycorax in his care while she went out to help the Valley coterie.

"Captain of My Soul" (3xe4)

### Season Four

"The Darkest Places" (4x04)

4x9

"In Praise of Ladies Dead" (4xe3)

## Character Information

* **Predator Type**: Unknown
* **Clan Bane**: Subtract dice equal to Bane Severity of the Brujah from any roll to resist fury frenzy. This cannot take the pool below one die.

### Disciplines

* Potence

* Presence
* Celerity

### Possessions

* Classic motorcycle he restored (from "Innocent Monsters" (2x08))
* 0.50 Cal silver semi-automatic pistol (possibly a Desert Eagle based on the design in Bloodlines: where its a fictional McLusky Calibre 0.50)

## Quotes

“You showed up. Good. Here's what I got to tell you- and so you know I don't lecture, I don't rap, I'm no bureaucrat; I'm just a guy out of nowhere came to be involved in something five-hundred times bigger then you or me."- Nines Rodriguez's introduction to the PC when they meet in the Last Round for the first time in Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines.

## **External Links**

* Nines Rodriguez in Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
* https://vtmb.fandom.com/wiki/McLusky\_Calibre\_0.50
* Jeremy MacNeil info https://whitewolf.fandom.com/wiki/Jeremy\_MacNeil
* [1]Dust Bowl https://migration.ucdavis.edu/rmn/more.php?id=1355
* [2]VTM: **Beckett's Jyhad Diary**, p. 117