Nosferatu Ghouls

The Nosferatu Clan tends to choose their ghouls from the lonely, alienated, and forgotten members of society. Usually, Nosferatu ghouls are either people that would not be missed if they suddenly disappeared, or mortals who make their home in the lowest rungs of society. In general, the Clan’s curse dissuades the Nosferatu Clan from gathering pawns in high-ranking or visible positions, as their ghouls make people uncomfortable around them. Instead, the Nosferatu Clan prefers to control those who keep the city functioning, support the movers and shakers, and move unseen.

Nosferatu domitors are careful to select candidates that might be overlooked by other Clans. A Nosferatu might stalk the city’s subway system under the cover of Obfuscate, following late-night commuters, listening to their conversations as he tries to identify potential targets. Another vampire might wander the city streets at night, scouring alleyways for thieves and vagrants. Once a candidate is chosen, most Nosferatu domitors take some time to explain the terms of their relationship. While they are not usually straightforward, the Nosferatu tend to appeal to the candidate’s feelings, and will talk about how they take care of their own, and even mention the word “family”. Others may use Obfuscate to hide their deformed appearances and the truth of their nature as they impart their vitae.

In addition to being chosen for their ability to access specific sources of information, some Nosferatu ghouls are selected for their ability to move about during the day, such as janitors, delivery drivers, and maintenance workers. Not only can they walk above ground and act on behalf of their domitors, Nosferatu ghouls can help conduct the Clan’s affairs by interacting with other ghouls and mortals. One key task that these ghouls perform for their masters, outside of acting as their eyes and ears, is to draw victims toward them. Criminals, thieves, and gangs might kidnap or lure innocents into dark alleyways, while sanitation or construction works might rig traps.

Unfortunately, the affliction of ugliness that comes with Nosferatu vitae means that some ghouls prefer to spend a limited time above ground or out in public. These ghouls hide below in the sewers, cluster near drain pipes, and are part of the city’s underbelly. Some form roving gangs who are tasked with serving the Clan’s interests, such as cleaning up the Masquerade, delivering messages, escorting guests, scouting abandoned buildings, etc. Others, however, stray into the darkness to exchange information and to share the burden of serving their domitors.

Like the Gangrel, the Nosferatu Clan also shares the gift of Animalism, and they put this Discipline to good use. Animal ghouls are often used below ground to guard havens, and the Clan tends to rely on species that are commonly found in sewers such as rats, snakes, bats, stray dogs, and feral cats. Occasionally, some Nosferatu domitors might displace an alligator or a larger snake, to feed into local urban legends. While they can and do maintain individual animal ghouls, many domitors are careful not to waste vitae, so they don’t create them for the sake of doing so. Most Nosferatu masters, however, do rely on animal ghouls in emergency situations or when they feel threatened. They even go so far as to leverage Spawning Pools to create swarms of small animal and insect ghouls to defend themselves. (For more on Spawning Pools, see Lore of the Clans, p. 161.)

Nosferatu *antitribu* domitors share similarities with their counterparts in the Camarilla, with a few exceptions. They tend to be more aggressive with the use of their ghouls, and less discriminatory. Though they do choose loners, thugs, and runaways, Nosferatu *antitribu* kidnap and snatch candidates that would make good soldiers on the front lines. More importantly, however, is the fact that they don’t waste time trying to convince candidates to come along with them. When a Nosferatu *antitribu* wants a ghoul, she finds a way to turn that candidate to her side.

Despite their appearance, Nosferatu ghouls are a crucial part of the Clan. Often overlooked, their domitors are not examined too closely with respect to their treatment. While they are not abused or mistreated, they are looked down upon by other Clans and their ghouls, a feeling their domitors know all too well.

**Appearance:** Nosferatu ghouls who operate above ground favor nondescript clothing that allows them to blend into a crowd. The last thing they want to do is stand out, either on the street or in an office, and they take great pains not to. Most Nosferatu ghouls maintain good hygiene, despite the effects of the Clan’s curse on them, as they also wish to avoid repelling people.

**Character Creation:** Recruited for the ability to procure information, Nosferatu ghouls are expected to infiltrate every corner of society. As such, sanitation workers, janitors, criminals, hackers, city employees, journalists, transients, and drug addicts are prime choices to be exploited and controlled. Thus, Social Attributes and Talents are favorable, and Allies and Contacts are preferred Backgrounds. However, like most ghouls, if they are deemed useful to a domitor, then their masters are less picky about their specific traits.

**Weakness:** Nosferatu ghouls are often shocked to discover their appearance degrades over time, much like their domitors. This can manifest in numerous ways: severe acne, greasy hair, weight problems, body odor, etc. Once it occurs, the transformation is initially noticed more by animals (dogs bark, cats hiss, and so on) at first, while mortals only notice when their deformities become more pronounced. Mechanically, the ghoul loses one to two points of Appearance over time, although their total Appearance may not drop below 1.

**Quote:** “I may be beneath your notice, but I have eyes that see more than you.”