Ahranite Sorcery is a form of blood sorcery, like Cruac or Theban. Legends say it was taught to the children of Ahran by a Demon in the long forgotten nights before the fall of the Camarilla, but none alive tonight can say for certain. What is certain, however, is that any who learn the secrets of this ancient sorcery become plagued by insidious whispers that urge them to give into their baser instincts and succumb to the Beast. Any rolls a ritualist makes to resist frenzy suffer a penalty equal to her dots in Ahranite Sorcery.

MotifsAhranite Sorcery is Visceral; the witchcraft of Shaddad comes a dark place within it's practioners. It requires butchery and effigies, song and dance. It is more than some arcane fomrula and an act of Will it is a primal force set free, tearing out of the forgotten hole we left it in. It is old and deep. It must be felt, lived and breathed. It does not reconisge the difference between the physical and the metaphysical, requring a material form for the magic to grasp. So it draws upon acts which could be considered primative or barbaric.Ahranite Sorcery is Communal;Ahranite Sorcery is Transgressive; crossing the boundries of the sacred laws of Humanity and the Divine.Themes: Destruction, Transformation

All Ahranite Sorcery rituals require the use what is called a Cauldron of Shaddad. It is a large cauldron, roughly the size of a bathtub, typically inscribed with arcane symbols whose meanings have been lost with the rest of the knowledge of this ancient sorcery. One symbol in particular, known only as the Seal of the Unnamable, must be carved into the cauldron and subsequently damaged or destroyed. This presumably has symbolic significance, but it too has been forgotten. All that is known is that the seal must be carved and damaged for any Ahranite Sorcery ritual to function. The cauldron must be filled with human blood, and at least 5 Vitae, which can be supplied by any vampire or vampires present, though it is most commonly the victim who provides the tribute. Finally, the ritualist spends a point of Willpower, and the request is made. Cost: 1 WillpowerImprovised Dice Pool: Presence + Occult + Theme

Creation Dice Pool: Manipulation + Athletics + Theme

Destraction Dice Pool: Composure + Intimidation + Theme

Divination Dice Pool: Presence + Survival + Theme

Protection Dice Pool: Composure + Craft + Theme

Transformation Dice Pool: Manipulation + Expression + Theme

Action: Extended. Ritualists may roll as many times as the unmodified dice pool. The base time per roll is half an hour, reduced to 15 minutes if the character has more dots in Ahranite Sorcery than the dot rating of the ritual being cast. A ritual must be completed in one attempt. Ritualists do not receive any bonus for attempting a ritual having already failed with a near miss; rituals automatically fail if interrupted; and ritualists may not use Defense while casting. Many rituals are also Contested or Resisted, as noted in their descriptions. Unless a Merit that modifies extended actions expressly says that it applies to Sorcery, Ahranite Sorcery rolls are not affected by it. Roll Results: Dramatic Failure: The ritual completely fails, and the sacrifice is wasted. The ritualist gains the Tainted Condition, with a 'Blood Poetency' equal to the level of the rite. The next ritual attempted by the vampire suffers a - 2 dice penalty Failure: The ritualist is having difficulty, and accumulates no successes. The player decides whether to abandon the ritual entirely or continue. If the ritualist continues, she gains the Stumbled Condition. Success: The ritual accumulates successes. If the target number of successes is met, the rituals effect immediately takes place.Exceptional Success: The ritualist makes great strides in achieving the ritual. The player decides which of the following effects takes place in addition to accumulating successes. Reduce the target number of successes by her dots in Ahranite Sorcery.

Reduce the time per roll to 15 minutes (or to 5 minutes if she has more dots in Ahranite Sorcery than the rating of the ritual).

Apply the Steadfast Condition if and when the ritual succeeds.

If the target number of successes is met, the rituals effect immediately takes place.

Teamwork rules may be used via Chanting (provided each partisapant has dots in Arhanite Sorcery and spends a willpower point to join in the rite) to assist the Primary Caster, limited to a number of partisapants equal to the ritual level. Enhanced via Altar (pg 109) merit equvilent?

Shadow Slaying Sword Level 3 (Destruction 3, Transformation 3)Target Number of SuccessesEmpower Sword to harm Strix & Emphreal entities

The Whisper of Shaddad Level 4 (Divination 3, Protection 4)Target Number of Successes 9Dream Vision Merit (pg 111), Indomitable Merit (pg 121)Special Condition ala Agendas?

Unique TraitsThe presence of Shaddad in the blood of the Akhud, and the demon's role in the creation of the clan, differentiates their blood from that of other Kindred in six important ways.First off, their minds cannot be read. Because Shaddad is present within their blood, and Ansuara is physically entwined with the demon, any attempt to read an Akhud mind picks up the strong dreaming thoughts of either the demon (expressed as the seal that trapped it) or its jailer (expressed as the image of "VII"). An exceptional success might yield a greater sense of what one of those two is dreaming about: Ravening destruction in the demon's case and a desperate need to protect something precious from the other. In either case, making mental contact with such ancient and alien minds is enough to provoke a mild derangement from those who fail a reflexive Resolve + Composure roll.Second, the Akhud neither provoke nor suffer from the Predator's Taint. Being created by a demon instead of sharing the sources of other Kindred, they do not seem to register a "real vampires." For the purposes of mortals (and other Ahranites) with Unseen Sense, however, they do register as vampires. (This discrepancy has provoked philosophical and occult debates within the covenant for hundreds of years).Third, the blood of Ahran -- as distinct from the perverse transformation of Shaddad -- gives them the Unseen Sense Merit. Their Unseen Sense is universally focused on vampires. (Normally, supernatural beings cannot possess the Unseen Sense Merit -- Ahranites can, but only to detect vampires.)Fourth, they cannot be diablerized. When an Akhud dies, her soul goes to Shaddad and is imprisoned by the demon.Fifth, they cannot raise their Blood Potency by diablerizing others, and, therefore, cannot absorb dots of Skills and Disciplines. The Akhud can perform the action and feel the bliss and regret of Amaranth, but the artifacts of souls consumed feed the demon instead of the vampire. For Ahranites, diablerie is just a thrilling form of murder.Sixth, drinking Akhud Vitae does not affect mortals in any supernatural fashion. The Vitae doesn't satisfy the craving of Vitae addicts or cause addiction, and Vitae cannot be used to create ghouls. Ghouls who drink the blood of an Akhud cannot use it as they would normal Vitae.VII traces its history directly to the Camarilla. Not in the emphemeral, hand-waving way that the Invictus do. No, VII are the direct inheritors of the Camarilla legacy... and they have been enacting their riteous vengance over the Camarilla's destruction for well over 1,500 years now.

In the most basic terms, VII is actually the continuing legacy of the Roman VII legion, 1st founding, "Claudia." Originally posted in Cisalpina near the Illyrians, the 7th legion served with distinction at Ceaser's side, forming part of the backbone of his armies during his rise to power and ascendancy to the Imperial Throne. Along with Ceaser, they campaigned through Gaul and into Roman Britain. The 7th also served with continuing distinction during the civil war and eventually inherited the name "Claudia" for their loyalty to the Imperial ideal. In time, they found themselves once again posted in the Cisalpinia region... though by 150AD they were farther along the Danube, a solid wall of loyal Roman soldier to stop the Dacian threat.

The men that served in the 7th legion had a long and proud history, riddled with the greatest names and accomplishments of any legion. Like many legions, they took to the cult of Mithras. Unlike many legions, the leaders of the 7th became entrenched in the mystries of the cult, discovering a number of ancient secrets on their own, and forming a cult very unique to the legion itself. As the Centurions, Lictors, Tribunes, and Prefectors of the 7th legion explored the meaning of Mithraism, they were introduced to a vampire that claimed to be Mithras himself. At first, incredulous, the 7th's leadership was eventually convinced that the secret meeting, undergound sanctuaries, sacrifices and loyalty all traced back to the vampiric existance of Mithras. In time, the 7th legion's officers pledged themselves to Mithras.

Under the vampire Mithras's leadership, many of the leaders and outstanding officers of the 7th legion were all embraced. Mithras stayed only for a short time with the 7th legion, but his exposure to the legion left a lasting influence. Along with Mithras came Akhud, his manservant and loyal acolyte (a vampire as well). After Mithras moved on, Akhud stayed behind and continued directing the Legion. Well into the 3rd Century, the 7th Legion was directed in the nights by Akhud.

Under Mithras and Akhud's influence, the legion became fanatics, dedicated not only to the living cult Mithras, but also to the ideals of roman unity. Mithras enculcated the roman identity even further into the embraced leaders of the 7th legion... and when those vampires entered the convoluted politics of the Camarilla, they found an instituion they could rally behind in public. The ideals of vampiric unity, discipline, and leadership appealed to the members of the 7th legion and they supported the Camarilla with vigor (knowing that Mithras and Akhud would approve).

Despite their strong belief in the ideals of the Camarilla, the instituion came crashing down around the 7th legion. The Legion saw the beginning of the end with the profusion of non-Roman born vampires in the ranks of the Camarilla. In particular, the various bloodlines that saw their way into the Roman empire revolted the 7th legion. For them, the core clans were the pure blood of the Vampiric community, a shadowy reflection of the pure Roman blood that infused the leaders of the 7th legion. The legion objected to the acceptance of barbarian peoples into the legions in the daytime world, and strongly objected to the acceptance of mongrel bloodlines into the Camarilla. For them, it was inevitable the camarilla would collapse under its own weight as a diaspora of various bloods and goals pulled the organization apart.

There is only one true bloodline the soldiers of VII accept- that of the Akhud. Directed many centuries ago by the consort of Mithras, the Akhud embody the loyalty and stoicism that makes for a truly great soldier. The Akhud bloodline can come into being with the right discipline and mentality- and can spring from any of the five pure clans. While VII despises the bloodlines, they understand that the Akhud bloodline is something special, something unique... and ultimately, a uniting factor in these troubled nights. The other bloodlines are weak and tied only to one specific clan... their very being creates more diversity and chaos in the vampiric existance and act as a barrier to unity and the type of ruthless leadership the members of VII demand.

Were it not for the barbarian bloodlines and the deviant ideas that came with the new vampires, the Camarilla would have remained a great instituion, hemming in the various chaotic impulses of vampiredom into a great community of the night... or so the soldiers of VII believe.

VII believes that the Camarilla of old was destined to fail... and so is laying the ground work for a new Camarilla, one based on purity of blood. VII is hunting down the most "deviant" bloodlines and working to eliminate them. Similarly, VII is identifying the most destabilizing elements of the vampire community (bloodline or pure clan) and executing them. The soldiers of VII understand their great social experiment will take many more centuries- and they may be losing the fight (it seems more and more bloodline appear each night), but they are dedicated to the ideal of the camarilla and do what they can. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and VII is beginning to ramp up its executions of deviant elements.

VII is a covenant unlike the others in that it is organized and treated as a military instituion. The trappings of the 7th legion are still held as canon in VII. Those vampires inducted into VII are brainwashed in styles similar to modern paramilitary organizations. The prospective members of VII all must come from one of the pure Clans, no vampire that is part of a bloodline or has directly sired a vampire that is part of a bloodline will be accepted. Unswavering loyalty to the legion and to the ideals of the Camarilla and Mithras replace any individual personality the inductee might have once had.

No one from the modern VII was around for the glory days of Ceaser and Mithras... and surely there is a good deal of misinterpretation and fallacy in the legends of VII. However, in a soldier's mind there is no room for error or mininterpratation, and so the Centruions, Exploratio, Equies, and Tribunes/Officers of VII never question their mandate... and work with lethal brutality to complete their goals. The vampires of VII claim they are the direct descendants of the vampire Mithras and the true holders of the Camarilla ideal. There is some debate as to the true identity of the vampire that referred to itself as Mithras, but most soldiers of VII accept his identity as fact- and act on that certainty.

The Camarilla will be reborn by the hands of the soldiers of VII in the blood and bone on the mongrels that tore down the original.