A bloodline is like a clan, but its characteristics are not so universal. It might help to think of a bloodline as a “sub-clan.” Not all vampires are members of bloodlines. Each bloodline has a parent clan from which it distinctly diverges, yet claims descent. Kindred scholars have no reliable estimates of how many bloodlines exist in the world tonight, because bloodlines can arise at any time and few of them would stand up to be counted, even if some formal roster of them were made.
OPTIONAL BLOODLINE WEAKNESS: TRIUMVIRATE OF POWER
This optional bloodline weakness may be too potent for some chronicles, and not potent enough for others. Storytellers with a sizeable number of vampires belonging to bloodlines in their chronicle’s domain may get use out of this optional bloodline weakness, possibly even attaching it to a bloodline like the Gorgons or one drawn from Bloodlines: The Legendary. If bloodline-based vampires are rare in your chronicle (or even if Kindred themselves are especially rare!), this bloodline may be too restrictive to be of use to you:
“For any vampire from this lineage to gain the benefits of the bloodline’s unique Discipline, there must be at least three members of the bloodline within a fixed mystic range of one another. This range is a number of miles equal to the highest Blood Potency of the bloodline’s local members — the vampire whose Blood Potency defines the range is known as the Matron. Unless three vampires from the bloodline are within range of the Matron, none of these vampires may use the bloodline’s signature Discipline. If more than three members of the bloodline are within range, each additional member beyond the third imposes a cumulative –2 penalty on all dice pools to use the unique Discipline.”
Adroanzi
Gardeners, Lacrimists
Caretakers and gardeners of native Africa, this bloodline resents its condition, and holds deep spite for humanity and divinity alike for tasking them outside of heaven.
Amara Havana
Guardians
An Indian bloodline that believes it was created by the gods to protect the world from powerful demons, they are incredibly skilled militants.
Apollinaire
Gatekeepers of Ghede
Favored of the Haitian god of death, they possess the inherit ability to see ghosts, as well as a discipline that grants them great power over doors and passageways.
Bak-Ra
Servants of Ra, Childer of the Sun, Sun-Stroked
Worshippers of the Egyptian god of the sun who fled the Roman conquest by entering into millenia-spanning torpor, those few members of this bloodline who have been reawakened have set to re-establishing their fanatical cult.
Brothers of Ypres
Jones, Trenchers
A line of poisoners and masters of toxins, descended from world war combatants.
Canda Bhanu
Purifiers
Indian bloodline that seeks to redeem mortals and Kindred alike for their sins.
Caporetti
Shivers
Predators who stalked icy trenches during the great wars, vanishing prey as they pleased.
Corajoso
Telepaths
Portuguese discipline, originally composed largely of a once-mortal family, that developed gifts of telepathy to facilitate their shared endeavors when the voyages of their country spread them far apart.
En
Emperors
Obsessed with power, this royally descended bloodline has a natural aptitude for rule and control.
Geheim
Dilettantes
Hedonistic German aristocracy, with a penchant for pushing the limits of the Blood for all its worth.
Iltani
Vipers
Powered by anger, spite, and resentment, the wrathful and sorcererous Iltani bloodline distills these emotions into lethal poisons.
Kinnaree
Fawn
Secret demon defenders of Thailand, they see themselves as the bloody guardians of their countrie’s spiritual future.
Les Gens Libres
Freedmen
Anarchists and rebels, each Embraced as a form of salvation from some form of bondage.
Mayarap
Coiled Snakes
Buddhists who seek to earn karma for themselves and all of the Kindred.
Mystikoi
Illuminated, Bureaucrats
Mystics who seek to reunify all of Creation with the divine, they modify their own forms in an attempt to mirror that of god… by succumbing to frenzy and the inner Beast.
Order of Sir Martin
Leper Knights
A diseased order of chivalrous and law-abiding Kindred, who have sworn fealty to the Invictus and serve as their secret police.
Septemi
Passionate
Champions who seek to lead humanity away from evil, they are altruistic to a fault.
Shepherds
Watchers, Herders
Protectors of mankind from the Kindred, who believe that most of their kind have grown gluttonous and drink too much too often, risking the Masquerade.
Sta-Au: the Cruel and Wicked Ones
LibreShades, the Twice-Dead
A misguided Golconda cult that seeks their transcendence through death and oblivion.
Usiri
Warriors of the Dead, Sleepers
Once servants of Osiris, this lineage has adapted well to modern times and they serve as purveyors of secrets.