Lexicon

The Lexicon is divided into 3 sections.

Common - This section is the common section. All the Kindred are familiar with these terms.
Old Form - The elders typically use these turns of phrase, which have existed since long before the modern nights. One is advised to use these words carefully - in some company, their use may be seen as humorously anachronistic, while in the company anarchs, for example, they may be misconstrued as the elders' propaganda.
Vulgar Argot - These terms are slang, the modern equivalent of older turns of phrase, which have fallen out of favour due to their association with the elder ranks. These words carry great connotation, as they are associated with the younger Kindred, who seek to establish their own vampiric cultures.


Vulgar Argot

Alleycat: A vampire who keeps no permanent haven, but sleeps in a different location each night. This term also refers to Kindred who feed exclusively from the homeless, vagrants and other elements of low society.

Banking: The practice of "withdrawing" blood from blood banks and hospital reserves. This blood has little taste, though it will sustain a vampire, and elder Kindred eschew this base indulgence. Kindred who engages in this practice is known as a Banker.

Bat: An elder vampire of the Sabbat, who often has little in common with younger members of the sect.

Bitch: A probationary pack member, or a Sabbat of lesser status than the speaker.

Blister: A vampire "Typhoid Mary" who contracts a mortal disease and spreads it to each vessel upon whom he feeds.

Bloodline: A vampire's heritage (q.v. Lineage).

Blood Doll: A mortal who freely gives her blood to a vampire. Most blood dolls gain a perverse satisfaction from the Kiss, and actively seek out vampires who will take their vitae.

Butterfly: One who mingles among the mortal high-society element and feeds exclusively from the famous and wealthy.

Casanova: See siren.

Change, The: The moment an individual ceases to a mortal and becomes one of the Kindred.

Chica: A female Sabbat vampire.

Costello: Dismissive term for the Camarilla, used by Sabbat (This is suspected to have arisen after some mispronunciation of "Sabbat").

Counting Coup: Taking the head of a fallen foe as a trophy (see Headhunter).

Crowley: A derogatory or dismissive term for followers of the Path of Evil Revelations, or vampires who make ostentatious shows of evil for their own sake. These individuals are also known as Ozzys or Mansons by some packs.

Damned, The: The race of Kindred; all vampires.

Dog: A Lupine. In certain circles, dog also means an infectious carrier of blood-borne diseases (short for plague dog).

Donor: A sarcastic term for a vessel, typically human.

Farmer: A term of mockery for vampires who refuse to feed on human blood, instead taking sustenance from animals.

Fief: A sarcastic term for a vampire's domain or claim thereof, most commonly used in reference to a prince.

Head: A Kindred who feeds upon those who have imbibed alcohol or drugs, so as to vicariously experience the same sensations. Those Kindred who prefer individual drugs have their "poison" prefixed to the term head (e.g., crackhead, dopehead, smackhead).

Headache: Accidentally killing while feeding. Usage: Eric gave that skinny girl a headache 

Headhunter: A vampire who hunts and feeds from other Kindred. (q.v. Rogue).

Juice: Blood.

Juice bag: A contemptuous term for mortals, indication that their sole use is sustenance. Even more irreverent is the term Bag.

Keg: A "member" of a Blood Feast. In some packs, these are referred to as pints or longnecks.

Lick: A vampire; one of the race of the Kindred.

Pimp: A vampire charged with gathering vices for Sabbat pack mates. The pimp may procure drugs, alcohol, prostitutes, children or any other indulgences for fellow vampires (or mortals ...).

Pipes: An exceptional failure, or an object of derision. Usage: That scouting run you guys did was the pipes.

Poet: A member of the goth subculture, especially one who "dresses like a vampire". Also known as Shelleys or Byrons.

Rack, The: The hunting ground of choice, including bars, nightclubs, drug dens, whorehouses and other bacchanalian locales, where mortals go missing all the time (q.v. Papillon).

Rake: A habitual visitor to the Rack, especially in the interest of feeding (q.v. Gentry).

Sandman: A vampire who feeds upon sleeping victims only.

Shovelhead A Sabbat vampire created during a siege or other event that necessitated the "quick and dirty" mass Embrace. Also known as Thwack or Clang (after the sound a shovel makes, presumably), which is sometimes used as a verb.

Slumming: The practice of feeding from derelics, the homeless and other dregs of society; one who does this regularly is known as a Slummer.

Stalker: A mortal who hunts down and destroys Kindred (q.v. Which-Hunter).

Tease: A term for a female Casanova (vide).

Turf: A modern affectation used in reference to a domain; it may also refer to the area under a given gang's influence.

V: A vampire.

Vato: A male Sabbat vampire.

Vegetary: A term of contempt for one who drinks exclusively from animals (q.v. Farmer).

Witch: Irrelevant term for a Sabbat pack priest, best used out of earshot of the individual in question.

Lexicon

The Lexicon is divided into 3 sections.

Common - This section is the common section. All the Kindred are familiar with these terms.
Old Form - The elders typically use these turns of phrase, which have existed since long before the modern nights. One is advised to use these words carefully - in some company, their use may be seen as humorously anachronistic, while in the company anarchs, for example, they may be misconstrued as the elders' propaganda.
Vulgar Argot - These terms are slang, the modern equivalent of older turns of phrase, which have fallen out of favour due to their association with the elder ranks. These words carry great connotation, as they are associated with the younger Kindred, who seek to establish their own vampiric cultures.
Lexicon Common

Abbot: A vampire or ghoul charged with the maintenance of a Sabbat pack's communal haven.

Anarch: A Kindred rebel who opposes the tyranny of elders. Anarchs wish to redistribute the wealth and resources of a city equitably among the vampires therein. Naturally, the elders oppose this, having cultivated their influence for centuries.

Antitribu: Literally "anti-tribe" or "anti-clan". The antitribu are vampires who have turned their backs on their "parent" clans and now follow the policies of the Sabbat instead. One exception to this rule is the Lasombra antitribu, who have abandoned the Sabbat in favour of independent or Camarilla unlives. Antitribu are generally held in extremely low regard by their parent clans, which is especially true in the case of the Lasombra.

Archbishop: A vampire who serves as the leader of a city under the Sabbat's influence. Not every Sabbat-held city claims an archbishop; some have councils of bishops.

Auctoritas Ritae: A collection of thirteen rituals practised by all vampires of the Sabbat, upheld in a manner similar to the Biblical Ten Commandments.

Barrens, The: Areas of a city unfit for life, including graveyards, abandoned buildings, industrial wastelands and areas of irreversible urban blight.

Becoming, The: The moment one passes from being a fledgling into "full" vampire status within the Camarilla. One may not Become until her sire deems her ready and gains the prince's approval.

Bishop: A vampire who serves or advises an archbishop, who maintains Sabbat influence in a city with the aid of others of equal status (has been likened to the primogen of the Camarilla).

Black Hand: Secret militia of the Sabbat. Some references seem to refer to another organization with the same name. The "true" meaning of this term, if there is one, is very uncertain, even among those who claim to be members. Camarilla vampires sometimes incorrectly use the name "Black Hand" for the sect known as the Sabbat.

Blood Feast: A victim or group of victims, bound and suspended upside down. These then serve as refreshment at Sabbat functions.

Beast, The: The drives and urges that threaten to turn a vampire into a mindless, ravening monster.

Book of Nod, The: A loose collection of Kindred legendry and history. The Book of Nod chronicles the origin of the Kindred, though it has never been published in its entirety. Fragments of the document and many partial transcriptions circulate in Kindred society. They are highly coveted, and exceedingly rare. Among the younger vampires many either do not know of it, or believes it to be myth.

Blood: A vampire's heritage; that which makes a vampire a vampire.

Blood Bond: A mystical power over another individual engendered by partaking of a particular vampire's blood thrice; accepting blood from a vampire is an acknowledgement of her mastery.

Brave: A vampire participating in a Sabbat war party.

Cainite: A vampire. Sabbat vampires use this term in places where other vampires would use the term Kindred. Sabbat vampires accept and claim descent from Caine, while the Camarilla largely claims him to be a myth.

Caitiff: A vampire of unknown clan, or of no clan at all. Caitiffs are typically of high generation, where Caine's blood dilutes too greatly to pass any consistent characteristics.

Camarilla, The: A sect of vampires devoted primarily to maintaining the Traditions, particularly that of the Masquerade.

Cardinal: A Sabbat vampire who oversees the influential affairs of a large territory. Each Cardinal is attended by a group of archbishops, who govern affairs on local city levels.

Chief: The leader of a Sabbat war party.

Childe: Term used for one of a vampire's fledglings. See Sire.

Clan: A group of vampires who share common characteristics passed on by the Blood. There are 13 known clans, all of which were supposedly founded by members of the Third Generation.

Code of Milan: An often referenced but rarely seen document developed as a code of conduct for Sabbat vampires. Some Sabbat scoff at it, claiming that codifying the sect's behaviour runs counter to everything the Sabbat stands for.

Communal Haven: A single haven shared by an entire Sabbat pack.

Consistory: The body of advisors to the Sabbat regent, composed of important prisci and cardinals.

Convention of Thorns: The treaty that supposedly ended the Anarch Revolt and resulted in the formation of the Sabbat.

Coterie: A small group or "pack" of Kindred, united by the need for support and sometimes common interests.

Coven: A pack of Sabbat that makes a permanent haven in a city; used to differentiate between "founded" packs and nomadic packs. Most Sabbat cities host numerous covens, in addition to providing "hospitality" to a seemingly endless stream of nomadic packs.

Creation Rites: The special ritual marking a Sabbat vampire as becoming a true member of the sect. The Creation Rites differ from the Embrace in that anyone can be Embraced, but until he receives the Creation Rites, the recruit is not a member of the Sabbat (and thus, not considered a vampire...).

Daughters and Sons (of Caine): All vampires. A similar term with the same meaning is "brothers and sisters".

Diablerie: The consuming of another Kindred's blood, to the point of the victim's Final Death, and then consuming the victims soul. Vampires of high generation may lower their generation, and gain mystical powers through this practice; particularly old Kindred have such rarefied tastes that mortal blood no longer sustains them, and they must consume vampire blood.

Domain: An area of a particular vampire's influence. Princes claim entire cities as their domains, sometimes allowing lesser vampires to claim domain within.

Ductus: The leader of a Sabbat pack. This title is a highly subjective one, sometimes held by the meanest thug in a pack while acquired through genuine merit or ritual combat at other times. The ductus decides the logistical affairs of her pack, though the wise ductus gives careful ear to her pack mates' voices.

Elder: A vampire who has experienced three or more centuries of unlife. Elders are the most active participants in the Jyhad.

Elysium: A place where vampires may gather and interact without fear of harm. Elysium is commonly established in opera houses, theatres, museums and other locations of culture. A thing of the Camarilla.

Embrace, The: The act of transforming a mortal into a vampire. The Embrace requires the vampire to drain her victim and then replace that victim's blood with a bit of her own.

Esbat: A weekly meeting held by a Sabbat pack, whether nomadic or founded. Central to the esbats are discussions that affect the pack as well as the auctoritas and ignoblis ritae.

Festivo dello Estinto: The "Festival of the Dead", a grand Sabbat celebration held during the second week of April in Sabbat cities. All covens attend, as do any nomadic packs that can make it.

Fire Dance: A ritual and rough celebration in which Sabbat vampires prove their loyalty and bravery by jumping through raging fires. Many Sabbat war efforts and other events begin with fire dances.

Fledgling: A newly created vampire, still under her sire's protection.

Founded Pack: A coven; a pack of Sabbat vampires that maintain a permanent haven in a city.

Generation: The number of "steps" between a vampire and the mythical Caine; how far descended from the First Vampire a given vampire is.

Gehenna: The imminent Armageddon when the Antediluvians will rise from their torpor and devour the race of Kindred and the world.

Ghoul: A mortal who has been fed the blood of a vampire, although not drained, thereby remaining mortal, but gaining the Blood Bond. Ghouls are very useful as servants, as they gain certain benfits from the blood, without losing their mortality, and ability to walk in the sun. With a steady supply of vampire vitae, Ghouls may live several centuries, maybe even forever. They may also develop Disciplines to a limited degree.

Great Jyhad: The war for supremacy in the New World, begun in the 17th century and arguably raging during the modern nights.

Hand: see The Black Hand.

Haven: A vampire's "home"; where she finds sanctuary from the sun.

Headhunter: A Sabbat vampire who collects the skulls of his fallen foes as trophies. Some headhunters collect only vampire skulls, while others collect Lupine skulls, mortals' skulls or the skulls of witch-hunters. These trophies are considered great honours in the Sabbat, according to the degree of difficulty associated with claiming them.

Horseman: A nomadic Sabbat vampire, thought to have been inspired by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Hulul: The figurehead of the Assamite antitribu, who is rumoured to be ritually destroyed every 100 years.

Ignoblis Ritae: The rituals practised by individual Sabbat packs to reinforce unity, loyalty and the causes of the Sabbat. These rituals vary from pack to pack, and they are considered less important individually than the auctoritas ritae because they are not as universally useful. Some Sabbat members observe no ignoblis ritae at all.

Inconnu: A sect of vampires who have removed themselves from Kindred concerns and, largely, the Jyhad. Many Methuselahs are rumoured to exist among the Inconnu.

Jyhad: The eternal Conflict with other vampires. A secret self-destructive war waged between the generations. Elder vampires manipulate their lessers, using them as pawns in a terrible game whose rules defy comprehension. Sabbat vampires use the term more loosely than other vampires, because almost all struggle is a holy war from the Sabbat point of view. In his mind, a Sabbat takes part in the Jyhad any time he fights.

Kindred: The race of vampires as a whole, or a single vampire. According to rumor, this term came about in the 15th or 16th century, after the great Anarch Revolt. Sabbat vampires use this term to signify non-Sabbat vampires. Most Sabbat use this term scornfully, considering Camarilla vampires to be their inferior and laughing at their "big, happy family" of vampires who cower from humankind. Many Sabbat also apply the term "Kindred" sarcastically to vampires of independent clans, whom they perceive as too selfish or foolish to take up the cause against the Antediluvians.

Kiss, The: To drink blood, especially from a mortal. The Kiss causes feeling of ecstasy in those who receive it.

Loyalist: A Sabbat vampire who refuses to acknowledge leaders among the sect out of loyalty to its original goals. Loyalists believe that to be truly loyal to the Sabbat, they must have total freedom. Loyalists are commonly viewed as agitators and dissidents, and their pack mates and elders watch them warily. Much of the Sabbat's terrifying reputation among other vampires stem from the actions of particularly fervent loyalists.

Lupine: A werewolf, the natural and mortal enemy of the vampire race.

Lush: A vampire who typically feeds from drugged or drunk mortals in order to experience their intoxication.

Life, The: A euphemism for mortal blood. Many Kindred regard this term as affected and effete.

Man, The: The element of humanity that a vampire maintains; the spark of mortality that distinguishes him from the Beast.

Masquerade, The: The habit (or Tradition) of hiding the existence of vampires from humanity. Designed to protect the Kindred from destruction at the hands of mankind, the Masquerade was adopted after the Inquisition claimed many Kindred unlives. Upheld by the Sabbat to a lesser extent than the Camarilla, due to Sabbat beliefs (the only reason they even bother is because they recognise humanity as a threat to their existence, should they find out about it).

Monomacy: A ritual duel between vampires of the Sabbat, held under formal rules. This duel is a traditional Sabbat means of settling disputes, and it often results in the Final Death of one of the participants.

Nomadic Pack: A pack that travels constantly in its duties to the Sabbat. Nomadic packs maintain no permanent havens, but they sometimes keep hidey-holes and emergency havens throughout the regions of their travel. Nomadic packs may also stop in cities for indeterminate periods of time, but they eventually return to the roads.

Nomads: Members of nomadic packs.

Pack: A group of Sabbat who have sworn the Vaulderie to one another. A Sabbat may belong to only one pack at a time - usually the one that enacted her Creation Rites - though she may have ties of blood to other packs from her past.

Paladin: A Sabbat vampire who serves another important vampire as an assassin or bodyguard. Also known as templars, paladins are greatly feared for their disciplined martial prowess. Paladins are forbidden from membership in the Black Hand.

Palla Grande: A grand and terrible Sabbat festival held on All Hallows Eve, when all Sabbat vampires in a city gather to celebrate and revere the sect. It often takes the appearance of a masquerade ball, and humans are sometimes invited as guests - or refreshments.

Path of Enlightenment: A belief system followed by the more alien members of the Kindred in place of Humanity. Paths of Enlightenment are moral codes that serve to anchor the Sabbat against her ravening Beast, though some paths encourage "riding" the Beast rather than controlling it.

Priest: The leader of Sabbat ritae in a given pack. The spiritual leader of a pack, the priest is (theoretically) below the ductus in "rank", though this is not true of every pack.

Prince: A vampire who has claimed a given expanse of domain as her own, particularly a city, and supports that claim against all others. The term can refer to Kindred of either sex.

Prior: An abbot (vide)

Priscus: A Sabbat vampire, often quite advanced in age and/or generation, who advises the regent and cardinals. Plural prisci.

Recruit: A vampire Embraced against her will, by members of the Sabbat. Usually in the interests of providing cannon fodder for the sect's conquests.

Regent: The "leader" of the Sabbat insofar as the sect recognizes one. Only one regent exists at a time.

Rouge: A vampire who feeds upon the vitae of other Kindred, out of necessity or depravity.

Sabbat: 1. The vampiric sect that opposes the Camarilla and the machinations of the Antediluvians. 2. A vampire belonging to the sect. 3. A group of vampire belonging to the sect.

True Sabbat: A Sabbat that has proven himself to the sect and has received the Creation Rites.

Sabbat, The: A sect of vampires that rejects humanity, embracing their monstrous natures. The Sabbat is bestial and violent, preferring to lord over mortals rather than hide from them.

Sire: A vampire's "parent"; the Kindred who created her.

Vaulderie: A mingling of the blood of all vampires in a pack, which is then consecrated by the pack priest and consumed by all members of the pack. This instills a blood bond of sorts, inbetween all the pack members. In the P&P game, each character assigns a rating to each of their pack members, signifying how strong this tie is to each of them.

Vessel: A source of vitae from substance or pleasure, primarily mortal.

Vinculum: A "blood tie" that creates an artificial loyalty to another member of one's pack, like a minor blood bond. Vinculi result from partaking in the Vaulderie.

    Lexicon

The Lexicon is divided into 3 sections.

Common - This section is the common section. All the Kindred are familiar with these terms.
Old Form - The elders typically use these turns of phrase, which have existed since long before the modern nights. One is advised to use these words carefully - in some company, their use may be seen as humorously anachronistic, while in the company anarchs, for example, they may be misconstrued as the elders' propaganda.
Vulgar Argot - These terms are slang, the modern equivalent of older turns of phrase, which have fallen out of favour due to their association with the elder ranks. These words carry great connotation, as they are associated with the younger Kindred, who seek to establish their own vampiric cultures.
Old Form

Amaranth: The act of consuming another Kindred's blood (q.v. Diablerie).

Ancilla: A "proven" vampire; one who is no longer a neonate, but is also not an elder.

Angelis Ater: The "black angels" of Clan Lasombra, often young vampires who embrace the stereotypical shallow evils of the modern night in blatant attempts to become monsters.

Antediluvian: A member of the dreaded Third Generation, one of the eldest Kindred in existence.

Archon: A vampire in the service of a justicar. Archons are generally nomadic in nature, frequently pursuing the Kindred who have fled to avoid persecution at the hands of the Camarilla.

Autarkis: A Kindred who remains outside the larger vampire society of a given city and often refuses to acknowledge the claim of the prince.

Blood Oath: see blood bond (vide).

Canaille: The bovine masses of humanity, especially the uncultured and unsavoury. The Canaille are viewed primarily as a source of sustenance.

Cauchemar: A vampire who feeds exclusively on sleeping victims.

Consanguineous: Literally "of the same blood," especially with reference to linage. Usage: Christof is consanguineous of Ecaterina the Wise, her childe.

Cunctator: A vampire who avoids killing when delivering the Kiss; one who takes so little blood as to avoid brining about her prey's death.

Demesnes: The Domain of a Tzimisce.

Domitor: A ghoul's master; one who feeds her blood and issues her commands.

Footpad: One who feeds from derelicts and other chaff of society. Footpads are frequently debased and may not maintain permanent havens.

Gentry: A Kindred who preys at nightclubs, bars and other establishments of the "red-light district", where mortals engage in reverie.

Golconda: A fabled state of vampire transcendence; the true mastery of the Beast and balance of opposing the urges and principles. Rumoured to be similar to mortal Nirvana, Golconda is greatly touted but rarely achieved.

Humanitas: The extent to which a Kindred still maintains her humanity.

Kamut: A nomadic pack of Sabbat formed for a specific purpose, such as hunting Lupines, scouting Camarilla cities or exposing heretics.

Kine: A term for mortals, largely contemptuous. The phrase Kindred and Kine refers to the world at large; everything.

Lacheur: A young Sabbat, particularly an insolent one. May be used to refer to any young vampire in some cases.

Leech: A human who drinks vampire blood, yet acknowledges no master.

Lextalionis: The code of the Kindred and the system for punishing transgression. It suggests Hammurabian or Biblical justice - an eye for an eye, and punishment in keeping with the grievance.

Lineage: A vampire's bloodline; the Kindred's sire, sire's sire. Etc.

Manus Nigrum: A mysterious subsect of the Sabbat, or one entirely independent about which very little is known. Younger vampires refer to this group, apparently erroneously, as the Black Hand.

Methuselah: A vampire who has existed for a millennium or more; an elder who no longer exists among the greater whole of Kindred society. Methuselah are rumoured to hail from the Fourth and Fifth Generations.

Neonate: A young Kindred, recently Embraced.

Osiris: A vampire who builds a mortal cult around himself, in the interests of gaining sustenance. As the millennium approaches and passes, Osiris cults become increasingly common.

Papillon: The red-light district; the area of town punctuated by drinking establishments, brothels, gambling houses and other locals of ill repute. The prime hunting grounds of a city, where the disappearance of mortals goes hand in hand with the area's general seediness.

Progeny: All of a given vampire's childer, collectively. Less formal, and less flattering, is Get.

Praxis: The right of princes to govern; the prince's claim to domain. This term also refers to the prince's matters of policy and individual edicts and motions.

Primogen: The leaders in a given city; its ruling body of elders, typically composed of one member from each clan present in a city.

Regnant: A Kindred who holds blood bond over another.

Retainer: A human who serves a vampiric master. This term is almost archaic, referring to a time when vampires kept vast entourages of mortal servants as part of their estates.

Revenants: Individuals who are born as ghouls. Revenants are families of ghouls that have existed for so long with the blood of their undead masters in their veins that it now passes on to each of their descendants as well. The vampires of Clan Tzimisce seem to use revenants most often, and others who know of their natures often hold them in suspicion.

Shakari: The eldest vampires among the Assamite antitribu

Sword of Caine: The Sabbat.

Siren: A vampire who seduces mortals in order to drink from them, and then only takes a small quantity of blood, so as to avoid killing them.

Suspire: The rumoured epiphany experienced just prior to the attainment of Golconda.

Third Mortal: Caine, who was cast out and became the First Vampire.

Thrall: A vampire under the effects of a blood bond, having drunk another kindred's blood thrice.

Vitae: Blood.

Voivode: The leader of Clan Tzimisce. Some vampires postulate that there is no single voivode, and the title is one of inscrutable significance to only the Fiends themselves.

Whelp: A derogatory term for a young Kindred, originally used with exclusive reference to one's own progeny. Wight: Human; man; a mortal.

Witch-hunter: A mortal who searches out and destroys vampires.

Whig: A contemptuous term for a vampire who possesses an interest in mortal trends and fashions.