The Path of Blood[]
Description[]
Nickname: Dervishes
Virtues: Conviction and Self-Control
Bearing: Resolve. Followers of the Path of Blood know the seriousness of their task and are incredibly dedicated to it. Their aura modifier affects Willpower rolls.
Basic Beliefs: This Path is practiced almost exclusively by the assassins of Clan Assamite, although only vampires who demonstrate true loyalty to the Clan learn its harsh code. The founding principle of this Path explains that the children of Caine (or Khayyin, as the Assamites refer to him) are wicked failures, fit primarily to bring the brood of Haqim (the Assamites’ name for their own Clan founder) closer to “the One,” a state of mystical transcendence.
Haqim instructs his childer to salvage or strike down Khayyin’s other childer to destroy the taint they inflict on the world. Assamites on this Path follow two basic precepts. First and foremost, the Clan seeks to convince other Kindred of their flawed, cursed nature, and thus convert them to the service of those on the Path. Kindred as a whole are a blight upon the earth, and only by upholding Haqim’s righteous code can they redeem themselves. Should vampires resist attempts at conversion, the Assamites kill them. Before they were cursed, Assamites would diablerize their victims, using the blood of the fallen to lower their Generations and thus return to Haqim’s bounty. Now, unable to drink the blood of other vampires, they instead collect blood from vampires as payment, using that to follow Haqim’s directives until the night when the curse upon them can be lifted. Although they are not inherently psychotic murderers, Assamites on the Path of Blood place little value on the unlives of other Kindred, and must have good reason not to slay most vampires with whom they come in contact. Vampires on this Path pose a serious threat to other Kindred around them, and do not frequently associate with non-Assamite Kindred. Blood is blood, however, and Assamites are not so fatuous as to disregard the value of the vast web of Kindred society.
Few young Assamites follow this Path or even know of its existence — Clan Assamite conspires to keep its beliefs secret from most other Kindred of the world. Hundreds of years ago, the Assamites’ bloodthirsty ways united all other Children of Caine against them, and they are loath to face the concerted opposition of Khayyin’s bastard brood again. As such, only the most accomplished and able Assamites learn this Path’s tenets.
The Ethics of the Path[]
• Faithfully follow the teachings of Haqim.
• Mortals are beneath the notice of vampires. Feed from them only when necessary.
• Lose no opportunity to obtain Kindred blood of any Generation. The power of the Blood shall ensure the clan’s victory.
• Withstand the Beast’s fury — failing to master oneself results in lessened prowess.
• Seek knowledge that may aid the Clan in its war on the cursed spawn of Khayyin.
• Extend the glory of Haqim’s cause to other Kindred. Should they refuse, use them to further your own journey back to Khayyin’s grace.
History[]
The Assamites practiced an early version of this Path for hundreds of years before the formations of the Camarilla and Sabbat. Their bloodlust led them into open conflict with powerful elder Kindred, who desperately sought to stifle the marauding diablerists.
The Assamites found themselves in the same situation as the Anarchs during the time of the Anarch Revolt, and the Camarilla levied a curse on the Clan, making it impossible for the Assamites to consume Kindred vitae. For centuries, the Clan have followed a debased version of the Path, crippled by its members’ inability to commit diablerie directly.
Current Practices[]
The fatal nature of this Path with regard to other Kindred stands behind much of the fear and mistrust of Clan Assamite. Predominantly practiced by proven ancillae and elders of the Clan, the Path of Blood leads these beings into direct conflict with non-Assamite vampires. Kindred on the Path of Blood gracefully attempt to convince other Kindred of their “one true way,” so a few individuals from other Clans also support this Path.
Practitioners of little understanding seek merely to follow the teachings of Haqim, doing so without question. However, those of greater wisdom seek to explore just what “becoming One” entails. By taking the cursed blood of the Antediluvians and their spawn, the followers of the Path hope to concentrate the curse of Khayyin in the hands of those who will use it responsibly (namely, the Assamite Clan). In such a way, according to Path doctrine, can the great endgame of Gehenna be averted. Accordingly, Assamite Ancients practice rigorous purity and meditation, and rumors of a Golconda-like state among these beings have recently trickled into the larger Kindred community.
Description of Followers[]
Study, proselytism, and selective strikes against the rest of the Kindred world occupy the nights of Kindred on this Path. Fanatical in their quest, the Assassins bring Final Death to those who would get in the way of collecting the blood payments or sending a portion of those payments back to their sires and leaders in Alamut.
Mostly, however, Assamites seek to convert those of high Generation, as they are farther removed from their progenitors and, thus, the taint of evil.
Path of Blood Hierarchy of Sins[]
|
Rating |
Moral Guideline |
Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Killing a mortal for sustenance | Human blood is nourishing to the body, but the murder of lessers is poison to the soul. |
| 9 | Breaking a word of honor to a Clanmate | Solidarity is important to the Assamites’ holy cause. |
| 8 | Refusing to offer a non-Assamite an opportunity to convert | The childer of Khayyin are accursed and must be saved. |
| 7 | Failing to destroy an unrepentant | Those who do not accept Haqim’s teachings forfeit Kindred outside the Clan their unlives. |
| 6 | Succumbing to frenzy | Haqim teaches ascendance, not indulgence. |
| 5 | Failing to pursue the lore of Khayyin | To oppose one’s enemies successfully, one must learn all about them. |
| 4 | Failing to demand blood as payment | Other members of the Clan may benefit from such vitae, no matter how diluted. |
| 3 | Refusal to aid a more advanced member of the Path | To act selfishly is to fall into the snares of Khayyin’s pawn. |
| 2 | Failing to tithe blood | Haqim has decreed this as paramount to his childer’s cause. |
| 1 | Acting against another Assamite | This is treason to the Path and the Clan. |
Following the Path[]
This Path espouses the liberal practice of Kindred murder and the acquisition of blood. More enlightened Kindred on the Path of Blood also seek to uncover lore and knowledge that may lead them to a key to remove the Tremere ritual that cripples them. As such, vampires who follow the Path of Blood are not mindless monsters murdering Kindred in the streets, but would be saviors of the entire world. All Kindred on the Path of Blood strive to attain “Oneness” with the mythical Haqim, though few who have reached this lofty goal deign to explain its nature. Most Dervishes believe that Oneness resembles Golconda, or another state wherein vampires can cast off their curse and revel in their Cainite natures.
Common Abilities: Combat and occult Abilities aid followers in their pursuit of the Path’s principles. Athletics, Brawl, Melee, Intimidation, and Occult are among the Abilities prized by Path of Blood supporters.
Preferred Disciplines: This Path lends itself to the refinement of Quietus, Obfuscate, and Celerity. Some followers cultivate knowledge of Thaumaturgy to aid them in their quests.