Malkavian

Malkavian
Plural	Malkavians
Pronounce	mal-KAH-vee-uhn
Nicknames	Kooks, Seers, Lunatics, Madmen, Cassandras, Children of Malkav, Clan of the Moon, Malks, Jesters, Jokers, Mockers
Antediluvian	Malkav
Faction	Camarilla
Disciplines	Auspex, Obfuscate, Dementation (formerly Dominate)

Malkavians are the brood of Malkav and one of the great vampire clans. They are deranged vampires, afflicted with the insanity of their Antediluvian progenitor.

Overview

Malkavians are an enigmatic and deeply disturbed group of Cainites. Members of the clan have assumed the roles of seers and oracles among Kindred and kine, eerie figures bound by strange compulsions and the ability to perceive what others cannot. They are also notorious pranksters whose "jokes" range from silly to sadistic. Against all odds, however, the children of Malkav are among the oldest surviving vampiric lineages. They are one of the 13 original Cainite clans and can trace back their history to times preceding the biblical Deluge. They were also among the founders of the powerful Camarilla, and are widely known as one of its pillars in modern nights.

History

Early History

As with all the major clans, the Malkavians originated in the pre-Deluge city Enoch. Little is known about the clan's early composition, only that their Antediluvian, Malkav, was a seer Embraced by one of the Second Generation. Malkav was particularly close to two other Kindred: Saulot, the founder of the Salubri, and Set, self-appointed god to his followers. Some accounts suggest the three shared the same sire, possibly Enoch.

Sometime after the Flood, Malkav was supposedly ambushed and murdered by his fellow Antediluvians. Most Malkavians believe that he is still undead, only now he exists entirely within the Madness Network, the group mind that all Malkavians share.

Dark Ages

When we attended the Convention of Thorns, our clan divided into a roughly 50/50 split. The true maniacs, those who lost control over their temperament and connection to humanity, of course drifted. But where did they drift? The Camarilla... Sabbat drove the sane insane and Camarilla acted as nepenthe to the madness.

—Jacob]] in a letter to Therese Voerman

The Dark Ages were a difficult time for the Malkavian; still suffering from their fall from grace as an important clan after the collapse of Rome, many of the Kindred feared and distrusted the Madmen. Many more pitied their sad, insane state. Humans, needless to say, also feared the madness of the Malkavians; many were persecuted more for their derangements than vampirism. That is not to say all Malkavians suffered horribly; quite a few became advisors, seers, and jesters to well-placed and powerful Cainite Princes. However, the bulk of the clan lived up to the Low Clan status bestowed on them by the more self-important Kindred. Part of this age were also the Ordo, secret covenants of Malkavians who sought to utilize their madness to predict the future and carried on the legacy of the Malkavian Oracles of Antiquity.

The Renaissance was a chaotic and paradoxical time for the Lunatics, much to their delight. The developing forms of literature and philosophy granted them a freedom that was only overshadowed by the religious backlashes against it. Malkavians stood on both sides of the fray, often also enjoying dabbling in Camarilla and mortal politics that provided an intricate web of possibilities to disrupt. Many Malkavians also came to regard the growing medical developments, particularly insane asylums.

Modern Nights

I can feel them out there. I don’t dare reach out for them; they’re so cold, my fingers would freeze and snap off. They’re the ravens waiting for Gehenna, the hounds at the gates. So many more of them in these last few years before it all ends; they must sense the finality as it’s coming, and give themselves over to it. Most of them young, younger than me; the elders, though, the ones who’ve been waiting for centuries and centuries, and are grinding their teeth against whetstones, they’re starting to move...

—Unnamed Malkavian

The Malkavians always had a dangerous reputation due to their madness and their signature Dementation discipline, which can induce madness in others. With the Inquisition and the formation of the Camarilla, the clan faced possible extinction at the hands of other clans – the Malkavians were just too dangerous to continue existing. In order to prevent this, the elders of the clan changed the Clan in ways unknown and incomprehensible – the result was that the majority of Clan Malkavian discarded Dementation in favor of the Dominate discipline. More disturbingly, the majority of Malkavians, even those present at the time of the change are unaware that this happened. A small fragment of the clan preserved the Dementation discipline, defecting to the Sabbat and becoming antitribu.

In 1997, for reasons unknown to anyone, the Dementation resurfaced within the Camarilla, although several "Dominate" Malkavians, or "Knights of the Moon", remained unaffected, for some reason.

Organization

On the surface, clan Malkavian is barely a clan. The majority of Malkavians are only marginally aware they belong to a clan; Sabbat Malkavians generally claim to be Panders. What connections Malkavians generally have are informal and generally paternal, sire-childe relationships being the most common, although Malkavian sires are prone to abandoning their childer.

Scratch the surface, however, and the Malkavians become a smörgåsbord of paranoid delights. Malkavians operate on their own timescale, and will gather spontaneously for incomprehensible events. Malkavians usually do not explain how they know these gatherings are occurring, and when they do the explanation is not necessarily worth anything. Scratch deep enough and it appears that the Malkavians are highly organized, so highly organized they do not even know they are, and instead they continue to pursue incomprehensible and arcane goals that even they are not aware are relevant.

This organization is generally termed the "cobweb", "Malkavian Time", or the "Madness Network" and is a form of shared consciousness unifying all Malkavians. The strength of the voices varies from Malkavian to Malkavian, however all of them are at least aware of its call and capable of interacting with it. Dead Malkavians' memories live on in the Cobweb, and it is implied heavily that Malkav himself is this network. The cobweb is only accessible by Malkavians, and they themselves only marginally understand it – most of them merely listen to the voices, but elders have demonstrated a powerful capacity to manipulate the rest of the clan through it. It is rumored that powerful Methuselahs partially exist within the Cobweb and can "download" themselves on their descendants if needed. The Cobweb also reacts to the presence of powerful Malkavians, like the Ankou.

FAQ

Q. Does Malkav actually wear a fursuit?
A. Yes.

Culture

The possible origin of name 'Malkavian' is from "mala cavilla", Latin for "bad mockery".

Malkavians have traditionally fulfilled two roles in Vampire society: seers and jokers. As seers, the Malkavians have relied on advanced Auspex and the Cobweb (Madness Network) to provide information. Malkavians being Malkavians, this information is generally jaundiced, incomplete, filtered through cracked lenses or a total lie.

The joker role is somewhat more complex: Malkavians have a clan tradition of pranking. The exact purpose of these pranks is open to debate; they often appear intended to readjust the target's perceptions, but are also often sadistic.

In the Camarilla, Malkavians are tolerated; they are rarely princes but often are important primogen or otherwise figures of authority. Given their obvious insanity, princes traditionally give the Madmen a certain amount of latitude; in return, Malkavians are generally expected to demonstrate enough self-control to not break the Masquerade. This is not a benevolent arrangement but largely driven by fear on both sides: fundamentally, Malkavians are unknowable and the general attitude among Princes is that it is better to keep them quiet and happy, since unhappy Malkavians have a tendency towards introducing bizarre and inexplicable incidents to the equation. Conversely, Malkavians need the protection of the Camarilla, and have been modified as discussed above to make them more amenable to it.

Many Malkavians are gifted with insight into the world around them. Through their shared madness and the powers of Auspex and Dementation, many are able to glimpse little bits of the future or the past. True Oracles and Seers, however, go beyond these common talents. They are blessed (or cursed) with strong visions that come upon them without warning. No one knows for sure from where this connection originates. Some embrace their powers and attempt to channel them. Some try to shun the visions and get on as if nothing happened. Other unsensitive Malkavians use the picture of the prophet for their own advantage like mortal fortune-tellers, using vague prophecies to secure themselves safe places. Those with the true Sight, however, often suffer for it, as they receive visions they do not understand at first and then watch helplessly unfold before them. During the Dark Ages, the Malkavian Orders of Mystery, also known as Ordos, tried to channel the gift of prophecy to mimic the Methuselah-Oracles of Antiquity, but with the formation of the sects and the severing of Dementation, their practice fell out of use.

Despite their madness, most Malkavians are not anti-social. In a certain period of time during their unlives, they may experience the cravings of companionship. Often, such companionship can ground the Lunatic's madness, giving them a focus that solitary Malkavians often lack.

Embraces

The Malkavians are one of the more intellectually focused of the Camarilla clans (with the Tremere arguably being the only clan as interested in cerebral pursuits). As a result, Malkavian candidates for the Embrace tend to be intelligent and more than a little... odd. While the Malkavian embrace guarantees insanity, they do tend to choose candidates who are already halfway there.

Lunatic childer do come from all economic and cultural strata however, though most have some sort of hard-luck story or black secret behind them that caused their sire to take note. Truly damaged Malkavians who are unaware of the meanings of their actions may not even be aware that they have sired childer, which makes for very difficult entry into Kindred society for these castoffs, many of whom end up among the Caitiff.

Those Malkavians whose derangement is so severe as to make them non-functional are called the Gnawed.

Related Pages

• Manor of Madness
• Malkav in a Fursuit
• Norfal

Characters

• Sister Catherina
• Ethereal
• Morgian
• Janet Trenton
• Malcolm Blackburn
• Evellen Willow
• Vailan Jones
• Wrath
• Malkav
• William Biltmore
• Soot
• F
• Warning
• Dante Dagger

References