Library Lore: Zillah

Art by Andew Robinson from "The Book of Nod"

 Let me tell the tale of Zillah
first loved of Caine, first wife of Caine, the sweetest blood, the softest skin, the clearest eyes.

Alone of Caine's newest Childer, did Caine desire Her,
and she was not mindful of his desire, turning away from Him.

Not gifts, not sacrifices, not perfumes, not doves, not beautiful dancers, not singers, not oxen,
not sculpture, not beautiful clothes, nothing would turn Zillah's heart from stone to sweet fruit.

  – ”Zillah´s Tale”, The Book of Nod











Who is this Zillah then, mentioned in the title of the cards Zillah´s Valley and Zillah´s Tears?

In vampire mythology: “Zillah the Beautiful” was wife and third childe of Caine, embraced about 10 000 BC. Caine was obsessed with her because she could resist him, and he sought out a being known as The Crone who taught him how to bind the young woman by blood.

Zillah sired three vampires of the third generation: Absimiliard (founder of clan Nosferatu), Set (yes, the Followers of Set are his followers) and Haqim (founder of the Assamites). All her childer possessed the discipline Obfuscate. Absimiliard was a powerful hunter, but was defeated in combat with Zillah – yet she deemed him brave and worthy of immortality.

Zillah has not been encountered in modern days. Possibly she was destroyed by her childer or other Antediluvians in the first or second millenia BC.

In human mythology: According to the Bible, Zillah is a wife of Lamech, who is son of Methusael, son of Mehujael, son of Irad, son of Enoch, son of Cain (Note that in Vampire Irad and Enoch are Caines first two childer.) She is the mother of Tubalcain and Naamah.

“And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah. And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.” - Genesis 4:19, 22–23

The word zillah means "shade" in Hebrew.

Sources:
The Book of Nod
The Bible
Behindthename.com

Library Lore: Ivory Bow

The Ivory Bow arguably the equipment in Vampire: The Eternal Struggle that has done the most impact on the game over the years, appearing in countless tournament winning decks. It´s cheap and very efficient.

Interestingly enough, it only mentioned in two sentences in the Vampire: The Masquerade roleplaying game, in "Players Guide to the Sabbat" (WW 2055), published in 1992:

"This is a magical bow made of ash and ivory. Any arrow fired from the bow causes aggravated wounds to Lupines and vampires."

Note that Ivory Bow is the only ranged weapon not affected by the card Anachronism.

Library Lore: The Society of Leopold

In the World of Darkness, the Holy Inquisition didn´t end in the 19:th century. It continues in the form of the most feared of all vampire-hunting organizations, the Society of Leopold. While no longer officially a part of the catholic Church, the society continue the proud traditions of the inquisitors, bound to destroy everything supernatural not loyal to Christianity.

For a period immediately after the formation of the Camarilla, the Masquerade was strictly enforced and the Inquisition faded. But in modern nights, The Society of Leopold is yet again the largest and most powerful organization of hunters, and also the one that has most knowledge about vampires. Several of its agents possess True Faith.

The Society is named after Leopold of Murnau, a leading inquisitor active in the early 13:th century. The current head of the Society is Monsignor Amelio Carpaccio and it´s headquarters are Monasterio di San Michele, located outside Rome, Italy.

Sources:
“The Hunters Hunted” (WW 2205)
“Vampire: the Masquerade Revised” (WW 2300)
“The Inquisition” (WW 2020)
“Dark Ages: Inquisitor” (WW 20004)

Library Lore: Gehenna

When [Lasombra’s] dreams come true

on the day when the moon runs as blood

and the sun rises black in the sky,

that is the day of the Damned,

when Caine’s children will rise again.

– Signs of Gehenna, The Chronicle of Secrets, The Book of Nod

In vampire mythology, Gehenna is the end of the world, the time when first the Antediluvians and eventually Caine will awaken and devour all other vampires and the rest of the world.

The signs that lead up to Gehenna are given in “The Book of Nod”, “Revelations of the Dark Mother” and “The Erciyes Fragments”. Among the signs are:

- a red star appear in the sky (Anthelios)

- the “last daugher of Eve” with a crescent moon birthmark (Afifa)

- vampires of thin blood, ie Caitiffs and kindred of very high generation (Thin-Blooded Seer)

- increased activity of enemies of the vampires, like the Garou (The Unmasking)

- solar eclipses (Veil of Darkness)

- vampires start losing their abilities (Blood Weakens)

All this is not to be confused with Gehenna in the real world, or at least according to Biblical myths, were Gehenna is an actual geographical place – the Hinnom Valley south of Jerusalem, modern day Israel. In the Second Book of Chronicles some Israelite kings committed pagan cult offerings to a deity named Moloch here, including human children that was burned alive. This practice was later forbidden and the valley became a place were dead animals, trash and corpses of executed criminals was dumped. Fires always burned here to prevent diseases from spreading. The Valley of Hinnom became associated with evil and after series of early translations of Bible texts, the word became Gehenna (γέεννα) in Greek and synonymous with ‘hell’.

Library Lore: Pulse of the Canaille

Pulse of the what?! “Vampire: the Masquerade Revised” (WW 2300) states:
Canaille: The bovine masses of humanity, especially the uncultured and unsavory. The Canaille are viewed primarily as a source of sustenance.

The Merriam-Webster dictionary: 1.)  rabble, riffraff or 2.) proletarian.
Etymonline.com: the french canaille means ‘rabble’, in turn coming of the italian ‘canaglia’ meaning ‘a pack of dogs’.

In the roleplaying game Pulse of the Canaille is a level 10 Auspex power, a power only usable by Caine and vampires of the second and third generations. Not really something for player characters. From “The Player's Guide 2nd edition” (WW 2206):

Pulse of the Canaille
This is a more powerful variation of the earlier Precognition power. Pulse of the Canaille not only allows the character to sense what will happen in a certain place and time, but enables the character to sense the current moods, trends, attitudes and directions in which entire groups of mortals are heading. This power also enables the character to sense who influences or controls the affected mortals, and to identify these secret masters.

System: The character must make a Humanity roll; the difficulty depends on the size of the group being studied.
Difficulty 6.................Organization
Difficulty 7.................City
Difficulty 8.................Region
Difficulty 9.................Country
Difficulty 10...............Entire world

The number of successes obtained indicates how much is known, and may also show how tightly and in what ways the humans are controlled. If they are influenced by more than one supernatural creature, the character discerns all appropriate puppeteers.
1 success.................You sense the mood and attitudes of the mortals.
2 successes..............You also sense the mortars' future and potential.
3 successes..............You know the extent to which the mortals are controlled.
4 successes..............You sense the aura of the being(s) that controls them.
5 successes..............You know who controls them, and why.

Library Lore: Heart of Nizchetus

Cheatus? Nietzscheus? The only information on this magical item found in the lore are this:
“This heart is said to be sealed in a green glass jar. The heart was that of a powerful Toreador, and some say the heart still beats, due to either its own magic or magic contained in the jar and its fluids. The heart is thought to bring good luck if kept on a mantelpiece in the owner's haven, possibly lowering the owner's difficulty numbers.”
- The Player's Guide to the Sabbat (WW 2055)

Explanation for those that never played Vampire the Masquerade or any other rpg: In the game you occasionally roll 10-sided dice to check if your actions succeed. The “difficulty number” is the result you want to roll, or beat, with each dice.

The flavor text of the card suggest that the Heart at some point was possessed by the notorious once count of Bistriz and in modern nights itinerant Sabbat Cardinal of the New World:
“Occasionally, I think I see it beat. Just dancing shadows, perhaps, but fortune follows.”
- Radu Bistri, Tzimisce