Post by HST Seth on Sept 13, 2014 1:28:21 GMT
Panders are Caitiff who have decided to accept clan membership. While this is quite common, this is not universal. Additionally, many Caitiff aren’t actually Caitiff. Many survivors of the Mass-Embrace arise not knowing their clan, without any obvious clues as to what clan they were once a part of. They become caitiff through ignorance. Others become Caitiff through choice, rejecting the practices of their parent clans.
Any vampire who chooses to renounce his original clan may join the Pander movement. It doesn’t matter if they were a Caitiff or a Tzimisce. Abandoning a former clan is sure to earn the enmity of not only your sire, but also your old clanmates. Once they abandon their former clan, and announce that they are a Pander, they are considered to be a Pander the same as any other.
History
The Panders have existed as a movement far longer than they have been recognized as a Clan. Originally centered around New York and Montreal, the Caitiff who were to become the Panders had been trying to achieve recognition and fair treatment in the Sabbat since the early 20th Century. The practice of Mass Embracing had lead to a higher number of Caitiff in the Sabbat than there were in the Camarilla and independent clans. There were enough Caitiff that they could not be efficiently hunted down and destroyed.
In the early years of the faction, the Caitiff were instead regularly maneuvered out of power and their unlives. In addition to their packs being given suicide missions, any Caitiff who achieved a title or position was often quickly monomancied. Such monomancies were often stacked against the Caitiff to insure their end.
Things began to change with the Sabbat Civil War of 1969. Lead by Brujah Antitribu, a group of Sabbat vampires rebelled against the Lasombra and Tzimisce. The rebels wanted greater representation for the Antitribu and to break the stranglehold over sabbat politics that the two clans had held. Although some of the rebels were sympathetic to the Caitiff cause, no formal overtures were made to get them to join in the rebellion.
The New York caitiff, under the leadership of Joseph Pander instead sided with the Tzimisce and the Lasombra. While many Caitiff questioned joining the side of some of their worst oppressors, there seemed to be little alternative. There was no indication that the Antitribu would improve their condition. Joseph Pander however had made a deal ahead of time.
After a hundred days of war, largely centered around New York, the Sabbat loyalists had won. The victors though wanted to be gracious and to avoid any further rebellions, at least for a few decades. They recognized that the Antitribu were full clans, and full members of the Sabbat, just like the newly formed Pander Clan.
Joseph Pander was made a Priscus of the Sabbat and has spent much of his time between Mexico City and New York. The amount of power he actually has as a Priscus is questionable. Originally most of the Sabbat, in the Panders and without thought he was just being put up there as a figurehead. Joseph Pander has been underestimated before, and may yet have another mercenary strategy that will further the goals of his new clan.
Organization and Position
These Subfactions aren’t really that exclusive. At any given time a Pander may be a member or supporter of three or more, or paying lipservice to one while really working towards the goals of another, or in the process of switching up their loyalties. None of these factions have any real hierarchy besides the Sisters of the East and even that is no more organized than a series of allied packs.
While individual packs and the Sisterhood of the East might have their own internal hierarchies the Panders as a whole do not. Joseph Pander is the leader of the faction, and he has a chosen few who he trusts that advise him, some more visibly than others, but there is no official structure beneath him.
Instead of a hierarchy, relations between Panders often comes down to reputation. Instead of the faction membership background, Panders should use Clan Prestige Pander to determine the starting point for how two Panders might see each other. Panders gain prestige through accomplishing deeds for the good of the clan and for the Sabbat as a whole. However even a highly regarded Pander has no real authority to give orders to another Pander.
The Panders also see themselves as a clan and a political faction at the same time. Anybody who joins the Pander faction is also a part of the Pander clan. There is no real distinction between the two. Given their history, the Panders also care little about lineage. A Toreador who renounced their clan is just as much of a Pander as any other. After all, plenty of Panders had Toreador Sires.
While the ritae hasn’t been known since the founding of the Panders, Joseph Pander’s “One of My Tribe” (Rites of the Blood p. 51) is generally offered to every new convert to the Pander cause. As it hasn’t been in use since the factions founding, it is not a requirement for a member to be considered a real Pander.
The Fanatics
The Fanatics believe fully in the cause of the Sabbat. Of all the factions, only the sabbat has fully embraced them, and in exchange they offer their eternal loyalty. There is no price to high to pay to support the sect that has supported them. The Fanatics are often the face of the Panders that outsiders see the most, as they tend to be the loudest. The Fanatics hope to prove themselves to the Sabbat, and often take the most dangerous missions against the Camarilla.
The Supremacists
Caine was a Caitiff. He did not possess the curses of any of the Antidiluvians, in fact he cursed the Antidiluvians for their pride. Being a member of a clan isn’t a mark of pride, it is a mark of shame. Those who focus too much on their heritage should be suspect of collaboration with their Camarilla family.
By contrast the Caitiff is without weakness, and ultimately adaptable. The Pander movement itself lacks the petty rivalries of the clans. If the Sabbat really wants to win this war they should begin by rejecting all distinctions of clan and joining the Pander movement.
The Quartermasters
Originally a subgroup of the Supremacists, the Quartermasters are no longer as ideologically driven. The Panders and the Sabbat by extension needs weapons to destroy their enemies in the Camarilla. The Quartermasters try to gain these weapons. This is often through stealing the tricks of other clans. Finding and distributing a new discipline or technique to your brothers earns great prestige throughout the Quartermasters and the Panders as a whole.
The Quartermasters have had recent problems with the Inquisition. Apparently when your goal is to gain new power through whatever means necessary, sometimes this involves demons or other forbidden entities, or may lead to you having non-inquisition approved blood magics.
Causing particular problems of late are the Panders calling themselves “Inceptors”. While it isn’t unheard of for a Pander to uncover ancient discipline techniques or rituals from sleeping elders, some of the Panders have taken to claiming that these disciplines are actually of their own design. The inquisition is unamused.
The Sisterhood of the East
The Sisterhood of the East is a monastic order of Pander priests who have devoted themselves to easing the transition into vampirism for those who never knew their sire, or were turned as one of the thin-blooded. The sisters try and teach the lessons that would have been taught by Sire or Ductus and prepare the vampires for their transition to full initiation into the Sabbat. For thin blooded they try and give methods of adapting to the various disabilities common in the condition such as a lack of fangs, or incomplete healing. The Sisterhood is upset about the treatment of non-initiated vampires, and is trying to press the Panders as a whole to take up the cause of their protection.
Like many things Pander, being female isn’t a requirement for the Sisterhood, however historically the nuns have been primarily women. Vicissitude makes such distinctions largely meaningless. Their founder is rumored to have been a Catholic Tzimisce who defected to the Panders before the Civil War, and may well explain the Sisterhood’s greatest secret.
The Sisterhood has a second charge that they protect. Sometime after their creation the Sisterhood successfully developed a Revenant Ghoul line. They call the line “Dhampyr” in honor of what they were, and what through the strength of Caine they have become. Many in the Sisterhood and the Panders as a whole worry that the Tzimisce Clan may attempt to seize the Dhampyr ghoul line should they discover its existence. To that end the Sisterhood hide the Dhampyr ghouls among the Panders as a whole. Many domitors don’t know that there is anything special at all about the ghoul that they now foster.
The Resistance
The Resistance believe that, while things are pretty good for Caitiff in the Sabbat, things are still pretty shit in the Camarilla and even among the Anarchs. The resistance focuses on helping the plight of Caitiff outside of Sabbat controlled domains. The first step to helping Caitiff is to open up communication with them. And so Resistance Panders keep an open dialog with Caitiff in nearby cities, attempting to both trade information, and to recruit them to the Pander cause. This ideally leads to a rescue where Scourges are killed and Caitiff find a new home in the Sabbat.
While in theory the end goal is to bring additional members into the Sabbat, what is done to get up to that point often shocks other Sabbat Members. Resistance members often share information back to their informants, in exchange for what their informants have given them. There have been multiple occasions where a Camarilla informant has gotten far more information out of their Sabbat contact than they gave in return.
The Clanless
The Clanless are not proud of what the Panders have accomplished. The Panders are at best a disorganized mess, with dubious loyalties, rife with infernalists and Anarch sympathisers, and are at worst a direct sign of the end of all things and the rise of the Antidiluvians. Not every Caitiff wants to be a Pander. Not every Pander wants to be a Pander. There still exists a significant minority that for various reasons think that this entire thing was a mistake. That said, the cover of the Pander movement is still a useful one, so many of its critics still hide in its numbers, protected by the very institution they detest.
The Prophets
It is said that the thin-blooded have insight into the dealings of the Jihad. It is also said that being known as a prophet is likely to either get you a cushy spot in some Bishop’s private haven, or to get your ass burnt by giving the wrong insights on the dealings of the Jihad. There are a large number of publicly known prophets in the Panders. A number of them are former Malkavians, others broke during the mass embrace, and still others are con artists. A few of the public ones are actual bonafide oracles. Most actual prophets keep that shit secret, or only tell their coterie at best.
Having better access to Oracles would in theory give the Panders a political advantage, but between the crazies and the frauds, the message tends to get lost. Additionally many actual genuine prophets find their visions going away as they age and grow closer to Caine.
The Don’t Give a Fuck / Realists
The Pander movement has succeeded. The Pander movement succeeded all the way back in 1959. There are no more battles that are required to be fought. The Panders have already won. This doesn’t mean they can’t win more. The Don’t Give a Fuck aren’t interested in the complete loyalty of the Fanatics, or the universal Panderness of the Supremicists. The Don’t Give a Fuck don’t actually have any causes at all. Unless you pay them.
The Panders only achieved what they have through being mercenary. Good speeches and loyalty didn’t give them shit. Members of the Don’t Give a Fuck caucus support whatever is in their best interests. Think that the inquisition needs to be taken down a peg? They can help. Think that the inquisition needs all the support it can get? They can help. What are you offering?
The Don’t Give a Fuck are often the Panders who have adapted best to positions in Sabbat hierarchy and politics. While the rest of the Pander movement makes for a great cover as they pursue their own agendas their lack of general principles has led to a great deal of internal strife with Supremacists and Fanatics alike. Of all the sub-factions, it is widely suspected that this is where Joseph Pander himself stands.
Prominent Members
Joseph Pander - Priscus of the Pander Movement
Clan: Caitiff
Generation: 8th
Faction Prestige: 5 + Fame:Leader
Joseph Pander is a revered yet enigmatic figure in the Pander movement. Joseph Pander wasn’t the only caitiff crusading for caitiff rights in the Sabbat. His Caitiff Clan pack was one of many packs throughout the East Coast trying to jockey for position and recognition. Continually the Caitiff were thwarted, whether through stacked monomancies, being positioned on the front lines against the Camarilla, or outright murder.
Joseph Pander was one of the few surviving leaders of the 19th century caitiff rights movement. The fortunes of the Caitiff turned during the Sabbat Civil War when Pander and his supporters famously sided with the Tzimisce and Lasombra against the Antitribu rebellion. In recognition for their assistance, the caitiff were granted clan status as the newly formed Pander clan, and Joseph Pander was made a Priscus of the Sabbat.
Everyone suspected that Joseph would be a figurehead at best, unable to fully control the clan he had created, and considered a pawn by his Tzimisce and Lasombra masters, but Pander showed continual skill at politics over the next decades.
Joseph has not been without his detractors. Known to follow the path of the Unifiers, Joseph Pander has reaped more rewards than what has filtered down to the rest of his clan. While the Panders are recognized as a full clan, little advances have been made since the 1960s. They are still are the least of equals, while Joseph is a full Priscus. Some vampires have speculated that his collaboration with the Tzimisce and Lasombra began long before the Civil War.
Joseph Pander survived where the other Caitiff leaders fell, whether that came through a better survival instinct, or direct collaboration with the enemy is something that is largely unknown. Joseph Pander is the leader the Caitiff have left.
The Matron - Leader of the Sisterhood of the East
Clan: Tzimisce
Generation: 10th
Faction Prestige: 5 prestige
The Matron was the founder of the Sisterhood of the East. Rumored to have originally been a Tzimisce, the Matron joined the Panders shortly after their founding and acceptance. The Matron cared for those who the Sabbat forgot, and with the Panders she found common cause.
The Sabbat creates shovel heads as expendable shock troops to sacrifice against the Camarilla and other enemies. To hide their own hypocrisy they say that the new embraces are not full vampires and are thus not due the full rights. The Matron disagrees, and her order strives to protect new embraces, whether they were shovel-headed or abandoned. Many of them end up being Caitiff.
The Matron brought with her the Dhampyr revenant line, a secret she has managed to keep from the rest of the Sabbat. As open as the Pander movement is, many of the members enjoy keeping secrets from the other clans that seem so high and mighty, and the secret has not spread too far. One of the oldest of the Dhampyrs still serves the Matron to this day.
