(OOC) San Francisco by Night II: A Requiem in Fog

[Bennosuke]

Welcome to the OOC thread for "San Francisco by Night".

1st IC thread is linked here

2nd IC thread is linked here

3rd IC thread is linked here

4th IC thread is linked here!

1st OOC thread is linked here

As it is developed, I will use this post to start describing the basic setting of San Francisco. I will go into detail regarding the major districts, and will describe specific important locations, unique to these areas.

Spoiler: Kindred Society of SF

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To the Kine of the Bay Area, San Francisco is a hub of change, industry and diversity. Cost of living explodes as Yuppie Tech heads and Start Up CEOs turn the city into their nightime playground. Gentrification spreads like a viral rash, displacing whole communities of ethnic and social minorities, and flooding the streets with an unprecedented number of homeless.

But to the Kindred, San Francisco is an ancient Ivory tower, slowly toppling over it's crumbling pillars, no longer able to support its ever growing weight. The Invictus have had a tight hold on the city since the Roaring 20s, but inflexibility and infighting are slowly leading to the Prince's displacement if not assassination. While The Prince, Christoph Gorman, tries desperately to turn his allies and enemies against each other, The Circle, Spear and Rabble are all as likely to topple his reign as his underlings within the Invictus. Nights are dangerous, and violence seems inevitable.

Kindred are also troubled by a rash of unexplained deaths and boogie men, blamed on everything from VII, to the very Fog of San Francisco bay, which some believe can swallow a neonate whole, if alone too late at night. Rumors of End Times are spreading, with references to Star Wormwood, The King in Yellow and the coming of VII.

A quick synopsis of City Politics:
Prince: Gorman was embraced as a young child. Many believe he is over 200 years old, and rumor has it, he has never fallen to Torpor. All Kindred fear his iron fisted rule, which hearkens back to a Feudal King of some backwater country in Eastern Europe. He is a member of the Invictus, and though not its Primogen, plays his sycophantic followers like puppets to maintain his power base. He is supported by his Seneschal, Dennis Collings, who many believe has fallen to the madness associated with his Ventrue background. Those who support Prince Gorman trust in the fact that he has maintained stability in San Francisco for almost a century, and fear that a threat to his power is a threat to the Requiem as "we" know it. Those who oppose The Prince view him as a pathetic dictator trapped in the past and unable to adapt to modern society.

Checking the Prince is his Primogen, made up of the leader of each of the five Covenants.
#Carthean Primogen: Bobby Hutton: 17 y/o black panther party member. Originally radical and violent, Hutton has gained the support of much of the Carthians and receives very strong financial and political support from the Carthian run city of Oakland.

#Lancea Sanctum Primogen: Father Benito Pedro Cambon. Sired in 1791 when the Mission Church was dedicated to the city. Father Skull is feared by all Kindred (some believe even the Prince), for his knowledge of Dark Magic, and his intimidating appearance. Nosferatu with tontured head, crooked broken nose and sunken eyes, though most have never seen his face. Kindred say that if you stare close enough, you can see he has spiders crawling in and out of his skin creating abscess like burrows. Known to wear porcelain Dia De Los Muertos skull mask painted in White black and Red. Also known as Padre Calavera or the Father of Spiders.

#Circle of Crone Primogen: Mother Blackstar (Lara Jackson the Third). Owner of a Vinyard up in Napa, Viticulturist and Botanist. Gangrel. Very young and beautiful. She is aggressive in her attacks on the Prince's character, and regularly calls for his removal from power. Rumor has it that she is bold enough to experiment with the powers of the Fae, in her estate in the Wine Country. Though her Covenant is small in number, there are thousands of rumors about their blood orgies to summon demons, and sacrifices of Neonates to power their Disciplines.

#Ordo Dracule Primogen: Yoshihiro Yamamoto. A Nosferatu who has gathered a cabal of Vampires of primarily Asian descent. Yamamoto avoids city politics, and to a small extent the Ordo members are greatly ostracized from City Politics. Many Kindred are afraid of an inevitable revolt, and there are rumors of the Dracule capturing young Kindred to fuel their arcane experiments.

#Invictus Primogen: (Previously Prince Nicholas D'Agostino) Ozzy Mandius. Ozzy is an elder Nosferatu within The Invictus. Mandius had been a strong supporter of Prince Gorman, and some had rumored was a direct ally to the now dusted Schultz. He is the newly elected Invictus Primogen. The Nosferatu is tall and gaunt with skin so pale it has a nearly sickly blue pallor. His face is skeletal with small yellow eyes sunken deep within dark sockets, and the cartilage of his ears appears burned or melted, fused to his skull.

#Herald and Master of Elysium: Lady Stardust. An unaligned Daeva who serves as both the Master of Elysium, maintaining the three Elysium sights in San Francisco and organizing the monthly Grand Gathering, and responsible for serving as the voice of the Prince as the Herald. Lady Stardust is androgynous and aloof and totally irresistible. Equally comfortable in the dingiest of dive bars and the finest of galas, Lady Stardust becomes the focus of any party or gathering she attends. Lady Stardust has dark hair cut in an 80s fab mullet, and a sexless body that leaves most wondering as to his gender.

#Sheriff: (previously Schultz) Nova: A high ranked Carthian who keeps a large Cotiere of Kindred and Ghouls out in the Dog Patch. She is known for her hot headed behavior and general rabble rousing. Though she has managed to anger many Elder Kindred within San Francisco, she has proven too wily and too well armed to take down, and so she has eked out a territory within the city that most respectable Kindred will leave alone.

Spoiler: The Traditions

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The Traditions in San Francisco:
1. The Masquerade: Intentional breaking of the Masquerade is worthy of a bloodhunt. Failure to uphold the Masquerade places the offender at the mercy of the Sheriff.
2. Progeny: The right to Sire can only be performed once every two decades and is not permissible till a Kindred has been undead for over ten years. Transgressions performed by a Progeny during their first five years of unlife are shared with the Sire.
3. Death: Kindred can only be slain only if a blood hunt is called. The right to call a blood hunt can be decided by either the Prince or a unanimous decision of the Primogen. This right can be provided postmouthly under trial. Breaking this tradition will result in the offender being staked and left in the sun.
4. Domain: Territories are divided amongst the Primogen. It is the right and responsibility of the Primogen to divide their territories into domains. The territories of Golden Gate Park, the Water Front, and The Pan Handle will always be unaligned, and hunting in these locations are free to all. A Kindred has full authority and right to hunt in his Domain. However, inability to maintain one's domain does allow for removal of authority by the Prince or appropriate Prisci.
5. Deference: All new Kindred entering the city must be brought forth to hear the Traditions and swear to respect them within the city. Newly sired Kindred must be brought forth within the first week of their Embrace. All Kindred who fail to show Deference will incur the wrath of a Bloodhunt.

Spoiler: The All Night Society

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#The Pulse: The Pulse is a cross platform instant messaging system, similar to Whatsapp or WeChat unique to Kindred society in America. The App was created by a Covenant of Unaligned Kindred in Palo Alto, and access is only granted to Kindred through a city's Harpy. The App has end to end encryption and does not store messages longer than 30 seconds after they are opened so that there is no server that can be hacked. Individualized and group messages can be shared between Kindred across the Country. Each city's Harpy also uses The Pulse as a means of spreading mass communication.

Spoiler: Boons

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Essentially, as money can increase or depreciate in value over time and vampires are immortal, it is not a great bartering tool, nor is blood which can be hard to store, preserve and transfer, and a small contamination can ruin a lot of blood.

Instead, among other things, Vampires trade in boons; a currency of favors. Each boon is traded for a favor of similar value, with the two parties agreeing on the magnitude of the boon. Boons can be registered through The Pulse, with the Seneschal. This way, if there is disagreement over a Boon, there is proof of the original agreement, and the Seneschal or Prince can be called on to settle the dispute. Unless otherwise specified, there is no time limit for when the boon can be requested, though the immediacy of pay back depends on the severity and nature of the boon. Both parties can agree on the nature of the boon, or even on the specific task when the boon is initally offered. The magnitude of the boon can be simplified as such:

#Simple: A simple boon is a small favor that can be performed without inconvenience to the indebted vampire. Examples would be: obtaining a pistol, providing an introduction with a higher ranked Kindred, or not attending Court on the day of a vote.

#Minor: A minor boon is a favor that can be performed with minor convenience. Examples may include: letting a Kindred stay at your Haven for a week, gathering extensive research on a subject, providing a piece of secret information, training someone in a common discipline.

#Major: A major boon is a favor provided when you owe someone greatly. Perhaps they saved your unlife, but a major boon is of significant inconvenience to pay back. Paying back a major boon may require one to bend a Tradition or push political boundries. Examples may include: Teaching a Kindred a proscribed Discipline (like a Coil or Theban Sorcery), vote a specific way in court they otherwise would not, staking and delivering a Kindred, cleaning of a breach of the Masquerade for another Kindred.

Spoiler: Important Locations

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Please note that many of these places are based off of real locations. Though I am taking creative license, please feel free to look any of them up if it contributes to your understanding of the city.

#The Sea Cliff Haven: An abandoned two story Victorian house in the Sea Cliff area of San Francisco. The building was previously used as a bespoke dress shop, but appears to have been abandoned for many years. The building sits atop one of the raised hills allowing the Cotiere a view both of the Seacliff neighborhood and the bay, but also into the neighboring valley of The Richmond. The building will need serious work to be considered a Safe Place or a true Haven.

#Elysium: Tommy's Joynt. A Divey all night diner that has survived through nearly 70 years unchanged in the city of San Francisco. The outside is garishly painted, the interior ridiculously decorated, and it is known for serving cheap slop like food to a garish assortment of riff raff and beat cops. On any given night a fight is just as likely to break out at Tommy's as a spontaneous all in drinking song. The Kindred have claimed a hidden third floor as a smaller more private Elysium, where meetings can be safely held. Tommy's is less of a place to be seen or meet new Kindred, and more of a place to hold business, make deals and advance one's politics.

#Elysium: The San Francisco Opera House. Though Kine performances are regularly held at the Opera house, Wednesday nights are reserved for "Private Gatherings" of the All Night Society. Every Wednesday night, Lady Stardust holds a large banquet like party where Kindred can come to socialize. Kindred are encouraged to come in their finest, and unlike Tommy's, The Opera House serves as a place to see and be seen. Once a month, on the first Wednesday of the month, The Theater of The Wolf puts on a dance, or play or performance designed specifically to entertain The Kindred. These gatherings are especially well attended by the Elder Kindred, and are not to be missed.

#Elysium: The Lost Church: On the last Sunday night of the month, Lady Stardust holds the Grand Gathering at the Lost Church. The Prince holds court for the first portion of the gathering, making speeches to the Kindred, and hearing grievances. After this, the grandest of banquets are held. Homeless are often hung up by their feet, to serve as fountains to provide sustenance, and all Kindred in San Francisco are expected to attend. The Lost Church is a performance hall built in the 70s. The theater is used by The Prince to hold court, and an upstairs room is used to hold the banquet.

#The Wyrm’s Nest on Octavia: A decrepit mansion sized Painted Lady style building that acts as the main chapter house for The Ordo Dracul. It is located in the Western Addition, just outside of Japan Town, in the heart of Dragon Territory.

#Temple Dragon: A Kindred owned bar in China Town that serves a safe feeding ground for members of the Ordo Dracul. The bartender and manager is an overweight Vietnamese Ghoul called Newt.

#The Night Owl: A cocktail bar and lounge owned by Nicholas D’Agostion.

#The Dogpatch Carthian Compound: Located not too far from the Bay Bridge, a group of Carthians led by Nova have taken over a 4 floor brick complex. The brick building is surrounded by an unkempt grassy lot that has been fortified with a barbwire fence, and is guarded by a number of Ghouls and Kindred.

# The San Francisco Psychiatric Asylum: A stand-alone psychiatric long term and acute care facility that was recently purchased by the UCSF hospital system. Anna has taken an interest in taking over the property and turning it into a sort of blood bank for the Kindred society. The facility is located a the Cliff's Edge in Hunter's Point, in the South East corner of the city. The Asylum is a walled in institutional property with a high central tower providing a panopticon view of a manicured garden enclosed within the rectangular four wings of the medical facility. The the front entrance attempts to appear welcoming, the majority of the facility is gated by four towering concrete walls topped with barbed wire. It has an emergency bay, as well as two wings of long term housing for residents who were receiving inpatient rehabilitation or were unable to return to the community due to their illness.

# The Kink: An S&M and Bondage nightclub in The Castro, San Francisco's famous LGBTQ heart. Though most levels of this three storied club are used to explore various nightly curiosities, the bottom basement level is used as a regular meeting place for The Circle of Crone to conduct their Sabbath rituals.