Before the Flood:Gorgon Bloodline

Background: Gorgons claim descent directly from the immortal gorgons, Stheno, Euryale and the infamous Medusa, the mythological monster herself. As the Gorgons tell it, Medusa was an ancient vampire Embraced by the gods, such that her blood was a mix of the earthly and godly. When she perished at the hands of Perseus, her body was fed upon by her ladies-in-waiting, who were lowly, terrestrial vampires but nonetheless queens among their kind. These were the first of the Gorgon bloodline of the Kindred.

In the ancient nights, before the Camarilla rose or fell, the Gorgons were monarchs among the Damned. They ruled the nighttime palaces of numerous Mediterranean cities, spreading this brilliance and authority as far as Turkey, Egypt and Iberia. For centuries they were loved, celebrated and feared among their kind.

What caused their glory to wane is unclear. Some blame the waning power of the Olympian gods. Others point to the gradual collapse the human civilizations on which Kindred society was built. Whatever the true cause, a near-extinction of the Gorgons took place as rival Roman bloodlines swept in and conquered the Gorgons’ cities. Those Gorgons who survived slipped into the earth to wait out the ages.

After the fall of the Camarilla and the Roman Empire, the Gorgons emerged again, crawling through the cracked floors of the Byzantine cities that had sprawled over their heads. For decades the Gorgons flitted about among the illustrious pillars of human and Kindred society in Constantinople and throughout the Mediterranean. In time, they spread to the west, seeking out palaces and hidden havens in the empty vaults beneath the earth of what would one night be Italy, France and Spain.

It was during these nights that the Gorgons first allied themselves with the Circle of the Crone, they say. These serpentine queens seemed to be a natural fit, as the undead descendents of demigods, and soon Gorgons were figureheads in a handful of Acolyte domains.

But it didn’t last. Within a few decades, most of the Gorgons disappeared again. By the time of the Renaissance they had vanished from Europe. Accounts of Gorgons still haunting Kindred courts in the Near East were thought to be legend.

Where had the Gorgons gone? What had driven them off — or lured them away? In the 19th century, Gorgons emerged once again into the glittering lights of Kindred society. But were these the same Gorgons, from the same bloodline, as those who had been ambassadors for the Acolytes hundreds of years ago? Were these the same that had ruled Kindred cities in ages past?

Modern Gorgons claim that they are, in fact, the same bloodline, suspended in places, it’s true, but unbroken yet from the day of Medusa’s death to this night. Who can say if this is true? Whether modern Gorgons are a new Medusa-idolizing family of the undead or an ancient lineage of demigod daughters, they are here now.

In the past hundred years or so, the Gorgons have taken their association with the Circle of the Crone for granted. Though many Gorgons came onto the scene in the 1800s expecting to find that the Acolytes had saved their seats for them, the truth is that the modern nights have much more appeal for these Damned debutantes than the appeal of dead goddesses and hungry gods. For the Gorgons, ancient gods are old hat, after all — just a part of the family tree. As Lords by blood, Gorgons are more interested in reclaiming stature and authority, in bringing cities back under their rule.

The modern approach of these Gorgons casts a great deal of doubt on the legends of the ancient Gorgons, however. Tonight’s Gorgons seem to have little interest in genuine power and authority. Instead, many seem content to be puppets for real politicos just so long as they can keep their posh suites and sit on the thrones that they feel are rightly theirs.

The Becoming: While ancient tradition dictates that a Gorgon must find and test a potential childe, analyzing their blood and heritage to see if they are truly worthy of the lineage, in modern nights most such Embraces are just stylized rituals. Although, it has been noted time and again that Lords have awoken from slumber after being bitten by a snake only to now find they carry the blood of Medusa in their veins.

Requirements: Those who are inducted by an Avus or sire are required to be Lords of notable heritage and powerful lineage to even be considered as a potential Gorgon. Those who find themselves spontaneously joining the bloodline have no such requirements, though often they do descend from powerful and regal Ventrue.

In the Danse Macabre: Gorgons seek power, luxury, and sensuality - all while believing completely and utterly that they are spawns of the divine and thus deserve such praise, finery, and authority. Many a Kindred tiptoes warily around a Gorgon, giving them just enough flattery and gifts to prevent them from unleashing their rage upon them, for each Gorgon carries horrid toxins within their body unleashed with but a nick from razor fangs. Combined with their powers of Dominate and Protean, Gorgons can be all but unstoppable once angered.

Bloodline Disciplines: Animalism, Dominate, Protean, Resilience

Bloodline Gift: Hypnotic Eyes

This acts as the Enticing Merit, deployed through the use of sibilant speech, sinuous body movements, and an entrancing gaze.

Bloodline Bane: The Gorgons retain their parent clan bane. In addition, Gorgons have a mystical requirement from their blood, a demand to keep at least one serpent on them at all times. Without a serpent in contact with their person, Gorgons suffer a -3 on all Discipline dice pools and may not spend Vitae to augment Physical dice pools.

Devotions: The Gorgons possess a unique set of Devotions called Amphivena, or “the serpent’s fang”. Using these grants the Gorgon the ability to create a variety of rare and potent mystical toxins inside their body and then inject them into others with a bite. A Gorgon gains the first Devotion, Venomous Bite, for free, which mutates their normal fangs into specialized, hollow fangs that can be used to administer venom. When not in use, the fangs fold back against the roof of the mouth and are enclosed in a membranous sheath.