Europe (WOD)

Europe is a continent that comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. To the east and southeast, Europe is generally considered as separated from Asia by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways of the Turkish Straits.

Overview
The borders of Europe — a concept dating back to classical antiquity — are arbitrary, as the primarily physiographic term "continent" also incorporates cultural and political elements. In the Classic World of Darkness, the continent of Europe is the home to various powerful, supernatural creatures that are strongly entrenched into the local mythologies and folklore and some have controlled the fortune of the continent ever since.

For information about the real continent and information about its various cultures and nations, visit Europe. For information on specific European countries and regions in the World of Darkness, please see the articles for Ireland, the British Isles, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, and Greece.

Vampire: The Masquerade
Since the nights of the Roman Empire, the childer of Caine had an enormous impact on the fate of the continent. Many important historical events, like the War of Princes and the Anarch Revolt, took place within the lands of the Old World. Every Clan has some ties to its inhabitants and most clans are present within its lands.

In the Modern Nights, Europe as a whole is a bastion of the Camarilla and its elders, although the Sabbat has established himself in small regions of various nations, like Scandinavia, Spain (the traditional home of the Lasombra) and lands around the Carpathian mountains (the traditional home of the Tzimisce). Venice acts as the traditional home of the Giovanni and Vienna as the peak of the Tremere pyramid.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse
To the Garou, the continent of Europe reeks of Wyrm-taint (particularly through the high percentage of vampires) and the webs of the Weaver. Nonetheless, many Tribes protect ancestral Caerns within the Old World and have maintained a strong presence there since the days of the first tribal cultures. Particularly prominent tribes are the Get of Fenris, who maintain a strong vigil in Scandinavia and Germany, the Fianna with their traditional strongholds on Ireland and Britain, the Black Furies, who have guarded the lands Greece ever since, the Shadow Lords, who stalk their ancient realms in Eurasia, the Glass Walkers, who dwell in the strong populated "Eurohub", and the Black Spiral Dancers, who were born in the moors of Scotland and prosper due to the heavy pollution and the spiritual scars left after two World Wars. Alliances between the tribes under the supremacy of the Margrave Yuri Konietzko have begun to drive back various Wyrm creatures, but everyone knows that the Apocalypse is driving near as the human suffering in regions like the Balkans grows and feeds the Wyrm.

Mage: The Ascension
As the birthplace of various western Paradigms, its natural that both the Traditions and the Technocracy have strong bases within the Old World. Sadly, many Nephandi also dwell here, nourishing themselves on the corruption left by World War II.

Wraith: The Oblivion
The empire of Stygia has been founded by Charon in the dawn of western civilization and although Heretics and Renegades are a problem (as they always are), the Hierarchy has maintained its grip over the western Shadowlands with very few exceptions. Sadly, the history of Europe is also marked with violence and war, allowing Oblivion to send its servants during various Maelstroms to launch devastating attacks on the Stygian infrastructure. Even today, the nihils created during the massacres of the Holocaust reach deep into the Labyrinth and allow dark things to creep upward.

Changeling: The Dreaming
Many changelings have found the continent to be a bountiful source of dreamers and Glamour. Counterbalancing this is the overcrowding of cities, the violence in the Balkan states and the dwindling of wild places. The Kithain of Europe, clinging to their precious sources of Glamour, avoid the Kindred at all costs, finding their cold ways and worldly lifestyles to be horribly Banal.

Hunters
The Society of Leopold still maintains their headquarters near the Vatican, and even if the methods of the Inquisition are more subtle than they were in the past nights, they still maintain a constant vigil of the innocent.

With the coming of the Imbued, Europe also got new protectors from the supernatural, like everywhere on the globe.

Timeline

 * Pre-Ice Age: Garou, nature spirits, and Fae fight Wyrm corruption in Eurasia.


 * Prehistory: Garou fight the Talons of the Wyrm, eventually binding them.


 * 1.75 million years ago-100,000 years ago: The Ice Age. Gaia attempts to root out Wyrm-corruption on her body by using glaciers. It is not as effective in Eurasia as it was in the Americas, as the Wyrm had no direct access to the Western hemisphere.


 * 1000 BCE: Beginning of the Iron Age in Europe and in East and Southeast Asia.


 * 800 BCE: The people known as the Celts first appear in Austria.


 * 800c BCE - 500 BCE: Growth of Greek city-states (e.g. Athens). Expansion of Congregational activities into Europe.


 * December 24, 1188: Beginning of the "festival" of midnight mass at Villars Abbey in Belgium, the brainchild of the Toreador coterie which oversaw the construction of the Abbey. At the conclusion of the worship, the doors to the church are barred, and a great orgy of blood commences, lasting into wee hours.


 * 1198: The moderate, Toreador-backed Pope Celestine III dies, and is replaced by the shrewd and domineering Innocent III. Innocent III crowns Otto of Brunswick Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, and begins to expand the Patrimony of St. Peter.