Anarch Revolt



An Anarch Revolt occurs when Neonate Cainite's either feel threatend by their elders who have been known to see their young as food, or anarchs who just want to consume their elder's powers. Revolts have also occured as a result of the witch-hunts of the Inquisition.

It should be noted that Caine's blood has thinned over the millennia. While in torpor, the clans of Caine spread over the Earth, unchecked and tyrannized the world. When vampiric abuse of mortal civilizations grew too oppressive, humans rose up to overthrow their tormentors. But human society rarely has a memory longer than a lifetime, and the immortal vampires always stole back into power. The Kindred have ravaged the whole world, fighting each other for power and ruling over human kingdoms with undead fury. Clan has battled clan for territory, and young vampires, known as anarchs, often fight the old vampire elders. At stake: nothing less than the right to self-determination and power over mortal society. Over the course of time, the anarchs discovered a terrible secret. If they could kill and consume an elder, they could absorb their power. They attacked their progenitors whenever they could, and inter-generation warfare has decimated clans. They even consumed powerful Antediluvians.

There are two notable Anarch Revolts that have shaped the world of vampires. The Anarch Revolt of 1400 and The Second Anarch Revolt.

Anarch Revolt of 1400
The Brujah, Tyler is credited for sparking the uprising, some time after 1381, when she led an attack on Castle Hardestadt, a location used to rally Elders for the formation of the Camarilla. Though suffering heavy losses, the assault was successful and Tyler committed the Amaranth on Hardestadt. When news of the Elder's defeat spread, the young Brujah of Spain turned against their sires in a frenzy that seemed to spontaneously grip all the younger members of the clan. Believing that the systems of blood lineage, clan loyalty, and feudal power that had dominated Cainite society were just tools of older vampires to maintain control and use the younger vampires as they pleased, these rebels called themselves anarchs as a declaration of their rebellion against the laws supposedly left by Caine.

Initially, The Anarch Revolt spread throughout Spain, and was regarded as a Brujah problem. Lack of organization, internal rivalries, poor communication, and the greater resources possessed by the Elders prevented the anarchs from making any large gains as the war devolved into a series of skirmishes. As word spread throughout Europe, however, all the clans began considering the hereto impossible notion of younger Cainites banding together against their Elders. Ironically, this likely increased support for the formation of the Camarilla.

The Italian Front
The movement moved to Italy, when Gratiano de Veronese joined with The Anarchs in a plot to kill his sire, Lasombra the Antediluvian. He led a group of Assamite allies to the Lasombra Court at the Castle of Shadows, in Sicily, where Lasombra remained in torpor. With the Assamites help, he tried to make it appear that Montano had turned against Lasombra. This created a chaotic event that served as a distraction for a full fledged Anarch attack that the house of Lasombra was unprepared for. With the Assamites assisting in the fight, Clan Lasombra fell apart.

As to who actually drank the Antediluvian's blood, seems to be some debate. It is interesting to note that the Shadow Guards were reputedly absent when Gratiano and his allies descended on the Antediluvian's tomb. It is assumed that Gratiano performed the Amaranth on his sire, but some claim that an Assamite antitribu drank the Antediluvian's blood, while others say that he was drained in unison by the anarchs that survived the battle. Few witnesses seem to agree on what exactly happened.

Of the remaining Lasombra, almost all joined The Anarchs, following the deaths of many of their Elders and their Antediluvian.

The Romanian Front
With news of Lasombra crushed and the Antediluvian dead, it spurred on another campaign to take the Tzimisce down. Led by Lugoj and his anarch army, they invaded houses of the Tzimisce Lords killing all those who did not convert. At the House of Tabak, Lugoj captured and converted the childe, Lambach, who was used to give the location of the Tzimisce Antediluvian.

Thereafter, Lugoj and his army of anarchs stormed the Monastery of Sernog, one of Romania's most ancient cathedrals. A huge war broke out between The Anarchs and the Tzimisce Guardians. The Guardians were desimated by the anarchs who successfully infiltrated. According to many eye witness accounts, Lugoj stood before everyone present, dispelled the magical protections over Tzimisce the Antediluvian's body, and unearthed the Ancient from his torpor. Without delay, Lugoj greedily consumed its blood not sharing with anyone. The body just crumbled to dust. The Anarchs rejoiced in triumph, this event now setting the stage for a new age, a new Sabbat. It seemed now that Gratiano's prediction was holding true: that all the other clans would fall as easily as his own.

However, this event was far from over, at least for the Tzimisce. Lambach, who was present at the time of the Cathedral Raid, possesses a secret that no one discovered. Despite all of the eye witness accounts, the Antediluvian Tzimisce was not destroyed. The body in torpor was a decoy... but no one knows that. Lambach also holds many other secrets that anyone else would just laugh at: Lugoj, is not really Lugoj. Lugoj is dead. Tzimisce had his decoy in place so that he was able to kill Lugoj during heavy battle, then fleshcrafted to look like Lugoj to fake his own diablerie, thus able to assume Lugoj's leadership position in the Sabbat... but no one knows that either.

Convention of Thorns
As the Tzimisce anarchs moved into Western Europe they brought with them the secret of the Vaulderie, which allowed Cainites to escape the blood bond in exchange for a pledge of loyalty to the anarch cause. This brought the revolt to every clan. As the battles intensified, however, so too did the efforts of the Inquisition, and the pressure of twin assaults led directly to the creation of the Camarilla. The Anarch Revolt continued for seven years after the Camarilla's formation, but the Anarchs were outnumbered and outmatched, and, after suffering heavy losses, their rebellion formally ended with the Convention of Thorns in 1493. Most of the remaining anarchs joined the Camarilla, but those who did not, mostly the Lasombra and Tzimisce, went on to form the Sabbat.

The French Revolution and the Second Anarch Revolt
Despite the formation of the Camarilla and the Sabbat, self-proclaimed anarchs would continue in isolated groups. During the French Revolution prominent anarchs used the opportunity to fight the traditional claim of the Toreador to France. Despite intentions to take the fight to the rest of Europe, the mortal revolution soon fell apart, allowing the Camarilla to move in and restore order.

Afterwards, many of the remaining anarchs made their way to the United States and from there to the West Coast. As Los Angeles quickly increased in prominence the Camarilla established Don Sebastian as prince with the hope that he would curb the growing number of anarchs in the region. He largely ignored their presence, however, and over the next few decades several famous anarchs made their way to the city. Finally, in 1944 Don Sebastian realized the full extent of the discontent in his city and ordered the savage beating of one such luminary, Jeremy MacNeil. Instead of instantly rebelling, MacNeil lead the anarchs in locating and studying the havens of the local Elders over a period of six weeks, and on December 21, 1944 the Second Anarch Revolt began. The prince was killed and those Elders that were not destroyed fled the city, making it a strong victory for the anarch movement. Soon thereafter the anarchs moved south to San Diego and then attempted to liberate San Francisco. They were repelled by the current Prince of San Francisco, Vannevar Thomas, but in those three months they had claimed everything from the border of Mexico to San Jose. This region would come to be called the Anarch Free State, ruled under a set of principles entitled the Perfect State.

Despite such ideals, the Anarch Free State soon became little more than a region dominated by roving gangs that were often at each others' throats. Whatever the reasons for the inability to create their perfect society, the invasion of the Cathayans and their efforts to turn the anarchs against one another resulted in several anarchs eventually joining the New Promise Mandarinate, with little remaining of the Free State by the year 2000.

Contradictions in the Timeline
There are a surprising number of contradictions concerning the timeline of the Anarch Revolt, even within the same editions. The Encyclopaedia Vampirica states that [Lasombra] was killed in 1205 and that the Anarch Revolt started in 1240. This cannot be correct, for all other accounts state clearly that [Lasombra] was destroyed after the uprising began, and Dark Ages: Vampire begins in 1230 &mdash; well before either event. The diablerie of [Lasombra] is more commonly stated to have occurred either in 1405 or 1483, though the former is almost certainly correct since the supposed diablerie of [Tzimisce] occurred in 1413. The inconsistency may be a result of typos, deliberate attempts to obscure the history of vampires, or even some sort of widespread manipulation by an Elder Lasombra. (VTM: Shards; VTM: Shadows; VTM: Sacrifices) Archons & Templars states that Tyler killed Hardestadt in 1335, but this is before Tyler's recorded Embrace, and probably happened in 1395. All accounts agree that the Anarch Revolt ended with the Convention of Thorns in 1493.